“Oral, who would have been 92 on January 24, was the founder of Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association (OREA), the ministry through which he conducted crusades across the globe over six decades. The ministry birthed, among others, Hunger Needs a Voice, a humanitarian outreach delivering nutritious meals to starving children, and the famous Oral Roberts University (ORU), a comprehensive Christian university—promoting the education of the whole person—mind, body, and spirit, with alumni all over the world. The outpouring of grief and the celebration of his life since the announcement of his passing has been of almost torrential proportions. It bespeaks love, great love and appreciation from a variety of sources.”
Tomorrow afternoon, a public memorial service will hold in Tulsa, Oklahoma in the US to honour one of the greatest men of God of our time, Evangelist Glanville Oral Roberts, who went to be with the Lord last Tuesday. He had a fall in his home the previous Saturday, was rushed to hospital and although he had a couple of broken bones, his departure was attributed to complications arising from pneumonia.
Oral, who would have been 92 on January 24, was the founder of Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association (OREA), the ministry through which he conducted crusades across the globe over six decades. The ministry birthed, among others, Hunger Needs a Voice, a humanitarian outreach delivering nutritious meals to starving children, and the famous Oral Roberts University (ORU), a comprehensive Christian university—promoting the education of the whole person—mind, body, and spirit, with alumni all over the world.
The outpouring of grief and the celebration of his life since the announcement of his passing has been of almost torrential proportions. It bespeaks love, great love and appreciation from a variety of sources.
Leading the cheer, naturally, was his son, Richard who described him as a beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He said, he was “not only my earthly father; he was also my spiritual father and mentor. He was the greatest man of God I’ve ever known. An innovator and a modern-day apostle of the healing ministry, he was one of the first men of his generation to build a worldwide ministry, an accredited university, and a medical and research center. He had a passion to bring healing to the sick. He came along when many in Christendom did not believe in God’s power and goodness, yet his name became synonymous with miracles…”
Pastor Benny Hinn who acknowledges Oral as his long-time friend and mentor admonished that “even as we grieve Dr. Roberts’ passing from this earth, we rejoice that he is now in heaven.” He continued: “What an amazing life! He was a giant in so many ways, and I was privileged to have him as a dear, dear friend for many years. Every time I was with him, I saw firsthand a heart consumed with the love of Jesus Christ. Through the years I have often thought of the standard he has set for so many ministers and believers to follow, and on this day of his glorious home-going, it is once again a time for all of us to reflect even more upon his tremendous impact…Only heaven will reveal how many hearts he has pointed toward heaven, how many homes have been revolutionized through his seed-faith teaching, and how many ears have heard his faith-filled phrase, "Expect a miracle!" God has used him to open doors that were once considered closed to the miracle-working power of the Gospel, and wherever I travel, I have been ever thankful for the trail he blazed…”
The two major US-based Christian broadcasters, Pat Robertson and Paul Crouch were not left out. Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) founder, Robertson said, "I am grieved at the passing of my dear friend, Oral Roberts…He was a pioneer in healing evangelism and in Christian education. He inspired a generation of young people to follow his lead in the charismatic ministry. We were friends for over 50 years and I will miss him…"
Dr Crouch of Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) who described Oral as “our dear friend” and “a spiritual father to millions of people both here in America and around the world,” was “thankful for the commitment he made to God to spread the Gospel message of salvation and healing. He was a sawdust pioneer who brought his tent revivals into the 20th century by means of radio and television and became the highest rated evangelist in prime time television. He opened the door for all of us who are now in Christian television.”
We've always considered Dr. Roberts a wonderful part of our TBN family…We will always be grateful for Dr. Roberts' enthusiasm and support for TBN, and will forever treasure the messages of inspiration he gave to Jan and me personally as he encouraged us to expand the vision and outreach of TBN to reach the whole wide world. His prayers and wisdom helped strengthen our faith in times of trial and difficulty. We…were blessed to see that he still had the desire to continue sharing the message God gave to him until his assignment was finished…”
Franklin Graham, President of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, had this to say: "Oral Roberts was loved and admired by millions of people around the world. I always appreciated the times when he went out of his way to befriend me. He invited me to speak at Oral Roberts University when I was just starting my ministry and was an encouragement to me.”
From this avalanche of tributes, two are noteworthy as they reveal the heart of the departed man of God. Kenneth W. Hagin, whose father was a contemporary of the late faith icon, apart acknowledged that one of my greatest compliments he was ever paid came from Oral Roberts who described him as a “preaching machine” after he preached at Campmeeting one year, also recalled Oral’s letter to the Hagin family at the passing of the older Hagin. It read in part: “My heart feels the tug of Heaven as it won’t be long until I am with him (Brother Hagin) face to face in Heaven.”
The other was from Billy Graham. He remembers Oral Roberts as “a man of God, and a great friend in ministry” whom he loved “as a brother” and with whom he “had many quiet conversations over the years, recalling that he invited “Oral to speak at one of our early international conferences on evangelism held in Berlin in the 1960s”. Then he added: “Just three weeks ago, I was privileged to talk to Oral over the telephone. During the short conversation, he said to me that he was near the end of his life's journey. I look forward to the day that I will see Oral and Evelyn Roberts again in Heaven--our eternal home.” (Continues Next Week).
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