Billy Graham and Charles Spurgeon: Examples for Election Engagement
“Larry, I’m a pastor and I want to be like Billy Graham—preach the gospel! I don’t want to get involved in politics.”
Graham did preach the gospel and lots more. He told me personally (pointing to his Bible), “Stay in the book!”
Remember: Graham was an evangelist, not a pastor whose primary responsibility is to feed the flock, preach “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27b, NKJV) and equip the saints for works of service (Eph. 4:12) so we fulfill our mandate to be “salting” society, holding back decay and not simply trying to avoid controversy.
He did both as God’s ambassador, announcing the gospel plus addressing the evils of his day: atheistic communism; segregation and racism (front-page headline in South Africa: “Billy Graham Calls Apartheid Sin!”); same-sex “marriage” and sexual immorality. He and his son Franklin placed a full-page statement in the Charlotte Observer exposing gay marriage and upholding biblical marriage between a man and a woman.
Charles Spurgeon
In the mid-1800s, Charles Spurgeon, prince of preachers, was a master Bible teacher, believing in the sufficiency of Scripture to address all issues as he emphasized the sovereignty of God and called for repentance. I love his famous quote: “Bold-hearted men are always called mean-spirited by cowards!”
He spoke out boldly against slavery, causing his sermons to be burned in America. He said,
I often hear it said, “Do not bring religion into politics.” This is precisely where it ought to be brought. … The Cabinet and Parliament do the work of the nation as before the Lord … We have had enough of clever men without conscience, let us now see what honest, God-fearing men will do. … Let the policies which are founded on wrong be cast like idols to the moles and to the bats. Whether we are kings, or queens, or prime ministers, or members of parliament, or crossing sweepers, this is our rule if we are Christians.
Free Speech
Spurgeon speaks to us in America today. Multitudes have been misled regarding the “separation of church and state,” (which appears nowhere in our founding documents) and correctly interpreted means freedom of religion, not freedom from religion.
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Many have been misled by the so-called Johnson Amendment (1954) used to intimidate and muzzle pastors afraid of losing tax exempt status, causing scores to refrain from any advocacy or opposition to political candidates or legislation. Truth be told, the IRS has never actually revoked the tax-exempt status of any church for violating this unconstitutional policy. The Alliance Defending Freedom is currently working to once and for all eliminate this measure (contact them for any caution or clarification).
Are you aware that prior to 1954, churches and ministries never had any problem speaking about political issues and political leaders?
Spurgeon was not afraid to address controversial issues such as freedom of speech. He spoke on other political issues: slavery, which he branded as the “foulest blot;” corruption in government (excoriating a “tyrant king”); using his monthly magazine “The Sword and the Trowel” to address societal events, which were mild compared to today. He refused to go woke as he spoke out about compromise and what he believed to be unscriptural practices, eventually departing his Baptist Union denomination and being “canceled” by colleagues and friends.
There is a cost to being a person of conviction. I know this firsthand, as I experienced the same thing along my ministry journey. After doing a biblical based video called “Is Gay OK?” the top leader of the church where I served said it was a “deal breaker”: “Just go and don’t come back.”
Applied Today
Do you really think Spurgeon, a man of strong convictions, would have been silent if a young girl in his congregation had teen boys come into her bathroom or changing room? Would he have been mute if leaders in London were endorsing and celebrating taxpayer-funded abortion up until the moment of birth and beyond? Would he have turned a deaf ear to English magistrates pushing surgical mutilation of young children in the name of “gender care,” pornography distributed in schools, calls for defunding police, and parades of homosexuals and undressed lesbians openly in the streets of London along with drag queen presentations in elementary schools?
Would Spurgeon simply look the other way if over 1 million unborn babies were slaughtered in the womb yearly? How about 100,000 dying yearly from drugs coming into the U.K. from “open borders?” Or 100,000 children declared missing, with scores ending up in sex trafficking, rape and horrible deaths?
Is this “loving our neighbor” to allow this on our watch and support politicians who have this blood on their hands? Let’s be real: Is simply studying books of the Bible and avoiding hot-button issues getting the job done?
“So for one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin” (James 4:17, NASB).
4 Kinds of Pastors
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1. Complacent. Sadly, there are many in the pulpit who have “left [their] first love” (Rev. 2:4b, NKJV) and are merely maintaining status quo religious services to make a living and wait out the clock until it’s time to recalibrate careers or comfortably retire.
2. Compromising. Tragically, some are caving to “woke” cultural pressures and betraying the call to “contend for the faith … once delivered” (Jude1:3) and choosing to yield to the fear of man and societal acceptance.
3. Cowardly. Those first cast in the lake of fire (see Rev. 21:8b) are those who submit to the fear of man, lacking biblical convictions in these “times that try men’s souls,” they’re afraid of losing members, tithers and maybe their salary and next mortgage payment.
4. Courageous. Billy Graham said, “Courage is contagious!” and the good news today is that many are awakening to bring both grace and truth, declaring the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27b) in one of the most serious moments in America’s history.
Our Defining Moment
Liberty or tyranny? Free-market capitalism or Marxist socialism? The window is closing fast in America, and if the wrong candidate takes office, conservatives will awaken to chilling consequences.
We are at an inflection point in this existential crisis requiring all of us to summon bravery to honor our Judeo-Christian heritage and our Founding Fathers’ ideals.
If you are a pastor, parent or person who can influence others, please avail yourself of the free, instantly available brief videos prepared by 16 key leaders in America to help you with the 30 hot-button issues of our day. We need to be informed influencers, changing the hearts and minds of as many as we possibly can. Go to , click the Bullseye graphic and get started!
Here’s the Deal
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years, telling our children and children’s children what it was once like in the United States, where men were free.
— Ronald Reagan
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Larry Tomczak is a best-selling author of 10 books, cultural commentator of 50 years, Intercessors for America board member and a public policy adviser with Liberty Counsel. Go to to watch 30 amazing, free, brief, on-demand videos by America’s top leaders so you can confidently address today’s tough issues.