Apr 24, 2023

Billy Graham

Chuck Templeton and Billy Graham (1918-2018) were close friends and well-known evangelists in the 1940’s. Chuck began to have doubts about the veracity of Scripture. When they met up in 1949, Chuck challenged his friend, “Billy, you’re fifty years out of date. People no longer accept the Bible as being inspired the way you do. Your faith is too simple.” The conversation rocked Billy’s world. Could he really trust the Bible? His ministry depended on the answer to Chuck’s question. Billy was asked to speak at a retreat, still reeling from his unsettling talk with Chuck. He went for a walk in the woods one evening near the retreat center with his Bible in hand. He opened his Bible in the moonlight, laid it on a tree stump and knelt to pray. “O God, there are many things in the Bible I do not understand. There are many problems with it for which I have no solution. There are many seeming contradictions. There are so many areas that do not seem to correlate to modern science. I can’t answer some of the philosophical or psychological questions Chuck and other people are asking.” He paused, sensing God’s presence and resumed his prayer, “Father, I’m going to accept this as your Word–by faith. I’m going to allow faith to go beyond my intellectual questions and doubts and I believe it to be your inspired Word.”
Billy’s so-called “tree stump prayer” became a defining moment in his ministry. Chuck Templeton’s life unraveled as a cautionary tale. He quit the ministry, moved to Canada and became agnostic. His book written two years before his death says it all, Farewell to God.

The following is a portion of the prayer Billy Graham offered at the 1969 presidential inauguration:

Our Father and our God, Thou hast said, “Blessed is that nation whose God is the Lord.” We recognize on this historic occasion that we are “a nation under God.” We thank Thee for this torch of faith handed to us by our forefathers. May we never let it be extinguished. Thou alone hast given us our prosperity, our freedom and our power. This faith is our heritage and our foundation.

Thou hast warned us in the Scriptures, “If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” As George Washington reminded us in his farewell address, morality and faith are the pillars of our society. We confess these pillars are being eroded in an increasingly materialistic and permissive society. The whole world is watching to see if the faith of our fathers will stand the trials and tests of the hour. Too long we have neglected Thy word and ignored Thy laws. Too long we have tried to solve our problems without reference to Thee. Too long we have tried to live by bread alone. We have sown to the wind and now we are reaping a whirlwind of crime, division and rebellion.

And now with the wages of our sins staring us in the face, we remember Thy word, “If my people who are called by my Name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” Help us this day to turn from our sins and to turn to the simple faith of the One who said, “Ye must be born again.” So, we pray, O God, as we enter a new era that we as a nation may experience moral and spiritual restoration…

Rev. Dr. Peter James served 42 years as the senior of Vienna Presbyterian Church in Vienna, VA — 21 years in the 20th century and 21 years in the 21st century. He retired in 2021 and now serves as Pastor-in-Residence at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

Even as a pastor, prayer came slowly to Pete. Read Pete’s story.