Just once more, Lord

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1 Let us bow our heads now. With our heads bowed and our hearts bowed before God, at the closing of this great convention, jubilee that we've had here, and around the Word of the Lord, I wonder, tonight, if our hearts isn't just bursting for something from God. If it is, let's just raise up our hands to Him, and say, just say, "This is my request, Lord. You know."
Our heavenly Father, look down now upon our hands. Them hands up, means that we surrender our all to You. You know what we have need of, Father, and we pray that You will supply our needs. Sometimes our wants are more than our needs. But, Father, You supply our needs, because we can ask that with faith. You promised You would do it. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I ask it. Amen. (Now you be seated.)

2 To Brother Moore, and Sister Moore, Brother Brown and his Brother Lyle, and Brother Boutliere, and all these fine people here of the church, the trustees, deacons, whatever they may be, I certainly am thankful for this opportunity and the fine time that I've had being here. These great founders that come in here years ago, with pieces of paper in the bottom of their shoe, and has give an unselfish dedicated effort to bring forth this worship place here, and these people. I think Shreveport is greatly indebted to men like Jack Moore and these people like this here. And untiring and unselfish effort, they have tried to establish a place where the light of God and the life of God, can go to the people who are wayfaring men and women, who will drop in and enjoy the services. May it long stand, to the coming of the Lord Jesus, until He's finished with it.

3 And I have greatly enjoyed the congregation, your fine response to the ministry, to the messages. And the great things that God has done for us, it's just unlimited. And we'll never know what it's meant until we cross the other side, because seed has been planted that will come to life in the days ahead of us. And many has been healed, probably at this moment knows nothing about it, after a while you find out it's gone. And we find that so much, it isn't just what you see happen; you never know what's going to happen, what will happen, as a results of it. And I trust that there will not be any feeble people that will leave this meeting, but what they have the sufficient faith to know that the work is done, and will be well.
For those who raised their hands to Christ, for the baptism of the Holy Ghost, and many things, and the works of grace that you desired God to work with you, I just trust that every one of you will be filled with the Holy Ghost, every one. Don't forget my message, on, "The Token." You must stay with that. Remember, display the token.

4 Now we have to leave immediately for Arizona, Yuma, and Phoenix. And then we'll be back through the South here. I just don't know the itinerary, just what it is. But we'll be here, I think, it's in lower Louisiana again, along about February, somewhere here in Louisiana, Dallas. And on into, over in Georgia, over in there, and then to Florida. And then we're supposed to go to Europe from there, until June. And then we come back here, through July and to the middle of August. And then go back, way down under the earth, at South America ... not South America, South Africa. And on the second day of September, this coming 1964, the Lord willing, we begin in Durban, South Africa, where we saw thirty thousand people come to the Lord, at one time. Brother Julius Stadsklev sitting here, was at the meeting at that time. I think that is right.

5 And I guess Brother Julius has been introduced, the man who wrote the book of "A Prophet Visits South Africa." Sister Stadsklev, no doubt, is here somewhere. I can't place her just ... yeah, yes, now I do, and the children. I remember, a few years ago, Minneapolis, they were little bitty fellows; now I have to look up to them, they're a great big boy and girl.
Sister Stadsklev here, not long ago, that really had my heart whirling around, a little mother, she lost her baby. And the Lord was ... seen fit to take it away. And she had called me, and she wanted... They was going to fly me over to Germany. And the doctor was so kind to wait, let the baby lay there. the little fellow died suddenly, a sweet little, plumpy girl. And Sister Stadsklev had lost her mother, and she was pretty well broke up. This baby certainly had got the best of her. And she got on the phone, long distance from Germany, and wanted to fly over. And I said, "Sister Stadsklev..."

6 She confessed her faith, that she believed that the Lord Jesus had sent me for the work in the last days, and such a loyal testimony that no one could give, and she meant it with all of her heart. She had seen the Lord God do such things as that, raise up the dead after they were dead. But, you see, really, as much as I... How, what a glory that would have been to God, in Germany and everything! If I could have done it, myself, I would have done it. But, the first thing, we mustn't go until we know what we're going for.
So I went out and prayed. And I think she stayed on the phone part of the time, through the night. And the next day I come in, there was nothing. Again Meda said, my wife, said, "Sister Stadsklev's called twice. Any word from the Lord yet?"
I said, "Not a thing." And I said. "Well..."
Went out, pray again. I was in the woods that night. Then, of course, the little baby had to be taken care of. And then just as I was coming in, the Lord Jesus, a vision struck, standing in front of me, and I heard His voice say, "Don't rebuke that. That's the hand of the Lord." So I knew then that God, for some reason, had taken her baby to glory, and it was certainly against the will of the Lord for me to say anything contrary to it.
And then I thought, "Well, that will be a big let down. But the one thing I did, I minded the Lord. I did what He told me."

7 Here not long ago, I got a letter from a minister over there, and he had made a statement by some more ministers. He said, "The one..." And he was, I think, he might have been a German Lutheran. I'm not sure. But he said, "There is one thing that I can admire about Brother Branham. When all the excitement was going on, he stayed steady till he got a clear-cut decision from God, then he knowed what he was doing."
And that's the only way you can do those things, is first hear from the Lord, when He tells. If He told me, tonight, that to go up there and raise out of that cemetery, President Kennedy, I would invite the whole world to come, watch it done, for I'd have "Thus saith the Lord," see. Now, but how can I say, "Thus saith the Lord," until the Lord has said thus? See, see?

8 Many times, people gets all excited and go under impressions and things like that, and what the best of their mental can think. That ain't always true. Wait till He tells you, and you know it, then you've got exactly. You don't have to guess about it. He's done told you, it's "Thus saith the Lord." Then He has told you, then you can go say what He said. Until then, you can go and do everything you can, do what you can yourself, but you can't be sure until God has said so. Then you're positive.

9 On the tape of "What Time Is It, Sirs?" Many of you has got the tape, see. I could speak for the Chapters and anywhere else, and say, "It's 'Thus saith the Lord.' I'll meet seven angels. And it'll be known, the countries over, see. And something is fixing to happen, for He told me." There it was, see, just three months afterwards, see. And all these other things, when you... When the Lord has spoke it, it's got to happen.
That's the reason that I know that His Word is perfect. No matter what people think about it, it's the Word of God. That's right, that's "Thus saith the Lord." See, that's, and we know that that's true.

10 Jesus is coming. When? I don't know. What form, how He'll come? I have an idea, but I don't know. It's wrote in here, He said, "If I be taken up," He would draw all men to Him, and He would come again. I know He is coming. Oh, that's positive. And it doesn't matter to me when it is, see. If it's tonight, or if it's next year, or if it's a thousand years from now, just so He comes! I got eternal life. I ain't going to be any older, I'm just going to be there when He comes. That's all. That's ... it doesn't matter to me when, how, which way He does it, just so I'm there!
And He promised me that I would be there, and He has already give me eternal life, 'cause He said, "He that can receive my words and believe on Him that sent me, has eternal life; and shall not come to the judgment, but has passed from death to life." That's good enough for me. Right there, that's my absolute. That's my absolute. He promised it. There is no way for it to ever fail. It just cannot fail, no more than God can fail. And it's impossible for God to fail. That's one thing that God cannot do, fail. He can't fail aren't you happy for that? Oh, my!

11 When I begin to see the years counting up, and begin to see two or three services a day, is beginning to make me get just a little bit tired, where it used to didn't bother me. But then I think, "Well, what difference does it make?"
I want to ask you something. We're just home folks, so what if you're eighty years old tonight, or you're fifteen years old tonight? If you're eighty years old, and you live till this time tomorrow night you'll outlive many, many young sixteen-year-old children. Did you ever think of that? You sure will. You're here for a purpose, to serve God. So what difference in the age it is to you? Just serve God.

12 If God come to me and said, "I want you to go to earth," and I was up there and He said, "Go to earth, I'm going to give you a hundred years space of the knowledge, but I want you to lot your years. What years you want to take, the first twenty-five, the second twenty-five, the third twenty-five, or the last twenty-five?"
What would I say? Well, if I'm going to put my time here to be, oh, a football player or an athlete, or something, I better take the first twenty-five. If I'm going to be here to be a carpenter, or some person like that, well, I better take the second twenty-five. But if I want to take to serve the Lord, I'll take the last twenty-five, from seventy-five to a hundred, because, I've had the accumulation of that much knowledge, I know more about it, see. As long as I can stand on my two feet and walk around, what difference does it make how old I am? I'm here to serve the Lord, and that's it. Amen. That's good enough for me. He promised it.

13 Now I want to thank each and every one of you, for your kindness. And trusting that, the Lord willing, that again we'll meet somewhere in this earth; if not no more here, we will on the other side. And the Lord bless. And I want to pray over these handkerchiefs. As soon as we get into the message, we don't know just exactly what will happen. We tried to put a couple nights in the ... about three nights; of the five or six, five nights, I believe, the Lord gave us a calling among the people, of calling the people out, where the Lord would heal them. And then we had one night, last night, we brought every person that wanted to be prayed, right through the prayer line and prayed for them. And I hope that I haven't failed anywhere to try to do everything that I know how to do, for us to be in better spiritual condition, and physical condition, tonight, than we were when we come in here about four or five nights ago. If I fail, God forgive me, and you forgive me.

14 Now for the closing message, and I'm going to try to make it just quick as possible, because I preach long. And I have told my congregation, and so forth, that, beginning the first of the year, I'm going to try to. I've tried it for the last thirty-five years, since I've been in the ministry, to cut down from this two hours, and so forth, down to thirty minutes. But, I'm so slow, I can't say what I want to say, in thirty minutes, is the only thing. I'm a Southerner, you know, and so I just have to. I can't think of it too fast. I just got to wait and see. I got to wait on Him, for my words. So, just as long as I can wait on Him, and you will just be patient with me.

15 Now let's read some Scripture, so we know that this won't pass away. And after we having our little get together of friendship and talking, before we approach this real sacred part of the service, bringing the bread of life, let's just pray again.
Lord Jesus, now we are grateful to You. We're all turning to You, to thank You for this great days and nights of service, fellowship around the Word, and with the people. We are grateful, Lord. Our spirits has been lifted up, and we're so thankful that we've been able to sit in heavenly places with You. And now, Father, on this great and last night of the love feast, may You stand in the midst of us, again tonight, and cry, "He that's thirsty, come unto me." Grant it, Lord. We know You will, because You do it. That's your way of doing things, and You never change it. And I pray, God, that You'll break the bread of life, to us. May we be able to receive that Word into our heart, that'll open a fountain of blessings to all of us. Bless the reading of the Word, and help me as I try to break the bread of life, to the congregation, for whatever the need is. In Jesus Christ's name. Amen.

16 Let's turn to the book of the Judges, the Judges of Israel. And I want to turn to the 16th chapter of Judges, to read a portion of the Word. Judges, the 16th chapter, and I want to read the 27th and the 28th verses.
Now the house was full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, beheld while Samson made sport.
And Samson called unto the LORD, and said O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee only this once, O Lord, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.

17 What a pitiful sight! And this little subject, I'm going to take a text out of it, calling: "Just Once More, Lord." Just once more!
It must have been a hot day. They had had a great celebration. And it makes me feel bad, every time I think of it, because the nature of that religious celebration. You know, a celebration is all right, but it's according to the nature of the celebration. And this was one celebration that I certainly hate to refer to. It was in the land of the Philistines. And they were celebrating, it just makes me feel bad to say it, victory over God's servants. God's disobedient servant had brought a reproach upon the name of the Lord, and went down in defeat, and these Philistines were celebrating the great time of victory, that their fish god had gotten victory over Jehovah's servant.
If that isn't a text to end up a meeting on! But I felt led, as I was looking through some five or six hundred texts that I had there. My eyes dropped upon this text here, and I thought, "I believe I'll just talk about that a little while tonight." And maybe that's what the Holy Spirit would want us to know something about in here.
About ...

18 hot day, I believe, and the sacrifices was burning in the fire around this great fish god, and there were three thousand Philistines looking down at the pair as they entered the great stadium. It must have been like a mushroom, the way they fixed it. Like, I'd say, something on the order of a mushroom or a toadstool, turned up like this, with two great pilasters, or pillars, holding up the stadium, as it sit like more on this shape, maybe, so that the people in this great stadium could look down to the entertainment that was going on down on the main floor.

19 And highly-polished war lords attended that meeting, and their fine jeweled ladies was at the meeting. And they all stopped suddenly, to lean forward, the main event was just about to take place. We have sometimes, what we call, the preliminaries, and then the introduction, the prelude to the main event. And they had had much entertainment, as they did sometimes, sacrificing and killing, and so forth But now the main event was just about to take place, in all this bunch of fine celebrity, of all the regions in the Philistines' land. They raised up, because they were a privileged. They were sitting up, in this big, we'd call it, like a mushroom. And perhaps the poor, and so forth, were down here on the floor. But they sat up where they could get a good look, and see all the entertainment. It was a celebrity box. Three thousand of them! The air was stinking with drinks, drunken revelry all day, drinking and slobbering, and carrying on, the way a drunken brawl can be like that. And they all stood up, because the main event was about to take place, and they leaned over. They wanted to get a good look. They couldn't afford to miss this, for this was the main event.

20 What did they see? A little boy leading a blind man out to the middle of the floor, in the celebration of the fish god, Dagon. The lad led this stumbling, blind bulk of flesh, blind, to the post, and stood him by the side of the post, to make sport.
So this is Samson, a man that was an outstanding servant of God, now he stands there, humiliated, blind, weakened, a disgrace. It's a picture of a demoralized, sunken generation. It's a picture of a nation that's lost its hold with God. It's a picture of a church that's lost its hold on God's Word, 'cause that's what Samson represented here. Humiliated, broken, he was in a terrible condition as he sat there, or stood there, rather. So could you imagine him standing, this great man that, one time, what he could do; and here he is standing here in that condition, humiliated, as I said, broken, a symbol that I want to declare tonight. This symbol represents the very hour that we're now living. The condition of the church now; broken, out of the Word of the Lord; humiliated, out of its place. And the question is coming, today, the handwriting is on the wall and who can read it? They know nothing about it.

21 Let's take and search the minds of those Philistines. This man's very name, Samson, at one time, caused the whole nation to tremble, just mention Samson, 'cause God was with him. And the nations trembled because of his very name.
That's the same way it used to be, the name of Jesus Christ, but now it's used as a curse word, jokes. There don't seem to be anymore reverence to it. When that name is above every name that was ever named on mortal tongue. It's a name that even it's so high exalted above every name that's in heaven, every name upon the earth, and all the family in heaven and earth is named it. And yet men take it in curse words, church members use it in jokes, and many religious leaders blaspheme it with their creeds. That's the reason that we're humiliated, in the face of communism, Romanism, and Protestantism, and the things that's rising in the earth today. And that's the reason that we're humiliated. We ought to know these answers. God has got it in His Book, for this day, but we have went to something else, forgot about it.

22 Many of these Philistines, as they stood there, of them great warriors, no doubt... Somebody announced, that, "The next event is Samson." Many of those warriors, with their fine jeweled, polished-up women, looked over the banister and remembered seeing Samson stand in a different way one time, when the Spirit of the Lord was upon him; standing with a jawbone of a mule, in his hand, with a thousand Philistines laying around him. And they had run to a rock somewhere, to take refuge.
When a man picked up the jawbone of a mule that had been laying on the desert, anyone knows that one hit on a rock or anything, with that bone, would shatter it to pieces. And those helmets, some of them was an inch, to an inch-and-a-half thick, of brass. And this man was not a soldier, and he wasn't a trained man for the spear. And Philistines with a coat of mail, mail that is laced over, lap over like a jalousie window, with the metal that keeps spears and things from hitting them; and also with helmets, and with shields, and with spears. And they surrounded this man, Samson, and thought, "The great cream of the army would be able to take this man."

23 And he had nothing in his hand. He found an old dry jawbone of the mule, and he begin to hit, right and left, until he beat down a thousand Philistines. Why? The Bible said, "The Spirit of the Lord was upon him."
Here he stood, different now. He had give away his secret. And they plainly could remember him.
There might have been another group up there, could remember one night when Delilah had bewitched him into the city of Gaza. And they had closed their big gates, probably weighing a ton or more, apiece, great big brass gates to the city, that had iron bars that went back into the rocks and fastened with such hinges till we wouldn't have such like it today. And they said, "The Philistines be upon thee, Samson." And many of the soldiers standing around the gate, and was speechless, when he could break the cords and walk down. And they scattered like a bunch of roaches at nighttime, when the light is turned on. The Spirit of the Lord upon him, reached over and jerked one gate out, and jerked the other one out, and put it on his shoulder and walked up the hill, and sat down. They could remember that. "What a warrior," many of them could remember that, of seeing him in great victory, "but look at him now!"

24 That's the picture of the church. I can read in the Bible, of the church when it was first filled with the Holy Ghost, great signs and wonders accompanied their meetings. We can remember a few years ago, forty or fifty years ago, when the church was filled with that same power. But look at it today, she stands stripped. Something has stripped her, the same thing that stripped Samson, all caused by listening to a woman that took him in. And what stripped the church, is listening to that organized woman situation, that old Jezebel. The very thing that Samson had been raised up to defeat, had defeated him. And the Pentecostal church, tonight, stands in those same tracks. The very thing she was raised up to defeat, denominationalism, she has grouped herself back into it again, and her power is gone. Right. The power of the Lord left her.
We ought to've knowed that every time, through history, that a church ever organized, God left it right then. It fell and never did rise again. And Pentecost was something that come out of the denomination, but, what it was, we adopted man-made leadership instead of the Holy Ghost.

25 That's exactly what Samson done. Think of it, what must have went through that man's mind while he stood there. He must have thought of all the great victories God had give him, the great things that God had done with him and for him; and how that, while he was with God, the power of His Spirit, and the joy and the peace that he had while he was with God, and of God and His people. How Samson had failed Him! Now, the very nation that Samson was raised up to destroy, had him bound.
And the very thing that God raised Pentecost to do, has them bound, stripped of fellowship, stripped of power; fussing, stewing, lukewarm members. Fine things, great, everything, they'd be better off if they had the old Salvation Army drum, or the little old guitar, down on the corner somewhere again. I'd rather have it like that, than to have our cathedrals that we're getting, costing millions of dollars.

26 But there he stood. He had failed. Now he was a prisoner of the very nation that God raised him up to destroy.
They had him doing tricks, to entertain them. And that's all it is today, some kind of a little gimmick to try to entertain them.
Let a woman lure him from the promised Word of God! That's the same thing the church did, has let a woman, Jezebel, the mother of harlots, represented in Revelation 17, lure them right back into the vomit that they come out of. As the Bible says, "As a hog returns to its wallow, and a dog to its vomit."
And as long as that hog remains a hog, he'll ... his nature is a hog, he'll go right back to the wallow. And the only way you'll keep him out of the mud hole is to change his nature.

27 That's the only way you're going to ever get any difference in the church today, it's got to have a change of nature. Instead of some ecclesiastical system leading the preachers around, it'll take the Holy Ghost, through the Word, to lead them back to that God-fearing spirit again. That's right. If the dog vomit and it made him sick at his stomach the first time, won't it make him sick again? And if God called us out of such a mess, because ... what will it do the same thing again? Then we go right back into it, the same thing. It should never be done.

28 This Jezebel system, now blind spiritually, I'm saying, to the Word of God, joining themselves right into the Council of Churches. Everything, our great evangelical teaching, we have to forfeit that, to be an organization. 'Cause all organizations that isn't in this Council of Churches, I got the paper on it, that even if your church is not in this Council of Churches, in time of trouble, they can use your church to store ammunition or anything they want to. And if any man is caught having a prayer for anybody, outside of affiliating with this Council of Churches, can be shot, as a federal offense. That's right. I got the papers on it, from Washington. They're going to force you into it. That's why I've been against this organizational system. That's it. I had to keep it quiet about being the mark of the beast, but it's late enough now till you can know it's the truth. Uh-huh, see. It is. It's exactly that.

29 Now what has it done? It's brought the church, stripped of its power, nothing but name, it pictures it exactly in Revelation 3, the Laodicea church age, rejected Christ, and on the outside. Exactly. Why? It did just exactly like its mother did, went back to the denominational. Pentecost, born out of denominational, born out of that; and as soon as they got a bunch of kids come in from some school, and they had to have seminaries and things, instead of upper rooms. And now, many of the big churches, a man has to pass a psychiatrist's test before he is permitted to be an overseas missionary. The first church didn't have to test, a psychiatrist's test, but they had to go through the test of the blood of Jesus Christ, what made the difference.

30 Notice, Samson give away his secret to Delilah. She finally loved him and patted him, and told him he was a nice man, how she loved him, until she found where the secret was, then she bobbed off the secret.
And that's exactly the way old mother Jezebel has done the Protestant church, has cropped in. And now they're compromising on a few little doctrines they said to have, so they can have unity over the world. And the first place the church got her locks bobbed off was at Nicaea, and she is going to bob them again since she's been here. That's her secret, is the Word. "If ye abide in me and my word in you, you can ask what you will, it'll be done for you." See, that's where they lose their secret. Now look at them, defeated just like Samson was. Ministers, instead of being born ...

31 As David DuPlessis said one time, "God don't have Pentecostal grandchildren."
But that's the way, you say, "My mother was Pentecostal. She had an experience. She did this. My father did so-and-so." That ain't got nothing to do with you. You've got to have the same thing.
Now we got seminaries that hatch out our ministers, and we're building bigger ones all the time. And we got students of psychology. And that's all right if you want to teach psychology, but I don't care about psychology. I just want to know Jesus Christ, that's all I want to know is Him. Now we find that we've got it. It certainly has to bring to pass the prophecy of II Timothy 3, where they'd be, lukewarm, you know, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasure more than of God, trucebreakers, incontinent, and fierce, and despisers of those that are good.

32 What has it done to us? It's almost made our Pentecostal women a Hollywood showmanship. That's right. It used to be wrong to go to the movies, the bioscope. But now, you know, the devil just beat them to that, he put it right in the house, see. That's right. It used to be wrong to do it. It used to be wrong for our sisters to cut their hair or wear short dresses. But now it isn't, not in the Pentecostal way of thinking, in their organization. But it's still wrong, by God's Word! But, you see, they got their power bobbed off, see. And then they say, "Well, our church believes..." I don't care what your church believes. It's what God said! That's the reason she stands, today, without the answer.

33 That's exactly the way Samson stood. Samson was the same thing. He must have thought of his errors, as he stood there. I don't believe a man could stand there and think sensibly, but what could think, knowing, here he is now, he's just become a stumbling block. What a condition, great big man standing there! All the man that ever was in him, as far as what I call muscles, every one of them was there. He still had his muscles. He still had his big muscles, his biceps he had. He had great big fists. He still probably was just as big as he ever was. Frankly, the Pentecostal church is a lot bigger than it ever was, but where was God? That's it. Yes. As he stood there, remembering his error, he remembered what caused it first. What caused it, first, was not exactly his natural eyes put out, but it was his spiritual sight put out, that he let Delilah woo him into it.

34 And that's what's hindered the church today, is the spiritual insight of the Word of God has been swapped for a bunch of creeds. That's the eye ... the devil has, first thing he can do, is put your eyes out. Tell you, "It's a bunch of holy rollers," tell you, "It's this, that, or the other, or some devil's move, or it's mental telepathy, or something on that order." If he can punch your eyes out, you're in darkness.
Notice Samson's first plea in his prayer, "Lord, that I might avenge my two eyes!" He knew there is where his trouble come. Notice, his locks had growed out, but he was blind. He would have to stagger, all the rest of his days. He was blind.
We may have as big a machinery as we ever had, and as many members; but what good does it do, if you're blind to the very thing that's going on in front of you, and you can't see it? What's happening right here, day by day, along with the people, the Holy Spirit revealing Himself, and people don't see it. That's blind, spiritual blind!

35 They stood and watched Jesus perform miracles, and so forth, and declare Himself to be the Messiah, and they couldn't see it. He said, "They got eyes, but they can't see." They were blind.
And Samson was blind. But here is what Samson recognized, that the church has never come to yet, he knew there was a possibility of coming back again.
If the church could only know that, a possibility, but the people of today don't seem to catch the vision yet. They don't seem to catch it, that there is a possibility. It doesn't come through. You can shout a little more pat your hands a little more, or dance a little more, that isn't it. No. It's back to the Word; there is a possibility of coming back and getting the Word on the inside again. You bypassed it there. Notice, they sit tight. Oh, sure, clap their hands? Yes, sir. But, you see, that's all sails, without any anchor.

36 I've seen the heathens clap their hands, do a dance, speak in tongues, and do all those things, and interpret it, but they were African heathens. Sure. I seen them lay a pencil down and that witch doctor stood there and made that pencil stand up, and it run up-and-down on a place up there, and come back and played, like "Shave and a hair cut, two bits," and drawed out an unknown tongue and wrote it out, and one of them stood there, interpreting it. Oh, my!
You can't rely on that. Many of them speak in tongues and they deny the very principles of Jesus Christ. I've took my Bible, laid it right out to a man; him standing there, speaking in tongues. And I say, "Brother, this is exactly."
"I don't even want to see it. Glory to God! I know what Jesus said, I don't care about the rest of it. Hallelujah! Glory to God," like that. Why, a man that would turn his back upon truth, and actually put on a shindig like that to keep from seeing the truth that's hypocrisy, and the heights of it, just because he would have to give up his fellowship card if he accepted what was truth. That's worse than Samson. Notice, but they didn't catch it. They sat tight.

37 Now, oh, sure, we have great get-togethers, meetings, we call it, worldly revivals, and so forth, all full of tinsel, sure, great big things, and great advertisement, "The man with the message of the hour, and So-and-so and So-and-so." We have all of that, but where is God? That's the thing we're looking for, where is God? A great big piece of scholarly showmanship, somebody with enough education that wouldn't ... use the word, half the people couldn't understand what he was saying, and yet he's got an honorary degree, and a degree, and a degree, and a degree, that he can lectionary and put the words together, and stand so perfectly straight, and say "amen" just exactly right, and turn like a military man, walk off the platform. But where is God? Samson had stood in that place one time, himself, and knowed the power of God, but now he had been shaven of those privileges. He was just as big as he ever was, but God wasn't there.

38 We got a lot of that today. It's too bad that we have it, but we have it. Now we notice. But it don't bring back the Spirit of God. Now, the thing of it is, the people are not willing to pay the price to get back to that. I believe that God just remains the same as He ever was. But, the thing of it is, the people has got so wound up into the world, and the world in them, till they just got just enough religion to make them miserable. Not enough to really turn loose to God and give your whole heart into Him, but enough, "I'll go to church. Certainly, I enjoy good singing and clapping hands. Yeah, I love that, see."

39 But when it comes right down to putting what you say you believe into practice, and willing to confess the wrong, they don't do it. It just isn't there. They don't have it. Well, that's real conviction. That's what we need. We've long left that, a long time ago, and swapped it. Prayer and confession, and conviction, we swapped it for emotion, a shaking, or a jerking, or a jumping up-and-down. That's the reason there is no holding tight, 'cause there is nothing there to hold them, until you come upon the basis of God's Word, of godly sorrow, ready to repent and make anything right, and do what's right, ready to live right. I don't care what the people say, or anything else, you live for Jesus Christ and what He said. Then you take a church like that, coming back, there is a possibility of it coming. But they're not willing to do it.

40 Samson prayed right, "Lord, let me die with these Philistines." Oh, my! See what it's going to cost him? What if God answers his prayer? "Let me die." Oh! I like that.
Was it Patrick Henry said, "Give me liberty or give me death"? That's right.
All right, that's it, liberty or death! It's back to God, or death. What are we going to do? What are we mimicking? What are we trying to play, Christianity? If the Holy Ghost is still the Holy Ghost that fell at Pentecost, it still does the same things it did then. The same power, the same Spirit, it'll work the same way. We don't need a council of churches. We need the Bible back in action. That's exactly.

41 Now we find out that Samson prayed right, "Lord, let me die with the enemy," die to the enemy that had got him in that way. If there is anything that people ought to pray for, tonight! And we see the thing that's done this, is getting away from the Bible, to a creed. Then, die with the thing, get out of it! Die to it. Samson was willing to pay the price to get the power of God back again. There is a price to be paid for it, but, today, the people don't seem to do it.
Oh, we hear revival, sure. Yes, we have a denominational revival, get more members in, and things like that. But look at the morals, it's constantly decaying. Look how further and further away from God they're getting all the time, getting away from the Word. And now when they go in and come into the Council of Churches, why, they've accepted the biggest killer that the church world has got. The Word that God left to them, they bypass all of that. You can't teach that Bible; you've got to teach their creed. There it is.

42 Samson knew one thing, and I wonder if the church realizes today. He knew that his backslidden condition couldn't meet the challenge of the hour. And I know, today, that the backslidden condition of the church can't meet the challenge of this hour. And it's going to be worse. The Bible said, "As Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so will they; men of reprobate mind, concerning the faith." They can almost impersonate it exactly.
Moses went down with his command from God, with a stick in his hand. And God said, "Do this sign before them. And if they won't listen to that, then do this sign before them. And if they won't listen to that, then I'll be with you, I'll take care of the rest of it."
Well, Moses went down with his first sign. And, as soon as he performed his first sign, there was impersonators everywhere, doing the same thing. But Moses never fussed about it. He just stood still, for he knew that it was God that sent him. We're going to have that repeat again in the last days, remember, see.

43 And our backslidden state now will not meet the challenge of the hour, yet all the big frame is here. There is more Pentecostals in the world today than there ever was, that we know of, more Pentecostal believers. That's right.
You know, "The Sunday Visitor," the Catholic paper, Sunday paper called "The Sunday Visitor," I believe about two years ago, made some kind of a statement like this, He said, "The fastest growing church in the world is the Pentecostals." Said, "Last year, the Catholic church recorded a million conversions, to Catholicism." But said the... That's all Catholicism. But said, "The Pentecostal church alone, in itself, recorded one million, five hundred thousand."
Now the frame is there, but we don't have the power we had when we were a handful. All of Samson's big bulk stood there, but where was the power of the Lord? Yes, the denominational system don't vindicate the Word of the Lord. That's right. Now notice.

44 I was talking to a priest that lives out the lane from me, the Sacred Heart church.
About a month ago, since this new issue has come on, the Lutheran preacher had the priest of the Catholic church, Sacred Heart church, up to preach in his pulpit for him. And the Catholic priest had the Lutheran minister down to say mass for him. "Swapping pulpits," big piece in the paper. Sure Oh, my, if anybody could see that and not... If you can't understand that, well, you're certainly Scripturally blind. Yes.

45 I've talked to this priest. And he said to me, he said, "I want to talk to you, Mr. Branham."
I said, "All right."
And he said, "Did you baptize this Frazier girl, by the name of Mary Elisabeth Frazier?"
I said, "Yes, sir, I did."
He said, "The bishop wants your signed statement about it."
I said, "I understand that she turned Catholic."
He said, "Yes," said, "she come back to the mother church."
And I said, "Yes, sir," I said, "her mother was telling me about it."
Said, "Yes, her mother didn't take it too well."
I said, "Her mother told me she would rather walk with her to the grave." And I said, "Frankly, that's what she was doing."
And so he said, he said, "I want you to sign this statement." Said, "Did you baptize her? How did you baptize her?"
I said, "In Christian baptism."
And he said, "I mean how, sir? Did you sprinkle her, pour her, or immerse her?"
I said, "Christian baptism is immersing."

46 "Uh-huh," said, "All right." Said, "Now, you immersed her then in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost?"
I said, "Yes, sir, that's Jesus Christ, that's the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. That's the way I baptized her."
And he said, "You baptized her in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost?"
I said, "Yes, sir. I never called them words, now. I baptized her in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, which is Jesus Christ."
He said, "Yes, sir, I see," and he put it down like that. He said, "You know, that's the way the early Catholic church baptized them."
I said, "Oh, is that right?"
He said, "Yeah, that's the way."
I said, "What happened? you did run well."
And he said, "Well," he said, "You see," said, "you believe a Bible. God is in His church."
I said, "God is in His Word, sir, His Word." I said, "Did you say Peter was the first pope?"
He said, "He was."
"Well," I said, "then if the Catholic church has to say all of its masses in Latin, and so forth, where it won't change; then what did the first pope said, in Acts 2:38, where he said, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins." He said, if you'll... I said, "On this confession, and so forth," I said.
He said, "Well, didn't Jesus tell His disciples, 'whosoever sins you remit, to them they're remitted; whosoever sins you retain, to them they're retained'?"
I said, "He did."
"Then what's wrong with that? Your very Bible tells you that."

47 I said, "Then if you'll remit sins the way that they remitted them, I'll go with you. 'Cause, Peter was asked, the one that had the keys, 'What must we do to be saved?' He said, 'Repent, every one of you, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins.' Now you do it like that, and I'll go with you." Amen. That's the Word. That's God's way of doing it. They weakened on it. That's...
He said, "Well, I never come to argue with you."
I said, "Who was arguing?" I said, "I never. I'm not arguing. You just asked me a question, and I answered it the best I knowed how."
I said, "I'm going to ask you one." I said, "You said that the ... that God was with the church." And now I'm going to give you the benefit of telling you, the first Christians, if you want to call them Catholic, all right; Peter, James, John, Mark, Luke, and all them... Yes." I said, "Then in following the order of the Bible that these apostles wrote, now you mean today that your dioceses now is so much greater than it was then, you know more wisdom? And you know how to take care of the... ?"
"Yes, sir. That's exactly right."
I said, "Then why was it, that when they followed the commandments of Jesus Christ, they raised the dead, they cast out devils, they done all kinds of signs and wonders, and you don't do it today? Now what's wrong?"
If the church was better in the Lutheran age, or the Wesleyan age, or any other age, than it was back there, why didn't they do the works of them then? Certainly. Back to the Word!

48 Samson stood there, stripped of his power. But, you know, there was something (I want to hurry) the Philistines didn't notice, while Samson was standing there thinking all this over.
I wish I could take the Pentecostal world and back them up in a corner somewhere, and let them think like that for a while, just think these reasonable things. Where are we now with our great big bulk of organization? Every one against the other one. The oneness against the twoness, the twoness against the threeness, and so forth, all, just that's the way it is. It shouldn't be that way. Shouldn't be that way. We should come back, and come together and settle it upon the basis of "Thus saith the Lord."
What's the matter with the prophets in the church? The Word of the Lord is supposed to come to the prophets. And if a prophet that claims to be a prophet, and will deny this truth in the Bible, according to the Word, he is not a prophet. Now, we're supposed to have these gifts to set us in order, keep us in order. But somehow or another, we got away from it all. And they stand, backed in a corner.

49 Here stood Samson, standing in the corner, thinking of all that had been. And these Philistines standing up there, with their arms around these women, looking down, belching and drunk, and celebrating the victory over Jehovah's servant. Oh, my, don't that just send something through you, to think of that, the victory over Jehovah's plan! Yes, standing there with a fish god. Dagon was the fish god. And they was burning sacrifice. Human lives were taken, a little child had to die for the sacrifice, run a sword through it, its heart, for the sacrifice. And there they were, having this big celebration over the victory over Jehovah.
And the church tonight, like a bunch of Philistines, is gloating over the idea that a Council of Churches, after a while, will shut out every church that don't belong to it. Samson, don't never bob your hair! Stay right with that Word. I don't care what happens, you stay right there with that Word. Don't get mixed up in that.

50 Samson begin to think, "Wonder if there is a possibility?" Now he said, "I know my hair has growed out, but I'm blind. There could be a possibility of another revival. There is a possibility."
He said to the little boy, "Put my hands upon the post. Is these the posts that the whole building is fastened on?"
"Yes."
"And you say all the kings and celebrities up on top?"
"Yes."
"I'm tired. You've made me do so many tricks and things! Will you just put my hands upon the post?"
And he put his hands upon the post, and stood in between them, maybe like in this order. And he stood there with his hands against the posts. The Philistines, celebrating and having such a big time, they forgot to watch him. Oh, my!
But he begin to think, "God is still God. I know He is. I've tried Him. I've put Him to the test. I know He still remains God. It's me that's wrong. I'm the one that sinned." They didn't notice the tears running out of them blinded sockets, dripping down off of his chin. They didn't notice his lips a-moving. "Lord, I've done wrong. Let me die with the Philistines."

51 He wanted God's Word manifested before that Jezebel, more than he wanted his own life. Oh, if that desire could come to the church again! Yeah. He wasn't praying for a new order, new denomination, but that the Word of God might be made known again; the promise that he once had, might come back to him again. He was aware of what would happen if his prayer was answered, but he was ready and in dead earnest. Oh, if the church could only get like that! Then he cried out!
Slowly he was praying, "It's possible, Lord. It is possible. I stand here, all my big frame is still together. I'm here, my hair has growed out. Why, I couldn't see how to whip them no more, because my eyes is blind. I couldn't see where I was going. But it's possible that You would let it happen again, Lord, to show Your power."
He screamed out, "Once more, Lord, just once more!"
Oh, if the church could only cry that, "Once more, Lord, let us see Your power!"
"Once more!" And as he cried and asked God, I can see them muscles begin to swell. Every fiber in his body begin to twist. The Holy Ghost was coming upon him then. He stretched forth his hands again, with the power of the Holy Ghost upon him, and down went the building. The Bible said, "He killed more that day than he did all the rest of his days." He fulfilled the commission God give him, then. "Once more!"
It's always been that way when the power of God comes, the big structures of isms fall. Samson's greatest victory over his enemy was at his end-time.

52 Now let me say this, just in closing. Pentecost, can we stand at the post of these big organizations, can we stand at the post of Hollywood and all these other things that separate us from the love of God that's in Christ, and can we stand there and repent, and cry aloud again, "Lord, once more make us Pentecost! Once more, Lord, once more make us Pentecost! Once more show Your power unto us, Lord! Just once more"?
Listen, destroy your enemy before your enemy destroys you. He'll do it. Bring back the old-fashioned meetings and the thing. And, oh, leave Delilah alone, leave the world alone, that thing that woos you off into little things that you shouldn't. And little things, troubles come up in the church, and you won't stand correction because you don't have to; you can drop off to another church, and things like that. In the early days, when a man didn't cope up with the Word of God, they packed him out, dead.
"Bring us back to Pentecost!" Not Hollywood showmanship, but a wholehearted turn to God is what we need. "Once more, O Lord, once more!"

53 If I could see that happen, if my old weakening eyes could look again and see that church forget its differences! If I could see that denominational system break down, and throw it right into the lap of the council, and say, "We want nothing to do with it! We'll not forfeit our birthrights!" If I could see the trinity and oneness, and all of them, get together and saying, "Brethren, let's go back to where we left Him off at. Let's go back to where we started fussing at one another at, right back upon the subject of water baptism, and come right back and take the Bible way for it," and then cry, "Once more, Lord, once more!" And get all of this showmanship ... and a lot of these fellows up on the platform knows no more about God than a rabbit does about snowshoes, and these women with dresses so tight till their skin is on the outside, walking up-and-down the platform, clapping their hands and jumping around like that, like a bunch of show or something or another.

54 "God, bring us back to the Holy Ghost and power and the manifestation of the Word! Once more, Lord, once more!" Do you believe it? "Lord God, once more, once more, let me see the presence of Jesus Christ walking through the church, let me see His power and His promise made manifest before us. Once more, Lord, once more! God, be merciful, help us!"
You see what these other things gets us? It kills the very ... it drives away the nature of Christ, out of the congregation, out of the church, out away from the people. We should be so woven together that there would be nothing separate us from this Word and our love for one another.

55 Jesus Christ is here. He's our Father. He's our mother. He's my healer. He's my King. He's my God. He's my life. He's my joy. He's my peace. All that there is, He is, for me. He's my all-in-all. He's here now.
He wants to bring the church back to that place. Wonder if we could cry, "Once more, Lord," and let the tears of repentance drop from our blinded sockets? I'm not exactly talking to this church. This is taped, you see, here, this will go around the world. Let our people come back to that again, let it come back to a place where we could call back a meeting like we used to have.

56 Just even take ten or fifteen years, back, look how it's declined since then, look how it's went down, down, down. It's got so it's almost a shame, a fellow feels embarrassed, almost, to talk about divine healing, there's been so much reproach brought upon it; talk about the Holy Ghost, when so much reproach has been brought upon it. That's right. It's not God's fault. It's a Samson that has left off of the principles of God's Word, and has substituted something else, and let the organization shave him down, woo him into it.
I say to you, my brother, sister, if I never see you no more this side of the great judgment bar of God, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever." His Word, to me, is life. He is here now. Do you believe that? I know He is here.

57 And the only thing you have to do, to know He is here, is get yourself out of the way. As long as you're in the way, then God cannot do nothing for you. When you think your thoughts, then God's thoughts don't have a chance. But if you'll quit thinking your thoughts, and think His thoughts! "My thoughts is not your thoughts," He said. "If there be any praise, if there be any virtue, think on these things." Not what some church is going to say about it, but what God said about it!
Like this little lady laying here, shaking in this cot. That woman is going to lay like that all of her life, unless she can get her faith set right straight on Jesus Christ. And no matter what comes or goes, it'd be revealed to her, then there is nothing going to stop the healing. That's right. But when you get your... Depends on what you're thinking about.

58 If you'll just believe and have faith, God can do anything for you. And the greatest thing He can do for you, tonight, is sweep your soul right back into the presence of his being. Right back there to where every person in here...
Just think, what if the Holy Ghost had everybody in here completely in his control? Think of what would take place tonight, think what would take place in Shreveport by this time tomorrow night! They would have headlines everywhere, "A bunch of people went crazy. They were healing the sick and raising the dead and doing all kinds of things down in Shreveport, Louisiana, United States, U.S.A." They'd have it on television, of what they was doing, if the Holy Ghost could take completely control.

59 Why don't He? He wants to. He is willing to. He is waiting. "Well," you say, "I've asked Him so many things, I just hate to ask Him too much." Ask abundance, that your joys might be full!
Could you imagine a little fish, a half inch long, out in the middle of the Pacific, saying, "I better drink of this water sparingly, I might run out, some day"? Could you think of a little mouse about that big, in the great garners of Egypt, think, "I'll allowance myself to one grain a day, 'cause I might run out before the next harvest comes in"? Oh, my! Now divide that by a hundred billion, and that's how easy you could exhaust God's mercies and grace and power to you, if you'll just believe it, you can just leave yourself... Well, I'm sorry I ... that's, you can't exhaust Him.

60 He is the inexhaustible fountain of eternal life, here tonight to make manifested any divine promise of His Bible, to anybody that'll believe it. Amen. Yes, sir. The only thing you do is drink. Come to the fountain and drink. Drink until you're satisfied. You can't exhaust Him. No, sir. He is absolutely the inexhaustible, and you can just drink and drink and drink. You can drink your healing in. You can drink your salvation in. Just come and drink. "Let him that's thirsty come and drink." Amen. I know He is here, and I know He'll do the exceedingly, abundantly if we'll just let Him do it.

61 I just seen something happen. And I don't want to start one of them kind of services, you see, of visions, because I'm talking about something else. See, I'm talking about you coming, not for physical healing, but coming to... As soon as I go to doing that, now that's just... See, as soon as I went to relax myself then, to get away, the first thing you know, people caught, you know, you feel that coming in.
Here, I can tell you. That man sitting back there, with his nephew's boy with that bad hip. If he'll believe, God will heal him and make him well. Do you believe that He'll heal him and make him well? If you do, well then God will do it, see. Exactly right. Amen.

62 Here is a man sitting right here, looking right at me. He is praying for his family. He is really not from here. He is from South Carolina. Mr. Dickson. But if he'll just believe with all of his heart, God will grant that blessing to him. Do you believe it, sir? I'm a total stranger to him. I never seen him, in my life. Amen. I never seen him, in my life.
But you see what I mean? What is it? "How does that work, Brother Branham?" When Brother Branham can get out of the way! Yes, sir. When I can get out of the way, then Jesus Christ comes in.
Just by the way, right over from him, is another man caught fire, and he is from South Carolina, too. That's right. I see it hanging right over him. That's exactly right. He is praying for a brother that's an alcoholic. That's exactly right. Listen. You're Brother Holmes. Do you believe that God ... Is that your name? God makes... God will grant it to you.
Do you see what I mean? "Once more, Lord, once more!"

63 Let's stand up on our feet, everybody. Cry, Pentecostals, raise up your hands, "Once more, Lord! Once more, Lord, once more!" Hallelujah! I don't know what to do, but it's here. Let's cry, with one accord, "Once more, Lord!" Cry it out, "Once more, Lord! Once more, Lord! Once more, Lord, send Your power, send Your blessings. Send the Holy Ghost upon us, like a rushing mighty wind, and fill every soul that's in here, anew." Glory to God! Believe it with all your heart. "Once more, Lord, once more!" Hallelujah!

64 Drunk on the Spirit! If the Holy Ghost can just pour into you till you're so drunk you forget what your name is, till you forget all your doubts; get you so drunk on the Spirit till you forget your doubts, then you can get somewhere with God. Then the cry of, "Once more," goes up from the sincerity, and then another one. Hallelujah! Filled with the Holy Ghost, these drunk on the Spirit; God's righteousness and holiness, and power, get you so drunk till you forget who you are. You're nothing, to begin with. Remember, God wants to come into you. "Once more, Lord, once more! Once more, Lord, once more!"

65 Oh, Pentecostal, Pentecostal, run for your life! There is just a little time left. It's later than you think. If I never say another word from this pulpit, remember, run for your life! It's later than you think. I feel the Holy Spirit on me, saying, "Say it again." Run for your life! It's later than you think.
Once more, Lord, Once more fill Life Tabernacle with eternal life, every member in here. And let the glory of the Lord fall upon this congregation, Lord Jesus. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! I believe God. Once more, Lord, once more let men forget who they are. Let men forget his unbelief, that we could cry, "Once more, Lord, once more!"
Do you love Him?

66 O God, heavenly Father, give us a revival in our souls, Lord. We see the lamps are smoking, the fire on the altar is going out. O Lord God, look down upon a sin-cursed nation, but Lord, don't forget Your people. People here that's strived for years, Lord, to build this little economy for You. Life Tabernacle was built, Lord, for a soul-saving station, for revival. O God, once more pour Your holy power into it. Search every member, take out every differences. Send down a rain of God's holy fire and lighten our souls, Lord, with the presence of Jesus Christ. May the people not be so stooped in unbelief, that they can see that You're here with us; and You are the Word, and a discerner of the thoughts of the heart, as the Bible has been so proven to us, over and over again. Lord God, let us wake to our senses, of the Spirit of God being in our midst. Grant it, Father. I commit it to You, with myself. Amen.

67 Brother, Sister, I don't know, in my Bible, of any other thing God promised to do before the rapture of the church. I don't. You're thinking of a mark of the beast, coming; I've told you, it's ... they've done got it, see. The next thing left is for the rapture of the church. It could come at any time, and not disrupt any Scripture in the Bible, as far as I know it. God knows that's true. Yes, sir. The time is at hand. It's later than we think.
Let's just close our eyes, and sing, "I Love Him." Maybe, if we'll worship and praise Him, maybe He'll do something. I've prayed all this week, to see a breaking forth in this tabernacle. I prayed before I come here. I got people praying for this. Oh, there is prayer going up for this. I'm trying to believe with all my heart. Let's wake up, right quick. Let's just worship Him and praise Him, as we sing it now with our eyes closed and our hands to God.
I love Him, I love Him
Because He first loved me
And purchased my salvation
On Calvary's tree.

68 Now while we sing the next verse, shake hands with somebody by you, your Christian brother, say, "God bless you," now while we sing it.
I love Him, I... ... (If you
love one another, you can't keep
from loving God.)
Because He first loved me
And purchase my salvation
On Calvary's tree.
Now let's say, "Hallelujah!" Say it again, "Hallelujah!" Again, "Hallelujah!" Praise our God!
I love Him, I love Him
Because... ... .