“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:13).
A reader responded to How the Lord Exposed Billy Graham:
You just don’t get the whole picture do you.
How do you know how Billy Graham worships and praises God in his time of private devotion and study in the WORD?
Did God really answer you regarding Billy Graham?
Or…do think that was a light from another source?
In GOD’S word we read.”1Jo 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. “?
I think and do believe that what you have written here about Dr. Graham; is slanderous and it is grievous to the precious Holy Ghost. Also, I feel that my God may be somewhat put out with you because are JUDGING Billy Graham.
The word of GOD also says, “Judge Not lest ye be judged…”
This carries a lot of wait.
Sir, there will be a real judging one day before God’s throne. Both you and I will stand before almighty GOD and give an accounting of our actions while here on earth.
And finally may I ask you; how many souls have you won or even witnessed to for the Lord within the past month, days or hours? Oh dear Brother, please stop being critical and instead if you are going to write; write about the coming of our Lord Jesus write a positive soul winning messages.
Just as importantly GIVE warnings of the HELL to come to those who reject my precious and adorable king of kings JESUS CHRIST.
As for what you have written, the theological term is HOGWASH while other scholarly persons would say, “BALONEY”
PS: The time that you went forward at that Billy Graham Crusade, did you step forward to follow the crowd or did you do all you could to grow as a new Babe in Christ…Ponder on that!!!
William
Our response:
William, Paul here.
It goes without saying that Victor reported what God had declared to him, and therefore knows what he was shown. It is all clearly stated in the letter. What is not clear in your letter is how you can dispute what God has shown Victor. All you do is question everything based on your own feelings, without bringing forth evidence of any kind to support your doubts. Do you truly think your feelings are worth anything, especially when they contradict what God says? Bring us substance, man; otherwise you are the one who is found speaking against God’s servants without cause or justification.
How do you argue with the evidence presented? If you want to vouch for the private life and testimony of Billy Graham you must take it up with God Who has said and shown otherwise. Not only that, we know God is true because His Scriptural testimony confirms His answer.
“If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:19).
Does the world hate Billy Graham? Is that not enough indictment? But you do not believe. You are of the world too, and love its own.
Put away your opinions. No one is saved by opinions. Tell us what God has shown you, or be quiet, listen, and learn. Your feelings, doubts, and reasonings are not of God. The heart is desperately wicked, and not to be trusted. You are not wise to trust your own heart.
According to the Scripture you quoted from I John, the spirit of Billy Graham has been tried, and he has been found to be a false prophet. Do you not know that false prophets often and particularly come in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ? Did He not warn us of this?
“For many will come in My name, saying, I am Christ, and will deceive many” (Matthew 24:5).
How do you know that YOU are not deceived?
Jesus also said this:
“Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets” (Luke 6:26).
There you have another Scriptural confirmation from the mouth of the Lord.
You say we are judging, but are you not judging us? Where did you ever get the notion that men of God are not sent for judgment, or that saints should not exercise righteous judgment? Not from God or Scripture. God spoke this by Isaiah:
“No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of Me, says the LORD” (Isaiah 54:17).
And He spoke this by the Son:
“Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment” (John 7:24).
You are judging according to appearance, whereas we are judging according to God and His righteousness. That is the difference. The one verse you quote about “judge not” is not saying what you presume Christ is saying. Jesus was not contradicting Himself by telling us to judge righteous judgment and then saying not to judge at all. He was saying not to judge after the flesh (the appearance), by which men unjustly condemn one another (as you condemn us). We do not condemn Billy Graham, or you, William. We tell you the truth, as friends of God, judging not by our own sight, but after the Spirit, knowing and speaking the truth that makes free. That freedom is there for you and for Billy Graham as well. We tell you both to repent of your errors, wickedness, unbelief, pride and false religion. Turn to the true Lord, Whom I quote for you again regarding His present judgment in and through the saints:
And Jesus said, “For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind. And some of the Pharisees which were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, Are we blind also? Jesus said to them, If you were blind, you should have no sin; but now you say, We see; therefore your sin remains” (John 9:39-41).
Jesus Christ came into the world precisely for judgment’s sake. He is the judgment of God that is present, active, and good. You have put Him in the past tense or future tense, anything but present tense. Hear more from the apostle Paul speaking of those who believe:
“Do you not know that the saints shall judge the world? And if the world shall be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels, not to mention the things of this life?” (1 Corinthians 6:2-3).
You proclaim the judgment of God as a future event, but He speaks of our judgment as present tense, even in the things of this life. Paul was telling the believers to exercise judgment, and that in due time this judgment would come upon the whole world, as it has even now. You are dead wrong, William. Listen to what Jesus Christ also said:
“But I tell you the truth, it is expedient for you that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you. But if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when that One comes, He will convict the world concerning sin, and concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment. Concerning sin, because they do not believe on Me; concerning righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged” (John 16:7-11).
The convictions of sin, righteousness, and judgment are not future events, unless Jesus Christ is a liar and did not send the Comforter to His saints. How can you adore the Lord Jesus Christ as you say you do, and call Him your “precious king,” when you do not believe what He says? Obviously you have not been convicted and judged yourself. It was for this very kind of hypocrisy that the Lord rebuked the Pharisees. You are no different than they are. As you accuse us, so you would have told Him, “Do not speak ill of those godly Pharisees!” You are as one who draws near to Him with your lips, but your heart is far from Him. You are a hypocrite. Not good, William. Repent.
It is evil to deny the present judgment of God on sin and unrighteousness. It denies the sovereignty of God and teaches people to not revere or fear Him. Putting the judgment of God in the future is the same as removing God from the present. To say that the saints are not to exercise judgment is no different than putting poison in the drinking water, thinking to do good. It is foolish wickedness. What? Are we supposed to dine with wolves, or rather, allow wolves to dine on His sheep? You encourage that very thing by your foolish assertion and defense of false prophets. You are not kin to brother Paul, who said:
“For I know this, that after my departure grievous wolves shall enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also men shall arise from your own selves, speaking perverse things in order to draw disciples away after them. Therefore watch and remember that for the time of three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears” (Acts 20:29-31).
Did Paul keep silent about false brethren to the believers in his day? Would he have said, as do you, “Don’t judge them, brethren, maybe they are godly despite their ungodly example and the ungodly fruits they produce. Who can know anything for sure? God will show us someday, but not now, because we are helpless to know anything in this present world”?
What utter confusion comes out of your mouth in your unbelief, William! Would God not inform us as we need to know things? Has He not sent His Spirit so that we might be as He is in the world and not blind to the hidden things, perishing because we cannot see? Does He not send shepherds to look after the sheep, and to protect them from heresies and diabolical doctrines of devils posing as angels of light? You deny God’s provision in Christ at every turn. Paul even withstood Peter, a true servant of God and shepherd sent by Him, when Peter needed to be judged for behavior that was injurious to the Body of Christ. How much more are we to contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints against those who have crept in unawares, just as Paul warned that they would! You are a fool, inasmuch as you are declaring that there is no God to help us by His grace with godly judgment.
You say the theological term for what we have written is “hogwash,” or “baloney.” Theology, as the presumed study of God, is the ultimate form of baloney. It is a supremely arrogant, man-centric endeavor to know God by the intellectual power of study and mental application. Yes, according to such standards, I am sure we are writing “hogwash,” and we are very thankful for that, and to be delivered from the carnal and ignorant presumptions of man. We are not depending on our own strength or righteousness to know God, or to preach Him as we do to you even now. We are not preaching man’s righteousness or wisdom whatsoever, but the cross of Christ by which we know Him Who is made the wisdom of God to us. As it is written:
“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel; not in wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. For the preaching of the cross is foolishness to those being lost, but to us being saved, it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:17-18).
It is not up to us to make it happen, as you suggest Victor could and should have done as a result of the Billy Graham Crusade where he made the “altar call.” To suggest so represents the crucial difference between the religious works of men and the work of God. What was happening at the “crusade,” and is happening in the many such works of which you are a supporter and are engaged yourself, is a work of the flesh and of the will of men. It is not the work of God. Men are doing it in His Name, but without Him. For that reason it fails, and that explains why Victor was not truly converted at that time. Had he gone on in that work, he would have been a tare, as you are, born of the will of man and the flesh.
In the fullness of time Victor was converted, not by men, but by God, to learn of Him in spirit and in truth, as it is this day. Read his testimony in Our Testimonies, and you will find the difference between a false conversion and a true one, the difference between what man does and what God does.
“He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came unto his own, and His own received him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name; which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:10-13).
William, Victor here.
There is very good reason to examine yourself in light of the facts and of Scripture as to whether you “get the whole picture or not.” First of all, you reveal yourself by that expression, as though it is up to man to figure it all out. You strive in the flesh to be pleasing and acceptable to God when, instead, it is His work, and not man’s, that prevails and counts for anything before God. Have you not red that the carnal mind is at enmity with God?
Did God reveal anything to me concerning Billy Graham or was it another spirit? The record is clear, with substance, according to Scripture. Along with the Scripture you quote, it is also written:
“To the Law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this Word, it is because no light is in them” (Isaiah 8:20).
Why do you quote the 1 John verse (”Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world”) and then disregard it? Why do you not pay heed to Isaiah’s instruction? It is because you have “a form of godliness but deny the power thereof.” Why do you not try the spirits? Why do you believe, and judge after, the appearance? You “err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power thereof.”
In an interview, Billy Graham also once credited the Hearst newspaper for his success. He related how, in Los Angeles (I believe it was…it does not matter where), Hearst sent out a memo to his papers saying, “Puff Graham.” He said Hearst thus launched his career. My, my! I thought it was God Who prepared, empowered and sent out His ministers. Graham is a phony, William, and you are deceived because you too are a phony.
Paul has covered many of these matters with you in his letter, but as touching on judgment, I am before the throne of God as we speak, having been judged. Peter writes that judgment must first begin at the house of God. We, as members of the Church of God, His Body, have been judged, and now we are here to judge you. You need correction (judgment) because you are in darkness and error, yet presume to instruct. We are sent to do that very thing, to correct you. Whether you receive it or not is another matter. Initially, you will not, and we know that.
You ask, “How many souls have you won or even witnessed to for the Lord within the past month, days or hours?” We are bearing witness to thousands every day, contending for the faith once delivered to the saints, convincing the ungodly of all their ungodly ways and speeches, people like you, as Enoch prophesied would happen. Not that I need to give you any justification or credentials. You have none yourself, yet sit in judgment, after the appearance, of God’s servants. Even after the appearance, you fail miserably. Here we are, preaching the truth to many, you included, and you are asking me about our witness? You are blind, yet you think you see.
You instruct me to write about the coming of the Lord. You are not aware that He is here, now, present, “parousia.” That is because you do not confess that Jesus Christ comes in the flesh. Of what spirit, then, William, are you?
You instruct me to warn of eternal torment, referring to it as “HELL.” Shall I teach the most heinous of diabolical doctrines, which wicked and ignorant fools presumptuously teach, making vile God’s Name and Character? Why do you think Billy Graham teaches such heinous doctrine? Why do you think you believe him? I will tell you why. It is because neither of you knows the Lord nor the Scriptures, which He has moved men to write. You two do not have His Spirit. Yes, you believe the Scriptures teach eternal torment, but you are wrong, so very wrong. We can prove so by the Scriptures, but you will not listen, will you?
If we write the truth, by the Spirit of God, which we do, and you call it “hogwash” or “baloney,” where do you stand now, even as we judge by the Word spoken to you?
As to false and true conversions, go to Our Testimonies, and ponder for yourself. William, you are lost, so lost, and God is not at all precious to you as you so vainly profess with your lips. You are full of yourself, and your heart is light years away from Him. You need to repent, big time. You perish in your sins and speak presumptuously in His Name, thinking to do Him service.
Victor Hafichuk
A month later, William sent us the following note:
I am very curious. Where did you study (college)? During the course of study, did you study Systematic Theology? Not to be nosy…how much time do you spend in the Scriptures and in Prayer each day?
Victor’s reply:
William, how much time did John the Baptist spend studying “systematic theology”? Of how great a value was the time and energy spent studying “systematic theology” and Scripture by Saul of Tarsus? Of what value was Gamaliel’s college? Here is what Paul said, years after being apprehended by Jesus Christ:
“Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision party. For we are the circumcision who worship God in the spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh; though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other thinks that he has reason to trust in the flesh, I more. I was circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews. As regards the Law, I was a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness in the Law, blameless. But whatever things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. But no, rather, I also count all things to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for Whose sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them to be dung, so that I may win Christ and be found in Him; not having my own righteousness, which is of the Law, but through the faith of Christ, the righteousness of God by faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable to His death; if by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect, but I am pressing on, if I may lay hold of that for which I also was taken hold of by Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:2-12).
God does not prepare His servants in institutions of men. Which one of the prophets, apostles, evangelists, pastors or teachers do you find in Scripture studying “systematic theology” in “college”? And if you should cite the school of the prophets under Elijah, would you know the nature of their studies and prayer times? And why should you ask or know my time in prayer and study? Of what value is that knowledge to you?
William, why do you ask?
Finally, what does this Scripture mean?
“Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
Victor Hafichuk