Of Angels, Devils and Messages From God

By Richard N. Ostling, Billy Graham

Billy Graham expresses beliefs that remain firmly based upon the Bible, yet ^ often sound moderate in a world of Fundamentalist fire. He spoke about his creed with 's Richard N. Ostling.

ON GOD. God does not dwell in a body, so we cannot define him in a material way. God is a spirit. I have had tremendous messages from him, which are from the Bible; it's not something I've dreamed up or had a vision of. It's important to study the Bible on a daily basis so he can speak to me.

ON SCRIPTURE. We have to have some rule of law in theology as well as every other part of our lives, and the rule of our spiritual life is found in the Bible, which I believe was totally and completely inspired by God. Our good works come from our belief that the Bible is inspired by God, and the life of Christ is our pattern.

ON HELL. The only thing I could say for sure is that hell means separation from God. We are separated from his light, from his fellowship. That is going to be hell. When it comes to a literal fire, I don't preach it because I'm not sure about it. When the Scripture uses fire concerning hell, that is possibly an illustration of how terrible it's going to be -- not fire but something worse, a thirst for God that cannot be quenched.

ON DEVILS AND ANGELS. We have a community of devils, and Satan is their commander in chief. Jesus is the commander in chief of the angels. They are very powerful -- not all-powerful -- and do God's bidding. I believe we have guardian angels. I expect I would have been dead long ago without a guardian angel.

ON THE VIRGIN BIRTH. That is a very tender and fantastic thing. Because I believe the Bible, I believe it's important. It is not necessary for one's salvation, but as we follow Christ it's one of the cardinal points we must accept.

ON CHRIST'S RESURRECTION. Chancellor Konrad Adenauer of West Germany asked me once if I believed in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. I said, Yes, I do. He said, So do I, and if Jesus Christ was not raised from the dead, there's no hope for the human race. I hold the same view. Christianity wouldn't be Christianity without it.