The faith that was once delivered to the saints
You can find this sermon at ChurchAges.net
1 Good evening, friends. Good afternoon, rather. I always get that mixed up. In Kentucky this is evening. I hope there's no one here from Kentucky hearing me say that, but we're happy to be here in the service of the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's always a privilege to speak to people. I love to do that. As I [Gap in the audio] back in behind the stage, where this famous song was written. Paul Rader used to be the pastor there after Brother Redigar. I was standing back there, and it was right after the service, and there was so many people around I couldn't get out, so they was just walking me around, back and forth in the building.
So there was a man came back there. He said, "Say, Brother Branham."
I said, "Yes, sir."
He said, "My, you have awful grammar."
I said, "Yes, sir. I know that."
2 And he said, "You use some of the awfullest words." Said, "You really tear up the ... butcher English."
And I said, "Yes, sir." I said, "I'm aware of that."
He said, "Why, the people that you speak before," said, "you ought to be ashamed of that grammar."
I said, "I am, but it doesn't do me any good. I just don't know no better."
He said ... "Well," he said...
I said, "When I was a boy, my father died. I had ten children to take care of, and I had to work and support my mother and the children. Then since the Lord has sent me out, why, I haven't had a chance."
And he said, "Oh, that's no excuse now." Said, "You're a man." And he was using some real words. I didn't know what he was talking about. So he said, "Well, there's no excuse now." Said, "You ought to do better than that now."
3 I said, "Well," I said, "I'm just so busy praying for the sick people and things," I said, "I..."
Said, "You take a correspondence."
I said, "Well, that's true but," I said, "I just don't have the chance to do it."
He said, "The awfullest words." Said, "Here's one especially you made tonight." Said, "You said, 'All the people crossing this polpit now will,'" He said, "You should never say that."
"I don't see nothing wrong with it." I said, "What's wrong with crossing the polpit?"
He said, "Your congregation would appreciate you better if you said 'pulpit' not 'polpit.'"
4 I said, "Well, brother, I want to tell you what. That's all right." I said, "Them people don't care whether I say polpit or pulpit. They want me to live the right kind of life and produce what I'm talking about. That's what they want. That's the main thing." I said, "None of them's so highly but what they'll understand what I'm saying. They'll make it out some way."
So you excuse my grammar. It's not very good, but a lot of times in the Word... I love to talk about the Word. I don't know too much about it, but I like to talk about it. I know the Author of it real well, so that's the main part, isn't it? I know the Author. So He is wonderful to me. He saved me by His grace, and I'm so happy about it today.
5 Usually on Sunday afternoon, it's given to me to speak and just preach or whatever seems good to do. So I'm not a preacher. I'm just kind of what you call a "spare tire." You know you use that when you got a flat. We haven't got no flat now. I was going to see where Dr. Vayle was. We haven't got no flat, but I'm still just a spare tire.
Just to talk a little while on our Lord. I love Him and the afternoon services on Sunday usually is giving over to missionary affair, missionary offerings and so forth, that we get money together, and as soon as we get enough we go back overseas to the people who are so desperately in need of Christ, has never heard of Him one time.
6 Poor little thousands and thousands of little children over there that know nothing of God and hungry, and they've got just as much right to hear about Jesus as my baby and your baby does. Just the same right. Jesus died for them the same as He did for our children and ... [Gap in the audio].
... loving Father in the Gospel even here at the age of seventy-five or seventy-six years old still wants to spend the rest of his days on the battlefield over in Africa. It's just a group from Chicago has just got a hold of me and said if I would accept it, they'd buy the Chicago Gospel Tabernacle, air condition it, and rebuild it all over and interiora and everything. Buy me a big home up there in Chicago Heights, if I'd be just the pastor there that when I come back into the nation and I'd accept it just be a pastor and have Brother Bosworth come along as my associate pastor.
7 I said, "Brother, them is all over the United States, but yet we can't accept nothing till Jesus Christ has said yes. I said, "After..." And we was talking to Brother Bosworth about it.
He said, "How can I be a pastor either, Brother Branham, when I hear that call coming from across the seas?"
You're just not the same if you ever get over there and see what it is. Now, I mean it, and I'm an American. I was born here in America. I had four or five brothers in the last war. I've got a boy here going in now, right away. When I was in France and Germany, I walked over the graves of many a dead American, a Branham rather, that gave their life under the stars and stripes. If I had to lay there for the cause, I'd gladly lay it down.
But if there ever was a place that needed missionaries is America. That's right. It's true. Farthest away from God that I know of is the United States. I say that with respect as an American. We have been so educated and taught and so many things throwed right into our laps we don't know how to trust God. Don't know noth...
8 We just simply... And you go into a congregation. This one says, "Well, [unclear words]." This little handful of people, you sitting here and feel one coming here and here and here and here, just everywhere, people. One thinking this and one thinking that. Why, I know what they're thinking about. Sure I do. God reveals it, and one of them saying, "Well, Doctor So-and-so said it was mental telepathy." This one says, "Well, he's a spiritualist," and this one says, "It's a devil." That's the reason the Holy Spirit can't move. You see? It's got to be one accord, see. Got to be one accord and then God's blessings and power will pour upon His people. Until we can get that, we're fighting the air. Truly. It's very hard, very hard and it almost kills you.
9 Now, in speaking I usually don't speak over five hours at a time, so it won't take very long so, and some of them said that I get just started talking, and I just don't know when to stop. But now this afternoon if you'll excuse me for a few moments I want to try to take a text and speak to you just a little bit on Gospel terms.
This is the fifth week of constant service of this type. There's no need of me trying to explain to you, my dear Christian friends, of how that that works. There's no need of... You can't talk it, and many people think I'm an isolationist. I'm not an isolationist. I love people. You don't know how I'd like to take each individual and sit down and have an hour or two with them to talk. I can't do that because there's something happens.
10 When the anointing first begins to come, every person you speak to, there it is, see. And now most always leaving the meeting when I'm standing here and it's going on at nighttime, it isn't bad. I don't even know my own strength then, but when I'm out of it, it's all right. It's when you're coming between, just in between, coming in and out of it, of the anointing.
Let me explain. Let me show you this. Did you notice always prophets, poets or so forth are considered neurotics? Did you ever know that? The greatest poet that America ... gave America its greatest folk songs, I guess, was Stephen Foster, wasn't it? Old Folks At Home, you know, Suwannee River, and all those.
11 I was standing not long ago at My Old Kentucky Home. I was born not far from that, and I had my hand laying on the desk like that. Inspiration come to Stephen Foster where he wrote Old Kentucky Home. I seen his picture, and the Angel that was supposed to touch him and give him his inspiration and so forth. And after the guide had went through, I was sitting alone and I thought, "Mr. Foster, you had it in the head, not in the heart." Because every time he'd write, get inspiration write a song, he'd go off and get on a drunk afterwards. Then finally you know how he ended his life; after getting up in that inspiration, he come back down, called a servant, and took a razor and committed suicide; Stephen Foster's end.
12 I thought of William Cowper. You heard of him that wrote that famous hymn:
There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood,
Drawn from Emmanuel's veins.
When sinners plunge beneath the flood,
Lose all their guilty stains.
About two or three years ago, I stood by his grave in England when his history there, and William Cowper after that song when he was up in that inspiration writing, he was considered a neurotic, and when he come out of that inspiration, he got a cab and tried to find the river to commit suicide. Didn't know where he was at, what he was doing or nothing, see. He'd been up somewhere.
13 Look, that's poets. Look at prophets. Look at Jonah when he was on his road to Nineveh and taken a boat to Tarshish. He disobeyed God, and he was throwed out of the ship and a whale swallowed him, and he was brought back to Nineveh, and he gave his prophecy so much, with a city the size of St. Louis, Missouri, over a million population. Some of them didn't even know right and left hand, but that prophet walked the streets screaming his prophecy like that until the people repented in such a way they put sackcloth on their animals.
And then when the inspiration left him, he sat under a little gourd tree and prayed God would take his life. Is that right? See, you don't understand it. He was up somewhere and while the inspiration was on him, all right but when it leaves him then what? See?
Jonah 1:1 Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
Jonah 1:2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.
Jonah 1:3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
Jonah 3:5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.
Jonah 3:6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.
Jonah 3:7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:
Jonah 3:8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.
14 Look at Elijah, the prophet, who stood on Mount Carmel that day and called fire out of Heaven, called rain out of Heaven at the same day, and then run out into the wilderness after the inspiration left him at the threat of Jezebel. Run out into the wilderness and wandered around out there in the wilderness for forty days and nights and God found him. He had crawled back in a cave somewhere. Is that right? See?
No need of trying to explain it. It's just a life alone. When you're in there, it isn't bad. When you're out, but it's coming between that, see. And there's just... You don't know where you're at and what you're doing. What does it speak? It speaks one thing. Brother, there's a land beyond the river. We reach up into it there somehow. I don't know. I can't explain it, but I know some glorious day, when I come to the end of my journey which I've got to some of these days, I suppose, as an old man. I hope to be if Jesus tarries.
1 Kings 18:36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
1 Kings 18:37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
1 Kings 18:38 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
1 Kings 18:39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God.
1 Kings 18:40 And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
1 Kings 18:41 And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
1 Kings 18:42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,
1 Kings 18:43 And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.
1 Kings 18:44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not.
1 Kings 18:45 And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.
1 Kings 19:1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.
1 Kings 19:2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
1 Kings 19:3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
15 Most all Branham's when they get real old, they take the palsy. Now, my granddad on my father's side was ninety-eight and my grandmother was a hundred and ten when she died. And my grandfather on my mother's side was ninety-six I believe it was. Died about three years ago and my grandmother died young with [unclear words] when she was just a young woman about thirty, but anyhow when they get old, they all shake with palsy. They're nervous, Irish, high strung, and I suppose if I live to be that old, I'll too take the palsy when I get old.
But some day when I've come my last road, and I feel the breakers a dashing against me, and I know my time is over, and I'm standing by the shores of the Jordan of death, and I feel it coming in on me, I want to take off the helmet, lay it down on the shores, and I want to take the Gospel shoes off and lay them down. Take the old sword and stick it back in the sheath of eternity. Raise up my trembling, shaking hand and say, "Send out the life boats, Father. I'm coming across this morning."
16 I believe He will meet me there. And then when I'm taken up, I want to look back down through briar patches, and hills, and hollows, and bad places, and rough places, of where I've cut my way through teaching Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever. And I believe He will meet me at that day. Not only me but all those who'll meet His requirements in this life to accept Him as your only personal Saviour. May the Lord bless you.
Now, I want to read a portion of the Scripture. My words will fail. God's Word will never fail. That's the reason in each service I try to read some of God's Word 'cause my words is just another man's words, but His words is eternal forever. They cannot fail.
17 And I've preached here before on a little subject and I just kind of ... new idea today that coming down here, I thought, I believe... I was reading in the book of Jude while I was waiting, and I started to read the first few verses of it and speak to you a little bit on it. In Jude the first verse we read this:
Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, ... preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:
I want you to notice. He is addressing this, not to sinners, to the elect, see. This letter is not sent to unbelievers. Now, listen.
Mercy unto you, and peace and love, be multiplied.
Beloved, ... I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and to exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered unto the saints.
Jude 1:1 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:
Jude 1:2 Mercy unto you, and peace and love, be multiplied.
Jude 1:3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
18 And now may the Lord add His blessings to that. I want to speak just a few moments on the faith that was once delivered to the saints. I believe... How many Christians are in here? Raise your hands. All over the building, Christians. All right. This is a very appropriate time for this. I thought sinners would be out bathing and out on gambling, and so forth, but Christians would come to the House of God surely.
Now, Father, we thank Thee today for mercy and grace for Thy Son, Jesus, who by His great sacrifice has redeemed us back to God, the Father. Beloved in the bonds of His suffering, He has redeemed us, and one day we poor alienated Gentiles were cut off from God without mercy, without hope, in the world, idol worshipers going into a devil's hell, a sinner's grave.
And in due season, Christ, the lovely One, came and took upon Himself the form of sinful flesh and was made sin for us. O that great substitutionary. The beautiful One for we ugly ones. The holy One for us, the unholy. The righteous One for we sinners. And God accepted Him insomuch that He witnessed with His own voice, "This is my beloved son. Hear Him."
Matthew 17:5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
Mark 9:7 And there was a cloud that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
Luke 9:35 And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
Romans 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
19 And now we who were once way off has been brought nigh by the washing of the water by the Word. And now we are nigh unto God even to be called sons and daughters of God. And it does not yet appear what we shall be in the final end, but we know we shall have a body like His for we shall see Him as He is.
That glorious hope rests within us to know that someday we'll never pray no more for the sick. There'll be no sick to pray for. We'll never preach a sermon of repentance because there will be no one there to repent; it'll all be perfect.
God help us today while this is called day. May we press to the mark of the high calling in Christ. Send the Holy Spirit now and take a few words. I don't what to say, but You promised, "If you open your mouth, I will fill it." You've met this in the last twenty years of my life, and I pray that You will grant it again today. I don't know what they have need of, what I have need of, but You know, and I'm committing it all to you in the name of Jesus Christ that You will get glory. Amen.
Psalm 81:10 I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.
Ephesians 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
1 John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
20 Now I would like to speak just a few, a little while. I'll try to get out in time so that we can get back to the service tonight. We're trying very hard and truly, Christian friends, I know Florida is a hard place to catch. I found them that, I really ... but one of these days there isn't going to be any Florida. She's going to be sunk, and the things that you so worship now will perish.
It's only eternal God can save you, so if you're not where you think you should be, or where God says you should be, that's the point. "There's a way that seemeth right unto a man but the end thereof is the way of death."
Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Proverbs 16:25 There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
21 Now, as His servant, I must be honest and know no person but Christ, and then as I told you, being illiterate and not knowing very much of what we call wisdom of this world, but I know Him who has called me and redeemed me from a life of sin. And I have my fellowship and communion with Him. And I do know what He requires of a Christian, so that's why today coming over I thought I would speak on this, earnestly contending for the faith that was once delivered to the saints.
Now, there's every one of us... Now, we're mixed up in here--probably Protestant, Catholic in this little hundred and fifty group or whatever would be here; Protestant, Catholic, Methodist, Baptist, and so forth. I have nothing against any of those churches, not a thing, and God knows my heart, I don't belong to any of them. I just come out and yet I belong to everyone of them.
Jude 1:3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
22 Here some time ago I was in Little Rock, Arkansas. Got the awfullest write-up I ever had in my life. The reporter wrote that a self-styled Baptist preacher, healing the sick, had caused so many ambulance to block the streets, and so forth. And the streetcars couldn't moved and the buses through the street. They really rode me good on it.
But there was an old man got healed. He'd been on crutches for many years. Had been stiffened up, and the next day he had a sign on those crutches walking down the street, "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever." Just a shouting away. So when I was speaking on Sunday and while speaking he raised up and said, "Say preacher."
I said, "Yes, sir."
He said, "You know I don't understand something."
I said, "What is it, dad?"
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
23 He said, "When I heard you preaching, I was sure you was a Nazarene." He was a Nazarene, too. He said, "I was sure you was a Nazarene." He said, "And then I seen all the Pentecostal people, and I thought surely you were Pentecost. And now I hear you say you were a Baptist." Said, "I don't get that."
I said, "That's easy, dad. I'm a Pentecostal Nazarene Baptist." So that's what it is. We just represent Methodist, Baptist, all of you, everybody. We're all one in Christ Jesus. But now, each one of us wants to think that our church is the church. You ought to do that. That's exactly right.
24 Now, being that I'm representing all of it, let's go back and find out what "the faith" is. A lot of people says, "Well, I don't go there because that's against my faith. My faith don't teach that. There's only one faith. There's only one church, one body. Do you believe that? There's only one church, and that church you don't join it at all. You're born into the church.
I've been with the Branham family this coming April the 6th, I've been in the Branham family forty-four years, and they never did ask me to join with them, see. Why? I was born a Branham. I'm a Branham by birth, so that just makes me a Branham, see. I don't have to join the family because I just belong to it, and that's the way it is.
You don't have to join the church. You just belong to it. That's all. You're just borned into it.
25 And when you're borned of the Spirit of God you become a son of God and a daughter of God and without that you just belong to the church then. But when you're borned-again you belong to Christ, and we must be born again.
There's one fundamental doctrine that I believe. That's Saint John 3. Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Except a man be born of water, and of Spirit, he will in nowise enter the kingdom. No matter how sincere. Our sincerity has nothing. Go down to Ganges River this afternoon, watch them mothers take their little babies and throw them in sacrifice them to crocodiles to appease the gods of the Nile. You find out whether this... Try yours one time. See how sincere you are up the side of their sincerity.
John 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
26 Go in China and watch how they break their feet and disfigure themselves and over in India they run spears through their nose, and splinters through their fingers, and lay on beds of spikes, and cutting some of them with their hands up like that, and shook their fists until their fingernails has growed through the back of their hand for as many as forty years saying, "I will never put my hand down until I get ease to my soul." Try your sincerity one time against that.
Take a great big bowl of fire like this and he has to walk through that bunch of fire like that, to please his gods and so forth. Try your sincerity against that one time, see. Torch and torment themselves.
27 Sincerity has nothing to do with it. There's just one law God requires that you must be born-again. That's right. If you're not born-again, then you're just not there. That's all. I had to be born in order to be a human no matter what it was I had to be born. There's no way of making me up mechanically. I had to be born in order to be a human. I had to be borned in order to be a Christian. That's just all. It's a birth. Actually a birth. A man is regenerated. A new soul comes in.
Now, let's go back. If you're going to look now with me for a little while into the face of the Scriptures... Now, the Scriptures is absolutely the fundamental truths of God.
28 Now, if we're going to have to look at this... Now, I want you, if you will, to listen close now. I may not be able to put it together right. I only speak by inspiration and inspiration is just when you find it here, you grab it and hand it out. It's over here you reach and get it and hand it out. It may be an old-fashioned sassafras way, but it'll do you good if you'll keep it. That's right. It'll stick to your ribs and hold you. It saved me, and it'll save you.
Someone said here not long ago when I went through almost a breakdown. They let me stay in the pulpit for eight days and nights without leaving, praying for the sick. I said I'd pray for all of them. It was just about three times as many, maybe more, when I stopped than I did when I started. Constant line, day and night running. I slept against the side of the pulpit. Drink orange juice, and things, sitting beside the pulpit and when I come out, I couldn't tell where I was at, and I was out for about eight months like that.
In there someone said, "Brother Branham, did you keep your religion during all that time?"
I said, "Oh, no. It kept me during that time." I couldn't have kept it. It keeps me,
29 and that's the way Jesus Christ is. He keeps us. We don't keep Him. He keeps us. It's not whether I can hold on, it's whether He held on or not. That's the main thing. It's what He done. What God did for me and Christ is what I am today. That's what you are by sovereign grace of God.
Now in order... If you went out here and looked at your field, and a big field, was all plowed up and fixed up real nice and there's something planted in there. The only way that you're going to know what's planted in there, is go back and raise up the clods and look under there, and see what the seed is. You'll find out what kind of crop you'll have by the kind of seed you got planted. Is that right?
When our Bible said that we are sown with the incorruptible seed of God, imperishable. It cannot perish. God's Word can't perish. Now, every seed will bring forth of its kind.
1 Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
30 Now, let's go back and find today in this great age that we live in, one of the greatest, darkest times of all the history outside of the dark ages that I could ever think to what little history I've read. We're living in it right now. When two thousand years of Christian teaching, and yet the world two years ago hatched out thirteen million infidels. Just think. Think of that. The darkest time that it had ever seen.
We've got the very best colleges we ever had. We got the very best schools we ever had. We got some of the best educated men that ever stood in the pulpit, and we got less Christianity than the world has known in years and years. That's true.
31 Just like doctors, we got the best doctors we ever had. We got the best science we ever had. We got the best medicine we ever practiced with. We got the best hospitals we ever knowed, the best trained nurses and got more sickness than the world ever heard of, because we got more sin and unbelief, than the world ever heard of. That's exactly right.
In the day of what we call civilization, we become uncivilized. We take the wrong road at it. I say many times ... I'm not talking about the group that I'm speaking to this afternoon, I'm talking the world in whole. It's a whole lot easier to talk. I can take a child of eight years old, and make him see Jesus Christ a thousand times quicker than I can a man with two degrees out of some college somewhere. He is just as smart. He just knows it all, and you can't tell him nothing, and he has just got his mind set, and he won't humble himself.
32 Salvation in Jesus Christ, and the power of healing, the power of God, there's no great mystery. It's something just right next to you. Why, my. It's just as simple as one, two, three. Just believe God. That's all there is to it. It's just that simple.
You tell your little girl you're going to get her something. She just believes it. That's all. Watch children when they get to the pulpit. Watch and see if everyone of them isn't healed, because they just believe it. That's all. Watch them when they're called on the platform out there. No matter what's wrong with them when they're called out. Watch them jump to their feet no matter if they're crippled, blind, whatever it is. Watch them receive it right now, but the elderly ones will sit around and say, "Now, wait. I can't move. I haven't moved this foot for a long time." A child won't think of that and it'll just jump to his feet right now.
33 He will do, but we try to figure it all out. We got to figure it out. What if Peter stopped that night to figure out? "Now, Lord, You told me to walk on the water. Now, let me see now. I'm strictly a scientist, and I know the formula of water. It's H2O. Why, no man can walk on hydrogen, and oxygen. There's no need of me trying that. Well, You asked me something impossible." Then Peter never would have walked on the water. The only thing... He never figured out how it was. He just took God at His Word and went walking on. That's what we've got to do.
Don't try to figure it out how God is a doing these things. Just accept it and go on. What if Moses turned aside to see the burning bush. He'd say, "Wait, let me take some of them leaves off. I'm going to take them down to the laboratory to find out why the chemical of this leaf that it doesn't burn. The fire's all right. Now, he'd have never approached God, but he took off his shoes and come humbly, and sat down, and God spoke to him right out of the burning bush.
That's the way you've got to approach God, humbly, taking His Word. No matter what it looks like. There God, You said so, I believe it, and that settles it.
Exodus 3:4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
Exodus 3:5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
Exodus 3:6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
34 Now, today let's find out why we've got this crop of people that we've got. Now, if this tickles a little bit ... I just feel something coming up, feeling kind of religious right now. So, just something come into my mind. All right. Maybe the Lord will bless us.
Now, let's go back over in Genesis, and pick up the beginning. We'll find out everything that we've got today originated in Genesis. Genesis is the seed chapter of the Bible. Everything began in Genesis. All right, because Genesis... The word Genesis means "the beginning." And it's the seed chapter where God sowed the seed of everything, and the evil one sowed his seed, and God sowed His seed, and here the crops are coming up of the earth. Just exactly the way God said.
35 We take, for instance, the word Babylon. We see it up here in Genesis. First, it was called the Garden Gates, I believe, or the Gates to Heaven. The next thing it was called a confusion. And we find out that Babylon started over there in the beginning, and it was the first place of idolatry. We find out for it's in Genesis. Then we find it over here in the middle of the Bible, and then we find it over in Revelations appearing again. See, it come out of Genesis. Come up Babylon all along. Right on up and it goes to seed in Genesis.
Now, in Genesis we will have to start with two boys. That's where the human race sprang from Adam and Eve, and out of Adam and Eve... Of course, she had to have daughters. If she did not... Someone has often wondered... The old question was where did Cain get his wife? Cain had to marry his sister. He couldn't have done nothing else, because there wasn't... The Bible seldom ever records a woman's birth, it's always men. And the Bible... Today, America...
36 Now, You're my sisters, see, but look there's only one place in the whole universe that gives the man his credit, that God gives it to him. Today the god of America is a woman. Now, that's right. Strip one of these little women off, and sit them down here on the beach somewhere with their bathing suits on, and she will send more men to hell than all the bootleg joints you got in the city. That's right. She's America's god. She makes men fall in anything she wants to.
The Devil knowed that in the beginning. That's the reason he chose the woman. Now, the woman is redeemed, and she can be a sister, and godly. But brother, what we need today is some more good old-fashioned God-sent, Holy Ghost born mothers to raise children right. Talk about juvenile delinquency it's parent delinquency is where it lays at. That's exactly right.
37 Talk about the illiteracy of Kentucky. Some of us people live out of there talk about the illiter... how dumb they are up there. Well, let me tell you something. If some of those old mammies would let their... See their daughter out, carrying on the way some of them do down here, on these beaches, brother, she wouldn't get up out of the bed for a week. She wouldn't be able. She'd top one of them hickory trees and beat what skirt she had on her, left off.
And I think if we practiced that a whole lot more around Palm Beach, and the rest of the places around here, we'd have a better social standing and a better moral in our country. Amen. That may be old-fashioned, flat-footed, brother, but it's the truth coming from God's Word. I believe that we get out of our places and things. It's the truth.
38 I'm not here to tell you how to dress and what to dress. That's between you and God, but listen when a person gets right with God, God will take care of the rest of it. That's right. I don't have no ruling say you have to do this, and wear your dresses, and your skirts, and men have to do this. There's no rule.
Just like up in my country. There's a oak tree, a little old scrub oak, it holds its leaves all winter long. When springtime comes, you don't have to go pick off the old leaves so the new ones will come on. Just let the new life come up, the old leaf drops off. And if a man or woman's born of the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit drops off the old life and the new life comes on. Amen.
39 Oh, it's such a pity to see the condition of our nation. To see how we've polluted it. It's not us. I've said a million times I'm not afraid of Russia ever hurting us, or any other nation. Some of the other nations is warring against us. That's not what scares me. It's our own rottenness right among us is what's polluting us. It's not the robin that pecks on the apple that hurts it. It's the worm at the core of the apple is what kills the apple. It's our own conditions here. What we're doing now, break the backbone of any nation. Just demoralize womanhood and watch what happens to it. Read your history back and find out and there is the fall of this nation as sure as anything in the world.
40 Here not long ago I preached on the subject there in my own home town. They had a note out. I preached on the overthrow of the United States government. And I took it from over in the Bible where that the evil spirits went out, lying spirits, and got into the prophets and caused them to tell a lie and to get this Ahab up there to take his life.
And I said, "The evil spirits of down--when I went down into Paris--and down in those places there, so demoralized. I never thought that human beings could stoop as low. And every fashion that we have, originates right there in Paris. Comes over here to Hollywood, out through the screens and everything. You all sit and look at them. The little girls and boys go in there come out and impersonate them actors, and some of them married four or five times, and three or four different husbands and wives, and make that an example. Brother, if there's any example we ought to take it out of God's Bible. That's exactly right. Yes, sir. There's where our crop started.
41 Look back yonder in the beginning in the garden of Eden back in the beginning, there was two boys that come out: Cain and Abel. All right. I want you to notice them as they come. Both boys after they was turned from the garden of Eden which laid east of Eden.
Going through the streets over at Palm Beach this morning, I thought, looking here at these lovely, big homes, just like the garden of Eden. Fallen sons of God has built them. We know if it's in their hearts, God has [unclear words], but everyone's going to have to die and leave them, but we're going to one some day, hallelujah, where we'll never leave it no more. We will be there forever.
42 Then, I was thinking as we was passing along there, of those wonderful thoughts how Eden must have been. And then when man sinned--I have my thought, my conception of it. You can have yours, but God drove them out. An Angel stood at the gate, and begin to guard the gate, and no one could come in, or out of that gate to keep them away from the Tree of Life.
Now, the Tree of Life, I believe, was Jesus Christ. "He that eats My flesh and drinks My blood has everlasting life." He is the Tree of Life. God was guarding it with a cherubim, an Angel with a flaming sword.
Now, then when Cain and Abel realized that they were mortal beings, and had to die some day, then they come to find favor before God. And each one of them ... Cain was a tiller of the soil. Abel was a shepherd. And notice, each one of them come to worship God.
Genesis 4:2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
John 6:54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
43 Now that's where I want to base my thought for the next fifteen or twenty minutes. Now, here come the two boys. Now, one of them was Cain, Satan's. The other one was Abel from Adam which was of God. Watch both of them. It's a very beautiful picture today of the churches.
Now, here where you'll start. I'm going to put the signs and wonders, vice versa, fundamentalists, and find out where, how true it is. Now, notice. Cain and Abel come up to worship God. Both of them did. Now, Cain brought his sacrifice. Abel brought his. Now, both of them were born of the same mother.
Genesis 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
Genesis 4:4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
44 Now, Cain was just as sincere, I believe, as Abel was. He'd never come. He was just as much of a believer as Abel was. Fundamentally, in worshipping he was just as fundamental as Abel was. Both of them, both boys realized they were lost. Both boys wanted to find favor with God. Both boys brought a sacrifice. Both boys worshipped. Both boys belonged to church.
If a church, sacrifice and worship is all that God requires, and God condemned Cain, He is unjust in doing so. Correct. He would be unjust. For if worship is all God requires, Cain worshipped just the same as Abel did. And perhaps had a more beautiful worship than what Abel did.
Genesis 4:5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
45 I'd imagine Cain being the anointed of Satan. Satan's son who came down, and I'd like to show you a little picture there too in a minute of Cain and Abel. How that when they came ... Cain came to bring his sacrifice, it was probably way more beautiful than what Abel's was. Cain was a tiller of the soil. And he had lilies and beautiful things to decorate his altar.
Now, look. I want you to get this,, and some day before Almighty God where we'll all stand, you'll find out this ain't too far wrong. Watch Cain in his nature. He was natured after his dad, Satan. And when he come--I want you to see--made a beautiful sacrifice. Perhaps, decorated with lilies and everything like here in our land.
46 Every Easter a minister told me not long ago of a certain big denominational church. He said, "Brother Branham, I just don't know what to do." He said, "Every time when people come on Easter," said, "I give them a 'Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,'" because I won't see them no more till next Easter, and they're members of my church."
I said, "Sir, you won't believe it, but the reason they don't come, they have nothing in them to draw them."
Here some time ago when I was a boy, I was coming down a pole. I was working for a light company and I had to turn off electric lights. And I went over there, I had to collect a bill across the street. There was a little old girl in there, and I knocked on the door, and she come to the door and she said, "Who are you?"
And I said, "I'm with the public utilities. I believe the bookkeeper told me that you'd forgot to send it."
"Oh, yes," said, "mother sent it and," said, "Mother was going to send it and she left it here." Said, "Will you take it?"
47 I said, "Yes, ma'am." She gave me the bill. I marked it paid. Started to hand it to her, and one of these here old jig dancers, or ever what it is, come on with that "Saw And The Sickle" and carrying on and playing some kind of a little old boogie-woogie music, ever what it was, and that girl had on little old clothes there, about enough to wad a shotgun, and it was pitiful.
Listen. I got two girls and they call it "sun tan." If one of mine, if God lets me live, she will get a "son tan" if she puts it on, by Charlie Branham, my daddy's son, will give her the tan with a barrel slat, just as hard as I can give it to her. That's the kind of a tanning she needs. Absolutely, out there like that, no wonder the corruption of the world. How can you men and women... You men...
48 Now, you're going to get angry with me. You just might as well get started, but you men that'll let your wives go out and act like that, and smoke cigarettes and walk around, that shows how much man's in you. That's right. A real true-blooded man won't permit such stuff as that. That's right. Brother that may be hard to digest but if it is, take it 'cause it's good for you. Amen. That's exactly right. I tell you a real red-blooded man...
My wife may do it sometime. When she does, that's the day she leaves the Branham home. That's exactly right. I wouldn't permit it. By the grace of God, I couldn't permit it. That's right. And when men will stand up... Excuse me. That thing's got more voice than I have. But look. I'm not excited. I know where I am. I know what I'm talking about too. Now, look. That's right.
49 This little old girl started across the floor, hollering, "Toodledee, tootledee," and when this... She said she was going to have some kind of an old barn swing dance, or something or another, and she got down there to the radio, and she throwed a kiss to that guy through the radio--so excited she didn't even know I was at the door. She said, "Toodleoo, honey, I'll see you out there tonight."
And I thought, "Yep, you'll be there. No doubt at all. You'll be there."
And she walked over, she took around the floor hollering, you know, like she was dancing. She said, "Oh, excuse me." She said, "I just love to dance so well."
I said, "I noticed it."
And she said, "Oh, I just love it."
I said, "I believe that." I said, "Here's your change." And I went on back and I was coming down a pole.
50 Doctor Brown came ... of another great church. He said, "Billy, I just wonder." Said, "I had so many people come to my church, and I had them to sign a card that they'd promise to come to my church at least Sunday school six months out of the year." Said, "I sent out five hundred cards. How many do you think responded to it Sunday?"
Said, "I don't know."
Said, "Two."
I told him that story. I said, "Do you think that Mr. Clayton McMitchel will ever have to make that woman sign a card to be out there to that old barn dance tonight?" No, sir, because in her heart is a spirit that feeds on that. And if a man's born of God when the church bell rings, you can't stay away from it. There's something on the inside of you that calls out, the deep speaking to the deep. You've got to go. Amen. You've got to get right here, brother. And if that spirit in there is still worshipping the world, the love of God is not even in you.
1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
51 If it hates the world and loves God, you don't have to sign a card to go to church to make places. You'll be there when the door opens. You can't stay away from it. Something on the inside of you pulling you. You just can't help from coming. That's right. It's something that takes place in here. It's a birth. And that's what the church needs today. Until that old carnal Adamic nature is still in the man, he's still a sinner. He might go to church every so often. He might put his name on the book but as long as those things are in him, he's still out of line with God. Amen. I feel pretty good.
Look. I want to tell you something, brother. Cain and Abel back there in the beginning, there come Cain up and he worshipped God, knelt down on his knees. Oh, my! He had all these lilies laying around like Easter we'll have.
52 People will spend literally millions of dollars across the country to put lilies on the altar to decorate the altar. God don't want the lily on the altar. He wants you on the altar. God don't care about the lily. You're the one. The altar wasn't made for a lily. It was made for you, and all you have and all you are. You ought to place yourself on the altar and say, "God, here am I." Amen.
That's what we need. That's what this Palm Beach needs this afternoon. Not a new mayor, not a new police force. It needs a good, old-fashioned Saint Paul's revival and the Bible, Holy Ghost back into the churches and men and women getting right with God. Then you'll see signs and wonders flying like sparks on an anvil. If you'd only get that started. Brother, until you do it, we're lost and we will never be able to have a revival.
53 America... Billy Graham here not long ago was having a certain meeting. He went through and he said he had thirty thousand converts, or twenty thousand, I believe in six weeks. He went back six weeks later, and couldn't find twenty of them. What's the matter? Because they stand up and say, "I accept Christ as my personal Saviour," and sit down, emotionally worked up.
That's the reason we can't have a revival. You've got to get back to God's faith again in the Bible, where men and women become born again and regenerated by the Holy Ghost. Then that man can't help from being a Christian. He is a Christian by birth. That's right.
54 You don't have to pledge him and give him cards and visit him. If he is born again, brother, you almost have to bar the door to keep him out. Amen. You've got the cart before the horse, brother. That's what's the matter. You've got to get Christ first and instead of the church you've got to put Christ first. That's what we need today. That's what America needs today. It's what the whole nation, the whole world needs today is a old-fashioned revival stirring, God-sent revival.
Cain, sure he was religious, just as religious as the other one was. Religious is a covering. Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden when they found out they were naked, they made themselves a religion. Find out, just as soon as Adam found out he was separated from God instead of trying to find God, he tried to hide from God. That's the nature of man today. It's still his nature. Instead of coming down confessing saying, "I've been a church member for ten years. I know nothing about God." We try to hide behind the name of a church. Right. We all do it. We Methodists, we Baptists, we Presbyterian, we Pentecostals, we all do it. We're guilty before God. Amen. It's the truth. Yes, sir.
Now, I want you to notice. Instead of coming out and it ought to have been Adam running through the garden hollering, "Father, Father, where are You? Father, Father." It was the Father running through the garden hollering, "Adam, Adam, where art thou?"
Genesis 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
Genesis 3:9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
55 When he found out he had to meet God, he made him an apron out of fig leaves. How typical of today. An apron was a covering. Religion means, "a covering." And he made his apron out of fig leaves. He placed it around him, and it was all right as long as Eve and Adam was standing back in the little church back there talking about, "Well, now when God calls again, we'll go out." But when they had to face God they found out fig leaf religion wouldn't work. And every man and woman that's hiding behind some church creed will find out in the day of their death, fig leaf religion won't work. He said, "Oh, I'm naked." He knew it when he had to meet God. Said, "I'm naked."
Said, "Who told you you was naked?"
Oh, then they begin to pass the buck one to the other, as the street expression. "The woman there Thou givest me," and this, that and the other.
Genesis 3:11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
Genesis 3:12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
56 And God went and got some skins, and gave them aprons. In order to get skins He had to kill something. Something had to die a substitutionary. And the only thing in the world... It's not the Methodist, Baptist or Presbyterian church that'll cover your sins. God killed something His Son at Calvary, and that's their covering. The only covering there is for the human being. Accept it. No matter how radical it seems the religion of Jesus Christ has always been considered fanaticism to the world. I'll prove that to you in a few minutes. Right.
Notice them now. Here they are out there worshipping. Both of them. Both sincere. Both just screaming up to God. Giving Him praise and everything. Cain was a long ways from being a communist. He was a believer. Now looky here. If the only thing you have to do is to believe that God is, then Cain was just. There you are. Kind of going to let that soak down a little bit because I want it to go on the fifth rib on the left side, see.
Genesis 3:21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
57 If all that you have to do is believe that God is, and you will kneel down and worship Him, Cain was justified. The Bible said that even the Devil believes that to be the truth. And the Devil publicly confessed Jesus Christ to be the Son of God. That didn't save them. Brother, we'd better get straightened out. Going to be a mistake one of these days. Somebody's right and somebody's wrong.
You'd better take what the Bible said. You've got to be born again, not mythical, think you're born again, but when the Spirit of God absolutely kills everything in the world in you, and you'll become regenerated, a new creature in Christ. Then you know the old things has passed away. If you still love the world, or the things of the world, the Bible says, "The love of God is not even in you." Amen. That's plain but brother, it's not whitewashed. It'll wash you white. That's right. Excuse me slobbering. I told you I wasn't a preacher in the first place. I've been eating a lot of grapes out of Canaan that caused me to slobber. Lot of slobber in Canaan. Amen.
1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
58 Oh, brother. What we need today is an old stirring of the Holy Spirit again. Brother, it had to come to me before God ever manifested Himself. We need another rushing, mighty wind sent. That's right, as on the day of Pentecost. They were all religious and followers of Jesus, but they had to go and receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Is that true?
And listen here women. You got to be scorched if you listen to this. Do you realize that up in there when they all went up, the hundred and twenty to pray, that when they... They never done like we Baptists do. Shake hands and put our name on the book and say, "Yes, I'm born-again." They didn't have it like that. There's no such a Scripture as that in the Bible. And we Catholic people who come, stick out our tongue and take the holy eucharist and say we got the Holy Ghost. No such Scripture in the Bible.
59 We Methodists go in on probation for six month and there's no such Scripture in the Bible. But the Bible said, "When the day of Pentecost was fully come, there came a sound from Heaven like a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting." And the power of God so enclosed those people and anointed them so they run out into the streets screaming, and dancing, and hollering, and acting like a bunch of drunk people. That's the Scripture "Thus saith the Lord."
And listen, women. The blessed virgin Mary had to get it that way, and if God made the mother of God have to come that way, how much more do you have to come that way? What we need is life. Not in some mythical, theological make up and in some theory of men, we need the old-fashioned baptizing of the Holy Spirit back into human life to make new creatures in Christ Jesus. Amen. I'm not amening myself. It means, "so be it." Can't help from saying it. Watch, my brother.
Acts 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
Acts 2:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
60 Yes, Cain was justified if God only required that, but God rejected him because his spirit only looked through the things temporal. He was the nature of his daddy. His daddy wanted a great, big, beautiful church in Heaven better than Michael. He got kicked out of Heaven for it. Here's his nature in Cain down here beautifying the altar and here it is yet today. Why, they make big fine churches.
You Pentecostal people are just as far off as the rest of them. Right. You think because you got a big crowd coming to your church, the society of the city or something like that, that's going to make any difference you may think, more sheep. God is going to meet you on the street corner or in an alley or anywhere. You're a lot better off when you was in the mission. Amen.
61 Oh, my! What a pity. What a disgrace that we are, to call ourselves Christians today when in the name of Christianity. Some of us know no more about God than a Hottentot would know about Egyptian night. Amen. Excuse me, brother. Just takes a lot of room for me to run around, I guess.
Notice, my brother. I'm sincere though. I mean this with all my heart. Cain knelt down and he worshipped God. And Abel worshipped God but Abel had a foresight. Cain said, "Apples brought us out of the garden of Eden." He offered fruit. How ignorant? Same thing goes on today. Beauty... He could appease God with a nice beautiful church and an altar. How ignorant? Same thing today. He is after his daddy, see.
Genesis 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
62 But Abel knew that it was blood. Amen. Brother, it takes blood to take us back there. Abel goes out and gets a little old lamb, wraps a grapevine around his neck. I don't guess there's any hemp in that day. Here he come, not beautiful, pulling a little old lamb up to the altar like that to a rock. Nothing pretty about it. Puts me in the mind of we free born church. Nothing beautiful about it. Picks up the little fellow and throws him up on the rock. Picks up a rock. I guess they didn't have any lance. Picks up a sharp rock, throwed his little head back and begin to chop his throat.
Did you ever hear a lamb die? The most pitiful thing you ever heard in your life, to hear a lamb die. But there that poor little lamb just dying, bleeding, and bleating, and the blood flying out like that bathing his little wool. God looked down and said, "That's right." That man was spiritual. He had a foresight of something.
Genesis 4:4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
63 What was he speaking of? Nineteen hundred years before [unclear words] that's about four thousand years it was. After that the Lamb of God was led away up Calvary's mountain. And on the road up there they nailed Him to the cross, beat Him in the back for the healing, striped, His body all over, his bloody locks dripping off of His shoulder mockery gobs spit all over Him; crying, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?"
Adam couldn't understand the language of the lamb. He was speaking another language. And Jesus Christ died speaking another language. "My God, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?"--perfect, beautiful, holy, unbelievable type, almost.
There He was, how pro and con. Watch them others. Cain in all of his beauty; his fine big altar, his glorious worship. My, just as pious and beautiful as it could be.
Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Mark 15:34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
64 Here was Abel. Little old sheep, brought up here, not very much to it. Just a big old rock, laying there, and he was beating his little life out of it, a bleating but what was it speaking of? Abel had foresight. He was born of Adam, which was a son of God and the church today that's born of Christ, the Son of God has the foresight and the recompense to the reward that's going to come. They don't care what the world says. How old-fashioned we're called. How much this, that or the other. We know what God said and that's what we're looking to. Amen.
Yes, sir. Let them go ahead and say what they want to. That doesn't make any difference. God's people has always been a peculiar people.
Now, watch. I want you to notice something else. We'll hurry. I want you to see this.
65 Here comes Cain. Then he looked around and he seen Abel's sacrifice was accepted, he become jealous. Then we find a whole lot of that today. Don't tell nobody but it is. That's right. Jealousy. "Oh, they're a bunch of nitwits. There's nothing to them. They haven't even got education. They don't know nothing about... How do they know? We got our degrees. We know what we're doing." Well, go ahead. Let the blind lead the blind, they'll all fall in the ditch. That's right. We know all about it. Yes, sir. And the first thing you know he goes over there, and what he does, he becomes jealous. He becomes angry. Where did that come from? That never come from God. That come from the Devil and he went out and murdered his brother.
Genesis 4:3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
Genesis 4:4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
Genesis 4:5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
66 Want to show you a little parable here right quick. A lot of people only seen three crosses at Golgotha. There was four. There was four crosses. The cross was a tree. Is that right? Here was Jesus, and the thief on the right, the thief on the left. Now, here was Judas went and hung himself on a sycamore tree. Is that right? Just as much cross as Jesus was on. The Bible said, "Cursed is he that hangeth on a tree." Jesus, they hung on a tree, or the cross to take away, made the first part.
Now, look. Here was the son of perdition come from hell returning back to hell. Here was the Son of God coming from Heaven, returning back to Heaven. Perfectly, Judas and Jesus the reincarnation. Judas and Jesus. Both of them brothers. One was the pastor. The other one was the treasurer. And this one thief on the left said, "If." The question mark on God's Word. "If Thou be, save Thyself and us. Show your power. Let's see You do a miracle now. If Thou be."
Matthew 27:5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
Luke 23:39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
Galatians 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
67 And this other one said, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." There was Judas taking with him, the unrepented sinner back to hell.
Christ taking with Him the repented sinner. "Today shalt thou be with Me in paradise." Perfect. The Gospel preacher, the church that believes. God withdraws the circumstance. They believe God anyhow. Go right on.
Now, notice. We'll hurry through 'cause we haven't got too much time. Let's take a little while. Now watch.
From Cain and Abel here starts two trees. Now, watch them coming up now. Here comes two trees start right there. Now, we're right into them today. I want you to get this. Right in them today. The first thing you know that started up. It's always been pro and con. Now if you look in the ark, in the time of the antediluvian destruction there was a dove and there was a crow. Both of them was birds. Both of them in the same place, the lower part was for the creeping things, the middle part was for the fowl. And Noah was right in the same category. That dove... He'd say, "Well, I got wings."
Luke 23:42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
Luke 23:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
68 Crow say, "I have, too." They were both fowl, but one of them was of God, and the other one was of the Devil. They turned one loose, and here's how they could tell by the appetite. The crow was satisfied to fly from one old dead carcass to another one and eat. That's just like the man who can confesses to be a Christian, today, and still smokes, drinks, and runs around like they used to. I don't care how much church you belong to. You're still a sinner in the sight of God.
So when they turned that dove loose, she couldn't stand that smell. She had to come back. Why? The nature of that dove, the reason the dove couldn't eat those things, it has no gall. It can't digest them things. And that's the way a Christian that's borned-again, the gall, the bitterness is taken away, and you can't digest the world no more (see?), or things of the world. It's all dead. Watch some more.
69 There's Esau and Jacob. Let's take them just for a moment. Why, Esau was way better, more of a gentleman, Christian-type man (what we call today) as Jacob. Why, sure he was. Esau taking care of his old, blind daddy. He herded the cattle. He went out hunting and got some deers and fed his old daddy. And Jacob was just a little old fellow laid around home, kind of lazy.
But what was the difference with Jacob? Jacob had recompense to God, that birthright. Is that right? A perfect type today. Somebody say, "Well, here's a good man. He goes to church and he goes every Sunday. He's a good payer in the church. He belongs to the best church in the city. He educates his children. He does that." That's very fine. That's good as a citizen, but brother, that has nothing to do with Christianity, not a thing. You go to church. Have your name on every church book there is in Palm Beach or Florida. It'll never do you one bit of good. Although the preacher can half-mast the flag and say you went to Heaven, but except you're borned-again, you're lost.
70 Now, might as well get this clear and get it right. And notice. Then the first thing you know how God vindicated His servant, Jacob. How He brought him out, and proved by signs and wonders that that was His. Now, always God has vindicated His believers. Well, bear that in mind. God has a vindicated His believers. Not how fundamental you are. We are not judged by fundamentalism, although, I believe fundamentalism is right. But we're not judged by being how fundamental we are, how orthodox we are to our belief. We're judged by God's election and vindication.
71 Notice. Here's a beautiful picture. Here comes Israel coming up out of Egypt. Israel, and they come to the land of Moab and when they got to Moab, well, here come... They had a prophet, a preacher up there. And he was a great man doing great things. So Balak said, "Come down now. I've got a lot of money here. I will give you if you'll come down and curse this fanatic coming up, this holy-roller, coming up out of Egypt down there, going to cross through my land. Come put a curse on him, because I know he was a religious man. Why, sure. Balaam went on. You know what happened? The old mule turned around, spoke in tongues to him, tried to get him to straighten out and he wouldn't do it. He went on down anyhow. And when he got down there to the place, why, I want you to notice now how fundamental. Now, those Moabites were not infidels. They were believers.
Numbers 22:6 Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.
Numbers 22:11 Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt, which covereth the face of the earth: come now, curse me them; peradventure I shall be able to overcome them, and drive them out.
Numbers 22:17 For I will promote thee unto very great honour, and I will do whatsoever thou sayest unto me: come therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people.
72 Cain on the left. Abel on the right. Watch them growing up through the Bible. Cain on the left. Abel on the right. Now, watch. Here comes the prophet down. He said, "The first thing we got to do. We got to be fundamental about this because God requires it. Build me seven altars." That's exactly what God said do. Fundamentally he was right.
Said, "I want you to put seven bullocks on there." That's fundamentally right. What the Bible said. "And not only that but I want you to put seven rams on there, 'cause Jesus Christ is coming some day, the Messiah. We got to make a sacrifice for that." Speaking of the coming of Christ. That's just as fundamentally as the Bible could read it. [Gap in the audio]
Numbers 23:1 And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven rams.
Numbers 23:29 And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.
73 Fundamental teachers, and there stood Israel right down there just having the same amount of sacrifices, the same promised sacrifices. Both of them were perfectly, fundamentally right. Now, if the Word only is what God requires, one was just as right as the other. Is that right? God required seven altars. God required seven bullocks. God required seven rams for His purpose. Seven is the perfect, the day of worship, seven days and so forth. And seven thousand years and then the Millennium or six thousand, and seven the Millennium. And so everything in the Bible types, and you know, in threes, sevens, twelve, twenty-fours and forties and fifties.
Numbers 23:29 And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.
74 All right. And in this seven worship, God was just as perfectly satisfied as fundamental, as these fundamentals were teaching just the same as He was with Israel. But here, watch, a group of believers standing up here now jealous of these his brother, Israel and here was... What was he jealous about? Why both of them Scripturally was doing exactly the same thing; teaching the exact same doctrine. Amen.
Now, I do feel religious. Notice. Here, I want you to notice it I'm bringing these trees. I'm going to bring it to Palm Beach, Florida, by God's help in a few minutes. All right. Here we are. We'll bring it right straight to Palm Beach, Florida, and prove from Genesis right down in here, and going out, in Revelation. It's the truth. Here they are standing here. All right.
75 These believers up here are jealous of these believers. Why? God is with them believers. That's the reason and he said, "Come curse me then." So they get the sacrifices and altars, put the bullocks on there, and all the great robes, the princes now, all the great doctors, and bishops, and archbishops, and all of them stood around with their robes [Gap in the audio] around these smoldering sacrifices. "O great Jehovah. Our land don't want to be polluted with that bunch of holy-rollers. Oh, don't let them come in this way."
Somebody said, "Was they holy-rollers?"
Sure, they were holy-rollers. Was they? When they crossed out of... Don't get angry with that. When they crossed out of Egypt, come through the separating Red Sea, representing the blood of Jesus, Miriam, the prophetess and Moses, the prophet... Moses got so full of the Spirit till he raised his hands and begin to sing in the Spirit. Is that right? And Miriam got so happy, she grabbed the tambourine and begin to beat the tambourine. Begin to dance, and the daughters of Israel followed her dancing in the Spirit down the banks of the river. If that ain't a holy-roller, I never seen one. Sure they were holy-rollers, and they had divine healing in their services, holy-rollers.
Exodus 15:20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.
Numbers 22:6 Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.
Numbers 22:11 Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt, which covereth the face of the earth: come now, curse me them; peradventure I shall be able to overcome them, and drive them out.
Numbers 22:17 For I will promote thee unto very great honour, and I will do whatsoever thou sayest unto me: come therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people.
76 They had a smitten rock, a brass serpent and they had a pillar of fire they was following, holy-rollers. Sure they were. They had signs, and wonders, and miracles among them. Is that right? But fundamentally, this bunch of fundamentals was just as fundamentally on the Word as they were, but God was a vindicating his people. Hallelujah! There you are. O God, have mercy. When I think of today how Satan has got the eyes of men so blinded [unclear words].
They offered their sacrifice, just as pious. Well if Israel come up, would say, "Wait a minute here, I'll prove to you by the Scripture," they couldn't have said a word. They'd shut their mouths right quick because they had the Word, and the fundamental believer today will shut your mouth. Yes, sir.
77 "I've got the Word. The Word says so. God bless you." That's truth, but wait has God vindicated you yet. Have you got signs and wonders in your church? That's where God always lives. You see signs and wonders because He's God. He's a Creator, and His people believe Him that way.
God made this world that you're sitting on this afternoon. Only thing He done is said, "Let there be," and this world that you're sitting on is the Word of God materialized. He believed things which was not, as though they were because His own Word said, "Let it be."
And any man that's born again of the Spirit of God, or a son of God, when God says so, no matter what the circumstances is, it's so anyhow. I don't care where all the teachers and the doctors of whatever it is and the world would say this, that and the other, he believes it's the truth because God said so.
"How's it going to be?"
"I don't know. God said so."
"How can you going to receive the Holy Ghost?"
"I don't know. God said so. He told me I could have it."
Genesis 1:3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
Genesis 1:6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
Genesis 1:14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
78 He said, "These signs shall follow them that believe. In My name they shall cast out devils, speak with new tongues, take up serpents, drink deadly things, lay hands on the sick, they shall recover." He said, "These signs shall follow them that believe."
Oh, we say, "The believer today is a man who goes to church and pays his tithes. He has his pew. He puts a window in the church. He's a good fellow." The Bible don't say one thing about that being a believer. See how we've taken our own traditions and made the law of God of none effect?
God said, "These signs shall follow them that believe. In My name they'll cast out devils, speak with new tongues, if they take up serpents or drink deadly things it will not harm them. If they lay hands on the sick, they shall recover."
Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
Mark 16:18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
79 Here not long ago there was a young boy went off to a cemetery, or seminary. About the same. So went off to get him... Always a seminary minister. I have nothing against it. I had some of it myself, but always reminds me of an incubator chicken, hatched out mechanically. "Chirp, chirp, chirp," and ain't got no mammy to go to. All they learn is theology. What we need is the baptism of the Holy Ghost. It's a shame that we've adopted theology to take the place of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
I may be deafening you, but I'm getting a blessing myself. All right. If I'm the only one, I'm swelling out. Notice. Oh, my. I would like to see this whole Palm Beach this afternoon with their hands up to God, praising God in an old-fashioned meeting. I tell you the power of God will sweep this place. This place would be so dry, if they'd nicker in the next few days, a bootlegger would have to prime himself a half hour to get enough moisture to spit. Amen. That's right. What we need today is an old-fashioned Holy Ghost meeting. That will solve the problem. Amen. Don't say it for a joke. I don't believe in joking in the pulpit, but it's the truth. Amen. Yes, sir.
80 Fundamental. Sure. He is just as fundamental right as the next man was. He was just as fundamental right, but now watch. Balak, the king, said, "Now, look over here." And he showed him the utmost parts of Israel.
I wonder if we haven't kind of looked at these people who preach divine healing, believe in the blessings of God the utmost parts. I believe he had the... This man run away with this man's wife. I wonder if we Baptists and Methodists haven't done the same thing, just kept it course down. Don't tell me. I've been with you. That's right. I know it to be the truth. Yes, sir. Sure. Let me tell you, brother, sin is sin let it be where it may be.
Numbers 22:41 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up into the high places of Baal, that thence he might see the utmost part of the people.
Numbers 23:13 And Balak said unto him, Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from thence.
81 Like this little, old mother sent her boy away to the seminary to become a preacher. Oh, my! It's all right. I believe it's a good thing. Sure it is as long as it's a good spiritual college; send him away. But when you take him to these old, cold, formal morgues... You know what a morgue is. Where somebody is dead and they take him down and pump something in him, keep him dead. That's just about the way it is. Take all the God out of him and teach him theology and send him back home worse than he was when he come. So that's right.
Here come this little old... One of these little seminary and the little mother got sick. She taken pneumonia and thought she was going to die. They sent for her boy to come home, if she wasn't better in the next twenty-four hours, he had to come home. Well, then the first thing you know she quit writing. A few weeks after that the boy took a vacation and come home. She wrote and told him she was all right. He said, "Mother, I want to ask you something, mother dear." Said, "How did you get well so quick?" Said, "What did the doctor give you?"
82 She said, "Oh, honey, I got something to tell you that you don't know about." She said, "You know this little old mission downtown here where that bunch of, you call, fanatics worship?"
"Yeah. Uh-huh."
Said, "You know that woman heard that I was sick, and she come up here, and the doctor done told me wasn't nothing he could do. Both lungs was congested. Just have to suffer it out and they didn't expect me to live overnight, and she heard about it and she come up here and said, 'Why don't you let our pastor come pray for you.' Said, 'He believes in divine healing.' Said, 'Don't you...'"
"'Oh,' she said, 'I don't know nothing about it."
Said, "Let my pastor come talk to you.'"
83 "So the pastor come up. He read Mark 3:6--Mark 16 to her and he said, 'If any among you is sick,' so forth like that and what to do, 'and these signs shall follow them that believe. They lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.'"
And said, "You know he read that out of the Bible and, I said, 'Well, if it's in the Bible, it's truth.' So he prayed for me and laid hands on me. And honey, the next morning I was perfectly well."
"Oh," he said, "Mother, you just don't know." Said, "Those fanatics never go to school." Said, "They don't know what it's all about. Well," said, "in the seminary we've learned better than that."
"Oh," she said, "you have?"
Said, "Yeah, we learned in the seminary Mark 16, from the 9th verse on is uninspired. It's not even inspired."
And the little woman said, "Glory to God. Hallelujah."
He said, "Mother, why you're acting like one of them." Said, "The very audacity."
And she said, "Well, hallelujah, son."
Said, "What's the matter, mother?"
Said, "I was thinking. If God could heal me with uninspired Word, what could He do with that's really inspired."
Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
Mark 16:18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
James 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
84 Amen. That's right. If He could do that with uninspired what about that that's really inspired. Brother, it's every bit inspired. I'll hang my soul on any of it. It's the truth, but the thing of it is, is our sluggishness won't meet God's requirement in faith. Looky here. Then I want you to notice just before I close now.
Here come these fundamentalists. My, they were going to put a curse on this, show him the utmost parts. And so away went the prophet. He took up his parable to find the Spirit, and when he found the Spirit of God, God said, "Don't you say a thing, but what I put in your mouth."
Said, "All right." And he went back to Moab. He said, "Now you show him how ugly the king was. How bad this bunch of fanatics down there that believed in divine healing, that brass serpent there for healing." They looked at it when they got sick. Got well. Yep. They had blessings. They go to the rock when they was thirsty and drink and just rejoice. They was just carrying on awful. That's right. Pillar of fire hanging over them. God's blessings just moving with them.
He said, "See how bad they are?" That's right,
Numbers 22:35 And the angel of the LORD said unto Balaam, Go with the men: but only the word that I shall speak unto thee, that thou shalt speak. So Balaam went with the princes of Balak.
85 but when the prophet come back, God begin to speak to the prophet.
He said, "I've not conceived iniquity in Jacob. I don't see him from the utmost parts because I beheld him from the mountain top, and I've not found any iniquity in Jacob." Why? His a vindication was there. His power was there. There was a smitten Rock, a brass serpent, an atonement going before them with a sign of God over them, with signs and wonders, see. The same thing from Cain and Abel. Now not fundamental, fundamental, too but signs following the believer. "These signs shall follow them that believe."
Come right along with Jesus. Look at Him for a few minutes. Oh, I think of that. How, when He come. He was fundamental in doctrine although it didn't agree with the priests in those days. And remember those priests wasn't scalawags, they were gentlemen. They were holy and without blemish. Scholars, as good as we got today. Right. And they failed to recognize Jesus Christ to be the Son of God. They failed to recognize Him, because what did He do? He tore up their churches. He tore down their creeds.
Numbers 23:21 He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them.
Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
86 He said, "You've taken your traditions and made the commandments of God none effect. You bunch of snakes in the grass." Oh, my!
"Oh," they said, "now, we can't stand for that. Anybody goes to hear such stuff as that he can just take his church papers and walk away." It hasn't changed a bit. The seeds are coming right on. Trees are going right on the same. They didn't believe Him, but why was He right and the rest of them was wrong? God was with Him. When after they crucified Him in Acts 2:4--Acts ... I mean, 2:24. It said this, "Ye men of Israel," said, "let it be known to you, Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by signs and wonders and miracles, which God did by him in the midst of you all." That's how they knowed He was a Man of God because God was with Him performing signs and wonders.
They were sitting back saying, "The days of miracles is past. There's no such a thing. That guy's a mind reader. He is a fanatic. There's nothing to Him. He don't even believe with our churches. He don't belong to any of them." Thank God for that. He stayed where God wanted Him. Didn't make any difference. He preached the Gospel uncompromised. He throwed, like John the ax to the root of the tree, let the chips fall where they wanted to. What we need today is an old preacher like John the Baptist. Amen. That'll lay the ax to the root of the tree, and lay it on the line. Line up with God's Word or line out. Amen.
Matthew 15:6 And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.
Mark 7:13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.
Acts 2:22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:
87 If they'll line up, God will vindicate it with spiritual signs and wonders like He said He would, but today we've accepted theology. "Well, now we know a little better. We're not that kind of fanatics and we'll just wait." See, just explained it all away, blood and everything else, power, signs, wonders, and here you got nothing. No more than a lodge. That's right.
Let me say this with reverence. I passed by one of your great churches, this morning, here in the city. And there stood... Looked to me like that the church was full, twenty or thirty percent of the members standing on the outside smoking cigarettes waiting between the services.
88 And I heard a Baptist preacher say the other day which is a good friend of mine, Dr. Schafer, a dear, godly, beloved brother. And I'm not just saying about the Baptists, the Methodists has got that kind, too. My associate pastor of my church is a Methodist from Asbury College and is a godly, borned-again, Holy Ghost filled man. Yes, sir. And old Mordecai F. Hamm, and many of those old Baptists is filled with the Holy Ghost. Sure they are. God have mercy on we...
Well, back yonder in Kentucky when we Baptists got the Holy Ghost, we didn't get like you all do. You all walk up and shake hands with the preacher, and be baptized, and put your name on the book. We got down at the altar and beat one another on the back till we come through. We got something, brethren. Yes, sir. That's right. That's what we need today is some more Baptists like that.
89 This Baptist preacher said sitting right here before me, brother, said, "Ten of my members is total drunkards, and members of this church, some of them living with other men's wives and everything else. Said, "What if I try to put them out?" Said, "You members would put me out." That's the way it's gone today. Denominations are breaking. God is pulling out His people, getting a church ready. Hallelujah! The very word church means, "the called out."
"Come out from among it, my people. Be ye separated saith God and I will receive you."
It ain't riding on your denomination. Denominational church age is a little like Moses. It failed to go in. Moses glorified himself instead of God, and failed, but Joshua was right with him all the time which has took Israel over to the promised land.
And today the church denomination is going by, "Who can get the most members and who can get this one to join and "A million more in 'forty-four," and all these different slogans and things like that, and what have you got when you got them? Hallelujah, but Joshua--the signs, and miracles, and power--that has been with the church all the time, and you're afraid to let it loose. That's the thing that will take the church into glory in the rapture. Hallelujah! Don't be scared. That means, "Praise our God," see. No, that won't hurt you.
2 Corinthians 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
90 Notice, brother. Here not long ago I was up in British Colombia when I come back from Africa. Brother Bosworth, I was so tired I couldn't hardly stand up. They was going to take me on a little trip up there. I was going to preach at Dawson Creek for the Indians and Eskimos. They knowed I was a hunter and liked to hunt. I'd get into the mountains there. I'd get alone with God watching, worship.
Here some time ago I was sitting up in the mountains in Colorado. I was hunting elk and it was early in the fall, and the snow hadn't come yet to make the elk come down. I was sitting up there, and oh, how my heart was burning for God. I was about thirty-five, forty miles from civilization, about five horses packed up. Was back there by myself, and I was walking along. Come up a storm. It'll rain awhile, and blow awhile, freeze awhile. Sun will come out. And you know how it is in the fall of the year in the mountains.
91 I was walking along there with my rifle. It come up a big rain. And I got in behind a tree and an old blow-down and waited there till the rain was over. I had to stand there with my head down, praising God. I said, "O God, how wonderful. You are the God of the mountain. You are the God of the valley. You are everywhere."
The storm let loose. After awhile the wind was so cold I looked. The sun peeped through the crevices and the mountain over there, and where the evergreens had froze a big rainbow come across the valley. Oh, my! I believe God is everywhere, don't you? I looked out there, and I seen that rainbow. I said, "Yes, Lord. Here I am way in the mountains. I see You yonder in that rainbow. Sure. You made a covenant. I seen Jesus in Revelations 1, sitting to look upon as Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the rainbow over Him, a covenant. Oh, I begin to rejoice.
Revelation 1:11 Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
Revelation 10:1 And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
92 Directly I heard an old gray wolf holler up here. Down in the valley a mate answered it. My mother's a half-breed--an Indian. Just enough about me to make me love deep calling to the deep and to that wild. And I heard the elk herd down here and the mate answering over here. Oh, I got to screaming and crying. "O God, let me live here forever. Let me stay here. Here is what I was born for. Let me live here." Listen at that old wolf howling yonder. Something in me stirring. I thought, "Oh how glorious, how wonderful. O God You live up here on top of these mountains."
About that time I heard a little old pine squirrel, I don't know if you know what they are. Little old fellow like that. The noisiest thing in the woods. He was sitting on an old stump going, "Chatter-chatter-chatter-chatter, chatter-chatter-chatter," like he's going to tear me to pieces. I thought, "What you so excited about, little fellow?"
93 And about that time out from under the blow, that old blow-down come a great big eagle. Oh, what a master looking big bird he was. And he was sitting there, and them big velvet eyes looking around. I thought, "Well, that's what he was scared about." I thought, "Now, Lord, me, standing here worshipping You, and listening to the wild calls and worshipping You, well, how could You ever be...?"
I believe God is everywhere. You see Him anywhere you want to look. He's just all around. He's just as tangible as the light is on my hand, right here now. And I thought, "What'd You put that eagle before me? He is a scavenger and why would that eagle come up here to break this?" I thought, "Well, God, I'm going to look to You. Is anything good about that eagle?"
94 I seen that eagle standing there, you know. He was just watching me. I thought, "Oh, he is scared of me." I said, "Hey, you know I could shoot you?" Flashed them big eyes, and looked at me. He wasn't scared of me, and I knowed he wasn't scared of that little squirrel. So he just kept standing there looking like that. I thought, "Well, what makes you so brave?" I can't understand it."
I said, "God, I know You love bravery. You like men who will stand on their convictions. Stand there when you know you're right, stay." And I said, "I know You love bravery. What makes that eagle so brave? I know he is brave."
95 I said, "You know I could shoot you?" Why, he knowed I didn't have a chance. My rifle was sitting against a tree. I put my hand on my rifle like that. I seen him look over at me. Set them big eyes. I thought, "Well, what's he so brave about?"
And then I happened to notice, he was moving his wings all the time. I see. God gave him two wings, and he knowed them wings about one big jump and a couple of flops he'd be out of my reach. He trusted them wings. He knowed them wings would carry him away from there. And as long as he could feel them wings there, he didn't care how much if I put my hand on my rifle, or how much that wood little old squirrel chattered at him there. He didn't care because God give him two wings and he trusted it.
96 I thought, "And that's true. No matter what the Devil says as long as I can feel the Holy Ghost around me, I don't care what they say." Hallelujah. God bless your heart. God give me the Holy Ghost to escape everything with, even everything and till even death can't hurt you. Hallelujah. I'll fly away some day.
I noticed him there. I said, "Praise God for the eagle." I looked at him like that. He got tired of that little old squirrel sitting there chattering. He knowed I was I was his friend. He knowed I wasn't going to hurt him, and he looked at that little old squirrel. He just got tired of him, and he just made a great big jump like that and made about two flops. You know what he did? He just set his wings and the first thing you know, he just begin to rise up. He never flopped his wings. He just set his wings, and every time them air current waves would come in over that mountain, he'd just ride up. Ride up.
97 I stood there crying like a baby. I said, "O God. Thank You, Lord. Praise the Lord." If somebody'd been there, they'd thought they had a insane man out of the institution up there. Around and around and around the tree I went as hard as I could go screaming the top of my voice. Well, I didn't care what anybody thought. I was worshipping God. Made no difference to me. I have a little heart spell once in awhile anyhow, like that, you know, worshipping.
And I thought, "Oh, look at that big fellow. He don't flop, and try, and flop, and try like a lot of those people will. But, "Oh, they just don't treat me right. I'll take... Go over to the Baptists." The Baptists don't treat me right. I will go over to the Pentecostals," and you're just packing your letter from place to place. You've wore it out. Why don't you put it in Heaven and forget about it? Right.
98 But what's he doing? He never flopped his wings. He just knowed how to set his wings, and ride the power when she come in. I thought, "O God, give us faith to know how to set our wings in Your power, and just ride away from this earthbound chatter--chatter saying ... Little old squirrel say, like, "Chatter-chatter-chatter. Days of miracles is past. No such thing as divine healing. Ain't no such thing as... Apostolic age is gone." He just rode on away from it. Not flopping. Just set his wings. He just rode on.
I thought, "God, if that ain't real I never heard it." Ride away from it. Just set your wings. When the power of God comes in, ride up on it. The power of God moves in, ride on up on it. The first thing you know you can't even hear their sounds, saying "Well if you don't belong to our church, if you don't belong here you don't..." You're just riding on away from it. On and on and on and on. My, how marvelous.
99 Coming down through British Colombia, I was hunting a big old grizzly bear, I was eleven hundred miles from a hard top road, and I was way back in there, and I got turned around. I thought, "I'll get my way out. Give me enough time so I just... And God is my helper." I got lost back there, and it coming dark.
I said, "Well, I know which direction to go. You got one little spot to find." So I took off, and I was way late, and the moon come out, and I passed by an old burn-over. And I thought, "Isn't that strange?" And the moon was out, and all at once when I passed by looked... It looked spooky--great, big, old blistered trees where the fire burned them. One time they were great towering pines. Put on your jacket now. Great towering pines stood there live, and doing things, but the fire come and burned them all down. And I thought, "Lord, what's this about?"
100 Then directly, I stopped my horse and tied her up. It was about nine o'clock at night. I looked around, and the moon shined on them old blistered trees. Put me in the mind of tombstones somewhere in a graveyard. And the wind begin to come down out of the heavens blowing and made the mournfulest sound, "Woo."
I thought, "Oh, what a spooky place." I looked around like that. I thought, "Well, my. Well, looky there. Now, why did You stop me here for, Lord?" I looked all around.
I thought, "Well, that's right.
I remember Joel said, "What the caterpillar left, the locust eaten. What the locust eat, the palmerworm eaten, and what one left the other one eaten." On like that till they eat it all down. He said, "Will this ever live again? Will this ever come to pass?"
I thought, "That's what Joel was speaking about," and I thought then...
Joel 1:4 That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpillar eaten.
101 I begin to notice and see. Then come the wind again and "Booo." I thought, "That's just the way our churches has got. Years ago the Methodists and Baptists having big old revivals, and healing campaigns. And you Methodists, don't tell me, I read your history. When the Methodists, when Wesley was over here, he couldn't get in places. He had to take places like this too, in little schoolhouses where he could get because the big starchy churches done fell away from God.
Wesley had a revival. And the people who fell down on the floor with the baptism of the Holy Ghost, they'd pour water in their face, and fan them. They'd lay all night on the floor. Huh! Too bad you had the pitcher of water. You might have come through, see. And they poured the water in his face and shake him. "Oh, he's fainted. He's fainted." The Holy Ghost working on him. Just wasn't the age yet to know these things, see. And there he was.
102 What a revival they had, and nobody can say they didn't have a revival. They did have a revival, and those big churches today saying, "I'm a church. Don't tell me. I'm recognized in the United States government." But, what have you got? You're dead, blistered. Just the signs of what you was, and every time God sends that Holy Ghost mighty rushing wind down through the church, then you go say, "Woooo, the days of miracles is past. There's no such a thing as divine healing. Wooooo. That's spiritualism. That's the devil. Wooooo. Don't go hear that old stuff. God don't heal the people no more. Days of miracles is past."
And the only thing the Holy Ghost does, going through them, there's nothing in the world would make them moan and groan and carry on. Ooh, brother, that sure went down, didn't it? I felt that go plumb to the core. That's where I wanted it to go. All right.
103 Now, but I wonder then what can you do? That's all it does. But now I thought, "Lord, You said, 'I will restore, saith the Lord in Joel.' Then I happened to look back and coming up under them trees come another bunch of trees, little, bitty old trees, coming up like this, little pine trees and all kinds, and when that wind got low enough down to catch them, brother, they wasn't standing stiff and starchy. They just give with the wind, that had life in them, just a frolicking and rejoicing.
I said, "Hallelujah. I will restore saith the Lord. I'll raise up another church. If they get starchy and deny the power of God, I'll raise up something that will receive it." Hallelujah! Whew! Amen.
You might think I'm crazy, but if I am, just leave me alone. I'm happy this way. I'm better off this way than I was when I was with the world so just let me alone. I'm all right. I never hurt nobody.
104 Listen, brother, if you have this, you know what I'm talking about. That's right. The Holy Ghost drawing. They're not starchy. "Why, I don't believe in them kind of things. Wooooo." Them little fellows was just as--just as nimble and they just give to the winds, and they was blowing. They was rejoicing and frolicking. I said, "That looks like a good old-fashioned Holy Ghost revival. That's exactly right. Coming right up under the Methodists and Baptists and all. God said, 'I will restore saith the Lord.'"
There come a... Oh, brother. What the church needs today... Not get away. Every time that a church gets away from the phenomenal, gets away from the faith that was once delivered to the saints, God sets them right back on the shelf, moves up, picks up somebody else and goes on. It's exactly.
Study church history. Find out if ever they had a revival in any age except they had miracles, signs, divine healing, power of God. In every revival, and as soon as that church, or a couple of decades or couple of rounds of reformers come along, they followed their step, the church got formal. God set it upon the shelf and raised up something else. That's exactly, and here we are today. What is it? The trees coming up. The tree... My, how ridiculous it looks to people.
Joel 2:25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.
105 Just another remark if you'll pardon me a minute. Something come in my mind. One time God was going to deliver some people down in Egypt. He had an old man out there eighty years old, back on the backside of the desert, named Moses. One morning he come up walking around. He was an old ... He was backslid. He was back out there and married an Ethiopian woman, had a couple of kiddies.
And so he was back out there, herding the sheep one morning and praising the Lord, and the Lord showed him a burning bush. He said, "Now, look Moses. I'm going to send you down to Egypt." The greatest mechanized units in the world, the powerfulest army in the world. "I'm going to send you down there to take over."
"Well," he said, "Lord, I can't go. I ain't got nothing to go with."
Said, "What you got in your hand?"
Said, "A stick."
Exodus 3:2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
Exodus 3:10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.
Exodus 3:11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
Exodus 4:2 And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
106 How little. How significant. What's in your hand today? You may not have even a stick in your hand. You can testify. You can sing, or you can pass tracts. You can tell somebody about it. Whatsoever is in your hand, get out and do something about it. Move. Let's get going. Let's get the revival moving. Let's fill these seats up. Get people saved. Filled with the Holy Spirit. Get the churches built up around here and on fire. All the Methodists and Baptists and all of us. Let's build up. Get somewhere for God. Sure.
Moses said, "It's a stick, Lord."
He said, "All right. Now, you throw it out of your hand." Now, in Moses' hand it wasn't very much, but when it come in God's hand, it become a judgment rod.
Exodus 4:2 And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
Exodus 4:3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.
107 The little boy one day had five fishes, in his hand it wasn't very much. But when it come in Jesus' hands, it fed five thousand. It's not very much in your hand what you got, but give it to Him one time. What little talent you got, give it to Him. Find out what it'll become in His hand. Yes.
Moses said, "All right, Lord, I will go." And could you imagine ... Let's draw up a little drama. Here comes the next morning. An old man eighty years old, whiskers hanging down about like this, little old skinny body, with a crooked stick in his hand, leading a little old mule, with a woman sitting straddle of it with two young'uns on each hip... A young'un on... Here she goes down in Egypt.
I hear somebody say, "Moses, where are you going?"
"Glory to God. I'm going down to Egypt to take over."
"Take over. Take over. Ridiculous."
They'd say, "Well, they've got a million trained men."
Matthew 14:19 And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.
Matthew 14:20 And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full.
Mark 6:41 And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all.
Mark 6:42 And they did all eat, and were filled.
Luke 9:16 Then he took the five loaves and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed them, and brake, and gave to the disciples to set before the multitude.
Luke 9:17 And they did eat, and were all filled: and there was taken up of fragments that remained to them twelve baskets.
John 6:11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.
John 6:12 When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.
108 "Don't make any difference. God told me to take this stick and go down and take over. God said so. I'm going to do it." Why, it seemed like ridiculous, but he did it. Hallelujah! Why? God takes the ridiculous to prove His powers. Hallelujah! That's what I believe. God takes the things which is not and brings that which is to naught. Amen. Sure He does.
Say, "How is He going to do this with this?" It's not our business to question, it's our business to obey.
Samson standing out there. One day the Philistines got after him. He knowed he was anointed. He knowed he was born under Nazarite birth, and the Philistines was upon him. Said, "Philistines on me." He looked around, and he... Well, he wasn't a warrior. He didn't know how to use a sword so he just found a jawbone of a mule, and he picked up that jawbone of a mule, and the Spirit of God come on him, and he slew a thousand Philistines. Amen. What? The Spirit of God come on him. That's what makes the difference.
Judges 15:14 And when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him: and the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands.
Judges 15:15 And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.
109 I was preaching one time in a football stadium, and as I went in, the thing was packed out, and I was going looking. Had a little sign up over the door. Said, "It's not the size of the dog in the fight. It's the size of the fight in the dog." That's a good idea. It's not the size of the dog. It's the size of the fight.
Brother, you legalists here want to call it righteous indignation. Let's get started. Hallelujah. Get stirred up about this thing and get out there and say, "God, You are real. You are my Saviour, and I want to serve You and I don't care what the people say. I'm going to serve you anyhow." Get out and do something about it. Sure.
I see little old Shamgar over there in the Bible. Very seldom you know anything about him. Don't know much about him. There he was sitting up there. The Philistines had come in and there was no judges in Israel and they just do anything they wanted to. About the way the churches are today.
Judges 3:31 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.
110 All right. And the first thing you know, the Philistines had come in--come in, take what they had to eat. And here's little Shamgar standing out there. The year before they'd took all he had, and here he was standing there. His poor little wife standing there, and her sleeves all out, and his little kiddies barefooted. I can imagine him standing there. He'd got some grain. He'd worked all summer. Said, "Well, wife dear, I suppose maybe this winter we won't starve if them cursed Philistines will stay away. We got enough wheat now. We can get the kiddies some wheat, and some bread, and here's some barley. We have some porridge for breakfast. And I guess everything will be all right. Honey, I'm just so sorry. Your poor little arms look so bad, and your clothes are gone. Maybe I can sell a little and get you some clothes.
111 Directly I hear something going, "Thomp, thomp, thomp, thomp." That's just the way you do when you think you got your church started out on the spiritual. Here comes the Devil send something in. That's just the way he does it. That's right. Don't pay any attention to him.
Here he looked out the window. Raised back the barn door and looked, and there come six hundred armed men. Big, fat fellows walked up armors and shields. Coming over to get Shamgar's grub to take it back across. He looked, and he looked at his little wife. I can see the tears running down his cheeks. He looked around. "Well, if I had armor and spear. What am I? I'm a farmer. I couldn't fight them and look I'm outnumbered. There's six hundred to my one. What can I do? But wait a minute. I'm an Israelite. I'm circumcised. I'm in the covenant of God." Hallelujah.
112 If the odds are against you on divine healing, if the odds are against you on old time salvation, what difference does it make? We're circumcised. The Holy Ghost has took the Spirit of God and cut the world away.
He looked out there, and he seen that, and his righteous indignation rose. He wasn't a warrior. He didn't have time to go away to school and train to fight these Philistines. He didn't know nothing about it in the first place; so he just grabbed the first thing he had, or got a hold of, and it was an ox goad. You know what an ox goad is? It's a big stick with a piece of brass on it. Knocked the stuff off the plow with, when it gets choked up, or poke the cattle, and make them go on through the gate. He jumped out there in the middle of the road, under this, knowing that he was a child of God. He wasn't a warrior. He wasn't a preacher. He wasn't this, that or the other. Just like you are today.
Judges 3:31 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.
113 You say, "Let the preacher do the preaching. Let him bring the revival." You've got to do it too. Have prayer meeting in your house. Burn up them cards you're playing. Take that beer out of the box. Let's start a revival. That's right. Yes, sir.
He grabbed that stick, and jumped out there in the middle of the road. The Spirit of God come on him, and he killed six hundred Philistines. Hallelujah!
You're going to call me a holy-roller after this, aren't you? But I'm feeling awfully good. If it takes that to get to Heaven, then I want to be that. I'm not a holy-roller. No, sir, and I've never seen one in my life. I've sailed the seven seas three times around the world, and I've never seen a holy-roller yet. I've seen people who believed in holiness, but I didn't see a holy-roller. Never seen one in my life. All the meetings I've been into and ministered, I guess I'm acquainted today, direct or indirect, with ten million people, never seen a holy-roller yet. No. Never seen any church that was, bringing it up here ... with the government, there was nine hundred and sixty some odd different churches. I never seen a holy-roller branded on any of them. It's a name the devil tacked onto the church. That's exactly. When a man gets salvation, they say he is a holy-roller. The devil's mark exactly.
Judges 3:31 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.
114 Now, notice this, friends. Jesus was rejected. All right. Then, let's look at the great Saint Paul. Now, let's bring this line on up. Look. Let's contend for the faith that was what? First delivered to the saints: signs and wonders. God vindicated His church all along with what? Not membership. Signs and wonders. Is that right? Not who has got the biggest crowd. Who is the most fundamental in doctrine; but signs and wonders. That's where God has been.
Look at it now. There's your seed in Genesis. Look at it now. Where are we at now? We're in Revelations. It's spreading out. Thirteenth chapter of Matthew said, "The sower sowed wheat and some sowed weeds." Said, "Let them both grow together."
Matthew 13:24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
Matthew 13:25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
Matthew 13:26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
Matthew 13:27 So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?
Matthew 13:28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
Matthew 13:29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.
Matthew 13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.
Jude 1:3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
115 Look. We're always saying how bad the world is. How the bootleg joints, and whiskey, and legalized drinking, and gambling, and prostitution and everything's going on. We're always talking about that, but you fail to find out... Look where the church is too. Hallelujah. We're moving right on up. Signs and wonders appearing everywhere. She's putting out seeds too. We're nearly there. Don't worry. The harvest is soon on.
Oh, thank God for the church. Yes.
"What church, Brother Branham?"
The born-again.
"Is that the Methodists?"
That's all of us. Amen. That's born-again. That's everyone of us. Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, Catholic, whatever we are if we're born of the Spirit of God, we're sons and daughters of God. We believe in the phenomenal. We believe in divine healing. We believe in the power of God. We accept it. We see Him working signs and wonders.
116 Now, look. Last comment. Now, we're in Revelations, going out. Let's listen to what Paul said. "Know this that in the last days (that's the end, isn't it?) perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves."
"I'm from the so-and-so."
"Lovers of their own ... proud, boasters, incontinent, fierce and despisers of those that are trying to do good." See?
"Oh, I tell you now, Brother Branham. That meant communists." Oh, no. That meant fundamentalists. "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. From such turn away for this is the sort that go from house to house and lead silly women," along with all kind of societies and stitch and sew and talk about Miss So-and-So. And boil up some old rooster and sell it and pay the preacher. Oh, goodness. Pay your tithes, you won't have to do that. In all these other things like this. "Having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof. From such turn away." God, be merciful to us.
2 Timothy 3:1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.
2 Timothy 3:2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
2 Timothy 3:3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
2 Timothy 3:4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
2 Timothy 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
2 Timothy 3:6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
117 Christians, I'm not trying to hurt you. I'm trying to stimulate your faith. Don't pay any attention to what anybody tells you if it's contrary to "Thus saith the Lord." Look, God always, from Genesis, He put the seed down there. Look here today. Look at the people go to church. Put on your thinking cap. I'm closing. Put on a thinking cap.
Look down through the Bible at these two stalks now. Here they come up. Both of them: Cain and Abel. Both of them was worshipers. Both of them was believers. God vindicated this one. Rejected this one. No matter how fundamental he was, he rejected him, because he didn't have signs. Come on up through the Israelite age. Got both of them fundamental. Both of them standing there. One just as scriptural as the other one. God vindicated it by signs and wonders. Rejected that one just as fundamental as this one here, but He rejected him because signs and wonders. You see election and calling, always of God. Come right on up.
118 Look at Jesus' day. Here they come up. Jesus fundamental too. So was the Orthodox priest, but He rejected him. Accepted Jesus, vindicated Him by signs and wonders said the Bible. That's how we knowed He was a man of God. The phenomenal was following Him: signs and wonders.
Now, the great Saint Paul. Do you believe he is authority? Say, "Amen." Great Saint Paul said, "Now, wait a minute. I'm writing this in the Bible. 'In the last day they're going to be just as fundamental. Having a form of godliness, but they're going to deny the power, this great power over here. That's going to have a form of godliness. They're going to be just as correct in the Scripture as the rest of you. They're going to believe in God, the second coming of Christ. They're going to believe in all that. They're going to have fine churches. They're going to have the same thing they had down here. Going to have the same thing they had here. Going to have the same thing here. Going to have the same thing there, but the same church was here, was here and here. And there she goes out in the seed at the end.'"
Step off that vine today, brother. Get over here. Come on in while it's called day. God has made a way for you. God has blessed you.
Acts 2:22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:
2 Timothy 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
119 Here some time I was reading about old blind Bartimaeus. He was an old man. One night his wife was stricken sick. He had a little dove that done somersaults over each other like this to entice the travelers that passed by. And as they passed by they'd watch that and stop. Then they'd give blind Bartimaeus a coin, and that's how he lived. So the story said.
Then one day his wife took sick. He walked out. He was a believer. He believed God would heal. He believed God was real. He said, "Lord God, my poor wife, the doctor can do no more for her. If You will spare her life tomorrow, I will take these turtledoves and offer them to You for a sacrifice." The hard thing. We want to make the sacrifice out of... Well, something easy, see. That's not a sacrifice. It's something that hurts and cuts is what's a sacrifice.
120 So the next morning his wife was well. He took the turtledoves and offered them. Not long after that they say he had a little blond-headed daughter about eight years old. He'd never seen her in his life. He was blind. She took sick. So he went out and prayed that night. He said, "Lord, if You will heal my little girl and don't let her die, I will give You my..." He had a lamb. These days they're led by a dog that leads the blind. They had a lamb then that led the blind. So he had a little lamb that led him up to the gate, and then he'd stop and tie the lamb up.
So he said, "If You will heal my little girl and don't let her die, God, tomorrow I will give You my lamb." Well, the next morning his little girl was well. God had healed her. So here he goes up.
121 The story says that Caiaphas, the high priest, stood up and said... They was going up towards the sacrifices. He said, "Where goest thou, blind Bartimaeus?"
He said, "O high priest, I go to offer my lamb. Jehovah God healed my daughter last night. I promised Him my lamb."
"Oh," he said, "blind Bartimaeus, you cannot offer that lamb." Said, "I will give you the money to buy you a lamb up at the sellers and," said, "up at the cages. They'll give you a lamb. I will give you some money and you buy a lamb."
He said, "I never promised God a lamb. I promised Him this lamb." That's right. This lamb.
He said, "Blind Bartimaeus, you can't do that."
He said, "But high priest, I promised God I would."
He said, "But blind Bartimaeus, that lamb is your eyes."
Said, "Very well, high priest, but God will provide a lamb for blind Bartimaeus' eyes, if blind Bartimaeus will obey God."
122 Well, about six months later in a cold November day, he sat at the gate shivering. No lamb to lead him. No doves to do enchantments. No money to pay the coal bill, but he had obeyed God. First thing you know he heard a racket coming down the street. "What is it?" There's screaming and crying, shouting. There's always some kind of excitement where God is around. Said, "Who is that coming?" God had provided a Lamb for blind Bartimaeus' eyes. Here come the Lamb.
And that Lamb is provided for every spiritual blind man or physical blind man in here this afternoon and woman. The Lamb has been provided. Won't you accept it while we bow our heads, if you will.
Our Heavenly Father, sometimes I think of how ... what can we do? How can these things be that You are so good to us? Bless us and help us. We're unworthy, and I pray for mercy. And today, while we know that same provided Lamb that was for blind Bartimaeus' eyes is here, pass through here, Lord. Open every spiritual blinded eye, and let them see today that Your church is a church alive with miracles and signs and wonders. Grant it, Lord.
123 And may many men and women who has not yet been borned and filled with the Holy Ghost, by tradition has been packed away to one side, may they humbly in their heart now say, "Lord Jesus, I now accept You as my Lamb to guide me. My eyes has been blind. I've never had an experience of being borned-again. I want You to give me the birth right now. I want to go out of here this afternoon with a happy, free-feeling heart to know that my sins are gone and to know that I'm filled with Your Spirit. To know that signs and wonders shall follow my life too, that You will appear to me in visions and dreams, and I can go on the street and work for You and testify and do Your work.
Grant it to every man and woman sitting here, God. Accept these few words, God, so unarranged and unknown what I would speak of it. I pray that somehow You will gather them all together in Your own glorious, lovely way, and present them to the hearts of the people. Grant it, Father, for their intended purpose. You know what I meant by them.
124 I pray that every sick person sitting here will hear that scream today of the Lamb of God coming by. "Who was it?"
We know the unbeliever said, "Keep your peace."
But he cried that much louder, "Thou, Son of David, have mercy." He had a need. He knowed God had provided the Lamb.
Pray, God! May no one hold their peace, but may they scream out until the Lamb stops. Says, "What will thou have Me do?"
"Lord, that I might receive my sight." He touched his eyes, and sight broke into eyes which could not see.
God, grant today that the Holy Spirit will touch every heart today and every eye that both spiritual and physical sight may be restored. Grant it, Lord. Bless all together. Have mercy.
Some glorious day, Lord, I don't know when. Some day I've got to preach my last sermon. Some day these people have got to hear their last sermon. We've got to stand in Your presence. I see those big trees coming up. I seen them from Genesis. And God, I see it here in this day.
Mark 10:48 And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.
Mark 10:51 And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
Mark 10:52 And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
Luke 18:36 And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
Luke 18:39 And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me.
Luke 18:41 Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
Luke 18:42 And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
Luke 18:43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.
125 What can I do, Lord? What can I do? I don't know what to do. My heart's burning. My soul's bleeding. I see men and women smuggled out there in darkness. And I don't know what to do, Father. If I say one thing, they say this, against it. And I say that, they say something else. But God, I'm committing it to You now. Speak to every heart.
While we have heads bowed and our eyes closed, please no one look, but just let the Lord and I see this. The piano or the organ as it's softly playing. I wonder if someone in here, I don't believe there's a head up that I see. I wonder if someone in here'd say, "Brother Branham, truly in the sight of God, I know I haven't received the Holy Ghost. There's no need of me trying to deceive myself. I know I haven't. There's no such signs following me and Jesus said, 'These signs shall,' and they're not, and I know I'm not ... I haven't received the Holy Ghost. You pray for me, Brother Branham. If God will hear your prayers to open the eyes of the blind, make the deaf to hear, and see, and the cripples to walk, surely He will hear for me."
Mark 16:17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
126 Will you raise your hand and say, "Pray for me, Brother Branham." God, bless you, you, you, you. Oh, my! Just keep your heads bowed. I see your hand. Thirty, forty, fifty hands up. Oh, Christ. Please, dear God. There may be one more step between us and eternity. We don't know what tomorrow even holds, but I pray that now, right now, while Your great omnipotent presence of the crucified One that stands here marvelously looking on, will bless.
I pray that You will give each one of those who raised their hands the baptism of the Holy Ghost. May He fill their heart with such power that we'll have a repeat of the Pentecostal blessings like fell in the beginning. They're tired and weary, Lord. Some of them was old and gray headed. Sun is setting. The evening star of time is coming out. God grant that they receive the Holy Ghost.
127 Poor old mothers and dads who struggle along through life. Maybe they never had an opportunity before. I pray that You will give it to them now and may the sweet, lovely Dove of God settle down in their heart and fill them with the Spirit of God till their lives will be full of power. Great signs and wonders will break out, and this hard city here will be crushed and smashed. And God's Presence will ride into every church and be an old-fashioned revival that'll spread across the country, the news of it from this city. Grant it, Lord.
Many couldn't hold their hand. Maybe wasn't... Wanted to but they just... Their convictions wasn't strong enough. God, I pray that You will bless them, too. Give them all the Holy Spirit. Save the unsaved. Heal the sick in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ we ask it. Amen.
128 You raise your heads. I'm going to ask you something. Excuse my rough way of speaking. I don't know no other way, friends. The only way I know to do is just what He tells me. I say it. And I'm just kind of... You know. I just do the best that I can. You've been used to listening to scholars, polished scholars who can hold their text together. I didn't know what I was going to say when I come up here. I just have to say it the way that ... but I know it's the truth 'cause it comes from God. I didn't write it on paper. And I love you.
I don't scold you to make you angry with me. I do that for your correction. Any true daddy would correct his children, certainly he would. And I knew you were sitting here and fifty or more hands went up that you needed the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Brother, sister, without that you'll perish as sure the world. Don't come short of that. Look, my Bible over my heart, I've tried to be sincere.
129 Now, there may be many things that I do not know, but I do know Jesus Christ. I do from the bottom of my heart. And some day I've got to meet everyone of you at the judgment seat of Christ. I've got to stand there. That's right. I've got to give an account for what I say and do. So if I'm in error, it's sincere. I don't mean it.
But, dear Christian friend, if you haven't the Holy Spirit, I wonder if you would want to receive It this afternoon coming to an altar to pray. I wonder if you'd like to come up here, and if God in His mercy, if He will hear prayer to heal the sick.
130 I'm just getting letters after letters of people here who's missing your tumors and everything like that is moving from them. People who was crippled with arthritis even come by here and went and I told them to lay hands on their wives, and people. They said, "When I got home and laid my hand on my wife, she got up out of bed. It's all over. She's feeling fine." Different parts... In this little bitty handful of people. See, friends, I'm trying to tell you the truth, and God is a vindicating I'm telling you the truth. It's not me. It's Him. It's Him. He is the One is doing it.
Now, He is here to heal right now. He knows all about it. Right now. I don't have to wait till night comes. I know He is right here healing right now. Now, I know... I know somebody... Right now the Holy Spirit is upon me, changing from preaching, right now because many of you are here for healing, and I feel It moving right around over me right now. The Angel of God whose picture that is on that paper. That's the truth.
131 I see It hanging right over me right now. Hanging right out here. It moves right... It just looks to me like... Oh, I wish I could explain this. I know you might say, "Brother Branham is a fanatic." Well, I'm not. I'm not a fanatic. I'm your brother.
A little soldier standing here. The little fellow standing there, sitting there praying. Yes. You're sick. You need healing, aren't you? It's something your ear, isn't it? That's a running in your ear. It won't heal up. Isn't that right? Put your hand over your ear. Lord Jesus, I pray that You will take that away from him right now and make him well. O God. Poor little fellow, out here serving in the army. His ears are bad. Maybe You wanted him healed today. That's the reason You do this. I pray that You will grant it right now in divine vindication. Jesus after preaching healed the sick. Now Lord, I pray as Your servant, I ask for healing for my brother in Jesus Christ's name. Amen. God bless you, my brother. It's going to stop now. It'll be all right. God bless you.
132 Anyone wants the Holy Ghost? Would you come here and stand right here while we sing: Almost Persuaded. Would you do it? Will you give us, sister, a chord on that, while the audience Would you come here? God bless you.
"Almost persuaded" now to believe;
[Gap in the audio] Now, we're not trying to take you from the Methodists, from the Baptists. We're trying to get you to receive the Holy Ghost and go back to your own church, see, filled with God's blessings. Your pastor will appreciate it. Oh, he'll be so happy you received the Holy Ghost. There's more in here should be standing here. What if Jesus would just now, you'd hear screaming? You look out, rainbows flashing through the skies, the sun going down, hanging yonder in the west dripping like black blood. Too late then.
If you're not sure you're filled with the Holy Spirit, won't you come now? Sing once more, will you? Your mothers and fathers sang these old songs years ago. Won't you come? Now while we sing...
133 [Gap in the audio.] While the organ's a playing.
There's others should be standing here. Don't tell me. I know there is. I feel led to say this. Right down here in the heart of your city one night, I felt led to do this. You know what I did? Walked out of the pulpit, a fine young Baptist girl. Said, "The Lord is calling you, sister, tonight."
She said, "If I wanted somebody to tell me something like that, I'd get somebody had some sense. Not you."
I said, "All right. Very well." I said, "The Holy Spirit told me this was your day, your time."
She stuck her little nose up, very attractive looking girl, walked away out the door. There's some vines growing out there. When I come out that night, if she didn't give me a beautiful bawling out.
134 About three years later, I was in the same city going down the street. She was out of a fine family. Her father and mother both was Christians; belonged to a fine Baptist church.
I started going down the street, and I looked across the street in a real bad neighborhood, and there went that girl. Her skirts hanging, horrible looking. I just started walking along down the street to be sure that was her. She turned around and she said, "Well, hello preacher." Real slurry.
Said, "How do you do?"
Said, "You're the guy that called me out that night in the church, aren't you?"
And I said, "Yes, ma'am."
"Ha." She reached down in her pocketbook and lit up a cigarette. Said, "Have a smoke."
I said, "Shame on you."
She said, "Maybe you'd like to have a little drink." She pulled her flask of whiskey out.
Said, "The very idea of you offering God's servant such a thing as that."
Said, "Nothing can happen to me anymore." She puffed on her cigarette a little bit, marijuana. She said, "You remember preacher, that night that you told me that God was giving me my call?"
I said, "Yes, I sure do remember it."
135 She said, "If you ever told the truth, it was then." She said, "My heart has been so hard since that very night." Now, here's the remark she made. "I could see my mother's soul fry in hell like a pancake, and laugh at it."
Turned around and blowed that smoke and walked down the street a prostitute, drunk, dope fiend.
Don't turn God down. He will knock one time for the last time.
Let's pray again.
Lord, I don't know why I said that, but I said it, Father, because I felt that You wanted me to. Now, if there be any here that needs You, Father, I just commit it to You and pray that You will send them to this altar at this time that they might receive Your Spirit.
If they're unsaved, save them, and if they're unprepared to meet You without the Holy Spirit, I pray that You will give them the Holy Spirit this very evening in Jesus' name. Amen.
136 Now, while we just wait a moment, will you play that again for us, sister? Just play it through. Just be reverent. If you feel that God would want you to come, come stand with us.
While doing this, how many ministers are in here that believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is for the believer today? Raise your hand. Ministers of the Gospel. Would you all walk right around here with these people?
Now, to you believers who are standing here seeking the baptism of the Holy Spirit, I'm very grateful for you. I'm grateful that what little ministry the Lord has given me here has been effective, and you've believed it. God will surely bless you for it. As a humble servant, I've done all that I know how to represent my Lord, and I say to you in the name of Christ Jesus, He is standing right here now. And He will give each one of you the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
137 Now, the thing you have to do... It's a gift. It isn't a faith. It's a gift. It doesn't come... You say, "Well, I believe I've got It." That don't work. It isn't that. It's a gift, unmerited gift. God just gives It to you. Not because you believe It, because God gives It to you, but you've come asking Him for It. And He would ... "Blessed are they that hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled." God will give you the Holy Spirit.
I want you to open your heart and say, "Father dear, I'm a believer. I'm Your child, and I now want the Holy Spirit to come into my heart. I lay all the world on the altar. I lay everything on the altar."
Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
138 Now, while you're standing here, many of you weeping, the tears rolling down your cheeks. That's the Holy Spirit. That's Him on you right now. Just wanting to fill your life. If the audience back there could only see this scene standing here. Young ladies, young men, elderly people, the tears just rolling down their cheeks. The Holy Spirit is hovered... Here's the Angel of God standing right... It isn't five feet above their head right now. The very Angel you see on the picture, standing right here above them right now. That's right. Just ready to pour Himself into every believer.
Now you just believe it. Ask Him and just accept It. Say, "Lord, I believe You," and then you'll know when It comes. You'll feel the Spirit of God pouring into your heart. Then when you do, raise up your hands and thank Him for it. Say, "Thank You, Lord Jesus. I'm so grateful that You've give me the baptism of the Holy Spirit," and you'll feel the power of God surge through your body. You'll be a different person from that time on.
139 Now, let every person in here, bow your head if you will. Now, you ministers standing here around these people, walk up to them, lay your hands over on them. The Bible said to lay hands on them. Each one of you, now lay your hand over on the believer. That's what we're supposed to do. Lay your hand over on them who are seeking the baptism of the Holy Ghost. [Gap in the audio] The Holy Spirit is coming into her heart. Now, lay your hands over on the believers and now ask them to receive...
Now, you people out there be deeply sincere. All right. Let's pray now everybody. All of you pray. Pray your own prayer.
140 Now, Father, as I pray knowing that at this very hour that millions of prayers across the world is coming into Your ears. You hear everyone of them. There's not a way for You to fail, but to hear everyone of them. And now, Lord, these dear, poor children coming up. I pray for mercy for them. O eternal God, send Your blessings, and may the Holy Ghost that's hanging right over these people now, may He fall right upon them just now.
May every heart receive Him, and may the glory and power of the resurrected Jesus Christ come upon them just now. May great signs and wonders follow their life, and may they lose their own thoughts and turn to Thee just now. Not caring what the audience says. Not caring what anybody else thinks, but knowing what You have required.
141 "You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you." And may the power of the Holy Ghost fall upon everyone of them just now as these ministers are laying hands on them. And may the Holy Ghost follow them in signs and wonders. May great exploits be done. And may this little gathering this afternoon break out into an old-fashioned Holy Ghost meeting. Grant it, Lord.
Now, Satan, you have lost your authority. You've lost your power. And the Holy Ghost is here to take over and to bless these people and fill them with God's goodness. I ask for the Holy Ghost to take the way in the hearts in Jesus Christ's name.
Now, just keep your hands up. Keep praising God. Keep giving praise and glory. Each one of you. Just thanking Him. Say, "Thank You, Lord, Thank You, Lord, for the...
Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.