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FIRST-PERSON: Sampling what’s in ‘The Name’


KENNER, La. (BP)–I want to recommend to you Franklin Graham’s newest book called “The Name,” published by Thomas Nelson in Nashville, Tenn. Here are a few quotes:

— “I love what my dear friend Roy Gustafson often said: ‘Religion is what sinful people try to do for a Holy God, and the Gospel is the Good News of what a Holy God has already done for sinful people'” (p. 74).

— (When Franklin Graham prayed at the inauguration of President George W. Bush, Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz wrote an article protesting his doing so in Jesus’ name. Franklin writes:) “I wanted to ask Mr. Dershowitz, ‘Since I am a minister of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, if I am to express my religious freedom, how am I supposed to pray?’ And who has the right to tell me what I should pray? As an American, am I not guaranteed freedom of speech? Freedom of worship? In my prayer, I did not ask or force anyone to agree with me I just did what I do: I always pray in His name” (p. 31).

— “An eloquent advocate of Christian faith, Ravi Zacharias wrote in ‘Jesus Among Other Gods,’ ‘We are living in a time when angry voices demand with increasing insistence that we ought not to propagate the Gospel, that we ought not to consider anyone ‘lost’ just because they are not Christians. ‘We are all born into different beliefs, and therefore, we should leave it that way,’ so goes the tolerant ‘wisdom’ of our time. When people make such statements, they forget or do not know that one is not born a Christian. All Christians are such by virtue of conversion. To ask the Christian not to reach out to anyone else who is from another faith is to ask that Christian to deny his own faith'” (p. 33).

— “The battle America is fighting against terrorism is really just a skirmish in a war that began when Satan turned against God and made his declaration of independence. God sent His Son to this earth on the ultimate commando raid. God inflicted the deathblow to evil on the cross, but the ‘mop-up’ operation will continue until He returns” (p. 43).

— “The Name of Jesus Christ is a lightning rod because Jesus Christ represents the division of life between good and evil, God and Satan, light and darkness, righteousness and sin, heaven and hell. The Name of Jesus shouts out a choice: ‘Whom will you serve, give your life to, depend upon?’ Rebellious, self-willed, sinful people want to retain the right to decide for themselves which way they will take. Jesus denies this option. Speaking on His behalf, the Apostle Peter said, ‘For there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved'” (p. 57).

— “We have looked at the controversy surrounding this Name. It is obvious that no other single person in history has influenced human events more than Jesus Christ.”

— “I want to ask you a pointed question. If you had been in the World Trade Towers that morning of 9/11, would you have been ready for death? Most of us do not dwell on the thought of death. A visit to Ground Zero causes one to give it some thought. Whether God blesses us with a long life or a short life, there is one thing we all have in common — the grave. Eventually, whether in a tragedy like the World Trade Center, from cancer in a hospital bed, or a heart attack in our sleep, we all will face death someday. Do you know your eternal destiny?” (p. 201).

— “Jesus is the only way to God, because He is the only One in history to take sin’s penalty for you and me. Buddha did not die for our sins; Muhammad did not die for our sins. No one paid the debt of sin for us except the Lord Jesus Christ — when He shed His blood on Calvary’s cross, went to the grave, and rose again on the third day. The only way we can come to God is by faith through His Son and Him alone” (p. 203).

— “If you desire to accept Christ as your Savior now, just pray this prayer: Dear God, I am a sinner. I am sorry for my sins. Forgive me. I believe that Jesus Christ is your Son. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins. I want to invite Him into my life. I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as my Lord, from this day forward, forevermore. In Jesus’ Name. Amen” (p. 204).
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McKeever is pastor of First Baptist Church, Kenner, La.

    About the Author

  • Joe McKeever