While some think this is “prophetic,” and speaks to our generation in particular, the fact that it was also true in 1965 tells us that Graham had a great insight into church history. This is true of almost every era of the church.
“Multitudes of Christians within the church are moving toward the point where they may reject the institution that we call the church. They are beginning to turn to more simplified forms of worship. They are hungry for a personal and vital experience with Jesus Christ. They want a heartwarming personal faith. Unless the church quickly recovers its authoritative Biblical message, we may witness the spectacle of millions of Christians going outside the institutional church to find spiritual food.”
Billy Graham, 1965
I think this is the reference, but I’m not certain: “Billy Graham Speaks: The Evangelical World Prospect,” Christianity Today, 3:1 (Oct.13, 1958), 5.
I stand corrected! Thanks for the info. My back issues “only” go back to 1976.
Didn’t mean to correct really, just give context–I was lecturing on the “Spiritual but Not Religious” movement that day, so the quote gave me a great opp for context.