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(Text
& audio following of "God Cares for Us" Rev. Billy
Graham's 9-14-01 Address at the National Cathedral) in
black printing
Significance: There is one thing out there about what happened last Tuesday/Friday (Sept 11 & Sept 14) that came in under the radar and escaped most Christians. Then for the first time in history, one man (Billy Graham) spoke the Gospel to the entire world at the same time. He gave the sermon that day at the National Memorial Service and was broadcast on every major television station in the U.S. and by satellite to the world.
Every country in the world received this
broadcast...and because it was The Rev. Billy Graham Editor's
note: By popular demand, here is the text of the Rev. Billy Graham's
address at National Cathedral during the National Day of Prayer
and Remembrance for the Victims of the Terrorist Attacks. MP3 1st of 4 audios President
and Mrs. Bush, I want to say a personal word on behalf of many people.
Thank you, Mr. President, for calling this Day of Prayer and
Remembrance. We needed it at this time. We come
together today to affirm our conviction that God cares for us, whatever
our ethnic, religious or political background may be. The Bible
says that He is "the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our
troubles." No matter
how hard we try words simply cannot express the horror, the shock, and
the revulsion we all feel over what took place in this nation on Tuesday
morning. September 11 will go down in our history as a day to remember. Today we say
to those who masterminded this cruel plot, and to those who carried it
out, that the spirit of this nation will not be defeated by their
twisted and diabolical schemes. Some day those responsible will be
brought to justice, as President Bush and our Congress have so
forcefully stated. But today we
especially come together in this service to confess our need of God.
We've always needed God from the very beginning of this nation but today
we need Him especially. We're facing a new kind of enemy. We're involved
in a new kind of warfare and we need the help of the Spirit of God The
Bible's words are our hope: "God is our refuge and strength, an
ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the
earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea"
(Psalm 46:1,2, NIV). But how do
we understand something like this? Why does God allow evil like this to
take place? Perhaps that is what you are asking now. You may even be
angry at God. I want to assure you that God understands those feelings
that you may have. We've seen
so much on our television, and hear on our radio, stories that bring
tears to our eyes and make us all feel a sense of anger. But God can be
trusted, even when life seems at its darkest. But what are
some of the lessons we can learn? First, we
are reminded of the mystery and reality of evil. I have been
asked on hundreds of times in my life why God allows tragedy and
suffering. I have to confess that I really do not know the answer
totally, even to my own satisfaction. I have to accept, by faith, that
God is sovereign, and He is a God of love and mercy and compassion in
the midst of suffering. MP3The Bible says God is not the author of evil. It
speaks of evil as a "mystery." In 2 Thessalonians 2:7 it talks
about the mystery of iniquity. The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah said,
"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can
understand it?" He asked that question, "Who can understand
it?" And that is one reason we each need God in our lives. The
lesson of this event is not only about the mystery of iniquity and evil,
but secondly, it is a lesson about our need for each other. What an
example New York and Washington have been to the world these past few
days! None of us will ever forget the pictures of our courageous
firefighters and police, many of whom have lost friends and colleagues,
or the hundreds of people attending or standing patiently in line to
donate blood. A tragedy like this could have torn this country apart,
but instead it has united us and we have become a family. So those
perpetrators who took this on to tear us apart, it has worked the other
way. It has back lashed, it has backfired. We are more united than ever
before. I think this was exemplified in a very moving way when the
members of our Congress stood shoulder to shoulder the other day and
sang, "God Bless America." Finally,
difficult as it may be for us to see right now - this event can give a
message of hope -- hope for the present, and hope for the future. Yes, there
is hope. There is hope for the present because I believe the stage has
already been set for a new spirit in our nation. One of the
things we desperately need is a spiritual renewal in this country. We
need a spiritual revival in America. And God has told us in His Word,
time after time, that we are to repent of our sins and we're to turn to
Him and He will bless us in a new way. There is
also hope for the future because of God's promises. As a Christian, I
have hope not just for this life, but for heaven and the life to come.
And many of those people who died this past week are in heaven right now
and they wouldn't want to come back. It's so glorious and so wonderful.
And that's the hope for all of us who put our faith in God. I pray that
you will have this hope in your heart. This event
reminds us of the brevity and the uncertainty of life. We never know
when we too will be called into eternity. I doubt if even one of those
people who got on those planes, or walked into the World Trade Center or
the Pentagon last Tuesday morning thought it would be the last day of
their lives. It didn't occur to them. And that's why each of us needs to
face our own spiritual need and commit ourselves to God and His will
now. Here in this
majestic National Cathedral we see all around us the symbols of the
Cross. For the Christian, I'm speaking for the Christian now, the Cross
tells us that God understands our sin and our suffering, for He took
them upon Himself in the person of Jesus Christ our sins and our
suffering. And from the Cross, God declares, "I love you. I know
the heartaches and the sorrows and the pains that you feel. But I love
you." The story
does not end with the Cross, for Easter points us beyond the tragedy of
the Cross to the empty tomb that tells us that there is hope for eternal
life, for Christ has conquered evil and death, and hell. Yes, there is
hope. I've become
an old man now and I've preached all over the world and the older I get
the more I cling to that hope that I started with many years ago and
proclaimed it in many languages in many parts of the world. Several
years ago at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, Ambassador
Andrew Young (who had just gone through the tragic death of his wife),
closed his talk with a quote from the old hymn "How Firm a
Foundation ... ." We all
watched in horror as planes crashed into the steel and glass of the
World Trade Center. Those majestic towers, built on solid foundations,
were examples of the prosperity and creativity of America. When
damaged, those building eventually plummeted to the ground, imploding in
upon themselves. Yet, underneath the debris, is a foundation that was
not destroyed. Therein lies the truth of that old hymn, "How Firm a
Foundation ... ." Yes, our nation has been attacked, buildings
destroyed, and lives lost. But now we
have a choice: whether to implode and disintegrate emotionally and
spiritually as a people and a nation - or, whether we choose to become
stronger through all of this struggle - to rebuild on a solid
foundation. And I believe we are in the process of starting to rebuild
on that foundation. That foundation is our trust in God. That's what
this service is all about and in that faith we have the strength to
endure something as difficult and horrendous as what we have experienced
this week. This has
been a terrible week with many tears but it has also been a week of
great faith. Churches all across the country have called prayer meetings
and today is a day that they are celebrating not only in this country
but in many parts of the world. And in the
words of that familiar hymn, My prayer
today is that we will feel the loving arms of God wrapped around us, and
will know in our hearts that He will never forsake us as we trust in
Him. We also know
that God is going to give wisdom and courage and strength to the
President and those around him. And this is going to be a day that we
will remember as a day of victory. May God
bless you all. One Transcript
Source:
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2001/9/14/210257.shtml Also available as well as other speech text/audios from: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speechbank.htm |
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