Posted on 10/20/2012 8:05:33 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Why, three weeks prior to one of the most hotly contested presidential elections in modern history, does America’s Evangelist need to suddenly declare Mormonism no longer a cult? Has there been an unreported change in theology or practice?
My maternal grandmother thought Billy Graham was a saint above all others. You simply could not say anything negative about the evangelist in her presence. She held the same regard for Jimmy Carter, because she considered him a godly man and a faithful Sunday school teacher -- even if not an effective president. She also was convinced Henry Kissinger was the anti-Christ, but that’s another story.
I’m glad she didn’t live long enough to see Billy Graham and his family descend into the arena of secular politics. It would have broken her heart. And it should be sad for the rest of the Christian world as well.
The latest news came last week, when the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association made a slight change to the content of its website right after a visit from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
Prior to Romney’s visit, the evangelist had defined Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, the Unification Church, Unitarians, Spiritualists and Scientologists as “cults” and therefore not Christian. Several news outlets reported that after Romney’s visit to Graham, the page with that content was removed from the Graham website; then later, a Graham spokesman confirmed it.
Now before some of you, dear readers, start heating your branding irons to label me a partisan heretic, please keep reading. I’m not saying you should or shouldn’t vote for Mitt Romney or Barack Obama. What I do want to say is that you shouldn’t vote for either candidate just because you have been cleared to do so (or been encouraged to do so) by a preacher, pastor or evangelist. You should vote for one or the other because you are convinced in your own mind that person is the best for the job. God gave you a brain for a reason; use it.
Nor should you require Romney to be a Christian before you vote for him, just as you shouldn’t spread the lie that Obama is a closeted Muslim in order not to vote for him. There is no religious test for office in the United States.
So why, three weeks prior to one of the most hotly contested presidential elections in modern history, does America’s Evangelist need to suddenly declare Mormonism no longer a cult? Has there been an unreported change in theology or practice? What purpose could there be other than removing a barrier that might keep some evangelical Christians from voting for a Mormon? Especially when the evangelist, to the best of my knowledge, never has repudiated his own son’s statements from February, implying that Obama may not be a Christian but is likely a secret Muslim. Why is Billy Graham taking sides in a presidential election?
Some will say he has every right to take sides and should make his views known. Here’s why I think he shouldn’t and why his son, Franklin, is single-handedly undoing his father’s legacy: The gospel of Jesus Christ transcends political parties and labels. Jesus is neither Republican nor Democrat. And the moment we put God in a political box is when we alienate half the population from hearing the good news of redemption through Christ.
No person in our lifetime has done more to proclaim this message of salvation for all than Billy Graham. And he was heard because he appeared to care about all people without regard to race, creed or color. To make any other agenda -- abortion, gay marriage, economic policy or whatever -- more important than the universal call to redemptive faith is to lose sight of the cross of Christ. Ironically, it is Billy Graham who most clearly and consistently has called America to fix our eyes only upon Jesus. And now his own vision seems to be fading. Woe to us.
Yes!! Good Point!!
Yes!! Good Point!!
I’m glad she didn’t live long enough to see Billy Graham and his family descend into the arena of secular politics. It would have broken her heart. And it should be sad for the rest of the Christian world as well.
The latest news came last week, when the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association made a slight change to the content of its website right after a visit from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.I’m glad she didn’t live long enough to see Billy Graham and his family descend into the arena of secular politics. It would have broken her heart. And it should be sad for the rest of the Christian world as well.
I imagine Mr, graham decided that maybe he should take an interest in this country that he loves, the cults have been here for ever But a free nation is hard to come by.
And besides, our faith should not be in Billy Graham but in Christ.
Gods people are not of this world and this world has never been and will not be governed by Christians but we have to live in it so i will cast my vote against Obama.
A cult demands 100% of it’s adherents, a religion only wants 10%.
“The main problem is ... Who gave YOU, or Billy Graham for that matter, the job of deciding who is ... and who is not acceptable to Jesus Christ?”
We are directed by the word of God to judge the spirits to see whether they are true or not, and to be wary of wolves in sheep’s clothing, preaching a different gospel.
1Jn_4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Mat_7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Mat_24:11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
Those who deny Jesus Christ are anti-Christ, and are enemies to God.
1Jn_2:22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
Furthermore, we are even told by Paul that anyone who preaches a different Gospel is accursed, and to even say “Godspeed” to that individual is to bring upon their sin on yourself.
Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
2Jn 1:10-11 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: (11) For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
What does Mormonism teach? It denies that Jesus is the Christ of the Bible, instead perverting Him into a vacuous “elder brother” with no saving power. Mormons don’t even use the word the same way the Bible does. They have 6 different uses for it, and none of them are Biblical. They believe that Jesus Christ’s “atonement” was in the garden, and that this atonement only satisfies Adam’s sin, but the rest of us are in sin unless we confess Joseph Smith a prophet from God, get baptized by “one with authority,” learn secret handshakes, wear sacred underwear, and get married. That is why they perform baptisms and marry people by proxy as well. You cannot enter the celestial heaven to become a god without it, because you must live like god does, who they believe was once a mortal man, a sinner, who through being a good Mormon rose up to the highest heaven “raising himself up by his bootstraps,” and now lives eternally with a flesh and blood body having eternal celestial sex with his harem of countless wives. Those who do get married (and therefore cannot populate their own planets) are sorted into other layers of lesser heavens. That is, at least, unless their “living Prophet” decides to change things up. That happens frequently in the whacky world of Mormonism.
It’s also worth noting that Mormonism is not a rational religion. It is easily disprovable. The Book of Abraham, for example, was “translated” by Smith from papyri he purchased from a travelling Mummy salesman. This was back during a time in history where no one could call his bluff. His bluff was called in the 1960s when Egyptologists looked it over and declared, universally, that Smith was making up random stuff as he went along. The LDS does not discuss this, and when they do they lie about it.
This is, by any standard, be it religions or intellectual, an obvious fraudulent religion that is filthy in the sight of God. It denies Jesus Christ, and to claim that somehow God will save the Mormon is like saying God will save the Baha’i, who believe that Jesus Christ’s second coming happened a long time ago and was their religious leader who is now long dead. It is a statement made upon an absolute ignorance of what Mormonism teaches and has historically claimed to be.
“I have a long history of supporting the Graham ministries, and I will not be fooled into thinking he has left the fols of God over some articvle written by a guy who does not believe the Bible is the infallible word of God.”
Evidently, Graham does not believe the Bible is the infallible word of God either.
““What did Romney really believe about Jesus Christ? Romney didn’t hesitate. “When I say JESUS CHRIST IS MY LORD AND SAVIOR, I realize that means something different to you than it does to me,” he admitted.
But he urged them to remember their shared beliefs: the faith that Christ was born of a virgin, was crucified and rose after three days. The ministers were pleased. “So you’re really a Baptist?” Lee cracked.””
Mormons have 6 different definitions for the word “saved.” None of them are the biblical one. In fact, they believe themselves to be “saviors” by getting baptized for the dead or performing proxy marriages, which are required to enter the Celestial heaven. You would have more luck pimping Baha’i movement, who believe their dead “prophet” is the second coming of Christ, than you would of covering over the teachings of Mormonism.
And talking about Nixon: he was one extremely good Republican. And he, personally, saved Israel - and personally saved the world from an all-out nuclear war somewhat later.
The main problem is ... Who gave YOU, or Billy Graham for that matter, the job of deciding who is ... and who is not acceptable to Jesus Christ?
“We aren’t electing a pastor of a church, but a national administrator. I don’t agree with the Mormon teachings, but that doesn’t mean Mitt isn’t a good man, husband and father.”
That’s another problem. The only reason you think Mitt is a “good man” is because of party propaganda making that claim over and over again. No one talks about the verifiable lies he told us during the primaries and, indeed, his entire political career to those who supported him. Mitt Romney’s friends can claim he saves little children and gives presents to the poor, but no good man that I know of ever lied so profoundly. If Mitt Romney had not won the primary, none of you would think of Romney as anything more than a RINO and liar. But because he is the nominee, reality takes a backseat to the echo chamber.
We aren’t electing a pastor of a church, but a national administrator. I don’t agree with the Mormon teachings, but that doesn’t mean Mitt isn’t a good man, husband and father.
I believe Christians have a duty to stand up for what is right and moral. I see Obama and the democratic party as an enemy of America and Christianity. After all, they actually booed God and have done everything in their power to remove God from the American public sphere. I don’t need a preacher or anyone else to tell me who to vote for, but I appreciate religious leaders who are not afraid to stand up for our religious rights. We need more, not fewer.
Remember the old hymn - Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross.
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
Mormons are not the only ones who collect ten percent taxes that is supposed to go to the nation of Israel and then keep it for them selves.
The early Christians did not collect or pay tithes, so some where along the line some one must have started preaching some other gospel and it really caught on.
David and Solomon come to mind.
Billy Graham: Jesus Not The Only Way
And here is the content of the transcript:
Dr. Schuller: “Tell me, what is the future of Christianity?”
Dr. 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 that 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. What God is doing today is 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 non-believing 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 they need something that they don’t have and they turn to the only light they have and I think they’re saved and they’re going to be with us in heaven.”
Dr. Schuller: “What I hear you saying is that it’s possible for Jesus Christ to come into a human heart and soul and life even if they’ve been born in darkness and have never had exposure to the Bible. Is that a correct interpretation of what you’re saying?”
Dr. 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, have never heard of Jesus but they’ve believed in their hearts that there is a God and they tried to live a life that was quite apart from the surrounding community in which they lived.”
Dr. Schuller: “This is fantastic. I’m so thrilled to hear you say that. There’s a wideness in God’s mercy.
Dr. Graham: There is. There definitely is.”
I’m curious where you thought I was “pimping” Mormonism? I stated I disagreed with everything they believe that isn’t directly from the Bible.
Or did you just find it upsetting that I quoted Romney stating “Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior”? I still think it makes Romney much closer in values to me than a Muslim is...
I've seen Billy Graham in person and followed ministry for many years. He has done incredible work for God here building His Church and bringing people to Jesus.
I can't believe you would make such a vile comment about Graham simply based on your anger he would (gasp) appear to be suggesting Christians should vote for Romney over Obama the Marxist anti-American Muslim.
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Billy Graham has been an apostate for decades
http://philosophyofjoel.xanga.com/722811552/billy-grahams-apostasy-exposed-by-john-macarthur/
http://www.wayoflife.org/database/grahamcompromise.html
http://www.middletownbiblechurch.org/separate/billgram.htm
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