The Way Of A True Prophet

Date: 63-0119 | Duration: 2 hours and 3 minutes
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Faith Temple in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.A
Sermon translation in Russian: 63-0119 - VGR
Sermon translation in French: 63-0119 - Shp
E-1 Thank you, Brother Borders. Let's just remain standing while we have prayer. I wonder who has a request tonight, would raise up your hands and say, "Lord, it's me"? Now let us bow our heads.
E-2 Our Heavenly Father, as we hear that song, "Lord, I believe." We can think of the—of the times that, around the world, I've heard that in so many languages, "Lord, I believe." Only Believe. And, Father, we pray that it'll be more than a song to us tonight and become a reality. May we have great faith in Thee tonight.
E-3 And now we pray for this little church, its pastor, our Brother Fuller, Your servant, a brother we have confidence in. And we pray for his family, his workers here, the deacons, trustees, and all that come into these hallowed doors. We pray, Lord, it'll always remain a lighthouse for Jesus Christ.
E-4 Bless all the ministering brethren that are here tonight, those who come in and out with us, all along the road. We pray, Father, that You will bless them abundantly.
E-5 And we ask, tonight, for another outpouring of Thy Presence upon us. We are needy, Lord. We need Thee. We're constantly in need because we're here on the battlefield, Lord, where the decisions has to be made. And we pray, Father, that You'll constantly encourage us with Thy Presence. It does so much to us, to know that You're with us. Just show Yourself present, Lord, then it encourage us to move on. Heal the sick and afflicted. Save the lost. Encourage the discouraged. Get glory unto Thyself. We ask it in Jesus' Name. Amen.
You may be seated.
E-6 I believe it was David said, "I was happy when they said unto me, 'Let us go into the house of the Lord.'"
E-7 Billy said, a while ago, said, "Aren't you getting kind of tired, dad?"
E-8 I said, "Yes. I've been tired all my life." It's got so I got used to it.
E-9 I begin to think, "Well, I'm getting too old. I ought to kind of let up a little." Then somebody come along, about eighty or ninety years old, just burning up the country, nearly twice my age, you know. I thought, "My! I'm ashamed of myself."
E-10 Down at the tabernacle at home, there's little old couple by the name of Kidd, comes down there from Ohio. Now, they're both in, well in there, eighty-five or eighty-eight. And they're so old until they can't go into churches much more, because their… They haven't got enough voice. But you know what they do? About every tape… This little old woman saved her money and bought a tape recorder. And so she gets a tape. I send her tapes. And she'll take these tapes, and she'll go at the hospitals, everywhere that she can put this tape recorder, her and her little old husband, playing them tapes. And then I'll send her a big roll of—of prayer cloths that I've prayed over. And every once in a while, "Brother Willy, I'm out of prayer cloths again." And then when I see them, she'd come in the church, little white hair, little shawl; and he, a little bitty fellow.
About four or five years ago, when I was at the…
E-11 What is the name of that place there in Ohio, where they have that convention each year? They call it Chautauqua. But I forget now. It's on the grounds there. But what the—the name of the city is, I can't think of it. [A brother says, "Franklin." A sister says, "Miami, by Middletown."—Ed.] Now, it's, you're right close now. Somebody said we go right through Miami. [The brother again says, "Franklin."] And it's close to Franklin. Yes. That's right. Right in… I believe it's in between Franklin… [Two brothers say, "Middletown."] Middletown. That's it. That's right. So, that's right, Middletown, down on the river, so at Chautauqua grounds in there. That's that great basketball, athletical center there.
E-12 And this brother, oh, I've knowed them for years, and little old Brother Kidd is, oh, I guess he's eighty when they taken him over, and the doctors found out that his prostates had turned to malignancy. And so this growth just wrapped him around. Well, they said it'd have to be operated. So when they opened him up, "Why, there's no need of operating. He's too far gone." See? Said, "There's no way of doing it, at all." Well, brought the little fellow home. And, the operation, hard on an eighty-year-old man. And he only weighed about, oh, I guess, less than a hundred pounds.
E-13 So, Mrs. Kidd called up, down. I had just come home from somewhere. Brother Kidd was dying. And said, "He wants to see you, Brother Branham, before you… before he leaves." Well, Billy and I took a turnabout. We got the—the message, one night, about ten o'clock. We started, next morning, about four. Because, at noon the next day, I had to leave again. And we almost tore the tires from our car, getting up there.
E-14 Little old fellow, they got him up when I got there. And he had a little shawl over his shoulders, setting there like a old patriarch. It just done something to me. And when I went to look at him, he looked over.
E-15 There was another old lady setting there, been one of the members of his church since he preached in the mountains, coal country in Kentucky, where she washed for fifteen cents a day, to send her husband out in the fields to preach the Gospel. That was about ten years before I was born; preaching the Message! And he looked over, and he called her "grandma," and him eighty years old. And she was past ninety. And so he said, "Grandma, you look white as snow."
E-16 I thought, "That's the way for a minister to look at some of his congregation, laying, setting there, dying. 'Grandma, you look white as snow.'" Yeah.
And he looked back around. He said, "Brother Branham?"
I said, "Yes, Brother Kidd?"
E-17 He said, "Well, I guess it won't be long till He will send my chariot down." Said, "I'm going up, this morning."
E-18 And I said, "Wonderful, Brother Kidd." I said, "That's the way to feel."
E-19 And the little old Sister Kidd, how many knows her, in here? Yeah. I know, oh, lots of you know them. So he said… She said, "But, Brother Willy, don't you think that God could heal papa now?"
Said, "Sure, He could."
E-20 And he said, "Well, glory to God!" He said, "If He wants to heal me," said, "I'm—I'm ready to work again."
I thought, "Eighty years old!"
I started to kneel down. There come the vision. That was it.
E-21 Two days later, they took him back over to the hospital. His boys was on the police force there in the city. They couldn't understand it. Took him back to the doctor. And the doctor scratched his head, said, "Man, there isn't a trace of that I can find anywhere, now, tell me your story." And then he like to tore the hospital down. Right back with his tape recorder, here he come, playing the Message. And they live there at… And right there near the Chautauqua and there.
E-22 Now, as soon as I start The Seven Seals, as we did The Seven Church Ages. She called me the other night, she said, "Well, honey, if I just had the money," she said, "I'd sure like to come down."
E-23 I said, "Forget it, Mrs. Kidd. Your—your room is waiting. You and pop come on down."
She said, "Bless your little heart!"
E-24 And that just makes me feel real good, you know, 'cause they encourage me. At eighty-five or eighty-six years old, and is still going. Then me, complaining here, at fifty-three. So, my, it makes you feel like taking courage.
E-25 Well, we got so much to talk about, and such a lovely group to talk to, why, we could just stay here half the night.
E-26 But you got to go to Sunday school in the morning now. Now, you must be sure to do that. And remember, I've always said, it's absolutely a sin to send your children to Sunday school. Don't never do that. That's wrong. Take them, always. See? Always go with them. He… And so, now, that's in the morning.
E-27 So, now, if you have had to miss work, to hear, to be with us and pray with us, and so forth, you have to miss work, that's all right. Just go ahead and miss work, but don't you miss church. Don't you miss church. I won't make you late enough to miss church. But if you do have to miss work, once in a while, that won't hurt. Now, 'cause, work, that's just your daily bread, and, you, the Lord promised to provide that. So, but, this, you must really be sure to come to church. You see?
E-28 I think, tomorrow morning, I'm with some other good brother here in the city. But I don't know what his name is now. I think it's called the Apostolic Church, or Apostolic Church, rather. It's the Apostolic Church. I—I might know the brother. His name is not on the paper. But I—I don't know who the brother is at this time. Then tomorrow night, up… [A brother says, "Macias."—Ed.] Pardon? ["Brother Macias."] Brother Macias. Oh, Macias. Oh, the Mexican church. Is that right? Oh, is that the one that taken Brother Garcia's place when he left here? ["Right."] Fine. That's very fine.
E-29 Say, I got a letter, here some time ago, from his daughter, up… Brother Garcia, up in—in California, still holding on. So, I'm so thankful. And I seen Brother and Sister Garcia when I was at San Jose, I believe, with Brother Borders up there. They're just doing fine. I'll never forget them nights up there at that little Mexican church. I never heard so much of "Gloria a Dios" in all my life. I'll never forget that, "Gloria a Dios."
E-30 [Brother Williams speaks to Brother Branham—Ed.] My! Thank you, Brother Williams. That's good. Fifteen hundred seats, in the morning, in this church. Say, everybody come on over, if you're not go… Now, wait a minute. I better be careful about that. I said something wrong then. No. All sincerity, you belong at your post of duty. See? Don't… Now, that's all right.
E-31 And today I found out they seen a tent. I was down here at Sixteenth and Henshaw. Or, that's what it was when I was in, over here in Arizona, about thirty-five years ago, an old dirt road. I went out there where they was, and it was Sixteenth and Henshaw. I lived there with some people, Francisco, and—and now you'd never know the same place. Even changed the name. I think it's called Buckeye Road now.
And, oh, how things change, but God don't.
E-32 And so I was over there and seen a brother has got a tent meeting. Some brother down there that's got a tent up. I went around to see if I could see him, but I didn't see him anywhere, to tell him that we wasn't here in competition to him. But, there's just so many people here!
E-33 I remember Jack Shuler. This would be good for you Methodist folks. I come in here one time, was at the Madison Square Garden, Jack was out here at the—at the high school. And—and I called him up. And I said, "Brother Jack?"
He said, "Yes. Is this Brother Branham?"
I said, "Yes." I said, "I'm running right in here on you."
E-34 And he said, "No." Said, "No. I just stayed over too long and got in your time."
E-35 And I said, "Oh, I am sorry, Brother Jack." I said, "I didn't…"
E-36 "Ah," he said—said, "that's all right, Brother Branham." Said, "They just wanted me to stay over."
E-37 I said, "Oh, my group won't bother you out there, anyhow, Jack," I said, "'cause most all mine is Pentecostal."
He said, "Course, mine is, too."
I said, "Yeah?"
"Why," he said, "sure." He said, "I'm pentecostal."
E-38 I said, "Now, you better not let Bob know that." It's his dad, you know. And he's Methodist, too, dyed in the wool, you know.
E-39 "Well," he said, "Brother Branham, don't you know what a—what a pentecostal is?"
I said, "I think so."
Said, "It's a Orthodox Methodist."
E-40 That's just about right, Orthodox Methodist. That's right. If the Methodist church would have continued on with its message, it would have went right on into Pentecost. The—the real Church did.
E-41 No, no disregards to your denomination now, brother. See? Because, Pentecost is not an organization. They tried to do that, but they sure have failed in it. See? It's an experience. Yeah. Pentecost is for Catholics, or—or Jews, or anybody. That gets… Pentecost is an experience, not an organization.
E-42 And now if everybody has got your Bible open, or close, that you'd like to read with me a few Words. I like to read the Word. Don't you? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Because, after all, what I would say can fail, because I'm a man. But what He says cannot fail. See? "Heavens and earth will pass away, but My Word shall not fail." Oh! Isn't that wonderful? ["Amen."] His Word shall never fail. What a glorious thing that is! His Word shall never fail.
E-43 Now let us read tonight from, and draw a little context from, what I'm going to take for a text, the Lord willing. It's in the Book of Amos, the prophecy of Amos. And he lived about seven hundred and… I think it's about seven hundred and eighty-seven years before the coming of Christ. Let's turn to the 3rd chapter of Amos, the Word of the Lord by Amos. And I—I like this man. He's considered one of the minor prophets, but he certainly had the Word of the Lord.
Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying,
You only have I known… all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquity.
Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
Will a lion roar in the forest, when he hath no prey? will a young lion cry out of his den, if he's taken nothing?
Can a bird fall in a snare upon the earth, where no gin is for him? shall one take up a snare from the earth, and have taken nothing at all?
Shall a trumpet blow in the city, and the people be not afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD has not done it?
Surely the Lord… will do nothing, but he revealeth his secrets unto his servants the prophets.
The lion roareth, who will not fear? the Lord GOD has spoken, who can but prophesy?
E-44 May the Lord add His blessings to these Words.
E-45 His little eyes must have gotten narrow, as the hot sun shone down that morning and glistened his white beard and his hair, as he topped the hill north of Samaria and looked over at the city. His clothes was rather common, and his feet dusty. He wasn't too much to look at, but he had THUS SAITH THE LORD for the people.
E-46 How different today from our modern evangelism! What a different setup that we have, than he!
E-47 This little fellow, none other than Amos, a true prophet of the Lord, with the Word of the Lord, for that sinful generation! This fearless, little man prophesied in the days of Jeroboam the second.
E-48 Jeroboam was smart, very smart, wise man, but he was an idolater. And Jeroboam had led his kingdom to its zenith, but he was in idolatry. He did it in the wrong way. But the kingdom had prospered under Jeroboam.
E-49 And, usually, prosperity causes sin. Many people look upon prosperity as blessings. It would be, if we could handle it right. But it usually leads to sin, dishonoring God.
E-50 The kingdom was flourishing in his day. And, the people, he'd made an alliance with all the nations around him.
E-51 And how Israel had drifted off into terrible sin, gotten away from God, gotten away from His commandments and His precepts, and had went off, altogether, on a tantrum. The women walked in the streets, in their fine, immodest clothes. The men went about, gambling and drinking. The roadhouses, we would call it today, the place of amusements, wide open in the city.
E-52 Sin was disregarded by the ministry, just laying wide open. A beautiful place, a great center for tourists, and it laid wide open. Sin wasn't rebuked from the pulpit no more. It was on the loose.
E-53 And when this prophecy come forth, it seemed like that it would not… It would be the last thing that could ever happen. According to what this prophet said to them, it'll be the last thing that could happen to them, from the way he cursed that generation. But, yet, within fifty years, their kingdom was completely wiped off the earth.
E-54 God speaks His Word. And God's Word is like a Seed. And when It's sowed, when that prophet coming with the Word of the Lord and spoke these words, they had to come to pass, if they were God's Words. When the—the Word of the Lord is anointed, and It is the Word of the Lord, It's bound to take Its place in Its season.
E-55 We can see it, after thousands of years, taking Its place today. It must do it, because It's the Word of the Lord, and It cannot perish.
E-56 Someone was speaking the other day to me, and said, "Genesis is wrong, and the six days of creation, that He said."
E-57 I said, "Genesis 1 to (Genesis) 2 is absolutely a different thing." The 1st chapter of Genesis says, "In the beginning God created the heavens and earth," period. How He did it, and when He did it, that's up to Him. Yes. Then, "The world was without form, and void," then we start off from there, for the creation. But, "In the beginning," how far, we don't know. All those seeds that He had in there when the waters went off, life come back on the earth again, replenished the earth. And when God's Word is sowed, there is nothing can keep It from happening.
E-58 And this fearless little prophet came from nowhere. The only thing we're told about, that he was a herdsman. We don't know who his father was. We don't know who his mother was. We don't know where any of his descents, nothing of him.
E-59 That's usually the way men that's sent from God comes on the scene. They come from nowhere, and vanish the same way. We didn't have no record of him, what happened.
E-60 This great man Jeroboam, which was a—a great mental power, and he had the nation in prosperity, yet, in sin.
E-61 I wonder, if we couldn't just kind of type that a little bit tonight with our own country, our own nation, in sin the way it is. Yet, prosperity, we're going to get a cut in tax, right away, I hear. Course, anybody can read between the lines there, election coming up. But, so forth, all these things that's going on.
E-62 Israel, preachers, priests, and government had left the Word of God behind, and a compromise. And that's why the country was in the condition that it was, though they had just as many priests, and just as many preachers as they ever had. But they had left off the Word of God, got away from it. And it's always at that time, that God sends somebody from nowhere, to blast it back into its path again. Some fearless person will rise up with the Word of the Lord and shake the people back to the Word again.
E-63 I was just noticing here. I had written down something here, that I maybe would like to refer to again. That's on the 2nd chapter, the 4th verse. I'd like to read it. Listen to this little fellow speak this out.
Thus saith the LORD; For these three transgressions of Judah, and… four, I will not turn away the punishment therefore; because they have despised the law of the LORD, and have not kept his commandments, and their lies caused them to error, after the which their fathers have walked:
E-64 See where his message was? Placing it right back, that they had got away from the Word of God. To any Bible reader, that makes you know that he was a true prophet. He put them right back on the Word, where they had fallen from.
E-65 Oh, perhaps their churches had prospered. They probably had fine buildings. Their city was probably more glamorous than Phoenix. Was at Samaria, as we all know, was a great tourist center. Is even yet, beautiful place.
E-66 But, yet, they had got away from God. And God sent this messenger to them. What a message of rebuke from God! This little prophet brought them out.
E-67 Now, Amos came forth from the wilderness, to the city of glamour. No wonder his little God-given eyes narrowed down as he topped the hill. He…
E-68 Not like a tourist would, ladies, to say, "Look at all the shopping the women is doing. Look at the new styles they've got down here," or not as some of the men would think, "The casinos, and so forth, was so great in the city," or because that they might set on the street corners and watch the passing of the other sex, lust.
E-69 But this prophet, his eyes narrowed because of the sin that he saw in the city. Wasn't narrowing because of things that he was admiring, but to see how far they had got away from God, the people that were called and chosen. You notice here, He said, "I know no other people but you. I led you out of Egypt, and then you go away from Me like that."
E-70 And when this prophet, coming from a herdsman back up in the north country, with the Word of the Lord, how he looked upon that city. Must have brushed back the perspiration. His clothes was rugged. And probably not enough money to buy him a—a room for that night. It didn't make any difference to him. He had a message that was burning in his heart, and he must bring it forth. Not only that, but the anointing of the Holy Spirit that had struck him out in the wilderness there, had shut his eyes from the glamour of the world.
E-71 And any anointed servant of Christ, their eyes are blinded from the things of the world. They don't see those things. They don't look for them. They have one thing: Christ is before them. That's all they see. They don't fear anything. Christ is before them. A Message must be gotten to the people, and they stop at nothing. You can't burn It out of them. You can put them in jail, prison, whatever you want to. They come right out of it again. That's anointed of the Lord. Yes.
E-72 He looked upon the spiritual decay of the city, the immoral, and the spiritual decay of the city.
E-73 Wonder how many servants of the Lord, crossing down over the mountain up here, would look upon Phoenix? You come here for the glamour, and sunshine, and rest, which we can speak not light of that.
E-74 Here not long ago, last time I was here, setting up on South Mountain, my wife setting back there, I was talking to her. I said, "About three or four hundred years ago the valley was a beautiful place, no doubt, when the Salt River run through here, and the coyotes, and so forth, and the blooming of the cactus. Look how it's… The whole thing has become a conglomeration of sin."
And she said, "Well, then what brings you here?"
E-75 I said, "Here is what brings me here. Even though in its darkness and in the sin that's in the city, there are some testimonies of the Lord, living statues of Christ, down there. I come to put my shoulder with them, to shine the Light of the Gospel. Some of those little old brethren down there on the street corner somewhere, worked it out, and sweated it out, and cried and prayed it out, with a message on their heart. I come to throw my part with them, to shine a Light of the unadulterated Gospel of Jesus Christ to the great metropolitan area of this city of Phoenix."
E-76 In it, although, it could be a wonderful place; if man would just take his achievements that he's been able to do, to build the beautiful homes like up on Camelback Mountain, Cavalier Mountain. As I passed through there, why, thirty-five years ago, that was a desert. We run burros through there on horseback. And over on South Mountain here, chasing burros and horses.
E-77 And now it's become a great metropolitan area of this great fabulous city. It's growing into the tens of thousands times thousands. It's stretched out, until now the own decay of the cities bring it to a chaos. Smog is coming in. Your humidity is as bad as it is in Jeffersonville, Indiana, in the Ohio valley. Irrigation… Man always pollutes the world. When the Indians had it, it was a beautiful place. But when white man come in, he brought his sins, and liquor, and immorality. And he's polluted the lands till it's become nothing but almost a cesspool. What a thing to look upon! God will wipe it from the face of the earth, one of these days.
E-78 And He's choosing a people, in righteousness, that shall reign upon the earth, as He reigns as King. He's now taking His people for His Name, a people for His Kingdom.
E-79 Now, would this smart, intelligent, intellectual group of Israel; its great, powerful, intellectual president or king, Jeroboam, who was a smart man; and would they hear this little, unknown prophet? Would this great message, that's burning in his heart, would he be able to walk through the streets, and the people would, women would, dress themselves nicely again, the men's would leave the taverns and the places of sin, and turn to God at the preaching of this little, unknown fellow? That was a question might have come into his mind, or it does mine, when I see him standing there, and his little, bald head shining in the sun. His gray beard hanging around his coat. Looking down through there, and looking upon that city, and his eyes narrow, and his heart beating.
E-80 And yet, in there, he saw the Kingdom of God, that should be established there, all weighted in sin. And with a rebuke from God, that would rebuke from the king to the beggar in the street, every priest, preacher, king, potentate, monarch, whatever he was, he had the curse of God to put on them. Because they… You'd think they would received him. Oh, would they understand it?
E-81 Remember, he had no recommendation. He come different from our evangelists of today. He had no recommendation from the priests. They didn't even know who the fellow was. But there was One who knowed who he was. That was the One that sent him. That's all counted, to him, as long as he knowed where he was sent from. His message had to go forth just the same, and regardless.
E-82 He had no denominational credentials to back him up when he went into the city, to come to the ministerial association, say, "My brethren, I'm sent of this certain group, this religious group. I belong to the certain-certain." He had not that. He didn't have any of those things. Neither did he have a fellowship card to show that he even stood in good fellowship with the ministerial association from the country he came from. He had no cooperation for his campaign. He never even consulted anybody about it.
E-83 That little fellow was standing in a difficult place. It'd be enough for a man to turn and go back, and take up his herd again, take off where he left, if he would just have thought.
E-84 But, you see, the man didn't take no second thought. He didn't think about any credentials, neither did he think about a fellowship card. He only thought about one thing, and that was the Word of the Lord. God had given it to him with a charge, that he must go over there and prophesy. That's all made any difference to him. He had the Word of the Lord, and therefore he felt he didn't need credentials, or any recommendation, or any cooperation. The only thing he needed, was, he had cooperation with God, and that's all it took. Long as he was in the will of the Lord, what difference did it make? Long as he knowed that his message was from God, God would vindicate that message. He had to.
E-85 And when he brought the message, it looks like that there would be all the priests, and preachers, and the prophets of that age, would have come in and repented, because they would have seen the condition of the place, to seen the moral corruption. But when he begin to prophesy with the Word of the Lord, It was foreign to them. They knowed nothing about It.
E-86 It's quite a picture of that today. Foreign, the message of the Lord! The church knows nothing about it, when they hear people raise up and give a message in unknown tongues, and give the interpretation to it, and say a certain thing is fixing to happen. The people turn their head and walk away; think the people are crazy. They see somebody rise up in the Spirit and prophesy, or give a message from the Lord, why, the people of the church world today thinks the person has lost their mind. It's foreign from them, because they are about the same condition, today, as Samaria was in that day.
E-87 But, remember, when the nations get, or God's church always got in that condition, God was able to raise up a prophet with the Word of the Lord to them. Certainly.
E-88 They had forgot it, long ago. But they ought to remembered, regardless of whether they could look up through their books, and see if they had a fellow out of some of their schools, by the name of Dr. Amos, or not. They ought to knowed, that, "God of Abraham was able of these stones to rise up children, or prophets, to bring His Word."
E-89 And that same God is just as able tonight as He was then. And it would, certainly, was misunderstanding to the people. He can rise up men, anoint men, to bring His Word. He can put the Word in a man, send him forth, and prove that He is God, by that person that will humble himself and submit himself to God, and not be afraid to take God at His Word. He is able to do it, and He will do it. He promised He would.
E-90 And His Words, of course, was vindicated to them in that day. Because, while that same generation was still in existence, all that Amos prophesied came to pass.
E-91 I wonder today, now, that if Amos would come to us, would we receive him today? Would Phoenix receive Amos? If somewhere across the mountain here, somewhere, or down from some part of the country, came a little, rugged-dressed fellow like that, to walk in here and call the ministers to order, and say, "I have the Word of the Lord," do you think we would receive him? Certainly not.
The first thing we'd ask him, "What group are you with?"
E-92 And what if he would turn around, say, "The Heavenly group?" That would kind of be foreign to us, I'm afraid.
E-93 But that's the way it was then. And it perhaps be the same way today if Amos come on the scene.
E-94 Let's, just for the sake of what I've said, transport him here, just a few moments, and see what we think he would do. You know what he would do? I believe he would disagree with our whole setup. Yes, sir. He would disagree with our denominational doctrines. He would condemn Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Catholic, and Pentecostals. He would take the whole thing in. He certainly would. He would disagree with their denominational doctrines. He would go straight to the fundamental foundation of the Word, and start right on the Word. He would begin his campaign upon THUS SAITH THE LORD.
E-95 Why, why, you think Phoenix would receive him? Do you think Louisville would receive him; New York, Boston, Massachusetts, or wherever it might be, California? No, sir. They'd have the little fellow in jail as quick as they could get him there. Certainly would. They would certainly do that. If he went back to the Word, I'm sure they would, 'cause every group would disagree with him. There wouldn't be a one agree with him, 'cause they have to hold to their traditions in order to disagree with the Word.
E-96 We'd have to remember that he is a true prophet. If he had been, and if he was a prophet sent from God, he would be one mark to him, one definite mark that we knowed he was a prophet, he would stay with the Word. Cause, that's where the Word of God came, was to the prophet.
E-97 You know what he would do? He would blast and condemn this generation. He would condemn every bobbed-haired woman in the country. He would condemn every denominational preacher. He certainly would. He would condemn every cigarette smoker, every woman that wore shorts or slacks. He would tear them apart. Why? It's against the Word. Exactly right.
E-98 You think we would receive him? By no means. They wouldn't receive him.
E-99 He would condemn the immorals of the church. He would shake that little old wrinkled finger in them preachers' face and say, "You mean to tell me that you call yourself anointed servant of God, and will stand in the pulpit and let your women dress sexy, and sexy among your men, and things like that? Let your young women rise up like that? You'll permit your men to marry two or three times, and be deacons in the churches? You mean to tell me that you'll hold on to that credential that you got in your hand, and turn aside the Word of God?" Oh, my! He would blast the thing. Yes, sir. The immorality of the church, and the immorality of the members, he would blast it. My! Every member, he would tear down. Every man-made seminary doctrine, he'd tear the thing to pieces.
E-100 Now, could you receive a man like that? No. They wouldn't do it. They certainly wouldn't do it. They'd get that fellow out of town as quick as they could. Why, the association would be meeting together, and say, "Say, we got to do something about this. Tell your congregation not to go there. Can't hear that." No. No. We would not receive him, by no means. We wouldn't receive him. Certainly. They couldn't do it.
E-101 Listen to him blast. Oh, I like it here. I'm looking right down on what he said. He said, "The very God that you claim to serve will destroy you."
E-102 He would say that same thing today. We Americans has wrapped ourself in so much of fantastic things, so much big buildings, and big numbers in our organizations, and all this fine popularity, and seminary ministers who is trained up to hold their peace and say nothing about it, because they're afraid they'd be excommunicated from the church. Certainly. He would blast that thing to pieces, 'cause it's against the Word. Certainly would. And the very God that we claim to serve will—will burn this thing off, one of these days. He'll blast it to pieces.
E-103 Amos wouldn't change his words, if he was here today. Stay right back to the Word! Oh! What? Listen at him tell them there, "God loved you. He brought you. He made you a chosen people."
E-104 I'd like to hear him in a Pentecostal church one time. You believe he's Amos, maybe you'd get off my back then, for a while. See? Yes, he would tell them. He would pull no punches. He would blast it just as hard as he could, and tell them where they had fallen short of the Word.
E-105 The God that brought you out of these home-made, man-made morgues, years ago! Fifty years ago, your fathers and mothers came out of these systems that had bound up and got the world into them. And God sent His mercy down and called you out, away from the sin and stuff that—that was in the church. And now you've turned right back around, like Samaria did. That, God brought them out from them countries, and they turned right back around and they made an alliance with that country, how we are today, and trying to compete with those big denominational churches. We're building bigger schools. What? We don't need big schools. It's all right; I ain't got nothing to say against it.
E-106 But every time that you take a founder or a leader that goes forth in his day, well, he'll do good in his day, but, as soon as he's gone, then they'll build an organization over the top of his work. Then they'll get a bunch of little Rickys in there, and Elvises, and, the first thing you know, they twist the thing to make it suit themselves. And then this other one comes up and he injects something else, because he's a great intellectual student out of Harvard somewhere, or something. And the first thing, they begin to inject this, and take This out, and say This didn't mean that and that. You're right back in the same old rut again. Yes.
E-107 If Amos was here, he would blast the thing right straight to the ground. He never built his campaign upon how many churches he could get to cooperate with him. He would never build His church upon some certain organization or some sectarian parts of the church. The thing he would do, would build his campaign upon THUS SAITH THE LORD. God would back him up as He always did, prove that it's right. He said, "There is trouble. There is turmoils in your church."
E-108 What would he say today? What would he say with that Word of God hanging out here before us? Second Timothy 3, where It said, "They'd be heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God; trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, and despisers of those that are trying to live right; having a form of godliness, but would deny the power thereof." You think a prophet could rise on the scene and bypass that prophecy?
E-109 He'll say, "It's fulfilled in your eyes this day," how that the church would get formal, and how the things they would do. He would—he would bring to your memory those Words of God. He'd bring to your memory what God said He would do in this day, if Amos rose on the scene. Not only that, but God would prove, by Amos, what He promised to do in this day. Certainly. He would. He did it in that day. He's always done it. Certainly.
We would not receive Amos if he rose on the scene.
E-110 Now, how, "That form of godliness," stand up there in—in the choirs, and—and around over, great long-robed choirs, and—and sing like Angels; and dance, the next night, like devils. That's right. See? That's exactly the truth. Some come out with great, long robes on, flowery-looking like that, and look like some kind of an angelic Being; and stand up there and deny the Word, like any evil spirit would. "Having a form of godliness, but would deny the power thereof." Go, talking about the baptism of the Holy Ghost, they, why, he'd—he'd run you out of the church. See? Why? He has to. But they'll stand in these churches and let their members, in the basement, do the twist and rock-and-roll.
E-111 And our so-called YMCAs, I wonder what that "C" stands for. Walk into them, you can't even hardly hear nothing but the Lord's Name. You… Is that the Young Men's Cursing Society?
E-112 I stayed, not long ago, in a hotel, was across from the YWCA And it was a disgrace to see them little girls out there on the floor, till about nine o'clock, trying to break their legs, doing the twist. That's right. And all of them, members of a church, sing in choirs, and taught Sunday school. Nothing but the devil, teaching them little children out there on the floor, a system that's been made up, called religion. Certainly. A true prophet would blast that thing right back into the smoke of hell where it originated at. Certainly is true.
E-113 You think Amos could stand on the platform and preach the Gospel, and look out over a bunch of bobbed-haired women and not condemn it? You think he wouldn't quote Isaiah 5, and First Corinthians 14? And, oh, wouldn't he—wouldn't he pour that on? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Certainly. He would. Walk down the streets and see women with these little clothes on, look like men, so tight that the skin is on the outside, almost; going down, twisting, mincing, walking like that, clinking theirselves along, and you think a man of God wouldn't stand in the pulpit and blast that thing? ["Amen."] When, it's very seldom ever spoke from—from the pulpit. And that's in Pentecostal churches, too. That's exactly right. Wouldn't make no difference to Amos. Uh-huh. Some… He would be one that would say it. He wouldn't be afraid, 'cause he was anointed of the Lord. And if he had THUS SAITH THE LORD, it would have to be the Word of the Lord.
E-114 He come to Samaria, not to look at their glamour, to count how many organizations, and how many numbers they had.
E-115 As I said the other night, it seems to be, today, that the whole church is built upon, the main thing amongst the brethren today, of the churches, is, "numbers, numbers," one trying to outdo the other one. "Numbers!" God don't count numbers. He counts character. Character is what God looking to find, somebody He can get His hands on, somebody that'll stand still long enough.
E-116 As we said, "Decisions! All year, we had so-many decisions." That's stones, "confessions." And what good is a stone without a stone mason with the sharp Word of God, to cut him into a son of God, or a daughter of God, and place him in the Church where he belongs? Rolling up stones won't make the building. You got to cut them and shape them.
E-117 We need men today, anointed men, like Amos was, that would cut the world away from that woman and make her a daughter of God, cut that world away from the man. Regardless of how many trustees throwed him out, or anything else, he would stand on THUS SAITH THE LORD. Yes.
E-118 We wouldn't receive Amos, I don't think, like this. What do you think Amos would do when he walked into a Pentecostal church of today, claims to be led by the Holy Spirit, and then see that same thing in the Pentecostal church that claims to be led by the Holy Spirit? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] I wonder. Now, we can talk about the Baptists, and Methodists, and the Lutheran, but, when it comes to our own dirty door, then what about that? ["Amen."] Gotten away from the Word of God! Something went wrong, somewhere. That's exactly right. Yeah. They come and do all these different things, and claim to be led of the Spirit, dance in the Spirit, sometimes even speak with tongues.
E-119 I believe in speaking with tongues. I believe in dancing in the Spirit. I believe in shouting. But there's a lot more goes with that. That's right. You do all those things, and deny the Word, then there is something wrong somewhere, got the wrong spirit. Uh-huh. God doesn't lead His people to such things, anyhow. No. He doesn't.
E-120 I think it's a time it's just about another coming-out party, another Boston Tea Party, as to say. The church needs one. It needs a real good cleaning up.
E-121 When, Joan of Arc, in the days gone by, the Catholic church missed knowing that she was a saint when she was living, because she saw visions, could interpret dreams, a Spirit-filled woman. And God used the little lady. And they thought she was a witch. And they burned her to a stake, as a witch. You know that. The Catholic priests did that themselves. Hundreds of years passed, and they found out she was a saint. Then, when they was going to canonize her, they had to do penance. So they dug up those priests' body and throwed them in the river, to do penance. You see, it passed right by and they fail to see it. They done pretty near the same thing with Saint Patrick and all the rest of them.
E-122 No wonder Jesus said, "You garnish and make white the tombs of the prophets, and you're the one that put them in there." That's right. What we need today is an Amos that'll bring back the Word of the Lord to us. Certainly does.
E-123 Now, our claims and things doesn't mean nothing unless the Spirit of God is there to back up our claims. If our lives don't compare with our claims, then there is something wrong.
E-124 Joan of Arc led France to a revolutionary. They needed a revolutionary. That's exactly what they did. They needed a revolutionary, and she led it. But after the revolutionary, where the mistake was made, they needed a counter-revolutionary to straighten—to straighten up what they was revolting about.
E-125 I say the Pentecostal church is the closest thing I know to the Bible today. If it wasn't, I'd be in some other. That's right. I wouldn't be standing here wasting my time, speaking to the Pentecostal people, if I didn't think there was a hopes. Right. Pentecost is right. But when we need Pentecost to get together and our traditions broke down, then we need a counter-revolution. We need a counter-coming; and not a Pentecostal claim, but a Pentecostal clean coming.
E-126 God is holy. They that live by Him must live holy. He is a holy God. The Bible said, "Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord." That's true. His Life is holy. And if His Life is in you, it makes you holy. Without It, you don't see the Lord. And look where she is drifting to.
E-127 We are something like Israel was in those days, though. Israel thought, because that they were prospering, everything was going good. They had an alliance, in their days, with the other cities. And they had an alliance. The government had an alliance with the ministers, with the priests, with the prophets. And they thought this was all right. And they thought that was just pleasing to the Lord. But they had a little fellow that raised up and brought them back again. That's right.
E-128 Just because they prospered, that's where we make a mistake. Prosperity is no sign of spiritual blessing. That's right. Not a bit is it. Prosperity, sometimes, is a hindrance.
E-129 You remember what the Lord said about Israel? "When you were little, when you had nothing, when you laid in your own blood in the field, no one to clean you, I took you in. Then you served Me. But when you got old enough till you thought you was all right and self-secured, then you left Me." They've always did that.
E-130 Uzziah, as I spoke of at the Business Men's breakfast the other morning, he was a great man. He held onto the Lord. But one day after God strengthened him… And he was a great example to Isaiah the prophet. But after he got strong, and built up, the nations begin to fear him. He built his walls and begin to get glamorous things. He got self-conceited. He got to looking how great he was. And then he tried to take the place of the preacher. And God smote him with leprosy, and he died a leper. See? We don't never want to get lifted up, in our hearts.
E-131 And sometimes, when we see our organizations prosper, we begin to say, "We're the big group. We're the biggest Pentecostal group there is. We have more than the rest of them." Or, "You can't get to Heaven 'less you belong to our group," or something. When you get that way, you've separated yourself from the Word of the Lord. Right. Remember, the blanket is wide enough to stretch for your brother. That's exactly right. Take him in.
E-132 Oh, how we need, today, a call back to the Word of the Lord. Look, today. And our nation needs a call back.
E-133 Going to speak, one of these nights, if I can, I want… I've got an indictment. I ought to wait till I get all the preachers together. Yeah. I want to indict this generation of the Blood of Jesus Christ, and prove it to you. See? Now, I may have, get out somewhere to do that. But we'll, we see if we can have a breakfast some morning, just for ministers. And I—I want to, Lord helping me, to show exactly where we're—where we're heading, the wrong way. We got to come back. There's no other way but come back. Right.
E-134 Look at our nation today. Look what we're trying to do, the very thing that took place in the dark age, unite church and state together.
E-135 Look at the unite, union, or the—the World Council of Churches. All the churches going into this World Council of Churches, and they think this is the oneness of God. Because, all the churches, United Brethren, men of fundamental churches, go into this great one big organization. That's because of lack in knowing the Word of God. The prophet spoke that that thing would take place, "They'd make an image unto the beast, and it would have power to speak."
E-136 Oh, do you think Amos could stand in the pulpit tonight down here, if he was in Phoenix, and fail to cry out on that thing? It wouldn't be that he would be against us, the brethren, but he would be against the system that's drawing us away from the Word. That would be what he would do. "How can those men walk together?" The Bible said here, in here, Amos. The Lord said, "Tell the people, 'How can two walk together, without they be agreed?'"
E-137 Now, how are we going to take our Pentecostal groups and go into the World Council of Churches, when half of them in there, more than half, eighty-five or ninety-five percent, even deny the virgin birth? They deny. I guess, ninety-nine percent of them deny, they deny Divine healing. They deny the principles of the Bible. They deny the speaking with tongues. Only the Pentecostal group alone takes that. And how we going to unite ourselves with them in a oneness? How we going to be one with them? How we going to walk with them without being agreed with them? How you going to do it? You'll have to deny the great evangelical belief that you have, the fundamental principles of the Bible, to walk with them.
E-138 I tell you, God calls an individual. He is calling you, as an individual, to stay with His Word and stay with Him.
E-139 How could God walk with them, when their own creeds, made up by their own worldly wisdom, deny His Word? When a creed accepts a doctrine of a group of men, together, and denies the Word being so, then you turn God from you. God is holy. And God, the Bible says, He watches over His Word, to vindicate it. And how can He vindicate the Word, when the Word isn't there? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] That's the reason we have members instead of children. That's, we have creed. And everybody can…
E-140 The world is looking for a super man. They're working for… They're looking for something that can let them hold on their Christian profession and live any way they want to. The women want to act like Hollywood and still maintain that they got the Holy Ghost. The preachers want to build the biggest church and do all these things, and have deacons that's married many times. And—and they can do these little things and wear these clothes, they call it the liberation of women.
E-141 You think Amos would stand still for that? No. Indeed he wouldn't. You think Amos would stand still, and meet with the hierarchies and the bishops up there, and say, "Brethren, I think you've done a great thing."
E-142 He would say, "You bunch of renegades! You impostors! You deniers of the Faith!" He would say the same thing that Micaiah said, that day before those four hundred self-styled Hebrew prophets.
E-143 They said, "In a number, a multitude is, and there is safety." Depends on where you want to apply that Scripture.
E-144 I can say, "Judas went and hung himself; and you go do the same thing." It doesn't apply there.
E-145 And it doesn't apply, that, "In the multitude of counsel there is safety." The Catholic church has it on all of you then.
E-146 In the Word of God there is safety. The Bible said, "The Name of the Lord is a mighty tower. The righteous run into it and are safe." And that's the only safe spot I know. The prophets always believed that. When Abraham died, when… When Job died, he placed hisself in the promised land, his grave.
E-147 When Abraham died, he bought a parcel of land right by the same place, by Job. What did he do? He watched that prophet. He knowed that was a man of God, and he said, "I know my Redeemer liveth, and at the last days He will stand on the earth. Though after the skin worms has destroyed this body, yet in my flesh I'll see God." Yeah. And Abraham knew that. He buried Sarah there. He bought a parcel of land, and buried. Hisself was buried there.
E-148 Isaac, when he died, he was taken back and buried there. Isaac begot Jacob.
E-149 And Jacob died way down in Egypt. But before he died, he called his prophet son, Joseph. And he knowed he was a prophet, spiritual man, interpret dreams, and saw visions, was perfectly right each time. He said, "Come here, Joseph, my prophet son. Lay your hand upon this hip that the Almighty God touched me years ago, and changed my name from 'supplanter' to a 'prince with God.' Lay your hands up here and swear by that God that you'll not bury me down here in Egypt." Why? Why? What difference did it make?
E-150 That's what they say today, "What difference does it make?" We get a bunch of people, get them to join church, and off the streets. You sometime make him a twofold more child of hell than he was out on the street. That's right. Does make a difference.
E-151 Joseph, when he died, he made mention, said, "Someday the Lord God will visit you." He was a prophet. He said, "The Lord God will visit you. And don't you leave my bones down here, but take them up in the promised land." Why? He knowed that the Firstfruit of the resurrection would come out of the promised land. That's exactly.
E-152 Jesus, when He died, and rose up on Easter morning, the Bible said, that, "Many of the saints that slept in the dust rose, and come out of the graves and appeared to many." Who was it? Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph. Why? They were in the right place.
E-153 That's the reason I say it does make a difference. You just don't bury me out here in some Methodist, Baptist, or some other church. Bury me in Jesus, "For them that are in Christ will God bring with Him when He comes." And it does make a difference. Certainly, it does.
Don't let somebody tell you, "Because you join church."
E-154 Amos would never stand still for that. He would say, "The very God that you are saying that you serve…"
E-155 I'd say this in the Name of the Lord. The very God that this nation is supposed to represent will destroy this nation. He'll destroy these churches. The God of Heaven will send down His wrath in judgment and destroy these churches, so-called churches. Remember, you take my Word.
E-156 There is nobody can join the Church. You join a lodge. You don't join a Church. You're born in a Church. See? You join the Methodist lodge, Baptist lodge, Catholic lodge, Pentecostal lodge. But you're born into the Church of the living God; and that's what He's coming after, that Church. So, we have lodges, not Churches. Anything can gather in that lodge, hypocrites and everything else. But I'll let you know this right now, according to the Word, there's not one hypocrite in the Church of the living God. There's nothing There but saints.
E-157 Now, the membership can take you in. And you think—you think Amos wouldn't blast that? He would shake that thing to its foundation. He certainly would.
E-158 Look. When Israel was on its road, off into the promised land, led by the Holy Ghost, a Pillar of Fire was before them, a smitten Rock followed them.
E-159 And there come Moab out, which was a brother. Remember, he was part of Israel, too. He was part, as from that Jewish descent, 'cause it was Lot's child by his daughter. It brought out Moab.
E-160 And look at Balaam, the priest, come out there and made an altar, offered the same kind of sacrifices, just as fundamental as he could be. See? And he had celebrity with him. He had the king. He had all the great men, the princes and the eunuchs, standing with him.
E-161 But there was One standing with Moses that he didn't see. That's Who stood with Amos. That's Who will stand with every person that's here, tonight, that'll stand for God and righteousness. No matter how much potentates, monarchs is there, doesn't have one thing to do with it. They'll never be able to curse what God has blessed. Why? It's a living Seed. It's a Word of God. It'll grow to Its perfection. Oh, signs of the living God in the camp! That's, looked like that Israel had done wrong down there. But they fail to see that smitten Rock, and that Atonement being made for Israel. And there was a shout of the King in the camp. God was with them. Why? He was healing the sick, and doing great miracles, and signs and wonders, and a Pillar of Fire hung over them. Moses was following the Pillar of Fire. The children of Israel was following Moses. And they were on their road to the promised land, and there's nothing going to stop them. Amen.
E-162 Oh, could it not be easy repeated today, if God could get somebody in His hand, in His control? That Pillar of Fire is still alive. He is still the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Word still lives.
E-163 God, send us an Amos that's… that'll stand for Truth and right, shake these things.
E-164 You say, "Could we… What kind of a results do you think he would have?"
E-165 Well, he would have a results, till he would call all those that God had foreordained to be called. That's who he'd get. "All the Father has given Me will come." Yes.
E-166 Micaiah was before Ahab, and Ahab hated him. All the ministerial group was against him. And they all was inspired, too, but their inspiration didn't cope with the Word. I suppose, maybe, Amos hit that same thing.
E-167 When the priests walked out on the street, said, "Now, wait a minute. Where—where… Show me your credentials. What school did you come from? What lineage did you come out of? Are you a… Who made you a priest?"
He'd say, "God made me one."
"What school are you from?"
E-168 "Jehovah God. I have THUS SAITH THE LORD." They'll listen to him? Certainly not. They didn't want to hear that guy. Certainly not. They didn't want…
E-169 And, yet, them men might have said, "I'm inspired. Well, I belong to the great church of the Pharisees here. Look how God has blessed us. We put golden altars in. We put temples on. We done all these things. And, oh, our missionary offering is greater than any of the rest of the churches throughout all Judaea. Well, we do all these things here. Our people are great tithe payers, and all that." But yet Micaiah or…
E-170 Amos stood there and said, "The God that you claim that you're serving is going to destroy you." And it happened that way.
E-171 Now, I'm not condemning missionary programs. I'm not condemning big churches. But, the trouble of it is, people gets their eyes upon that, and upon… off the Word. And, finally, it leads you right off into that thing, and you find yourself slipping. Come right back to the Word. Don't get away from It. Oh, how we need a cry, out of the wilderness today. Certainly is true now. Certainly.
E-172 Other reasons, people reason. They want to reason. That's the first thing that got… That's what lost the fellowship of the human race, is when Satan introduced the program of reasoning against the Word being so. And it sound very logical.
E-173 Let's just take Satan, what he might have said to Eve, when God barricaded them in by His Word.
E-174 That's the only thing that God ever did give His people to fortify them from the enemy, was the Word. He never give us a creed. He never give us nothing but His Word. That's all. And God is infinite, omnipotent, unchangeable. He cannot change. His first program is perfect. He never has to alter it.
E-175 His first decision, when man sinned and crossed that great chasm between him and God, leaving hisself no way back, God, full of mercy and grace, accepted a substitute. Only a God that's full of mercy and grace could do a thing like that. He accepted a substitute, and that substitute was blood. That's the only place that man could ever come in fellowship with God again, is under the shed blood. And it's never been any time that man could fellowship to God, only by the blood. And is so true, where he fellowships with God.
E-176 Now, Eve let down the bars. Eve begin to reason. Satan said like this, "Now, you're… You don't know. You haven't had any schooling yet. I'm the professor of the seminary out here." His own. "And, I tell you, we've learned some things out there. We learned that God is so good! We learned in our seminary that God is so good! He don't expect you to do all He wrote there. He doesn't expect that."
"Yeah, but," she said, "the Lord God said."
E-177 Now, she'd have made a good preacher, if she stayed on That. That's the reason she's condemned to be one today. See? Keep her away from it. What would Amos say about that? I wish I could hear him for about five minutes, and record his message. I'd put it right on tape, let the whole world hear it. Uh-huh. Then I could keep quiet about it, from then on. Notice. Yes, sir, he would condemn it.
E-178 And notice what she said. Now, Satan said… Now, he couldn't do that with Eve, you know…
E-179 He couldn't do that with Adam, but he did with Eve. So he said to Eve, now, "Now you know this." He said, "You know, surely God is too good to hurt you. God… You surely won't die. You know He's a good God."
E-180 We hear so much of that today. He is a good God. But, in order to be good, He has to be just, also. That's what makes Him good. He's not wishy-washy. He is God.
E-181 And now, "God is too good to do that to you." And he begin, said, "Why, you'll be wise. You'll have an education. You'll be smart and wise. You'll—you'll know things that you don't know now." See?
E-182 She only had to know one thing, that was the Word. We don't have to have a Bachelor of Art, and a Ph.D., and a LL.D., and all these other things. Just know God's Word. The simplest child, that can read, can know it, know.
E-183 But, reason, and what did they get? What did they get? Right there they broke down. And Satan knowed he defeated the human race right there. And that's where he's defeated them ever since.
E-184 That's the reason Amos come. Because, popularity and popular opinions, and fine, great president or king, and had brought prosperity. The people will sell their lives for a mess of beans, like Esau. I'm not trying to hurt, but I'm trying to make truth.
E-185 You Democrats sold your birthrights not long ago. That's right. And I'm not a Republican. I'm a Christian. But, brother, what a disgrace! And had to take a crooked machine to vote it in like that. But that's what America wanted. They got it. He usually gives you what you want.
E-186 God, give me Your Word. That's what I want. "Let me hide Thy Word in my heart, Lord, that I sin not against Thee."
E-187 Oh, others reason. But, see, Amos couldn't reason, because he was a prophet. The Word come to him. No.
E-188 Same as the Word today, you must interpret It, let the Holy Spirit interpret It by vindicating It in your life.
E-189 That's what was said, what, you know, Jeremiah said to the—to the prophet Hananiah. He said, "When that prophet speaks, and what he says is manifested, then the prophets knowed he was right."
E-190 If Amos was here, what do you think he would do? He would—he would stay with the Word. That's what he would do. You know what? He would tell us that we've been taught off of the foundation of the original Word of God. He would tell us that we're far away from the first pentecostal Church. That's what he'd tell us Pentecostals. Say, "Now, they had almost fifty years to get yourself in gear, and you never come there yet." Oh, what would he say to denominational personality? Well, oh, if he wouldn't give that, if he wouldn't tear up the churches, for their immorals, for accepting creeds, joining the church instead of being born into it!
E-191 Well, if you're born into it, brother, sister, you act different. You—you stay with the Word. If the Holy Spirit is in you, It only feeds on the Word. Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word," not part of the Word, "but every Word that proceedeth from the mouth of God."
E-192 He, being a prophet, he would see this thing in us. Of… Amos was a prophet.
E-193 Now I'm going to close, in a minute, but I want to make these remarks stick if I can. I'll say it, and the Holy Spirit has to make it stick. I want to ask you something.
E-194 If Amos come here tonight and stood on this platform, if he walked up and down the streets of Phoenix, he would see in us today, in our national affair, in our church world, he would see the very thing that he saw in Samaria: given wholly over to immorals, away from the Word of God. He'd see a very religious group. They were, every one of them, Israelites. But he would see an—an immoral, immorality. He would see—he would see social and immoral decay among the people. He would see immoral decay among, on the nation. He'd see immoral decay from the Word. He'd see adultery in the church. I'm not meaning… Yeah, both; physical, and he'd see spiritual adultery. How they would be taking the creeds of man out here, as man's creeds, and accepting them instead of the Word, that's committing spiritual adultery against God. Revelations 17 says so, that they, this whore, committed a sin, because, "With her abominations she made the earth drink of the wine of her wrath." Yes. We see it would be altogether different. He would see it, the immoral decay.
E-195 Amos never blamed the government, though. Listen. Amos never blamed the government, in all of his Scripture. But he blamed the people for electing such a government. Oh, I could…
E-196 Are you tired? [Congregation says, "No."—Ed.] Well, just hold on just a minute. See?
E-197 Don't blame your government. The government cannot build a house on a rock that the people votes for sand. The people wants it.
E-198 And many times I say things in the pulpit, when I know my brethren is setting out there, ministers, good men. I talk to them, get them in a corner. And it's my duty, knowing these things, to tell my brethren. And I talk to them. They say, "Brother Branham, we know you're right, but my church would walk out." See? See? It's what you want. [Blank.spot.on.tape—Ed.] See? You can't. It's the people.
E-199 Now, if you think I could start up a building down here on the street and sell, the ladies today, those old-fashion, high-top, lace shoes? They probably got more leather in them than—than a whole store full has today, one pair. But if I sold them for fifty cents a pair, I'd starve to death. Why? You don't want them.
E-200 If I sold those old-fashion, Mother Hubbard skirts to the women today, you think they'd buy them? Certainly not. They want something that they can pour themselves into, that looks like the skin on a wiener. They—they just want to be so tight. Walking down the street, about four or five different degrees, pushed in, pushed out, and reared back on a pair of heels, their head stuck out. That's, I don't mean that for joke. This is no place to joke. But that's the truth. I have not a good education. That's the only way I can make my word, know, you know what I'm talking about. See? Now, it's true. They wouldn't buy them dresses.
E-201 The other night on the platform, a little Indian woman come up there. I wanted to shake her little hand. Up at Brother Groomer's church, or ever where. She had a dress on like my mother wore. I thought, "Well, bless your heart, lady." And the Lord healed her right there, 'fore she even got to me. She… See? I thought, "I—I—I just better keep still." See? "Just wait till the occasion comes, sometime." See? And there it was.
E-202 Well, you couldn't sell those dresses. You might sell them to an Indian, and not too many of them. They're getting just about as loose as the rest of them. You got too much television programs. And your children getting out, and some of these modern, white, school teachers coming in, and all this other nonsense. You'd be better off, you was back out yonder like Sitting Bull and them was, long time ago.
E-203 In Africa, when we had the colored race there, what do they do? Go over there, them missionaries, is reading, writing, and arithmetic. When he… Why, they, they know more about morals, in their tribes, than you could ever, Christianity could ever bring to them. That's right. If any of those women out there, if she in the Zulu tribe, if she waits to a certain age to get married, and hasn't, someone hasn't taken her for a wife, she has to get out of there. She is no more a tribesman. No, sir. And when she's married, she's tested for her virgincy. And if she be found guilty, she has to tell the man that's done it, and they're both killed, together.
E-204 Be a lot of killing around here if we had that kind of a setup. Don't you think? That's right. They couldn't have enough undertakers to bury the men and women. Certainly. "But you're dead, anyhow, and don't know it." So that's the trouble of it. See? But now, so much, that's right.
E-205 Then what do you do? They take them over there and teach them school. Then you find them on the street. They got their own tribal sins, what they had; and come in, take the white man's sins; and then they're ten times more child of hell than what they was to start with. The only thing they need is Christ, to stay where they are. Right.
E-206 That's the way with our American Indian. Anybody I feel sorry for, in this nation, is that Indian. Sure had a bad deal out of it! I'm not… I'm just one person, but I'm for them. Yes, sir. If the Lord ever calls me from the fields, of dealing like this, and my message is over; He let's me live any longer, I'm going to the Indians. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. My!
E-207 We see what Amos would do when he called out. Our whole system would be condemned. Certainly not…
E-208 The government cannot build (my remark was) upon a rock, that the nation votes for sand.
E-209 How you going to build your church upon the Rock? How will the preacher ever stand in the pulpit and preach the Rock, and build it upon the fundamentals of the full Gospel, when his audience, some of his people out there, would put him out? Now, I blame the preacher for not having the audacity, and the Spirit of God, for just shutting the door, say, "Get somebody else will stand for that stuff and not me." I—I admire a preacher that would do that.
E-210 But woe unto that congregation when an anointed man of God tries to bring them the Word, and then they won't line up with It. That's right. How is he going to have a church that all the nine gifts operating in it, and so forth, and then, they and that, and the church won't even—even live decently and morally, won't learn their ABC's of the Gospel? Then say, "If I had a better preacher!" Why, it's your fault. That's right.
E-211 It's our nation's fault, our Americans, that we come over here for freedom of religion. From what? And we go right on back, and put into our capital the very thing that we was come over here to be free from.
E-212 This nation is a whole lot like Israel. They, Israel, come into Palestine, drove out the occupants and took the land. The first, they had some good—good, men over them. They had David, and Solomon, and great men. Finally, after while, they kept voting in, and pushing in, and electing in, till they got a Ahab down there, that married a heathen. Now, Ahab was a pretty good fellow. Is… He—he wanted to do right, but he couldn't do right, for that woman of his.
E-213 Now, I ain't nothing against the man that I was speaking about a few minutes ago. He might be a good man. But it's that system of that harlot behind him, that twists his neck. That's the thing is going to do it. Come in like just as easy as he can, like that, and flash the whole thing down.
E-214 Did you know we are—we are now… Our national debt is so great, until we are paying on borrowed money, off of taxes that we'll get fourteen years from today. What's going to happen when this system breaks?
E-215 Castro, sure, I'm against him. He's a communist. Right. I'm against him. But he done a good thing when he changed the currency and sent the gold back, bought up the bonds and sent the gold back.
E-216 We'll have to do that, or there's one thing stuck in our face, that is, that the Catholic church owns the wealth of the world. She's got the money. She's got the gold, to buy our bonds back again. That's exactly. And you think these whiskey dealers, and tobacco dealers, and great people of the country won't sell out, to keep from losing all their business and counterfeiting the currency? They'll go right back and take that money from the Catholic Church, and then she's sold. Right. Don't the Bible predict that, "The wealth of the world"? I'm not a politician, neither a smart man, but I thank the Lord I know Him. And that's right. There is where she's going to lay, right there. You watch it. You watch and see if that ain't right. Just… I hope we all live to see it, and I don't think we'll have to live too long.
E-217 But how you going to do? How we going to build a church? How we going to build a nation? How we going to build a nation upon this now? What are we going to do about it?
E-218 Maybe I better shut up, go somewhere else. But, you know, I've said enough till you know what I'm talking about. See? You know what I mean.
E-219 Look what we want. You, you see what you want? That's what you get. That's your desires.
E-220 Look at our television programs today, uncensored. Used to be, it was wrong for our children, we wouldn't let them go down in the—the city and see the bioscopes, the picture shows. But now the devil turned that right back around and—and made it a television, and set it in every house.
E-221 And that would be all right, the television is all right, if you got the right thing on it. Certainly, it is.
E-222 But what do you do? It's getting rottener by the hour, using God's name, swearing, cursing, naked women, immoral acts, that poison the mind of these children, till we've raised up a bunch of beatniks, that's right, hoodlums. It's exactly the truth. You might as well look at it.
E-223 Our whole nation is turning to a bunch of hoodlums. Any boy walk around with his britches hanging off his hips, and head hanging back, and his hair hanging down his neck like a Mrs. Kennedy's water-head haircut, and going around like that, as a hoodlum, and then call that American? You've fallen from grace. Repent and turn back to God, or you'll perish. That's the reason, we—we want to get somebody in here that'll let us do anything we want to. That's right.
E-224 That's the way with the churches. They want to elect in a pastor, not a pastor that'll stand there and beat the Gospel to them. But they want somebody that'll let them stretch themselves in a bathing suit, and play bunco in the basement, and live any way they want to, television programs of uncensored radio, nast' and filth, joining church and the world together.
E-225 No wonder Amos would scream out against that stuff. You think the people would receive him when they voting the thing right in?
E-226 If the pastor preaches over twenty minutes, the trustee board calls him over into the room and say, "Looky here, pastor. We—we didn't bring you here to do something like that. We have twenty-minutes program. When that's over, let her go."
E-227 What he needs to do is kick that bunch of trustees out the door, and take the Bible and preach all night, like Paul did, and see the resurrection of the dead. Exactly. They put him out of the building; the street corner is all right. "God is able of these stones…"
E-228 Television, uncensored picture shows, dirt, filth, and makes an example. Look at our young kids today. Look at our girls. See little bitty fellows coming from school, not over six years old, seven, eight, lighting up cigarettes. Why is it? Their mammy before them probably done it. If they didn't do it, then some of the kids they're associating with. Watch who your kids play with. Right. Here the other…
E-229 Some time ago, wife knows it, we was setting at the table. And my little Joseph let out a word that would make a drunken sailor ashamed of himself. I turned around. I said, "What's that?" And mother like to fainted. The little fellow looked innocent.
E-230 He said, "What's the matter, daddy?" And big tears in his eyes.
E-231 I said, "Don't you never say a thing like that." He didn't know what it was all about. Come to find out, the kids at school was using that dirty word. I said, "Honey, that's of the devil."
E-232 See, there you are, your kids. It's just got into a place, brother, till it's just dog-eat-dog, such a conglomeration of sin. Oh, my! Television programs, sin-lovers, pleasure-lovers! Oh, my!
E-233 "Twenty minutes is long enough. I've got to see the late show." See? "Hurry up and get this out of here. I got to do it." See? They've done their religion. They went down there, and that's enough.
E-234 But, I tell you, a real man or woman that's born of the Spirit of God will set hour after hour, drinking in the Word of God. Not only that, but when it hits there, it anchors and changes the life. Amen. Yes.
E-235 It's our people's desires. Our whole setup is corrupted and decayed. It's our people's wants.
E-236 You take a good man, say, like a good man, put him in a family that's a bunch of pleasure-lovers, they'll lead that man a dog's life; or, a good woman, either one, put them in a family that's mixed up. Why, the whole family should surrender to God. It's our business to pray, till our children are saved, keep our house in order. Yeah.
E-237 We're something like Israel did, that made the alliance with their enemies. First, they had to get away from the Word before they could do that. And it just goes to show how far America has gotten away from the Word.
E-238 You know, you—you have to deny the truth before you can believe a lie. That's right. That's exactly. Eve first had to deny God's Word 'fore she could take Satan's lie. They had to get away from the Word then, same now, letting Rome take over without firing a shot. They don't know the Word of God about these things. That's what's the trouble of it is.
E-239 We need a rising of a true prophet, bring us back to the Word. That's right. We're promised one. We're promised that. Yes, indeed. Malachi 4 said he would. "And he would restore the Faith of the people back to them pentecostal fathers again."
E-240 Amos knew that Israel's ungodly lovers would someday destroy her. Now let me say this with reverence. So does a believer today know that the world, this America's ungodly lovers, is going to destroy her. Your love of politics! I'll just let that anchor a minute. That'll destroy the nation. And your love of the world, not coming up with the Word and trying to do what's right, will destroy the church. That's exactly right. I hope that's gotten. The church had left Him, left His Word of Life. The whole world stumbles at it, like a stumbling block. They do the same thing today. Yes. If Amos was here, he would cry against the whole system.
E-241 Now, in closing, I want to say this, in verse 8. Listen close. He said, "When the lion roars, who but can fear when the lion roars?"
E-242 And I've hunted lions. The lion is the king of the beasts. In Africa I've laid out there on those deserts, of a nighttime, under those little grass, or it was stickers.
E-243 A lion will jump right in the face of a firing gun. He's not afraid of that, but he won't go near a thorn. You've heard the legend. But, that's true, a lion won't go near a thorn. They build up thorn huts like that, and the lion won't jump against it. Otherwise, he could get, come right on in.
E-244 Billy and I. I remember laying out there one night, and hear his big old mouth popping right around, that far from my head, see, but he—he wouldn't get near. His big old pad, about like that, walking around on the ground.
E-245 And you can hear everything from hyenas, the laughing hyena, the crying hyena, and—and they—they scream. And—and you hear the baboons, the monkeys, and—and the giraffes, and the elephants with them great whine and "whee." You can hear them for miles. And bugs and beetles of all kinds making their noises. But just let a lion roar in a distance, even the beetles quit hollering. They listen. Why? It's their king. They listen to it.
E-246 The Bible said, "When God… When a lion roars, who shall not fear? And when God speaks, how can we keep from prophesying?" How can we keep from it? When God speaks, the prophet cries out the spoken Word. And if It is the Word of God…
E-247 And the lion roars; the beetles, everything, hushes, because they're afraid. Their—their—their king is—is speaking. They got the—the sense enough, the audacity, and the honor enough, to honor their king when he speaks.
E-248 So, God speaks by His Word, and let every creature of His creation take heed. He is speaking in this last days. He's putting forth His Word. And let every creature that belongs into His Kingdom take heed to what He's saying. Stop. Check up. He's roaring now, roaring by His vindicated Word. He's making Hisself known. When He roars in these last days, let's take the heed, and know that there is something fixing to happen, knowing that God never does that without first He roars forth. When He roars forth, then something follows that roar, yes, because He's coming forth then.
E-249 He said, "Does a—a… Does a lion roar now without a reason? Does a young lion cry, out of the cave, before he's taken anything?" See?
E-250 God has got a reason to roar, because He knows that judgment is at hand. And, His Word, His Word is a prophet. He is. "This is the prophecy of Jesus Christ." It's a revelation, God revealing Himself to us through His written Word. And He is the Word. And, now, this is His Word. Nothing can be added to It or taken from It, but It's got to be lived and straightened just the way It is. We are daresn't, take anything from It or add anything to It. God still is God. He is roaring.
E-251 He said, "As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the coming of the Son of man. They were eating, drinking, marrying, giving in marriage, the immorals."
E-252 "And as it was in the days of Lot," He came Himself in a body of flesh, and vindicated Himself being there to Abraham. Said, "So shall it be in the coming of the Son of man." Watch for these things. The evening Lights are shining.
E-253 Oh, if we had Amos on the scene today, let him roar forth, he'd blast down our systems and our traditions, and the Word of God would ride triumphant.
Let us pray.
E-254 Heavenly Father, speak again. Roar forth, Lord, with the Holy Ghost. He is the Prophet of the hour. He's the Prophet of the day, trying to find His way into the hearts of men and women, that He could speak Truth. I'm so glad that He's finding some. I pray, Heavenly Father, that He will find many in here tonight, that He can use someone that's ready to be reverent. When they hear the roar of Almighty God go forth by His Word, judgment is at hand.
E-255 When a lion roars, he's coming forth. Every—every creature knows he'd better hide, because a king is walking forward.
E-256 God, we only have one safety zone, when the King of kings roars, that's the Blood of Jesus Christ. We have a safety zone. I pray, Heavenly Father, that You'll speak to hearts tonight. And let them know that they're living in the shadows of the Coming of Christ, when nations are breaking, and the things are going on, of what they are. And, yet, in Your tender mercy…
E-257 We have sinned so much, it seem like You'd turn Your back from us, and let us go away. But, still, as You was back there in Eden, You make a way of escape. You made a way of escape for Noah. You made one for Moses, and for Daniel, the Hebrew children. You, You're constantly making a way. And those who find It, they walk in the Light of God and have Life. Those who reject It, are condemned and are cast away.
E-258 I pray, Heavenly Father, there'll be none of those in here tonight, that's cast away. May they sweetly hear the roar of God, the Holy Spirit speaking down in their hearts, and saying, "This is I. Be not afraid. It's I." For we ask it in Jesus' Name, Amen.
E-259 I'm going to withhold the altar call for about ten minutes. I'm a little late. But I believe Billy give out prayer cards a couple nights ago, or something another, up at Brother Groomer's. And I think he's been giving them out last night. I never did call them. I don't… I guess he give them out again tonight. I don't know whether he did or not, but let's call some of those cards. Is Brother Groomer here? Groomer? No, no. Groomer. Is he here? Where did we start from? Start from number… Didn't we start from number one, up there?
E-260 Last night, we didn't have prayer cards. We… The Holy Spirit just went right out through the audience and called the people. Do you like that? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] I do, too. And preaching hard like this, that maybe I'm a little reluctant on it.
E-261 I—I've give the people prayer card, I'm obligated to pray for that person. That's all. If we don't have any discernment, that's all right. But I'm obligated to pray for the person. My son gives out a prayer card, I—I got to pray for that person. That's all. So, I—I feel that way. I'll do it, God helping me. Before I leave the country here, I'll—I'll do that.
E-262 Now, we can't take too long. Let's see, we started from one to twenty-five, I believe it was, that night. Yeah, one to twenty-five. I… Brother Groomer, are you here? Brother Groomer? I don't pronounce that right. But I think that's right. One…
E-263 Well, let's start over somewhere else tonight. Let's start, let's start from seventy-five, then, to a one hundred. Who has prayer card number seventy-five, raise up your hand. Let's see if… Well, that's right. That's good. All right, come up here, lady. Seventy-five, seventy-four, seventy-… just seventy-five. Now seventy-six, seventy-seven, seventy-eight, seventy-nine, eighty, eighty-one, eighty-two, eighty-three, eighty-four, eighty-five, eighty-six, eighty-seven, eighty-eight, on to a one hundred. Let them come here. Where is Billy Paul? Excuse me. Okay. Get, go down there. Let some ushers help him till they get in the prayer line.
E-264 Now, the rest of you, look to me just a minute. Yeah. Do you love Him? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Let's just softly, sweetly sing, just a minute, while some of you usher brothers go down there. Oh, thank you. They got them, down there, so they… So the lines won't be mixed up. I want to pray for these people. Then, tomorrow, we'll probably be praying for the sick just the same, and on and on, till the convention starts. And I…
E-265 Maybe Brother Roberts may have a prayer line up there, too, up at the—at the place. I was thinking maybe both of us have one together, one on one side, and one on the other. But I—I don't know whether he would like that or not. I haven't talked to him, and I better talk to him first, you see. Brother Oral is a fine brother, is a real servant of Christ. And he would be humble enough to do it, but I just kind of hate to throw myself in there with a man like that, you see. So I just maybe better let it alone. Well, if he'd tell me, if he'd ask me, "Brother Branham, come help me," I'd—I'd be glad to do that. But, now, he's humble and very sweet brother. And if he'd ask me to do it, I, course, I'd do it. But I'd want him to ask me, first, you see. I better not say nothing about it. Don't you mention it to him, now, Just let—let him ask me, then I know it's all right. See?
E-266 But now—now we're going to see. How many take… Well, now, let's see. How many prayer cards is in the building? Let's see your hands. Oh, there's quite a few more, maybe fifty more. Forty, fifty more, maybe. Oh, yeah, maybe thirty more. All right. Now we'll get—we'll get…
E-267 We're going to get them. Now we're… Just hold your card, if you're not called. See, it's ten minutes after ten, and I—I want you to be at Sunday school in the morning. And maybe tomorrow, having two services, we might get rid of pretty near all the cards we got then, and then—then start off new for Monday again.
E-268 Where we at Monday night? Oh, we're down, say, at Tucson. Don't forget to come down to Tucson now, to the convention down there. Anybody here from Tucson? Yeah. Sure. Garden spot of the world, certainly, you should be from there. Brother Carl Williams is going to get after me for that, some of these days. When I first come here, they were rival cities, and I see they still are.
E-269 I'm used to that. Our ball, baseball, or basketball team at home, them rival cities, Jeffersonville and New Albany, oh, my, my, my! Whew! There's ever a night there's not a big bunch of fights, when they have a game, then I don't know where it could ever be.
E-270 They're constantly at it, I know, in Tucson. But Phoenix has out-growed Tucson many times, I believe, 'cause I… Tucson, I don't think is one-third the size of Phoenix. But…
E-271 We're going down there, 'cause they got some good, sainted people down there, I'm sure. Everywhere I've went in the world, plumb into the jungles of Africa, I still find them. Oh, my! I wish I could get my wife come up here and sing that song for you one night, "They come from the East and West, from the lands afar." Now, she'll get up and slip out when I said that.
E-272 So, she is scared to death of Brother Rose. Brother Rose said, "Sister Branham is here. We'll have her come up, say a word."
E-273 She said, "My heart skipped about fifteen jumps." Said, "I ducked my head down." Said, "Bill, if ever he is anywhere in the meeting," said, "I'm sure going to hide." She is real backward. So, I—I—I hear from this when I get home.
E-274 I hope that all you young people… I say this, not because she is here. You know that, and all that know her. I hope that every young man in this building, when he marries his wife, that she is as sweet to him, and you're as happily together, as my wife and I have been these years. If there's any credit to be given to the Branham family, let it go to her. She's the queen. She certainly is. One thing, she's a real mother. And then look what she has to put up with, see, and then, well, you'd—you'd be surprised what that is. Why, people at the door, day and night. And she stands between me and the public, see, that's where, at home. So that's really a hard job.
E-275 And little old Billy Paul, I think of, many time, I packed him around, when his mother died, just a little baby. Dr. Adair used to say, "You're a strange fellow." And I'd be down on the street, packing him, and him crying for his mother, and it cold weather, you know, me hold him up on my shoulder, like this.
E-276 And didn't have money enough to keep his… or get him a real bottle. I had him a Coke bottle with a nipple over it. I'd put it in here, and kept it under my arm, keep it warm. He'd get crying too much, I'd reaching around, stick that nipple in his mouth. Let him nurse a little while, and put the bottle back down in here. And I had milk all over me, and everything, you know.
E-277 I was holding him, going right on, you know, taking him on. Nighttime, my, my, how I try to rock him to sleep, and get somebody come watch him while I went and pray for the sick. We come a long ways together. Hope He keeps us that way.
E-278 I see him yesterday, packing his little boy. And I thought, "Billy, that was you, just a little while ago." Well, that's the way we have to do, move out of the way, and give the others a chance. Blessed be the Name of the Lord.
E-279 "When a lion roareth, see, who cannot fear?" "And the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom." That right? That's what the wise man said. "The fear of God."
E-280 Now, I want you people in that prayer line, standing there, all you that know that I know nothing about you, raise up your hands. Every one. The good Lord of Heaven being my Judge; as far as I know in my life, I've never seen one of them in my life. They've probably seen me, from setting out in the audience.
E-281 Now, how many out there in the audience, that knows that I don't know one thing about you? But, yet, you're sick, and you believe that, God, you could touch the hem of His garment, and God would speak to me to call you, like He did the woman, like the original woman? Oh, my! No wonder I preached so long. An audience like that, with that kind of faith, should do it.
E-282 This the lady? Now, here's a lady. We meet tonight as strangers, and now she stands here. Of course, perhaps she is sick, or she may have some other trouble.
E-283 See, God does other things besides heal the sick, you know. And so… And He promised to meet all of our needs, our needs, sometime not our wants, but our needs. Now I want you just to think, one now, when you go home, or if you've never read it before, read Saint John 4, and—and see now. Now, here, now, I don't remember…
E-284 Let me say this. I believe, this ministry, is either He's going to take me home or step it up. It's—it's right down to this end-time. Or, either send me overseas or somewhere where they've never heard It. See? There is something fixing to happen. You just remember.
E-285 And, listen, I am not a tape salesman. But I've got a good brother here that's taking these tapes, and that's Mr. Maguire. I believe it's James Maguire. And his—his father-in-law, Brother Sothmann back there, they're with these tapes. I would, if any of you got a tape recorder… I'm not going to say anything about it now, 'cause I don't know nothing about it. But if you ever bought a tape from them, buy that tape, Sirs, What Time Is It? Listen to it, Sirs, What Time Is It? Play it prayerfully, and then you'll start praying for me. See? When you… Cause, you'll see then what—what predicament I'm standing in right here tonight. Talk about in a predicament, if you only knew what I was standing, at right now, right here! See? But I must go on. A winner never quits, and a quitter never wins. That's right. I must practice what I've preached. See? Now, I believe God. I believe Him right now.
E-286 Now, here is upon a basis. Now, if I—if I was our Lord Jesus standing here, and this woman was sick, you know I could not heal her if I was the Lord Jesus. I couldn't do it, 'cause I had already done it. Now, how many knows that's true? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] See? Certainly.
E-287 He has already forgive every sin. He's already healed every sick person. He's already appropriated that Blood at the Calvary. The price is already paid. It's all paid. But the only thing you have to do is to accept It, believe It and accept It. And you cannot accept It until first you believe It. See? Believe the Gospel.
E-288 Now, but what if He was standing here, wearing this suit that the good Lord had Brother and Sister Williams to buy for me, about five or six years ago? And what if He was standing here for that suit, wearing this suit, and this woman was standing here?
E-289 Now, if He had scars in His hand, He'd say, "You see, I'm the Messiah. I… See the scars? Look over my forehead." Now, any impostor could do that. That's right. Wouldn't know Him by that. And if He was standing here like that, I'd know it wasn't Him. I'd know it wasn't.
E-290 Cause, when He comes, the trumpet will sound. We'll… He'll never even come to the earth. We'll be caught up in the air, to meet Him. See? We catch Him in the air. "We which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them, to meet the Lord in the air." He never comes to the earth. We meet Him in the air.
E-291 But now, He said, "I'll be with you, to the end of the world. I'll never leave you nor forsake you." How can He be? His Life. Then, if His Life would be in me, and then I'd be representing Him. Then, if it would, it would be the same Life that was in Him, it'd do the same things He did.
E-292 Now, here is a man and woman, like Saint John 4. He met a woman. He never seen her before. She had never seen Him. And there they stood, together. And He told her, the woman at the well, what her trouble was. And when He did that, she said, "Sir, I perceive You're—You're a prophet." She said, "But we know that the Messiah, when He comes, Who is called the Christ, means, "the anointed One; when He comes, He is going to do these things, tell us these things."
And He said, "I am He, that speaks with you."
E-293 Now, if He's the same yesterday, today, and forever; only, the corporal body… He uses our body. "He's the vine. We're the branches." Then, that Spirit would act again just exactly like It act when It was in Him. Is that right? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Would it make you believe? Say, "Amen," if it would. ["Amen."]
E-294 Now, lady, me not knowing you, never seen you in my life, as I know of. Course, you probably seen me on the street or in the meetings, and so forth. But this is our first meeting time.
E-295 Now, if it's healing you need, well, I, if I could do it, I would, and if I had any way. And if it's finances, if I—I could help it, I would do it. And if you would say, might be somebody else, you'd say, "I come here, Brother Branham, for you to pray for—for my son, or my daughter, or my sister, or daddy," or somebody. I'd do that, see, anything I could.
E-296 And if you had domestic trouble, I'd say, "I'd like to meet you and your husband, together, and talk with you somewhere besides here, you see, so I could talk to you both and see just exactly where the fault lay. Then, when the Holy Spirit reveal, say, "Wait a minute. You did this right here at this certain time." That settles it. You can't deny that. See? Say, "You did this over here." Then, then it's settled, you see. Now, you start from right there. See? That way, it's done.
E-297 Now, you know I'm talking to you for some purpose. I been preaching. See? And then I'm—I'm just getting myself in—in anointing for something else, you see, to see if the Holy Spirit will come and work upon me with a Divine gift; that is, the two consciouses laying right together, which gives me the grace of God to see visions, and see what's happening, what will happen, what has been.
E-298 You know whether it's truth or not. You're standing here before at least five hundred people, see, or close to it, three hundred, anyhow. See? And—and you know that it—it… You know whether it's truth or not. And—and if it is truth, then it's God. The Bible said, "If there be one among you, is spiritual or a prophet, and what he says comes to pass, then hear him." See? Now, "If it doesn't, then don't hear him."
E-299 Now, I have no idea what the lady is there for. But now just let the Holy Spirit come, and see if He don't tell it. See? And if that won't be the same thing our Lord did! That'd be all He could do if He's standing right here, 'cause, remember, it is Him. It's Him. It's not me. I don't know her. I'm confessing, I know her not. So, it'd take Him.
Now, of course, the lady does have a wonderful feeling to her spirit.
E-300 Not because she's got her hand up. You all been in meetings, and see them put their hand up, do like that, and the Holy Spirit call right back and tell them what they were. See? That's right. That don't mean anything. Hear them scream and shout like that, you tell them right then, "You're living with this man's wife," saw it right over here, and everything else. Well, you know. You been in the meetings and seen how those things, and see how them things. That don't mean a thing.
E-301 But the lady seems to be a wonderful feeling to her spirit. Now, the lady is suffering with something wrong. I watch her, the way she is eating. She is before me now, at a table, and kind of dieting or something, kind of a odd-like diet. That's right. That true? [The sister says, "That's right."—Ed.] Then raise up your hand so the people will see it. See? I seen the lady before me, doing something. Whatever it was, it's on the tape. See? All right. Now, just so that you'll know why… She's a nice person.
E-302 Watch just a moment. Now the Spirit is anointing. Now, everybody set real reverent. Keep praying. Be in prayer, 'cause I seen it move right over the audience just then. See? Now be real reverent.
E-303 Let's see the lady again, just to speak with her. Ever what He told you… Yeah. Here it is. It's at a table. It's a—it's a stomach trouble. And some kind of like an infection or something in the stomach. A doctor has been looking at this. And, say, you've had this trouble for a long time. And, once, it was pronounced, "Ulcer, that rise." [The sister says, "It certainly was."—Ed.] And now he said something. What was that? "Duodenum. Duodenum." ["Duodenum."] "Duodenum," I heard him say that. See? ["Right."] That's right. That's exactly right. Your name is Miss McCraw. ["Yes, sir."] That's right. Go ahead now, believe with all your heart. [The sister crys for joy—Ed.]
You believe? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.]
E-304 After crying like that, setting back there, sir, that collapsed lungs that you had ought to feel lots better by now, if you believe. It's all right now. All right, that did it. Amen.
What did he touch?
E-305 Man, about two behind him there, with hardening of the arteries, if you believe also, sir!
E-306 What did he touch? Can't you see that Light hanging right there? Look at that Amber there. I don't know the man, never seen him in my life. Just believe the Lord Jesus.
E-307 Now, somewhere, there's a little baby here, an infant has got a crooked neck. There it is. I don't know her. Believe, sister. That baby's neck will straighten up, if you'll believe it.
What did she touch? Hallelujah.
E-308 There is something else about a neck. I seen it. It's a woman. I can't place her. Yeah. She is setting here, weeping. Mrs. Riley, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, your neck will be well. Believe.
E-309 I don't know the woman. I've never seen her in my life. Only thing you have to do is believe Jesus Christ. Do you believe that? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Have faith.
E-310 I don't know you, sir. We're strangers to one another, as far as I know. You believe Jesus Christ can tell me what your trouble is? You know whether it would be right or not, don't you? If you can believe with all your heart now! Keeps going to the audience. You believe your wife out there is going to get all right, too? [The brother says, "Yes,"—Ed.] The eye trouble, she suffers with an eye trouble. Believe it? You're not from here. No. You're from where there's a lot of water, some way. It's a coastal city. It's California, Los Angeles. Return on back, Mr. Bowman, and get well. And Jesus Christ will make you well.
E-311 You believe? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Now, you, every one can be healed right now if you'll believe it. You believe that? ["Amen."]
E-312 What about you in the prayer line, you believe it, too? You just have faith, and don't doubt. Believe with all your heart, a minute.
E-313 This lady, the reason I stopped with her, she's in serious condition. This woman will die right away if something isn't done for her, 'cause she's shadowed. See that dark shadow over her?
E-314 Say, you know, we got the shadow of that death over people; took by picture camera, just like the Angel of the Lord. We got It hanging in our church; great big, black-looking thing, like a cyclone, hanging over a woman. They told her not to take the picture. And the Holy Spirit said, "Take it right now." And they snapped the picture, and there it was. See? Both sides, here. It's hanging right there.
E-315 You people from the tabernacle, some of you who is, that's here, Brother Fred and them, here is that same thing hanging right over this woman.
E-316 She's got cancer, that's right, the bladder. That's right. Is that right? Raise up your hand if that's true. See? Now the darkness is gone, without saying anything. See, just her faith, that did it. Go, believing. Amen. Amen. Don't doubt it. Just go and believe with all your heart.
E-317 Heart trouble kills a lot of people, but it won't kill you if you'll believe. Amen. Just go, saying, "Thank the Lord." Go and be well. All right.
E-318 The devil would like to make you have this arthritis all your life. But if you believe with all your heart, Jesus Christ will make you well. You believe it? Start on your road, thanking God.
E-319 You believe with all your heart? You can go eat your supper, and that stomach trouble will leave you. Just go and say, "Praise the Lord!" Go, believe Him with all your heart.
E-320 You had, also, a stomach trouble. Believe with all your heart, and go, and Jesus Christ will make you well. All right.
E-321 What you so scared about? You're bothered with nervousness. Just about got you down, almost in a breakdown, Satan lying to you. But it's finished now. You believe me? Go, and say, "Praise the Lord!"
E-322 Lord Jesus, I pray that You'll heal our sister and make her well, in Jesus' Name. Amen.
E-323 Come, believing, sister. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I lay my hands on her for her healing.
E-324 Come, my brother. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I lay my hands on the brother for his healing. Amen.
E-325 How many has got a believing heart, under a hand that'll raise up? Now lay that hand over on somebody next to you. You say, "Would Amos say that?" He certainly would. That's the Word of the Lord. You raise your hand, you believe.
E-326 Jesus said, "These signs will follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick…" Didn't even say they'd pray for them. Said, "If they lay their hands on the sick, just the hand laying on them, they shall recover."
Let us pray.
E-327 Lord Jesus, the King has roared with His Voice, "These signs shall follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover." Lord God, may every demon scream. May every sickness leave. May the devil be defeated, and the children of God go out of this building tonight in the victory and power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
E-328 Believe it. That's right. Just stay right with it. Say, just put, keep your hand on somebody, saying "Lord, heal them." I want you to pray. I prayed. I want you to pray for somebody. You're—you're the… You're a Christian like I am. We're all Christians. Now you pray for somebody. They are praying for you.
E-329 Now, how would you want somebody to pray for you? You pray for them like you want somebody to pray for you. "Do unto others, you'd have others do unto you." Pray right out, be sincere, just like you want them pray for you.
E-330 "And the prayer of faith shall save the sick. God shall raise them up. And if they've had any unbelief, it'll be taken away from them." Why? "The King roars. Who can but prophesy? Who can but testify when the King roars?" His Word says, "He's the same yesterday, today, and forever."
Brother Fuller, come. God bless you.
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