Dake Bible Discussion Board ⇒ Are All Sins Equal in God's Eyes? Billy Graham Sounds Off

[bibleman]

Are All Sins Equal in God's Eyes? Billy Graham Sounds Off

9:00AM EDT 3/28/2014 BILLY GRAHAM

When once asked, "What is the definition of sin?" Billy Graham gave the following answer:

"A sin is any thought or action that falls short of God’s will. God is perfect, and anything we do that falls short of His perfection is sin.

"The Bible actually uses a number of examples or 'word pictures' to illustrate what this means. For example, it tells us that sin is like an archer who misses the target. He draws back his bow and sends the arrow on its way—but instead of hitting the bull’s eye, it veers off course and misses the mark. The arrow may only miss it a little bit, or it may miss it a great deal—but the result is the same: The arrow doesn’t land where it is supposed to.

"The same is true of sin. God’s will is like the center of that target—and when we sin, we fall short of His will or miss the mark. And this is something we do every day; as the Bible says, 'For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God' (Rom. 3:23, NIV). Even when we aren’t aware of it, we commit sin by the things we do (or fail to do), or by the way we think.

"This is why we need Christ, for only He can forgive us all our sins, and only He can help us live the way we should. We can’t forgive ourselves, nor can we change our hearts and make ourselves better in God’s eyes."

Graham has also been asked whether all sins are equal in God’s eyes. This was his answer:

"It is always difficult and dangerous to attempt to list sins according to their degree of seriousness. In one sense, all sins are equal in that they all separate us from God. The Bible’s statement, 'For the wages of sin is death' (Rom. 6:23), applies to all sin, whether in thought, word or deed.

"At the same time, it seems obvious that some sins are worse than others in both motivation and effects, and should be judged accordingly. Stealing a loaf of bread is vastly different than exterminating a million people. Sins may also differ at their root.

"Theologians have sought for centuries to determine what the essence of sin is. Some have chosen sensuality, others selfishness, and still others pride or unbelief. In the Old Testament, God applied different penalties to different sins, suggesting variations in the seriousness of some sins. A thief paid restitution; an occult practitioner was cut off from Israel; one who committed adultery or a homosexual act or cursed his parents was put to death. (See Exodus 21 and Leviticus 20.)

"In the New Testament, Jesus said it would be more bearable on the Day of Judgment for Sodom than for Capernaum because of Capernaum’s unbelief and refusal to repent after witnessing His miracles (Matt. 11:23-24). The sins of Sodom were identified in Ezekiel 16:15-22 as arrogance, gluttony, indifference to the poor and needy, haughtiness, and 'detestable' things.

"When Jesus spoke of His Second Coming and judgment, He warned that among those deserving punishment some would 'be beaten with many blows' and others 'with few blows' (Luke 12:47-48). He also reserved His most fierce denunciations for the pride and unbelief of the religious leaders, not the sexually immoral (Matt. 23:13-36).

"However, remember that whether our sins are relatively small or great, they will place us in hell apart from God’s grace. The Good News is that Jesus paid the penalty for our sins and the sins of the whole world at the cross. If we will repent and turn to Jesus in faith, our sins will be forgiven, and we will receive the gift of eternal life."

You can read the original article at http://www.BillyGraham.org.

[Rocky]

First of all I believe Billy graham has been used by God in a mighty way. And I agree with a lot of what he said here accept:

Billy Graham: "A sin is any thought or action that falls short of God’s will. God is perfect, and anything we do that falls short of His perfection is sin.

The bible Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet

[branham1965]

ARE YOU KIDDING ME????????????? BILLY GRAHAM IS GETTING "CORRECTED" ??????????????


SIGHS..........

[Justaned]

I wonder what passage Graham was thinking of when he mentioned the archer and arrow.
While the illustration does not speak of the archers intention I think it speaks well of how sin is sin.

I think the major failure of Christianity today is it's failure to emphasize the need to be in and do God's will.
Too many today want all of Christianity and what it offers but fail to submit to God's will.

[branham1965]

BILLY GRAHAMIS A VERY DEVOUT HUMBLE MAN. I LOVE THE FACT HE ISNT A KNOW IT ALL.
HE IS A SPECIAL MAN. AS IS HIS SON.

CATHOLICS ARE NO GOOD VILE ROTTEN CULTISTS , DEMOCRATS ARE DEMONS. LITTLE CHILDREN ARE CAST INTO HELLFIRE AS ARE INNOCENT BABIES BUT LET A WOMAN BE RAPED AND BEATEN AND FOLKS WHINE IF SHE TERMINATES HER PREGNANCY. HOW RIDICULOUS.

LIKE MACARTHUR.I DISAGREE WITH HIS LATEST BOOK. BUT I WAS TAUGHT TO RESPECT THE MINISTRY.
SAME WITH DR.KENYON. HE WAS A FINE TEACHER AND MAN. I DISAGREE WITH THE JDS TEACHING 100%%%%%%%.....BUT I OWE HIM AN APOLOGY.

IT TAKES A MAN TO STICK HIS CHEST OUT AND SAY I WAS OR AM ....WRONG.

[titus213]

He is probably thinking of the meaning given in Strong and other lexicons for the most common Greek word for "sin", 'hamartizo' and 'hamartano' . . . to miss the mark.
See Dake's comments in places like John 1:29. There he adds this thought: "Christ came to teach men how to shoot straight -- to hit the moral bullseye every time"

[Rocky]

ARE YOU KIDDING ME????????????? BILLY GRAHAM IS GETTING "CORRECTED" ??????????????


SIGHS..........

Hi Billy I love Billy Graham, I did not correct Billy Graham, the apostles John and Paul did I was merely pointing out that his statement is not really a complete biblical definition of what sin is. I was not trying to come across arrogant just pointing something out. Being in sin means being under the law, the law was intended to give knowledge of sin
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

And also to show guilt and accountability
Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

So Billy Grahams explanation was not that accurate
So its easy really, the law was given to show us our guilt and to establish what sin is until Christ came. And we have broken the law and the law and it became a curse to us, Christ came and redeemed us from the curse of the law. So Sin in the bible is defined as breaking the law. So in essence sin is sin, because without Christ we are all under its curse, because the word says
For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

[branham1965]

my bad Rocky.
you are .sighs.....

ARE YOU KIDDING ME????????????? BILLY GRAHAM IS GETTING "CORRECTED" ??????????????


SIGHS..........

Hi Billy I love Billy Graham, I did not correct Billy Graham, the apostles John and Paul did I was merely pointing out that his statement is not really a complete biblical definition of what sin is. I was not trying to come across arrogant just pointing something out. Being in sin means being under the law, the law was intended to give knowledge of sin
Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

And also to show guilt and accountability
Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

So Billy Grahams explanation was not that accurate
So its easy really, the law was given to show us our guilt and to establish what sin is until Christ came. And we have broken the law and the law and it became a curse to us, Christ came and redeemed us from the curse of the law. So Sin in the bible is defined as breaking the law. So in essence sin is sin, because without Christ we are all under its curse, because the word says
For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

[victoryword]

Roger, if you really believed in the Matthew 5 passage then you would not be advocating this "God of Hate" that you and other have been promoting lately. The passage in context says:

Matthew 5:43-48
43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Godly perfection, in context, means to love those that hate you. When you love those that hate you then you are being like your Father in Heaven. But you and others claim that God hates people. So you tell me Roger, how do you reconcile this passage and its context with your God of Hate?

[Justaned]

Roger, if you really believed in the Matthew 5 passage then you would not be advocating this "God of Hate" that you and other have been promoting lately. The passage in context says:

Matthew 5:43-48
43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Godly perfection, in context, means to love those that hate you. When you love those that hate you then you are being like your Father in Heaven. But you and others claim that God hates people. So you tell me Roger, how do you reconcile this passage and its context with your God of Hate?

Oh my aching back!