The sign of His coming

Preached on Saturday, 7th April 1962 at the Church Of Faith in Cleveland, Tennessee, U.S.A. (2 hours and 33 minutes)

E-1 Thank you, Brother Littlefield. You may be seated. Somehow it kinda seems like coming home to be back in this lovely church tonight (and I had the grand privilege of dedicating this to the work of the Lord some time ago); and to be here with my most gracious Brother Littlefield and his flock here; and be back in good old Cleveland, Tennessee, where there’s always a nice, good, warm handshake. Certainly feel good about it tonight.
I called, or had contact with Brother Littlefield some time ago, and he said, “Brother Branham, what about coming up and seeing us again?”
I said, “All right, Brother Littlefield. I’ll be glad to do that. I’m going away now, but when I get back around April, I’ll contact you.”

E-2 We got in from Arizona, and then went down to Florida, and just got back. And I called him that night. Him and his precious little wife had done went to bed. But I–I’m up all hours, as ministers are, and so I thought, “Well, it won’t be too late to call a preacher, you know. He’s–he’s usually ready at any time.” And–and he was… His wife answered the phone, and he was almost in the arms of Morpheus (you know, the noble one of sleep). So he was… I told him that I’d be coming up, if the Lord willing, for this Saturday night and Sunday morning, and it’s certainly a grand privilege to come back.

E-3 I want to express my gratefulness to the City View Motel, and the Lehi Motel for their kind courtesy that they are showing to us also here in the city, by even donating rooms to us. And–and the people that’s with us, they’ve given them discounts and things like that on the rooms. You know, this would be a good place to live (That’s right.), when they treat Christians like that. Be a good place for a–a good old fashion, Pentecostal, God-sent revival to start, wouldn’t it? Sure would. Coming up down here, and seeing this is the Church of God, the headquarters, down the road here a little ways, I noticed on the right hand side a big campgrounds. And–and been a great place here. So it’s a good place for a revival.

E-4 I just been taking some of that through some study in the–at home, here Sunday before… About three Sundays ago, I believe it is now, I preached one of my ordinary Sunday morning services (just six hours, you know) on it. And I–and that’s what it was: six hours. Believe it. And so… I–I can’t get started under about three, you know. And then after you get warmed up, and get running, you know, and then you can’t–don’t know no place to stop at. There’s no brakes on–on–on the Gospel, you know. You just don’t have a stopping place. So we had a glorious time.
And then Sunday, I believe last Sunday, we had about another three hour on teaching of the Word, that what day that we’re living in, and the times we’re living in. And it’s been glorious to us, to see the Scripture speaking just where we’re at: go back and bring up the prophecy, show what they did, what right now is here, and what THUS SAITH THE LORD is for the future, coming. See? And we know that it is true. Never can fail because it’s in the Word, and the Word is always correct.

E-5 Now, wish we had about a–time for a few nights, about eight or ten nights here in this lovely country, and advertise it around all the churches for fellowship and come together. But we can’t do that. I’m going now to–right away to Canada, with the Indians, way back up in the country, I–very far away. And I, last fall was with a little missionary from over there, and I noticed that… He was out of a lovely home, but his arms and under here, and around, was all red. And I asked what it was. It was where fleas and bedbugs had eat on him from being with the Indians out there. You know, you just have to live with them.

E-6 In Africa I would eat, when they just… I don’t see how in the world I could do it. Just God had to help me, that was all. But you have to do it anyhow. You see? And so, people who missionary go through a lot of things that’s unpleasant. But we have to be all things to all people, that we might win some to Christ.
And I felt so sorry for Eddie, and his children that way too, and little Eddie Byskal and his wife, lovely woman out of a nice lovely home. Her father owns a big company, and president of it, and everything, and then give their lives out like that. It certainly takes God to do that, Brother Littlefield. That’s really sacrifice.

E-7 And they’re nearly all Catholic over there, so they… They–they brought the Chief along and four or five of the Indians. And they walked right in on the ground, and the Holy Spirit moved right down and told those people, and healed them right there. And now, they’re just about to burn that coast up and down. They’re commercial fishermen, and they get in their boats and go out (the only way you can go is in the boats), go out a long way in above Vancouver off of Queen Victoria Island. And you go up towards Alaska, along that coast up in there. There’s where we’re going. Then come back over to Fort St. John off the Alaskan highway, then back.

E-8 And then, coming up here to visit you, just above here to Southern Pines. That’s I think, the 6th, 7th, and 8th–or 8th, 9th, and 10th of June, and then, the 11th and 12th with Brother Bigsby. I’m sure many of you know him down in Columbia, I believe it is, South Carolina. And then, we go from there to the–to the Cow Palace in Southgate, Los Angeles, where we’re expecting a big meeting there.
And so we’re… Then from there on up through California into Oregon, Washington, and then Anchorage, Alaska. And then coming back, the Lord willing, for this fall then, seeing then where the Lord will lead us–no special leading to any of it–just sowing seed, that’s all, until we get a leading to do something. We certainly trust that you’ll pray for us.

E-9 Now, your most kind and generous pastor has give me the privilege of having the Sunday school in the morning, so I thought tonight we would base a thought for prayer for the sick tonight, and pray for the sick; and in the morning have a Sunday school lesson. Now, that’s nice, when a man will turn his pulpit twice in a row like that on his weekend service. God bless Brother Littlefield. He’s just a wonderful, wonderful Christian brother. And so we’ll be looking for you. If you don’t have a post of duty in the morning, why, visit with us. But I thought tonight would be good to pray for the sick, ’cause there might be… Now, we kept it from being scattered out so that… Our church is little. He wanted to get an auditorium. Brother Littlefield has been real nice to bring all the people. And I said, “Brother Littlefield, I don’t have long enough to stay. Just let’s have it at your little church.”

E-10 There’s something about a church that’s sacred. I–I like a church, don’t you? You know, you go to these auditoriums… We appreciate them now. They’re nice, and the people that let us have them, the trustees and so forth. But look what you have there: you have all kinds of vulgarity, entertainments of all kinds of the world, and–and demon spirits hang around there. See? And it’s just a–a brought in by demons. And then… And you get to a church, the Holy Spirit’s there. You see? And so, it’s just a–it’s just something different about the–coming to a church.

E-11 Just thinking here about… I was thinking today, or the other day I wrote down something after on my road out to Arizona, where the–the Lord had showed me something was going to happen. And–and I usually write down, if I don’t speak it to the people. I couldn’t tell all that He shows in those things. But now, the Holy Spirit… Here’s the Bible, this–this is His house where He–He stays, and dwells with you people here, and He knows this to be truth.

E-12 About six weeks ago, one morning, I guess about… I was on my road to Arizona with Brother Sothmann and Brother Wood, two of the trustees of the church at the Tabernacle at Jeffersonville, and I saw a vision of a strange thing. There were two men, and they were both kind of well-trimmed-up men, and they were both kind of fighters. They had on regular clothes, but they were kind of real fighters. They wanted to fight. And they had a grudge against each other, and one of them…
They’d got into a–it looked like it was in New York. I could see myself coming down there towards the–the arenas, and so forth, where I preach so much. And looked like there was a little hole, round place like this, of a place they’d got into. And they started fighting, and one killed the other one. And I seen, looked like something damp, or water. And then they had, looked like a cellophane something, that was put over one’s feet. Everything got real quiet, and it was sad. They’d killed… One had killed the other one in a feud. And I thought, “Well, I don’t know exactly what that means, Lord.” I just kinda jotted it down, and I…
You all know what taken place the other day: two welterweight fighters in New York, fighting it out, and one killed the other one. You see? And…

E-13 He’s really good, isn’t He, letting us know these things? ‘Course that doesn’t… Reason… It didn’t look like it pertained to the church, so I just let it go. Just awhile ago… I never learned of it till just awhile ago. And I was thinking, “Yes, sir, and I got that wrote down on my little book there,” See? that that something.
I didn’t know what it was. I seen them step down. ‘Course that hole, like they went in that place, was the ring they were in, and they were fighting the feud out, and one killed the other. So another feud, both in the same… When–when athletics and sports gets to that, it’s time to leave them alone. That’s right. Another Cain and Abel affair (You see?), there to see brother kill brother. But we’re so glad that we’re trying to restore brothers back to the faith that was once delivered to the saints.

E-14 Now, there’s people standing, and we don’t want to keep them too long. And I have a–some Scripture here I want to read, and some notes that, in here are little comments of something, and Scriptures written down that I’d like to speak from for a little while. And if we will, let’s bow our heads first, just for a word of prayer.
And now to those who are present and would like to be remembered in prayer, would you just slip up your hand to God and say, “Now, just remember me. Lord.” He sees every hand, these young people, young girls, boys, young and old. We all know that we’re facing eternity.

E-15 Our heavenly Father, again tonight we are approaching Thy–Thy seat of mercy, for we have been bidden by our Lord to come, saying, “If you will ask the Father anything in My Name, I’ll do it.” Now, we know that those Words are true, so we are coming to the seat of mercy while it’s still sprinkled with the Blood of the Lord Jesus, crying out, “Father, forgive them.” For, Father, truly we do walk sometimes and stumble as it was, because we’re walking in a dark world. And all that we have is just the light of the Gospel, the Holy Spirit, to guide us, or we’d tumble off into dark eternity without a hope, without God.
But we’re so glad that Thou has made a way for those who’s been called to the wedding supper. And what a privilege it is tonight to be assembled with a group, those people setting present now, that’s been invited to the wedding supper, dressing, making ready now for the wedding to come. We’re so thankful for this.
And there’s much need in the land tonight, Lord, a need in the church. You seen those precious hands and knowed the thing that was behind that hand, resting in the heart. God, look down into each individual’s heart and answer their request. That’s my prayer to Thee, Father.

E-16 We thank Thee for this church, and for its glorious survival. In the time of darkness, yet it stands as a lighthouse, a light that’s set on a hill that shines out its rays out across the country, that weary, sin sick people might come in and sojourn with us to a better land.
God, bless its pastor, our precious brother. And we pray for his trustee board, deacon board, and for every member and every person that’s sojourning here with these people, for these great churches through the country here, the Church of God and its great standing internationally, both of them. And, God, someday we believe the time will come when we’ll be one, united together in the power of the Holy Spirit. Grant it, Lord. Plant the seeds now in this former rain, that when the latter rain begins to fall it’ll bring forth ripened Gospel seeds. Grant it, Lord.
Bless us tonight now, Your unprofitable servant, as we endeavor to speak a few moments on these Words that lays before us. We ask that You’ll give us a context of the text. We ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

E-17 Now, we would like for you to… In this, in speaking tonight, I am trying to build around the Gospel in the day that we are living, the light of this day for Divine healing. For I believe that God has poured out His Spirit, and this is the hour of deliverance for those who are seeking such. In the book of Jeremiah, the 10th chapter, the 2nd verse.
Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathens are dismayed at them.
Learn not the way of the heathen… (now,)… and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; the heathens are dismayed at them.
Now, we would like to speak on the subject of–of “The Signs of His Coming.”

E-18 I’ve noticed, especially from you, the Church of God people up here in–in Cleveland and around (I think it’s their churches that I see along the road), when I thought of this subject, “Be ready. Jesus Christ is coming soon.” I think that’s kind of a slogan among them.
Well, now, we know that God through all ages has always… First before He does anything, He first warns the people and gives them a sign of the approaching thing that’s coming. Nature does that itself. The weather warms before spring, it cools before winter, and, oh, we could just go on and on saying, that all nature… So therefore, it behooves the Creator of nature to also cast forth a wonder or a sign of something that’s fixing to happen. Therefore it makes His judgments just, because you are forewarned.

E-19 Now, if a man runs through a stoplight, and he’s got a caution as he’s coming up and it turns red, now he knows better. Now, if there’s no stoplight there, then it’s the city’s fault, or ever who doesn’t have the stop sign should’ve put it there.
But God will always give a sign of warning (See?), before something happens. And I believe with all my heart, as I have been digging this last year more than ever upon the approaching Christ, the coming of the Lord… Now, that’s either the truth, or it isn’t the truth. The Bible is either right, or It isn’t right. And know… I just believe the Bible.

E-20 Now, God’s got to judge the world someday by something. And if He’s going to judge it by the church, then what church is He going to judge it by?
The Catholic church says, “We’re it.” The Lutheran says, “We’re it.” The Methodists said, “We’re it.” The Baptists said, “We’re it.” The Pentecostals said, “We’re it.” And there’s about thirty, or forty, or maybe fifty different “its” in that “it, (See?), branches of it. So who is “it”?
Now, there’s so much confusion there, till a man could not base any faith upon confusion. If you’re confused about whether the girl you was going to marry was going to be a lady or not, you better leave her alone: same thing to the man. You’ve got to have something to base faith on.

E-21 Not long ago, talking to a priest, he said, “Well,” he said… I was telling him about… He… Some woman that went to my church, I’d baptized her daughter. And she’d married into a Catholic family and wanted to be–become a Catholic. And she’d already been baptized. So he asked me about, did I baptize the girl?
And I said, “Yes.”
He said, “Did you sprinkle her?”
I said, “I give her Christian baptism (See?) by immersing.”
He said, “You know, the Catholic church used to do that.”
I said, “When?”
He said, “Well, in Jesus Christ and the apostles.”
I said, “Do you say that was the Catholic church?”
He said, “Yes, sir.”
I said, “Give me a history to show that the Catholic church ever existed before six hundred and six years after the death of the last apostle.” I said, “Here’s the Nicene Fathers, pre-Nicene, post-Nicene, Pember’s ‘Two…,’ Pember’s ‘Early Ages,’ Hislop’s ‘Two Babylons,’ Foxe’s ‘Book of the Martyrs,’ oh, Broadbent’s ‘Early church,’ all the sacred histories I know of laying here. Show me one page, any time,” See?

E-22 He said, “You’re trying to argue from a Scriptural standpoint.” Said, “We don’t care what–so much what that is. God is in His church. We’re the church.”
I said, “If you’re the holy church, then why don’t you stay with what the Bible said? If you say they was the ones set the church in order, and you change it.”
Said, “We have rights to change the order of the church. God give us the right.”
I said, “Then, if those apostles were Catholic… Say they were. And then, they did the things they did with the order they had it in, you better get back to that order again.” That’s right.
He said, “God is in His church, mister.”
I said, “God is in His Word. Not only in His Word, but He is the Word. Right. He is the Word. God is the Word.”

E-23 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made manifest, dwelled among us.” Right here among us, the Word of God, the Spoken Seed, from the very garden of Eden, when “every seed shall bring forth of its kind.” That’s right. When Eve got perverted, and listened to a lie of the devil, and took a wrong seed in the womb of her soul to believe one word twisted…
You don’t want to twist any Word of God. Say just what the Bible said. The Bible said that this–no prophecy is of any private interpretation. Why? The prophecy was given by the prophets, and the Word of the Lord came to the prophets. They interpret It just the way it was. So there’s no argument with it.

E-24 Then in Revelation 21 we find out that God said–or 22, I believe it is, said, “Whosoever shall take away, or add to the prophecies of this Book…” So it’s absolutely God’s Word, and the world will be judged by this Word. So we don’t want to twist It. We don’t want to make It say anything more, or anything less. Just say it just the way it is, and believe it like that. And I’ve found out that it’ll produce just exactly, because every seed shall bring forth of its kind.
Now, if Eve… Now, she didn’t disbelieve it. She was seeking wisdom. And the devil’s always trying to put a little private interpretation, a little wisdom on the Word. “It means this, or it means that.” It means just exactly what God said it did, and let’s just say it like that, and that settles it. That’s the way I believe it, and I know that it’s true, because He manifests it and proves that it’s true. See?

E-25 Now, if one little twist of God’s Word caused every death, every sorrow, every heartache, everything, the troubles we’ve been through, just to twist one little Word of God, and they didn’t get by with it…
It’s cost us six thousand years of heartaches, and even the Son of God that come to the earth and died to redeem the human race. Every war, every heartache, every unwedded mother, everything that ever happened wrong in the world was because one person disbelieved, believed ninety-nine and ninety-nine percent of God’s Word, and just twisted a little teeny bit at the end, and caused all this. Then one twist anywhere… Don’t think you’ll ever get back anything less than the entire Word of God. Believe It. Stand on It. We got to say just as It said.

E-26 So God approaches His people by signs and wonders. Now, lean not the way of the heathens.” Now, the heathen is actually, by the interpretation, is unbeliever. See? Learn not the way of the heathen, the unbeliever. Stay away from him. See? Don’t fellowship with it at all. He’s a unbeliever; let him be marked an unbeliever. Can dark… Can light and darkness exist at the same time? Can it be dark when the sun’s a shining? Never. Which is the most powerful? Can dark put out the sun? No, sir. The sun puts out the darkness (See?), light. That’s right and wrong. So wrong can never exist in the state of truth, and neither can a lie exist in the–in the face of the truth. The truth is always the same. A lie twists around and is still a lie. See? So just, it’s truth.

E-27 And do not learn the way of the unbeliever. Now, if he’s an unbeliever, let him be what he wants to be; but you be a believer. “Heathen” means “unbeliever,” somebody who does not believe what? Oh, say, “I believe God.” If you don’t believe God’s Word, then you don’t believe God. That’s right.
“He that says he loves Me, and keeps not My commandments is a liar, and the truth’s not in him.” So then, we got to believe God’s Word. That proves we love God, when we believe His Word. If you say that you loved me, and didn’t do what I said, or keep my saying; or I said I loved you, and vice versa, why (You see?), it would prove we didn’t do it. We had not confidence in one another. So the–the creation has got to have confidence in the Creator, and through that puts a union.

E-28 It’s just like taking a wire and connecting it with a–a dynamo, where there’s current; or taking a wire and sticking it in a socket where there is no current. See, it’s the difference; it’s just a dead wire; no matter how much socket it’s in, it’s still… If there’s no current in there, it’s still a dead wire. And as long as we’re trying to connect up with something that hasn’t got any life or any truth in it, it’ll still be a dead thunder with no lightning in it. That’s right. But we got to get connected with the Word, the Word of God. That’s the truth of God.

E-29 And He said don’t lean their way, don’t learn their ways. Keep away from them. Keep away from them. And dismayed… Do not be dismayed, for they are dismayed. Dismayed comes from the word of discouraged. What is it? The unbeliever is discouraged. What with? The signs of heaven. It just makes an unbeliever just pouting angry, when you speak about signs and wonders and so forth. They don’t believe in it. You go to talking about Divine healing: “Oh, our church don’t teach that. We keep away from that.” Baptism of the Holy Ghost: “Oh, that was just for the apostles only.” See? Don’t learn their ways. Stay away from them. Learn the Word, stay with the Word. The Word is Truth.
Now, don’t learn their ways, because they are dismayed with the signs of heaven. That’s just exactly what the Bible said here in Jeremiah the 10th chapter and the 2nd verse, and the last phrase of the verse. Said, “They are dismayed with them.” They are–they are discouraged with them. They just… It discourages them.

E-30 Now, if it discourages them, the signs discourages and dismays them, it encourages the believer. That’s right. What… It discourages one. Because why? He believes the Word. It is the–encourage the believer in the Scriptural truth. Signs… Remember I’m speaking on the signs of His appearing in this generation. Now… And then, if we can show here in the Scripture that this is the generation that will see the coming of the Lord, then… Or we’ll… What?
“Oh,” you say, “Are you sure of that?”
Well, I… We’ll just look to see what the signs point to (See?) see how close we are. If the signpost says you are nearing, just a few miles away, you better be getting ready, because it may be just a few hours away. See? But He told us what would take place just before this time, and that’s what we’re going to look at.

E-31 Now, to the unbeliever, he’s dismayed with God’s signs of heaven. He’s–he… It discourages him. He don’t want to think about it. He wouldn’t teach it in his church. He wouldn’t let his people believe it. See? He–he–he’s dismayed. He don’t want the thing around him at all. He wouldn’t let a preacher in his pulpit believe such. That’s right.
I was turned down by a Pentecostal group last week, where thousands of letters pouring in and everything because they were dismayed. See? That’s right: Pentecostal, not Presbyterian now, Pentecostal, dismayed, it worried them, about signs of heaven, wonders appearing: dismayed.

E-32 But to the believer, it’s a vindication of the truth of God’s Word that speaks of the coming sign. Amen. It vindicates God’s Word to be the truth. That’s to the believer. Amen. The unbeliever, he’s worried, dismayed, discouraged. “Oh, such a outfit,” he will say. “You don’t mean you belong to a thing like that.” See? He’s just discouraged with it. And–but to the believer, it’s, oh, it’s honey in the rock. It’s a vindication.

E-33 Some time ago I was reading a little article of a man that went over… He liked blackbirds, and he had a field full of strawberries because the blackbirds like strawberries. And he liked to see the birds come every spring, and up there in the north. And we have some dandy strawberries up in northern part of our nation.
And so, he went away and let the place out. And the neighbors come in, and thought they’d keep the birds out and get the strawberries, ’cause the old man wasn’t coming back. So they put a big scarecrow out there in the field. And to amazement, walking down the road…

E-34 When the blackbirds returned, thinking they’d get a good fill of strawberries, there was some of them setting way up in a tree, just chirping and going on; here set some down on the telegraph wires; they were chirping, some setting on the fence post, chirping. What was the mutter? All that commotion, and what they was chirping about… There was plenty of strawberries. It wasn’t because there was no strawberries, there was a big crop. But they was afraid of the scarecrow; that’s all.
And I thought, “That’s just about the way it is with people, though. The devil will put some old scarecrow out there, and scare every–every dove in the country away, if he can, or every eagle, I might say, if possible. Yes, sir. He will do some old scarecrow and get everybody afraid. You see? And…

E-35 But to my surprise, right on the arm of that scarecrow set two big, healthy birds just eating blackberries, or strawberries, till who wouldn’t have it. See? I thought, “That’s right. There’s no condemnation to them that’s in the patch.” That’s one thing, sure. Yes, sir. They… Why, they didn’t pay a bit more attention to that scarecrow than nothing. They set right there and eat just the same, because it was strawberries, and it was there for them.
And God bless that man or woman who can walk around every unbelieving scarecrow that tries to point something this or that, go right on in the patch, because there’s a good crop (Amen.), right in season. Go right into the patch now. No condemnation to them big birds that can go right on in there and not afraid of the scarecrow.

E-36 A vindication of God’s Word being true, God bears record of His Word by His signs. God’s Word is a Seed, and that Seed has to bring forth of Its kind (Genesis 1:11), every seed of its kind. And Jesus said that the Word of God was a Seed that a sower sowed. So then, every promise in the Bible has to produce its kind. Amen.
Now, how you going to get away from it? When they say there’s no such a thing as the Holy Ghost in this day, that I was only give to the apostles, when Peter said on the day of Pentecost, when they’d all received the Holy Ghost… Now, look what they were doing. According to Isaiah and all the prophets that prophesied the Holy Ghost would be poured out… Now, here’s a man under inspiration with the Holy Ghost. He said, “The promise is unto you, and to your children, and to them that’s far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” Now, if you’re scared of the scarecrows you’ll never get it. See? But if you’re not afraid, come right on in behind the scarecrow. No matter what’s done this and that, that has nothing to do with you or God’s Word. Just stay right with the Word.

E-37 Now, the signs are a vindication of the true Word. God in all ages has said that. Now, some of you might want to take down some of these Scriptures. If you do, put Hebrews 2:4 there. You see that–that God has vindicated, vindicated His messengers. “God in sundry times and divers manners,” Hebrews starts out, “spoke unto the fathers by the prophets, in this last days through His Son, Christ Jesus.” See? And seeing that, them had the Gospel preached to them way back long ago, and had signs and wonders to vindicate that; then how much more should we hold on after God with divers signs and wonders and gifts of the Holy Ghost? Oh, divers of signs, the signs that Jesus Christ showed that He was here on earth, Who He was, and what He was, and the–and the purpose He was here from.

E-38 No wonder He said, “You can discern the face of the skies, but the signs of the time you cannot discern. If you’d have knowed Me, you’d have knowed My day.” See? That’s what’s the matter today. People realize–fail to recognize the day that we’re living in. These things has to be this a way. There’s nothing out of order; everything’s running perfect.

E-39 Preached not long ago on a little subject, Hebrews, I beg your pardon, Matthew 11:6. It’s… I call it, I believe, “The–The–The Hidden Beatitude.” It was Jesus speaking, when John’s disciples come over to Him, you know, and said…
John got a little worried down there, because he had preached that there was a Christ coming. (Now, this would be good for Pentecostal brethren.) There was a Christ coming. John stood out there with the axe laid to the root of the tree, and the snakes a-running. That’s what he was taught. He was in the wilderness. He didn’t have any seminary experience. So only thing he knowed was the axe in the wilderness and a bunch of snakes. And that’s what he classed everything as (See?), what he’d seen in the wilderness. And so he–he knowed a snake had to flee when it was run.

E-40 So then, he said to the Pharisees, “You generation of snakes, who’s warned you to flee from the wrath that’s to come.” See? So standing out there he said, “He will thoroughly purge His floor. He will gather up the wheat into His garner, and He will–He will sweep her clean, and He will burn the chaff with unquenchable fire, and the axe is laid to the root of the tree.” Oh, my. What a Messiah coming.
But then, when He got there, little, meek, gentle Fellow, shoulders stooped down. The Bible said, “No beauty we should desire Him, Man of sorrow, acquainted with grief.”
When John got in prison he got to thinking about all of this, what… But he said, “I’m sure I seen the right sign. Now, now, He told me in the wilderness, upon Whom I shall see that Spirit descending and remaining on, that’s the One that’ll baptize with the Holy Ghost and fire. I seen that sign. I bear record that’s the truth. That’s the Son of God. But maybe He… A fellow acting like this, it must be something wrong. I–I better go find out.” He sent some of his disciples.

E-41 Jesus never said, “Now, wait a minute. I’m going to send John back a–a book that we just got from the seminary, on how to behave yourself in jail for righteousness’ sake.” No. He never said, “Tell him he ought to have took two more years in college, like his daddy did.” He never even went to college to begin with, never even went to school.
His daddy and mother died when he was just a boy. At nine years old he went into the wilderness, ’cause he had a message that come from God, not from some manmade creed. He… It had to come from God. And his–his day was too important just to fool around with a little seminary experience like his daddy had (‘course he was a priest). And he never went to his daddy’s school; he went to the wilderness, so he could get God’s school.

E-42 God told him exactly. “Now, this can’t be no mistake, John. You’ve got to let–wait for this sign. When you see this sign appearing there, like the Holy Spirit falling like a cloud of fire, and the wings of a dove coming down, that’s the One.” John said, “I saw him. But He don’t act like that. So go find out.”
So Jesus said, “I’ll tell you. Don’t go back yet, and don’t take a book or nothing.” He said, “Just stay till the service is over. Wait till the evening service is finished.” Then when they went back, He said, “Go show John (Amen.) I’m right on time. I’m not behind time, and everything’s just in order.” Amen. See?
That’s the way we get today. We think something’s happened. It isn’t. He’s right on time (Amen.), not behind time at all. Everything’s running just exactly right, right on time. “Just go show John what’s taking place and tell him, “Blessed is he who’s not offended in Me.” Then after he got gone…

E-43 I like that comment. See, John had paid Jesus one of the lowest comments: asked Him “If you are the One…” See? But Jesus knowed his condition, how he’d suffered and laid there in jail. And as Pember said, “His eagle eye got filmed over.” So I guess, maybe laying there, his prophetic gift wasn’t working just right, laying there in jail, knowed he was going to get his head cut off in a little while, and…
But Jesus turned around and paid him the greatest compliment that anybody could pay him. He said, “What went ye out to see? Yeah. What’d you go out to see? A reed shaken with any wind?” Not John. No, no. Said, “Did you go to see a man from the seminary with a tuxedo on, his round collar, you know?” He said, “Them wears them kind of clothes belongs to kiss the babies, and you know, and marry the young, and bury the dead.” Said, “They hang around king’s palaces,” and DD., Ph., LL., QU., you know, and all that, you know. And see, that’s that kind. “But what did you go to see? A prophet?” He said, “I say to you, and more than a prophet.” Yes, sir.
Said, “If you can receive it, this is he who said (Malachi 3) ‘I send My messenger before My face to prepare the way.’ That’s who it was.” Now, see there was a sign. He was watching that sign. Now.

E-44 Now, God in all ages gave the people signs, bear record of it (Deuteronomy 18:22, also 13:1, if you want to put these Scriptures down). God gave Israel an assured sign. He said… Now, God sends His Word by His prophets. Is that right? It’s exactly what the Bible said. The Word of the Lord come to the prophets.
He said here was the test of a prophet: if a prophet prophesied, and that what he said come to pass, then hear him. But if it don’t come to pass, then God hasn’t spoke. That’s all. So don’t–don’t fear him. That’s right. “If there be one among you who’s spiritual or a prophet, I, the Lord God, will make myself known unto him in visions, speak to him in dreams. And if it comes to pass, then I–that’s Me speaking.” Sure, God ain’t going to lie. You know He can’t lie there’s nothing in Him to lie. He’s the Fountain of all purity, all truth, is God. So it can’t be a lie come from God. He’s perfect, pure.

E-45 And if it’s the Word of the Lord, then it’s His premeditated thoughts. Amen. That’s how we have Eternal Life, because we was spoken into existence by God, not joined into a church, but born by the Word, the original Seed, that God said, “Let there be,” and there was. Amen. That’s the way God borns His children today, in the womb of their heart with His Word, and His Word takes root and grows. How can a spirit in a human heart say it’s of God and deny this Word, when the very God-Word itself is what’s in the human heart? Amen. If it isn’t, it’s something else, and it isn’t the Holy Spirit in there. All right.

E-46 Now. Prophets of the Lord gave signs and wonders to every generation. Prophets, true prophets with the true Word gave true Scriptural signs. Now, remember… Now, we want to differentiate here between the right and the wrong, because remember, in–the Bible said in Matthew 24 that the two spirits in this day, that we’re coming to in a few moments, would be so close it would deceive the very elected if it was possible. I’m glad it said, “if it was possible.” The elected… But those who were elected was foreknown by God. “Those who He foreknew, He called: those who He called, He justified: those who He has justified, He hath already glorified.” That’s a settled fact. Yes, sir. So then (You see?), it would deceive the very elected if it would be possible, and it certainly looked like the right thing. All right.
Now. But the true prophets gave true signs of the true Word (Is that right?) true Word. Let me call just a few up–just one of them right here, just before we go any farther. How close the lie can seem like the truth. (Am I blasting too much to you? Is that–that too loud? Look, can you hear me back in the back? Oh fine.) Now, how true–close the truth and a lie is alike. The thing that Satan told Eve was almost perfectly the truth.

E-47 Look. When in the times of Jehoshaphat and Ahab… Ahab had preserved to himself four hundred Israelite prophets. Now, they were prophets, Israelite prophets, Jewish, in the line of the truth: prophets. He had four hundred of them that he’d schooled and taken care of.
And so Jehoshaphat came down to make an alliance with Abra–with Ahab. And when he did, he said, “Shall we go up to Ramoth-gilead and take that land?” Well, they spoken to the prophets. Remember, look how truth it looked.
Them prophets said, “Go up. The Lord’s with you.” Why? Where was they basing it? They were basing upon the fact that the land did belong to them. That’s right. When Joshua divided the land, God gave Ramoth-gilead to Israel. And the enemy had pushed them back off the land, and was occupying the land themselves.
Now, watch, my Pentecostal brethren. See? That’s right. The land belongs, but it can be taken by the enemy and held until things are made right. Come back to the Word. See? No matter what we claim, we got to get back, and come in line with the Word, for that’s the–that’s the–the way God’s made it. We got to come back to the–line up with the Word. Line up with God and His Word, then it’s got to work.

E-48 But these prophets said, “You go on up there. The Lord’s with you.” And why, one of them (Zedekiah there, I believe) had made him two horns. And he said, “You’re going to take these horns and–and push the enemy plumb out of the land.”
But you know, a real spiritual man… (I hope the whole house is setting full of them tonight. See?) That didn’t sound right to Jehoshaphat, ’cause he was a good man.
Four hundred, probably twice what we got setting here tonight, all prophesying in one accord. He said, “Now, there they are, there they are.” Said, “That’s our sign.”
And this prophet said, “I’ll make you a sign.” Got two horns, and said, “Take these, and you’ll push them plumb out. That’s ‘THUS SAITH THE LORD.'”

E-49 But Jehoshaphat said, “There’s just something wrong there. I can’t put my finger on it, but there’s something wrong.” Said, “Haven’t you got another one?” He said, “Oh, yes. We might call another one. He’s a holy-roller down here, a little fellow called Micaiah. But I hate him. Why,” he said, “he–he–he’s continually prophesying evil against me.”
“Oh,” he said, “don’t let the king say so. But let’s hear him.”
So they sent the trustees over, the deacon board, and said, “Now, look. You know, you might be made state presbyter or something, if you’ll just line in with them now. You say the same thing they do.”
And, oh, could you imagine talking to a man of God like that? Micaiah said, “As the Lord God lives, I’ll just say what He tells me to say.”

E-50 There you are. That’s the kind that stands. Yes, sir. See? What was he? He was a sign. He was a sign right then: something’s going to happen. God’s going to fulfill His Word, ’cause He’d already said to a real prophet of God, Elijah, what was going to–to happen to Ahab and Jezebel both for their evil. And how can He bless evil that’s unrepented?
How can He do these things in the corruption that the church stands in today, with its differences, and selfishness, and–and denying of the Word, and forms of godliness, and denying God’s power of His Word? How can He place a blessing upon that? He can’t do it. He sure won’t. We got to come back to the real true thing.
And–and he said–he said, “Give me tonight.” And the Lord appeared to him, and you know what the prophecy was. And so, it was just exactly right: a sign.

E-51 Now. Now, if there is true prophecies… Now, we learn after that Scripture over in Matthew 24, we know there is both true and false. We know that. Every time you see true, false is there also. Remember.
What is–what is a–what is a lie? It’s a truth perverted. It was actually the truth, and somebody misquoted it, made it a lie. What is a wrong thing? Is a right thing perverted. See? Everything… The devil cannot create nothing. And everything’s wrong, the devil perverted what was right to make it wrong. And if there is a real Word of God; there is a so-called word of God that’s false. That’s right. If there is a true prophet… Matthew 24 Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets.” So there’s false prophets, as same as there’s true prophets.

E-52 But the true prophet, how you’ll mark him, he will stay with the Word always. That’s exactly what Micaiah done. He stayed exactly with the Word of the Lord, ’cause the Word of the Lord… He knowed it was the Word. It come to the prophet. Now, we feel religious. See, see? The Word of the Lord, It stands no matter what goes on. Churches rise, fall; people rise, fall; everything else, rise and fall, but God’s Word will never fall, for It’s God. It’s God in printed form. That’s right.
That’s the reason you have Eternal Life. Everything had a beginning has an end. If you have a beginning, you have an end. That’s the reason this body has to die; it had a beginning. But the soul that’s in you… If it’s God, the Holy Spirit, in you, what is it? It’s God’s premeditated thought. What is a word? Is a thought expressed. See? And God, before there was a world, had you in mind. Amen. He had a church in mind. Sure. See?

E-53 And then, when you are borned again, Jesus said He’d give him Eternal Life. And the Greek word “Zoe” is God’s own Life. You are a part of God and shall never perish. And “I’ll raise them up again at the last day,” can’t perish, because it’s eternal. It never did start. It never did start, so it never can end. You were God’s thinking before He expressed it into a Word. Then when it become a Word, then it become flesh.
And that’s the reason Jesus had not to pray. I have to pray; you have to pray, because we are perverted from a sexual affair. Father and mother brings us a perverted being. We’re not in the original. God in the beginning never said, “Woman, you bring forth man.” He created man by His Word, and therefore Jesus was the Word. Man had nothing to do with it; neither did woman. No, sir.

E-54 He was–He’s no pollen of Mary. That knocks your Catholic idea a million miles. Had nothing to do with Mary; Mary was just an incubator. That’s all. He never even called her “mother.” Show me one time He called her “mother.” He said, “woman.” Amen. That’s all she was, a woman that God used (That’s right.), no goddess. “Mother of God,” what a silly thing. Mother of God? Who can give–make God having a mother? Then Who was the mother of the mother of God? Oh, my.
Talk about eternal sonship. Son has a beginning. Eternal can’t start, can’t begin. And there… It always has been. How can it be an eternal son? Oh, my. How you… I’m a dummy, and I know better than that. Sure.
He was the expressed Image of God, ’cause He was God’s thought expressed by His Word. God said, “Let there be,” and it was. He overshadowed Mary. She nursed Him, true. Certainly. You’re doing the same thing tonight, as you feed Him your praise and glory (That’s right.), commune with God.

E-55 Now, watch. He was the Word. See now, Jesus, He just said this because He was the Word. But to us, we have to approach God through the Word. See? The Word comes to the prophets. They’re not the Word. In the Old Testament, now, Elijah and Moses, and all those great prophets, they wasn’t the Word. They were the–they were a perverted body that the Word of God came to. The Bible said the Word of God come to the prophets. They wasn’t the Word. But Jesus was the Word. Amen, amen. Oh, I just love that. All right.

E-56 Now, why did He never fail to stay right with that Word? Satan tried to pervert it like he did to Eve. He said, “It is written thou shall… He give the Angels charge concerning thee, lest any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.”
He said, “It’s also written.” See? Oh, He just poked it right back at him. Then He said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every,” every, not a little bit here, and a little over yonder, mix it together with some theology of the world-made, man-minded people, “but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God, man shall live by that.” Every Word, every Word, every Word of God, men shall live by. That’s what he shall live by. Jesus said so, and He was the Word.

E-57 So now, then if a true prophet stays with the Word, and you see the manifestation of the Word, like Micaiah did, like Moses, like all of them did; then a false prophet would be a one that would cause you–try to make you dismayed about the signs of God’s Word. He’d be a false prophet. Jesus said beware of them, and they will fool or deceive the very elected if it was possible. See, they’ll come right up there, and claim to be everything else, but they just don’t… When they go to moving away from that Word, you move away too. Move away from them; stay with the Word.

E-58 We’re coming into a season I think now, they’re going to call it Lent. Lent…?… I think that’s what you call it, something like that. That’s all right. If they want to… I–I’ll go with them that far. But, you know, don’t drink, and don’t smoke, and don’t do so-and-so, Protestants, Catholics, and all along. That’s all right. I don’t believe in doing that either. Sure, I quit that. But after forty days, then you get away from me again. I go with you that far, then you pull back in the mud again. I don’t want to go back. Let’s keep on going. If it’s good forty days, let’s keep it on, and on, and on. See? Stay with the Word. Stay with Eternal Life. Stay with Christ. If it works good for forty days, it’ll work the rest of your life. Sure, because the Word’s eternal. All right.

E-59 False prophets, or unbelieving heathens (either one you want to call them, ’cause anybody don’t believe the Word’s a heathen, that’s exactly), and they are–they are dismayed, and they–they bear false record of the Word. They say the Word don’t mean this. It means just exactly what It says. They say, “Well, that was for the apostles. That was for…” Well, how can they preach Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever then? See? The Word says He is the same yesterday. “Well, in a way He’s the same.” He’s in every way the same. Yes, sir. Yeah. Sure He is. Yes, sir.

E-60 False prophets, or unbelieving heathens, beareth false signs. What kind of a sign would they bear then? Now, remember, they’re going to all… They’re–they’re not communists. They’re religious. A communist never fooled nobody. Sure. But these kind’s going to deceive the very elect if possible. See? What will he say? Not, “Come and be born,” but, “Come and join.” See? That’s false prophets. See? “Come and join again.” But you got not to be joined again but borned again. False signs…
They also say, now, to the people, “Don’t believe those signs.” ‘Course, they’re dismayed with them. That’s what the Bible said they’d be. See? They would be dismayed at the signs of God, signs of heaven.

E-61 God would send signs down out of heaven of His Word, and the people, the heathens said, “Don’t take their learning. Keep away from their learning.” Now, they’re–they’re–they’re learned. Don’t learn their ways. They got seminary ways, and all kinds of ways like that; you stay away from them. You stay right with the Word. See? You stay right away from them, ’cause they’re going to bear false signs.
For Jesus said in–in Mark 16th chapter, “These signs shall follow them that believe.” Yes, sir. That’s right. So if them signs don’t follow, and he says, “Oh, that ain’t necessary today,” just–just get away. Why just like (oh, my.), just keep away from it like a burnt child around the stove. Just shun it, way back. See? Get plumb away from it. Saying to the people, “Don’t believe these signs.” And how can they do it? Though the sign be a true God-sent sign of the Word for the very day that they’re living in…

E-62 Now, I give Micaiah awhile ago. Let’s just drop back. I’m going to get several of those prophets in a few minutes, the Lord willing. But I’m just going back to Micaiah. Now, look. Why couldn’t those preachers down there see that the Word of the Lord had cursed Ahab, cursed Jezebel, and a curse was on the land? And how could He bless it when a curse was on it? See, couldn’t do that. God don’t do things like that. See?
And here Micaiah… And that man standing there under inspiration exactly with the Word, exactly what the Word of God said, for the Word of God said that the dogs would lick Ahab’s blood and would eat Jezebel. The Word of the Lord that was spoke by the prophet said that. And that was the Word of the Lord because it came to the prophet. And here was another prophet staying right in line with the Word: look like Ahab would’ve seen that. Look like they could’ve noticed that. See? And he turned around and cursed that little fellow, and that–that bishop walked up and smacked him in the face. And that man didn’t do that hypocritically. He believed he was right.

E-63 “How can you tell, Brother Branham, what’s right or wrong? Give them the Word test. That’ll tell whether they’re right or wrong or not. Stay right with that Word; see what happens. See? Just throw the Word down there and see where they’re at. “Oh, well, you see that…” Oh, then get right away right then. See? Yeah. Just stay right with that Word.
So why, if they’d give Micaiah the Word test, he proved out he was a hundred percent with it. Now, they say, “Wait a minute (See?); God gave it to us.” That’s right.
God gave us the promise of the Holy Ghost. Peter said on the day of Pentecost, you know, “Repent every one of you and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. You shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. The promise is to every generation.” See? That’s us. That means us. But it’s conditions. You just can’t get it any way. You’ve got to follow instructions. That’s exactly.

E-64 The land did belong to them, but they had to follow instructions. And the instructions of the Lord wasn’t to give it to Ahab. He was cursed, and anything that God curses and proves He’s not with, get away from it. Amen. (That was a good double-barrel, wasn’t it?) Yes, sir. If God’s proved He isn’t with the thing, stay away from it. That’s right. It’s no good to begin with. God condemned it, and I’m sure I don’t want to be around it. Yes, sir. Have enough trouble the way it is, instead of getting in something like that.

E-65 Now, he said… Now, we want to stay this… These fellows took that little preacher and said, “Put him in the inner cells, way back there, and put a–one of these here big wooden collars on him, and put him in stocks, and–and feed him just bread and water till I return in peace. Then I’ll deal with this fellow, the son of Imlah.”
He said, “If you return at all, then the Lord hasn’t spoke to me.” He wasn’t taken down, ’cause he knowed his prophecy. The Spirit, the–the–the vision that come to him was exactly in line with the Word. There you are. Now, you see what I’m getting to? If your–if your vision isn’t exactly in line with the Word, you’d better stay away from it. No matter what kind of a promise you try to claim, you better get back in line with the Word. That’s right. That’s exactly true. See?

E-66 Though it be God’s true sign for the day, spoken of in the Word, God said the thing would happen just at that time, still they’ll deny it, say, “There’s nothing to it. (That’s right.) Don’t believe it.” Oh, my. By His true prophetic Word, He has always given Scriptural signs before He sends judgment (See?), by His Word. He will speak it way back, then it’ll come up to the Word, and here will come one of His servants along proclaiming that Word, just the way it is. See? And He always does that before He sends a judgment that He’s promised. He always… And somebody comes along with the Scriptural fact and God bearing record. Hebrews 2:4 said so–bearing record with signs and wonders of it, God confirming the Word (Mark 16) with signs and wonders, God confirming what was preached. See?
Sure, you might have a little healing service. That might work all right. But what about the rest of it? See? You can take the Word and make it work right here. Then take the rest of it, and it’ll work in its place, just exactly every place. Every place you place the Word, It’ll work if It’s in the right kind of channel, faith behind it to believe it. Then it’s got to grow.

E-67 I seen the other day where they took some sunflower seed, I believe it was–or maybe it was wheat–out of the garners of Egypt where Joseph had laid back there about twenty-eight hundred years ago, planted it, made a crop of wheat. No matter how old it was, it still had life in it, because it was a germitized seed. No matter how long them promises has been made, it’s for you and to your children, and to them that’s far off even as many as the Lord our God shall call. You’ve got to get that seed with water. Amen. And whatever the seed is will bring forth a crop that the seed is.

E-68 We’ve had a great revival, no doubt. But it’s been a denominational revival. Why? Because we’ve sowed denominational seeds. Correct. When the Holy Spirit falls, just like the rain on the just and unjust…
The rain falls, make a cocklebur grow and make the wheat grow too, both of them just as happy as the other one. But their fruits you know them. What did we try to do? A million more in this organization outdoing that one, this denomination outdoing that one. We’ve had a Billy Graham. They’ve had a revival, and the Baptists: one of your boys up here, great man of God too. Yeah. Pentecostals had a revival, Oral Roberts. Oh, my, many of them, great revival. Boy, they picked up in numbers to who wouldn’t have it. What’s it turned out to be? Now, it’s over.

E-69 Did you know Joel said there will be a former and a latter rain? The former rain (f-o-r-m-e-r) means “moureh,” Hebrew word which means a sowing rain–sowing a crop. That’s the reason… What did you reap? Oh, the organization’s built up; but where’s God at? You’ve sowed denominational seed. When the Holy Ghost fell it made a denominational revival.
What we need is get back to the Word. Get back to the real Word of God, and bring forth a Bride to Christ and the Word. True, back to the Word. Let the organization… That’s all right. Nothing against it. But everybody’s… “Just got to pull a few punches, you know,” because if they don’t, they get put out. God have mercy–pulling punches. Tell the truth, or shut up. Yes, sir. Just say it the way it’s wrote; see if God don’t confirm it. I challenge you to believe it. I know it’s the truth. See?
But you got to stay right with the Word and believe It, not just slip over here this way and that way, and say, “I’ll peck and try.” You don’t do that. No, no. You’ve got to come with a whole heart. “It’s Your Word, Lord. I believe it.” God will make it… It’ll go to work right then. Yes, sir.

E-70 Yes, sir, He’s always sent before His judgments somebody with the Scriptural Word, showing Scriptural signs before He sends it. And the unbeliever misses it a million miles. Why? He’s dismayed with it, discouraged. Why? Because he don’t believe it. Amen. But it always brings its harvest just the same. See, the unbeliever… “Oh,” he says, “such nonsense. Such nonsense, oh, my. There’s nothing to that. Why, you know the days of miracles is past. There’s no such a thing as that. Oh, my, that’s terrible just a bunch of trash. That’s all there is to it.” But they go right on just the same.

E-71 Well, could you imagine Moab standing up there looking down on Israel, his brother? After all, it was. Did you know that false prophet up there offered the same kind of a–a theological terms that Moses was offering down there in the other camp? That’s right. Here come Balaam (Bishop Balaam), come out there in that great big organized land of Moab. Daughter of Lot, that’s where it come from. Not another God; the same God. Come up there and put seven altars. What did Jehovah require? Perfect number. Jehovah, seven sacrifices, clean sacrifices, just exactly what Jehovah…
That’s what Moses had down here, exactly the same. Seven rams speaking of the coming of the Son of God–seven rams. Yes, sir. But oh, brother, he failed to see that smitten rock and that brass serpent. That’s what he failed to see, and that’s the same thing today. They fail to see that Holy Spirit moving in the Word and promise of God, bringing forth the signs and wonders that He promised. They didn’t believe it, that’s the reason.

E-72 Now. Let’s take just a few just for a moment now, a few more minutes. Noah and his God-given signs… You believe he had a God-given sign? Sure, he did. He was sent of God, a prophet of God that prophesied, and showed great signs and wonders, that there’d be a great sign in heaven. Clouds would come up, rain would fall. It never rained till that day–his God-given sign. He stood right in his door of the ark and preached a hundred and twenty years, and they laughed and made fun of him.

E-73 You know Jesus referred to that, Matthew, 24th chapter again, about days of Noah? In the days of Noah… He said, “As it was in the days of Noah…” They were eating, drinking, marrying, giving in marriage. He said the same thing in Matthew 24 here. That’s exactly right. Said they’d do the same thing. And did you notice right below that He said also and there will be fearful sights in the heavens, signs in the heavens and in the earth. Is that right? Now, what did–what did Jeremiah say here? “Be not dismayed at signs in heaven.”
Look here. You say, “Sign in heaven?” Why, they’ve wondered, even the Pentagon. You seen it not long ago, all this here flying saucer stuff. They wondered what it was all about. They can’t make it out yet. It’s an invisible force almost that comes down there, and yet it’s–it’s–it’s intelligent, it’ll… Now, I’m not a flying saucer man. All this here nonsense has been told about that. That’s nothing to that. Don’t you believe that. But they’re signs. Exactly. Why is it they hang right over the Pentagon? Why is it they’re right over Washington, where they’re seen all the time, constantly, even yet. We’ll come to that after while, see if He didn’t say, “As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the coming of the Son of man.” That’s right.

E-74 Moses and his sign, God-given sign, Scriptural sign… Do you believe Moses’ sign was Scriptural? How did Moses know? How did Moses know it was God? When he went down there he understood, being born to be a prophet, he had the Word of the Lord he knowed. So he goes down there to deliver Israel, and he found out he was out of date. The people didn’t want him. A prophet can never deliver his message unless the people wants to hear it. So God just called His prophet in the wilderness. Sure. Took him out there and let the people suffer a little longer till they was ready. Moses was ready; God was ready; but the people wasn’t. They stayed forty years longer because they wasn’t ready. That’s exactly right.

E-75 But when Moses seen this burning bush… He’d seen a lot of fire, I guess, but when this voice come from that bush… Maybe might’ve heard a lot of voices, but when this voice come from the bush, you know what it said? It quoted to him the Scripture. And then it was a Scriptural sign, because God told Abraham that His people would be stranger in a strange land for four hundred years, then He would deliver them out with a hand of power and might. Oh, He said, “I’m ready to fulfill that, Moses. I’m sending you down. Amen. Going to make the Scriptures… I’m going to give the Scriptures to you. Take this old stick you got in your hand now and take off to Egypt as hard as you can go.” See? for He was going to make His Word come to pass.

E-76 You know what they did down there? Was the Egyptians said, “Moses, oh, the great prophet of the Lord.” They laughed at him, and they were dismayed by the signs that he performed. Is that right?
Why, even Israel was dismayed with him, the signs that he was performing. “Why, you–you make us work in rigor. Why, looky here, our hands. We have to make stubbles, and so forth,” and Moses performing the very God-given signs, and they still couldn’t understand it. That’s just exactly. See? Moses give them a sign, discouraged Egypt, discouraged with the signs of God, with the prophesied signs.
God told Abraham, the father of the promise, that his seed, Israel, would sojourn in a strange land. And He would show His hand of power by delivering them. And here was the man according to the Scriptures, here was the man with the signs that was promised, and they didn’t believe it. They perished. Certainly.

E-77 Could you think of Ezekiel, another prophet? Why, Ezekiel, that man, God told him, “I’m going to…” Just before the judgment came… God sent Moses before the judgment, sent Noah before the judgment. He sent Noah and got all the people… I mean, Moses, and got the people over in–in the land where they–and where they would not be bothered with the plagues. And He sent Noah, and took all the believers in the ark, and destroyed the unbelievers of it–of Noah’s sign (building an ark, preparing, prophesying what was going to happen). All that went in the ark was saved. All that went into Goshen was saved.

E-78 And here come Ezekiel just before God carried them down into Babylon. He said, “Go lay on your left side for three-hundred and ninety days.” Said, “I put the burden upon you.” And could you imagine this old gray-headed prophet laying on his side at the gates of, or of Jerusalem in Israel? And all the people come by and say, “Look at that fanatic, laying up there,” with an old pottage of seed up there of–of–of beans and things, and they’d been soured for weeks.
And there he was laying there, and laid on his left side for three hundred and ninety days. Then God said, “Turn over on your right side and lay forty more.” Why, it was a disgrace.

E-79 Oh, Israel had got real pomp, you know. Boy, they’d associate with the rest of the country. They wanted to get rid of such things as prophets. But they forgot that the Word of God came to the prophets. They wanted to take their gods; they wanted to take their–the way they wanted to believe it.
But God had sent them a prophet for a sign, and he did the sign. And they ignored the sign, and they went into judgment. How long? For four hundred and thirty years. He allowed a day for a year for them. When they laughed at him, every day they laughed meant another year in captivity. And He gave them a sign. They wouldn’t believe it, no. But He carried them away down in Babylon in judgment. Oh, my.

E-80 Let’s think of another one. One hot summer morning, coming down the Samaritan road, his face all wrinkled, his little teeny eyes looking up towards the sky, staff in his hand, his bare feet on the ground, old piece of sheepskin around him (looked like a fuzzy worm coming out there), and his bald head shining, stick in his hand… Brother, his steps was just like a young man coming down the road, a Samaritan road. He didn’t stammer when he got before Ahab. He’d been preaching to them for a long time about their cursed way.
They was having these, maybe, water-head haircuts in them days, after the first lady, you know. He’d had enough of Jezebel and all of her carrying on. Oh, how he laid it onto them. God vindicated him to show that he was God’s prophet. Yes, sir. But they wanted to be like the first lady, you know. It repeats so often, you know.

E-81 This nation’s a whole lot like Israel. God gave them a land. They come over and run the occupants out. And for the first they had Solomon, they had David, fine kings. And there come a–a Ahab in a wishy-washy (I don’t know) puppet (That’s right.), with Jezebel, the neck of the Kingdom, guiding him.
And we did the same thing: come over and run the Israelites, or run the–not the–the Indians out, pushed them out and starving them to death (That’s right.), took their land. We had a Washington and a Lincoln, but I wonder now. We got something up there now with the old Jezebel system behind it. Just exactly like they had. God will send us… He promised in the last days, according to Malachi 4, He’d raise up somebody (That’s right.), wouldn’t spare not. That’s right.
And when he’d done worked all of his signs and wonders… Brother, I mean, he had THUS SAITH THE LORD, walked right down to the capital, and said, “The… Not even dew will fall from heaven till I call for it,” stomped right back out of the way. Why? He had THUS SAITH THE LORD. It was a sign. There was a drought on. Death was in the land.

E-82 I think this time it’s going to be spiritual death to–to some of Jezebel’s children. Yes, sir. Spiritual death, dry up… I could say something, but I just better leave it alone, ’cause I believe there’s a tape recorder out there playing this. Now…?… [Blank.spot.on.tape–Ed.] Oh, my, the day that we’re living in… Yes, sir.
After his God-given ministry, the true Word of God with true signs and wonders had been rejected, what could the man do? Bawled them out. Jezebel hated him, and all of her modern first ladies hated him. They didn’t like him. Certainly not. They thought he was a horrible thing. But he was their pastor just the same. He was. Oh, yes, Pastor Elijah, oh, she wouldn’t claim him, but he was a God-sent pastor, God’s pastor to her. He didn’t spare her. He poured out the Word.
And they rejected him, and thought he was a idiot, and–and turned him away. None of the organizations would have him. They kicked him out. That didn’t stop the Word: went right on just the same. So way up there he waited till he had THUS SAITH THE LORD for Ahab, and he come told him. And when he did, the famine hit the land. That’s right. And you know what taken place. Sure. That was Elijah before the drought.

E-83 I like to see one that patterned him, one was his type, or an antetype of him. When John came to fulfill the last prophet’s message, Malachi 3… You know, John was kind of a strange born boy. You know that. Gabriel had appeared to his mother, told her what he would do, and he’d be great, and would call the children back to the faith of the fathers, and so forth, and all what he was going to do. Malachi 3: “I send My messenger before My face.” And instead of going with his father down there to his father’s school, he took off for the wilderness and got ready.
Look at him, just exactly like Elijah. He lived in the woods like Elijah. He hated immoral women just like Elijah. He said to old Herod, “It’s not lawful for you to have her,” his brother Philip’s wife. Cost him his head, but he went on just the same. Sure. He was a sign.
What was he saying? “I’ll baptize you with water unto repentance. But there’s coming One, already standing among you. I don’t know him; I ain’t seen the sign yet. But he’s among you.” He knowed that the hour was so close that He had to be on earth right then. Amen. “There’s standing One among you right now,” he said, “Who you don’t know. But he’s the One. I’m not worthy to loose His shoes, but He will baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire. His fan’s in His hand.” Said, “He will come one of these days.” Yes, sir.

E-84 One day Jesus come walking down, and John looked up. He said, “There it is. There’s the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.” Jesus, when He come on earth, He done exactly what the Word said He would do for a sign to Israel before they were ousted, and having… Just now coming back, since two thousand years ago, since they turned away. Israel will be converted all at one time, of course. They’re–they’re a people. They’re a nation. God deals with Israel as a nation; but a people out of the Gentiles for His Bride. Israel’s a nation, just now coming back into the homeland: a great sign.
Hope we can get to it in a–just a few minutes. I ain’t got but about five or ten minutes left yet, and we’ll form the prayer line, when we get down here where I want to say what I wish to tonight. See? This is a great big foundation, but it’ll stand.

E-85 Jesus bore record of the Word. He was the Messiah, the Anointed One. “Christ” means “the Anointed One, the Messiah, One that’s sent–Anointed One, One anointed with the Word of God and the Spirit of God.” He was the Word. He was the anointed Word. Amen. He bore record of it, exactly what Moses back here in Deuteronomy said He would do. He said, “The Lord Your God shall raise up a prophet liken unto Me.” He’d be a prophet.
And when… Simon Peter knew this. And when he’d heard his brother Andrew stayed all night with Him… You know, that’s a good way to stay all night with Him. Uh-huh. Somebody can’t stay five minutes with Him; but Andrew stayed all night. Then he could really tell his brother… “Let’s go down and try it again.” No. “We’ll see tonight.” No. He said, “Come with me and see Who I’ve found.” He knowed he’d found Him; he’d stayed all night with Him.
Jacob could go meet his brother after he’d stayed all night with Him. You don’t stay long enough, trouble of it today. Your old mothers and daddies back in Pentecost prayed all day and night. Today, we get down: “God bless mama and papa, and sister and brother. Amen. I’m getting so sleepy I don’t know what to do. I got to go home and watch the new television show (See?) that’s come on: ‘We Love Sucy’ is going to play after while,” some old perverted something of the devil, your soul feeding on such as that, instead of coming to the prayer meeting on Wednesday night or something. Then call God pouring out His Spirit.
What can he hatch? A big bunch of denominations. That’s all. That’s the kind of seed’s sowed. “Well, oh-h, I belong to this; I’ll…” I’d rather belong to God (That’s right. Yes, sir); let the rest of it go. That’s right.

E-86 Now, notice now. Now, we find out that Jesus bore record. When Simon… he knowed… He–he said, “I know what my daddy told me: that there’d be a lot of confusion around in that day when He comes.”
I can just hear old–the man Simon telling–his–his father tell his son, said, “Son, look. I hoped to see the Messiah, but I guess I’m getting too old now. I won’t see Him. But now, listen. I want you to know. Now, there’s going to be a lot of imitations rise up, but you’ll know that Messiah. When He comes, Son… I’ve taught you how to catch fish. Uh-huh. I’ve taught you to be honest on your scales down yonder. I’ve taught you to keep your word. That’s what makes you a man of integrity. That’s what makes you a man of honesty. Son, if you can take that kind of teaching in being honest, and take your dad’s word and be honest, then be honest and take God’s Word. (Amen.) God said this Messiah would be a prophet, not a theologian: a prophet the Lord your God shall raise up.”

E-87 Simon had this in his mind. One day when Andrew come told him about when he’d been all night with Him, he was convinced. And Simon goes down to see who he was talking about. That day on the shore, when he set down on this chunk and listened at Him… But as soon as He looked at old Simon, He said, “Your name is Simon, and you’re the son of Jonas.” That was all right. That was all right. Why? He knowed there was a Scriptural sign. That was the Messiah.
When Philip went to get Nathanael, and Nathanael come back, said, “Now, wait a minute. I might’ve heard about it, but I wonder if it’s really true or not.”
He said, “Would… I wouldn’t know. But you wait till you get there. You’ll find out. Stand and watch the meeting a little while and see what takes place.”
Here come Philip and Andrew walking up together, Jesus standing and looked, said, “Behold, an Israelite in whom there’s no guile.”
He said, “Rabbi…” That deflated him right then. He said, “Rabbi, how did You ever know me?”
He said, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the tree I saw you.” What was it? A Scriptural sign, Messiah. [Blank.spot.on.tape–Ed.] right.

E-88 The Samaritan woman when she was at the well, He said, “Woman, bring Me a drink.”
She said, “It’s not customary. We have segregation here. You Jews and Samaritans, we have no dealings. And I’m a woman; You’re a man. How You come to say something like this?”
He said, “But if you knew Who you were talking to, you’d ask Me for a drink.”
She said, “Why, we know, we worship in this mountain. And you say at Jerusalem, you being a Jew and so forth…”
The conversation went on. Jesus caught her spirit. He said, “Go, get your husband and come here.” Oh, my.
She said, “I don’t have any.”
He said, “You’ve said the truth.” Said, “You’ve had five, and this sixth one you got’s not yours.” Right.
What did she say? She said, “Sir, wait a minute; just a minute. You must be a prophet. That’s the Word of the Lord. Now, we know we’re living in the day when we’re expecting the Messiah to come, and He will show us these kind of things.”
Jesus said, “I’m He.”
Brother, Jacob’s well had no taste no more. Right into the city she went and said, “Come, see a Man Who told me what I’ve done. Isn’t that the very Messiah?” A Scriptural sign that He was Messiah. Exactly right. Yes, sir. Yeah.

E-89 They rejected it. The people re… What did they call Him? Beelzebub, a fortuneteller, a devil. What happened? They waded in their own blood. Josephus tells us in his writings of the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, the great Roman general, when they sieged it there for years, until they eat the bark off the tree, and killed one another’s children and eat it. What was it? They failed to see their sign.
What did Jesus say? He said, “You hypocrites” (with all these priestly robes on, and doctor’s degree behind you, all these great big Pope Johns, and everything else, all these titles, and things), “walk down the street and desire the high places,” (the best places to go to), “devour widows’ homes, and make for–for–for pretense a long prayer, and learn how to say it.” He said, “You’ll receive more damnation.” Said, “You can look at the sky. You know more about–you know about science than you do the Word of God.” Oh, brother, that–that knocked them.

E-90 Said, “You look at the skies, and you listen to the weather prophets more than you listen to My Word. Why, you say if the sky is low and red, and so forth like that, and tomorrow it’ll be foul weather. And if the sun sets clear, it’ll be fair.” He said, “You can discern the face of the skies, but the signs of the time you can’t discern. If you’d have knowed Me, you’d have knowed My day.” There’s the signs: Messiah. Oh, how, how, how they miserably failed. (How we could stay here a long time. But we can’t now. We got to hurry.)

E-91 Listen. Then came the promise through Jesus, what would take place before His coming. Now, let’s check that a minute. Just about a few minutes now, just in a little bit. Are you tired? If you are, why… See? All right. Let’s just check this a few minutes. Now, listen real close. Lay back. Now, we see all signs. We could stay on it hours, weeks, and months, and never leave that one subject. But let’s stay right back now just a few minutes and come back.

E-92 Now, Jesus was asked, “When shall the time come when there won’t be one stone left upon another? And what is the sign of the coming of the end of the world? When is it going to be?”
And He begin to tell them. “This Gospel will be preached to every nation and kingdom for a witness unto Me.” You know what? Now, He never said. He said, “this Gospel.” Now, He didn’t say, “Go teach the Word”; but, “preach the Gospel.” There’s a lot of difference, certainly. The Gospel is the power and demonstration of the Word (See?), the power and demonstrations of the Word.
You remember when that Angel come down on the river (which you have the picture of it, and you know about), when it said here about–in 1933, when I was baptizing my first group, that the message would sweep the world? And every nation they’ve got a revival going. They’ve had it everywhere. See? Sure. Pulling the elected out. That’s right. “This Gospel shall be preached.”

E-93 Then we find out in Revelation 3:1-3, there’s to be three church ages in this last days. Did you know that? That’s right. We’ve had it. Remember as they’ve come through those elements: justification, sanctification, baptism of the Holy Ghost (Luther, Wesley, and Pentecost), the three messengers of the last days, find that out… The coming of His own in the last times, we find this again. That we find the coming now of His–the rain–the Holy Spirit being poured out in the last days. You believe it’s been poured out? What upon? Somebody’s sowing seeds to bring forth His latter-day crop. You know Joel said, “In the last days…”

E-94 Now, look. Here’s another thing I’d like to get to. You say, “You just started with Wesley.” Did you ever think of that? I just got through with the seven church ages. Did you ever notice why I started with Wesley? Because that’s where it begin at, Wesley, after the reformation. What about St. Martin, and St. Irenaeus, and all those back there who stood in protest to that Roman Catholic church in that day, to stay with the Word when they started off on dogma? What started that? What happened to them?

E-95 Didn’t Joel tell you about it? What the palmerworm left, the caterpillar eaten; what the caterpillar left, the–the–the other locust eaten. See? And that same insect, from palmerworm, to caterpillar, to locust, and so forth, is the same insect only in different stages. And that’s Catholicism. What did it do? Eat up the Word. But He said, “I will restore, saith the Lord. I will restore.”
How is it? Went plumb down to the stump. That’s right. The Roman Catholic church eat up everything that the Bible teaches. Right. They made their own Roman dogmas out of it, even to their communion, their false Holy Ghost, false baptism, false water baptism, everything else. You’ll never, never, never get back till you come back to the Life comes out of the stump, and that’s the Word of God. Men to be free… It bound them up in an organization and burned them, and killed them, and fed them to lions, and everything, if they didn’t join it. That’s exactly right.

E-96 But He said that stump will grow again; it’ll put forth. What’s the first thing come up? Was a tree. What’s the next thing come? The leaves. What’s the next thing come? The blossoms. What’s the next thing come? The fruit. Luther, Wesley, the leaves; Pentecost, the blossom. Now, we’re heading right into the fruit. The church is dwindling down. Amen.
“I will restore,” saith the Lord. “What’ll I do? I’ll bring her back to her original condition. I’ll bring her back to her original doctrine. I’ll bring her back to the original Word. I will break every denomination in pieces. I’ll bring her back to My Word.” How? Maybe I better shut up. Stop, boy. “I’ll bring her back.”

E-97 What was the first organization? Ask it. Catholic church. Exactly right, that’s exactly right. Or, as she’s called in the Bible in Revelation 17, a whore. That’s a–what is a… Oh, that kind of a woman? It’s a woman that’s untrue to her husband. See? That’s a church that’s untrue to the Word. And she was a mother of harlots. What’s a harlot? The same thing. We’re going to get to that, just right, just about two more minutes, three. See? All right. There you are.
She is the mother of harlots, same thing she was organizing, taking away the doctrine of the Bible, teaching her own self, teaching for doctrine–the commandments of God, and making the commandments of God of none effect by their traditions. Jesus found the same thing. Pot can’t call kettle black. That’s right. It’s all the same. Yes, sir.

E-98 When you get away from that Word, you got away from God, you got away from the principles, you got away from the Holy Spirit, you got away from everything. The devil will give you something false. But it’ll never bear the record of it. Until it’s true…
Come right back to that same Messiah. That’s the Spirit of God. “I am the Vine; ye are the branches.” The same life that’s in the vine is in the branch, and the branch bears the fruit of the vine: St. John 15. All right.

E-99 What did they do? Now, all of them, you know… Jesus said in the last days He would bind–first He’d bind all the what? The tares. Is that right? Boy, they’re sure binding up now. World Council of Churches got them every one, Pentecostals and all. They’re all bound together for the burning. That’s exactly right. Uh-huh. Separating them from the wheat. Praise God for that. That’s right, separating them all out, unbelievers. Don’t walk in their way. Don’t go by their learning; come by the Word. That’s right. Don’t be dismayed at the signs of God, true signs of heaven. That… not signs… Signs of heaven, not signs of the church, signs of heaven, God-sent signs, don’t be dismayed with that. Stay with it. See? All right.

E-100 Council of Churches uniting themselves together, what are they doing? Fulfilling Revelation 13. “And they made an image unto the beast.” What is the image? We know who the–the image, the dragon that stood before the woman was to devour the child, the Man-Child Who was to rule the world with a rod of iron, Christ. And He was caught up into heaven, set on God’s throne. The dragon that stood before the woman, that’s that same old beast in the beginning: Rome. What did she do? Organize people together. And they made an image.
Pope John wants all the churches to come together to fight communism. And God… Anybody that knows the Bible knows God organized communism to kill her with it, burn–hate the whore, and burn her–her children in a bed of fire. Sure. Exactly. He’s using it just like He did King Nebuchadnezzar.

E-101 And the–the Protestant churches will unite themselves together and make a council of churches, and the Pentecostals right with them. Why? They don’t know the Word. That’s exactly. The Word’s promising that.
God, send somebody to blast this thing out, warn the people. We’re right in that hour, right here now.
There’s the day. Look here, and see the signs. My, they’re all over us, all around. You wonder what’s the matter, why the church hasn’t gone on into the rapture? Well, it’ll never go like that. It won’t. That’s right. That’s not the one He was talking about.
Remember, Adam’s bride was found with false seed. That’s exactly right. Jehovah’s bride was found the same way. Right. He divorced her and put her away. Is that right? That was God.
Christ’s bride is the same thing. She’s found with worldly organization seed in her and not the Gospel, having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof from the Holy Spirit and the Word. There’s the sign of the last day. God will divorce her and take His Bride as certain as anything in here. “As it was in the days of Noah,” He said, “so will it be at the coming of the Son of man.”

E-102 Watch. Form an image unto the beast… We see all this. The very Catholic president… It ain’t Kennedy, far as I know He’s a man like I am or anybody else. It’s not that. It wasn’t Ahab. Ahab was a pretty good fellow. It was that Jezebel behind him. That’s what was behind it. That’s the thing that done the trouble. And it ain’t Kennedy; it’s that Jezebel church behind him. That’s what’s a doing it. Sure, that’s exactly.
Why, the thing’s right before you. Can’t you see that–can’t you see that everything… See the fig tree putting forth its branches? Jesus said when you… “Learn a parable. When you see the fig tree and all the other trees…” Now, look. The Jews has got a revival on. They’re becoming a nation already. Is that right? Own money, own flag, everything–first time for twenty-eight hundred years. See? They’re a nation. The fig tree, it’s putting forth its buds.

E-103 And the other trees: the Baptists “million more in ’44,” a Billy Graham just slaughtering it from side to side, “All of you come join, come join, come join.” The Pentecostals another thing–oneness, twoness, threeness, Assemblies, everything else, “Come and join, come and join, come and join.”
O God. Where is the things that God promised? Where is it? Where is them Scriptural things that God spoke of would happen in the last days? Where are they at? We got nothing but a big bunch of cold, formal organizations. The revival’s swept in thousands in each one of them. But where is that Bride of Christ standing in purity? All of our women bobbing their hairs off, and wearing all kind of clothes; and preachers and things not saying a word about it, and–and going out and getting formal and indifferent. And the Gospel has become a meal ticket, like it is with the rest of these social Gospel preachers.

E-104 What we need is a man of God who’ll stand out on the Word of God, and preach it regardless, and stand there with the signs and wonders of God’s Bible. That’s exactly right. Amen. Exactly right. Afraid to call black black, and white white: wishbone instead of a backbone. It’s a shame. Modern, independent, oh, my… And then… My, I better shut up.
Listen, let me tell you, brother, the signs are all around you. Don’t you worry, you little bride. God’s coming; don’t you worry. Everything’s right on time. This has got to happen like this. The Word says so. Listen. Watch.

E-105 Now, Jesus promised that this wicked and adulterous generation, Matthew 12:24… Jesus promised that this wicked and adulterous generation would get a sign. They come to Him and said, “Master, we would seek a sign from thee,” right after He’d been healing the sick, and doing the things He’d done. Said, “We’d seek a sign from thee.” He said, “A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and there will be no sign given to that wicked and adulterous generation…”
How many knows that immorality is on the move greater than it ever was? How many knows that wickedness is unbelief? More unbelief and adultery than we ever had: homosexuals, everything else. Is that right?
Perversion… I–I must… I–I got to say it. Our Pentecostal women, skinning themselves in little old dirty-looking dresses like a skinned-down weenie, walking out here on the street immorally… Did you know you’re going to answer for committing adultery, them men looking upon you, and you putting your kids out like that? What’s the matter?

E-106 Why, well someone said not long ago, said. “Brother Branham, people call–call you a prophet.”
I said, “I’m no prophet.”
Said, “Well, the people call you that. Why don’t you teach them great things: how to receive the gifts of God, instead of talking to women about wearing short hair, and–and wearing things the way they do, and makeup and stuff the way they do, and things like that?”
I said, “How am I going to teach them algebra if they won’t learn their ABC’s?” They won’t come out of kindergarten: the common decency to line up with the Word of God. That’s exactly right. How you going to do that? You can’t do it.

E-107 Why? Just those God called is the ones will hear it. “My sheep hear my voice.” That’s right. They know the voice of God. It speaks from the Word. The Word is what does it.
Now. He said that generation (and this is it) would receive a sign. What kind of a sign? “As Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days, the Son of man shall be in the heart of the earth.”
Is that right? What kind of a sign would they receive? A resurrection sign. Jesus is not dead; He’s alive. He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. Is that right? A wicked and adulterous generation would receive the sign of the resurrection. Amen. They would try to discourage it. They did. They did for Him. Matthew… If you want to put that down, Matthew 13:24. They were very dismayed at it.

E-108 They said, “This fellow… We got to answer to our denominations. Us Pharisees got to answer, Sadducees, Herodians, Publicans, and so forth. We all got to answer. What is it? Why, he’s a fortuneteller. That’s the reason He knows what’s in their hearts, He perceived their thoughts. He’s a fortuneteller.”
He said there’s never forgiveness for that when that happens in the last days. That’s right. Called Him Beelzebub, the prince of the devils. That’s right. They were discouraged with Him. Is that right? But He told the church, the real church here, “Don’t be discouraged with them heavenly signs. For the wicked, the heathen, the unbeliever is discouraged by them,” See? And we’re in the last days.

E-109 Let’s close by saying this, just for a moment. And they say it’s not like… They just say that that’s not the way God formed it. “God wants a great big this, and a great big that; and we’re going to build… Six million dollars, and we’re going to put this in this, and this in that” and preaching the Son of God’s coming right away.
What is it? It’s all turned into denominational fodder, bound in a big bunch of confederation of churches, to be burned at the end-time. That’s what Jesus said. Saw-briers and all kinds of things bound in them (That’s right.); fuss, carry-on, keep a revival out of the country.
I challenge that man that challenged me with that Word, anybody else. Dispute it and see what happens. Find out what takes place. If you can’t stand for It, then shut up. That’s right. Either come make it right, or say–do something. Yes, sir.

E-110 Noah, Matthew 24, we see them days fulfilled. And remember, Jesus said also in St. Luke 17:28 to 30, “As it was in the days of Sodom, so shall it be at the coming of the Son of man.” Is that right? Now, remember, Sodom was just before Sodom burned. And what did they receive? Did they get a sign? Sure.
Now, there’s three classes of people always. Now, remember, that is unbelievers, make-believers, and believers. There’s three signs, three classes, always have been. There was right there. Now, watch. Jesus said, “As it was in the days of Sodom…” Same kind, same thing. See? He went ahead and told what they was doing in the days of Noah, eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage. Said as it was in the days of Sodom before the burning… Now, watch what taken place ‘fore judgment. Now, He’s going to send a sign to the generation just before the burning time. There’s no more water, but what, this time? Fire. The judgments of God going to be fire. And what was Sodom received?

E-111 Now, just before the burning taken place, Abraham represented the church elected, because he was elected: Abraham was. And Abraham’s seed is elected with him. Now, the promise was made to Abraham and his seed, his spiritual seed, the seed that was in him that received God’s Word. Regardless of what anything else went contrary to it, it’s still God’s Word. He stayed right with it. That’s the seed of Abraham, the one that stays with the Word; not them that runs off like Lot. See?
There was the Sodomites, the unbeliever; there was–there was the Lotites; they were make-believers; and there was Abraham, the promised, elected, the believer.

E-112 Three Angels come up to the tent of Abraham one day. Two of Them went down and preached a good message to the Sodomites, and they called out a bunch. But they didn’t have to call Abraham out, because he was out already. He didn’t go in in the first place. He’d left twenty-five years before that. Yes, sir. He was called out, the elected, called out, setting out in the desert. And then them ones went down; they preached the Gospel down there, and finally straggled out two or three.
A message has went to Sodom. There’s been some of the churches in those organizations, a lot of them saved. There has been a message give to the elect too: the Word, the sign. See?
This one said, the spokesman that talked to Abraham said… Now, remember, he was Abram four or five days before that, and Sarah was S-a-r-r-a, not S-a-r-a-h. He was A-b-r-a-m, not A-b-e-r-h-a-m (See?), just four or five days before that, you remember. And this man walks up and He said, “Abraham, where is your wife, Sarah, S-a-r-r-a-h, S-a-r-a-h, rather? Where is your wife, Sarah?”
Why, Abraham said, “She’s–she’s in the tent, Sir, behind You.” Now, the Bible said behind Him.

E-113 He said, “Abraham, I’m not going to keep this from you any longer. I made you a promise.” See Who He was? The One Who’d been talking to him all the time (See?), the One that’d been with him. See? “I made you a promise. I’m going to fulfill it. I’m going to visit you according to the time of life. Sarah’s going to be back like a young woman, and so forth, and you’re going to bear this son,” See?
Now, that was a sign that just the promised son was coming. See? Abraham was looking for a promised son. Is that right? Is the church looking for a promised Son? Right? What was the last sign Abraham got? He said, “I’m going to visit you accor…”
And Sarah, in the tent, laughed up her sleeve to herself, said, “Me, an old woman, have pleasure with my lord, Abraham, him being old too?” Now, they was both well-stricken in age now. She was ninety, and he was a hundred. They hadn’t been husband and wife for many years. See? Said, “Me have pleasure with my lord, and him old too, like that, and me old?”

E-114 The Bible said that Abraham’s body was as good as dead. That’s right. And Sarah’s womb was dead. “But he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong giving praise to God,” knowed that what He promised He will do. That’s the way we got to… And his seed does the same thing, his promised promised seed, royal seed, believes the same thing.
Now, look. Just then He said… And she laughed. He said, “Why did Sarah laugh?” There’s His sign. There’s the sign to the church, the called-out church. A man, a man, human flesh, eating veal chops, corn bread, and drinking milk. Did He do it? Was it God? See if it isn’t. Look in your Bible and see if it don’t show “Elohim,” Elohim, the self-existing One, Elohim in human flesh. What’s it a sign of? Elohim back in the Bride, human flesh again in the last days doing the same thing. Where’s it at? There’s your sign for the last days.

E-115 In Zechariah 14:7 it said, “There will be a day that cannot be called day nor night.” It’s a dismal, rainy day like we’ve had today: dismal, rainy. “But in the evening time it shall be Light.” Now, as I’ve often said, civilization come from the east going west. The same sun that rises in the east sets in the west. It’s been a day of organization. We’ve had enough light to build churches, and schools, and hospitals, and seminaries, and so forth, had a little light, accepted Christ and put our name on the books, and so forth like that.
But He said, “In the evening time it shall be Light.” What is that? Gospel Light. What does that do? Holy Spirit. What does it do? Ripen the crop. In the last days the Holy Spirit will pour out in time, in the last days, to bring in the latter rain, the real rain. But first, how you going to have a rain when we’re still planting denominational seeds, bringing forth more unbelief all the time? Why don’t you plant the Gospel seed, bring forth the power of God in the resurrection. There’s the last-day signs. This is His promise, friends.

E-116 Look here. Let’s just take three signs right now together, make three in a confirmation. I can give you a dozen of them. I do not believe that there is such a thing as these things you say, well, like the zodiac, and like the pyramid doctrine, and things. I ain’t going to speak of that ’cause there’s something in there that… The first thing you know, you get yourself wound in British Israel, and all that stuff, which there’s nothing to. But let me tell you. There was…
The first Bible that was ever written was in the skies. Look at the zodiac. It starts off first with what? The virgin, first coming of Christ, goes down through the crossed fishes. What is that? Cancer age. We just passed through it. And what’s next? Leo, the lion, the second coming as a Lion of the tribe of Judah.

E-117 Look at the pyramid, how it started, the great bottom here. That was the beginning of the church. What was it? The first was Luther, in the reformation to build the church. The second line it become more in the minority. Wesley come along preaching sanctification. Then after that went along, made its grounds, like the tree…
First was a grain of corn, went in the ground. Next to come up was blades. The next thing come up was what? Tassel. Then what next thing come up? Same corn, same life. “I will restore, saith the Lord.” Next thing come was a ear of corn; same thing to a tree. That’s what God’s been growing.

E-118 Some of the Pentecostal people today don’t even count Martin Luther and them, because they say he didn’t have the Holy Ghost. He did. He might not have had it in the depths that we get it in now, but it wasn’t for that time. Don’t holler. We may get to something right sticky in a few minutes. See? So you see, Wesley and those brethren… Sure they was.
What was it? It was–it was a body, growing from the feet, coming up, comes up more important parts of the body from the feet, on into the lungs, and the heart, on into the Head. Who is the Head? Who is the Head? Christ. That’s the intelligence. How’s the body move? By the head. Amen. And the government shall be upon what? His… [Audience replies, “Shoulders.”–Ed.] What is His shoulders? His body. Amen.
There’s where the real true church speaks in His power. There’s where the apostolic power returns to the church, when the government shall be upon His shoulders; judgment. There’s coming a real church, I believe, trying to do my part to present it, have it ready the best I know how, to present my part in my age to Christ when He comes.

E-119 Look and what… do… If you got a dollar bill in your pocket, take it out. On one side, the right side, it’s got the American seal, a eagle with the arrows in his paw. That’s the seal of the United States. Then on the other side it’s got the pyramid. And the cap never was put on the pyramid. It’s got like a big eye shining there for the cap, and it said “The Great Seal.”
Why would that be the Great Seal in the United States instead of our own seal? Did you ever think of it? Look on it, see if it don’t say “The Great Seal.” Why wasn’t the pyramid ever had a cap on it? Same thing is in the temple of Solomon: the headstone was rejected. Certainly. But it’s coming down.
And I’ve been to the pyramids in Egypt. And them stones are laid in there so perfect you can’t take a razor blade, hardly, and go between them. Now, they fit perfectly. How they built it, they don’t know, and the sphinx and so forth. They can’t tell. But look; right where that headstone’s supposed to fit, it’s honed. If they ever could find the headstone, it would fit just so perfectly snug it would bind the whole thing together. That’s the Bride of Jesus Christ. When the headstone comes, there will be a church here on earth to receive it. It’ll have a ministry just exactly like His. It’ll just go right in there, bringing up the feet, Luther, and all the rest of them for the resurrection.

E-120 Some fell asleep in one watch, some in the next watch, and some on down to the seventh watch. That’s the seven church ages. But when the Bridegroom come they woke (Amen), come out from–from among the dead, and rose in the resurrection. We’re living in the last days.
You say, “What did you say? Luther, Wesley: justification, sanctification, baptism of the Holy Ghost?” Yes. And then the headstone. Is that right? The headstone was in the pyramid.
Let’s take the ark. Let’s take… Here’s one. Let’s get away from that part, come back here. Let’s take the ark: one floor, two floors, three floors. Is that right? Where did the light come from? Where was the window? Upstairs on the third floor. That’s where the power of God will come to a church. A sun (s-u-n) shined through there, but the S-o-n will come in this way to the church that God’s honing out and getting ready, bringing in a ministry to the church just exactly like what the palmerworm, and–and the locust, and the caterpillar eat up back there.

E-121 This stump’s growed from Wesley through–from Luther, to Wesley, to Pentecost; and now is honing out those Pentecostals, and those that’s got the baptism of the Holy Ghost. And shall come someday the headstone, Christ Jesus, in these last days… And we’ll have to have a ministry just exactly like His–His whole Spirit as it gets closer, closer, closer, closer. The negative becomes so positive that after while the negative and positive blends together, Church and Christ to make one: for we’re flesh of His flesh and bone of His bone. Amen. You believe it? “It shall be Light in the evening time.” Amen. We’re here today. You believe it? Sorry to keep you this long. Let us pray.

E-122 Our heavenly Father, we are now at the end of the sermon, the end of these notes, the end of the night’s message. And I tried to say in my broke-up way, Lord… And what I was unable to say in the Word, You–You make it real to them. I might say what You said here in the Word, but I can never make it live. It’ll take You to make it do it, Lord. That’s the seed; now water it, Lord. I present it to You in the Name of Jesus Christ.
Grant, Father, that we will see the Word confirmed as it was in the days of Sodom, as it was with our Lord. If it’s a Messiah coming, and we’re borned again Messiahettes, as sons of God, adopted, He will have to come into His church to be flesh of His flesh, and bone of His bone.
I pray, God, that You’ll manifest yourself tonight and show these things to be true, that this lovely pastor, this lovely church, these lovely people may all be blessed and know that the end time signs are here. The very thing that… Why, it wasn’t no time until the promised son was given. Immediately little Isaac come on the scene after that sign was performed to that called out church, that royal seed, the seed with the promise. Only Lot was just a relative to the seed.

E-123 Lord, we see the formal, indifferent churches today organizing themselves: Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, all of them together. Many in there are virgins, and many of them are trying to come out. Now, the Episcopalians, and so forth, trying to seek… And our precious brethren, many of our Pentecostal brethren, going to them and rejoicing over it… Certainly we will, Lord. But does the men really understand that the very time that they–the sleeping virgin come to buy oil, that’s when the Bridegroom come?
Oh, Lord, wake up the church right quick, Lord. And I’m sure You’ll do it. But You said one time when You looked upon the harvest, and said, “Laborers are few. Pray the Lord of the harvest that He will send laborers into his harvest.” Now, Father, we know that You want us to ask. We’re partners with You. It’s got to be us together. We realize not even an Angel can do it. It takes men.

E-124 Philip was sent to the eunuch. Certainly, Lord, he was sent there by an Angel, but it took Philip’s hands. Sure. We realize a vision came to Paul on his road down to Damascus, but it took Ananias’ hands, the church, the called-out, the elected one. Peter was sent by a vision up to Cornelius’, but it took the apostle, not the vision, not the Angel.
God, I pray tonight that You’ll wake people up, and let them see that the promise is here. It was given to that church. “Whosoever’s sins you remit, to them they’re remitted.” Lord, we know there’s many of them claim it, but they’re unauthorized apostles because they’re unscriptural.

E-125 We pray, God, that You’ll manifest Yourself, and show Yourself tonight. Those that are doing that make men join church, they’d never call out the words that Peter said in Acts 2. They’d be afraid to call repentance, God’s promising the baptism of the Spirit and the Holy Ghost. They’d be afraid to do that. They’d be throwed out of their organization for doing it.
God, we pray that You’ll wake up men right quick and let them see the hour, ’cause it’s approaching swiftly. Now, we commit everything to You now. Get glory. Speak, our Father, ’cause we commit ourselves with Your Word. In Jesus’ Name, Thy Son. Amen.

E-126 Oh, my. The Word, you believe it? You believe it’s the truth? Sometimes I–I might sound like I’m angry, but I’m not. I–if you seen some… If you knowed I was going down the road, and here’s a big jump-off right down the road here; and you knowed me going down that road ninety miles an hour, I was going to hit it, it was going… I was going to end up right there; would you love me well enough to warn me? I believe you do. That’s what I’m doing.
See the thing that… The church is getting in such a slump. Pastor, you see that; choir, you see that; everybody that’s spiritual, you spiritual people see that. What can we do, folks? What can we do? We see it right here. It’s the last… There never was another sign come to Abraham or any of them. The last sign was given. The son came. Jesus said, “As it was in that day, so will it be again at the coming of the Son of man.” Did He lie? He couldn’t have. He was God; He couldn’t lie.

E-127 Now, we’re going to pray for sick people. How many’s sick? Let’s see. Raise up your hand, all the sick people that’s in here. Did you give out cards? That’s better. He give out some cards. All right. We’ll call them. What–what? What? 1 to 100? All right. He said he give out prayer cards A-1 to 100. All right, let’s line up some of these people. Who has A-1, prayer card A-1? If you can’t get up, now, raise your hands, we’ll have somebody pack you. That lady, would you stand right here? 2, who has 2? Just as I call, the lady back there, would you come? Number 2?
All right. Prayer card number 3, A-number-3, who has that prayer card? Number 3, is it the brother coming there? All right, number 4. Who has prayer card 4? The lady right there. 5? Prayer card 6, prayer card number 6, number 7? All right, 8, 8, 9, 10, 10? I didn’t see 10 get up. Number 10? There’s been some people left. It might’ve been them. 10, 11, 11, 12, number 12, 13, 14? Move your hand or something, so I can see you right quick maybe. 14, 15, 15, prayer card number 15, please? 16, 17, that’s right. 17, 18, 19, 20? All right. Where’d did I call? Number 20? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16–Only sixteen people there as I can tell. All right. 16 to 20. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16…

E-128 Well, we’ll start from there. How many doesn’t have a prayer card, you’re sick, needy? Raise your hand. All over the building. All right. How many will promise to be in prayer just for a few minutes now, just set real still now, and be in prayer?
What have I been preaching about? The last sign that was going to strike the church before the end time. Someday it’s going to be different. We’re going to hear it our last time. All right. Will you be real… How many believe that to be true? How many believe that’s… you believe it? All right. Be reverent then, be real reverent. Just have faith; don’t doubt.

E-129 Now, if you’d just be in prayer, be real reverent now. I want to see if maybe the lady here had prayer card that wasn’t… You got somewhere between 1 and 20, lady? See what it is, Billy, that’s… All right. Sometimes maybe… I forgot somebody might be deaf. Look around, if there’s any more prayer cards. Look and see. It might be somebody deaf and couldn’t even hear. I–I–I get a little bit late and I… Well, you ain’t going nowhere tomorrow anyhow, just come back to church, aren’t you? That’s all, so just set still then. Paul preached this same thing all night. Sure, he did. So–so we–we’re not in no hurry. All right. Then everybody be real reverent now, and now don’t move around. Set real still now, and be real reverent. Now, let’s bow our heads just a moment.

E-130 Lord Jesus, now I realize what I face. I realize that now I must be found telling the truth or telling something false. I’m not trusting in myself, Lord. I–I’d be afraid to do that. I know… Even though I know it’s–it’s Your Word, and I know it’s the Truth, yet, Lord, it’ll take You to do it. You’ll have to help me. You’ll have to permit me to do this, Lord, or I can’t do it. It would be totally impossible for me to do it. I pray that You’ll help me.
Bless me, forgive me of my mistakes in life. Lord, here I am, way up here in middle-age now. Wish I’d have served You from all the way back, from the time was a little bitty boy, till I was–did start, about twenty-one years old. Wish I could make restitutions for that lost time, Lord. I’ve got to come forth… If You’d turn me back tonight to a young man, I’d be out of my place. I could never be a young man now. I wouldn’t know what I know. I–I wouldn’t raise in the resurrection with this people I’ve preached to. I’ve got to raise in this–this very generation to stand as a witness of Your Word. So, Lord, let me be true and honest with the people, honest with You, while I’m here. Then, when You’re finished with me, Lord, receive Thy servant in peace.

E-131 I pray that You’ll guide me now and direct me. Bless these people, bless this church, this lovely pastor, his wife, all the people here, Lord, such lovely, sweet people. I pray that You’ll be with them now, and let them see that what I’ve just said, that the end-time signs, every… plumb on back from Noah’s time, Lord, You give those signs. Just with a hour or two to try to explain it, would be hard to go into detail with all of it. But I pray now, Lord, that You’ll confirm it. That’s the main thing. Confirm it and let them know that that same God that performed that sign down there in the presence of Abraham, Sarah, and that elected church setting out there in that desert, a little interdenominational group setting out there… They wasn’t no city. They was a little group dwelling in tents. They had no big buildings and great things to glory over. They were just a bunch of pilgrims. But You appeared to them, because they had the promise of a coming son.
We have too, Father. We believe that. I pray that all out through Sodom here tonight… Look across this nation. How many great adulteries is being committed now? How many homes are being broke up? How much sin is coming up before Your eyes right now, Lord, in this very city? God, how can You stand it. I pray You forgive them, Lord. They don’t know what they’re doing. Be Thou near us, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

E-132 All right. Your attention for a moment. Let me look down the line here first. I believe that the people, as far as I know down the line, is strangers to me. I don’t know them, don’t know nothing about them.
Really, to look out across the audience here. I see my good friends there, Brother and Sister Palmer setting right down here from Macon, I believe, or down in Georgia. And I know that brother and sister; I can’t call their name, setting right next. And here’s right setting–man setting here right, Brother Fritzsinger from Ohio. That’s right.
Now, I know that Fred Sothmann and Mrs. Sothmann is here somewhere. I don’t know where. I heard him say “amen” awhile ago. I don’t know where he’s at. He’s in here somewhere. And Brother and Sister Evans is here. I think Brother Evans is. I think Sister Evans is in camp down there tonight. They seen they didn’t have no room to get in, so they went back, my wife, and children, and them. So we–we wanted this meeting… And Brother Tom Simpson is here, Brother David Wood is here, and they’re… I don’t see them, none of them.

E-133 But how many in here knows that I know nothing about you, what’s wrong with you or anything? Raise up your hands. Every person in this… Oh, it’s just everywhere. All right. Now, you just have faith. You believe with all your heart. Oh, my.
Now, here’s where something else has to speak besides a man. Now, you know that. Now, look here. Look at this prayer line. Every one of them raised up their hands; they’re strangers. And here’s my hand; here’s the Bible; they’re strangers to me. I don’t know them. And I’ve told you just exactly who I knew out there, could recognize from this platform. Behind me, I don’t know nobody but Brother Littlefield. As far as I can see, I don’t know a one. Is this Sister Littlefield? I didn’t. Whether it was her or not, I wasn’t too sure. Excuse me for waking you up the other night. So I–I don’t know no one hardly here.

E-134 But now (See?), now if the Holy Spirit is in the Word, the promised Word, then He promised in the last days to give a Scriptural sign just before the coming of the Son of man as it was in the days of Sodom. Is that right? Now, don’t you believe, brethren among us, that this little group of people is that called-out bunch? Don’t you believe the–the Pentecostal church… In all of its ups-and-downs, I believe in there is that elected called-out group of people. I believe it. Sure, sure.
Not all of them in the Pentecostal world is. But I mean, in that group they’re in there somewhere. I don’t know where they’re at, but they’re in there somewhere, ’cause there’ll never be another church age. This is the last one. But God will take that elected out of that Pentecostal group, and shape in that coming stone just like… That would have to fit like that to bring that roof down to it. You watch. It won’t be cater-cornered, and setting this a way. It’ll be a perfect fit. And this church will have to have that same ministry, and Jesus testified of the same thing.

E-135 Now, where do we start? Is this the first person, or that one? This here? All right, lady. Just stand where you’re at if you want to. You don’t have to come any farther there. Now, here we are: man and woman meeting here, just like Jesus met the woman at the well. I’ve never seen her, know nothing about her. She’s just a woman standing there is all I know. And you’re people out there. Now, I have a… Now, look. She looks kind of thin, but she actually could–could be a good, healthy, strong woman. She may be. She may be standing there for somebody else. I don’t know. I never seen her. Well now, if the Holy Spirit…
If I could heal her, I’d walk over there… If she’s sick, say for instance, say, well, a thin woman you’d think of TB. All right. Say she had TB. I’d walk over there and say, “I’ll lay my hands on you, sister. Praise God. I heal you in Jesus’ Name.” If I… If the Lord would speak to me to go do that, I’d go do it. See? But I ain’t going to go over there and say that until He tells me to say it, ’cause I don’t know it.

E-136 A man drove up in front of the house just recently, whole big group of people out there, and he said, told my wife (I’d just got in), he said, “Just let Brother Branham come to the door and tell me my daughter will be all right. That’s all he has to do–just walk and tell me.” Meda said, “Well, go out there and…” And I said, “Well, what could I do? If I’d go tell him, not knowing, I’d be lying.” I said, “If the Lord would tell me to go tell him that, I’d go tell him that. But until He tells me that, I can’t say no more than what He tells me to say.” That’s what it is, just going and presuming you’re all right. But that’s–that’s wrong. Can’t presume it. You… And right here you can’t presume.
I can’t say, “I presume this woman is praying for her sick aunt.” That won’t work. She’d know better. Well, she might be at that. See? But I mean, just presuming it (See?), you can’t do that. It’s got to be truth, got to be truth. And here’s where it’s got to prove whether it’s truth or not.

E-137 Now, remember. Let every person remember, I’m your brother (See?), just a man. But–but the gift of God, believing this message, and believing He sent me to preach this message, then yielding myself to the Holy Spirit, and that Word in there is in my heart. And “If ye abide in Me, and My Word in you, ask what you will.” Not… Abide, not just running and jumping from here to there; but “If ye abide in Me, My Word in you, ask what you will.” Is that right?
Now, I’d just like to talk to you a minute, lady (been preaching), just for a few minutes, just while you stand right there; just so I can single you out from somebody else. And just like our Lord talked to the woman at the well, you know. He was just catching her spirit, till He found out what her trouble was. Then when He found her trouble, He told her what her trouble was, and she said that was a sign of the Messiah. Well, if Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and then, you know me, as a man, I couldn’t do that; and if it’d be performed again, wouldn’t that be the sign of the Messiah again? Would you believe that, church?

E-138 Now, just to talk with her a minute now. See? Not me, Messiah, but Messiah talking through me. See? That’s it, ’cause I don’t know her. I’ve never seen her. Now, we get… Just a moment till I… I don’t know as He will do it. He might not even do it.
Yes, the lady’s got to have help right now, or she’s going to die. She’s got cancer. That’s right. That’s right. So the people will know, raise up your hand like that. You want me to tell you where it’s at? It’s in the throat. It’s correct. You believe with all your heart? Then will you accept…?
All right. Now, look. Now, you say you believe that He can heal you. Then according to the Bible He has done it, if you believe that. Now, is that Word right? Then you are healed, aren’t you? That’s right. Amen. Go down and say, “Thank You, Lord,” and forget all about it, and get well. Amen.

E-139 We are strangers one to the other. I don’t know you. I’ve really never seen you, I guess. We’re strangers, just met here. But God knows both of us. You believe that, don’t you? The Bible said, “He that believeth…” Just be real reverent. If the Lord God can tell me… If I walk over there and say, “Lady, you’re sick.” Now, you may be sick, standing there in that prayer line. That may be true. And it maybe you’re standing there for somebody else. I don’t know. But if you was sick, and I went over there and put my hands on you, say, “Jesus said, ‘These signs follow them that believe: lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.'” That’s the truth.

E-140 But wait a minute. Let’s a-vindicate whether He sent that person or not. See? Let’s find out first (You see?), whether it will work that way or not. See? You remember that. Them two words, presumingly, come to two dif… always has been a… Satan tried to make God’s work in the–God’s Word in the garden of Eden by whitewashing it. Moab tried to do the same. Satan done the same thing in the presence of Jesus–flew into Him with his ecclesiastical education and knowledge, and said, “It’s written; it’s written.”
Jesus flew right back onto him, and said, “It’s also written…” It would work for Jesus. Why? The Word was in the Word. That’s what made it work. The current was in the wire. That’s the difference.

E-141 Now, it takes the current in the wire here. See? I’m just the wire; but He’s the current. So the wire’s dead without the current. So if the current of God, the Holy Spirit, can come through a wire (your brother) and can describe to you (or by the Holy Spirit, like He did the woman at the well), describe something that you have done, or something you ought to have done, or–or something that’s–that’s past tense, that you–you’ll know whether it’s the truth or not; or, if you’re sick, if something’s wrong with you: tell what’s wrong with you, then you’d know whether that’s the truth or not, wouldn’t you? You’d know it. Is that right, church?
Then if He can tell you what has been and you know whether that’s true or not; then if He tells you what will be, you know it’s right. See? And you already know what will be, if He–if He said it right here in His Word. It don’t have to come from me; it’s already come. The only thing is a vindication now, that this–this Word, your faith, your being and God’s Word is meeting together right here. See? I’m just a mouthpiece to transfer. See?

E-142 Here’s God’s promise. God said this would be a sign of the last day. Here’s the last days here; we’re living in it. All right. Now, is it true? Here’s the Holy Spirit standing present right now. How many ever seen the picture of that Angel on that–that Light. See? It’s right here right now. It’s right here, right where I’m standing. That’s exactly what’s talking. That’s exactly what’s doing this to this woman. See?
The woman has got some trouble with her ears. She’s having trouble with her ears. That’s right. Getting a little hard of hearing too, with it. That’s… Raise up your hand, if that’s true.

E-143 I always catch that. Somebody thinks I’m guessing that. You’re presuming wrong. I’m not guessing that. Just watch a minute. Just want to talk to you. Now, let’s see. I don’t know what it was He said. Whatever it was, was right. Yeah. It’s your ears. I see now something’s going wrong in your ears. And you’re having something wrong in the head. It’s like a headache, like migraine headaches or something say. That’s right, isn’t it? Not only that, but–but you’re praying for somebody. You got somebody with you tonight. That is right. She’s a–a woman, elderly woman. Exactly right. She has trouble with her ears too. I’m looking right at her now, looking at you.
Yes, sir. Another thing she’s got, she’s got high blood pressure. She’s got arthritis. That is true. That’s exactly right. All right. Ruby, do you believe she’s going to get well? You believe she’s going to get well? You believe you’re going to get well, Mrs. Crumley? Ruby Crumley? Go back and tell them…?… Do you believe? “If thou canst believe…”
Now, just believe. Now, calling her name was nothing. Didn’t Jesus say to Peter, “Your name is Simon? Your father was Jonas,” See? See, it’s just still Him.

E-144 I don’t know you, sir. We’re strangers one to the other. But do you believe that God can reveal to me your trouble? Would you believe me to be His servant if I did that? Would the audience, every man in there believe the same thing?
Something happened. Not in the audience… I didn’t get it just right. Let me catch your–get attention again, just a moment. You’re here for somebody else. That person’s not here. They’re not in this town, not even in this state. They’re in Carolina. That’s right. It’s a minister’s wife. She’s got cancer. The cancer is on the breast. You’re standing for her. You believe she’s going to be well? May Jesus Christ grant it.

E-145 How do you do? We’re strangers one to the other. But you believe Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lives tonight? It’s just starting out in the audience now. It’s just kind of hard to hold here on the platform. It’s just going on. It’s sweeping out through the audience. See? If you just could believe, friends, right now, you’d see the Spirit of God go to moving. I’ll try to keep my attention this way as much as possible for these people I got lined up.
You’re a stranger too. That’s right. Been in the hospital, had some operation: spinal condition. That’s right. Want to go back to Georgia and be well? You do, Mrs. Colleen? Go back down and believe it with all your heart.

E-146 What if I told you your back trouble’s healed, standing there? Would you believe me? All right, go back and just claim it. Say, “Thank You, Lord.” Go believing. And you have the same thing. Just go believe. That’s all you have to do. Your stomach trouble? Go eat. Jesus Christ make you well, if you believe with all your heart.
Got a nervous condition, gives you a stomach trouble too. So you just go right ahead and eat your supper. You believe with all your heart? Have faith.
Heart trouble is nothing for God to heal. You believe He will make you well? Go back to your seat, and say, “Thank You, Lord, for healing me.” Yes, sir.

E-147 Don’t climb up on there, ’cause arthritis hurts. But God can heal it. Do you believe that? Go right back, and say, “Thank You, Lord,” and get well.
Nervousness is a great thing. But you believe God can heal your nervousness? Go back and say, “Thank You, Lord,” and be made well.
Do you believe with all your heart, everybody? “If thou canst believe…” What if I didn’t say a thing to you, and just told you you’d be all right and your heart… Well, go ahead. You’re healed anyhow. I said that before he…
Now. Long time this has been bothering you (See?), and sourness in your stomach and everything like that. You believe He’s going to make you well now? Go eat, may just be well. Does everybody believe with all your heart?

E-148 This little lady setting here with her head bowed, setting right in here, she’s praying. There’s a woman setting next to her there. I can’t call her name. I don’t know who she is. But that person is praying for a loved one to be saved. That’s exactly right. If you’ll believe with all your heart that God will save them, go, and God will give it to you just exactly in answer to your prayer. What’s that lady’s name, setting there? I can’t see, setting right next to her? Yes. Tell her to believe it. God’s answered her prayer. Amen. Praise the Lord. Amen. You believe? Don’t doubt. Have faith in God.
Ron Sothmann, is that you setting back there, I’m looking at? Lay your hand on that woman next to you there, your friend setting there. She’s got a kidney trouble. You believe you’ll be healed, lady? Yes, sir. Your husband setting next there got trouble with his eyes. You believe he will be healed? Lay your hands over on him. They’re both perfect strangers. I’ve never seen them in my life. You believe with all your heart? Jesus Christ makes you well. Amen. You believe?
God can heal stomach trouble, nervous stomachs. Do you believe it? Make you well? Receive it. Jesus Christ makes you well. Amen.

E-149 How many in here believes with all your heart? Up-and-down, up-and-down… Do you believe that’s the same Lord God that stood with Abraham down there that day, represented Himself in human flesh? Don’t you see it’s the same God in you, the same God in me, the same sign that He gave just before the end time to the elected church? Don’t you believe that? Don’t you believe that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever? Don’t you believe that’s a sign of Him coming? Don’t you believe that’s a sign soon the world is going to be destroyed, and the millennium is going to set in, we’re going to have a great reign with God? Don’t you believe that? It’s the end time sign.
How many seeds of Abraham is in here tonight with that hope in them, resting in God? Jesus Christ the Son of God said, “These signs will follow them seeds of Abraham, they that believe.” Are you a believer? Raise your hands. Now, I don’t care what’s wrong with you. That don’t mean a thing (See?), just telling you, and revealing. See? That takes your faith to do the healing. See? Your faith does it. See? It’s my faith in the gift of God that reveals it, because God made a promise. Then God revealed the promise to me through His Word, and I stay with that promise. You get what I mean? I stay with that promise.

E-150 That little lady setting there with that bladder trouble, you believe God’s going to make you well? All right, sir. You can have your desire. God bless you. Worried about your prayer card? Don’t have to have any after all. See? God made you well.
Now, don’t you see what I mean? It’s just everywhere. Do you believe it? Lay your hands over on one another. Just pray for one another. I’m going to listen at you. Pray for one another; lay your hands on one another. I want to see how you pray. What…?… here, in this little group standing in the prayer line, lay… Turn around, turn your hands one to another; put your hands… Now, pray one for the other. Just… I want to hear you pray. Now, don’t pray for yourself, now. Pray for the one you got your hands on. That’s it. Standing out in the hall, around the place everywhere, put your hands on each other.

E-151 Our heavenly Father, we bring this meeting to this great climaxing moment. The devil would do everything he could to hinder it. But, God, You have showed yourself present, the Presence of the Holy Spirit by the Word, by Scriptural signs, by the very Bible itself, Who gives the promise, and said these things would come to pass in the last days.
Jesus Christ, Son of God, who knows the hearts, the names, the everything, the diseases, and what was, what is, and what will be, You know all about it. And these people setting here are your people. They’re children of God, and they believe You. They have their hands on one another. You said, “These signs shall follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover.” Now, I’m placing my prayer with theirs. I’m believing with them. I’m believing that what they’re asking You’re going to give them, because they are Your children. You will withhold no good thing from them that walk upright before You.

E-152 Now, Satan, we come to this moment to challenge you. You are defeated. You’ve been defeated since Calvary. There’s not a thing that you have that you can offer but a bluff. And we’re not letting you bluff anymore. We are laying out the Word of the Lord God. The Word of the Lord said, “These signs shall follow them that believe.” These people profess to have the baptism of the Holy Ghost. They have felt the supernatural power of God surge through them to change their lives. They have sympathy one with another. They’re praying one for the other.
Oh, Satan, you evil one who’s made these people sick, we adjure thee in the Name of Jesus Christ turn these people loose. Come out of them in the Name of Jesus Christ. Let them go. Come out in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Stand to your feet now. Raise up. Give God praise. Raise up your hands to Him. I don’t care if you’re crippled. Raise up anyhow. Raise up your hands and give God praise.