Questions and Answers

You can find this sermon at ChurchAges.net

1 ... these questions before I got to the pulpit, but Brother Moore, he sent in an emergency call, and I thought somebody was very sick---and he just wanted a meeting, so I was just trying to get him off the phone over there. He wanted to come down through Thanksgiving and have a meeting down there for them in Louisiana. Last year when we were there the Lord started a revival, and it's never ended yet. It's still going, the revival. I forget how many hundreds has been saved this last year, after the revival down there.

2 Now, I guess it's kind of surprising maybe, being here this morning, and ... it is to me. And I didn't know, so we didn't advertise it out amongst some of, you know, the people. Just dropped in to answer some questions. I thought that way... Usually a pastor can find out what's on his people's heart when they ask questions. And that way we find out what the people's thinking about.
And I believe before we start this morning, there was someone said they had a baby to dedicate. Billy was telling me that there was a dedication of a baby. If that's so, why, all right, we'll bring the little fellow up and dedicate it to the Lord. And then we'll answer the questions, and then we're going to pray for the sick.

3 I want to report that my mother is just about like usual. I don't think she's any worse, though they think so. But I don't think so. I believe she's just about like she was. And until God tells me that she's going to die, I'm not going to believe it. And I'm going to hold faith for Mama until He tells me she's going to go.
Now, He could be taking her. I don't know. Might be just keeping it from me, keeping me from worrying or something. But I'm going to believe that God is going to let her get well, no matter what she is. She hasn't eat for three weeks (but just glucose), but I believe she'll get well anyhow.

4 [Brother Branham dedicates a baby.] Well, this is a ... hope to another preacher coming on here. Little Mr. Woods. (What's his full name?) This is a little token just added to the Woods family up there. Of course, he's grandma's pet. William David Junior. He sure is a fine little boy. And his little fists are [unclear words]. Because he... Yeah, see he's got his fingers doubled-up. He's got his trigger finger... Squirrel hunter, right? He's looking of one eye at me. I guess he's kind of backward. We know that these are little things that God sends into our home that we appreciate and gives us responsibility of raising these up. And I'm quite sure if the grace of God continues with this family, this baby will be raised in the admonition of God. Let us bow our heads.
Our heavenly Father, we bring to you little William David Wood this morning in the name of the Lord Jesus, in respect of the Scripture, that they brought unto Him, when He was here on earth, infants, little babies, that He might lay His hands upon them and bless them. And if He was here this morning in a body of flesh, we know that our brother and sister would take this little token of grace to Him, so that we are to represent Him today in the way of preaching the gospel, they bring the babies to us. We, by faith, lift little David to You in the name of Jesus. And we pray that You'll bless him, Lord. God, grant that he'll live to be a servant of yours if you tarry. Grant it, Lord. Give him health and strength. Bless his father and his mother. And may, if it be in thy divine will, that this little boy will raise up to preach the gospel in the days that lies ahead. Grant it, Lord. We give You this little William David Wood for a credit of yours in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

5 I'm always so careful for those little fellows. It feels like you're going to drop them all the time. I think little babies and old people... If someone is just an old person that's been down along the line or a little baby that's... They're so innocent-like, you know. There's something about them that I really like. (Why don't we put on this pulpit mike. Brother Neville, you know where. Oh, here we are.)

6 Now, in questions, we got quite a few of them here. And I don't get a chance to even look up the scriptures of the questions that's asked because it was just give in this morning. And I just picked them up a few moments ago, just kind of brushed through part of them, and seen some questions, and wondering just how... And some of them... This is the most sticky group I ever have gotten. So, looking through them, I seen we was going to have a hard time with these.
So if I do not answer them according to your belief in these questions... Now, always remember that they are to the best of my knowledge. And then sometimes maybe in this I'll have to just refer to a scripture to answer them, and maybe not have time to look it up. Then when you go home, you look it up and see. And if I've misquoted it, well, then, I would be wrong. I don't mean to misquote anyone, but ... misquote the Scripture, but sometimes we can do it. Maybe a word where it would be something, then we might say it some other way. You know how easy it is to do that.
But we're aiming ... our aim is to quote them straight. And if I had to take them, say, this Sunday and answer them next Sunday, then I'd have time to look them all over through the week.

7 But there's many sick people coming in, and I've been real, real busy and haven't had a chance to go out and make many of my calls. And I thought today would be a good time, just let those sick people come into the Tabernacle and we'd pray for them. And we know that prayer changes things.
Prayer does something for us. And it's through prayer that I live today. I live by the grace of God through prayer. And this morning being a little tired and worn out, I desire your prayers for me, that you pray for me.

8 And then, I was at a friend's house yesterday, a Christian home where there was some young Christians gathered. And I was talking to them, and something just presented itself to me, a thought of how... I was looking into the woods and around the trees and see them dying, and I thought, "How pretty those trees are. Even though they are dying, yet they are pretty." And sometimes a tree looks better when it is dying than when it is ... when it's in its greenest and best. And I wonder if that just wouldn't picture out our conditions to our heavenly Father, for He said, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints."
How that must be a beautiful thing for Father to look down upon His child coming home to Him and holding his position in Christ, his faith and his confession, see. "I am saved by the grace of God," and stand there. In the hour of death, yet we can hold our profession, we are saved.

9 And I believe that our Father loves our gallantry, and believing, and holding our testimony. And it just isn't to testify when you're feeling good, and healthy, and strong; it's when you're down, weak, and troubled. There's where your testimony counts.
And thinking on that, I was thinking of this, that death is associated not with life. Life and death cannot exist at the same time. And the trees has to have the sap go out of them before that the leaf can die on the tree. So therefore, death is associated---I would think in the realms of a human being---death is associated with sin, because before we had any sin, we had no death at all. But where there is death, then there is sin; and where there is sin, there is death because death is the results of sin.
And then, the soul that sinneth, it shall die. But when we're born again of the Spirit of God, we have eternal life and not associated anywhere with death, see. Death cannot associate with life. Life cannot associate with death.

10 And talking in the room yesterday where some young Christians was, I said, "If you were standing out here on the road and a car was coming down the road at ninety miles an hour, out of control, you would get off that highway as quick as you could. You'd jump, slide, do anything, get out of the way of that car." And that's the way that sin should be to a Christian, because sin is associated with death. And as soon as you see sin in any form, jump from it, get away from it. I don't care what you have to do, get away from the very appearance of evil. Because remember, to associate with sin is death, just the same as standing there and let that car strike you.
Don't just wait and see what it'll do; get out of the way of it. The very appearance of evil, shun it quickly. When you see a temptation coming up, and sin... You know, if it's something wrong, that death is lurking after you, see. Then get away from it just as quick as you would get away from an automobile approaching at ninety miles an hour, see. You'd want to get away from it right quick, out of the way. Jump, slide, run---any way---just get away from it.

11 And how that we know that we have life, is because that we hate sin. And we hate sin so bad, that we know that death's associated there, and we shun the very appearance of it. Any way we can get away from it, we jump, run, anything that we can do to keep away from sin, because sin has death in it. And we sure don't want to associate anything in death. We want to keep away from that.
So I thought that would be a good little thought. It struck me yesterday talking to these Christians, and I thought that would be good to pass to the church this morning, especially while the young people are sitting here and undergo such temptations as that.

12 And then, I believe a question, if we can only get it down here, something another associated in that also. And just remember that anything that is sinful, death lays right there. And when you're partaking of that sin, you're partaking of death. So stay away from it.
And what is sin? Unbelief. Stay away from all unbelief, anything that disregards the Bible. Anything that disregards God's Word, stay away from it! And if I get through these in time before having the healing service, I want to speak a little bit on that---disrespects.

13 Now, before we answer the questions, or try to attempt it, let us pray. Our heavenly Father, we come into thy presence this morning in the name of Jesus, claiming that we have disassociated ourselves with the things of the world, which it is said by Him that you cannot serve God and mammon, meaning the world. We either hate one and love the other, or love one and hate the other.
And we believe this morning that we are associated with eternal life as we accept Jesus Christ by faith and have the evidence of the Holy Spirit living in our lives guiding us. We are so grateful for this, that when we see sin, no matter how mild, how pretty it might look, there's something within us makes us jump, keep away from it, just as the illustration I gave about the car coming at a terrific speed. We don't want to be caught anywhere in sin. Keep away from it.

14 And now, Lord, feeling this morning that there is many sick and needy, I would pray for them, Lord, that You'll give faith to these especially in the Tabernacle this morning that will come into the prayer line, that they will lay aside every little weight, all unbelief, get away from it quickly, and flee to the Lord Jesus in faith to believe.
I pray for those that's in the hospitals and in the convalescent homes. And Lord, I pray for my mother. As yet, Lord, Thou has kept her with us, and we are thankful to You for this. And with faith we reach out with wanting hands, first to know the will of God, to see that if it's His will for her to go. If it's His will, then we are ... that's our will. But first we want to know if Satan has did this evil and it's working together for good to them that love us to give us a trial. Then, Lord, we want to stand gallant at the post of duty.

15 We ask this morning, Father, to remember all those phone calls and special requests that's out there at the office waiting. Bless our loved ones everywhere.
And today as it falls lot to answer questions, Lord, we realize that these are deep, sincere things that's on the people's heart. They never asked them just for folly; they asked them because that they are interested in knowing truth. Thy Word is truth.
So, Father, we pray that You'll associate our minds this morning into this truth, the Word, and help us, Lord, that we be able to understand better today when we leave this house of teaching, that it might be good for our souls. We ask this for the glory of God in the name of Jesus Christ, His Son. Amen.

16 Now, have some handkerchiefs laying here, I suppose, to be prayed over, and we'll do that just shortly, as soon as we possibly can. Now, by right time we have about a hour and a half. I don't know exactly whether, as I have said before, I'll be able to answer all of these or not. But what we plan for the program today is to answer the questions, have just a little sermonette here to help the faith of the people, then have prayer for the sick. And remember the services tonight, and the midweek prayer meetings, the men's meetings, and so forth.
And I don't know about next Sunday, if... I have a subject on my heart that I would like to bring to the church if it's possible, if the Lord permits it, this next coming Sunday---a very outstanding thing that come to me this week to preach, just a message to preach on, evangelistic message. We'll see about that a little later on as our Lord will lead.
And pray for me now, because there's got to be some great decisions made. Brother Roy Borders (I suppose he's sitting somewhere here this morning), he takes care of the meetings, and he's got a book full of invitations that's come in in the last few months, of places to go, and people that are calling him for meetings. And so you pray that God will let me make the right decision. On whatever I do, may it be right, that will count.

17 Now, to answer questions, which we know is sharply... And that's the reason I answer questions. We never advertised a healing service or something, so it'd just be the home folks here, so we could find out what was on their heart.
And Brother Neville sitting back here, our precious brother and pastor, I'm so thankful to see him advancing on in the kingdom of God. I believe he's come farther in the last couple of years than he has all the rest of the years put together, how the Lord has blessed him. I'm so glad of that.
And I'll say, not to his face... I do to his back, and you know that. I knew Brother Neville since I was just a boy, see. And I know that if Brother Neville... I believe this---he's subject to mistakes like all of us are. We all are subject to that. We're still human. But it wouldn't come from his heart. I don't believe that. He would be sincere, and he's always been the highest of sincerity.

18 And when he come to this message, I've had him ... brought him here by the vote of the church to be pastor here when even he didn't understand these things as he does now. But his sincerity to be willing to lay down and look it over and approach it reverently, until I think he's got a good solid background, that when he comes up now, he knows where he's standing now.
So I'm very happy for the Tabernacle. And they say the other night they had a meeting here whether they would build a new tabernacle or extend this one and make it bigger and make Sunday school rooms in it. And the church unanimously voted for the extension---to put a new extension to it out here, make it larger, and put Sunday school rooms so there'd be classes for all the classes, and carpet the floors, and put birch over it, and fix it up real nice, and Bedford stone it on the outside. And so the church voted that. And I think the architects and them are on the work now. There's a meeting of it tomorrow to make us a bigger church, extend it on back and fix it around different. So we'll be grateful to the Lord for that.

19 Now, in these questions, some of them I haven't even looked them over. I may have to go easy to spell the words out to find out. It's not your writing, but it's my education that's limited.
QUESTION: "We believe in being baptized Acts 2:38, but how can we answer people concerning the other baptism? Are they saved or not? Also those that have gone on and never received the light?
Now, that is a good question. Now, let me say again, see, on these questions, if I don't answer them according to your thoughts... I'm going to answer them just as close to the Scripture as I know how, to make them scriptural.

20 Now, the scriptural way of water baptism is in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is found in Acts 2:38 and the rest ... all the Bible. And many peoples today and nearly all the churches all the way from the beginning, the one that started it, they baptize the people in the name of the Father, in the name of the Son, and in the name of the Holy Ghost. Now, they do that through a error. There is no such commission as that in the Bible, nowhere at all. It's not even found in the Scriptures.
When Matthew was writing what Jesus said, where they taken Matthew 28:19, "Go ye therefore, teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost"...
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, that's titles, not a name. The name of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost is the Lord Jesus Christ. Father, Son, and Holy Ghost... And if He... And then they baptized all through the Bible, every person in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. On down through history they come until the establishment of the Laodicean ... I beg your pardon---the Nicene Council of the Catholic church at Nicaea, Rome.

21 When the Pentecostal church... Two groups, they separated. One wanted to stay with the Word, the written Word; others wanted a classical church. It was during the time of Constantine's reign. And Constantine was not a religious man. He was a heathen to begin with, but he was a politician that wanted to unite... Half of Rome was Christian; half of it was pagan. So he adopted some of paganism and some of Christianity to a classical group, and they made up their own religion.
Therefore, to disregard the Bible, the Catholic church believes that God gave the church the power to change or do anything it wanted to, see. Therefore, if the Catholic church is right, if that is true what God did, then we're all wrong but Catholics, see. The Catholic church is right, then the Methodist church is right, then the Baptist church is right, or all the organizations are right, see. They have a right, and who is right then? If the Catholic has power that they can change anything the Bible wants to say and make it some other kind of doctrines, to "Hail Mary"s and so forth, the Methodist has the right to say, "Baptism by immersing is wrong; we'll sprinkle." And they're every one right, because each one can do whatever the church is. Now, who is the church then? Is it Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic, or what is it? See?

22 So you can't... You know that God, the source of all wisdom, couldn't do a thing like that. There's no such ... not even common sense in it, let alone the intelligence of the supernatural being. There's one thing that's right---that's the Word. The Word is right.
So then, if the Catholic church wanted to say this morning, "We'll just omit baptism altogether and take eating a lump of sugar each morning. That's what we'll take for remission of sins"; then that's got to be right, because ... if God gave that authority to the church.
But you see, to me it's the Word is right, because at the close of the Bible, God said this in His Word, "Whosoever shall take one word away from this, or add one word to it, the same will be taken, his part, out of the book of life." So, to me, it's the Word.

23 And there is no such a thing in the Bible as anybody ever being baptized in the name of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost, because there is no such a thing. Father is no name, and Son is no name and Holy Ghost is no name, but the name of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost is the Lord Jesus Christ. Exactly what the apostles and all down through the age they've recognized.
Now, the next question is... Of course that's scripturally right. That's the truth.
And in the Bible when they found people that had been immersed some other way besides the name of Jesus Christ, they were commanded to be baptized over again in the name of Jesus Christ before they could receive the Holy Ghost---Acts 19:5. Right. So that is scripturally the truth.
Now, there's no bishop, there's no archbishop, there's no minister, there's nobody else can say one word against that, because that's the truth, see.

24 And I asked the other day in Chicago before three hundred ministers that stood over there to debate and to ask that... And the Lord told me, He give me a vision, and told me where we'd be and what to do. I stood before three hundred trinitarian ministers, and I said, "Now, if I am so wrong in this doctrine, some of you men stand up here and show me where I'm wrong by the Scriptures without textbook. If there is no such a thing as serpent's seed or something like that that I've been teaching, come here and show me by the Scriptures." Nobody moved, see, because it can't be done. That's true. Not to be different, but just it's the truth. It's the Word. And there's where... No one can debate that---that's the Word of God. Nobody can do it, see.

25 But now, "Will these who have not [Let me read this to be sure it's right, see.] ... concerning other baptisms, are they saved or not? Also those that have gone on and never received the light?"
Well, I believe strictly that God called His people, and ordained His church and all those that would be there, before the foundation of the world. I believe the Bible teaches that. And I believe that every man that loves God with all of his heart will seek after truth. I believe that, that they'll do that. Every man that loves God will do that.
I believe if a man was baptized wrong, ignorantly, not knowing that he was baptized wrong... Now, I can't say this scripturally, but I believe it with my heart that if a man did not know what to do right, and he did something the best of his knowledge, I believe that God would overlook that and save him anyhow, because he didn't have... Remember, back in the days of Wesley, back in the days of Luther in the reformation, those great men of God who God honored and proved that He honored them, they died in the faith, see, with all the light that they had.

26 And there may be things I believe yet, like... Anybody hear Charles Fuller this morning on "Old Fashioned Revival Hour?" He's one of my favorite teachers of the Bible, yet he's way, way old and... But I think he's a great teacher of the Bible. And he said this morning (he was teaching on prophecy, I believe), he said that there were great things ahead, things that the church knows nothing about would be opened up to the people. I said "Amen!" to that. I believe that we still have great light coming on now that'll just flood the earth one of these days for a short period, maybe just in a matter of months. But I believe that there's great light coming.
I do believe that any person upon their faith and sincerity and walking in all the light that they have will be saved.

27 Remember, in the coming of the Lord Jesus, you remember how that He found those who walked in all the light that they had to walk in? You remember what happened? "Is not he a good man, even a Roman centurion? He's built our city ... or, our people a synagogue, and he's (all these things he'd done), he's worthy of this blessing that's being asked for him." See, God is a understanding Father. He knows your heart, whether you really see light or whether you don't see light. He knows.
And I truly believe with all my heart that the correct answer for this question is that the correct baptism is in the name of Jesus Christ, and that those who was baptized contrary, and in their heart---not selfish, just say, "Well, I don't want to fool with that!"... Now that person, that'll be up to them and God. But if they didn't know any different, I believe that they're saved. I believe it with all my heart, because they didn't know any different.
We could stay a long, long time on that one, but we try to get to all of them if we can.

28 QUESTION: "Would you please explain Hebrews 6:4 and 6, and also explain Hebrews 10:26-39? Please explain whether this refers to the Holy Ghost people or the sanctified people. Please explain the difference."
Well, let's see where the person's referring to, Hebrews 6 and 4. I love Bible questions that just... It pulls out something in you, that you get something that you wouldn't get otherwise, because you got what the other people's thinking, what's on their heart, see, and you know what they're doing.
Now, there's Hebrews 10, and here's Hebrews 6 and 4. All right.
For it is impossible for those that were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
And have tasted of the ... word of God, and the power of the world to come,
If they shall fall away, to renew themselves again to repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
Now that's one. Now, Hebrews 10:26. All right, Hebrews 10 and 26.
For if we sin wilfully after ... we ... receive the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin,
But a certain fearful looking for the judgment the fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversary.
He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
... how much more sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who has trod under foot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and ... done despite to the works of grace?

29 They are both about the same thing. Now, I would like to explain this to the person. Now, if you notice here in Hebrews 6 and 4, it said, "It is impossible for those that were once enlightened..." That associates with this other scripture that's just read. If you have been enlightened and then turn away from your enlightenment, it is impossible for that person to ever regain his place again, see.
Now, Hebrews only tells the punishment that follows this rejection. It's one of the horriblest things in the world is to reject Christ, is to reject light of the Scripture.

30 Now, you notice, "For it is impossible for those which were once enlightened and has been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, if they turn away, to renew themselves again unto repentance..." See? Here we are. "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted [watch], tasted the heavenly gift..." They've been right on the edge of it: "tasted the heavenly gifts..."
Now, you notice they never had come to the baptism of the Holy Spirit, see. They was enlightened to it: "And tasted of the heavenly gift [see?], but were made partakers of the Holy Ghost [by tasting of it], and have tasted of the good Word of God, [part of it, see?] and powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew themselves..."

31 Now, Hebrews 10 here only gives the judgment for that. "He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses. How much sorer punishment, though worthy, who has trod the blood of Jesus Christ and counted it an unclean thing that they were sanctified by?"
Now, to put these two together to make the question for you, let's take a scripture and a person in the Bible that did this, and then we can find...
Now, all the church today is the antitype of the type. We know that. There's a type and a antitype. Now, when Israel was on their journey from the land of Palestine ... or, from Egypt going into Palestine, was a type of the church in the spiritual today on its journey to the promised land. You all agree with that, don't you? All the theologians agree with that, that that was a type.

32 They left Egypt. Egypt was the world. They come out, went through the waters of separation at the Red Sea through baptism, come out on the other side rejoicing and praising God, went to the ... got their laws, and from there on to the promised land.
Well, did you notice, just before they got to the promised land, before they were to enter into the promised land---which would only been just a few days, ten or eleven days, maybe not that much, because it was only forty-something miles... They would've went right on into the promised land. They'd come right up through every stage of the journey that we've walked. And they come over, crossed over the Red Sea. Pharaoh's army was drowned behind them. They were free from their enemies, started through the wilderness, and got to the edge of the promised land at Kadesh-barnea, and there they failed. Why? Why did they fail?

33 Now, Moses said to the ten tribes, he said he'll send a man out of each tribe to represent each tribe, to go spy out on the land to see what kind of a condition it was.
Now, if that isn't exactly up to your place this morning, where you come. Today the church has come through justification through Luther, through sanctification through the Methodists, and now up to the time of the promise. The promise is the baptism of the Spirit, which is promised all through the Old Testament and New too, see. The promise---"Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you..."---Peter said that on the day of Pentecost.
That is the promise. The promised land is to live in this land of Holy Spirit. That's God's promise for the church, is to live in the power of the Spirit. It's another world, it's another land. You have to come out of the conditions that you've been in, to come out to live in this promised land, to receive the promise. Remember the promise? "You shall receive power from on high, after this, the Holy Ghost, is come upon you."
And Peter said that the promise that was made all down through the Testament, Old and New... You find promising on up, on up to that day of Pentecost, and then they entered into the promise.

34 Now, those people had come out and had seen great signs and wonders in Israel. And then he sent some men out to spy out, one out of each tribe. And some of them come back... Some of them wouldn't go over. Two went over. When they come back, they had a bunch of grapes that taken two men to pack. Now, they had never tasted grapes. They were in the wilderness, and therefore, in that place was no place of fruit and stuff. They was fed from manna, bread from heaven, and quails, and wild life and what they fed on.
But now they were going over into the land, and they had a bunch of grapes that was so big that took two men to pack these grapes. And these two went over into the land and come back and give every one of them others on the bank a taste of these grapes. What did they do?
When they went back, instead of rejoicing because they had a taste of the grapes, instead of that, they went back to their tribes and said, "Oh, but we have seen the great walled-in cities of the Philistines, or the Hittites, and the Perizzites [and all the different "ites" over there]. Why," said, "they are giants. Why, we look like little grasshoppers up the side of them. We can't take that land. Why did you ever bring us out here anyhow?" See? And the Bible said that they all perished in the wilderness, every one of them. They died. What did they do? They were borderline believers. They come up to the real thing, and saw the promise, and felt that they wasn't able to go over and take the promise.

35 Now, that's exactly what's come today through justification and sanctification, see. "Has trod the blood of Jesus Christ wherewith he was sanctified..." It is the sanctified people that come up to a place where they see the baptism of the Holy Ghost, and they turn away and say, "It's fanaticism. We cannot take it. We'll be turned out of our classes, we'll be turned out of our places, we'll be turned out of our churches. We cannot do that, see, because it's contrary to our church teaching," see. Has counted the blood of Jesus Christ that brought him all this distance, right to the sealing of the promise, and then walk away from it. He said it's totally impossible for them to ever be saved. See?
Not the ones that has walked over in the promised land.

36 Remember, Joshua and Caleb was the only two out of that entire group of two and a half million people that went over into the promised land; because they went over in the promised land, and got the blessing, and come back. And they said, "We're able to take it, because God said so."
And there they stayed. Why? Now, all those people were looking at circumstances, but Joshua and Caleb was looking to what God said: "I have give you that land. Go get it."
And that's today, the people say, "Oh, if I be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, if I receive the Holy Ghost, if I would speak in tongues or prophesy, or if I would testify or shout in my church, they would put me out." Go right ahead.

37 You say, "But, I'll tell you right now, I live a Christian life; I live a good, clean, sanctified life." That's true, but you've come to the showdown, come to the place, the borderline. And if you turn away from that, then "it's impossible for those who were once enlightened..." See?
In other words, a man comes through justification, he goes, says, "I believe I want to preach the Word." He gets saved; he said, "I'm tired of sin." All right. Then he goes out, and first he still smokes, and maybe lusts or something. After awhile he says, "God, this is not becoming to a Christian, especially a minister, to look upon women in the wrong way, to smoke cigarettes." Or, "I do take a sociable drink of beer with the fellows, and even my congregation, but it don't seem right. Sanctify me, Lord." And then the Lord sanctifies him, takes all that lust away from him, and everything. Then he's a sanctified vessel. Then what God presents to him is the baptism of the Holy Ghost. To do that, he has to come out of that bunch he's with. There's where he shows his color. Then he backs down. What does he do when he backs down? He tramps the blood of Jesus Christ that sanctified him as though it was an unholy thing, not able to take him over there. Then it's impossible for him to be saved. And then what, but on to the fiery indignation and the judgment.
I hope that's clear. If it isn't, why, you let me know at another time. I got so many of them here, I...

38 QUESTION: "Brother Branham, what did Jesus mean in St. John 21:15 through 17 when He asked Peter if he loved Him and told him to feed His lambs; then He said, 'Feed my sheep!' and in the seventeenth verse He said again, 'Feed my sheep!'?"
Well, that is merely this. See, Christ is the shepherd. He was going away, and He was leaving the commission of His sheep---which any shepherd feeds, which is His flock, His church, see---He was leading ... or, leaving the commission with these disciples to continue to feed the flock, to be a shepherd, feed the sheep.

39 In other words, like this. If you look out here, here this morning, that's what I'm doing. Now, sheep will only grow as you give them sheep food. Now, if you'd fry up a big hamburger and give it to a sheep, he couldn't grow on that, because, see, that's not sheep food, see. And if I would fry up or have a nice T-bone steak fixed up, and give it over to a sheep, it's not sheep food. He just couldn't eat it, that's all, because he's a sheep. But sheep like sheep food. Well, then, when you're to feed the flock of God, don't feed them on some man-made theology; feed them on the Word. Well, that's where the sheep grow from---feed the Word.
Be a shepherd, a true shepherd. "Feed my sheep." Lambs is the little ones, of course, and sheep is the adult. So both young and old, feed the flock of God! See? And feed them with the Word. The Word, you see, is the truth. Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." Is that right? So, then, if man is to live, and they are the flock of God, the church, then they are to thrive upon the Word and manna of God. This is His manna!

40 In the Bible (we just come through it over there in the church ages), Jesus is the hidden manna. Christ is the church's manna. What is manna? Manna in the Old Testament was that what come down from heaven fresh every night to sustain the church in its journey. Is that right? Now, in the New Testament what is the hidden manna? "A little while and the world seeth me no more [hidden]; yet ye shall see me, for I'll be with you, even in you to the end of the world." And Christ is that hidden manna that comes from God out of heaven afresh every day.
Every day. We can't say, "Well, two weeks ago I had a great experience with God." What about right now? Every day, fresh, a new blessing, a new something coming from God, the hidden manna coming down from God out of heaven---Christ. And we feast upon this manna which is Christ, and He sustains us through the journey till we reach the land on the other side.

41 Now, that's what He meant by, "Feed my sheep." We'd get on that, we'd never get the rest of the questions, because that's a good one for me. I like that, when I talk of Christ being the manna and the food for the sheep.
Feed them Christ from His Word, see. Take the Word of Christ just exactly the way it's wrote here and give it out to the sheep. No matter what anybody else says: "Oh, they need a hamburger!" Don't you believe it. Here's what they need, right here. This is it, see. Give them this, this is sheep food. That's what makes them grow. The Holy Spirit, this is His Word, His commission. The Word is a seed. The seed brings forth a plant; the plant we eat. Now, this is what brings forth the plant that the Holy Spirit thrives upon, is the church. It feeds upon the church, the Holy Spirit does, rejoicing in the presence of God, because that the people is believing His Word and letting Him work through them, giving them the very things that God promised them that they would do. If God sees His church growing, therefore the sheep's being fed, and the Holy Spirit's being glorified, see. That's it. "Feed my sheep." All right.
Now, if that's not all, why, you let me know a little later.

42 QUESTION: "Brother Branham, as I went through the prayer line a short time ago, anointed hands were laid on me and prayer was made for my unsaved husband. I was slain by the power of the Lord. Is this a definite sign that he will be saved?"
Well, it's bound to be a woman. Sister, I wouldn't think that it was a definite sign that he was to be saved, though I believe that God... I believe he will be saved, certainly, but to say... Now, could you say that's 'Thus saith the Lord'? Be careful about that, see, because, see, it might be the Holy Spirit blessing you because you have taken a place of Christ.

43 See, you come here to stand for your sinful husband as Christ went to the cross to stand for the sinful church, you see. It was a great thing that you did. But what I would do... If you're present this morning, if you that wrote this question, what I'd do, I'd believe with all my heart that God was going to do it, see---that God was going to do it, because whether He give you the blessing or whether He did not, that was something extra God give you. But I believe it would make you feel good because He blessed you.
It's just like if you speak with tongues, and there's no interpreter in the church, why, you're not supposed to speak in the church unless there's somebody to interpret the tongues. But if you speak in tongues, and there's no interpreter... Why, you... Wherever you're in prayer---at your home or wherever you are---speak then, because he that speaketh in an unknown tongues edifieth himself. It gives him consolation, see. He feels good, because he is standing there praying, the first thing you know, the Holy Spirit come upon he or she and they begin to speak in tongues. And their soul was rejoicing and happy because they spoke in tongues, see.
Why, that wasn't just a sign that God was going to answer the prayer that you was praying for, but it was a sign that the Holy Spirit's hearing you. He knows you and He's with you. That's the same thing I would apply to this, the Holy Spirit giving you a blessing.

44 Here some time ago... The last time I spoke with tongues, as I can remember, it's been about three or four years ago. I was in Illinois, and Billy come after me to go to the prayer line up at Zion City. And I was burdened on my heart, and I knelt down and started to pray. And while I was praying, I heard Billy come up and knock at the door. And I said, "Billy, I can't go now." And he went out there and sat down.
And I was praying, my heart was so burdened I couldn't go to church like that. And, see, usually sometimes He gives me a vision, show me something's going to happen, but He didn't do it then. And I was just praying away in the room there, and I heard someone talking. I quit praying. I listened, and there was somebody at the door. They ... sounded like a foreign language, like German or Low Dutch, or something---it was so fast, chattery. I listened again, and I thought, "Well, somebody's come up there talking to that motel man in German. Maybe he'll answer him back."
And I just quit praying, leaned over a chair like this, listening, and it just kept on talking. I thought, "Well, wonder why some-body don't answer back." And I listened. I thought, "Well, now, isn't that strange."

45 There was a weight scales down the road, and I heard that fellow down there hollering, "Drive off!" you know, and, "Drive on!" I turned around, looked out that way, and I did, I felt my mouth. Come to find out, I was the one doing the talking. It was me. And I just kept real still, not knowing not one thing. I had no more control of what I was saying than nothing, knowed not one thing I was saying, not a thing. I just... My mouth was moving, I was speaking some kind of a language. I just held real still. After while it quit. And when it quit, oh, my, I felt like I could scream out, I just ... just so happy. I don't know why, but the burden all left me.
So I went on to the church then, called Billy. And when I got to the church... Mr. Baxter then was the manager of the meeting. And he was a ... been singing, waiting. I was over a half hour late. And I told him that I was just late. And he seen I'd been weeping, and he said, "What's the matter?"

46 And I said, "Nothing," and I went on. And just about ten minutes, a woman come in at the back of the auditorium, and she was about to take the place back there. And when we checked up with the woman, to find out, she was on her road from Twin Cities (St. Paul and Minneapolis, somewhere, one of those cities). She was so bad with T.B. till the ambulance would not dare to bring her, her lungs were in such a condition, just gelled. And so a couple of brethren got an old Chevrolet car, and took the back seat out, and fixed her a cot in there some way, or a bed, and laid her on it, and was bringing her to the meeting. She wanted to come. The doctors had give her up.
And on the road over... They told her the least little bump, she'll go into a hemorrhage, and that's it. And she went into a hemorrhage. And they had taken her out and had laid her on a grass flat. And the saints were standing there praying over the woman. And she was just... Every time she'd breathe, it'd just gurgle and the blood would blow out of her mouth, like that.
And all of a sudden, she was instantly healed! And she jumped up from there and started rejoicing, come on to the church. And there she was back there testifying, back in the back.
I said, "What time was that?" And when she gave the time, of what time it was, it was the very same time that that speaking was going through me. Well, what was it? It was the Holy Spirit making intercession for that woman there! See what I mean?

47 Now, the Bible says that. Sometimes we mutter words, we don't know what we're talking about. But it's the Holy Spirit in there moving out, making intercession for things that we do not understand, see.
And the woman was instantly healed. We heard from her for a long time from that. She's perfectly well, got all right.
Now, you see God knows where those things are, and He has a way of doing it, see. He has His own way of doing it. We must just submit ourselves to what He does. And then the hard thing to do when you get there is hold yourself from that one little knife edge of fanaticism to a truth.
Now, if you don't watch, the devil will throw you right over into a bunch of fanaticism, and you'll lose all your experience and everything else, see, when you do that. But if you can just hold to solid truth, watch the Bible, and stay with it, and stay meek and humble, God will just keep taking you on towards Calvary, just on down the road like that, if you'll just stay with that.

48 And that's something like yours was, sister. God was just giving you a blessing. It might be a definite witness that you're going to... But I wouldn't rely just on that, you see, say, "The Lord told me!" Because ... I said that experience because that it might encourage you to continue to believe on. Whatever it was that God did there, brought the Spirit upon you like that, it was for some purpose. It might've been something else; but if it was for your husband, he'll sure come right into the kingdom of God. I believe that.

49 QUESTION: "Brother Branham, is it not scriptural that women should not speak in the church?"
He's got two questions here. That is true. That is true. It's not right for women to be ministers and speak in the church. That is right, I Corinthians, the fourteenth chapter.
Of course all of the church here, you all know this. And this may be a stranger in here this morning, I don't know. But it's not right for women to be ... to minister. That is true.
I'll just read it to you here, and you can find out. And then you'll know: I Corinthians, the fourteenth chapter, I believe. I'll get it just in a minute, if I can find... Yeah, here it is.
Let your women keep silent in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. [Now, the law didn't permit women priests and so forth back in them days, see.]
And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it's a shame for a woman to speak in the church.

50 Now, if you'll notice Corinth here... Many of these Corinthian Christians and many of... The great goddess of the world in that day was Diana, which was a Roman goddess. And she was a goddess of Ephesus, and she was worshipped throughout all the world. And now, her ministers... Of course, her being a woman, then that made her ministers women. And when they were converted into Christianity by Paul... Now, Paul was in prison when he wrote these letters, of course, at Rome.
Now, they wrote him letters, you see, after they'd begin to speaking with tongues and got great gifts working among them. Well, these women thought they should continue on their ministry.

51 Now, if you'll notice, you that's reading your Bible, the thirty-sixth verse, he said.
What? came the word of God ... from you? and came it from you only?
If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.
But if ... he be ignorant, just let him be ignorant.
Now, in otherwise, the women... Now, if you'll take the history to this letter, see, of the church, these women thought that they were to continue on with their ministry, just as they was the priests to the goddess Diana. God is not a woman; God is a man. And there's only really one, and that is a man. A woman is a by-product from a man. Man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man, see. If you could just open up your spiritual understanding, see.

52 When a man first come on earth, he was both male and female, feminish and masculine before he become sex, see. A feminish spirit, the lower spirit, the one that's timid; and then there's also masculine, man. But when He made and put him into different... In order to reproduce the world, He brought the feminish spirit off of him and put from a rib from his side and made a female.
She was not to be ruler! When she first started that, she caused the whole human downfall, see. Oh, and even it was a... She was the cause of the fall. And then God taken her up and brought life back into the world through Christ by the woman. But nowhere was a woman ever permitted to be a minister in the church.

53 On over in II Timothy, the third chapter, he said, "I suffer not a woman to teach or to usurp authority over man, but to be in silence," you see. And it isn't right for the woman to preach---that is true.
Now, I know I've seen some women that were real preachers. They could preach, too---like Aimee McPherson and many of those women there. But just put your hand on this for a little while, see. I know people who could speak with tongues this morning sitting right in this church. If there was no interpreter, they'd be daresn't to do so, see.
You got to remember them women was born under a certain line, that when they are... Your birth has a lot to do with it. It's ... your name, all about you, you see, has a makeup to it, no matter what it is.

54 I could get out here and pull a trigger on a gun and kill a man this morning, but I'm daresn't to do it. But I can do it all right, sure. See, I could kill a man the same as you could a squirrel; but you ain't supposed to do that, see. And that's the same thing. You've got to watch those things, now, that you do not... This is the commandments of the Lord.
When they wrote over and said, "Why, the Holy Spirit told us!" Paul said, "What? Came the Word of God out of you? And came it from you only? If any of you all ... if you got any prophets over there, they'll acknowledge that what I say is the commandments of the Lord, see. [That's right!] But if there's any man shows he wants to be contrary, if he wants to be ignorant, just let him be ignorant, see. Just let him alone, leave him go on. Don't do any contrary to it." But remember, she's not supposed to speak in the church.

55 And therefore, there's where you can judge your pastor or whatever it is, whether he's spiritual or not, see. He said, "If any man be spiritual or a prophet, he'll acknowledge that what I say is the commandments of the Lord," see.
That's the reason I command the people to be baptized over again in the name of Jesus Christ. Paul did that, and he said, "If an angel from heaven come and taught anything else, let him be accursed." And this is what's already taught here also. If any man comes... If a angel come from heaven and said, "Let the women preach and be preachers, ordain them ministers," the Bible said, "Let him be accursed." This is the commandments of the Lord here.

56 QUESTION: "Is it right for Christian men and women to kiss one another [Oh!] on greeting?"
No, sir! No, indeedy! No, sir! You kiss one woman, brother, that's your wife, see, or your child, see.
"Is it right for..." Let me see if I got that right! "Is it right for Christian men and women to kiss one another on greetings?"
No, sir! No, indeedy! Don't you never get that started! Yes, sir! No, sir! You keep away from women! Shun away from them! Exactly right!
Now, they're our sisters, but ... now, they've got that. That thing even got over in Pentecost, and it's called "free love." And when you get anything like that, you stay away from it. That's right!
I don't care how clean you are. You're my brother, and I believe that you might be a good, sanctified, holy man. I don't care how holy you are, you're still a man. And I don't care how holy she is, she's still a woman. Stay away from it till you're married. You just do that!

57 Remember, the body... I'm going to speak double now, so that you older people will understand. It's a mixed group, but I'm your brother, and this is a question, see.
Each human being, male and female, have a different type of gland. A female has a female gland, sex gland. A male has a male gland, sex gland. And those glands lay in the human lips. That's right.
And here's another thing might be brought up, men kissing one another in the mouth. That's dirty! That's filth! And what does it do? It starts homosexuals. Stay away from that! You say...

58 A guy asked me not long ago, said, "Brother Branham, why, they greeted one another with a holy kiss." They kissed on the back of the neck, fell upon their neck and kissed them on the back of the neck. That was before handshake come in. It's a greeting. That's the way it is. They didn't shake one another's hands; they put their arms around one another and they kissed one another on the back of the neck---not on the lips, in the face. That starts a perversion. Stay away from it! Don't never do that!
Nowadays, we shake hands with one another. If you want to... If you got your arm around your brother, and kiss him on the neck, or he kisses you on the neck, that's all right. But don't you kiss that woman, and don't you let that woman kiss you, see. That's right! You take her by the hand, say, "Wait a minute, sister, just a minute here, see. Let's get this straight!" And so, now you do that.

59 Now what did I tell you awhile ago when I first started? When you see a car coming down the road ninety miles an hour, get out of its way. That's right! When you see the first twist in anything like that, get away from it. Stay away from it! That's the ground you should not be on. Satan will present something till you'll wreck your soul and send you to hell. Stay away from it! Shun the very appearance of evil. That's right.
Be a man, be a woman, like... I'm going to take up for the women a minute. That's unusual, isn't it? They say, "Oh, the woman caused it! Oh, it was a woman's fault. If she hadn't got out of her place, well, the man wouldn't have got out of his." That's true. We'll say that's right. She gets out of her place. A man can't be bad unless there's a bad woman; but remember there can't be a bad woman without being a bad man. That's right!

60 And you who claim to be a son of God, where is your principles? If the woman is out of her place, aren't you a son of God? Aren't you the one that's a higher, stronger vessel? As the Bible says, she's weaker. Then if she's weaker, then show yourself a man of God. Tell her, say, "Sister, you're in the wrong." That's right. I've done it, and other Christians has done it. And you'll always do it as long as you're a Christian. But show yourself, you're a son of God. You have more power over yourself than the woman does. If she is weaker, recognize her to be weaker, understand her mistakes, and things like that. Or try to correct her, say, "Sister, we are Christians. We shouldn't do that." Be a real man, be a son of God, and watch the women.
And there's where the great fall began at the beginning. It was Satan with Eve. That's what brought the whole downfall of the human race is through that.
And if you're a son of God, be strong, be a real man. If you're not that way, stay at the altar till you become that. And shun the very appearance of evil. And don't start, now, greeting...

61 Someone told me some time ago about they'd seen that two or three times at my church here, of... Not here in the church, but people who come to the church. And if you're sitting here this morning, I just want to dig this to you right good, see.
Women, young women, coming up and these men kissing these women. Don't you do that! You keep away from there. You remember that! If she's young, single, or whatever she is, she'll be somebody's wife someday. And you haven't got no business doing that. Stay away from her. If you want to greet her, then be a son of God, shake her hand and say, "How do you do, sister." And let that settle it right there, see.
Stay away from those things. It's filth, and it'll soon get you into trouble. You just ... oh, that's just... Sin is so easy. It's so appetizing, it's so pleasant, it's so easy to fall right into it. The best thing to do is, the very even appearance of it, stay away from it! Get back! Be a real Christian!

62 And for men kissing one another, if you kiss your brother on the neck, and you want to do it, that's all right. Don't kiss no man in the lips, and on the mouth, or anything like that, because that's not right, see. No, that shows there's a little something wrong to begin with, see. So just stay away from there, shun that. Don't start that around this tabernacle here. No, we certainly won't stand for that at all, see.
If you want to see your brother, if you want to kiss him on the neck, well, you go ahead and do it, but don't kiss people in the mouth, because that won't work. That's not right! And it only starts a perversion. It starts homosexuals and things.
And there's only two things that'll do in them things like that. If you start... Let the man ... I've seen, oh, many times amongst the people, they'll come down... I've seen the churches, and the preacher'd come in, reach and grab every sister, and hug her and kiss her and set her down. "How do you do, sister? Hallelujah!" Reach over and get this one and kiss her. Go right down right through the church like that. To me that's wrong!

63 When I was in Finland, we was all over there... You might know this. We was having meetings, and I was at the Y.M.C.A. There was no soap, no detergents in Finland. I had some shaving soap, and every one of us had to stand up and take a spit bath, you know, with this shaving soap. Only had one piece with us. We had no soap in Finland. And they just washed with some kind of a compound, and it'd nearly take the hide off of you.
So then, they told us they was going to take us over for a Finnish sauna, and we went over to the Y.M.C.A. And we went over there to take a sauna. That's that Finnish ... famous Finnish bath. And I've had them before, and they were nice. I thought "Well, we're going at the Y.M.C.A. so it'll be fine."
But when I started over there, the Holy Spirit said to me, "Don't you do it." Oh, it's so good to have the Holy Spirit! "Don't you do it."
Well, I ... just right then I said, "I don't believe I want a bath this morning."
Dr. Munion and them said, "Oh, Brother Branham," said, "my, there's some big glass rooms," and said, "it's beautiful." Said, "It ain't..."

64 Usually when they do, they throw this water on these hot rocks and make you all steamy, and beat you with birch leaves like that, and then you run right out and dive into cold water. Them Finns go right into the snow and ice and things like that. But of course they're used to it, great big sturdy men. And then they'd come back and get in this hot bath again. Then from hot to cold quickly, like that. But they'd just let me stand where the cool air was and then get back, because I couldn't ... I was afraid it'd stop your heart to do that, wasn't used to it. So I liked it real well, but something told me not to take that one up there.
Well, Howard, my brother, and Brother Baxter and all them going up there, and Brother ... all the rest of them, you know, all talking, you know, going up. So I kind of got a little skittish, you know, because the Holy Spirit said, "Don't do it."

65 So we went up to the Y.M.C.A. and they come in, all those men standing there, greeting me. And, oh, they had the headlines in the paper, first and second page, every day, the meetings. And they were around, and I went into a little room and sat down, and they all went into the room to undress. And while they were in there to undress, here come a lovely-looking little Finnish blonde-headed girl. And they're a nice people. They're clean, moral people as they could be. Here she come with the towels over her shoulder. Started walking in the room. I said, "Hey, hey, hey. Stop. Psss." I tried to stop her. She looked around and laughed, went on in there, gave each one of them (and them men no clothes on), a towel. Each woman come down got a man, took them back in there, scrubbed them like that. I seen what the Holy Spirit meant. So then when I come back out, I said, "Dr. Manninen," I said, "How does that come, you being Christians and going in, taking those saunas with them..."
"Oh," he said, "Those scrub women, Brother Branham."
I said, "I don't care what they are. It's wrong. It's not right." I said, "And nature itself teach you."
He said, "Well, Brother Branham, they're raised up from children to scrub, just like your nurses in America, things like that; they're raised up that."
I said, "I don't care what they are; that's still wrong. Absolutely. It's male and female, and they're to be separated, and clothed from one another." Amen.
I don't want to start on that, I'd be preaching that after while, wouldn't I? All right.

66 QUESTION: "Please explain apostolic faith."
That's one question. There's one, two, and three questions. Apostolic faith means "the faith of the apostles." That's what apostolic faith means, that you stay with the Bible. Now, what's called apostolic faith today, many of them don't stay with the Bible. But apostolic means the--the apostolic faith, the apostolic faith of the Bible. All right.

67 QUESTION: "...and the group that call themselves fundamentalists, are these two groups saved?"
Now, I don't know. See, I wouldn't know how to answer that. Now, "Are these groups saved?" I don't know.
Explain the difference between the spirit and...
Well, that's a different question now.
Are these two groups saved? Now, I don't know. See, I wouldn't know how to answer that. Now, are these groups saved? I don't know. Explain the difference between the Spirit... That's a different question now. Are these two groups saved? Let me make that just a little bit more sensible to you and say I don't know. I wouldn't know. Now, remember, here's my thoughts. It may be wrong. My thought is that if a Roman Catholic or whoever he might be, Methodist, Presbyterian, Church of Christ, Lutheran, whatever he is, if he believes on the Lord Jesus Christ and solemnly trusting Him for his salvation, I believe he's saved.
But you see, the Roman Catholic church doesn't do that. They believe that the church saves them, see. Their salvation is in the church. Like this priest was put off the air here some time ago for saying there's no other salvation only [break in tape] Christ, that's right. Not by the church but by Christ.
Now, if these Apostolics, and fundamentalists, now, call themselves...

68 Now, like a fundamentalist come to me here some time ago and he said to me, said, "You kind of lean Calvinistic, don't you?"
I said, "Well, as long as Calvin is in the Bible I'm with him." I said, "I just go with the Bible and if Calvin stays in the Bible; but if he gets off the Bible, then I just pull on, believe the Bible."
He said, "Well," he said, "I want to say something to you. You told, I've heard you say, that if a man was once saved, that he could never be lost."
I said, "That's exactly what the Scripture says: 'He has eternal life and shall never come into condemnation, or judgment, but has already passed from death to life.' " I said, "That wasn't me said that. That was Jesus Christ said that."
He said, "I want to ask you something then." Said, "Do you believe that Saul was saved?"
I said, "Saul, the king Saul?"
He said, "Yes."
"Why," I said, "sure."
He said, "Now, remember, he was a prophet."
I said, "Correctly, the Bible said he prophesied with the prophets. He had a gift of prophecy. He wasn't a prophet, but he had a gift of prophecy, because he was down there with the prophets when they were prophesying. But we know that Samuel was prophet in that day, so... But Saul was prophesying with the prophets."
He said, "Then if he was a prophet, then he was saved?"
I said, "Absolutely!"
He said, "Then I want to ask you something." Said, "I want to ask you something." Said, "And then you say Saul was saved, and the Bible said that the Lord departed from him and he become a enemy to God, and he committed suicide, and then say that he was saved?"

69 I said, "And you're a fundamentalist?" I said, "Brother, you're just not reading it right, that's all. You're not reading what the Scripture said."
He said, "Well, Saul could not be saved if he become an enemy of God."
I said, "Saul was saved."
"Oh!" he said...
I said, "He was a prophet, he had to be saved, see. God saved him, and God's not a Indian giver, as we call it. He don't... Well, if God give you the Holy Ghost knowing that He is going to lose you right down here, why, what a foolish thing it would be for Him to give you the Holy Ghost in the first place."

70 You might impersonate the Holy Ghost and act like you got the Holy Ghost, but if you've got the Holy Ghost, God knows your beginning from the end. That's right! That's a loose way to run business. God don't run His like... He's infinite. He knowed the end from the beginning and knowed everything that'd ever be here. Every fly, every gnat would ever be on the earth, He knowed all about it before the world ever began. So, see, what would He run His business like that for? He doesn't do that.
If you once ... if you've really got the Holy Ghost, you're saved eternally. I can prove that through the Scriptures, and we have, time after time. But to conserve the time to get these questions, I might say this, you see, that... This fellow said, "Well, then what would you say about Saul?"
I said, "Sure, Saul was saved." I said, "Remember, Saul backslid. I'll admit that. He backslid and went away from God, because he was greedy. He liked money." He'd brought up all them sacrifices and things, when Samuel through the Word of God told him to destroy everything. But he even saved the king, and he saved a lot of stuff, and brought it up because... See, instead of following the Word of God just exactly like it says, you put your own opinion in it. There's where you backslide."
That's what I think about denominations and things. They backslide, because they don't follow the Word. And you show them the Word, they turn their back from it, say, "Well, our church teaches this." That's not right; it's what God says!

71 And Samuel was commissioned to go down there---or Saul was---and destroy everything utterly, "Everything, you destroy it all." Instead of doing that, he saved some for sacrifice, and he spared the king's life, and he done everything. And Samuel walked out to him and told him the Spirit of God had departed from him and all like that.
And Samuel died. And about two years later, well, then, Saul had got... The Spirit of God departed from him, but He wasn't lost. Sure, he wasn't. The anointing went off of him. Now watch, and see if it was now.
Saul got so far away from God till when he went to the battle... He started to go to battle. And he was worried about going to battle, and he asked the Lord for a dream. The Lord wouldn't give him a dream. There was no prophets in the land in that day, no prophets. Samuel was a prophet. They had prophesiers, so forth, but he couldn't get a answer from God no way. He even went down to the Urim Thummim and asked there. And the flash of the lightnings upon the Urim Thummim wouldn't even answer him. And what did he do? He crawled off into a cave where there was a witch, a fortune-teller. And this witch... He disguised himself like a footman and went down there, and he said, "Would you divine unto me the spirit of Samuel, the prophet?"
And she said, "Well, now, you know what Saul has said." (She was talking to Saul, but she didn't know it.) Said, "Saul said all that's got familiar spirits, he must be killed."
He said, "I'll protect you from Saul, but divine unto me the spirit of Samuel."
So the witch went into her enchantments, and first thing you know, when she seen Samuel raise up, the spirit of him coming, materializing in front of them, she said, "I see gods rise from the earth."

72 That's one of the consolations. Look at old Samuel standing there. He had been dead two years, but there he stood. Not only... He was standing there with his prophet robe on. Not only was he still alive, but he was still a prophet. Hallelujah!
She said, "You've deceived me."
And Saul said, "Samuel, I don't know what to do. I'm going to battle tomorrow, and the Spirit's gone from me." He said, "I can't even get a dream from the Lord, and the Urim Thummim won't speak to me. I'm in a terrible shape."
He said, "Seeing you've become an enemy of God," said, "why have you called me out of my rest?" Samuel said that. Said, "Why did you call me from my rest, seeing that you've become an enemy to God?" And then he went ahead and told him. He said... But however, he'd tell him the Word of the Lord. And when he did... Now remember, he'd been dead two years, see. But he said, "I'll tell you the..." He told him the Word of the Lord. Said, "Tomorrow you're going to fall in the battle, and Jonathan, your son, is going to fall with you. And," he said, "by this time tomorrow night you'll be with me." If he was lost, so was Samuel, the prophet. That's fundamentalism---you see why it's so-called. He said, "You'll be with me tomorrow night by this time," see. Then if Saul was lost, so was Samuel, because they was both in the same place.

73 No, no! Fundamentalist. Fundamentalist so-called, like Church of Christ so-called, and Christian so-called, Christianity so-called. Today because you're an American you're supposed to be a Christian---because you're an American, see. That's so-called Christianity. But a real Christian is a born-again man of the Spirit, born-again woman of the Spirit. That's really... These others are impersonating, but real Christians are called of God.

74 QUESTION: "Please explain the difference between the spirit and the soul."
Well, now, that's a hard one. But the first thing, you are a triune being, just like Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Father, Son, and Holy Ghost is three titles going to one person, which is Jesus Christ. And you are soul, body, and spirit, but it takes those three to make you. With just one of them, you're not you. It takes the three to make you.
Like I said the other day, "This is my hand, this is my finger, this is my nose, this is my eyes, but who's me?" Who is me that this belongs to? It's what's on the inside of me---that's the intelligence.
If this eyes, if this hand, if this body stood here just as it is today, yet I could... My body could be here, but me could be gone, what I am. Whoever I am inside of me has gone on. That's the part that is the spirit. The soul is the nature of that spirit, that when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, it does not do nothing... It changes or converts your spirit to a different soul. And that soul is a different nature that's on that spirit. So the soul is the nature of your spirit.
First you were mean, and evil, and hatred, and malice, and strife; now you're loving, sweet, kind. See the difference? It's your nature. I call it that. It's your soul that's been changed. The old soul died, and the new soul, which is the new nature, was born into you, see.

75 Your brain is not your intelligence; it's your spirit that's in you is your intelligence, see. Your brain is a bunch of matter and cells and so forth. It has no intelligence in itself. If it did, then as long as it laid there, whether you was dead or alive, it would still operate, see. But it's not your brain; it is your spirit inside of you. And your soul is the nature of that spirit. That's the soul of the spirit that controls the body, see. There you are.
Now, I've got to hurry because we're just getting a little bit late. Now, I hope that takes care of that.

76 QUESTION: "Brother Branham, please explain ... please make clear if women should testify or speak in tongues in the assembly."
Well, I believe that if the woman is a preacher in the assembly, she isn't supposed to be a preacher. But if she has a gift of tongues and speaks in the assembly, where there are prophets and the gifts are gathered together, I believe she has a right to do that. Because in the Bible we find out that they had prophetesses like Miriam and them, and they wasn't ... they had no jurisdiction... If I get to my little sermonette here, I'll get that in there, see.

77 But the women, if they are gifted... Now, the correct way that I believe that when we come together pretty soon... When our church gets settled a little bit more... (And by the way, there's a new group, another church is going to unite and come with this church as soon as we get room here for them and things. Another church is going to come and unite with this church. Not no organization, just come as a body, in a group, to the church. And they are a bunch of gifted people.)
And now, when it comes together, the thing to do, is these gifted people must get together on certain times for themselves, and see what the Spirit says to them. And then it can be given out from the platform. And the people... It's for the edification of the church.

78 Now, if you speak with tongues, and you know, nobody interprets it... And then when you're in the meetings, sometimes it's so irreverent, you know. You find sometimes... I've been standing in my congregation making an altar call, and someone would raise up and break the altar call speaking in tongues. Now, see, now, the person might've been speaking in tongues correctly. That might've been the Holy Spirit. But, see, without being taught to know what to do, how to hold that...
I've sat right on the platform and hear a preacher preaching and see him get to a spot... My, I wanted to get up and help him so bad I didn't know what to do. And you've done the same thing---all of us do that. But what is it? That's irreverent. Sit down. Regard my brother.

79 I heard Brother Neville preaching, and he's heard me preaching when we'd, no doubt, we'd ... Brother J. T. here and all of them, we can hear one another preaching, we think, "Oh, brother, I believe I'll get up and help him out," see. You just feel the Spirit pouring on you, but what do you do? Hold your peace, see, because the spirit of the prophets is subject to the prophet, see. That's right, hold your peace, see. You do that.
But I believe if the woman... The question was if the woman has got a gift of tongues and she wants to speak. I believe that when that time comes on, she has a right to speak out in a gift of tongues; but not to preach or to usurp any authority over men. When she's a preacher, of course she is over men.

80 QUESTION: "Brother Branham, I was married to a woman that had been married before. We divorced, and she has been married twice since. The Bible states that if we desire to marry ... if we desire to marry, to turn to ... first wife. Now, could I turn to her who has been married before or could I be free?
Well, now, my brother, here's the only way that you could do it. Now, this is a great subject, and someday I want to---if the church ever gets organized and straightened up into the place where it should be, or... I'll say this with reverence. There's two factions of this marriage and divorce in the churches, one holds one faction and one the other. And to my opinion, with grace in my heart before God and His Bible, they're both wrong, see. But there's a truth lays there.

81 If you notice what Jesus said... Now here, I got a brother, my own blood brother, that's fixing to marry a woman, and my brother has been married before and got a child by a good woman. And he come to me to marry him. I said, "Not at all!"
Jesus said, in Matthew 5, "Whosoever puts away his wife, and marries another, saving the cause of fornications (which she had to do before she was married and didn't tell him about it), causes her to commit adultery: whosoever marries her that is put away liveth in adultery." So don't do that. No, you cannot go back to your first wife if she's been married again. But if she divorced you and put you away...

82 Then you said, "Am I free?" Let me read it again. "I was married to a woman that had never been married before. We divorced, and she has been married twice [I suppose this person has remained single]. The Bible states that if we desire to marry to turn to ... first again."
No, sir! Get over in the Levitical laws. You go back to that woman, she's somebody else's property. You've defiled and made yourself worse off than ever. No, you should not take a wife back who's been married to somebody else.
Now, "Could I turn to her who has been married before or should I be free?" You are free! Stay free! Yeah, you don't go back again. No, sir! She's married to somebody else; stay away from her. That's right! That defiles... You understand. If we had a little more time, I'll get into that. But just for your question, my brother, whoever you are. No, sir! Don't you go back and take that woman when she's been married two or three times since she married you. That's wrong.

83 I married a couple here not long ago that'd been married before, and they divorced and went away---old couple. Well, it was Brother and Sister Puckett. That's exactly who it was. They just couldn't get along and had a little spat between them. They divorced. She lived just as true and single as she could be, and he lived the same way. And after while, they seen how silly they was, and they come back and wanted to be married. I said, "Sure," see. "That's all right, that's what you should be." Well, they was married all the time. They never had been divorced---just give them papers to live together as husband and wife, that's all, because they was married in the beginning.

84 QUESTION: "What do the three letters mean on the Catholic crucifix? [Let's see.] What does the three letters mean on the Catholic crucifix?"
Well, I think all crucifix are the same, if I'm not... I'd better look that up. But it's got I-R-N-I which means "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews," see. If that's what it is, I didn't know they had any other special or something or other. But them letters means "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." I-R-N-I, that's what's on the crucifix. All right.

85 QUESTION: "Would it be wrong to use tithes on church building funds?"
Well, now, here's a touchy little thing for the church now. No, correctly, tithes is to go to the minister. That's right! In the Bible they had a box they'd set at the door in the Old Testament when the ... building. This box was a fund where the people put in there for the repairing... You've read it many times in the Old Testament. They kept up the buildings and things like that... All the repairs on the building was taken care out of that fund. But a tenth of that went---a tenth of the tithings---all the tithings went to their priests, their pastors. Yes, tithings are to go for nothing else.
I know people take their tithes and give them to a widow woman. That's wrong. If you've got anything to give the widow woman, give her, but don't give her God's money. That's not yours in the first place---that's God's.

86 If you sent me downtown to get a loaf of bread, and you give me twenty-five cents to get the loaf of bread, and I met somebody on the street wanted it ... something else, and I give him the twenty-five cents, see, I give them your money. If they asked me for something, let them get it over here in this pocket and give them my money; but this is your money. And a tenth of it is the Lord's, and Levi the priest could live by the tenth.
The tenth is to be a tithing that's to be brought into the storehouse with a promise of God to bless it, and a proof. He said, "If you don't believe it, come and prove me and see if I won't do it," see. That's right.
The tithings goes into the church for the pastor, and so forth like that, to live on. And then the building funds and things like that is a separate fund altogether. Now, that is scriptural.
One time, when we get started, I want to take a night... I've went here some time ago, before I left the Tabernacle, and taken about two or three weeks just on subjects like that and went plumb through it and showed what tithings was in the church.

87 QUESTION: "Brother Branham, is there anything wrong with belonging to a lodge after we have become a Christian, such as the Masons?"
No, sir. You be a Christian wherever you are. I don't care where you are, you still be a Christian.

88 QUESTION: "How do you feel is the best way to find the Lord... ? How do you feel is the best way to find the Lord's will in some important matters?"
Now, I don't believe I... Let me see if I can get the continuity to it. "How do you feel is the best way [I see. It should be a comma there, I suppose.] ... How do you feel is the best way to find the Lord's will in some important matters?"
I tell you, dear friend, the best way to find the will of God in some important matters is prayer, see.
Now, let me... Here's a wonderful little thing here. If you have a matter that's very important, now, here's the way I do it. I take it before the Lord, and it's always been my strength. I wait upon the Lord and see what He says. And I just let myself neutral to it, don't take either side, and say, "Now, heavenly Father, it can..."

89 Of course, now, in my case most of the time, if it's very important, I wait on a vision. But many people, God doesn't deal with in visions. So therefore, I wouldn't advise you to do that, see, because it's just some people that has visions, and some does something else. Where you do something else that I couldn't do, maybe---in your way of serving the Lord---I do something that you couldn't do, see. God deals with us different.
And so I would, if I was in your place and didn't have visions before the Lord, I would just wait upon the Lord and say, "Lord, now You show me what's the decision to make." And then, the way you feel led to do it, then wait just a little bit. Then wait a little while longer, and see which way, which side you lean towards, which way the Spirit... Say, "Now, Father, in my heart You know it doesn't matter, but I want to know what You want to do about it."
That's the way I do about meetings sometimes. I feel kind of led to go this way or that way, then I follow that way. That's the way to do it, because it's in prayer then. You're doing the the best you can.

90 And I believe this, my friends, as Paul was, in the New Testament, in days gone by. He was between two straits, which way he should go. And he started on the wrong road, and he got a Macedonian call. And I believe if you are making a decision for God and do it the best that you can, I believe God will correct you and see that you don't go wrong. I believe God will do it.

91 QUESTION: Let's see. "Brother Branham, what happens to the people that are considered the sleeping virgin when they are judged at the judgment?"
Well, the sleeping virgin will be saved, of course. She'll be saved at the judgment. She'll never be the bride, but she is a saved group of people that will come in the judgment, that will not be included in the bride. But as long as they are virgins, they are before God, see. They are to be saved. He separates... They'll be the sheep on His right side, and the unsaved will be the goats on His left at the great white throne judgment.
I could spend a lot of time on that, but it's getting a little late.

92 QUESTION: "Is it possible for a Holy Ghost-filled person to be driven by the ... to do minor things ... influenced to do minor things that he doesn't want to do?"
Oh, yes! Yes, sir! Yeah, a Holy Ghost-filled person... You're right in the place then to be drove by these things. You just put yourself up a target. When you're down there serving the devil, he just lets you slouch around any way you want to, but you once take a stand for Christ, you've got on the other side then. He trains every gun right around on you. Every temptation, everything that can be throwed to you, then you got it. But what have you got? "Greater is He that's in you, than he that's in the world," see.
Now, you was in no battle here, you was just slopping along, see. But now, you've cleaned up, you've dressed up, you've shaved, you've combed your hair, you put on a uniform, you've got a gun in your hand. "Let's go!" See? You're in battle, not to show off, but to fight, fight! Sure, when the temptations rise, with the Spirit---the shield of faith, buckle on and move on, see. That's right. Oh, put all the whole armor of God. Why do you put on a armor if you're not going to fight? All soldiers are dressed to fight; not to show off, walk out and say, "I'm So-and-So. Now, I'm a Christian. See who I am? I belong to So-and-So. Hallelujah! I got the Holy Ghost the other night. Sure, nothing bothers me anymore." Uh-uh! Oh, brother, I believe you better go back and try again, see.

93 Oh, I'm telling you, when as soon as you say you got the Holy Ghost, Satan's got every gun right on you, shooting. Then you got the whole armor on. Then take the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, or the Word, and take the buckle on the ... shod yourself with the gospel, and take the old middle piece here, the breastplate, and pull up the cinch on it, and tighten yourself up a little bit, and get ready, boy, because it's a-coming, don't you worry. Yes, sir, you're going to have plenty of trouble. But remember, "Greater is He that's in you, than he that's in the world."

94 QUESTION: "What did Jesus mean in St. Matthew 16:9 and 10? What do the twelve baskets and the seven baskets represent? Question for Sunday morning."
Let's see, Matthew 16:10. I'm not too sure just now. Let me get where it's at, Matthew 16:9 and 10---16:9 and 10. Here we are.
Do you not ... understand, neither remember the five loaves or the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up?
Neither the seven loaves or the four thousand, and how many baskets did you take up?
Now watch. Let's just take just a little bit before this.
And Jesus said unto them, Take heed that you beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
And they reasoned among themselves, saying, Is it because we have taken no bread.
Jesus [Now watch!] Which when Jesus perceived [He caught their thoughts, you see.], he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among you, because you have brought no bread?
Do you not ... understand, neither remember the five loaves and the five thousand, or how many baskets you took up?

95 In other words, like this: If you seen God provide and do a miracle, then can't He do a miracle again? See? In other words, like this: If He saved you from a life of sin, can He not heal your body? Don't you remember when you was a sinner how He lifted up your soul in faith to believe? Can't He likewise do something great for you again? Can't He do the miracle or anything else for you? The five baskets, said, "Remember..."
Like when they crossed over the Red Sea, God opened up the way like that and made the Red Sea open like that, and walked through. He come right on the other side, and as soon as he got without water, they started murmuring. Is that right? As soon as they got without bread, they started crying out, "We don't have no bread," see. Said, "Didn't you consider the miracle back there at the Red Sea? Have not you come down... ?" When they all got in a spot by the Red Sea, "Oh," they said, "we ought to have died. Here comes the Egyptians right on us now. Here it is, what are we going to do?"
Said, "Who smote the earth with plagues down there? Who kept the sun shining in Goshen?" See? We must remember those things, remember God is God! Hallelujah! Any of it, He's still God. He certainly can do anything.

96 QUESTION: "Will you please explain 'the body of Christ' in I Corinthians 12:27 and 'the bride of Christ' in Revelation 2:9. Is the New Jerusalem spiritual here in Revelation? Is this the spiritual discernment of the church?
No. Now, let's see if I get this first now, I Corinthians, right quick, I Corinthians, the twelfth chapter, all right, and the twenty-seventh verse.
And ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
And then, where was the next scripture? Revelation 21:9, Revelation in the twenty-first chapter and the ninth verse. All right, here we are.
And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, and I will shew you the bride, the Lamb's wife.

97 Yes, the body of Christ. See, the body of Christ was broken for our sins and by one Spirit we're all baptized into that body and become members. And where did the body... ? Where did my wife, symbolically speaking... ? Where did Eve come from? The body of Adam. She was taken out of his side. Eve was taken from Adam's side. The Christ... And she was part of his body. He said, "She's flesh of my flesh and bone of my bones. And I'll call her woman," see.
Now, and the body of Christ was taken out of the body of Jesus, for we are spirit and flesh and bone of Him, see. Because we are born into His body. And because this body here belongs to Him, yet it's born in sin, He has redeemed it. God will raise it up at the last days, and I'll live in it for eternity, see. That's it. All right.

98 Now, let's see, the last question here was: "Is the new Jerusalem spiritual?" No, no, the new Jerusalem, John saw coming from God out of heaven, it isn't the discernment of the church now, you see. It's the New Jerusalem John saw descending out of heaven prepared as a (Revelation 21, see) ... prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

99 The last question now. I think that's all of them.
QUESTION: "The Bible says that everything works for the good to them that love the Lord. Then if you love God and turn back to the world, would God let you die in sin or would He let you be reconciled back to Him before He takes you away?"
The lady signed her name to it, so I'd say it was a lady, see, because she signed her name. Yes, sister. If you are born... Now, let me get this. See, temporarily, minor, every one of us backslide many times a day. We know that. We're all guilty, every one of us, there's none of us perfected. And as long as we're in this body, we are still... No matter how much the people try to tell, "I've got sanctified, I can kiss this woman or do that," he's lying. He cannot. Now, that's all.
I don't try to say, "Lord, let me see how close I can go." It's, "Lord, keep me as far away as I can get," see. Just stay as far away as... Remember, you are still human being, see.

100 But, now, if you make a mistake and do something wrong, you don't willfully... If you are a Christian, if you're a born-again Christian, you don't mean to do wrong. Your intentions and everything is right. But if you do, as she said here, make a mistake and do something wrong, will God let you just go on and go on and die like that and be lost, or will He bring you back to reconciliation? He will bring you back. That's right! He will bring you back.
And then, if you do anything wrong, it don't condemn you and you go on like that, on out, remember, you wasn't saved at the beginning. That's right. You wasn't saved. You just had a make-belief, you wasn't saved. But when you're saved, you have a different spirit. You're a different nature, you're a new creature in Christ. And the old things has passed away, and they are dead and buried in the sea of forgetfulness. You see?
But being you're living here in this world, there's traps set for you everywhere, and you're walking with your eyes on Christ. And remember, that when you make a mistake, a real Christian will always come back quickly for reconciliation.

101 Look, in the ark, God turned the old crow out ... or, Noah turned the crow out. Now, what was he? He was a crow. Oh, yes, he sat on the same roost there with the dove. They both sat in the same roost. But when he turned the old crow out, well, I imagine all the waters was stinking with millions of people's swelled bodies rottening up on top the water, and horses and animals, all dead. The whole world was destroyed. And there they was, this old dead carcasses floating on top of the water, and things like that. And Noah turned the dove out, because ... guess he saw some sunshine, and he wanted to know whether the water had receded or not, so he turned the crow out. And the old crow flew down on an old dead body, "My, just fine, that's good!" See, eating a dead body. Why? That was his nature. He was a crow. No matter how much he'd sat with the dove, how much he'd heard Noah preach, how much he'd sat with this clean bird, he was a crow to begin with. As soon as he got the opportunity to show his colors, he showed it.
Now, but when he turned the dove out, when she started down, whew, she couldn't stand that. Nowhere she could go, she couldn't find no rest for the soles of her feet, so she come back to the ark. And that's the way it is.

102 Sometimes you might be turned loose for a little while to see what you'd do, but you'll always, if you've got the nature of a dove, you cannot eat crows' food. That's all. It just won't digest, that's all.
Where would you go, what would you do? Tell me what you would do if you were not a Christian! Tell me what I'd do this morning if I wasn't a Christian. What could I do this morning? And my mother laying out there in the hospital in that condition and unconscious as she is, and laying there, and in my heart I could stand here in the pulpit and preach, and go on the way I do, seem like I don't pay much attention to it. Because I know my mother's saved, see. I know she's saved. I know who I believed. I'm persuaded He's able to keep that which I committed to Him against the day.

103 What would Mama do now? Now, maybe she'd had good intentions all of her life, that "Someday I'm going to be a Christian." But how could she be, now when she's laying there unconscious? How could she become a Christian now? What would her children do?
The other day when we put her ... taken her out there to give her glucose out there... It's the only thing she has in her body is glucose. She can't swallow, she's paralyzed. And she said, "This one thing I want you to know, Billy." She talked about me and Delores standing there, and about her children and things, and a couple of my brothers' drinking.
And I said, "Well, they broke your heart."
She said, "But, Billy, that all goes in the wheel for a mother." She said, "But I'm saved." And she said, "I'm ready to go."
I said, "Mama, you might've left us a home that reached all the way from Jeffersonville to Utica, a palace. You might have left us ten million dollars to fuss and fight over after you were gone---that's all that would happen to it. But Mama, you leave us the greatest treasure that anybody could leave, the assurance that we'll see you again in that land beyond the river." That's right, see.

104 You're saved, and I'm so glad to know that Christ saves our... But we may backslide, we may do wrong. We all have our ups and downs. But in your soul, as soon as you do anything, well, there's something goes wrong in you. You know it is. Now, right there is the time to jump. That's the time to jump. Get away from it.
Now, say you go out here today, and somebody comes up to you and say, "Hey, they tell me you're one of them holy rollers."
Right quick Satan say, "Slap him down!"
"I don't know about being a holy roller. I'm a Christian." See? And always with evil, meet evil with good. And remember, now just take this, remember this: when you meet evil with good, evil cannot stand in the presence of good. It cannot do it.

105 Now, I'm a missionary, and I've been around the world, in all kinds of evils, and all kinds of spiritualists, and isms, and all kinds of devil worship, and, oh, everything could be thought of, where there's everything---and I've always found that right always conquers wrong.
Listen, I don't care how dark the night is. It might be so dark till you could feel it. You could put your hands up like this and couldn't see a shadow of no type. The least little bit of light will expose that darkness. Certainly. That's the way life does in the presence of death. That's the way right does in the presence of wrong. That's the way faith does in the presence of doubt. It scatters it away.

106 How can the night stay here when the sun shines through ... blessings through? Where does the night go to? It's no more. What happened to the night? Where is that darkness in this tabernacle about twelve hours ago? Where is that darkness that was congealed inside of these walls here? It is no more. It vanished. Why? Light came in. And when light came in, darkness had to go. Yes, sir!

107 You take the creatures that roam at night---roaches, and beetles, and bugs and things. Let the sun rise or let a light flash on, watch how they take for darkness. That's the way the gospel is. When it flashes on, what happens to those who wants to call you holy roller? What happens to those people who make fun of you? When a light flashes on, they shoot for darkness as hard as they can go, because they're children of the night. But the children of the day walk in the light. Amen!
We are the children of the light by the grace of God. So when the light's flashed on, we thank God and walk with our eyes open, looking at things that you can't see with your natural eye. For faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Amen! I love that.

108 I haven't got time for my little sermonette I was going to speak, because we're going to have to pray for the sick.
How many love the Lord? Amen! Now, after we've had these questions, and there's some of them sharp and everything, and maybe answered... Maybe I didn't even do the right job on it, because I didn't have time to look up the Scriptures. I'd had it wrote on the paper if I had. I hope everybody's satisfied. If not, write it back again to me. Let me have a time to study it if you don't think it was fully answered.

109 Thanks for staying. And now, we're going to form the prayer line just in a minute. But before we do that, let's just change the atmosphere now from answers and one answering this, and one believing this way, and that way. You see, in answering questions, sometimes it's a little sharp, so let's just worship the Lord and sing.
I love Him, I love Him,
Because He first loved me,
And purchased my salvation
On Calvary's tree.
Now, I want you to shake hands with somebody around you now when we sing again.
I love Him, I love Him,
Because He first loved me,
And purchased my salvation
On Calvary's tree.
Now, let's just raise up our hands to Him like this, close our eyes.
I love Him, I love Him,
Because He first loved me,
And purchased my salvation
On Calvary's tree.

110 Our heavenly Father, we love You, Lord. And I believe this little group loves You. We come down to the house of the living God, a little building---not the building, but the God that lives in the building. Like in myself, this old body, it's got to drop one of these days, but the man that lives inside of it cannot drop, because it's held by the power of God.
This old building here that we worship in this morning, no matter how much we fix it up, someday it'll drop, but the God who lives in the building is eternal. We're coming to face You now, Father, to give thanks and praise.
And for these questions upon the people's hearts, we see that they were wondering whether they should do this or that. And, Father, I trust that in every tender Christian's heart that the answer was some way that would make them understand what was truth. Grant it, Lord. And if I failed, then forgive me. I didn't mean to fail, because it's your children, and they're asking those questions, and I want to give them all that I know, Father, like if You were standing right here to judge me by what I said.

111 Now, Lord, we're coming to face for the sick. Now, we know that in the Bible that we only get what we believe we get. We remember one time, Father, when Jesus was here on earth, the Syrophenician woman come to Him and said, "Lord, be merciful unto my daughter, because she's variously vexed with a devil."
And we hear what He said, "It's not meet for me to take the children's bread and give it to the dogs."
Oh, God, seemingly what a flat refusal, and not only that, but to call her a dog. But instead of being arrogant about it, very sweetly and humbly she said, "That is true, Lord." Because it was truth. She said, "It is true, Lord, but the dogs will eat the scraps that fall from their master's table." That's what done the work. She was willing just to take the scraps that come from the children's table. And God, that's our attitude just now. We are willing to anything that You want to do with us, Father. We're in your hands.

112 I'm so glad to know that the God of the Old Testament, who showed visions and give signs and wonders, still lives today. And the heaven that they longed to go to, someday by God's grace we go too, because the same God is showing Hisself to be the same God among us.
There are those among us, Father, this morning who are sick and needy. They're going to pass through a prayer line. May they not come and say, "Well, I don't believe You can do me any good." Lord, may that not be the attitude, but may they come remembering that God said, "These signs shall follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover." You promised it, You said so.
May they come with holy reverence, believing that as soon as prayer is made and hands have been applied to them, may the Holy Spirit come upon them like this dear sister that wrote the question, said the Holy Spirit almost slew her mortal being with such a tremendous baptism of His presence.
May that be the effects upon everyone that comes this morning, Lord. Grant it. May they be healed. May they come knowing, knowing without a shadow of doubt that You promised it and You cannot lie, and as soon as light strikes in, darkness and doubt flees away. Grant it, Father. We commit them to You now as we pray for them in Jesus' name. Amen.

113 Now, those that wants to be prayed for, on this side first, line up along the building here while Teddy plays for us "The Great Physician Now Is Near."

114 Brother Neville... Just keep lining up, coming. We'll be standing here. Let all the church be praying. And Brother Neville and I will be here together; he'll be anointing; I'll be laying hands on the sick, right... Now, everybody in prayer now.
Now, what are we doing? We are coming to anoint the sick and to pray for them. Now, let me quote the Scriptures to you. "If there be any among you, sick, let them call the elders of the church, let them anoint them with oil and pray over them. The prayer of faith shall save the sick, God shall raise them up. They that did any sin, it shall be forgiven them. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another that you may be healed."
Now the rest on this side, when you desire, as soon as you get below that line there, that place, that aisle, you just drop right in behind. Now the elder here of the church will do the anointing and prayer. I'll pray and lay hands on the sick. And now, remember friends, you that is standing in the prayer line, this is the moment to prove that you believe what you're standing here for. You got to get well.
I believe with all my heart, that's what held my mother all this time, (and her an old woman) is because that I believe. Until He tells me... that she may be dying, but till He tells me, I'm believing she's not dying, see. And now, I know she's got to go, and she's old enough to go, and wants to go, and trying to go. But yet I'll--I'll believe He would tell me. Now I believe He'd tell me, see. Now He may not. I don't know, I don't know that He will, but I just believe He will, see. But so far He said nothing to me about it. And I believe it. And if you...

115 I don't express to the people all that He shows me, you know that. Well, yesterday I was at a certain place, and I saw a vision exactly what was going to do, and God knows that's true, and sitting right with two or three more men. And about a half hour afterwards I seen it happen, just perfectly, just exactly the way it was. I had stood there, just trembled in myself, thinking, See? May... I said, "Maybe I should have told them that was going to be that way." But I said, "Well, just let it go. See?"
And that happens daily. See? Something's going to happen; I just let it. God knows that's true. See? Just something that's going to happen, just shows it, tells it. Something will appear to me and say, "Just say this word this a way, and this thing will happen over here." And then I'll say, "Well, let it be like that." Then I watch; here it is over here. See? Yeah.
Well, if He can make objects, material, something that has no life in it, move to His Word, because we have said it, how much more can He make you and me, associate with me. You are with me; you're my--you're my brother and sister that's sick. And if we say these words, "Let the power of God heal this person," why, it's got to happen. Now, that material can't say, "No, I doubt it." It'll go ahead and do it. But you can say, "Well, I wonder," and it won't happen. See? But if you'll just go ahead and just stay right in line with your thought now, "I'm going to be healed." You've got to have it. You believe in that?

116 Now, let's all pray. Our heavenly Father, laying hands upon this young woman, this young mother standing here, that suffers with this bad cold. Let the... [Gap in the audio--Ed.]
So I pray that You will heal the people these handkerchiefs lays upon. Grant their requests to them. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I ask it. Amen.

117 In deeply appreciation of your stay, and your loyalty to stay all this time, and to wait in the church like this, while we're... But I don't know a better place to be, do you, than in the church? I just don't know of a better place to be. And the consolation that we have in the respects that God, of Him being present now.
And we just, for a moment, let's just think of how great He is, and what He's done for us. What could we have done without Him? How we have seen Him, just not one thing has He ever told us through the... He had give me visions. And I bring you to question, this morning, have you ever seen one but what He fulfilled? Just exactly what He said He'd do, right at the moment. Then He's God. Then He's our Father. He loves us. And wherever His heaven is, we know we're bound to go there someday. We know He's present here now. We realize that.

118 We--we look at things that we don't see. Now, many of you was prayed for, and (See?), as we just refuse any symptoms of any thing contrary to that... See? Anything that God has promised... See, the Christian does not look... You do not see with your eyes anyhow. You know that. You do not see with your eyes. You see with your heart. See? "Seeing" means, "to understand." You understand with your heart; therefore, we look at things that our eyes does not see. See? The Christian confession, the whole armor of Christianity is based upon that. We--we look at things that we do not see, for Abraham called those things which were not, as though they were, because he believed God. See?
Now, what do we do now? Now, when you're prayed for like that, then God promised to heal you. Then right now you may not feel a bit of difference, but He never... That--that isn't it at all. See? We believe it anyhow.

119 If you only knew, I come to the pulpit about two hours ago and I didn't think that I'd go half way through the meeting almost. I was so tired and worn, and felt like I was taking the flu, but now I feel fine because that I said, "I am duty bound to God. I believe God." And I had to fight with him. My wife there could tell you the same, in trying to get down here this morning, and I was hoarse in my throat and everything. I said, "How will I be able to do it?" But, honestly, I feel wonderful now. And I--I believe I could take my text and go ahead and preach, and that--and feel fine.
But because, you see, you've got to look at those things that you don't see with your eyes. You see it with your heart. You believe it, and you testify to those things that you don't see, but what you believe. Because it is faith. "And faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

120 I've watched, this morning, a young Christian that's been setting here before me, And I know a decision that that person made. And I certainly appreciate it. I wouldn't say who it was, but I--I appreciate a--a decision that this certain Christian, regardless of even to whether it would be an associate, a friend, father or mother, or whatever it was, they long to stand loyal to Christ. See?
That's the way you win a loved one, is by being loyal. Being loyal is the way you win loved ones. Stay to your conviction. Be sure that you're right with God, and then ever remain there. Just stay right with it. Nothing can ever move you from it if you'll just stay right with it.

121 Now, we are all going to make mistakes. Just remember. And when you're looking at one another, don't look at the other person's mistake. See, don't do that, because, remember, you make mistakes too. But look to Christ Who is guiding this person. And if they need some help, then you pray for them. That's--that's the way we get along (See?), pray. And remember, when you are praying for somebody else in that kind of a fix, God will honor and heal you when you're praying for somebody else. That's right. That's what Christianity is based upon, to help one another, do for one another, be kind to one another, understanding to one another. Now, if you see your neighbor's mistake, you see where they've went wrong, don't go wrong with them, but just pray for them. Just keep praying, and God will understand that. He'll make everything right.

122 Now, I'm hoping to, if it be the Lord's will, I think Billy has got a system, he mails everybody a card. And if mama gets along all right this week; as far as we know now, we're not sure, but if mother gets along all right this week, and everything, next Sunday I--I want to speak on a--a Gospel message. If that's all right with our--with our precious pastor here. And we'll be expecting you back if you can... If you can come, we'd be glad to have you.
Do you love Him with all your heart? Isn't He wonderful? What could we do without Him? Now, just what could you do? Could you tell me anything that would be greater? If you can show me something greater than that, then I'll--I'll--I'll sell out what I got, and long for that that you show me that's greater than This. Yes, sir. This is the greatest thing that I know of, to know with the assurance that we are saved, to know that the very God that made the heavens and earth would humble Himself and come down and dwell among us, and do for us.

123 Now, here is how we know whether we are right or not (See?), because that the very thing that He did in the beginning with those Christians back there, the very church, the very operation, the way the Holy Spirit moved, and the way the devil fought against them, and the way they stood, that's the same thing that takes place right here, with the same signs, the same wonders, the same God, the infallible proof of Him.
Tell me, in the word of science, tell me in scientific way, how that anyone could foretell something that would happen in the years or times to come, before it happened. Show me the power, that where it would be, that would foreknow it before it happened. Tell me any human mind that could drop back through anything that you want to, and show me any way that you could see something and foretell something that happened just the way it--it does. See? There isn't.

124 So, He is God. See, He is God. And because He is God, through His grace He comes and dwells with us, and just like He did with them men back there who foretold these things, and every one of them happened just the way they was foretold. Now, that same God is with us, foretelling and showing just exactly the same things He did back there. Why, we should be so happy, we'd be skipping like from cloud to cloud, like that, just walking through space, almost, because that we know.
We know that we have passed from death unto Life. We know that we have salvation. We know that we are Christians. And we know that we're going to heaven, because God made the promise, and here He is moving right along with us in--in a way that we see Him.

125 We see Him. How do I see Him? When I see you. You see Him in me; I see Him in you. See, I see what He does for you. Now, here I see Him here reveal the Word to me. You say, "How can you see Him in me?" Well, look, He is here revealing the Word to me. I see It out there, Him giving It to you, and you keeping It. See? And then you look back, and you say, "How'd he, how'd that ever come?" Then you come back, find out that's right. See? So you see Him in me; I see Him in you.
And we can see Him in the sunrise. We can see Him in the sunset. We can see Him in the flowers. We can see Him in the... We can see Him anywhere, because that we have passed from the lower elements of this earth-bound condition, into this high element of the glory of God, so we can see His beauty.
A few days ago, when I was up on this trip, up in--in on the Alaskan Highway, when I went on a hunting trip, I was back there wondering, "Why? Why?" Watch how--how real God is. Now, there's sick people everywhere, but yet God knowing.

126 Now, tomorrow I'm supposed to leave, Brother Roy back there, and all of us, we're supposed to leave tomorrow for Colorado, for our... going hunting each fall where we... I've come in from the meetings, to go. I can't go, because of mama, mama's condition.
Now, look at the kindness of the Holy Spirit. He knew that a long time ago. So instead of letting me go, He turned around and gave me a vision and sent me up there, and give me one of the hunting trip that I couldn't get in Colorado (See?), ' cause them animals are not in Colorado like that. Turned around, and gave me that by a vision, and let me have that, knowing that He'd have to keep me away on this trip up there to Colorado. Talk about goodness and mercy. Then why? Then a long time ago He knew my mother was going to suffer. He knew my mother would be in the hospital. If He permits it, then He's doing it for some good purpose that I know nothing about. But I know it's all working together for good to them that loves the Lord.
If we'd just stop once in a while, church, and see our God... Just stop yourself and get away from your flusterations, and stand still a few minutes in the Presence of His Spirit, and you can just see Him moving everywhere. See how good He is?

127 Now, there lays mama, and me wondering about her. Why didn't He just let her go when she had the stroke? Why didn't she just die right then? But, see, Him knowing that ahead of time, and knowing that I'd promised to... I was going out into Colorado, and know that I love to get in the woods like that, He just turned around and give me a better one, sent me up there, and told me what I was going to get, and everything about it, 'fore I even left; told me how the people would be dressed, and what we'd do, and all about it. Then I come, told you all. Then he goes up and see it happen, come back, just exactly the way it is. Exactly, see, knowing that mama would be out there, know that she--she'd be broke down at this time, and I wouldn't be able to take this other trip. See? We wouldn't under... I didn't understand it myself then. But if you just yield yourself to Him and watch Him, He just leads everything just exactly right. See? He makes it all come out just right, step by step.

128 The other day I was standing by a young minister that'd had some dreams, and he brought the dreams to me. When the interpretation come, we stood there, Billy and I and this minister, stood there together. There it was. Why, it was just as perfect as it could be. And how that man stood there with--with--with awe, and how to see the Holy Spirit could reveal those things, and bring him right straight back and show exactly on the road and where it's supposed to do it. Oh, I tell you; He's God. He--He dwells... He's God.

129 So many of you people have made sacrifices. You've give up your boyfriends or girlfriends, you've give up homes, and so forth, and many of you has had to come out from amongst associates and friends, and things, and old friends that you've knowed a long time, to walk in the way of the Lord. I commend you for that. I think that's wonderful to do that. Now, because that you have seen the Gospel Light, and it is the truth, and you're--you'll walk in that Light. And whatever you do, children, whatever you do, wherever you go, shun the appearance of evil and walk after Christ. As long as you live, stay right on that road. Don't move from it, it'll certainly pay off good. It's Eternal Life.

130 And I see mama when--whenever she... A few minutes she can get to herself. I say, "Mama, mama, do you hear me?" Sometimes she just laying there, she won't. Then after awhile she'll say, "uh," shake her head like that. I'll say, "You..." I said the other night; I said, "Mama, you know me?" She didn't know me. I said, "You know who this is standing here." No, she didn't know that. I said, "Mama, you know Jesus?" And... Oh, my. Might forget her own child, but she can't forget Jesus. That's it. Oh, brother.
You don't know what that means till you have to come to your own family, down to that. You see? To know Him is Life. To know Him is the satisfaction of knowing that when this life's race is run, we got a home beyond the skies yonder. What it is, I don't know. I don't know just how to tell you it would be, 'cause I don't know, myself. But I know that someday by God's grace we'll journey over there.

131 Pray for me this week. I'm needing it. And now, you pray for me; I'll be praying for you. The Lord willing, being willing, I'll meet you next Sunday. And remember tonight's service. Possible, if I don't have to set up tonight, or anything, and be out there with mama, I'll probably be back with you tonight.
And now, Brother Neville, our precious pastor, come up here. How I certainly... There's--there's no one here but home folks, you know. We're just all what we call home folks. I appreciate Brother Neville's stand for this Gospel truth. I appreciate his loyalty and sincerity before the people. And the other day when he was speaking, I had never noticed it, but while he was under inspiration, giving prophecy, he called me a prophet, under inspiration. That wasn't him calling me that then, that was the Holy Spirit. So that give me courage and faith to move on, deeper depths and higher heights with God. I appreciate you, Brother Neville. God ever bless you. And till I see you again, God be with you.