E-1 Happy to be here this morning, and to hear this exhortation, just as coming to the platform. Sorry to be late. But the sick in the back out there, in cars, ambulance, like, and—and I had to catch those that couldn't get in, you see, before I could get in.
E-2 Now, I wonder if the sister that's got the—the little fellow, if she can't come back this afternoon. I want to preach this evening, also, if the Lord willing. If she can't come back for the dedication then, while I've been standing so long this time, well, tell her to, she can bring the baby on now. But if she can come back, this, tonight, it'll be a little better for us. But let whatever she can do, whatever it means. Why, she can't come back, we'll bring the little fellow now for the dedication. And now, all these, while I'm speaking, if she wants to come now, and this would be the time.
E-3 Now, tonight, there is a very special, I—I want to speak on the subject tonight, a prophetic message of: Sir, Is This The Time? So if the Lord willing, I want to speak on that subject tonight. Is This The Time, Sir? Or, Sir, Is This The Time? rather. And then I want to take this opportunity, in the presence of the church. Which, there's been many things happened in the last few days, that points up to a—a great something that I do not understand. But we are, we always… God's ways are past finding out by man, so we just have to walk by faith. If anyone could explain God, then it would no more be necessary to have faith, because you—you know then. But we just walk by faith.
E-4 And this morning, I thought I would try to just have a regular evangelistic service, because, kind of changed my thought after I got down here and seen so many standing, and been waiting so long. And then, tonight, maybe be a less here, and then I can go ahead with this what I want to say.
E-5 One thing I'd like to announce, while many of them are together, many of you together. It's something I refrained from announcing for the last couple weeks. That is, your prayers has been answered concerning the tax case that I had with the government. It's settled. And so we are… It's—it's all over now. As many of you understand what they had against me was those checks that had been made out for the campaign, and yet they tried to say there were mine out there. And wanted to charge me three hundred and fifty- something thousand dollars for being my personal property, and it wasn't. It was the campaign's. And the church knows about that. All of you know about it. And finally they come to the place that…
E-6 I'll just give you a little outline of what happened. They been most, three to five years, about, nearly five years, I guess, in the case, and back and forth, and character and everything. But I'm so grateful that they couldn't find anything against me, so they couldn't indict me for it. So there wasn't nothing to be indicted, only, they said, just my—my ignorance, myself, I guess, by not knowing much about law. They'd bring me the checks and I'd sign them, put my name on them, place them in the campaign. But then, as long as I put my name on them, they were mine, you see. No matter… Said, "That's very nice for you to, like that. But they were yours, and then you give them to the church. But as soon as you put your name on it, it was yours, no matter what they was designated for. They were wrote to you." So if they had been put, somebody had put across there, "personal gift," it would have been all right. But they just wrote, "William Branham." See? And when I put my name on it, it then done it. It was all of it. So they was… And then finally with prayer…
E-7 And then not long ago, you know, they… I had the vision that a great, dark, smoky, sooty, scaly, like an alligator, man come, moving towards me, with iron fingers. I had one little knife, like that. And he had on him, "United States government." And I couldn't help nothing. I was helpless. And then the Lord came on the scene, and it was conquered. And you remember me telling you that, long ago.
E-8 And they offered a compromise, other day. And my attorney, Mr. Orbison in New Albany, and Ice & Miller in Indianapolis, on tax case, called me, and told me, "Come down." And I went down, Brother Roberson and I, and my wife, and the trustees of the church here, and all of us. We went down. And they told us that they were, the government, was willing to compromise.
E-9 And I said, "I, if owe anybody anything, I'll pay them. But I do my best. But," I said, "I don't owe that." And so I said, "I—I… It's, honestly. God knows. And why don't they indict me, then, if I'm guilty?" I said, "They've had five years to try to do it, but they couldn't find nothing to do it with." So I said, "No, I refuse. I just won't pay it until it's proved that I owe it."
E-10 And then the attorney took me in and talked to me, and said, "Now, we can try the case. Government will try it." And said, "When they do, the only thing they can find against you, was that you…" What I, what, the way I done it. I didn't just…
E-11 I don't know nothing about keeping books, so I just had to do it the way I thought was honest. And it—it was never banked in my name. It was always banked to the name of the church campaign and so forth, see, so it wasn't nothing that I could do about it. And I…
E-12 He said, "Well, they are willing to compromise, for fifteen thousand dollars, with ten thousand dollars penalty." And the attorney's fees was fifteen thousand. That made me forty thousand. And so then they want five more, I think it is now. So I went…
E-13 I said, "Where in the world would I ever get forty thousand dollars?" I said, "You know, my bank account here, it says a hundred dollars, or maybe less." I said, "Where would I get forty-something thousand dollars?" And I said, "I have nothing for collateral. I just haven't got it. That's all."
E-14 And he said, "Mr. Branham," he said, "here is what it is. If we try the case," he said, "there's no doubt but what we can beat the case." He said, "But here is what. We can beat it, because here is what I'll do. They're going to claim all that's yours because you signed your name to it. And they are going to claim it's yours, though it was banked in the name of the campaign, church, Branham campaign, and then a church."
E-15 And not one time, could they find one cent that I ever spent on myself. That's the truth. God knows. There is men setting right here now, been right with me all along. There wasn't one cent that I ever spent for myself. It was all for the Kingdom of God, everywhere, every check, everything else.
E-16 But, see that, but that don't matter. It was—it's supposed to be mine, first, and then the churches, the campaigns. And they have a way of doing it, you know, all kind of escapes they can make. So then I said, "Well, I—I just won't do it."
E-17 And he said, "Well, if we beat the case that way, because, I'll—I'll declare them 'personal gifts'. See? I'll declare it, by the government, 'personal gifts.'" And said, "Then, when I do that, all over ten thousand dollars will be inheritance. And then you'll be right back in it again, and they'll hold you another five years, checking all them." See? When you write a check, it goes through the clearing house. They photostat, copy that check. Course, I had all the checks, too, that it went through. So they said, "That's where they get you, right back again."
E-18 And he said, "Another thing, Mr. Branham, if you, ever called in to the government, like that, under an investigation, no matter what you ever do, in the eyes of the public, 'You're a crook.' See? But that's all."
E-19 Look at this little Baptist minister down here in Mississippi, that little fellow. A woman said that he come in and insulted her. And that man brought evidence from across the country and everywhere, he wasn't even around the city, for days before, the day, or day after, insomuch that the judge wanted to turn back and have him to sue the woman for scandal. He said, "Let her go."
E-20 And when that was put on a Monitor test, across the country, you know what happened? Seventy-five percent of the American people said, "Where there is smoke, there is fire." And that poor little fellow, just as innocent as I would be, or anybody else, will labor under that the rest of his days, when he had nothing at all to do with it.
E-21 I felt very bad, for a while, to think that I've put my life to the Kingdom of God, to try to make, see people pay your taxes and do things, and do what's right, and make crooks become right men; and have to be put up like I was a crook, myself. I thought, "What in the world have I did?"
E-22 And then it came to me, and I looked in the Bible. Every man in the Bible, no exceptions, that ever had a spiritual office, if Satan couldn't get them on morals or something, the government caught them. Go right back to anywhere you want to, all the way down; Moses, Daniel, Hebrew children, John the Baptist. Jesus Christ died by the governor, capital punishment. Paul, Peter, James the Great, James the Less, every one of them died under the government.
E-23 Because, it is, every government, is the seat—seat of Satan. Jesus said so. The Bible says it. See? Every government is controlled by the devil. There is coming a government who will be controlled by Christ, but that's in the Millennium. But this, these governments now, no matter how well we think they are, yet, the back of them, they're—they're dominated by Satan. "These kingdoms," he said, "are mine. I do with them whatever I wish to. I'll give them to You, if You'll worship me."
E-24 Jesus said, "Get thee hence, Satan. 'Thou shalt worship the Lord, and Him only shalt thou serve.'"
E-25 And then I got discouraged. My wife is listening to me. I went on, I said, "No, sir. I, if I owed it, I'd pay it. I do not owe it, and I'm just not going to pay it. That's all." I said, "How can I pay it, anyhow?"
E-26 So, I went home. I said, "Meda, wash the kids' face. Get their clothes ready. I'm leaving." I said, "They won't even… Everything, it's just upside down."
E-27 I said, "What have I done? Tell me." I said, "Yet, me, forty thousand dollars? Whew! You don't realize what that means to me."
And she come in, as a nice little wife would. I said, "I'm leaving."
E-28 She said, "You think that would do any good? Prayed over it yet?"
E-29 Thought, "Well, maybe I better pray again." I goes back in. It seemed like He said to me, a Scripture.
E-30 Always, we want to watch the Scripture, what God did about it, you see.
E-31 And one day, it was asked to Him, you know, trying to—trying to accuse Him to the government. They said, "Is it right for us free Jews to give tribute or taxes to Caesar?"
He said, "You got a penny?" Said, "Whose inscription is on it?"
Said, "Caesar's."
E-32 Said, "Then you give Caesar's the things that's Caesar's. And to God's, the things that's God's."
E-33 I thought of that. I turned over in the Bible and read it. I thought, "Truly, Lord, that's right. But this don't belong to Caesar. This was Yours. It wasn't Caesar's. If it had been mine, I been had to pay more taxes or something, well, that would been different, that it belonged to Caesar. But, this, this is Yours. See? And it—it didn't belong to Caesar, in the first place."
E-34 You know, He has always got the answer in the Word. I just read a little farther, and He said, "Say, Simon, haven't you got a fishhook in your pocket?" See? "You always carry a little fishhook and a string. And I just made a deposit this morning, in a fish bank down there at the—at the river, you know." Said He… "I made a deposit, and the banker will certainly give up what he's got. Just go down there and throw the hook in the river. And when you get up the bank, open his mouth, you see, and he'll—he'll give out the coin. Let's not offend them. Don't bring offense to them. See? Go pay it, Simon. That'll be for me and you."
E-35 I thought, "True, God. You got fish banks and everything else, across the country. I don't know how it will be done."
E-36 But we went down. I got brothers right here in the church that stood on my note, and I put a note in, and got the forty thousand dollars, and paid it off.
E-37 I went home. I wanted to know the way I wrote that check, if they'd ever come back on me again. I said, "This is to say that I'm free from all taxes. Well, they better endorse that one, they sure going to be in a mess after that." I kept calling back, the bank, to see if they'd do it.
And, finally, Bob told me, said, "Billy, they did it."
E-38 I went in and put my arm around the wife, I said, "Honey, I'm free." What a feeling, to be free!
E-39 And so I can pay it back now, they made it real easy on me. I can pay it back at four thousand dollars a year. Now, I can't loaf anymore, folks. I got to get out and go to work. So I—I… It take me ten years to pay it back. And if—if Jesus doesn't come. And when that, when He does, all the debts all settled then anyhow. See? So, then, so I—I hope that you all… Your prayers… And, tonight, I'll continue on with something just a little to that. But your prayers is what helped me. Thank you, so much. God bless you. No matter where we ever at, I'll never forget that.
E-40 Tonight, if the Lord willing, I wish to state some of the facts that I know. And be sure to come. Now, remember: Sirs, What Time Is It?
E-41 Now, we're going to… I believe, they got a full schedule for the rest of the… this week. And Monday night is… The services, tonight, today and tonight, and Monday. Monday night is the watch service. And—and then that gives you Tuesday, New Year's Day; if you're out of town, can go back home.
E-42 And we'll have some fine ministers here now for that meeting. We, a—a great group of fine speakers, and everybody will be speaking at intervals, down on till midnight. And sometimes they take communion, if it's in line. I don't know whether they are this time, or not. Right as where they're whooping, and hollering, and shooting, and drinking, and going on, we take the communion. Amen. Start the New Year's right, with the communion. Now, you're all invited. And I hope that, you, God of the heavens will give you an opportunity to stay over if you can.
E-43 Now, before we approach the Word, I want to say this, too, that I certainly thank this church, its members, for this fine suit of clothes that you bought me. Thank you, very much. That's so much to me. All your cards and things through the—the—the Christmas seasons, and gifts that you sent to the family, and, oh, I, they were innumerable to me. And little spots that cannot touch the spot in my heart, nothing could do it like that, to know that it come from you. And so some of them sent me some of their Christmas gifts in money.
E-44 And some of them sent such. One brother sent me a pocketbook, and he had made with my name on it. A little pin that you look through; it's got the Lord's prayer in it. And, oh, things like that, it just, we just treasure. Wife and I, and the children want to tell you, "Thanks, so much." It's so little. But I'll say this, this is the greatest word I think that anyone could say, "God bless you." There's nothing could be any greater.
E-45 Now, and to these brethren here at the church, who bought me that rifle, I—I wore my suit, but I—I couldn't bring the rifle to church. But it was… They really would have something against me then, wouldn't they? So I—I—I certainly thank you, my brethren. And I was going to read their names on a little… But one of the brethren was up yesterday, said, "Oh, don't—don't—don't thank me, Brother Branham. It would just take all the joy out of it. See?" So I thought maybe the rest of them might think the same thing. But I got your name. They typed it out. Always remembered. And the Lord bless you greatly.
E-46 And you know what I relax at, and is go in that den room and set there, and live all over. When I get so wound up, I can't go no farther, then think about some hunting trip I took somewhere, or somewhere went fishing. I appreciate that. God bless you.
E-47 Now, can we bow our heads just a moment, as we approach the Word. I'm sure there is requests in here this morning, too numerable to numerate just now. But I wonder, while we have our heads bowed, your special request, if you'd just keep it on your heart, and just raise up your hands, and say, "God, You know what I'm thinking of now."
E-48 Lord Jesus, You see every hand. And You know what's behind that. Down beneath that hand lays a request. And we are coming now, reverently, up to the Throne of the living God, that great white pearl that stretches across the space of time, where Jehovah God sets in There, and the Blood of Christ laying upon the altar. And we speak across that Blood, by Him that said, "Ask the Father anything in My Name, it'll be granted." Won't You hear, God, this morning, and answer their requests? I lay my prayer with theirs, today, that You will grant it.
E-49 Here are handkerchiefs laying here, Lord, that's sick and afflicted. And we're taught in the Bible, that, "They took from Saint Paul handkerchiefs and aprons, and they were placed upon the sick. And unclean spirits went out of them, and diseases departed." And, Father, as we have known for a long time, and we surely know that we're not Saint Paul. But, after all, we feel that it wasn't Saint Paul. It was the Christ that was in him. And You are "the same yesterday, today, and forever," according to the Scripture. Now, these people, Lord, believe that if we ask God, and take these handkerchiefs and lay them upon their sick, that they shall recover. I pray that it'll be so, Lord, when these handkerchiefs are placed upon the sick.
E-50 And as is said, one time, Israel starting in the line of duty, going to the promised land, and the Red Sea cut them off, right in the path of duty. But God looked down through that Pillar of Fire, with angry eyes, and that sea got scared. And it rolled back its waves, its waters. And Israel went through on dry land, to the promise land.
E-51 Now, Lord, today, look through the Blood of Jesus. And You see this act of faith that we're performing here this morning. And may Satan get scared and move away. And may each one of these pilgrims that's present, and each one of these handkerchiefs will lay upon, may (they) the road be opened up, and sickness moved away. And may they journey on towards the promised land, being led by the Holy Spirit, the Pillar of Fire. Grant it, Lord.
E-52 Now, bless the services, the words, the context, the reading. And may the Holy Spirit take the Word, this morning, and sweetly divide It to each one of us, Lord, as we're growing close to some great tremendous something that we know not what. Our hearts are moved strangely, Lord. And we pray now, as we reverently approach Thee and Thy Word, that You'll interpret to us the meaning thereof. For we ask it in Jesus' Name. Amen.
Now, tonight, don't forget the… The Time, What Time Is It?
E-53 And now, this morning, I wish to turn, you too that have your Bibles. Or mark it, if you care to, in the Scriptures, where we want to speak from, for a few moments, found in the Book of Acts. We might read two or three places. Acts 26:15, first. Acts, the 25th chapter and the 15th verse, to begin.
E-54 Then we want to read Acts 23:11. And you might add with this, if you wish to, I probably won't have time to read it, Philippians 1:20. It's all about the same course, the same words.
E-55 Now, in the Book of Acts, 26:15, it reads like this.
And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.
… arise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;
Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentile,… whom now I send thee,
To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.
Whereupon, O… Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision:
But showed first unto them at Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and them… then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
E-56 In Acts 23, and the 11th verse again.
And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of a good cheer, Paul: for… thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.
E-57 May God add His holy blessings to the reading of this most gracious, holy Word that we have before us.
E-58 Now, I was hearing a man speak, or talk, not long ago, and he used the word: Absolute. And I thought, "That's a very fine word." I hear it used so many times, "Absolutely." That's…
E-59 I looked up in the dictionary, Webster's. According to Webster's, it's "Perfect in itself; unlimited in its power; primarily an ultimate." And an ultimate is "The amen. That's all." An absolute, it is. It's "The unlimited in power," the word absolute. It's—it's, "Perfect in itself. That's all of it. That settles it."
I thought, "That's a glorious thing. That's a wonderful word."
E-60 And now, a word is a thought expressed. First, it must be a thought, and then it becomes a word. Because, you do not speak your words without thought.
E-61 When we speak in tongues, we have no thought. It's God taking the thoughts. It's God's thought using our lips. We don't think or know what you're saying when you're speaking in tongues, if it's inspired speaking. When you interpret, you do not know what you're saying. You just say it. That's all. See? That's God. And prophesying, you not using your own thoughts. It's God, 'cause you say things that you ordinarily wouldn't think about saying. See?
E-62 But the word absolute is "an ultimate." And, therefore, I think that everybody should have an ultimate. And every great achievement that's ever been achieved, there has been an absolute behind it. No matter what it was, it's had an absolute behind it. And every person, in order to achieve something, has to first have the absolute. And that's the final wind back, through this, that, back through the other, till you come to that absolute, or the amen, or the ultimate. Of what you're… You got something you have to tie to, in other words. It's the final tying post, to every achievement. It's somewhere. It might wind through many different things till it gets to that tie post, but there is the amen to all of it. There must be such a thing. You cannot go on through life without having one.
E-63 You, when you got married, there had to wind back through your mind, something, till you hit that tie post. And it should have been love for your wife, or your husband. Well, maybe she isn't as pretty as John's wife; or she, well, she not the—the this, that. But there is something about her, that, you, it strikes you. You—you—you say, "She might not be as pretty as the other," or, "He might not be as handsome as the other." But there has to be an absolute there, that that person is different, and there is where you hold on to. If that isn't there, you better not get married. That tie post! That absolute!
E-64 We can think of many who had absolutes, in the Bible. Oh, how we could take, down through the stream of that Bible, and just be here two weeks from now; and never even touch the surface, if we'd think of the absolutes in the Bible. For instance, let me just call one or two, just brief them.
E-65 Look at Job. Now, he had an absolute. Everything went wrong for that man, a just man. Now, we would be daresn't to say that he wasn't just, because God said he was. "There was no one on earth like Job. He was perfect," in the sight of God. And he knew it, because he had an ultimate. He had an absolute, when everything seemed to be contrary.
E-66 Sickness broke out. His friends might have said, "Now, there you are, Job. That proves that you are sinning. You're wrong." And then the bishops come down. They called them Job's comforters. And instead of comforting him, they seen nothing but sin in his life, because God had dealt with him the way He had.
E-67 And his children was killed. His—his property was burned. His—his everything went wrong. And even his own life in jeopardy, setting on an ash heap, broke out from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet, with boils. And even his lovely, sweet companion, the mother of those children, said, "You should curse God and die the death." But in the face of all that, Job had an absolute.
E-68 Oh, in time of sickness, if we could only tie ourself to that absolute!
E-69 Job knowed that he had done Jehovah's bidding. And he had faith in what he done, because Jehovah required it. We can just do that. Jehovah required a burnt offering for his sin. And Job, not only for himself, but for his children, had made a burnt offering, and that's all God required.
"Oh," you might say, "I wish that's all He required today."
E-70 It's less than that. Just faith in His Word! And you, if you make His Word your absolute, you can. Any Divine promise in the Bible, you can tie your soul to it. No matter how much the waves whip you around, you're still tied; your absolute.
E-71 And he held on to it. And when his comforters said, "You've sinned," he knowed he had not. He was just, because he had done Jehovah's bidding. And when his every…
E-72 The man come in, said, "You're children is dead." Another one come in, said, "You're camels are all burned up. And there come fire down from heaven."
E-73 Look what an argument his discomforters had. "You see? The fire came from heaven. Now, Job, that proves." That proves nothing. "Now, He wouldn't have struck your children, Job; you're a just man."
E-74 "But," Job said, "I know that I've done what's right." He still held on. He had something that he could drive down. That's it. He had accepted it. He had done exactly what God told him to do, and he was absolutely sure. All right.
E-75 Then when he come to the spot, when that absolute held, then finally he begin to feel the strain tighten up. That had been running loose, bouncing around, but it begin to tighten up. And the Spirit come on him. And he stood up, being a prophet, and he said, "I know my Redeemer liveth." Amen. See? He had tightened up to his absolute. He had come in contact. He knowed that he had done what was right, and some day he had to pull to it. "I know my Redeemer liveth, and at the last days, He stands upon this earth. Though after the skin worms destroys this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." He knew then. Then his absolute anchored.
E-76 Abraham, an absolute, coming down from Babylon, from the tower, and out into the Shinar, and out in there where he was sojourning with his father, and perhaps was a farmer. But one day, way back in the jungles somewhere, maybe picking berries, or—or going to kill a beast for his meat; and somewhere back in there, God spoke to him, when he was seventy-five years old. And he was… He and his wife, Sarah, her being sixty-five, was childless—childless. They didn't have any children. Then God told him, "You're going to have a child by Sarah. But, in order to do this, you've got to separate yourself."
E-77 God's promises are always on condition. You must, absolutely. No matter how fundamental you are with the promise, it's under conditions, always. How we could stop here and wave through that Scripture, back and forth, for hours, see, that the condition is what means something. You can be just as fundamental as you want to, but it's under conditions by the promise, predestination, and so forth. Notice.
E-78 Now, "Abraham, he believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness." Now, what a—a horrible thing it would be to meet a—a civilized world, a man seventy-five years old, with a woman sixty-five, and had lived together since they were young couples, 'cause she was his half sister, and now going to have a baby by her. But he had an absolute. There was nothing going to move him.
E-79 And when, the first month, it didn't happen, his absolute held, because he knowed he had talked to God. The second month, second year, ten year, and at twenty-five years later, when he was a hundred, and Sarah was ninety, his absolute still held.
E-80 And the Bible said, when his obituary was written, He said, "Abraham staggered not at the promise of God, through unbelief, but was strong, giving praise to God."
E-81 Why? Did you ever think why? He was absolute, positive. And the only thing he had to do was separate himself from his people. And God never did bless him until he did it. He took his daddy. His daddy died. He took Lot. And when, after Lot separated from Abraham, then God come to him, said, "Now walk through the land." See?
E-82 Obedience, promise, under conditions, always goes with God and His Word. Now look at…
E-83 Let's take Moses. Moses, the—the runaway servant-prophet, that God had raised him up and educated him in Pharaoh's palace. And—and Moses went out with his theological training, and was the first man he slew. Then, the first little defect come along, then Moses was scared to death.
E-84 Why? He had no absolute. He only had his—his mother's testimony of his birth. He was a strange child. He had his mother's word about it. He had the scrolls that God had perhaps in paper somewhere, they had written, packed along with them, that God was going to visit His children. He knowed that that was the time.
Like we do now, we know something is fixing to happen.
E-85 Now, Moses knowed that was the time, and he knowed that he was chosen for it, but he didn't have an absolute. See?
E-86 And one day, on the backside of the desert, when he had lost the vision, God appeared to him, in a burning bush. And He said, "Moses, I have seen the afflictions of My people. I've heard their groans and crying, of those taskmasters punishing them. And I have remembered My promise. I've come down to deliver them. Now go down to Egypt." Oh, my!
E-87 Said Moses, complaining, saying, "I don't speak very well. My—my deliverance is not very well. They won't believe me."
He said, "What's in your hand?"
He said, "A stick."
E-88 He said, "Throw it down." It turned to a serpent. Said, "Pick it up by the tail." It turned back again to a stick. He was giving him the assurance, a vindication.
E-89 When God gives an absolute, He gives the vindication to that absolute, always.
E-90 Then Moses, when he was down there, and he threw down his stick before the magicians and Pharaoh, and the magicians come and threw down their stick too, Moses never run and said, "Oh, well, I was wrong. Ah, it's just a cheap magician trick, and maybe I was wrong."
E-91 But he knowed. He was positive that he met God, and he stood still. Let's say he had done exactly what God told him to do. So had Job done exactly what God told him to do. Moses had followed His commandments. Then, stand still and watch the glory of God. Moses was tied to his absolute, his commission, and he stood still. And when he did, his serpent swallowed up the rest of the serpents. See? He was tied to that absolute.
E-92 God said, "When you deliver them children, you'll worship Me again on this mountain."
E-93 Now, the enemy, in every way that he can, will try to get you away from that absolute.
E-94 Right as they started out of Egypt, they got cornered right in the neck of the—of the Red Sea, mountains on either side. Come up through a valley, and there was the Red Sea. No way to escape over the hills, no way to escape this way, and Pharaoh's army coming this way. What a place to stand!
E-95 See how the devil gets you in a place where you don't know what to do? But remember, if you're tied to that absolute, that's got it.
E-96 Moses knowed that God promised him, that, "You'll worship on this mountain when you bring them out. And I've come down, by your hand, to deliver them and place them over in that other land." He stayed right with it. And God sent an east wind and blowed out the waters, out of the bottom of the sea, and they walked across on dry land. An absolute!
E-97 How we could go through the Scriptures: Daniel, his absolute; Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego, their absolute; David, his absolute; all, absolute.
E-98 Paul had One, too, the One we are reading about. He had a Christ-centered call, and that was his absolute. That's the reason he wasn't afraid of what Agrippa would say. Standing there, and Agrippa was a Jew, as we know. And so then when he is standing before these kings and things, God had already told him he would stand there. So, he had an absolute, so he told exactly the Heavenly vision. Said, "I'm not a… I wasn't dishonorable to it. I was… Did not misjudge it. I didn't misbehave myself." But he held to, and was not disobedient. He carried it out, to the minute, for It was an absolute.
And any Christ-centered life, that's your absolute.
E-99 Now, since meeting Him, face to face, on the road to Damascus, that was meant so much to Paul.
E-100 Now, remember, he was a scholar, beforehand. He was a mighty man in the Scriptures. But he didn't have any tie post but the Sanhedrin that would back him up, and a—and a diploma from a—a—a great teacher. He was a great man in his field. But he was waiting. Only thing he had, his absolute would only be as strong as his organization was. That's all the stronger he could be. And he was working faithful to that, and was taking Christians, and binding them, and making havoc of them, and even stoned Stephens.
E-101 I think, later in his life, the reason he went to Jerusalem. When, the prophet told him, "Don't go up there, Paul, for chains and prison waits for you."
E-102 And Paul said, "I know it. But I'm not only going to Jerusalem as a witness. But, I'm going there, I'm ready to die for Jesus Christ." For he knew what he had done, and his ambition was to seal his testimony with his own blood, die a martyr, because he killed one of God's martyrs.
E-103 And now he was on his road down to Damascus, with all of his education. Set under that great teacher, Gamaliel, and how that he had been taught in all the Jewish religion. And yet, with all that, he was flimsy, and he did not have the ability to do certain things. And all of a sudden, there was a Light, and a roar, maybe, and a thunder. And he was smitten, and fell to the ground.
E-104 And he looked up. There was a Light shining, that blinded his eyes. And what a strange thing that was. No one else saw the Light, just Saul. It was so promised, so real to him, until It blinded his eyes. He couldn't see. Totally blind, with that Pillar of Fire blazing him right in the face. And he heard a Voice saying, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?"
He said, "Lord, Who are You?"
E-105 And He said, "I am Jesus. And it's hard for you to kick against these pricks. Rise now, and go into Damascus, and there one will be sent to you." Then when he raised up from there…
E-106 And there was one, a prophet, down in the city, who saw in a vision while he was praying, and he came. Ananias came, and come in to Saul. Laid his hands upon him, and he was healed by Divine healing. He rose then, was baptized, washing away his sins, calling upon the Name of the Lord. And then he had an absolute. He was never the same after that. He went straight, from church to church, from place to place, trying to build up that which he had tried to tear down.
E-107 How the nation, how the Christian world, this morning, needs that type of absolute. Those who tree creeds and traditions, has tried to, with doctrine of men, to disqualify God's Word to being the same yesterday, today, and forever. They need an absolute, an experience of meeting, on a Damascus road, the living God Who can heal the sick, and raise the dead, and cast out devils. A genuine absolute!
E-108 Paul knew that something happened. There was no one could take it away from him. Nothing else mattered. He was tied, and that was it. No matter what come, he knowed he was tied, Christ-centered life. Oh!
E-109 The life that he had lived was a different life. Now, remember, he had been a religious man.
E-110 And to some of you peoples this morning. And I know you realize that this tape is being made, will play in every nation under the heavens, about, around the world, and some of you peoples who is here present. And some of you, out where the tapes will be played in the other nations, by an interpreter, giving it to the tribes of Africa, back in the Hottentots, and—and all around.
E-111 And to you religious leaders who just got an education of the Bible, you've got it from a historical standpoint, and may be able to explain all these things. But, if you haven't got an absolute, haven't got a—an experience! And if that experience, that—that you claim you have, makes you deny that every Word of This isn't just as true to the church today as It ever was; and you're trusting upon your Bachelor of Art degree, or whatever you might have! If you're trusting upon the thoughts of your organization that would say, "The days of miracles is passed. And we have no Divine healing. And the baptism of the Holy Spirit like they received on the Day of Pentecost, is not for the people today!" If that's all you got, my precious brother, sister, you need a Damascus-road experience.
E-112 You need to meet this living God, where you, not only just a mythical thought in your mind, not some shiver, or some kind of a sensation, but a taught and experience of a real, genuine. The same Jesus that walked in Galilee is living today, and alive forevermore. And He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. An absolute, that you don't have to take what anyone said. You know for yourself, not some sensation.
E-113 And if the sensation that you've had, and somebody, it might have been a real Bible sensation, and somebody tried to explain it away from you, saying those things were in some other day. Be careful. It is true. Be careful. But there is a way to know. Test it with the Word. That's the blueprint.
E-114 If the house goes up contrary to the blueprint, the contractor will tear it down and rebuild it. But it's got to go to the blueprint.
E-115 No matter what your experience is, then, if something in you tells you that that Bible isn't true, that power of God, apostles, prophets, and teachers, and pastors, and the gifts of the Spirit just isn't the same as It was when It flowed through them apostles at Pentecost, there is something wrong with your absolute. It has to tie to a denominational creed instead to God's Bible. When, He said, "Both heavens and earth will pass away, but My Word shall never fail." Watch what your absolute is.
E-116 You might be absolutely sure that you're in good fellowship with the pastor. And might be absolutely sure that you're in fellowship with the district presbyter. And might be absolutely sure that you're in fellowship with the bishop or some other great man in your church. But if you're not… Your absolute isn't Jesus Christ.
E-117 "For upon this Rock I'll put My absolute, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Spiritual revelation of Who He is, and knowing! All right. Oh!
E-118 Now, when you become like Paul, have the same absolute that he had, a Christ-centered life is a different life than what you once had. And it might be a very religious life that you lived.
E-119 Oh, I've heard people say, "Now, they're very religious." That don't have one thing to do with It.
E-120 I've just seen many religions, very devout, many times more sincere than the Christian people of today profess. When, a mother can take her little, fat, black baby, about that long, and throw it into the mouth of a crocodile, for the love of her god. I wonder how sincere Christianity is. When, a man can afflict himself in a such a way, would put in a thousand hooks through his flesh, like that, hanging with balls of water, holding him down like this, and walk through a streak of fire, from here to the end of that tabernacle, back and forth, and it white-hot, fanned like that, for the sacrifice of his god, an idol there with ruby eyes in it, and so forth. I wonder where Christianity is. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. So don't think "sincerity." Sincerity is not It. Sincerity is all right if it's placed on the right thing.
E-121 Like a doctor giving medicine. He might give you arsenic, sincerely, and he might give you sulfuric acid, sincerely. You might have your prescription filled wrong, and you might take it in sincerity, but that don't save your life. See? No, sir. You've got to know what you're doing. And anything contrary to God's Word, I don't care what it is, and how long it's been existence, it's still wrong.
E-122 Peter give them an Eternal prescription on the Day of Pentecost. He said, "Repent, every one of you, and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For this prescription is to you, and to your children, and to them that's far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call." That's right. It's an Eternal prescription.
E-123 Now, some quack druggist could get a hold of that and kill you. Yeah. Certainly. You know, there is so much poison in a prescription, to poison the germ, and the—the doctor knows just how much can, your body can stand. If he over-poisoned, it would kill you. If you haven't got enough of it, then what would it do? It wouldn't do you no good to take the medicine. He knows what your body can stand.
E-124 Now, that's the way the prescription of God is. No matter how much somebody else says it must be done this way, or that way, don't you believe it. When you follow the Word exactly to the letter, that's it. Hold onto It. Now, we've got the… those who say, "You must be sprinkled." They got those. So, "You must use the titles of Father, Son and Holy Ghost." There's no such things in the Bible. No such place anybody was ever baptized, in the Bible, any other way besides the Name of Jesus Christ. That's a dogma that was added in the Roman Catholic church, that's carried down through traditions. We'll hit that tonight.
E-125 But notice, in the midst of all that, the prescription remains. That's why we got so many sick children, because they're not listening to what the Doctor said. The absolute, when you've tied to That, that's it. That's God's Word. It cannot fail.
E-126 Christ-centered life, very religious, but it wasn't Christ-centered. So many of us have that today.
E-127 And when you get this Christ-centered life, it makes you do things you ordinarily wouldn't do. It makes you act different than ordinarily you would act. I don't mean act silly. I mean act in the Spirit, something that's real, something that's genuine. And when you see somebody acting silly, you know they're only putting on something. They're only trying to impersonate where that genuine thing is.
E-128 When you see a bogus dollar, remember there's a good dollar it was made off of. See? When you see a bogus, it's absolutely a off-shadow of something that's real. It's something that—that is genuine, is copied off of.
E-129 Notice, it makes you do things ordinarily you wouldn't do. Oh, it is something. You are certain. You are very certain of it, when you get this absolute. You're positive of it. You don't take what's somebody else's experience.
E-130 That's the reason Christianity has become like little kids in the Bible, or, and not, excuse me, little kids in school. They try to copy one off the other. And if that guy is wrong, the whole thing is wrong. See? You got the whole bunch of them wrong. Oh, my! Don't copy. Meet Him, yourself.
E-131 A good friend of mine, standing back here, is an old… is a son of a buddy of mine, a life-long friend, little Jim Poole. Why, his daddy and I were growed up together in school. And, oh, what a fine fellow! Little Jim and I are praying constantly that big Jim will become a Christian, a real believer. And little Jim and I were talking yesterday about where we found God in the woods and seen Him in nature. There's where you find Him. Because, He's the Creator, and He's in His creation.
E-132 And I remember, Jim and I used to go—go, want to go hunting. And when night come, well, we used to go down, take our bicycles, and ride right down this street here, scared to death to pass the graveyard after it got dark, and go down and get us an ice cream cone.
E-133 And Jim liked to shoot pool. Now, we was just boys, ten, twelve, fourteen years old. And then Jim liked to set around and read storybooks of hunting and trapping.
E-134 And I would set around and daydream. See? About… And now some of the boys can see me. And I'd see a little bitty shack somewhere. I used to say, "Boy, that would be a good shack to have in the mountains." And I always dreamed that some day I'd have me a shack in the mountains, a big bunch of hounds, and—and some guns. And I always thought, "If I could own a 30-30, some of my time." Thought, "How in the world would I ever own a little 30-30 rifle?"
E-135 The other day, standing, looking on my wall, and seeing there some of the best rifles that can be gotten, I thought, "Amazing grace."
E-136 I thought, "I'll train myself to shoot, and shoot good. And then maybe sometime to get, take a trip into the mountains, some good hunter will take me along. Just to be kind of a… Cause, he'd want to protect his life, maybe, from a charging bear. He wasn't too sure. Some rich man, would take me along, just to go along with him, kind of as a bodyguard. Maybe some day I'd get to hunt in Africa, as a body guard. If I could just train! That's the only thing I can do is train to be a good, steady shot."
E-137 Oh, I thought, "God, think, of You let me hunt, over the world." What a wonderful thing!
Jim used to set and read the book. I said, "Jim…"
He said, "I—I like to read about it."
E-138 I said, "Jim, that's what somebody else done. I want to do it, myself. I want the experience." When I come to Christ, I couldn't take somebody else's experience. I wanted it, myself.
E-139 I remember when I read Zane Grey's Lone Star Ranger. I tore up two or three brooms for mama, riding around the house, galloping, when I was on this hobbyhorse broom. I—I read that story of—of the Lone Star Ranger, how he brought the justice to the Big Bend.
E-140 Then I read Edgar Rice Burroughs' fiction story of Tarzan, The Apes. Mother had an old fur rug, a sealskin rug, or something, that Mrs. Wathen had give her from the fire. And it laid on her room, and I—I took that rug out. Mama done knowed the wind didn't blow it out. And I took it out, and cut it up, and made me a Tarzan suit, and set up in the tree. I—I lived half my time in a tree, out in this Tarzan suit. Because I had seen what he done, I wanted to do it too.
E-141 But one day, by the grace of God, I got a hold of the real Book, the Bible. My song and story has been, "To be like Jesus, on earth I long to be like Him." I don't want to be a bishop or—or some great fellow in the church, some pope or some priest. I want to be like Jesus. An absolute, it makes you different. There's something about it, to read His Word, and something in your heart, you long to be like Him. You're certain.
E-142 It's like, the absolute to the Christ, the absolute to the Christian, is like the… It, it's like the anchor in the ship. Yes. You, you got to have an absolute. And if Christ is your absolute, it's like the anchor. That, when you… The sea is very rough, and the ship is about ready to sink, and, you, only one hope you have, is, cast anchor. And then if the ship is tossing, see if the anchor will hold the ship. You know, we got a song, I forget the author's name now, but, My Anchor Holds.
E-143 Like the little boy, as we've many times thought, flying the kite. You couldn't see nothing, but he had the string. And a man passed by and said, "What are you doing, sonny?"
Said, "I'm flying my kite."
He said, "What's you got in your hand?"
Said, "The string."
E-144 Said, "Where is the kite?" Said, "I don't see it. Well, how do you know you're flying a kite?"
E-145 He said, "I can feel it. It's a tugging." See? At the end of that string, there was an absolute. To his little way, that kite was his absolute, so he could say he was flying a kite. Though he couldn't see it, but he had a hold, something, that had a hold of it.
E-146 That's the way a man, when he's born again of the Holy Spirit, he's got a hold of something that's got an anchor out yonder, and the storms doesn't shake him. He knows he's all right. He's anchored. All right.
E-147 Now, if we are in our little bark, floating across life's solemn main, as the great poet said that.
Life is not an empty dream!
And the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.
Life is real! And life is earnest!
And its grave is not its goal;
For dust thou art, and dust returnest,
Was not spoken of the soul.
E-148 Oh, I think that's so pretty! Now, Longfellow wrote that, Psalm Of Life. See?
While sailing over life's solemn main,
For a forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
In seeing, shall take heart again.
E-149 See? Now we are embarked, sailing life's solemn main, and Christ, to the ship upon the storms of time. When the storms get heavy, and they're pitching about, I'm glad I got an anchor that holds within the veil yonder, somewhere. Even death itself cannot pluck you away from it. You are tied to your absolute. Christ is our anchor. What is He? He is the Word. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us."
E-150 Then, when we know that our actions is exactly with the Word, we know our teaching is perfect with the Word, adding nothing or taking nothing, just the Word. And we see the same results, that others who anchored to the same Word, living up in our life, then your anchor holds. The life of Christ being reproduced in almost an incarnate way, through you, as it was in Christ, because, "It was God in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself." And you see God in yourself, holding that same keel on the Word, just exactly the way Jesus did. You see His life. "The works that I do shall you do also, he that believeth." Not him that maketh-believe, he that thinks he believe, but, "He that believeth." "He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he also." Why? He is anchored to the same Rock. What was the Rock? The Word, always. You're anchored there. It's your north Star when you're lost at sea.
E-151 You know, we got a lot of stars, but there's only one true star, that don't move. That's the north star, 'cause it sets in the center of the earth. No matter whether you're on the backside, upside, or wherever you're at, that north star is just the same. It's your north star. Now, you see, there's lot of stars that shift from place to place. But if you're in a… on the sea, why, any seaman knows, or any hunter that roams the woods, knows that your north star is your—is your place. That's all. Then, it's like your—your—your compass. Your compass won't point to Mars, or Jupiter, or somewhere. It'll point to the north star. Why? That's your absolute.
E-152 Oh, my! Notice, your absolute! Oh, I'm going to say something! I just feel it coming on. Notice. I feel very religious at this time, because this is assurance. Notice.
E-153 Your compass can only point to the north star. That's the only place it can point. If it's a true compass, it'll strike the north star every time. Is that right? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.]
E-154 Then, if you have the Holy Spirit, It can only point to the Word. It'll never point to a denomination. It'll never point to a creed. It'll never point it away somewhere. It'll point straight to the Word. I feel like shouting. Notice, it's—it's Something inside a man, pulsating, when you see your Star setting out yonder, Jesus Christ, the Word. And you see the Spirit that's in you won't let it move right or left. That's the only One that can. He come to take the things of God, and to show them, manifest them.
E-155 And Jesus said, "He will do just exactly the things that I say. He will reveal to you things that is to come," show you ahead of time, before it gets here. See? "He will take the things that are Mine and will show them to you, and then He will show you things that is to come." John 15.
E-156 We see that He shows the things. And He takes the things that are God's and will show them to you. And He will reveal to you the things that Jesus said. Other words, He will make plain the thing. Place that way over in a corner, tonight, 'cause that's what we're going to use, a little while. Making sure, making that positive, see, then you know. If you… Your north star, which is the Word, to any Christian.
E-157 Anything contrary to the Word! Look. Let me tell you something. Listen to this closely. This is the complete, Divine revelation of God, His will, and the Coming of Christ. And everything lays right in this Book, completed. [Brother Branham pats on his Bible—Ed.] And if anything draws you off of That, throw that compass away, 'cause it's only a creed. It's only an organi-… It's only a paper that you're packing in your pocket, got hanging in your room, framed. It's a creed. Then, find the compass that sets you to the Word. Amen.
E-158 You notice, when this experience hit Paul, he went down in Egypt and Arabia, somewhere, and studied three years. Glory! Whew! He had to be positive. And when he seen, when the Holy Spirit direct him, word by word, he could write that Book of Hebrews and show those Jews. Certainly. Why? He was centered. That compass of the Holy Spirit put him right on the north Star.
E-159 Now, if you got something pulling you off of It, you better leave it alone. The Son, It'll point to His Word, and only to His Word, because the Holy Spirit came to manifest, or vindicate, God's promises. There's no creed will do that. No organization will do it. No powers or nothing can do it. Only the Holy Spirit, by the Word. And He is the Germ.
E-160 Now, you take a grain of wheat, a pretty grain of wheat, but it can no do nothing. It's dead until the germ comes into it. Then it produces many grains of wheat.
E-161 And Christ is that Life, the absolute. If the wheat doesn't have that absolute in it, it'll never rise. If that wheat don't have that absolute, may be ever so pretty on the outside, but it cannot live, because there's nothing in it to live by. But when it gets that absolute, it can look in the face of all critics, say, "I'll rise again." Why? Because it's got the absolute. It's in it. It's got to rise again. And when it… "If ye abide in Me, and My Words abide in you, then ask what you will." That's that absolute.
E-162 But if you got creeds and everything else tied up into It; you can't mix oil and water. You just take and break it any way you want to, it'll never mix, because it's two different chemicals. And you can't make creed and the Bible, contrary to the Bible, mix. You can't make denomination and freeborn religion, or freeborn salvation, mix together. Cause, as sure, God only deals…
E-163 I'm going to say it, anyhow. God never breaks His program. He cannot break, because He's infinite. And I realize, you know, I, It goes before lots of people. See? But God cannot break His program. He cannot do something one day, and change it over, do something, saying it's wrong that day.
E-164 God doesn't deal with groups of men. God deals with an individual, because men has different ideas. He's built up different, in nature. God has to take that man, and mess him around, and pull him around, out of his own self, till He gets him in His nature. See? And then God deals with that person. Look all down through the ages, Noah and Moses, the prophets, never two of them at the same time. One, constantly, all the way down through the age.
Therefore, if you say, "In the multitude of counsel there is safety."
E-165 Look, and as I preached here not long ago, at the tabernacle. There was Ahab, and there was Jehoshaphat. And they were going up to Ramoth-Gilead, to push back. Fundamentally, they were right, the land did belong to them. And the—the enemy, the Syrians up there, was filling their children's belly with the wheat that the Israelities should be. God-given property, so, fundamentally, it seemed good. "Go with me, and go up there, and we push them off the land." Well, that sound awful good. Fundamentally, it was right, but it's conditions.
E-166 Jehoshaphat, being a good man, said, "But shouldn't we consult the Lord?"
E-167 Course, Ahab, that backslider, said, "Well, sure." Borderline believer, you know. Said, "Oh, certainly, I should have thought of that. I've got four hundred Hebrew prophets. Four hundred of them, I feed, take care of. They're the best there is in the country. We'll bring them up."
E-168 And all of them together, with one accord, said, "Go on up. The Lord is with you." Fundamentally, they were right, but they hadn't caught that absolute.
Then when he said, "Isn't there one more?"
E-169 Said, "Yes. There's another one, but I hate him." He said, "He's always telling evil about me, see, always saying."
E-170 How could he prophesy good, when the whole Word, Elijah who had been before him, said to Ahab, "The dogs will lick your blood"? Now, how could that vindicated prophet say anything that wasn't the will of God? And how, that, "The dogs would eat Jezebel, and the dung would be upon the fields, so they could not say, 'Here lays Jezebel.'" With a curse like that on a man, how could anybody else bless?
E-171 That's the way it is today. How can a man bless these things that's taking people further from God all the time? There's only one thing to do, if you have to stand by yourself: curse the thing, in the Name of the Lord, and stay with It, when you're absolute.
You say, "Well, Brother Branham, you make people hate you."
E-172 God will love me. That's my absolute. Can't rest on an arm of flesh. You got to rest on the Word, what God said do.
E-173 How did Micaiah know he was right? He waited. He had a vision. They had a vision, too, but the vision didn't compare with the Word. And today, the same thing. Micaiah compared his vision with the Word, and then he seen he and the Word was together. Today, if your vision is contrary to the Word, leave it alone, 'cause it's the wrong absolute. Micaiah's absolute was exactly with the Word, so he could stand and say, he, what he said, and—and believe it.
E-174 When, they smacked him in the mouth, and said, "Which way did the Spirit of God go?"
E-175 He said, "You'll find out when you set in the inner chamber." Right.
E-176 He said, "When I return in peace… You put this man in inner prison, and when I return in peace," said Ahab, "I'll deal with this fellow."
E-177 Oh, now, Micaiah, what about it? Your head will be chopped off when he comes back. Micaiah stood there just as stern as Stephens did. Amen. Just as willing as my Lord walked to the cross. Just as easy as Daniel went into the lions' den, or Shadrach, Meshech, Abednego went to the furnace. Absolutely! He stood there and said, "If you return at all…" Why? He was absolute. "If you return at all, God never spoke to me. Chop my head off then." He had an absolute. He knowed that his compass, that had guided him to this vision, was exactly with the north Star. Yes, sir. His anchor held, yes, the Word and It only.
If your absolute, if you have an absolute in your life…
E-178 There was a time when, you know, etiquettes had an absolute. I can't think of that woman's name, but the whole nation trusted in what that woman said. I forget her name. I was writing a note here. I couldn't think of that woman's name, what it was. But here, a few years ago, they had to be, this woman, what she said. If she said use the knife in the left hand, that was—that was it, that was the absolute. She was the—the answer to all of it. And if you put the fork in the left hand, then you were absolutely wrong. What was her name? [Congregation says, "Emily Post."—Ed.] Oh, that's it. Sure. Yeah. That's who. Now, you were—you were absolute… She was—she was etiquette's absolute. "It must be that way." Like, oh, many things we find like that. But, we find out, now it's gone. Eat the way you want to. Yes, sir. All right. But that was etiquette's absolute. "Had to do it that way."
E-179 There was a time when Adolf Hitler was Germany's absolute, whatever he said. When he said, "Jump," they jumped. He said, "Kill," they kill. Millions of Jews, he dodded his head. You see what happened to that kind of an absolute? It looked like power, but it was contrary to the Word.
"How do you know it was contrary to the Word?"
E-180 God said. When Balaam tried to look down upon Israel, to curse it, he said, "I see him as a unicorn. How righteous are thy tents! Whoever curses you will be cursed. Whoever blesses you will be blessed."
E-181 Look like Hitler could have saw that. Look like them German Christians could have saw that, see, that absolute. Absolutely contrary to that Word. You know, as it has been said, "Man… God made man, but man made slaves." One trying to rule over the other one. We got one Ruler, that's God.
E-182 But Hitler was Germany's absolute. Look at it today. Now, see what happened? It was the a wrong absolute. Why? It was contrary to the Word. And now you see where it all went to: disgrace.
E-183 And if your absolute is in some organization, or some sensation, or something else besides the Person of Jesus Christ, you'll come to the same portion of shame, only worse, see, if your absolute is not Christ. That's the only center post of the human life, and Christ is the Word; not your church, your word. The Word! See? "Upon this absolute I'll build My Church," upon Christ, the Word.
E-184 There was a time when Mussolini was the absolute of Rome. I don't know, I might have read an article, or it could have been that I read it in a book, or somebody told me, but when someone was being interviewed by Mussolini. He was…
E-185 He want—wanted to bring Rome into athlete, athletics. And there's a big statue used to stand there, of him, about athletics. That's all right. Greece had that idea many years ago. Rome has always tried to have it. Athlete is all right, but—but athletics. But—but remember, that won't take the place of Christ. No matter how strong you are, that has nothing to do with it. He is the all-power. And you see what he tried to build Rome upon. And he tried to build Rome upon the thing of an absolute, that he was the absolute.
E-186 And they said that, one day, that his—his—his driver was one minute early, and he shot him. Said, "I didn't say, 'be here at one minute before nine.' I said, 'Be here by nine.'" Pow! And shot him. See? See? "I don't want you here one minute before. I want you here at nine." See? Look what an absolute he tried to make hisself. But you see what happened?
E-187 You remember, many of you here, the old-timers, Roy Slaughter, maybe, and farther back in that, remembers down yonder when I told you about prophecy. One day, down there at the Odd Fellows' building, before we ever come to here, I said, "Mussolini will come to a shameful end." I said, "His first invasion, he will go to Ethiopia, and Ethiopia will fall at his step. But he'll come to his end, and nobody will help him. In disgrace will he be buried." There he is.
E-188 I said, "There is three isms has rose up. Nazism, fascism, and communism." I said, "Them isms will revolve and come around into one, and it'll be communism. Watch. Communism will burn Rome." See?
E-189 You watch it. Uh-huh. It's a tool in God's hand. They think they're against God. They're working right into it, all the time, don't know it. He's just using them as a puppet, uh-huh, some tool in His hand, like He did Nebuchadnezzar and many of the others. Now notice. See, now.
E-190 There was a time when Pharaoh was the absolute of Egypt, but look where it's at now. See? It all fail.
E-191 Oh, it's a wrong kind, so they always fail. They are man-made absolutes. You can't take a man-made absolute. I don't care if it's a—a president, if it's a dictator, if it's a king, if it's a church, if it's an organization, if it's a creed. Any of those things are going to perish, just like all the absolutes of that kind through the ages.
E-192 We can look back. Look back. Look at men who trusted the emperors. Look at men who trusted the dictators. Look at men who built their hopes upon them kind of absolutes, and look where they are today.
E-193 Now let's turn ourselves around and look at the men who put their hopes upon the Bible, upon God's Word, and held It for an absolute. Look where they are now.
E-194 Paul gives you a little brief of them, in Hebrews, the 11th chapter, what they did. "How they subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, and so forth. And they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins. Of who the world is not worthy of." [Blank.spot.on.tape—Ed.] Waiting in Glory for that grand resurrection. See? All right. For they, some of them, didn't—didn't obtain to these miracles, and they give their bodies, anyhow, looking forward to that resurrection. To finish out their lives, they didn't care for it. They wanted to go on and sacrifice themselves, so they could obtain that resurrection, and that's what they did.
Now, absolutes, we're talking, absolute.
E-195 You know, our supreme court is an absolute. It's the absolute. It's the—it's the final end of all arguments in this nation. That's right. Their decision is an absolute, in our supreme court. Right. Oh, I know sometimes we don't like it, but it's—it's an absolute, anyhow. Yes, sir. What if we didn't have that? Then what? But that's an absolute. Certainly is. Why? That's, our nation, is tied to that. When that supreme court finally makes their final decision, that's it. There's no further. Where you going to, after that? You're going to follow their decision, that's all. You've got to. They're the last word. They're the amen.
E-196 You can try it in local city courts. You can try it magistrate, then go to federal, to all kinds of courts, and to federal courts. But when we come to the supreme court, that's it. Right. Sometimes we don't like, to say, "Well, I don't like their decision," but you try to get away from it once. That's the nation's absolute. And what if we didn't have it? Yes.
E-197 We have to have an absolute. Everybody has to have one. You got one. But what I'm trying to tell you, background there, and show you what absolutes are.
E-198 Now, the nation's supreme court is the nation's absolute. That's the last thing in any kind of a fuss. They settle it. What they say, that's it.
E-199 There is an absolute at a ball game. That's the umpire. Oh, yeah. Sometimes we don't like his decision, either, but it's—it's—it's that, anyhow. The umpire, his decision is the final word, that's right, no matter what others say. If he says it's a strike, it's a strike. That's right. Certainly. No matter what others say, that don't have nothing to do with it. And let's just think of it. If you… I don't go to ball games, but just happened to jot that down. An umpire, he's the absolute at the ball game.
E-200 One of them say, "That was a ball." The other one say, "You're a liar." This say, "This is that way. You ought to be this way."
E-201 The umpire said, "Strike." See the rest of them take their seat and set down. It gripes some of them. But I imagine they'd boo at him there, down in their heart, and things, but it's "strike" anyhow. Why? He's the final word.
E-202 First baseman said, "You know that that passed." The other one say, "You know that's a…"
E-203 "It's a strike" Uh-huh. That's all of it. Shut up then, go on back to your place.
E-204 What if there wasn't an umpire at the ball game? My! Could you imagine what kind of a game that would be? One of them said, "It was a strike." The another one said this. Another said that. Another said, "You're a liar." There would be a fuss and a fight.
E-205 To have a ball game, you got to have an absolute. And he walks out there, and no matter if you don't like him, or what, he—he's the absolute, anyhow. He is the absolute. His word is final, no matter what you say about it. It's that way. Now, if they didn't, the whole game would go into chaos. Is that right? [Congregation says, "Right."—Ed.]
E-206 What would the nation be if there wasn't a federal court? There wasn't supreme court in this nation, what would it go? Where would they go to? The nation would be in a chaos. If there wasn't a…
E-207 If there wasn't an umpire at a ball game, it would wind up, you wouldn't make the first throw till somebody would be fussing. Somebody stand there, and maybe really went right on the plate, and the other guy would say, "Oh, no. No, no. It didn't do that." Then, there you go. First ball was throwed, they'd argue about. One of them said, "That was a strike." The other one say, "It wasn't a strike." See?
E-208 You've got to have somebody that game is tied to, and that's the umpire. When he says, "Strike," it's strike. If he says, "Ball," it's ball. Whatever he says, it goes. That's it. And if you didn't, you wouldn't have no game.
E-209 Let me show you another absolute, is the red light. A red light, when it says "stop," it means stop. If you run it, you're going to pay for it. But if this city didn't have have any lights out here, stop lights, what kind of a city would it be? See? It's got to have an absolute. I don't care what the policeman said, or anybody else said, standing there. They're secondary. If somebody can prove that you went through on a green light, I don't care what the policeman said, they're wrong. When the light said "go," that means go. That's the absolute. You can prove that, the light said "go." The policeman might have been standing somewhere, the mayor of the city might, somewhere, that don't make a bit of difference. If you've got proof that it was "go," you go. And if somebody hits you, it's their fault. You can prove it. That's right.
And we can prove what we're talking about. Right.
E-210 Now, what if there wasn't no red light? One went up to a crossing, and it… look what it would be. One say, "Hey! Get out of the way. I'm in a hurry. I got to go to work. I'm late now. I'm going through now." The other one said, "You just think you are. Because, I am the one that's going through, because I was here first." And I can see a woman get out and fix her hair. What if we didn't have a red light? Wouldn't there be a traffic jam!
E-211 That's what's the matter with the churches. See? That's right. That's the reason we got such a denominational jam. Yeah. That's exactly right. Nobody is getting anywhere. They're standing, fussing.
E-212 Here is God's Light. When It says "go," go. When It says "stop, this is far enough," then stop. That's right. That's where we are based, upon That, that Word, not what some bunch of men said, or some other bunch of men said. Jesus said, "These signs shall follow them that believe." Let's go. "Go ye into all the world, preach the Gospel to every creature."
E-213 You know, as good as education is, but Jesus never required that. That's right. As good as churches are, buildings, He never required that. As good as hospitals was; we, the churches, build hospitals. That's all right. We appreciate that. But He never required it.
E-214 He said to the Church, "Preach the Gospel." And the Gospel came not in Word only, but through power and manifestation of the Word. Paul said so. Then go, manifest the Gospel, oh, my, if it was that way.
E-215 Oh, we are, today, living in a time when we got the best doctors we ever had. We got the best drugs we ever practiced with. You know that. And we salute those men. We pray for them. I do, and I hope you do. Those men, who with their understanding of feeling… They got two senses to work by, that's seeing and feeling, and they… and hearing. They work by a sound of a heart, or a—a feeling of a tumor, or something, or the sight of something they can see, a spread of disease, or—or something on the face, that's covering the face or the body, somewhere. They, they work upon those things. See? Because that's… And they try to take medicines, and so much that will kill it, and then won't kill you, and—and so forth. They won't… That's their business, to work on that. And we appreciate that. That's very fine. But, we got the best doctors, the best medicine, the best hospitals, and more sickness than we ever had.
E-216 We got more unbelief than we ever had. Yes, sir. Exactly. Ministers has organized themselves, and got great denominations, and taking in anything, and so forth, and just anything, making a church member. And they went over to some seminary, like an incubator chicken, and hatch them out by a grinder that brings them out like that, and sometime know no more about God than a Hottentot does about an Egyptian night. Bring them through like that, and there you are. See?
E-217 Oh, what we need in our churches is a man that's got an absolute. What we need in a Methodist church, the Baptist church, the Pentecostal church, the Presbyterian church, is an absolute, a man of God that will stand tied to the Word and to Christ, and bring that congregation under that condition of where each member walks in condition of this Word, seeing that Word manifested, follow them. "These signs shall follow them that believe, into all the world."
They said, "That was done away with."
E-218 Jesus said, "Go ye into all the world, preach the Gospel to every creature." We haven't reached all the world yet, and a long ways from every creature. How long? "All the world." Who to? "Every creature." What will happen? "These signs shall follow them that believe. In my Name they shall cast out devils. They shall speak with new tongues. If they should take up a serpent, or drink the deadly thing, it would not harm them. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover." That's the absolute holding there, the Word, that north Star, that compass that stays right with It. That's what we need.
E-219 But we went out and built institutions, organized the people, took in members, and fussed with the Baptists because they didn't believe the way we did, and the Methodists because they didn't, this way. And—and we hatched out a bigger seminary, built a bigger churches, and better plushed pews, and a bigger organ, and so forth, and a better-dressed crowd, and got the mayor and everybody in the church. And what have we got? A bunch of death, tied to a denominational absolute. Death! Oh, far be it!
E-220 If I die in my tracks, my absolute is Jesus Christ, upon that is what I believe, if everybody walks out. Someone said, Dr. Davis said to me, "Billy, you preach such a thing as that, you'll preach it to the posts of the church."
E-221 I said, "I'll be preaching God's Word to the posts, then, 'cause God is able of these posts to rise children unto Abraham." Right. God's Word is true.
Said, "You think they'll believe you?"
E-222 I said, "It don't… That's not my business. It's my business to stay true to that Word." That's right.
E-223 Said, "You think you could meet an educated world like this, with a theology of—of Divine Healing?"
E-224 I said, "It's not my Divine healing. It's His promise. He was the One give the commission." Oh!
E-225 And I remember when He swept down there in that big Light, standing yonder at the bottom of the river, 1933, in June, when He said, "As—as John the Baptist was sent forth and forerun the first coming of Christ; I send you with a Message to the world, to forerun the second Coming of Christ." And around the world She's went, when revival fires had been built for fifteen years on nearly every mountain. Divine healing across the nations, and the power, and restoration.
E-226 And now I believe She is ready to strike that final climax yonder, to bring forth a Faith that will Rapture the Church into Glory. And She is laying in the Messages. We're really at the end time. We've talked about it, and everything, but the thing has moved upon us now. Yeah. Yes, sir. Here is one. That's right.
E-227 The—the—the red light, as I said, it settles the case. That's all. The red light tells you who goes. No matter what anybody else says, it's what the red light says. You can really have a traffic jam if you don't—if you don't mind the red light. There must be an absolute. Yes sir.
E-228 Just like to the Church, there has got to be an absolute. To the people in the Church, you've got to have your absolute.
E-229 But, today, each church has its own absolute. See? And don't try to take, "We Baptist believe this. We Methodists believe this. We Presbyterian believe this. We Pentecostals believe this." That's all right, but why don't you take the rest of It? What's wrong with the rest of It?
E-230 "We Baptist believe in immersing." That's good. What about the baptism of the Holy Ghost, now? What about speaking with tongues? What about gifts of healing? What about prophecy? "Oh, no. We don't. That, that was for another age." Oh, boy!
E-231 Pentecostals, you say, "Well, we believe in speaking in tongues, for the evidence." Sure, speaking in tongues is all right, but that is still not the evidence. Many people speak in tongues, that's true, and that's as far as they ever go. The devil can impersonate any gift that's got, any gift that's in the Bible.
E-232 Paul said, "Though I speak with tongue of men and Angels, though I give my body to be burnt as a sacrifice, though I sell all my goods to feed the poor, and though I have faith to move mountains, though I went to the seminary and learned all the knowledge there is to be learned, I am still nothing."
E-233 It's the Person of Christ. Christ, receive Him, and you can't receive Him without receiving His Word. The Word has to come first, then the Life comes into that Word and manifests that Word.
E-234 Didn't Jesus say, "If I do not the works of My Father, then don't believe Me"? It was the Word of God being manifested. God was in Christ, reconciling, expressing Himself to the world, what He was. That was—that was the absolute. That was the Eternal absolute there.
E-235 Now you say, "Is that the Eternal, Brother Branham?" That was. "Then what about today?"
E-236 Jesus said, "He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he also." It's the same absolute. All right.
E-237 Each one has their own absolute. Oh, my! It's just like it was in the days of judges, "Every man done what was right in his own sight." In the days of judges, every man had his own—his own absolute. He did just what he wanted to do. And that's the way it is now. "Every man done right in his own sight." Now, you know the reason they did that in Judges? This might shock just a little bit. But the reason they did it in Judges, because they had no prophet in them days, for the Word of the Lord to come to. So every man could do what he wanted to, in his own sight.
E-238 And that's exactly what's happened today. We don't have the prophet in these days of denominations, but God promised us one. See? See? And He did. In the last days, He would rise up and send Elijah back on the scene again, "And he would turn the hearts of the children back to the Faith of the fathers," back to the original Pentecost. You know he said that.
E-239 Now, I know you'll refer, as He did there to John, over in—in Matthew the 11th chapter, and the 6th verse, I believe it is, when they said, "Who do you think this man was, this John?"
E-240 He said, "If you can receive it, this is he that was spoken of, 'Behold, I send My messenger before My face.'" That's Malachi 3, not Malachi 4.
E-241 But, remember, if that was the Malachi 4, then the Word failed, because He said, "But just at this time, the whole world would be burnt, and the righteous would walk out upon the ashes of the wicked." No. Don't mix it up, brother. Make It say just exactly what It says. That's right. He promised it in the last day, and it'll be right in the midst.
E-242 Remember, when judges, every man done the way he wanted. There was no man, no man could make that Word live. There was no prophet. The Word of the Lord always comes to the prophet. Right. And he is always hated. Only the little group that love him, see. But, I mean, there was always that.
E-243 God doesn't change His policy, He cannot, and be God. If God ever says anything or does anything, He must do the next time. When that crisis arrives, if He don't act the second time the way He did the first time, He acted wrong the first time. And who will accuse God of acting wrong? Who are you, can lay sin to God? That's what Jesus said, "Which one of you can accuse Me of sin?"
E-244 What is sin? Unbelief. "He that believeth not is condemned already."
E-245 "Which one of you can show Me that I haven't fulfilled everything Messiah should do?" See? Nobody spoke a word. He had. The Messiah was a Prophet, and He had proved that He was that. They hadn't had a prophet for hundreds of years, since Malachi, and here He rose on the scene. He was a mystic to the people, and a stumbling block to their church.
E-246 Cause, He said, "Behold, I lay in Zion, a cornerstone, a precious One, tried, oh, a stumbling stone." Yeah. "But whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed." That's right. There He was. And that just exactly fulfilled Scripture. But those who believed Him had an absolute.
E-247 Little Martha, when she seen Lazarus come from the grave, she knew Who that was. Even before It done it, she had the absolute of knowing. "I believe that Thou art the Son of God, that was to come into the world. Even now, though my brother be dead, just say the word. God will do it." Amen. She was absolutely positive. That's right. When He… Said that, and she meant it from her heart.
He said, "Where have you buried him?"
Said, "Come and see."
E-248 There He stood there, with a vision. Cause, He said, "I do nothing until the Father shows me first," Saint John 5:19.
E-249 Sent Him away from, went away from Lazarus' house. They sent for Him to come, pray. He knew Lazarus was going to die. And after the amount of time, He said, "Our friend, Lazarus, sleepeth."
They said, "He does well."
E-250 He said, "He's dead. And for your sake, I'm glad I wasn't there." They'd been asking Him to pray for him.
E-251 Then He comes back, said, "But I go wake him." Oh, my! (Not, "I'll go and see what I can do.") "I'll go wake him." Why? "The Father has already showed Me just what to do."
E-252 Went down to the grave. There stood a Man. There stood God in flesh, that could have said to that stone, "dissolve," and it would have dissolved. But He said to them women, them poor little women, little young women, said, "Take away the stone."
E-253 You got something to do, too. See? And they rolled away the stone. And it made them sick; he was so stinky.
E-254 There, He stood there. Oh, my! I can see Him straighten that little frail frame up. Because, the Bible said, "There is no beauty we should desire Him." He wasn't very, much to look at. See?
E-255 Just like David, he was chosen king when he was just a little ruddy thing. See?
E-256 "All them great big fellows," said, "won't he look pretty with a crown on his head! Take this older son," Jesse said.
E-257 Samuel said, "God refused him." Brought all of his sons up. Said, "Haven't you got any other?"
E-258 "Yeah, we got one, but he wouldn't look like a king. Why, he's a little bitty, stoop-shouldered, ruddy-looking fellow."
"Go, get him."
E-259 And as soon as he come, walked before that prophet, the Spirit fell on him. He run with that oil, pour it on his head, said, "This is your king." That's it. Yes, sir.
E-260 Jesus stood there, stooped-shouldered, perhaps, turning gray when He was yet not over thirty years old. The Bible said, "He might have looked like forty." Jews said, "You're a Man not over—over fifty years old, and you say you 'seen Abraham'?"
He said, "Before Abraham was, I AM." My! Oh, my! Saint John 6.
E-261 Then, we come to find out, here He stood, by the grave. He knowed that vision had to strike. He knowed it had to be. "Take away the stone." He's…
E-262 He was stinking, wrapped in grave clothes, been dead for four days. His nose had already fell in, that much time.
E-263 There, He stood there, straightened up His little body. "I am the resurrection, the Life." Hum! "He that believeth on Me, though were dead, yet shall he live." Tell me a man could ever make a statement like that. "Whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die. Believest thou this?"
E-264 She said, "Yea, Lord." Though He had failed her, seemingly. When she called, He didn't go. She called again; He didn't go. But here she says, "I know that Thou art the Christ that was to come in the world."
E-265 He said, "Lazarus, come forth." And a man had been dead four days. Why? What? Christ had the absolute. He had saw the vision. It couldn't fail. That's right. It couldn't fail. He was absolutely sure.
E-266 And Martha was absolutely sure. If she could get Him to recognize what she believed in Him to be, she'd get what she asked for. Right. There they was. The absolute, it tied in with the Word, and that was it.
E-267 Every man today does, in his own sight, what he seems good, because there is no prophet. Look in the days of the judges.
E-268 Look in the days when, I believe, it was Elijah or Elisha, one. Yeah. That, the dead baby. The Shunammite woman, she made…
E-269 Elijah was God's man of the day, not just some good, intelligent teacher. Why, he was old guy that walked along. Would you… Come, if come to your door today, you'd probably run him away. A whole nation hated him. Jezebel and all the rest of them hated him.
E-270 Because, she set in the White House and made all the women do the way she did, and all of them patterned after her. And Ahab was turned, his head was turned, by her power. We haven't missed it too far today. Just about the same, and there—there you are. And they was all popularity. And, oh, they was all snowed up.
E-271 But that little, old Shunammite! Not Shunammite woman, but little… Yes. I believe she was a Shunammite. When she come and seen that that power was in Elijah, she said, "I perceive that he's a holy man." And when that baby was laying dead, she said, "Saddle that mule and don't you stop." She went up there. She knowed. And I like that, the way she come. She got to her absolute, her tie post.
E-272 Elijah said, "Here comes that Shunammite. She is grieving. But I don't know what's wrong." See? God don't show His servants everything; just what He wants them to know. So he said, "Her heart is grieved, but I don't know." He said, "Run, find out, Gehazi, and see what's wrong."
E-273 He said, "Is all well with thee? Is all well with thy husband? Is all well with thy son?"
E-274 Look at her. Oh, my! This is it. She said, "All is well." Why? She had come to her absolute. "All is well."
E-275 And she knelt down. Fell, first, at his feet. And Gehazi raised her up, "That's not right," before his—his master. Raised her up. And she begin to tell him.
E-276 Now, he didn't have no absolute now. He knowed he had power, by the vision, to give her the child. But now what did he do? He took his staff and went down in the room, put shut all the doors, taken everybody else out. He walked up-and-down the room. He had an absolute, if he could only contact It. Back and forth, up-and-down the room! Oh, my! Directly he felt Something strike him. He laid hisself on the baby. Got back up again, went away. The—the baby kind of moved, got warm. He raised, back and forth. He didn't get a good contact with the absolute "What was it, Lord? What'd You say do?"
E-277 No doubt, when he turned, he saw a vision, that little boy run, playing, jumping with a rope, something, another like that, playing. He throwed hisself upon the baby. He stuck his nose upon its nose, his lips upon its lips, and power of God raised up the baby to life.
E-278 What was it? The woman's absolute was the prophet. The prophet's absolute was God. And together, with the Word, "I am the resurrection and the Life." I see the power of God. The Creator can do all. She raised up again, the baby. Sure.
E-279 Reason every man done in his own way, because they had no prophet for the Word of the Lord to come to. The Word and the prophets was missing in that day.
E-280 Oh, I seen this at my conversion, of the day that we lived in. I'm so glad that God got a hold of me before the church did. I'd probably been an infidel. Yes, sir. I… All this conglomeration, a mess, and everybody, "Well, come over and join ours. And if you don't, well, you can pick up your letter and go join the other one." Oh! "Won't you bring your letter into our fellowship?"
E-281 I believe there's one letter, that's when Christ writes your name on the Lamb's Book of Life. That's the only one it's on.
E-282 When I seen all the denominations! Our background is Irish, which was formerly Catholic. And I seen that was corrupt and rotten. I went down to a certain denominational church here in the city, they said, "Oh, we're the way, the Truth, the Light. We got all of It." I went to another one in New Albany, "Oh, my! Them guys up there don't know what they're talking about." Catholics said, "You're all wrong."
I thought, "Oh, my!"
E-283 I played with a little Lutheran boy. And I thought… A little German Lutheran. I went over, and I said, "Where do you go to church at?"
"I go to that church."
E-284 I went down, and I found out they said they were the way. I went down to Brother Dale, in Emmanuel Baptist, and, or the First Baptist. They said, "This is the way." I went over to the Irish church, she said, "Well, this is the way."
E-285 "Oh, my! I'm so confused. I don't know what to do. But I want to get right." I didn't know what to do. And I didn't know how to repent.
E-286 I wrote a letter. I thought, "I seen Him in the woods." I wrote Him a letter. I said, "Dear Sir, I know You pass down this path here, 'cause I set here squirrel hunting. I know You come by. I know You're here. I want You. I want to tell You something."
E-287 I thought, "Now wait a minute. I—I never seen anybody. I didn't. I want to talk to That. I—I want to speak with Him. I want to talk to Him." I thought, "Well, now, I don't know how to do it."
E-288 I went out in the shed and knelt down, water, wet. Little, old car setting there, wrecked up. I said, "I believe I've seen a picture, I believe, they put their hands like this." And I got down. And I said, "Now what I'm going to say?" I said, "There's some way you have to do this, and I don't know. I know there's a way to approach everything. And I don't…" I said, "I'll put my hands like this."
E-289 I said, "Dear Sir, I wish that You would come and speak with me, just a moment. I want to tell You how bad I am." Held my hand like this. I listened.
E-290 People said, "God talked to me." And I knowed He did talk, 'cause I heard It when I was a kid, tell me "not to drink" and things.
E-291 He didn't answer me. I said, "Maybe I was supposed to put my hands like this."
E-292 So I said, "Dear Sir, I don't know just exactly how to do this, but I—I trust that You'll… Will You help me?"
E-293 And each preacher would tell me, come join theirs, and stand up and say they took Jesus Christ, and they "believe Jesus be the Son of God." Devils believe the same thing.
So I thought, "I—I got to have something better than that." No.
I was setting like this.
E-294 I read where Peter and John passed through the gate called Beautiful, and there was a man crippled, from his mother's womb. Said, "Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have…" Oh, I knowed I didn't have that.
E-295 So I was trying to—to find out how to do it. I didn't know how to pray. I made my hands, then I laid down like this.
E-296 And, course, Satan come on the scene then, said, "You see, you waited too long. You're already twenty years old. There's no need of trying it now. Yeah."
E-297 Then I got all broke up, and started crying. And then, when I really got broke up, I said, "I'm going to talk. If You don't talk to me, I'm going to talk to You, anyhow." So I—I said, "I'm no good. I'm ashamed of myself. Mr. God, I know You'll hear me, somewhere. You'll hear me. And I'm ashamed of myself. I'm ashamed that I have neglected You."
E-298 About that time, I looked up, and a funny feeling swept over me. Here come a Light, moving through the room, and made a cross, like that. And a Voice, that I never heard in my life, talked. I looked at It. Just cold, all over, numb from scare. I couldn't move. Stood, looked at It. It went away.
E-299 I said, "Sir, I—I don't understand Your language." I said, "If You can't talk mine, and I—and I don't understand Yours, and if You have forgive me… I know that I'm supposed to be reckoned in that cross there, somewhere, that my sins was supposed to lay in there. And—and if You will forgive me, just come back and talk in Your own language. And I'll understand by that, if You can't talk my language." I said, "You just let It come back, again."
E-300 There It was, again. Oh, my goodness! There I got an absolute. Amen. Yes, sir. Felt like a—a load of forty tons lifted off my shoulders. I walked down through that floor, where I couldn't even touch the ground.
Mother said, "Billy, you're nervous."
I said, "No, mama, I don't know what happened."
E-301 There was a railroad track back there. I run down that railroad track, jumping up in the air, just as hard as I could. I didn't know how to give vent to my feelings. Oh, if I'd have knowed how to shout! I was shouting, but in my own way, you see.
E-302 What was it? I had anchored my soul in a haven of rest. That settled it. That was my absolute. There I had found something, not some mythical, some idea. I had talked with the Man. I had talked with that Man that told me "never to drink, or smoke, or do anything that would defile" myself with women's and so forth. That, when I got older, there would be a work for me to do. I had contacted Him; not the church. I had contacted Him, Him! Yes, sir. He was the One.
E-303 Like a fellow down here at the Kiwanis or the… was speaking, not… right after the First World War. Brother Funk, standing there, being a soldier. He said he was… It's a little, kind of sound jokey. This no place for a joke, but here is what he said. He was here in New Albany.
E-304 And he said, "The captain taken us out, said, 'That whole country there is invested with Japs. Tomorrow, boys, we go in. We got to take them.' He said, 'Remember, boys, there is many of us standing here, today, that won't be there tomorrow. They won't be here tomorrow. We're going in, in the morning, at daylight.' Said, 'Now each one get to his own religion.'" This guy said, "And I didn't have any religion." And said, "I said…"
E-305 Said, "I stood there. And all the rest of them…" Said, "Here come a chaplain, went this way; and a Protestant went this way; and the Jewish went this way; and the Catholic went that way; with their chaplain." Said, "I stood there."
E-306 And said, "The—the commanding officer said to me, said, 'Boy, you better get to your religion.'"
He said, "I ain't got any."
E-307 He said, "You better be getting some, 'cause you're going to need some right away. I'm sure."
E-308 And said, about that time he seen a bunch going by, and it was Catholic. Said he walked over and said to this priest, "Could you give me some religion?"
And he said, "Come on."
E-309 Said, "He went in and made a Catholic out of me." And there in New Albany, there was John Howard and a bunch of them real royal Catholics setting there, you know, when this guy was telling this.
E-310 And he said—he said, "The next day in the combat…" He was talking about, oh, how it was. And said he was a great big fellow, you know. And said, "They got hand to hand, and they was just stabbing with knives, and screaming, and cutting, and slashing." Said, "Their lines got twisted up. They got right around, where them Japs let them walk right into it, like that. And them big old machine guns bellowing, from every side. A hand-to-hand combat!"
E-311 Said, "Directly, I stopped, long, like this." And said, "Everything, screams and carrying on, you couldn't hear yourself." Said, "There's blood." Said, "I looked, and it was my blood." He said, "I looked here. There's a hole in my side." He said, "That was my blood." And said, "I, you know, I—I—I… And a real…"
And Catholic friend, I'm not saying this for—for fun now.
"But a real royal Catholic said—said, 'Did you say a 'Hail Mary'?"
E-312 He said, "No, sir." Said, "That was my blood. I didn't want any secretaries." I said, "I want to talk to the main Man. Yes, sir. That was—that was my blood."
E-313 I think that's about the way it is. Yes, sir. That's the way it goes. We've got to have a tie post, an absolute.
"I had no time for His secretary." Said, "I want to talk to Him."
E-314 And that's it, brother. When a man comes to Christ, you don't want to take some preacher's word, some secretary's word, some something else. You Protestants, don't take this, that, or the other. Go to that absolute, until you're anchored there by the new Birth, being born again and filled with the Holy Ghost, and you see the Bible being manifested in humility and love through your life. Oh, then, that's your absolute. Yes, sir.
E-315 I read in the Word where He is the Word. When, the German church said it's this way; and the Methodist, and the Baptist, and the Catholic. But I read in the Word where He said, "Upon this rock I'll build My Church, and the gates of hell can't prevail against It."
Listen now, in closing. Now the Protestant says…
E-316 Now, the Catholic says, "He built It upon Peter, 'Thou art Peter, and upon this rock… '" No, He never. If it was, it backslid right away. They built it upon a man.
E-317 What did He do? The Protestant said, "He built It upon Himself." No. He did not. Didn't build It upon Himself.
E-318 What did He do? What? "Who does man say I, the Son of man, am?"
"And some said Thou art 'Elias,' and 'Moses.'"
He said, "But what do you say?"
Peter said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."
E-319 Watch the words now. "Blessed are thou, Simon, son of Jonas. Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you. You never learned it by some priest. You never learned it by some seminary. But My Father which is in Heaven has revealed It to you. And upon this rock," spiritual revelation of the Word, "I'll build My Church, and the gates of hell cannot prevail against It."
I thought, "Lord, that's it."
E-320 I read over here in the Book of Revelations, 21st chap-… 22nd chapter, where He said, "Whosoever…" This is the complete Thing. "Whosoever shall inject something to It; whosoever shall take something away from It, deny It's so; or whosoever shall try to make It a little better, polish It up for the day. Whosoever shall add to or take away, the same will be taken, his part, out of the Book of Life."
E-321 I said, "Then, that's all I need, Lord, is to believe This." And in This, that cross yonder, the Christ came. Is perfect, all the way, every Word that He ever said. Take the Book in this hand, the history in this hand, and just vindicates right straight down, is perfect. And I said, "Then, Lord, receive me." And when I did, I received Christ, the Holy Spirit in my heart, my absolute. It hasn't been me.
E-322 I was sick one time, when my… I lost my wife. I lost my baby. Oh, lost my father, and lost my brother, and lost my sister-in-law. And Billy was laying, dying, and—and I was just about gone. I was going up the road, crying, going to her grave; and her and the baby, and the baby on her arm. Going to the grave. I was walking up. Mr. Isler used to come here and play, you know, the state Senator of Indiana. He was coming up the road. He stopped me. He run out there, put his arms around me. It was after '37 flood. He said, "Where are you going, Billy? Up there?"
And I said, "Yep."
He said, "What are you going to do up there?"
E-323 I said, "I listen to an old dove." I said, "I set there by the baby's grave and hers. An old dove comes down there, and he speaks to me."
"Oh," he said, "Billy!"
E-324 I said, "Yeah. And I hear the whispering of the leaves when they play it. It plays music for me, Mr. Isler."
Said, "What kind of music does it play?" he said.
There's a Land beyond the river,
That they call that sweet forever,
And we only reach that shore by faith degree;
One by one we gain the portal,
There to dwell with the immortal,
When someday they'll ring them golden bells for you and me.
E-325 He said, "Billy, I want to ask you something." He said, "What does Christ mean to you now? What does Christ mean to you now?"
E-326 I said, "He's my Life, my all. He's all that I have, Mr. Isler. He is my—my Ultimate. He's all that I can hold to." Why? There had been something happen, "Upon this rock!"
E-327 Said, "I've seen you stand here on the corner and preach, till you look like you was going to drop dead. I seen you, all hours of the night, up-and-down the streets, making sick call. And after He took your own wife, and your own baby, you still serve Him?"
E-328 I said, "If He slay me, yet I trust Him." Why? My Anchor holds within the veil. I had an Absolute. I tied myself to His Word, and His Word was holding. He is my Absolute. I found out, that all these other things may fail, but Christ can never fail.
E-329 The Catholic church has a pope for an absolute. The Protestant has their bishops, and their creeds, and their general overseers.
E-330 But, I, like Paul. Got your pencil? Set down something. And Paul said, in Acts the 20th chapter and 24th verse, "None of these things move me." Oh, you can have the creeds, you can have whatever you want to, but them things don't move me.
I've anchored my soul in a haven of rest,
To sail the wild seas, (and don't know where you're at, this way, that way), no more;
The tempest may sweep over the wild, stormy deep,
All may turn down.
But in Jesus I'm safe evermore.
E-331 Yeah. None of these things move me, for I'm tied to an anchor. "Oh, since I met Him," Paul said, "on that road, I been tied to an anchor. He turned me around. He started me back right." Remember, Paul belonged to an organization too, the biggest in the land, but he got tied to the absolute.
E-332 Listen. I want to tell you something. He had a purpose in saving me. He had a purpose in saving you. And I am determined, by His will, to do it; not to add to It, or take away from It. Revelation 22:19, if you want to put that down. All right. "Whosoever take away…" I'm determined. I'm fixing to leave the church, and you know that. And so I'm determined just to remain with this Gospel as long as I live, by the help of God. Huh! Remember, here is grace. There were millions dying in sin when He saved me. Who was I that He should save? He had a purpose, saving me, and I'm determined to carry out that purpose. I don't care. It might be my end, maybe, pretty soon now. But, whatever it is, I'm still anchored. Never changed it.
E-333 Mr. Isler said to me that day, going up the road, he said, "Billy, in all this trouble, did you keep your religion?"
E-334 I said, "No, sir. It kept me." Yeah. Yeah. My anchor held. That's right. I never kept It. It kept me. I can't keep It. There no way for me to do it. But It keeps me. Yes, sir.
E-335 He had a purpose in saving me. There were millions in sin when I come to Him, but He saved me. He had a purpose in doing so.
E-336 Christ's death was an absolute, to the fear of it. Christ's death settled the question, when that bee of death stung Him and anchored that stinger. You know, a bee, an insect that has a stinger, if it ever anchors that stinger into, deep enough, when it pulls away, it pulls the stinger out of it. Death always had a stinger. Death always had a stinger.
E-337 And one day when, that going up Calvary, and the bumping of them rocks, the Blood splashing upon the rocks, when it hit the dirt on Calvary, going to Golgotha. The back of that cross, was dragging out the Bloody footprints of that little, frail body going, marching along there. Them whipping and mashing Him, as He went up the hill, but He had an absolute. He knew where He stood, because the Word of God said, through David, "I'll not leave My holy One see corruption, neither will I leave His soul in hell."
E-338 He knew corruption set in, in seventy-two hours. He said, "Destroy this temple, and I'll raise it up again in three days." He had an absolute.
E-339 There He go, up the hill, with gobs of mockery, spit of drunken soldiers that put a rag around His face, and hit Him on the head, said, "You're a prophet? Tell us who hit You." There He was, going up the hill, in shame and disgrace. To be… His clothes stripped from Him, despising the shame, hanging on the cross before the people, naked. Dying in Roman disgrace, under government, capital punishment, a Man that had done nothing.
E-340 A little story one time, said, Mary Magdalene run out and said, "What has He done? Healed your sick, raise the dead, and brought deliverance to those that would, in captive. What has He done?"
E-341 And a priest smacked her in the mouth, till the blood flew out, and said, "Would you listen to her or your high priest?" Oh, that denominational world, it's a curse of all of it. That's it.
E-342 There, yeah, they took Him on, but as He went up the hill, dragging.
E-343 The devil had always doubted it, Him being what He was. Said, "If Thou be the Son of God, turn these stones into bread. You claim You can do miracles. If You are the Son of God, command these stones to be turned to bread."
E-344 That same old devil lives today. That's right. "If you are a Divine healer! Here is old John So-and-so setting here on the corner. I know he is crippled. Heal him." Don't you know it's that same old devil?
Jesus said, "I only do…"
E-345 Look, He went through the pool of Bethesda, where thousands lay there, lame, blind, halt, and withered, and went to a man that could walk. He could get around. He might have had prostate trouble. Whatever it was, it was retarded. He had it thirty-eight years. He said, "When I'm come into the pool, someone steps ahead of me." He could walk.
E-346 Left all them laying there, and went to that very one and healed him. Why? He said He knew he had been in that shape. Then they said to Him, questioned Him, when they found Him. Saint John 5, He said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing in Himself, but what He sees the Father doing." There is His absolute. That's still the absolute.
E-347 Standing yonder in Finland that day, and that little boy laying there, and I walked around, him laying there, dead, been dead for a half hour. You read in the book. I started to walk away, Something put their hands on. I turned around, thought, "What was that?" I looked again. I thought, "Wait a minute."
E-348 Looked back here on the flyleaf of the Bible. "And it shall come to pass, a little boy about nine years old, he'll be killed by an automobile. There will be a long strip of evergreen, rocks lapped in there. The car will be laying across the road, wrecked. He'll have on little stockings, like, up high; a crock haircut. His little eyes will be turned back. The bones in his body will be broken."
I looked. I thought, "O God!"
E-349 I said, "Stand still, all of you." The mayor of the city there. I said, "If that boy isn't on his feet in two minutes from now, I'm a false prophet; ride, run me out of Finland." Certainly. "But if he is, you owe your lives to Christ." That's right. They stood still.
E-350 I said, "Heavenly Father, across the sea yonder, two years ago, You said this little boy would lay here."
E-351 There was Brother Moore and Brother Lindsay, them looking at that. And, everywhere, they wrote it in the Bible. And thousands of Bibles across the land had it wrote in. What was it? An absolute. The Father had showed what would take place. There was no fear, at all, standing there. Absolute, sure, he'll rise.
E-352 Right there in Finland, where thousands of people coming in nightly, and have to even move some out and let me speak to them, move them out and put somebody else in. There he stood, with all that. The people loved me, and they had seen healings done, but here was a boy laying there, dead. What was the absolute? The vision. "I do what the Father says do. He that believeth in Me, the works that I do shall he also." There's your absolute.
E-353 I said, "Death, you can't hold him any longer. God has spoken. Come back. Give him up." And the little boy raised up, looked around like that. The people got to fainting, everything. There it is, wrote right there, and signed by the mayor of the city, by a notary republic. That's right.
E-354 What is it? An absolute, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. If that ain't the same God that stopped the woman from Nain, with the bearer with her son. When anyone died in them days, they immediately put them in the grave. They didn't let them lay over. They put them in the grave. There is that same Jesus Christ, yesterday, today, and forever. Yeah.
E-355 Look down there in Mexico, and that little baby. Some of you laying here, setting here. And that baby, the doctor signed a statement, it's wrote in the Christian Business Men. "That baby died that morning at nine o'clock, and this was ten o'clock that night."
E-356 That little woman would not be comforted. Billy standing there, my son, trying to put her back. And he had, well, I guess they had two hundred ushers standing there, and she climbing over them. The night before, that blind man received his sight, and she knew it. She was Catholic.
E-357 When, finally, I said, "Go, Brother Moore, and pray for her. Because, that baby…"
E-358 Was raining, pouring down. They had been standing there since early that morning, out in that big bull ring. And I said… Let me down on ropes, behind, to get into the place. Just there for three nights.
E-359 I stood there. I said, "As I was saying…" preaching. And looked, I seen a little baby out here in front of me, a little Mexican baby, no teeth, just setting there laughing at me, right here in front of me.
E-360 I said, "Wait a minute, Brother Moore. Bring her here." Oh, absolute!
E-361 The ushers cleared back. Here she come. She fell down and said, "Padre, Padre."
I said, "Stand up."
E-362 And Brother Espinoza said, "Stand up," and he told her in Spanish. She stood up there.
I said, "Heavenly Father, I'm standing here in this rain."
E-363 The pretty, little woman about twenty-three years old, something like that, her hair hanging down. Her little face looking up like that, the look in her eyes, expectation. She had seen that man that had been totally blind for about forty years, his eyes come open on the platform. She knew if God could open blinded eyes, He could heal her baby. There she lay there, a little stiff thing laying under a blanket like that, and it soaking wet. She had been standing there all morning, and that afternoon, too. There, was about eleven o'clock, ten o'clock that night, something like that, holding that baby out. You seen the article in Christian Business Men. There, holding that baby like that.
E-364 I said, "Heavenly Father, I do not know what this means. I'm just Your servant. But I seen that baby standing yonder. It was alive. I lay my hands upon it, in the Name of the Lord Jesus."
Said, "Whah!" and begin to cry.
E-365 The mother grabbed the baby and started screaming. And the people started screaming out there, and women fainting and things. I said, "Don't you say nothing about that. Send a runner with that baby, with that mother, and go to that doctor, and let him sign a statement, that, 'That baby died. It died of pneumonia, the morning before that, and, or that morning at nine o'clock.'"
E-366 And we got the signed statement by the doctor, "The baby was pronounced 'dead,' in the doctor's office that morning, and the mother packed it around all day."
E-367 What was it? An absolute. What was it? She believed, if God could open blinded eyes, (what?) God could raise the dead, for He's the same yesterday, today, and forever.
E-368 I wasn't sure. I didn't know till I seen. And when I saw the baby, it was an absolute, absolutely right. There it was. Death has to give up its victim.
E-369 Here went the Son of God. That bee of death begin to buzz around Him. "Ah, how could He be a prophet? How could He stand there and let spit in His face? How could He stand there, let them make fun of Him, and not do something about it? That isn't Emmanuel. That's just an ordinary man. Look at the drunken slobbers from them drunken soldiers. Look at His face bleeding."
E-370 The devil said "I'll get Him. I'll get Him." Here he come, like a bee, the sting of death, buzzing around Him. But, brother, when that bee ever anchored its stinger in that Emmanuel, when he come out, he lost his stinger, even death itself.
E-371 No wonder Paul, later, could look in the face of it, say, "Oh, death, where is your stinger? Grave, where is your victory? Thanks be to God, Who giveth us the victory!" Christ's death was the absolute to every man that feared it.
E-372 My heart says "amen" to every Word in His Book. I'm closing, sure enough now. I just got to cut this off. See?
E-373 That's why I know the Holy Spirit is my compass that guides me. He is the One that makes me know this Word is true. He is my Absolute. He is my Sunshine. He is my Life. He is my Anchor. When troubles are on, He's my north Star. When I'm lost, the Holy Spirit is my Compass that guides me back to the place.
E-374 Denominations are like other stars, they shift with the world. Other stars shift as the world shifts, but not the north star. The world can shift where it wants to, but it stays put. Oh, brother, the north Star is anchored. The others shift around, you can see them here and there, and everywhere else. That's the way with the denominational churches.
E-375 But Christ is the Absolute. He's the One you can put confidence in. When the denominations got you all twisted up, just look to the north Star. The Holy Spirit is your Compass. He ever remains true to His Word.
E-376 When they told me that them things couldn't happen in a modern day like this, I knowed. If—if there—if there is no God, then live, eat, drink, and be merry. There is a God, let's serve Him. And I've lived to see the day that He has performed everything, even to raising the dead, when He was here on earth. And we know that by documented statement, that it is the truth. Yes, sir.
E-377 He is my Absolute. Now make Him your Absolute. Take in the… In time of my trouble, He's always the Absolute. Now watch. By the grace of God…
E-378 Now I just better close. It's getting late. Well, look here, I thought it was eleven o'clock, and it's twelve-thirty.
E-379 Friends, all day, all night, all year, all through Eternity, could never speak of It. Don't try to figure It out. You can't. There's no way of figuring It out. You say, "Brother Branham, if—if you…"
E-380 I don't know. I just believe. I quit trying, do anything about It. I just believe It, that's all. See? "Not him that runneth, or him that willeth; it's God shows mercy." See? Not by works. It's by grace. See? I just believe It. God, it's up to Him to do the rest of it. Just believe It, act upon It.
E-381 This famous song, I heard them play or sing it here or somewhere.
Oh, love of God, how rich and pure!
How fathomless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure,
Saints and Angels song.
E-382 When a man in mathematics, tried to break down, or tried to show by his education, he'll run you crazy. You can't do it. Don't try to do it. Don't try to figure It out. God is past figuring out. You don't figure God out. You just believe God. That's the sec-… That's the secret. Don't figure It out. Just believe It. I can't tell you what It means. I can't tell you how to do it. I just know I just believe It. That's all.
E-383 Just like you promise something to a little kid, he believes it. You should keep your word. You're God's child. He keeps His Word. Just simply believe It. Don't be shook up. Just stay right there. God did it one time, He has to do it again. If He don't, He will tell you why He can't do it. And that's right. Now, just stay right with It.
E-384 You know, that one verse there… I believe our precious brother there, was baptized last night, sings that song, "Oh, love of God." They tell me that that verse, this part of it, was found penned on an insane institution's wall. When it said:
If we with ink the ocean fill,
Or were the skies of parchment made;
And every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Or could the scroll re-… contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
E-385 Think of it. When, about three-fourths of the earth is water. And look at the hydrogen and oxygen in the air, the humidity and stuff. See? If every moisture was ink. And think of the billions, and trillions and trillions of straws, which would be quills. And think of the billions of men that's been on earth, and every one of them a scribe by trade. To dip them pens into the ocean, and try to figure out the love of God, would drain the ocean dry; or could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from Eternity to Eternity.
E-386 Don't figure It out. You can't. You lose your mind, trying to figure It out. Just believe It. Make Him your Absolute. Stay there, the sweet peace and the experience that you'll never forget. Anchor to That, and your anchor will hold within the veil.
Let's bow our head.
"How great Thou art! How great Thou art!"
E-387 How many in here, with your heads bowed this morning… It's approaching New Year's now. And you've been very religious, and that's good. I appreciate it, every one of you. I'm sure God does. But you really haven't had that absolute experience?
E-388 That Something that you just didn't make believe, you just didn't imagine, but Something spoke back to you, and then you seen your life change from that time. See, every Word of God, every promise, is punctuated with an "amen," then you're holding to the absolute. Cause, remember, He said, "Heavens and earth will pass away, but My Word shall not fail."
E-389 You haven't come to that place yet, to where you could say "amen" to every Word, if it was against your creed, It was against your denomination, but you want to come to that place, like Moses, like the rest of them? They could not do that till they caught that absolute. And you want it in your life this morning, would you just signify the same by just lifting your hands to God? God bless you. All right, sir. All over the building.
E-390 Gracious Father, I know that some time we must part. There's got to be a time that when we're going to leave this world. We don't know what time that is, and it doesn't make too much difference. If our time is finished, then we want to come. Our objective of staying here is to serve You.
E-391 And since on the road to destructions, one day, as Paul was on the road to Damascus, to make havoc of the Church, a Light blinded him. And, O God, that Light followed him, for It was Christ. And he anchored there to an absolute, that, even death itself, he could laugh in the face of it, and say, "Thanks be to God Who gives us the victory through Jesus Christ."
E-392 You become a complete absolute to that apostle. He was the… You were the Amen to him, in every sentence. You were the Star of his life, the guide post. You were the compass that guided him through the storm. You were the revelation. You were the vision. You were his hopes, his salvation. Even at the hour of death, when he knowed he was going to it, You were still his absolute.
E-393 You were Daniel's absolute. You were all the prophets' absolute. In the midst of the denominational difference, and the troubles of their days, and the Pharisees and Sadducees, still there was men who took You for their absolute.
E-394 And today, Lord, men and women with compassion, with love, and—and hearts that are bleeding, Lord, for a real experience of knowing God, and to have a—a—an assurance of an absolute. Maybe all the people ever knowed, before, Lord, was to join the church. And we realize, as I have tried to, sincerely, not to be different; You know my heart; but tell them that, "You cannot join the Church. You join the lodge, the Methodist, and Baptist, and Catholic, and Pentecostal lodges. But you're born into the Church, the mystical Body of Christ, and become members of His Body, with the gifts of the Spirit, to make His great Body move in action and power."
E-395 God, that's what these hands meant this morning, when they went up. "Place me, O Lord. Take me, mold me, make me. Just make my position in life such an absolute, tied to Christ, that I'll think of nothing else but that absolute." Grant it, Lord. Bless them. Heal the sick and the afflicted. Save the lost.
E-396 Now, Lord, we know it's customary to call to the altar the people, but that has become a tradition to us. And this morning, with the altars filled, and the—the little children and—and all, but, Lord, somehow You spoke to them. They raised up their hands. They made—they made, as it was, a decision. They want to. They—they—they want something real. And I'm offering my prayer in their behalf. Grant it to each one, Lord. Be with us now, forgiving our sins, healing our sickness, and giving us the deliverance that we need.
E-397 And, Lord, above all things, may we never forget, today, that we are tied to the absolute, our north Star, to Calvary, to Christ. And the Holy Spirit is taking the Words of God and making Them manifest literally to us, by healing the sick, showing us visions, raising the dead, and doing just exactly what He promised to do.
E-398 And may this church, and these people, or the portion of the Body of Christ that's assembled here this morning, live like Jesus said to live. "Ye are the salt of the earth." And may they become so salty till their community will be thirsty. Salt creates a thirst. And salt can only save as it contacts. And I pray, God, that You'll grant this to the people, that they might be soul-winners, also.
E-399 Bless our pastor, Brother Neville, this humble servant, Lord. Standing at his post of duty, just as reverent, as a member of the Body of Christ, trying his very best to follow everything that You'd tell him to do.
E-400 Bless the trustees, them men who stood with me so gracious in this great, dark time that I been through.
E-401 Stand with the Church who prayed with me and stood by me in times of trouble. Lord, I love them. And I offer my prayer, that they will look to You, Lord. May they look away from this mortal clay of a servant. May they look to Him Who is the Omnipotent, Who is. And we know, Lord, that we are finite. No matter who we are, we're still mortal. But, not the messenger, but the Message. Grant it, Lord. That's where we point, to Jesus Christ the Son of God. Grant that He will be so real to every one here today, even to the little children, that He will become the absolute of the entire congregation. We ask in Jesus' Name. Amen.
I love Him, I love Him
Because He first loved me
And purchased my salvation
On Calvary's tree.
E-402 Now, while we sing it again, shake hands with somebody in front of you, back of you, side of you, just everybody shake hands now. Just remain seated. Just turn around and shake hands, if you can. See? "I…" [Brother Branham shakes hands as the congregation sings I Love Him—Ed.] "And purchased my…"
They just announce, "Communion, Monday night, at midnight."
E-403 Let's raise our hands now and sing to Him. How many, how many feels (you) He is your Absolute? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] The Word, He is the Word. Do you that believe that? ["Amen."] He is the Word. And the Holy Spirit germitized that Word, to make that Light live in you, of the Word, the vindication of the Word. Put the Word in your heart. Let the Holy Spirit come in, and watch the Word move. Believe. Be humble. Don't desire to be a great somebody. Be a nobody, that God can make you a somebody. See? All right. Do that now.
E-404 Everybody love Him? Say, "Amen." [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] You know what the word amen means? "So be it." Amen. That's right.
E-405 Let's say, "Hallelujah." [Congregation says, "Hallelujah!"—Ed.] You know what that means? "Praise our God."
E-406 When I was in Germany not long ago, I got up before (about) thirty, forty thousand people out there that day, and I said, "It's a strange thing that you German people can't understand." I said, "On my road down here today, a dog barked at me in English. That's right." I said, "He had no trouble at all. And there set a bird, and he sang for me in English. I come down the street, and a mother had a little baby on her arm, when I come in back there at the back, and," I said, "that baby was crying in English. What's the matter with your people?" That's right. Oh, if you just look around, He's everywhere. Isn't He? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Sure, He is.
E-407 Now let's just raise our hands and close our eyes, and sing, while we ask the pastor to come up for dismissing.
Let's stand up, first. Everybody on your own feet, everybody.
E-408 Do you love Him? Again now say, "Amen." [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.]
E-409 And you know, the word hallelujah is the same in every dialect. Go in the Hottentot jungles of Africa, hallelujah is the same word. Hallelujah, it ought to almost be a Christian salutation. Oughtn't it? [Congregation says, "Amen."—Ed.] Hallelujah, the word means "praise our God." And He's worthy of it. Isn't He? ["Amen."] He is absolutely my Saviour. He is absolutely Jesus Christ, the Son of God, to me. He is absolutely "the same yesterday, today, and forever," to me. Is He that way to you? ["Amen."]
I love Him, I love Him
Because He first loved me
And purchased my…