Billy Graham Quotes - Page 14

The Christian should stand out like a sparkling diamond against a rough background. He should be more wholesome than anyone else. He should be poised, cultured, courteous, gracious, but firm in the things that he does and does not do. He should laugh and be radiant, but he should refuse to allow the world to pull him down to its level.

Volumes could be written on the problem of [drug] addiction. Millions of barbiturates are swallowed every night to help the nation sleep. Millions of tranquilizers keep us calm during the day. Millions of pep pills wake us up in the morning. The Bible warns that these flights from reality bring no lasting satisfaction.

Consistency, constancy, and undeviating diligence to maintain Christian character are a must if the older generation is to command respect, or even a hearing, from the young.

The Holy Spirit not only convicts of sin but also convinces men that Jesus is the righteousness of God. He shows sinners that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

The Ten Commandments are just as valid today as they were when God gave them. They reflect the moral character of God, and they also provide the foundation of right living with others.

We often seek to please ourselves first, instead of God. What is interesting is that when we seek to please God first, very often we discover that we end up far more pleased than we did when we put ourselves first.

The sin of self is a deadly sin.

A godly person—one who serves Christ and exhibits purity and integrity in his life—is not necessarily welcomed or admired by those who live differently. They may even react in scorn, or refuse to include a christian in their social gatherings because his very presence is a rebuke to them.

Integrity means that if our private life was suddenly exposed, we’d have no reason to be ashamed or embarrassed. Integrity means our outward life is consistent with our inner convictions.

Ask God to help you see the world the way He sees it.

Why are our inner lives so important? One reason is because our thoughts determine our actions.

I am still learning, for the Christian life is one of constant growth.

The broken home has become the number one social problem of America, and could ultimately lead to the destruction of our civilization . . . it does not make screaming headlines; but, like termites, it is eating away at the heart and core of the American structure.

[My wife] is a great student of the Bible. Her life is ruled by the Bible more than any person I’ve ever known. That’s her rule book, her compass.

Authentic Christian living has its own order of priority in our lives: God first, others second, self third.

When Jesus hung on the cross, a great unseen cosmic battle raged in the heavens—and in the end, Christ triumphed over all the forces of evil and death and hell.

God’s judgment echoes the sound of hoofbeats, but God’s love quietly convicts.

All believers are called to be holy in mind, body, and spirit (1 Peter 1:15).

If you are a true Christian . . .you will reveal through your daily life the fruit of the Spirit . . .and all the other Christian virtues which round out a Christlike personality.

The Bible teaches that whosoever is born of God does not practice sin.

There comes a moment when we all must realize that life is short, and in the end the only thing that really counts is not how others see us, but how God sees us.

Nowhere does the Bible teach that Christians are to be exempt from the tribulations and natural disasters that come upon the world. It does teach that the Christian can face tribulation, crisis, calamity, and personal suffering with a supernatural power that is not available to the person outside of Christ.

We have been trying to solve every ill of society as though society were made up of regenerate men to whom we had an obligationto speak with Christian advice.

We talk out of both corners of our mouth at once. We say we are a Christian nation, but much of our literature, our social practices, our deep interests are not Christian at all. They are totally secular.

There is one thing God’s love cannot do. It cannot forgive the unrepentant sinner.

We have a conception that God is a haphazard God with no set of rules of life and salvation. Ask the astronomer if God is a haphazard God. He will tell you that every star moves with precision in its celestial path.

From compromise to deceit is a small step.

There are those who say that all roads lead to God. But Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” [John 14:6 KJV].

I hope the day will never come when the church abandons the “class meeting” and the prayer service . . .The old-fashioned “testimony” meeting should be revived, for through this medium we can share with others our faith and triumphs as well as our needs and mistakes.

I preach a Gospel not of despair but of hope for the individual, hope for society, and hope for the world.

[Ruth’s] disposition is the same all the time—very sweet and very gracious and very charming. When it comes to spiritual things, my wife has had the greatest influence on my ministry.

The church should be setting the pace. The church should be taking its proper place of leadership in the nation . . .God help the church to wake up!

The Christian . . . way of daily living must be distinct from the world. While some will think you “peculiar,” do not let this disturb you, for just as many others will secretly admire you for your stand. It is possible you will be persecuted by jokes and be misunderstood . . .but if you accept this with patience and in the spirit of love, God can use this very thing to help you win some of your friends [to Christ].

We have largely lost sight of the holiness and purity of God today. This is one reason why we tolerate sin so easily.

Don’t forget: Without fuel, a fire grows cold—and without the “fuel” of the Bible, prayer, and Christian fellowship, our faith grows cold.

One of the real tests of Christian character is to be found in the lives we live from day to day.

The Christian is to take his place in society with moral courage to stand up for that which is right, just, and honorable.

Agape love is selfless love . . . the love God wants us to have isn’t just an emotion but a conscious act of the will—a deliberate decision on our part to put others ahead of ourselves. This is the kind of love God has for us.

Cursing, telling smutty stories, smearing the good name of another, and referring irreverently to God and the Scriptures may be considered as coming under the expression corrupt speech. Our speech is to be clean, pure, and wholesome.

Man cannot control himself, and if he will not be controlled by Jesus Christ, then he will be controlled by Satan.

If we read the Bible as carefully and as regularly as we read the daily papers, we would be as familiar with and as well informed about God as we are about our favorite player’s batting average during baseball season!

God honored and blessed America as few nations in history. However, in recent years the nation has been moving away from its religious heritage.

We get angry when others hurt us, both by what they say and what they do. We get angry when we don’t get our own way or our plans and dreams are frustrated. Anger may arise in an instant, erupting like a volcano and raining destruction on everyone in sight. Often, anger simmers just below the surface, sometimes for a lifetime. Like a corrosive acid, this kind of anger eats away at our bodies and souls, yet we may not even be aware of its presence.

While Christians in America have worshipped without the fear or threat of physical abuse for their beliefs, thousands of their brothers in Christ throughout the world have been tortured and martyred for confessing the name of Christ.

Those you know the least may need your prayers the most. Don’t let the fact that you don’t know someone keep you from praying for them.

Today we are putting our hopes in materialism, in technological progress, and in freedom from moral absolutes. They have all failed. They’ve failed because they’ve been powerless to change the human heart. What is the answer? There is hope, if we will turn to God.

Any history of the political events of our time which does not also include a discussion of the Bible, the impact of Christianity, and the role of faith in changing the hearts and minds of people all over the world is an incomplete and invalid study. For what is taking place in the world today is not just a protest, but a revolution in the sphere of the human heart.

This age is interested in success, not suffering . . . Our Lord was ridiculed, insulted, persecuted, and eventually killed. In the face of opposition, He went about “doing good.

Life [can] become unbalanced, and in the process God gets pushed to the fringes. Instead of staying at the center of our lives, Christ gradually gets relegated to the shadows. Don’t let this happen to you!

Do not seek solace in alcohol. Alcohol obscures good judgment and leaves you unable to think clearly or understand what God is trying to say to you.

Instead of clinging to the only Lifeboat that can save, we have tossed overboard biblical truths in the name of [compromise], living on the edge of life, like the man who rides the parameter of a hurricane, daring it to sweep him away.

When God forgives, there is an immediate andcomplete change in relationship. Instead of hostility, there is love and acceptance. Instead of enmity, there is friendship.

God wants to use you right where you are. Every day you probably come in contact with people who will never enter a church, or talk with a pastor, or open a Bible— and God wants to use you to point them to Christ. You may be the “bridge” God would use to bring them to Himself.

God is sending forth His message of love, but you must tune in. You must be willing to listen and to receive His message and then to obey it.

The Book of Psalms is the Bible’s hymnbook. It will show you what it means to walk with God in prayer and praise.

In heaven I’ll wish with all my heart that I could reclaim a thousandth part of the time I’ve let slip through my fingers, that I could call back those countless conversations which could have glorified my Lord—but didn’t.

Thousands of uninstructed Christians are being deceived today.False teachers use high-sounding wordsthat seem like the epitome of scholarship and culture. They are intellectually clever and crafty . . .adept at beguiling thoughtless, untaught men and women.

The Bible is our authority in everything it touches. This means the Bible is our guide to show us how to live . . . it is our instructor.

Though we have less to worry about than previous generations, we have more worry. Though we have it easier than our forefathers, we have more uneasiness. Though we have less real cause for anxiety than our predecessors, we are inwardly more anxious.

The Scripture teaches that popularity with the world means death. Satan’s most effective tool is conformity and compromise. He is aware that one man standing in the midst of a pagan peoplecan move more people in the direction of God than thousands of insipid professors of religion.