Excerpts from Billy Graham's Sunday night sermon, which focused on the New Testament parable of the prodigal son found in the gospel of Luke:

The Rev. Mr. Graham waves as he leaves the stage Sunday night. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        “Do you want to sing with me,” said Grammy winner George Beverly Shea. “Maybe later,” Graham said.

        “We're going to advertise ourselves as "older men for Christ.”'

        “Tonight, there are so many things I'd like to say on this closing night in Cincinnati. I don't know when we'll be back. We haven't been invited yet. (applause) I want to thank all those people who worked behind the scenes .. and Anthony Munoz ...”

        “But I want to thank my son, Franklin, whose been standing here ready to preach. One night, they told me it was over 100 degrees in here.”

        “Once, there were all these bugs flying around. Some of them even flew in my mouth. One was a special bug -- he tasted pretty good. ... But that's just one of hundreds of stories I could tell.”

        “I want to thank all of you. I wish I could come to all of your homes and drink tea with you . Or call you. Even if you don't like tea, you would like a call.”

        “It's been too much to come here on the heels of the National Underground Freedom Center. ... As long as I live, I want to make it back for the opening of that.”

        “There's one story that I want to tell. It's a story of a son who wanted to leave home. ... Many people ask me what God is like. I think that this story says what God is like more than any other story in the Bible. ... There is a son who wanted to get lost. ... He wanted to live his life as he pleased and he didn't want anyone to see. ... He didn't want to wait for his father to die.”

        “You go to church. You've been baptized. ... But deep down inside you don't really belong to Christ. This boy was running from himself. All around here, there are people who do the same.”

        “Sex. Greed. Fraud. ... He was involved in all of it.”

        “His physical hunger is a picture of our spiritual hunger. There are millions of people in the world who are physically hungry. There are millions more who are spiritually hungry. Maybe you don't have the peace and the satisfaction you want.”

        “Jesus said there's two roads. One is broad ... and it leads to disaster. There the narrow ... and it leads to eternal life.”

        “(The story) is also a picture of a young man's repentance. ... He realized he had sinned and he wanted to confess and cast his sin.”

        “To repent means that you change. You turn around. You change direction. You take another road. ... That's why we give this invitation.”

        “It gives people (the chance) to take a step to repentance. Many of you need to take that step.”

        “The day is coming when God will judge the world. But today is a day is grace.”

        “Not because we deserve it, but because of what Christ did on the cross. ... You don't have to do anything for it. God gives it to you.”

        “If you were the only person in the world that needed him, he would have died for you. ... On the third day, he rose again. And tonight, he's a living God.”

        “The longer you travel along that road away from God, the less you will think you need him. ... Cincinnati may never have another moment like this again.”

        “If you feel a tug in your heart at all, then it's not too late.”

        “Do come tonight. God is waiting to receive you with open arms..”

        “(The father) didn't condemn his son. He just hugged him and welcomed him home.”

        “The Bible says there's joy in heaven over one person's repentance.”

        “He has a gift for you. He's waiting to welcome you. ... There may never be another moment like this. Don't let this moment pass for you.”

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