ON CHRISTIANITY

DEAR REV. GRAHAM: Recently, a couple came to our door and asked if they could read the Bible to us. We said yes, but later I began wondering if they were from a cult. They said Christian churches don’t understand the Bible, and only their group understands it correctly. Are they right?

— S. McN. DEAR S. MCN.: No, they’re not right. Christians throughout the ages have understood the Bible’s central message and have sought to live by it.

That message is centered in Jesus Christ, who was fully God and fully man, and who came into the world for one reason: to make it possible for our sins to be forgiven and for us to go to heaven. He did this by becoming the final and complete sacrifice for our sins through His death on the cross, and He proved it by rising from the dead by the power of God. This is why the Bible says that “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Your question, however, suggests to me that you want to know more about God, and I hope you’ll act on that desire. You can do this simply by telling God that you want to know Him — not just know about Him, but actually have a personal relationship with Him. Then by faith ask Jesus Christ to come into your life, and He will.

Don’t be misled by those who could lead you astray, no matter how friendly or sincere they seem. Ask God to lead you to a church where Christ is preached and you can grow in your faith. God loves you, and He wants you to be part of His family forever, beginning today. Write to Billy Graham in care of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C. 28201 or visit the website at