Message Of Grace #07

Heavenly Father, we’re grateful again to be in Your Presence knowing that the Blood of Jesus Christ justifies us from all sin, scattering the sins till there be no evidence whatsoever, so we stand bold in Your Presence Lord, today, but not to take advantage of grace to take disadvantage to us but rather to be sober and sincere in Your Presence Lord, and may we be very sober, very sincere at this time to know Your Word Lord, to know truth, truth in the inner man, that sets us free.

Help us in all these things Lord, we’ll be careful to give You the glory in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

You may be seated.

Now, of course, we’re still looking at The Message of Grace as preached by Brother Branham back about 1961, somewhere in that area, and it’s on number 7, and this part is just at the time of an altar call where he has invited people to receive Jesus Christ as their Saviour and then begin to live for Him.

And, of course, from this portion he will be dealing with his ministry as he prays for the sick, especially showing the people the gift of discernment in operation whereby it is the significant sign of the Messiah that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.

So we really no need to recap except to say that we have read the part of the altar call and we’ll be hearing Brother Branham instruct the strangers because there are those in the audience who have never seen him or heard him, and he’ll be instructing those strangers from the Word of the Lord that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.

So reading on page 30, paragraph 175, he said,

[175]  Don’t you love Him? Isn’t He wonderful? Oh, I just think He’s wonderful. Now, just think, that this Bible is His truth, [and the statement comes] and this Bible teaches [that Jesus Christ is] …the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Now with that statement you can be sure that He’s going to be expressing to you how that He is known to be the same today as He was yesterday which means what He is today doing the same as He was doing when He was here on earth.

I want to ask you something. If He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and God forgive me for saying the sacrilegious word, “if,” but He is the same. But if He is the same [or the better word would be ‘since’ He is the same or ‘because’ He is the same, we might say, since He is the same] [I’ll put it like that], then what kind of a person would He be? He’d be the same that He was.

Now the next paragraph is going to explain how that He would be at this time the same as He was.

[176]  Now there’s only… Now, there’d only be one thing different in Him being here this morning than when He was amongst the people of Galilee—and that would be His Own body of flesh, His corporal body; because that was raised up (do you believe that?), and sits at the right hand of the Majesty on High, ever living to make intercession for our confession.

Now what you’re looking at here then is that this living body that God indwelt, known as the Lord Jesus Christ, that body has been raised from the dead and is seated at the right hand of Almighty God and is motivated by the same life that was in the embryo that produced Christ as a babe in his mother’s womb. It’s that same life.

Now you know that the life of a child consists of a sperm and an egg, usually consider the male has the life, the woman is the carrier, although that’s not a hundred percent true, because if the egg was rotten it would… she could never conceive. So there’s got to be something there that is at least life sustaining and life… that’s the best word, life sustaining.

Now that’s how it was with Jesus at his birth but at the River Jordan, of course, God came in, in His fullness, the entirety of the Holy Spirit which is God, came in and indwelt Him, making him God in a body of human flesh.

So he said there’s one difference between that day and this day and that is as God left the body of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and then that body was crucified and died and raised again, that body was taken up and set in heaven wherein God did not then re-indwell Him or reincarnate Himself, no way.

He stayed separate. Okay, you understand that. All right.

Now, this one raised up called the body which it is true it is, is still known as Messiah, the physical part. Now he’s raised up to be the high priest for our confession, and he’ll go into that confession shortly.

[176]  Remember, He cannot do one thing [that’s that living God and the living Christ] …cannot do one thing for us until… we first accept Him and believe that He is, and say what He has said, for He is the High Priest…

Now that goes back to before the incarnation. You have to accept the Word of God as being the Word of God and you have to believe that Jesus is risen from the dead to back up that Word that you believe. Now you’ll notice that Brother Branham says the truth here. He cannot do one thing until first we accept Him.

Accept Him is the only prerequisite or the only requisite for grace. Grace means an extreme condition wherein you can do nothing. Someone has to do it for you. Now this is where we have the grace of God. You cannot save yourself so God’s willing to save you but you have to be willing to accept.

That is the one thing. Either take it or leave it. There’s where Brother Branham so correctly said, “That the soul has the privilege of doubting or believing, receiving or rejecting.” So his statement here is very, very correct.

[176]  …He cannot do one thing for us until first we accept Him and believe that He is, and what He says… what He has said, for He is the High Priest… He’s the High Priest making intercessions upon our confession.

Now thus he himself, Jesus that rose from the dead is backing our confession making it good. See? In other words, our confession before God becomes THUS SAITH THE LORD; it does, as we leave it in the hands of Christ.

Let me just take a look at that little statement that Brother Branham made here some time ago, if I can find it. He says, “The right mental attitude toward any divine promise will bring it to pass.” The right attitude is to receive it and say that it is THUS SAITH THE LORD.

And this is how you make it THUS SAITH THE LORD. You say what He said for the purpose of what He said it. Then when you say what He said that places it in the hands of Christ so that He then can see that we have the petition.

As John said, “If we know that He hears us we know that we have the petition we desired.” What petition is that? He said, “If we ask anything in His Name,” and, of course, you can only ask in His name what’s in that Word because there’s got to be a promise for it. Then it says, “If we know that He hears us we know that we have the petition we desired.”

Why? Because it is placed in His hands making it THUS SAITH THE LORD. See? Because what do I mean by that? It’s got to come to pass. The simplicity is what hurts us.

[177]  Now a lot of you Bible readers say That says “profess.” And profess and confess is the same word, [Well, it is in the sense that the translators made a mistake. It should not be profess; it should be confess because that is the actual Greek word.] see. “Made the high priest,” in the book of Hebrews, …chapter 3, “now making intercession upon our confession.” [And that’s true.] Then He can’t do anything until first we confess that He’s done it.

It’s got to be having been given to you to receive, the price paid for it, so it’s by grace, so you can simply confess what He did, what He said He would do, it is done, and say now, it’s in His hands, I will wait for it patiently. Now the waiting patiently is the bug bear. We’ve studied that different times.

[177]  Now, then He can’t do anything until we first… confess that He’s done it. See, you get down here at the altar and you could pray all night, wouldn’t do you a bit of good until you believe that He forgives you, then you stand up. Then as much faith as you have, that’s what you use. That’s good. You lived once way down here in the muck of sin. Now, you young converts, now you believe that you’re saved, don’t you? Then you raise up here, you rose a little higher. What does that? Your faith. And because you believe you’re a Christian now, you’ll live above that thing… see [because you’re confessing it and looking for strength.] …see. Now if you want to rise a little higher, just have more faith, because it’s unlimited. Just keep on.

Now what is faith? Faith is revealed Word, “so you pile Word upon Word until,” Brother Branham said, “you come to the place where that Word living in you makes you like a perfect statue.”

He used the term and that’s going back to like mythology because much of the Bible does say things not based upon mythology but using as an illustration.

You see? So therefore, it is like some god is carving you out, hewing you out by his word, filling you with his word and the life in the Word and the more that fills up in your life, the more you go out of the picture until God is in control which is what we really want which is what most people want and then they’re fearful they don’t want it because they feel that they can’t live up to it and the secret is that nobody can live up to it.

God has to give you the strength whereby you live and you must believe for that.

Now,

[178]  Oh, the impossible, …can be made real. All things are possible to them that believe. That’s right. “If you say to this mountain, ‘be moved,’ and don’t doubt in your heart, …believe what you say comes to pass, you can have what you say.” 

Now that Scripture was made personal to Brother Branham, you know, wherein he talks of how that he needed… he was out hunting and God provided the squirrels through an act of creation which we can certainly believe because if God did that for Moses why would He not do it in this hour of Exodus when we… it’s a far greater thing than the Exodus of Moses?

So, as Brother Branham says here now, “If you believe it, it will be made possible to you.” In other words, if we believe it and confess it, that will start a reaction until by persevering, piling the Word upon Word, and that’s the secret of keeping your faith up, you come to the place where the promise is truly fulfilled.

Now speaking of the fact that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever he now launches out and begins to talk about Christ.

[179]  One day Christ was in a Pillar of Fire. That One you see taken, we believe It to be Jehovah God. That’s what the Angel was trying to get to us. Now, He was in the Fatherhood then. He was the Father of Israel, a nation.

Now see here he said, speaking of this; now that, of course, is going to stumble a lot of people because they’re going to say, “Now look, God fills the universe and He’s a big God and don’t tell me that that’s the way it is.”

Well, nobody’s going to tell anybody anything. Believe what you want, figure it out if you want, have your own theology; it’s your business. Nobody’s going to complain. Now what is he saying here?

[179]  One day Christ was in a Pillar of Fire. [That predates both the incarnation and This. One was first century; this is twentieth. The predating; he’s talking of God appearing to Moses in a Pillar of Fire, the same Pillar of Fire.] …and we believe that to be Jehovah God.

Now he’s telling you what it is. Now you could say, “Well, I believe it is Jehovah God in so far that God is doing it.” That’s not what he’s saying. But you can take it anyway you want to take it. It’s up to you. I believe just what he’s saying here, “That is Jehovah God.”

Now watch what he says.

[179]  That’s what the Angel was trying to get to us.

Talking of the same thing wherein at anytime God appears to a prophet He comes with a Message, and at that time it is known as the Angel of God. So you say, “Well, if it’s an Angel of God then it wouldn’t be God.” Now hold it, the spirit of God moved upon the face of the deep. The spirit of God and God happen to be the same thing.

Don’t get thrown by language. You cannot discover God by grammar and correct laws of English so-called because they didn’t have the correct laws of English back there.

So you see that’s why we believe so strongly in a prophet in the last day. We just care less about what the world or any denomination or anybody else thinks. We stand with the vindication.

And if This isn’t it let me tell you the whole world’s gone to pot, because they haven’t got a thing, at least we got This. So let’s cling to what we’ve got piling Word upon Word and faith upon faith until we come into His Presence literally which is going to be that Spirit incarnated at the Wedding Supper and we’ll crown It… Him, King of kings and Lord of lords. Now we believe that.

All right.

[179]  Now, He was in the Fatherhood then. He was the Father of Israel, a nation.

That same One was in the office of Father, today it’s not that; it’s Son whether you want to believe it or not.

[180]  Then He came and dwelt among His people, as Christ, the Son.

And that was a bodily form. But God Himself had not changed; it was the form that he went into predicated, the designation, Son. Right. It was in Him to be that but it wasn’t until a body was there to get into. So He provided His body by taking of His own life and applying a little chemistry which was a creation because God made all this.

As Brother Branham said, “If God can create one set of squirrels; He can create many sets of squirrels. If He even created one squirrel, He can create any number of squirrels. God created one fly, He can create billions of flies; create one man, create billions of men.” So get the picture. Okay.

At that time He came as the Son.

[180]  Is that right? Christ is the Son of God. [How? Remember, God was in Christ.]

Now at this time He’s Christ, the Holy Spirit, at this time here, see, and at this hour when He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever, the same God never changing but perhaps changing His form, and no doubt changing His form.

[181]  Now He’s Christ, the Holy Spirit, [not a body, but a spirit] which is the anointing. Christ means “the anointed”; and the anointed one that’s upon the people, Christ with us, the Holy Spirit. It’s Christ with us, Christ in us.

Now that’s two different things. Now you could say, “Well, Christ is with us then He comes in us.” I don’t buy that. But what you’re looking for is Christ in you to be born again. What you’re looking at Christ with us is the Appearing at the end time. That’s what you’re watching, see you better be careful there.

[181]  It’s Christ with us, Christ in us. [See?] Do you believe that? Be real reverent just for a moment, quietly. Now is He the same?

Then he just throws an interjection in here about prayer cards and the people being irreverent in the Tabernacle and then he said,

[183]  …How many [people] here have ever seen this [ministry] …work? Let me see your hands, never did see it. Oh! Never did see it work. Well, there’s a group in here that’s never seen it—I guess, strangers. We don’t know where the people come from. [Now he explains his position in his church.]

[184]  This is an interdenominational Tabernacle. We are not against denominations, but we’re not for them either. We just let them go their way. …If they want to go back to denomination, all right, as long as they live a Christian life. We are just… a soul-saving station here. That’s my ministry… to them.

Now he’s telling you what his ministry is to denominations. He wants to get the people saved. That’s all. He’s not interested in making a denomination of his own or making something for himself. And he doesn’t try to change the luke-warm nature of the age. Why should he try to change what he’s not supposed to change?

You’re not supposed to change the organizations and the church; you’re supposed to change the Bride that’s in that church by getting them out. So he’s standing here as a lighthouse and if he can do no more than getting people in the churches saved then at least they’ll come up in the second Resurrection. There’s that much.

[185]  Now, but I believe… the Bible teaches, in Hebrews 13:8, that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do you believe that? (The congregation says, “Amen.”) Well, …He is the same. Now while you all sit real quiet just for a minute, I want to talk to you just right out of my heart, and then we’ll have the healing service. I want to ask you something.

Since He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then the only way we could tell [tell He’s the same is because He as] …a Spirit, …would act the same way… He did yesterday [when He was manifesting Himself in flesh. He said,] Is that right? [Of course that’s right. See now the…] He would act the same way He did yesterday. How did He act yesterday?

Now the question comes up here pardon me, in our minds if He’s Spirit and we can’t see Him because He is Spirit how are we going to know? Well, the next paragraph tells us. Now listen carefully. This one he’s talking about yesterday when He was a man.

[186]  Was He different from any other man? [He couldn’t be; he was circumcised as a baby. They… perfectly normal baby boy.] He was just a man, looked like a man. He was a man. He was born, …(born) a man. He had flesh and blood. [Certainly.] He suffered, He groaned, He went through temptation. He was a man. That’s right, isn’t it?

Okay, let’s go back to 1 John and read it because this is a very good portion of Scripture.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God:” and if you make Jesus the Word you got a third person. It’s God is the Word. It’s God doing the manifestation. And however He wants to do it if it’s through a human being that’s His business.

But I tell you we got too big noses. We criticize the Jews for big hooked noses and beady eyes which means they got big fat noses and they put their nose where it doesn’t belong and beady eyes that can’t see past the nose and then we criticize the Jews.

We’re in the same boat. We ought to get our nose chopped off and our ears opened up to hear and our eyes widened. He said, “Get the eye salve.”

So I hope you’re getting what I’m saying here, to get rid of your own thinking, your churchanity, what you think you got in your mind and get just what the Word of God says which has been vindicated by a prophet because we’re taking what he said and applying it here, bringing it here to show what we’re talking about. It was manifested.

In other words, now we saw it and we got from Him the explanation and that’s how God has always done things. It’s got to be there. Then it’s got to be explained. If it’s not there; it can’t be explained.

It’s just the same as I said many times. If there is no answer, there is no question. The only reason there is a question is because there is an answer. Deep calleth to deep. So we’re getting the understanding of God’s Word.

How do you have fellowship with John unless you know what John is getting across to you? How do you have fellowship with William Branham unless you know what he is saying? You just think you got fellowship. How are you going to have fellowship with this group unless you know what we’re saying?

People think I muddy the waters; I don’t muddy the waters. If they’d just get a little eye salve they’d wouldn’t have a bit of trouble. They just haven’t come out of their denominations.

Let me tell you something, if you’re still thinking denominational thoughts; you’re cooked. I’m sorry for you but I got to tell you the truth. You better get to God and get to God fast. I know what I’m talking about.

I’ve had years that’s far beyond any of you or all of you put together just about, and I know it’s difficult, it is not easy but the first thing I learned was this, Brother Branham was not talking my language because I had been taught wrong.

Yeah, and I’m going to tell you it’s just as foolish that is, as years ago this is a very, very nasty little joke, a kid, a friend of mine next door to me pulled on another fellow. This fellow couldn’t talk English so he whistled and he let the guy know in his pigeon broken English, “What does that mean?”

And the kid says, “That means groan,” so here the guy was whistling and he thought it was groans. He thought he was groaning tunes instead of whistling tunes.

Now that’s the same thing here. Yes, yes, it is. You’re not speaking the same language as the prophet until you know what he is saying. That’s why the doctrine is so absolutely necessary.

Quote will not do you a thing because this old Sam was quoting Gordon so he said to me, he said… he asked me what it was and I said, “That’s whistle.” I said, “That’s not groan. That’s whistle.”

I didn’t appreciate what the boy did though I had to kind of smile at it. I thought, “Well, the kid’s rotten anyway.” But so is the devil rotten. So is the churches rotten; they get you all messed up you don’t understand language, you never understand language. You’ve got to understand language. See, that’s what it counts. All right.

Now, getting down here, “He’s the same yesterday, today and forever and if He is and since He is He would have to act the way He did when He was there in the flesh,” and we showed you that He was a man and He did it as a man and now as the Holy Spirit He will also have to do something to show us that He’s that same person, the same One that was in Christ.

So then he was a man. Now that’s the thing you’re looking at. And Brother Branham is referring to himself also as being a man.

[187]  But what made Him God? [Now he was a man. What made Him God? There’s the big question. See? What made this man to be God?] It is because the Spirit of God was on Him. He was the anointed Messiah. And how did they know who He was? Moses said, “The Lord your God shall raise up a prophet likened unto me. And it will come to pass that those who won’t hear this prophet will be cut off from among the people.” Now, He was a prophet.

[And you know prophets are men.] Then was Israel looking for a prophet? They had to, if they were looking for a Messiah. And… Messiah would be a prophet.

Now here’s what he’s trying to get to the people. He said, “Now look, I’m here to show you He’s the same yesterday, today and forever. What was He when He was here yesterday in the flesh? He was a prophet.

Alright then, that is the key. Someone then in this age will have to be a prophet because that’s the secret of it. Now then what is the prophet going to be?

Well, let’s look at a prophet. One thing over here is Deuteronomy 18. Here’s where Israel turned down the Pillar of Fire and said, “Lord, we don’t want to see the Pillar of Fire again and hear Your voice.” …It said,

Now somebody has set your destiny, the same as Adam did. You can say what you want but that’s the way it is.

I was over there at my daughter’s the other day before I went to the doctor, so I turned on the TV and looked at some of this… I looked at this fellow and I think his name Gibbs, the new commissioner, since Eggers gone, they got Gibbs I think it is and he was before the committee.

And I want to tell you he stood right there and let me tell you something in spite of life or death you are going to pay your taxes because somebody put them on you.

Now you try to get out of them, just… I’d like to see you try. I want to see how stubborn you are. I pay mine and I overpay my taxes because the bank here in Pickaway made a very stupid mistake on my tax return, their computer haywire. Put me down for hundreds of dollars in my pension fund I didn’t get. They billed me. I had to go back four years.

They were very nice and sweet about it but they still sent me a bill for seven hundred and eighty-eight dollars. Instead of fighting anymore though she said I was clear; I paid the seven hundred and eighty-eight dollars because next time it will be worse. I haven’t got anything to hide because I gave them all the records but because the IRS said you’re going to pay; you’re going to pay.

Now you’re going to do the same thing here. “Well, I don’t want a prophet.” Then you just die without a prophet. You’re too rebellious for God anyway and you’ll die. I’m not saying that just here. These tapes go a lot of places in the world; even out there they’re multiplied.

One preacher turned out a hundred and ten in one week; you better believe they’re being multiplied.

Now I said this is what you’re going to have. Now I’ll raise up a prophet from among their brethren. I don’t care if he’s of Israel or who he is. He could be a Gentile.

In other words, you’re not going to get off because you say, “Well, I don’t believe in prophets. Well, I don’t think should this way it should be done.” Who asked you? Do you think I would have asked for my nose? Look at it. Ha! First time I got a good look at my face in a three-way mirror I went into shock.

I never looked in a three-way mirror again until my thirties. By that time it was too late. Ha! Even my wife said she liked the back of my head. Today who cares about my nose? As long as I can smell good and feel good, who gives a rip? As long as I got a nose; some people can’t even smell, lose their sense of taste.

In plain English, when a prophet comes he said in the Name of the Lord God which today is the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I will tell you this thing and if that thing doesn’t come to pass you don’t listen to one more word, but if it does come to pass you know that’s your sign that you listen.

Now that’s a big sign. Now Jesus came on earth and he brought another sign as a prophet which was known as the Messianic sign or the sign of the Messiah and we’ll go into it in a little while. But you watch. See? We got to be careful here. Okay.

He said,

[187]  …they’re looking for Messiah… that was going to be a prophet.

[188]  Now let’s just go through… just a second, for just a few seconds. Listen close. Now, keep your mind on God, because we don’t know what God could do, don’t know what He’ll tell me to do.

But it’s going to be in the Bible, some way shape or form, what he goes through to let you know he’s legitimate.

[189]  Now I know… we have a gift of prophecy in the church. [That’s the little gift of prophecy.] …Brother Neville, he prophesies over… people, which is grand. We appreciate that. We’ve been referring to that all along. We’ve got some here that speak in tongues. We do not believe that people have to speak in tongues to have the Holy Ghost… [That’s true.]

…There’s no such scripture for such a thing like that. But we believe there is a gift of the Holy Ghost that speaks in tongues. We have it in our church. …we don’t believe in carrying on. We believe it’s the Voice of God. We speak when the Holy Ghost speaks, and we only let that come three times. And it can’t be while I’m preaching… to be in order, because the spirit of the prophet is subject to the prophet, see. It has to be carried on scripturally…

…No one can say that there isn’t such a thing as the gift of the Holy Ghost and speaking with tongues. We know that. The Bible teaches it, and we believe… that. And thank God we got it in our church here. We’ve got gifts of prophecy… which first must be tested and see if they’re right or not….

[190]  Then there’s a prophet. Now, that now you come into an office.

Okay, he’s teaching the Bible doctrine to the unlearned babes in the Church at this time that there are gifts of the Holy Ghost and those gifts do not constitute you… make you an officer in the church. They are just gifts of the Holy Spirit. That’s all. Gifts and tongues etcetera, do not constitute offices. They are gifts.

[191]  They…are—speaking in tongues, …interpretation of tongues, …knowledge, and wisdom, discernments, and so forth. They are… just gifts.

[192]  …then there are five offices. First… apostles, prophets, teachers, evangelists, and pastors. [All five. They are] …ordained offices of God. Men hold them, see.

Now men say they’re called to this, they have to produce this. There are people that say, “I am an evangelist” and are not producing a thing.

So people say, “Well, he can’t be an evangelist.” Who said so? When did God say so? When did God say stop casting the net? You say, “Maybe they won’t come in.” There’ll be somebody come in, even after it’s all over. Where are they? Well, see, people get discouraged.

What do they try to do? They say… Well one fellow said, “Well, …I’ve become a teacher now.” That’s greater condemnation.

You better know what you’re talking about because you’re going to stand before the judgment seat, judgment throne like few people will ever stand there because you took God’s Word the wrong way.

Women preachers, no place for them. See? You better be careful. And five-fold ministry, you better be able to produce it. See? That’s why I’m terribly careful with mine, the best I know how without entreating and doing so-and-so. You got to watch it.

Now, he said,

[192]  Men hold them,… you can’t wish for them, you can’t pray for them. They’re sovereignly given, you’re born to them.

[193]  A prophet is not a prophet, if somebody lays hands on him and makes him a prophet. [No sir.] A prophet’s born from his mother’s womb, is a prophet, see, so he’s always a prophet,

[194]  God told Jeremiah, said, “Before you were even conceived in your mother’s womb,” …”I knew you and sanctified you and ordained you a prophet to the nations.” (Foreknowledge.) That’s right, see. Moses, before he was born, …was a proper child.

[Sure, fitted to be the prophet of God. See?] He was the prophet of the Lord. So were all the rest of them coming forth. Christ was the Son of God from the garden of Eden. That’s right.

Whatever that manifestation was there in the Garden was absolutely the same God manifesting in a form that would take another form on earth and be a human being to shed His blood for the remission of sins. True.

[195]  But the gifts are given to the body. [They’re given to the body. Now that’s the Church.] Now we recognize that, we recognize all these gifts.

But remember, they’re only gifts. That’s right. It’s not the person of the Holy Spirit, it’s not even a spirit, it’s just a gift, an operation, a manifestation, an emanation.

[196]  Now let’s see what Jesus was among us, [when He was among us] see what He was back there. We find out when He first started His ministry. Now listen close, stranger. …He first started His ministry, in St. John, the first chapter, and there we found out… how He was born and became thirty years old, and then… was baptized by John. The Holy Spirit came down like a dove… descending upon Him, and a Voice came and said, “This is my beloved Son in whom.” The real… Greek said, “In whom I’m pleased to dwell in.” Said, “…I am pleased to dwell.” But, see, that sounds a little backwards from us, …but it’s actually… “Whom I’m pleased to dwell in,” because, God was in Christ,… [In other words, you don’t worry about the grammar; you’re worrying about the fact he’s saying, “God was in the Christ.”]

God was in the Christ, therefore, making Him God. See? Keep the separation, and keep the union right.

[197]  Now, immediately He went… forth in the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil. Then He came forth with His ministry, and [began to] pray for the sick.

Now you’ll notice here as a true prophet under the temptation he did not stage play with the devil. Remember Moses got trapped into a power play, smiting the rock twice. Jesus never was trapped. He went straight to the Word.

“If thou be the Son of God turn these stones to bread.”

He said, “That’s a trick. That’s a stage play. No way.” He said, “Man does not live by bread alone. I’ve got something better. I don’t have to eat. It’s been forty days now, go forty days again if I had to, but I won’t, of course, I’ll be eating pretty soon.”

But he said, “Why don’t you cast yourself down from the temple… that makes a good show… that will prove who you are.”

He said, “No way. That’s not it.” See? Tried to trick him.

Well, he said, “Why don’t you worship me, I’ll give it to you all.”

He said, “No way, I’m going to pay the price in death for them and get rid of you.” That’s right.

No stage playing. Prophets don’t do that. Many a man calls himself a prophet. I don’t think that Brother Oral Roberts ever did but what we’re looking at the bind he’s in today, cartoons all around the world just making a big schmozzle out of the whole thing.

You say, “Why would people do that?” Listen to the wrong voice. I believe something is directing him. You say, “What if God told him?” Well, you can talk to God about that; I’m not God’s spokesman. I’d like to see it in the Bible. I’d like to see it in the Bible first.

The Bible says it… well, he says, “Strong delusion.” That’s true. God does send delusion. How does He send it? He doesn’t come and do it; He lets somebody else do it, the enemy do it. Now he was tempted and he overcame.

[198]  …after awhile, there came up a man by the name of Simon Peter, an old fisherman, uneducated, couldn’t even write his own name. [Now watch how He’s the same yesterday, today and forever. This is the setting here. This is the sign of the Messiah.] Andrew… told him about this fellow he believed He to be the Messiah. And he said, “Nonsense!”

[199]  Peter came up to Him. [That’s Jesus.] And as soon as he walked up in the presence of Jesus, Jesus said, “Your name is Simon, …you’re the son of Jonas.” Peter knew something happened. He knew that was the Son of God. And it pleased Jesus to give Peter the keys to the kingdom, He made him… head of the church. [Now that’s what Jesus did yesterday.]

[200]  There was a fellow standing there by the name of Philip. Philip saw it, and he thought, “Wonderful! I know a man who’s a Bible scholar, lives about fifteen miles around the mountain. I’ll run around and tell him. His name is Nathanael.” [Now that’s the sign of the Messiah again, very simple.]

[201]  So he ran around…real quickly that day. Next morning he got up, maybe at the break of day. Ran up and knocked on the door. And Mrs. Nathanael said, “Well, he’s out in the yard out there, Philip is (his good friend).” He went out there, and Philip was on his knees, praying. As soon as he got up off his knees, Philip said, [Rather Nathanael was praying. Philip said,] “Come, see whom I have found! Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

[202]  Now this religious great dignitary said, “Can there be any good thing… come out of Nazareth?” He gave them a good quote, a good thing. He said, “Don’t stay home and criticize what I’m saying… don’t go talk about it. Just come and see for yourself what I’m telling you. Come, see. Just come, find out if anything good could come out of Nazareth.”

Now you see that goes back to John 7:51 where Nicodemus said, “Why do you judge a man without having taken him first to the law and found out about him?”

Well, they said, “Are you one of His disciples? Search and see, does a prophet come out of Galilee?”

It showed what they searched; they searched nothing because even Herod knew that the baby was born in Bethlehem of Judea. You see, people won’t take the challenge and search. No, they won’t do it.

“No, my church says so-and-so.” What do I care about your church? When did it ever raise the dead? When did it have THUS SAITH THE LORD? What can it prove? Nothing!

No more than this church can prove anything; we prove nothing. We believe that which has been proven. We’re not ridiculous to try to reprove something proven. You think God would answer to that? He said one sign would be given this generation; the sign of the risen Christ. Now you do what you want with it.

[203]  “You mean Messiah? Why, if… Messiah would come… down from above…. The corridors of heaven would… let down, He’d come right out of the palace. He’d come right out to our great organization.” They still think that, …that it has to come to their organization. “He’d come right to our organization, walk down upon the canopies of the palace right there. …He’d go… to the outer courts and come right upon the throne, and up to the Holiest of holies, and say, ‘I am the Messiah.’ “ Messiah never comes like that. Messiah comes where He wants to. He’s sovereign, He does as He pleases.

Grace would not select a group already formed by a man and a fellowship of doctrines. Grace selects whomsoever.

If you want to take a look at Luke 17:20 we’ve read it dozens of times but you can never ever beat it or do better than that when you want to realize that Messiah is sovereign, He comes when He please, where He pleases, does what He pleases. They said in… Luke 17,

Like the old Scotsman said, “You wouldn’t even know God if you met Him in your porridge.” That’s right. The very people that always scream, “We know God.” Never know Him. We are not of that group that said we know God, get out of my way. We said, “Hey, what’s with this man.”

My testimony still is when I first saw Brother Branham something in me said, “If you ever listened to a man that’s the man you’ll listen to.” From that time on although I loved what he did, loved what I saw, it was not that that made me wonder, “Like what does this man believe? And why does he believe it?” That’s what we’re looking at. That’s what you’re supposed to be looking at. See?

[204]  Don’t just stand around [No, he said, “Well, come and see. Come see for yourself.”] Don’t just stand around…, “I don’t believe in that holy roller stuff.” Just come, find out if there’s anything to it.

[205] So… on the road over, I can hear them talking. …would you like to hear what they were talking… listen awhile… I believe, as they went… along the road, …Philip said, “You know, Nathanael, I know you’re a Bible student, so I want to ask you something. We are looking for a Messiah, aren’t we?”

[206]  “Oh, yes, we’re getting in the last days for this generation and I believe this generation will see the Messiah.” … “Oh, but here we are, and we’re not even a nation, we’re… scattered out amongst the people. How can we? All of this. ” [Then how could it be? And yet he said, “I feel it’s the hour.”] God comes in an hour… you think not. That’s when He’s there.

Now you’ll notice that that generation was speaking of the Messiah. This generation is speaking of Messiah. They missed it. Will this miss it? Good question. The answer is they sure will.

“Now in such an hour as you think not” could radically mean, in the hour that you are thinking wrong concerning His coming and you think not concerning the reality of what God has truly predestinated in His Word, that’s the hour He is coming.

And I believe that’s right on the nose. That’s the hour, the hour they’ll turn it down. He’ll be there. Not turning down a Rapture. You missed it, period, because it’s coming, it’s the Appearing is here, they’re turning it down, see. That’s when He’s there.

[207]  Philip said, “…wait a minute, what kind of a person will… Messiah be?” “Oh,” said, Nathanael, “Moses, our teacher, told us He’ll be a prophet.” [Now notice the emphasis on the prophet, emphasis on office, emphasis on what he did. Okay, you see the parallel to the ministry.]

[208]  “I’m going to tell you about this Jesus of Nazareth. You remember that old ignorant fisherman you bought that fish from at that time, …and he couldn’t sign the receipt, didn’t have enough education?”

[209]  “Yeah. …Yeah, Jonas… Jonas’s boy. Yeah, I bought from Jonas…”

[210]  “Well, now, you know what? Simon came over to His meeting. [That’s the son.] And no sooner had he walked up. You remember how Simon used to tell us that his father told him… not to be deceived, because there’d be many false prophets before the real Messiah. [And that’s true. Many false messages go forth.] But he said, ‘You’ll know… [That’s Simon’s dad said,] ‘You’ll know when the true real message comes, because, remember, we Jews believe that this Messiah will be a prophet.’ [In other words, he’ll be perfectly with the Word of God as a prophet. Do you follow? Okay.] We believe our prophets.”

[211]  Now ask a Jew… Israel, when they pick up the Bible right there now in Israel, and the Jews are coming… from Iran and different places, …and they read… their Bible. They say, “If that Jesus was the Messiah, let… Him do the sign of the prophet, we’ll believe Him.” Yes, sir. They know their prophets are truthful.

[212]  So Nathanael must have said, “Oh, I believe the Messiah will be a prophet, because Moses said, ‘The Lord our God will raise up a prophet”.

[213]  “Well, when… Simon walked up to Jesus,… He said, Jesus said, ‘Your name is Simon, and you’re the son of Jonas.’ Not only did Jesus know him, but he knew that godly old Pharisee daddy as well, Pharisee daddy as well, He knew Simon’s father….” “A-a-h! I can’t believe that.” Said Nathanael, “You’ve gone off on the deep end.”

[214]  And so Philip… said, “Oh, no, I haven’t. You come, find out. Come see. Come on!” On along the road they went.

[215]  Finally Nathanael walked… into the presence where Jesus was, maybe he was standing there out in the audience somewhere. And Jesus standing…, looking around. After awhile Jesus looked out, and He saw Nathanael standing… there, and He said, “Behold an Israelite, in whom there is no guile!” …that took the starch out of him. That let the wind out of the sails. “Behold an Israelite, in whom there is no guile!”

[216]  That’s God. He said, [That’s Nathanael said.] “Rabbi (means teacher), [That’s what Nathanael said,] Rabbi, when did You ever know me? I’ve never met you before. I’m a stranger to this congregation, I’ve never… seen you here before. How would You ever know me?”

Now Brother Branham is talking about the fact that he’ll know everybody in that prayer line and anybody’s name he needs to know. Now how does he know that because he doesn’t know anybody?

Well, you say, “That’s telepathy.” I’m sorry, you’re out on the limb. No telepathic or no work of telepathy could ever do what that man did because I’ve seen it, and no spiritist because I’ve seen that, too.

They can’t do it because no telepathist can tell you when you try to fool him, can search you and whirl on you and just beat you right down in your seat. You’ll fool him and no spiritist can do it either because the man of God will tie the spiritist up.

But you try to fool William Branham, you’ll be carried out feet first and that was done more than once. You don’t fool with God.

People think, “Well a man, a man.” Well, what was Jesus Christ? A horse? A Sherman tank? A bee? What? Or one of the big 747’s? Or some robot? Or the Rock of Gibraltar? Man!

What do you expect God’s going to use but a man? Chimpanzees? You know men can be so stupid. I don’t understand people, gross, gross, gross, and yet so educated, so refined. That doesn’t make God some bimbo, some dumb head. But the simplicity of God makes a smart man look pretty stupid. You can’t find God the way people try to find God.

You find Him the way it is said in the Scripture, the simplicity knocks everybody out. “Well, you see, the telepathist can do it, a spiritist can do it.” Well, let him do what this man did. No way! No way! We’re not dealing with some little thing here, brother/sister, this ridiculous. This to the human being that is too smart for God.

“How did you know me?”

[217]  He said, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, the tree, I knew you.”

[218]  That was Jesus yesterday. Is that right? If He’s the same, He’s the same today. Let’s take another nation of people. 

[219]  There was only three nations of people—that’s Ham, Shem, and Japheth’s people, see. That’s exactly. That’s where, at Pentecost where the gospel went to the Jews, then to the Samaritans, …then to the Gentiles. [Three peoples there, too.] See, Ham, Shem, and Japheth’s, …and they are three nations. Now, there were two nations… looking for… Messiah. [Way back in his day.] Not the Gentiles.

Who were they looking for? Ham and Shem, and that was Samaritans and Israel.

[220]  Now, …(the Israel’s and the Samaritan’s were) half Jew and half Gentile, caused by the marriage of … the sin of Korah there, and they went off. So they believed in God, they were looking for… Messiah. So Jesus went presenting Himself before them. [That’s down in Samaria.] He come to the Jews, His own, but now He had need to go to Samaria. …John 4, did you read it? (So He went to) …Samaria. …He came to the city of Sychar, and so… just sent His disciples in to buy some food. And while they were gone. [something happened]

[221]  If you’re ever there, you’ll see it’s a panorama, a well… a city… a pump, …where they let the bucket down for water. You know, the women would come and take the [windlass, he calls it windle but it’s the windlass, you know, the law, the lever and the what have you there] …and let the bucket down, he get the water, put it on their heads [in the bucket, of course]. And now the ill-famed women, the bad women, they couldn’t come when the good women came. They had no associations together in those days. A woman that was bad, …stayed in her own company. Not today; they’re all together, but… it’s just like picking on the middle of an egg, you make it all red…

I don’t know what he says there, that’s something I never could figure out. I don’t care and it doesn’t matter.

[222]  So the ill-famed woman came… there. About eleven-thirty or quarter to twelve, about that time of day, they would come walking… to get a bucket of water. So… she came down to get her bucket of water. And she let the bucket down and… put the old swivel down here and the windlass, …down… to get the water out of the well, to get that… bucket of water. And just about time she started to bring it up, she heard somebody say, “Woman, bring me a drink.” …she looked over there and there was a Jew. Now, they didn’t have any dealings… one with another.

[223]  He was a middle-aged man. …about thirty years old, but the Bible said He must have looked about fifty. [Because He said, when He said, “I’ve seen Abraham.” They said, “Why you’re not even thirty [fifty] years old.” So He was an older looking man than He actually was for his age.] So I guess His ministry drug Him down quite a bit. So the Pharisees said, “You say that You have been with Abraham, [Well, if that’s the case,] now we know that You have got a devil, you’re just crazy.”

[224]  He said, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” See, He is the God of Abraham. Sure, He was. He said, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” [That’s right. That’s Christ speaking in the human veil. God speaking in Christ rather.] …

[225]  …now, here He is sitting at the well. And He said to the woman, “…bring me a drink.”

[226]  And she said, “It’s not customary. We have segregation here,” like…in the South,… “We’ve got segregation here. Not customary…you…ask me, you, a Jew ask… a woman of Samaria, to do you a… favor or ask anything. We have no dealings one with…another.” She was a little prostitute woman, you know, …probably a pretty little woman. …standing there, …her curls all down upon her face, you know, …been out all night. …So she said, “It’s not customary for you to ask me, a woman of Samaria, such as this.”

[227]  He said, “Woman, if you knew who you were talking to you, …you’d ask me for a drink.” That’s Messiah yesterday…. “You’d ask me for a drink, I’d give you water and you wouldn’t have to…come here and draw.”

So he’s talking about discernment. See? Because he said to her,

[229]  “You’ve had five husbands, the one you got now is not your husband.

So he says here, in this case now that’s Jesus Christ the Messiah of yesterday. Now what about today? Well, the answer today is this, today the people have… they failed to recognize Christ, and they fail to recognize the explanation of the gifts like he’s doing to this woman here.

[228]   …she said, “the well is deep, you have nothing to draw with. How can… you give me any water?” “Our father Jacob, See, she’s a Samaritan, but she called Jacob her father, too. Our father Jacob gave us…this well, his cattle, his family [They all drank here]. And yet you say you got water greater than this?” She said, “You say ‘worship,’ you being a Jew, you say ‘Jerusalem.’ We say… this mountain.”

In other words, she gave Him an argument right off the bat. She wanted to argue.

[229]  He said, “Woman, the time is coming, and now is, …when the true worshipers will worship God in… Spirit and truth, because you see God is a Spirit. (See?) 

[230]  So you see where we’re at today, if it happened to be today. [Right now the same thing happened.] One word against it will never be forgiven, neither in this world or the world that is to come. So you see what this generation has done. Now think of it. Think strong, weigh the solemn words.

Now Brother Branham is letting the people know here that to blaspheme this is not to blaspheme him, it has nothing to do with William Branham, it has to do with God which is the truth.

[231]  …the Jews said, “This man does… things by Beelzebub. He’s a devil, a fortune-teller. We know that fortune-telling is of the devil.” So he said, “This man’s a fortune-teller.”

[232]  But Jesus forgave them for calling Him a fortune-teller. But after He died and the Holy Spirit came back, then it was different… that’s in this Gentile generation. Now…

[233]  Now, the Jews had already seen it, and condemned it. But the Samaritans received it, and she said, “Sir, I perceive… you are a prophet.” What are you going to do with this, Samaritans? [Now that’s the question she asked them, of the Samaritans, and the question He’s asking us today.] “I perceive… you’re a prophet. We know that when Messiah cometh, he’ll tell us these things.” See, they knew the Messiah, who He would be. She said, “We know that the Messiah, which is called the Christ, when he comes he’ll tell us these things. But who are you? Are you his prophet?” He said, (“No, I’m Messiah.)

[234]  And on this, …listen, upon this, [That’s the evidence and the Word of testimony to the evidence] she left her waterpot and ran to the city, and said to the men in the streets, running through the city… “Come, see a man who told me all things that I’ve done! Isn’t this the very Christ?” …the Bible said… all the city believed on Him because… the woman had said this, that He told them, because He was Messiah.

In other words, whatever He said, she said, and the people believed and that was enough. One sign enough.

[235]  Now, if that was the sign of Messiah (yesterday,) (today) and He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever, it’d be the same sign today. Is that right? How many will agree on that? …yes, it is…

[236]  Now, would it be… any different man? [Bringing down Himself. Will it be any different because God uses a man, a man like He used Jesus.] No. Jesus loved, … cried, wept… slept, …went into the wilderness, went fishing, did anything… like anybody else. He was just a man, see; but yet He was the anointed Messiah.

What has that got to do today? He’ll use a man like God used a man then because Jesus was not God when he was born, he was the man, he had the life of God, but so do you and I have a little bit of life of God. See? Okay.

[237]  Now [remember,] …we remember over in the Bible, that tells us way back, where there are so… many scriptures and prove that the Bible claims that there’ll be a day that’ll not be night or day (just a dismal day, organizations and churches and enough to be saved), but in the evening time it shall be light.” How many… read that…?

Okay. That’s what the Bible said, “It shall be light.”

[238]  Now, in other words, the sun [Now here’s the explanation and you can take it or leave it, this is what God’s servant said, and I believe God told him to say it.] the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. The same sun that rises in the east, sets in the west. Well, when the Son of God, S-o-n, rose in the east, and on the Eastern people, civilization travelled with the sun, and we’re back at the West Coast now. If you go across, you go back to China, then back to the east again where Christ was born. So then the same Son that shone on the East is now shining on the West, with the same baptism of the Holy Ghost, the same signs, the same wonders, the same Messiah. Is that right? “It shall be light in the evening time, the path to glory you will surely find.”

Now he’s telling you right at this hour what’s happening.

[239]  We’re in that evening light, the evening light. [We’re in the evening at the evening light.] The sun is going down. The Messiah is in our midst. The Son of God is in the form of the Holy Ghost, is in our midst. Do you believe that?…

[Now that’s the thing we teach here and most of the people say they believe this message cannot follow us.]

…Do you believe me to be His servant? Do you believe me to be telling… the truth? Do you believe the story of the angel yesterday morning, the day before yesterday…? Do you believe it? Then let the God of heaven, let the God that appeared to me in the form of that rainbow, let Him speak. …let my body be dedicated to Him, my soul, my spirit, …my mind, be dedicated to His glory.

In other words, let God take over, and people who think they’re full of the Holy Ghost say, “Well, that God won’t do that but the devil does.” Every time, Pentecost, I know I came out of Pentecost, don’t try to tell me sitting here. Don’t try to tell me. Latter rain, the whole bunch.

Then they’ll pull the weirdest things under God’s high heaven to call it God, such as you’ll never believe. If God took over the body of the Lord Jesus Christ and Paul the Apostle said, “God was in the prophets.” When did He change? And when will He change from that mode of operation?

It’s even “Christ in you the hope of glory” for without that little seed of life in you from Christ you are still a lost sheep going astray. Then what is wrong with God putting His Spirit in Moses in such abundance that when God needed… Moses needed fifty helpers, God took the spirit off of Moses, didn’t take any more out of Himself, He took it off of Moses, gave fifty people a measure and Moses still had more and God was not diminished.

What is so wrong with understanding the Word of God? What is so hard? Look it, if I’m making this Word hard to you believe me, there’s something wrong with either me or you, and I don’t think it’s too much it’s me, it’s I that’s wrong because I’m trying to get it down to simple, simple, simple.

Your minds are still foggy, there’s something wrong somewhere, and I won’t take the blame, no sir, I’m not that proud but I just won’t take the blame. I won’t do it.

[239]  So let my body be dedicated… (that’s what altar calls, things, are all about.)… When I was looking for that last squirrel, …he knew it would be the last, it was right there three minutes before ten… and I had said it would be there by ten…

[240]  Brother Daulton, a Baptist sitting here from down in Kentucky, sitting right there. How many children you got, Ed? Twelve children. Standing right here, he asked for his children. I was walking out of the building. Ed come to me and I said, “Ed” The Holy Spirit was on me, said, “Give it to him. Give him.”

[241]  I said, “I gave you your children.” Every one of them saved and baptized. There was his teen-ager sitting at home, waiting, and crying, has been saved since he was up here. This Baptist brother, [Brother Daulton from] down (in Kentucky)…. how wonderful He is when He speaks! [He’s speaking of God.]

[242]  …I’m asking Him now, for His glory, to show Himself, that He’s Christ, that I’m telling the truth.

[243]  …that the unbeliever might have no escape, 

Now that’s a terrible statement to make. It could mean one of two things but it means two things. It means, number one, that the unbeliever has something to believe for the first time in his life that he can put his finger on.

The other means this, you turn it down you won’t have to turn it down the second time, because this is what the Scripture said, “Utterly lost.” I’m not quoting myself, I’m quoting Acts 3, I’m quoting Malachi 4: utter destruction. That’s what the Bible teaches.

[243]  Now, I want the people that’s in here, that’s sick and needy, that have need of God, that I don’t know, strangers within our gates, people that I do not know, they’re here and you have… need of God, raise up your hands. People everywhere that’s. All right, I just about general everywhere, I suppose. People… I do not know. If I call somebody that I know, and you know me, and we’re acquainted with one another, don’t you say anything, …you just hold your peace. If He is the Son of God, which He is, and my message is right, [and it was right] and that angel [God in a form]…

[244]  When it was three minutes till ten, I said, “O God, who appeared to me a while ago in that rainbow, it’s three minutes. I see no squirrel. It’s three minutes! You’ll have to bring one to me.” And God being my Judge, I solemnly say it with my hand on the Bible. Don’t believe in swearing, the Bible [doesn’t say that, it] says not to do that. But God is my Judge, a squirrel ran right down the tree and sat just exactly right. He’s never failed…, He’s never done it. Many of them here are present to know these things. I know that He the same God is here.

Now that’s not the baptism with the Holy Ghost; that’s the Baptizer who gives the Holy Ghost.

[245]  There are prayer cards given out. I don’t want them. We’ll… just pray for them in a few minutes, 

[246]  I want strangers. 

[247]  …one day a little woman pressed through the crowd. She had a blood issue. 

[248]  When all of them were saying, “Here he is! Look at him! There’s that Galilean,” so forth. …those rabbis… standing forth and… saying, “Rabbi, we seek a sign from you,” and so forth….

[249]  The little woman said, “I believe Him to be the Son of God. …I believe if I can… touch the border of his garment, I’ll be made whole.” How many know that? She touched Him.

[250]  Not that He could feel, but He stopped and turned around, said, “Who touched me? Somebody touched me.” Everybody kept real quiet. Said, “Somebody touched me.” … “Who touched me?” He said.

[251]  …He looked around till He found the little woman. She couldn’t hide herself. …Found her and said, “Thy faith has saved thee.” [See, Brother Branham’s going to do the same thing to those in the audience. I’ve seen it dozens of times.] “Thy faith has saved thee.” He told her her blood issue had been healed, stopped… because… she had believed, and her faith had touched His garment. Do you believe that? All right.

[252]  Now, is He the high priest today that’s sitting at the right hand of God, making intercessions on our confession?

Now he’s talking about himself. If I’ve told you the truth and that Body’s up there and He’s a living Person, not God incarnate now, but the body God used as our High Priest and he’s making intercession for me upon my confession he is going to do what I’m saying he’s supposed to do.

Now people say, “I don’t think I want that.” You do what you want. You see, I’m nuts, I’m crazy, I’m simple-minded, I’m gone. Throw me in the nuthouse and I may go in there smarter than you and cook a better meal than you and add a column of my figures quicker than you.

I’m pretty fast, I’ve always have been and read faster backwards than some of you people read forwards. Give me all the checks, then check me on this, I’m a complete nut. I’m gone and the more I say it the more I get convinced, the more I get convinced the more I’ll say it. Too bad about that but that’s the way it goes. All right.

[252]  Does the Bible say that He’s a high priest that can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities? [You got an infirmity? Okay, put it before God.] Is that right? All right, …you that are sick, …start praying, and say, “Lord, …I’ve just heard a message. I don’t know this man. I’m here in the Tabernacle. I don’t come here, this is not my home church. I’m not from here, I’m from somewhere else. I’m… out of town, I’m [not just one of the people here] …I don’t know that man. But he makes it seem… so positive that it’s You, and has said that You appeared to him, that his Message was right, and how You do these things. Now, I don’t know the man, but I know You. So if he has dedicated himself to You, and You are using his body to speak Your Own Words through, let him speak to me. Let me touch your garment, Lord.” …see if He does or not, see if it’s God.

That’s a fair one. Now that’s their confession. Here’s his confession. That’s their confession.

[253]  Now if He’s still God, He can use my lips to speak the same words that He would do, because He has no lips but mine and yours. [But He’s not going to use yours; going to hear yours and use His.] He has no eyes but ours. So He just comes down and operates His church through our body. Do you believe that? Operates Himself. [That’s a good word. Operates Himself. That’s right. He does.] That’s what He said, “The works that I do, …shall you do the same.” Is that right? “The same works, that you… do.” That proves that it’s right, regardless of all… denominations. Oh, hallelujah!

[254]  Little… Brother Kidd and Sister Kidd sitting here, both of them, …were eighty years old, preaching before I was born. Here he laid the other morning, dying with a cancer, about two years ago, cutting through his prostate, [That’s true.] way up in Ohio. [Right down in Cincinnati] Been very dear friends of mine. [I knew the Kidds.] Sister Kidd [They were eighty years old at that time; they’re both deceased.] Sister Kidd called…, and said, “Billy, you better hurry. He’s just dying, dying right now.” And Billy and I liked to burnt up that old secondhand car of mine, getting up there.

[255]  When I got there in the room, as soon as I got there, the Holy Spirit said, “THUS SAITH THE LORD.”

[256]  And there he stands, a witness to the glory of God, even got his doctor all tore up. It’s just He’s God! Could I do that? No…! My words are no more than any man’s. But that was “THUS SAITH THE LORD!”

And he said, “THUS SAITH THE LORD you shall not die but live,” and Brother Kidd’s cancer of the prostate disappeared instantly. It was no more. Now you see he was not operating simply as a man who prayed for the sick.

Many a man could pray for the sick and that could have happened. I’ve seen cancer disappear myself, tumors of the brain.

But he said, “THUS SAITH THE LORD,” he knew all about it. I would know nothing but just prayer. You see? Now I don’t have a healing ministry. It’s not my ministry, although I can pray for sick, anybody can. You can pray for sick, any man, woman and child can do it, to please God, no problem. But this is a special ministry.

[256]  There he stands, a witness to the glory of God, even… his doctors got… tore up. It’s… THUS SAITH THE LORD….

[257]  Years ago, down in the mountains of Kentucky, a little old Church of God or some of them, packing up and down hillsides, beating corn out with a piece of stuff—with… old Mother Kidd—to feed a bunch of children,

She’s talking about the kids where she worked over a washtub and there’s no money to feed her and her husband while they went out working for the Lord because the people had nothing.

[258]  And here they are in their eighties, sitting… here today, enjoying the gospel of… Christ, driving… hundreds of… miles on Sunday morning, [That’s right, over a hundred miles to the Tabernacle] every Sunday I preach down here, if they can hear about it. Sure, we sent… an invitation but they want to come. Bless their little old hearts. That’s right. I want every person in here to shake their hands this morning if they can, bless them.

They brought a child up, I forget the condition of the child, to Brother Branham, the child was completely given up with leukemia, I believe it was, it didn’t have a chance. The child would be dead within a matter of hours or days. And Brother Branham prayed for that child and that child was perfectly healed. No sign of leukemia.

And if that’s the same case, I am not sure, but there was a case either that they brought or Brother Collins brought and that little girl grew up long after Brother Branham died.

She was eighteen years of age and she went into become a nurse, and they first of all took a blood check, and they said, “Never in the history of this hospital’s laboratory have we ever seen blood like yours; it is a hundred percent pure.”

Now you know anybody can eat gunk and get a pretty mucky bloodstream, pretty much of a sewer for a bloodstream. You know that and I know it. I get my blood checked under a microscope every now and then, even the red cells aren’t too perfect, pretty good for an old geezer but it’s certainly not real life giving blood like it should be. There’s some death in there. Imagine this girl’s blood after all this time.

So what he’s saying here then, look, a Message of grace I’m telling you it’s the hour that God does not expect you to do anything about anything except make a decision and here is the proof.

And I’m proving to you that this One that is here now, that is dealing with me and consequently you is the same One that was here in a human body dealing with Israel, proving it from Word to Word, Scripture by Scripture showing the people, not the necessity of healing.

That’s not… healing is not a Resurrection. It is a sign of the Resurrection. A prophet is not God; he is only a sign of God. These things that he’s done is not to get us excited and to think that we are going to have great ministries but it’s to show us the truth. It illustrates again that what he said in 1965 just before he died that the conditions of the Rapture were threefold.

The Lord descend with a Shout, the Voice and a Trumpet, and the Shout was a Message, the Appearing of God and proving it was God, bringing us the Word for this hour which we believe does bring us healing. That’s what our trouble, we are not sincere enough. There’s some of you here that absolutely amaze me.

I get phone calls you don’t even know about. I talked to Roger. He let me know that David’s been working on these messages; he puts them all in a little abbreviated form. He sent it to Roger and he said, “Man, …I get the tapes and… boy, that guy’s on the ball.” He said, “Everything he said I see right here what he’s saying it.”

Then I made a phone call this morning to my good friend Lois Mercer, I haven’t phoned her in years, shame on me, what a… you talk about a indolent person, you’re looking at one.

After a year I phoned her, and so we were talking this morning, she’s taking number seven down all in long hand, she does it every now and then, she got number seven in Doing God a Service.

A lot of people do that because they want to make sure that every statement is right because I’m reading word by word and telling you from my background and my understanding in the Word of God which I have every right to do, and let me assure you I have every right because when I would… when Brother Branham asked me to do the Seals.

I said, “Brother Branham, I’m not able without you.”

He said, “Lee, you are able to do it without me.” He said, “You are the only one who can do it. Do it!”

I can take this by the grace of God without fear; I will not make one error in it. Now you say, “You’re boasting.” I am not boasting. You do what you want. I’m telling you how I feel. You don’t have to feel that way, be my guest. My wife and my children don’t have to feel that way.

Nobody has to, I know what I’m saying. He said it. I believe what he said; I’m going to stand on it. I’m going to keep doing it, and if nobody hears me I’ll preach to the walls. I’ll preach to my wife; she’s a good audience. She’s my favorite fan anyway; and I’m her favorite preacher. So, all right.

We got it going, but I’m certainly pleased with you people, that’s why there’s a hardcore in this church, a strong core of faith and belief in this Word because you deal with this Word the way the Scripture says, and I’ll tell you something, you will keep on doing it, you’ll keep on moving. We are hitting plateaus. We hit one two weeks ago.

There’ll be another coming down the road. I’m telling you these things. I’m not a prophet, but I know what I’m saying. I’m telling you the truth. I don’t say these things for nothing. You watch and see. See, I’m not worried about that great White Throne; I’m going to be there and you’re going to be there. Don’t worry about it. You’re going to be there. It’s no use worrying.

You got to pay your taxes; don’t worry, just pay them. Don’t worry about the White Throne. You’re going to be there. I mean don’t worry in this respect. Don’t worry as though you get out of it or you might not make it, have your say. You’ll be there; I’ll be there.

I read you where that was, you’d be before but not in. You’ll be standing there but you can’t be judged. Now maybe they’ll hit some barbs and say didn’t you do so-and-so and act so-and-so?” I’ll say, “Yes, I did that.” I admit it. So you better get geared up, realize the truth. I’m going to be standing there. That’s responsible.

I don’t feel irresponsible this morning, bragging or boasting, because when I leave this pulpit. I’ll feel very low having said it; I won’t back up but here I got that nerve. See because I believe I know what is in my heart. I believe it’s what the prophet said. I’m sold on William Branham being a prophet of God, what he said was the truth.

So the Lord bless you, next week we’ll be able to start something else but by the grace of God this is where Brother Branham pretty well ends and the Message is over except he has a discernment line of prayer which is not brought to our attention.

Let’s rise at this time.

Gracious kind heavenly Father, again we want to thank You for the time of fellowship we had together, giving us the privilege Lord, to study Your Word, to recall to our minds Lord, especially I could have been there in that very meeting, though I kind of doubt that I was in that meeting. I doubt very much but I was in other meetings where numerous other meetings where he said the same thing, illustrating, and then saw all the evident works of God.

And Lord, we do know that You are there and You are here and if we’re not Bride we honestly know that there is a Bride out there somewhere and now Father, may we have the same spirit that William Branham had, that we can say by the grace of God we will not stand in her way.

And Lord, if we can do anything to help Your people, and even help anybody that are not Your people, may we have the grace of God, the love of God, which we do have shed abroad in our hearts surface to where it can be seen and we show grace and love and mercy wherever we can.

Not to take away anything from anybody, not that, but in all sincerity warning, admonishing, advising, and helping, being a good Samaritan wherever we can be. Now Lord, the God of all comfort we pray You’ll comfort our heart, the God of all grace You’ll extend Your grace visibly to people this morning that might come into Your fold.

We know, Lord, that raising the hand won’t do it, coming to the altar won’t do it, but Lord, opening the heart will do it for You said, “If any man open the door of his heart I’ll come in.” Father, we pray that there won’t be one person here that doesn’t open the heart, Lord.

I open my heart wider I trust than ever before that all of you can come into my life and my life Lord, be as nothing, not even be as a vapor, the vapor vanished. The little candle that was burning, let it go out, let the candle of God be lit instead Lord, but let our lives be your lives Lord, that You can work through for Your glory. Give each one a word of testimony in a home Lord, where the testimony lives.

We pray Lord, for Brother Joe White’s brother here today, he’s already talked to him, we pray Lord, you’ll give him words, maybe he’ll withhold words, I don’t know, but I pray Lord, that You will have Your way so that whatever he might say or might not say is going to be fully efficacious Lord.

For other people here in the building, the same way Lord, friends, loved ones, Lord, we know we all got them. We all have friends coming, loved ones coming. Father, we pray that they’ll be the Word in season, or the Word not spoken but something understood, just by the very atmosphere. We know that’s possible Father, we know it’s only too possible we’ve seen it and understand it.

So the God of all grace and all love and all mercy rest and abide in each one of us by the Holy Ghost and direct us through the living Word within us until we come forth in His image which we surely shall but in the meantime may it be to the praise of the glory of His grace by witnessing the very One that imbues us and unto Thee we shall give all the honor and the glory because we ask it in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

The Lord bless you.