The Law Having A Shadow

Thank you, Brother Smith. Good evening, friends. It's a privilege to be here in Binghamton tonight representing our Lord Jesus Christ and His love to all mankind. It's an odd thing of me being here. I was fixing to go somewhere else, and just in the spur of a moment something happened that I come to Binghamton. And I don't understand it yet.

We just come back from overseas, from India, my son and I. Then I'd had a little meeting down at Owensboro, Kentucky, with the Assemblies of God. And we were down there a few nights, come from there and was many places, as you know how it is, so many of God's children are sick and needy.

And I'd kind of purposed in my heart to just preach the Gospel awhile and let the healing go for a little bit. Not saying I'd let it go, but ... relax, so I can talk to people. Usually under that terrific anointing of the Holy Spirit.... There's many of you, probably's all, been in the meetings. It kind of has an awful effect upon me, weakening me and so forth.

And I've never had the chance to get to shake hands with ministers, and get acquainted, and so forth. I was just going to take a little time around just kind of get acquainted with everyone. We might as well get acquainted here; we have to know each other up there a long time, don't we? So, we just might as well get used to each other here.

And usually in that type of meeting, they keep me fastened in a room. You know how it is. And come and knock at the door, and you're by yourself all day long, and all night long, and into the meeting. And, of course, everybody you meet, you start talking to them, and there starts the vision, you see. So, then it just tears you up for the meeting that's coming in the evening.

So, we've taken this time just to go around and visit our brethren; many of them calling from different parts of the nation.

And Mr. Boze, in Chicago.... They have the Chicago Gospel Tabernacle, and then they had the inside sports arena there for the service. And Mr. Boze had just come down. I was just about ready to go over and tell him, “All right”; and he was at the airport. And I put on my coat and started to walk out the door, when I did, the phone rang at the house. And so we got four phones we can answer on, so I just stepped back and picked up the phone, and it was Mr. Gardner of the city here, one of the Christian Business Men. And so I knew him well, and he said, “Come up and have a meeting for us, Brother Branham.”

And I said, “Well, Brother Gardner, you know,” I said, “just going over to the airport to meet Mr. Boze for a meeting in Chicago, or something.” I said, “I don't know what they'd do. I've kind of been moody for the last few days, not knowing which way to turn.”

And he said, “Well, our church has been fasting and praying.” And Something said to me, “You'd better go up there.” So, here I am. So, I'm just kind of on your hands now. I don't know just what to do. And I come up to minister, to speak of the Word of the Lord. Our Brother Smith here: I've met him, your pastor, a lovely brother. I don't say it because I'm standing in his pulpit, but he is. And then the brother from New York, who was our singer, I've met him before; and meeting many of the different Christian Businessmen today. And it's been a great time since I've been in Binghamton the last two days.

And I've always been a little partial of New York. I like New York. It's one of my favorite states in the union. And I thought some day I would like to live up here at one of these lakes.

When I was a little boy.... I like to hunt, and my conversion never took it out of me. I still like to hunt. So, New York is one of my favorite states, up around Lake Placid and up in the Adirondack, you know. And I think it's just one of the garden spots of the world, to my opinion. And I like good cold weather. And I'm initiated right tonight. So, we just.... I like it real well, better than I do the hot weather of the south. And your people here are nice, and I have always been treated so nice in New York. My uncle lives Plattsburgh up here and my wife's sister lives at White Plains, and so I have many things in common in New York.

So it's a great privilege tonight to be here in this lovely church with this lovely group of people, to minister to you in the name of our Lord Jesus. And I don't sit and make itineraries, because my meetings are just a little ... sometimes a little different; not ... I don't mean for it to be that way, but just ... God deals with individuals different ways. And sometimes I've been right in meetings where ten thousand people gathered and He'd pull me away to one person somewhere. And so I just have to kind of follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. I'm sure that we all understand that, as Christians, don't we? To follow the leading of the Spirit.

So, we don't know just what will take place. So, I'm just here, that's all; and whatever He leads, well, that's the way it'll go on, I suppose.

Thank you for your kindness of coming out tonight. The opening night, the first time in this country probably.... You know, we may be just a little curious and so forth. Let's shake that away from us tonight, and just let the Lord speak to us and tell us what He wants us to do. And if He wants me to stay more than these two or three nights, that's all right. I just want to stay till He says, “I want you to go over somewhere else, to Macedonia.” And so that's the way I like it; and I'm sure we all do that, by loving our Lord Jesus, and being His servants.

And now.... We have just returned from India, to a wonderful, successful trip. Coming up a few moments ago, when they started singing that song: Only Believe. Oh, I just think of how many times that's called me to the platform the last few years—thousands of times.

And in India, we had a great meeting and we preached and had a divine healing service right in the shadows of the Vatican, in Rome. And in Portugal, went on into from Lisbon, on down into Egypt and then over into India. Where I think our greatest audience was in India, that we ever had. We couldn't even see them. It was estimated around five hundred thousand people at the meeting. So, it was much larger than the African meeting where there was about.... Oh, we could put about fifty or seventy-five thousand inside the racetracks, then you couldn't see down the streets. Nothing down what was.... The people were there. Our Lord Jesus was great to us there.

And the thing that thrilled my heart more than the thousands of healings and the miracles that our Lord Jesus done, was to see thirty-thousand raw heathens come to Jesus Christ, at one altar call. Thirty-thousand people who had never accepted Christ before, worshipped idols and so forth, come to the Lord Jesus at one time. Now, you just about imagine how you felt. You just felt like you could cry, or, well, you felt kind of religious, you know. Kind of like you would just ... real good. Missionaries weeping, laying on the ground; and so it was really a marvelous time.

God might not give us that many converts, but He will be with us here at Binghamton. Don't you think so? Right here. He loves us just as well as He loves those people over there and in denominations. Of course, we don't represent any denomination—perfectly interdenominational.

My people before me were Irish, which were Catholic. I was converted and joined a Baptist church, which I was licensed and ordained under the Missionary Baptist church, in the Southern Baptist convention. And then, after that, well, the Lord appeared to me to pray for His children; and it was a little misunderstood with the Baptist church. And so, I thought surely if God wanted me to pray for His children, He'd have somebody who believed it. So I got over with the Pentecostal people and it was just like putting a glove on your hand. It was just ... fit right in, because they believed in such, so I was just right at home.

And I was always kind of misunderstood as a boy. You've read my life story perhaps, how He appeared to me and said, “Don't never drink or smoke and so forth.” Now, some of you here might smoke and still say you're Chri.... That's up to you, see. I'm not saying those things. He told me not to. So, I'm not to smoke or anything and defile myself in the way of immoral living, that there's a work for me to do when I got older.

And among my brothers, my associates, I was kind of a misfit. And then when I joined the Baptist church, they thought I had a little too much religion, I guess. So, I was kind of a misfit. So, you know they say, “Birds of a feather....” (Ha, ha.) So when I got over here, I was just right at home then. So, I've been feeling good about it ever since. And I love to have this time of fellowship.

Now, I think that the Bible is the Word of God. And I believe that all ... everything must be based on the Bible—any subjects, whatever it may be. And people many times differ with me (my!), but that doesn't bother me. I love them just the same, you see. And they're still my brothers and sisters, and I don't fall out with any one. And I just had a entertainment in India where seventeen different religions, anti-Christians, met with me in the Sikh... in the Jains Temple, and they're seventeen different religions—antichrist. Well, I never fussed with them. I just let them express theirs, and then the Lord vindicated what I was talking about that night. So, thousands times thousands and thousands of them came to Jesus Christ that one meeting, you see. So, it's the thing....

A man can make a statement; he can be wrong, because he's just a man. We're all subject to mistakes, but when God makes a statement, that's truth. That's truth.

And now, until we get acquainted, and see what the Lord wants us to do, I feel if we just read some of His Word and talk about that tonight.... We don't want to keep you too long in the meetings at night. The Lord may give us a great service of evangelism. He may give us a healing service. We don't know. Whatever He does we'll say, “Amen, dear Lord.” That's right.

Now, there's many ... any of us that is able to hold a Bible, could open it like this, but there's nobody really can open it but the Lord, see. For, remember in the vision in Revelations, He saw One sitting on the throne? And He had the book in His hand and no man in Heaven, or in earth, or beneath the earth was worthy to take the book, or to even look on it, or open the seals of it. And a Lamb that had been slain from the foundation of the world, came and took the book out of the right hand of Him that sits upon the throne, and opened and loosed the seals, for He was worthy. And that's the Lamb of God, the Author of this book. So, before we try to open it, shall we speak to the Author of this book while we bow our heads.

Our kind, loving Father, we come to Thee tonight in the humility of Spirit, and ask forgiveness of our sins, as Thou through Thy mercy will be gracious to us to forgive us of all of our sins and our trespasses. And now, Heavenly Father, we ask this through an approach through the name of the Lord Jesus, for we have no other way of assurance. But He has told us: “Whatever you ask the Father in My name that will I do.” Then we are sure of having a little time with You, if we will only ask in His name, we know that You will hear.

So, Father, we pray now that in His name You will forgive every one of us of our sins and trespasses against Thee. And if there be any sin in our lives, take it out, Father. We don't want it to be there, for it would just corrupt our journey here on earth and we'd fail at the end. So, we pray that You will forgive us of every short coming, and let the blood of Thy Son the Lord Jesus cleanse us tonight from all unrighteousness.

Bless this little church, Father, the members, the pastor, all of its workers, and the churches that's represented here. Bless the cities, Father, here and the surrounding about.

And we pray that You will send the Holy Spirit, and may He go through these cities and comb out, and put a mark upon the people. Grant it, Father. May this be a marking and a separating time among Thy people, that men that has got a desire in their heart to serve Thee may come close to Thee. May the hearts of the saints be filled with the Holy Spirit. Grant it. And may sinners find pardoning grace at the altar of their hearts. Grant it, Lord.

Now, if it be Thy will for us to have services, the healing of the sick, or anything that Thou would have for us to do, manifest it to us Lord; give us the witness of it: appear and show us. We're just here, Father, moving slowly and waiting to see what You will do.

Now we commit all these things, these blessings into Thy hands. And now come, Lord Jesus, and take the Word; may the Holy Spirit carry it to every heart just as we have need of tonight. And when we leave, may we say it like them of old who came from Emmaus, “Did not our hearts burn within us because of the Lord Jesus speaking to us?” For we ask it in His name and for His glory. Amen.

This is a brand new thing for me, to start teaching in the Word. Now years ago as the pastor at the tabernacle as a Baptist minister, we used to have great classes. And we would run them maybe a series of subjects for a complete year. Start in the book of Genesis and just tie the Bible together; and start in the book of Exodus and run it, and the book of Daniel, wherever, and maybe the book of Revelations. And just take the entire book from place to place.

And all of God's Word is written by inspiration. There's not a contradiction in the entire Bible; if there is, I want to seek it. It's nothing in there that's written that cannot be straightened out by the Word of God, if it's rightly put in its place. But we'll never do it by man's understanding. The Holy Spirit wrote the Bible, and the Holy Spirit is the only One who can interpret the Bible. And He would give it to us as we have need.

Now, in the Scripture tonight that I was thinking of, coming down here, was to read some out and teach a little, if the Lord willing, out of the book of Hebrews. One of my favorite places in the Scripture is this great book because it's a separating.

And now, in the tenth chapter, we'll begin and read just awhile, and see what the Holy Spirit has for us; trusting that He will bless every heart of every believer, and if there be any unbeliever that they will become believers tonight.

Now, this great book of the book of Hebrews. Of course, scholars are in difference of it, who wrote it. Myself, it sounds to me like it was Saint Paul's writing. It sounds like his technique, the way he approached the Gospel. Now, in here he's writing to the Hebrews. And in here.... Being the Hebrews lived under the law.... It's a good thing to begin right here for it starts:

... the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of those things, can never with those sacrifices which were offered year by year continually make the comer unto perfect.

Now, the law having a shadow.... Many times you've heard people refer to the Twenty-third Psalm saying, “Yea, though I walk through the dark shadows,” or, “The valley of the dark.” We always use a dark in there, it's not, see. The valley of the shadow, not the dark shadows, or the dark valley; it's the valley of the shadow of death. Now showing that if it's ... got a shadow there has to be a certain percent of it light or it wouldn't make a shadow. So, death, itself, is just a shadow. In other words it's a scarecrow to the believer, trying to scare him when there's enough light mixed into it to show that there's light somewhere. And now the law having a shadow of things to come....

In the twelfth chapter of Revelations we would read where the woman appeared in the sky, and she was in travail to give birth to a child, and the moon was under her feet, and the sun was at her head. Now that represented the law. The church, of course was.... The woman was the church, and the moon under her feet represented the law, and the sun at her head represented the dispensation of grace. And the moon is a shadow of the sun. The moon and the sun represent Christ and the church. In other words, the moon and the sun is husband and wife. That when the moon, only is reflecting the shadow of the sun; the sun is shining on the moon; it reflects the light to the earth, when it's dark.

Now, as Christ went away, like the sun when it sets, the moon comes up to give a light until the sun returns. But when the sun returns, the moon just fades out and the sun makes the light. And that's the same thing it is with law and grace. Law was to reflect, or shadow, of the light until the light came, and the light was the Lord Jesus. And law faded out, see, when the light taken its place. Now, but the moon in there.... There was enough in the reflection to reflect the light, showing that there was a hope, and a blessed place to go to after life was over, for the law reflected that in the light of the Gospel. Now the moon is to give light while it's dark, in the absence of the sun.

And now the church is to give the light, a lesser light, in the absence of the Lord. And then when the light of the moon is shining, and the sun comes into the moon, they both blend together, and it makes one light, so will it be when the Lord Jesus returns. The light that the church has reflected.... And the same Jesus, the same works, the same light, the same thing that He did here when He was here on earth is reflected by His church, showing that He is living somewhere.

When I look out tonight and can see the moon a shining, the stars shining, the lesser light, when I can see that, it's a guarantee of one thing, that the sun's shining somewhere. That's right.

Not long ago, a few years ago, I used to pastor the Milltown Baptist church. And I would go home at night out to some friends I stayed with, way out in the country. And we'd pass by an old cedar bush; come up over the hill. And way down in southern Indiana there's a lot of rolling country like you have here. And there used to be a nightingale (I guess you have them here.), and he would sing all night long; and I just love to hear that bird. And as I would pass by at night, I'd hear him. He would sing all night. And I notice on a cloudy night he would sing awhile then he would stop awhile. Then he'd sing awhile and then he'd stop awhile. And after awhile, he'd cut loose and sing again.

So I got to studying the nature of the nightingale. And he sits at night looking heavenward. And as he looked up that way, he watched for the stars; and when he could see nothing, he'd sing not; but when he could see one star shining, he'd look straight to that star and begin singing. I thought, What a lesson. There you are.

Oh, if I could walk out tonight and ask the stars, “Little star, what makes you shine?”

If that little star could speak back to me, he'd say, “Brother Branham, it isn't me shining; it's the sun shining on me that's making me shine.”

That's the way it is with any born-again Christian, when they are giving a life of testimony or doing something like that—giving their testimony, living a life for Christ—it is not the individual; it's the Holy Spirit reflecting back His light on the individual, making him a light to shine.

And as long as that nightingale could see one star shining, he'll sing. Excuse this expression, but as long as I can hear a good hardy “Amen” once in awhile, I know Christ still lives and reigns in His church—when you can hear something that reflects something about the Gospel, a reflection back, coming back.

Oh, how you can watch God if you just watch the elements of nature.

Here sometime ago, I was up in the mountains, and I went by an old spring that I always drink from, when I go up there. And this was the happiest spring I ever seen in my life. It just bubble, bubble, bubble, bubble all the time. And I thought, Little spring what makes you so happy? Why are you bubbling and jumping all the time? I thought, Maybe because deers drink from you is what makes you bubble and jump.

If he could speak, he'd say, “No, Brother Branham, that isn't why I'm jumping.”

I'd say, “Well now, maybe because bear come by once in awhile and drink from you; maybe that's what's makes you bubble and jump.”

He'd just speak back, he'd say, “No, Brother Branham.”

I'd say, “Well, maybe it's because I'm drinking out of you, what's make you bubble and jump.”

He'd say, “No, that isn't it.”

I'd say, “Well, what makes you so happy and jumping all the time?”

If he could speak, he'd say, “Brother Branham, the reason I'm a jumping, it's not me; it's something behind me pushing me, making me jump.” And that's the force of the water spraying up.

And so is every man and woman that's borned of the Spirit of God, the instant you've become changed, there's something about you that something has moved in, made you a different person. You look on life different, you look at things different. It isn't you that's a bubbling. It's something within you pushing it out. It's Christ pushing out the testimony and the life. And it all comes back to Christ.

The law having a shadow of things to come could not make the comer perfect. What's the subject called speaking of this? Perfection. God requires perfection. No one could ever come to Heaven outside of these perfect [unclear words]. Perfect. You must be perfect. And yet the Scripture says, “None is perfect.” So if you must be perfect to come to Heaven, and the Scripture says none is perfect, and we've all sinned and come short of the glory of God, how are we ever going to enter God's living place and dwelling place, when He requires perfection? Jesus said, I believe in the ... in Sermon on the Mount, He said, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Think of the perfection that God requires of the person—of perfection.

We seen the first, given in the Garden of Eden.... The man was in a perfect state. After awhile he fell, and then he marred his perfection. He marred his heritage with God, lost his fellowship and was cut off away from God. When I think of perfection, then how could we ever be perfect? Now, the writer here said, “These sacrifices which was offered every year continually could never make the comer unto perfect.” The requirement is perfection, and the sacrifice of animal life could never make the comer perfect.

Animal life, the blood of animals, goats, and heifers, and sheep, so forth was animal blood, and in the bloodstream lays life. Life is in the blood cell. Life lays in blood.

Here a few weeks ago, when the Sikhs, or the Jains, rather, with something over their mouth so they'd never breathe a gnat. They thought if they breathed a gnat, killed it, it might be some of their relations that was coming back in the form of insects. And it's just the way that they went to be sure they wasn't sitting on an ant, or something.

I said, “How could that people ever accept the blood sacrifice?” And would not even kill an ant, or wouldn't even sterilize a knife when they'd cut one of their fingers off in a operation, because they was afraid they'd kill a germ that was on the knife. Could you imagine? I said, “Where does the basis of your religion lay?”

He said, “On man.” All on goodness, all on works; no grace, you see. All on goodness, what a man can do. If a man lives good enough, he'll be God himself—if he could live good enough.

I said, “Look. Life lays in the blood cell. And without the shedding of blood there's no remission of sin, innocent substitute has to take a guilty sinner's place.” Oh, I want you to get this now. Notice. An innocent substitute must take the guilty one's place, and it happened in Eden that same way; that when Adam sinned, he cut off his fellowship with God the Father. And when he had sinned, before he could stand before God, God had to kill some sheep, perhaps, whatever it was, and make a covering. Blood had to be offered in substance because the blood ... where life laid, and God required life at sin.

Sin's judgment is to take life. Notice how people now can look and see that's how we believe so supremely in the blood of the Lord Jesus. Jesus, I used to think was a Jew, or He was Jewish blood. He was born of a Jewish mother, but He wasn't Jewish blood. Neither was He Gentile blood. He was the blood of God, see. God the Father overshadowed the virgin Mary, and created a blood cell in the womb, that brought forth the Son, Christ Jesus. You see what I mean? Every male.... The blood cell comes out of the male.

Like, the hen can lay the egg but it isn't fertile unless she has been with the male bird. And I've often said this, not for a joke, because I don't believe in it the platform, but as an expression: You take an old mother bird can lay a nest full of eggs, and she can hover them; she can turn them; she can be so loyal with them until she sat on that nest till she gets so poor, she can't fly off the nest—so loyal to those eggs. But unless that mother bird has been with the male bird, they'll never hatch. They're not fertile.

That's the way it is with a lot of churches today. You can get a bunch of people, you can baby them, and this, and that, and the other and whatever you want to, but if they haven't been with Christ Jesus and born again, you just got a nest full of rotten eggs, that's all. That's right.

It's time to clean out and get a hold of something, or somebody who has been in contact with the Lord Jesus Christ, and been born again. You will never be able to get them believing the supernatural, 'cause there's nothing in them to believe with. Amen. Now that's not skim milk. Look. That's right. A man must be borned-again by the Spirit of God, and then the Spirit of the Creator Himself comes into the individual, and claims relationship as sonship. You see it? Then that person is an offspring of God, and God who spoke the worlds into existence, and this man's an offspring off Him. He can believe anything. All things are possible unto him, for he believes he's a part of God. He's a son of God, or a daughter of God.

Say, “You believe in divine healing?”

“Certainly, God said so. Yes, sir.”

“Do you believe in being borned...?”

“Sure. Yes, sir. God said so.” They believe anything. Anything God says, that's all right, because God's Word will be made....

Any divine promise in this Bible will come to pass, if you'll believe it will. The right mental attitude towards any divine promise will bring it to pass. Notice. Then how are we ever going to get to Heaven?

I want to ask you tonight: If you only belong to church here, if you've never really been born again, I want to ask you how're you going to Heaven and the Bible said you must be perfect? And the law testified of perfection. The law having a shadow could never make the believer perfect. Then how're you going to be perfect?

Notice. In the Old Testament the believer when he come, he went out—John Doe—and maybe committed adultery, told a lie or something. He came with a lamb. How the great Lamb testified, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. The first thing, the lamb must be perfect. The lamb must be without a blemish for the sin offering. Could you imagine that? A lot of people think, I know there's people in this city, Well, I could be a Christian if I'd just could quit this. If I could just be a better man. If I could be a better woman. You'll never be better in that estate. You can never get better until something comes in you to make you better, and then you're born again, see. You can't do it.

Just like under the old law, if a little ... say, the mother horse gave birth to a little baby mule down there, and the little fellow was borned with his ears broke down, cross-eyed, knock-kneed. What a horrible-looking creature. Anyone here ever plowed knows what a broken-eared mule is, see. Oh, he's no good for nothing. And you would look at him, you'd say.... Well, if the little fellow could see and understand, he'd look and say, “Well, it won't be long; he'll never feed me. When he come out.... The master of the place here comes out finds me he'll just knock me in the head and throw me over in the ditch, because I'll never be no use. Look at me; I'm no good at all. Look at my ears are broken down, my eyes are crossed, my knees are knocked together, I can't even walk straight. I'm a horrible person.”

But if the old mother was rightly instructed, she would say, “But wait a minute, son; let me tell you something. The priest will never see you, but the man of the house, when he comes out this morning and sees you were born under a birthright; you're the first one, you have a birthright. So the master will have to go and get a lamb that will have to be examined by the priest without a blemish, and he'll have to die in your place so you can live. Why, the little fellow could, my, kick up his heels and run and have a big time, why, he's never going to see him. The priest isn't going to see him. The priest is going to examine the lamb, to see if there's any fault in the lamb—not the mule; the lamb—because the mule was born with a birthright. Oh, my! I begin to feel religious, see.

God never examines the believer till you're dead, and your life is hid in God through Christ, sealed by the Holy Spirit. God looks at the Lamb. Christ died in your stead. The Lamb, without a blemish. Notice. This little mule, then, he could have a good time.

Here sometime ago, just a little farmer, he was a good farmer. He didn't have much of a barn, and he didn't have much to work with, but he was an industrious man. Reminds me of some of the pastors, maybe: might not have a very big church, or very much this way, but they're industrious. They like to work and bring some spiritual food to the church, preach the whole Word.

So the farmer, he raised a good crop. His neighbor got some tractors, and so forth. And he had a nice big barn and almost fourteen carats on the door knob of the barns. And he had a wonderful barn, but he was too lazy to work. So, that year all the farm growed up in weeds. And so when it come harvest time the only thing the farmer with the great beautiful barn and everything could do was cut his weeds and put it up there to feed his stock. But he had a beautiful barn; oh, it was pretty. So, with the other farmer, he was an industrious man. He didn't have much of a barn, but he'd raised some good alfalfa. So, he put it up in the barn loft to feed his stock.

In each barn there's a little calf born that year. So, the next spring when they let them out, the first thing you know, they let the little calf out up there, and it didn't have very much of a corral to run in. So, he went out there. And he was a little old fellow, he got out there, and he's all round and fat. And, my! He begin to kick up his heels in that nice warm spring wind. And he was having him a big time, just kicking up his heels and running and kicking and having a big time. All fat and round, you know, eat good hay all winter long. He was all right.

And the other fellow turned his calf out, poor little fellow that had weeds. He was so skinny, the wind nearly blowed him down. He come out. He couldn't hardly walk around like this, you know. And he peeped his little eye through the.... He had a beautiful church ... or, barn (excuse me). He looked all around to see how pretty his barn was, but he's so skinny, he couldn't stand up under the pressure of the wind.

You know what kind of wind I'm talking about. That wind—like come on the day of Pentecost, come sweeping down through there. The wind begin to blow. It was staggering him, he couldn't stand it.

The other little fellow was fat and round—better he liked it. Made him feel good. You know what I'm talking about, surely. All right.

You know what that little skinny calf did? He peeped down through the crack and looked over there at that other little fat calf jumping up and down. He said, “Tsk, tsk, tsk. Such fanaticism. My, my, such fanaticism.” The poor little fellow hadn't been fed.

That's the way it is in a lot of places today, brother. What we need today is a good old-fashioned, Holy-Ghost revival sweep the country to fill the people full of the vitamins of God's Word—where they'll know where they're standing, and know.

Taking the fear out of the church. Now, the people ... where we know that by grace we are saved and filled with the Holy Spirit and sealed to the day of redemption. Yes, sir. Takes all the fear out. How God bless....

Notice. Then when the man come to sin, he had to make a sin-offering. He brought the lamb. He knew he must die, because God had done said, “The day you eat thereof, that day, you die.” So, she seen something had to die in his place. [Blank spot on tape.] [Unclear words.]

He confessed his sins.

Then, there was a note made of that and put in the book. So he took the little lamb up to the priest, laid it down, confessed his sins upon its head. He pulled the knife, the priest did, cut its throat. Did you ever hear a lamb die? It's the most horrible thing you ever heard. The little fellow there kicking, jumping, his blood going out of him and his little white wool being bathed as the blood sprinkled all over him. And this sinner sitting there with his hands on the lamb, confessing, “That ought to be me dying, Lord, but the lamb has taken my place.” So, as he felt the little fellow quivering, and jerking, and his little muscles and his wool bathed and his hands bloody.... As the little fellow died, he confessed his sins.

Then there was a note made of that and put in the book. And if that man sinned the second time, he'd die without mercy, under two or three witnesses. But he had to know that that lamb died for him, then an innocent substitute. The man went right back out of the church with the same desire in his heart he had when he come in, because the blood cell of the lamb was a animal life and not a human life. So it could not atone for sin. It was only substitutionary; it was only a covering. The law only made a covering, but the blood of Jesus Christ divorced sin, put it away, see.

Notice. Then that man ... even the dying of the lamb, he felt the results of it there on his hands as he looked up and confessed his sins, and he was sprinkled with the blood of the lamb. He went back out with the same desire in his heart. For, the offering of sheep and goats could not make the comer unto perfect.

But.... (Oh my! Here you are.) But a believer, not emotionally worked up, not upon because of some relative that's gone on, but with a sane sensible look at it, knowing that he's guilty of sin, walks to the altar of the Lord Jesus Christ, places his hands upon the dying Lamb in the respects of Calvary, and pulls down into his heart knowing that Christ was nailed there to the cross for him and died in his stead.

The worshipper once purged with the blood of Jesus Christ has no more consciousness of sin. Sin has gone. Looky here, in the 10th verse:

By ... which ... we are sanctified through the offering of the blood of Jesus ... once for all. (Not every year continually.)

And every priest standing daily and ministering the same offerings ... oftentimes, rather, the same sacrifice, which can never take away sins:

But (Look.) this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sets down at the right hand of God;

You believe it? Watch. All right, Christians. This gets you now; this seals it; watch it.

From henceforth expecting until his enemies be made his footstool. (And the last one is death.)

For by one offering he hath (What?) perfected (That's right.) perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness unto us: for after that had he said before,

This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;

Notice. But one lamb every year, they come and made another offering. Every year come back and make another offering. Every year make a remembrance of sin. But this Man after one time offering up His blood sat down at the right hand of God and the Majesty on High and has perfected forever every believer that has come and been borned-again of the Spirit of God. God has protected forever them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus. Amen. Oh, my. What we scared about? What you worried about? Don't listen what the devil has got to say; believe what God said.

Now, how could I be perfect? I couldn't be perfect. You can't be perfect. But God don't look at us.... When we are born-again into the body of Christ, God looks at Christ. He took my place; He took your place. And He is the One that's perfect and we stand in Him perfected tonight before God the Father through the offering of His blood. Amen.

Oh, how I like that. That's good vitamins, spiritually speaking; you know it fattens you up.

Notice. Oh, Christ: that all emphasis should be laid on Him, not upon the Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostal churches; it should be laid on Christ. He was the One who died.

Notice. Now, in the blood cell that God the Father when He brought forth Christ Jesus from the womb of Mary.... Look. He created a blood cell. And now that blood cell ... in that was the life: God Himself. How that He formed Himself into this....

Look at a germ; look at your own body. You can see divine healing easy if you'd look at this, see where cancer tumors and so forth come from. It's devils. I can prove that by God's Word. Look at you. One time, you was just a tiny little germ; look to it through a microscope glasses, which I've had the privilege in sanatoriums, and clinics, and things where I've been interviewed. And looked at the germ in the sperm, of human sperm, just millions of them, little teeny germs, so teeny that they can't see it with the natural eye. That was every individual in here one time.

Now, that little germ then cold, the mother is the incubator. When it comes in there it begins to develop that one cell, spreads out, and develops another cell, another cell, another cell. And every seed will bring its kind: dog, a dog; bird, a bird; man, a man—same thing.

Now, that's where you come from, but where did the cancer come from? It's a ... it's a big growth too; it's developing cells, started from a germ. Where did that germ come from? From the devil. That's what it is. That's where tumor, cataract any other germ disease is: demons. That's exactly. Jesus said He give power to cast out devils in His name. That's exactly the Gospel, brother. The Gospel come through demonstration of the Holy Spirit.

Notice. Now in the germ.... But when God, when Christ was in the womb of Mary.... You're just a little teeny germ. Before it was a germ.... What's after that germ? is a life. Then you're in the supernatural, you're in the sixth dimension, you're plumb out of human reasoning, you're into spirit life. Every little germ has a life; that life come from somewhere. The life of the cancer come from the devil. Your life come from God. That's the difference.

And God, being manifested in the flesh was Christ Jesus the anointed, wrapped Himself in a blood cell (Oh, my!) in the womb of Mary, brought forth His life. He lived a man, He died a man to give His blood that through His body and the shedding of His blood that every believer could be wrapped in that blood cell with Him. Which is a born-again Spirit of a man is wrapped in the blood cell of the Son of God, and God can no more deny you than He could deny Himself. For by one Spirit we're all baptized into one body, and become partakers of the same Spirit that's in this blood cell.

And the church is wrapped into the blood cell of the life of Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! Then we are sons of God, joint heirs with Jesus Christ in the kingdom.

Oh, my! You say, “Brother Branham, the devil got me.” No, the devil didn't. You went out to the devil. The devil can't get you, for you are dead. Dead people won't argue and fuss and backbite. You're dead and your life is hid in God through Christ, and you're sealed there by the Holy Ghost. How can the devil get you? Can't do it. That's right. You get inside one time. By one Spirit, not by one letter we're all joined into one body, not by one denomination are we all brought into the body, but by one Spirit. We're all baptized by Holy Spirit baptism into one body. Whether we're Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostals or whatever we are, one Spirit has baptized us into one body of believers. Do you believe it?

Jesus said in Saint John 5:24 (Be sure to read it; think about handful and two dozen eggs: 5:24, John 5:24): “He” (personal pronoun, individually not the groups of whatever), “He that heareth my words, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath,” (present tense) “everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” Amen.

On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other grounds is sinking sand. You can say you have to be a Methodist, Baptist if you want to, but He said, “He that heareth My words, and believeth on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life and shall not come unto condemnation; but's passed from death unto life.” That's His Word.

I tell you, brother, the devil can whip you around the stumps on how you felt when you got it. Somebody said, “I feel good, the reason I know I got it.” That's not the reason I know I got it. The reason I know I've met God's condition and the devil can't tramp on the Word of God, it's “Thus saith the Lord.” That's it. Upon the basis of the promise of God, I've met God's conditions and know I have eternal life. That's the way every believer does it: 'cause he has met God's conditions and the requirements that was laid down to him. Oh, my!

Some time ago.... It's just so easy to condemn and condemn others. Some time ago we was having a meeting up here somewhere in, I believe it was, Pennsylvania; I believe around Erie, or somewhere there. No, it was over in Ohio. Toledo, I believe it was. And we were having a great meeting in some arena—thousands were there—and we couldn't get in and out, hardly. And they keep me way out in the country, in a motel. There's a little place across the street there that we were eating at; it was a lovely little place; it was Dunkards. You know, Amish or Dunkards, whatever they are. And the little ladies that worked in there were such clean, nice-acting little ladies. And we were having a wonderful time just eating there —had such a dandy time. Well, come Sunday they all closed up and went to church. So, that's the thing to do.

Well, I was left out there. And Mr. Baxter, the manager, some of them going on in to speak. And so Billy, and them, had gone in to give out prayer cards. And I was there. And I thought, Well, I'm just a bit hungry. I haven't eaten now for two days. I believe I'll go get a sandwich, because I'm going to speak this afternoon. It was on Sunday. And usually on Sunday afternoons I usually tell the life story, or speak to them. Then I thought, Well, I'll find.... I looked across there, and I said, “That's a place that's a restaurant”—just an ordinary place. And I walked across there, and this is shocking.

Brother, as soon as I walked in the door, there was a policeman standing there with his arm around a woman, playing a slot machine. Gambling is illegal in Ohio, and there was the law that's supposed to uphold righteousness, gambling himself. And he was a man as old as I am. So he must have been married and had a wife somewhere else. What a disgrace!

I looked back there and there was a young lady at the table waiting on some boys, and they was all drunk. And the way that young lady was acting ... letting them boys act to her, it was a disgrace. And I thought, Looky there, if it isn't from a ... from Paradise into a rat den, almost.

Listen. Let me tell you: Don't you worry about Russia coming over here and whipping the United States. Don't you worry about some nation coming over and whipping us. We're whipping ourselves. All morals is a breaking down. Yes, it isn't the robin that pecks on the apple that hurts it; it's the worm at the core that kills the apple. That's what gets the apple. So it isn't some other nation; it's our own self.

Communism is not Russia. Communism is a spirit. That's right. And it's sweeping this place and honeycombing it. You know that to be true. All right. May have more to say about that some other time.

But notice, this woman when she was sitting over there at that table, that young woman, I thought, Oh, my! And I looked over here and seen an old fellow sitting there, and there sat two fellows drunk, one with a great big long army overcoat on, and a dear old mother sitting there, old enough to be my grandmother. And the clothes that the woman had on, little bitty short clothes, and poor old wrinkled arms and flesh. And she had on this here manicure, ever what you call it on her lips, you know. With that.... I know that's not the right stuff. I can't ... ever what it is; it's paint. And she had it all over her lips like this. It was blue, blue-looking, you know. And she had her.... And I looked at the poor old thing, she was sitting there with a cigarette, smoking it.

And I looked, I thought, Oh, my! And two old men.... I said, “God, why don't You just strike this thing off, just wipe it off the map. If me, a sinner, could look and despise such as that, how can Your great holiness look at such a thing as that and stand it?” I thought, O God, my little Rebekah and Sarah are going to have to come up here, one eight, and the other one three.“ I thought, ”How're they going to come up here and see such as that? What will it be in their day? God, why don't You just clean the thing up?

And then God taught me a lesson. That's right. The two men got up, went to the rest room. And I was standing there looking around. And I thought, O God, looky here. What is it? Nobody that waited on me; I was just standing at the door looking around. It was kind of dark back towards the door.

And the Holy Spirit said to me, “Come over here.” And I went over. And as I sat down, I looked, and I saw like the world and it was revolving around. And around this world was a rainbow. It looked like a streak of red, like a rainbow going around and around the world.

Then I went right into that, and when I was standing there in that, I looked and I seen somebody standing just above it with His arms out like this. It was our Lord. And I noticed myself, and every time I'd go do something wrong, just then according to grace ... according to the Word, the Father would have took my life right there. But Christ.... Every time I would do a sin, then it would hit Him like that. He'd shake His head like that. In other words, His blood was acting like a bumper on the automobile. It was protecting me from death. And I thought, Oh, I see.

And I seen it come again, and there was an old book laying out there; my name written at the top. And it was a sinners' book smutted up. And my name was at the top. And I'd sin, it'd be recorded against me. God would have took my life, but the blood of Christ protected me. Every time it would hit, I'd see it like that. And I'd see those scars on His face, from them thorns, and the blood run down His ... bat His weary eyes.

He looked back at me, said, “Father, forgive him.” And then, I'd go along I'd do something else, and there it would come again like that. He'd say, “Father, forgive him.”

I thought, Oh, I see. If that's the reason God can't take the life of those people—sinners—because they are yet protected. They have a chance yet. The blood of Jesus is still protecting them. It's like a bumper to the world. I said, “Oh, I see. I see, Lord, what You mean.”

Yeah, the blood of Jesus Christ covered the world like this, and every man while you're here, you're still a free-moral agent. If you reject it and reject it, and then you die and your soul goes beyond that, then you've judged yourself, God don't have to judge you, see. If you die without the blood of Christ, you're a sinner and you're lost. If you accept the blood, then you're in Christ, protected.

And then I'd seen Him there, as my sins kept beating Him. I got so broken-hearted, I come crawling up to Him. I laid down like this; I said, “Lord, look at my name up there!” I said, “Is that my name?”

He said, “Yes, that's your name.”

I said, “God, forgive me. I didn't mean to make You suffer like that. I didn't know my sins were hurting You so bad like that. When I did things, You protected me with Your own life. Please forgive me.”

He took His hand in His side, like that, and wrote across there, “Pardoned!” And put it back behind Him like that to remember it no more. And He looked down at me. He said, “Now, I forgive you, but you want to condemn her.”

Then that made things different. I come out of the vision. I looked over there, that poor old woman sitting there, toddling, trying to smoke this cigarette and couldn't even get it to her mouth, toddling like that. I said, “Lord, God, please forgive me. I'll not be critical anymore.”

I walked over to where she was, and I said, “How do you do?”

She looked up and she said, “Oh, how do you do?”

And I said, “Could I sit down a minute?”

She said, “You may.”

And I sat down and looked at her. I thought, Somebody's mother no doubt. I thought, Something is behind that life; I don't know what it is. And I said, “Lady, excuse....”

She said, “Do you want a smoke?”

And I said, “No, ma'am, thank you.”

She said, “Would you have a drink?”

And I said, “No, ma'am, thank you.” I said, “I am a minister of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.” And I said, “I was standing there condemning you, and asking God why He didn't take your life.” And I told her what had just happened, right there.

She said, “Oh, I know who you are.” Said, “You're that preacher down there.”

I said, “That's right.” And I said, “What's behind your life?”

And that poor old thing begin to tell me of how she'd been mistreated and run out like that. How she had belonged to church one time, and went astray.

I said, “Have you got children?”

She said, “I've got two daughters, married, both of them are Christians.”

And I said, “And you sitting out here. Aren't you kind of ashamed of yourself?”

She said, “I am, sir.”

And I said, “Don't you want to accept Christ?”

I begin to talk to her, and took her by her poor old feeble hands, and the tears running down.... She throwed that cigarette on the floor and knelt down there and humbly come to the Lord Jesus Christ. What a difference when you look at yourself one time. Who are we? Where'd we come from? There she got up wiping the tears from her eyes. She said, “I'm ashamed of myself, sir.”

I said, “Now, mother, go put on your clothes. Go to church. Get some good church, and get yourself affiliated with it, and be a loyal member of Christ's body.” I said, “For this day there's hundreds sitting yonder wanted to come into a prayer line or so forth, and here the Holy Spirit deals with me, to you, and me standing here criticizing you.”

And God.... And me, as a minister, let me know, where am I? Who'd I.... Who am I? Where did I come from? What about me? I may not have done that, I may not have done them kind of immoral things, but I, still a sinner in the sight of God, and the blood of Jesus Christ had to protect me. And I accepted it, and she accepted it.

My brother, one of the horriblest pictures I can paint in my mind is the Garden of Eden, when God made His beautiful couple there, and put them in the garden. Little Eve, when God woke Adam up that morning and he looked.... I was standing in Greece here not long ago, and seen where some Greek artist painted a picture of Eve and Adam; is the most horrible, oh, the horriblest thing I ever seen. What a discredit to the Bible or to even civilization, that such a thing could become famous as a painting like that. Adam with one shoulder up and the other one down, the hairs hanging out of his nose like that; and Eve the most horrible-looking brute you ever seen to Eve. All common sense would say that was wrong.

Look at the strain, look at man today when he sins. Instead of coming out before God and saying, “Father, I've done wrong; here I am.” Look at the strain in the Garden of Eden, when Adam done wrong. And instead of him running up and down the garden saying, “Father, Father, where are You,” it was Adam hiding behind the bushes, and God crying, “Adam, Adam where art thou?” That strain still stays in man. Instead of coming out and confessing his sins and saying he's wrong, he'll try everything in the world. He will join this church because it don't teach very strict. He'll go over and if it's a little too strict for him, he'll fall out with this church and go for the other one, trying to make himself a religion like Adam did. It's in him; that's his strain.

Looky here. If Eve was that sort of a looking brute, every man in the world would admire a woman that looked dirty and ungodly like that. But there's not a man, I don't care who he is, but what admires a woman that keeps her place and is clean and acts nice. If he's got any speck of man about at all, he does. So it shows the very strain that Eve was the most beautiful thing that ever set on the earth. That's right. She didn't need any Max Factor to fix herself up. She had it from God. Them beautiful teeth would never turn yellow or fall out, and that.... I see her sitting there and her hair hanging down her back, and her eyes as bright as the stars of heaven. When Adam looked at her, it put such a shock; it still lives in mankind. That's right. I believe it.

There she was, a beautiful species. And he picked her up in his arms, and he looked at her. And said, “Well, she's flesh of my flesh and bone of my bone.” As sweethearts.... Almighty God squared them off there, and performed the marriage ceremony. And he took her by the arm, and down through Eden they went. Perfect: God's children.

And I believe that every woman and man that's born-again in this building, tonight, will turn back to that someday.

Oh, brother, when you see the Gospel light, what difference does sickness, death or anything else mean? Nothing can separate us from God's eternal purpose.

The other day, I was telling the brother today: I was standing to a glass combing what few hair I had left. My wife said, “Billy, you're getting bald-headed.”

I said, “But praise God, honey, not one of them has perished.” Here a few years ago I had real thick black hair.

She said, “Well, where are they, honey? Tell me.”

I said, “Where was they before I got them? Ever where they was that's where they are again. And God will give them back to me.” Hallelujah! Yes, sir!

Death has set in on this old mortal body here. It's creeping it, and turning me gray, and taking it down, but bless God, every atom and every light and every light meter that was ever in this body will return at the resurrection to its perfection. Hallelujah! Death has no reign over righteous. Hallelujah! The soul of man never dies. When my spirit's turned loose yonder with the King of spirits at the resurrection, it will scream. And every atom that ever made this body, when it was as strong and the best as ever, will set to its place again. Hallelujah! Yes, sir.

Death don't bother me; it don't bother any believer. No wonder David saw it and said, “Death, where is your sting?” ... or, Paul, “Grave, where is your victory?” Yes, sir.

There when Adam sinned then.... The most horrible thing I can see is that day when them children sinned. And God called them out behind the bushes, and throwed them old bloody aprons in there. There stood His heritage, His own children standing there. Look at Eve. Around that beautiful body of hers is wrapped an old bloody sheepskin, the blood running down off of her like that, and dripping down her perfect shaped body. There's Adam standing there not a brute; a perfect-made man. His muscles in his arms, the muscles in his big legs, his shaggy hair around his shoulders, his dark beard hanging: a perfect man.

Look at that now. I see his shoulders stooping, around his big body here comes an old bloody sheepskin; running down those big manly legs, comes blood, tears is dripping off of his cheeks, patting on the top of Eve's head as she leans over on his bosom. And little Eve crying, the tears patting down as it mixes with blood running down her bosom. What's the matter? Something is happening. They can cry now. They're mortal now. They're dying now! There you are.

I can see God say, “Depart out of My presence.” Couldn't stand it. I can see Adam start walking away and he said, “Yeah, I can hear something going [Brother Branham claps slowly.]. What it is? An old bloody sheepskin flopping against his legs as he was going out. Oh, I can see God who covers space and time, who has no beginning or ending. I can see it all bottled down like a funnel coming down like this to one four-little-lettered word: l-o-v-e. He couldn't see His children depart from Him. What? He'd made the covenant conditional with Adam, but now He makes it unconditional. He said, ”I will put enmity between the woman's seed,“ and He'll bruise the serpent's head, and so forth: promising the Saviour.

Let's turn our camera to another picture. Four thousand years later we're in Jerusalem, we're at a window. I hear a noise. What is it? A screaming mob, hollering. Some poor man has come against it. We raise up the shade and look out the window. Coming down through the streets comes an old rugged cross bouncing over the cobblestones, bearing ... rubbing out the bloody footprints of the bearer. He's going to Calvary. His back beaten till His ribs is showing through nearly. There He starts up the road, walking along as He's going. Look at Him. I look all over His back. The little red spots over that little old garment was wove throughout without a seam.

Look at those little red spots. What are they? Directly they get bigger, bigger, bigger. First thing they all run into one big spot. Now I hear something again. [Brother Branham claps slowly.] What is it? There goes the second Adam. One brought death. Here goes the One bringing life. There's the one who took life out of the world. Here's the One who's bringing life in the world. The second Adam with His own blood hitting against His legs like that, the Son of God going to Calvary to bear away our sins yonder, that through the shedding of blood to perfect a man or woman unconditionally.

Oh, “No man can come to Me, except the Father draws Him: and all that comes, I will give him everlasting life and raise him up at the last day.”

Oh, my! There it is. As He goes up there, I can see a little old ... a little old something stinging around him. Oh, my! Death! Buzzing at him like a bee as He goes yonder to be crucified. A bee springing around Him saying, “Oh, I got You now; I got You now,” as He went moving on, moving on. The bee of death was going to sting Him. God, Himself, made flesh in order to take away sin. God the Father, and the Spirit, could not take death, of course—He was supernatural—but He had to be made flesh. And there He was dragging the cross on, and that bee stinging around Him: Death.

But you know what? Insect bees, you all know them here; you raise a lot of honey in this country. If a bee once stings, it leaves its stinger. It cannot sting no more. And God Himself coming unfolding Himself out of Heaven was made flesh in the form of man, took upon Him the form of man, and was going yonder to Calvary to anchor the sting of death, and death stung the Son of God on the way to Calvary. He anchored, pulled the stinger out of death, and today death has no sting for the believer.

For we are perfected in Christ Jesus. Hallelujah! There's the blood of Christ, what it does. The sting of death.... Paul, when they was going to chop his head off, and that old bee buzzing around him, he said, “Death where is your sting? Grave where is your victory?” But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Oh, my! There's God's Lamb that pulled the stinger out of death. There's the One that was perfect when the Father said, “This is My beloved Son; hear ye Him.” There's the perfection. That's what the law could not do. But what the law was a shadow back yonder under the offering of sheep and goats, was a shadow of the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world. When He come and was made flesh, and anchored the stinger of death, and pulled it out where you and I can walk in the face of it. Death can't bother us. Hallelujah! It hasn't got any stinger. It can buzz and hum and threaten, make a bluff, but that's all it can do. Death has no more stinger. For every believer that's in Christ Jesus is perfected forever. Praise God!

Not when you're at church doing a novena, not when you're saying a “Hail Mary,” but when Christ give you the baptism of the Holy Ghost accepted you into the beloved. He sealed you there until the day of your redemption. If you're riding on an airplane, wherever it is, you are perfected until the day of your redemption. And every man and woman that's born of the Spirit of God has no more desire of sin. Sin has passed from him, and his whole motive is to do the will of God. If you have any more motive besides that, brother it's time for you to find a place at the altar and pray through, 'cause you're only ... the devil is bluffing you.

For a grain of corn cannot produce cockleburs, neither can cockleburs produce corn. And if you're sowed with the incorruptible seed of God, borned again of the Spirit of God, you're whole motive, everything in your whole life, goes towards God.

And the day when God turned the ... or, Noah turned the crow loose.... He was a bird set right on the ark, set in the ark right on the same floor with the dove. He could fly just as far as the dove. He could squawk and make a noise like the dove. But when they turned them loose.... The crow was a scavenger. He could fly from one dead body to the other one and satisfy himself. But the dove could not satisfy herself. She flew back to the ark and pecked on the window, until father Noah opened the window. She was a dove. A dove is a bird that doesn't have any gall. It cannot digest rotten things.

And every man that's ever borned of the Spirit of God takes on a nature that it can't digest the world no more. “For if you love the world or the things of the world, the love of God's not even in you.” And, brother, if you still love the world, and professing to be God's child, for the sake of your own soul, find a place at the altar and pray through until God takes the world out of you. For He has perfected forever those that are sanctified (or cleaned) by the Holy Spirit, then we are in perfection.

The law having a shadow of things, not even the real things, to come. With them sacrifices can never make the believer perfect, but a believer once coming into Christ, and by one Spirit baptized into that body He has perfected forever those that are in Christ Jesus.

Then the things of the world.... See? And he, the worshipper, once purged has no more conscience (or, the right interpretation of that: has no more desire) of sin. For the worshipper once purged has no more desire (or conscience) of sin. He doesn't even want to sin. He will do things wrong. And as soon as he does it, he'll confess his sins right there and say, “God, forgive me. I didn't mean to do that. You know it, Father.” God never sees it, but He has an advocate. He has a confession and he makes it.

But the man who goes ahead and sins and says, “Well, I belong to a church; don't make any difference.” It shows that right in him proves that he hasn't got what he says he's got. No, sir. You can't draw bitter and sweet water from the same fountain. That's right.

For God has made a sacrifice to perfect every believer that's in Christ Jesus that when we stand in His presence, we'll not have to stand in our own self; we're standing, and Christ stood in our place, to take our place, and He has judged Christ and not you and I. We have accepted it. We've accepted it. And if you haven't accepted tonight, my brother, sister, when you see the agony and the price it cost Almighty God to get your soul saved, could you turn Him down upon those kind of a basis? Certainly not. Sure, you couldn't.

God willing, tomorrow night I want to speak on the unpardonable sin. What it to sin against the Holy Ghost and never be forgiven.

Now, may the Lord bless you while we bow our heads just a moment. If the organist or pianist will come a moment. Now shall we bow our heads just a moment.

Our kind Heavenly Father, seeing that clock on the wall moving around so swiftly, just beginning to speak on the things of eternal life. And seeing the people, Lord, knowing that they have need. We all have need, Father, of knowing more about Thee and Thy love.

I pray Thee, God, to be merciful to every person here. I do not know this people; Thou does know them. And now I pray that You will send the Holy Spirit up and down the aisle just now. Look through the audience and if there be someone who really knows that in their heart they've never met this condition, to fully surrender, to die out to everything of the world, and let the Holy Spirit take complete control enough to kill all the desires of the world, and the things of the world. God grant that that person will now accept Thy beloved Son and be filled with the Holy Spirit.

While we have our heads bowed.... I wonder: In the audience, the people, (everyone with your head bowed), if there would be a person here that would say, “Brother Branham, I for one, I know that I have never re'ched that place yet ... or never reached it, rather. I have never come to the place to where I had myself completely under control. I still, in my heart I'm wavering. I'd like to be anchored, Brother Branham, by the Holy Spirit with Christ, so the things of the world would be dead to me. There's little things that I just seem like I can't give up. Pray for me, brother.”

Would you, man or woman, boy or girl raise your hand? say by doing this.... Don't nobody look. Just let me and the Holy Spirit do this.) Just raise your hand.

God bless you, sir. Someone else? God bless you, sir. Someone else, someone else around just boy or girl, that not really knows. Now you're before God. God bless you, brother. God bless you, sir. God bless you, lady. That's all right. That's right. Now someone else just raise.... God bless you, lady. That's honest. We want to be hon.... God bless you, lady. God bless you, sir. That's right.

Say, “I want to, Brother Branham. I'd really ... my soul, I know that I'm going.... These little brittle threads of life I'm walking on is going to break one of these days and I'm going to plunge out into eternity, yonder. God knows at that hour. Say, I'll want to go to Heaven. I don't want to be lost and condemned. And I've tried for a long time, but I just yet haven't done it. Pray for me that I will accept Him.” And you who want Christ to remember you and you signify the same as you raise your hand.

Would there be somebody else now that hasn't raised their hand, would want to? This doesn't save you, certainly not; but it answers your conscience towards God who knows you.

In the morning you may not be on this earth; you may be gone. As an evangelist, and three times around the world, and watching the millions of people, seeing things in the contact with God by vision and Spirit, realizing that I wouldn't say this for nothing in the world unless I knew what I was talking about. Would you just raise your hand, not to me now, but to God? Say, “God remember me. I want to be right when I die. Remember me, God.”

Is their another one in the building would raise your hand, anywhere? Raise your hand. There's about a dozen, I guess. God bless you; I see your hand, sister. Would someone else raise your hand? Say, “Remember me, God.” You're not saying, “Remember me, Brother Branham.” You're saying, “Remember me, God,” as you raise your hand. Saying, “I want to be remembered in a word of prayer at the close of this service, Brother Branham. I realize that I'm a long ways from having the nature of sin killed in my life. I want it so I can only be a servant of the Lord Jesus.”

Is there another one, would just raise your hand so God can see? I'm going to ask prayer for you just in a moment. All right. Remain with your heads bowed.

Now kind Heavenly Father, realizing that every word that we say will meet us in judgment. You've seen those people raise up their hand. It's written in the Word of our Lord Jesus Christ that, “No man can come to Me accept My Father draws him.” Then that's a sure sign that You're out there in the audience dealing with these people. Something has touched their heart.

Father, “No man can come except My Father draws him,” showing that Your Spirit is moving upon hearts. “And all that comes to Me I will in nowise cast out.” That's Your Word, Father. And here they are. They've raised up their hand. You seen them.

Now, if Thy poor unworthy servant has found grace in Thy sight, I pray You forgive them, Father. And from this very hour where they're sitting right there in their seat now, may they go from this church tonight a new person. May the Holy Spirit just move upon them, just now, and take away all guilt and condemnation of sin, all doubtings and may they become Thy servant. Grant it, Lord. Thou knowest all things. I pray that You will grant it now, through Jesus' name. Amen.

Jesus paid it all.

All to Him I owe;

Sin had left a crimson stain:

He washed it white as snow.

You feel tonight.... This little altar here is open. If there's someone here while we sing another verse of that hymn, if you would like to come down here, have prayer, why we'd be glad to pray with you. I love you, my friends; that's from my heart. If there's anything I never want to meet God.... I'd rather meet Him a sinner than a hypocrite, for I'd be lost either way. But I don't want to stand outside of being a sinner, and then be a hypocrite with it. I'd rather get out of the way. I want to be sincere. And I love humanity; that's why I've gone the way I have, is because I love mankind. I want to see people right with God.

And, brother, what have we got in this world? Why, it won't do us any good. What if we have to leave it tonight, see? And all this just putting off, putting off, you may just do it one time too much. And remember now, as your brother....

This altar is open. I come right down here. Surely if He will hear my prayer to open the eyes of the blind, the deaf, and the dumb.... And you heard about it around the world. You will see it a little later on so just.... If He'll hear my prayer for that, surely He'll hear for your soul. Don't you believe that? Certainly He will. These other ministers here that loves the Lord and they're God's servants....

While we sing Jesus Paid It All once more, would you want to come down, just stand around the altar praying. You want to get closer to God. You want ... you want salvation, you want to be saved, or seeking the Holy Spirit to be born-again, you're invited tonight, while we sing once more. All right.

Jesus paid it all;

All to Him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain;

He washed it white as snow.

How many love Him with all of your heart? Raise your hands to Him like this: I love You, Lord. That's wonderful, almost a hundred percent of people who love Him.

I so appreciate you, my brother, sister, so much. I just love you with all my heart and expect to spend an endless eternity with you.

Now, tomorrow night, God willing, I want to talk on the unpardonable sin, if it's God's will. Just a little farther down the chapter. I looked at it tonight there. And it's just a little farther down. So, we'll speak it tomorrow night, if God willing, not knowing just what He's going to do. I'm waiting on Him.

Now, is there any sick here raise up your hand, any sick and needy?

Now shall we bow our heads for those.

Our kind loving Father, we pray that You will heal the sick and the needy here in the meeting tonight. Thinking of the days, and seeing Your great Spirit move on the people and heal the sick, and give the blind sight, and take them from the stretchers, cots, and wheelchairs around the world. And the kings, potentates and monarchs, the world shaking and quivering tonight under the impact of a great revival sweeping the land.

And the people is letting it pass right by, and not receiving it. Just like they let the Son of God go by the gates, and the palace temples, and so forth and they didn't recognize that it was Him. And, oh, if they could come back to earth tonight for another trial. But while He's passing by tonight condemning sin in the flesh, people raising their hands and recognizing that they're not just where they should be in Thee, I pray, God, that You will heal every sick person here. May Thy Spirit be upon them, and may they be perfectly normal and well.

And now, Father, for a healing service, we commit to Your hands. Let Thy Spirit move, Lord, in any way that It so desire. We're waiting on Thee, Lord, seeing what You will say. Not knowing what minute, or what hour, what time the Spirit of God break in upon us here, Lord, and just shake the whole valley. We pray that He will do it, God. Grant it. May it be done for Your glory. Get glory out of your servants. Bless every stranger in our gate, Father, in Jesus' name.

Now, the Lord bless each one of you now. And now expect tomorrow night.... Get somebody, get on the phone right quick, and get somebody. We want to get them in here. Bring out those who are needy and ... cots, and stretchers, and so forth; put them in here and see what the Holy Spirit says, you see. We're calling for sinners, now.

While we bow our heads just a moment, and for our dismissal prayer, I'll turn the service then to the brother here, while you bow your heads, and the brother....