Matthew 10 - Take up your cross

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God's Will is more important than miracles

MATTHEW 10:1   And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

All the disciples were given power against demons and diseases.

This included Judas Iscariot.

Thus, a ministry in the supernatural is not evidence that a person is right with God.

MATTHEW 7:21   Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Getting saved and calling Jesus “Lord” is an essential first step.

But in the last church age, that is no proof of being in God's final Will.

God wants us to be saved to miss hell, but also, God wants us to know the revealed truth of Scripture to save us from the errors and horrors of great Tribulation.

The biggest barrier to understanding Bible truth is the Trinity doctrine with its unscriptural statement, “One God in three Persons”.

Lord, Lord implies two Persons.

As if Father and Son are two separate Persons. That immediately means that they have no name for God. You cannot find one name for two Persons.

Then they make up unscriptural statements like “God the Son” and “God the Holy Spirit”. “First Person of the Godhead” and “Second Person of the Godhead”.

“Father and Son are of the same essence” (whatever that means) is just as unscriptural as “Eternal Sonship”.

MATTHEW 7:22   Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

There are 45000 different types of churches and denominations—all with different ideas. Many of them, despite their different beliefs, produce wonderful supernatural manifestations. But this does not hide the fact that there is a vast spectrum of different beliefs, all producing the same impressive miracles.

So, the miracles are not dependent on believing the truth.

Even atheists, when honest, have produced spectacular answers to their needs. Caiaphas, the corrupt High Priest prophesied the fate of Jesus. Balaam, the rogue prophet, prophesied a Star, and hundreds of years later, wise men who expected a Star were thus led to Christ.

A lying spirit was used by God to guide Ahab to his doom. God uses any person to fulfill His will, even a donkey if needs be.

ROMANS 11:29   For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

People are attracted to the power and prestige of the supernatural.

We must search for God's Will rather than our own personal benefits

MATTHEW 6:33   But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

We must put finding God’s Will first in our lives. God’s Will is very different from our own self-will.

So, stand by for the unexpected. And leave God to add to us what He thinks we need.

The magicians Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses and turned sticks into snakes. They turned water to blood and produced frogs. So, bad people produced great supernatural feats that boosted their reputation amongst men. But God saw things differently. He was interested in how much they understood the Bible mysteries. And there they failed dismally as they felt that understanding difficult Scriptures was just a minor detail of no real concern. Ignorant of the substance of difficult Bible meanings, they stressed the impressive show of the supernatural. But God rejected them.

Scriptural substance means more than an impressive supernatural demonstration.

MATTHEW 7:23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Iniquity means that you do what you know is wrong.

In the end time, God is revealing the hidden mysteries of the written Word. Nothing is more important than that.

God is trying to reveal the errors of the religious deception of the antichrist horse rider.

When asked about the end-time, Jesus preached against deception.

MATTHEW 24:4   And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

If you believe error, it is because the antichrist has fooled you. However powerful, your spiritual experiences are.

Moses had sent 12 spies into the Promised Land. Now Jesus was sending 12 chosen disciples, or apostles, into the Promised Land as a sign that He was going to extend the Law of Moses into its fulfillment by the age of Grace.

Excluding Judas, the other eleven disciples with their powerful supernatural gifts made a strong impact on the Jewish people. Satan became aware that a powerful adversary had been raised against himself. But Judas did well in the supernatural before he foolishly betrayed Jesus at the end.

Thus, the Devil would be endlessly using the Jewish religious leaders to try to trap and destroy Jesus.

The Jewish religious leaders had one aim. To preserve their money and power over the people, they had to turn the Jews against Jesus.

Church leaders, in the end, will have the same attitude. The church of the Laodiceans is rich.

Christianity has become Big Business. Pastors insist on being the unscriptural head of the church to lay claim to the wealth. Then it becomes a father-to-son business as the son becomes a pastor. That keeps the money in the family.

Judas, an apostle, sold out for money. This is the biggest weakness of modern-day pastors.

They make sure that the people are kept away from God's Word by not allowing the people to be strictly Scriptural. Selecting certain quotes and ignoring other quotes, the people become distracted from being Scriptural as quotes replace Scripture. Bible ignorance spreads like a virus through the message churches.

Choosing the 12 apostles was purely God choosing who He wanted

MATTHEW 10:2   Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;

Peter was the first apostle to be mentioned but he is never called the Prince of the Apostles as the Roman Catholics claim.

Nobody was ever called a Prince of the Church. This unscriptural title was made up for the unscriptural Cardinals.

MATTHEW 10:3   Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;

Lebbaeus Thaddaeus, also called Judas, was the brother of James, the son of Alphaeus.

LUKE 6:16   And Judas the brother of James.

MATTHEW 10:4   Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

LUKE 6:15   and Simon called Zelotes.

The Zealots were political extremists. The Romans regarded them as terrorists.

Thus, there were three sets of brothers amongst the disciples.

Brotherhood was a strong theme amongst the disciples. Brothers are equal. No brother is above another brother.

One disciple could be more gifted than another, but all were equal in authority because they were all subject to the Scriptures.

I PETER 2:9   But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood,

All Christians are priests. All priests were equal in authority. No priest was above another priest. The only person higher than a priest was the High Priest, Who is Jesus.

MATTHEW 10:5   These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:

When Jesus came the first time, His First Coming was only to the Jews. Not to the Gentiles, nor to the Samaritans. But the Jews rejected Him, so He turned to the Gentiles.

Thus, the Second Coming of Jesus will be to the Gentile church, not to the Jews. Since most of the Gentiles have rejected Him, He will take His small living Bride to Heaven and then turn to the Jews.

MATTHEW 10:6   But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

The Jews claimed to obey the Law of Moses, but they had lost their way partly due to their political hatred of the Romans. Besides, the Temple had turned into a corrupt money-making business.

When politics and money enter the religious realm, the mixture quickly becomes toxic.

The Jews forgot that when a person gets wrapped up in self, then that individual becomes a rather small package.

MATTHEW 10:7   And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

According to the prophecy of Daniel’s 70 weeks, there was one week (or seven years) left to the Jews when Jesus began His ministry.

Laban said to Jacob:

GENESIS 29:27   Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.

Thus, in prophecy, a day can represent a year.

MATTHEW 10:8   Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

The Gospel was to be a free service.

The true church was to be a club for the benefit of non-members.

Great supernatural power was manifested by the disciples as they reached out to the Jews.

But that did not make the Jews truly believe. It only made a temporary impression.

In the end, their religious leaders told them to condemn Jesus, and they did. Despite all the supernatural miracles that they had seen.

The supernatural attracts attention, but it does not necessarily make people believe in the long-term.

Money builds up church organizations which are unscriptural

MATTHEW 10:9   Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses,

The disciples had to rely on God's provision, not their own resources.

Money is the lifeblood of organizations.

With enough money, it is easy to set up a church organization that has very little of God's Will in it.

Nebuchadnezzar saw a Gentile image made from different metals.

Gold was the head of Babylon with its religious deception based on wealth.

Silver was the arms and chest that represented the crushing power of the Medo-Persian's centralized and dictatorial organization. Highly organized, they developed into the first worldwide empire that enforced obedience to the king.

Religious or church organizations can easily end up crushing people into obeying church beliefs. It is very difficult for an individual to oppose an organized system.

The loins, where life is, were made from brass. This represented Greek philosophy with its clever unscriptural statements that gave life to the spirits of antichrist in the church systems.

Unscriptural statements are easily learned and very difficult to unlearn. Such as Trinity, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, one God in three Persons, Christmas, 25 December, Good Friday, Sunday is the Sabbath, and the pastor is the head of the church, and so forth.

Do not carry around any of these ideas. Only carry what is written in the Bible.

MATTHEW 10:10   Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat.

God did not want the disciples to be self-sufficient. He wanted them to be totally reliant on Him.

A scrip is a small bag that shepherds carried.

We all tend to carry around a small bag of unscriptural personal ideas that the churches have taught us.

Do not carry any of your own ideas around. Just what is written in the Bible.

I SAMUEL 17:40   And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.

MATTHEW 10:11   And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.

Stay at that one place. Do not move from house to house for better entertainment or better conveniences. But make sure that the people are of a good reputation. Lodging with bad people will harm the reputation of the Gospel.

Worthy means that they can understand the mysteries of Scripture so that the different Bible verses can be fitted together to form a distinct pattern that runs through the Bible.

REVELATION 5:4   And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.

No human wisdom will enable a person to understand the Bible mysteries. Seven Angels had to bring the revelation of the Seven Seals to brother Branham in March 1963. From what he taught us, we should be able to comprehend what the Bible is talking about.

REVELATION 3:4   Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

White colour is the combination or coming together of all seven dominant colours that form the rainbow.

The end-time Bride must be able to learn the truth about the seven church ages. This will enable them to eliminate all the unscriptural errors that the churches have picked up during the seven church ages.

Then we should be able to join the different verses together in the Bible as we run each revelation through the Bible verses to create a hidden pattern.

Each doctrine should start in Genesis and then run through the Bible to finish in Revelation. The First and the Last.

Only then can the Bride be restored back to the beliefs of the first church age.

To be worthy of the name Christian we have to believe that every verse in the King James Bible is the infallible and Absolute Voice of God.

Elevating human preachers is wrong. Only Christ must be lifted up

JAMES 2:9   But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.

Pastors must not be elevated to be the head of the church. That is unscriptural.

63-0707   THE  INDICTMENT

Where is He crucified at? From the pastors. You hypocrites

… They're guilty of crucifying the Prince of Life, teaching man's doctrines for His Word.

Brother Branham must not be elevated to be the Son of man and the Voice of God. Only Jesus can occupy that position.

60-0804  AS  THE  EAGLE  STIRRETH  UP  HER  NEST

Oh, I tell you it pays you to listen to the voice of God, the still small Voice that speaks deep and rich. It attracts the attention of His people.

… We know the Bible is right; that's not my voice; that's God's voice, speaking

64-0823   QUESTIONS  AND  ANSWERS.1

Wanted all the people to be baptized in my name. That'd make me an antichrist.

62-1007 THE  KEY  TO  THE  DOOR

...some brethren up there that said that I sent them up there, and they're preaching that men should leave their wives and hunt for their spiritual mate, and that I am perfectly infallible. That there's nothing... And, oh, some of the awfullest things you ever heard.

Brother Branham does not claim to be infallible.

63-1110  HE  THAT   IS  IN  YOU

Believe all the Message. Believe That. If it isn't written in the Bible, then don't you believe it.

Brother Branham explains the Scripture to us. Then we believe it because we can read it in the Bible.

64-0823  QUESTIONS  AND  ANSWERS.1

But those who can accept the Word in Its fullness, not me preaching It, because It's the Bible says so. Those who accept that is free, because they--the Word's already been judged.

What brother Branham preaches must be found in the Bible.

62-0318 THE  SPOKEN  WORD  IS  THE  ORIGINAL  SEED.2
Now, all these things I've said, if they don't jive with the Bible, or dovetail with God's Word, they're wrong, they're wrong,

Any quotes that are different from the Bible must be ignored.

Any human being can make mistakes. We must check with the Scriptures.

ACTS 17:10   And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.

:11   These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

The early church checked that what Paul said was Scriptural.

Message-pastors say that it is wrong to check the prophet. That is not true. They are lying so that they can keep you in ignorance of their errors because they have misinterpreted the quotes into unscriptural doctrines. They know that what they are saying cannot be proven from Scripture. So they want you not to check with Scripture. That way you remain fooled.

56-0902 THE  HANDWRITING  ON  THE  WALL

I want you to notice that the beginning of the Gentiles, when God dealt with them, they got haughty in their heart and forced every man to worship the image of a holy man.

And the Gentile age was issued in with that; it will go out in the same way.

Putting all the emphasis on William Branham. Elevating this holy man. That is a sad mistake.

MATTHEW 10:12   And when ye come into an house, salute it.

Salute the house with a blessing of peace.

MATTHEW 10:13   And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.

Let your peace stay with the worthy people. If they reject your peace, let it return unto you.

If people do not want the truth, then you hang onto the truth that they reject.

The Bride are all members of God’s spiritual house. The spiritual Temple that He has built up over the 2000 years of the seven church ages.

HEBREWS 3:6   But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Each believer is an extra living stone added to God’s spiritual House, which we call the Bride.

MATTHEW 10:14   And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.

:15   Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.

These apostles wanted no material gain. They did not even want the dust that belonged to the unbelievers.

People struggle to believe the Bible because of the church traditions that they have been taught.

People reject or change Scriptures to stay under the headship of the pastor. They will only believe what he says.

65-0220  GOD'S  CHOSEN  PLACE  OF  WORSHIP

They think you have to belong to that certain church or you cannot go to Heaven. That's wrong. To believe that, is antichrist. I'll say this: if you believe such a spirit, you're lost.

HEBREWS 3:15   While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.

Unbelief. Not believing what is written in the Bible is our biggest sin.

HEBREWS 3:18    And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?

The spiritual rest is the rest from sin or unbelief produced by the Holy Spirit baptism that opens our eyes to the truth.

Only the Holy Spirit can guide us into all truth so that we do not go back to our unbelief again.

JOHN 16:13   Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth:

HEBREWS 3:19    So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

HEBREWS 4:1   Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.

We were promised that the mystery of God should be finished at the end.

REVELATION 10:7   But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

The King James Version of the Bible contains the thoughts of God. Thus, the Bible is the Word of God.

You cannot separate God from His thoughts.

If we cannot understand the mysteries of Scripture, then we do not understand God’s thinking. Then we do not have the mind of Christ.

I CORINTHIANS 2:16    But we have the mind of Christ.

The end-time Bride must be restored to the beliefs of the first church age Bride.

They had the mind of Christ.  So, we must also have the mind of Christ.

Thus we must be able to understand the mysteries of the written Bible.

The Bride rests on the written Bible. She will not deviate from what is written

HEBREWS 4:2    For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.

We have to have faith that every word of God is true.

PROVERBS 30:5   Every word of God is pure:

HEBREWS 4:3     For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

The final rest from sin is when the Bride receives their new, immortal bodies. Then they are caught up to meet the Lord in the air. At that stage, they will be immune from sin.

But the foolish virgins who are the fooled church will go into the 3.5 years of great Tribulation. A time of trouble that is greater than any trouble that the world has experienced before.

DANIEL 12:1   And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

Michael is God’s name when He takes on the role of the Archangel.

55-0109  BEGINNING  AND  ENDING  OF  THE  GENTILE  DISPENSATION
"And at that time Michael shall stand, the great prince." Michael was Christ, of course, Who fought the angelic wars in heaven with the devil.

This time of trouble will be the years of great Tribulation.

Only Daniel’s people, the Jews, will be delivered.

Not the foolish virgin Gentile churches. The Gentile churches will perish in horror as that is what it will take to knock all their church-unbelief out of them.

I THESSALONIANS 2:12   That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.

We walk worthy of God when we believe the revealed mysteries of Scripture. When we regard the King James Bible as the Absolute and infallible Truth.

Living a good life does not make us worthy of God. Many atheists and people from other religions also live good lives.

We are expected to live good lives.

We only walk worthy of God when we allow Him to call us to follow His revealed Scriptures.

He wants to call us into His Kingdom. God does not call us to pursue our own will or our church's interests.

I THESSALONIANS 2:13  For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

When we believe what the Bible says, then the Holy Spirit is actually able to work effectively in us. Because then we will only tell people what is written in the Bible. We will not pass on our unscriptural church traditions to them.

But believing the Bible truth will also involve suffering. There is a price to be paid—rejection and persecution from the churches.

Believing the Bible will cause you to be persecuted

I THESSALONIANS 2:14   For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews:

MATTHEW 10:16   Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

We need to have wisdom. It is a mixed-up and turbulent age. There are so much error and confusion to contend with. But the Bride has no desire to harm anybody.

MATTHEW 10:17   But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;

Church people will condemn the Bride.

We have to grow used to rejection, insults, and character assassination.

MATTHEW 10:18   And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.

Over the seven church ages, true Christians have been tried before rulers, kings, and emperors.

MATTHEW 10:19   But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.

Because these Christians had studied the Bible, God reminded them of Bible verses that He wanted them to say.

MATTHEW 10:20   For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.

God always speaks what Scriptural is. So when you say what is written in the Word, it is as if God is speaking through you.

MATTHEW 10:21   And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.

There will be great divisions in the family. The Truth will not make us popular. Strife, tension, and stress will be the affliction that tests Bible believers.

The question that God always asks us. Do you really believe?

Even if you have to endure hardships?

MATTHEW 10:22   And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Claiming that Jesus is the name of Almighty God invokes the hatred of the church world.

The churches have been fooled into thinking that, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” is God's name. When asked what that name is, they suddenly realize that they have no name for their Trinity God. They cannot find one name for three Persons.

At the same time, they cannot abandon their Trinity belief, which has been brainwashed into the churches since the Council of Nicaea in AD 325. Unable to let go of Trinity, because that would result in them being thrown out of the church, they prefer to hate you for questioning the Trinity.

This emphasis on Trinity will continue into the Tribulation.

“But he that endureth to the end shall be saved”.

This is not saved from hell. You got saved from hell when you repented and accepted Jesus as your personal Saviour.

This sentence talks about being saved from the horror of the Tribulation by being caught up to meet the Lord in the air at His Second Coming.

The sudden, savage destruction of the Christians in the churches by the antichrist Pope as the time of great Tribulation starts will totally shatter today’s Christians' faith in their pastors. They will realize, too late, that they have been led into a death trap. That horror will shake their confidence in the Trinity doctrine too.

Moses preaches the Godhead in the Tribulation to the Trinitarians

There will be no church heroes in the time of great Tribulation because the people will realize that their leaders have fooled them.

But two mighty Jewish prophets with the supernatural power to interfere with nature will capture the foolish virgin churches' attention.

Look at the type of preaching they will hear from Moses during this time of great Tribulation.

They sing the song of the Lamb that states that the Lamb is the Lord God Almighty.

REVELATION 15:3   And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.

:4     Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy:

Only the Lamb is holy.

So, there are not two other Holy People in the Godhead.

Thus, the 3.5 years of great Tribulation will be used to correct the churches until they realize that there is no Trinity.

As the Father, Jesus was above the Jews in the Old Testament.

As the Son, Jesus was with the Jews and called Emmanuel. God with us.

MATTHEW 1:23   Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Jesus was the Man on the outside and was known as the Son of God.

I TIMOTHY 3:16   And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh,

The supernatural Spirit of God the Father dwelled in Him bodily.

COLOSSIANS 2:9   For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

The Spirit that was with them in Jesus would come back into them
JOHN 14:17   Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

As the Holy Ghost, God is in His Bride.

Each member has a portion of the Holy Ghost.

Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are the three manifestations of God when He was above, then with, then in His people.

Thus Jesus is the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

Lord is a title.

Christ is also a title that means "Anointed One".

Lord Jesus Christ thus describes all three manifestations of God.

MATTHEW 10:23   But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.

Christians would get used to being persecuted and scattered. That is how the Gospel spread.

Do not elevate any man, however powerful his ministry

MATTHEW 10:24   The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.

Do not promote William Branham to the Godhead. His quotes cannot be placed above Scripture. You cannot make him be the Son of man.

He came to reveal the Son of man, Jesus Christ, walking through the pages of the Bible. He did not come to be the Son of man.

MATTHEW 10:25   It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?

They called Jesus the Prince of devils.

If you believe the truth from Scripture, then you can also expect to be called a devil. Take it as a compliment. Suffering in the same way that Jesus did means that you have got the Devil worried.

MATTHEW 10:26   Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.

People will talk behind your back and condemn you. But one day, their words and schemes will be publicly repeated before everybody on Judgement Day.

MATTHEW 10:27   What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.

Take what Jesus has revealed to you and tell it to people from Scripture.

MATTHEW 10:28   And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

Heathens and atheists can threaten your body but cannot change the beliefs in your soul.

But the churches can threaten your soul by replacing Scripture with man-made quotes.

MATTHEW 10:29   Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.

God is aware of the smallest details in nature.

MATTHEW 10:30   But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

God is aware of the smallest details concerning your personal life.

MATTHEW 10:31   Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

“Fear not” is said about 365 times in the Bible.  That is once for every day of the year.

We should therefore not fear what faces us. God is aware of the smallest details in our trouble-zone.

And He loves us as His Bride. He will not abandon you in your hour of need.

Sparrows are tiny birds. That means that God even looks after the smallest details of your life.

MATTHEW 10:32   Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

We have to develop the courage to stand up for God.

MATTHEW 10:33   But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Denying God when we are under pressure is a long-term disaster that we will bitterly regret.

Bible truth will not bring an easy and peaceful life

MATTHEW 10:34   Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.

Truth is not about living a peaceful life. The Word of God is a sword that attacks sin and unbelief. Thus it will always stir up controversy.

MATTHEW 10:35   For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

Family bonds are easily disrupted when one begins to believe the truth.

MATTHEW 10:36   And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.

Satan can use family members to attack a believer.

MATTHEW 10:37   He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

Never value any family member more than what you value God.

Jesus has to come first in our lives.

If He is not Lord of all then he is not Lord at all.

MATTHEW 10:38   And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

There is a cross to be carried—a price to be paid.

We must follow God’s Will, not our own self-will.

MATTHEW 10:39   He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

When you succeed in all your personal aims, you will find that you have locked God out of your heart.

When you have boosted your church to be the best of all the churches, you will discover that Jesus stands outside the door.

When you have lost material benefits in your endeavours to follow Jesus, then you have laid up treasures in Heaven.

When your faith requires you to lose your life, then you step into eternity with Eternal Life.

We will always have a deep admiration for the martyrs when we are in heaven.

MATTHEW 10:40   He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

You represent Jesus on earth as one of His ambassadors.

Those people who listen to you speaking to them from Scripture are actually receiving Jesus. And because the fulness of the Godhead dwells physically in Him, they are simultaneously receiving God the Father.

Jesus is a Man on the outside, but He is Almighty God on the inside.

God was manifest in the flesh.

God became a Man. The Ideal Man.

7 messengers. 2 were prophets and 5 church ages received 5 righteous men

MATTHEW 10:41   He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward.

If you receive brother Branham as the end-time prophet, your reward will be to benefit from his ministry.

You will be able to understand the Bible mysteries and be ready for the Coming of the Lord.

63-0318  THE  FIRST  SEAL

Takes the Book of Seals and breaks them and shows the seventh angel, for this alone, the mysteries of God, is the ministry of the seventh angel. Now, we just come through the church ages with even history and prove that. See? It is the angel's message of the seventh church.

The main purpose of his ministry was to reveal the hidden mysteries that are written in the Bible.

63-0318  THE  FIRST  SEAL

All right, reveals all the mysteries that's been in the past, all the things in the past: Revelations 10:1-7. That's to be.

The mysteries came down from God as the revealed Word of God.

When the Bride can prove these mysteries from the Bible, then the mighty Angel of Revelation Chapter 10 will come down to perform the resurrection.

The benefit or reward that we get from accepting brother Branham as the end-time prophet is our ability to understand the mysteries of Scripture. He revealed the meaning of enough patterns and symbols to unveil the past history of both the true church and the antichrist spirits.

Revelation Chapter 10 was revealed by him to be the future resurrection of the dead that is produced by the voice of the mighty Archangel.

64-0119  SHALOM

When that Angel, of Revelation the 10th chapter, puts one foot on land and one on the sea, and a rainbow over His head, He swore, "time shall be no more." When that time comes, you will rise up from among the dead. While the rest of them lay there, you will go in.

REVELATION 10:1   And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:

"His feet as pillars of fire".

The Pillar of Fire represents great spiritual power. Something big is about to happen.

The "rainbow" represents the righteous dead from the seven church ages.

“His face as the sun”. The bright illumination of revealed Scripture.

Saint Paul was a prophet to the first church age.

William Branham was a prophet to the seventh church age.

All the other messengers were righteous men.

So, those believers who received the messenger's teachings for their age will receive their righteous reward by being part of the Bride's resurrection. Even though they did not understand the deeper mysteries of the Bible.

But the first and the last church age believers obtained an extra prophet’s reward in that they were also granted a prophetic insight into the mysteries of the Bible.

The shout, voice, and trump are in the future

We will never really grasp what great importance God attaches to having His Bride understand the mysteries of Scripture.

Thereby, the 7^th church age Bride triggers the resurrection when they can finally understand the Bible mysteries and thus believe what the first church age believed.

65-1127   I  HAVE  HEARD  BUT  NOW  I  SEE

Dear God, in this solemn moment, it's going to be a time like this when there really will be a clap of thunder someday, and the Son of God shall descend from the heavens with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and the trump of God, the dead in Christ shall rise.

One month before he died and brother Branham is still waiting for the “shout” to happen.

The "shout" was not brother Branham revealing the mysteries.

The "shout" is when the Bride is able to understand those mysteries and prove them from the written Bible for themselves. Not just repeating a quote like a parrot without any understanding.

[Remember the message pastors who claimed to have a quote that predicted that Hillary Clinton would win the presidential election in 2016. Many of those same pastors had a quote that the Lord was coming in 1977].

You must be able to establish the quotes in the Bible.

There is also that mysterious first Thunder that brother Branham was waiting for. We have no idea what that will be when it happens.

But when the Bride can understand, just from Scripture, what the written mysteries are, that will cause a "shout" that brings Christ as the Archangel down to perform the "voice" of the resurrection.

So the next major event that is promised is the "voice of the Archangel".

I THESSALONIANS 4:16   For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

Do not be fooled; we were never promised the Voice of God at the end time.

The “trump” of God. President Trump’s name is a sign of the times. We are getting towards the end.

He fulfilled a prophecy by recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

God is turning back to the Jews, which means that the time of the Gentiles is almost finished.

REVELATION 10:2   And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,

“a little book open”.

The Bride can read the Bible with understanding as brother Branham’s revelations made it possible for us to understand the deep mysteries written in there.

The sea and the earth are where the saints from the seven church ages are buried.

The voice of the resurrection triggers the 7 Thunders

REVELATION 10:3   And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

When Jesus resurrected Lazarus, He “cried with a loud voice”.

JOHN 11:43   And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

This is the voice of the Archangel that raises the dead.

REVELATION 10:3   And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

The Lion of the tribe of Judah does His roar of triumph as He raises His seven-church-age Bride from their graves in earth and sea. Satan can no longer hurt the Bride members who are in their immortal bodies.

REVELATION 10:3   And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

“When he had cried”. This indicates the resurrection of the dead New Testament saints.

MATTHEW 27:50   Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

There was an earthquake, and the Old Testament saints rose from the dead.

A massive earthquake will accompany the resurrection—a really turbulent and troubled time.

MATTHEW 27:51   And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

:52     And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,

:53     And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

It will not be easy to recognize the resurrected saints.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, did not recognize Him when He rose from the dead. She thought that He was a gardener.

51-0509  TESTIMONY

And now, I'm thinking of the great morning of the resurrection after He went from mortal to immortality. He rose up from the grave. His poor little old disciples scattered about like sheep without a shepherd... Standing by the tomb, stood His dear mother, weeping. Daylight was breaking; doves was flying around, cooing. He said, "Mary." She recognized Him.

61-0424  THE  GREATEST  NEWS   FLASH  IN  HISTORY

Now, the message is, He goes before us: before us. He's not in a tomb behind us; He's before us, making a way. We are to follow, not to look back to the tomb, but to look forward to where's He's leading, for He is our Leader. We're to follow Him, not look back to the tombs.

Mary, that morning well represented the bewildered church. She well represented it, because she was in the same channel it sits in today. What did she say when she heard Him speak? "Mary, what... Woman, why weepest thou?"

She said, "They have took away my Lord, and I don't know what they've done with Him."

Mary was bewildered, representing the bewildered church in the turbulent times of the resurrection.

She did not recognize her own resurrected Son.

So, the resurrection will be a very confusing time.

JOHN 20:14    And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.

:15   Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.

:16   Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.

REVELATION 10:3   And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

Seven mysterious Thunders utter after the New Testament resurrection.

These Thunders will be so unexpected and so unusual that the Bride will be staggered by what is happening. But we must be able to spot the Scriptural clues.

Moving into the unknown will demand patience, caution, and a readiness for the unexpected.

At His First Coming, there were only 40 days between the resurrection of Jesus and His Ascension to Heaven.

If this pattern repeats at His Second Coming then we can expect approximately 40 days between the resurrection of the New Testament saints and the Rapture or Catching Up to meet the Lord in the air.

That will be the time when we have to get our guidance from the mysterious 7 Thunders.

Somehow these mystery Thunders are hidden in the Bible without actually being written.

We will really need to be able to understand the Bible to discern the 7 Thunders when they utter.

63-0318  THE  FIRST  SEAL

He'd been commissioned to write everything he seen. But when these seven thunders over in Revelations 10 uttered, he said, "Don't write them at all." They're mysteries.

… God said, "Hold it back now. Wait a minute. I'll reveal it in that day. Don't write it at all, John, 'cause they'll stagger over it. Just let it go. (See?) But I'll reveal it in that day when it has need to done."

So, there is no way that we will puzzle out in advance what these seven Thunders mean.

Eating the little Book at the time of the 7 Thunders

The Angel held a “little Book”. That implies that very few will believe the full Bible truth.

REVELATION 10:10   And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

It was bitter in his belly. When the 7 Thunders enable us to digest the real truth by understanding the Bible.

These 7 Thunders will guide us to get our bodies changed.

Not just repeating quotes like a parrot that cannot understand.  This final truth will be very different from what we expected and will be a bitterly unpopular and bitter process that the majority will avoid. Once we are in our new, immortal bodies, then we can get rapturing faith. These old bodies of ours cannot be raptured.

But strength comes from the Lord, and His praises will be sweet in our mouths once we are changed into our new bodies. And we will be believing the same doctrines that John believed and wrote down in the first church age.

62-1230  IS  THIS  THE  SIGN  OF  THE  END  SIR

What if it is something to let us know how to enter into the Rapturing Faith? Is it? Will we run, leap over walls? And is there something fixing to happen, and these old, marred, vile bodies are going to be changed? Can I live to see it, O Lord? Is it so close that I'll see it? Is this the generation? Sirs, my brethren, what time is it? Where are we at?

...  Is that really them Seven Thunders, fixing to utter out something, that the little group that is gathered together will receive a Rapturing Faith, to go in the Rapture when He comes?

63-0724  GOD  DOESN'T  CALL  MAN  TO  JUDGMENT  WITHOUT  FIRST  WARNING  HIM

Leap over the "wall" between natural and Supernatural, and go into the arms of God, into that great Eternity. Lord God, we thank You for this. We know the time is approaching at hand.

II SAMUEL 22:30   ... by my God have I leaped over a wall.

The Bride will leap over the wall of time into eternity.

Nebuchadnezzar saw a Gentile image representing four Gentile nations.

The feet represented the seven church ages.

A Stone then struck the feet and destroyed the image. This Stone represents the Coming of the Lord.

The Capstone comes because the mighty Angel has raised the dead from the seven church ages.

61-0806  THE  SEVENTIETH  WEEK  OF  DANIEL

when that Stone strikes the image, the church will flee to It.

The Stone that smites the image destroys the Gentile image.

The Stone that rescues the Bride will destroy the church and the world systems. That will make the Bride extremely unpopular.

The Jews are outside the Gentile image. In the 3.5 years of great Tribulation, the Gentile churches and nations are destroyed. The Gospel will then go to Israel to pull out the 144000 Jews.

MATTHEW 10:42   And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

57-0806  GOD  PROJECTING  HIS  LOVE

Now, it's different with Jesus. No matter how little or small a thing that you do in His Name, He knows all about it. It might seem insignificant, but yet if it's done in His Name, no matter how little... He once said, "If you will give to one of these My servants, as much as a cup of cold water, only in the name of a disciple, verily, verily I say unto you, you shall not lose your reward." So it doesn't matter how little that you do, Christ always sees the little things that we do. And I'm so glad of that (Aren't you?), that He sees the little things we do. And this little portion of Scripture, if it's properly received, He will understand.

So, a small deed of kindness impresses God.

There is also a deeper spiritual meaning. Life-giving water represents the Word.

So, if we offer a bit of doctrine that a disciple wrote into the Bible, then we are helping that person.

We should always be quoting the Scriptures—that which the disciples wrote down.

There is no better way to help another person.

The importance of being Scriptural.

Staying with what the Scriptural disciples wrote.