Rev. Billy Graham’s love for Jesus Christ and spreading the Holy Gospel has deeply impacted my life since 1989, when I first became a Christian. His message is personal, life changing, full of hope, and applicable to everyone – the rich, the poor, the popular, the imprisoned, the sick, and the spiritually lost.
What is his message? First, that God loves you and has a plan for you. What a beautiful truth! Second, we have all done bad things, which the Bible calls “sin” and the result of this sin is death or spiritual separation from God (Romans 6:23). So, what is the “Good News?” Jesus died in our place so we can have a relationship with God and be with Him forever. The Bible says that “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). We can’t earn salvation by good works; we are saved by God’s grace when we have faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. No amount of good works can do this. When we turn from our sin (called repentance), we can then begin to know, love, and follow God through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Every man, woman, and child needs to receive this truth, including me!
In a book I still have today (among many others) written in 1991 called “Hope for the Troubled Heart,” Billy Graham outlined how we can handle pain, frustration, stress, loneliness, illness, depression, and even death. From time to time, I have referred back to this little manual on Christian life and faith. Billy Graham’s sermons always lifted me up, strengthened me, and most importantly pointed me to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The love that Jesus has for me, and you, coupled with what Christ did on the Cross of Calvary for each of us, is forever ingrained deep into my soul.
God Bless you, Rev. Billy Graham!
Troy
