The Trial

You can find this sermon at ChurchAges.net

1 In Mark, the 16th chapter, beginning with the 9th verse, I wish to read. Such a glorious text, it's about the resurrection.
Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.
And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.
And they, when they ... heard that he was alive, and had seen ... been seen of her, believed not.
After that he appeared in other form unto two of them, as they walked, and went unto the country.
And they went and told it to the residue: neither believed they them.
After, he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay their hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
So then, after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
And they went forth, ... preaching every where, the Lord working with them, ... confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

2 Let us pray. Lord Jesus, we say now, as we approach the Father's throne. And in your name, we believe this to be your Word. We believe this to be the last words that come from your lips before You ascended up. And we ask that You will bless them to our hearts this afternoon, for the sake of those that are sick. We thank You for calling a great number to your throne last night, and we seen those great lines of those people, men, women, fathers, children, mothers, coming down the row and moving into that prayer room. We thank You for that, Father. And now we pray that You'll give to them the riches of your kingdom, may there be faith among us this afternoon to make the Word of God to be a reality to us. And You're the only one who can do this, Father, so we ask it in Jesus Christ's name. Amen. You may be seated.

3 Now my text this afternoon, I want to take it, and it sounds a little strange. And I want to take it because of yesterday, at the breakfast, I met one of the finest type of men, and he's sitting behind me now, an attorney. And we were talking about the trial, and it more or less was a mock trial, or something, that was given our Lord. And I certainly believe that that man would be a better man to stand here and typify it with the courts of the land, because I spoke of him since I met him, and he ... they tell me he's a wonderful attorney, so I know that he would give Him a fair trial. And being that Jesus never got the right kind of a trial ... and He is the Word. We all agree upon that. He is the Word. So I have read His Word, and we're going to put the Word on trial this afternoon.
The Word is on trial.

4 The case is, the Word of God's promises versus the world. And the cause for the indictment, is a breach of promise. And the ... I think the prosecuting attorney always represents state. I think that's right. And the ... Satan is the prosecuting attorney, he represents the world, in this trial. And the defendant is God. And the defense witness is the Holy Ghost. So I want to make the church, the congregation, both jury and judge. And let's hear the trial now, as we raise the curtains on the scene and see where we're sitting.
Now, don't forget now that the ... what we're seeing here is the cause for this trial, is the Word of God versus the world. The cause for the indictment, is a breach of promise, that is, that the world claims that God made a promise that's not true. That's a breach of promise, "He don't keep His promise." And the prosecuting attorney in this case is Satan, that represents the world. And the defendant is God Himself. And the defense witness is the Holy Ghost.
And now we call the court to order.

5 And now the prosecuting attorney is going to call his first witness to the stand and swear him in. And now, he has three witnesses this afternoon I want to use, he wants to use, rather, in this trial. And these witnesses are Mr. Unbeliever, the next is Mr. Skeptic, and the next one will be called will be Mr. Impatience. Now, these are the witnesses against the case that, "God doesn't keep His Word. His Word isn't true."

6 And we can see before we start the trial, that that so many of the world tries to say that God's Word is not true. For instance, this I just read, I was reading the footnotes on Scofield. And I was thinking of a story that was told me one time. I think ... don't think I have ever quoted it, especially in this meeting. But that a woman one time had a fine young boy, he wanted to be a minister. So she was kind of a poor sort of a woman, and she wanted her boy to get all the good schooling and training he could (which any mother would want her boy, if he was called to such as that), would be the very best training that could be gotten, why, she wanted him to have it. So she sent him away to the very best religious seminary that she knowed where to send him.

7 Well, he had been there about a year, and one day his mother took violent sick, she was real bad off. And they kept calling and sending telegrams. She was living by herself. That he might have to be called home because she took a real serious cold, and it run into double pneumonia, and had congestion in ... of the lungs, and she looked for to die. Her heart was showing up too bad. So the faithful physician was doing all that he knowed how to do to save the woman's life, and she constantly got worse. So the physician sent a telegram to the young fellow, and said, "Stand by at once. Get your airplane reservations, for you may have to come to your mother at any a time, because she looks like she's pretty close to the point of death." And then the boy, all upset, got his clothes ready and was fixing to catch a plane. And a telegram come straight back from his mother, "Don't come, son. I got all right."

8 So then about a year later, or six months later, I believe it was, that he returned to his home. And after greeting his mother, and they was having fellowship together, he said, "Mother, there's one question that still lingers in my mind." Said, "When you were so sick," and said, "you never did write and tell me the details. You just said you got well, and you never did tell me the details of how this come about."
She said, "Son, you know down the street here, right where that old grocery store used to stay on a certain place?"
"Yes."
There's a bunch of people down there that worships in that little building."
"Yes," said, "I remember them, they're the Pentecostals."

9 Said, "Yes, that's right." Said, "When I was at my very worst," said, "there was a fine lady come up here to me. And she said, 'Sister, we were down there in prayer meeting, and we understood that you were very sick, and you had a boy away in the seminary school, to be a minister. And while we were praying, the Lord revealed to us that we should come pray for you.'" And said, "Well," she said, "that, that'll be fine." Said, "'Do you mind if our pastor comes and prays?'" Said, "Why, certainly not, lady. I'll be glad," said. "So they brought the ... The doctor said that would be fine. So the pastor come up, and he read this Scripture here in Mark, 16th chapter. And he said, 'This is what the Bible said.'" So he laid his hands upon the woman and prayed, went out. And said, she "got well," she said.
"Oh," he said, "Mother!"
She said, "Isn't that wonderful, son? Think of that!"

10 "Oh," he said, "Mother, of course that had nothing to do with your getting well." Says, "Perhaps some of the medicine that the physician had give you before, it just didn't take effect at the time."
And said, "Oh!" She said, "No, son. The physician had quit giving me medicine two days, said there was nothing he could do. He just put me under oxygen and said there was nothing he could do. And I was constantly getting worse."
"Oh," he said, "Mother, it wasn't that." Said, "You see, those are illiterate people." Said, "They really don't understand. They just read the Bible." And said, "You see?"
She said, "Well, aren't we supposed to believe the Bible, son?"
"Oh, sure." Said, "Mother, we're supposed to believe it, but," said "you know, in the school," said, "we learned that where he read there from Mark 16, from the 9th verse on, it's not even inspired."
"Well," she said, "glory to God!"
He said, "Mother, you're acting like them people." And said, "Why, the very idea!"
She said, "Well, honey, I was just thinking."
Said, "What you thinking?"
Said, "If God could heal me with that part of the Word that's not inspired, what would He do with that really is inspired?" So we believe it is inspired.

11 So, now this, we're going to let the prosecutor call his witnesses, the first one to the stand, to witness against.
I just said that a few minutes ago, because I was just reading, when I was reading this text Mr. Scofield says that some of the manuscripts don't pack that. That's probably where that story come from, but it is so.
So Mr. Unbelief comes to the stand, and takes his stand now to testify against the Word of God, to witness against it. And now when he ... he is to be the first witness to stand by. Now we find out that after he's sworn in, now his complaint is this, that "the Word of God's promises are not altogether true."
Now, all these witnesses that the prosecutor's bringing up, claims to be believers. They all claim to be believers, or, they give the evidence of this, "We would have never attended such meetings if we wasn't believers." So they say that they are believers.

12 And the complaint that Mr. Unbeliever gives against the Word of God, he claims that "Mark 16 isn't true, it just can't be true." For he said that he'd been sick for some time, and he's giving his testimony now that he was sick for some time, and he "went to a so-called Holy Ghost meeting where people were laying hands upon the sick, and they claimed that they were being healed." So he went into this prayer line, and when he did ... He had been very sick for some time, and he "was prayed for by this Holy Ghost (so-called Holy Ghost) bunch of people that were shouting and making noises, and claiming that they were healed." And Mr. Unbeliever walked through this line, had hands laid upon him, "And that was over two months ago, and there hasn't been one sign of recovery." So he says that "The Word of God---that part is not true."

13 Now, so the prosecutor takes down his first witness, he brings up his next witness to the stand. And the next witness comes up, is Mr. Skeptic. He's sworn in, he takes the stand. Now, he claims that he is a believer, and he "heard in the city that they had a church where they had a faithful pastor, so-called godly man, so the congregation said. And this man believed the Scripture, so he said. And he prayed for the sick and anointed them with oil. And he read the chapter of this in the Bible, in James the 5th chapter, the 14th verse, 'Any among you sick? Let them call for the elders of the church, and let them anoint them in oil, pray over them; the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and God shall raise them up.'" So he said that he goes in, being a sick man, been turned down of ever being able to get over this undulant fever that he had. And the doctor said that he could not get over it, there's no way for him to. So he taken God at His Word, and he found this so-called godly pastor, that all the congregation had all kinds of testimonies that they had been healed, and so forth. And this godly pastor prayed over him, anointing him with oil, according to the Word of God. He did not doubt the man's sincerity, he did not doubt the sincerity of the congregation; but the pastor carried out the order just as the Bible said, anointed him and prayed for him. And that was better than six months ago, and he hasn't showed one sign of recovery. So he gives that testimony. Now the second witness steps down.

14 The prosecutor then brings up his next witness, which is Mr. Impatient. He brings up and he's sworn in, to give testimony against the Word of God, not being true. This man comes forth and he claims that he is a believer, and he was reading one day in Mark, the 16th chapter, or the 11th chapter of Mark, rather, and beginning with the 22nd verse, where Jesus Himself ... He claims that he had a red letter Bible, and the red letters was the exact Words that Jesus said, Himself. And that in this red letter Bible, in Mark, the 11th chapter, where Jesus was speaking, He made this quotation, "Have faith in God. For verily, verily, I say unto you, if you say unto this mountain be ye cast into the sea, and don't doubt, but believe that what you have said shall come to pass, you can have what you've said." And he "had been a cripple," he says here, "for many years," since he was a boy. He had been lame in his feet. He had to walk with crutches. So he accepted that as being the infallible Word of God, and he said within his heart, as he claims, to testify now, he said, "I will walk." And accepted the Word of Jesus Christ, he said that he would walk because Jesus said so. "If you'll say to this mountain be moved, and when you pray, believe that you receive what you asked for, and you shall have it. And he asked for it, prayed for it, said he would have it, and that's five years ago." And he's still lame in his feet, he hasn't gotten any better.

15 Now the prosecutor comes forth after his witnesses has given three different quotations of the Scripture which was in the Jewish courts is a witness gives three witnesses of scripture that was wrote in God's Bible, supposingly that Jesus Christ said it, which is the Son of God, God made flesh, dwelling in a man, infallibility. And the prosecutor comes forth now to nail down the case to you people.
Now, you remember, you are the jury and you are the judge.

16 So the prosecutor wants you to know now, as he nails down the case again, these people claim that they are believers just as the rest of them claim. So he claims also, the prosecutor wants you to know that God is not justified in putting such rashal promises in His Word, when He does not back it up, for He has given this to His believing children to claim. And by them claiming it, they are brought to shame and are disgraced, by claiming the Words which are not true. The prosecutor now, for He has failed to make the promises of these three witnesses, which is being carried out exactly according to the Word of God. And he wants, the prosecutor wants you to know that God has failed, in all three cases, to make any manifestation of keeping His Word (he's nailing it down for you), and to these claimed believers.

17 Then again, the prosecutor wants to turn, call your attention to something else. He that is God, promised that all things were possible to them that believed. He promised that. The prosecutor wants you to know that. And these so-called believers has tried to keep this word, and He failed to keep it, therefore He's sued for breach of promise.
Yet again, the prosecutor wants to call your attention to another Word of God. He claims to be alive after His death. Jesus claims to be alive after His death. And the prosecutor wants you to know that he has seen no man with nail prints in his hands, and scars all over his body from the lashes, and prints of the spikes in his feet. Neither has he seen any crown of thorns upon any man's head. And yet He claims to be alive after His death. Also He claims, that in Hebrews 13:8, that He lives. And it is not so. He claims also, in the chapter of Luke, the 17th chapter and the 30th verse, that in these days that we live in now, that He would reveal Himself; as He was then, so would He be. He claims also, the prosecutor now giving you the nailed down case, that in Revelations 10, that the seventh angel, when he begins to sound (that's the angel to the Laodicea church, that's supposed to call the church back to the faith of the fathers), that when this angel sounds, that all the mysteries of God should be revealed in that day. He also claims, that in Malachi 4, that the holy prophets prophesied that there would be a prophet rise in that day, to make these claims true. And there's none of it so! He also claims that heavens and earth will fail, but His Word shall never pass away.

18 Now the prosecutor's got a case here. He's nailing it right down. Now he gives it over to you audience, to you who are both judge and jury. Now we've heard his side, we've heard the witnesses. We hear what they say about it. We hear what the prosecutor pours in, the Word, and nails it down from both sides, All the promises that God made, and there isn't any of it that he can see that's the truth. So he's trying to get an indictment against God, and against Him making such rashal promises, because the promises that God has made is absolutely rashal. The promises that He made for this day is absolutely rashal. And he doesn't keep them! Now we've heard his side, so now let us call the prosecutor's witnesses to step down, and the prosecutor.

19 And now we will call the defense witness to the defendant. And the defense witness now is the Holy Spirit, now He comes and takes the stand for the defendant. Now, the first thing He wants to call to the attention of this court, hallelujah, that the prosecutor is misinterpreting the Word to the people, just like he did to Eve at the beginning. Remember, he was her interpreter. God told what they should do, and there'd never be death sorry or nothing, and he come around and misinterpreted the Word. Therefore when men got from behind the Word of God what does it make them? he is not defended by God. But, you see, Satan was the interpreter of the Word to Eve. She wouldn't listen to her husband and to God, but she took the prosecutor's interpretation of the Word. And he has no right to give an interpretation, and neither does any man have a right. God's His own interpreter. He doesn't need us; He keeps His Word, we believe. Now he wants to call your attention to that, that the same interpreter to the first words of God that was spoke, is the prosecutor who's trying to bring indictment before this court this afternoon, of the same one, and he's misinterpreted the Word. That's the first thing the defense witness wants to say. Now, He wanted to bring this to your attention, that he was Eve's interpreter and he misinterpreted the Word.

20 First place, He wants to give you this idea, that the promise is only to believers; not make-believers, skeptics, or unbelievers. It's only for those that believe! Now He wants this court ... the defense witness, the Holy Spirit, wants this court to realize that these promises are only for believers.
Then in the cross question, he said, "These are believers!"
And now the defense witness Himself should know whether they are believers or not, because He is the One that quickens the promise. How you going to get it past that? Got a right ... hot trial going on. How you going to get it past that? The Holy Spirit should know, for He is the life that's in the Word, He's the one that quickens the Word. Just like your spirit quickens your body, and the body is quickened by the spirit; without the spirit, the body is of no effect, the body's dead. And the Word is dead without the Spirit. It takes the Spirit to bring forth the Word, to make it live. And He is the quickener of that Word, and he is the defense witness of the defendant. Amen. How you going to get it past that? I want this court to understand that very well, that He is the quickener, He should know. He quickens the Word.

21 Again, He wants to call the attention of this court to the Word of promise that's in question. He never set any certain time for them to recover. He said, "The prayer of faith shall save the sick, and God shall raise them up." He didn't say "right then." "They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." He never said, "a day, month, year." He just said, "They shall!" The defense witness wants you to know that, that He didn't say there'd be a miracle performed. He just said, "They shall recover!" Interpret the Word right. "They shall recover." He never said any certain time. And, that is, if they are believers! If they are believers, they shall recover. "They'll lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover," whether it's now, a week, month, year, ten years, twenty years, fifty years. "They will recover," He said so! That is, if they can hold onto their believing. Now, that's the defense witness.
Another thing, the defense witness wants to call to this court's attention this afternoon that also, the Word is a seed, and the seed has to fall in fertile soil in order to quicken it. The seed will not grow on a rock. The seed has to have fertility. And the Word has to fall in faith, which is the fertility that brings the Word to pass. Now the defense witness at this time...

22 We could call lots more, things could be said. But, we don't want to keep you too long, got a big prayer line. I want you, court, to listen.
The defense witness now will call His witness. See, the defense witness has a right to call a witness, because the prosecutor turn, called a witness. Now the defense witness is going to call a witness. And the defense witness wish to present to this court, this afternoon, the prophet Noah. "Come forward, Noah, and take the stand. Now, I understand that you have a testimony concerning a Word of God that was given to you."
"Yes."
The witness today wants to say, to this court, that he was just an ordinary man and he believed God. And he lived in a scientific age, where they believed that the days of miracles never was. There'd never been rain upon the earth, but one day he met God. And God told him to prepare an ark for the saving of the people, and all would come in this ark would be saved. And the witness wants to say that he solemnly, with all his heart, believed it. And he went to preaching it. And he went, not only preached it, but to make his works testify of his faith, he started building the ark.

23 And the witness wants to point a finger to Mr. Unbeliever, and to Mr. Skeptic, and Mr. Impatient. They haunted me day and night. When is that rain going to fall? Ah, you said that a year ago, and there's no rain up there. We have went to the scientists and they prove there's no rain up there. And they claimed that I was crazy. And they scoffed at me and told me that I was altogether foolish and simple to believe such a rashal promise as that, against scientific research." But he said, "I worked on the program, because, I held steady because I knowed it was God's Word and it can't fail. I built the ark."
And after the ark was completed, then the scoffers run around and around the ark, daily, as I stood in the door preaching to them. And they still said, 'Now, that's been 120 years ago, now where's your rain? So, you see, your labor's all in vain,' they said. 'Our scientists are right, and there is no such a thing. And you're altogether a simple old man for believing in such a rashal promise as that.'

24 And then the day come when I started to walk out one morning, out of my ark. And, all of a sudden, without a hand on it, the door closed right in my face, and I was sealed on the inside. Now what's happened? Then I climbed the ladders that I had built, and got up in the top, and pulled back the window. And I could hear them on the outside; Mr. Unbeliever sitting over there, Mr. Skeptic, Mr. Impatient; saying, 'Now what's happened? He trapped his own self!' And I thought surely the rain would fall then. And the day that I went in was on the 27th ... or the 17th day of May. The door shut in my face. I called my people together, and said, "Get ready, the rain will be falling in the next few minutes." And, all day long, Mr. Unbeliever and Mr. Skeptic Mr. Impatient walked around and around my ark, criticizing me, saying all kinds of evil about me. But I told my congregation, 'Be quiet. God made the promise!'
The second day, the sun come up, bright; no rain, no thunder, and no lightning. The third day, the same, the fourth, fifth, sixth. But on the morning of the 24th day of May (120 years later), there come a gusher coming down from heaven. And all the anointed by Mr. Skeptic, Unbeliever, and Mr. Impatient perished on the outside.

25 Defense witness said, "Step down, Noah. I want to call another witness. Come up, Mr. Abraham, I want you to give testimony."
Mr. Abraham comes up, and said, "I was working on my farm just outside of Ur, the land of the Chaldean. And I had married my half-sister, her name was Sarai and my name was Abram. And I met God, and God told me that I was going to have a baby by Sarah. And Sarah, at this time, was sixty-five years old, and I was seventy-five years old. And God told me that I would have a baby through Sarah, and through that child the whole world would be blessed, and I would be the father of nations. Quickly I returned, for this joy that was in my heart. I had always loved children, and thought I never would have any. But when God said I was going to have it, I believed Him. I went to a doctor to make the arrangements. He run me out of the office, Mr. Unbeliever was sitting there. I went out into the street, and the authorities wanted to arrest me up for a mental case. And then as the years went by, Mr. Impatient tormented me day and night.

26 "The first month, I said to my wife, Sarah. See, she was way past menopause, it ceased to be with her as it is with women. And I said to Sarah, 'Honey, we got all the little booties and all the Birdseye, and the pins? We all ready, are we?' 'Yeah, all ready.' 'It's going to happen now, you watch.' And at the end of the twenty-eight days, I said, 'How do you feel, honey?'" "There's no difference, Abraham." Well, he said, "I said, 'Bless God! Sarah, don't you doubt it. God said so, we're going to have it anyhow!" This went on through the years.
And after year after year a-passing, Mr. Skeptic, Mr. Unbeliever, and all of them made fun of me. But in twenty-five years later, the baby was born when I was a hundred years old. God didn't tell me I'd have the baby the next day. He said I would have it! And I don't care how long it took, God promised it! I waited twenty-five years. They thought I was going to get so old I'd die, but I said, 'I can't die, the promise is to me. God said so!'

27 "How Mr. Scoffer, and Mr. Unbeliever, Mr. Skeptic, Mr. Impatient, constantly come by, had men anointed, said, 'Abraham, how many children now, father of nations, do you have?' But I held steady, because I never staggered at the word of God by unbelief. I knowed God was able to keep every word He promised. I didn't consider my own body, even dead, and the deadness of Sarah's womb. But I believed in God. They said, 'Well, I thought you said twenty-five years ago you was going to have the baby?' 'I did say it twenty-five years ago.' But Mr. Impatient there, said, "Well, twenty-five years has lapsed. Look at you now! The whiskers way down to your knees, almost. Look, you're an old man.' I let him know that God didn't tell me when I was going to have this baby. He said, 'You'll have it by Sarah,' and that settled it! I held steady. Now the Word never said when, it said it would!"

28 Let's call another witness right quick, we ain't got much time. We can call hundreds of them. Let's call another witness yet, Moses, have him to testify.
"Why," he said, "I was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. I was a professor to who wouldn't have it. But one day on the backside of the desert, after I was eighty years old, I met God. And He was in the form of a sign, and He was a burning fire back in a bush. And He told me that He had heard the groans of His people, and He remembered His promise to deliver them. And He said 'I'm sending you.' And I said, 'Who am I? I can't speak well. I'm not a theologian. I can't go.' He said, 'You'll be given two signs. One of them will be in your hand, the other one be by a stick. And if they won't hear the voice of this sign, then pour some water upon the ground, it'll turn to blood, then that finishes it.'

29 "When I took my sign that God give me and went down before Pharaoh, Pastor Pharaoh, he tried to make my gift look kind of shady. He said, 'Most any cheap fortuneteller or Egyptian can do that. Most any cheap magic man can turn these tricks.' And he got out two fellows by the name of Jambres and Jannes, and actually they impersonated everything that I done. But that didn't stop me, because the voice that sent me was a Scriptural voice, and I stayed with it. It was the Word of God.
"It was a Scriptural sign a Scriptural voice, 'For I remember my promise, and the time is at hand.' They hadn't had no prophets in Israel for hundreds of years, 440 years, they'd had no prophets in Israel. But He said, "I'm sending you to be one." And he went. And He told me that, for a sign, I'd come back and bring the children to this mountain. It took a long time, but I did. I stayed right true to the Word. And when Jambres and those carnal impersonators that tried to mock it yet I knowed no matter how much mock they could give..."
Do you know that's to repeat again in the last days? Jesus said so. The Bible said, "As Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses so will these men in the last days," impersonators trying to act like copy after.
But he said, "I stood still because I knowed the voice was a scriptural voice." Yet there was two of them, and only one of him. But he went down and did what he ... and he, it proved out to be true, he come right back to the mountain where God told him.

30 "Step down, Moses. Let's call another witness right quick. Joshua."
Joshua said, "When we was nearing the land, we come up to Kadesh-barnea. And Moses, the servant of God, went and took all of the ... one out of every tribe, one out of every denomination, and he said, 'Let's go over and spy out the land.' And we went over, two of us, brought back the evidence that the land was good." They had the evidence of it. Them were real Pentecostals. "So they come back with the evidence that the land was good. But when it come to taking the full land, they said, 'We can't do it. We can't do it; we're not able.' And the people was all tore up, didn't know what to do, which organization to go to. And I stilled them, said, 'Remember, it's a promise of God! God said, "I have given you this land." And what God promises, He'll do!' I got the people quiet. The next day, they say, 'Are we going to leave?' Then next day, 'We going to leave?' It was forty years later, but we took the land!"

31 One more witness, right quick, may I call Isaiah to the stand. "Isaiah, would you testify for the defense witness, and give us a defense for the defendants, defendant?"
"I will. I was a prophet. I was a vindicated prophet. What I said, it wasn't ... I didn't know what I was saying, but God made what I said come to pass. Everybody begin to believe it. All the church they begin to believe it one day a strange thing happened. The Lord God said to me, 'Israel's seeking signs, so I want them to do that, but I'm going to give them a super sign. And that's going to be for a super age, when they have supermarkets and super jets and super everything super. I'm going to give them a super sign, a virgin shall conceive!' And me being a vindicated prophet, every little virgin got her booties ready, and everything else, she was 'going to have a baby,' yes, sir, she was 'the one Jehovah called.' All kinds of things went on. Yes, sir. 'Well, now, we're expecting her, my daughter, to conceive.' This one, this one, every girl was looking for it. Years passed. Some of them scratched their head, said, 'That old false prophet.' But it was eight hundred years later. He didn't say when she would conceive, He said she would conceive! Eight hundred years later a virgin conceived."

32 Now for the last witness, if you'll pardon me, can I be the last witness? That ain't back in the Bible, that's now. Let me be the next witness, just for a few minutes before we start the prayer line. Listen closely. I'd like to give a testimony for Him. I'd like to be called to the stand, and raise my hand to tell the truth, nothing but the truth.
I'd like to say, how did I ever become a Christian? My father and mother, grandfather, grandmother on both sides, was all sinners. My nature was a cocklebur ... and how am I going to be a grain of wheat. But one morning in a little log cabin down in Kentucky, so said my mother and the midwife, on April the 6th, five o'clock in the morning, 1909, when the Lord God brought me into the earth, there was a light standing at the little window. And when they opened the window back, mother laying on the little shuck bed, to find out what kind of a baby she had a light come whirling in. And the people of the mountains didn't know what to think about it. I was too little to know this.

33 And as a child, about eight years old, seven or eight years old, I was packing water to a moonshine still that my father owned. While one warm, September afternoon, sitting down, crying, going fishing out to the pond with the boys, and they ... couldn't go on account of I had to pack this water. I heard like a whirlwind in the tree, about half way up. Still, everywhere else, September in Indiana, everything's real still, dying, quiet. And this whirlwind in a bush, there come a voice out of there, and said, "Never smoke, drink, defile your body (That's run with women), anything like that, for there's a work for you to do when you get older." My mother called the doctor, she thought I was so nervous.
A week after that, I seen the Municipal Bridge, in a trance, as I called it, seen the Municipal Bridge cross the Ohio River, and seen sixteen men lose their life on it. Twenty-two years from that day, the Municipal Bridge crossed at the same place, and sixteen men lost their life in it.

34 At Green's Mill one night, not knowing what this all was about... Later I become a minister to serve the Lord. At Green's Mill one night... My pastors had just told me I tell them about going, having a ... being able to see things, and they told me it was the devil. And me being a Christian, I didn't want nothing to do with the devil, not at all. So I went up there, and said, "Lord I can't let ... go through life like this." And I set up there at a little place way back at a fishing camp, praying. One night there, as Lord had spoke to me, at a tree, like He did to Moses. Then here on this Green's Mill there come a man in and told me that, not to try to ask to get rid of this, but it was a gift sent from God, that was to be taken to the peoples of the world, and to let me know by the Scriptures that all these things that had been promised according to the Bible must be fulfilled that the time was at hand.
And I went back and told my pastor. I went down and told him, and he said "Billy, what have you eat? Did you have a dream was that a nightmare?" But, to me, it was Malachi 4. He said, "How you going to do it? It was Luke 17:30. It was also Revelation 10. It was also all these scriptures that's been promised for the last days. I didn't see it done right then. People wondered, "When's this going to happen?" But I just held on.

35 One day at the river, I was baptizing five hundred people at the river, when, all of a sudden, this same light that come in when I was a little boy. And I'd told the people I'd been seeing it. They said I was dreaming and it was some kind of a mental conception that I had. But before better than five thousand people, at two o'clock in the afternoon, in 1933, out of the skies come this cloud coming down, speaking these words, "As John the Baptist was commissioned to forerun the first coming of Christ, your ministry will forerun the second coming of Christ.", where thousands times thousands of people heard it, and the newspapers give witness of it.
I want to say, and I want to call this to the attention of that blind prosecutor that's looking around for some man to have thorn prints and nails, and everything like that. It doesn't say that! It doesn't give such a promise.

36 We read here in Luke the 17th chapter and the 30th verse, Jesus speaking, "As it was in the days of Sodom, so shall it be when the Son of man will be revealed." When He's being revealed! I want to draw your attention to this just for a few minutes, if you'll bear with me just a few minutes longer now. Be real reverent for just a few minutes.
Notice, Jesus packed three names; Son of man, Son of David, Son of God. He had three names. All the same person, but with three names. Just like Father, Son, Holy Ghost; all the same God, three attributes.
Just like me. My wife calls me husband. My children has nothing to do with me by the name of husband, I am their daddy. My little grandson sitting over there, has nothing to do with me in the name of daddy, nothing in the name of husband, he is my grandchild. And it's all the same person.

37 And we notice when Jesus come and tried to reveal Himself as Son of man (don't miss this), when He revealed Himself and called Himself, constantly, "the Son of man," Israel was blinded. They knowed nothing about what Son of man meant. But they said, "Son of David," when blind Bartimaeus run out and recognized Him. David meant "King." Remember, Son of man, Son of David, Son of God (which was Lord). This Jew got what he asked for because he approached Him in the name of the Son of David, the King; He wasn't Saviour, but He was King.
But when the Greek woman, the Syrophenician approached Him in the name of Son of David, He never even as much as raised His head. She had no claims on Him in the name of Son of David. He wasn't Son of David to that Syrophenician woman. But when she said, "Lord," then He turned around. He was the Lord. Lord, He was Lord! No Son of David to her.

38 Now, why wasn't He recognized as Son of man? The Son of man was the spiritual revelation, a prophet. Son of man means "prophet."
Now if you'll turn over in your Bibles to Ezekiel, the 2nd chapter and the 1st verse, you'll find out that Ezekiel was the prophet, the Word of God for that day. And Jehovah Himself called him the son of man. Jehovah calling a man, the son of man. The same as Jesus revealed Himself as Son of man. What was it? The promised Word of that hour being made manifest, same God! God of Ezekiel's time, God of Jesus' time, Son of man! He was not at that time...
He was the Son of man because He was come to reveal Himself to Israel as a prophet, and they rejected it. And that was the prophecy that they should receive Him in the name of the Son of man, a prophet, because it was according to the Word Deuteronomy 18:15, "The Lord your God shall raise up a prophet likened unto me." And when He come, He identified Himself in His ministry as a man, not a Son of God, Son of man! God is a Spirit. And He revealed Himself as Son of man, what He claimed to be, and they was blinded and couldn't see it.

39 But now unto the Gentiles He reveals Hisself, and now the Son of God which is the Holy Ghost. Now, Jesus said "As it was in the days of Sodom!"
I want this blind prosecutor to see this. He's a blind interpreter of the Word, always. He takes his organizational ideas of it, and knows no more about it than nothing. He does it to deceive, because he is a deceiver at the beginning.
Jesus said, "As it was in the days of Sodom, when the Son of man is being revealed!" In the days of Sodom was the Son that was God revealed in human flesh, which was one time called Melchisedec, the Father. Melchisedec at that time had no father no mother, no beginning of days or no ending of life; ever who He was, He remains the same. Jesus had father and mother; but this man had neither father nor mother. And He appeared to Abraham in the form of a son of man, Elohim, Jehovah. The church now has served the term through the church age, in the baptism of the Holy Ghost. But Jesus said here, to make Malachi 4 and the rest of these Scriptures real to you, see, that "In the last days, just before the coming, the world setting will be like the Sodom, and the Son of man will reveal hisself as the Son of man like He did in the days of Sodom."
Blind prosecutor, can't you see that? His words are true. Not nail scars and prints and thorns.

40 It's the Son of God impersonated in His church, as Son of man. It has to fulfill Malachi 4 and the rest of the Scriptures. I call to the court's attention, look at that real good, "Son of man"! Like God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost; it's the same God, three different attributes of the same God. Now, this is Son of David ... Son of man revealed then as a prophet, Son of David, the King. And now the Son of God to the church age, as God isn't man, God is a Spirit, and the Spirit, Son is the Holy Ghost, which is revealing the church age. But promised here, "In the last days, that the Son of man would be revealed"!
Blind prosecutor, do you get that? And I want you to know, blind prosecutor, we see it, we believe it, these words fulfilled before us and we know that they are the truth.

41 To the Jews He was the Son of David. To the Greeks He was Lord, to us He's Lord, to the Gentiles. And now in the last days, He would return back again as Son of man, because Malachi promised us that there would be a prophet rise up in the last days that would return the hearts of people back to (away from them organizations) back to the original Word, the faith of the fathers, the original Pentecost. And when He did it, St. John 14:12, the works that He did would be done also. Revelation 10 promised the whole mystery. How you going to reveal the mysteries? See what Luther left off, see what Wesley left off, see what Pentecost left off, and then reveal the secret of the heart, to make it the same God through every age, which is nothing but God's Word being made manifest back to the Son of man again. We don't look for nail scars; we look for the Word made manifest. Notice, God promised these things now, and He does it just as He said. I could say more, but, we'll leave the subject, it's getting late.

42 Mr. Prosecutor, I want you to know that I could call a thousand witnesses here this afternoon. I want you to know that the things that He said that He did, we are witnesses that "He keeps His Word!" There is a genuine Holy Ghost meeting! There is a genuine power of God! And there is a genuine promise that they shall recover, when they lay hands on the sick. I want you to know that. I want you to know He said, "As it was in the days of Sodom, so shall it be in the coming of the Son of man."

43 I am a stranger, and I'm only bearing record of what the Bible says to be truth. If you notice, the Angel of the Lord that come in the form of a man, had His back turned to the tent, and He told Abraham what Sarah was thinking. Jesus said it would repeat. Now, if I have told the truth, let God confirm that to be the truth. Let Him reveal it. Then, it's no secret, we know then. I'll leave this court this afternoon with this verdict, to make in your own mind. Let the God that made the promise... Not back in them days; they were vindicated. Let the God that made the promise vindicate it today, say the same. Some of you think in your heart, pray to God for your sickness or your affliction, and see if God will reveal the secret of the heart. I challenge you to do it, from one side to the other. Now, would I dare to do a thing like that if I wasn't standing exactly on what the Scripture says? I want this court to see that He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, that He keeps His promise. And He promised that Jesus Christ would be revealed in the last days, as the Son of man.

44 A man sitting here suffering with hemorrhoids. I never seen you in my life. If that's right, raise up your hand. You believe me to give witness of the Word of God? That's your wife sitting next to you. She's suffering also, cyst on her head that's right raise up your hand. Do you believe God can tell me who you are. If He's still the Word the Word knows the secret of the heart. You are Mr. and Mrs. Hunt. If that's right, raise up your hand. Why don't you believe it?
Here, here sits a man sitting right here, his head down, crying, praying for himself and also for his wife. She isn't here. She's not with you this afternoon. She's suffering. You believe God could tell me what her trouble is, and her not here? You believe it? You do? I'm a stranger to you, is that right? Your wife has a female trouble. If that's right, raise up your hand, high, so they can see it. And your name is Mr. Smith. Do you believe that God will make her well? If that's right, wave your hand up and down like this. I challenge you to believe that Jesus Christ is revealed in the form of Son of man in human flesh in the bride's body [words are unclear].

45 Here's a woman sitting here looking at me, she suffers with high blood pressure. Do you believe that God could tell me who you are? They call you Daisy. If you... Is that right? Raise up your hand. Believe now with all your heart, Jesus Christ will make you ... give you your desire. You see, He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do you believe it?
Here's a man sitting right back here looking at me, he's got a burden on his heart. It's for his son, son has diabetes. Do you believe? That was your wife that started weeping right next to you there, she's got a burden on her heart. That's for her sister. Her sister has heart trouble, complication. You're Mr. and Mrs. Sickles. Is that right? Wave your hand up and down like this. If I'm a total stranger to you, stand up on your feet. Stand up, if I'm a stranger to you and don't know you.
What is it? The fulfilling of the Word of God in the last days! Prosecutor, I want you to know that the Word of God is true. God told me that thirty-three years ago. I've waited all this time, but it's fulfilled right here this afternoon God keeps His Word! He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. God bless you; go and get your desire now.

46 Your mind is the jury. The jury has to make up its mind. And the way you act from now on will pronounce or show to the people what your verdict is. Is He guilty, or is He not guilty? Do you believe that He's not guilty, that He does keep His Word? It's us that has the... We're listening to old man Impatient, Mr. Unbeliever, and Mr. Skeptic. But now do you believe that God keeps His Word? Your mind is the jury. And the way you act from hereafter will prove to the people what your verdict is. You see that? Let us bow our heads then.
I've told you the honest truth. If we had time to stay here, there ain't a scripture in the Bible what'll testify of this same thing. I've been honest. But, you know, sometimes, to be honest it's not an easy path. But as long as God stands there! It wasn't easy for Luther, Wesley, or none of the rest. It isn't easy for you or anybody else that takes a stand. But this afternoon you've got to make your stand He never said... He said "They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." If you believe it, then I don't care if it happens right here, it if happens next week, it happens twenty years from today; if you absolutely believe it, it's got to happen. I...

47 There's a doctor sitting present now, as I understand. I want to thank Him. I was at a patient, to see his patient, a while ago, early this morning in a hospital, who's bound to die, so they think. She's so eaten with cancer. And this little woman said to me, said, "My surgeon has been attending your meeting, and he agrees with you. And not only that, but, Brother Branham, I want you to know he's standing with you in prayer for me. If I needed any medical attention, I'd want him to give it to me, a man that can trust God like that! Yes. They're in all walks of life, and all professions.
Let's remember, the verdict is yours now.

48 Lord Jesus, I've just tried to explain the Word. You've testified that it's the truth. Your witnesses, we could have called hundreds, and yet we haven't the time. Here also lays handkerchiefs, laying here, that's going to the sick and the afflicted, right here where the Holy Spirit gives witness that Jesus is still alive. We know Him by His life the life that He lived the things that He did. And we pray, God, now as laying hands upon these handkerchiefs, that whosoever they touch may they be healed. I offer my prayer, with faith, along with this other bunch of believers, for these who are not able to be here. May they enjoy the greatness of God. They may be sick and can't come. Some poor old father sitting back there in a room, pecking on a little white cane, this afternoon, waiting for this handkerchief to return. That baby laying there in the hospital, burning up with a fever, and someone waiting to bring it the handkerchief. Let the power of Almighty God go with them, anoint them with the same anointing that's been upon the meeting this afternoon. And may they recover Lord. We offer this prayer in their behalf, because they wasn't present. But you're omnipresent. May You be there to confirm your word, through Jesus Christ's name.

49 Now let the Holy Spirit truly, not emotion, not some kind of just a halfway hope, but a genuine verdict may be passed by this, what I call this afternoon, "the court." May each one of them give testimony the same, as they take their prayer card and hold in their hands, as they cross the platform. May, when they have ... being ministered to according to the 16th chapter of St. Mark, "They shall lay their hands upon the sick, and they shall recover." As your elected servant stands here and we lay our hands upon them, Lord, may it settle it forever. May they go out of here just as happy, and forget about they ever had any troubles, because they're sure, like Abraham was, that God is able to perform the promises that He made. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
I love Him, I love Him
Because He first loved me
And purchased my salvation
On Calvary's tree.

50 How many's got your verdict? Raise your hands, "I've got my verdict." All right, court, you will be ministered to according to God's Holy Word, "These signs shall follow them that believe." I'm not going to leave you sitting here, thinking that just because this gift, that that makes anybody any more than anybody else. You've got godly pastors here. They're here, I'm going to ask them to stand with me on the platform. They'll lay their hands on the same as I do. They had us to come here, and they're here as your ... as witnesses of God. They're bearing witnesses to the truth. Now, can't say, "Brother Branham laid hands," because my hands is no more than theirs or anybody else's. It's your faith, your verdict that you've passed on the Word of God. God keep... And if God can keep that part of the Word and prove it to you, then you're already healed, because by His stripes you were healed.

51 Now, I want all that's in this section over here, that's got prayer cards, stand up on that side around the wall. Now, all that's in this section here, that has prayer cards, stand up in the middle of the aisle and face back that way. And all that's in this section here, that has prayer cards... Now, on this section here, now turn back the other way now, go back this a-way. Turn the other way, because I want a straight line. All that's in this section, come out this way, face back that way, and all that's in this section up here, that's got prayer cards, come out this way and face back that way, and the prayer line will be running. All that's in the balcony, with prayer cards, wants to be prayed for, come right down and fall right in behind this next section as they come. While they're coming, I...

52 [Brother Branham speaks with the ministers on the platform.] You want me to call other ministers? Is it all right to give witness? All, is it all right with you all? What's your verdict at the trial? [The brother answers, "I know that them things is the truth."] All right.
The pastors wants to know, wants to fellowship with other ministers. They want any minister in here that believes in God, and believes that laying hands on the sick, if their verdict is this afternoon, that it's the truth, they invite you as their colleagues to come here and stand on the platform with us while we pray. All pastors that's filled with God's Spirit, and your verdict now is that you believe that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, you believe that Mark 16 is the truth, these pastors here wants to invite you up here now as their colleagues to the gospel. Come up here and stand on the platform with us as we form these prayer lines, to pray. Right here, bring them up this way. All pastors in the building, no matter what denomination. They just told me to ask you. Come on up here if you wish to come at this time, and form this prayer line to be prayed, pray for the sick, to lay hands on the sick.

53 How many in here that isn't ... that's well, now, and you don't have to be prayed for, but you are believers, raise up your hands, will you promise me also that your prayers will be going up with we pastors while we're praying for these people? What if that was your mother standing over there? What if that was your wife? What if that was your brother or sister? Remember, it's somebody's mother, it's somebody's brother, it's somebody's sister, it's some mother's boy or girl, it's somebody's. And we will do to others as we'd have others do to us. Now, I want you, everyone to be reverent and in prayer.
And while they have got their lines formed about now, to where they can come through, I want the ministers now to come here and form a double line right around the side of the platform here, right up and down this way, form a double line so that the people passing by. I'll sit this microphone back, Mr. Borders will be standing here leading in song. That's right, double line up and down this a-way, so the people...

54 Now, to each one of you that's standing in line, to make it double sure to Satan, the prosecutor, that your decision is made up. Your verdict's passed that you believe that Mark 16 is God's Word, and it is the truth, and you're coming through this line to have hands laid upon you. And from this time on, your action is going to prove what your verdict was. Raise up your hand, and say, "I promise God that." All that's in that line.

55 Now let us pray. Our Heavenly Father, this people, this afternoon, as we have used it like a court. I feel, Lord, You've had a real trial. Pilate didn't give You the right kind, he got false witnesses. But you overruled the false witness. The defense witness, the Holy Spirit come to confirm the Word before the people. You've had a fair trial. And the people has made up their mind, they've passed the verdict this day, and they're coming through to prove to the world that they believe your Word is so. It's been misinterpreted some of them saying, "Let me see you do this, let me see you do that." It ain't according to the Word. The Word said "They shall recover." And we've brought witnesses to the platform to prove that that's what You said. You do things your own way.
Now, I pray, Father, that You will grant these blessings this afternoon to the people. As your servant, and with all your other servants, hundreds of them here, we offer our prayer for these people. Anoint these fine pastors, Lord. And if skeptic ever comes by, or unbeliever, or Mr. Impatient, or any of those critics, scoffers that's been through every age, if they come by these people, may this court this afternoon ring out against it, their testimony. That, no matter as it was in the days of Noah, as it was in the day of Sodom, both into destruction. How they scoffed and made fun! But it didn't make any difference, the believers held right to the Word. And we're ready to hold to the Word this afternoon, Father. I join myself with your other pastors here to lay hands upon these people, may the power of Almighty God, which we know is present now vindicating the Word, make each one of them well. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

56 Brother Roy, if you'll come to the platform. Every head bowed now, everybody praying and singing. If you don't pray, sing "Only Believe." As you pass through, just when you pass through, no matter what you say or do, that's up to you. If you want to shout, shout. And if you want to walk off... No matter what it is, just believe God. Walk off and say, "It's settled in my heart." Just like if you went to the pool to be baptized. That settles it, if you believe it. You're a Christian as long as you believe. Is that right. And you'll be healed as long as you believe. Let's all pray now. All right, Brother Borders. [Brother Branham prays for the sick. Blank spot on tape.] Only believe!
Till we meet! Till we meet!
Till we meet as Jesus' feet;
Till we meet! Till we meet!
God be with you till we meet again!

57 I minister the Word of God to you. In the name of Jesus Christ, may every one of you receive what you've asked for. "If you say to this mountain, 'be moved,' and don't doubt in your heart, but believe that what you've said will come to pass, you can have what you have said." When you pray, believe that you receive what you asked for, and it shall be given unto you. I minister in the name of Jesus Christ. I believe that our verdict has been made up and been passed and our actions proves now that we believe, and we know He heals. If I never see you again this side the river, I'll meet you on the other side. Then the great Holy Spirit who's been our guest this week, here with us and ministered to us, He'll witness to you then that I've told you the truth. Till that time:
Till we meet! Till we meet!
God be with you till we meet again!
Let's bow our heads now. Real quietly, sweetly. May we just wait here before you. May the God of heaven who's presence we're in ever keep you faithful until we meet again. God bless you brother. I appreciate you.