The Family Altar Audio Devotionals
Take time to get in the Word of God today…
Day 152
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. (John 15:12-15)
141 If you’re a member of a church, that’s a good thing, but that’s not good enough. See, the rich young ruler was a member of the church. See? He asked Jesus what could he do to have Eternal Life. He never accepted It. He walked away. What a foolish thing for that young man to do. Don’t take his place. You remember the last time he was identified? A little later, he prospered. He got richer. He got to a place till even his barns bursted. But then we find his last identification, in hell, flames tormenting. Don’t, don’t let that happen to you. Accept Christ.
142 You young people, you young girls, young boys, just at the turning of life, please do that. Hear me, as—as your brother, one who loves you. I’m here because I love you. I love God, and I love you, and I cannot love God if I don’t love you.
143 I would a lot rather, if you had a comment to pass, pass it on my son out there, or one of my children. Let me just…I, I’ll go without it. Any parent will do that; so will God. See? Love His people. Love one another.
144 You say, “What do you scold them for?” Genuine love is corrective.
145 If your child is sitting out on the street; you say, “Well, there sits Junior. He oughtn’t to do that, but I don’t want to hurt his little feelings.” You don’t love him. He’ll get killed there. If you love him, you’ll bring him in and give him a spanking. You’ll make him obey.
146 That’s the way God does. Love is corrective, and that’s genuine love.
147 When a preacher stand and lets you women bob your hair, and wear paint and stuff, and don’t correct you, there is no genuine love there; and won’t call it out. And let you men marry three or four times, and all of these other things, and get by with it, there is no genuine love there. Let you join a church, and pat you on the back, and smother you with some creed, then, “That’s all you have to do, is join the holy church,” there is no love there. Or, either, the man is so totally lost, himself, he don’t see.
148 Genuine love is corrective, and brings you back to the Word of God.
149 Look at Jesus, how, what He said, ’cause He loved them, so much that He died in their place, when they was even calling for His Blood.
64-0322 – “Possessing The Gate Of The Enemy After Trial”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 153
And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel! As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river’s side, as the trees of lign aloes which the Lord hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters. He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted. God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and pierce them through with his arrows. He couched, he lay down as a lion, and as a great lion: who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee. (Numbers 24:3-6)
69 He went on down, and he thought that surely he was going to curse those people. So when he goes down, we find a good picture of it here in Jude, if we’ll just turn over. Listen. When he got down there, he said…Now watch Balaam. And Balak is going to show Balaam Israel, so he goes and builds his altar. He was a prophet, Balaam was. So he just showed him a part of Israel, just the worst part.
70 And that’s just exactly the way the devil does today, he just shows you the worst part of the thing. That’s what the devil shows some of these modern preachers of theology, just say, “Now, look here, you know John Doe that used to live over here, he run off with So-and-so’s wife. We had enough of that bunch of holy-rollers.” He didn’t think about some in his own organization did the same thing. That’s right. But they can cover it up.
71 But, listen, he showed him just so much of Israel, then he took him back and showed him so much here. But when he come to a place, and Balaam, he thought, “Surely if Israel had done wrong…” They did do wrong. They had done everything in God’s calendar, wrong, nearly. But what, and Balaam thought that a holy God would surely curse a people that had done that much wrong. He thought, “Surely God will do it.” So when he got down there, he was so money crazy until he couldn’t see what the reason that God wasn’t cursing them. And everytime he’d try to curse them, he would bless them. He’d throw out his prophecy like that, and go forth and take up his mantle and his parable; and instead of cursing, it would be a blessing fall back to them, “How righteous are thy tents, O Israel,” how great they was. Instead of cursing, it was a blessing.
72 What Balaam failed to see, is what the modern preachers and modern people fail to see in the Holy Ghost Church today. They say, “I know a lot of them call themselves this, that, and the other, and a lot of things they’ve done.” I’ll admit that, brother. They say, “They blow up with this, and they’ve done that, and done this.” That’s true, I’ll admit that they’ve done wrong.
73 But where Balaam failed, to see that Brazen Serpent and that smitten Rock going before Israel, making atonement. It was God’s calling, God’s election. They were God’s people. Hallelujah! God had called them and separated them, and put a Serpent before them (as an atonement) and a smitten Rock, and Balaam failed to see That. In the day the modern preacher fails to see the Power of the Holy Ghost, the smitten Jesus Christ, that we are in His Body, by one Spirit are we all baptized into one Body and become members of that Body. And that’s what the modern man failed to see in there. Before that Holy Ghost church moving on, they fail to see that, that smitten Rock, that Brazen Serpent going before the church, making an atonement. Balaam failed to see It.
53-0329 – “Israel And The Church #5”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 154
And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. (Numbers 25:1-3)
238 Now, what did Balaam do when he found out that he couldn’t—that he couldn’t curse Israel? He told Balac it would be a good idea, then, for him to invite these people to the festival of the god. They had a—they had a—a great festival up there, they were…where they were going to have. And they…The festival was called “The feast of Baal-p-e-o-r, Baal-peor.” I suppose p-…peor, Baal-peor. It was a—a feast, to worship.
239 And Balaam said, “Now, I’ll tell you, Balac, I’ll give you a good idea. If you’ll just…if you…God won’t curse them, that’s all there is to it, so I’ll tell you what we’ll do. We can’t get rid of them; but if you’ll just invite them over, you’ll swing the whole thing your way.”
240 See, exactly, exactly what Constantine did. Perfectly! That’s the reason “the doctrine of Balaam.”
241 What did they do? They then…Balac’s teaching come down amongst Israel. And they invited all the Israelites up to this big feast, the big blowout they had. Oh, some big party, shindig of a thing up there they had. And when they got up there, why, these Israelite people begin to see these pretty, sexy-dressed Moabite women. Yes, wasn’t like their common girls down there. “Oh, they looked so pretty. My! How they were made and, oh, how they could show themselves.” And they fell for it, and begin to commit adultery. And Balaam knowed if God wouldn’t curse them, he’d take them over on this denominational side and cause the anger of God to kill them anyhow; let God kill them Hisself, if he could ever get them out of the way of the Truth.
242 And as soon as you walk out and join a church instead of receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost, you’re dead! (Not for you, but on here, I’m letting that soak a little while.) Dead! “You have a name,” said to Luther here, of the Sardis Age. The word Sardis means “dead.” “You have a name that you’re alive, but you’re dead!” That’s what God said. Yeah. See?
243 And when they had committed spiritual fornications up there, the church married from the baptism of the Holy Ghost to a denomination, they become dead. There you are. That’s what the Bible said, that’s what God said, speaking to the churches.
244 Now I want to just read something here to you, that I…
245 And God, what did He do? And now when they did this evil thing, and they were in adultery, God killed forty-two thousand of them at one time; forty-two thousand, for committing adultery. And what is it spoke of here in the church? The spiritual adultery, that you profess to be a “Christian” and still living like the world. Oh, brother, receive ye the Holy Ghost! Get away from these old creeds and things you…they’re dead; recite the Apostles’ Creed, or some kind of a creed, and say a few prayers wrote out of a prayer book, or something like that. Jesus never did tell His people to say a prayer, He said, “Pray!” Pray! All right.
60-1207 – “The Pergamean Church Age”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 155
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. (Psalm 1:1-3)
7 And if a fellow doesn’t know his sheep real well, it’s hard to tell the difference between the bleating of a goat and of a sheep. They’re a whole lot alike. But the nature of them proves what they are. That’s the way with confessed Christians and real Christians. The goat represents the world. They’ll lead you right down the wrong road to your eternal separation from God. They’ll lead you into trouble. So if we are sheep, we better watch what kind of shepherd we got.
Sheep are funny little creatures in one way. Here’s another thing we might learn of sheep tonight. When the weather is real hot, did you ever see sheep? They won’t separate themselves, and one be at one place, and one at another. But right in the heat of the day, the sheep will all stand together. You know what they’re doing? They’re making shade one for the other. They’re having fellowship.
8 And wouldn’t it be good if all God’s sheep, when the heat was on, would stand together. When the trials are real hard, and the heat is on, and everything going on everywhere, if all of God’s little sheep would just stand together, we’d have the coolness of the shade of each other, the comfort, to lean upon each other.
Now, someone said, “Is that necessary, Brother Branham?” It certainly is. There’s nothing like having a real good dependable friend, that when the troubles are blazing, the heat’s on, you can go to this friend, and set down, and just explain it to them, talk it over in personal confidence, and then kneel down and pray together, and know that this person is a good God-saved man or woman that you can put confidence in. Oh, it’s good to do that. “Come, let us reason together,” saith the Scripture. Or, “Come, let us stand together.”
And I noticed another thing when I see sheep in a cold country. And when all the sheep, the blizzards comes, to break the wind all those little sheep will come from one side of the field to the other and huddle up together; it keeps each other warm. The warmth from each body helps warm the other.
9 And I think when the Church gets real cold and indifferent, God’s sheep ought to kinda huddle up together and pray for each other. And the warmth of real good Christian fellowship, oh, it means so much. David spoke of it in the first Psalm, said, “Blessed is the man that setteth not in the seat of the scornful, standeth in the way of sinners. But his delight is in the law of the Lord: and in the law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree that’s planted by the river of water, and his leaves shall not wither; whatsoever he doeth it shall prosper.”
57-0308 – “The Good Shepherd Of The Sheep”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 156
Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. (Psalm 2:12)
38 You know, the custom in the Palestine country, the first thing happens when you’re invited to a royal entertainment like that, when you come to the door you’re all dirty, you stink; you’re not—you’re not a fit subject then for entertainment. You’d be embarrassed to walk in those lovely homes with all that on your feet and everything, and the way you look and sweaty and everything. What’s the first thing? When a guest arrives, they got a flunky, the poorest paid man on the job.
When I think that my Lord girded Himself and washed people’s feet, He took the lowest place, when He was the—deserved the highest place. But He took the lowest place, to wash the dung and dirt from their feet, become the humblest of servants. There’s not another servant got as humble a job as the flunky that washes the feet.
But when you come to a—a home of that type in the eastern country, Palestine, the flunky meets you at the door, goes to one of the wells and draws him some—a great basin of—of good clear water, and he removes your sandal, or your shoe, sets your feet up across his knee, and he washes all this dirt, and dust, and dung, and stuff off of your body. And then he takes another towel and wipes your feet, and he washes them, sets them down.
And then he takes your sandals and sets them up on a little—little mantle like, sets them along like this at the door of entrance. Then he goes over, and he finds a pair of fine satin, silk slippers; they’re soft. That’s the compliments of the host. He does that; he has them setting there; he put them upon your feet until he finds one that fits you comfortably.
39 Then your feet’s washed. Then he passes you into another place, and then there’s a man meets you there at the door, and he has a little basin in his hand, a little pitcher like. And you take it and pour a—some of the oil in your hands.
Now, that oil is made of a very fine spikenard. What it is, it’s—there’s a bush that grows in Arabia that they get it from. A little flower blooms like a rose, and then when the rose goes down, it leaves a little bulb like and that hardens like a little apple. And that’s the thing that this tree does, but you can take that and roll it in your hands.
I seen a—a Russian celebrity one time, who had two of them; you could roll them in your hands like that, and the scent would stay on your hand for two weeks. It’s very expensive, costly. And it cost much money. Oil will get old and—and smell bad in a few days, but they put this spikenard in there until it becomes… Oh, it keeps for—that aroma for years. That was some of the treasures that the queen of Sheba brought to Solomon.
40 And they give you that, and you wash your hands with it. Then they give you a towel, and you wipe your hands. Then the next they give you, it’s some more of it, and you put it on your neck, the back of your neck, on your cheeks and on your forehead. Both men and women in Palestine must do this, because the sun rays are so hot. They do that, and then it creates a smell. Then after you wipe the most of it off, you’re refreshed. Your feet is washed; you are washed; your hands are clean; your face is clean.
Then you’re taken into the chamber of where the host is. And then when you meet him, you take—he takes his right hand and puts it on your left shoulder, then you bow. And then he—you take your right hand and put it on his left shoulder, and he bows. Then he kisses you, from one side of the cheek to the other side of the cheek; and that’s the welcome, the right hand of fellowship. When the host kisses you, you are a brother; you’re welcome.
Jesus was very careful to wash Doctor Jones’ feet, or the Pharisee rather. And He was very careful for the celebrity, but here set Jesus with dirty feet. Here set Jesus, unwelcomed, with no oil on Him. Here set Jesus with no kiss. And yet He left His work and come all the way across Palestine to keep His promise.
41 I imagine He was miserable setting there. All the rest of them, and the Pharisee testifying over there about different things that happened, and poor Jesus set there with dirty feet, unanointed face, no kiss. Jesus wants to be kissed. There’s a Scripture in Psalms 2, says, “Kiss the Son, lest He be angry.” “Kiss the Son,” Oh, you’ll never know what it means till once you’ve kissed the Son. Kiss the Son, make Him welcome into your heart.
But He set unanointed with dirty feet. Oh, how embarrassed He was. Pharisee was having his big time; he was too busy entertaining the great men of the city, to know that Jesus was unentertained. But He come anyhow. Oh, my God, how did—what happened, how did that flunky at the door ever get by without washing His feet? God, I wish I had his job. How I would’ve loved to have washed His feet at the door. How I would’ve loved to have entertained Him, to take in my basin of water, when I knowed that He was setting there.
55-0807A – “Pride”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 157
And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. They said therefore unto him, Art not thou also one of his disciples? He denied it, and said, I am not. One of the servants of the high priest, being his kinsman whose ear Peter cut off, saith, Did not I see thee in the garden with him? Peter then denied again: and immediately the cock crew. (John 18:25-27)
327 Peter, after he was out there fishing, he was…his occupation was fishing. I kind of like his occupation. And so, he was out there fishing, all discouraged, know that he had denied Christ. Oh, my! Heard that Prophet stand there and tell him, “Peter, do you say you love Me?”
328 He said, “O Lord, You know I love You.” He said, “I love You. I’m ready to die for You.”
329 He said, “Peter, you think you mean that, but you’ll deny Me three times before…You’ll deny Me before the cock crows the third time. See, you’ll deny Me thrice before the cock crows.”
330 And then seeing that come to pass, when he stood there and said “I don’t know Him. No, I don’t know nothing about them there Pentecostals.”
331 It ain’t time to quit preaching, it’s just my watch having a spell. [The alarm on Brother Branham’s watch sounded—Ed.] See? Said that, “I—I know…” I—I’m supposed to stop now, but I—I can’t stop right at this time, see, so I got to finish this up here just a minute.
332 Said, “I—I—I—I know I denied Him. I denied Him in the presence of Pilate. I denied Him in the presence when that little woman come around to me, said, ‘Aren’t you one of them?’ ‘No!’ And even cursed!” Oh, he was in a terrible shape. Said, “I—I—I…” She denied…He had denied Him. And he had seen Jesus stand and look over, then is when the cock crowed, looked over at Peter. He went out. Oh, he was discouraged with himself, said, “Why do I live any longer?”
333 And then, besides that, he said, “I think I’ll go back and go fishing again. I can’t preach anymore, so I’ll just go back and start fishing.” He had throwed his nets in and cast all night long, didn’t have no fish. And he was at a weak spot, he didn’t have nothing, discouraged with himself, come to the end of his abilities.
334 Well, he thought he was a great man, chopped the high priest’s son’s ears off like that. Well, he thought he was a great fellow, you know, he had learned something. But he knowed nothing! He had to forget all about it.
335 And there he was out there, said, “Well, I know one thing, I’m a fisherman. I can still make a living, fishing.” He cast all night and didn’t get nothing. Oh, what a discourage! Every time he pulled it up, an empty net. And he was so discouraged! He was at the weakest point, said, “I just might as well feel like jumping off this boat. I ain’t worth nothing, anyhow.”
He said, “Have you got any fish, children?”
336 Looked out on the bank, and there stood a Man. He said, “No, we’ve toiled all night and taken nothing. I thought I was a fisherman.”
“Is that you, Simon?”
337 “Yeah. Well, I toiled all night and taken nothing. Oh, I—I…We ain’t got no fish out here.”
He said, “Well, cast your net on the other side.”
338 “We’ve done…What?” Then he be-…Said, “On the other side? We’ve been doing that!”
“Cast it on the other side.”
339 He throwed his nets out, and he pulled. He said…Then he become strong. Oh, my! He grabbed up his old fish coat and put it around him, said, “Brethren, that’s Who It is!” And he beat the rest of them to the bank, before they could oar them boats just as fast as they could, he outswam them, with a fish coat on, got to the bank. Why? When he was strong. When he was strong he couldn’t do nothing, but when he got weak then he got strong. Yes, sir.
61-1119 – “Perfect Strength By Perfect Weakness”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 158
Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged him. And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe, And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him with their hands. Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him. Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid; And went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art thou? But Jesus gave him no answer. Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin. And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar’s friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar. (John 19:1-12)
171 Did you ever notice an airplane pilot before he goes up in the airplane? He’s got…checks every instrument he can. He’ll take that plane out, he’ll check everything; and stand out there and rev it up, and rev it up, to see if it’ll take off, and everything. Why? He is awful careful. He has got blood on his hands if he don’t watch.
172 Look at a doctor, for an operation, how he checks every tool, takes the x-ray, and everything. Why? He’s got that man on his hands. If he dies, the blood is on him. And he checks everything, to be sure that the blood is not upon him. That’s right. He don’t want no blood on his hands. Human blood don’t want to be on human’s hands.
173 But what are you going to do with the Blood of Jesus Christ on your hands? Now you can’t throw It out, say, “I don’t believe That.” The Bible condemns you. He says He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever; and here He is working, doing the same. The Blood is on your hands, anyhow, and you can’t wash It off.
174 Pilate tried that. There couldn’t be enough water to wash It off his hands. He tried to pass It on to his organization, the higher up, the presbyter, said, “If you would let me do it,” but it backfired.
175 It comes right back to you. See? You can’t get It off your hands, no way in the world but accept It. The only way you can get It off your hands, is get It on your heart. That’s the only way to do it. And when we see Jesus Christ today manifest Himself here just exactly like He al-…when He did here on earth, and promised to do it, we are sure this is the Messiah. Now It’s on your hands, in your lap. What will you do with this Jesus called Christ?
63-1130E – “Go, Awake Jesus”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 159
Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. (Psalm 5:1-3)
8 Now, the thing is with the people, is the way God appears. Many times we want to make an idol out of God. We ask God to do something, and then He must do it just the way that we ask it, or we’ll say He never answered. When we do that, we weaken our faith in God. And we weaken our testimony when we do not take Him at His Word.
God always answers. No one never asked… Jesus said, “Ask and you shall receive; seek and ye shall find.” Everyone that asks will receive. Everyone that seeks shall find. Everyone that knocks, it’ll be opened to them.
Now, that’s the only way that I’ve always found it, that I can get anything from God, is take Him at His Word and believe it the way He sends it.
Now, if we do not take it just the way that we think it is… We’ve built God as an idol. He’s got to answer just according to our ways, or, “Well, it’s just no good. He didn’t answer us.” God answers in many ways. He answers in peculiar ways, times, and everything is odd.
9 We’ll take, for instance, Moses. Moses was eighty years old. He was almost, you might think, too old for God to deal with. He was an old man, unexpected in his age to be dealt with with God. Another thing, he was under the Mount Horeb, a unexpected place. God met him at a unexpected age, at a unexpected place, in a unexpected way. God didn’t meet Moses the way He usually met men. He met Moses in an unusual way, in the way that He chose to meet Moses in.
That’s the way he answers our prayer, in the way that He thinks is best. And His way is always right. If we ask for anything, and it doesn’t happen just the way God—or the way we think that God ought to let it happen, then that makes us lose and fall back. Let’s ask God, stand firm on the Word, and say It’s true, and it—just receive it the way He sends it. That’s the way you got to believe God.
It may come disguised; it may come in another way, around about way. But no matter what way it comes, if we have asked we shall receive. God said so. And that settles it forever, if God says so. Now, when you get to taking God like that and believing it…
60-0326 – “The Unchangeable God”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 160
But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. (John 20:24-29)
35 Watch here, Oral Roberts, a bosom friend of mine, used this Scripture after, I believe he got it from Jeremiah. Jeremiah said, “God is a good God.”
And my friend, Oral Roberts, has used that many times, that expression, and that’s true. God is a good God. He… Certainly, He is. I want to ask you something. God being a good God, did you notice at the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, Peter was at the grave and some women, and Peter recognized the Lord had raised from the dead. He come right back to the disciples, and he said, “The Lord is risen.” And the rest of them began to praise the Lord, ’cause they knowed He was supposed to raise from the dead. So, don’t you remember what he said to us? They began to rejoice, because the Lord had risen.
36 In this group there was two missing, and one of them was called Cleopas and his buddy. And they were on the road to Emmaus, going back home very sad. They never heard the word yet. So as they journeyed on, Jesus appeared with them. And notice, He didn’t go to tell them some kind of fantastic, the first thing He went to, was back to the Word, said, “Fools, slow of heart, don’t you know the prophets have said, the Word has said, that Christ must suffer to enter into His glory? He begin with the Word. And Christ always begins with the Word, and stays with the Word. And when He made hisself known to them by a sign, not a fantastic, a sign that He did before them here on earth, which made it a Bible sign, they rushed back, and in this midst of people, they found a guy named Thomas.
“No, don’t believe it. No, don’t believe it. I’ve got to have bloody hands before I believe it.” He was the first Pentecostal. “I’ve got to have a sign. I’ve got to have some kind of a feeling, a sensation.”
God’s a good God. He appeared and said, “Thomas, come here.” Said, “Put your hands here in My side. Do you feel Me? If you want to feel something, here it is Thomas. Feel Me. Touch My hand.”
And Thomas said, “Oh, now I believe.” He had to have a feeling.
37 The others didn’t have to have a feeling. They had faith. They didn’t need a sensation. Thomas had to have some evidence. They needed no evidence. The written Word was written, and they had faith in the written Word. Not special hard, brother, that’s what Phoenix needs—faith in the written Word.
And He said, “Thomas, now, you’ve had all the feeling and sensation, and you say you believe.” He’s got many children, Thomas has. He said, “Now you believe. How much greater is their reward, who has never seen, or had any sensation, and still believe?” I want to be on that side—the greater reward.
57-0307 – “God Keeps His Word #2”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 161
So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. (John 21:15-16)
80 Well, that is merely this. See, Christ is the Shepherd. He was going away, and He was leaving the commission of His Sheep, which any shepherd feeds, which is His Flock, His Church…See? He was leading—or leaving the commission with these disciples to continue to feed the flock, the—to be a shepherd, feed the sheep.
81 In other words like this, if—if you look out here…Here this morning, that’s what I’m doing. Now, sheep will only grow as you give them sheep food. Now, if you’d fry up a big hamburger and give it to a sheep, he couldn’t grow on that, ’cause, see, he don’t—that’s not sheep food. See? And—and if I would fry up or be a—have a nice T-bone steak fixed up, and give it over to a sheep, it—it’s not sheep food. He just couldn’t eat it, that’s all, because he’s a sheep. But sheep like sheep food. Well then, when you’re to feed the Flock of God, don’t feed them on some man-made theology; feed them on the Word; that’s where the sheep grow from. Feed the Word!
82 Be a shepherd, a true shepherd. “Feed My sheep.” Lamb’s is the little ones, of course, and sheep is the adult. So both young and old, feed the flock of God! See? And feed them with the Word! The Word (you see?) is the Truth! Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Is that right? So then, if man is to live and they are the flock of God, this—the church, then they are to thrive upon the Word and Manna of God. This is His Manna!
83 In the—the Bible, we just come through it over there in the—in the—in the Church Ages. Jesus is the hidden Manna; Christ is the church’s Manna. What is manna? Manna in the Old Testament was that what come down from Heaven fresh every night to sustain the church in its journey. Is that right? Now, in the New Testament what is the hidden Manna? “A little while and the world seeth Me no more (hidden); yet ye shall see Me, for I’ll be with you, even in you to the end of the world.” And Christ is that hidden Manna that comes from God out of Heaven afresh every day—every day.
84 We can’t say, “Well, two weeks ago I had a great experience of God.” What about right now? See? Every day, fresh, a new blessing, a new something coming from God, the hidden Manna coming down from God out of Heaven, Christ. And we feast upon this Manna which is Christ, and He sustains us through the journey till we reach the—the land on the other side.
85 Now, that’s what He meant by, “Feed My sheep.” We’d get on that, we’d never get to the rest of the questions, ’cause that’s a good one for me. I like that, when I talk of Christ being the Manna and the Food for the sheep.
86 Feed them Christ from His Word. See? Take the Word of Christ just exactly the way it’s wrote here and give it out to the sheep. No matter what anybody else says, “Oh, they need a hamburger!” Don’t you believe it. Here’s what they need, right here! This is It. See? Give them This! This is sheep Food. That’s what makes them grow. The Holy Spirit, this is His Word, His commission. The Word is a Seed. The seed brings forth a plant; the plant we eat. Now, this is what brings forth the plant that the Holy Spirit thrives upon, is the Church. It feeds…It—It—It feeds upon the Church, the Holy Spirit does, rejoicing in the presence of God, because that the people is believing His Word and letting Him work through them, giving them the very things that God promised them that they would do. And God sees His Church growing, therefore the sheep’s being fed, and the Holy Spirit’s being glorified. See? That’s it. “Feed My sheep!” All right.
61-1015M – “Questions And Answers”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 162
Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus. For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry. Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out. And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood. For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take. Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection. And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place. And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. (Acts 1:16-26)
34 When Judas fell, by transgression, by the love of money and the pride of life, he fell from grace and went to his place. And the disciples said, “There must be twelve.” And the church, with all of its dignity, to show you what the church is; with all of its dignity and all of its power, it’s still millions of miles short, at its very best. They said, “We’ve got to look out, one among us, who will take the place.” And they chose, by casting lots, Matthias. Mattheas, I believe, or Matthias. Matthias, I believe it is. And whenever they chose him and put him with the twelve, with the eleven, which made up the twelve, he did not do one thing. That’s the only time his name is ever mentioned in the Scriptures. That was the church making its choice.
35 Now, they thought, “He is a gentleman.” No doubt. “He’s a wonderful man. He’s a scholar. He’s smart. He’s educated. He’s a wonderful person. He would take the place of Judas and be one of us.”
36 But, you know, God sometimes makes some of the…to our opinion, some of the most foolish choices. Now, God seen a little hook-nosed Jew, just as full of temper as he could be, with his mouth setting sideways, “I’ll go down, arrest every one of them. I’ll—I’ll throw them in jail. I’ll do this.” That was God’s choice.
The rest of them taken a scholar and a diplomat. That’s the church’s choice.
37 See, you don’t know who that is at the altar. You don’t know who that is you’re testifying, in jail or wherever it is. It might look like a pugilist, his ears broke down, eyes skinned up, and, but you don’t know who that is. You just cast your lot, that’s all, give him the Word. God takes the choice.
38 And God choose this little high-tempered Jew, or chose him, rather. On his road down, “I’ll go down and get them. I’ll—I’ll show them what I can do like that,” and God just knocked him down.
God said, “That’s My choice, right there.”
39 Wouldn’t that be foolish, to the church? “Why, he persecutes the church. He’s a carnal man.” But God knowed what was on the inside of man. See what I mean?
57-0901M – “Hebrews, Chapter Three”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 163
And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)
85 So I just happened to investigate. I went up to a fellow, I just taken the negative side, on both sides, to test out. I went up to a bro-…, this brother, and I said, “I hear that you belong to the Assemblies of God, a minister.”
He said, “I am.” He said, “What are you?”
I said, “I’m a Baptist.”
And he said, “Well, have you received the Holy Ghost?”
I said, “Yes.” I said, “I received the Holy Ghost?”
He said, “You speak in tongues?”
I said, “Yeah. Yeah, I spoke in tongues.”
86 He said, “Brother, you’ve got It. Hallelujah. Praise the Lord. That’s It.”
87 I said, “Yeah,” I said, “I received the Holy Ghost, and spoke in tongues, and for the evidence of it.” And I said…
88 He said, “Oh, you’ll come out of that old, stiff, formal Baptist church, then. Hallelujah!” And he spoke in tongues a few times.
89 I said, “Yeah, I received the Holy Ghost, was baptized in Jesus Christ’s Name. And…”
He said, “You what?”
90 And I said, “I received the Holy Ghost, and was baptized in Jesus Christ’s Name.”
He said, “You don’t get the Holy Ghost like that.”
91 I said, “You told me a little too late.” I said, “I done done it.” So he said…And I said, “I—I—I just…I just done done that.”
92 And he said, “Oh, you can’t get That like that.” Said, “You believe that kind of heresy?” See?
93 I—I said, “Oh, I wouldn’t call it heresy.” I said, “It teaches in the Bible.”
94 He said, “Get out of my house. I don’t even want nothing to do with you.”
I said, “Okay. The Lord be with you, brother.” Walked out.
95 Not long ago, an old Baptist preacher out there…That was my first trip to Phoenix, Curtis. I went to see this old boy. Walked into him, and I said, “Howdy do, sir.”
He said, “Howdy do.”
96 I said, “I hear you’re a Baptist preacher.” Way back over there, at the time when that little old boy, back over in that place was healed, with that lung trouble, back, where that tubercular place is back there. I forget the name of the place. And so I just said, “I hear you’re a Baptist preacher.”
He said, “Yeah.”
I said, “Have you received the Holy Ghost?
He said, “Well, what are you, Pentecost?”
97 And I said, “Yeah, I’m Pentecost.” I was a Baptist to the other one, but I was a Pentecost to this one. I said, “Yeah,” I said, “I’m Pentecost.” I said, “You got the Holy Ghost? Evidence, speaking in tongues?”
98 He said, “Uh-huh,” he said, “well,” he said, “I tell you, brother,” he said, “that’s all right.” He said, “But, you know, I never did just… Somehow, I just never could see it just like that.” He said…
99 And I said, “Oh, you haven’t got nothing then. That’s all there is to it. You ain’t got a thing, ’less you do it. That’s all.”
100 He walked over to me, took a hold of my hand, looked me right in the eye and put his arm around me. He said, “But we’re brothers, aren’t we? We’re going to Heaven, aren’t we, brother?”
101 I said, “Yes. And, brother, happen to be, I’m on your side.” See?
55-0911 – “The Unwelcomed Christ”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Order your own copy of the Family Altar at http://store.bibleway.org
Day 164
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. (Acts 2:38-40)
196 Remember, there was never a person in the Bible, or any time before the organizing of the Catholic church, was ever baptized any other way than in the Name of Jesus Christ. There is no place found in Scripture, or history, that any persons was ever baptized, in to the Church of the living God, in the name of the titles of “Father, Son, Holy Ghost.” It is a Catholic dogma, and not a Bible teaching.
197 Being interviewed by a priest, I asked him that. He said, “That is the truth. But we are the church; we can change whatever we want to. The solemnity is in the church. God is in His church.”
198 I said, “God is in His Word. And if the church is…” I said, “God is the Word. And if the church is contrary to the Word, then I don’t believe the church.”
I let every man’s word be a lie, whether it be priest, pope, whatever he might be, and God’s Word be true.
And Paul caused every man, no matter how he had been baptized, if he wasn’t baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ, to come and be baptized over again.
199 And after some had already received the Holy Ghost, Peter said, “Can we forbid water, seeing that these have received the Holy Ghost,” Acts 10:49, “seeing that these received the Holy Ghost like we did at the…” And he commanded them, “Before you leave the place, although you’ve received the Holy Ghost, come and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ.”
For, Peter was given the key to the Kingdom, saying, “Whatever you bind on earth, I’ll bind it in Heaven.” And what does a key do? It unlocks something, the mystery.
200 And when Jesus said, “Go, baptize them in the Name of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost,” setting that there to blind the unbeliever.
Watch! Why didn’t Peter carry that out, word by word? He had to.
If a man is baptized in the titles, “Father, Son, Holy Ghost,” he’s never been baptized at all; he has no Name. Father is no name, Son is no name, and Holy Ghost is no name. The Holy Ghost is what It is; like, I’m a human. It is the Holy Ghost.
Father is a title; I’m a father. Son is a title; I’m a son. Human is a title; that’s what I am. But my name is William Branham.
And the Name of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost is the Name of “Jesus Christ.” Jesus said, “I come in My Father’s Name.” What is the Father’s Name? Any son comes in his father’s name. And the Father’s Name is Jesus Christ. See? See what I mean?
201 If I told you to go down and get me something off of the counter down here, in the name of the mayor of the city. How many knows who the mayor of the city is? My good friend, Rich Vissing. Well, you wouldn’t go down there and say “in the name of the mayor of the city.” You say, “In the name of Richard Vissing.” You people here in Jeffersonville knows who he is.
And that’s the reason He said, “Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” In Him dwells the Deity, the fullness of the Godhead bodily. He said, “Baptize them in the Name of the Father, Son, Holy Ghost.”
202 Peter standing there with the revelation on which He built the Church, of Who He was, he said, “Repent, every one of you, and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ.” And never…The keys turned in Heaven and on earth. “There’s not another Name under Heaven given among men whereby you must be saved.”
65-0801m – “The God Of This Evil Age”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 165
The Lord trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright. (Psalm 11:5-7)
232 Brother Cox, not long ago, was setting on my runway before we put the…after we had the rocks there, and he picked up a little, old fossil, and he said, “Brother Branham, how old is that?”
233 “Oh,” I said, “chronologically, you might say it’s ten thousand years old. Some kind of a little, old sea monster that lived at one time, a little sea animal, might have lived way back in the ages gone by.”
234 He said, “Just think how short human life is to that life.”
235 I said, “Oh, but, brother, that thing has an end, but the Life that we have in Christ has no end. That may live two or three forevers, but it’ll never have Eternal Life, ’cause Eternal Life comes from God alone.”
236 Eternal, “He that heareth My Words and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath Eternal Life and shall NEVER come to the judgment but passed from death unto Life.” There you are, you get Eternal Life by being a believer. An unbeliever has life forever. An Eternal…a believer has Eternal Life, and cannot perish because It’s Eternal.
237 But a believer, he will go…An unbeliever will go through the world, he’ll have miseries, woes; what he calls having a big time, “whoopee, having a big time.” Women, wine, and big time, he thinks he’s going on. He’ll die, he’ll go into a lake of fire and brimstone which burns, where burning is going on forever and forever, and maybe for a hundred million years his soul may be tormented in a lake of fire and brimstone.
238 I…You say, “Will it be just like regular brimstone?” I believe it’ll be a million times worse than that. I believe you couldn’t describe it by fire, by a literal fire. The only reason it’s put “by fire,” that fire is the most consuming thing that we had. It absolutely consumes and destroys everything, fire does. Well, then, it’ll be in there, but you’ll have a soul that’ll have to be punished through some kind…
239 Now, you have to watch the word fire, because the Holy Ghost is used “the Holy Ghost and fire”; ’cause Holy Ghost fire burns sin out, see, and makes clean.
240 But this fire, it comes from hell, it said a “lake of fire.” And ever what it is, it’s a punishment with torment. The rich man lifted up his eyes, being in hell, and said, “Send Lazarus with a little water on his fingers, to put on my lips, for this flames are tormenting me.” Don’t think there isn’t a burning hell, and a literal hell, there is. If there’s a literal devil, there’s a literal hell.
241 But, you see, everything that’s perverted has a end to it, because it finally must come back to that purity and holiness of God. And God is Eternal; and if we have Eternal Life, God is in us, and we can no more die than God can die. There you are.
57-0925 – “Questions And Answers On Hebrews #1”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 166
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus. And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. (Acts 4:13-14)
38 When Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever is revealing Himself, making Himself manifested to the people, showing signs and wonders, the same thing that happened in the Bible. Search It out, try It out, It’s infallible. Oh, my. Here we are.
All the disciples, they’d been moving around and speaking Word, because there wasn’t the slight doubt in His Word. Now, she has never done that. But He knowed men that’s fooled with it and tampered with it, and try to have seminary experiences and great things like that. Not as I’m downing the seminary. It’s all right. Go ahead. But brother, God…?…
I’d rather, my boy, here, he’s fixing to go to Bible school, I suppose; but I’d rather that boy knowed God and being—in a new birth of being borned again, if he didn’t have enough education to know his ABC’s. That’s right. I… Education’s all right, but I tell you this. Now, put on your shock-proof coat, ’cause here it comes. Education has been the greatest hindrance that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has ever had. Thank you. That’s exactly right. We’ve got some—we’ve got some educated infidel dummies. That’s exactly what we got.
39 Here a few days ago, there was a woman standing to me, and she was talking to me. She said, “Rev. Branham,” she said, “I was in that meeting out there, and—you had in Louisville.” She said, “I just don’t believe in that.”
I said, “Certainly you don’t. You’re a heathen.”
She said, “I resent that.”
“Well,” I said, “you just admitted you was.” I said, “What is a heathen?” If I know my English right; it’s an unbeliever. An unbeliever is an heathen. I said, “You said, yourself. You said, ‘I’m an unbeliever in that,’” I said.
40 She said, “But I have so many of this. I’ve got my education. I’ve took… I went to this school. I went to…”
I said, “I don’t care. You’re just an educated heathen. That’s all.” Exactly right.” [Congregation claps their hands—Ed.] Thank you. And friends, that’s the worst type there is.
Now, look. I ain’t spraying at you women, understand that. I’m not saying this; that’s between you and God. But the woman was standing there with enough makeup on to paint a barn almost. And I just come out of Africa, down there where the Hottentots was, and that’s exactly where that come from. “You look down with that mud on your eyes and paint like that.” I said, “You’re not too far out of the tribe yet, you have tribal paint yet.” I said, “Don’t tell me you’re not a heathen.” Yes, sir.
Oh, let me tell you… Hallelujah.
41 Education is one thing, but Jesus Christ is another. That’s right. There wasn’t an educated one in the bunch, but Paul; he said, “I had to forget all I ever knowed in order to know Him.” That’s right. Peter and John couldn’t even write their name, ignorant and unlearned men passed through the gate, called Beautiful. The man laying there crippled from his mother’s womb… Said, “Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have.” That’s what I want.
“Such as I have. I have not a Bachelor’s Degree, or I haven’t come from so-and-so college, but what I have, I will give you. In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up.” That’s what he said. Walked over there and picked him up by the hands and stood him on his feet. The man went leaping and jumping. When it come…?… Peter and John never used their grammar so bad. “Why,” they said, “they perceived that they were ignorant and unlearned men, but had to take notice though, they had been with Jesus.” That’s what…?… kind I want to have, somebody that knows that Jesus is around. Oh, my. Now, isn’t He wonderful?
52-0716 – “Thou Knowest All Things”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 167
And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? (Acts 4:23-25)
47 Peter said, “I have silver nor gold, but such as I have I’ll give you: In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” And the man hesitated a little, and Peter grabbed him by the arms, him and John, and lifted him up and his ankle bones received strength. He begin leaping and praising God.
It did something to the congregation. They took them in, and whipped them, and threatened them, that they should no more preach in such a Name, no more scatter that heresy of Pentecost any farther.
So when they did that, they went out with that threat, that they’d be throwed into prison if they preached it again: said anything about the, Jesus being raised, and the Holy Ghost here, performing miracles. You know what they done? They were in trouble. There was an emergency. So they went to their own company.
That’s where we ought to go tonight, not go out and ask the mayor of the city how we should do this, or how we should do that. We shouldn’t send off to some school of education, and ask how we must do this, or how that, we must do that. If our church is getting lean in the Spirit, the thing we should do is hold a conference with God.
48 Acts 4 they held a conference. And they preached, and they prayed like this, “Lord, why did the heathens rage and the people imagine a vain thing? Is it right for us to refuse to preach Divine healing in our messages? Should we preach Divine healing, or should we refrain from such a thing? O Lord, we know what Your Word said; then give us boldness, courage.” Oh, my.
Then the house was shook where they were assembled together. What an answer. Give us a conference like that on Eleventh and Garfield; we’ll preach the full Word of God; we’ll stand on everything that God said stand. We’ll believe in being dead from sin and alive in Christ. We believe that a—a man that’s dead from sin, refrains from the things of the world, because they’re dead to him. There’s no more gossips, and pouts, and fusses, and fights, and stews. He’s at peace with God and with the church from then till the day he’s taken out of the world.
49 I believe that the Holy Spirit kills the nature of the world in a man or woman. Yes, sir. I believe that Divine healing is right. I believe that the power of the Holy Spirit is just as great today as It was when It was when It was poured out at Pentecost. I believe It breaks down the walls of partition and brings a brotherly love, that the devil and all the cares of the world can’t separate us from the love of God that’s in Christ. We need a conference, a real conference to bring us together in these kind.
There’s another conference coming. And that’s the conference of judgment. Now, you might not have been at the Big Four; neither was I. You might not’ve been at the Geneva; neither was I. But brother, sister, let me say this to you as your brother; that one, you’re going to be there. Every time that ambulance screams out there on the street, it let you know that you’re going to be there too. Every time you pass by the graveyard and see a tombstone, something tells you you’re going to that conference. Every time you hear the warning voice of your pastor across this pulpit, it tells you you’re going to the judgment. Every time you comb your hair, and see the gray, or it falling, the wrinkles in your face, your eyes dimming, what is it? You’re going to judgment. You’re going to be at that conference. Just remember that. You’ve got to be there, young or old, right or wrong; you’re going to stand there. Some men’s sins go before them; some follow.
60-0228 – “Conferences”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 168
But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. (Acts 5:1-5)
91 Notice. As they moved on, we find that Lot saw the opportunities for a—a fatted cattle. Many see the opportunities of a fatted pocketbook. Many sees the opportunities of a better social standing. He saw the possibilities of a few extra dollars. He saw the possibilities of being the mayor of the city. Being a stranger, and a pretty smart man, as he was, “Maybe I will become the chief man of the city.” He saw the possibility because they were laying before him. But he did not see the fire that was to destroy the land. He did not reconcile himself, that the land was full of sin, and God had to destroy it.
92 And, today, people try to reconcile themselves by saying, “Are you…?”
I’ll say, “Are you a Christian?”
93 They say, “I’m an American.” That has no more to do with it than try to say to a crow he was a frog. It has nothing to do with it. [Brother Branham claps his hands one time—Ed.]
94 She’s going to be destroyed, because God is just. And if America gets by with her sins, the just and sovereign, holy God will be duty bound to—to resurrect Sodom and Gomorrah and apologize to them for burning them up, because of their sin; if He let’s us get by with it.
95 If He lets you get to Heaven on your injustice works, He’ll have to raise up Ananias and Sapphira and give them another opportunity. He certainly would. But He’s just. Ananias saw his money. Peter saw Christ.
96 Oh, my! Lot didn’t see the destruction of his children in that place.
97 Many of you, today, holding around these old formal creeds and things, you don’t see the juvenile delinquency and the destruction of your children. You don’t see your daughter in a prostitute house. You don’t see your son a drunkard, or at a card table somewhere.
98 “Because she’s well-watered.” And sin is not touched. He didn’t see his wife, the head of all the societies, turned to a pillar of salt, when he was looking. He didn’t see him escaping only by the edge of his teeth, to a little city somewhere, for his life. He didn’t see that, because he only looked at what he saw in front of him.
99 But, Abraham, he didn’t notice the well-watered land, for he lifted up his eyes and saw the tomorrow, for he would inherit all things. The real Christian today lifts up his eyes and sees the promise of Christ: “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit all things. They shall inherit the earth.” The real Christian, by faith, looks up and sees that. Call him what you want to. He lifted up his eyes. And when he did that, God said, “Abraham, walk through the land, she’s all yours.” By faith, Abraham did this; the same faith that Moses had.
100 It was wrote by one commentator, that said this. I thought it was the most beautiful words. That Abra-… “Moses took the best of the world and put it in one scale; and the worst of religion, and put it in the other scale; and the worst of religion out-weighed the best of the world.”
58-0720m – “By Faith, Moses”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 169
Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved. (Psalm 15:1-5)
172 Could you imagine the wise men coming to see Jesus? I’ll just take a little drama for a minute. I can see…They say three wise men. We’ll just say there was three. Jim, John, and George, we would say their names was. And they’re coming to see Jesus. And I can see them all getting ready to go. We’ll take this fellow Jim. He’s quite a man. He runs and tells his wife, said, “Wife, you know what? I seen the star, so I’ve got to go.” And so he goes over and he packs up, to go.
173 That’s what’s the matter with people today. They’re trying to pack up, to be a Christian. If there’s anything you need, is “unpacked,” to be a Christian. Got too many things hanging on now.
174 “Mom!” Say, “Now, mother, you know, I couldn’t go along unless I took my card table,” so he hangs that on the camel. “Because, you know, the other boys wouldn’t appreciate me going along if I didn’t have my card table along.”
175 All these other little old things that keeps you. And you have a little box of selfishness, you have to hang that on, too. And you have to hang on a little tattling, a little backbiting, a little of this, that, hang it on the camel.
176 And the first thing you know, he jumps up, astraddle the old camel, say, “Come on now! Let’s go!” The old camel can’t hardly move. He’s mashed down so hard till he is bow-legged, almost.
177 And you’re always kicking and complaining about your church you are going to, and maybe it’s you’ve got so loaded up till it can’t run. That’s what’s the matter. You need to unload, wash up, clean up, get right. Amen. What’s the matter with me? Notice. That’s what it is.
178 I can see the others going, moving on. And the first thing you know, he got down and looked at that star again. And so, the first thing, he begin to throw tables one way, and packages the other way.
The wife said, “Where you going, John?”
179 Said, “I’m laying aside every weight that so easily beset me. That, I’ve got to run this race with patience. For straight is the gate and narrow is the way, but few they’ll be that’ll find it.” There’s only room for you and Jesus. Nobody else can go through. Amen.
180 She said. I can hear her say, “Well, look, you’re forgetting your compass.”
“I don’t need any compass.”
181 “You’re forgetting your seminary degree. You’re forgetting your baccalaureate services and all these other things that you hang on.”
He said, “Listen. I don’t need any compass.”
“How you going then?”
182 He pointed up to the star, said, “I’m going God’s provided way. God provided me a star to follow, that’ll take me to the Christ.”
54-1231 – “Everlasting Life And How To Receive It”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 170
Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (Psalm 16:9-11)
416 And now, remember that, when He died, He went first and preached to the souls that wasn’t in prison…that was in prison, and witnessed that He was “the Seed of the woman.” He was “the One that Enoch saw coming with ten thousands of His saints.” He had to witness the Scriptures that had been preached by Noah, and by Enoch, and by the righteous, that “He was that One.” Everything had to recognize It!
417 Then He ascended into hell, and received the keys of death and hell from the devil.
418 Come back up into Paradise; and brought Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the righteous; and raised (Matthew 27), and they come out of the grave and entered into the city, and appeared to the people along the street. Hallelujah! There you are!
419 Now, but his body…While His soul was over here witnessing to the lost, down here taking the keys from the devil, and coming back and bringing Abraham and Isaac; His soul was laying in the…His soul was down there doing it, and His body was laying in the grave. That’s the reason Jesus said…People say, “Well, why does Jesus say, ‘Three days, I’ll raise it up. Three days I’ll raise.’? He—He died on Friday afternoon, raised up on Sunday morning.”
420 But watch, it was “within three days,” if you’d get the lexicon. For He knew that David, under the anointing (of the anointing of the Holy Spirit), said, “I will not suffer my Holy One to see corruption.” He knowed that pertained to Him. He knowed that meant Him. He was God’s Holy One, and He knew that corruption sets in in seventy-two hours. Somewhere within them three days, He was coming out of there again, because the Scriptures cannot be broken.
421 And every promise in There pertains to me and pertains to you, it’s ours!
422 He said, “You destroy this body, and I’ll raise it up in three days.” For He said, “I’ll not leave My soul in hell, neither will I suffer My Holy One to see corruption.”
423 He knowed, in three days that body was coming out of there. He didn’t stay the three full days. No, sir, He certainly did not. He stayed just from Friday afternoon until Sunday morning, not one cell of that body could be corrupted.
424 And He was dead, and embalmed, and was laying…or wrapped in cloth, and laid into a tomb. In that hot, boggy country, just take a few hours and He go to corrupting. You go to morti-…mortifying, you know, his body, his nose dropping in and things, corruption sets in; that hot, damp country. And it would’ve went to corrupting, because it was a body. But He knowed, before that cell corrupted, that God said through David the prophet, “I’ll not suffer My Holy One to see corruption.”
425 How He took the Word of God and lived by It! Now, every one of them promises in there that pertained to Him, God fulfilled every one of them. And every promise that pertains to the believer, God will fulfill every promise of It. Amen. Just rest assure that It’s the Truth. Amen. So, His soul…
57-1002 – “Questions And Answers On Hebrews #2”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 171
O Lord God, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand: for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might? I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the Lord said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter. Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes: for thou shalt not go over this Jordan. (Deuteronomy 3:24-27)
54 The reason that you hear me say sometimes, get the people say, “Believe me.” See? Now, the reason I say that is not believe me as Him. Certainly not, certainly. It’s to believe that I have told you the truth that He has sent me to do this. Now, see when that Angel met me, he said, “If you can get the people to believe you.” See? “If you get the people to…”
Peter and John passed through the gate called Beautiful, said, “Look on us.” Is that right? And Elijah when the—all of them had come down there and got him kindly all stirred up, he said, “If it wasn’t I respected this righteous man, Jehoshaphat, I wouldn’t even look at you.” See?
55 How many knows that you can—you could send your soul to hell with a Divine gift? Sure, you can. You have to watch what you’re doing. How many believe Moses was God’s prophet? Say, “Amen.” He was God’s prophet, but do you know what he done? God told him to go down there and speak to the rock. The rock was already smitten. Is that right? Instead of Moses doing what God told him to do, he went down and smote the rock again. Is that right?
Well, that absolutely broke the entire Scripture right in two, right there. Christ wasn’t smitten twice. He was smitten once. We just speak to Him from now on. Is that right?
But when Moses smote the rock, that broke God’s complete program and it was—he had done exactly what God told him not to do. See? But he could do it anyhow, whether it was God’s will or not. That seems strange, doesn’t it? But it wasn’t God’s will, but he was a prophet. He could do whatever he wished and what his power would permit him to do.
But what did God do then? He dealt with Moses and kept him from going over in the promised land. Is that right? Took him upon a hill and said, “Here it is.” Let him look at the promised land, passed him out, let the Angels come take him away and bury him.
56 You have to… Look at Elijah. That young prophet was bald-headed, and them little children teasing him about being bald-headed. Said, “Thou bald head. Thou bald head. Why didn’t…”
You know what he said? That prophet turned around and put—cursed those children and said, “Cursed be,” I suppose in the Name of the Lord, and before those little children returned into the city, two she bears killed forty-two of them little innocent children. Is that Scripture? Poor little innocent children, but an angered prophet. Better be careful what you’re doing. See? That’s right.
So that’s the way it is here. I want to see what you’re doing before you put a curse a disease… What if God had put something on a person, or permitted Satan to do it, and you and I would come around with a Divine gift and take it off before God’s will was accomplished? Then God will deal with me. See? Have to be careful.
53-1130 – “Has The Lord Spoken Only To Moses?”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 172
When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. (Acts 7:54-60)
134 But Stephen walked out there, before that Sanhedrin court, like a sheep among a pack of wolves, was howling for his blood. And they accused him, and pointed accusing finger at him. What did he do? He said, “Men and brethren, God of Glory appeared to our father, Abraham, when he was yet in Mesopotamia, before he was called out.” Went ahead and brought it down, all the history of Abraham, and how that through him would bring in the Gentiles. And when he got down to a certain place…Look at him, full of the Holy Ghost. They’d, waiting, just couldn’t wait till they could get their hands on him. He said, “You stiff-necked, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Ghost. Like your fathers did, so do you.” He was God’s advertisement board.
135 And when they stoned him to death, throwed him outside the city and beat him to death with stones, when he was dying, he raised his head to Heaven and asked forgiveness for those who was stoning him, the same as Jesus did at the cross.
136 Then, God seen His little advertisement board being taken down. Stephen looked up to Heaven, said, “Behold, I see heavens open, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.” And he fell asleep in the arms of God. He was an advertisement board for a hungry world.
137 You say, “Well, how many was there? You said there was maybe five thousand. How many of them got saved?”
138 There was one. He never accepted it right then, but years later. Hallelujah! Somewhere, your influence never dies. There was one held the coat, Saul, that young Pharisee standing there, consulted and give witness to his death. But when he saw that advertisement of the Power of the resurrected Christ in that little fellow, it never got away from him. That same man, Paul, that one standing there that morning, led tens of thousands of souls to Christ, because one man was willing to give his life to be an advertising board for Jesus Christ.
139 What ought we to do today? No matter, we don’t have to have big audiences. We don’t have to preach to ten thousand. We don’t have to even preach. We can be God’s advertisement board. How do you know that your life might not start some young man on the Gospel? Some of you older men, see old women, start some young man on the field out there, would win ten thousand souls to Christ, is because that he saw Christ in you, that you presented Christ to him, in the simple Power of the Gospel. Yes.
61-0903 – “Let Your Light So Shine Before Men”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 173
Honour thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. (Deuteronomy 5:16)
13 I’ve always been a black sheep in my family. And I was always in my church a black sheep. And it’s just recently that I have begin to come into a group of people that love me. And to that group of people, I aim to give my life in service. And I—I love them, and they love me. And all my life, I’ve been in the—a person that wanted somebody to think something of me.
Sorry to say, but my family wasn’t religious. My father was just a typical Kentucky boy up here, drank up every penny he had. And I—I hate to say those things, but what is truth is the truth, no matter if it hurts, or whether it doesn’t. If it’s dark, and it’s on me, why, it’s just on me. It’s the truth. And you be truthful and honest with God. God will bless you for it. And although my daddy did drink, and drinking’s what killed him, but no matter what he did, he’s still my daddy. And out there on his grave today, where the white snow lays, he’s still my daddy.
And let me tell you young people something, no matter what you ever do, don’t you never disregard or disobey your mother and father.
14 They got such a word today, they say, “The old man and the old woman.” One of these days, when a squeaking casket is going out the door, and they’re going out head first, and you look down to see your mother or dad at the last time you’ll ever see them on this earth, you’ll realize it’s not the “old man and old woman” then. “Honour thy father and mother, which may lengthen the days on the earth the Lord giveth you.” That’s the first commandment with promise: obeying.
I seen dad work. We lived in a little cabin up on the Utica Pike, where we moved to from Kentucky to Indiana, right on the River Road. I seen him work in the log woods for seventy-five cents a day to make a living for me, when I was too young, four or five, six years old, till his shirt would sunburn into his back. I’ve seen my mother cut the shirt from his back with a pair of scissors. I don’t care what he done; he’s my daddy. And I love him.
15 He died on my arm, his black, wavy hair laying across my arm, and his little Irish blue eyes looking up at me. Seen a white Angel standing before him; I led him to Christ just before he died. He was my dad, and he had a great respect for me. The last drink he ever taken in his life, he was standing in a little old saloon down there, wasn’t two weeks before he died. He started to… Somebody was treating him. It was during the time of depression; he was broke. They give him some drink, and he started to take it up in his hands, and he started spilling it. He tried to drink it, and it went all over his face. And they started teasing him. Before he took it, he said, “Look, fellows,” said, “I got a boy standing up there in the pulpit. That boy’s right, and I’m wrong.” He said, “Don’t let this reflect on my boy.” Said, “This is the last drop I’ll ever take in all my life.” And it was.
16 So I honor him today as my dad. It’s hard work. I remember when we went to school. I’m firmly against drinking. I remember reading of a man that was borned a hundred miles from me, a hundred years difference, in a little log cabin. His name was Abraham Lincoln, one of the greatest men Kentucky ever produced, to my opinion. And Abraham Lincoln, when he got off of the boat down in New Orleans, he seen them auction some colored people off as a slave, a big heavy man. His little, poor little wife and children standing out, crying; breed him, like cattle, to bigger, heavier women to make better slaves. Lincoln, as many of you know in the history, when he folded his hands and smacked them together and said, “That’s wrong. And by the help of God, if it takes my life, I’ll hit it with all I got.” And he did.
17 Here sometime ago, I was standing in a museum, and when he had to cross the river, in Illinois… I seen an old colored man with a little white rim of hair around his head, looking around, watching for something. He looked into a little box, and he stopped real quick and got back. It just looked like it just froze him. And the tears dropping of his cheeks, he raised up his eyes like that towards God, and he had a prayer. I just stood off, watched him for a little bit. I walked over to where he was at, and I said, “How do you do, uncle?”
He said, “How do you do, sir.”
I said, “What excited you so?”
He said, “You don’t understand?”
I said, “No.”
Said, “Come, look here.”
18 And I looked in there; under a glass was a little old dress, just a little dress folded up laying there. I said, “Well, I only see a dress.”
He said, “But that spot on the corner is the blood of Abraham Lincoln.” He said, “I got a mark across here as a slave belt, and the blood of that man took a slave belt off of me. Wouldn’t that excite you?”
I stood there. I couldn’t answer him. I thought, “If a colored man, by taking a slave belt off of him, how much more ought a Christian to be excited of the Blood of Jesus Christ, that taken sin from his life and made him a new creature in Christ Jesus?” Down his life went.
19 We had a hard time, very hard. I remember going to school with no clothes hardly. Went to school one year without even a—a shirt. My dad was a good man, but it was drinking that ruined him. I put my coat up like this, buttoned it with a… Or, pinned it with a pin. A rich woman, Mrs. Watham had give me the coat. And I, knowing how it made us go without something to eat… It made us go without shoes, and I would never got an education, all because of drinking that drove my daddy to it, a habit. That’s the reason I’m against it today, to fight it with everything I got. It’s wrong. And brethren or women, if you’re here, and do such, God have mercy, don’t do it no more. Don’t let it boss you. You boss it.
53-1108a – “Life Story”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 174
The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward. Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:7-14)
22 While they were thinking on these things, a Stranger walked out. That’s usually…?… That’s when you want to get… When you go to thinking about Him, that’s when He appears. They were talking about Him when He appeared. And that’s the reason, maybe, He doesn’t appear to so many of us. We talk too much about other things instead about Jesus. Maybe we’re talking about trading cars, something else, or the washing, what kind of soap powder do you use, listening to the radio and some kind of nonsense. That’s the reason He doesn’t appear. If we’d just keep our minds on Him… “Let the meditation of my heart.”
He told Joshua, He said, “Meditate on these things day and night.”
David said, “I’ll bind Them on my bed post.” Sure. Let Them stay in, inside of you and think of Them, meditate upon Them. And that’s when He appears.
Do you ever notice how the Angel of the Lord comes? Of a evening at three o’clock when I go in, I close everything out, don’t let no one come in, and just set there and read the Word, and yield myself until I know He’s there. I can feel it when He’s coming. He comes in, and I know He’s there. Oh, my. That’s the way you do. That’s the way the disciples did. They were with one place in one accord in an upper room. And they were all up there praising Him. And all of a sudden He came in. That’s the way He does it.
56-0405 – “The Resurrection Of Jesus”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 175
And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. (Acts 9:1-5)
72 That road to Damascus changed Paul. Going down, about eleven o’clock, perhaps, in a day, that he was stricken down. And he heard a Voice, saying, “Saul, why persecutest thou Me?” And he looked up. And looking up, being a Jew, and knowed that Pillar of Fire was the Lord that led the children of Israel, because he knew that’s what It was.
73 Remember, this Hebrew would have never called anything “Lord,” capital L-o-r-d, Elohim, unless he had been satisfied that that’s what It was, because he was trained scholar. And when he looked up, and he seen This, a Light, a Pillar of Fire that had led his people through the wilderness, and he said, “Lord,” Elohim, capital L-o-r-… “Lord, Who are You?”
74 And what a surprise it must have been to this theologian, to say, “I’m Jesus,” the very One that he was so against. What a—what a turnaround! Oh! Oh! It must have been something terrific for this man, that all of his ambitions that he had, to find out, all at once, he had been persecuting. His ambitions had drove him to—to farther away from the main thing that he meant to do. And what a—a great shock it must have been, for this apostle, when He said, “I am Jesus,” the very One that he was persecuting. “Why persecutest thou Me?”
75 Another little quotation we might drop in here. You see, as they make fun of the Church, they’re not really making fun of the Church, they are making fun of Jesus. “Why persecutest thou Me?” How could Paul then, with all his intellect, believe that This was…that this Group that he was persecuting was the very God that he claimed to be serving? I think that’s, without going into details, I think we’re all well trained enough to know what I mean here. The same thing is happening today.
76 Paul, through ignorance, was yet intelligent and smart, much smarter than those uneducated Galileans that he was persecuting, that had already in their humility accepted this Man as Lord. But, Paul, in his great teaching and his intellectuals, could not accept That. And what a turnaround it must be to him, on this road. And he was stricken blind, so he would not carry out his commission, but was led down to a place in a street called Straight, and the house of one.
77 And then come the prophet down there, by the name of Ananias, who saw in a vision, him coming down, saw where he was at, went down to where he was, and went in. And said, “Brother Saul, the Lord appeared to you on the road down; sent me, that I might lay my hands upon you, and you receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Ghost.”
78 See where he was. What a—what a thing it must have been for Paul! See? All that he had been trained to do was vice versa. So now, with—with all the education he had, it—it was just become naught to him.
79 Now, he knew that he had an experience. So here is another good lesson for us, that, experience alone isn’t enough. It’s got to be experience according to the Word of the Lord. So, him seeing this, and know that It was a great Something, then, that somebody else had received It before him, he took three years and six months down in the—the desert in Arabia; taking the—the Bible, as It was then, the Old Testament, and going down there, to—to compare this experience that he had had, and see if It was Scriptural.
63-0717 – “A Prisoner”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 176
And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. (Deuteronomy 8:2-3)
81 In other words like this, if—if you look out here…Here this morning, that’s what I’m doing. Now, sheep will only grow as you give them sheep food. Now, if you’d fry up a big hamburger and give it to a sheep, he couldn’t grow on that, ’cause, see, he don’t—that’s not sheep food. See? And—and if I would fry up or be a—have a nice T-bone steak fixed up, and give it over to a sheep, it—it’s not sheep food. He just couldn’t eat it, that’s all, because he’s a sheep. But sheep like sheep food. Well then, when you’re to feed the Flock of God, don’t feed them on some man-made theology; feed them on the Word; that’s where the sheep grow from. Feed the Word!
82 Be a shepherd, a true shepherd. “Feed My sheep.” Lamb’s is the little ones, of course, and sheep is the adult. So both young and old, feed the flock of God! See? And feed them with the Word! The Word (you see?) is the Truth! Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Is that right? So then, if man is to live and they are the flock of God, this—the church, then they are to thrive upon the Word and Manna of God. This is His Manna!
83 In the—the Bible, we just come through it over there in the—in the—in the Church Ages. Jesus is the hidden Manna; Christ is the church’s Manna. What is manna? Manna in the Old Testament was that what come down from Heaven fresh every night to sustain the church in its journey. Is that right? Now, in the New Testament what is the hidden Manna? “A little while and the world seeth Me no more (hidden); yet ye shall see Me, for I’ll be with you, even in you to the end of the world.” And Christ is that hidden Manna that comes from God out of Heaven afresh every day—every day.
84 We can’t say, “Well, two weeks ago I had a great experience of God.” What about right now? See? Every day, fresh, a new blessing, a new something coming from God, the hidden Manna coming down from God out of Heaven, Christ. And we feast upon this Manna which is Christ, and He sustains us through the journey till we reach the—the land on the other side.
61-1015m – “Questions And Answers”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 177
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? (Psalm 22:1)
27 When the Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world, came to take the place of guilty sinners, and was mashed and bruised, and—and scoffed and made fun of, and died a death that no creature could die except God Himself, and His bloody locks hanging from His shoulders, dripping to the ground, expressed what a horrible thing that sin is, when He had to die to redeem man from a life of sin. Nothing could die like that. Nothing could stand that death. It said that, “When they pierced His side, that, there came forth Blood and water.”
28 It’s been some time ago, I was speaking to someone about this. And it was a scientist that said, “There is only one way that that could have happened. And it was not because of the Roman spear, that He died; and neither was it the loss of Blood, that He died, because there was still Blood in His body. What He died of, was not because of the Roman spear or the nails that was drove in His hands, or the thorny crown they placed on His head. But because…He died of grief, because He came to His Own and His Own received Him not. He died of a broken heart. When, He knowed the very creatures of time, that He would die to redeem, had spit in His face, and He was rejected of man.”
29 David, eight hundred years before it happened, cried with the very voice that He cried at Calvary, “My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”
30 What a terrible thing that sin does, it separates man from God! And He was the sin offering that had to be offered for our sins. And He was separated from the Presence of God. Sin had separated Him. God placed our sins upon Him, and He was separated from God, and that’s why He cried, “Why hast Thou forsaken Me?” And because He was forsaken, and had taken this place; and seen His people, that He was come to be their Saviour and to offer them Life, they had rejected Him. And it grieved Him, so, till He was so broken-hearted until the Blood and water, and the chemicals of His body, separated.
31 Man will never know what that was. That’s the reason there could be no one else could ever die like that. I don’t care how much that you could be tormented, how that they might put your feet in stocks, or saw you, by inches, or burn you by inches; you could not die that death, because your make-up is not like that. He had to be God. He had to be, more than man. And to think, that, God died. He died of a broken heart, with such grief for the world, until a chemical reaction taken place in His body that could not take place in you. You cannot suffer like that. There is no way for you to have that kind of a grief. So there is only One could do it, and He did it.
59-0329s – “Living, Dying, Buried, Rising, Coming”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 178
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. (Psalm 23:1-6)
50 I’m don’t want to live in this old pesthouse that I been living in. It catches every disease floats through. I want one that’s made not with hands, fashioned after God, that—that’s not a hybrid plant like this is. I want one that’s made by the hands of God, that diseases and sickness and death goes from it. Now, whenever He summons me, I—I’m ready, by the grace of God, believing that, “When this earthly tabernacle be dissolved, we have one already waiting,” that we move into, that can’t die from it no more.
51 How would you want to live in this? Not me. My it’s…We’re going out of it, and I’m glad of it. And this old human, germ trap that we’re living in, death trap and whatmore, is the groans and pains in it, and old age. And, why, my, who would want to stay in a body like that? I, I’m glad there is one coming. We got a body that—that’s being prepared for us, in Glory. And as soon as the life leaves this old hull here, that Eternal Spirit of God that lives within, it takes its journey into that tabernacle yonder, and there it lives Eternally. Why would we want something like this? My! Yes, sir. Oh, I—I’m so glad that, that there, that there is a God Who has made all these things plain.
52 And we look here, we see they’re just a shadow, anyhow. We are a shadow. I look here on the platform, see men that moves, and I look out on the street and see men and women that moves. They got life, but yet it cannot be real Life, because it’s death in it. And—and David said, “I’ll walk through the valley of the shadow of death.” Now, it takes so much light to make a shadow. There has to be so much light. If it’s altogether darkness, it cannot make a shadow. See? It has to be so much light, in the dark, to make it shadow. Well, now it depends on which one of those sides that you are leaning to.
53 If I see a man walking, fine-looking young man; in a few years, watch his hair turn gray and slip out, his shoulders droop down. A beautiful young girl standing, with a sainted, godly face on her, and stand and praising God; and I come back in a few years and find her stoop-shouldered, packing two or three children. Well, my, there, it shows that in that body there is death. No matter how well it is and how lovely it looks, it’s still got death in it.
54 Now I watch which a way that spirit in there leans. If it’s always representing the Light, speaking of the Light, talking of the Light, it’ll go with the Light. But if it’s always on the other side, of the world, the things of the world, influenced by the world, there is nothing but it to turn into darkness when it dies, into outer darkness. So you see, what we are, we must remember that we are only what we are by the grace of God, and none of us can brag about it. We can only bow in adoration and humility, before God, and give praise to Him for His goodness.
63-0803e – “Influence”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 179
Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah. (Psalm 24:7-10)
24 Ezekiel couldn’t stand it any longer. He said, “What’s going on, brethren?” And he looks over Daniel’s shoulder. He said, “Brethren, there’s that Wheel in the middle of the Wheel that I saw turning way up in the middle of the air.
He said, “I’ve conquered. Let’s go out. The next conquering I got to conquer is the grave. Come, go with Me, children.”
I can hear Abraham say, “Can we make a little whistle stop?”
“Yes, I’m going to just talk with My disciples for forty days.”
On Easter morning He conquered the Roman seal. He conquered Joseph’s grave. He broke forth the seal and destroyed corruption, and He rose triumphantly.
25 Here He goes up in the air with His disciples, with the Old Testament saints, goes on beyond the moon, beyond the stars, beyond the spheres and the spheres. And after while they come in sight of the city. What do you think took place?
Let’s look in the Bible and see what took place. I’m going to quote David’s prophecy. The Old Testament saints, when they see the city in sight, and Jesus at the Head of the army marching on, the Old Testament saints screamed out, “Lift up, ye everlasting gates, and be ye lifted up, and let the King of glory come in.” And all the Angels begin to gather on the top of the building.
You know, they said when Nero had conquered a city that the people fainted, and screamed, and called him a god. When Adolf Hitler went into France, he stood at the Arch of Triumph, and for hours, the whole sky was dark with airplanes, and goose-stepping soldiers…
And when Stalin come into Germany after Russia had won, how the tens of thousands of Russian soldiers crossing their legs and giving the victory salute as Stalin stood for hours. Oh, it must have been a great thing.
26 I talked not long ago to a soldier. He said, “Billy, after I’d been fighting so long, and when our ship sailed into the New York harbor…” Said, “I’d been overseas for four years. All I’d seen had been hell and death.” He said, “Some of the soldiers was crippled, some with no legs, some with no arms. They rolled us all up on the deck.”
He said, “When I seen the Statue of Liberty standing there, and I knowed I was going under her arm… Just behind there was everything that was dear to me: my mama, my father, my wife, my children.” He said, “Soldiers fell on the deck weeping.”
And if it’ll make a man out of four year’s of battle act like that to come back home, what would it be when we go under the old rugged cross, when the last battle is fought, and we’ve conquered? Oh, what a time it will be.
27 And as they hollered back to them, “Who is this King of glory?”…
And the Old Testament saints screamed, “The Lord of hosts, mighty in battle.” You know the Scriptures. The great Angel, Gabriel, must have pressed the button. Those great big doors folded back. Right under the arch of the old rugged cross went Jesus and the soldiers of the Old Testament. Right down through the streets of Jerusalem they went with Angels, singing and screaming (What a welcome home.), right down through to the great white throne. And He said, “Father, these are those that believed on You. I’ve conquered both death, hell, and the grave.”
And I can hear the Father say, said, “Set on My throne here, Son, until I made the last enemy Thy footstool.” And Jesus climbed up at the right hand of the God of heaven on His throne on high. There He stands tonight. A few hours ago:
Lo, behold the Man of Sorrow,
Lo, and behold Him in plain view,
But here He stands the Mighty Conqueror;
Since He’s rent the veil in two.
58-0329 – “The Mighty Conqueror”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 180
O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee. Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee. (Psalm 25:20-21)
50 But he got lifted up so much in his heart! Now I want to speak this word to the Full Gospel Business Men. He got so lifted up in his heart, until he thought he could take a minister’s place. He tried to become a minister, which he wasn’t called to be. And I think that’s a many times that where sometimes man in these ranks, and the businessmen’s groups, they—they get to a spot that God blesses them in their business, and makes them prosperous, and so forth, till they get to a place till they think they ought to preach the Gospel, also. And that’s wrong. That is wrong. You should always let a minister do that preaching, ’cause, as Oral Roberts once said, “It’s hard enough to keep the thing clear, by ministers, let alone by men who is not called for that office.” See, you should have men there that knows, and are ordained for the work.
51 This proves it. That, he, we find out that this man, being a great man, a good man, an honorable man, but he took the—the offering, the censer, and went in to the altar of the Lord, to burn incense before the Lord, which is only for a dedicated priest to do so. But he thought, being that God loved him so much, and—and He had been so good to him, that he could go do that, anyhow. And the priest run after him, and said, “You’re not ordained to that office. God forbids that anyone should come in there, only a Levite that’s dedicated to that service.” You should never do that.
52 And that’s the way many times, that, what’s, I think has got the world today in such a confusion, that men go out and try to take those places which they’re not ordained to do. It gets to a spot to where they—they try to fulfill this office, and they’re not called for that place.
53 Now we find out, though a good man, blessed of God; but, if God blesses you, you stay in the category that God has called you in. If it’s a housewife, remain a housewife. If it’s in a business, remain in that business, reflecting God. And whatever God has called you to, let it be that. Because, He wants you to be a real housewife, to reflect your influence upon another person that would want to be a good housewife. If you’re a good businessman, let your life so be that it will reflect Jesus Christ in your business, with honesty and integrity, and with things that really mean something. Because, somebody is watching your life. You’re influencing somebody. God has to have a real housewife. God has to have a real teen-age in school. God has to have a—a—a real minister, a real businessman, somebody that will reflect Him. Because, there they see, in you, Christ. No matter what the rest of the world has got to do, that has not one thing to do with you or I. We are responsible to God for our lives, and for our experience with Christ.
63-1130b – “Influence”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Day 181
And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. (Acts 13:20-22)
137 And God is our King! Why do we want anything else besides God? Why would a Christian want anything else to lead him but the Holy Spirit? I don’t know. I can’t understand.
138 And Samuel called them up. He said, “I want to tell you something.” Said, “Have I ever said anything to you in the Name of the Lord, but what come to pass?”
“No.”
139 “Did I ever take any of your money? Did I ever beg you for money?”
140 “No, you haven’t begged us for any money. And what you said, the Lord brought it to pass. We know that.”
141 He said, “Then why are you rejecting God, and want a king? You want to act like the world.”
142 And that’s what Pentecost is doing today. It wants to make intellectual giants. It wants to take the Power out of the Church. It wants to make a denomination grow, bring more members in. That’s nonsense! And when you bind a man to a creed, when you do that, you take the Holy Spirit away from him. He’ll have to give somewhere. The Holy Spirit will move on; the man can’t, on account, of his creed. Now he said…
143 And then, of course, Saul trained his army. Oh, my. He had them Israelites just knowing every which way to knock a spear off, or to do anything. But one day there come a challenger, old Goliath. And, brother, it taken more than an intellectual training then.
144 It took a man that knowed something about supernatural. But God had such a man. Thank the Lord for that. God has always got somebody. He always has. He had a man He could put His hands on. A little bitty old ruddy fellow out there, wasn’t very much, but he come up there and he said, “You mean to tell me that you will let that uncircumcised Philistine defile the army?” And there was old Saul, head and shoulders above all of them. All of his intellectual training didn’t do any good.
145 Now the churches has done that. They got away from the Holy Spirit. They got away from the Power of God. They got away from the leading of the Spirit. And we’ve got…We got sons of—of Kish, too. We just had one of our great giants the other day, over here in Africa, was challenged by a Mohammedan, on the Scripture. What happened? He took water like the other son of Kish; no disregards to our brother.
146 But they had a man who knowed that God could deliver. They brought that little old David up there, and he said, “I don’t know nothing about your spears, your intellectual training. But I know one thing. I know one thing, I went out after sheep that was took by the enemy. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. God let me bring them back.” He said, “How much more will He make me, let me, bring back this uncircumcised Philistine!”
147 What we need today is men and women who wants a reality. Hallelujah! Not a creed; a reality, that’s what the world needs today! Not creeds and fashions; we need realities in God! The world don’t want It. The world don’t want It. They won’t, don’t want to accept It. But the Church has to have It. God wants you to have It. He is the God of realities. Yes, sir.
60-0626 – “The Unfailing Realities Of The Living God”
Rev. William Marrion Branham
Other Months Devotions
Podcast Episode 15: A Man After God’s Heart –...December 10, 2019 - 1:27 pm
Podcast Episode 13: A Thanksgiving From The HeartNovember 23, 2019 - 2:57 pm
Podcast Episode 12: Listen To Your Teenage Son And Daughter...November 16, 2019 - 12:07 pm
Podcast Episode 1: My Testimony and Purpose of Th...September 19, 2019 - 11:50 pm
Podcast Episode 402 – What Should We Learn From The...June 8, 2022 - 6:00 pm
Podcast Episode 401 – What Should We Learn From The...June 2, 2022 - 2:45 pm
Episode 400: The Family Altar Audio Devotional – Day ...January 1, 2022 - 8:00 am- Episode 399: The Family Altar Audio Devotional – Day ...December 31, 2021 - 8:00 am
Praise the Lord my brother. Thank you for leaving us your...December 13, 2019 - 12:41 pm by lfurrego
I'm a converted Christian boy from Hindu, and I have received...December 13, 2019 - 5:48 am by Sumit panda
This is a powerful website. Thank you for having it for...December 3, 2019 - 7:48 am by Aubia Nokoyo
Share this entry