Billy Graham was presented with the first American Bible Society (ABS) Heroes of the Faith Lifetime Achievement Award. Paul Irwin, president of the American Bible Society and Lamar Vest, chairman of the Board of Trustees, made the presentation that recognized five-and-a-half decades of Graham's service.

Presenting the award, Irwin told Graham he had anchored his life and ministry in the Scriptures. “With your Bible held high, you would pronounce, 'the Bible says,' establishing the authority with which you spoke and unleashing your intensity of conviction,” Irwin said. “With 'the Bible says' you reminded listeners that you were not expressing an opinion, but you were imploring them, urgently and sincerely, on God's behalf.”

ABS presented Graham its first Heroes of the Faith Lifetime Achievement Award to “commemorate our spirit of partnership, and honor you for a lifetime of service devoted to proclaiming God's Word,” he said.

Graham responded: “I am honored and overwhelmed, and I feel hope that not long from now I can present this to Jesus. It is His Spirit that takes that Word and applies it to our hearts. When I preach, I don't think about numbers, but rather one individual, whose life can be changed by the preaching of His Word.”

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