E-1 Some place in Louisville, where you—you eat, and it’s called, let’s see, Dogpatch Restaurant. I got one, today. When anyone eats there, then they take the money that you gave them, and send the church the tithing off of it. It’s somewhere at 319 West Jefferson Street. I guess that’s why Billy had it laying here, that so that they could see. That’s mighty nice.
E-2 Now, brethren, I don’t know what your procedure of—of men’s meeting, just what you do, or how you conduct your meetings. And if I get off of schedule here, why, off the regular routine, why, you call my attention to it.
E-3 It was purposed tonight, I thought, as I had a—a dinner not long ago with our most beloved pastor, Brother Neville, and I was saying something to him what was on my heart. And I thought, if we get a bunch of men together, and the ministers, they’re our colleagues here of the Gospel, and men, we could talk to one another in a way that we wouldn’t talk it before the public. Because we’re all in…We’re men that understand as men, Christian men. And that way, usually, in a congregation, a group, you say something, and—and one will lean it a little this way, and one will lean it that way, and—and then it goes all out. But where we come to try, tonight, to tell you what I have in my heart, concerning the church, and its—and its place, and its position. And then if we get done in time, I would like to speak to you just a little bit on the Word, if it’s all right. Just kind of settle that, so we’ll get our business part, or the part that I’d like to express to you, first. And I guess maybe you let out, regular time, about nine-thirty or something like that, like each night. Well, I’ll try not to keep you long. Tomorrow is Saturday, and it’s a big commercial day, but now we have to get our groceries and so forth.
E-4 I want to say to Brother Neville, publicly. Now I—I want to say, to each one of you, just like I was talking privately to you, just each one. Cause, you’re a group that—that’s…I really think that, and believe and teach, that, men, God has made men leadership of His Church, of His people. See? And it’s a…As I was preaching down to Brother Junie Jackson’s, last night, about God fortified His—His people with His Word. And it was a woman that broke through that line and give vent to reason, and when it did, God forever has always placed it for His, for men to keep His Church fortified by Word.
E-5 Now, I—I want to encourage Brother Neville just a little, talking to him privately. I noticed last night, discernment struck me, two or three times, while I was in the pulpit. And I turned around, ’cause I’m trying to keep as far away from it as I can, until I find out what the dream meant to me here not long ago, a few weeks ago. It stuck with me for a long time. I told it here in the church, about something about the Message and—and discernment, and so forth. It just didn’t, just wasn’t coming out right. To my opinion, that time is over, and—and I may be wrong on that. But I noticed that—that Brother Neville was kind of weary and upset.
E-6 And yet I just wanted you to know, Brother Neville, that you’re only anticipating in this fellowship in that. Have you just noticed what Satan has tried to do in the last few days to what ministers that’s associated in this fellowship? Just stop for a few minutes, and wonder. Here sets Brother Crase, setting here, tonight, almost killed up there on the road. See? And I almost had my head blowed off with a shotgun, or with a rifle. See? Satan trying to take us. And there you crashed right in, and could have killed yourself and some woman also. See? Just the ministers, look at just the—the ministering group. See? It’s Satan, and he’s trying to get rid of us.
E-7 Now, we realized that we’re not assembled here to talk on some kind of a business. We’re here to assemble, to talk on the…on Christ, and the holds to take a hold, and what to do for this present time.
And I—I want to encourage you, Brother Neville. Be courageous. No matter what comes up, what goes, what takes place, just don’t let nothing beset you. Just stand there like a rock of ages, and God will make everything come out all right. He’s proved that to you. Course, that could have upset you, that could have killed that woman, and that would have been on your mind, the rest your days, and there would been a lot of things. But God is still on the Throne. He, He lets those things work out all right. He could taken us, too. And, so, Satan fighting at the Church.
E-8 Now, when I laid that cornerstone there that morning, I never felt that I’d ever be a pastor. It wasn’t in my callings, at the beginning. And my first call was to be on the field of evangelism. That was many years ago. And started off, over here in a tent, just across the street.
And I remember when Brother Roy Davis, down there, and his church burnt down. That bunch of people was just like scattered sheep without a shepherd, had no place to go.
And Mr. Hibstenberg was Chief of Police then, and he called me down there. He said to me, “We’re here to help you.” Said, “I’m Catholic, myself, but,” said, “them people,” said, “they don’t probably have the clothes.” It was during the time of the depression. Said, “They go to other churches and they feel out of place, and they’re good people. I know many of them.” He said, “Billy, if you wanting to start a church,” he said, “I want you to know that we’re behind you in anything we can do to help you.” And I thanked him for it.
E-9 We had a tag day. First, we prayed and asked the Lord. And people come to me and wanted to build a church, so could have a place to go. And we decided this place, and one night along this time, or a little further here, in a pile of horseweeds right along in here, and water in this ditch, and just had been like a dump, like. Well, the Lord spoke to me definitely and said, “Build it right here.” Not a penny of money, and among us we had about—about eighty cents or a dollar. And that’s, course, you would laugh at that now, but, brother, that was some money then.
E-10 When some neighbor cook a pot of beans, and they get the neighbor hadn’t had nothing for two or three days, come over and eat a few of them, that was hard times. Lot of the young fellows never seen that, but that was hard going. I seen the time that you could pass through this church a collection plate, two times, or three, and get thirty cents out of a place packed full, and beg for it. It would…You’d probably got thirty cents, and had a good offering. See? It’s really rough going.
E-11 And we had nothing to build with, yet the—the desire of the people was to build a church, so we could have a place to go. Cause, in them days…The Message, well, you think It’s badly thought of now. You ought to have knowed It then, when there’s nobody, and then of this water baptism in the Name of Jesus Christ, and the—the blessings and things that we believe in and stand for.
E-12 So upon my heart I made a promise to God, that we would stay here and build the tabernacle. The morning we laid the cornerstone, He met me over there in a vision, about eight o’clock that morning, when I was setting there, watching out across, the sun coming up, just about this time of year. And He had told me, after He had met me down there on the river, with That, when the Angel of the Lord appeared in that Light. I seen It in the distance. It looked like a star. And It come right down over where I was, and them notable Words were spoken. And so, then, I purposed then to get a place for the people to worship in.
E-13 Now, I thought, myself, “It ain’t for me. It’s nothing to me.” But yet anything that’s pertaining to God is part of me, no matter if it’s…Anything that’s—that’s for God’s children, it’s for me, whether it’s my duty to do this, or do that. It’s my duty to see to God’s heritage, regardless of where it’s at. See?
E-14 Just like you’d say, “Well, my…” Like you was a little boy, say, “My—my business is just to chop the wood, not pack it in. Let John pack it in. I don’t care if snow falls on it, rain. Let him get out and get it.” No. It’s your duty as a—as a child of that home to see that that wood don’t get wet, for your mother. See? Pack it in.
E-15 If they say, “Well, Frank should have went and got the water. It ain’t my business.” But if Frank didn’t get the water, it’s your business to take care of the water. That’s all. Now, that’s just the way it runs.
And that’s the way it runs in God’s family, too. If some of them—some of them say…
E-16 The other, not long ago, said, “Quit preaching the way you are. My, goodness, you’re going to ruin every friend you got, and everything like that.” Said, “Let that alone. I know it’s wrong, but, my, it ain’t our business.”
Well, whose business is it then? If it’s wrong, somebody has got to do it, so let’s just do it. And that’s the way I feel about the Church.
E-17 The building programs and so forth has come, up and down, up and down, and there’s been pro and con, in the buildings, and so forth. One wanted it, and the other didn’t want it, and this, that. You, you find it like that.
E-18 You find that as you deal amongst ministers, amongst businessmen, amongst lodges, everywhere you go. Where you got a group of men, you—you got different ideas. And so, therefore, you’ve got to have one person that you put confidence in, and elect that person. All work with that.
Just like in the army, you got to have one is a general, that’s the headquarters. Captain says this, he’s the captain of that group, but then the general can change his orders.
And the Chief Commanding General, of course, is Jesus Christ, in the Church. And His ministers are His captains of the companies, that—that’s representing Him here on earth.
E-19 And they have tried many things, the little tabernacle here. And finally…I kept quiet in it, just to see, after I had built it. And then the Lord called me out into the field, about fifteen, sixteen years ago, and I left the church.
But, still, I just can’t turn it out. I’ve always kept my name attached to it, so that I could be a vote sometime if the wrong thing got started in here. I’d have a right to come and—and stop it, because I’ve sweated it out for many years behind this pulpit, seventeen years in here, to keep the thing straight. When all kinds of isms and ins and outs, and every kind of a cult. And being the interdenomination, everything that flew in, flew in this way, and by the help of God we stood here with the unadulterated Gospel, and she still stands the same tonight. And so we…But there is times that this church has been tried to be sold out from under me, and everything else like that. If my name wasn’t attached to it down there, why, it sure would be, been an awful fix tonight. Not…And it wasn’t me, it was God, of course, that did it.
E-20 And then, as I see it now, coming into the place that it is, and we’re living in a great hour, it’s still my interest to say something about this church, see, because it’s—it’s a part of me. No matter whether I’m here or not, it’s still a part of me. And it’s my duty to see to it that it operates clean, clear, and the best I can for the Kingdom of God.
E-21 And I’m very grateful, that, in these days, I see it’s got little satellites to it, that I am grateful for. Brother Crase here, his Sellersburg group; and brother back there, that just taken Brother Snelling’s place at Utica; and Brother Ruddell up here; and Brother Junior Jackson; and those precious boys, who are fine men, wonderful men of God. They preach this Message. Now, they may, one might disagree just little-ly upon something or other, that’s only human amongst the group of the ministers yet. And if ministers have a little difference, there won’t be a—a shadow of a difference in it.
Maybe one might say, “I believe that the Millennium will come, and Jesus will be on a white horse.” The other one say, “I believe, when He comes, He will come on a white cloud.” Well, as long as they believe He’s coming, that’s the main thing, see, no matter how He’s coming. Just, they believe He’s coming, and making ready for it. And that way…
E-22 I have tried to find now. And I’ve been studying. I told it out before the congregation. I been studying the early Church. And I watched the way that those anointed men prepared the House of the Lord, and the order of the Lord’s worship in the House, and it struck me real, real good. And I preached here sometime ago, and upon the subject of Joel 2, “I will restore, saith the Lord, all the years that the palmerworm eaten, and the caterpillar, and cankerworm, and so forth.” And I begin to study on that, about what these men did, and the way that they taken care of the Church that God had left them overseer.
E-23 Now we’re going to start off with the early Church, and just bring It for about five minutes now, down to what they did, and then I can show you the vision that I have for the future. Now, at the beginning, the Church was inaugurated at Pentecost. And there the Holy Spirit fell upon them, where Jesus had chosen twelve. And one of them had fallen, and they had chose Matthias to take his place. And the Holy Spirit waited until all this was in order, before It come. They had to choose one to take the bishopric of—of Judas, that fell by transgression, to fulfill the Scripture.
E-24 And I believe that all these things has a time of lingering, waiting, but it’s waiting for a time for the Scripture to be fulfilled, till everything gets right, everything in order, waiting. Many times we get pa-…impatient, like a child. We great…get great anticipations, and many times jump way ahead, and that—that just hinders the work, until the work gets caught up. See? We must just move reverently, have a purpose in heart that God, if He would desire to use us in such-and-such, but wait till He makes the opening, ’cause He has to go ahead of us.
E-25 Remember David going to battle that night? He was weary about that fight, and he laid under those mulberry trees until he heard the Lord in the rumbling of the leaves, going before him. Then he went with courage, because he knowed that God had gone before him.
And if we’d only do that, brethren. Knowing the battle must come, but we must wait till we see the hand of God going before us, to make a way.
E-26 Now, I notice that how the churches, the evangelism started scattering out everywhere. And then we’ll take, for instance, the Paul becoming a great missionary to our people. We find out that he went about, wherever the Lord led him, and he established a church. And it was a new Faith. The churches of those days, like in Asia Minor, all throughout Europe, they—they didn’t believe that Message. And when he had to preach the Message, and many was converted to It, then there was no one…If he left the people in that condition, they would wander right back out into their pagan gods, and into Judaism, and whatever more, because the people had no one to teach them. The—the converts, they had no place to go, so Paul established churches in different parts of the country.
E-27 Each one of these churches, he left someone who was in order, a man that was trustworthy, a man that was known as a pastor, shepherd. Or, then, after this church then become…Other little churches come out of it. Young men and old men raised up, and become churches out of that. The man that was over the first church was called the bishop. And then his that went out from him, his children, was called shepherds, or pastors. And then this group of little churches all would come back to this bishop.
E-28 Like in the time of Irenaeus, he carried on the same thing. Martin carried on the same thing. Polycarp carried on the same thing. Right on down through the age, they had that. And then the apostle of the Church, the apostle, that was the Paul. And when Paul left, John took over the Church. And when John left, Polycarp taken It over. When Polycarp left, Irenaeus taken It over. And on down, Martin, and so forth.
Just kept on going until the Roman Catholic church broke the whole thing to pieces, and burned them, and scattered them. And the palmerworm eat this, and the cankerworm eat that. And so-forth eat that, and eat that, until they brought It plumb down to a stalk.
Now, but, God promised to restore again that same thing.
E-29 I—I do believe, with all my heart, that we’re living in the last days. I believe that there—there is not too much would break this, anything…And my interpretation may be wrong, of the Scriptures, that Jesus could not come tonight. I believe that what little is left to be fulfilled, could be fulfilled before daylight in the morning, and I’d see. And I may be wrong on the time of that fulfilling, but it’s at hand. The…I believe that.
And, remember, Paul believed that. John believed that. Polycarp believed that. Irenaeus believed that. Martin believed that. All the rest of them believed it.
E-30 What if God would have told John, the revelator, “Now, it’s going to be two thousand years before My Coming?” John would have come back and told the Church, “Well, I guess we might as well eat, drink, and be merry, ’cause there going to be many generations.” See? “Jesus ain’t coming for two thousand years.” See? So, see, the Church would been loose. There would have been no “on the mark.” There would have been no waiting.
And after all, it’s your anticipations, if you fall asleep in that watch, that you wake with them same anticipations. Cause, it ain’t going to hinder one thing. You’re going to be right there on time, anyhow. See? See what I mean?
E-31 Now, when—when Saint Martin awakes in the resurrection, Saint Paul, all the rest of them, it’ll be just as fresh as if they was right in the battle, battling right away, ’cause they went right down under those same anticipations, looking for His Coming. And there will be a Scream come, and up will come the whole Church. You see? That’ll be it. So, it doesn’t matter. See?
E-32 We’ve got to be looking for Him right now. Even…We don’t know. It—it could be possible that it could be a hundred years from now. It could be five hundred years, a thousand years, ten thousand years. I don’t know. Nobody knows. But, say, for instance, that we lived each day, that He was coming that day. See? If we lived like He was coming this day, when we awake, if we sleep, and we awake in the resurrection, it’ll be just as fresh as if we just fallen asleep, just woke up. “The trumpet will sound, the dead in Christ shall rise first; we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them, to meet the Lord in the air.” See? So it’ll be just as fresh.
E-33 But now, until that time, until He comes, we want to live each day like He might come the next minute, because it might be the end of your life at that minute. You don’t know when you’re going. This may be some of our last breath, we have it in us now, so you want to live like it is.
E-34 But now to carry on, further, we’ve got to put footprints here on the sands of time, that others can see. If Paul hadn’t have went on the way he did, then John wouldn’t have known how to follow. If John hadn’t have went on, Polycarp wouldn’t have known how to follow. If Polycarp wouldn’t have went on, Irenaeus wouldn’t have known how to follow. If Irenaeus wouldn’t have went on, Martin wouldn’t have known how to follow. See what I mean? Each one has to put footprints on the sands of time.
E-35 Well, if I thought that there was a denomination or any other group of believers, that had anything better than we have here, brethren, I would have want to emerge this little body with it right quick. I’ve waited, I have longed, I have been under anticipations and believed that some great one was coming some day, or maybe the great prophet that I speak will come, of the Elisha. I’ve always believed and thought, maybe, that maybe I’d live to see the day that when I could change, when I’d see that person rise on the scene, then I could take my little church and say, “Brethren, this is the man we have looked for. This man, he is the one.” I’ve waited for that.
And if actually that has passed, then I’m looking to say, from up here, “Brethren, this is the One,” coming from here, see. And I—I want to see the church kept up like that.
E-36 I must have stepped on something, or done something, and put a lot of more life in that thing. [Brother Branham adjusts the microphone—Ed.]
E-37 So now I would like to say this, that, now that this is an established church.
E-38 Let me just stop again, just a moment. When I went to Bombay, I count that my greatest meeting because of the effects it had on the people. And I…If in Africa, they say thirty thousand came to Christ at one time, then there was a hundred and fifty, or two hundred thousand came to Christ at one time, out of that half a million there. See? What could I do? There wasn’t a thing. Perhaps, maybe, say there was, just say, there was a hundred thousand of them. There was no church, nothing I could do. There was nobody to give to them. The Message that I believe, I…There wasn’t even a Pentecostal denomination would cooperate with me. And all those souls probably drifted right back into Sikhs, Jains, Buddhism, whatever more they come from. No place to put them. Now, that’s a shame. That’s a disgrace. See? Because, I had no cooperation, because of the stand that I take. See?
E-39 Well, in Africa, I went in there under that auspices, of the— the—the A.F. of M. and Afrikaans Faith Missions. And when I did, course, I can’t agree with them. They, they baptize people in a triune baptism, three times, face forward. And one of them baptizes three times, backwards. One for one god, the Father; the other one for another god, the Son; the other one for another god, the Holy Ghost; and baptizing three different times, for three different gods, and all such stuff as that. And, perhaps, the Durban meeting, not having it rightly, and the people see such a scattered amongst the Pentecostal faiths and so forth, the people didn’t know what to do. They had no place to go.
E-40 Perhaps, what if we just had a revival here, brethren? Let me place it like this. What if we just got through with a big revival, and you brethren had just got converted, and there wasn’t a church of this type in the country, nowhere; and I had been the evangelist, and now I’m leaving out, you may never see me again? What would you do? You’d feel like you wouldn’t know what to do. You can’t go back to that wallow again. You can’t go back down there, with—with your wives to wear shorts, and your…and to your card parties and dances, and things like that, and ever be satisfied again.
You’ve come to Life. You’ve raised above that thing. You’ve come to a place, instead of saying, “This is our creed,” saying, “This is God’s Word.” And you’ve come to live by This, what This says. And not what…
And you go down there and listen to them, and hear them go down and play bunco, and have a dance, and this, that, and the other, and a little bit of message that had nothing in it, about some mayor or something, or was going to be re-elected, or some kind of a political affair, and cut off in ten or fifteen minutes; after you been setting here, day after day, and great gastronomical jubilees of the Word and things. You wouldn’t know what to do.
You’d be so burdened with it, till some of you lay members would feel like starting up a church, and start preaching It yourself, ’cause your heart would burn for the Word of God, and you would feel bad for the people that felt the same way you did. Now, isn’t that right? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.]
E-41 Though you know Jesus was coming, thought He was coming tomorrow, yet you’d want to do something today for those people who, fellow citizens of the Kingdom of God, to come together. You want fellowship with them. That’s right. So if it’s this way…
E-42 Now, I believe with all my heart that the Lord has helped me and has used me to spearhead a great revival, one of the greatest that’s ever struck the world since the early days, across the world. We know that. That’s right. It was all gone at that time, and—and He met me down there on the river and told me that the Message that I had would forerun the second Coming of Christ. And I suppose there is nobody here tonight that was down there that day. That’s been about thirty-two years ago, when that Light appeared; and standing there, me looking right at It. Hundreds of people standing, looking at It. It come right down, and that Voice spoke.
E-43 Years later, strange that the camera takes the same picture, looks the same thing just exactly what I told you, down on the river. Now, I may be mistaken in a lot of things, brethren, but I don’t want to be a hypocrite. I want to be honest and straight with you.
E-44 And then, another thing, if I’d have went away, what? We’d—we’d have never built a church here like that. It’s hard tell what we’d have had, see, if I just went on. But the God of Heaven put it upon my heart to build this church here. And then when He called me out into evangelism…We’ve had pastor after pastor, and so forth, but now we got a—a precious brother here who is of the Faith, believes the Message. We’ve got other brothers out here that’s believes the Message. Having…
E-45 Am I getting too loud, Brother Beeler? [Brother Beeler says, “Little bit.”—Ed.] All right, let’s see. [“No. Go ahead.”] Yeah. Had…
We got—we got the material.
E-46 And now you say, “Well, Brother Branham, if they won’t hear these signs and wonders of the great God of Heaven, how are we going to do it?” Well, now, what if Saint Paul would have had that same idea? See? What? But he didn’t. Those bishops stayed just as loyal to the Message! And they…And Paul, ever so often, after making his round…You’ve read the Bible, how he visit back with these churches, talk with the pastors, and with the bishops, and so forth, and took relief from the people, and—and had, oh, just a great time of fellowship, like a revival or big time of jubilee. And the Holy Spirit would fall upon them, and messages would come.
E-47 Look when he went down there to Philip, even his daughters prophesied. And said, “There is chains and prison waiting for—for our brother when he gets up there.” He no more than got out in the yard, and here come Agabus, a prophet, walking down, looked across the street. And never seen Paul before, the general overseer, this whole group of churches throughout Asia. And he walked over there and pulled the string off of his side, he had his garment tied with, bound his hands and said, “THUS SAITH THE LORD, chains and prisons wait for the one that wore this up there.” See? Prophesying.
E-48 Paul said, “I know it. I know it. But don’t break my heart now. Let me finish my course.” He was tired. He was finished. And he was going on and leaving his bishopric with Timothy.
E-49 Now we got to think of young people. We got children. Most of us people here, married men, has children. Well, what about them that’s coming on? See?
E-50 Like I used to kick up, down there, about them throwing those cast nets on the river, pulling out them perch; and the drinks, drunkards and things. I’ve seen them piled high as this ceiling here, big, fine perch laying there. The stink would be all around the river. I went down, as the game warden, to make them stop it. I got a letter, “Leave them alone. What are you going to do? It belongs to Kentucky.” Now, Kentucky warden can’t come over here, because he’s out of his territory. Indiana warden has nothing to say into, because the water belongs to Kentucky. There you are. Nothing can be done.
E-51 I said, “I’ve got a boy coming on, would like to fish. Why, they’d put his picture in the paper if he caught a chub, twenty years from now; let that go on like that, those nets, traps, everything else.” And it’s practically getting like that right now. See? What’s the matter? You’ve got to think of these that’s coming on.
E-52 So we’ve got to think of the others that’s coming on behind us, these young people, and so forth, and a place for our children. Our daughters, we don’t want them out in the world, in these things like that. We want them girls raised like their mothers. And we’ve got to make arrangements for that. And if there is no tomorrow, we don’t know that. If there is no tomorrow, we haven’t done nothing but been at the Master’s business and been found at our post of duty when He does come. See?
E-53 So, I would suggest this. I did, to Brother Neville. Let’s carry this on just as we have. Let’s let it just the way it is.
I’m grateful for these young ministers. See, actually, at the Day of Judgment, for this entire valleys through here, there will be no excuse, because we’ve got little churches setting out everywhere, outposts, listening posts, waiting.
E-54 Last night I was in brother’s church, and asked if all in there was fortified behind the Word. And every hand went up. Now, that made me feel good. See?
E-55 Now, what I would think, would be this, brethren, that like in the church here now. I…the…My ministry has, the best of my thinking, four things that can be done. And it might not be either four, but that’s the only outlook I can think of; if that One that spoke to me down there on the river, if this is all that was left for the Gentile church.
Which, we realize, in Revelation, it’s just one, two, three chapters to the Church. The Church goes up, in the 4th chapter. It does not return anymore till the 19th chapter, that’s after the Tribulation Period when God calls out the Jews. That’s right.
E-56 And like Enoch, he went up before one drop of rain ever hit the earth. He was gone, then the tribulation set in. See? Noah was in the ark before any tribulation set in. Lot was out of Sodom before any tribulation set in. See? And the Church will be gone before any Tribulation Period.
E-57 Now, during the Tribulation, that will be: the sleeping virgin will be hunted down by the dragon, and spurts water from his mouth, which means, “multitudes and people,” armies that will search down and take this woman, remnant of her seed, and will kill her. Now, that will be in the Tribulation Period.
But the Church will go Home. Now, if—if that take, would take place tomorrow, it wouldn’t hinder us from just keeping on today. Let’s make today count.
E-58 Now, what I think, down there, if that Angel that said those Words to me, said, “As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the first Coming of Christ,” see, “your Message…” I was to take this Message, and “It would forerun the second Coming of Christ.” Well, if This has been It, then we’re real, real close, brethren, because the hour and the Light of the Message is just about gone out.
E-59 Did you notice when Pentecost fell, and those brothers were filled at Pentecost, with the Holy Ghost? It wasn’t hardly any time until the Message had begin to dim down, and they begin to set up churches to hold the fort, for Christ, expecting Him to come. Well, that’s the same thing is taking place today, if the Scripture is true, “I will restore, saith the Lord, all that the palmerworm and cankerworm has eaten.” Now, if that be it, if that is the Message, and, God forgive me, I—I do not know. If that’s it, then the time is close at hand, really, because the Message is over.
E-60 And the other night, I was dreaming that I went to have discernment where a great host of my friends had gathered, thousands of them in a meeting. There was a fellow come, got me. And Billy usually comes, gets me, ’cause you don’t talk to me. And this man just talked a blue streak. And ’fore I got over there, all the anointing was gone from me, for it. And then I said, “Well, I’ll just go over there and—and preach the Message, of telling those people, ‘Don’t fool with those denominations,’ and so forth, and, ‘Come out, like this.’” And when I got to the platform, that had left me.
E-61 I don’t know what it meant, but I, just going on. I just don’t know. It could be the end of my road. It could be the Coming of the Lord. It could be the change of the day. It could be the coming of that mighty one, if there’s to be another besides what’s already come. It could be that. All those things, we’d have to draw from, it would be. And as I stand here tonight, before God and you brethren: I don’t know. I couldn’t tell you. If I did, I’d tell you, or I wouldn’t mention, bring anything up like this. If I didn’t know which way…If I know which way the thing was going, I’d—I’d say it, but I don’t know. I can’t tell. I’m going right now on meetings without one speck of leading. I’m going because I don’t want to sit up there. I—I—I like to get out in the woods as well as anybody. If I’m wrong in this, God forgive me.
E-62 There’s three things could happen to me. It’s either the end of my road, and let this other one come on; I’ve opened up the road for him to take over, ’cause, remember, the one that comes to preach, will be on the Word, “Restoring the Faith of the children back to the fathers.” It could be the end of my road. It could be that He’s changing my ministry back into evangelism, for overseas. Or, it could be that He’s not going to call me anymore for an evangelist, and He’s taking me into the wilderness somewhere, to anoint me, to send me forth like the promised one is to come, I think. It could be any of those things.
E-63 I cannot go on the way I been going. Because I’m…The people has believed me. I—I have to say this. I say it before men. The people, many times, regard me as being a prophet. I do not regard myself that. No, sir. I do not. I have…I don’t say that to be humble. I say that to be truthful. I do not regard myself to be a prophet of the Lord. I—I haven’t that honor.
E-64 I believe that the Lord has used me, in little special things, to help maybe lay a foundation for a prophet that will come. But a prophet doesn’t operate the way I operate. Now, you know that. A prophet isn’t an evangelist, and an evangelist isn’t a prophet. A pastor isn’t an evangelist, and an evangelist isn’t a pastor. “But God has set in the Church, first apostles, then prophets, then teachers, then pastors,” and so forth. God set them in the Church, and God gave them an office.
E-65 But, the morning when I laid that cornerstone! Because, now, if you’re spiritual, you get it. Because of the cry of the people! If you could break that out, or take the book and read it, it said, “Do the work of an evangelist.” Didn’t call me to be an evangelist, but said, “Do the work of an evangelist, for the time will come when they will not endure sound Doctrine, but will heap themselves together, teachers, having itching ears, and shall turn from Truth to fables.” See? Quoted that Scripture and told me where to find It. Said it three times. And I got the Bible and turned to where He told me, and there it was. And then you know about the two buckets, of the Pentecostal Oneness and the Pentecostal Assemblies. I never crossed them. I planted their own trees right where they was, ’cause I think they’re both wrong. But, out of it, I was at the cross, at the harvest.
E-66 God respects anybody who is sincere. Peter said that. He perceived that God was no respect of persons, all nations calling, when on that house of Cornelius, when they received the Holy Ghost like they did at the beginning. See? God is no respect of person. We see a person deeply and sincere, he can be sincerely wrong. But if he is sincerely, God will lead him to the Light, somewhere. He’ll come to It, ’cause God is obligated to do that.
E-67 And we think about the Coming of the Lord, being such a—a great thing; and the Message, no more than It’s went. Remember, there’s a predestinated group to be here when the Lord returns, and it might not be over a dozen. See? We don’t know. It might be a hundred million; might be ten thousand. But if…The predestinated will hear the Message and believe It, if It’s the Message sent of God, which we believe It to be.
E-68 Now, here we are, then, right up here to the end of the time. When, if God did call me…Now, listen, this is not to be repeated. If He did call me to be His prophet, then I’m certainly not holding the office of one. Prophets don’t evangelize. A prophet hides himself in the wilderness, alone, with God, until he gets exactly, directly what God wants him to do. And he stomps right out and gives his Message, and back into the wilderness he goes again. He’s not an evangelist, holding meetings, and getting cooperations, and all these things like evangelists do. He don’t teach like evangelists. He has THUS SAITH THE LORD, and that’s it, and that’s all. He gives it, throws it out, and let the chips fall where it will, and then away he goes again. Nobody knows where he’s at. He’s in isolation, somewhere.
E-69 Now, I cannot, or if He’s called me to be that, I cannot be an evangelist. And if He’s called me to be evangelist, I cannot be a prophet. Now, you get what I mean? I don’t know what to do. I’ve done, reverently, when He told me, first, about me hold the people’s hand and praying for them, then know the secret of their heart, all these different things. And, brethren, that’s infallible. You know that’s to be the Truth. Every one of you knows that. See?
And how He told me It would blast across the world, and It’s done it just exactly! Every nation under the heavens has heard It, everywhere, newspapers, tape recordings, everywhere. I don’t know how It’s ever done it. But, throughout all the world, letters coming in, and people from way down in Thailand, and the Hottentots back in there. How those missionaries has crowded back in there with those tapes, and giving that interpretation of the Word. And now we hear from all over the world, see, around the world. Now, they, the Church, is predestinated universally, everywhere. “Be two in the bed; two in the field,” see, take one and leave one.
E-70 Now, as I have done the work of an evangelist. And here is my plea. If that is pleasing to God, and I’ve done the work all right, trusting that I have pleased Him, asking forgiveness for all my mistakes, then He may be calling me from the field of evangelism, to be His prophet. Then if it is, I’ll leave evangelism. But if He calls me to be a prophet, I cannot be an evangelist. If I’m to be evangelist, I cannot be a prophet.
I’m mixing the two offices. That’s where I’ve always fussed about. Standing on the platform, it’s never been good, successful. God has used it, but I’ve never thought it was His direct will. It’s been His permissive will. Stand on the platform, a vision or two will knock you out, almost. See? And then if you tell this person how to straighten hisself up, and what to do; and then the next person stands there, he is expecting the same thing. And you can’t tell him, ’less Something tells you to tell him. And then the other people feel like you’re a traitor, or a backslider, or—or a demon or something, because you don’t tell them what they want to know. See, that’s not the office, the way a prophet operates.
E-71 A prophet stays back here till he stomps right into the hospital, or wherever he’s going, with THUS SAITH THE LORD, and say it, and stomp back out again. He’s no evangelist, at all. He don’t hold meetings and discuss things. He’s got the Word of the Lord for whoever he’s sent to.
E-72 If he’s sent to the White House, he stomps right up in front of the White House, says, “THUS SAITH THE LORD.” If it’s to the governor of the state, whoever it is, it’s THUS SAITH THE LORD. He don’t fool around with a group of churches, trying get them to come in and take the Word, and preach these things like evangelists. He’s not an evangelist.
E-73 So, you see, brethren, that’s the reason I don’t call myself a prophet. I’m not even in the office of one. See? Now you understand what I mean?
Now, there’d be a lot go on like that for a long time, but I hope to not take too much of your time, until I get a little bit of this Word I want to read tonight.
E-74 Now, here is what I’m doing. I have never felt that I should live in Indiana. I’m a—I’m a—a rambler. I don’t…I’ll go one place, I think, “I’ll go over here, I’ll settle down here. This is it.” I can’t do it. When I go somewhere else, I think, “I’ll go over here.” When I do it…
My wife calls me…What’s that song they sing about? Restless Winds. You’ve heard it, I guess. Most all of you hear them sing. Well, that’s what she calls me, “Restless winds.”
About time I get here, I think, “Boy, I just got to get home. I got to see the wife and kids. I just got to go to the church once more and preach.” I get here, and come down and preach once. Kiss my wife and hug all the kids. Get out in the yard to cut the grass, and an airplane goes over. I stop, wipe the sweat off my face, and I want to go with him. Somewhere else I got to go. Well, I think I got to go down there. And I—I go down there, and I preach there a while. Look around, there goes another one over. I got to go with him. See, there’s no settling down place for me. I just can’t do it. I’m restless, shifting, place to place, something. I can’t help it. It’s something in me. And I know that I must do it.
E-75 Now, at the church, is in its present state, I’d feel horrible to walk away from here. And, think, of all you men sitting here, that I believe I’ll spend an Eternity with, over in Gloryland. We got fine men, fine material, solid, sound people. Just recently there was a revival broke out in the church here amongst the people. The Spirit come among them, begin to give gifts. I watched it, to see if it’d go off into fanaticism. Every time it start moving that way, the Spirit would check it and bring it back here. I thought, “Praise the Lord.” See? You just hold your place there. That’s fine. See?
E-76 Now, what my thoughts is, is this, is if it could be possible that, when I start going somewhere…I don’t know where I’m going. But I can’t sit still. I ain’t going to stay here. I just can’t do it. I got to move somewhere. And I probably won’t stay there but a few days, be moving somewhere else. I got to go somewhere. I don’t know where I’m going. Neither did Abraham know where he was going. He just crossed the river and started off. That’s all.
E-77 I feel that what we ought to do here, in this present time, I believe that we need a church. I think—I think the house of God…You say, “Well, what, putting all that money in it if the Lord is going to come?” Well, what good is it going to do to keep the money if the Lord comes? See? And if the people designated the money for the church, it’s our duty, with a hundred percent vote here, that I took that night, to build the church. So, build it. I’d say, “Build it. Yes, sir.”
E-78 I never expressed this before, but I want to do it before you men. Didn’t want the women here, ’cause one leans this way, and that way. Now I’m trying, tell you the reason I want to do it. I think, if the Lord is coming next week, let’s start the church this week. Certainly. Let’s show Him. Let’s stand at our post of duty. Yes, sir. And then if we…when the church is built up.
E-79 Why? Say if He’s…What if He’s ten years from now? What if He is twenty years? Or what if He’s a hundred years? Whatever it is, when He comes, that matters not. We know He will be coming for us before that time, because we can’t live it out, a hundred years more. He will be coming for us, but we got to leave partings behind us. And I’ve thought this. Why not then let the church board here, speaking to them now, build that church? Put it up here. Make it nice, and a nice place where the people can come.
E-80 I’d suggest, Brother Neville be the pastor of the church, as long as the church suggests him being pastor. That’s the vote of the church. As long as he holds that post of duty and stays with the Faith, wants to come, feels the leading of the Lord, then the leading of the Lord for him to stay, if the congregation votes the same.
E-81 Then I’d say, each one of these men out here, these other men, like Brother Crase, and Brother Junior, all of them, as long as they feel their duty at that post, and they’re associated here together. You can’t go down and meet with the Methodist. You have no fellowship with them. The Baptists, you go, talking about speaking in tongues, and the baptism in Jesus Name, they kick you out, that quick. [Brother Branham snaps his finger—Ed.] That’s right. You sit around there, you’d be like a—a dove amongst a bunch of crows. You would have no fellowship, at all. You’d die. I ain’t making fun of Methodists and Baptists, now. Remember that. I’m not saying that. I’m just drawing a comparison. There, many, those Methodists and Baptists are good men, godly men. But I’m talking about the fellowship.
There is Brother what’s-his-name, back there tonight, the—the evangelist sitting back there, Brother J. T. Parnell. Brother Beeler. Believe, this brother sitting here. Some of…Many of you here are men of God, calling in your life. You can be doing something. Just don’t set around. Let’s do something. You don’t get but one soul saved, get that one saved. Each one of us.
E-82 Now, I think, this church, if you men would, when you build this church, make this like your headquarters, and like Brother Neville here being like the senior elder among you. See? And sometimes you get a question that you can’t discuss out with your church out there, then bring it in here to Brother Neville, and you all discuss it together. If you can’t come to any decision, I’ll be coming by, pretty soon, then we’ll all come together with it.
E-83 And—and then, in there, get training in your own groups, other ministers, men that you see that has a calling in their life, for the ministry. Train them young men. Bring them in here to the elder. All of you set together in a ministerial meeting, and there teach the deeper things of God. Don’t go on the bad end. Keep someone who can have confidence in, to be kind of like a—a leader for you. And then, sometimes, if you don’t see it just exactly the way he does, goes, that’s all right. You’re in the Faith, anyhow. Just move along. Maybe when we come together, then, all of us together, we’ll pray; the discernment of God come down, and He will give it just exactly what it is, you see, and let us know just how to do it.
E-84 And in there, churches can go hear, and training up a group of men. And if I’m in evangelistic work somewhere, there is places I can place them, worldwide.
E-85 What if I was in India, go back to India? There I’d say to these people, maybe, would have thousands of them. Stay there for a week or two, and they see the ministry. They love it. They believe it’s the Truth. They come out of heathenism. There I’ve got…and maybe in two or three weeks.
When I was over there, two nights, and maybe a hundred thousand converted to Christ; nowhere to go. The next day, take a plane and start back to Rome, then to the United States. Leave them just like sheep put out among wolves.
What if I had a group of men, young men trained in the Message, see, to say, “Now, wait a minute. Before I leave here, we’re going to set in order these churches. I’ll have a man. I’ve already telegramed them. They got the money. They’re on their road here, right now, to take over this; a good man. There is two or three young men with him, who will be his helpers and assistants”?
E-86 And a church of this Faith can be set there, which will be an outpost in India, outpost in Germany, outpost in Switzerland. Why, right now, we should have had them all around the nations where I been. And the Message then, from there, comes another, from another comes another. See what I mean? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.]
E-87 Now, tomorrow night, or day after tomorrow night, you’ll see Mattsson-Boze come down here, which is my friend. You’ll see just what one little, crippled-up Swede did over there in Tanganyika. He went in there. And, now, Mattsson-Boze is a good man, but he don’t believe the Faith that we believe.
E-88 I’ve took him right out, and took him and just tied him to such a place in the Scripture. I say, “Mattsson, you’re my friend. Now you’re not going to jump or run. We’re just going to stand here, hold one another’s hands, as Christian brothers, and talk.” See?
E-89 And lay the Message right to him, and he’d just stand there. He say, “Bro’er Branham, you—you sure are right.”
E-90 I say, “Now, Mattsson, you don’t believe that, or you’d accept It.”
E-91 “Well, Bro’er Branham, I—I believe what you say is the Truth.”
E-92 “Then why don’t you accept It?” See? Just burn It right down to him. And he—he, then, as soon as he gets away, he’s gone. See?
E-93 But just watch what that man did in his missions over there, just one man. Cause, he could send right back to Chicago and pick up Burton and all the rest of them, send them over in there like that, and start the work doings. Till, now they’re getting up in the tens of thousands, of one little revival. Not a man with gifts, just a man who had enough courage to go there and start.
What could been done under This? Could been ranking in the millions. Sure. We’ve lost that time. That’s what my suggestion would be.
E-94 Now remember, in doing this, you’ll find out, there may be times that you’ll disagree with Brother So-and-so. You’ll disagree over here. And remember, as long as you get to the spot, you say, “Well, because he don’t believe It just like me, I ain’t going to…” then there is something wrong with you. Is not wrong with the other fellow. It’s something wrong with you. When, brethren who are trying to hold together!
E-95 There’s one thing, we Branham’s, there’s nine of us, and we’d fight like pet dogs. But, after all, when we got through fighting, we were still Branham’s. One knowed the other was a Branham. I knowed he was a Branham. He knowed I was a Branham. See? But we’d fight. You do that in your family, but they’re still your brothers.
That’s the way it is. We might different, that’s all right, but we’re still one. We’re one in Christ. We believe this Message, and let’s stay with It.
E-96 And I think that that’s the thing to do, to keep on carrying on, until Jesus comes. And that’s what I wanted to say in that manner. And I believe if you’d have like…
E-97 See, you’ve got to be enthused with It. If you’re not enthused, then there is something wrong. There is something wrong. You got, just not say, “Well, last month I was pretty well enthused, but I don’t know.” See, then there is something wrong somewhere. You’ve got to be enthused, all the time, see, and just keep punching. It’s the devil, trying to get you.
Like, I always liked our last president, Mr. Eisenhower. I had a great admiration for General Eisenhower. He said, “When we were fighting,” he said, “there’s many times we picked up a shell and throwed it into the gun, and pulled the hammer on it, and let her fall, and it snapped. It didn’t go off.” Said, “We didn’t surrender.” Said, “We might have put in another one, and it snapped, too.” Said, “We didn’t give up.” Said, “We kept on snapping till the one went off.”
E-98 That’s it. That’s the way to win the war. Keep trying. Throw the shell in and pull it. You got a purpose, a target to hit. And if it don’t go off, throw it out, and throw another one in, and try it again. Throw it in and try it again, till one goes off. There’s one of them in there that’s alive, and one of them will go off. But that’s the way we got to do. Just keep firing away, firing away, until something happens.
E-99 What am I doing? I’m firing away now. I’m going out here, not know even…out any leading.
A responsibility! Millions of people looking at you, “What’s you going to do? What’s the next move?” Some thinks I’m dead. Some thinks this. Even that gun went off, other day, said I was trying to commit suicide. Everything, see, out around the country, and everything. See? But you got all that to contend with. Then, you got the burden of the people.
E-100 And just imagine, what if God would place on you, that you knowed the heart of the people that you was talking to? Think about that. See? Brethren, maybe, I know you have burdens, but you don’t understand. And besides that, here, you got the responsibility here.
E-101 You say, “Well, that ought to be easy for you, Brother Branham. Anything to do, God just tell you.” No. He doesn’t. I sweat it out, just like you do, and a whole lot harder. Sure. I have to sweat it much harder than you do.
And there’s going to be more required of me. Where you have to answer for a church, where you have to answer for your family, or maybe just for yourself, see, there’s millions of souls I got to answer for. I got to know my moves. And if Satan is knocking you, for one soul, or a few souls that you’ll catch, what about out here where millions are sitting in order? How many more blasts is he throwing in there? See? So you got a whole lot to remember, brethren. That, no wonder I get nervous sometimes. Sure.
E-102 But now I’m punching away right now. I throw a shell in. If it fires, there it is. If it don’t fire, I won’t quit. I’ll throw that one out, as a thud, and try another one. One of them is going to go off. That’s all there is to it. One of them is going to fire, somewhere. Then, I—I want to be on the target, so, when it does fire, I’ll hit the object that I’m shooting at. And now you know what I mean. I’m sure. See? There is something, somewhere. I’m leaving for these meetings, just plunging out yonder. I don’t aim to teach these great things I teach you people.
E-103 You remember what that dream, that I got the interpretation, was? “Go back and store up Food.” Where was the storehouse? This tabernacle. Where is there anything like it in the country, around here anywhere, that will compare with the Message that we have?
Now, course, our little brothers here that’s out along here, these other little churches, are us. We’re one.
Where would you go to, to find It? Show Its comparison anywhere. You go right out in denominational creeds. You’ll go right out away from the Name of the Lord Jesus. You’ll go right out away from these other things. See? And here is where the Food has been stored up.
E-104 Well, one Message that I preach here to you all…Look, I’ve been preaching from one to six hours to you, on a Message. Well, if I had to use one of those Message, I’d take a week to take It, just a little bit here and a little bit there, see, because It’s been stored up here.
E-105 It’s on tapes. It’ll go worldwide on the tapes, where people in their houses. Them tapes will fall right into the hands of the predestinated of God. He can direct the Word. He’ll direct everything just exactly to its course. That’s the reason He sent me back to do this. “Store up the Food here.” He forbid me to go overseas.
E-106 Brother Arganbright said, “Well, come, go. You got one night, but we’ll take you a tourist trip all around over the country.” The way I seen Brother Fred and Brother Banks trying to go.
E-107 I said, “I wouldn’t go that way.” See? It showed that there was something else.
E-108 I’ve pressed right up to the mark now, but I don’t know which way to go. But there’s ammunition laying all around me. Did He call me back to the evangelism? Has He called me to foreign missionaries? Has He called me to be His prophet? Am I to pastor somewhere? Whatever I’m to do, I’ll just keep throwing shell in and pulling the hammer on it. One of them will go off. But I’m just not going to stay and look, say, “Lord, You put the shell in the gun.” I’m going to put the shell in the gun, do the pulling myself. Let Him do the firing. He is the One to take care of that. Let me just keep moving on.
E-109 Out, when I go on this meetings now, I’m just going out. I don’t know. It, I—I may not say one thing about these Message like I preach here. I may not even have one night of discernment. I don’t know. I’m just going, not knowing what I’m going to do. I couldn’t tell you. I’m just going, and that’s only.
E-110 And that’s the way you have to do. You’ve got something in mind. The people here wants a church. Build it. As quick as you can, get it up. Get your teachers and things.
You brethren out yonder, with your little churches, and you want to, you’re doing a work, God will reward you for that. Go out there, preach, do everything you can. Let all of you get together, you bunch of men, and have meetings, and talk on deep things of the Scripture.
And, pray. Don’t—don’t just come here to gather, ’less you’d come for prayer meeting alone. Do your praying in secret. Stay out in the places. Go into your rooms. Hide out somewhere. And just kneel down, and just stay before God, and stay there.
Then if you find out, look like something is moving up, oh, you’re just going, and you find out it gets a little bit off the Word, then be careful. No matter how good it looks, stop right there. A wrong spirit struck you. Cause, the Message of this day is to the Word. See? Don’t…See?
E-111 If you say, “Oh, my, Brother Branham! I tell you so-and-so. Why, So-and-so stood the other night, this other thing taken place like this.”
Watch it. Watch it close. Don’t renounce nothing. Just wait and see how it acts, and then bring it up to the Word and see how it compares with the Word. Then, if it compares with the Word, and everything is fine, thank God, and just keep moving on then, see, just long as it stays in the Word. That’s my opinion, what I think you should do.
E-112 Brother Neville, Brother Ruddell, Brother Crase, and Brother Beeler, and all you brethren here, Junie, wherever you are, and the rest of you brethren, God richly bless you.
I see Terry, Lynn, Charlie Cox, David, a lot of you young men here. God anoint you. My! How I would like to pick up a handful of you, to be evangelism, and set you somewhere, see, knowing that you’ve come up. You can stand and know the Message, and study, to prove yourself, you feel a call in your life. I see two or three young men, and four or five, sitting, on another row back here, and—and like that. You’re a young man. I’m getting old. Brother Neville is getting old. We’re middle-aged men. If time rolls on, we’re going to walk off the scene, after while. You’ve got to fill our shoes. See? And so, you see, and then, maybe, in that day, even will be growed greater, if there is a tomorrow.
E-113 But while there is a today, let’s work while it’s day. Tomorrow may never come. If it does, let’s be ready for it. See what I mean? Now, that’s what I would think, to you.
E-114 Would it be wonderful to see a brother up there from Utica, Brother Crase, all you other brethren here, come together, meet, come into a place. You ministers set together and discuss things. You’ve got to have fellowship somewhere. You’ve got to have something, to come together, to kind of get together about. You all come together as a group of men and believe one with the other, and like that, and discuss these problems, and set out, maybe, once a month, just ministers alone. Let you meet somewhere in one of your churches. Sit there and discuss it, and talk it, each one of you pastors, and evangelists, and whatever you are.
And then if some great problem comes up, you can’t settle, then, if I’m called on the field of evangelism. I don’t know that I will be. If I will be, you know I’ll be coming back, constantly, all the time. And then if you get those things, then, when I come back here, well, we’ll meet together and just set down there. One of you has a calling in your life…We won’t have like private interviews and things we been having. We’ll just come right together, and stay there till we have THUS SAITH THE LORD.
E-115 And if you can get the preachers straight, and him going right, look what he’s going to do. He’s going to influence a…It would take care of a hundreds of these things. That’s it. We’re just beating at, you see. You’ve got to get it a system, God’s system.
E-116 Like Jethro said to Moses, “Why, you can’t beat out all of them.” Or, and God put elders out there, seventy of them. And took the Spirit was on Moses, and put them upon those seventy elders. And they prophesied. And it didn’t weaken Moses a bit. It strengthened him. He had just as much prophecy in him as he did before they took the Spirit off of him, to prophesy. See? He just separated, said, “Now, Moses, let them judge the smaller things. And, but, when it comes to the major things, you come in with them and help them like that.”
E-117 Now, that’s the way. That was God’s way back there. That was God’s way in the—in the early Church Age. And I believe it’s God’s way now, right, for us to do it. So, let’s do it. Just quit talking about it, and do it. That’s all. We can do it by the grace of God. Don’t you believe it? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.]
Now, now, let’s see. Oh, I done took my time up.
E-118 But Billy wrote a note here. Just a minute, I’ll see what it is. “I’m from New Albany. Daughter Grace, Memorial Hospital, broke her arm. Wants prayer for her. T-r-o-u-b, W. C. Troub.” Troub, something like that.
Let’s have prayer for this young lady.
E-119 Our Heavenly Father, as we’re speaking now, and I’m thinking that maybe when Irenaeus looked out upon his little group of men, it perhaps was a lot smaller group than is here tonight. And they didn’t have a seat to sit in. They set on old cold slabs of rock. And they sit there, and he talked to them. Those men went out even when, to go, they know that they could be fed to lions, their heads chopped off. But the Faith of our fathers are living still, in spite of dungeon, flame and sword.
E-120 I thank You for these men, Lord. I pray that You’ll bless them. And I bless each of them, in Thy Name, that You will keep them in the Faith that was once delivered to the saints, that never will they vary from that. And out of this group may You send pastors, teachers, evangelists. O God, grant it. And may they hold the fort, everywhere, wherever they are. May they continually work until Jesus comes.
E-121 And now, Father, I pray for each of these requests that’s come in here tonight, and ask that You’ll remember this little lady down here, that’s just broke her arm. May the power of Almighty God heal her and make her well. Grant it, Lord. I pray that You’ll help her and bless her. Bless her loved ones for calling. And may the power that raised up Jesus out of the grave raise up this girl. May her arm get well.
E-122 All these requests that was made mention tonight! That poor boy laying there, that’s got this, I heard the brother announce it, that the—the Hodgkin’s disease has eat through him until his face is burnt up, with radium and things they’re giving him. God, be merciful to that boy. Let him live.
We think of that man that didn’t prepare to meet You, and has gone on now; his wife with a crushed head. The adopted child! All these others!
Sister Bruce, packing that water. She is getting old, Father. And there she burnt her arms, and up and down her body. We pray for her. She is probably hospitalized. And we pray that you’ll deliver her and bring her out. Grant it, Father. We ask these blessings in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
E-123 Now I want to ask you something, and ask you if—if you believe that we have time just for a little bit of the Word. Do you have it? [The brethren say, “Yes.”—Ed.] Just for…Now it’s, I know, it’s a little late, but I had a little something here that I thought out today, that I would like to—to speak on, just for a minute, and it might help you.
And I thought, first, that I would announce this. Now, it’s on this tape. And if anybody would ever want to refer to it, Jim will have it, see, to what I think ought to be done, and now what should be done to the…for you brethren.
E-124 Now, do you know, when those early men went out, sometimes there were only about six or eight of them, together? And they shook the country. Well, you know, when Aquila and Priscilla, that great revival that Apollos was having over there, there was only about six or eight men and women in that bunch. That whole church, meant six or eight. You got five or six, seven times as many here tonight as they had then.
E-125 You know, Jesus only had twelve apostles. We always thinking for something big. But God don’t deal in them big numbers. It’s in these little groups is where He gets it. See? Look all down through the age, at any time He ever met with men. It was in small groups, see, and spoke with them, and ordained them. It’s God’s good pleasure to do that. That’s the way He likes to do it. And now we just want to keep God in our midst, and go, doing these things.
E-126 Now, Sunday morning, Lord willing, I want to speak to you on Evening-Time Evangelism. And then I’ll, if the Lord permits, I’ll probably be leaving until late this fall, and ’fore I get back again. I’ll probably get back sometime in, around in September.
And now I’m hoping, by then, that everything will move wonderfully for you brethren, and your meetings will grow in numbers, and the grace of God be upon you all, until we meet. And I’m trusting that you’ll pray for me, and the success.
Remember, your prayers for me, that means you’re my colleague. You’re—you’re my buddy, my helper. And, together, we are helpers in the Lord. And now, when I’m standing out there before the enemy, I—I want to remember that faithful, true soldiers that gets prayer answered for the sick and the afflicted, and those men are praying for me. I’m the one who needs it out there. I really need it. So, you all pray for me when you gather. Don’t forget me, in any meeting. Pray for me.
E-127 Now, in Saint John, the 9th chapter, I want to read from the 26th verse unto the 35th, now, just for a few minutes. And then we’ll—we’ll close in the next twenty or thirty minutes, or maybe before that time, the Lord willing. I want to read these Scriptures now from Saint John, 26 to…Saint John 9:26-35, I’ve got wrote down here, just something I was thinking of.
Then said they unto him again, What did he do to thee? how opened he thine eyes?
And he answered them, I have told you already, and you did not hear: wherefore would you hear…again? will you also be his disciples?
Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciples; but we are Moses’ disciples.
We know that God spake unto Moses: but for this fellow, we know not from whence he is.
The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvelous thing, that you know not from whence he is, and yet he has opened mine eyes.
Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.
Since the world began has it not heard that any man has opened the eyes of one that was born blind.
If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.
Then answered…They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sin, and does thou teach us? And they cast him out.
And Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?
E-128 Now I’d like to speak just for a few minutes to you brethren, knowing that, my little talk here, I don’t know what will become of it. Trusting that God will use it in some way. And now in this, upon His Word, so I know that Brother Sink, Brother Neville or one of you ministers, usually preach. And just being here with you, you’ll pardon me, I’d just like to speak to you a little bit on this manner.
E-129 Now I want to take a subject here of: Taking Sides With Jesus. The Pharisees and leaders of His day always tried to belittle Him before the people. That was just a way that the devil had of working. All the Pharisees and the teachers of His day constantly tried to belittle Jesus. They, all the throw-off that they could give to Him, they done it. They watched Him, constantly, to find where they could find a fault. And they never spoke of His good things. They were always finding something that they could belittle Him about, and say, “You see, looky here. If He was man of God, He wouldn’t do it this a way.” Or, “If He was a man of God, He wouldn’t do it that way.” They were trying to cast a shadow upon Him, to get the people to disbelieve Him. That’s the work of the devil.
E-130 And that old scheme has never ceased. There’s many times that a minister will make a mistake. And if he comes into a neighborhood, a precious brother who is trying to do what’s right, and to lead the people right; everything that the devil can point to the unbeliever or the so-called Christian, in that neighborhood, to throw off on that man, he’ll do it.
You know, the real Christian way is to hide everything you can from a brother. Don’t tell his bad things. Just tell his good things. Just tell what you know about him is good. If anything is bad, let it alone. Poor fellow has got enough against him, anyhow. Don’t try to take a pole and shove a man further into the ditch. The Christian attitude is pick him up and take him out of the ditch. See? Don’t never try to shove him down. He is down, already. Try to help him up. And, but, too many of us today, too many people today, I might say, try to do that, if they could just get something another that they could say, that was real bad.
E-131 Now, for instance, if—if one of you brethren would make a mistake and do something is wrong; which, you’re subject to do it; I am, too; every one of us. But, as we go along, let’s remember we are brothers. We are brothers. And if we got any fighting, let’s fight with one another. Bring it together. Bring it before our brethren and settle it.
E-132 Now, they used to, in the Branham family, if one of the little ones done something, they was going to tell Bill about it, ’cause I was the biggest. And I had to stand there and see which was right and wrong. Well, my decision was that, if they…which one was right and wrong. If they still didn’t believe it, then they got around behind my back and fought it out. But they were still brothers, you see. They’d fight in the back yard, with one another; and fight in the front yard, for one another. So that’s the way it was, see, and were still brothers.
E-133 Well, that, that’s the way we—we got to do this. See? If you got something against somebody, your brother, don’t tell somebody else about it. If it’s wrong, go to him and tell him. And then if he’s going to argue with you, then take somebody else with you. Then bring it up the way the Bible said.
E-134 But, Jesus, they—they just tried to find every little shadow that they could find, to try to belittle Him in the sight of the people.
And that’s what the devil wants. They want to—they want to hurt your influence before the people. That’s the way you want to watch careful what you do. Walk like real men of God. Talk like men of God. See? Act like men of God. Live like men of God. Because, “The devil, your adversary, is going about like a roaring lion, trying to devour what he can.”
E-135 Why did they do this? They were jealous of Him. That was what’s the reason they tried to belittle Him. They were jealous of His ministry. And that’s the reason they were trying to belittle. Well, He had the ministry of God, and they knew that, but It was contrary to their creed. So they were trying to belittle Him, make everything He…every little flaw that they could find, get Him out of the way. They wanted Him to quit. They wanted the people to denounce Him.
They wanted to say, “Now, this Guy is nothing. Looky here. Now, there He is. He—He—He did this, and you know that’s not right. We been taught, all of our life, that we should believe the elders. And here He is, stood right there and bawled that elder out. He disagreed with the tradition of the fathers. And we been…We ought to believe the tradition of our fathers. We been taught that, by each rabbi, all the years through. And here this Man comes around and disagrees with them. See? Why, the Man like that ain’t fit to be a preacher.” See? They were trying to belittle Him.
E-136 But, in all of that, the ones that believed Him and loved Him, and had seen His Scriptural, miracle signs, would not be hindered by them. No, sir. Them who believed Him believed Him. Those who loved Him stood by Him. They would not see what others pointed out to them.
E-137 Oh, if we could be that! If we could just not see. If somebody would come around here, say, “You know what? They say you’re a pentecostal.”
“Not by denomination.”
“Well, you was the…You, you’re them kind that baptizes in Jesus’ Name.”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
E-138 “Well, let me tell you something. I know a man, one time, was baptized like that, and he did so-and-so.”
E-139 But looky, that has nothing to do with It. It’s a devil, trying to throw a shadow on you. They’re always trying to point you to some old ship that got wrecked upon the seashore, but they’re not pointing you to that one that made the voyage safely. That’s right. See? That’s right.
E-140 They’re always trying to throw a crow bait out there, and say, “This is the example. Here is what did it. I know of a certain preacher that was a holiness preacher, and he did this, that, or the other.” But they don’t point out others that wasn’t holiness, did that also, you see. And they don’t point the great things that God did.
E-141 Like somebody say, “Oh, here this man went too far. He, he went too far.” He might have done that. “He wrecked hisself up. He went too far. He become a fanatic.” He might have done that. But while they’re pointing to how many that went, one that went too far, how about these millions that never went far enough? They fail to see that. See what I mean? [The brethren say, “Yes.”—Ed.]
E-142 So, the people tried, them Pharisees, and Sadducees, and hypocrites, and Herodians, and all tried to cast a shadow on Jesus. But them true believers that was predestinated to hear that Message, heard It and seen no fault in It at all.
E-143 Same now. Those who believe Him, love Him. Those who believe Him, see no fault in Him. They don’t see any heresy. They don’t see anything wrong. They don’t see anything wrong with His Word. They don’t see anything wrong with His people. They just see Jesus. That’s all. They, they’re—they’re predestinated to Eternal Life, so they just take sides with Jesus and stay there.
E-144 We used to sing a little song, Brother Roy Roberson. And we used to sing a little song here, I guess, time you come here.
I’ll take the way with the Lord’s despised few.
I started in with Jesus, and I’m going through.
I’d rather walk with Jesus alone,
And have for my pillow, like Jacob, a stone.
E-145 Well, you’ve heard the little song. That’s right. I’d rather take the way of the discord, take the way of the despised, take the way of the talked-about, and walk with Jesus. See no fault in It, at all. Don’t see another fellow’s error. Just keep on going. That’s all.
Now, that’s the way they did to Jesus. They didn’t—they didn’t…
And you must teach your people, you pastors, to do the same.
E-146 If somebody comes along, says, “You know, your church, they was so-and-so. They…” Yes, sir.
E-147 There may be a dozen of them setting there then, but how about that one that’s—that’s—that’s all right, that’s setting there? See? You’re—you’re—you’re…You just can’t see the woods, for the trees. That’s all. Now, that’s it, right back again. See now?
E-148 And so they tried. They was not willing to admit that He was doing the work of God, so they were trying to sow discord and get the people not to believe. But them people who believed Him, stayed right with Him. They took side.
E-149 You know, I thought here, a couple of people I got wrote down here. The blind man would not be changed by them, that man He just give his sight. We know the story. And he gave them a very stinging question, besides. Now, they come up there.
And Jesus walked by, and He was a Man that was despised and hated. The Bible said He would be rejected. “There be no beauty of Him, we should desire Him. And all we like sheep have gone astray. He was a Man of sorrow, acquainted with grief.” And how all the Bible said what He would be. “He would be despised and rejected.” And we see that Man.
E-150 Now, those who believed the Word, they knowed that the very things that Jesus was doing, and the things was of His life, they knew Who He was. So they couldn’t put nothing blight on Him, because they couldn’t see it. And you know, love is blind, anyhow, to them things. “Love covers up a multitude of sin,” you know. “Perfect love casts out fear, and sin, all discord.” Love does.
E-151 Now, this blind man was sitting there, and Jesus and His disciples come by. And I think Jesus gave them a little lesson here. When they seen this poor, blind man, they thought, “Well, now surely, there’s a sin behind that, somewhere.”
When we see something happen to a man, we always say, “Well, he sinned. He got out of the will of the Lord, somewhere.” When Brother Crase hit the post, “He got out of the will of the Lord, somewhere,” in somebody’s idea. When the gun blowed up, on me, “Well, he was out of the will of the Lord.” Brother Neville hit the car, “He was out of the will of the Lord.” That’s not exactly right. No, sir. It isn’t. God permits those things.
Jesus turned around and taught them a lesson.
E-152 They said, “His father must have sinned. Or—or, did his mother sin? Or, did he sin?”
Jesus said, “Neither of them sinned, but that the works of God might be made manifest.” Amen. See? God lets things happen just to…for the works of God to be made manifest. Now, and so He said, told the man, and give him his sight, and He went His way.
E-153 And here come the Pharisees up, when that was rumored around. “Here was the man that was blind, setting down there begging, and here he could see.” And that was rumor around among them. And, oh, my, that stirred up something. And here they come up there, and they seen that the blind man could see.
And first, they went, wanted to find some way to put a fear upon all the people. Cause, they had already said, “If anybody goes after this new Doctrine and this new Prophet called Jesus of Nazareth, immediately they’ll be handed their paper and fellowship from the church. They cannot go to the synagogue no longer. If you associate with Him, attend one of His meetings or anything, you can’t go no more.”
E-154 So, they wanted to make a big display out of it, because they hated Him. They wasn’t thinking of that poor blind man. But they wanted to make a big display, to make the people keep away from Him.
E-155 They said they want to ask his father and mother, so they went and got the father and mother. They said, “Is this your son?”
He said, “Yes, sir.”
“He, was he born blind?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And what means does he see?”
E-156 “And the father and mother was afraid,” the Bible said, “ ’cause they know they be put out of the synagogue, if they admitted that it was…”
And, see, there they was, taking down. They said, “Now, we know this is our son.”
E-157 Oh, probably a few thousand people standing there. But if he could…If them stinking Pharisees could only put a blight on His Name right there, or done something to scare the people, they’d have run Him out of there, for that meeting. See? All of His influence would been lost.
E-158 So they said, a bunch of them come up there with their priestly garments on, and they said, “Speak for him.”
E-159 They said, “We know this is our son. We know he was born blind. But now, how he sees, I don’t know. You ask him. He’s of age.” See? All right.
E-160 So they went over and got him, said, “Who give you your sight? How did He heal you?”
He said, “One called Jesus of Nazareth give me my sight.”
E-161 And they said, “Give praise to God.” Said, “Why, we know this Man is a sinner.” Said, and said, “Whence is He?”
E-162 He said, “I don’t know. He just come by and healed me, and that’s all I know about it. I know one thing I do know. I couldn’t tell you about Him being a sinner, or not. I don’t know. I just met the Man, today. But if—if He could me my—my sight! I know this one thing, that, where I was once blind, I can now see. I’m sure of that. For, I was blind, a half hour ago, and now I got just as good of sight as any you fellows. So, I know I can see.”
E-163 Oh, what a stinger that put on them! So they thought, “Why…”
E-164 He said, “Well,” said, “you all want to be His disciples, too?” That’s good—that’s good, solid testimony. That—that—that’s good—that’s good backgrounds. That—that—that’s really good witnessing, what I’d say. Said, “Do you all…”
E-165 Here is a lay member, a blind man, standing on the street after meeting Jesus, now asking the disciple, asking the Pharisees if they want to be His disciples. “The bishops, head men, you want to be His disciples, also?”
E-166 They said, “Nay! You’re His disciple. We are Moses’ disciple.” Looking way back down through history, you know. “We are Moses’ disciple. This Man, we don’t know nothing about Him. We don’t know where He come from. Well, we haven’t got a rule of any of our schools He ever come up. He never come and asked us about these things. See? We don’t know nothing about It. You people out there, you realize that Man is not ordained? That Man is a soothsayer or something. He is Beelzebub. You’re being bewitched. Why, He doesn’t have any authority. We haven’t give it to Him yet. See? We don’t even know whence this Man comes from.”
E-167 This old boy standing there could see, said, “Now, this is a marvelous thing.” See? He’s about to get the people beat down, these Pharisees was, making them afraid. See? But he had done took sides with Jesus, see, so he said, “This is a marvelous thing.”
Let me break it down, some of the words he might have said. “Now, you fellows around here has been running all the religious end of this for hundreds of years. And you speak of a coming Messiah and something that’s going to take place just in the shadows of time, when the Deliverer is coming to see us. And you tell us that when He comes, that—that what all He is going to do. And here you, the spiritual leaders, the high priests and priests of this community, standing here together before these people, trying to blacken His Name, trying to say something evil against Him. And the Man come and opened my blinded eyes. I was born blind. Here is my father and mother, giving witness that I was born blind. Been setting right here among you, for all these years, born blind. And that has never happened since the world began. And, here a Man can come and perform a miracle that hasn’t been done since the world began, and, you, the spiritual leaders, and don’t know nothing about it.” Whew! Hum! Said, “I say this is a marvelous thing.”
E-168 He took sides with Jesus. See? He was permitted to be blind so the works of God could be manifested, see, ’cause he come on the side of the Lord Jesus. He took sides with Him.
E-169 Now, he put a stinger to them. You know what they did? They said, “Now we know you were born in sin. Try to teach us?” They shoved him out of the church. Knocked him out. Pushed him out. Throwed him out.
But as soon as he was throwed out, did you notice? Jesus found him again. Amen. Amen. Jesus found him again. So don’t worry if they throw you out. He will find you again. See? All right.
And He said to him, “Does thou believe on the Son of God?”
E-170 He said, “Lord, Who is He?” He didn’t even know. But the only thing that he knowed, that, where he was blind, he could then see.
E-171 And I know this one thing, brother. They might call This fanaticism, and whatever they want to. But, wherein I was once a sinner, I—I’ve come into grace now. Something has happened to me. See? This one thing I—I now know. By trusting His Word, by believing Him, I been kicked out of every organization under the face of Heaven. There is none of them that will receive me anymore. You know that. Some of their men will, out here. Good men will accept. But every organization is thumbs down on me. That’s right. But He has found me. He will find me somewhere. That’s right. See? That’s right. Come along like that.
E-172 And so it’ll be all right, because we want to take sides with Jesus. And the only way you take sides with Jesus is taking sides on what He said, believing His Word. So let’s take sides with Him.
E-173 The blind man gave them a real testimony. All right. We find again that they tried to blight His Name.
Just for a little bit, and I’ve got to skip over some things here.
So, one time, there was a Pharisee. I preached on it here some time ago, and called it, “Washing Jesus’ feet.” I believe you all heard me preach on that here, when a Pharisee asked Jesus to come down to his house. A big, old, stiff-starched Pharisee, and asked Him to come. And you know I gave it a little drama, how the courier come and found Him. And—and He come on down, yet He knowed He was hated. Yet, He went, anyhow. And when they got Him in there, they never washed His feet. And let Him sit down there, stinking, and everything else, from the toil of the road. And there He sit there.
E-174 And a little woman come in. They thought, “Oh, my, the Lord is good to us, because, look, this just brings our big party!” They brought Him there just to make fun out of Him. They brought Him there just to have some fun from Him. And now they thought the Lord was working right with them, because that this ill-famed, prostitute woman come over, and was crying, and washing His feet with her tears, and wiping them with this hair.
And old Pharisee and all the rest of the priests stand over in the corner, said, “Brother, everything, the Lord set it up just exactly for us. Here we can put a smear on His name right now. He calls Himself a Prophet, and the people thinks that He’s a Prophet. And they call Him the Galilean Prophet. And He even claims to be the Messiah, and we know Messiah will be a Prophet. And here He is, sitting back there. You see where we brought Him? Look at there. Boy, we got Him fixed right now. There He is, sitting back there, stooped down like a whipped-out puppy or something back there. And some prostitute, of His own class, would come around and wash His feet like that, and now He don’t even know. If He was a Prophet, He would know what kind of a woman that was. Now, boys, we’ll drink on this one,” said, “because, look there.” See?
E-175 Anything to blight His Name, anything to ruin the confidence of the people, not knowing that they were possessed of the devil to do that. They were working in harmony with the devil, trying to blacken the Name of the Son of God.
E-176 How did they do this, brethren? Because they never searched the Scriptures. Jesus said, “Search ye the Scriptures. In Them you think you have Eternal Life, and They are They that testify of Me.” Oh, what a ministry He had! See? Yes, sir. “If I do not the works of My Father, then don’t believe Me.” See?
E-177 But here this Pharisee said, “We got Him now. Oh, looky here, there’s probably fifteen hundred people here at this feast. Now look at Him setting over there. There He sits with a prostitute.”
E-178 And, oh, my, what a horrible thing that was in that day. Whew! Hum! And there He was with an ill-famed woman, slipped in like (looked like) He slipped in. He got by the foot-wash flunky and everything else, and set there.
E-179 And said, “Here she is, over there washing His feet. Now, if He was a Prophet? You see, brethren, that Man is no Prophet. If He was a Prophet, then He would know what manner of woman that was, washing His feet.”
E-180 And Jesus just sit and watched her, never moved a foot till she got done. If you’re going to do something for Jesus, Jesus set and watch you do it, sometime. Uh-huh. He lets you go ahead till you get finished, then the reward comes. Maybe you run the whole race of life, working for Him, but, don’t worry, there’s a reward at the end, if you just take your way with His side.
E-181 You might not—not see one person healed, that you pray for. Just keep on praying for them. I’ve often said, “If I prayed for five hundred a night; all five hundred dead in the morning; tomorrow night I’ll be preaching Divine healing and praying for the sick.” See? Don’t have one thing to do with it. See?
E-182 He’ll let you come right down through defeats and everything else, till you come right down to the end of the road and finish your work, like He led that woman. She wanted to do Him a service, so He just held His feet out there and let—let her wash them. Oh, if He’d have said, “Don’t do that,” she’d have jumped and run. But He let her do the service.
E-183 And after she got through, finished the service that she was going to do, then He looked up to that hypocrite standing back there, was trying to cast the blackness on His Name. Said, “Simon, I’ve got something to say to you; not to her, but to you. You, standing back there, in your heart, that’s the reason you brought Me down here. You have no fellowship with Me. Didn’t I know it? But you brought Me down here. And you set Me back here, to make fun of Me. Let…You never give Me no water, to wash My feet. You never give Me nothing to soothe Me. Me setting here, burning and hurting, you never give Me no oil for My face. You was ashamed to kiss Me welcome, or shake My hand. See? You was ashamed, before your company. You was ashamed to do it. This woman, since she has come in, she has did nothing but rub My feet and bathe them with the very tears of her eyes, wiped them with the towel of her own hair. Then, I’ll just show you whether I’m a Prophet, or not.” Amen. I like that.
E-184 “Now I want to speak to you, just a minute. Your sins, which are many, are all forgiven you.” Hum!
E-185 Did they blight His Name? They thought they had It. They thought they had stopped It. They thought they’d fixed Him so His revival could never be in that community. They thought they had ruined His influence. But it just taken one person that loved Him, to turn the whole situation.
E-186 How do you know that you’re not that person, for your community or somebody that you’ll meet? Take sides with Him. Do Him a service. Do something for Him. Know what I mean, brethren? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.] Take your side with Jesus. Take Him, make Him your choice. Do service for Him regardless of whether anybody else, or you’re ever repaid, or anything. Don’t make any difference. Wait till the work is over.
E-187 How would you like for Him to say…Even though you had prayed for sick, and they didn’t get well. Though you prayed to get to speak with tongues, and you didn’t do it. You prayed to prophesy; you didn’t do it. But, yet, the only thing you can do is tell the story of Jesus, in your church, or in your community, at your work. You couldn’t even do one thing; didn’t lead one person. That woman didn’t lead one to Christ, but she done a service for Him. And what difference does it make, at the end of the road, if He will say, “And I say unto you, all your sins, though there not one prayer was answered for you. But, you come on the basis of My Word. You come because you believed Me, and you did Me a service. And I say that the many sins that you have done is all forgiven you”? That would be good enough for me. Amen. Yes, sir. All right.
E-188 They want to say, “The days of miracles are passed,” and—and so forth. Let them go ahead and say it. But let us do the service for the Lord.
They hated Him because they were jealous of Him. That’s the only reason. They were jealous.
They were trying to destroy His influence before the people, the same as they’re doing now. They, if they can just in-…destroy the influence of the Message before the people, then they’ve got the thing whipped. That’s right. Because, why did they try to do it? Because He was against all their creeds and all their church doctrines, and everything that they believed in, and called all their—all their faiths and so forth. He was against it all. And they hated Him because He didn’t barge in with them.
E-189 Now, if He’d have come in, said, “Oh, Caiaphas, marvelous man of My Father. I am Messiah. Come here, Caiaphas. Do you see that water there? You remember, down in—in Egypt, Moses, the great prophet turned it into—into blood. You remember that, Caiaphas?”
E-190 “Oh, young Fellow, I’m very well acquainted with that story.”
E-191 “All right, Caiaphas, I’m going to turn the water now, from water to blood, to show you that I am that Prophet that Moses spoke of. There it is, Caiaphas. What do you think about it?”
E-192 “What do You think about,” Caiaphas, being a Pharisee, “what do You think about the Pharisees?”
E-193 “Oh, I think they’re the marvelous race of people. Oh, you all keep the traditions of the fathers just exactly right.”
“You know, You could be the Messiah.”
E-194 No. He wouldn’t have been. That would been a very mark that He wasn’t. When you see somebody come, say, “Come here and I’ll show you what I’ll do. And come here, I’ll do this and do that.” You remember, right now, there is something shady about it, to start with.
Jesus said, “I do nothing till the Father shows Me, first.” See? Yes.
E-195 He was against them. He taught against them. He condemned their Sabbath-keeping. He condemned the way they dressed. He condemned all the ways of their life, all their traditions, all their pot-washing, and kettle-washing, and hand-washing, and everything else. He condemned it, every bit. Their dressings, He said, “You wear broidered garments, and desire the high seats, and—and make long prayers, and devour widows’ homes.” Said, “You’ll receive more damnation.”
“Well, remember, I’m Dr. So!”
E-196 “I don’t care who you are.” Oh, man, He really put it on. They didn’t…Why? Because they didn’t believe Him. He was the Word. See? He was trying to break up that legalist bunch.
And if He was here on earth today, He’d try to do the same thing.
E-197 Some people say, “Well, now, wait a minute. We keep the Sabbath, ever. We do this. And, you know, we keep all this, and we keep that. And every, why, every Good Friday…Why, when fast time comes on, forty days before Easter, we always observe Lent. I give up smoking, for forty days. I give up drinking, for forty days, before, during time of Lent.” Oh, tradition of the fathers, legalists. If you loved God, you—you don’t smoke, in the first place. You loved God, you…I—I wrote in the back of my little Bible, first one I ever had. I said:
Don’t ask me foolish questions.
Make this up in your mind,
If you love the Lord with all your heart,
You don’t smoke, drink, or—or…Don’t smoke, chew, or drink any shine.
E-198 And that still stands good today. I don’t do it because I think He condemns me for doing it. I would quit it because it’s a dirty thing, and isn’t becoming to a minister. That’s right. I wouldn’t say…
E-199 Many times I’d go to houses and there are women standing out there. And I go to the house, knock on the door, and a sister would come to the door, “Come in, Brother Branham.” If her husband is not there, ’less it’s a case of sickness and somebody with me, I don’t go. And then they call me to a hospital, or to a room, say, “Brother Branham, come over here. I’m Sister So-and-so from So-and-so. I’m—I’m here at the hotel. I—I—I brought my mother along. She is sick.” I take my wife. If I don’t, I take some other brother. See? I—I don’t. I don’t think…
E-200 I think it would be all right for me to go in there, but what if somebody seen me go in there? See? What if somebody seen me do it? See? Then, the first thing you know, they would say, “He went in there where that woman was. He is chasing after women.” That, see, that would be a thing I shouldn’t do. See? You should never do anything like that, ’cause you put a stumbling in somebody else’s way. See? I don’t believe that I would do anything wrong in there. Would, I would, and trust God to go in there. No matter what the thing was, I would trust God. But, yet, see, and—and—and I love the Lord well enough till I wouldn’t do it. See? It’s a love you have. You, you’ll not do it because it’s a duty to do it. You do it because you love the Lord. You don’t have do it, but you do it, anyhow.
E-201 Paul said, “To me all things are lawful, but not all are expedient.” See? Paul could do lots of things that maybe that he knowed the Lord understood him, and trusted him, but it wasn’t expedient for him to do it.
So that’s the way these legalists, trying to say, “Forty days before Easter, we always start in a fast.” And they eat just as much as they ever do. Maybe they say, “Well, I don’t like beans, so I’ll give up beans, for Lent.” I’ve heard them say that. “I don’t like pork, so I’ll just give up pork, you know. I’m going to quit drinking, for Lent.”
E-202 One woman told me, said, “You know what I give up, for Lent, this year, Brother Branham?”
I said, “No. What?”
E-203 Said, “Candy.” Said, “I—I never did care too much for it, anyhow.” See?
E-204 There you are. Now, they call that fasting. See? Legalism. They say, “Well, I got a…You know, I—I—I stagger to church a long time. Cause, I tell you, I kept Sunday school for a full year, because my teacher said if they’d give a Bible to the one that didn’t miss a day.”
E-205 Now, brother, that’s some way of going. I’d rather just go buy me a Bible. See? If you don’t go to church because you love the Lord, you might as well stay away. That’s all. See? Because, you go there for you love God. I think of this song we sing.
Blest be the tie that bindS
Our hearts in Christian love;
Fellowship of kindred mind
Is like to that Above.
When we asunder part,
It gives us inward pain;
But we shall still be joined in heart,
And hope to meet again.
E-206 See? That’s it. “When we asunder part, it gives us inward pain.” I’ve seen the time, brother. Let me not condemn us, but let me just wake us up to something. I seen the time in this church, that when people had to wait until Wednesday night to meet one another, they would cry over it. And that’s right. I seen ministers come in here and would say, “How do you do it? Well, them people, just one heart.” See?
E-207 They meet at the door and say…Them sisters meet one another back there, and hug each other, and saying, “Sister, be sure to pray for me now. Honey, I’ll see you again Wednesday night. You’ll pray, won’t you? You pray for me. I’ll be praying for you.” And making like that, and tears in their eyes.
E-208 See the brothers shake one another’s hands, and just could hardly get away from each other like that. That’s real Christian fellowship. See? See? Just waiting, praying for each other. Yes, sir. That’s the way we should be. All right.
E-209 Now, these men that made these statements, they wasn’t bad men. They didn’t mean to be evil. They thought they were doing a service for God. Them Pharisees and things, they wasn’t bootleggers and drunkards. They were religious men. They wasn’t bad. They just—they just did not accept the Word of the Truth. They did not accept the Spirit. Why? They held to their creeds and their—their leaders’ traditions. See? It showed that they loved their leaders.
E-210 Here is big Caiaphas, the high priest. There is the rest of those big priests, and those men go along.
Now, you take, like Catholic. They…Not throwing off to them. Same thing in Protestants. You take a Catholic, he loves his priest. And—and I’ll tell him about the Word of the Lord, and—and he sees the works of God. He say, “But my—my church don’t believe That.” And you go to talking, and pinch him. I say…
A woman said to me, other day, said, “It’s a sin for me to listen to you.” See? She didn’t want to be bad. She just thought so much of her church and her priest, till, if she listened anything else…She was loyal to that priest.
E-211 Jehovah Witness is loyal to what they believe. The Baptist is loyal to what they believe. The Presbyterian is loyal to what they believe. And they’re just as loyal to their pastors. Can’t we be that loyal to the Word? See? Now if those…
E-212 I want to ask you something. You say, “Well, Brother Branham, how you know they’re not?”
Now, if those Pharisees and Sadducees, and leaders of that day, would have got away from their creeds and their dogmas, and listened to what the Word said and what Jesus was telling, just exactly what Messiah was supposed to do, they would have held on to Him. See? But they thought so much of their leaders!
They wasn’t bad men. They wouldn’t steal, lie, cuss, anything like that. They wouldn’t do that. They wouldn’t commit adultery. Why, certainly not. Why, they would witness the stoning of one that had did such a thing. And they wouldn’t—they wouldn’t do that. They were good men.
But the only thing it was, they wasn’t spiritual men. Morally, they were fine, but that isn’t what counts. And what did Jesus tell them, even them loyal people? He said, “You are of your father, the devil.” See? It’s the Word that counts.
Now I’ll hurry just as quick as possible.
E-213 Now, they wasn’t Spirit-filled, but they were loyal and held to the modern creed of their leaders. See? All right. His ministry was showing up their doctrine. That’s what the matter. Now look. I’ll just take it. Now just…
Brethren, I—I, I’m—I’m going to ask you, forgive me, right now, for being this long. I’m…Maybe you won’t want me come back for another one. But, look. Listen to this. See? I want you to be sure to get this.
E-214 Now, they had their creeds, and there were great churches and great people, and great men, holy men, good men, gentle men, fine men, honorable men, men of honor, educated, smart, religious. Is that right? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.] And we all know that. Just as good as you could find anywhere. See? But when Jesus come on, His ministry showed up their doctrine, ’cause God was proving by the ministry of Jesus Christ that He was with Him.
E-215 Didn’t Peter quote the same thing? He said, “You men of Israel, let this be known unto you, and hearken to my words.” He said, “Jesus of Nazareth, a Man approved of God among you.” See? See? If they…
E-216 Like this blind man said, “Isn’t this a marvelous thing? You’re the spiritual leaders of the nation, and here comes a Man in and opens my eyes by the power of God, and yet you don’t know nothing about Him.” He said, “This is a marvelous thing.” He had something. Didn’t he? He sure did. All right. He did. A Man that could do this, and yet they didn’t know whence He was. Now that was a marvelous thing.
E-217 Now look at today, brethren. See? We have a, we know we have a move of God. We know It’s performing miracles. It’s healing the sick. It’s even raising the dead. It’s casting out devils. It speaks with tongues and interpret tongues. It sends forth prophecies; they happen. He showed us dreams, interpretations; perfect, strictly. Then isn’t it a strange thing that great leaders would say we was a bunch of crazy people, when they’re the leaders of the nation, the leaders of churches? That’s a marvelous thing.
E-218 What is it? It’s still jealousy. The Spirit and power and Word of God in these last days is showing up their dogmas and creeds, that’s all there is to it, that they got men blinded by.
So, my young brethren, you all that’s going out here in these churches, hold to God’s Word. Don’t you move. If you can’t make It come to pass, don’t stand in nobody else’s way. Stand there, beating at the door of the gate, just pointing right to It. That’s right. Stay right there. Don’t start fanaticism, ’cause it’ll show you up. But if you’ll stay true and holy, and with that Word, God will vindicate you. That’s right.
E-219 His ministry was showing up their doctrines and dogmas. So they took every chance to get rid of Him, they could find. Everything that they could find, to get rid of Him, they did it. Trying to say, “Well, now, looky here. Looky here, So-and-so, this one.”
E-220 There He is, sitting there, one day, in the house of Simon, the leper. Not one word said He healed him. He was a leper. Nothing says He healed him. That’s right.
E-221 He passed by the pool of Bethesda, and there laid about two thousand people, lame, blind, halt, withered. And He walked over to one man and healed him, and walked away. Say, “Well, now, if He was Messiah, He’d have healed all of them. If He was full of compassion as you all say He is, He’d have had mercy on all of them.”
Everything that they could find, to throw a black mark on Him, they did it. Everything they could find, they throwed it on Him. All right. They took every chance they could, to rid, get rid of Him.
E-222 Questioned His birth. His birth was in question. They put that before the people. They couldn’t understand how He was born a virgin birth. And Joseph, His father, was supposed to be a carpenter. And He was born before Joseph and Mary was married. They throwed that before the people. Yes, sir. See? What am I saying now? They’re black marking Him. See?
E-223 “Look at Him. Where did He come from? Look at His mother, no more than a street prostitute, had this baby. And after the baby was born…She already pregnant, the baby was to be born, then Joseph married her, to hide it, then come around with some kind…Why, it’s a work of the devil. Can’t you see? It’s that kind of a birth.” They throwed that before the people, not reading in the Bible, Isaiah 9:6, “A virgin shall conceive.” See? What was it? They got away from the Word. That’s it.
E-224 They throwed black figures at His authority. “Gentlemen, don’t you know we’re Moses’ disciples? Don’t you know we’re servants of Christ? Don’t you know we search the Scriptures daily? And we have not one thing.” They said, “The Messiah would come to His temple. Not one word of Him coming to a temple. Where is He at? What school did He come from? Ask any of the brethren, both Methodist, and Baptist, and Presbyterian, you know; Pharisees, Sadducees, and so forth. What fellowship card does He pack? Where is His authority even to preach? He hasn’t been ordained. He hasn’t even got right to preach.”
E-225 He said, “My ordination comes from God. My works vindicate what I am.” That’s right. “I don’t have to have your papers.”
E-226 See what I mean? They throwed that. His Doctrine, why, they called Him Beelzebub. His Doctrine, they couldn’t understand.
E-227 “Why, He disagrees with all of the traditions of the fathers. He even disagrees with the Pharisees. He disagrees with the Sadducees. He disagrees with the whole group of them. Now, where does He get His Doctrine?” From the Bible, of course.
“Well,” you say, “well, now, how do I know that That’s right?” God backed it up.
That’s what the blind man said. “It’s a strange thing, if you’re so right and He’s so wrong. Yet He can take the power of God and open my eyes, and you never have seen it done yet, even. That’s a strange thing.” Oh, my! I like to take sides with Him. Don’t you? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.] Sure. “You say you’re Moses’ disciples, and you’re so right and He’s so wrong, then let me see you do the things He is doing.” Amen.
E-228 That’s where, His Doctrine, they denounced Him, all of His claims. They said, “He has no…His claims was wrong, of being a Messiah. How could He be a Messiah, not come to the church? How could He be a Messiah? And here we are, the cream of Israel.”
But the cream had soured. See? Oh! Yes, sir. Had flies in it, so they—they had to skim that off.
E-229 So he said, “Here we are, the church, the elect. We’re…We’ve kept the tradition. We’ve kept Moses’ laws. We’ve done all these things, and down like this. And here this Man comes along and denounces our claims. And besides that, our holy priests, our holy father, who did this and who did that, and all this other kind of stuff, and all of our great men, and He calls them ‘of the devil,’ then calls Himself the Son of God.” Oh, my! See?
E-230 They tried to throw them shadows on the Name of Jesus, and on Jesus, to get it before the people. Much more could be said there, but takes too much time. But what? But the Word and the works vindicated Him. Amen.
E-231 Oh, to the true believers, the predestinated that were predestinated to see Him and know His ministry, there He was. No matter if He ever opened His mouth about anything, they knew He was. Hallelujah!
E-232 That little old prostitute walked out there at the well that day, get a bucket of water. And a middle-aged Man sitting over there, said, “Bring Me a drink.”
E-233 She said, “Why, it’s not customary for you Jews to ask a woman of Samaria such.”
He said, “But if you knew Who you were talking to!”
E-234 “Now,” she thinks, “here’s a smartaleck Jew.” She turned around, said, “I see You’re a Jew. And if You’re a Jew, course, You’re religious, and You say, to worship at Jerusalem. But our father, Jacob, drank from this well, and watered his cattle here. And the water is deep, and You ain’t got nothing to draw with. And we worship in this mountain.”
E-235 He said, “Just stop a minute. Go get your husband and come here.”
She said, “I don’t even have a husband.”
E-236 He said, “You’ve told the truth.” Said, “You’ve got five. You’ve had five, and the one you’re living with now is not yours.”
E-237 That little prostitute, predestinated, I can just see her set that pot down, and she said, “Sir, I perceive that You are a Prophet.” See? See?
E-238 That seed was laying there. The only thing that it needed was Water, and the Water had fell on it.
E-239 When It fell upon those Pharisees, they said, “It’s Beelzebub.” Couldn’t bring nothing. There was nothing there but weeds, to come from.
E-240 But when that predestinated seed struck that Water of Life, she said, “Sir, You must be a Prophet. I know that when the Messiah cometh, He will tell us these things.”
He said, “I am He, that speaks to you.”
E-241 She left that water pot, and into the city! She had something to tell. She said, “Come, see a Man Who has told me the things I’ve done. Isn’t this the very Messiah?” See? She took sides with Jesus. That’s right.
E-242 Strange thing, wasn’t it? All the Pharisees and Sadducees didn’t know Him, and this prostitute knowed Him. See? Why? Those who believed Him, and loved Him, and seen His signs, they knowed that was the sign of the Messiah. There’s no getting around it. They knowed it.
E-243 When old Nathanael walked up there. Maybe, before Philip, said, “Now, I don’t know about this, Philip. I’ve seen a lot of things rise up in these last days. I know there’s a lot of things going on.” But he walked up there before Him. Said, “I’ll go listen to Him, and see what got to say.”
E-244 Walked up there, and Jesus said, “Behold an Israelite in whom there’s no guile.”
He said, “Rabbi, when did You know me?”
E-245 He said, “Before Philip called you, when you was under the tree, I saw you.”
E-246 What did? The Water struck that predestinated seed. Oh, my! When It did, he said, “Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God. You’re the King of Israel.”
E-247 What was it? The seed was laying there, ready. God sowed it back yonder before the foundation of the world; It should bring forth the Light right at that time. Hallelujah!
E-248 That’s my stand, right there, brother. That’s where I believe, right there. I preach It, and It falls here and there, and they go this way and that way. Don’t make any difference. Somewhere, It’s going to strike a seed. And when It did, [Brother Branham snaps his finger—Ed.] it’ll fly up to Life, like that, just as sure as the world. Yes, sir.
E-249 Like, “That blind boy,” said, “this was done that the works of God might be made manifest.” See? See? He knowed what was going to take place. Sure, He did. All right.
E-250 Now, the predestinated, when they seen His Scriptural signs, knowed that the Word vindicated the works, or the works vindicated the Word, that the Word was right. They were predestinated to see It, and they were right in line to see It, and they got It.
Then they said…After they seen they couldn’t get nowhere.
E-251 Because the people was predestinated to Eternal Life, they was going to find It. That’s all. “All the Father has given Me will come to Me. And all that comes to Me, I’ll give Eternal Life and raise him up at the last day. There’ll not be one of them lost.” Amen. I’m holding right to that.
“Not by works, not by deeds, not by power, not by might; by My Spirit, saith God.” Not what I done, what I am, or what I will be; but what He is. And I am in Him. And whatever He is, I’m part of Him. Amen. I’m saved because I’m part of Him. And, He, He is God. And I’m part of Him, being His son. That’s right. So ain’t what I done, what I will do. It’s what He has done. That’s my trust, right there. All right.
E-252 So they seen they couldn’t get nowhere. I’ll skip a few of these Scriptures here. They seen they couldn’t get anywhere, with Him.
So, you know, the next thing they had to do, to try to get Him off the field, they went and said to His brethren and His mother, “You know, He is awfully tired. You should take Him off to one side, for a while.” That bunch of hypocrites! They just didn’t, the thing, it was, they just didn’t want to get, the thing they didn’t want to do…They wanted to get rid of Him. It wasn’t that they thought He was so tired. They’d like for Him to work Himself to death. But every time He went out, the miracles started pouring, the Word of God went forth.
I, wouldn’t I like to hear Him stand up there that day, on the sea coast, when He called Simon Peter, and said, “Follow Me!” Would I liked to got on a chunk and set down there, left my nets, and left my fishing pole, Brother Crase, and set down there, lean back against a chunk and listen to Him preach when He got in that boat! Oh, my, my! Would I loved to have heard Him when He said that, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and heavy laden. I’ll give you rest.” Amen. I’d like to heard Him say it.
E-253 They tried to get His mother and them to take Him off the field. They said, “Well, you know, He’s—He’s overworked. I believe you better get Him off that way.” Any way, thing, to get rid of Him, that’s all they wanted. Yes, sir.
E-254 Again, the many that went with Him, just to find a place to trap Him. Did you know that? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.] People followed right along with Him, just to find a place. They give Him, one day, a penny. And they said, “Rabbi…”
Before they give Him the penny, said, “Rabbi, we’re Jews. We know You’re a great Man of God.” Oh, that hypocrite! See? Yeah. “We know You’re a great Man of God. Yes, Sir, Rabbi.” They was walking right along with Him. “Oh, good morning, Brother! Oh, we’re so happy You’re over here in our country! Oh, we’re so glad to see You! We are really for You, teeth and toe nail, Brother. If You’re going to have a revival, we even might cooperate with You.” See? What they’re trying to do is set a trap for Him. See?
E-255 They said, “Now, we know that Thou art a great Man of God. You don’t fear favor of no man. You fear nothing but God. And we know that You are bold. Oh, You’re fearless with Your Message! We know You’re a great Prophet, ’cause no man could do like that and be fearless with His Message in a days like this, unless He was a Prophet of God, knows where He is standing. So, we know You don’t respect person, no man. Rabbi, You’re a great Man. We’re Jews. We’re right with You, Brother. We sure are.
E-256 “Now, Rabbi, is it right to pay tribute to Caesar?” Oh, that bunch of hypocrites! Huh!
Wait. The Holy Spirit was with Him. He was the Holy Spirit. See? He said, “You got a penny?”
Say, “Oh, yes, yes. Yeah. I got a penny, yeah, I do.”
Said, “Hand it to Me.” Said, “Whose inscription is on that?”
Said, “Caesar.”
Said, “Then give Caesar what’s Caesar’s; God’s what is God’s.”
E-257 Setting a trap for Him, professing to be His friends. Seemed like no one could understand Him. They would travel with Him a little while, then get disgusted with Him, and leave. They would say, “Oh, well, we thought, we thought surely…” Even the disciples said, “We thought surely this was He that was going to—to…” Even John sent out, asked Him, “Are You He, or do we look for another?” See? Oh, what a life He must have lived, see, and knowing that! But He had one purpose, one purpose: do the work of God. Many went with Him, just to find a place to trap Him.
E-258 Now, I hope it’s not sacrilegious if I say it’s the same today. Many come in and follow the meeting, just to find a place, see you pray for somebody.
E-259 Here, not long ago, a certain sister that goes to this church, was at another church where God was making everything happen. And this sister said to the other sister, said, “You know, that man that could pray for the sick,” said, “must have a—a—a very victorious life.” And said, “He must just be able, his family, everything, be healed at a spoken word, like that.” [Brother Branham snaps his finger—Ed.]
And the other lady happened to be from Jeffersonville. And I’m sure that nobody has to know, but what Jesus said, “Among your own people,” you know, “your country.” That’s right. That’s the reason I…It may be that right now, coming close, it may be a change of time, you see.
And he said—he said, “You know what?” Said, “Not one of his kids can have a sniffle, ’less he takes it to a doctor.” A poor, degraded, deluded thing like that, see, see, a woman that just wanted to throw off. Said, “When his children get sick, he takes them to a doctor.”
E-260 Anybody that’s sensible will do the same thing. Yeah. People can’t understand that medicine is sent of God. Why, brethren, if it’s not, it’s of the devil. Sure, it is. God is where medicine won’t reach. Certainly. Medicine is of God. “Well,” you say, “I know a lot of doctors just…” Oh, yes, and I know a lot of preachers is the same way, too. It’s not the man that’s handling it, it’s what it is. I know a many men is handling the Word of God, don’t believe in Divine healing, don’t even believe in God. Right. But they handle It, just the same. There’s many of men out there with medicine, and surgery, and stuff, that denies God and everything else, but there’s a many one that believes Him too. So if it helps people, it’s of God. I don’t have to…I don’t have to take that car and ride home tonight. I can walk if I want to. But God made me a car, so I thank God for it. All these things come from God, but use them sensibly. Don’t go insane with them. See?
E-261 The same thing, so, that, that’s it, you see. Just trying to find something, to this young convert, to blight their name, the name of—of the works of God. See? They wanted to blight it. “Every time a child gets sick, one of his children, he takes them to a doctor.”
Sure, I would. Then if the doctor can’t…I’ll ask God to help before I go there. Then if the doctor can do nothing about it, then I’ll take him up a little higher. Uh-huh. That’s right. Yes, sir.
Oh, just the same today, they’re trying to find a trap somewhere.
E-262 He knew them, but notice, He never rebuked them. He went right with them. Uh-huh. He does the same thing now. He goes right along with them, shows them His mercy, that’s right, though they do altogether against Him. Why? Because He loves them. And He went with them.
But they’re always ready to call on Him in a case of emergency. They want Him then. They want…They’ll make fun of somebody, of shouting. They’ll make fun of somebody preaching Divine healing, say they don’t believe in it. They just haven’t got sick enough yet. I’ve heard a many one.
E-263 A woman, dying, just as I run up the steps, when I was preaching right here. And the man standing right there at the door, calling to me. She had walked by. She lived up the street here, and had a cow out there. And she said, “If my cow got that kind of religion that Billy’s got, I would kill the cow.” In less than an hour from then, she was stricken and taken to the hospital, a beautiful young woman.
And I rushed out there. Her husband was Catholic. And they sent for me. “She is dying. And she went…Her eyes went to swelling out. She said, ‘Call him. Call him. Call him. Call him. Quickly. Quickly.’”
E-264 And her brother run up and stood there at the door, and waited and waited, and he kept motioning for me. And the place was packed full of people. And after while, somebody come around and put a note on—on the desk here. It said—said, “Someone is dying in a hospital.”
And I believe, Brother Graham Snelling, I said, “Take my place till I go.” And he would just stand up and lead singing. He wasn’t even called, and to—to preach, at that time. He come up to lead singing.
And I went out and got in my car, and rushed out there. And just as I go up the steps, she drawed her last breath. And, of course, the bowels and kidneys, everything, act. And I run in there, and they done covered her face up, and steam coming up around like that. And that old nurse standing there, she said, “Brother Branham, she screamed her last breath for you.” Trying to make it right, but it was too late then, you see. Yeah. Too…You can sin one time too many, you know.
E-265 And she kind of had…deep in her face. She had auburn hair; a real pretty woman. And her—her bobbed hair was all bushed out. Great big brown eyes had pushed out, and just half closed. And the freckles on her face had got in such a way, such strain, till they just stood on out like little bumps all over her face, and her mouth was open. And I walked over there and looked at her.
And there her husband stood there, and said, “Billy, here is what it was.” Said, “I am Catholic. I want you to say a prayer for her, ’cause she’s gone to purgatory.”
I said, “What?”
E-266 Said, “Say a prayer for her.” Said, “She’s gone to purgatory. She passed by your church about two hours ago, and said, ‘If our cow ever got your kind of religion, she would kill the cow.’” See? Said, “Say a prayer for her.”
E-267 I said, “That’s too late. She should have purged her soul here, not till she gets somewhere else.” See? That’s right. Oh, yes.
But we always want Him in the time of distress. People, I’ve heard them say, “I don’t believe in God.” Let him hurt himself right bad, once, see the first One he’ll call on.
E-268 Even His disciples, one time when they were in a storm. Though, when they saw Him, they were a little bit afraid of Him. They didn’t know just exactly what It was. They said, “It’s a spirit.” And they cried out. But, yet, all hopes for being saved was gone, so they invited Him in. Yeah. There, always, whether you’re a little suspicious or not. When all hopes is gone, you like to invite Him in. Yeah. They took Him in, because they had a need of Him. That’s right.
E-269 You know, I’ve often wondered, sometime, maybe that’s why the storms come on. Did you ever think of that? He set up there and watched them till they had need of Him, and then He come on the scene. So, we can see our need of Him now. We see that the storm is coming, brother. Let’s take sides with Him tonight. Take sides with His Word.
I—I—I quit here.
E-270 Let’s take sides with Him. Let’s us, you and I, brethren, join up with Him, tonight. The storm is coming. And don’t wait till the little boat is sunk. Let’s take Him into our little bark now.
You might look off and say, “I can’t understand all these things, Brother Branham.”
E-271 See if we say anything but what’s in the Word. See if there’s anything there but what He promised to do. It might look a little spooky to you, sometime. You think, “Oh, my. I can’t understand That.” But there’ll be a day when this life of yours is leaving. It—it won’t look so bad to you then. When you know, yourself, you got to turn back to the God that created you, you’ll want to take Him in then. Let’s take Him in now, before the storm gets any worse than what it is.
E-272 I want Him into my heart. I want Him so much in my life, till my whole being is saturated; that my mind, my thoughts, my everything that I am, is governed and controlled by Christ Jesus. I want to be so lost, to—to myself, that all I’ll know and see is Jesus Christ.
And I want to come before you all, if the God of Heaven permits you to have these things that I’ve talked about. When I come among you, I want to know Christ, Him crucified. I—I want to know the glory and precious praises of God. Set down among you, and hear one minister get up and give the praise to God, to what he had seen done in his church. Another one, what he saw done in his church. Another one, what he saw done in his church.
E-273 That’s exactly what they did. And when they come together and met in fellowship, in Acts 4, they was giving account what God had did over here, and what God had did over here. And Peter and John had been whipped. And—and—and made a promise that they’d…what they’d do to them if they preached any more in Jesus’ Name. And they gathered with their people, and they all prayed with one accord, and prayed in the will of God, and quoted the Scripture. “Why did the heathens rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?” And when they prayed, the Holy Ghost shook the place where they were assembled together.
E-274 That’s the kind of a meeting we need. That’s what we got to have, brethren. Let’s be fortified by the Word of God, by the Spirit of God, by the power of God. And let our Lights so shine now, that we’ll be like Stephens.
E-275 He stood there, one man, alone, before that Sanhedrin council of a half a million men, maybe, standing there. Every one of them pointing their finger of accusation in his face. When that little fellow walked out there, said, “He shined like an angel.” I don’t mean, maybe, a light on his face, like that. An angel don’t have to have a light on him. But an angel is a man or…An angel is a messenger, and a messenger who knows what he is talking about.
He walked out there and said, “Men, and brethren, and fathers, our fathers in Mesopotamia, how they was brought out, and Abraham,” and so forth, and on to So-and-so. And then he got down to the spoiling point, said, “Oh, you stiff-necks, uncircumcised in heart and ears, why do you always resist the Holy Ghost? Like your fathers did, so do you.” He knowed exactly what he was standing at. That’s the reason he was shining. He wasn’t a bit afraid. He knowed in Whom he had believed.
E-276 Even when death knocked at the door of Saint Paul’s heart. [Brother Branham knocks on the pulpit—Ed.] And he said, “I know in Whom I have believed, and I’m persuaded He’s able to keep that which I’ve committed to Him against the day.” Amen.
E-277 The Lord bless you, brethren. I’m sorry I keep you here till twenty-five minutes until eleven. I know this is uncustomary for you. I’m sorry to do it. But you’ve been real nice tonight; none of you has left. You’ve set and give your undivided attention.
And I trust and hope that, in my little, broke-up, nervous talk, that God, the Holy Ghost, has somewhere has poured out a little Seed into your heart, that the power of God will strike and bring It to Life, just like the woman at the well, and others who are predestinated to Eternal Life. God bless you.
E-278 Brother Neville, you going to dismiss, or what do you want to do? How do you? Just in…[Brother Neville says, “I would just pray.”—Ed.]
Do you love Him? [The brethren say, “Amen.”—Ed.] Will you serve Him? [“Amen.”] Will you believe Him? [“Amen.”] Amen.
Do you love Him? Amen.
Will you serve Him? Amen.
Will you believe Him? Amen.
Amen. Amen.
We want to sing it. Amen.
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
The Bible is true. Amen.
I believe It. Amen.
It’s the Word of God. Amen.
Amen. Amen.
Let us stand.
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
Lord, we love You. Amen.
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
We believe You’re coming. Amen.
We’re ready to meet You. Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.
Amen. Amen.
We pray God to let us be our best at all times, to serve Him.
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
I trust that He will bless you, and preserve you, and keep you, and watch between us, and Fire you into His Kingdom, to do great works, and help me on the field until we meet again.
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
I’ll pray for you. Will you pray for me?
Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
E-279 Our Father, we have assembled tonight in the Name of the noble Lord Jesus, that beloved and darling Name that we all love and adore. I’m thinking how groups of men down through the years, for thirty years or more, we’ve assembled in this little old building. How we’d set around a stove with our feets freezing, nearly, and set there with our feet up on the stove, and talk about the Lord Jesus.
I’m thinking of some precious feet that once trod upon the earth, that set with them feet up against there. I’m thinking of old Brother Seward, Brother Sparks, Brother George DeArk, many other precious souls that once set with their feet against that stove, has gone on to meet their Lord tonight, resting yonder in the grave, waiting for that great summons for on High. They fought a fight. They kept the Faith. They finished the course. And now they’re waiting for the crown of righteousness, the Lord the righteous Judge will give them that day.
E-280 Father, God, we prayed when we dedicated this little church on the corner, and said, “Lord Jesus, let it stand and people be in it when You break the skies, to come in that secret, quick going of the Church. God, I pray that souls that’s come to this altar, souls that’s served You, the Gospel Seed that’s been sowed back and forth, and back and forth, and back and forth, across here, for thirty years, that we believe many of those precious people will be there on that Day, because of these feeble efforts that we put forth, to bring the Word to that predestinated Life. We thank Thee for it. And trust, God, tonight, that not one present now but what will be present on that Day, covered by the Blood, anchored in Jesus. Grant it, Father. We trust in Him.
E-281 Now we’re to meet here again Sunday morning, many of us. And we pray, God, that You’ll meet and break the Bread of Life for us.
God, we would remember Brother Ruddell and his place up there, where those who are sojourning with him. Be with that precious boy, Lord, I pray. As I see him coming up, see these young fellows, I feel like they’re my Timothy’s. I pray, Father, that You’ll bless Brother Ruddell and his ministry. Bless Brother Junie Jackson. O God, we pray that Your blessings will be upon him, upon our Brother Crase, upon Brother Snelling, upon this other brother there that’s taking his place, and Brother Beeler, and brother, all these brothers here, Lord, and Brother Neville, and every one of us, Lord. We just pray that Your blessings will be smiled upon us, that Your grace will be all that we need, Lord, to go on.
And may we never forget the little comment, tonight. Though that little woman standing there, not knowing what the end would be; but Jesus needed attention, and she was giving it to Him, yes, washing His feet. A neglected something that even those who claimed to be His servants had failed to do it, and they were trying to make fun of Him. But she did Him a service, not expecting a reward, and there could not been a greater given.
E-282 God, may we do the same, just press right on and do the service of God. And all we long to do, Lord, is to hear, on that Day, “It was well done, My good and faithful servant. Enter into the joys of the Lord that’s been prepared for you since the foundation of the world.” God, grant us to do that, and keep fellowship with one another. And may the Holy Spirit be with us and guide us and direct us in all we do. And give us long life, maybe, if it’s possible, to see the Coming of the Lord Jesus. We ask it in His Name. Amen.
Blest be the tie that bind
Our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred mindS
Is like to that Above.
When we asunder part,
Now it gives us inward pain;
But we shall still be joined in heart,
And hope to meet again.
E-283 The Bible said, “They sang a hymn and went out.” God bless you now, till I see you again, Sunday morning, the Lord willing. Bye-bye.
Jim, I didn’t get to shake your hand, tonight. God bless you. The Lord bless you.