by Frank Viola
8. Moody believed all Ten Commandments were binding on Christians, with penalties for violators, and he criticized preachers for not emphasizing them enough.
What makes this surprising is that Moody criticized his mentor Charles Spurgeon on these very grounds saying,
I do not remember ever to have heard a sermon preached on the commandments. I have an index of two thousand five hundred sermons preached by Spurgeon, and not one of them selects its text from the first seventeen verses of Exodus 20. The people must be made to understand that the Ten Commandments are still binding, and that there is a penalty attached to their violation. We do not want a gospel of mere sentiment. The Sermon on the Mount did not blot out the Ten Commandments.20
Many Christians today are divided over the role of the Law of Moses in the life of the Christian. Some believe the Sabbath command was fulfilled in Christ, contending that Christians aren’t obligated to keep Saturday (which some say is the true Sabbath) holy.21
On the other hand, Moody believed that a countless number of “careless Christians” will get to heaven by “the skin of their teeth.” On this score, he wrote,
Moreover, it seems highly probable, indeed I think it is clearly taught by Scripture, that a great many careless Christians will get into heaven. There will be a great many who will get in “by the skin of their teeth,” or as Lot was saved from Sodom, “so as by fire.” They will barely get in, but there will be no crown of rejoicing. But everybody is not going to rush into heaven. There are a great many who will not be there.22
I come back to the front of this chapter. Moody was an evangelical superstar, and for good reason. That being said, he wasn’t flawless in his views. Let’s, therefore, regrace, shall we?
In our next chapter, we’ll examine the surprising beliefs of the best-known Christian leader of the twentieth century.
14
Seven Shocking Statements by Billy Graham
True intercession involves bringing the person, or the circumstance that seems to be crashing in on you, before God, until you are changed by His attitude toward that person or circumstance.
~ Oswald Chambers
Billy Graham is an icon.
Few people in history have impacted the Christian faith like Graham. While he has his critics—like every other servant of God—countless positive things can be said about him, all remarkable. Throughout his lifetime, Graham preached to an estimated 215 million people in more than 417 crusades.
In the summer of 2005, during his final evangelistic crusade, he preached to a quarter of a million people over a three-day span.
In addition to his remarkable preaching ministry, Graham prayed with or counseled twelve American presidents.1
In my humble (but accurate) opinion, Graham was one of the “greats.”
That said, here are seven little-known shocking quotes from Billy Graham. Graham isn’t noted for being an “out-of-the-box” nontraditionalist, but these quotes show a side of him that runs against traditional evangelical thinking.
Whether you agree with the sentiment of these quotes or not, they will surprise many evangelicals.
Quote 1—Are Muslims and Buddhists Saved? (an Interview with Robert Schuller)
Schuller: Tell me, what do you think is the future of Christianity?
Graham: Well, Christianity and being a true believer, you know, I think there’s the body of Christ, which comes from all the Christian groups around the world, or outside the Christian groups. I think everybody that loves Christ, or knows Christ, whether they’re conscious of it or not, they’re members of the body of Christ. And I don’t think that we’re going to see a great sweeping revival that will turn the whole world to Christ at any time. I think James answered that, the apostle James in the first council in Jerusalem, when he said that God’s purpose for this age is to call out a people for His name. And that’s what God is doing today, He’s calling people out of the world for His name, whether they come from the Muslim world, or the Buddhist world, or the Christian world or the nonbelieving world, they are members of the body of Christ because they’ve been called by God. They may not even know the name of Jesus but they know in their hearts that they need something that they don’t have, and they turn to the only light that they have, and I think that they are saved, and that they’re going to be with us in heaven.
Schuller: What I hear you saying is that it’s possible for Jesus Christ to come into human hearts and soul and life even if they’ve been born in darkness and never had an exposure to the Bible. Is that a correct interpretation of what you are saying?
Graham: Yes, it is because I believe that. I’ve met people in various parts of the world in tribal situations, that they have never seen a Bible or heard about a Bible, and never heard of Jesus, but they’ve believed in their hearts that there was a God, and they’ve tried to live a life that was quite apart from the surrounding community in which they lived.
Schuller: That’s fantastic, I’m so thrilled to hear you say that, there’s a wideness in God’s mercy.
Graham: There is. There definitely is.2
Quote 2—Salvation without Christ? (an Interview with McCall’s Magazine)
I used to play God, but I can’t do that anymore. I used to believe pagans in far-off countries were lost—were going to hell—if they did not have the Gospel of Jesus Christ preached to them. I no longer believe that. . . . I believe there are other ways of recognizing the existence of God—through nature, for instance—and plenty of other opportunities, therefore, of saying “yes” to God. (Graham later clarified what he meant here.)3
Quote 3—Should We Link America with the Kingdom of God?
Speaking as an American himself, Graham said:
I came close to identifying the American way of life with the kingdom of God. Then I realized that God had called me to a higher kingdom than America. I have tried to be faithful to my calling as a minister of the gospel.4
Quote 4—Staying Out of Politics
Looking back on his long history of speaking and traveling, Billy Graham made this comment:
I wouldn’t have taken so many speaking engagements, including some of the things I did over the years that I probably didn’t really need to do—weddings and funerals and building dedications, things like that. . . . I also would have steered clear of politics. I’m grateful for the opportunities God gave me to minister to people in high places; people in power have spiritual and personal needs like everyone else, and often they have no one to talk to. But looking back I know I sometimes crossed the line, and I wouldn’t do that now.5
Quote 5—More Worship, Less Works
In response to an interviewer who asked Graham this question, “If you were to do things over again, would you do it differently?” he said,
Yes. I would study more. I would pray more. Travel less. Take less speaking engagements. I took too many of them, in too many places around the world. If I had to do it over again, I would spend more time in meditation and prayer, and just telling the Lord how much I love Him and adore Him, and I’m looking forward to the time we’re going to spend together for eternity.6
This response may be surprising to those who believe that the name of the game in Christianity is service. Graham later realized that it’s not.
Quote 6—Has the Church Denied the Authoritative Biblical Message?
Here is Billy Graham’s prediction about the future Christian landscape. He made it in 1965, and it has since come to pass.
Because the church, in turning to naturalistic religion, increasingly proclaims a humanistic gospel, thousands of laymen and clergymen alike are asking penetrating questions about the purpose and mission of the church. Thousands of loyal church members, particularly in America, are beginning to meet in prayer groups and Bible study classes. Multitudes of Christians within the church are moving toward the point where they may reject the institution that we call the church. They are beginning to turn to more simplified forms of worship. They are hungry for a personal an
d vital experience with Jesus Christ. They want a heartwarming personal faith.
Unless the church quickly recovers its authoritative biblical message, we may witness the spectacle of millions of Christians going outside the institutional church to find spiritual food.7
Quote 7—A Successful Minister Does Not Spend Most of His Time with a Great Crowd
In the following quote, Graham answers the question “If you were a pastor of a large church in a principal city, what would be your plan of action?”:
I think one of the first things I would do would be to get a small group of eight or ten or twelve men around me that would meet a few hours a week and pay the price! It would cost them something in time and effort. I would share with them everything I have, over a period of years. Then I would actually have twelve ministers among the laymen who in turn could take eight or ten or twelve more and teach them. I know one or two churches that are doing that, and it is revolutionizing the church. Christ, I think, set the pattern. He spent most of his time with twelve men. He didn’t spend it with great crowds. In fact, every time he had a great crowd it seems to me that there weren’t too many results. The great results, it seems to me, came in his personal interview and in the time he spent with the twelve.8
Graham is certainly one of the greats who shaped the Christian church, but even he had some surprising views. I don’t think I have to repeat the lesson at this point.
15
The New Tolerance
The only way to keep true to God is by a steady persistent refusal to be interested in Christian work and to be interested alone in Jesus Christ.
~ Oswald Chambers
If you are alive, you’ve noticed. But perhaps this chapter will provide language for it.
We live in a day where there is profound intolerance exercised in the name of tolerance. I call it “the new tolerance.”
It goes something like this:
“If you don’t agree with my beliefs and my value system, then you’re intolerant.”
Which being interpreted means “In the name of tolerance, I’m intolerant of everyone who doesn’t bow to my values and beliefs.”
Or . . .
“I’m intolerant of everyone except those who agree with me, and in the name of tolerance, I will brand them intolerant.”
What is tolerance?
True tolerance doesn’t force people to adopt a belief system, whatever it may be.
True tolerance can “agree to disagree” and go on with one’s life in peace without ever entering into a social media beatdown over politics, ethics, or theology.
True tolerance values all mortals as made in God’s image, and therefore, regards them worthy of love. At the same time, it points out areas of disagreement and even condemns beliefs and actions that violate God’s will.
Disagreeing with a person’s habits, values, or ideas isn’t the equivalent of hating, fearing, despising, or wishing them ill.
Loving a person doesn’t mean approving their practices or beliefs.
Love and approval aren’t the same thing.
Even God doesn’t always approve those whom He loves.
Jesus, who is the human face of God, said as much:
He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. (Luke 6:35)
By contrast, the new tolerance says, “I will tolerate everything except those who disagree with me.”
That, dear friends, is an extremely intolerant tolerance.
Let it not be so among the people of God.
16
You Just Might Be a Pharisee If . . .
A Pharisee is hard on others and easy on himself, but a spiritual man is easy on others and hard on himself.
~ A. W. Tozer
Even though it’s been “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” since Pharisees were running around in Century One causing trouble for God’s messengers, Pharisees and Pharisaism are still here.
They’re like the poor. They’ll always be with you.
While Pharisaism is in sharp decline today (experiencing advanced stages of rigor mortis), the pharisaic spirit still exists. And it’s the chief reason why so many non-Christians want nothing to do with Jesus.
When I was eighteen years old, I spent a lot of time in a group that bred Pharisees like rabbits. And I will shamefully admit that I was one of them.
Thank God, however, I experienced the washing machine of life and it drained much (or all, hopefully) of the Pharisee out of me. Regrettably, that doesn’t happen with everyone. Many Christians waste their sufferings. And so they remain just as hardened, callous, self-righteous, and judgmental as they were in their youth.
That said, you just might be a modern-day Pharisee if . . .
You hate people who sin differently than you do.
(Isn’t it ironic that God hates the same people Pharisees do?) Cough.
Jesus said to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Pharisees play the sin-metrics game. Magnifying the sins of others while not even wincing at your own.
Regrettably, “Christian” Pharisees produce more vitriol and spread more poison than a Chernobyl-like nuclear disaster. Dispensing slander is labeled “poison” by the Bible because it exposes innocent souls to toxic substances which are spiritually lethal.
Pharisees are adept at vilification, bombing others “with God on their side.”
You wake up with criticism in your heart, plotting against those you wish to destroy, even before the coffee gets cold.
In this regard, Pharisees minister toxicity and death to those who love God (all in the name of God).
For a leaven-dispensing Pharisee, it’s shoot first, ask questions later. The exact opposite of what James as well as Jesus told us, for that matter (James 1:19; 4:11; Matthew 7:1–4, 12).
As E. Stanley Jones rightly pointed out, “The measure of my spirit of criticism is the measure of my distance from Christ.”1
You seem incapable of apologizing—sincerely, that is.
It breaks a Pharisee’s jaw to admit he’s wrong or apologize to those he’s mistreated. You’ll have a better chance seeing a hen floss her teeth than to witness a Pharisee apologizing or admitting to a mistake.
In this regard, Pharisees exhibit a remarkable lack of self-awareness.
This also accounts for why they are so belligerent. They exist to correct others, never turning the spotlight inward.
You only hang out with other Pharisees.
Because Pharisees establish dubious doctrinal criteria by which every Christian is judged and condemned to hell, they hang only with their own kind.
In addition, they aren’t a terribly happy bunch of people. They weren’t in Jesus’ day either. In one Greek manuscript, they are called “lemon suckers.” (Okay, I made that up. But it’s not far off the mark.)
You impute evil motives to the hearts of others (then call it “discernment”).
Pharisees are clueless to the fact that they betray their own hearts whenever they judge the heart of another. Because Pharisees have anointed themselves to be the guardians of “biblical purity,” there is always some enemy to fight.
They also engage in the usual fare of claiming to uphold “Christian values” while they paper over the harmful things they’ve done in the name of Jesus—unfairly sitting over others in judgment.
NEWSFLASH: Only God has the ability to read the motives of mortals. And as I’ve contended elsewhere, the New Testament has zero tolerance when humans engage in it.
You cannot tolerate correction, even when it’s given in the spirit of Christ.
A Pharisee hasn’t caught on to the fact that everyone has blind spots, including herself. Pharisees are quick to join the bandwagon of brother/sister bashing, leveraging rhetorical bullying tactics claiming that God is on their side.
For the Pharisee, reacting in the flesh and vilifying others is an art form. They are adept at crafting special attacks against those who don’t line up with their unique interpretations of Scripture. And they bre
ak out in boils whenever someone points out their own flaws.
As Len Sweet and I argued in Jesus: A Theography, the things that make Jesus angry aren’t what most evangelicals get angry about.
Concluding Point
I suspect that as you were reading this chapter, your brain was populating with different people who fit my description of a Pharisee.
But that’s not really the intent. Sometimes we need to turn those rifle scopes into mirrors and ask ourselves, does any of this describe me?
In which case, repentance—a U-turn of the heart—is the cure.
Sadly for many, conscience is that still small voice that tells you what other people should do.
By the way, intelligence has nothing to do with the insidious danger of Pharisaism. Some modern-day Pharisees are freakishly smart. But that doesn’t count for much in God’s eyes (see 1 Corinthians 1 and 2).
It’s time to move past our fears in the name of “protecting theological boundaries” and with grace and humility join the conversation that’s been going on for centuries.
When it comes to God’s family, there is no place for erecting walls of isolation and narrowing the borders of who is in and who is out. In this regard, Pharisaism replaces the divine dream with a human nightmare.
Alas, the heavens are darkened by our refusal to love each other.
May God be merciful to us all.
17
Twenty Reasons Why the Christian Right and the Christian Left Won’t Adopt Me
You can be straight as a gun barrel theologically and just as empty as one spiritually.
~ A. W. Tozer
