Hear ye Him

You can find this sermon at ChurchAges.net

1 Thank you, brother. Good evening, friends. I'm certainly happy to be here tonight again to speak in the name of the Lord Jesus to you fine audience of people. Sorry to see you standing, several of you, but I think this is about the largest auditorium they could get at the present time. And it shows you love the Lord, if you come out and stand up during the service. You didn't come to be seen then; you come for what good you could get out of the service.
And a service is always that way. You usually get what you put in the service. We think of expectations. When you're expecting to find the Lord, if you come to a service expecting to find Him, He will be there. If you come expecting to find something you could criticize, the devil will sure show it to you. So just whatever you're expecting, that's just what you receive.

2 Now, last evening we took so much time on the subject of healing, I thought maybe tonight I would speak a little from the evangelistic side. And tomorrow at noon ... or, eleven o'clock, I think I'm to speak at a church here. The brother, cooperating pastor here, Brother Littlefield, at his church. That's evangelistic service.

3 And now, usually, we're trying to start new to try to have an emergency place, where that those... Many people doesn't understand, in America especially, this type of ministry, because they've always been used to have laying hands on them and praying for them.

4 We had such a wonderful time of fellowship this morning at the ministerial breakfast. And you people I met, many of you are pastors. No wonder you're fine people; you got fine pastors to teach you. And we had a real time of rejoicing.
And it just looked like I could find no place to stop talking. Just such a fine bunch of men. We were there till ten minutes till eleven, I believe, after just having a few moments for breakfast. But we had an old-fashioned love feast among each other. I think that's what brethren ought to do. I think that's good. That molds us together as one.

5 Then tomorrow evening is prayer service here again for the sick---tomorrow evening beginning at, I believe, seven o'clock; the pastor's announcing it at seven o'clock.
And now, there's an emergency room. We have been... The brother said if he'd've knew it a little sooner, he could've got it; that's on a side.

6 But Mr. Woods and my son gives out the prayer cards in the afternoon. And the pastor and I were just discussing it here a few moments ago. And if you see one of them, and if you feel that you just can't wait till after service and you've got to get to your own service or whatever it is, and you wish just to pray for them before the service starts, see one of those and they'll put as many as they can to the emergency room.
If you've got a case that's real bad, and you're afraid you can't stay through the service, or your own service is going to go on that night, we don't want to call anyone from their post of duty. We want you... And your duty is at your church when you're having services.
And usually when I have just my own service, just set a meeting and call whosoever, I have my service on the afternoon, so everybody can be free to go at night back to their own church.

7 So, this way... We couldn't have it that way this time, so we had to take it the way we had to have it tomorrow night. And then, we're going to give that emergency room for the people who can't stay for the service and must hurry home at once. And so we will pray for them in the room before the service begins tomorrow night.
So you probably will have to be in the emergency room by six, or a quarter after, at the latest.

8 Now, I'm sure we all love the Lord Jesus and just love to feast on His Word. And I'm so thankful that He gave us His Word. And I have always tried to be very strict about the Word, because Jesus said that "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."

9 And now, I want you to remember this. And this is for the weakest Christian that there is in this building or in the world. You don't have to have gifts. You don't have to wait till some person comes by who prays for the sick. And I'll go on record because there's a tape recorder taking it here. And I say this, that the right mental attitude towards any divine promise of God will bring it to pass---if you can get the right mental attitude towards that divine promise.

10 And the Word of God will defeat the enemy any place, anywhere, at any time. Jesus had... All the great power of God was in Christ. He was God bodily; "God in Christ reconciling the world to Himself."
But when He met Satan, He never used any of His powers. When Satan met Him, he said, "Now (in other words), if You're a miracle performer, if You are the Son of God, do a miracle here before me, and turn these stones to bread." Jesus never used His power. He used the Father's Word. He said, "It's written, man shall not live by bread alone." Then Satan come around and wanted to debate with Him. So, he used the Father's Word, too, but he misused it; put it in the wrong place.
And Jesus said, "And it's, also, written..." And every time Satan would come at Him, He'd speak with the Father's Word and defeated Satan on the Father's Word.
And you can do the same thing. If you'll believe God's Word and stand on God's Word, it'll defeat Satan every time. I know that to be the truth. I've seen sarcomas cancer healed, when it's nothing but standing on the Word of God. And you know what sarcomas cancer is.
All right. It's because that God's Word is life. And every word of God is true. It has no end to it.

11 Here some time ago, I was reading an article where some girls were working on this radium that you put on hands of clocks that shines in the night. And they licked it some way, with their tongue, a brush. And that got into the girl's body and killed her.
And years later, they kept (from an autopsy)--- they kept the skull of the girl. And many, many, many years later, they could take the stereoscopes and put it on that skull of that girl; they could hear that cancer ... or, that radium still going, "Brrr, brrr." It has no end. It just keeps going.

12 And that's the way with the Word of God. It has no end; it's from eternity and for everlasting. It's always God's Word. And Jesus said it was a seed. And if a seed is put in the right kind of ground and watered correctly, it's certainly going to produce what it's kind is.
And if you need anything from God, the seed of God will produce it, if you'll just receive it into your heart and believe it with all your heart.

13 Now, in praying for the sick... I like to make this statement because probably there's newcomers tonight. And I do not claim to be a healer. And I don't believe there's any healer in the earth, whether it's minister, evangelist, or pastor, or doctor, or hospital, or whatever it is. There's no one can heal you outside of God. God is the only healer. Psalms 103:3, "I'm the Lord that healeth all thy diseases."
We're living in the day when we got the best hospitals we ever had; the best doctors we ever had; the smartest doctors we ever had; the best drugs we ever practiced with; and in the midst of all of it, we got more sickness than we ever had. 'Cause we got more unbelief than we ever had.

14 People, in other days, when they spoke of, say, "God performed a miracle. He healed this person."---it was never questioned. They believed in miracles. They just said, "Well, praise the Lord." And went on.
But today, we got to scientifically prove it. Take it back and analyze it, and look through it and see if it's right. You'll never be able to prove God scientifically. God is not scientifically proven.

15 In the garden of Eden, there was a tree of knowledge and a tree of life. And man quit eating from the tree of life and eat from the tree of knowledge, and separated himself from his maker. Every time he takes a bite off of it, he destroys himself.
He bit off gunpowder: kills his neighbor. He bit off automobile, science: kills more than all the wars put together. He's bit himself a hydrogen bomb. Now, I wonder what he's going to do with that.
He destroys himself by knowledge. And God is not known by knowledge. God's known by faith. And faith alone is the only way you'll know God. And His works are acts of faith.

16 What if Moses would have pulled some of the leaves off of the tree that was burning, and said, "Wait a minute. Before I accept this, I'm going to take it down to the laboratory and have a chemical test of these leaves and find out just what that tree's been sprayed with. That tree on fire and doesn't burn. What kind of chemicals is it, it won't let the leaves burn?"
God would've never spoke to him if he'd've done that. But Moses just took off his shoes and sat down and talked to God. He didn't care what was on the leaves and whether they burned or whether they didn't burn; it was God in the bush and Moses recognized it. And he talked to God. And God revealed Himself to Moses.

17 Now, divine healing is not a hocus-pocus. It isn't touching a totem pole, or pouring some mysterious stuff that's run out of somebody's hands on you.
Divine healing is an act of faith in the finished work of Calvary. That's just as purely the Gospel as I know how to place it. It's a finished work that Christ died for at Calvary. "He was wounded for our transgressions; with His stripes we were healed."
Now, healing is not on the same basis as salvation. When you're born again, you receive a new spirit: new life, immortal, cannot die. But when you're healed, it's just an attribute of the divine love of God that heals you temporarily, for a while. Your body must be born again just like your soul.

18 You will die. Lazarus was raised from the grave but died again, see. But if there is no divine healing, which is the earnest of our resurrection, there is no resurrection.
And if there is no freedom from sin and living above sin and free from sin, then there is no heaven to go to. This is just the earnest of our salvation that we have now through the works of the Holy Spirit.
So, divine healing has already been purchased for every creature. It's your faith in the finished work of Calvary.

19 Let me just show you a little something. Of all the fine medicines we got (to settle this)... Now, I was interviewed. Many of you read the Reader's Digest, of the miracle of Donny Martin.
And I was interviewed at Mayo Brothers' Clinic, on account of that, 'cause Mayo's had turned him down. And the vision told him who he was, where he come from, what was going to happen. That's just the way it was and the baby was healed.
And they wrote it up in Reader's Digest. And when I asked them there, I said, "Don't you believe that God heals?" They said... Took me in an old room there and showed a great, big place where Jimmy Mayo used to have. Said, "We do not profess to be healers. We only profess to assist nature. There's one healer; that is God. And that's our best."

20 For instance, what if I cut my hand tonight with a knife? There isn't a medicine in all the world can heal a knife cut. Did you know that? If it'll heal a knife cut in my hand, it'll heal a knife cut in my coat. It'll heal a knife cut in this desk.
"Well," you say, "Brother Branham, I believe you're wrong there." No, if it'll heal a knife cut, it'll heal it regardless of where it's at. Water that's wet in here will be wet out there. A gun that will fire in here will fire out there. If it'll heal a knife cut, it'll heal a knife cut anywhere.

21 But you say, "Brother Branham, medicine wasn't made to heal a knife cut in your coat. It was made to heal your body." All right. For instance, I cut my hand tonight and I fall down dead. And they pronounce me dead; take me down to the morgue and embalm my body with a fluid that'll make me look natural for fifty years.
They send, tomorrow, for your best doctor in Tennessee. Next week, they send for the best doctor in the nation. Next week, they send for the best doctor in Germany. And they put penicillin, sulfa drugs; sew it up, everything they want to do. In fifty years from now, that cut will look just exactly like it did the minute it was cut.

22 If medicine heals the body, then why don't it heal the human body? "Well," you say, "the life has gone out, Brother Branham." That's different. Sure. Then, is it the medicine that heals, or is it life that heals? Now, you tell me what life is, and I will tell you who God is. God does the healing.
Medicine does not build tissue; God builds tissue. A doctor can set an arm, but he can't heal an arm. He leaves it there for God to heal. A doctor can take appendix out, but what about the hole he cut it out? He could pull a tooth, but who stops the blood? Who heals the place up where the tooth come out the socket? God, if it's ever healed. Correctly.

23 So, God's Word never fails. There's not one flaw with it. God heals all our diseases. Now that don't mean that we don't need hospitals, and we don't... Oh yes, we do. Absolutely. I'm for them and pray for them, and for the research of science to find something to help us. Every little aid they can give is wonderful.
But it don't heal. God does the healing. That's right. And when they give you, like penicillin and things for a bad cold, what does it do? It doesn't heal. It's just like rat poison, putting out; it poisons the rats. That's the germs that's in your body. It doesn't heal. God has to build that up where it's been destroyed, see. So, God is the healer on every word every time. He's the healer.

24 Now, let us pray before we open the Bible. And just speak a few moments and then go right straight to whatever the Lord will lead us to do tonight. Shall we pray.
Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the Lord Jesus, and for the power of His resurrection. And tonight while we're gathered here in this city, in this lovely, little auditorium here at the school, God, we pray that You will bless those who so courteously opened up the doors and let us have it.
We thank Thee for this city; for the mayor, that fine gentleman. And for all the different ones who are donating rooms, and so forth, to take care of the comers to the meeting. And we pray that You will bless the ministers here, everyone. Bless these colleges, Lord.

25 These other churches throughout the land, we pray that You will be with them. And I ask that You will be with us in a great way here, tonight. We're so in need, as I look at these wheelchairs, look down over this audience and seeing men and women who's probably worked hard today, leaning against the wall. They're hungry.
Thou hast said in Thy Word, "Blessed are they that do hunger and thirst." It's a blessing to feel that way, for they shall be fed ... or, filled. And we pray that You will grant it.
And now, Father, circumcise the lips that will speak and the hearts that will hear. And may the Holy Spirit come take the Word of God and give it to every heart as we have need. For we ask it in the name of Thy beloved Son, the Lord Jesus. Amen.

26 Just by the way of a Scripture reading, I wish to read a portion of Saint Matthew's Gospel in the 17th chapter, beginning with the 1st verse. And just for a little text, watching the clock and just as quick as we can, change the service.
...after six days Jesus taken Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart,
And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.
Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord ... is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make thee three tabernacles; one for Moses, one for Elias, one for thee.
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.
And by a way of text I would take those last three verses ... or, last three words, Hear Ye Him.

27 Man has preached on this text through the age. Every time it's ever read... You can't read the Word of God without inspiring you. And it inspired the disciples when they heard it. It inspired the next round of apostles and the next round. And Martin Luther, John Wesley, Calvin, Knox, Finney, Sankey, on down through the age as we have come.
And if we should read it a hundred million years from tonight, it would still be just as inspiring, because it's God's Word. It's a finished product. It can never fail. It's God's Word.

28 Now, we could take a lengthy time on this, and we could take it from many different angles. Truly, the right angle to take this from is by the way of the second coming of the Lord.
And perhaps, maybe, your pastor has taught you this many times; on how that the order of the Scripture, how perfect it is, the second coming of the Lord. First: Moses and Elijah, and then they looked and saw just Jesus only: all foreshadowing or picturing the coming of the Lord the second time. But, tonight, we want to approach it from another angle.

29 Now, Jesus meets with men in different circles and in different numbers. One time, He met with five hundred. Another time, He met with seventy. Once with His twelve; once with three. And He will even come to one hungry soul.
No matter what size the circle is or how many people is gathered together, Christ is omnipresent. And He's the only Being that there is that's omnipresent. The devil cannot be omnipresent. God is the only One who is omnipresent: that's everywhere. He fills all the heavens, the earth. Here some time ago on Mount... Up in California, I was looking at that great observatory, where one of the astronomers had been converted in my meeting, and they took me up there. And they got a glass that you can see a hundred and twenty million years of light space.
Light travels, I think, about eight thousand miles per second. Break that down into miles and how many miles would you have of a hundred and twenty million years? How many miles would you have in a minute? how many in a hour? in a day? in a year? in a hundred years? and in a million years? and a hundred and twenty million years? And all beyond that is filled with solar system.

30 Our great Jehovah God just blew them off His fingers in creation. And He covers all the space. And sometimes we walk around and act like we can run His business.
He's so big that He fills all the space, and yet, will become so small that He will come to a poor, lost sinner's heart. That's what makes Him great.
I've had the privilege in my life to meet great men, kings. I've been in four palaces praying for kings, monarchs, potentates. And you find great men; they're little in their own sight. It's men that's nothing; little men that thinks himself big, that tries to make himself big.
That's what makes God so big. He humbles Himself, to come down, to save, to heal. Makes Him God to me.

31 Now, on this occasion Jesus had taken Peter, James, and John and went up into the mountain alone. Now, the Bible has said in the Old Testament, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses, let every word be established. And three is a confirmation.
So, Peter, James, and John... Really, you notice, in the resurrection of Jairus' daughter, three... He'd always taken Peter, James, and John: that's faith, hope, charity.

32 And He taken these three witnesses with Him because God was going to do something great. Jesus never idles. Every word was for a meaning. And we're taught by the Bible not to have vain repetition, and not to have idle words. "Let your 'yes' be 'yes' and your 'no,' 'no,' for anything more than this cometh to sin."
What kind of people should we be then? We should be sober, ready; always looking and waiting for the leading of the Holy Spirit. Christians is the salt of the earth. And salt will save if it contacts.

33 You have a barrel of meat here and a barrel of salt here, it'll never save the salt ... will never save the meat till it contacts it. And we've got to be salty. And then contact the world. That's the savor. And salty makes... Salt creates thirst. And when the Christian people, who call themselves Christians, will be so salty that the world will desire to be like you, you're making a contact then.
Have you seen Christians... You'd say, "Oh, I'd just love to be like that woman. I'd just love to be like that man. If there ever was a Christian, there he is." That's salty. You just be the salt; God will create the thirst. But you be salty.

34 Notice. Jesus taken them up into the mountain and met there three earthly beings: Peter, James, John; Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. There was three witnesses of the earth; three witnesses of heaven. As a witness, both in heaven and in earth.
God always vindicates. He never does nothing before first He sends forth a witness. And here it is. My beloved friends here in this lovely city, this great move that you see moving in the earth today, is a warning. Something's fixing to happen. Take it from the Bible.

35 Every junction of time, God sends forth prophets, then angels, and gives a warning. Like before the antediluvian destruction, before every epoch of time, God always sends warnings first. He could not put punishment on the earth without (and be just), without first sending warning.
So, remember, the handwriting's on the wall. These things... God doesn't just play around and dally around like we do. But when you see the hand of God moving, it's a milestone. It's pointing to something.
And we're at the end of the six thousand years. Everything in history, everything in the Scripture, everything in the heavens, everything on the earth, is pointing to a change right now. Prophets, angels, signs, wonders; and the church cold and formal, to be spewed from God's mouth just like He said. Take courage and be ready. Something's fixing to happen.

36 Notice. Something's fixing to happen here. And God was going to, at this time, settle it before the earth, once forever.
Now, back in the Old Testament... And many of the ministers will know this, and many of you Sunday school teachers and Bible readers. In the Old Testament... And I think here's where our churches has made a great mistake.
And the reason I thought on this, that it might be profitable for tonight: the Old Testament is a shadow of the New. And myself, I have no education; so, I have to be a typologist to know where I'm standing. And if I look at a shadow of something, I can pretty well judge what the positive will be. So, in the Old Testament all those things were shadows and types.

37 And when a child was born into a family... If you'll notice in the Bible, back in the early translators, in King James' time, King James' version, John 14 sounds very strange, doesn't it? "In My Father's house is many mansions."
Mansions in a house? How much bigger is a mansion than a house? Sounds strange. I believe it was Moffatt or one of the other modern translators, who made it more ridiculous than ever. Said, "In my father's apartment house is many apartments." Now that doesn't sound like God. You're going up there to rent an apartment from Him.
Now, that's wrong. But if you'll go back to the original, it says, "In My Father's kingdom is many palaces." Now, the reason King James put it like that (the translators) in the Old Testament and also in the early ages, a man who owned a great portion of country, it was called his house, his household. He had servants over here and servants over there and servants down there.
In Africa and many parts of the country, you still find this law. And he was called the father over all of this group of servants and grounds, like Abraham.

38 And notice. When a child was born into that family, a son, he was a son at birth. But that didn't mean that he was an heir, yet. Because when that child was born in the family, he was a son because he was born.
Now, many times we have misjudged that. They think, "Oh, praise God, I'm born again, so that's all that matters." No, sir. You're wrong. You're just then beginning.

39 Notice. Then this child, as soon as he was born, was given a tutor (many of you know the Galatian letter), of a tutor, or a teacher. And this teacher raised this child, bringing his father word all the time how the child was progressing. He educated the child. He raised him up. And he kept word to the father all the time about the child.
Father would come along once in a while and trot his child on the knee and kiss him. But he was a busy man, and he couldn't take time to educate his own child. He had a special, selected, the best that he could find to raise that child, because it was his son.

40 And that's what the Father God has done for His church. And when we are born into the church of the living God (and that's the only way we can get into it), for by birth, one spirit. I've been with the Branham family forty-seven years, and they never did ask me to join the family.
Why? I was born a Branham. And that's how you become a Christian, when you're not joined a Christian, but born a Christian.

41 Now, notice. And this child being born a son, a tutor was given to raise the child. And when you were born into the kingdom of God, God sent us a tutor, educator, raiser; and that is the Holy Spirit who brings word to the Father constantly how His children are progressing.
How shameful it must be as Ezra, the prophet, blushed before God, that the Holy Spirit must have to blush before the Father of the conduct of His children.
How sin has crept into the church. The things that goes on in the church today, that we call ourselves the church of God. I don't want to hurt you, now. I want to help you.

42 If I understand it right, a little while ago it was a sin for you ladies to cut your hair; at least the Bible says it is. But you just ignore that anymore.
It was wrong for you to put on a garment that pertained to a man. The Bible says it is. But you just do it anyhow. You let your young girls do it. Then they get insulted by the boys on the street, and you want to arrest the boys. You're the one that needs it.
We'd never have juvenile delinquency till we have parent delinquency. You used to love to go to prayer meeting and pray till twelve and one and two o'clock, lay on the little, old cottage floor somewhere, under the Spirit of God. You used to love to pray all night long. But since you got your television, you like to stay home and watch some old vulgar picture, Who Seen Lucy or Who Loves Lucy, and stay home from prayer meeting. Something happened.

43 Then you wonder what's the matter. The most greatest event ever took place on earth was when Jesus Christ was baptized of John. When God came to the earth ... or, sent His Son, rather, He represented Him as a lamb. The lamb is the meekest of all the animals of the earth.
And when He represented Himself, He represented Himself as a dove. And the dove is all the meekest of all the birds of heaven, that fly the heaven. And only those two species could agree.
And John said, "Behold, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. And I bear record seeing the Spirit of God like a dove." When the Dove settled down on the Lamb, heaven and earth embraced each other and kissed. And sinners and God was reconciled.

44 And that's the only animal that the dove could settle on. What if that lamb would have snorted like a wolf? The gentle, little dove would have took her flight.
And you wonder what's the matter with the prayer meetings? When you got saved, you was a lamb. But when you started snorting like a wolf, and hating your neighbor, and fussing and fighting, the dove just took her flight and went away from you. And now you wonder what's the matter.
That's what's the matter. A dove won't stay on a goat; it won't stay on a wolf. Fussing, fighting, stewing, ups-and-downs, and arguing, and denominational barriers, the Holy Spirit just took her flight.
You say, "Brother Branham, how do we get it back?" Just come back to a lamb. She's just sitting up there on the roof somewhere. She will come right back when you take the nature of a lamb.

45 But that's what's wrong. That's the reason the Holy Spirit, going to God, has to take such word. What do you think the tutor felt when he went to the father. He said, "Oh, how is my son progressing?"
"Well, he's just a little, snoopy fellow. I just have to tell you the truth." Now, God tells the truth. The Holy Spirit don't pull no strings or punches for anybody. It brings the truth.
Now, I read a book. It said George Washington never told a lie. I don't know about that. I couldn't say that.
But the Bible don't pull strings for nobody. About Lot living with his daughters, and so forth. And David, a man after God's own heart, but when he took Bathsheba, Uriah's wife, God placed it right in the Word.
And it's either right or wrong. That's the reason I got confidence in the Bible, because it's the truth. Whether it hurts or whether it doesn't, it's the truth. And I have confidence in it, for its Author is none other but God.

46 So, then, if the father brought word and the son, the children was not progressing ... that son always was a son, certainly. But he never had anything to do in the father's kingdom. He never had any position.
But if he was a good son, and he was a smart boy, and he was interested in the father's business... How good the tutor must have felt to go to the father and say, "Oh, my. You've got one of the finest boys. Why, he just sees something to be done, he goes and does it. And he's smart. He knows how to do it. He seeks wisdom. And oh, he's just you made over." How the father must feel. That was fine.

47 So when the son became at age, where Pentecost ought to be tonight: of age. If you're not going to be of age at forty, you'll never be of any age.
And then, when it come to the place of coming of age, the father seen the son had progressed and he was a worthy boy. Everything he did was right and he was right up with the father's business. He wanted everything just right for the father. He had no selfish motives.
Then, the father taken that son out into a public place. [You ministers: the placing of a son.] And the father taken the very son that was born in his family and adopted his own son. That's what Ephesians said. We're adopted, predestinated to the adoptions of sons by Christ.

48 Now, the son that was his son... In other words, he adopted him, by this ... he placed his son positionally. How did he do it? Then that son's name on the check was just as good as the father's, because he was in position. The father had vindicated it, had placed that son in position. I hope you're getting this.
And then that son was an heir of what the father had. And we are, what God has, we're joint-heirs with Christ, if we are sons of God, positionally placed in the kingdom, holding our places.
Now, God has many places He could place you. Some are apostles, some prophets, teachers, evangelists, pastors, so forth. God positionally places this son.

49 Now, God didn't ask men to do anything that He didn't do Himself. So, He goes up on the mountain, taking a witness of earth and a witness of heaven. And He took His own beloved Son and stood Him out before the witness of the earth and the witnesses of heaven, and glorified Him. And His raiment shined like the sun.
That's that royal robe that the father, in the Old Testament, placed on his son and stood before the crowd and adopted, or placed his son, positionally, over everything he had.
And God took His Son, with witnesses of heaven, witnesses of earth and on Mount Transfiguration, placed Him and overshadowed Him. And He said, "This is My beloved Son. Hear ye Him."
Peter got all excited, like we do lots of times. He said, "Lord, You know, this is a good religious ground that we're standing on. You know what we ought to do? We ought to build a tabernacle here for Moses. All them that wants to keep the law, they can belong to that denomination. And we ought to build a tabernacle for Elijah. All that wants that denomination can go to it. And then, we'll build one for You. And all that wants to go to You..." God said, "Away with such stuff. This is My beloved Son. Hear ye Him."

50 I'm so glad He said that. Let's look at Moses. What did Moses represent? He represented the law. By the law nobody's saved. The Bible said you can't be saved by the law. You're saved by grace through the foreknowledge of God.
God by foreknowledge saved you before the foundation of the world. You're saved by grace. Someone said, "I just sought God and sought God." Brother, you didn't. No man ever sought God at any time. God seeks man, not man seeking God.
In the garden of Eden, it should've been Adam going up and down the garden, saying, "Father, where art Thou?" It was God saying, "Adam, where art thou?" That's His nature.

51 Jesus confirmed it. He said, "No man can come to Me, except My Father draws him first." It's God seeking man. You have nothing to do with it. If you ever felt the hand of God knock at your heart, you're a privileged person.
No man is saved, not what you do, but what He done. Notice. No man is saved by the law. And I'm glad that He dismissed Moses. Moses represents the law. The Sabbath keeping, non-meat eating and all those laws and shadows. He said, "Away with it."

52 Now, what did Elijah represent? Elijah represents the sternness or the justice of God. God knows we don't plead for judgment ... or, justice. I plead for mercy, not for justice. How can we receive justice when we're born in sin, shaped in iniquity; come to the world speaking lies? Our very being, here, God would condemn. He's already condemned it.
So, we're without hope trying to stand on the justice of God. Elijah stood on the mountain and they sent a captain of fifty. He raised up that prophet and went to meet them. Said, "If I be a man of God, let fire fall from heaven and consume you." And fifty was burnt up.
King said, "We will send some more. Send another captain and fifty."
Elijah walked out there, and said, "If I am a man of God, let fire come from heaven. You're trespassing on God's ground. I am God's justice. Let fire fall from heaven and consume you." And fifty was burnt up. God's justice. He was the lion of God's justice.
So, I don't plead for law. I don't plead for God's justice. But I'm so glad. Let us turn our head and look this way.

53 There stood Jesus. What did He represent? God's love. That's what I want. That's what we need. Not His law, not His judgments, but God's love.
"This is My beloved Son." Let the rest of it pass away. "Hear ye Him." Why do you want to hear Him? He's the only One that has eternal life in His hands. He's the only One who can save you. The law can't save you; your judgments can't save you; your justice can't save you. Your own selfish, righteous rags can't save you. Your religion can't save you. Your church can't save you. He alone can save you. That's the reason you ought to "hear ye Him."

54 He can heal you. Your doctor can't heal you; your hospital can't heal you; your medicine can't heal you. All your "quacks" and "...terns" and everything else can't heal you. All your superstitions can't heal you. He alone can heal you. "Hear ye Him."
All your pranks and jollies and your Elvis Presleys and rolling, boogie-woogie and rock-and-roll and all your nonsense only brings you down to sorrow. There's only One can give you joy that settles and gives you peace, "Hear ye Him.
All your social prestige and whatever you might put your heart into---your social standing and your gatherings and so forth---can never give you the peace that passes all understanding. He has them alone. "Hear ye Him."
All your church joining, denominational fusses and your stews and difference and arguing, it'll only take Him away from you. Forget it and "Hear ye Him."
That clock just keeps moving, and I know I got to quit.

55 Oh, how I would like to see the whole Christian church just look up and "Hear ye Him." He's the One. God is looking and searching for men who will stand out---outstanding men. Not because you can do this or do that, because in your heart, in your innermost being, there's something that loves Him.
No matter what the world calls for, it's death. God grant the day that when Christians will be Christians. And if you're not a Christian, quit dodging behind your church trying to make people believe you're a Christian. God knows you're not.

56 It wouldn't seem funny to see a hog rooting in a manure pile. That's his nature. I don't blame him. He's a hog. That's his nature. That's what he is. You see him eating on an old, dead carcass. That's all right. He's a hog. But it would sure seem funny to see a lamb doing that.
I don't condemn the sinner. If he drinks, let him drink. That's all the pleasure he knows. If he smokes, let him smoke. If he listens to rock-and-roll and all these other devil-inspired things, let him listen. That's all he knows. But you, who knows better, and then turn to such things as that, you're not worthy to bear the name of Christianity. That's right. You're the one. You who know better ought to be putting an example to them and living an example. Now, that's right.

57 God is searching for real men. I don't mean how big his muscles are. Man is never judged by his muscles. That's brute. Man is judged by character. I've seen men that weighed two hundred pounds and solid muscle and didn't have an ounce of man in him, will throw a baby from a mother's arms and ravish her. That's a brute. But man is measured by character.
There never was a man like Jesus Christ. And the Bible said, "There was no beauty we should desire Him, but a character like it has never been molded." That's right. "Hear ye Him."

58 Now, the old story that we used to learn in the school... Too many times, it's forgotten. Just recently, I come from Switzerland where the Lord was with us. Five nights we had fifty thousand souls registered, coming to Christ; ten thousand each night.
And up in the hills of Switzerland, around Jungfraujoch and Eiger and Monch and through those famous hills of Switzerland, there was a character of many years ago that we had in our book named, 'Arnold Von Winkelried.' Many of you has read the story of Arnold Von Winkelried.

59 One day when Switzerland was invaded in its early days, they were a peace-loving people. And a great army came into Switzerland and they were all military men. They had great shields, breastplates and helmets, great long spears. And they come marching in to take away the economy and all the little Swiss people had, up in the mountains.
And the Swiss army had gathered in a field to defend their homes. And the great army come marching on. And finally, when they seen the army appear, they were outnumbered by the hundreds. And there was that well-trained army like a brick wall moving on to the Swiss.
And the poor little Swiss stood with pieces of sticks in their hands, and anything they could pick up to fight with: rocks and with old sickle blades; only thing they had to defend their land. They stood helpless against such a massive army, as they marched on and closing in on them.

60 And when they seen that every hope was gone, then one gallant man... He will never be forgotten in Switzerland. Mention his name today, and their face will flush and tears will run down their cheeks. His name was Arnold Von Winkelried.
He stepped out amongst the Swiss army and he said, "Brethren, this day I will give my life for Switzerland." He said, "Across the mountain yonder is a lovely, little, white home, my wife and three children. They're looking for me to come back, but I will never see them again in this world. I must give my life for Switzerland this day."
And the man says, "What will you do, Arnold Von Winkelried?"
He said, "You just follow me. And do the best you can with what you have to do with."

61 And he threw down the little missile he had in his hand, and he looked all around the spears till he found the very deepest place. And he threw up his arms and he ran as hard as he could, and screamed with all of his might, "Make way for liberty! Make way for liberty!" And when he ran, hundreds of spears turned to catch him, with nothing but his bare bosom open. In the midst of the bunch of them, he ran into them grabbing an armful of spears and plunging them into his chest.
They caught him with the spears running through him. And such a display of heroism rallied that alien army, and those Swiss men followed with little sticks and stones and beat that alien army plumb out of their country. Because one man was willing to step out and take the place and make the sacrifice that was needed.
That display of heroism has seldom ever been compared with, and never exceeded.
[Gap in the audio.]
Hundreds of years has passed, but Switzerland still remembers them; they've never had a war from then since. That was heroism. That was a man who met the challenge of his day and the challenge of the time.

62 But my brethren, listen, that was a small thing. When one day, Adam's race was backed into the corner. God had sent them the law; they didn't keep it. God sent them prophets; they stoned them and made fun of them. They sent them judges and they wouldn't let them rule over them. Every hope had been lost. And Adam's race with sin, sickness, diseases, illiteracy, and all was backed into a corner. And the devil, with his own marching army of diseases, sin, was whipping Adam's race down just as fast as he could.
And there was One stepped out of heaven. And He said, "This day I'm going to earth."
The angels said, "What will You do?"
He said, "I must give My life for Adam's race." He didn't have to do it. But He was willing to do it, because there was no other hope left. No one else could do it.

63 And He didn't hesitate. He stepped out and took the sinner's place. When He was on earth, He looked and seen where the greatest dread that man had; where the thickest of the spears was: it was death. Every man's afraid of death. And He raised His precious hands to the heavens and struck at the very hardest part and the worst enemy man has, and He plunged the spear of death into His own precious bosom.
And then He sent back on the day of Pentecost to Adam's fallen race, the baptism of the Holy Ghost, saying, "Take up this and do the best you can to fight away ignorance and superstitions, sin and sickness." Men who claim to have kissed the rim of the cup of blessings of God... How can we hold our peace in such a time when God has give us the most powerful weapon that man ever placed in man's hands to fight against sin and sicknesses and ignorance and superstitions and isms.
It's a real sky full of the genuine baptism of the Holy Spirit. And we stand in the corner like a bunch of cowards. God wants men and women who are gallant, who'll stand out and take the place. God wants a hero. Could you be one?

64 I am a hunter. I love to hunt in the woods, not so much for the game; I love to be alone. I never get to be alone unless I get into the woods. I love to get into the mountains alone. That's where I first knew God: watching Him in nature, how He moves.
A lot of times, I will go with a brother and I will take a position to go hunting, and I will tell him I'm going to a certain place. I'm not going to hunt. I go up there and set my gun against a tree and kneel down on top of the mountain. There I see Jehovah.

65 One day, I remember, it was along in the fall of the year, early October. The storms hadn't come yet to run the elk down. I was three days back, on a horse. Nobody with me. Nobody in seventy miles of me, way into the mountains.
And I was searching around the mountain top, for the elk hadn't come down. They'd had no storms. And in that time of year there'll be a storm, it'll rain a while, and then snow a while, and then the sun will come out and melt it all off, and so forth.
And it come up a storm. And I stood behind a tree. And after the storm was over, I got out from behind the tree. And I looked and the sun was setting through the crevice of the rocks in the west. And a rainbow came out because the evergreen was froze that high. And a rainbow come across the valley. I thought, "O Jehovah God, there's Your promise." The rainbow is a covenant. The covenant was with Christ.

66 John saw Him to look upon as jasper and sardius stone, a rainbow over him; the first and the last. And I got so filled with joy. You may call me a holy-roller after this. But I set my gun down, and then, an old gray wolf got to hollering upon the mountain side and the mate answered it in the bottom.
My mother's mother come off the reservations up here. My conversion didn't take that out of me. I love the wild, nature.
And when the wolf got to hollering, his mate got to answering. I started crying. The storm had run the big elk herd apart and I could hear the males bugling one to another. It was like heaven.

67 I set down the gun. I run around and around and around that tree. If there would have been someone in the woods, they would have said I was out of the insane institution. I didn't care what... I was worshipping my Creator. I could hear Him in the wolf call. I could hear Him in the elk call. I could see Him in the rainbow. I could see Him as the sun was setting. Everywhere around was God.
I felt like Peter. "It's good to be here." But just below the hill, of course, there's sickness waiting.

68 And while I was worshipping God, I happened to notice, I heard a little pine squirrel. And oh, he was making so much noise, like he was going to hurt someone. Just a little noise box was all he was, sitting on a stump in an old blow down.
And he was just a chatter, chatter, chatter. And I thought, "Little fellow, what you so excited about?" And he'd cock his little eyes sideways and look down. And I thought, "Surely, you're not scared of me. Only I know you're the blue coat policeman of the woods. But why are you making so much noise?"

69 But, I found out he wasn't barking at me. In the storm, a great huge eagle had been forced down. An eagle... A prophet in the Bible is an eagle. He goes higher than other birds and he can see way off, things coming.
And he'd been forced down. And the big eagle jumped up. His great big, gray eyes, and he looked at me and he looked at that squirrel. And I thought, "God, why did You stop me from shouting? I see You in the rainbow and all around, but where are You in this scene?"
And I watched the big bird. And I thought, "Well, maybe He's in the bird. Well," I thought, "there's one thing, the bird don't seem to be a scared. He's a hero."
God don't want cowards. He wants somebody who will stand. He don't want somebody that's ashamed to testify to their boss. He don't want somebody that's afraid to tell the doctor that God heals you. He wants a hero.

70 And I could see the eagle wasn't afraid. I said to the eagle, "Big bird, aren't you afraid of me?" And he looked at the pine squirrel, he'd look at me. I thought, "Why isn't he afraid?" And I kept noticing, he kept moving his wings, feeling his wings. I thought, "Oh, I see the reason he's not afraid." I said, "Do you know I could shoot you?" He looked over at me. And I said, "I could take my rifle and shoot you. Aren't you afraid of me?" He just kept feeling his wings.
I thought, "There it is." God had given him a provided way that he trusted in. And he knew, by his own wings, that I couldn't get that rifle as fast as he could get through them bushes and be out of my way. And he trusted in his God-given power. And I thought, "That's right, Lord. The eagle will trust in his God-given power, but how about a man with the baptism of the Holy Ghost afraid to trust God with that God-given power?" He's a coward, not a hero.

71 And I watched the big fellow. He got tired of listening to that little pine squirrel because if he had any discernment, he knowed I was his friend. I was admiring him.
And after a while, he got tired of hearing that little old chatter, chatter. He just made one big jump, flopped his wings about twice, he was out of the timber. And something happened that set me to screaming. He never kept flopping his wings from one church to another, from one denomination to another. Flop, flop here and flop, flop there.
You know what he done? He had a knowledge that these wings was give to him for a purpose. So, he just set his wings. And when the air waves come in, he rode up on them. And he went higher, not flopping his wings, just knowing how to set his wings. And riding on the air waves. And he went on, on till he become a little speck.
And I got to weeping and shouting again. I said, "That's it, Lord. Oh, if we only knew how to set our wings of faith and ride the current of the Holy Ghost and get away from this little old chatter, chatter here, days of miracles is past. There's no such a thing as divine healing.' Just ride on out of sight of it." Get tired of it and ride away on the God-given wings that He's give you.

72 One day, went hunting (and I'm closing), a friend of mine by the name of Caul, Burt Caul. He was a cruel man. But yet I liked him. There was something about him inside I liked. Now, I'm closing. Be in prayer.
He used to shoot little fawns just to be mean. Now the law provided, if you want a fawn, why, you could have it; one a year. But Burt would take about ten or fifteen a year just to be mean. I used to be a game warden, as you know, for years. And I love game. I'm a conservationist. I like to take care of it. But I was in another state, New Hampshire.
And one year when I went up there, Burt had made him a little whistle. And that little whistle, he could make it go just like a little baby fawn crying.
And I said, "Burt, you're not going to use that."
He said, "Oh, you chicken-hearted preachers." Just to be mean, cruel. You've seen men like that. You think you're big, but you're little.

73 And he wanted to blow this little whistle. I thought, "Surely, he won't do it." But one day while hunting, we come to a little open space, and Burt slips down and screams this little whistle. It sounded just like a little baby fawn crying.
And all of a sudden, across the way, a beautiful, big doe (that's the mother deer), she raised up and she looked. And her great big ears and her big, beautiful, brown eyes and her statue that only a lover of nature could admire. She walks out into the open, those ears up and them eyes searching. A baby was in trouble and she was a mother. And she looked.
I seen Burt pull the bolt action on his rifle to put the shell in. I thought, "Oh, surely, you're not going to do that, Burt. Surely, you couldn't do that. That's a mother. She would certainly come to the cry of that baby."

74 And I seen him raise the rifle, put the sights right across her heart. And as he raised the rifle, the mother doe spotted him; looking right in the barrel of that rifle, knowing it was death.
But the call of that baby. There was a mother instinct in her. No matter what death she looked at, that mother instinct. She walked on. No matter if she died. Where was that baby in trouble?
"And, oh," I thought, "that display of heroism. And Burt," I thought, "are you going to do it, Burt?" And I turned my head, and I said in my heart, "Dear God, don't let him do that. How can he do it, knowing that there's something in the mother deer that makes her reach for the baby. No matter what the price is, the baby's in trouble."

75 If that would take that effect on a mother deer when a baby deer's in trouble, what would it do to a man with the Holy Spirit when the church of God is in trouble? Would it make you show your colors and love the Lord? Would it make you quit your fussing and lay down your differences? Would it make you throw away all your superstitions and believe God?

76 And as I prayed, I wondered why the rifle didn't fire? And I looked around, knowing that Burt was a dead shot. Listening, to hear the gun fire at any time, yet praying that he wouldn't do it. I thought there was a quietness of something. And as I looked, the rifle was going like this. He turned around, the tears was running down his cheeks. He laid his rifle on the ground and reached around and grabbed me by the hands.
He said, "Billy, I can't stand it no more. I am whipped. I just can't stand it no more." There on a little patch of snow, I led him to the Lord Jesus. Because a mother deer showed the display of what she was.

77 Don't you want to show a display to the world what you're made out of? God is looking for heroes. He's looking for people who will stand out and believe Him. And may you do that tonight, is my prayer, while we bow our heads just a moment. The organist, if she will, just a little music. I want every Christian to pray.
I wonder, tonight, with every head bowed and every eye closed, if there would be someone here would say, by an uplifted hand, "Jesus of Nazareth, I want to become a true servant of Yours. And tonight, I want to show how much I love You. And I'm going to raise my hand to You that I want You to forgive me of my past life. And I want to accept You tonight as my personal Saviour."
God bless you, up there. God bless you, sir. God bless you, lady. God bless you. Someone down in the lower floor, here; around... God bless you, sir. God bless you, sir. God bless you, sir. Someone... God bless you, lady. God bless you, sir. That's right. Be in prayer. God bless you, sir.

78 "I, now, want to take my stand as a witness. I take my stand. I want to display that feeling that's within me before men and women of this world that I love the Lord Jesus. And from tonight on, I will display my heroism as a Christian. And I want to become a real Christian just now. And I'm raising my hand to You, God, that You'll see me. I know You will. And I want to be remembered in prayer." Is there another? God bless you. God bless you. You. You, lady. You, lady. That's right. All right, is there another just before closing? I want to pray for you. Is there... God bless you, mister. God bless you, sir. All right, just waiting a moment.
Is there a backslider would say, "I'm ashamed of myself, Brother Branham. God, You know I'm ashamed of myself. Right now, Your Spirit's condemning me. I've seen lot of times where I ought to've stood for Christ and I didn't do it. From this night on, by Your help, I will stand." I'm going to raise my hand for help, too, Lord. Will you, backslider? God bless you, lady, up there in the balcony. God bless you little lady. God bless you, sir.

79 All right. There's any need the baptism of the Spirit and say, "Brother Branham, I need the fullness of God's Spirit in my life to give me courage to stand in these hours. I've tried, but I've failed and I want God to fill me with the Holy Spirit, and adopt me into His family, so I can be a real courageous soldier." Would you hold your hand to God, say, "It's me."? God bless you. Yes, dozens of hands. Now, let us pray.

80 Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee. "Faith cometh by hearing, hearing of the Word of God." We thank Thee for these tonight. I don't know them. Thou does. But they raised their hands, dozens, that they wanted to receive You as their personal Saviour. And Thou hast said that "No man can come to Me, except My Father draws him first." And then you said, "All that comes to Me, I will give him everlasting life. None can pluck him from My hands. I will raise him up at the last days."
And Father God, I'm quoting Your own Son's words. He said, "He that heareth My words and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath (past tense) passed from death unto life and shall not come into the judgment. But is passed from death to life." God, that's Your Word. You seen every hand went up. According to Your Word, they have passed from death unto life. They believe. They've raised their hands as a witness, a token. And I pray, God, that You'll receive them into the kingdom of Thy own beloved Son this night.

81 And at the close of this service, may each of them come up around the altar and pray, and thank You; for there's many people on earth who will never, never accept Christ. Not that God was willing, but by foreknowledge He knew it and they were predestinated to this condemnation, says the Scripture. But what a privilege that a man that God Almighty will knock at his heart and invite him to come to His own beloved Son. And Jesus said, "He that comes, I will in nowise cast him away."
But the Father... And it's a gift of the Father to the Son. And the Son promised to keep them through His own blood. God keep these who raised their hand. And if I have found grace in Your sight, hear the prayer of Your unprofitable servant. I ask this blessing in Jesus' name. Amen.

82 Doesn't it just make you feel real good? The Holy Spirit. Now, each that raised your hand, along with the others, at the close... I was not going to have prayer service. If I can find Billy Paul, he was saying he went over to, I believe, to the church today to give out cards, but I forgot. If he didn't, there's some to give out anyhow. I think there's some from last night. Where's he at, Brother Woods? Oh, excuse me, he was behind me. Did you give out cards? A hundred.

83 All right. How many believes that the Lord Jesus Christ promised to meet wherever two or three were gathered? He did. And He said... Now, if He was here tonight and was... How many here never was in one of the little humble meetings that the Lord has given me, His unprofitable servant? You never was in one of my meetings, would you raise your hand? My, just look at the hands.
I would take just a moment of time, then. Now, friends, there's five offices in the church: prophets or evangelists, pastors, teachers, and apostles or missionaries, (either one you want to call it, both the same word). God set this in the church for the perfecting of the church.

84 Now, I want to ask you a question to you newcomers. Do you believe Jesus raised from the dead? You believe it, you newcomers? All right. Does the Bible say in Hebrews 13:8 that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever? Yes, He did. Well, then, if He is the same, He has to be the same in principle, the same in power, the same in attitude, just the same Jesus. Is that right?

85 Well, now, if we wanted to know if there's all... There's all kinds of religions in the world. But there's only one, and they are just simply making creed already out of that. And that's the Christian religion that the founder of this religion is alive, yet. The rest of them are dead. Mohammed, Buddha, all the rest of them are dead and in their graves.
But Jesus is the only One who has an empty tomb. He's alive, and He's with us. He promised, when He was here on earth... Now listen close. Did He say that the things that He did that we would do also? Did He promise that? Did He say, "A little while and the world (that's the world order, church members and so forth), won't see Me no more." Did He say that? "Yet, ye shall see Me (That's the church, the body. Is that right?), for I will be with you," and He said, "even in you to the end of the world." Is that right?

86 Then, if He is working... Then, the only thing different in Jesus, His corporal body sits at the right hand of God on the throne of God. That's not Jesus' throne; that's His Father's throne. His throne... He's the full heir to that. He has David's throne. But He's at His Father's throne, waiting. "And He that overcometh shall sit with Me on My throne, as I have overcome, and sit on My Father's throne."
Now, He's waiting there in a corporal body, but God sent His Spirit back to be in the church.

87 Now, if I told you the Spirit of John Dillinger was in me, you'd expect me to have big guns and be an outlaw. If I told you the spirit of an artist was in me, you'd expect me to paint these mountains. If I told you the spirit of a mechanic was in me, you'd expect me to hear your car and know what was wrong. If I tell you the Spirit of Christ is in me, you'd expect me to do the works of Christ. That's right. That's what the churches look to, not to have creeds, but to have the Spirit of Christ.

88 Now, what did Christ do when He was here on earth? I want to ask you; now this is for newcomers. Did Christ say He was a healer? No. Did Christ take credit for healing the sick? No. What did He say? "It's not me that doeth the works, it's my (what?) Father that dwelleth in me. He doeth the works."
And Jesus was questioned. And here's what He said in Saint John 5:19, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing in Himself." Did He say that? Saint John... How many ever read that? Let's see your hands. Saint John 5:19.
He had passed through a lot of crippled and lame people and didn't heal them. And He healed a man just laying on a pallet. And He was questioned for the man packing his bed. Of course, I guess not healing all of them and so forth. But He passed through and just healed this one and went away. And they wondered why He did it. And He said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing in Himself, but what He sees the Father doing." Is that right? "That doeth the Son likewise."

89 Then the Word of God, which is infallible, proves that Jesus Christ didn't heal nobody until God showed Him a vision on what to do. Find one place in the Bible where a prophet ever did anything without God showing him what to do. It's not man, it's God. Even God didn't recognize the flesh of His own Son to give Him free will for whatever He did. He did just as the Father told Him.

90 And when He was here on earth, when He first started His ministry (this is for the newcomer), a man got converted by the name of Philip. And he goes around behind the mountain and found Nathanael under a tree praying. He brought him back to the meeting.
And he was standing in the audience, or over in a prayer line, or wherever it was. And Jesus looked at him for the first time in life, physically like that, and said, "Behold, an Israelite, in whom there's no guile."
He looked at Him. He said, "How did You know who I was, Rabbi? How did You know I was an honest man?" He could have been a crook. He could have an unbeliever. He could have been a Greek. They all looked alike about, them long beards and dressed alike. "How did You know me that I was honest and straight and so forth?"
He said, "Why, before Philip called you (thirty miles around the mountain), when you were under the tree, I saw you." What eyes; see through the mountain, thirty miles away, and see him under the tree when Philip come up.
He said, "Rabbi, You're the Son of God. You're the King of Israel."

91 That was the ministry of Jesus Christ yesterday. If He's the same today, it's His ministry today. Is that right?
What did the Jews say, the believers, now was supposed to be believers, the great ethics, teachers of that day. The great priests, and high priests, and scholars, and seminary students that knowed the Bible from A to Z. What did they say it was? They said, "It's a devil. It's Beelzebub."
And Jesus said, "You speak that against me, the Son of man, I will forgive you. But when the Holy Ghost is come and does the same thing, if you speak a word against that, it'll never be forgiven you, in this world or the world to come."

92 And we're living in the Holy Ghost dispensation where Christ has been glorified and the Holy Spirit's here. That's what He said. So, be careful now. Don't judge. I'd just say nothing and walk away if you didn't believe. Might be... You can't believe if you're not a believer.
Fellow said not long ago, "I don't care what happens, I don't believe it." I said, "It's not for unbelievers." Just for believers. That's all. It's not for unbelievers. It wasn't intended for them.

93 Now. He found a woman at the well, and she was a Samaritan. And He sent His disciples away. And the woman come out to get some water. He said, "Bring me a drink." There was a law of segregation then, like colored and white today. He said, "Bring me a drink."
She said, "It's not customary for you Jews to ask Samaritans such. We have no dealings with each other."
He said, "But if you knew who you were talking to, you'd ask me for a drink. And I'd give you water you don't come to draw."

94 And on went the conversation, contacting her spirit. Now, He was on His road to Jericho, but He had to go through Samaria. You see, the Father had sent Him to Samaria. And the woman come out; He didn't know what to say. So, He found where her trouble was. Anybody know what her trouble was? Sure. She was a bad woman. She had a bunch of husbands. She'd been married and divorced, and married and divorced, and so forth.
He said, "Go get your husband."
She said, "I don't have any."
He said, "That's right; you got five."

95 Now, what did that woman say? Did she say, "You're Beelzebub?" No. That poor, penitent sinner, she said, "Sir, (listen!) I perceive that You're a prophet." She said, "Now, we know, we Samaritans know..." Of course she'd just said that Jacob was her father, and so forth, that dug the well. You Bible students can surely follow me in it.
Said, "We know that when the Messiah cometh..." You believe Jesus was the Messiah? She said, "We know that when the Messiah cometh, He will do these things ... He will tell us these things. But who are You?"
He said, "I am He."
And she run into the city and said, "Come, see a man who told me what I done. Isn't this the very Messiah?"

96 If that was the sign of Messiah then, and He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, it's the sign of the Messiah today. Is that right? He wasn't a healer. He didn't claim to be a healer. He said, "I just do what the Father shows me."
On down through the Scripture we could name place after place after place, and every time it was what the Father showed. 'Cause Scriptures don't contradict itself.

97 Jesus said with His own words, so you can put confidence in it, "I do nothing till the Father shows me first." He stood in a audience, a woman touched His garment. And He said, "Who touched me?" He didn't feel it physically.
And Peter rebuked Him. After all, denied the woman and all, said, "I never touched You." The woman was scared.
But He said, "I got weak." Virtue went out. Virtue's strength. "I got weak. Somebody touched me." And He looked around till He found the woman. That's discernment. He found the woman.
She'd had a blood issue and she was healed, "Thy faith has saved thee." See that same word, saved? Physical saved or spiritual saved, the same word is "sozo". Is that right? The Greek. Sozo, same place interpret every time; healed or saved, the same Greek word, sozo, saved. All right. "Thy faith has saved thee." I never done it. I never had nothing to do with it. She used God's gift. God never used His own gift.

98 But now in the healing of Lazarus ... or, raising, God used His gift. God just picked His gift up and said, "Son, in four days from now (by a vision)," He said, (the Father showed Him) " Lazarus is going to die. You get away from here. I will bring You back and You go down to the grave and raise Him up." Jesus just went on, obeyed the Father.
They said, "Lord, come heal him. He's sick."
Jesus just went on. After the time was fulfilled, (which God had showed Him, which He said He did nothing till the Father showed Him), He said, "Our friend, Lazarus, sleepeth."
They said, "Oh, he's resting good."
He said, "He's dead. And for your sake I'm glad I wasn't there. You'd be asking Me to pray for him when I knowed it wasn't right for Me to pray for him. But I go wake him." And when He stood at the tomb, He said, "Father, I thank Thee Thou has already heard me. But I just said this for those who stand around. 'Lazarus come forth!'" And it happened.

99 God used His gift there. But He had no vision and the woman touched Him, and then the woman used God's gift. Jesus didn't say, "How much greater was the miracle of resurrecting Lazarus than there was the woman being healed." But God used His gift there. But the woman used God's gift in this case.
Now, if He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, can He be touched again? Can He? Does the Bible say He can? The Bible said, "He is a high priest (in Hebrews) that can be touched by the feeling of our infirmities." Is that Scripture? Then you can touch Him tonight. He could speak to you just the same as He did to her, if He is the same. You believe it?

100 Now, if He will do that tonight, will you... I trust that He will for these new born babies here that's just come into the kingdom. So, you'll see that your faith that you have professed tonight by raising your hand, that you professed faith in Jesus Christ and made a promise to God that you'll serve Him the rest of your days; that you might know you're not in error. No ... accepting Buddha, Mohammed or any of the rest of them can produce this. But Jesus can prove Himself right here tonight that He's right here with us. And His life was reproduced right among His people.

101 Now, one time they was coming from Emmaus, after He was dead and had raised. They didn't know He was risen.
And many people today that really love Him, don't know He's risen. They think He's dead. It's just a story. They packed His body away. And yet they love Him.
But He walked and talked with them. They didn't know it. But when He got them to themselves in the little inn (now watch!), He closed the doors and He did something. Just that no one else did it like that. And by doing this, that's the same way He done it when He was here before His crucifixion, and they recognized it was the risen Lord. Is that right?

102 Now, my prayer is tonight, to you, that Jesus will come here and do something just like He did before He was crucified, so that you'll thoroughly understand that He has risen from the dead and is the same yesterday, today, and forever. I'm not here to break up your organizations. I'm not here to do nothing but to help your organizations. I'm not here to scatter your people. I'm here to gather the people to the Shepherd, Christ Jesus.
Stay in any church you want to, but love the Lord. We got plenty of denominations, and fine ones, and they all mean good. There's not no Christian denomination here on earth that means bad. Oh, they fuss and stew like a bunch of little juveniles, petty, like a little bunch of kids. But in all of it, they're God's children.
The devil gets among them and causes temper and everything, but God loves them. So, if God can love them, you surely ought to, too. So, love them anyhow. If that's not in your heart, then you ought to've raised your hand; that's right, and made your way down here. So, love the people.

103 We are here trying to do what? To strengthen the faith of the Christian.
Let the sinner see that it's not nothing, great something, it was just some kind of a... Some fellow said, "And the only reason we'd know that we're saved is from old Jewish writings." An infidel told me that.
I took him by the hand, I said, "Sir, I have more that vindicates to me than Jewish writings, because them writings are made manifest by the resurrection of Jesus Christ." That's right.

104 Now, if He will come... I don't say He will. I have no control. He runs His own business. I don't tell Him; He tells me. I don't operate Him; He operates me. But it's a gift that you just yield yourself. Look at this microphone. You're hearing my voice plain. But that microphone is a dumb mute until something operates it. Is that right? It can't speak itself. That music we hear, it's a mute unless something's making it. So would I be.

105 There's not a person here that I know outside of Mr. Cook, sitting right there, Brother Cook. I think he's the only minister around the group that I know, except my son and this man here. And Mr. and Mrs. Woods and my daughter-in-law, sitting right there at the end of the seats, right down here. Is the only persons that I can see now that I know. You're all strangers to me. I don't know you. But I will say this: Whether you're a sinner or not, Christ knows you.

106 Now, if He will come and do just exactly the way He did when He was here on earth... Take the book of John or any of the Bible and read it. If He will reproduce that again in the next fifteen minutes, will you say, then, "Lord, I'm confident that me being a Christian, I am confident that I can have what I ask for, for this is Your promise. And You are alive here, proving Yourself tonight, that You're here to give me anything that I have need of and will ask for it."
Will you do it? Raise your hand to Him if you will. May the Lord add His blessings. Once more for prayer.

107 Heavenly Father, now there is a hundred people sitting here in the audience with cards in their hands. There's probably several hundred there that needs Your touch.
And I pray Thee, precious Father, that somehow, that tonight that we together... No matter how much I'd yield myself and Your Spirit would come on me, if these people doesn't believe, nothing could happen. It's their faith. For when the Holy Spirit was on Your Son, Christ Jesus, when He had the Spirit without measure, He went into His own country, and the Bible says that 'Many mighty works He could not do because of their unbelief.'"
Now, I pray, God, that it won't be so here in this city, this lovely place where great people live---a little city, but a great people.
Now, I pray that You'll shower Your blessings upon them. And confirm Your Word among them tonight that they can see that their hope in Christ Jesus is not mythical. It's not just a story like Santa Claus. But it's a real, resurrected Son of God that lives among us tonight. I pray in Christ's name. Amen.

108 So sorry to keep you waiting long. Just a few moments now. All I could say... I'm not a preacher. There's men here who could preach the Word.
[Gap in the audio.] in the prayer line. Because the Bible said, "Go and sin no more or a worse thing will come upon you." And what is sin? Unbelief. "Go and disbelieve no more or a worse thing will come." All right. Bring your patient or ever who...

109 Now, would you change that to "Only Believe" if you would, sister? I've been preaching, you know, it's kind of hard to twist around from one to another. And you brethren back in the corner, if you will, be in prayer for me now. And all around because it's a big crowd and they're standing all around everywhere, behind me, and over in there in the next room. Visions could spring from anywhere, see.
It's you. Do you understand, now, everybody? It's not me. I just become anointed, and it's you that touched Him, and He speaks through me. Do you understand that now? It's not me; it's Him.

110 Now, here stands a man. I never seen the man in my life. We're total strangers and the rest of us are. Well, now, what if this was a Bible drama? And here was Nathanael, who Philip had brought to the meeting. And he was standing there and Jesus was standing here as I'm standing. And what if this man was sick and the man would say, "Jesus, I believe You're the Son of God. I want You to heal me." And Jesus had done returned the second time; was standing like He did before His crucifixion and was standing here. What would Jesus say to him? Would He heal him? Be careful. (I'm glad you're a well-taught audience.) Certainly He wouldn't. He couldn't. He's already done it, at Calvary. He couldn't do it again. He's already did it.
If you had something in a pawn shop and you'd redeemed it and you had a ticket to show you redeemed it, how can you redeem it the second time? You are already redeemed from every curse the devil put on you. You just have to believe it and accept it.

111 Now, be reverent. But what would Jesus do? He would speak to him. You'd think if... Now, if Jesus... If the Father would reveal to Him, like He did about Philip and Nathanael, if He did, He could do that again if He's the same. Is that right? But to heal him, it's already done. Is that right?
Now, I don't know what the man standing... He might be a critic. He might be an infidel. He might be a Christian. He might be wanting financial aid. He might have domestic trouble. I don't know. I couldn't tell you. I never seen the man before. And the only thing it was, somebody give him a prayer card had a number on it, and that number happened to be called and here he stands.

112 Now, if Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then He can, if He will, come. And He knows you. And He can tell me, just like He showed the Son of God. If He's the same, He has... See. Jesus... We are the (what?) branches; He's the vine. Is that right? You Bible readers know that? Does the vine bear fruit? Be careful. No, the branches bear fruit. The vine only energizes the branches.
So, Jesus has no eyes tonight but mine and yours, on earth. He has no hands but mine and yours. He has no voice but mine and yours. And He is the Spirit in us and we are the branches to bear fruit as He energizes us. Is that right? Now, that's the way you'd have to do here.

113 You say, "Brother Branham, you're pausing; what you're hesitating, what you stalling about?" I am. That's right. I'm waiting for Him. If He don't come to me, I will just tell the man I will pray for him, and we will bring the rest of them up and pray for them and that's all. The anointing isn't on me. I know it's here at the platform.
And just from preaching like that I can't enter into it. So, let's just be in prayer for a moment and look to Him and believe. And maybe I will talk to the man just a moment.

114 Now, sir. I suppose that we are strangers to each other, are we? We don't know each other. But God knows both of us. And I have no more idea what that you're there for. You look like a good, healthy man, to me. And I have no more idea what you're standing there for than nothing. And I don't want you to even think of what you're wanting. I want you just to believe. And believe that Jesus Christ has raised from the dead and that settles it.
Do you believe that the Gospel I have preached about Him being raised from the dead, you believe that to be the so? Do you believe me to be His servant? You believe what I've told you, the truth? Did you ever read that book of mine which said ... the angel said, "If you get the people to believe you." See. Well, that's what He told me. "Get the people to believe you." Not believe me as Him, but believe that He sent me, see.
That's the way it has to come. It's a gift. And your attitude towards the gift is what... If He does it, then you'll know it has to come from a Supernatural being. So, it's your attitude towards it.

115 Now, if the audience can still hear and the engineer on the microphone. That light that's settling between me and the man. And I'm sure he's conscious that something's going on. The man moves from me. I see him all nervous about something. He's suffering with a nervous condition. That is true. And the man is... When he's especially trying to walk at times, he's got something wrong. He's got arthritis. That's "thus saith the Lord." That is true. Raise your hand, if that's true. Do you believe?
Now, you talk to Him more, more would happen, see. I tell you what you do. If you believe with all your heart now (It's going to be up to you.), I want you just to throw all the faith you got on Jesus Christ and believe right now. You do?

116 Now, I see the man again. He's walking through a house, but there's something else. It's a younger person. It's somebody that's close to him. It's a grandson, I'd say, that he's praying about. And the boy has something on the head; it's a knot, lump on the head. That you might know that I be God's servant, saying this humbly, he had two. One went down and there's another one. That's "thus saith the Lord."
That is true, isn't it? You know, sir, I didn't know about that. No way I... Something's here, is that right? Something's here with your brother that knows you. That's true, isn't it?
Then Jesus said, "These signs shall follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover." Did He say it? You count me a believer? Then come here just a moment. Let me have your hand.
Heavenly Father, I bless this man in the name of Jesus Christ, that You'll give to him whatever it was that he desired. I asked it with all my heart, in Christ's name. Amen.
God bless you, sir. Go, believe and receive what you've asked for.

117 Do you believe? How many now believes? Thank you. You'll see greater things than this, then. Just watch. Now, the Holy Spirit's here. And I take every person in here under my control in the name of Jesus Christ for the glory of God.

118 How do you do? I've never seen you, sir. We're strangers to each other, I suppose. But God knows both of us. He knows you; He knows me. I don't know you, and perhaps you don't know me. But there's Someone here who knows us both. And you're aware that that feeling that's coming on you isn't your brother standing here.
You have a fine spirit. You're a Christian. That's right. But you're not standing here for yourself. You're standing here for somebody else; an elderly man. That's your daddy. And he's shadowed with death with a cancer. That's right.
And here's another thing. There's some way you're associated at a pulpit. You're a preacher. That's right. Do you believe now that you're in the Presence of your Maker? Let us pray.
Our Heavenly Father, I pray for this man and his desire, that he will now realize that he's, perhaps, in the closest contact that he ever was with Thy beloved Son, the Lord Jesus. And I pray that You'll give him the desire of his heart through Jesus' name. Amen.
God bless you, sir. Have faith in God. Don't doubt, but believe with all your heart. You shall see the glory of the Lord.

119 Are you the lady? I'm not beside myself, but you're the lady I'm to talk to? Is this the pa...? Is this the lady, anybody there in the prayer line? All right. Well now, if you believe with all your heart and will ask the Lord and believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Do you believe these things that you see and witness with your eyes is a token of the coming of the Lord Jesus soon? Did He say that in the Scripture?

120 Jesus, when He was here the first time, He said He did it that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken by the prophets many hundreds of years before, thousands of years before. And this is taking place tonight that it might be fulfilled, which is spoken by Jesus, "The things that I do, shall you also. I will be with you, in you, to the end of the world." It's to fulfill. God's Word has to be fulfilled. Time's at hand.

121 I don't know you. Never seen you, and you don't know me, I suppose. If that's true, raise your hand, we know not each other. We've never ... pardon? Never seen me until tonight. Our first time meeting.
But you are a believer. You're a Christian. And you're not here for yourself. You're here for a woman; a younger woman. And she's some relation to you. It's your daughter-in-law. And she has a bad case of arthritis. And if you believe me to be God's prophet, you have just come up from a sickness yourself. And that sickness was pneumonia. That's right. "Thus saith the Lord." Do you believe? Then come.
Our Heavenly Father, I bless this woman in the name of the Lord Jesus, that Your Holy Spirit may be upon her, and that she may receive those things which she has asked for. For I ask them in Jesus Christ's name. Amen. God bless you, lady. And receive what you ask for.

122 Be reverent, have faith. If I told you I was doing this, I'd be a liar. This is permitted by the Heavenly Father to fulfill His Word.
If you believe me, God is testifying that what I have preached is the truth. You can say what you want to. If God doesn't testify, you have a right to doubt it. But if God testifies that what's been said is the truth, then the doubt makes you a sinner. I don't care where you go or how much religion you claim to have, you're an unbeliever. Caiaphas was an unbeliever, religious.

123 How do you do, sir? We are strangers to each other, I suppose, sir? I've never seen you in all my life. But there's Somebody here who knows you. He knows all about you. And He will judge you at that day, as He judges me. And we are two men that's met here. And if God, by the permission of the Holy Spirit, will reveal to me what you're here for, will you accept it just like the woman was, that He told her where her trouble was? And you will believe it with all your heart?

124 Little lady sitting there looking so earnestly at me, with your hand up like this. You got a little, yellow thing here. You. You touched Him. There's the light, if anyone can see it hanging right over the woman.
The lady was praying. And she was asking in her prayer for God to have me to call her. She's suffering with a ladies' trouble, a female trouble. That's right, isn't it, lady? If what I said is the truth, wave your hands back and forth.
You got a drainage to that, haven't you? That happens at the bathroom where only you and God know. You got a abscess on the ovary. If that's right, wave your hand back and forth. But you're healed now. You have touched the High Priest. Go, and God's peace be with you.
Do you understand? The woman with no prayer card, nothing, not on the platform. She touched... This night that Scripture's fulfilled in your eyes. How can you doubt?

125 Excuse me, sir. I can only minister as He shows. I can only say what I see. I'm not responsible for what happens. I'm only responsible for what I see. And I speak what I see. And what I see is the truth, because He shows it. Forty-seven years, He's never said wrong. And He can't say wrong, because He's God.
I see you trying to get into something. You're in a spiritual whirl. You are desiring me to pray for you for a spiritual lift. That's "thus saith the Lord."
I don't know your heart, sir. But God does know your heart. You know that. I see something else: a great seashore or something. Water's moving. And there is a person that you're praying for, or that's far away---a sister of yours.
And she's somewhere where there's a west ... it's a west... It's California. And she's a great long time worker in the Lord's work, and she's going blind. And you want me to pray for her. That's "thus saith the Lord."
Do you now believe? Our Heavenly Father, in the name of Thy beloved Son, the Lord Jesus, I pray that You will help this man to receive that which he's asked for. In Christ's name, I ask it. Amen. Don't doubt, sir. Go believing, and as you have believed so shall you receive. Amen.

126 Now be real reverent, pray, have faith in God.
How do you do? We are strangers to each other, I suppose. But God knows us both, sir. And you and I have to answer to Him. And He's permitting this, if He shall do it. I don't say that He will. He may. I don't say that He will.
But if He will let me know what's in your heart and what you want from God, do you believe God in return would be willing to give it to you? If He'd let me know, when you know I don't know you? You believe it would be the will of God, then, that He was...?
Do you believe the same thing in the audience? It's God's mercy and goodness trying to get the people to believe Him and accept Him. Can't you believe that?

127 Someone was healed then. There's an aged woman sitting there with gray hair, glasses. She's got high blood pressure. And she's praying that God will take away the high blood pressure. That's right. The little lady with glasses on, gray headed, with a blue looking dress. Isn't that right? Wasn't you sitting there praying, then, for...? Raise up your hand. All right, do you believe you receive it? Then you can have what you ask for. May the Lord grant it to you. Amen.

128 Sir, you are wanting me to pray for a growth that's on you. And the growth is in your hair, on top of your head. That's right. I don't know where it's visible or not, where you can see it. But that's what you're wanting me to pray for. Is it visible? Can you see it? Let's see. All right.
Can anyone see it, in the audience? Then let us talk to him again. That's something you could see. Some unbeliever might say, "Sure, anybody can see that." Let me talk to the man. May the Lord God reveal something else, maybe, that they can't see.
The miracle is, is what you don't see or they can't see. When Peter came to the Lord, He knew who he was. He knew who his Daddy was. He said, "Thou art Simon, the son of Jonas."

129 Do you believe God could tell me who you are? You believe it? Your name is Olan Cross. That's right. Do you believe He knows where you live? You live at 1401 Wildwood. That's correct. And you go to a church somewhere that's ... not too big a church. And there's a gray headed man a speaking, and you're a rejoi... Goes to your church. Do you believe with all your heart, now? Will you accept Him as your healer? Then come here.
Our Heavenly Father, Jesus the Son of God, resurrected from the dead, I pray that You will help this man and give him the desire of his heart, seeing that he has come humbly and asked for mercy. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. God bless you, sir. Don't doubt now. Go believing with all your heart.
All right, come sir.