LITTLE ROCK — DEAR REV. GRAHAM: What makes Jesus different from any other great man who ever lived? In my opinion, you could say He was a failure because He never did anything important, did He?
- J.S.
DEAR J.S.: Jesus never commanded massive armies or founded universities or accumulated great wealth while He was on earth -yet 2,000 years later millions upon millions of people build their lives on His teaching and look to Him for their eternal salvation. And across the world countless hospitalsand orphanages and schools have been built in His name. No, Jesus wasn’t a failure!
But what made Him different from anyone else who ever lived? He was unique for one reason: He wasn’t only a man, He was also God. This staggers our imagination, but Jesus was God in human flesh - fully man, and fully God. As the Bible says, “He is the image of the invisible God.... For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him” (Colossians 1:15,19).
What did Jesus actually accomplish? During His days on earth Jesus performed the greatest deed anyone could ever accomplish: He broke down the barriers between us and God. Our greatest need was to be reconciled to God - but how could that happen, since we were separated from God because of our sins? It was only possible if God acted to save us - and that is what He did when Jesus Christ died on the cross for us.
I invite you to examine Jesus as He is found in the pages of the New Testament. When you do, you’ll discover not only who He was and what He did for us, but that He can change your life.
Write to Billy Graham in care of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C. 28201 or visit the website at
Family, Pages 34 on 07/28/2010