LAST UPDATED: 3.30pm, 22nd February, 2018
World renowned evangelist Billy Graham has died at the age of 99.
Rev Graham, who took the Gospel message to millions, passed away at his home in North Carolina at 8am on Wednesday.
In a statement his son, Rev Franklin Graham, said he and his siblings “would appreciate your prayers in the days ahead as we honor a man who served the Lord with his life, loved his family, and was always grateful for God’s faithful people who supported him in the work of the ministry in Jesus’ Name.”
Tributes have poured in for Rev Graham, known as “America’s preacher” and seen as one of the most influential Christians of the 20th century, from world and Christian leaders. In a tweet, US President Donald Trump described him as the “GREAT Billy Graham” said there was “nobody like him!” “He will be missed by Christians and all religions. A very special man.”
Former President Barack Obama said Rev Graham “gave hope and guidance to generations of Americans.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, said in a statement that Rev Graham had “few equals” in terms of the “living and lasting” influence he has had on the worldwide church “for he introduced person after person to Jesus Christ”.
“The debt owed by the global church to him is immeasurable and inexpressible. Personally I am profoundly grateful to God for the life and ministry of this good and faithful servant of the Gospel; by his example he challenged all Christians to imitate how he lived and what he did.”
Meanwhile, US Christian leaders have also paid tribute. Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said that “[w]ithout question, Billy was the preeminent voice of evangelical Christianity in America – an advisor to Presidents, and a spiritual guide to the multitudes who attended his crusades all over the world”.
“Billy has been a dear friend of mine personally and I will miss him. He is now with our heavenly Father, well and happy, and joined forever with his dear wife, Ruth. I extend my profound sympathy to Franklin, to Anne Graham Lotz, and to Billy’s other children who are continuing his legacy throughout the world.”
R Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said Rev Graham did not pioneer mass evangelism but “perfected it”.
“What others had done on a smaller scale and infrequent regularity, he began to do in a way I do not think can be replicated or equaled. He was one of the first to recognise the importance of the media – first in radio and in print media, then with television and even film. By the end of his life, his organization was pioneering new ways to reach people with the gospel by digital and social media.”
Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights said that, for Catholics, “Graham was more than just the titular head of the Protestant community, he was a man who inspired us. He was a man of prayer, and his deep spirituality was contagious”.
“When Graham was at his peak, our culture was Christian-friendly, allowing him to follow a decidedly pastoral approach. Those ministers who came after him were forced to take a more aggressive public stance, owing to the advent of the culture war.”
Evangelist Alveda King, niece of Rev Martin Luther King, Jr, said an experience with Rev Graham in which he instructed her to pray without ceasing and then told her he was praying for her changed her life.
“The lives of my family have been personally intertwined with those of Dr Graham and his family throughout our lifetime. My ‘Uncle ML,’ Rev Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, ministered with Dr Billy in New York at Madison Square Gardens during the 1950s. Together, in living color, bridging the racial divide, they debunked the colorblind myth; revealing the mystery of Acts 16:26 – One Blood, One Human Race.”
Pastor Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Dallas – Billy Graham’s longtime congregation, said he thought of Rev Graham’s “unfeigned and boundless love for people”.
“Once, when he was preaching at First Baptist Dallas, I told him before the service that my barber and his family were attending, and I had been praying that they would all become Christians. I asked Dr Graham if he would write them a note before the service began. He wrote a brief note on a card to my barber that said, ‘I’m praying for you tonight to become a Christian. Billy Graham.’ When Dr Graham extended the invitation that night, my barber and his family were the first to come down the aisle.”
Rev Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, called Rev Graham the “most influential evangelist in modern history” and said he would “never stop being grateful for the impact he has had on my life”.
“He preached the Gospel, lived with integrity and changed the world…May his death, as in life, point all people to the cross of Jesus Christ and His glorious Gospel.”
Leith Anderson, president of National Association of Evangelicals, said Rev Graham had been the best “known face and voice of evangelicalism for more than half a century”.
“With Christian graciousness, he transcended political and religious differences to faithfully proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ…Billy Graham loved God, and we loved Billy Graham. We will miss him.”
In Australia, Rev Dr Keith Garner, superintendent of Sydney’s Wesley Mission, said Rev Graham was a Christian leader and evangelist without equal in the modern world.
“Billy Graham was one of, if not the most, influential Christian leaders of the 20th century,” Mr Garner said in a statement. “His gift was to inspire people who were not his traditional supporters. He carried his ministry into Eastern Europe – while Communist rule still existed – and was an evangelist alongside Roman Catholics. In the last two decades his ministry embraced a very powerful message of reconciliation and hope in different areas of the world.”
Rev Dr Garner said he admired Rev Graham’s ability to “make the Gospel real to anyone he addressed”.
“He had a striking presence; he was also an unassuming, kind, generous and modest man. He could move among people from all walks of life. His legacy of biblical and evangelistic preaching has influenced billions of people around the world.”
– with ADELLE M BANKS of Religion News Service
