Believest Thou This?

Before we pray I would like to say this, that—last evening I believe it was—I said to a lady, “If you'll just do as we're instructed to do,” that the baby with the water head, it would shrink. And the baby's head shrunk last night one half an inch, by measure of a string. The lady brought it here now. Now the reason I did that, sister, is for a purpose. See, if you can see something tangible happen, that'll make your faith increase to keep believing it. Sometimes I do that, just . . . maybe like ask a person to get up, make a step or two, move your hand, wiggle your finger, just something that they can do that's different, just to let them see that it's all all right. They just get nervous and think it isn't going to happen, but it's happening all the time, see. It has to.

How many wants to be remembered in prayer now? Would you just raise your hands, and say, “Lord, grant it.” Let us bow our heads. Lord, as we hear this grand old hymn of the church, wrote by my precious friend Paul Rader, “Only Believe,” we are thinking now of a boy was brought by his father to the disciples. No more than ten days after Jesus had given them power to cast out devils and heal the sick, and here they was completely defeated on an epileptic case. And they seen our Lord coming, and the father ran and said, “Lord, have mercy on us. My son is seriously vexed with a devil, and I brought him to your disciples and they could not cure him.”

Jesus said, “I can, if ye believe. Only believe.”

O God, You haven't changed a bit since then. You're just the same loving, sweet, and compassionate God. As You were then, so are You today. Lord, like that father we all cry, “Lord, help Thou our unbelief.” It's so simple, we just stumble over it, Father.

We want to offer You thanks and praise for touching that little baby last night. To see that that skull that's been swollen—that is, that the bone has pushed out—it went down half an inch last night, we are grateful for that, Father. When . . . we know that our doctors has nothing in the research for it, there is nothing that they can do for it, but Thou art still God, the master of all situations. We thank Thee, Father. We thank Thee for this mother's loyalty and sweetness and obedience, to bring back the string and paste it on this piece of paper here, to show to the public her testimony for the glory of God. May her little one live and be a normal child, for Your glory.

Look at all those hands that went up, Father. Each of them had a need. Mine up too, Father, I have needs. And here's many here in the form of letter, or in this box, that's needy, people who are really needy. Let it come to pass, Lord, that each will receive their request this night. May they take this mother's testimony and . . . just as an example to show that when You say anything, it's finished. All we have to do is to receive it and act upon it. It's a finished work. Grant, Lord, that each one of these letters and these handkerchiefs, the people that they are laid upon, may they be healed. Everyone that raised their hands, Father, they may receive their heart's desire. We ask it in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated.

I just wanted to show you the string here that the lady . . . (there you are) that the little baby's head did shrink, as the Lord promised us through the Holy Spirit last night. Isn't He wonderful? Gives us so much courage to have faith and believe.

Now, when Jesus said to that tree in Mark 11:23, “No man eateth from thee from henceforth,” He might not have yelled out. Why, frankly, He was so easy about it till his disciples . . . just, I think, one of them heard Him. When that epileptic, when it come up before the Lord Jesus, the boy had the hardest fit he ever had—perhaps fell on the ground like he was dead. But he realized that he met someone who had faith far above those apostles.

Now, I'd like for someone that didn't believe in divine healing to watch this. Jesus had given them power to cast the spirits out, and they had failed. Not the power had failed, but they had failed. Jesus told them.

“Why could we not cast him out?”

He said, “Because of your unbelief.”

The church still has the power. God has never taken His power from the church, but the church don't have faith enough to act upon it. That's all. It's just that simple. We try to make it so complicated sometimes, but the more simple you make the gospel, the more reality you'll have—when you just get real simple with it. “God said so. That settles it, that's all.” And just believe it, go ahead.

When Jesus said, “No man eateth from thee,” why, the leaves were just as pretty and bright as they ever was, the bark looked the same. But way down beneath the ground in those roots the life began to dwindle away. So is it upon a cancer, upon any kind of disease that you might want to think. When you can accept God's Word, way down deep in the roots. . . . The cancer may be there, your hand may be just as stiff—that don't have anything to do with divine healing. It's “If thou canst believe. . . .” Way down somewhere it has already gone to work.

Jesus said, “If you say to this mountain be moved, and don't doubt in your heart, but believe,” that what you said will come to pass. You can have what you've said. Isn't that lovely? Who did that come from? The Son of God whose words. . . . Heavens and earth will pass away but, now, but His words won't.

Now, the only way that you can do that, you've got to have the right objective and the right motive. Now, if I went out here and said, “I'll show you I can move this mountain. Be moved, mountain,” it would never move. Certainly not, no matter what I had. It's got to be . . . first you've got to find the will of God.

That's the reason usually in the prayer lines I get the very hardest, is because it's something that's went through lines and so forth, and that's where you get it back. But, see, if you've got unconfessed sin. . . . Did you ever notice? On a case, before I ask the evil spirit to leave, I watch that case real sure, to be certain that there's nothing in that life that would hinder anything. Because, remember, on these gifts you can get in trouble with them.

God (do you remember one time?) gave a prophet . . . made a prophet out of a man, Moses, and told him to go down and speak to the rock. And the prophet was all excited, and went down and smote the rock—speaking of the weakness of Christ, that he would have to die the second time . . . or, be smitten the second time. He had power to bring it, but it wasn't the will of God.

I never could believe that it was God's will for Elijah to go around . . . because them children was teasing him about being bald-headed. I don't think he should've did that. But he was a prophet and was angered, and he put a curse on those children, and two she-bears killed forty-two little innocent children. But I don't believe he should've done that. And it's just . . . God, I believe, today before He puts His church in power, He tries His church to see what it will do. Next time, maybe, if the Lord willing, when I come back we'll have time to dwell on something like that, on something that's fixing to happen. Then we'll know more about it then.

But if you'll just speak the word, say, “Lord, I believe it,” don't doubt, mean it in your heart. . . . Now, say, for instance I was in a valley, and I don't . . . I'm preaching to millions of people, but just across the mountain there is a group of people of one hundred, and they are dying without knowing Christ. Well, I've got a million here to preach to, but yet something in my heart is telling me, “Get across to those people. Get to them, they're perishing.” I don't want to go myself, but yet there is something in me. See, that's God then, moving.

See what the objective is, see what the motive is of going—not for self. Now if I say . . . well, if my objective is right, to get over there, but then I get up there, and here's a big mountain, I'd say, “You know, if I get over that mountain and save all those hundred people, someday they'll have a statue there: Brother Branham, the great missionary,” now my motive is not right. The mountain won't fall. No, sir.

But when my motive and objective is right, and God in my heart is leading me, and I can't get over the mountain, around the mountain, under the mountain, I'd say, “Mountain, move.” Maybe when I say that, no more than I say it —with that kind of a right spirit, led of the Holy Spirit in the will of God—there might not be but one little spoonful of that mountain drop down; but it's on it's road. The next day there may be two pounds fall, the next day a quarter of a ton, and maybe in a month five ton drops in. What of it? May not even see it yet, but she's moving, on its road. I'll stay right there and watch the thing be done, because God said so and that just settles it.

Can you think that about your mother there tonight? All right, if you'll think it, she'll get well. All right. That's if you just believe it. Just speak the Word and stay with it, see. Just believe it, hang on to it. It's eternal life.

Now, tomorrow afternoon. . . . I told Billy tonight just omit the prayer cards. I wanted to speak. I'm confessing, in truth, I've been going since January—overseas, and back in Phoenix, right home and back—and all completely that discernment, till I am so weak I hardly know where I'm standing at times. It's just about got me whipped out. Now I have to leave, and you brethren invited me to stay over for some more days. How I appreciate that! I certainly think that this is a wonderful bunch of ministers here. Wish we could've had a little more time for fellowship. If the Lord willing, I'll be back some time—if nothing else just go from one church to the other, and wind around through the city and visit you all. I'll be glad to do that—anything that I could do to help the kingdom of God, that is, if you'd want me to do it—and come back sometime, and join up with us and have a nice, good meeting somewhere. And, remember, brethren, I'll be praying for you, that's one thing sure, and I want you all to pray for me, all of you.

And, now, tomorrow morning is the church services in all these different fine churches around the city. Now, some of the groups from Jeffersonville is here, some of my friends. One of my trustees of the church is here, Brother Fred Sothmann. I've never been able to see him in the meeting, and Brother . . . oh, many other of my friends from up there at Jeffersonville. My secretary there, and all, is here somewhere in the meeting. I haven't seen them yet.

And, brethren, there's some fine churches here in this city, and all the rest of you visitors find one of them and go to these churches tomorrow. They'll do you good, I'm sure. They are brethren who believe in this kind of a ministry. That's the reason they're here sitting on the platform and down in the places here, because they believe in it. And I appreciate those men.

Lord bless this Full Gospel Businessmen's chapter here who sponsored this meeting. I believe that was right, they sponsored the meeting. I go a lot of their sponsors because in there. . . . We oughtn't to be this way, but many times brethren lets little bitty differences. . . . Like a man believe a little something, another little something, it kind of makes a little friction. And old sores from way back, it ought to be healed up by this time. But in a few . . . like at the Full Gospel Businessmen, then that kind of helps bind it up. And we get together and we have real fellowship together, just real good times, and we appreciate that. God bless that chapter. I believe the Lord raised it up for a purpose.

Now, and then I had the grand privilege of seeing Brother Oral Robert's place the other day. And, my, such a mammoth place, such a beautiful thing! It's a memorial to Pentecost. Then I went over to Brother Tommy Osborn's, another wonderful place. Wonderful man of God, who. . . . Brother Tommy and I are just close, and Brother Oral, too—just real close brothers, and we love one another, and trying our best to work everything that we can for the good of the people and the kingdom of God. So, I certainly appreciate those men being here in this city among the rest of these fine men you've got. You sheep have got wonderful shepherds. I'll say it like that. May the Lord continue to be with you all, is my prayer.

Now, tomorrow afternoon, what time does the service start, brethren? Two-thirty. Let's say one or one-thirty you ought to be here, so they won't interrupt with the rest of the services.

Now, if the boys hasn't already told you, tonight they have some books, pictures, and so forth, and tapes and records of the meetings. And they sell them, but we will not let them sell them on the sabbath, tomorrow. No books nor nothing to be sold tomorrow, so we won't. . . . We never permitted that, although many said, “You're awful wrong,” and old Daddy Bosworth used to tell me, “Oh, Brother Branham, you're wrong there.” But that's the way I feel, see, and I . . . feel. If you want one, to give you one; but we can't sell on the sabbath, no. And so, I believe that. I got to live it. I've got to live with myself, you see. I've got to live with my convictions. Or you could send home, up to the house, up to the place, and get it.

Now, tonight, oh, let's just all just forget that there's any work to be done, or anything else, or the toils of the day. Let's just lay aside everything, and look into the Word for a few minutes and see what God would speak to us through His Word. And may I pray that God will just give us an extremely great blessing tonight.

Gene, could you kidnap her for me? Could you kidnap that little girl for me? Isn't she a pretty little thing? Would you like to go home with me and play with my little Sarah, about this high? Oh, you would? I'd like for you to. She's just about your size and she's Daddy's little girl. And I bet you love your daddy, too, don't you? Mommy? Oh, sure you do. The prettiest little girl I'm sitting here looking at—little eyes look like two burnt holes in a blanket, and little brown hair.

I just love little children. I got two little girls at home. One of them is Rebekah, and the other one is Sarah.

Here some time ago I was away. They're both Daddy's little girls, you know, and I love them. And as soon as I get in I've got to give them a piggyback, only Becky is getting too big for it. She's big as I am. She'd break my back now. But she's still Daddy's little girl anyhow. And now, about another year we want to get her in Bible school somewhere and away from the public school. And then they was waiting up for Daddy, you know, to come home. I had been out in the meeting. And tomorrow night they'll be waiting until midnight for me, to try to get in. And so I got in real early in the morning, around three or four o'clock. Mother come to the door and let me in. I was so tired and weary.

Here on the platform when I'm anointed it feels fine, but when that once leaves you, that's where you get in trouble. How many ever knew that? Why, sure it is.

Look. Elijah went up on the mountain and called fire out of heaven, called rain out of heaven; and then when the Spirit left him, he wandered in the wilderness forty days, and God found him pulled back in a cave somewhere. Jonah, he went down and stayed live in the belly of a whale for three days and nights, was spit out upon the bank, and went around preaching. The whole city repented and come to God. And when the anointing left him, he went up on top of the hill and asked God to take his life. See?

I stood by the side of William Cowper's grave not long ago, that wrote that famous hymn that we use at our communion service:

There is a fountain filled with blood

Drawn from Emmanuel's veins,

Where sinners plunge beneath the flood

Did you ever hear what happened to him after the inspiration left him from that? He tried to find a river to commit suicide.

I live right across from the Old Kentucky Home, and Stephen Foster gave America its most famous folk songs. And when he'd write . . . get inspiration up, that inspiration, write a song, then when he'd come out of it, he'd go get on a drunk. Finally he called a servant, and took a razor and committed suicide. People don't know what those people that live in that spiritual realm go through.

Now, here you feel like you could move a mountain; but just let the anointing drop from you and start through that door, and somebody ain't there to catch you, see. And then maybe for a few hours you hardly . . . wonder where you are at. Then night after night that takes the best of you.

And little . . . want to tell you about little Sarah and Rebekah. So, the next morning I couldn't sleep, and I got up, was sitting in a chair. And after awhile Becky—being the oldest, she had longer legs than Sarah—and so Becky come running. . . . Woke up, jumped out of bed, not waking her little sister up, and here she come through the house, running as hard as she could. She was saying “Daddy, Daddy!” I stuck out one of my legs and she jumped across there, pretty well balanced. (Kind of like the modern church, you know, that's been in the game for a long time, you know—for several hundred years.) She could balance herself right well. And she put her arms around me, and said, “Oh, my daddy, my daddy!”

Little Sarah, in the commotion, had woke up. Well, I don't know whether your children does or not, mine does—the younger ones get the hand-me-downs. And so Sarah had on Becky's pajamas—feet about that much too long, you know. And here she come, little bitty short fellow, falling, stumbling, and she got there a little late. So, Becky turned around and said, “Sarah, my sister, I want to tell you something.” She said, “I was here first and I have the monopoly, so I've got all of Daddy and there is none left for you.” (That's the way some people try to think about religion, isn't it? That's right.)

And poor little Sarah, she dropped her little lip, and her little black eyes looked up at me, and she started to cry. And Becky had her cheek against mine, hugging me (I love her).

And Sarah started to walk away, because Becky had all of Daddy. I scooted the other knee out like this, and motioned to her, like that. Oh, she perked up right quick, and run jumped up on my knee. So, she hadn't been around very long and her legs wouldn't even reach the floor. She was kind of a little tottery perhaps, like I am. Just a little tottery, you know, and she couldn't reach the floor (she wasn't a big denomination, you know). And so, she couldn't get down on the solid floor—she hadn't been around long enough. And so she was kind of tottering, and I throwed both arms around her, like this, and hugged her up close to me. And she sparkled those little black eyes, and looked back to Rebekah. She said, “Rebekah, my sister,” she said, “it may be true that you've got all of Daddy, but I want you to know one thing: Daddy's got all of me.”

That's . . . just so He's got all of me. I might not have the education to put the big things over, but just as long as I know He's got all of me. In my tottering, just let Him have both arms around—it'll just make me feel fine.

Well, let's offer another little word of prayer to Him before we open up the Word.

Now, heavenly Father, we realize that we are just like children also, and You love to be with us, and worship with us as we worship You. And You love us, and hold us in Your arms, and send down Your Holy Spirit and make us to know that You are living and You're our Father. We thank You so much. Now let the Holy Spirit come to us tonight. Love each heart, Lord. Give us a fresh blessing. Pour out the dewdrops of mercy upon us, Father. Do not look at our sins—they're too many. Lord, just forgive them. Omit them, Father, and just take us into Thy arms. And heal our sickness, and cleanse our souls, and set our spirits free, Lord, that we can worship and praise Thee, be like little children running around the house, just know that Daddy is watching over us. Grant it, Lord.

Now, no man is able to interpret the Word. We realize that. John saw the book in the right hand of him that sat upon the throne, and there was no man in heaven, or in earth, or beneath the earth, that was worthy to take the book to open it or to loose the seals. And there come a Lamb up that had been slain since the foundation of the world. And He was worthy, and He took the book and loosed the seals and opened the book. O Lamb, come tonight. Open the book to us, Father, as we wait upon Thee, for we ask it in Jesus' name, the Lamb of God. Amen.

I have chosen tonight a little scripture verse here of three words, but first I want to read a verse or two out of St. John, the eleventh chapter, beginning with the twenty-third verse:

Jesus said unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.

Martha said unto him, I know . . . he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and . . . life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

She said unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, that should come into the world.

And for a text I wish to use these three words: “Believest Thou This?”

I read a story some time ago. I think it was a fiction story. And most all ministers, I guess, have read Dr. Ingraham's book of the “Prince of the House of David.” It's a great book. I think it's absolutely out of print. I'd like to have it in print so I could put it among the people. And in there I was reading a little article on this Lazarus, and upon Jesus, and Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus. And I was reading in there that . . . where Jesus lived, I believe, with Martha and Mary. They were both lovely Hebrew girls. And Lazarus was learning, or training, to be a scribe at the temple, making letters of the law for the priests. And Jesus had great fellowship, especially with Lazarus. And we read in the book that . . . where He did come to their home. And Martha was a little dilatory about listening to His words, but she had to get the dinner ready and set the table. But Mary sat at His feet, and Jesus said that “Mary has chosen the better things.”

And then we were told that Lazarus was the one that brought Jesus to John in the story of Dr. Ingraham's book on “The Prince of the House of David.” However, that might not have been true. I do not know. But just for the background of it . . . but He was supposed to have been living with them. Now, we've been learning this coming . . . this last week, rather, that Jesus said in St. John 5:19, “The Son can do nothing in himself, but what he sees the Father doing, that doeth the Son likewise. The Father worketh, and the son worketh hitherto what He sees the Father doing.”

So to make this really the right story, the Father, God, must have spoke to his Son, Jesus, and said, “Your friend Lazarus is going to die, but it's going to be for the good. So You leave the home. Go away, because they'll be asking You to pray for him, or make him well, and I don't want You to do that.” If you'll watch the story as we go along, you'll see it heaps up to that very truth of that. So Jesus, just without any warning or anything, walked away from the house and went somewhere else, didn't return that night. And He went to some other city. And as soon as Jesus left the home, then trouble set in.

And when Jesus leaves your home, trouble is on its road. Just remember, when He leaves your home, trouble is on the way. When you get social societies and everything operating in your church so perfectly, like some great big sixteen cylinder Rickenbacker, and you leave Jesus out of it. . . . When Jesus goes from your church, trouble's on the road. Yes, sir. When Jesus leaves a denomination, that they lay Him aside and say, “Well, now, we just don't believe that these things could be just exactly right,” and you adopt something else, trouble's on its road. Just remember that.

Reminds me of a story of the Lord Jesus that's found in the book of Luke. You know, when He was just a boy of about twelve years old, His people taken Him, as the custom was each year, up to the feast of Pentecost. And while they were in the city of Jerusalem at the feast, and having a good time, we find in the Bible that they went three days without Him. And they thought, maybe just took it for granted, that Jesus must have been among some of their kinfolks. Now, we cannot do that. When they come to go through their kinfolks to find out, He wasn't there.

And we can't take it for granted. Just because we are Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Pentecost, and our background and our forefathers were great believers, we just take it, well, for granted Jesus is with us. We can't do that. We've got to be in contact with Him every day and every minute. Oh, I love that.

I want what God is now. What my parents had, what my forefathers had, is wonderful. But—what they had is good—I think we are farther up the road. Let's see what He is today. I don't want to look back and see what Mr. Moody did, because we are farther up the road than Mr. Moody. The trouble of our churches, we look back and say, “Well, let's see what Mr. John Wesley said, what some of the others said.”

That's the reason science is so farther in their field than religion is in its.

Here, three hundred years ago, a French scientist proved that if you'd go the terrific speed of thirty-five miles an hour, gravitation would take you off the earth. Do you think science would refer back to that today? They are going nineteen hundred miles a hour, and still going on. They're pressing forward, looking forward; but we want to look back and see what Moody said, Sankey said, Finney said, Knox, Calvin some of those. What they said was all right. That was for their age, but we're going on. My grandfather rode an ox cart, I'm driving a Ford V-8, my son will fly a jet plane. That's where we're moving on. That's what religion ought to be.

The coming of the Lord is at hand. The church ought to be moving on into their powers. Science can only climb so far and then it has to drop off; but we got untapped sources that's never been touched of the power unlimited of God that we ought to be moving into. We are living a million miles under our privilege tonight, a privilege as Christians to be enjoying. I feel ashamed of myself when I look out here and see the institutions, and the sickness, and the troubles that's going on right now. Our church ought to be walking the street healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out devils, doing signs and wonders, making the whole world realize that Jesus Christ lives. That's what we need to be doing.

Well, you say, “Mr. Moody never.” Mr. Moody wasn't living in this day. That's right. We're living on the coming of the Lord.

And we've just took it for granted that He was with our kinfolks. But the other day when a challenger challenged Mr. Graham, we found out that He wasn't among our kinfolks. Where did they find Him? Where did they find Jesus? Right where they left Him. Where did they leave Him? At the feast of Pentecost. Where do we leave Jesus? Where did the church? At the feast of Pentecost. When we get away from that old time Pentecostal power and the feast of Pentecost, we walk away from Jesus. That's exactly right, friends.

We are living under our privileges. Yes, sir. They left Him at the feast of Pentecost, and there is the only place that Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, and Pentecostals will ever find Him—is go back where you left Him at. Where is the joy of the Lord? Where is the power of the Lord? The church asks today, “What happened to the God of history?” He's waiting for His people to call Him on the scene.

But we can't do it through denominations. We can't do it under psychology. We can't do it under arithmetic, or we can't do it with education. We separate ourselves, divide ourselves. We are not divided! We are one person indeed in Christ Jesus. We are all one in Christ, and our denominations will never do it. As good as they are, they won't do it. Our education is the greatest hindrance the gospel ever had—is education. What we need is not education. We need the power and demonstration of the Holy Ghost back in the church to demonstrate the power.

Jesus never said, “Go into all the world and teach.” He never said, “Go into all the world and. . . .” He said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel.” And the gospel is to demonstrate the power of the Holy Ghost, the resurrection. We are still a million miles short where we should be. Let us move forward. Let's go back where we left Him—at the feast of Pentecost.

Jesus said in John, I believe the fifteenth chapter, He said, “I am the vine, ye are the branches.” Well, now, if that vine put forth the first branch and out of that branch wrote a book of Acts, the second branch will make another book of Acts. The third branch will make another book of Acts. And every branch that comes out of that vine will be the same as the first branch was.

Now, you can graft. We know that. I've seen a citrus tree with about eight different kinds of fruit on it. I've seen an orange tree putting grapefruits, and lemons, and everything else on it, but they were grafted in. That's what's the matter today. We've grafted in our ideas, grafted in our denominations. But if that tree ever puts forth another fruit vine itself, it'll be like the original was that went into it. Hallelujah! Oh, church will blend together, but we need the power of the original! We need the Holy Ghost, the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That's what He told us to do.

“I am the vine, ye are the branches.” If a grape vine puts forth a shoot that comes out with pretty blue grapes, the next vine it brings out will have pretty blue grapes on it. If the first vine come out and they fell under the impact of the Holy Spirit, and they did great miracles and signs, and sealed their testimony to a world. . . . Even many of them with their own testimony, with their blood they sealed their testimony. They went through all kinds of perils and everything to bring the gospel. They suffered, they were beaten, they were punished. “Must we be carried home to heaven on a flowery bed of ease, while others fought to win the prize and sailed through bloody seas?” What do we expect to do? “I must fight if I must reign. Increase my courage, Lord.” Certainly.

We don't need a new denomination. We don't need a new church building. What we need today is an old time, backwoods, sky-blue, sin-killing, Pentecostal revival (that was born at Pentecost) back into the church again, with the power of the Holy Ghost again to bring Jesus on the scene.

The God of history always rises on the scene in a crucial moment. We need it.

That's what's the matter with the church today. We are getting too far back. We're falling into the fashions of the world. Gradually, year by year, it begins to die a little and wither away. It's pruning time pretty soon. God will cut it back, as sure as I'm standing in this pulpit. God will cut her back to make her bear fruit! He'll cut the works of the world out of it one of these days. Such a disgrace, the way the church is carried on, under the name of religion. And we find out when Jesus left, death set in. When Jesus leaves our church, the power of the Holy Spirit leaves our church, it begins to dwindle and die, and after awhile there is nothing no more to it.

Now, when Jesus left, death set in. Oh, what a sad time it was!

And notice, they wandered around, and they sent for Jesus but He didn't come. They sent for Him again, and He didn't come. But He knowed what He was going to do. He knows tonight what He is going to do. It's not lost with Him. He knows exactly what He's fixing to do. He's going to raise a people up, just as certain as I'm standing in this pulpit. He'll raise a people for His name's sake out of the Gentile generation. He'll do it. The Jew's time is right at hand now.

And the Gentiles are ending out because they just went on out. They're rejecting Christ, they're rejecting their signs, they're rejecting everything that's called godly, and branded it some kind of telepathy or devil power; and they're blaspheming the Holy Ghost and sealing themselves away from God. And God will take that minority after awhile and raise it up into a powerful church, and then turn the Spirit to the Jews and take the Gentile church home. Exactly right. It's in the making now. We're at the end time nearly.

Jesus, He knew, and after awhile He said, “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth.”

Why, the disciples thought He was taking a little rest. He said, “Well, if he is sleeping, he's doing very well.”

Well, He said (in their words so that they would understand), said, “He's dead, and for your sake I'm glad I wasn't there.” See, “. . . for your sake I'm glad I wasn't there,” because they'd been asking Him to heal him, but He knowed He couldn't do it because the vision was yet. . . . After those four days He knowed that was the time the Father told Him. How beautifully He said at the grave, “Father, I thank Thee Thou hast already heard, but I just say it for these that stand by.” He already knowed what He was going to do. He said, “I'll go wake him.”

Now, I can imagine that little home was really broken up—the breadwinner gone, sadness. Oh, it's wonderful when you got a sad home or a sad heart, and then Jesus appears all at once, isn't it? I can imagine seeing Martha, a beautiful little woman with a black veil over her face, and little Mary, and them holding one another and saying, “What will we do? Papa and Mama is gone, and our precious brother. Now we have left the church, we're excommunicated from them; and come out to follow Jesus of Nazareth, and He's pulled away and left us somewhere.”

I can hear a critic come by and say, “Hey, where is that divine healer, that prophet of Galilee? Where is he at now? See, when it really comes a time for him to do something, he's gone.”

There it is. God just loves to do that, just to let people show what they are, just trying them to see what they really are. He gives them a blessing, He appears, shows Himself, introduces Himself to the people, just to see what kind of a reaction they will take, just to see what they'll do about it.

Now, we find then after a few days, four days, poor Lazarus was dead. They'd buried him. Second day, third day, fourth day. Now, anyone knows corruption sets in after three days. The nose falls in on the face first, and then corruption sets in. The skin worms begin to eat the body. They'd laid him in the ground, put a big rock over the top of the cave where they had him. And every once in awhile the young girls would go out, and kneel down at the grave and cry. And after awhile the news got around, “Jesus has come. We've seen him moving into the city.”

Oh, that little Martha that had been so . . . seemingly so dilatory about it, she proved then what she was made out of. Here she comes. She's coming on the road, then run out to seek Him. I can hear some of them along the road say, “Well, I guess you're satisfied now that your religion was false.” She just ignored them and went on, passed right on by all the critics. She went down till she seen Him, maybe sitting down at the street corner.

Now, it's . . . seemingly she might have had a right to upbraid Him, and speak evil to Him. Why, she didn't run up and say, “Looky here! Looky here, you, you are supposed to be a prophet, a man of God. Why didn't you come when we called you? Why, we are the laughing stock of the town now. We come out of our church to follow you.”

Seemed like she had a right, but (you know, just like I preached on the lamb and dove) if we are lambs, a lamb forfeits every right he's got. That's exactly right. He ain't got nothing but wool, so he has to forfeit that. And you forfeit every right that you've got, to serve God. That's exactly right. I was getting after the women about the way they was wearing these little old clothes, you know, and they said, “Well, we are Americans. We can do what we want to.”

I said, “That's exactly right, but if you are a lamb, you'll forfeit your rights.” Smoking cigarettes and carrying on like that, that's the worst thing a woman ever done. That's exactly right.

A lady said to me not long ago, talking to me, said, “Brother Branham, they don't make no other kind of clothes.”

I said, “But they still make sewing machines and sell goods. There is no excuse for it at all.” That's exactly right. Remember, some day . . . you may be pure here to your husband, but you'll answer for adultery for it just as certain. “Whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.”

What is the matter with the Pentecostal women today, is what I'm wondering. How you have got away from the old hewing line, how your mothers used to wear long hair; and today the Pentecostal women paint up like a bunch of Mardi Gras, and cut their hair, and wear little old short clothes like that, just like the rest of the world, get out and mow the yard in the afternoon, when men is coming by. Do you realize, woman, that you're going to have to answer for committing adultery with them men? You present yourself to them for that purpose. It's an evil spirit on the church and the people, and they don't know it. Blind and don't know it! It's the truth.

Maybe you might say I haven't got a right to say that as an evangelist. Well, I have to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, that's all I can say. If I meet you at judgment then I won't have to have your blood on my hands. Get away from every bit of the ground that looks like Satan! Get away from it! I don't care how many television stars. . . . You're not here a television star; you're a daughter of God.

Preached in a pastor's church the other morning about an old slave, time they was selling slaves, long ago. And they used to come by and buy them on the auction. And the people were weeping, crying, because—their homeland—they'd never go back no more, and they had to whip them. And they'd buy them just like you'd buy an automobile, just for anything the prices . . . selling them human beings. And one day a buyer come by, a broker, to a big foundation . . . a big plantation, rather; and he said, “How many slaves you got for sale?”

Said, “Well, I got some to swap.” They'd try to get them big, take them mothers, fathers. . . . If the woman he had married was a little weakly woman, take these big healthy men and breed them like horses and animals. Never was right! God made man; man made slaves. It's not right to begin with. Never! God don't intend any man to be a slave. No, sir. And watch what taken place.

Then in the midst of all that, this fellow said, “Well, I'd like to buy some of them.” He noticed one young fellow there, they didn't have to whip him. His chin was up, head up, just like a real gentleman walking around. And that broker said, “I'd like to buy him.”

He said, “But he's not for sale.”

He said, “Well, why?” Said, “Is he the boss?”

He said, “No, he's a slave.”

“Well,” said, “why? Do you feed him better than you do the rest of them?”

Said, “No, he eats out there in the galley with the rest of them. He is a slave.”

Said, “What makes him so much different than the rest of them?”

And the boss said, “I wondered that myself for a long time, but one day I found out. Over in the homeland his father is the king of the tribe; and though he is an alien, away from home, he still knows he's a king's son, and he conducts himself like one.”

If an African native could realize that his father is a king, and over here, an alien in a strange land, can still know that across the sea he's a king's son, how ought women and men conduct themselves when you are sons and daughters of God! Act like it! Certainly. Conduct yourselves, clean up yourselves and act like sons and daughters of God. No wonder what a condition

here we are.

Oh, little Martha come running out. She looked like she had a way to have said something against Him. “Why didn't you come to my brother? Look what we've done for you, and you let us down.” Why, if she'd've said that, the story never would have finished the way it did. No, sir. It's the way you approach a divine gift of God. If God sends a gift, you've got to approach it right if you ever expect to get anything from it. You've got to approach it right, and Martha knew that. She'd probably read about the Shunammite woman and her baby. If that Shunammite woman knew that God was in Elijah, how much more was He in Jesus? Sure. So she went up with the right approach.

She run up and fell down at His feet. I like that! Fell down at His feet and said, “Lord.” That's His right title. That's what He was. He was her Lord. “Lord, if Thou would have been here, my brother would not have died.” Oh, my! Oh, I can just imagine seeing His great heart as He looked at that beautiful woman, the tears running down her cheeks. Said, “Lord, if You'd have been here my brother would not have died.” Watch what she said: “But even now, Lord [Though he's dead, though the skin worms is crawling though his body.], even now, Lord, whatever you ask God, God will give it to you.”

Oh, that's the secret! You might say, “I've seined through every hospital. The doctor says I'm going to die. But even now, Lord. . . .”

“I'm all crippled up with arthritis. I can't move. But even now, Lord. . . .”

That little baby had a waterhead that big around last night. There's nothing you can do. It'd spread on out and burst its little head, and die. “But even now, Lord. . . .” He is still the same God. He's still the same Lord. “Even now, Lord. . . .” And He's sitting at the right hand of God Almighty, making intercessions upon the things that we claim, that He's done for us. Now I really feel religious. Sure do. You're going to call me a holy roller anyhow, so you might as well get started and get it over with.

So, yes, sir, “Even now, Lord, whatever you ask God, God will do it.” “Ask the Father anything in my name, I'll do it!” Jesus said.

“Even now, Lord, whatever you ask, God will give it to you.” Oh, that must have turned in His great heart. He said, “Thy brother shall live again.”

She said, “Yea, Lord, he'll live. He was a good boy. He'll come forth in the general resurrection at the last day.” Them Jews believed in the general resurrection. “He'll come forth in the resurrection in the last days.” Looked at Him.

He pulled His little self together. He said, “I am the resurrection and life.” Oh, my! There never was a man could say that before! There never will be one afterwards can say it. He is the only one that can say it. “I am the resurrection and life,” saith the Lord. “He that believeth in me, though he were dead yet shall he live, and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?”

She said, “Yea, Lord.” Oh, she knowed something was fixing to happen. Has to be.

When faith from an honest heart meets God, them cogs just comes together like that, something has to take place! I challenge this audience tonight in the name of Jesus Christ. Let your faith connect with God like that, in a few minutes we'll have another Pentecost. There'll be such a revival break in this town there wouldn't be enough cops in the country to keep them down. That's right. There'll be a real revival. “Even now, Lord. . . .”

“Well, Lord, we've done gone off from this, we've did this, and did that.” I don't care what you've done, “Even now, Lord. . . .” He's waiting for you to call on Him. “Believest thou this?” Sure. Yes, sir. Even now, whatever you ask Him.

“Where have you laid him?” Now He goes down to the grave. He was man enough to cry; He was God enough to raise the dead.

Here some time ago a woman that belongs to a certain group of people. . . . I never make it a habit to make it . . . about denominations, but this woman. . . . They do not believe that Jesus was divine. They said He was just a prophet. Now if He was just a prophet, we are all in sin. He was either God, nothing less than God, or the biggest deceiver the world ever had. That's right. He was more than a man.

She said, “He wasn't divine.” There is so much of that in this social gospel today, trying to make Jesus Christ a prophet. Why, He was the God of the prophets. Sure He was. She said, “I'll prove it to you by your Bible he was just a man.”

I said, “You do it.”

And she said, “When he went to the grave of Lazarus, the Bible said he wept. He had to be mortal or he couldn't weep.”

I said, “Lady, is that your scripture?” I don't mean to be sacrilegious here to say this, but I'll tell you what I told her.

She said, “That's it.”

I said, “That statement is weaker than the broth made out of the shadow of a chicken that starved to death.” I said, “You haven't got one thing to stand on.”

She said, “Why, he wept. That showed he was mortal.”

I said, “He was both mortal and immortal. He was God in flesh.”

She said, “Oh, nonsense.”

I said, “He went to the grave weeping, that's true enough, but when He straightened His little self up [the Bible said there wasn't much to look upon Him, no beauty we should desire Him], but when He throwed them little shoulders back and said, 'Lazarus, come forth!' [and a man had been dead four days and rotten in the grave], he came forth. That was more than a man! Show me the man can do it. What was it? Corruption knew its master, life knew its creator. Something had to happen! He spoke, and a man that was dead and in the grave for four days raised again, and stood on his feet and lived! Hallelujah! That was God in His Son. Yes, sir. That was God making Himself known through His Son. That was God speaking, not a man.

He was a man when He looked around on that tree that day for something to eat. That was a man; but when He took five biscuits and two fish and fed five thousand, that was more than a man! That was God feeding them there. He was more than a prophet, more than a man—He was a God-man. Sure.

He laid on the back of that little boat that night, and the seas roared and it bouncing like a bottle stopper out there in that mighty sea, when ten thousand devils of the sea swore they would drown Him that night. He was a man, weak and tired from praying for the sick, laying back there and the wind didn't even disturb Him. He was a man when He was asleep; but when He woke up, put His foot upon the brail of the boat, looked up and said, “Peace, be still,” and the winds and the waves obeyed Him, that was more than a man. That was God in man, making Himself known. That's right.

He was a man at the cross when He cried for mercy. When He cried and said, “I thirst,” that was a man. When He died, He was a man; but on Easter morning when He broke the seals of death, hell, and the grave, and rose again, He was more than a man! It was God made manifest! No wonder the poet said:

Living, He loved me; dying, He saved me;

Buried, He carried my sins far away;

Rising, He justified freely forever;

Some day He's coming—oh, glorious day!

He said, “Because I live, you live also. Believest thou this?” He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. Believest thou this? I believe the Holy Ghost is right here now. Believest thou this? I believe He'll fill us with His presence. Believest thou this? I believe the Holy Ghost wants to pour His presence out, heal all the sick, make all the people who hasn't got the Holy Ghost be filled. Believest thou this? Do you believe with all your heart? Let's stand to our feet and give Him praise. I believe He'll fall right now upon us.

O Lord God, creator of the heavens and earth, author of eternal life, giver of every good gift, we believest thou this, Lord. We believe that that's You here in the meeting. We believe that that's You blessing our souls. We believe that's You pouring out Your Spirit upon us. We believe that You're the same yesterday, today, and forever. We believe You are ours forevermore, that our names are written in the Lamb's book of life. All heavens and earth will pass away, but we'll live forever because You live forever. Lord, you promised this to us. We believe it with all of our hearts. Everything that's in us, we believe it, Lord.

I love Him, I love Him.

Do you believe Him? I believe that's the Holy Ghost. There's something falling on us. Believest thou this? I believe He wants to heal every person right now. Believest thou this? Raise your hands to Him. Stand up to your feet. Believest thou this? The Holy spirit is here. This is that. Peter said, “This is that.” This is it, the Holy Ghost.

O Lord, creator of heavens and earth, send Thy power and Thy blessings and Thy goodness upon this people and bless their hearts, and let them see that the Son of man is alive forevermore. Grant it, O Lord. We present them to Thee in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Anybody that doesn't have the Holy Ghost, raise up your hands and praise God. I believe He'll fall on you. Somebody put your hands on them. This is the hour. Why do we wait any longer? This is the time. This is the time for a Pentecost, coming back to God. Get right with God, Pentecost! Get your hearts stirred for the power of the living God. Let His Spirit move into you, saturating your souls. He's here night after night. He's here to heal the sick, give sight to the blind. He's a great and mighty tower. He proves Hisself to be evermore the same. Hallelujah! Praise Him! Raise your hands. Forget where you're at—just know that you're around Him, in his goodness, and His glory, and His power, and His mercy. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Hallelujah! Oh, praise His holy name.

Oh, how wonderful, how mighty is He!

How many would like to consecrate your lives to God right now afresh? Raise up your hands. How many would like to consecrate your lives to God? That's it. Raise up your hands. Let's see Pentecost, let's see the people of God. I'll raise my hands. Lord, here am I, send me. Take an angel with a coal from the altar and send your fire upon us, Lord. God, grant it unto us with Thy Spirit, Father. Hear our prayer, Lord, hear our prayer, as believing children we stand. Praise be to His name.

Oh, it's like waves of glory falling—oh, the dewdrops of mercy. Oh, praise be to God! May our souls wait. Believest thou this? Believest thou this? This is the Holy Spirit that comes. This is that Unseen Force that rises us into the kingdom of God, that blesses us. Pentecost, come back home! You are expected back home. You're precious people. God wants you to consecrate yourselves. Women, clean up yourselves! Men, clean up yourselves! Let's get started back to God, and serve God with a real true heart.

Praise God! The Holy Spirit's out in the meeting. Just do what you feel led to do. Just let the Holy Ghost move on you. There's nothing I can say. I just don't know what to say now. The Holy Spirit is just all over the building. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Praise be to the Lord. Oh, hallelujah, hallelujah! Praise be to the Lord, praise the Lord. How wonderful! How glorious! How beautiful, how wonderful, the praise of the saints of God, upon your faces, upon the presence of the Holy Spirit here moving, showing us His glory, how this great multitude in one accord praising His name!

Turn right around and shake hands with somebody, and say, “Praise the Lord, brother. Praise the Lord, sister.” Let's get right in there as God cleans us up. Praise the Lord. That's right. All you Methodists, and Baptists, and Presbyterians, Pentecostals, and Seventh Day Adventists, and whatever you are, shake hands with one another in the presence of the Lord God. That's it. O hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah! Oh, “I'm so glad I'm one of them.” I'm so glad! Oh, tearing down the walls, clearing out the dross, oh, freedom of the Lord, praising His name! Blessed be the name of the Lord. Oh, hallelujah! Praise God.

Oh, I just love to see that—people shaking one another's hands, and lightening up their faces, the power of God saying, “That's it, that's it.” We're children of God. We are all one great big church, one great big person in Christ Jesus, in His bride, the glorious One. The coming of the Lord is drawing nigh, the people getting together and welding themselves with love and with power of His presence. Oh, this is like heaven. Oh, this is good. Amen. Oh, how glorious, how wonderful, just worshipping the Lord in Spirit and in power. Such a time!

There's just no . . . brethren, there's no place to stop, there's no place for it. We never begin it, so we don't stop. Just wonderful. How many feels real good? Just the presence of the Lord. Oh, my, wonderful presence of the Lord here.

Now, the presence of the Lord is here to heal the sick, make the people well. Just believe Him. Do you believe Him? If we can believe Him, all things are possible. Do you believe that? Do you believe that that's the presence of the Lord? Now right here, give me just a moment, just a moment. Now listen just for a moment. Let me prove to you it's the Holy Spirit here. Let me show you it's the Holy Spirit, the very one that does the talking, the one that does the things, knows that. . . . How many is here now that come in here sick? Let's see your hands, ones that have a sickness.

There's a man standing there. Do you believe, mister? There's no prayer cards out, but do you believe that God can heal you? Do you believe He can tell me your trouble? It's in your side. You're up for an operation. That's right. Your name is Mr. Cartwright. That's right. Is that right? Wave your hand. All right. Go home and be well, you won't need it. Do you believe it?

That man holding that baby in his arms. Do you believe me to be God's servant? Do you believe this to be the Holy Ghost? I do not know you, is that right? Never seen you in my life. We are strangers. Do you believe the Holy Ghost can tell me what's the matter with that baby? Got a rash. That's right. Isn't that right? Certainly. You're not from here. No. You got a stomach trouble you are suffering with yourself. That's right, isn't it? You're from Kansas City. All right, return back, Jesus Christ makes you well.

Hallelujah! Do you believe? Do you believe it with all your heart? Here . . . a little bitty woman, kind of elderly, sitting right in here, suffering with a hernia. Do you believe God will heal you of that hernia, sister? You, with the little red flower on your hat, raise up your hand. All right. Go home and be well. Amen! Oh, it's God, it's Christ, the Son of God! He's raised from the dead, He's here. Now, put your hands over on one another and just offer a good season of prayer, every one of you, while I ask somebody to come here. Come here, brother. While you got your hands on one another to show that God heals too, I have the brother here to offer prayer too. Go ahead.