13. Chapter 12: The Plan Of Salvation According To Franklin Graham

Chapter 12 The Plan Of Salvation According To Franklin Graham

Popular conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh has made many controversial comments about President Barack Obama, but when you listen clearly to his arguments against the policies of our new president, whether you like Rush Limbaugh or despise him, it makes no difference at all whether you agree or disagree with his stance anymore than it would be plausible to agree or to disagree with a hurricane looming off the coast gathering strength before it moves ashore. Certain policies are doomed to failure. The Constitution of the United States of America is the blueprint for success in terms of running our nation the same way the bible is the owner’s manual for success as a Christian. In no way is this meant as a slam against President Obama. The bible instructs us to pray for those in authority over us, to pay our taxes, and to stay out of trouble. After all, God elects “kings” over the nations for His own purposes, whether we agree with them or not; the purpose of this line of argument is merely to convey a special message that I will attempt to use as a means of comparison between the content of what Franklin Graham (Billy Graham’s son) says about salvation and the content of what Christ Himself says about salvation. Rush Limbaugh does not have a personal argument against President Obama anymore than I have a personal argument against Franklin Graham. When Rush Limbaugh stated that he hopes President Obama’s policies fail, an attack upon Mr. Limbaugh’s character quickly ensued in our media. Limbaugh’s statements were misconstrued and he was vilified most reprehensibly by media spin doctors as a way to vent their frustrations against him and to throw dirt upon his character. Why? Because, for one, people do not want to know the truth, and two, some people enjoy tearing one another down so that they gain favor from others. I detest the egocentric and prideful aspects of today’s forms of modern argument, especially in religious or political contexts, but to vilify a voice of truth is akin to how the Pharisees tried to silence the truths that Jesus taught. In virtually all of Jerusalem at that time, even among the most fervent spiritual law keepers, the lone voice of Christ spoke the truth about salvation and evil men sought to take His life as a result; likewise, Rush Limbaugh, though not infallible, is perhaps only one of a very few who speak the truth concerning the errant policies of our newly elected government, and as such, those who are opposed to the truth seek daily to silence, discredit, even to dishearten this “lovable little fuzz ball” through lies and half-truths. In the same impersonal way that Rush Limbaugh hopes President Barack Obama’s liberal policies fail, I, too, in an impersonal and completely unbiased way hope that Franklin Graham’s plan of salvation fails to influence the masses because what he says does not match with what the Author of Salvation, Jesus Christ, says. This is not an attack upon the person or the values of Franklin Graham. I actually like the man. He is really a wonderful person, he has done much good through the Samaritan’s Purse, and I have benefited from his teachings, but when it comes to salvation, I can show you upon the authority of the Word of God that what he teaches in terms of salvation is not the same salvation that Christ teaches, and because of this fact alone, one should consider very carefully the differences between the two. I hope that my statements will disarm the critics of my work while at the same time show them the simplicity, the beauty, and the freeness of salvation in Christ alone; however, there will be those who refuse to look at what Christ says, and there will even be those who derive a twisted sense of pleasure in calling both Christ and me a liar for what I am about to say regarding Franklin Graham’s plan of salvation. So be it.

Franklin Graham is the son of perhaps the most well-known evangelist of all time, Billy Graham. According to the Franklin Graham Festivals Website, Franklin did not begin preaching until the age of 31. During his first-ever sermon, approximately 1,000 people were in attendance to hear what he had to say. At the end of the service, when he invited the audience to give their lives to Christ, not a single person stepped forward to make Christ the Lord of their lives; however, many came forward during his second-ever sermon in which, according to his Internet page, was an audience packed full of drunkards and prostitutes. Franklin’s friend, evangelist John Wesley White, attributes the fact of so many people coming forward to that of a “miracle.” Franklin now holds his festivals all over the world under the auspices of his father’s organization, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA). At this time, I would like to draw your attention to the plan of salvation according to Franklin Graham.

If you will visit his Franklin Graham Festivals Website and click upon the “Peace With God” link, you will be taken straight to the salvation statement issued by Billy Graham at the BGEA Website. Franklin uses his father’s plan of salvation rather than issuing a statement of his own. Essentially, Franklin is just a younger version of Billy, only Franklin does not deliver his sermons in the same forceful manner in which his father did when he was Franklin’s age. Franklin delivers a much kinder, more inclusive call for people to come forward and surrender their lives over to the Lordship of Christ.

Because Franklin uses the exact same plan of salvation as his father, I will take you to the plan of salvation given by Billy Graham at his BGEA Website. Now, because of potential copyright issues, I will paraphrase for you what salvation is according to the Grahams’. First of all, we are told that God loves us and wants to give us an abundant life. Second, we are told that we are sinners. Third, we are told that Jesus died for us and that He is the only way to heaven. Fourth, we are told to turn from our sins and to receive Christ as both the Lord of our lives and as our savior, which, according to the Grahams’ means that we are to trust that Christ paid for our sins by His death on the cross and that we are to follow the Lordship of Christ over our lives in strict obedience (for the rest of our lives) “in order to” get to heaven. In virtually every sermon you hear given by Franklin Graham, he makes surrender of one’s life to Christ sound more appealing to us than a hot-fudge sundae could ever appeal to a child. What Franklin says about giving our lives to Christ is truly beautiful. At the end of his messages, I would follow him in prayer, trusting Jesus Christ and then giving Him rule over my life by determining to follow Him in obedience for the rest of my life so that I, too, could go to heaven when I die. When I thought I was saved as a result of trusting Christ the way both Billy and Franklin told me to do, from the years 2002 through 2005, I decided to make my decision “public” the way they said we all have to do in order to go to heaven. I literally became “high” on Jesus. I was so “on fire for Jesus” that I became a pamphleteer in order to get the “plan of salvation” out to everybody. I bought a paper cutter and began to make my own salvation pamphlets using the Grahams’ salvation message as a blueprint.

I made so many pamphlets (or tracts) that I literally wore out the paper cutter and had to buy another.

I had the most fun making these pamphlets because I just knew I was doing the will of God by making them and giving them out to everyone. I would go to grocery stores and watch people with a careful eye. As customers would lean over to inspect a food item, I would drop a pamphlet into their grocery cart and quickly run away and watch their reactions as they discovered this “pamphlet from nowhere” in their baskets! I saw many people pick them up and start reading them. I would see some look around as if, “Where did this come from?” and I would get the biggest thrill out of giving them “a chance” at eternal life through my pamphlet based upon the teachings of the Grahams’. In 2005, in an attempt to find some specialized information about the gospel to present to my Mormon co-worker, I came across a great article about Mormonism that was written by a pastor who, up until that point, I had never heard of. This pastor’s name was Hank Lindstrom. I was so impressed by his article on Mormonism that I began to study other articles that he had written. The one that drew my attention the most was the article he wrote about “repentance.”

I was always afraid of the word repentance because I was never really sure if I had repented correctly or if I had, in fact, repented enough to be truly born again. To make a long story short, what I found in the bible (through Dr. Lindstrom’s article on repentance) changed my life forever. When I learned that the bible refers to “repent” as being “a change of mind” rather than meaning to “turn from your sins” or to “quit sinning altogether,” I was thoroughly awestruck and then immediately the plan of salvation according to Jesus Christ in the bible became clear to me for the first time in my whole life. For three whole years I had been going about trying to establish my own righteousness before God through my own efforts, when in actuality Christ had, by His own righteousness, paid for all of my sins by His death, burial and resurrection from the dead 2,000 years earlier. When I learned the bible said I could have the free gift of everlasting life by believing solely upon what Christ had done for me by His death and subsequent resurrection from the dead, I believed His message immediately, hungrily, and to the exclusion of all the other counterfeit plans of salvation that I had been led to believe by today’s biggest hitters in Christianity. I was finally “free.” I was finally born again, and I knew it beyond any doubts at all.

God put an end to my pamphleteering of false gospels. Now, I preach His plan of salvation via my personal Internet page, by face-to-face discussions with people, by tract, by CD, by DVD, as well as through the use of e-mail. Today, I am now proclaiming Christ’s free gift via this book you are holding in your hands now which shall eventually go all around the world. The plan of salvation according to Franklin Graham is different from the plan of salvation according to Jesus Christ. Let me explain His plan a little more fully for you. First of all, I would like to draw your attention to a very important statement that Jesus made: “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:4-5). Upon first glance of this passage, one may assume that Jesus was referring to some strange person who would rise up and claim to be Jesus Christ. There have been many instances in our history where people have done that, successfully. Charles Manson comes quickly to mind because he claimed to be Christ and his followers believed him. But when you look more deeply into this verse and what Christ was trying to convey, you will notice that He is saying many false preachers will agree with you about Jesus being “the Christ,” that He really is who He claims to be. In fact, all of the pastors and bible teachers I talk about in this book agree that Jesus is, in fact, “the Christ” of the bible. But directly after Jesus mentions that in the aforementioned passage, He says, “and shall deceive many.” What is the deception of which He is speaking? Christ is telling us that many will claim to be Christians, that they will agree that Jesus is “the Messiah,” that He is deity, but that they would deceive everyone with a faith plus works message that cannot save anyone at all. What is so frustrating about this clever form of deception is the fact that people who have fallen for a faith plus works message do not even realize they are deceived by a doctrine that is not of Christ. It is a doctrine of man, not of God.

Nowhere does the bible state or imply that a person must turn from their sins and follow Christ in obedience “in order to” be saved. People can twist the bible to make it say virtually anything they want it to say, but when you see the words of Christ and understand what He says about salvation, no one can refute or debate what He says. For example, Jesus says “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting life” (John 6:47). Who can argue with that statement made by Christ Himself? Who can interpret this verse as anything other than eternal life being a gift from God made available to anyone the instant they “believe” on Christ as their savior? To say otherwise is to call Him a liar. To add man’s efforts, such as turning from sins, making a public profession, forsaking sins, giving tithes and money, joining a church, etc., or any other “thing of self” is to call Christ a liar; after all, according to the bible, heaven is a free gift that is given to the individual who places his or her faith in the finished work of Christ and has nothing to do whatsoever with what we do for God. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Reader, what we all must realize is that there are built-in consequences to 1) choosing man’s way of salvation, which always includes “something of self” and denies Christ His rightful place as the one and only savior of mankind, and 2) choosing Christ’s way of salvation, which always excludes all forms of human effort or merit and makes Christ the absolute savior of mankind. My best friend in the world is named Chris. I’ve known him since the age of four. One day, as I was walking around in his front yard, I saw a little baby robin that had fallen out of the nest a little too early. This robin was perhaps the sweetest little thing I had ever seen. I would have left him there to go his way, but Chris’ next door neighbor had several cats, and this little robin was so close to those cats that it would never have lived through the night. Those cats would have “played tennis” with this baby bird using their claws and then they would have eaten him. So, I gently picked this little bird up and took him home with me. I had two ducks as pets at that time, so, I gave this little fellow some mashed up duck food and built him a little place to live made out of pillows and towels. This robin was completely helpless. He had no feathers. He could not fly. He had no means of defending himself, and he was too weak to run away. Days later, after a nutrient-rich diet of duck food, he became stronger. I so loved this little bird. As his feathers began to grow, I would gently coax him into flapping his wings by holding him firmly in my hand and moving him up and down. After a few days of getting him ready for his first flight, I let him take some test flights onto a very soft pillow. He flew wonderfully! Later on, I would take him places with me; after all, we were friends! I began feeding him a diet of worms, too, because worms are a robin’s favorite food. This little fellow loved me, trusted me completely, and I took care of him. As he slept on our screened-in back porch each night, we began to notice a mother robin sitting on the ledge outside of the screen. One morning, my bird had flown up to the ledge, and we found both my bird and “his mother” sitting together, side-by-side, with only a thin screen separating the two from each other. The mother had found her baby, recognized him as her own, and remained faithful to him. Then it came time to introduce him to our tall pine trees in the back yard. My bird would fly way up into the tallest branches of these trees. After a while, I would call to him, and he would come back to my hand. This went on for a few days. As his mother came around more and more frequently, my bird would meet with her. And one day, a day that had to come, my bird flew away with his rightful mother. I was devastated over my friend leaving me, but I knew it was for the best. A couple of weeks later, I saw my bird again, looking at me and whistling away like the happy bird he always was in my care. I knew exactly who he was because of the distinct markings on his feathered torso. The mother fed him some worms as I watched on with delight. It was a feeling of great accomplishment. I knew I had done the right thing in saving that helpless little fellow from those horrible cats who do nothing more than kill for sport and then go home to eat their store-bought cat food. To this day, although that was 30 years ago, I can still become emotional about my little bird when I think about him. I have a photo of him perched atop of my finger, smiling along with me (ha!) into the camera, and I plan to make this photo available to everyone on my new Website, one day.

It was a difficult task for me to write about my little bird in this portion of the chapter, but I see now, very clearly, why God allowed me the privilege of such an experience.

We all need love, we all want to love, and we all want to be loved. Although my bird was just one of God’s creations, God loves birds, too. Oh, reader, how much, much more does He love you! You see, in a sense, I was this little bird’s “savior.” This bird was facing certain death. I picked him up, and in his innocence he trusted me. He did not put up a fuss, he did not try to wiggle out of my hands. This little bird trusted me. I do not mean to personify a bird or to ascribe human emotions to my little winged friend, but the parallel we can draw from this experience is in every case the same as the one we might draw between a lost person who faces absolute, certain spiritual death and the willingness of Christ to save them, without any questions, without any efforts on his or her part, and without any expectation of us making Him our Lord. Above all, Jesus wants to save you if you are lost. He does not demand that you become His disciple or to follow Him for the rest of your life “in order to” receive the free gift of everlasting life in heaven. His will for you is that you trust Him alone to save you, the same way my little bird “trusted” me to save him. God’s will for you “after” you are saved is that you obey Him and live according to His will, but that does not always mean becoming His disciple, as we have been so wrongly taught all of our lives by good, well-meaning but thoroughly confused pastors who erroneously make discipleship a necessary aspect of salvation. One day, in an emotional state, Christ looked over the city of Jerusalem and said in Matthew 23:37, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” You see, they wanted to reach heaven “their way” rather than Christ’s way, and He grieved over them, knowing that unless they trusted in Him alone, they would end up standing before Him at the Great White Throne Judgement, and afterward be cast into the eternal lake of fire.

Friend, anyone who thumbs their nose at Christ’s way of salvation and instead puts their trust in a plan of salvation other than the one Christ said for us to trust, that person will stand before Christ at the Great White Throne Judgement where he or she will stand “in their own righteousness” which will not be enough to gain entrance into heaven. Isaiah 64:6 states that our best deeds, the absolute best that we can come up with in this lifetime, will be seen as “filthy rags” when compared to Christ’s supreme sacrifice of His body on the cross. The lost person’s partial faith in Christ and partial faith in his or her works and discipleship will not be “enough” to get them into His eternal dwelling place.

I urge you, reader, to understand that Christ has but one way into His heaven, and that way is through trusting in Him alone as your only hope of heaven. To trust Christ as your only means of entering heaven you must first realize the penalty for sin, which is eternal death and separation from Him in the lake of fire. Once you realize you are under this eternal “death penalty,” you then trust that Christ paid for your sins by His death on the cross and that He arose from the grave three days later. Because Christ knows every single thought you are thinking at this very moment, He “knows” whether or not you have trusted in Him alone, or if you are only placing partial trust in Him and the rest of your trust in living the “Christian Lifestyle” as your hope of entering into His heaven. The latter won’t save you, but the former will save you. You either trust Christ alone or you trust partially in Christ plus your “filthy rags.” To do the latter, you will not make it to heaven; however, if you choose the former, you, at this very moment, have a home in heaven waiting for you! God immediately grants you the gift of everlasting life in heaven the very same instant that you trust Christ alone to save you. For those who still believe today’s counterfeit plans of salvation, those who are counting on their faith in Christ “plus” their discipleship to Christ to get them into heaven, Jesus says that they will experience the following horrors:

“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity”(Matthew 7:21-23).

These are persons who were trusting in their works alone, or in partial faith in Christ plus their good works, to get them into heaven. Look at the various areas of service in which they brag. They acknowledge Him as “Lord” and then they brag about preaching in His name, about healing in His name, and about the myriad of inexhaustible works of goodness they have done in His name; yet, because they did not trust in Him alone, the way He so clearly tells us to in His bible, He tells them to depart from Him because He sees their good works in His name as “sin.” As if that were not bad enough, this is the fate of everyone who appears at the Great White Throne Judgement, where they stand not in Christ’s righteousness, but in the filthy rags of their own inadequate righteousness. This is their fate:

“And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:11-15).

Reader, this chapter presents to you two plans of salvation: 1) the plan of salvation according to Franklin Graham, and 2) the plan of salvation according to Jesus Christ. Of these two plans, which one will you choose?