What Did Billy Graham Believe about the Last Days?

Influential, iconic, sincere, and captivating: Billy Graham was one of the most influential evangelical preachers of the 20th century. His unflinching dedication to proclaiming the gospel and the hope found in Jesus Christ has been an inspiration to millions of people all over the world. One of the core beliefs that Billy Graham held and preached about was the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Just as surely as He rose from the dead.

Billy Graham believed that the second coming of Jesus was imminent and that every Christian should be ready for it at all times. He often said, “The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ will return one day, just as surely as He rose from the dead.” Graham encouraged Christians to live their lives in a way that honored God and to be ready for His return.

In a sermon delivered in 1997, Billy Graham said, “The Bible says in 1 John 3:3, ‘Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.’ If we have the hope of Christ’s return, it should impact the way we live our lives. We should be living in such a way that when He returns, we’ll be ready to go home with Him.”

Before the days of His wrath are poured out.

He also said, “The rapture is a central part of our hope as Christians. It is the time when we will be reunited with our loved ones who have gone on before us, and when we will be with the Lord forever… The rapture is a comfort to the church, for it means that we will not have to endure the great tribulation that is to come upon the earth. It means that we will be taken up to be with the Lord before the days of His wrath are poured out upon the world.”

At an hour you do not expect.

The Bible is clear in its instructions to be ready for our Lord’s return. In Matthew 24:44, Jesus says, “Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” The apostle Paul also writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:2-4, “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.”

Honor Billy Graham’s legacy.

Today, Christians continue to be inspired by Billy Graham’s message of hope and preparedness for the second coming of the Lord. As followers of Jesus, we are called to be prepared for His coming and to glorify Him with our lives. In doing so, we honor Billy Graham’s legacy by spreading the good news of the gospel to the entire globe and awaiting the coming of the Lord.

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