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ROB PHILLIPS
He has preached the gospel to more than 200 million people in 185 lands and, at 91, still maintains that his one purpose in life is "to help people find a personal relationship with God, which, I believe, comes through knowing Christ."
Billy Graham, whose crusade in Los Angeles in 1949 vaulted him into the public square, is far and away the top living preacher that has most influenced Protestant pastors, according to a survey released Feb. 2 by LifeWay Research.
In telephone interviews conducted in November 2009, Protestant pastors were asked to "name the top three living Christian preachers that most influence you." Twenty-one percent of pastors surveyed said Graham -- nearly three times the number who named Charles R. Swindoll, prominent pastor, author and host of the radio Bible-teaching ministry Insight for Living.
Graham, who served as pastor early in his ministry, has led major evangelistic campaigns around the world, authored 27 books and counseled many U.S. presidents. His appeal to both religious and secular audiences is evidenced by the wide range of organizations that have honored him, including the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and the George Washington Carver Memorial Institute.
While Graham's position at the top may have been expected, the list as a whole was a bit surprising for its lack of diversity, according to Ed Stetzer, director of LifeWay Research. "Considering our sample includes liberal and conservative, all races and ethnicities, mainline and evangelical, we were surprised that the list looked like mainstream Christian radio and publishing and was not more representative," he said. "Of course, the majority who answer drive the final numbers, but I was expecting more diversity in the responses."
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