Susan Wright on the Right
I haven’t seen eye-to-eye with Franklin Graham on much, these days.
In my opinion, Graham, son of the late Evangelist Billy Graham, has forgotten his first call, which is to pick up where his father left off. He is to seek the lost, be the hands and feet of God to a dark and hurting world. He is to use his name, his platform, and his gifts to bring the Gospel as a light to those who will hear and receive.
In his lifetime, Billy Graham did that very thing in more than 185 nations, preaching to many millions.
Out of that many, how many were saved from their sin, because of some message of redemption brought by Graham?
You have to imagine, there were quite a few.
I took an Evangelism course through the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Of all the lessons within the course that were taught, there was a single line and thread that was highlighted, throughout:
Preach Jesus. Preach only Jesus. The message of the cross is enough.
Franklin Graham has a record of also being the hands and feet of God in the world, through his organization, Samaritan’s Purse.
I’ve packed tons of those familiar red-and-green shoeboxes through the years, preparing to bring Christmas joy to needy kids in faraway lands.
The organization also deals in disaster relief, as well as meeting other critical needs in the world.
He deserves kudos for the work they’ve done.
With that being said, the age of Trumpism and the lure of being associated with the most powerful seat in the land has twisted Franklin Graham. He no longer preaches Jesus, and only Jesus.
No, the new message of Franklin Graham is filtered through his devotion to a serial adulterer, liar, cheat, and con artist.
Billy Graham met and formed bonds with many presidents, through the years. In fact, the man known as “America’s Pastor” met, and in some cases, counseled every president since Harry Truman, in 1950.
He spent time with Hillary Clinton, lending spiritual guidance when she chose to publicly forgive her husband, President Bill Clinton, for his adultery with Monica Lewinski.
Truly, Billy Graham kept his message nonpartisan and focused. Though we know he preferred more conservative candidates for president, he didn’t let that prevent him from taking the Word of God to either party.
He never met Donald Trump, but his son has more than made up for that, to the point that he’s become a loyal acolyte to the Trumpian way, rather than serving as a godly influence and guide on the life of the president.
To his defense, however, he has a lot of competition from other evangelical “leaders,” all jostling for the first spot in line, in order to kiss the ring.
Franklin Graham has twisted and contorted himself to defend a host of spiritually untenable character flaws and offenses by the current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
I mean, I can understand if his point is to extend grace on the path to leading someone to higher ground, but that method can’t be altered to suit your political whims. That’s not what’s happening. Graham goes out of his way to defend Trump’s adulteries, lying, and abusive behavior towards others.
So why not hold his fire when it comes to other leaders, even if he’s right?
On Wednesday, Franklin Graham decided to wade into the upcoming election season by commenting on Democratic presidential hopeful, South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
Buttigieg is getting a lot of attention, right now, and even seems to have stolen some of the rock star thunder from Beto O’Rourke.
At a town hall meeting on Monday, Buttigieg chose to offer up his dubious version of Christian faith.
“It can be challenging to be a person of faith who’s also part of the LGBTQ community and yet, to me, the core of faith is regard for one another,” Buttigieg said. “… Part of God’s love is experienced, according to my faith tradition, is in the way that we support one another and, in particular, support the least among us.”
So none of that is technically wrong, and I’ve heard many celebrate Buttigieg for his “faith.”
Well, Franklin Graham has something to point out.
Presidential candidate & South Bend Mayor @PeteButtigieg is right—God doesn’t have a political party. But God does have commandments, laws & standards He gives us to live by. God doesn’t change. His Word is the same yesterday, today & forever. 1/3 https://t.co/QHDNY3pwzJ
— Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) April 24, 2019
Mayor Buttigieg says he’s a gay Christian. As a Christian I believe the Bible which defines homosexuality as sin, something to be repentant of, not something to be flaunted, praised or politicized. The Bible says marriage is between a man & a woman—not two men, not two women. 2/3
— Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) April 24, 2019
The core of the Christian faith is believing and following Jesus Christ, who God sent to be the Savior of the world—to save us from sin, to save us from hell, to save us from eternal damnation. 3/3
— Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) April 24, 2019
Normally, this would be a “BOOM!” moment for me. Every word spoken here is absolute truth, per God’s Word.
In God’s design for us, he made his intentions for human relationships absolutely clear. Men and women are meant for each other. They’re meant to complement each other.
Can homosexuals be Christian?
I believe they can, but just as heterosexuals cannot live unrepentant, promiscuous lives and still claim to be followers of Christ, neither can homosexuals who have embraced their flesh, rather than lay it down at the cross.
Repentance means to change your mind, or turn back from your sin.
Claiming to be Christian, while openly living a lifestyle God has deemed corrupt and against His design is not repentance. It is rebellion.
Pete Buttigieg is openly homosexual, and “married” to a man.
He may have the right words, as far as his Christianese goes, but his lifestyle is a rejection of God’s standards, and as such, a rejection of the faith he claims to be a part of.
It’s not harsh to tell someone that they are in error in their claimed walk with Christ. In fact, it is the opposite. It is loving to give a gentle, but truthful rebuke, in hopes of turning them back to the path that leads to salvation, rather than the alternative.
Not many want to receive the truth, these days.
With that being said, it is the height of hypocrisy for Graham to point out [rightly] where Buttigieg fails, while celebrating and defending Donald Trump.
I get it. No sin is greater, but sexual sin is more dire, because, as Paul pointed out, it is a sin against your own body.
1 Corinthians 6:18 NLT – “Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.”
Still, Donald Trump has committed sexual sin, through multiple adulteries. He has lied. He has cheated. He is brutish and abusive. He is puffed up and full of his own ego.
I’ve heard too many claim that those things are in Trump’s past, he’s a renewed man, doing many good works for Christians and for Israel.
Political calculations.
Meanwhile, if you want to see if his heart has truly changed, just take a casual look at his Twitter feed.
The man continues to openly abuse and insult others. The stories coming out of the Trump White House about his behavior is even worse. His staff and Cabinet walk on eggshells because they fear his outbursts.
In fact, nothing at all seems to have changed in the man. There is no evidence of the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Not once have I seen Franklin Graham call out Trump’s hateful, abusive behavior. I have, however, seen multiple instances of him making excuses for it.
Graham has made a choice to become political, rather than remain a faithful steward of God’s Word and light in the world. He picks and chooses which sinful behavior to either condemn or endorse, and in doing so, casts a shadow over his father’s good name.
Yes. He was right in what he said about Buttigieg, but how can anyone take him seriously, if he can’t bring himself to be at least as outspoken about Donald Trump’s multiple offenses?
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