A Super Sign

Jeffersonville, Indiana, USA

59-1227M

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[Brother Neville says to Brother Branham, “...we at this time would like to show it, in a small way, by presenting to you a little gift.”] Thank you, Brother Neville. [“God's blessings rest upon you. You're welcome.”]
Thank you, very much, Brother Neville. And thank you, church. Just doesn't know just what's on the inside of it. But I appreciate, with all my heart, all that you have meant to me, and the things that you have done for me. And if it wasn't for you, there would be no me. If there wasn't someone to believe the message that God gives me to preach, there would be no use of preaching it. There has to be two of us working together. So, I appreciate this very much.
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Our church has always got, more or less, among us here, a sense of humor. Now, when I walked in just a few moments ago, in the back room, someone handed me a package, and said, would I walk out to the platform and present this to Brother Neville. In appreciation of my feelings to him, and the fellowship of this church, and what he has meant to us this year, as a pastor in the years gone by, and the hopes and prayers that he will continue to be our pastor through many years to come; a token from the church and myself, Brother Neville.
[Brother Neville says, “Thank you, very much, all of you. God bless you. I truly appreciate the kind things and the helpfulness that has been toward me from each and every one in the congregation. And I truly, this morning, feel deep down in my soul that every last one of us are deeply grateful to Brother Branham for what he has meant to us, in his ministry. And may God prosper him and bless him as he goes on for the Lord this year, is my earnest prayer. Thank you, very much. I certainly appreciate it.”]
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The little children, all right, I think the little fellows now are to go to their rooms. And now remember, be real good little girls and boys, out there in the room this morning, for, after the service, I think (it looks like) that there was something left here for you, in treat.
Now, to the adults, as you see our population of young fellows are quite a number, we are anxiously waiting until the time that we can have a new church where we can separate those classes.
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Our Sister Arnold certainly has an armful; not a handful, but an armful. And my little girl was telling me, she said, “Daddy, it's so hard on Sister Arnold,” she said, “because she will be speaking to us in the language that we would understand, and then the little bitty tot will do something and she will have to stop and correct them for it,” you see. So it makes it hard on this one woman to have all this class. So we appreciate her and her fine cooperation to do what she can in this time of need. The Lord bless her.
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Now we are hoping, some day soon, the Lord willing, to have a nice, big Tabernacle, where we will have all kinds of Sunday school rooms for the classes. For the little babies, with the flannel-graph; and have up over the pulpit, up this, a great glass-faced nursery, where a trained nurse will be there to take care of all the little ones. There will be no interfering in the services, at all, walking or tramping around. These little fellows are restless; they don't understand. We have to understand them; they can't understand us. And so, then, a place where everything will be just the way I believe the Lord would have us do it. It will not be fancy, but a nice church. We're looking forward to that.
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Now, for Brother Neville and myself, I've just drew an idea that these were suits of clothes. I don't know, Brother Neville. I think it is. I'm not sure. Because, it looks like a suit box, to me. [Brother Neville says, “Amen.”] Don't you feel the same way about it? [“Yes.”] And it's either suits or overcoats. They both look the same, so it goes to show there is no respect of person here. And so I have an overcoat, and I know that it's not an overcoat. You have one, also, so it must be a suit. And it's just.... We just do appreciate this so much!
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And I am sure that, as pastors, shepherds.... The word pastor means “a shepherd,” one who shepherds the sheep. I'm sure that we are grateful to you, each and every one of you, because it was your kindness and thoughts, and money, that made this gift possible to us this morning. And through God's grace, we are pledging ourselves to be your pastor, to do everything that we can to lead you in the right way. Maybe sometimes, the way we speak and things, it may be hard to understand. But we're only doing it as guides, trying to guide you to that place, that, in the resurrection you'll appreciate us greatly then. For, we have considered not our own selves, in making up when we speak to you, not of our own thoughts, but trying to do just as the Holy Spirit would lead us to do. And that's been our endeavor, and we are still endeavoring to do the same thing, that is right, for the pastor and myself.
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We're grateful to see the sunshine. Doc, my brother, was just saying he sent word to Brother Frankie Weber, in Florida, said, “Not the only one that can get out on Christmas and wash the windshield off, of his car, in his shirt sleeves.” He was doing the same thing, so warm! Well, you know, Florida gets tired of the sunshine, looking at Florida all the time, so it has to come up in Indiana and see how everything is getting along up here. Don't you think so? So, we're happy that it give us a visit, at least for a few moments, this morning.
But, above all things, we are thankful for the Sunlight of God, that gives us the shining of eternal bliss.
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I wonder if the little lad, that's just come in, would want to sit with his parent. Or, there is a Sunday school class in the back, little fellow, if you'd like to go back there. Brother Taylor, would you direct the little gentleman to the class? That's fine. Sometimes they like to be with their own, you know. They have things in common, that they like to talk about. And it's just like that.
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The little twelve-year-old girl, as I have often said.... If you see a little eight-, nine-, ten-year-old girl hanging around with grandma all the time, there is something wrong. See, there is something wrong, because there is too much difference in their age. You can imagine, grandma has got a sack of candy somewhere, she can put her hand on. And little sis is.... Them big eyes are brightened up for the sack of candy. Because, in common, they would have nothing to talk about, nothing but just she could pet her and baby her. But that's the way it is, and we're glad that it's just that way.
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And then I'm making that statement, I did it one time, on the preaching of the lamb and the dove. You see, they have things in common. They could talk about things.
The Masonic lodge, they have things to talk about, brothers of the Masons lodge; brothers of the Odd Fellows lodge. Germans has things to talk about, to Germans, about the home place, when Germans meet each other over here, one just come from the home place. Italians have things to talk about.
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And Christians has things to talk about. That's why we assemble in places like this, in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, because we are citizens of the same country. We are pilgrims and strangers here, to this world. So we love to gather together on these sabbath mornings and prayer meeting times, to assemble ourselves together, because we have things in common. We like to talk about common ... things in common, that we love: the Lord, His doings. Someone, in their heart, burning with something, the Lord healed them, and just wants to present themselves up there, “See what the Lord has done!” Someone received a great blessing, and just wants to go to the church, to fellowship these blessings with someone else. See, that's why we have things in common.
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It seems to me that the acoustics is better in the church, this morning. It seems to me. I'm not sure. There is such a rebound in here.
But I'm so glad for the results of last week's revival. It has not only given a local stir, but around, different countries, we've heard from it, that the Lord was good. Now, if just burning the old bridges, making things ready, and entering into the Lord, prepared to receive the blessings; if that little time did that, what would it be if we continued on? So, let's not let it die. Just keep pouring on more material all the time, until the smoke signals will be seen around the world, that Jesus Christ lives, and there's a fire burning in our hearts.
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After I have made a new dedication, my own self, and my wife, and so forth, we've noticed things so different around home. And not as nervous as we were, shaky and jumpy, “we won't get this and we won't get that.” We just go at it just quietly, get more done.
So, now, there is a coming new year. And we don't believe in turning new pages; we just believe in burning the old. So just keep yourself consecrated to God through the coming year, we don't know what the Lord will do for us.
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But we're grateful for every one of you. I'm very thankful to God for every member of the body of Christ, everywhere. And in all different phases of faiths, no matter how much they might disagree with me, I'm still grateful that somebody.... Even if I'd think they would be a little in error, in the Scripture, but yet trying to earnestly stand for what they believe. I'm certainly willing to bear with those brethren, and them bear with me in my errors and things, because there is none of us perfect.
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But in the message the other evening, when I spoke of God separating Himself at Pentecost, at the junction time, or at the conference where there had to be a decision made, “What kind of a church would this new Christian church be?” That's what the conference was held for. And we find that in that book of Acts, the second chapter, we find the kind of a church that was decided on; what type of church, what would the church be, what would be the reaction of the church when it had received Christ. I love that. And I am earnestly contending for that church that was once established on the day of Pentecost. Now, it was odd then; it's odd now. And it will, as long as there is sin in the earth, and a battle to be fought, it'll be odd to our foes; but yet it's the precious things of God that we earnestly are contending that God will do for us.
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Now, the announcements, I guess Brother Neville has already made them.
And being home for this week, to pray and to seek the face of the Lord. For, in this coming year, by the help of God, if He will only help me, I want to press the battle harder than I ever did in all my life. And perhaps a great deal of this year will be spent in the foreign fields, and Haiti, and in the islands, and South America, and Africa, and Asia, and India, and up in Scandinavia. And all those is to be decided this week, if the Lord will permit. Therefore, when I feel led to do anything or to go anywhere, the Lord has sent me to do so.
Then when I step off the plane, on the soil, and seem like here comes one, and said, “Oh, this certain denomination dropped out, this did this, or this went wrong, or we couldn't do this, or the authority says we cannot have the meeting.”
Then I like to stand, “But I come in the name of the Lord!” I know that's the devil then. See, it isn't did I make a mistake; I'm led. And then you can stand with your shoulders to the wheel, and press the battle.
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Now before we open the Book ... or, to ask God to open it as we read it, I would like to say the reason that I am bringing this message to the church this morning. It's my Christmas message to the church; it's the ... if the Holy Spirit will help me to deliver what I believe about it. Now, no matter how well it's written in the Scriptures, and how much a person understands it, they've got to yet depend on the Holy Spirit to deliver it to the people. And it's just after Christmas, when you've heard all the different Christmas stories and the broadcasts, and so forth, of the Christmas messages. This will be a little unique, for a Christmas story, but yet God has placed it upon my heart.
And now let us bow our heads just a moment, in His presence and the shadows of His justice, to ask mercy.
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O God, our blessed Saviour and Father, we are approaching Thy throne of mercy. In the name of the Lord Jesus, Thy Son, we are humbly presenting ourselves this morning, to offer to Thee our prayers and our thanksgiving, for all that You have did for us. In this last week, especially, how that hearts has hungered, and the people has fasted, and the Holy Spirit has blessed them, has done great things in our midst! The sick has been healed. And God has been made known, that He lives, and He loves His people.
And that the words are still so true, of the prophet, when he spoke the words of the Lord God, when he said, “If the people that are called by my name shall assemble themselves together, and pray, then I will hear from heaven.” Those words are just as true as the day they were first spoken. And we've found that so, Lord. Now forgive us, we pray, of all of our sins, all of our unbelief, which is sin.
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And we would pray, Lord, that You would restore to us that faith that once moved that first church. Not asking for flowery beds of ease, but asking only for mercy of God, and for His presence, and His blessings to go with us. Whether it be in this field or a field across the sea, whether it is on luxury, or beds of ease, or whether it is at the battle front, no matter where it might be, Lord, Your slightest will is our extreme desire to serve you. Just make it plain to us, O Lord, that we will not miss the way, for we walk in a dark and blinded world, amongst sinful blinded people. So, clear our way, Father, and lead us as You would sheep of Your pasture.
Let the Shepherd of the flock sweetly and humbly lead His people, as we wait upon Thee this morning for the morning message. May the Holy Spirit speak plain to each heart, and may we catch the glimpse of what the prophet was speaking of, and in that, then, have the glorious blessings of the presence of God, to confirm every word. We ask it in the name of Jesus, Your Son, our Saviour. Amen.
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I would ask our audience this morning, those with the Bibles, if they would desire to read with me, the Scriptures, or to follow me as I read, if you will turn to the book of Isaiah. The prophet Isaiah, and the seventh chapter, I would like to read from the portion of this Scripture. In Isaiah, the seventh chapter, we will begin with the conversation of God to Ahaz, at the tenth verse.
Moreover the LORD spake again unto Ahaz, saying,
Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God, ask it either in the depth, or in the heights above.
But Ahaz said, I will not ask, neither will I tempt the LORD.
And he said, Hear ye ... O house of David; It is a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also?
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and ... call his name Immanuel.
Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse ... evil, and choose ... good.
For before the child shall know to refuse ... evil, or choose ... good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both ... kings.
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If I should say a subject out of this, to draw a context, I would like to use the word: A Super Sign.
When we have the darkest night, and it seems that in some times it's so dark in this night that we cannot even see our hands before us, it is at that time that the forked lightning shines the brightest. It's sent to us to show that there can be light in darkness.
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This was during the time of the reign of Ahaz, a wicked king. And if you noticed, the Lord never addressed the message to Ahaz, but to the house of David. “Hear, O house of David! This shall be a sign.” Because, they was in war, brethren against brethren, and it seemed to be the darkest hour of Israel's journeys and their pilgrimage. But God blasted forth, through the prophet, an eternal sign. Now, signs are many times....
People have signs. And we live in a world full of signs. Man has tried to achieve certain signs. Man has tried, through his scientific research, by his own achievement, to make a sign that would be an outstanding, or a memorial of his intelligence, of how great he is, or what a mastermind he is. He has done that down through the years.
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For instance, when the marine intelligence of the world, some less than a hundred years ago, decided that they were so smart that they could give to the world a sign of their cunning craft, that they could build themselves a ship that there could not be a wave big enough to sink it. And they called this certain ship the Titanic. It was a lasting memorial to the world, that the great art of shipbuilding had come to a perfection, that they could show to the world that this ship could not be sunk.
So, with all of the safety upon the intelligence of the builders, and their speech and talks, and scientific proofs that this ship could not be sunk! Then when things are presented to people like that, they seem to rest assured that everything's all right, as long as the scientific research says that it's okay.
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So they was crossing the ocean in this ship, on its voyage, and feeling so secure that there was nothing could harm them, they throwed a big drunken party. And all of the women and the men aboard, or, maybe many of them, I might say, become drunk; even, they say, even the pilot and the captain, and all of them. And the bands begin to whoop up the jazz music, which was the great fad of that day, as we have rock-and-roll today. Because, they were safe, they were in a ship that men had given the world a sign of their intelligence, that “This ship could take any wave or any sea.”
While they were in this drunken stew, it headed towards the fog. And one of the captains said, that, we must check the engines. But the main party said, “Give her 'Straight ahead!' We've got to be at the port for a certain cause.” While she was plunging in the fog, like it was the master of the situation, all of a sudden, she struck an ice gorge, and down beneath the water she went.
And we are told by the poet who wrote the song, “God, with His mighty hand, shows this world it cannot stand.”
Their great achievement went to the bottom of the sea, with hundreds times hundreds of drunken people aboard. It just won't work.
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It was the late Adolf Hitler who give to the German people a sign that he was a genius, he knowed all about military life. And, without discrediting him, he did know much about it. But he assured the German people, by building what we call the Maginot Line, or the Siegfried Line, that he poured billions of tons of concrete and steel together. Showed his confidence in it, that he moved his headquarters up to the front line, where restaurants and business places operated beneath the ground, where they had billions of tons of steel and cement. No matter how it ever went, Germany was fortified. It was a sign of safety. But the modern blockbuster blowed it into eternity, and Hitler with it.
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It was Nimrod, one day, who said that he would build a tower that would bring his people, he could show what he could achieve by his intelligence. And he was to build a tower that would go beyond the clouds, that if the wrath of God ever come, he could outsmart Him. With his scientific research, he could place the rocks and the stones in such a way that he could take the people to safety, by his intelligence. But it was brought to naught, by a confusion of tongues, and they couldn't even finish the tower.
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It was Nebuchadnezzar who built the walls of Babylon, and then bragged about it. So great, that six head of horses and chariots could race around the walls. Its gates was so big, until men sweated their life out of them, pounding the brass into gates that weighed hundreds of tons; in the great city, they taken companies of men to swing them open. No one could touch Nebuchadnezzar. But one night, in a drunken stew, thinking that they were safe behind their scientific walls, with the weapons of their days, there come a hand writing on the wall. And it was ended.
Oh, how man has tried to carry men to safety, to push himself on to safety, by his own signs of achievement. It seems like, because that men seek for a sign, there must be some reason for it; something within a man that would call for a reason or a sign, from somewhere, that he could be safe.
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Then God spoke up, said, “I will give them an everlasting sign. I will give the church an everlasting sign.” It wasn't to be a great wall or a tower. He said, “A virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and call His name 'Immanuel.' That will be God's eternal sign.” How simple! How little!
Do you understand that it's the little things that you pass over and omit, that mean so much to God? Can the church conceive that this morning? In our achievement as organizations, and his great buildings and masterpieces, we're omitting the little things that mean so much to God and so much to our eternal destination. We omit those things.
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God saying that “I will give you an eternal sign. A virgin shall conceive, and bear a baby.”
Why, why a baby, why should it be a baby? The Creator Himself must come and live in His creation, to be a sign to men? Why should it be a baby? Why couldn't He have said, “I will build a great ladder, and all of you.... like Jacob's dream. Or, I will drop from the heavens, from the corridors of heaven, a string, and give you strength that, when you hook yourself into it, I will lift you up”?
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But, He come so simple. And said, “A baby will be born, and that will be a sign.” Not only will it be a sign, but it'll be a super sign. A baby. Why, the intelligence of science would laugh in the face of such a thought. But, to God, it was a super sign. “A virgin shall conceive, and this baby will be called Immanuel, which by interpretation will be, 'God with us.'” That's the super sign.
God of heaven living with people is the super sign. It would be not a sign only for that day, but for this day and for all days. God lives with His people. Immanuel, God with us: This is the super sign. This is the eternal sign, the everlasting sign, God gave.
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And why did He become dust, the very dust of His own creation? The creator became that: dust of His creation.
Men trying to do big, big things; but, when God gave a sign, it was a little thing. Men try to deal with big affairs; God deals with small affair. Man tries to say, “Because everyone goes this way.... Let us do like they do in Hollywood.” God wants the minority. He wants to omit all the big things, to receive the little ones.
A baby will be born, little, Immanuel will be born. God of the creation become part of His Own creation. God, the Creator of the heavens and earth, who made the dust and the trees, and all the things that is, become part of them. That'll be a sign: He will come through the way by a human being.
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Now, He could have come some other way. He could have come by the way of other ... of other ways He has of coming.
But He chose to come this way, to give a sign, the super sign. “A virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and they will call Him Immanuel.” Now, what was it for? What reason?
Why didn't He choose to become an angel? He could have done it. He could have come a full matured man. He could have come with a full salute from heaven, with the angels and all the beings of heaven; lay down from the corridors of heaven, the golden ladder, and He could have climbed down with an angel band. He could have did it.
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But He said, “I will give you a sign, a super sign, an everlasting sign. A virgin shall conceive, and bear a child.”
And when He had to select a place that this child would be born.... He could have come down the ladder, with all full-heaven salute. He could have come down from heaven as an angel, or come down as a full matured man. But He, also, could have come in a king's palace.
But He said, “I will give a sign.” And the sign was told to the shepherds, “You will find Him in the stable, wrapped in swaddling cloth.” That's the super sign, born over a manure pile, and the stink of the barn, with not even clothes to put on Him—Immanuel! The devil wants to make things big and bright. God keeps things humble. A super sign, “You'll find the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, laying in the manger. This will be a sign, the super sign.” When He was on earth, He was so poor! How we talk about hard times? Who is this little One? It's Jehovah!
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Jehovah God became man, took on our stock, crossed Himself from God, and become man. There's the sign. Become.... He was God, and became man; not rich man, but poor man. This is the super sign. “You've asked for a sign,” said God, “I will give you one, an everlasting sign.”
He could have come otherwise, as I've said; but a baby, why did He become a baby? When that first little, toothless mouth opened in that manger, on that first crib... first Christmas morning, in His little manger crib, and the first little yell that went from His voice, that was God crying. Jehovah crying; a man. Come from God; and was man, every whit, man. Come to the world with nothing, but still man. What was He trying to do? What was He purposing?
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He cried like a baby, in the manger. He played like a boy, on the street. He toiled like a man, but yet He was Immanuel. This is the super sign. God dwelling in the creation that He created. The super sign, “It shall be a sign unto you.”
He was so poor when He come to the earth, He come through a borrowed womb, a borrowed womb of a woman; and had to borrow a grave to be buried in. God! “A virgin shall conceive, without sexually interception.” Jehovah borrowed the womb of Mary, a woman, to perform the duty, that He'd give an everlasting sign. And was so poor on earth, after thirty ... three-years-and-a-half of ministry, He had to borrow a grave to be buried in. Can you imagine? Talk about immaculate conception! What meanest thou, anyhow?
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Can't you see the real sign? It's Jehovah become one of us. Jehovah God on earth, as a fugitive, a pilgrim in the land that He created; rejected, and pushed, and laughed at, and scoffed at; a stumbling stone to the unbeliever, a rock of an offense; a devil, to the religious world. But an eternal sign to the believer, “God with us,” the super sign. Do you see it? God made manifest, God presenting Himself to the world, as a fugitive; could have come some other way, but chose to come this way.
Listen to this. Don't miss it!
I think that God had in His mind it would be appealing to the human being. It is, to the believer. It is appealing when our God becomes one of us. But to the starchy, ungodly: a stumbling block. “I will give you the sign, a virgin shall conceive. Immanuel will be with you.” God thought it would appeal to the human race, that our God would be one of us, that He would cross Himself and become our dust, that He would become our stock, a human stock; the Creator who made all things.
And again, it fulfilled prophecy. The prophets had saw it.
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And another thing, the Word was made dust, flesh, and dwelt among us. The Jehovah, the Word, became human, became dust, and tabernacled with us. Everlasting sign, shall never end. Oh, when we think of it, an eternal sign, the super sign of all signs, God becoming one of us.
Then, again, He must be the seed of Abraham. Abraham, of course, was the seed of Eve. Eve was the woman's seed that was to bruise the serpent's head. But Abraham, if you can catch it, he had faith in God, which united the Spirit of God with the flesh of man. There is where the faith come. There is why He could be the Abraham seed, not all flesh, but the uniting of Spirit and flesh together. God, making Himself ... tearing out, rooting out all evil, bringing into submission the flesh, the dust that He created, and live with you as a partner.
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Another thing, He never defiled or contradicted any of His laws. He cannot do that. So, a virgin! “I will give you a sign [not a Titanic, not a U.N., but], I will give you a sign of safety. A virgin shall conceive, and she shall bring forth a Son, and call Him Immanuel.” That's the sign. Yes.
You see, in God's laws of redemption, as it was with Boaz and Naomi, it had to be a near kinsman. And the only way that man could be redeemed, God had to become a kinsman, near. I want you to see it. He never become kinfolks altogether to the rich, to the mighty, but He was born in the stable, wrapped in swaddling cloth; not to the adult, but to the child. He was God over the creation. He chose to do it. Not come a full matured man; He came that He might suffer the feelings of the little babies. He came that He might go through the teen-age temptations. Might go, that He could toil the toils and snares of the devil as a man, and make a way for people of all ages, of all ages and of all classes: the poor, the rich, the all. He became poor, that through His poverty, we might become rich and heirs with Him in the kingdom. A sign would be given, crossing Himself, making Himself something different than what He was; now a super sign, crying as a baby, playing as a boy, toiling as a man, but it was God living in all stages of life like we do.
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You know, God has give many signs that He was God. He gave a sign to the antediluvian world, that He was God, the God of judgment. He drowned the people in the days of Noah, and floated the righteous in an ark; a sign that He was just, and judgment was sure. That's a sign, that every unrepented sinner will perish in the judgment, that the righteous shall be saved by the mercy of God.
He gave another sign at the burning bush. What was it when He caught His runaway prophet? “I have heard the cries of my people, and I've remembered my covenant.” He gave another sign there, that He was a covenant-keeping God, that He remembered everything that He said, every promise that He made. He gave a sign at the burning bush, “And I've come down to deliver them.”
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Watch God in His ways of work. When He created the heavens and earth, He called the angels together, and He said, “Let us.” Every place in the Scripture where He did anything, mostly: “Not me, but my Father.”
But when it come to the plan of redemption, He came alone; nobody was with Him. He was the only One that could come. An angel couldn't do it. Another man, called His son, couldn't do it. One called something else, a holy virgin, or a holy mother, or some saint, couldn't do it. God had to come! “And I will give you a sign. A virgin shall conceive; and a baby will be born, and He will be Immanuel, God with us,” the super sign. God in His people. God with His people. God become His people. God and man became one. A sign! A stumbling block to the world, but a blessed hope for the believer. A sign that will be evil spoken of.
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He had another time that He proved. He proved in the flood that He was the God of judgment, and the God of mercy to those that keep His Commandments.
He showed at the burning bush, by a sign, that He would keep every promise that He made.
And at the Red Sea, He showed that He would make a way for those who were trying to do right and follow His Commandments. No matter what cuts it off, God proved at the Red Sea, and gave a sign, that He could open up the sea. In every temptation, He will make a way of escape. Say, “Mother don't believe it. Daddy don't believe it. The church don't believe it.” I don't care who don't believe it. If you believe it, God will make a way of escape! He gave a sign that He would. They were on their way, straight to the promised land, where God promised them; and the Red Sea shut them off, and they got in trouble; they didn't know what to do. God showed that He would make a way of escape in every temptation, every trial. If you can't quit smoking, take God one time! You can't quit lying, can't quit stealing, can't quit having temper; take God with you one time! If you don't feel like going to church, and you can't get anywhere; take God with you once, take His promise! He proved, at the Red Sea, that He will make a way of escape. God has gave many signs.
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But that night when He said to the shepherds, “Go down into Bethlehem, for this day is born Christ the Saviour. Christ, the anointed God, this day is born by a woman.” God!
Not making her a god, now. He just borrowed the womb of the woman, the same as He borrows this body to preach the Gospel from, the same as He borrows your body to do the work that He wants to do through you, because He still is Immanuel, a sign, God with His people, God living among His people, the super, everlasting sign. It can never fail. It'll always be the sign.
44
You talk about these signs, what about this one? Before you can ever get any other sign—the sign of speaking with tongues, the sign of prophesying, the sign of any supernatural—you'll have to go back to the original sign, the eternal and everlasting sign. Get straight to start with, and upon that foundation, which is rock through the ages, and nothing will ever touch it. The gates of Hell will be against it, but cannot prevail. Get that sign, “A virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son.”
And He told these shepherds, “Here is how you'll find Him. He will be in a manger, in a barn, wrapped in swaddling cloth. And when you look upon Him, believe, for He is God among us.”
That sign wasn't only to the shepherds. But it was given to all the world, to look upon Him and see who He is. It's God with us, Immanuel.
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When He was here on the earth, He proved that He was God. Proved that God was in Him, because the signs of God followed Him. He said, “If I do not the works of my Father, then believe me not. But if I do the works of my Father, if you don't believe me, believe the works, the sign.” Immanuel! “I and my Father are one. My Father has sent me. And as he sends me, so send I you. The Father who has sent me is with me; He is in me and doing the works of himself. It's God in flesh!”
46
Didn't Lot get a taste of that before the destruction? When.... He seen God manifested in flesh, eating a calf, drinking the milk of the cow, eating bread off the hearth, and stood with His back turned to the tent, and with the personal pronoun “I.... I, seeing that Abraham is the heir of the world, I....” In other words, “I will make it known unto him.”
Who was He? Then He said, “Abraham, where is your wife, Sarah?” It shocked him. God, in a prefigure of Christ, made flesh.
Said, “She is in the tent, behind You.”
Sarah laughed. And He said, “Why did Sarah laugh?”
47
When Immanuel become through the womb of a woman, instead of appearing as a theophany, He said, “As it was in the days of Lot, so will it be in the coming of the Son of man.”
When He was on earth, those apostles went forth with the Gospel, that even the angels looked over the banisters of heaven, the corridors of the Glory Land, to look into it. You who are putting down Scripture, as I see you writing, I Timothy 3:16. “Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: for God was manifested in the flesh, believed on in the world, seen of angels.” The angels raised over to take a look at God; when, they once waved their wands before Him, crying “holy, holy, holy,” when He was sitting yonder as a pillar of fire, in the glories of heaven. And when He become man; angels come and looked over to see Him, Jehovah, made flesh. Sure, “Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness.”
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“I will give you an everlasting sign,” for God was made flesh among us. He dwelt in flesh. It'll be an everlasting sign. Not only to the shepherds to look and believe, but for you, the Branham Tabernacle, and for this cruel world, to believe that that is God. God gave that sign. Jesus said, “As the living Father has sent me, and come with me and was in Me, so send I you; the living Father to go with you and be in you, an everlasting sign. These signs shall follow them that believe! Lo, I will be with you, even in you, to the end of the earth. I will be with you. The end of the world, I will be there with you.”
49
Someone, as I have said before, wants to make Him a little short God. He was man; God was using a man. God was using a flesh that He created Himself, in order to create through Him, and to bring through Him many sons, says the Scripture, through that obedient Son. Through one son, all fell; through an obedient Son, all shall live that believe. God with us, a sign, said that would be a sign. Jesus so loved to refer to Himself as “Son of man,” man Himself, just a man, “I am nothing; the Son can do nothing in Himself.” But it's the Father was in Him, the Immanuel, the God.
The baby, God, Jehovah God! That little baby cried; that was Jehovah. Can you see it? God living in a baby.
God living in a teen-age. What type of a teen-ager was He? He set the example. When He was lost by His father and His mother, they looked about to find Him, and they found Him in the temple. What did He say, as a teenager? “Know you not? Wist thou not that I must be about My Father's business?” Example for teenagers.
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As a man, with all the pomp of the world offered Him, everything laying right in His hands, to become the greatest of all men, the richest of all men; who could tell people where fish had coins in their mouth, could pump the best water out of the wells and turn it into wine, that could change anything that He wished to change, that could take five biscuits and feed five thousand, with a power in His hands to become a great man, but still chose to be poor. Didn't even have a grave when He died; He had to borrow one. “Immanuel, this will be a sign.” How does God come? In the poor. How does God deal? It'll be an everlasting sign; with the poor, the uneducated.
51
“A sign,” said the great prophetess Ann. When Simeon raised his hands at the temple, holding that little One in swaddling cloth, and says, “It's a sign that'll be evil spoken of, for the fall of Israel, but the gathering together again, too; a light to the Gentiles!”
What? “God with us,” not in the rich and the haughty, but in the poor. Born in a stable, “God with us.” What kind of things did He do? Watch His things He said. Watch Him, what He said.
For, God Himself said, “This is My beloved Son, hear ye Him. This is My Son who I am pleased to dwell in, hear ye Him.”
He said, “I will be with you always, even to the end.”
He sent forth His apostles. They burnt the earth up in their day, as God being one with man. They baptized the people in the name of that God, Jesus Christ. They lived so close to Him till He manifested Himself through them, through signs and wonders and gifts of the Holy Spirit. “God with us.” They preached there was one true and living God.
Man has built all kinds of towers on three or four gods, or two gods, but there is one God. That message was to be revived in the last day.
52
You had better get your thinking on now; open up your hearts. Ask God to reveal this to you, what I'm fixing to say.
When He come, He fulfilled what the prophets said.
And when He is coming in the last days, in the latter rains of God, when both former and latter rain will be poured out, He is coming just exactly the way it was prophesied of Him, “It shall be light in the evening time.” What was to happen? Immanuel, the same Son, the same light, the same God that come to dwell in flesh with His people at the day of Pentecost, will come in the like manner in the last days, for it shall be evening light. What is it? There shall be a sign, an everlasting sign: God with us, God in us, God through us, man and God becomes one. Jesus died, that He gave that precious life, on His decision, (in last Sunday's message), because He gave it for a decision that He might bring many sons to God. Immanuel with us! The evening light people, it would attract them.
53
When God gave the sign, “This will be a sign. God will be dwelling in flesh.” He thought that would attract the people. It did. “For as many as received Him, to them gave He the power to become sons of God.”
And it's supposed to attract the evening light people when that same light shows. God and Christ are one! Peter said, “Let it be known unto you, that God has made this same Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” A sign evil spoken of. But the evening lights is here.
54
As the late minister of the Gospel, when the Pentecostal message first started falling, the late Dr. Haywood, just before he.... I guess, maybe when he was in his best, one day when the Spirit struck him—He was a poet, besides a preacher—he grabbed his pen and penned it.
It shall be light in the evening time,
The path of glory you will surely find;
In the water way is the light today,
Buried in the precious name of Jesus.
Young and old, repent of all your sins
And the Holy Ghost will surely enter in;
For the evening lights have come,
It is a fact that God and Christ are one.
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The evening lights! If we are walking in the evening light, the evening sign, then it was to be the same light and same sign, an eternal sign. Then the same signs will follow the evening light. Whew! Do you see it? Can you understand it? That's the message this Christmas: the evening lights, the signs of the Messiah accompanying the message. The evening lights are here.
It's evil spoke of. They'll turn you down, your brethren. Who turned Him down? His brethren. They loved to see Him perform the miracles. But when it come to Calvary, where were they all at? When it comes to that crucial moment, where God in His truth and His Bible is to be made manifest, where are they? They back away.
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“There shall be a sign given unto you. And these signs shall follow. The works that I do, shall you also; even more than this, for I go unto My Father.”
“It shall be light again in the evening time.” Oh, this dark day that we've been through! But for forty years the clouds has been clearing back, through the first reforming, of the bringing forth the message that God and Christ are one, that God was made manifest in flesh. He chose to dwell in human flesh. And today they make Him something sitting on a throne; they make Him some prehistoric something; some of them wants to take Him back to a philosopher; some wants to make Him a prophet. But, brother, He is God in you, God manifested in the flesh. How?
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How did they know He was God in the flesh? He said, “If I do not the works of My Father, then I've told you wrong. But if I do the works of My Father, you believe it.”
And now the same thing. The message is revived again in the last days, the message of who He is, what He is. Immanuel dwelling in you, with the same works that He did, manifest Himself through you, the very same things that He did. It's the evening light. It's evil spoken of. It's a hard way.
58
It meant something for the rich young ruler, yet his heart hungry, to come to Jesus, and said, “Rabbi, what must I do to have eternal life?”
Said, “Keep the commandments.”
He said, “I've did that since a child.”
Said, “You want to be perfect then?” Said, “Follow me!”
But he went away sorrowful. It was too much of a price. If he could have give Him some money and built a big church somewhere, put himself a member, he'd have easily done it. Don't you see how that's patterned today amongst the rich? There were others.
Not only rich, but poor; many of them from the slime pits, and so forth, they refused because of popularity. Because, He was unpopular. He was Immanuel. They said, “That's criticism. That's the devil. That's mental telepathy. That's Beelzebub.” The teachers of the day, their big churches, said, “Nonsense.”
But God said, “It's an eternal sign, the super sign, the sign of all signs, that God is with you, even in you, to the end of the world.” There's your super sign. It exceeds all signs. It's the first sign. Acts 19, those people had to come back and recognize that sign, before they could ever receive the Holy Ghost (Acts 19:5). Yet, a believer that had the Bible, and had a fine preacher that was proving that Jesus was the Christ, yet before they could come into it.... And to see the sign, they had to come and be rebaptized, have hands laid on them and receive the Holy Ghost. That's true.
But in the evening time, the lights are here. And it's criticized; it's made fun of. It's evil spoken of. The prophet said it would be evil spoken of, “A stumbling block.” Evil spoken of, made fun of, criticized; Immanuel in us, working His will through us.
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Oh, today, my pilgrim brother, my sister, believe that sign. Look into the manger of your own heart, and see if you are able to say within yourself.... See the sign that the shepherds seen: God in flesh, dwelling amongst the poor, the needy, the off-cast. See if you can understand it. God in your heart, God in here, watch and see if He manifests Himself right, in sweetness and meekness, as He did.
60
A few years ago, there was a girl who went off to college, and, with a lot of her colleagues there, she become a very little smart aleck, from her old country teaching that she had had as a mother in a country home. And one day she decided, some two years later, to visit her mother again. She wrote her a telegram and told her she would arrive on such-and-such a train, to meet her at the station. However, she brought another little smart aleck with her. And she had become a smart aleck, herself. And she brought another one with her, that was kind of one of the modern-day's sophistications, know-it-all, teeannie.
61
And when she arrived at the station, when she started to get off of the train, she looked. And there stood her mother, looking with all that was in her, to see where her daughter was. And when the girl that was with her, mother.... saw her with her face all scarred, and her hands all burned, and she looked terrible, old, and looked horrible. And the girl that was with the little Mary, said to her, “Wonder who that old wretched-looking thing is?”
And the girl was ashamed of her mother. She said, “I don't know. I don't know who she is.”
And her mother, when she seen her daughter, run to her and throwed her arms around her, started to kissing her.
She pushed away, said, “I don't know you. You've got the wrong person,” because she didn't want to be affiliated with such a person that someone else would laugh at and make fun of.
There happened to be a man, a conductor of the train, standing by. He grabbed that young woman by the shoulder. He said, “Shame on you, you miserable thing! I remember the case very well.”
62
And the people gathered to hear what had taken place. He held the girl right out, and he said, “This young girl, when she wasn't six months old, was in her little crib in the upstairs. And her precious mother, the most beautiful woman I ever saw,” said the old conductor. Said, “The house caught fire while her mother was hanging clothes. And the neighbors all run, screaming; they seen it. The mother never noticed it. It was on the porch side of the house. And the blazes had got well ahold, and it was gone into the air.”
63
And said, “They couldn't hold that frantic mother. Her baby was upstairs!” And said, “All of them cried, 'You can't pierce those blazes!' But she grabbed the sheet that was in her hand, from hanging them up, and it was a wet sheet. And she threw it around her, and through the blazes she went, and upstairs, not thinking about her own danger. Then when she got there, she knew she couldn't wrap the sheet around herself to go back. But, to save the beauty of her daughter that was to follow her, she wrapped the baby in the sheet, and run through the blazes, with her bare face and hands and arms. And it burnt the meat off of her body, and shrunk her cheeks to her bones, and marred her, burnt her hair off, and all to the bones on her finger.”
Said, “She become ugly, that you might become pretty. She forfeited her beauty, she forfeited everything that she had, that she might save you. And then you stand and be ashamed of that precious mother?”
64
Brother, when I see God, the God of heaven, forfeited His throne, His beauty, and all that He was; to be born on top of a manure pile, be wrapped in swaddling cloth, to be made fun of by His signs and His wonders, to be called a devil; should I be ashamed of Him? No, sir. Let the classic world do what they want to do. To me, He's the super sign. The Holy Ghost in me screams out! It might make me act funny and be a crazy man, to this world, but I cannot deny Him who done so much for me. He took my place in death. He took my place at Calvary. He done all these things. He condescended from heaven, from the pearly white thrones, to become a man; to taste my suffering, to go through my temptation, to know how to be the right kind of a mediator in me, to lead me and to guide me to eternal life. And through His poverty, I am made rich. Through His death, I am given life, eternal life.
Don't deny Him. Don't be ashamed of Him. Don't be ashamed of Him. But embrace Him, and say, “Yes, my dear Lord. Give to me like they did on the day of Pentecost, Lord, give to me the Holy Ghost. Pour it into my heart. I don't care what the teenagers say. I don't care what the world says. I'm not looking to them. I'm looking to You.” What is it? Joining church? No. The super sign, Immanuel, God with us!
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Let us pray.
In the audience of the people this morning, is there some here that would like to say, “To me, I'm ashamed of my life. I'm not ashamed of Him. I'm ashamed of my life,” to offer to Him who was made ugly, and despised by the world?
“A Man of sorrow, acquainted with grief. We all hid our faces from Him,” said the prophet. “He was despised and rejected. Yet, we did esteem Him stricken and smitten of God. Yet, He was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquity; the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with His stripes we were healed.”
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Would you be ashamed of Him? If you are, come to the altar and repent of your sins. If you're not ashamed of Him, and you're ashamed of your life that you've presented to Him, such an awful thing. You've been ashamed many times, before the boss, before your woman friend, before your man friend, before your girl friend or boy friend. You've been ashamed of Him, Immanuel dwelling in you. Raise your hands and say, “God, forgive me for being ashamed.”
67
Our Lord and our God, we humbly and most graciously ask You to accept our apology, this morning, for all of our shortcomings, for, all of us at times are guilty. We are guilty for standing for truth. We are guilty. When they want to call us some evil name, like, oh, “holy-roller,” or some evil thing that is not so, yet sometimes we back off like Peter and warm ourselves at the enemy's fire. Forgive us, Lord.
The new year is approaching us. May we start from this very hour, and see the super sign of God among us, God living with us, dwelling in us, performing, doing exactly the way He did. And the evening lights are here.
Forgive us of our shortcomings. Forgive our sins.
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And we most graciously, Lord, accept Your Christmas present, the Son of God, to dwell in our flesh, our dust, to live with us, sanctifying His way by His own blood, and giving us the assurance of eternal life. We thank You. I thank You, Lord, for this great wonderful present from God, for it is a gift, a gift of the Holy Spirit, all packaged up in the name of the Lord Jesus. We're glad to receive it. We thank You because our church stands for that sign, because the sign stands for the church's teaching. We stand for it. It stands for us. And it's known among the Christians throughout the world today, of a poor, ignorant bunch of people at Eighth and Penn Street, at Jeffersonville; that Immanuel, the pillar of fire from the wilderness, the Jesus of Galilee, the Holy Spirit of Pentecost, made manifested by all Immanuel's signs in the evening light. We're so thankful, Lord. And may others see it and receive it. For, we ask it in Jesus' name, and for His sake and the church's sake. Amen.
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I wish I had the voice of a singer. If I should have the voice of a singer just now, I would love to sing to you my favorite hymn, wrote by my precious friend, William Booth-Clibborn.
Down from His glory, the ever living story,
My God and Saviour came, and Jesus was
His name.
Born in a manger, to His own a stranger,
The God of sorrow, tears and agony.
O how I love Him! How I adore Him!
My life, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
What condescension, bringing us redemption;
When in the dead of night, not one faint hope
in sight; (Then the forked lightning came!)
God, precious, tender, laid aside His splendor,
(Stooping to a manger, a stable full of
manure, to be born in)
Stooping to woo, to win and save my soul.
O how I love Him! How I adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
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And then He is in me, and I am in Him, and in you, “In that day, you will know that I am in the Father, the Father in me, and I in you, and you in me,” God, Immanuel, with us.
It was that Immanuel that seen George Wright, sitting down there just now; laying there dying, when four doctors passed him. It was that Immanuel, when He had to borrow a womb, when He had to borrow a grave; He borrowed my eyes, said, “Go tell Brother George, 'Thus saith the Lord. He will dig the grave of those preachers and things that's laughing at him.'”
It was that Immanuel, it was that same One, about the little animals, the other day in the woods. It was the same One, about Margie Morgan sitting there, all the rest. It was the same One who borrowed the mental faculties, the senses of the body, to present Himself to the world today, through you, while the evening lights are shining. God be merciful, friends!
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I'm taking so much of your time. Let's try it. Give us a chord, “O how I love Him!” How many know it?
O how I love Him! How I adore Him!
My life, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
[Brother Branham hums “O how I love Him!”]
............... How I adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
72
[Brother Branham begins humming.] Now is the time for Him to show His grace. A mother brings a little baby here with leukemia, cancer in his blood stream. That evil to a baby? God hears my voice. “Speak the word, and it shall be so.” For, Lord, You've said, “Say to this mountain, be moved,' don't doubt, it shall be.” In the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, I condemn the devil called leukemia. The disease of this child's body, it shall leave it [unclear words] in the name of Jesus Christ, may it be so.
My sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
How I love Him! I just can't let it go. I want to, just like Jacob, hold onto it.
.................... adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
(“This shall be a sign.”)
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
73
Isn't He wonderful? Don't you just feel like worshipping Him? Just in the Spirit, just worship Him. [Brother Branham begins humming.] Just forget yourself now. Don't be ashamed. The Holy Spirit is here. That's the Holy Spirit. Just meekly in your own way.
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
What condescension, bringing us redemption;
(“It shall be a sign.”)
When in the dead of night, not one faint hope
in sight;
God, precious, tender, laid aside His splendor,
(Think of what He did!)
Stooping to woo, to win and save my soul.
Let's raise our hands when we sing it.
O how I love Him! How I adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
74
Lord, we will never be able to understand the riches, the fullness of Your Spirit, until we see Him at that day when He shall come. We may be sleeping in the dust. I may have to turn back to the original dust, but that will not worry me one bit. “I know that He will call, and I will answer. And then I shall see Him as He is. This corruptible body will be changed and made like unto His Own glorious body, whereby He is able to subdue all things unto Himself.”
I will ever be grateful to You for the Christmas gift of Christ in my heart, to know that it's the same Christ, because He does the same thing. He makes me feel and act like He did at the beginning, to His servants.
I'm thankful for a church universal, triumphant, already predestinated and called, and sealed, and ordained to that body. I find them in Asia, Africa, Rome, everywhere, Indiana, through the States, Africa. Everywhere around the world, I find that church triumphant, who knows that You have come in the flesh. And You said that, “Every spirit....” In Your Bible, You said, “Every spirit that does not confess this, is the wrong spirit, the antichrist. Every spirit that doesn't witness this same thing, that Christ has come in our flesh, is the antichrist spirit.”
75
Father, God, help me to jerk those firebrands out yonder. I can see them, Lord, out yonder. See the lepers at the gate, look at India yonder, at the Taj, at the gate, them poor things crawling on the ground, no feet. See them poor little black boys yonder in Africa, their little hands reaching up. O God, send me, Lord! Let the angel come with a coal of fire, burn into my soul, Lord, and take all the dross and sluggishness out, that I might go as a firebrand of God, to pluck from the fire those who are in gross darkness.
Bless my little church, Lord. Oh, I can see the little sawdust trail down through here, see the precious people. People driving by in their cars, laughing at them, because they got their hands up, praising God. But someday Jesus will come, and all things will be made right. We won't be ashamed, Lord. We will join with Paul of old, and say, “I'm not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for it's the Power of God to salvation, to eternal life, to everyone that believes.” Help us to live that way, Father. We're worshipping You now in the Spirit, in heavenly places. We thank You for this visitation this morning. In Jesus' name. Amen.
76
Just once more, will you?
O how I love Him! How I adore Him!
Lord Jesus, bless my sister, in Jesus' name.
..................... my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
Just want more of Him, don't you, Doe? [Deloris says, “Yes.”] That's my sister, my sister in flesh.
O how I....................
My daughter-in-law. They want more of God. Brother Grimsley coming, wanting more of God.
...................... my all......
That's it. Brother Wood is coming. Brother Collins, Methodist preacher; his wife, others.
................became my Saviour,
This is the works of the Holy Spirit calling, Himself.
...................dwelleth in Him.
O how I love Him! (Just express it in
your own way now) How I adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
77
Lord, Lord, here they are, the sheep of Your pasture. Feed them, Lord, on Thy Spirit. They are giving theirselves to You, Lord. They are consecrating their lives to Thee. They stood because they're not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We know that You're here, the great pillar of fire, the Christ, the Holy Ghost.
.................... adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
[Brother Branham begins humming.] Just speak in your own words now. That's the Holy Spirit that brought you here. Just tell Him you love Him. The same Holy Spirit that raised them up on Pentecost, you stand here crying, weeping, rejoicing.
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
Without reluctance, flesh and blood His
substance, (a little baby in her)
He took the form of man, revealed the
hidden plan.
O glorious mystery, Sacrifice of Calvary,
And now I know Thou art that great “I AM.”
O how I love Him! (O God!) How I adore
Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
78
O love that won't let me go, love that grips my heart beyond anything, the sweetness of the presence of the Holy Spirit; while His church is standing around the altar, adoring, looking into the manger, seeing the same thing the wise men saw, God made flesh.
................ became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
If there is anything wrong in your life, confess it now in the presence of the Holy Spirit, while quietly. Look into your heart, see if there is a manger there that can stand the criticism, on your confession that He is God.
All God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
79
With your heads bowed now, just offer a prayer yourself. This is the Holy Spirit. Can't you feel the meekness and gentleness of the Spirit of God, sweetness, lasting life?
“Where there are tongues, they shall cease. Where there is prophecy, it shall fail. Where there is knowledge, it shall fail. But when love is come, it endureth for ever.” “Love suffers long. It vaunteth not itself. It is not puffed up. It doesn't misbehave itself, unseemingly. But it humbles us, sweetens us, puts in the sweetness in your soul.”
80
Let's pray now, each one in your own way, thanking God for what He's done.
O Lord, in the sweetness of this song, expressing by the keys, not an uncertain sound, but a sound that means (to us) who our God is, as the Word has expressed it. Now the music expresses it. Now our hearts express it, Lord, our attitudes toward You. We come forward. They stand to their feet. They love You. Together, Lord, we stand as Your sheep, the sheep of Your pasture. We love this food; it's good for our souls. And we know that God lives with us. We know that God was emptied into Christ, and Christ was emptied into the church.
And here we stand today, when all kinds of religions, and all kinds of denominations and phases, all kinds of beliefs, but yet the Word speaking for itself, God manifested. The super sign that God is still manifested in the flesh of His people, doing the same signs and wonders, appearing in a form of a cloud, a pillar, dwelling among us, discerning our hearts, foretelling us things to come, healing our sickness, making us so heaven bound that we become beside ourselves. Till, we do things strange, to the children of the world; how they stand by and laugh, and think that we are crazy; just as they did at Pentecost, saying, “Are not all these drunk?”
But how I love Him! How I adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Saviour,
And all God's fullness dwelleth in Him.
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Do you raise your hands now to pledge your faith in God, your vows to God, your loyalty and tributes to God, the church over?
We now, Lord, present ourselves to You, after this blessing of manifestation of Your presence, know that God is still manifested in our flesh. He became our dust, He became our stock; He crossed Himself from God to become man, that man might live in Him. And we felt You this morning, in our spirits. We see Your works and Your manifestations. We love You. We pledge ourselves anew to You: to honor You, to love You, and to do everything that we know how to do, that would be pleasing, to live lives that would be like Christians, that would bring no reproach, but would be a blessing to Your great Holy name. This we do, Lord, as Your children, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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I want to ask you something before you take your seat. Did you ever feel such a sweet thing? The sweetness of the Holy Spirit! Nobody to say a word; just automatically rising, coming forward. The glory of God, see.
I've been praying and studying, two days, on this; more than that, since last Sunday, or last, yeah, Sunday.
How that that super sign, how God said, “I will give them a sign. I will be in their flesh. I will be like them; they'll be like Me.” He said the angels look over ... the angels said to the shepherds, “Look into the manger; you'll see what I mean.” That sign wasn't just for angels. It wasn't just for shepherds. It's for the world to see and believe that God dwells in flesh.
And through the offering of that flesh, He sanctified our flesh, that He might dwell within us; God in you, Christ in you. “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” Don't forget this. Keep it in your hearts.
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I received some mighty fine Christmas presents, a movie camera, and many other things, guns and things, that people love me, they give me. How I appreciate that!
But, oh, this, this eternal life, the blessed assurance that Christ lives in us, that His fullness dwells within us, makes us rise and act different. Because, when you do that, you become a fugitive to the things of the world. You become a pilgrim. You reckon yourself dead to the things of the world, and alive in a new life. Now you're an alien in the world. You're an alien because you've professed plainly, by your action, that “There is a city whose builder and maker is God,” see. And you no longer care for these things of the world, but we're a heaven-bound people looking for that city whose builder and maker is God. We are Abraham's Seed because we have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, and have died to the things of the world, and have been raised again in the resurrection of His likeness; to walk as Abraham did, seeking a city to come, taking God's Word, calling everything else contrary, to entertain angels in our home, like Abraham did, the messengers of God, that brought the message. Oh, what a time! Professing that we don't want no more of the world, we want Him and Him alone. He is our Saviour.
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As you journey from this building this morning, take Him with you. Never let it leave. Be sweet in your soul, all the days of your life. God bless you now as you go to your seats, and the children has their presents. God bless you.
Is it to be prayed over? [A sister answers, “Yes.”] Stand here, sister. [The sister speaks to Brother Branham] The Lord God be merciful to this brother! Take the drunken spirit off of him, Lord. May he be drunk on new wine of God. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
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Isn't this just heavenly? How many feels that, just a sweetness? Nobody knows what to say. I don't know nothing to say. I'm just ... I'm.... I am baffled for words. I don't know what to say. Just His Spirit just move in, see.
What is it? You are becoming lambs, and the Dove is here to lead you to lamb's food, sheep food. This is sheep food. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Our spirits live on that.
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I think now I am to see my good friend, Attorney Robertson, if you'll just wait at the building long enough so I can change my clothes, get back, because I'm sweaty.
Brother Neville will take the service over now, for the gifts for the children. The Lord bless you.
Always sing “Down From His Glory.” When you do that, remember what we believe in Him, “All God's fullness dwelleth in Him.”
God bless you, Brother Neville.
[Brother Neville speaks to Brother Branham.] Yeah, if you want me to. [“Yes.”]
Brother Neville asked me if I would come back tonight, again, to preach tonight again. I hate to take his service. But I'm here; that's what I'm here for. Okay, I will be back tonight, the Lord willing, to speak on the service.