When their eyes were opened
You can find this sermon at ChurchAges.net
1 Thank you very much. Good evening, friends. Happy to be here again tonight in the service of the Lord Jesus. Trusting that your hearts are all on glow tonight with His blessings. Just a little weak in my voice. This is four months straight now without one bit of rest. And I've got two more meetings before I get any rest; that's Charlotte and Anchorage, Alaska.
The tremendous impact of the anointing of the Holy Spirit gives such an awful weakening condition to me. Really, I wasn't supposed to have one healing service while I was in Carolina, any place. The manager's not here, and that's the reason I'm having it. If he's here, he'd pull me out of the meeting right now, to see me do it. When I get this tired and worn, they take me in. But it's because I've never been here before, and I want to come back. You're lovely people; I'm trying to do all I can for the kingdom of God while I'm here.
2 And we're struggling pretty heavy. I just speak so much in open air, from city to city, from nation to nation, till my voice just gets tired. I just... Not only that, but my body does. And I get so weak sometimes. Now, as far as physical strength, I'm pretty strong. But you don't realize what those visions does to a person. They just almost kill you. And there's no way... It takes you hours to come out of them. Then one right after the other one, you can imagine what it does to the person.
When it even made Jesus weak, we can realize about what it would be to a human being like ourselves. There's no way to explain it; you just have to go on. I couldn't explain it, and no one else could explain it; so you just have to take our word for it. But if you're a good Bible student, you'll understand, if you know the Bible really correctly, the way it's written.
3 So we'll probably go ahead and have it. Now, in Charlotte, we'll probably only have one healing service and that'll probably be the Sunday afternoon---just getting too tired, too weak. And some more of the managers going to be with me and them up there, so they probably will ... they won't let me have it. But I probably at least have one night sometime, or one Sunday afternoon at Charlotte. And then they'll probably cut it down to one night at Anchorage before we get some rest.
Now, the thing is: When Moses, the servant of the Lord, went down in Egypt, every time he met a Hebrew He didn't have to heal his hand with leprosy and perform a miracle with a stick. He done it one time and that settled it. That was forever true.
Well, see, there's where I do wrong. One time should settle it forever (see) with every congregation. It can be really proven of God and from the Scripture, and God does it one time, that should settle it.
4 Every time Moses... Could you imagine meeting someone, say, "Now, wait a minute; I want to show you the Lord sent me. See, my hand's leprosy now. Now it's clean. See this stick? It's a snake. Now it's a stick." Wait and get the next Hebrew and say, "Now here, here's my hand; it's leprosy." Oh, no. He did it one time, and that's it, see. They all believed it.
But the Lord never sent me to do all this; I do it upon my own accord. And that's the reason it bothers me so bad. Soon there's something greater than this coming; it'll soon be here. It'll be marvelous then, if the Lord willing.
How many ever read my last vision that's been wrote up in the magazine? Wait till you see that take place. Then this will be minor. What the Lord's fix... It'll just keep going on and on, on and on. Jesus is coming. The time of the gathering of the people is at hand. And we must look forward to great things to happen.
5 How many read the sermon, When Omnipotence Speaks, Miracles Happen? You believe that? Certainly. Omnipotent spoke at every junction. And when the church cooled off, then Omnipotence spoke; miracles takes place. And this is the junction of all junctions; this is the end time. The end of the whole history of the world is right now at hand. So you can expect Omnipotence to speak, and you can expect the greatest and mightiest miracles that's ever happened on the earth will happen in the next few years to come, if Jesus tarries. It will be.
Then watch for Satan to raise up his too. When all heaven turns loose, all hell turns loose too. And it's prophesied that there'd be a Jannes and Jambres on the earth in the last days, who would almost impersonate the real thing so close it'd deceive the very elect if possible, see. So, we're looking for all that.
Matthew 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mark 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.
6 So, my Christian friend, the best thing for you to do, and I to do, is to stay just as close to the Lord Jesus as we can. Love Him and pray daily that God will help us and guide us, that we'll be on His side when the end finally comes. That's the desire of our heart. And I'm sure if we're sincere in our heart, and study His Word, and receive all that He has for us, we'll not be deceived by the antichrist and his power.
Did you notice? The antichrist can do everything but heal. He can't heal. Did you notice Jannes and Jambres, when they stood against Moses, they could do everything but heal. They could bring curses, but they couldn't take it away, see. God's the only healer there is. He's the only One can heal.
And today we have the finest hospitals we ever had, finest doctors we've ever had, smartest doctors, the best doctors, the best drugs we ever practiced with. Don't you believe that? And we got more sickness than we ever had. Why? We got more sin and unbelief than we ever had. Unbelief is sin.
7 What is sin? Unbelief. Smoking, drinking, committing adultery, lying, stealing, that's not sin. That's the attributes of sin. You do that because you're an unbeliever. If you was a believer, you wouldn't do that, see. Just because you quit drinking, and quit smoking, and quit drinking and committing adultery, that doesn't make you a Christian. You're a Christian because you are a believer, see.
You are a sinner, you do the things that you ought not, because the life that's in you makes you do it. The tree's known by its fruit. If a tree looked like it was a apple tree and it was bearing pears, then it's a pear tree, because the life in it is the life of a pear tree.
8 Wanted to show you how simple it is, just one little illustration. Can't keep my eyes off a little baby tonight, sitting down here. It looks just like mine at home, and makes you feel funny.
All the medicine that we got in the world. We haven't got one medicine that'll absolutely guarantee to heal a bad cold (You know that?), common bad cold. Hundreds of people die every year with a bad cold. Doctors die every year with bad colds. That's right.
9 Look, we haven't got a medicine in the world that'll heal a knife cut (Did you know that?), little simple knife cut. We haven't got a medicine that'd heal it. "Oh," you say, "Brother Branham..."
No, we haven't. If we got a medicine that'd heal a knife cut, it'd heal a knife cut if it was in my coat or on this desk. It would heal a knife cut; it'd heal it wherever it's at.
"Why," you say, "Brother Branham, now you're getting fanatically. Because medicine wasn't made to heal your coat, or heal the desk; it was made to heal your body."
10 All right, what if I cut my hand with a knife now, and I fall down dead. The doctor comes in a pronounces me dead; they take me over to the morgue, or the funeral home. They embalm my body with a fluid that makes me look natural for fifty years yet. Let every doctor in the United States, Germany, and wherever the great scientists are, come in and give me a shot of penicillin every day. Sew that place up, put all the Methiolate, sulfa drug, everything we got in it. In fifty years from today that cut will look just exactly the way it did when it was cut. If medicine heals the human body, why don't it heal it?
"Well," you say, "the life is gone out."
"That's right. Now, what's life? You tell me what life is, I'll tell you who God is, see."
11 Medicine doesn't build tissue. God builds tissue, see. Doctors... Now, not condemning them, God knows, no, sir. We respect them, and they're our friends. They're God's servants and we respect them. And they don't claim to be healers; they only... They could come, like if you cut your hand, it's a good thing to do, go to the doctor and let him sew it up, put the drug, and whatever he puts in it to keep it clean. But he has to turn it over to God then to heal it.
If you got a bad appendix, the doctor looks at it, says, "You have a bad appendix, sir. Well, we'll just trust God and take that thing out, all right?"
Go down and take it out. Take it out, then the doctor sews it up. You're not well. He just takes the appendix out. Now, what about the healing? God has to do that. Is that right?
12 You break your arm. Go down to the doctor. What does he do? Say, "Just a minute, I'll pour a little of this cure-all on it and..." Now, that would be a quack, see. So he just... What he does, he sets the arm; that's what he knows. He looks through the x-ray and finds out if he's got all the bones setting right. He puts it in a splint, and you hold it that way for several days. And then God heals it. Then you take... Doctor never healed it, he just set it; God healed it, see.
Now, don't condemn the doctor, and the doctor shouldn't condemn God. We should all work together. Don't you think so? There's mighty fine things today. It's too bad the selfish motives that are in men.
13 Now we have chiropractic. The medical doctor condemns the chiropractor; the chiropractor condemns the medical doctor. Osteopath, they condemn both. And all of them together condemn divine healing.
You know what I'm thinking? The osteopath does a lot of good things; the chiropractor does too. The medicine does also. Surgery does also. Even a medical doctor some times condemn a surgeon. The surgeon condemn a medicine doctor. What's the matter? Forgive me, doctor, whoever you are. I don't mean to insult you, but I'm only making a statement before people. We need you, and we need one another.
It looks to me like that anyone that would condemn anything that would help anyone, it's a selfish motive. There's something wrong with the person. If we just all forget that---osteopath, chiropractic, medical doctor, surgeons, ministers, and all work together to try to help our fellowman, to make life a little better for them, to make the journey a little more pleasant---I think God would be more pleased with all of us. Don't you think so? So if our motives are right, our hearts are right with God, we're trying to do everything we can to help make life a little more blessed for each one.
14 That's my business here tonight. I don't come as a healer, for I'm not. I don't come as a medical doctor, for I'm not. I know nothing about the body. The only thing that I know: that there is a risen Jesus Christ, and He is the Lord of lords, the King of kings. And I know His divine promise has promised us that the things that He did when He was here on earth, would be reproduced again.
Now, did He claim to be a healer? No. He never claimed to heal anyone. He said, "It's not Me that doeth the works; it's My Father that dwelleth in Me; He doeth the works." Is that correct? Then what did He do? He was possessed with a power ... or, endued, I'd say, Brother Powell. (Excuse me. I didn't mean to say possessed.)
John 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
15 But He was endued with a power from God that He saw visions. And He told His disciples, and all them who questioned Him, that He didn't do nothing until the Father God showed Him a vision on what to do. And He did just what the Father showed Him to do. How many knows, Bible readers, that that's true and that's the Bible, raise your hand.
Saint John 5:19, Jesus said, after He passed through all those crippled people, He said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing in Himself," because He never healed a one of them. He healed a man laying on a pallet that had a retarded disease, thirty-eight years. He said, "The Son can do nothing in Himself, but what He sees the Father doing; that doeth the Son likewise. The Father worketh and the Son worketh hitherto." In other words, the Father showed Him what to do.
John 5:5 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
John 5:8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.
John 5:17 But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.
John 5:19 Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
16 Now, you Bible scholars, you who have been looking for the superman to come, that does things just at random, he'll go out and whatever he wants to do, he does it. That never was in the Bible. And it never will be done by mortal beings in the will of God. If Jesus Christ... No man will ever live a life above His. And no prophet at any time ever did do anything without first God telling him to do it. Search the Scriptures and see if that's right, always. It's not the will of man; it's the will of God being shown to man.
So now, may I explain this to you, that all sin and sickness was settled when God dealt with it at Calvary some nineteen hundred years ago, when His Son died to save us from sin and sickness. "He was wounded for our transgressions; with His stripes we were healed." That's what the Scripture says.
Isaiah 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
17 Now, I don't mean that He made one atonement for your sickness and one for your sins; He made one atonement, and that was for sin. And when you deal with sin, you've got to deal with every attribute of sin.
The human race, as we're taught in the Scripture, didn't have any sickness before sin came in. And then when sin came in, it... Sickness was issued in as an attribute of sin, which had to bring death. Sin is death. And sickness follows sin. Worry follows sin. Did you ever notice what a horrible thing worry is? There's not one value in it at all.
I was speaking here some time ago to a group of men at a club in a city. And I said, "There's not one value... If you was going to be killed in the morning," I said, "worry would not help you one bit."
I seen one man kind of look down and kind of laugh, and he said, "Well, what would faith do?"
I said, "Sign your pardon."
That's right. Worry, there's no value in it. Faith... So just get away from worry and have faith.
18 If the doctor's done all he can for you, the man's done all he knows how to do. He's done to the end of his knowledge; he doesn't know nothing else. And a good honest doctor will tell you, "That's all I can do."
Now, many times he'll tell you, "May the Lord help you and bless you." In Mayo's up there, when they turn people down, they say, sometimes, them things, "God, be merciful to you. And if we ever find anything, we'll call you back." They're trying to help someone, trying to make life better for somebody. That's what we all should be doing: trying to help each other as neighbors along life's journey.
19 Now, then we have a right then, we come to God, and ask Him for His help. And that's what we're here for tonight. Now, if I'm telling you the work is already finished, which the Bible declares that it is finished, then what could I do for it, if it's already finished? The only thing I can do is point you to the time it was finished and the Scripture that says it was finished, and that's about all that can be done. It rests within your personal faith in the finished works of Jesus Christ at Calvary. That's the only Gospel that I know that's written in the Bible. The work was finished at Calvary. And we only look to that place. And by faith we draw dividends off of our eternal salvation. This is the earnest of our salvation, the Scripture says.
Then friends, if there is no earnest to healing, then there's no resurrection of the body. If salvation only pertains to the soul, that when we die and all of our corruption of our mind and our thoughts, are changed when we come into the presence of God... And this change that we have now by the Holy Spirit, if that's the earnest of our eternal salvation... Sure, that's the down payment, the proof, that there is a place where we will go beyond temptation, and there'll be no more sin.
John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
Ephesians 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
Hebrews 4:3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
20 Then there has to be an attribute ... or, I mean, a earnest, if there's a resurrection. And if there's no divine healing, there's no resurrection; so we believe in the resurrection. And divine healing is the earnest of our resurrection. I can give you statements of people who's been, according to medical science, laying dead on the cancer society, been dead ten, twelve years ago, living and lively tonight as they can be. What is it? It's the earnest of our resurrection. Now, we look and live; we believe.
Now, Jesus, when He died, after making that promise, He said the same things that He did, that the church would do, until He returned again. "I will be with you, in you to the end of the world. The things that I do shall you also. Greater than this (or, more than this) will you do, for I go to My Father."
God was operating through one human being, Jesus. And when He returned to God, He operates universally in every believer's heart around the world.
Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
John 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
21 I was surprised when I had my first service in Durban, South Africa. When we went in there that afternoon, at the airport there's some thirty-five thousand or more, waiting to receive us. And we walked to the meeting and no more than getting into the meeting, the Lord showed a vision of a car coming and a boy with one leg shorter than the other. Have you got that book? I don't know whether the boys has any more or not, "Prophet Visits Africa." And it told him and who he was, and even told him what his name was. Told him he was healed. The boy come running down through there, and he was normal and well. He was examined after a bit by some doctors.
The next morning the Medical Association of Africa called me up and asked me to have breakfast with them, which was a great honor. They said, "We open every hospital door to you, Reverend Branham," said, "for you have helped us more."
22 Now, down there it was something on the order... And no disregards to you, my friends. It's Christian Science like, on the Afrikaans AFM Church. They didn't believe in even having a doctor; it was a sin to have a doctor in your house, to them. And they said, "There's many of those people that we could help if we could only get in to." And said, "They love you, and they believe you. And when you told them that the medical profession was of God and God would help the people through medical profession," said, "it opened doors to people that we couldn't have got to otherwise."
"Well," I said, "Brother, that isn't so much as I said it (for it is for you also), but it's the Word. God said so and that settles it when God says it." And so we know the great things are done in the hospitals amongst doctors, and so therefore we've got to recognize that to be of God, because all good things come from God, all good things.
James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
23 What if I had to walk tonight back down home? What if I had to walk to my home about six hundred miles away? Well, that would be terrible. What if I went in an ox cart? But science has produced an automobile. I thank them for it. I'm very glad; I accept it.
What if I had to wash my hands with sand like they used to years ago? But science has perfected soap; I can clean them much better, see. Well, then if I have to condemn the doctor, I have to condemn the soap and have to condemn the automobile and have to condemn all those things, see.
So wake up now. Be real wide-awake, Christians. Look to Jesus Christ. If the doctor's done all he can do, Christ is here to heal you---not to heal you, but He could prove to you that He's already healed you. Now, first He spoke by the Word. Then if you don't believe the Word, then being He is risen from the dead, and we believe that.
24 And listen, Christians, I want to ask you this solemn question. Isn't it a wonderful thing tonight to know that our Christian religion (Think hard now.) is the only religion on the earth, out of the hundreds and hundreds of them, that can prove that their Founder and Saviour is living.
Buddha died twenty-five hundred years ago. Mohammed died around nineteen hundred years ago. Different religions, their founders are dead, buried; they got their memorials at the grave. But we got an open tomb. Not only that, the Jews couldn't believe it. They said that some of His disciples come stole Him away. They're always trying to figure some way out, some mechanical way. But Jesus knew that, knew they would do it. But He said, "A little while, and the world won't see Me no more; yet you'll see Me: for I will be with you, in you, to the end of the world. The things that I do shall you also."
And tonight, in our midst, Jesus Christ, God's Son, is living here with us, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, infinite, immortal, God, living with us now. Right here in Spindale, North Carolina, on this night, He's here; He's everywhere. And if you'll submit yourself to Him and believe Him, the same works that was performed when He was here on earth, He'll perform them right back again. There's not another religion in the world that can do that outside of Christianity. May the Lord bless while we speak on His Word and read it just for a moment. Let us pray.
Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
John 14:19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
25 Heavenly Father, as the hours are growing late, men and women are here from different places, and different occupations in their journey, their pilgrimage here on earth. And we pray that Your blessings will be upon each of us as we serve Thee. And, Father, we pray that You'll take the motives of our heart tonight and express it through Thy Word to the people, that they might know that we're here to be Your servant and to give to them Thy love through Thy Word. And that they might know that You're alive, and that their hope that rests in eternal, immortal life beyond this shadow that we live, is correctly; Your words are true. Now, come and speak, Our heavenly Father, for we ask it in Jesus' name, Thy Son. Amen.
26 In the Word of God, Saint Luke 24th chapter, the 31st verse and the 32nd inclusive, listen to the reading of the Word. I love to read the Word, because faith cometh by hearing, hearing the Word of God. My words is a man's word; they perish and fail just like yours or anyone else's. But His Word will never fail; it's the imperishable Word of God. Listen close:
And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.
And they said unto one another, Did not our hearts burn within us, while he talked with us by the way ... while he opened unto us the Scripture?
And now may the same Lord Jesus open to us the Scripture. Now, there's many people, anyone that's able, physically, to turn the pages can open the Bible this way. But there's no one can interpret it and open it to us but Christ Himself. John saw in the Revelation, in the last book of the Bible: "and He that sat upon the throne had the book in His hand, and no man in heaven, or in earth, or beneath the earth, was able or worthy to take the book, to loose the seals, or even to look thereon. And a Lamb as it had been slain from the foundation of the world, come and took the book out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne, and opened it, and loose the seals." That's the Son of God. May He open it to our hearts.
Luke 24:31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.
Luke 24:32 And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?
Revelation 5:1 And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
Revelation 5:3 And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
Revelation 5:4 And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
Revelation 5:7 And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
27 Being I got a weak throat, just speak for a few moments and then start our prayer line in the next fifteen minutes or so, and pray. Now, give me your undivided attention.
Our little scene is, tonight, the first beautiful morning of the resurrection. And it wasn't a thing that, like is scattered across the world now. The resurrection to us now means much more than it did to them that morning, because many did not believe it. We're following two disciples, one of them's name's Cleopas. The Bible doesn't give what the other ones name was.
The Scripture says that these men were ignorant, unlearned men. They didn't have any education. But they knew Him. And I think that a education is wonderful, but I would rather know Him in the power of His resurrection, than to have all the education the world could give me. Education is wonderful, but to know Him is life. And these disciples knew Him. But because a disappointment had come up, they had forgotten all His words.
And isn't that just about like we have it today? When one little disappointment comes about something, someone comes in and misconstrues something, and then we go to say, "Oh, well, it's all fanaticism; maybe there's nothing to it after all." Isn't that just the human race? "Well, I know divine healing isn't real, because I know Mrs. Jones was prayed for and she didn't get well."
That doesn't have one thing to do with God's promise. That had to do with Mrs. Jones' faith, or the will of God, see.
Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.
28 Now, but they had forgotten all of His words, that what He said He would raise on the third day. And they were present when He said it, when He talked to His disciples. But they'd forgot all about it. Sorrow had come. They'd seen a man that had raised the dead, after being dead for four days, and seen that man let soldiers spit in His face.
And seen a man who could stand, and by the power of God, tell people in the audience, of His audience, even can perceive their thoughts. He could foretell things that would happen perfect, the way He said it would be. Even sent an apostle down to catch the first fish and to take a coin from his mouth to pay tribute. They seen Him how great He was and accurate in His predictions. Never failed one time. When He told a person something, it was always perfect.
Matthew 17:27 Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.
Matthew 27:30 And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.
Mark 15:19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
John 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
John 11:44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.
29 And we see that man now with the Roman soldiers has wrapped a rag around His face so He couldn't see, and was hitting Him on the head with a stick and saying, "Now, You tell us, if you're a prophet... Prophesier, you tell us who hit You, we'll believe You." We seen a man who was able to do all these things and then in weakness, seemingly, defeated.
It broke their faith, it should not have, but it did. And it does yet. "We seen a man who could call a dead man from the grave, who could do all these wonderful miracles, and see Him hang on the cross with great spittle all over His face, with His beard and face bleeding, where the soldiers jerked out His beard, and spit in His face. And seen Him with His back beat to a pulp where thirty and nine stripes..." They couldn't put forty.
Matthew 26:67 Then did they spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands,
Matthew 26:68 Saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, Who is he that smote thee?
Luke 22:64 And when they had blindfolded him, they struck him on the face, and asked him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that smote thee?
30 And did you know there's thirty and nine major diseases in the world today. Thirty and nine stripes across His back with a cat-o-nine-tails, leather sockets in it with lumps of lead, beating till His ribs showed through. "All My bones stare at Me," He said in the Psalms.
And to see the Jews and the religious men of that day, the high churches, the scholars, the educators, walk around saying, "Now, if You are Christ, come down from that cross and we will accept you, we will believe You."
They wouldn't have. "And how could a man that was that powerful one time, lose all of His power overnight?"
I wonder if we aren't thinking the same thing? Or the Pentecostal church nineteen hundred years ago, who went about preaching the Gospel and healing the sick, seen visions and miracles taking place with a living resurrected Jesus in it, and all of a sudden lost its power. Did you ever think of it that way? That's right.
Psalm 22:17 I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me.
31 There was something... Their hearts were heavy. Like many believers today. They still loved Him. And all the time, on this wonderful first Easter morning, Jesus was alive in a springtime of the world, and they didn't know it. And it's the same thing today: Jesus is alive. And many people who love Him don't recognize it yet. They're worshipping Him as a creed, or as someone who once lived, someone who was once powerful, someone who once could call God and have things done. They worship Him as a historical God.
But what good is a historical God today? If He isn't the same God today, what good is He to you? If the God of Elijah doesn't live today, then what good is the God of Elijah to you? It's like taking a bird and putting him in a cage and feeding him orthodox food to make him have strong wings, and then put a cage around him so he can't fly.
That's the way we do in our churches. We want to be so precise and so orthodox. But yet, keep the people caged up to a dead religion, a creed of a man that once lived. He's a man that lives today. He isn't dead. But as it was then, those who loved Him, many of them didn't know it. And those who had brought a report of it, they didn't believe them. So is it today. Some are bringing the reports of the resurrection, God omnipotent, All powerful, still lives. But many doesn't believe it.
32 So these two disciples, on the road, they were thinking about Him; and as they thought about Him, He stepped out of the side of the road and begin to talk to them, and they didn't know Him.
That's the way... Now here it is, get it. I'm sure the reason that we don't see more of Christ, we're always talking about something else but Christ. If you let your conversations be upon Christ, and upon His finished works, and His goodness, instead of so much stuff that we do think about all day long, Christ would appear more often to us, if we'd only look at it in that way.
And as they're going along, speaking about Him, He walks along their side, and they don't recognize Him. Many times He's been at your side, yonder in the hospital when your doctor turned you down, all he could do. But you got well; you didn't realize that's who it was.
When that car went right in front of you and you slammed the brakes and just barely missed him. You didn't realize that's who it was sitting at your side. He's been with you in so many things. When the barrel was empty during the depression, the children had no clothes, you never knew where the next meal was coming from, somehow you made it. You didn't realize it was Him, see. How you've been blessed. If you only knew that's Him that you love, that's with you.
Luke 24:15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.
Luke 24:16 But their eyes were holden that they should not know him.
33 As they went along, He said to them, "Why are you so sad?" I wonder if He'd say the same thing to this little gathering here tonight? "Why are you so sad? What makes you so weary?"
"Why," they said, "are You just a stranger?"
They didn't know Him. And you don't know who that is sitting right next to you tonight. The Bible said, "We have entertained angels unaware." God sending His Spirit to an individual and that individual is a mouthpiece; when you receive that individual, you don't receive him, but you receive Him that sent Him. Jesus said, "When you receive Me, you receive not Me, but you receive My Father that sent Me." You get it?
We laugh at a preacher sometimes, a good Gospel preacher, because he disagrees with our theology. We make fun of him sometime and even call him that scandalous name of holy-roller, fanatic. You don't know: You might be talking about God when you do that. For the Bible said, "Insomuch as you have done unto the least of these little ones that believe in Me, you have done it unto Me." "And these signs shall follow them that believe," not all that say they believe, but "these signs shall follow them that believe." That's how you know them. See what I mean?
Matthew 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
Mark 9:37 Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent 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;
Luke 24:17 And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?
Luke 24:18 And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?
Hebrews 13:2 Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
34 Now, notice as He goes on. He begins to speak to them. And notice, quickly, Jesus will always go to the Scripture. He began with Moses, and He said, "Oh, foolish, slow of heart, to believe all the prophets ... not to believe all the prophets said." In other words, "Are you so slow at heart not to preach the full Gospel?" Not part of it; all of it. Said, "Are you so foolish? Don't you know that all the prophets has said had to be fulfilled?"
And He begin to explain to them the need of the fulfilling of the Scripture that the prophets have said. I feel very religious right now. Surely, you know what I'm speaking of. Would we be so slothful and so foolish of mind, to confine ourselves to a book of creeds and lay aside the Bible, and say the days of miracles is not past ... or, is past, when Jesus said, "I will be with you to the end of the world. And the things that I do shall you do also, even more, for I go to My Father."
How could we be so slothful? Jesus rebuked them, said, "You should've knowed that the Scriptures..."
Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Luke 24:25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:
Luke 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
35 And as they journeyed on, the day become drawing nigh to the close, and they were very interested; they knowed that that man spoke a little different from ordinary line of clergymen. And as He went along the road... Now, they got near the city where they were going. Now, quickly now, as we come to a close, listen.
As they got near to the place where they were going to stay, He made out like He was going to go on by. The Bible said He did. Now, many times, He makes out like He's going to pass you by. "Well, last night there was chairs sitting here and cots laying here, and tonight the chairs are empty and the are people here, and the cots are empty and the people are here. Well, why don't He get me?"
Well, now a lot of times He makes out like He's going to pass you by, but He never does. He just does that. You remember blind Fanny Crosby's hymn?
Pass me not, O gentle Saviour,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.
Luke 24:28 And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further.
36 Watch Him, He makes out like He's going to go by them. But they constrained Him to come in. They persuaded Him to come in. "Oh, come and abide with us." And He's never invited, unless He comes. When you'll invite Him and open up the doors of your heart, Christ will always receive that invitation. He's waiting, and longing, and anxious to get to that invitation. If it's preaching the Word, if it's seeing His works, if seeing the sunset, seeing the sunrise, watch the flowers bloom, or the prophet prophesying, miracles or signs---whatever it is---He's trying to speak to your heart to get in. Did you know that? Now, you ask Him to come in, and He will come in.
And then when He got them on the inside... Now, here it is, notice. Once on the inside, the doors closed. The little restaurant that they went into, once on the inside, seated at the table, they ordered bread; and the waitress went to get the bread, brought it back, and laid it down while they were sitting there in silence watching each other. The doors closed on the outside world. Jesus made Himself known to them by doing something that He did before His death and burial, to prove to them that He was the very Christ that was dead, was with them doing the same thing He done before He was crucified. You see it?
Luke 24:28 And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further.
Luke 24:29 But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.
Luke 24:30 And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them.
Luke 24:31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.
37 Now, tonight, if you'll only shut off your theology for a few minutes, shut off your worries, and take Christ into your heart... Close off the world and all around you and just let Him come in. And He'll do something here tonight just like He used to do when He was here on earth before the resurrection. And you'll see that He is the risen Christ. Quickly, He vanished out of their sight. And they ran back light-footed, light-hearted, saying that "Indeed the Lord has risen from the dead; we know it. We seen Him do something just the same way He did it before His crucifixion. And to us He is risen from the dead and alive forevermore."
That same Lord Jesus Christ---I declare by His Word---is here tonight. And if you'll only let Him get into your heart, He'll do the very same things He did when He was here on earth, or I'm a false witness of the Bible and the resurrection. Challenge of that, how could you turn it down?
If He will, will you receive Him? Would you raise your hand, say, "I will receive it, if He will return to this building tonight and will do the things that He did when He was here on earth, I myself, will believe."?
Luke 24:33 And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them,
Luke 24:34 Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.
38 Now, don't notice my poor education; I'm not much of a preacher; but I do know Him. And I know Him in His resurrection. And I declare that if you've ever received Him in any way, you know Him. But you must have faith in Him. Now, when He was here on earth... Now remember, He didn't claim to be a healer; He saw visions.
A woman touched His garment and run out into the audience, and Jesus said, "I got weak; who touched Me?"
Peter said, "Why, who touched You? Why, everybody's touching You."
He said, "Yes, but I got weak." Said, "Who touched Me?"
He looked all around through the crowd. Everybody denied; the woman denied herself; she said, "I never done it." All of them denied, the Bible said; everyone denied a doing it. But Jesus knew that somebody there was telling something wrong. So He looked around till He found the little woman. She'd had a blood issue for so many years. He told her that her faith had made her well. Then she come and fell down at His feet and confessed all.
Matthew 9:20 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:
Matthew 9:22 But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.
Mark 5:25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,
Mark 5:30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?
Mark 5:31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
Mark 5:32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.
Mark 5:33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.
Mark 5:34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.
Luke 8:43 And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any,
Luke 8:44 Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.
Luke 8:45 And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
Luke 8:46 And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.
Luke 8:47 And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.
Luke 8:48 And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.
39 If that was Jesus yesterday... The Bible said, "He's the same yesterday, today, and forever." If that's what He did yesterday, He will have to do it today in order to be the same.
When Philip went and got Nathanael, as we quoted last night, and he found him way around behind the hills, several miles, and brought him back. And when he come up and stood before Jesus, Jesus said, "You are a believer, an honest man."
Why, he said, "Rabbi, now wait a minute, when did You know me? You've never seen me in Your life, and how did You know me?"
"Why," He said, "before Philip called you, when you were under the tree over there praying, before Philip called you, I saw you."
He said, "You're the Son of God; You're the King of Israel."
John 1:47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!
John 1:48 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.
John 1:49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
40 But what did the church people say, the people of the big church? They said, "This man is the chief of all the fortunetellers, the devils; He's Beelzebub."
And what did Jesus say to them? Listen now, for your own soul's sake. He said, "I'll forgive you for that. Who speaks against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven, but when the Holy Ghost comes, and if you speak against Him then, when He's doing the same thing that I am, that'll never be forgiven you in this world or the world to come."
Bible readers, is that true? It's the unpardonable sin. Why? Because the Bible said that He was standing there with the Spirit of God doing these things, telling that man who he was and where he come from, and they said He was a fortuneteller, saying He had an unclean spirit: calling the works of God an unclean spirit, which is blasphemy. Anyone knows what blasphemy is. Blaspheming the Holy Ghost is the unpardonable sin which will never be forgiven in this world or the world to come. So if you don't understand, just keep still, and go ahead, and don't say nothing about it, be best.
Matthew 12:24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.
Matthew 12:31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
Matthew 12:32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
Mark 3:22 And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.
Mark 3:28 Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme:
Mark 3:29 But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation:
Luke 11:15 But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils.
Luke 12:10 And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven.
41 A woman came one day, speaking to Him. Peter come up, and He knew who He was. He said, "Your name is Simon. Your father's name is Bar-Jonas," said, "but you'll be called Peter from henceforth."
He knew as the Father revealed it to Him. Now, He said, "I don't do nothing but what the Father shows Me; and then what He shows Me, that I do."
Now, if that was the Jesus of yesterday, that's the Jesus today if He is risen from the dead. If He hasn't, then it's just a cold church formal creed like we all teach and go on, that's all. "One man lived a long time ago, was called the Son of God; He died and rose again, but He's gone away. There's nothing to it no more; we just worship as a creed. We come to church and do the best we can, hoping that someday that there will be a manifestation of His presence."
That's not what He said. "I will be with you; the things that I do I will be doing in you to the end of the world." That's right. Shall we pray.
Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
John 1:42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
John 5:19 Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
42 Our heavenly Father, enough has been said by man. Now, let the Holy Spirit continue on the service, Lord. And I pray that You will grant tonight that the Holy Ghost will so represent You here, that the people of this community, that has gathered in this building tonight, may be without an excuse at the day of the judgment.
O God, as You said to Cleopas and them, "Don't you know the Scripture must be fulfilled?" And if You said that You'd be with us to the end of the world and would do the same things through us that You did, mustn't the Scriptures be fulfilled? You said that in the last days, this day that we live, that when the great signs and wonders would be taking place, the Jews would be returning for the third time to Palestine; the ensign would be lifted up. And all the great signs of the world would be taking place like it is today. You promised in that day You'd pour out both former and latter rain, and that signs and wonders would be wrought among Your people again. You promised it, Father, and we know that Your words are true.
Luke 24:44 And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
43 Now, as Your poor, unworthy servant, and as all of us together are Your unworthy servants, but we now submit ourselves to Thee and yield to the working of the Holy Spirit, that if there be some here, Father, who doesn't know You in the power of Your resurrection, may it come to pass tonight that they will believe on You. Have mercy on the sick and afflicted. And may each one catch the vision of Your finished work and Your everlasting eternal life, which You are the possessor of, and give to us as we believe. And declare Yourself to be alive tonight, holy Father God, as we pray and ask these blessings in Jesus Christ's name, Thy Son. Amen.
Now, I'm going to ask this, which is usually a custom that I do. Now, to you people who haven't been in the meetings before, I will admit that connected with divine healing is much fanaticism. Jesus said there would be. Connected with all religious moves are fanatics.
44 Just visiting in India and watching the hypocrite lay there trying to clown for somebody, roll his back on some spikes, walk through some glass. Just remember, that in the interior there's a genuine person who's doing it for the sacrifice for his soul. But that's a clown. We have it in all different kinds of churches: Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Pentecostals, everywhere else. That's the reason I don't belong to any church. I belong to the One church; that's the body of Christ. And all these members are made up out of different churches as they believe and God receives them. So have faith tonight and believe.
But now, if you are an unbeliever, I don't believe I would stay any longer in the meeting. I believe I would go and wait and come back tomorrow night and listen to another service. For, I don't think it would be profitable for you. For, you have to take my word in just a few nights here, but some horrible things has happened in the meetings when Christ, the Holy Spirit, begins to move among the people, and diseases and demons...
45 See, we call it tonight---we got medical names---call it cancer, epilepsy, and all kinds of things. But Christ called them devils. The word devil, is a "tormentor."
Like a person that's deaf and dumb. The doctor would examine that person. Now, listen close. He'd say, "Well, the nerves is dead in the ear, or on the vocal cords, the nerve is dead, that's the reason they can't speak or can't hear; there's no vibration; it's dead."
"Well, why didn't it die all over the body then?"
"I don't know," he said, "it just died there."
Well, the thing of it is, what the doctor works on is what his five senses will declare: see, taste, feel, smell, and hear. Has anybody here ever heard the old Missouri thought, "Seeing is believing."? Did you ever hear that? You want to see how foolish that is just a minute? Let me show you something.
46 Over here, please. Here's a man standing before me with a gray suit on. He's got a striped tie. Quite a bit larger than I am. How many believes that? Why? You see him.
Step back this way. Now, I cannot see the man. It's impossible for me to see him. But do you want to argue with me he's not there? I know he's there just as well as if I was looking at him and I can't see him. Then seeing is not believing.
I've got a sense of feeling and I can feel him. And the sense of feeling is just as reliable as the sense of seeing. How many senses are there in the human body? Five: see, taste, feel, smell and hear. Now, I can contact him in my sense of feeling. Now, I cannot contact him in my sense of feeling; it's dormant. But my sense of sight says he's there. Now, seeing is believing now. But feeling is believing now.
Where's the pianist? Organist, or something? Give us a little note, would you, sister? How many believes there's music? Let's see your hands. How many of you sees it? Raise your hand. Did you see it? Well, why did you raise your hands for, then if seeing is believing? Hearing is believing now, isn't it? See, hearing is believing.
47 Now, what is faith? Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things you do not see, taste, feel, smell, or hear. You believe it. Your body has five senses; none of them senses contact God. God give you them five senses to contact your earthly home, here on earth.
But you contact God by faith. This great mechanical age that we live in, people's got ... has got to scientifically prove it. Like Moses, if he was standing there at the bush... What if he'd been a modern man today and the bush was on fire? What if he'd said, "Now, wait a minute; I'm going to take this bush, some leaves off of it; and I'm going down to the laboratory to give a chemical test and find out why them leaves didn't burn with that fire on them," see.
In those days, when a miracle was done, they took a man's word for it and went on, because they knowed it was supernatural. But today they got to run it through the scientific test. And you can't prove God by scientific tests. God is believed. And you know Him by faith.
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
48 A fellow said to me not long ago, he said, "Brother Branham, anything that's not scientifically proven is not real."
I said, "I'll just contradict that, brother, and say anything that is scientifically proved isn't real."
"Oh," he said, "that don't sound intelligent."
I said, "I know it don't sound intelligent, but it's correctly intelligent. The real things of life cannot be scientifically proven."
He said, "If it isn't scientifically proven, I can't accept it."
I said, "Are you a married man?"
He said, "Yes, sir."
"You love your wife?"
"Yes."
I said, "Scientifically tell me what love is. What part of you... Pull it out here and let me see it; analyze it; let me see what part's love that makes you love that woman different from anyone else, makes you love your children different from other children, what's scientific?" I said, "Have you got any mind?"
He said, "Certainly."
I said, "Scientifically show me what your mind is."
Can't be done, certainly, but it's real. Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, gentleness, patience, all those are God, and they're the real thing. The scientific things are perishable, come from the earth. But the unscientific things are the real things that come from heaven: God, Holy Spirit, angels, supernatural; they are the everlasting things. Believe on the Lord; don't try to scientifically prove anything; just have faith in God.
Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
49 Remember, there was two trees in the garden of Eden. How many knows that? One of them was a tree of science, the other was a tree of faith. As long as man eat from the tree of faith, he lived. But the first bite he took off the tree of science---knowledge ---he separated himself from God. And he destroyed himself. And every time man bites from the tree of science, he destroys himself.
He bit off gunpowder: kills his comrade. He bit off automobile, off the tree of science: kills more people than all the wars put together. He's bit himself off a cobalt bomb now; wonder what he's going to do with that? See?
Science destroys; faith builds. I have nothing against the tree of science; it's done wonders, but you can't depend on it. Here's where you have to depend on: your faith. It's everlasting. Believe on God. Believe that He's raised from the dead; and may He come into your lovely audience tonight and show Himself alive to you by working through His church, is my sincere prayer.
50 What was them cards, B, B 1 to a 100? I'm not going to call too many up tonight. How many was here last night? Let's see your hands. Did you notice? There's more people healed in the audience than there is on the platform anyhow, see. It isn't... The thing is here just to get somebody up here so he can stand up here to start the Holy Spirit moving among the people.
So, last night I think I called from 1 to 50, in them cards that they give out. I think tonight I'm just going to call about the last fifteen of them, say 85 to a 100. Just stand those up here and see just maybe we can get to a few of them, four, five, ten, maybe all of them, maybe more. If not, then we'll start back, we get through them we come through some more, depends on what the Holy Spirit does.
Look at your little card. I don't have any one of them laying here, but it's a little bitty card, about so big. Now, I want each one to look at the person next to you, because it might be somebody deaf and can't hear, might be somebody crippled and can't stand up. And now when your number is called, you answer your number, otherwise just be reverent and sit still, wait for your number.
51 Now, who has prayer card 85? Raise... I think 85, 90, 95, 100, yeah, that'd be fifteen. Who has prayer card 85, would you raise your hand? Over here, would you come back on this right side, lady, so you can get up and down the steps? 86, would you raise your hand, please? All right, 87? Come over here, lady. 87, 88, 88, all right. 89, now see, we can legitimately, without any squeezing, without any pushing, without any trying, get every one lined up perfectly in line. 89, 90, who has prayer card 90? All right, sir.
The boy just announced that tomorrow night, you sick people coming to get cards, instead of you have to chasing all over the building, they're going to rope off the first ten sections in each row for sick people only, in these first ten rows on each side tomorrow. Is that right? First ten rows, all right.
All right, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. That'd be 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, all right, 91? 92, 92, would you raise up your hand? Somebody got prayer card 92? Look at somebody by you now; it may be somebody deaf, can't hear their number called, 92? Is yours 92, lady? 92? Ninety-what, sister? 93, isn't 92 here? Just one moment. See, I don't want no one to miss your turn.
All right, 93 then, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, and a 100. Let's see if all of them can get up.
[Gap in the audio.] ...
52 that does not have a prayer card now, now listen real close, see. Don't be a bit alarmed; don't be nervous; be quiet. Now, this is the church of the Lord tonight, the church of God. I know it's an arena used, but tonight it's dedicated for the Lord, see.
So now, how many here that does not have a prayer card, but solemnly you believe every word the Bible taught. You believe that Jesus Christ is here, and you believe that He will ... that He is just exactly the way we've explained Him, He's raised from the dead, and He's here. And you want Him to heal you, would you raise your hand? I just thought I'd get an idea where they were at, but it's just solid, everywhere.
Now, I don't want to... If I call without the prayer card, then somebody that's got a prayer card, don't ... see I'm wanting those who does not have prayer cards, that won't be in the line. But it's just a solid bank, you wouldn't know. So, I have no way of stopping your faith; that's between you and God. But you look and believe.
53 Now, if Jesus has risen from the dead, and you're sitting out there, and you believe with all your heart, and if He's risen from the dead, can your faith touch Him today, Scripturally speaking, like the woman touched Him when she had the blood issue, can it be done? Yes.
"Did you say you was a Fundamentalist?"
Yes, sir, I am.
All right, then what about the Scripture? The Bible said that He is now a High Priest that can be touched by the feeling of our infirmities; is that right? Plead your case to Him; tell Him. Don't try to get up here; there's nothing in me; I couldn't do nothing. But it's in Him. So, let your faith touch Him. Then if I'm yielded, and become His mouthpiece, then He is obligated to answer your faith (Is that right?), to turn right back around and do the same thing that He did to the woman that touched His garment.
Now, if He will do that, all that have promised to believe on Him, say, "Amen." Now, may the Lord bless you.
Hebrews 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
54 Now, I'm going to ask you little fellows something for me tonight, will you do it? Jesus loves you, little fellows. I know it's warm in here, and you're restless; but I'm going to ask you, with mother and dad, and all of you, will you just be real quiet for a few minutes ... or, sit real still, see. 'Course I know mothers with little babies, they can't ... little fellows are upset, so forth; you can't help that. But if you can just sit still a few minutes, just sit quiet, see.
When the Holy Spirit comes, each one of you people become like a live wire, see. And the Holy Spirit is a light. How many knows the Bible says that? How many know that Jesus Christ is in the form of light now? Let's see your hands. Has anybody got a picture of Him here now that was taken there with me down then? Somebody got the picture raise up your hand, somebody's got one of the pictures, the pillar of fire? Here is it, right here. Here it is, the pillar of fire that led the children of Israel. This is scientific. If I die tonight, my testimony's true. The scientific world has proved it. The church knows it. So that settles it. George J. Lacy proved that, right there.
55 And now you see this; it's a light. When the children of Israel was led by the Angel of God through the wilderness, what was it? A pillar of fire. Is that right? Thirteenth chapter of Exodus. God kept it; in the daytime it looked like a white light, like a cloud. And at nighttime, it was a light. Now, that was Christ. How many knows that?
Well, if He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and if He said, "I come from God and I go back to God..." Then when He was here on earth, He was a man in flesh, when He returned back, His corporal body went into the presence of God and He turned back to light. Is that right? If He's the same as He was when He was with Moses. Now, is that scriptural?
When Paul was on his way down to Damascus, what was it struck him down? What did he see? A light, is that right? And he said, "Why persecutest thou Me?"
He said, "Who are You, Lord?" Called the light, Lord. "Who are You, Lord?"
He said, "I'm Jesus."
So He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. You see it? Now, He's Spirit now, called the Holy Spirit. The same was God the Father, leading Moses---called God the Father, the three dispensations, Fatherhood, Sonship, and Holy Ghost, see. It's just three offices of the same self God. Tonight His office is here on earth in His church as the Holy Ghost, God the Holy Ghost. Same God that was in Jesus is in you. And if He's the same, and correctly the same, the same things that He did then, He does now. If it isn't, then He isn't the same yesterday, today, and forever, He changed or weakened in His death.
Exodus 13:21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night:
John 16:28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
Acts 9:3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:
Acts 9:4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
Acts 9:5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
56 Now, if you just stand where you are, just a moment, lady. Now, how many people in this building is totally strangers to me? Let's see your hands---everywhere, that you know I don't know you. All in the prayer line, are you all strangers to me? Are you a stranger to me? Everywhere, everybody's strangers. Then I don't know you. I don't know nothing about you, never seen you in my life.
But now, you say, "Brother Branham, what are you stalling for?" Sure, I am; that's exactly right. I'm waiting for Him. If He doesn't come to me, there's nothing I can do, that's right. But if He does come, then He can work. But I have to be anointed. Then it's your faith that pulls, see.
Now, here stands a woman; here's a very perfect picture of a man and a woman again. Let me quote a Scripture for the stranger. When Jesus of Nazareth was here on earth (as I'm talking to this woman now) now, Philip said... He was a Jew. When Jesus told him where he was before he come to the meeting, he said, "You're the Son of God; You're the King of Israel." Now, all that knows that that's in the Scripture, Saint John the 1st chapter, say, "Amen." All right.
John 1:48 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.
John 1:49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
57 That was the Jews. But now here He goes up to the Samaritans. And now, He sits down and sends the disciples away. And a woman comes out, a woman of Samaria. She comes out to get some water. And Jesus carried a conversation with her. He begin to talk to her, contacting her spirit. Father told Him to go up there; He was contacting her spirit.
And then when He found just exactly where her trouble was, He said, "Go, get your husband."
She said, "I have no husband."
He said, "That's true." He said, "You've got five, and the one you have now is not your husband." Isn't that right, see?
Would you get a chair just a minute, Paul? Would you, somebody set the lady up a chair please. Be seated just a moment.
And said, "You said well. Said, 'I have no husband.'"
He said, "Go, get him."
She said, "I have none."
He said, "That's right; you got five. And the one you have now is not your husband."
Now, look what she said; now look at this woman now. Listen my subject, Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever, raised from the dead.
She said, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. Now, we know (we Samaritans)--- we know that when the Messiah cometh (which is the Christ), when Messiah cometh, He'll do these things; He'll tell us these things, but who are You?"
And He said, "I am He that speaks to you."
John 4:5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
John 4:6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
John 4:7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
John 4:8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
John 4:16 Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither.
John 4:17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband:
John 4:18 For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.
John 4:19 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet.
John 4:25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
John 4:26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
58 Now, if that was the sign for the Jew, for the Samaritan, and Gentile, and the whole world then, that He was the Messiah, because He done those things, would not it be the same sign of the Messiah if He is the same tonight? Is that right? Then if He's raised from the dead, He's no more in a corporal body, but He's in our body. All that was in God He poured into Christ, and all that was in Christ He poured into the church, see. So it's just a continuation. "That day you'll know that I'm in the Father, and the Father in Me and I in you, and..." See? All together. The Holy Spirit working among His people.
Now, here's a lady. I don't believe I ever saw her, as I said a few moments ago. God knows the lady. We've been raised miles apart, and first time of ever meeting in life. Now, if there's ... if that lady is here for some purpose, I don't know. She wouldn't be on the platform. But if the Holy Spirit will reveal to this woman, just like He did the woman at the well, and will find out what this woman's trouble is and will correctly tell her... She knows about that, whether that'd be true or not, wouldn't you, lady? You'd know whether that was true. And if He would tell the same thing, would you all believe Him now with all your heart? All right, all right.
John 14:20 At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
59 Now, to contact the woman's spirit. Now, please be real reverent and keep your seats. Now, the Holy Spirit is here, and I know that He is here, so be real reverent, now, as I look to the woman just a moment. Now, lady, I just want you to answer me as I talk to you. And then that'll be... Now, if I tell you, well, you come here and say this lady sitting here would say, "Mr. Branham, I'm sick."
"Oh," I'd say, "go ahead you're healed (see); you're going to get well." She has a right to doubt that. She don't know me. She don't know how firm my words are. But what if someone, something comes here to me and tells me about it, and what she is, and what she's done, or what about her, then she'd scratch her head, she'd say, "Say, that man don't know me; that had to come from some other resource." Then whatever she classed it to be, that would determine what she got. If she said, "Now, well, it's not of God." It'll never help her a bit. But if she believed it was of God and embraced it as God's promise, then God's obligated to His Word, see.
60 Like the man hit Jesus on the head with a stick and the woman touched His garment. She got virtue, because she approached God's gift right. The man didn't. And that's the way it is. He was trying to say, "Show me something." That's the same devil that said, "Turn these stones into bread and do a miracle before me; I'll believe You (see) if You're the Son of God." Just the same spirit, lives right down through men.
Now, to contact our friend here, the lady, not knowing her, never seeing her, it would have to take... Now, if you want to stand up now, you can stand up now. I just thought maybe I had you standing there too long, that you were getting weak.
And now, God knows us both, and someday you and I have to stand in His presence to give an account for everything that we've done in this life. That's right. We have to bow before Him some time or other.
Matthew 4:3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
Mark 5:30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?
Luke 4:3 And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.
Luke 8:46 And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.
61 Now, I've asked the engineer to watch my voice, because I know it's low, but as I look to the woman, and speaking to her, like Jesus did the woman at the well, a man and a woman standing together. Jesus was trying to contact her spirit to find out what her trouble was; and when He found it, He told her. She believed it and said, "That's the sign of the Son of God, the sign of the Messiah." That would be the same to us tonight, wouldn't it? I'm just talking to you.
Now, the lady who stands before me, being a stranger, and as I'm yielding myself to God, and she's standing there knowing all what she's here for. I see her as she moves away from me. The first thing, the woman's all bothered. She's got a terrible nervous condition. That's true. And you got something wrong with your throat. That's right. And it's a dark shadow hanging there; it's a cancer. It's a cancer in your throat. You're scared about it. Then you've got something on your mind, you're worried about. You've made some promises and didn't live up to it, and so forth like that. You're studying of those things.
John 4:25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
62 And another thing it is: you've had cancer before. I see you going into a hospital, or some kind of a place where there's two doctors standing. And that was a cancer too. And that cancer was on the breast. And they removed the breast, removed the cancer from the breast. That's "Thus saith the Lord." Is that true? Then raise your hand.
You believe on the Lord Jesus now, He raised from the dead? Will you believe now? If He knows what was, He surely knows what will be. If He can tell you correctly all about your past, surely He'd know your future. Is that right? Well, I say by His Word, If thou canst believe with all your heart, right now, and here I am anointed with some kind of a Spirit. You know that. I'm saying that for the audience's benefit. If you accept it and believe it to be the Son of God, He said, "These signs shall follow them that believe: they'll lay hands on the sick, they shall recover." It has to be, doesn't it? Do you believe it? Well, come, let us pray.
Our kind heavenly Father, as I bow my head in Thy divine presence, and ask for mercy for this dying woman. And I pray that she will go from here tonight and be a well person and just cause an old-fashioned revival to come to her neighborhood by the way of her healing. I pray this in Christ's name. Amen. God bless you, lady. Now, go rejoicing and happy, doubting nothing, believing all things.
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.
63 Would you come? Now, let's just say, "Praise the Lord." The Bible said, "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord." Now, I'm not emotionally, but I am emotionally too. Anything without emotion is dead.
So now, the lady stands here as a stranger to me. I do not know her, have never seen her. Is that true, lady? That's the truth. [Lady speaks, "Only on tape have I heard you."] Ma'am? [Lady says, "Heard you on tape."] On tape, all right.
Now, please, be just as reverent. Something happened there then and I missed it. Don't be moving around, please, see. The Angel of the Lord is a light and I have to follow it as it goes from here. Now, be real reverent, please do, just for a little bit. They won't let me stay long under these conditions.
But right now there oughtn't to be one shadow of doubt in anybody's mind. Every person ought to be believing right now with all your heart. Moses was sent to perform a sign to prove that God had sent him. I was sent to perform the sign to show you that Jesus lives today. And if He lives, every promise is true. He's alive to make good His promise. You ought to believe it, oughtn't you? But being that we got people standing in the line, don't move now, because the diseases goes from one to another. See, please.
Psalm 150:6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.
64 Now, lady, as a stranger to you, I just speak to you in the name of the Lord Jesus, not knowing you and knowing that both of us will have to answer at the day of the judgment sometime when the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed, we know.
I just have to leave, friend, I suppose, see. If you believe me, you would do what I told you to do. Please, don't move around, just for five minutes, for the sake of the other people; don't do it, see. It's a counter... See, that's the reason we can't get nowhere. If you believed, you'd do just as I told you. I asked you if you had to go for the next fifteen minutes to leave a few minutes ago. Now, please don't; please stand still just a few minutes, see. You're spirit. Lot of you doubt me. And when you move, that puts a con...
You say, "Oh, Brother Branham, that's psychology." Is it? Then Jesus did it when He taken Jairus' daughter and put everybody out of the house and went in and healed her. He did it when He took a blind man and went out of the audience and plumb out of the city and on the outside of the street, took him to himself and healed him. Is that right? Certainly. No, it's just a pack of unbelief and mingling with faith, and a battle's going on.
65 Now, pardon me, lady. I don't mean to be rude, but I have to be firm, see. But God knows us both, doesn't He? And He knows what you're here for. I don't know you. And what I'm trying to do is single your spirit from all these others, to see if God can get in contact with both of us. Like Jesus, He just sent His disciples away to talk to the woman. That's right.
But if God will let me know what you're here for, just like the woman that come to the well, will you receive Him as... To receive... It might be financial trouble; it might be domestic trouble; it might be sickness. I don't know; He does. But you will receive it? You will?
You are, first thing, is a nervous condition; you're extremely nervous. That is right. 'Cause I see you just walking back and forth. And you got some trouble with the lungs, with the liver also. It's a malignancy. That's right. It's a malignancy. And you're something mixed up about Pentecostal. That's right. And then there's something about Presbyterian. That's right. And you're not from here; you're from another country north from here. It's a city, I see spelled---R-i-c... Richmond, Virginia. That's right. That is right. You believe? God bless you, and I bless my sister, in the name of Jesus Christ, for her to return well. Amen. God bless you, sister. Go, believing now, don't doubt.
John 4:8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
66 How do you do, lady? Do you believe? You believe me to be His servant? If God will reveal to me what's your trouble, will you accept it?
I can't help it, sir. See, the vision just leaves me. In the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, may you sit still. Cursed be you if you move from now on till you're called. For the sake of these others I say it. And if I be God's prophet, better be careful what you're doing.
You're here for someone else. You're not here for yourself. It's a woman, and she's not here; it's your sister-in-law. She's got cancer, expecting to die. That is right. Do you believe? Then that handkerchief you brought with you, go put it on her; have faith in God; let her live. God bless you.
Bring the lady. Do you believe with all your heart? I'm a stranger to you, never seen you in my life. God knows you; I don't. But you're suffering; you're really nervous. You have a distressed, disturbed nervousness. You're all upset about something. That's right. You're suffering with a nervousness, and you're praying for somebody. It's a man, and that man is in the hospital. And it's a mental affair, nervous mentalness. And that's your husband. Don't fear; believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is here; he will get well. Do you do it? Do you accept it? I can't heal you or heal him, but do you believe it? Amen. Then go and you will receive it. Amen. Have faith in God. That's it. Have faith in God.
67 Do you believe, sir? I'm a stranger to you; I've never seen you. We don't know each other, but God knows us both.
What about it, son; are you believing? Don't doubt, no matter what's wrong with you; have faith now. You were praying. You're in a serious condition; you had an examination of something wrong in the rectum. It's a growth in the rectum. You have to sit on cushions, pads, like. That is right. That's "Thus saith the Spirit." That is true. I don't know you, never seen you in my life; but that's true, isn't it? And you're not from here. You come from the east, coming this way, west coming here. You come from a city called Charlotte. That's right. Your name's Charles. Your last name's Pruitt. That's right. You believe now Jesus is standing here; you believe it's Him that knows you? Then go home, Mr. Pruitt, and receive your healing, in the name of Jesus Christ. Have faith in God.
68 Come, sir. We don't know each other, I suppose? Christ knows us both. You believe that? What you scared about? Your trouble's in your throat. You've got something where the doctor examined you, and he says there's little pockets like, or little things in your throat. And you've been up for an operation for a long time. You've been putting it off, and putting it off, and putting it off. You're scared of it. Don't be scared, believe. You know you're standing in His presence; I don't know nothing about you. Isn't that right? You believe you're in His divine presence now? Then receive Him and be healed in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The reason I laid my hands on you, because that's what you wanted me to do. That's right. If that's right, wave your hand. All right now.
Let's say, "Praise the Lord."
69 Come. You believe? The next time you get up, you won't have to get up that way then. Your back's been bothering you a long time, so just go on off the platform rejoicing and praising God; your back trouble will leave you and you'll be well. You believe it? All right, now I lay my hand. In the name of the Lord Jesus, may you receive it. Amen. Now, go believing.
Come, lady. Stop thinking that I'm reading your mind. I'm not. Here, I believe this... Lay your hand on mine, lady, just to contact. If God will tell me what's wrong with you and me looking this way, will you believe it with all your heart? The patient. You're suffering with a lady's trouble; it's a female condition. If that's right, raise your hand off of mine, to the audience. Now, is that reading mind? Got a drainage from it, it's bad. It's right. It's abscess on the ovary. But you'll get well. Your faith's healed you. Go ahead home and praise the Lord.
Let's say, "Praise be to God." Do you believe?
70 Got something wrong, with a disease in your bones, right there on the end of the row, haven't you, brother? That's right. Yes, your wife's sitting right behind you with diabetes. You believe that Jesus Christ make you well? You believe it? All right, raise up your hand. All right, you can have it. Amen. The Lord bless you. Your faith saves you, sir. Amen.
Lady, what if I just told you, you was healed before you come up here, would you believe it? Then go back; you was. Amen.
Come, believing. Awhile ago when I said to that lady turning this way, and told her about a female trouble, you was the one come before me. You had female trouble too, lady's trouble. You were healed. So just go ahead thank Him; just believe with all your heart.
Jesus can heal you of the heart trouble and make you well, you believe that? Make you every... All right, just receive your healing, go back to your seat; be made whole in the name of the Lord Jesus.
You believe? Have faith in God.
71 You got back trouble too, haven't you? Internal troubles too. You just been down a long time; you just got up out of a bed to come here (That's right.), walking on that stick. You're believing God's going to make you well, aren't you? All right. When the service is over just throw your old cane, or crutch, back under there, and just go ahead home (see), having faith. You contacted Him, just praying that way.
Liver trouble, isn't it? You believe me to be His prophet? A while ago when I turned to contact ... I caught a contact of you then, but I seen something. I waited just a minute, people were moving; I couldn't keep you in contact. You believe me to be His servant? You're not from here either. You're from a big city that's got a city on one side of a big river, and on the other side there's another big city and there's bridges spanning across. And you're going by a great big place that's got a high tower on it, and it's got some kind of a name writ up on it, and you're going up a hill. And that's near a big river; it's the Ohio River. And that place is Cincinnati, Ohio. You come here from Cincinnati, Ohio. That is right. If that's true, stand on your feet. Go back home healed, because you're well; your faith has made you whole. God bless you.
Hallelujah. You believing?
72 What's sinus to God? Nervousness too, haven't you? Sinus and nervousness and all upset, that's right. I'm not reading your mind, but that's the truth. Do you believe God? Do you believe me to be His prophet? Then raise up before the audience to witness that you believe it, and stand on your feet and be made well. In the name of Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord.
I challenge anybody here to look this way and believe. I do. And the whole group of you can be healed if you'll believe it. What more can He do? He's raised from the dead; He's here. His words are true. Do you believe it, everyone of you? Then have faith in God.
Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, Thy Son, we condemn every sickness here, and pray, God, that You will cast away every evil spirit, all unbelief, and make them well.
You too, sister, go and in Jesus name, be healed.
You believe? Raise up your hands. Stand up on you feet then, I don't care who you are. Stand to your feet and give God praise. Praise the Lord; you're healed in the name of the Lord Jesus.