Billy Graham--Daily Devotional for February

[trukinlady]

February 3, 2011 - During the month of February, we will post a teaching series on the Holy Spirit. Through words penned by Billy Graham, let’s explore the role of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

We should always be conforming more to the image of Jesus Christ, and it is the Holy Spirit who helps us in this growing process.--Billy Graham

Excerpted from "Does the Holy Spirit Shine Through You?" by Billy Graham

It is impossible to understand the Bible, Christian living, the structure of the church, or our own relationship with God without understanding the Person and work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is not an “it.” The Bible says that He is not something. He is Someone. He is God.

There are three persons in the Trinity—God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. The Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is all-powerful. We read in Micah 3:8, “I am full of power by the Spirit of the Lord” (NKJV). The Bible says that God is present everywhere. No matter where we go, He is there. “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?” (Psalm 139:7, NKJV). The Holy Spirit can be in your heart and my heart, and we may live a thousand miles apart.

The Holy Spirit has all knowledge. The Bible says, “The Spirit seaches all things, even the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10). It is the Holy Spirit who teaches us and takes us deeper into God’s truth as we go along in our Christian life. We are to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ, but we can grow only by the help of the Holy Spirit.
The moment that we receive Christ as Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to live in our heart. Our Body becomes the temple of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit helps us live the Christian life.
There is not a person anywhere who can be a Christian without the Holy Spirit. There is not a person who can follow Christ without the help of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit sees everything that goes on. He knows what goes on in our hearts. He knows what goes on in our minds. Nothing is hidden from Him.
And the Bible says that the Holy Spirit is eternal. In Hebrews 9:14 we read “the eternal Spirit.”
The Holy Spirit is called holy. The Bible says, “Be holy, because I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). One of the Holy Spirit ministries is to help make us holy. We ought to be more holy today than we were yesterday. We should always be conforming more to the image of Jesus Christ, and it is the Holy Spirit who helps us in this growing process.



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Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or
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[Denis]

A Great Man indeed!
I think anyone who knows who Billy Graham is could vote for him here: Great People of America / Billy Graham

 

[trukinlady]

I've always admired Dr. Graham. He is, IMO, one of this country's best evangelists. I believe his rewards in Heaven will be great!! AMEN!

 

[closetsmokr]

Dr. Graham was indeed one of the best, if not the best, preachers then, and now. He knew how to appeal to all people, and he was a true beacon of faith. It's great to acknowledge him and his work!

 

[trukinlady]

I'll be posting more of his teachings here.

 

[Saintscruiser]

Dr. Graham was indeed one of the best, if not the best, preachers then, and now. He knew how to appeal to all people, and he was a true beacon of faith. It's great to acknowledge him and his work!

PREACH IT CS! I agree 150%!

 

[trukinlady]

by Billy Graham


Are you lonely? There are many lonely people today. Loneliness is one of the supreme problems of modern society. But when you are with Christ, you have Jesus as your Lord and companion.

Jesus came to a man who was lonely and sick and paralyzed. For 38 years the man had sat in the same spot, lonely and tired, without a friend. This bundle of loneliness and human pain had been buffeted by the surging tides of thousands of people, but Jesus singled him out. He became the man’s friend, and He healed him (John 5:1-9). Jesus will become your friend if you will let Him.

Loneliness has an inner dimension. It is a thirst of the spirit, and the roots of loneliness are within each of us. A poll revealed that fear and loneliness can take over a child’s life when a parent suddenly vanishes from the scene—whether a mother or a father, whether from divorce or death—and the child crumbles.

So, first, there is the loneliness of sorrow. The older I get, the more funerals I attend as friends die. Jesus wept at the funeral of a friend. On that occasion He said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die” (John 11:25-26). Think of the hope in that statement. Spiritually we will never die. If we come to Christ, we will be alive with Him forever.

If you died right now, would you go to Heaven? Are you sure that your sins have been forgiven? You say, “Well, I’m not sure I’m a sinner.” The Bible says, “All have sinned” (Romans 3:23). We are all guilty before God, and we are facing judgment and hell.

But in Christ is the promise of a new life, forgiveness of sins, a chance to start over. He said we are to be born again (John 3:7). If you come to Christ, you can be born again spiritually and start life over, as though you had never committed a sin.

The Loneliness of Sin

Second, there is the loneliness of sin because a deeper and more basic root of much loneliness is isolation from God. You may be isolated from God—you may go to church, you may have your name on a church roll, you may have been baptized and confirmed in the church—but you really don’t know Christ. You don’t have His life, joy, peace or the forgiveness that He offers.

Loneliness began in the Garden of Eden, when man and woman made a terrible choice. They chose to turn from God. They went their own way. Sin entered that beautiful garden, and sin was given to the next generation and the next and the next, down to you and me. We all have the disease of sin, and it is a fatal disease. Nobody ever escapes the judgment of the disease of sin. So the roots of loneliness were planted in the human soul and have been inherited by every individual ever since.

In that garden God went looking for Adam. He knew where Adam was, but He wanted Adam to know where He was. He said, “Adam, where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). And Adam was trying to hide from God because he already had eaten the fruit of the tree. But Adam couldn’t hide from God.

Loneliness has never been a respecter of persons. The world’s greatest artists, writers and composers, kings and queens, carpenters and plumbers have experienced loneliness.

John 13 records the events surrounding the Last Supper and Jesus’ betrayal by Judas. The Scripture says that Judas “went out immediately. And it was night” (John 13:30). No one ever went away from Jesus but that it was “night” for that person.

Perhaps you once knew the fellowship of God’s people, and you had peace with God. But perhaps you have backslidden; you have turned away from God. There was a time when you meant business with God, but now your heart has grown cold toward spiritual things. You have been pulled away by other people, other things, other gods and other pleasures that you know are wrong.

You, too, went out from the presence of God, and you have found that it is night out there. You don’t have fellowship with believers. Yet you don’t feel at home in the world where you are living, either.

Do You Need God's Love in Your Life?

Follow the Steps to Peace online to learn about Jesus or recommit your life to Him.

No loneliness is quite so bitter as the loneliness of a person who claims with his mouth that he knows Christ, but deep in his heart he knows he doesn’t. Are you straddling the fence, trying to put one foot in God’s Kingdom and keep one foot in the world’s kingdom? Sin makes us lonely because it separates us from God.

It was never God’s intention for you to be lonely. Hundreds of surveys prove that our society has not made us better adjusted or happier people. We may have fleeting moments of sensual satisfaction, but these can create bitterness and the loss of a sense of pleasure that no psychiatrist can cure. The Bible says that “The wicked are like the troubled sea, When it cannot rest, Whose waters cast up mire and dirt” (Isaiah 57:20).

The Loneliness of Jesus

Third, there is the loneliness that Jesus experienced. He spent much time in the company of the lonely and the outcast. Remember the woman at the well? She was a lonely woman. She had had several husbands—no satisfaction, no peace, no joy. When she came to draw water, Jesus talked to her, forgave her and made her a new person. She went into the village of Sychar and told all the people, “Here is someone who knows all about me; come and see him” (Cf. John 4:29). And they all went out to see Jesus.

Jesus knew loneliness. The Bible says, “He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3). Even though great crowds had surrounded Him at times, Jesus was alone. Scripture says, “All the disciples forsook Him and fled” (Matthew 26:56). The crowds who had shouted, “Hosanna” (Matthew 21:9), now shouted, “Crucify him, crucify him!” (Luke 23:21).

On the cross, Jesus was dying for you and for me. God was laying on Him all of our sins, our judgment and our hell. Jesus said, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). In that terrible moment something mysterious happened. No theologian can explain it. Jesus took our sins, our judgment, our hell, the penalty that we deserve for our sins. He alone had to bear that pain on the cross.

He became guilty of all the sins of the entire world. He experienced ultimate loneliness as He died for you and me. How can anyone turn away from Jesus when they see Him dying on that cross? How can anyone reject Him, when He offers forgiveness? He offers new life. He offers peace and joy and friendship, so that we need never be lonely again.

Jesus suffered for us. Jesus was lonely for us. Through His death Jesus Christ dealt with the primary cause of human loneliness—separation from God.

The Loneliness of Death

Fourth, there is the loneliness of death and judgment. I remember when my mother was dying. She had a joy and a peace. We never went into her room that we didn’t leave with the feeling that she had ministered to us. Even when she had been in a coma and awakened one night, she quoted Scripture. The nurse said that she never saw such a look on anyone else’s face. Then she fell back into her coma and went into eternity. There is a great difference, even in the last hour of life, between those who know Christ and those who don’t know Him.

The Loneliness of Christianity

Fifth, there is the loneliness of deciding for Christ. I am not going to tell you that it is easy to follow Christ. It is not. Jesus said, “If you are not willing to deny self and take up your cross and follow Me, you can’t be My disciple” (Cf. Matthew 16:24). Are you willing to do that? Are you willing to go with Christ all the way to the cross?

In the midst of it all is His peace, His joy, His friendship, His forgiveness and His promise, and the hope that He offers for the future.

Our reaction to loneliness is often to deal with the symptoms rather than the cause. We become involved in pleasures, parties, good times or sex. We become involved in our work. We throw ourselves into the social whirl.

Any attempt to deal with sin without conversion is like struggling in quicksand. How many people today are trying to save themselves but can’t? If you have come to the end of your rope, turn your life over to Christ. Let Him bear your burdens, help you solve your problems, direct and lead you in your life. Jesus Christ restores our most fundamental relationship in life: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). But you have to make this decision alone.

The psalmist who wrote about the pelican and the owl said, “O my soul, why be so gloomy and discouraged? Trust in God. I shall yet praise him for his wondrous help. He will make me smile again, for he is my God” (Cf. Psalm 42:5). Often loneliness is God’s way of letting us know that it is time to reach out. Reach out to the cross and say, “Lord, I open my heart and my life to You. I commit myself to You.”



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Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or
phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple
copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.

 

[trukinlady]

A Message by Billy Graham

People today are concerned and frightened as they look at world conditions—mounting debts, war, torture, killings. Many things seem to be pointing toward the time of Christ's return.

The Bible tells us, "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ... Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come" (Matthew 24:36-37, 42, NIV).

We read in the Scriptures about the Flood. It was the greatest catastrophe in the history of the world. Scripture says that the Flood destroyed everything. The Flood was both a warning and a promise. God warned that He would not always strive with man. Then He made a covenant with Noah and his sons that He would never again destroy the world by flood. He gave the rainbow as a promise.

The Apostle Peter wrote of Noah's day that "By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed" (2 Peter 3:6, NIV). Peter also wrote, "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare" (2 Peter 3:10, NIV).

Let us look at man's condition at the time of the Flood. The Bible tells us that the people gloried in sin; they loved it. Jesus said, "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man" (Matthew 24:37, NIV). Every form of perversion recorded in human history is being practiced today on an even greater scale.

In Noah's day the world was filled with violence. And today on television we see films in which people are doing all kinds of terrible things. We listen to some of the conversations on talk shows, and as some of those people are expressing themselves, we can't believe that human nature has sunk so low.

The Bible says there is a limit to God's patience. God has said, "I'm going to judge the world" (Cf. Joel 3:12). God is still a God of love, but He is also a God of judgment. He is going to judge the world and He is going to judge you, unless you repent of your sins and receive Christ into your heart.

The Flood was not a natural catastrophe. It was a moral catastrophe. It came as a result of God's judgment on the attitudes and actions of the people in the world of that time. God has set a time limit for our day as well. God has "set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed [Christ Jesus]" (Acts 17:31, NIV). We don't know when it is, but Jesus said the hour is coming.

Today the Holy Spirit is at work showing you your spiritual need. The Scripture says, "When he [the Holy Spirit] comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment" (John 16:8, NIV).

We are not on trial. The trial is over. We have already been found guilty in the sight of God. The jury has said, "You are guilty." The penalty is death—spiritual death, physical death. What can we do?

We have to make a choice. We have to make a personal commitment to Christ. We can't go on our mother's faith or our father's faith. We can't go on the faith of our church. We may be baptized, we may be confirmed, we may live a decent life—and still not know Christ. We may come from families with no Christian background or influence. We come to Christ by faith and we come just as we are. The Scripture says, "Whosoever will may come" (Cf. Revelation 22:17).

Noah was a righteous man who walked with God. God came to him one day and said, "Noah, I am going to cause it to rain 40 days and 40 nights. The Flood will destroy the whole world, because the world has become so wicked" (Cf. Genesis 6:5, 7:4). God gave him all the specifications to build an ark. It was designed to float—not to navigate.

Noah started building the Ark, and as he built it his work was a sermon to the people of that day: "Repent, believe. Let God come into your heart. Let God take control of your life. Come into the Ark and be saved." But no one repented. Then one day God said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and your whole family" (Genesis 7:1, NIV).

Noah went into the Ark and the Scripture says that God shut the door (Genesis 7:16). Noah didn't shut it; God shut it. And one day God will shut the door as far as we are concerned. But today you can pass from death to life. You can be saved from that which is yet to come.

The Scripture says that Christ will come back and every eye shall see Him. A day will come when Christ will return and there will be the Judgment. Eternity will be before you: heaven or hell. You will be in one of them, according to the choice that you make about Jesus Christ.

God gave a personal invitation to Noah, and Noah acted on it. And it's a personal invitation to us as well—to come to God, to the Cross, to the empty tomb.

Noah was shut inside the Ark and the waters came—a torrential downpour. The earth also broke up and great floods came out of the earth. People likely began to cry, "Let us in, let us in! We were wrong. We repent. Please let us in!" But it was too late. The only door was shut.

There is only one Door to heaven and that is Jesus. I am glad to tell you that Door is still open. Jesus said, "I am the door" (John 10:9, NKJV). In Revelation 4:1 we read, "After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, 'Come up here'" (NIV).

Are you ready for that day that is certain to come? We don't know when it will be, but we should be ready at any moment. Jesus said, "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come" (Matthew 24:42, NIV). Are you ready? You can make sure today.

You ask, "What do I have to do?" Three things: First, repent of your sins. To repent means to change, to turn to God and say, "I'm sorry; I've sinned."

Second, come to Christ by faith. You may never understand all about salvation, or all about God or all about the Bible, but you can come by simple, childlike trust and put your faith in Jesus Christ.

Third, be willing to obey God as best you can. The Holy Spirit will come into your heart and help you to obey God. You can't live the Christian life by yourself. I can't live the Christian life without the daily help of the Holy Spirit. And even then sometimes I fail. But the Holy Spirit helps me, and He forgives my sins and my failures. He can do the same for you if you will let Him. Today, you can make your commitment to Christ.



This forum will sometimes contain copyrighted information, however, it is placed here under Title 17:

Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or
phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple
copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.

 

[closetsmokr]

Truly awesome! Love it!

We have to make a choice. We have to make a personal commitment to Christ. We can't go on our mother's faith or our father's faith. We can't go on the faith of our church. We may be baptized, we may be confirmed, we may live a decent life—and still not know Christ. We may come from families with no Christian background or influence. We come to Christ by faith and we come just as we are. The Scripture says, "Whosoever will may come" (Cf. Revelation 22:17).

The psalmist who wrote about the pelican and the owl said, “O my soul, why be so gloomy and discouraged? Trust in God. I shall yet praise him for his wondrous help. He will make me smile again, for he is my God” (Cf. Psalm 42:5). Often loneliness is God’s way of letting us know that it is time to reach out. Reach out to the cross and say, “Lord, I open my heart and my life to You. I commit myself to You.”

 

[trukinlady]

by Billy Graham


We are not the masters of our fate, either individually or as a nation. How can we boast that we control our own destiny when a virus can lay low tens of thousands? How can our country insist that we, with our military might, our tremendous wealth and our foreign alliances, are the masters of our own fate when history testifies that God shaped this nation’s course?

We are caught up in a stream of history that is beyond our ability to control. There is only one power available to change the course of history, and that is the power of prayer—the prayer of God-fearing, Christ-believing men and women.

But today we have come to a place where many people regard prayer as simply a formality. We have no sense of coming to grips with God, except for the continuation of a venerated tradition. Yet how can we go on unless there is a renewed emphasis on prayer?

Thousands of people pray only in times of great stress, danger or uncertainty. Christ instructed His followers always to pray. So fervent and so direct were the prayers of Jesus that once when He had finished praying, His followers turned to Him and said, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1).

From one end of the Bible to the other is the record of those whose prayers have been answered—those who turned the tide of history by prayer; those who fervently prayed, and God answered. Abraham prayed, and so long as he prayed, God did not destroy the city of Sodom where Abraham’s nephew Lot lived.

Hezekiah prayed when his city was threatened by the invading armies of the Assyrians under the leadership of Sennacherib. The entire army of Sennacherib was destroyed and the nation was spared for another generation—because the king had prayed.

Elijah prayed, and God sent fire from Heaven to consume the offering on the altar he had built in the presence of God’s enemies. Elisha prayed, and the son of the Shunammite woman was raised from the dead. Jesus prayed at the door of the tomb of Lazarus, and the one who had been dead for four days came forth. The thief on the cross prayed, and Jesus assured him that he would be with Him in Paradise. Paul prayed, and churches were born in Asia Minor and in Europe. Peter prayed, and Dorcas was raised to life to have added years of service for Jesus Christ.

John Wesley prayed, and revival came to England. Jonathan Edwards prayed, and revival came to Northampton, Mass., where thousands of people joined the churches. History has been changed time after time because of prayer, and it could be changed again if people went to their knees in believing prayer.

What a glorious thing it would be if millions of us would avail ourselves of the privilege of prayer! Jesus Christ died to make this communion and communication with the Father possible. He told us of the joy in Heaven when one sinner turns from sin to God and breathes the simple prayer: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”

When the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Lord, teach us to pray,” the Savior answered by giving them His model petition, “The Lord’s Prayer.” However, that was only part of His sacred instruction. In scores of passages Jesus Christ offered further guidance, and because He practiced what He preached, His whole life was a series of lessons on prevailing prayer. Jesus had only three years of public ministry, yet He was never too hurried to spend hours in prayer.

How quickly and carelessly, by contrast, we pray. Snatches of memorized verses hastily spoken in the morning, then we say goodbye to God for the rest of the day until we rush through a few closing petitions at night. This is not the prayer program that Jesus outlined. Jesus pleaded long and repeatedly. It is recorded that He spent entire nights in fervent appeal. But how little perseverance and persistence and pleading we show!

The Scripture says, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). This should be the motto of every follower of Jesus Christ. Never stop praying, no matter how dark and hopeless your case may seem. A woman once wrote me that she had been pleading for 10 years for the conversion of her husband but that he was more hardened than ever. I advised her to continue to plead. Then some time later I heard from her again. She said that her husband was gloriously and miraculously converted in the eleventh year of her praying. Suppose she had stopped praying after only 10 years!

Our Lord frequently prayed alone, separating Himself from every earthly distraction. I would urge you to select a room or corner in your home where you can regularly meet alone with God. That quiet, secluded, soul-to-God praying in which you come to the mercy seat can be your greatest blessing.

As we observe the prayer life of Jesus, we notice the earnestness with which He prayed. The New Testament records that in Gethsemane He cried out with a loud voice, that in the intensity of His supplication He fell headlong on the damp ground of the garden, that He pleaded until His sweat became “like great drops of blood” (Luke 22: 44).

Too often we use petty petitions, oratorical exercises, the words of others, rather than the cries of our inmost being. Too often, when we go to prayer, our thoughts roam. We insult God by speaking to Him with our lips while our hearts are far from Him. Suppose we were talking to a person of prominence, would we let our thoughts wander for one moment? No, we would be intensely interested in everything that was said. How dare we then treat the King of kings with less respect?

Jesus teaches us for whom we are to intercede. How startling His instructions and His example! He tells us to “pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). We are to plead for our enemies, asking God to lead them to Christ and for His sake to forgive them.

In the first words that Jesus uttered from the cross after the heavy nails had been hammered through His hands and feet, He interceded for His crucifiers, saying, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34). How many of us have ever spent time praying for our enemies?

We are also told in Scripture to pray for the conversion of sinners. I once listened to a discussion of religious leaders on how to communicate the Gospel. Not once did I hear them mention prayer. And yet I know of scores of churches that win many converts each year by prayer alone. If there is a person of our acquaintance who needs Christ in his or her life, then we need to start praying for them. We will be amazed at how God will begin to work.

One more lesson that Jesus teaches is the victorious assurance that God answers every true petition. Skeptics may question it, deny it or ridicule it. Yet here is Christ’s own promise: “And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive” (Matthew 21:22). We need to trust that promise. Our Father possesses everything, and He “shall supply all [our] need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

God can defeat each enemy of your soul and defend you from every danger. Nothing is impossible for Him. No task is too arduous, no problem is too difficult, no burden is too heavy for His love. The future with its fears and uncertainties is fully revealed to Him. Turn to Him, and say with Job: “He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold” (Job 23:10).

Do not put your will above God’s will. Do not insist on your way. Do not dictate to God. Rather, learn the difficult lesson of praying as the sinless Son of God Himself prayed: “Not My will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).

Many of you have never come to know Jesus Christ so that you can pray in His name. The Scripture says that the only mediator between God and man is Jesus Christ. You must know Him, and you must pray in His name. Your prayers must be directed according to the will of God.

If you do not know how to pray, start now by saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” Ask God to forgive all your sin, transform your life and make you a new person. He can do it today in answer to the simplest prayer.



This forum will sometimes contain copyrighted information, however, it is placed here under Title 17:

Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or
phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple
copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.

 

[trukinlady]

A New Beginning
by Billy Graham

I still remember the night I made my personal commitment to Jesus Christ, around the time of my 17th birthday. A visiting evangelist was preaching in our town in a large temporary structure built for that purpose. At first I wanted nothing to do with those meetings, but finally a friend persuaded me to go, and I found myself transfixed by the evangelist’s message (and his colorful way of presenting it).

Although thousands were present, he seemed to be speaking directly to me—even when I hid behind the large hat of the woman in front of me! I realize now that God’s Spirit was working in my heart, convicting me of my sins and convincing me of my need for Christ.

One night as he gave the invitation for people to commit their lives to Christ, I knew I had resisted long enough, and I finally went forward (although I held out until the final verse of the last hymn). A kindly man explained how I could invite Christ into my life, and at his suggestion I prayed a simple but sincere prayer of repentance.

When I got home, I went upstairs to my room, sensing something important had happened to me—although I wasn’t exactly sure what. I didn’t feel any strong emotion or dramatic change, but looking out over the moonlit fields of my father’s farm, I thought about the step I had just taken. Then for the first time in my life, I spontaneously got down on my knees and prayed: “Lord, I don’t know what happened to me tonight, but You know.”

Only gradually would I understand my commitment and what it meant. Decades later I am still learning, for the Christian life is one of constant growth.

What really happens to us when we believe in Christ? Let me list seven gifts God gives you when you commit your life to Christ.


A New Relationship

The first thing that happens when we give our lives to Christ is that God gives us a new relationship.

Once we were separated from God because of our sins—and not just separated, but alienated from Him. The Bible says we were “excluded. … without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12).

But Christ took away all our sins—not just part of them, but all of them! You are forgiven! The one thing that separated you from God—your sin—has now been removed, and therefore you are reconciled to Him. Instead of being God’s enemy, you are now His friend. The Bible says, “Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). We aren’t only His friends, however. We are also His children.

The Bible uses two vivid images to illustrate this. First, it tells us we have been born again. A second image the Bible uses is adoption. If we have given our lives to Christ, God has adopted us into His family. He is now your loving heavenly Father, and you are now His child, spiritually born into His family.


A New Citizenship

The second thing God gives you when you commit your life to Christ is a new citizenship. You are still a citizen of a particular country—but now you are also a citizen of the Kingdom of God.

In Jesus’ day, one of the most coveted privileges a person could have was Roman citizenship. A Roman citizen paid fewer taxes, and if he went into the army, he automatically became an officer. A Roman citizen couldn’t be flogged or put to death by crucifixion (except in very rare cases, such as treason). If found guilty in a Roman court, he had the right to appeal directly to Caesar.

But Jesus said His followers possessed something far greater than Roman citizenship—and that was citizenship in the Kingdom of God. In His first recorded sermon, Jesus declared, “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:15). God’s Kingdom, He made clear, wasn’t an earthly political kingdom, but a heavenly spiritual kingdom—the realm over which God rules. The Bible says, “Our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20).

As long as we are on this Earth, we possess dual citizenship. On one hand we owe allegiance to our nation and are called to be good citizens. But we are also citizens of the Kingdom of God, that invisible Kingdom of which Christ is the head. Our supreme loyalty is to Him, and if someone demands we do wrong, “we must obey God rather than men!” (Acts 5:29). And someday, the Bible tells us, this world’s kingdoms will become “the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).


A New Family

God also gives us a new family. You aren’t just related to God; you are now related to other believers. Everyone who truly believes in Jesus Christ is now your spiritual brother or sister. We are bound together in God’s family, not by an organization but by a spiritual relationship. The Bible calls us “members of God’s household” (Ephesians 2:19). One of the most frequent terms for Christians in the Bible is “brothers,” underlining our family relationship.

In my travels, I have often met men and women who were very different from me. And yet after a few minutes it was almost as if we had known each other all our lives. Why? Because we both knew Christ. Our common spiritual bond cut through the barriers that separated us, and we enjoyed fellowship as members of God’s family.


A New Purpose

When we come to Christ, God gives us a new purpose. Now we want to live for Christ and not just ourselves. We begin to see other people differently—not for what they can do for us, but for what we can do for them. The Bible says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).

When I came to Christ, I had little inkling of what I might do with my life, but I knew something was different. Before my conversion, for example, I tended to be touchy and irritable. Now I deliberately tried to be considerate and courteous. Some may not have noticed, but my parents did—and so did I. Little by little I was beginning to have a new purpose in life: a desire to live for Christ. I was learning that “those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Corinthians 5:15).


A New Power

One of the Bible’s most comforting truths is that when we come to Christ, God Himself comes to live within us by His Holy Spirit. We are not alone; God is with us!

The Bible says, “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9). If you know Christ, you don’t need to beg for the Holy Spirit to come into your life; He is already there—whether you “feel” His presence or not.

But why has God given us the Holy Spirit? One reason is to help us live the way we should. God has given us a new purpose—but without a new power we’ll never be able to achieve it. We are too weak!

But the Bible says, “The Spirit helps us in our weakness” (Romans 8:26). Jesus promised, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts 1:8). We aren’t meant to live the Christian life in our own strength. God has provided His Spirit to help us.


A New Destiny

The word conversion means “change” —and the most radical change of all when we come to Christ is that God gives us a new destiny. Once we were headed for hell; now we are headed for Heaven. Once we were bound for eternal separation from God; now we will live with Him forever. Once we had no hope of eternal life; now we do. The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

Note carefully what this verse says: Eternal life is a gift. Many misunderstand this (even some Christians). They still think they must earn their salvation by their own good works.

But we can never be good enough to earn our way into Heaven, because God’s standard is perfection. Our only hope is Christ, who purchased our salvation at the cost of His own blood and now offers it to us as a free gift. The Bible says, “In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:3–4). What a gift!


A New Journey

God gives us one final gift: a new journey—a whole new path to follow until the day He takes us to Heaven.

In other words, your decision for Christ isn’t an end but a beginning—the beginning of a whole new life. We aren’t only called to become Christians; we are also called to be Christians. Don’t ever think that faith in Christ is just a type of “spiritual life insurance,” something we obtain and then put away until we need it to get into Heaven. The Christian life is a new journey—one that will take us the rest of our lives.

And the best part is this: We never walk it alone, for Christ walks with us.




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[trukinlady]

By Billy Graham

People today sense that we are rushing madly toward a climactic point in history. Conferences are held, investigations conducted and junkets authorized in a frantic effort to discover the basic cause of the world’s ills. Millions of dollars are spent to find an answer to international problems. The stockpile of problems mounts higher and higher as the solution to the world’s troubles is hidden from us.

Observant people are unanimous in the opinion that the moral disintegration of this generation is a result of a materialistic philosophy. The Word of God says, “They sow the wind, and reap the whirlwind” (Hosea 8:7).

The immutable law of “sowing and reaping” has held sway. We are now the unhappy possessors of a harvest of moral depravity, and we seek in vain for a cure. The weeds of indulgence have overgrown the wheat of moral restraint. All humanity is guilty.

But as a minister of the Gospel, I am an optimist. The world’s problems are big, but God is bigger! If we will dare to take God into account, confess our sin and rely unreservedly upon Him for wisdom, guidance and strength, our problems can be solved.

David, king of ancient Israel, found himself in the midst of a confused national situation. His kingdom was torn by internal strife. Slave hated master; master hated slave. People blamed the government; government blamed the people. David’s nation stood on the brink of a perilous civil war.

David knew that if the tide of sin continued to rise, his nation would collapse spiritually. He knew that economic depression, moral disintegration or military defeat inevitably follow spiritual decline.

So David did what all intelligent people should do when they reach the end of their rope—he turned to God. The Spirit of God revealed to him that the spiritual tide of his nation could rise no higher than the spiritual level of his own heart. So he fell on his knees in utter humility and prayed: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:23-24).

If only we today could realize that a nation can rise no higher, can be no stronger and be no better than the individuals that compose that nation! If the world is bad, it is the people who are bad. If the world is confused, it is the people in the world who are confused. If this is a godless world, it is the people who are godless.

David realized this truth; and in wisdom, he concluded that he should start making things right in himself!

Search me and know me

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties” (Psalm 139:23).

Here was a wise confession on the part of a great leader, a humble admission that a nation’s sicknesses can be attributed to its spiritual ills. David turned his face to the altar of God. He prayed earnestly for God to begin the revival of his nation by kindling the fires of revival in his own heart.

Not only did he pray that he might know God, but that God might know him: “Search me, O God!” (Psalm 139:23).

His heart yearned, as our hearts yearn today, for a personal, vital intimacy with God. In short, he was praying for a definite, real experience with God. Most of us know about God, but that is quite different from really knowing God. It is one thing to be introduced to a person, but quite another thing to know him personally.

Is it not logical to believe that the only one who can re-create us is the One who created us in the first place? If your watch were out of order, you wouldn’t take it to a blacksmith. If your car needed overhauling, you wouldn’t take it to a plumber. If you needed an operation, you wouldn’t go to a machine shop.

Our spiritual problems can only be solved by the God who created us originally. He created us in His own image and likeness; today by the grace of His Son, He can re-create us in the likeness of His resurrection. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are made new, and we become partakers of His life. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

May God, through our humble confession and prayer, so reveal His Son to us that we can say with the early believers, “We ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world” (John 4:42).

See if there is any wicked way in me

David also prayed, “And see if there is any wicked way in me” (Psalm 139:24).

Sin is not only the saboteur of souls—it is the destroyer of nations. For that which undermines and disintegrates the human spirit also destroys the society. “Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34).

Sin is defined as the “transgression of the law of God” and cannot bring any degree of happiness to the human heart. This is a truth demonstrated by history, logic and human experience.

The Bible teaches that God will not allow sin to go unpunished—in this life or in the world to come. Sin digs for itself two hells: one this side of death, and one the other side of death.

Many today are living in a self-made hell. Lusts, selfish appetites and indulgences have dug a pit for them. It burns with the fires of their expended passions.

This “hell on earth” can be covered by the blood of Christ. Thousands who have lived in a veritable inferno of lusts, habits and uncontrollable passions have been extricated by the grace of God.

David, God’s chosen man, found himself deluged with iniquity—a victim of his own lusts. But he took the lead and in humility of heart confessed his spiritual need to God.

This prayer was a turning point in his life. By his sincere confession of inadequacy he was brought into the very courts of the Most High, and God rushed to his rescue. When he was rescued, his court and his nation were also rescued. All salvation—social, political and national—begins with the salvation of the individual.

The way everlasting

Finally, David prayed, “Lead me in the way everlasting” (Psalm 139:24).

David’s prayer contained a proper sequence. First, he prayed that God might know him; then he prayed that God might cleanse him; last, he prayed that God might direct him.

David’s transformation, as a result of this prayer, was full and complete. Israel was brought into harmony with God; and David’s son Solomon brought to Israel one of the most prosperous reigns Israel had ever known.

Likewise, salvation can only come to you as an individual as you repent and by faith receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.



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Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or
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[trukinlady]

By Billy Graham


More than 100 years ago a man living in London was converted to Christ. He became pastor of a church in the slums of London. He went to the poor, the down and out and the oppressed. He formed a little group of people called the Hallelujah Band, and he would stand on street corners and preach the Gospel.

Many of the clergy were embarrassed by it all. The man was called before a conference of religious leaders, who said, “William Booth, will you go where we tell you to go? If not, you will be defrocked.” In the balcony a woman stood. She was Booth’s wife, Catherine. She said, “William, say, ‘No, never!’” And he said, “No.” That no changed history in Great Britain and in many other parts of the world, as Booth founded the Salvation Army, which has given help for both body and soul wherever it has gone.

I want to ask you a question: What is the most difficult word for young people to pronounce? It’s the word no.

In the Bible there is a story about a woman by the name of Vashti (Esther 1). She was queen of Persia and the wife of Xerxes (Ahasuerus), who reigned over territory from India to Ethiopia.

Xerxes gave a feast for the various princes, governors and leaders of the entire country—they came from everywhere. His feast lasted seven days, and it was a pagan feast.

On the seventh day of the feast, as Xerxes became drunk, he did something that absolutely startled his guests. He said, “I’m going to bring my queen out here. I want you to look at her. She’s the most beautiful woman in the world. And so he ordered Vashti, his wife, to come to that drunken orgy. She sent word back and said, “No, I will not come.”

Vashti was ready to give up every luxury that she had to keep herself pure. She would not expose her body, would not degrade her character, even though she surely knew there would be grave consequences if she did not obey.

When we say no, God will help us to stand by it. He will give us courage. You say, “But the temptations are so great. I can’t resist them.” Of course you can’t. In my own strength I can’t either. We cannot live pure lives without the help of God. We need to give our lives to Jesus Christ, let Him come in and help us to live during these times of wickedness.

There was a man in the Scriptures who said no. His name was Daniel. He “purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank” (Daniel 1:8).

Daniel was a young man who had found a purpose in life. As a teenager, he had been captured by the Babylonians. He was taken to Babylon to be trained in all their ways. But Daniel refused to eat the king’s meat or drink the king’s wine, even though he knew how dangerous that refusal would be.

How different Daniel was from those who can’t wait until they get away from home to live it up. Daniel was a long way from home. He could have yielded; no one back home would have known the difference. Daniel knew that it might mean death to refuse the king. This early no in Daniel’s life prepared him for the big no when he faced the den of lions (Daniel 6:4-23) and when he refused the gifts that Belshazzar promised him if he would interpret the handwriting on the wall (Daniel 5:16-17).

We defile ourselves. How? By eating too much; drinking too much alcohol; taking drugs; watching movies that are wrong; watching too much television.

In Luke 21:34 we read, “Take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.” What day? We don’t know the day or the hour, but we know there is a day coming in which we will have to give an account before God at the Judgment, because God is a God of judgment.

There’s another man in the Bible, by the name of Joseph. He also said no. Joseph was sold into Egypt and became a slave to Potiphar, who was a top man to the emperor, Pharaoh. Joseph was strong; he was handsome. And Potiphar’s wife found him appealing. She begged him to have sex with her. But he said no.

Day after day she begged him, trying to wear him down. And time after time Joseph resisted and said no.

One day, when everyone was out of the house, she grabbed him and said, “Come with me to bed.” Once again Joseph said no, and he pulled away. As he did, she took his coat and kept it. Then when her husband came home, she accused Joseph to her husband and said, “This slave has tried to seduce me” (Genesis 39:1-20).

The Bible doesn’t say that sex is a sin. Sex was given to us by God for a purpose—for enjoyment within the bonds of matrimony, for the continuation of the human race. It is a gift from God. But we abuse it and use it the wrong way. God has judged nation after nation, and family after family, and person after person because of misusing this gift of God.

The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “Keep yourself pure” (1 Timothy 5:22). And he told him, “Flee youthful lusts” (2 Timothy 2:22). He said run! When the temptation comes, don’t just sit there and think about it. Run as fast as you can away from it.

Paul also wrote, “I discipline my body and bring it into subjection” (1 Corinthians 9:27). He did that with God’s help.

Another man in the Bible who encountered a similar situation was Moses. The Bible says, “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (Hebrews 11:24-25).

Moses had to make a choice, just as we have to make choices. Moses, as heir to the throne of Egypt, had the choice of accepting all the pleasures of Egypt. But one day he made a choice. Moses said no to all that was offered. He said, “I’ll go suffer with the people of God. I choose God rather than these pleasures.”

There is a difference between pleasure and joy. The Bible says, “He who loves pleasure will be a poor man” (Proverbs 21:17). When we love pleasure, we are poor, if that is what we are seeking. Scripture also talks about people who are “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God” (2 Timothy 3:4). Do you love pleasure more than you love God?

When we come to Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in our hearts. Joy is produced by the Holy Spirit. More than 100 Scriptures talk about the joy of the Lord. That was the announcement at that first Christmas: “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people” (Luke 2:10).

If you take a stand and mean it, you may suffer persecution. Some of your friends will drift away. They don’t want to be with people like you. You speak to their conscience. They feel uncomfortable in your presence because you live for God. Jesus said, “Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets” (Luke 6:22-23).

Jesus said, “Rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.” Make the choice that Moses made—he turned his back on pleasure and followed God’s way. The Scriptures say, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials” (James 1:2). Moses chose the joy of following God rather than having the pleasures of Egypt.

Are you following the Lord Jesus? Or are you following the pleasures of this world and fulfilling the lusts of your own heart?

When Jesus was tempted, He didn’t debate the devil. He quoted Scripture: “It is written … It is written … It is written …” (Matthew 4:4-10). And each time the devil was defeated.

Satan can be defeated! When we are filled with the Spirit of God, obeying God, in His will and quoting Scripture, Satan will be defeated. The devil left Jesus, and angels came and helped Him.

Are you willing to say no, whatever the cost? Then say yes to the claims of Christ. He will come into your heart right now.

Jesus Christ loves you so much that He died on the cross and shed His blood for you. That’s the reason that He came to this earth. That’s the reason that He died on the cross. He died for you. Your sins have been placed on Jesus Christ, and He rose from the dead for you to give you everlasting life.

You need to do three things:

First, repent. What does repentance mean? It means to change—to change your mind, change the way that you’re living—and to determine that with God’s help you will live for Christ.

Second, come to Christ by faith. You cannot understand it all. You never will. I don’t understand, but I come by simple, childlike faith and surrender to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. I’m asking you to make that commitment.

Third, follow Jesus Christ. Follow Him, obey Him and serve Him as best you can. You won’t be perfect. But you will be changed.

You may be a member of a church. You may have been baptized or confirmed. You may be a “good person.” But deep inside you are not sure how you stand before God. You know that you need Jesus Christ in your heart.

You know that you need to change. Make that change now.



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[trukinlady]

By Billy Graham

As I read the Bible, I find love to be the supreme and dominant attribute of God. Because of His holiness, God cannot condone or countenance sin, but He loves the sinner.

Because He is just, He cannot excuse sin. But since His love goes hand in hand with His justice, He has made provision to forgive sin through the atonement of His Son. “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

The promises of God’s love and forgiveness are as real, as sure, as positive as human words can make them.
But just as the total beauty of the ocean cannot be understood until it is seen, God’s love cannot be understood until you experience it, until you actually possess it. No one can fully describe the wonders of God’s love.

Some of our modern “experts” in theology have made attempts to rob God of His warmth, His personal affection for mankind and His sympathy for His creatures.

Never question God’s great love, for it is as unchangeable as His holiness. Were it not for the love of God, none of us would ever have a chance in the future life. But God is love! And His love for us is everlasting!

Ours is the God of law who, loving the earth’s people, and realizing that we had offended in every point, sent His only Son to redeem us to Himself and to instill the law of the Spirit of life within us. His eyes of compassion have been following men and women as we have stumbled through history under the burden of our own wretchedness.

Jeremiah the prophet wrote, “The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying: ‘Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you’” (Jeremiah 31:3). Calvary should prove even to the most skeptical person that God is not blind to our plight, but that He was willing to suffer with us.

Compassion comes from two Latin words meaning “to suffer with.” God’s all-consuming love for mankind was best demonstrated at the cross, where His compassion was embodied in Jesus Christ. “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19).

Paul speaks of God as one “who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us” (Ephesians 2:4). It was the love of God that sent Jesus Christ to the cross.

But God’s love did not begin at Calvary. Before the morning stars of the pre-Edenic world sang together, before the world was baptized with the first light, before the first blades of tender grass peeped out, God was love.

Turn back, if you will, to the unwritten pages of countless aeons and centuries before God spoke this present earth into existence, when the earth was “without form and void,” and the deep, silent darkness of outer space formed a vast gulf between the brilliance of God’s throne and the dark vacuum where our present solar system now is.

See God’s dazzling, scintillating glory as cherubim and seraphim cover their faces with their wings in awe and reverence toward Him who is high and holy!

Yet, as lofty as the vaults of Heaven may be, and as pure as God’s holiness glistens, there comes to our ears the word that the majesty of His love was moved for us, and the Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world.

It was love that enabled Jesus Christ to become poor, that we through His poverty might be made rich. It was love, divine love, that made Him endure the cross, despising its shame. It was love that made Him endure the contradicting accusations of sinners against Himself, that restrained Him when He was falsely accused of blasphemy and was led to Golgotha to die with common thieves.
It was nothing but love that kept Him from calling 12 legions of angels to come to His defense. It was love that caused Him, after every known torture devised by degenerate man had been heaped upon Him, to lift His voice and pray: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34).

From Genesis to Revelation, from Earth’s greatest tragedy to Earth’s greatest triumph, the dramatic story of men and women’s lowest depths and God’s highest heights can be couched in 25 beautiful words: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Many people misunderstand God’s love. “God is love” does not mean that everything is sweet, beautiful and happy, and that God’s love could not possibly allow punishment for sin.
God’s holiness demands that all sin be punished, but God’s love provided a plan of redemption and salvation for sinful men and women. God’s love provided the cross of Jesus Christ by which we can have forgiveness and cleansing.

Who can describe or measure the love of God? The Bible is a revelation of the fact that God is love. When we preach justice, it is justice tempered with love. When we preach righteousness, it is righteousness founded on love.
When we preach atonement, it is atonement planned by love, provided by love, given by love, finished by love, necessitated because of love. When we preach the resurrection of Christ, we are preaching the miracle of love. When we preach the return of Christ, we are preaching the fulfillment of love.

No matter what sin you have committed, or how dirty, shameful or terrible it may be, God loves you. You may be at the very gate of hell itself. But God loves you with eternal love.
Because He is a holy God, our sins have separated us from Him. But thanks be to God; because of His love there is a way of salvation, a way back to Him through Jesus Christ, His Son.

This love of God is immeasurable, unmistakable and unending. It reaches to wherever a person is. But it can be rejected. God will not force Himself upon any person against his or her will.

You can hear a message about the love of God and say: “No, I will not have it,” and God will let you go on without His love. But if you really want it, you must believe—you must receive the love of God, you must take it. You must be forgiven of your sins.
There must be a definite, positive act of commitment and surrender to the love of God. Nobody else can do it for you. You can sit all the days of your life under the preaching of the love of God and still die without Christ.
Or you can open your heart today and say: “Yes, I receive Christ.”

Now, as in the first dawn of creation, God beckons you to fellowship with Him, and His heart yearns for companionship with those for whom His Son died. You, too, can join in this glad song of the redeemed. You, too, can sing:

“The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day,
And there may I, though vile as he,
Wash all my sins away.”

Respond to the love of God, and receive Jesus Christ as your Savior, Master and Lord. And become transformed by surrendering your life to Him.



This forum will sometimes contain copyrighted information, however, it is placed here under Title 17:

Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies, or phonorecords, or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.

 

[closetsmokr]

Still lovin' it, TL! Thanks again for posting these!

 

[trukinlady]

You're welcome, CS! I am always blessed by reading Dr. Graham's teachings!

 

[trukinlady]

By Billy Graham

We received a letter from a prisoner in a state penitentiary. He said, “I am a life-termer, and for 10 years I have been dreaming and planning for the day when I could escape this horrible place.”
Then he wrote, “Our plans for escape were almost complete when last Sunday a man in the cell next to mine tuned his radio to The Hour of Decision. I could not help but listen. My soul was stirred with memories of Mother and home. I began to realize how far I had wandered from Mother’s teachings. I remembered the church we used to attend, and some of the sermons came thundering back to my memory.
“While Mr. Shea was singing ‘Softly and Tenderly’ at the close of your sermon, I knelt in my cell and sobbed my confession to God. My heart was strangely warmed, and for the first time in my life I felt the presence of God. I knew I had been what you call ‘born again.’ I have discarded my plans for escape because I realize that God can use me right here in this prison to help others find the wonderful peace that I have found in Christ.”

Escapism
Thousands of people have plans to escape from the realities of life. A new word came into common usage a few years ago: escapism. The dictionary defines it as “a retreat from reality into an imaginary world.”
Perhaps you are caught and held in the clutches of escapism. Instead of facing up to the realities of sin and defeat in your own life, you are trying to hide in an illusive, imaginary world. But the Bible says there is no possible way of escape: “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Hebrews 2:3).
Sooner or later we must leave our dream world and face up to the fact of God, sin and judgment. The Bible says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) and “There is none who does good, no, not one” (Romans 3:12).
There are no new sins—only new sinners. There are no new crimes—only new criminals. No new evils—only new evildoers. No new pleasures—only new pleasure seekers. The devil has invented no new gimmicks.
Sin and its accompanying effects are now and always have been monotonously the same. The murders you read about are no more shocking or different than the murder of Abel by Cain. The sex perversions, which our newspapers play up as daring and new, are only modern copies of the ancient perversions of Sodom and Gomorrah.
For centuries we have been trying to escape the realities of life and shirk our responsibilities to God. It is one of the tricks of Satan. One of Satan’s schemes for you is that you may find a measure of temporary satisfaction in the escapism that he offers. Stubbornly we resist the pleadings of Christ when He says, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). And each passing day finds us a little deeper in the pit of despair.

The Escape of Imagination
Solomon spoke of the unspiritual heart as one that is inclined to fantasy and imaginative living, calling it “a heart that devises wicked plans” (Proverbs 6:18). The Bible describes Satan as “an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14), and he does a good job of selling the unreal.
It was evil imagination that lured David out of the pathway of blessing when he imagined that he loved Bathsheba. And eventually that imagination led to years of sorrow, remorse and judgment.
The prodigal son imagined that the pleasures of the far-off city were greater than the joys of his home. But after wasting his resources in shameful living, he returned to his father in repentance and tears, and he begged to be a hired servant in his father’s house. He discovered that real peace was found in facing up to the reality of life and doing something about it.
Satan’s dream world always ends with disillusionment. Sin, which is his stock and trade, brings forth death when it is finished. Thousands of people live in an unreal dream world while shirking their responsibilities toward their family and God. They read cheap novels or use pornography and get a vicarious, imaginative thrill out of what they see or read.
The Bible teaches that with Christ in your heart you can face the hard realities of life, and the grace of God will give you greater joy and pleasure than any dream world to which you may try to escape.

The Escape of Pleasure
This is humanity’s oldest escape from reality and responsibility. It is a flight into passion, appetite and desire.
A man wrote, “I’m going to drown my troubles in alcohol.” Another wrote, “I’m going to plunge into a lost weekend.” An unfaithful man told me some time ago, “I’ll show my wife that somebody loves me.”
And so these frustrated, deluded people run like crazed animals into the jungle of worldly pleasure, only to emerge more miserable than before. The Bible warns us to beware of the deceitfulness of pleasure: “For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe a man with rags” (Proverbs 23:21).
We must distinguish between wholesome, God-ordained pleasure and sinful, worldly pleasure. Christians have more wholesome fun than anyone in the world, but their joy wells up from within. It is not something artificially stimulated by the sinful pleasures of the world. It is a joy born of the Spirit.
If you have been trying to escape in amusement and sinful pleasure, I beg you to turn back. Jesus said, “Broad is the way that leads to destruction” (Matthew 7:13). Instead, He points to a narrow path that leads to eternal life.

The Escape of Security
Thousands of people in America settle down comfortably in the security of investments, good business and luxurious living. This has become one of our principal forms of escapism.
There is nothing wrong with people possessing riches. The wrong comes when riches possess people. The Bible sounds a warning to those who have become smug in their sense of security when it says, “If riches increase, do not set your heart on them” (Psalm 62:10).
The Bible warns that money cannot buy happiness. Money cannot buy true pleasure. Money cannot buy peace of heart. And money cannot buy entrance into the Kingdom of God.
If God has given you more than your neighbors around about you, dedicate your possessions to Christ, and realize that you are only a steward of what God has given you—and some day you will have to give an account for every penny you have spent. The Internal Revenue Service wants to know how you spend your money, but that is nothing compared to the books God is keeping!

The Escape of Self-Sufficiency
The flight away from God and into self-sufficiency is as old as the human race. It finds expression today in the words Believe in yourself and in admonitions to self-confidence. But the Bible says, “For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Galatians 6:3).
God did not intend that we should be self-sufficient. Life on the highest level is a life that leans on the everlasting arms. “In You, O Lord, I put my trust,” said David (Psalm 31:1). Many people boast of their own virtues. The Bible says that our good works are like filthy rags in the sight of God (Isaiah 64:6). We cannot save ourselves. We cannot get ourselves to Heaven by our own good deeds. Only by the grace of God, through the finished work of Christ, will any person get to Heaven.

The Escape by Suicide
Some time ago the mayor of a small town near where I live committed suicide. None of his friends have an explanation except that for the last month he had been despondent and discouraged. He apparently decided to end it all and put a bullet through his head.
But we cannot end it all by committing suicide. You can destroy your body, but your soul will live on through all eternity. The Bible says, “Though they dig into hell, from there My hand shall take them; though they climb up to heaven, from there I will bring them down” (Amos 9:2).
You may have thought about suicide. I warn you, that is no way of escape. You say, “But Billy, is there no refuge from life’s hurts, distresses and burdens? Is there no deliverance from sin’s chains? I’m up against a stone wall!”

There Is an Escape!
I want to tell you that I bring you Good News. There is a way of escape! There is a way of deliverance. The same chapter of Hebrews where we find the question, “How shall we escape?” also tells us of the means of escape God has provided: “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death … that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone … and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Hebrews 2:9, 15).
Jesus is the way of escape that God has provided. The Bible declares, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3).
You can know Christ by receiving Him at this moment, and He can become your escape.


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Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies, or phonorecords, or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.

 

[trukinlady]

By Billy Graham

We worship a risen, living Savior, who has promised to give immortality to all who believe on His name. No longer do men and women need to stumble in the fog and the darkness of hopelessness. A Light shines brighter than the noonday sun, offering hope to everyone who has been born again. Jesus promised, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die” (John 11:25-26).

Long ago Job asked, “If mortals die, can they live again?” (Job 14:14). We expect death, but we always have a glimmer of hope that medical science will discover something that will keep us alive a little longer.

Death carries with it a certain dread. From the day that Abel was killed, people have dreaded death. It has been the enemy, the great, mysterious monster, that makes people quake with fear.

The Bible always links sin and death. It says “the sting of death is sin” (1 Corinthians 15:56) and “through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned” (Romans 5:12).

Death stalks the rich and the poor, the educated and the uneducated. Death is no respecter of race, color or creed. Its shadow haunts us day and night. We never know when the moment of death will come for us.

Is there any hope? Is there a possibility of immortality?

I take you to an empty tomb in the garden of Joseph of Arimathea. Mary, Mary Magdalene and Salome had gone to anoint the body of the crucified Christ. They had been startled to find the tomb empty. An angel sat on the stone by the door of the tomb and said, “I know you are looking for Jesus.” Then the angel said, “He is not here; for He is risen” (Matthew 28:6).

The greatest news that mortal ear has ever heard is the news that Jesus Christ has risen from the dead as He promised! The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the chief proof of the Christian faith. It is the truth that lies at the very foundation of the Gospel. Other doctrines of the Christian faith may be important, but the resurrection is essential. Without a belief in the resurrection there can be no personal salvation. The Bible says, “If we confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved” (Romans 10:9).

In the resurrection of Jesus Christ we have the answer to the great question of the ages: “If mortals die, can they live again?” The Bible teaches that because Christ lives, we also shall live. The greatest truth that you can ever hear is that Jesus Christ died but rose again, and that you, too, will die but can rise again into newness of life.

The Bible teaches the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is not a spiritual resurrection, as some would have us believe. Jesus’ very body was raised by God from the dead, and someday we will see Him.

The resurrected Christ also lives today in another very real sense: in the heart of every true believer. Though He is in His glorified body in Heaven, yet through the Holy Spirit He dwells in the heart of every Christian. The Scripture says, “Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in His glory” (Colossians 1:27). The Christ of God, in whom “the fullness of God lives in a human body” (Colossians 2:9), condescends to live within the hearts of people. This is a mystery that is beyond comprehension and yet gloriously true.

When we come to Jesus Christ, we bring everything that we have. Our bodies with all their members, our faculties, our talents, our time, our money, our possessions, our hearts, our will, are all His.

Our faces become the faces in which the resurrected Christ shows forth His beauty and His glory. Our eyes become the eyes of the resurrected Christ, to exhibit His sympathy and His tenderness. He wants to look on the world’s needs through your eyes. Your eyes should never be lent to the devil; they belong to God. Be careful how you use your eyes!

Our lips become the lips of the resurrected Christ, to speak His messages. The harsh, unkind words remain unspoken. Other people marvel at the gracious words that come out of our mouths. When He was on earth, the people said, “No man ever spoke like this Man!” (John 7:46). And this is the One who lives within you. Your lips become an instrument for the expression of His message. His words are spirit and life. The word going forth out of His mouth cannot return unto Him void. Remember, your lips are His; they should never be lent to the devil.

Our ears become the ears of the resurrected Christ. They will be sensitive to every cry of spiritual need. Jesus living in us today listens through our ears and hears the plaintive cry of the world’s needs. Take heed what you hear. Refuse to hear the voice of the tempter or give your sanction to the spread of false reports and idle rumors concerning others. Your ears are Jesus’ ears; never lend them to the devil.

Our minds become the mind of the resurrected Christ. The Scripture says, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). Cultivate spiritual thinking. Your intellect becomes His so that He may plan through you and you may be an instrument for the realization of His purpose. Yield your mind to Him so that you may know His secrets and be kept in His will. Never lend your mind to the devil; the mind is the devil’s favorite avenue of attack.

Our hands become the hands of the resurrected Christ, to act on His impulse. He will work through us. The living Christ dwells in our hearts and gives us power to live the victorious life. The Apostle Paul said that the same power that raised Christ from the dead is ours to enable us to live for Him!

The feet of the Christian need to tread the narrow path that the Savior trod, keeping in step with Him throughout the earthly pilgrimage. He lives in you. Let your feet direct you only to those places where Christ wants you to go.

We are to allow the resurrected Christ to allocate our time as His own; to control our money as His own; to energize our talents, our zeal and our ability with His resurrected life; to have complete right-of-way throughout our beings. He does not want an apartment in our house. He claims our entire home from attic to cellar.

Not only does the resurrection give us hope of immortality but it also provides Life with a capital “L” here and now. Before the resurrection of Christ, the Holy Spirit came upon individuals only on certain occasions for special tasks. But now, after the resurrection, Christ through the Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of every believer to give us supernatural power in living our daily lives. The Scripture says that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead on the first Easter will raise us from the dead if the Spirit lives in us. Call upon His resources. His grace is more than sufficient; He will cause you always to triumph over the world, the flesh and the devil.

Perhaps you do not know the power of the resurrected Christ. You have never knelt at the foot of the cross and had your sins forgiven. On that first Good Friday, Jesus Christ died on the cross in your place. He took your judgment, your sin, your death. Scripture teaches, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). The Bible says, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

On the third day Jesus was raised from the dead. That fact is a guarantee that the atoning work of Christ on the cross was acceptable to God in your place.

Now you need to receive Him and to believe on Him. God says that He will clothe you in His righteousness. Everyone can know the power of the resurrected Christ. Through disappointments and trials, through all the circumstances of life, the resurrected Christ will go with you, if you will put your trust in Him by faith.

So many people are confused, lonely, discouraged. Give your life to Christ. Let Him transform your life so that you will have a glow on your face, a spring in your step and joy in your soul.

First, you need to renounce your sins. Second, by faith receive Him as your Savior. Will you do that today? If you will, the resurrected Christ will come to live in your heart!

 

[closetsmokr]

Amen, amen, amen!

 

[trukinlady]

By Billy Graham

Scores of people write in every week to tell us that they have received Christ as their Savior during a Crusade or to comment on our radio or television ministry. My greatest encouragement has been to know that not only are many taking a decisive step, but many are continuing in the Christian life. For this I thank God.
However, some people write to say that they are making little or no progress in their Christian walk. They are struggling along, showing little evidence of conversion. They want help so that their Christian lives may be joyous and victorious.

Let me remind you that the Scriptures teach that the moment you receive Christ as your Savior you have His power for spiritual growth. Conversion is not the end, it is the starting point. You are to go on into a fuller and richer Christian life.

The Apostle Peter wrote, “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2). The Apostle Paul commended Christians at Thessalonica, “Your faith grows exceedingly” (2 Thessalonians 1:3). Is this your experience? Are you full of joy because you are filled with Christ? Salvation is certainly not something to be endured—it is something to be enjoyed! And you will enjoy it only as you discover God’s will—His purpose and plan for your life.

The people who are the most miserable are those Christians who are living outside the will of God. They cannot grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If you wish to live a joyous and victorious life, one of the most important things you will want to know is what to do with temptation.

There is nothing unusual or abnormal about a Christian being tempted. Indeed, we should expect it. People who think they are never tempted should question whether they are spiritually alive! Say to yourself, “Christians are tempted. I am now a Christian; therefore, I shall be tempted. What provision does God make for me?”

In seeking to help you answer that question, I would suggest five things:

First, recognize that temptation is a normal experience. The Bible says that temptation has not overtaken you in any way that is not common to humanity in general (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Christ, as the only perfect man, was in every respect tempted as we are (Hebrews 4:15). Moreover, He felt deeply the spiritual and mental anguish that accompanies temptation, for it is written that “He Himself has suffered, being tempted” (Hebrews 2:18).

God never tempts any person (James 1:13); that is the devil’s business. Satan is the tempter, and he tempts us along the lines of our natural desires. Many of our desires are good, such as the desire for food, rest, fellowship, self-preservation and so on. But because we are members of a sinful and fallen race, we also have certain wrong desires; for example, we may be tempted to cheat, lie, hate and seek revenge.

Some desires are not sinful in themselves, but they lead to sin if they are abused. Concern about the necessities of life and taking care of one’s family is essential; but this can degenerate into anxiety, and then, as Christ reminded us, the cares of this life choke the spiritual seed in the heart.

Money is necessary for daily living; but money-making is apt to degenerate into money-loving, and then the deceitfulness of riches spoils our spiritual life.

Here is a formula to use when in doubt. Ask yourself: Does it glorify God? Can I do it in the name of Christ? Can I offer a prayer of thanksgiving over it? Does it make me more preoccupied with the things of the world, or does it draw me nearer to the feet of Christ? Does it build me up in my Christian life, or does it hold me down? Will it help others, or will it cause them to stumble?

If you can honestly answer yes to these questions, you will be able to recognize temptation when it comes. The Scripture teaches that God always makes a way out of temptation, so that you will be able to endure. The moment you are tempted, call on God for help.

Second, know that Christ lives within every one of us who has accepted Him as Savior. No enemy is too powerful for Christ. Every temptation can be resisted. You can have glorious, daily victory.

The Scripture says: “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:14). Paul wrote in Romans 7:24, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” Then he answered the question: “I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25). In Romans 8:2 we read, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

Third, recognize the place of the Word of God in Christian growth and in meeting temptation. The Scripture says, “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. … Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You” (Psalm 119:9,11).

We grow in grace and tap the source of spiritual strength by reading and studying the Word of God. We are actually changed by the Word.

The Word of God is “the sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17). To the Christian, the Bible is not just a holy book to be placed on the shelf. It is a mighty weapon to be taken hold of with both hands and used in defeating the enemy.

Study it. Memorize it. Determine that you are going to read the Bible every day from now on. You would not expect to lead a healthy physical life unless you ate your meals regularly! Show the same amount of common sense about building up your spiritual life. Daily Bible reading is essential to victorious living and Christian growth.

Fourth, learn the secret of prayer. Throughout the days of His life on earth, Jesus was conspicuously a man of prayer.

He prayed with His disciples. He prayed in secret. Sometimes He spent all night in prayer. Let Him be your example. If He, the holy, sinless Son of God, could not live His earthly life without constant fellowship with God, you and I certainly cannot expect to do so.

Perhaps you are thinking, But I don’t know what to say when I pray. God does not mind your stumbling and faltering phrases. He is not hindered by poor grammar. He is interested in your heart.

Have a time for secret prayer each day, when you can pray alone. It should be a regular habit and become as vital and necessary to you as your daily food. Another thing I would suggest is that you learn to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). In other words, all day long you are to be in the spirit of prayer.That does not mean being solemn and having a long face. It means that in all situations you are aware of leaning upon God and inclining your heart toward Him.

Fifth, yield and consecrate your life to Christ. The Bible says, “Consecrate yourselves today to the Lord” (Exodus 32:29). Paul wrote, “Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:1-2).

Get on your knees before God and ask Him if there are any areas of your life that are still unyielded to Him. The searchlight of His Spirit will probe the inner depths of your soul and reveal things that you think you have already yielded, but you have not.

Spend time praying and thinking about the things your eyes look upon, your ears listen to and your tongue utters. Ask God to take your eyes, ears, tongue, hands, your social life, your friends—every area of your life—under His control. Yield yourself to Him, completely, unreservedly. This is pleasing to God.

The Scripture says, “To obey is better than sacrifice”



This forum will sometimes contain copyrighted information, however, it is placed here under Title 17:

Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies, or phonorecords, or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.