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Billy Graham, No fear, no fencing himself off, no pettiness - no viewpoints, not afraid to associate with anyone, the most open and all un-compassing mind, Unto the hills, willing to talk and exchange ideas with anyone
Is fear natural? Is fear normative? Does Jesus give us an idea about fear? What says the fellow who faced hundreds of thousands, and still hasn’t stopped. He says this:
“Jesus wasn’t afraid to associate with anyone! One of the things which the scribes and Pharisees criticized bitterly was His willingness to help and talk to and exchange ideas with anyone, be they publicans, thieves, learned professors or prostitutes, rich or poor! Even His own followers decried some of the people with whom He was seen in public, but this did not lessen the compassion that Jesus felt for all the members of poor, blinded, and struggling humanity.
“Jesus had the most open and all-encompassing mind that this world has ever seen. His own inner conviction was so strong, so firm, so unswerving that He could afford to mingle with any group secure in the knowledge that he would not be contaminated. It is fear that makes us unwilling to listen to another’s point of view, fear that our own ideas may be attacked. Jesus had no such fear, no such pettiness of viewpoint, no need to fence Himself off for his own protection. He knew the difference between graciousness and compromise, and we would do well to learn from Him. He set for us the most magnificent and glowing example of truth combined with mercy of all time, and in departing said, “Go and do likewise.” (1)
— Billy Graham. Unto the Hills. Word Publishing. 1986. Pp. 123-124.
(quoted in The Book of Jesus by Calvin Miller, pg. 170.
(1) Luke 10:37)
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