Day 3 The Evangelist

The Evangelist

Great Britain has never been fond of all things American, which makes their growing love of Billy Graham all the more unusual. Billy’s first major crusade in 1954 was met with an antagonistic press and hesitant churches. His return the following year included an invitation to preach to the Royal Family and talk with them personally afterwards. The press and the churches slowly warmed with subsequent visits, and by 1989, the invitation to come back was signed by more than 500 significant churches and civic leaders. Over the years an extraordinary number of nations have opened their doors to the evangelist, including many whose governments were openly antagonistic to Christianity.

To further promote evangelism, Billy Graham initiated the World Conference on Evangelism in Berlin in 1966, and conceived the idea of a wider conference of evangelicals that became the groundbreaking Lausanne Conference in 1974. Some years later in 1983 he convened the Amsterdam Conference for 4,000 itinerant evangelists, mostly from third world countries.

Billy Graham has never been free from criticism – whether from stronger evangelicals for his not being “pure” enough in his message or from liberals for his not giving enough emphasis to social concerns. But the man has maintained his integrity and learnt from his mistakes.

God has used Billy Graham to bring multiple millions of people to Christ, more than through any other man or woman in world history.

Billy Graham found what he was called to do and gifted to do, and never swayed from that calling. You and I need to do the same.

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