To Whom Would We Go?

Shining faces and great expectations, waiting and... [Blank.spot.on.tape]... We believe that God is going to be real good to us; don't you think so? When we turned in, Billy and I out there just a few moments ago, I heard that song ringing out, “Isn't Jesus, Our Lord, Wonderful?” I said, “Amen.” That's right; that's right. He's wonderful. Oh, has He been good to you since I left last year? Oh, that's wonderful. Well, He's sure been good to me.

Glad tonight to see Brother Rasmussen and many of my friends here that's from out of the city. And I'm sure as the week goes on we'll meet each other and have lots of fellowship together. As I used to make this remark (I hope it doesn't sound sacrilegious), I said, “We get to know one another so well till we can chew each other's chewing gum.” That's really brotherly love, isn't it? That's really close communion.

Well, we've had a few trips, out in the sea, out in the islands; and the Lord was gracious to us out there. And I've been having the privilege of having Brother David DuPlessis here, as you all know him. And we've certainly had some great times together, Brother David and I, around the country; and we're hoping that the Lord will continue to bless our ministries as we journey on together. Been hearing great reports from up here, getting letters from the last healing campaign—the healing of many people.

I believe I'm looking at Brother and Sister Kidd sitting down here. Oh, you look so good to me. You remember I told you you'd be here? All right. That's exactly right; that's right, very fine. Of course you all understood what was wrong with Brother Kidd, didn't you? You didn't? Well, he was a very sick man. Doctors just give him a few days. And when we come up one morning.... We left home about two o'clock to come pray for him; I thought he wouldn't be here if I didn't come at the end of that week—which would be about three days longer—he wouldn't be here on earth. When I got through praying, I said, “Brother Kidd, I want to shake your hand and meet you over at Chatauqua.” Here we are. Always respected those old people. They were out preaching the gospel when we were kids. That's right. And that means something; they got all the stumps out of the way, so we could run up the highway smooth. That's right. That's very fine.

I know Brother DuPlessis speaks, and they've got other speakers here. I'm looking for Mattsson. Where's he at? I haven't seen him yet. Is he at the con...? Be in tomorrow morning. I haven't seen Brother Mattsson for so long; it'll be like a homecoming to see Brother Mattsson again. So, today will be taken up with many, many good messages from the Lord, and we're expecting great things to happen.

How many would like to have a healing service this week? Would you like to do that? Oh, wonderful. That's just fine. All right. We'll see if the Lord will provide that for us—to have a healing service.

How many in here would like to receive the Holy Ghost this week? Let's see your hands. Oh, my. That's wonderful. That sounds like revival, doesn't it, brethren? That's right.

Last evening I announced in my church, I said, “Every person here that doesn't have the Holy Ghost, you get to the Chatauqua. I'm almost sure you're going to get it before you come back. Amen. Have we got a place for them to go in and pray? Right over there. Now, that's just fine. You know, just like caterpillars following one another, just take a line right around over there.

I believe it was Buddy Robinson, one time, that said, “Lord, if you don't give me the Holy Ghost, when You come back, You'll find a pile of bones laying right here in the field.” That's when he received it. When you get to meaning business with God, God will mean business with you. If we can just get that little shaking away from us that God “...maybe He will, maybe, I hope He does....” He will; He promised it, see. And we want to believe it that way.

Now, we don't want to keep you too long at night, so you can come back each night fresh. And we are glad to see our ministering brethren and all. So, before we turn into the Word now for a little message tonight, let us bow our heads while we pray.

I wonder, tonight, if before we pray, if you got your heads bowed, is there a sinner? How many sinners are present, would like to say to God at the beginning of this meeting, “Lord, save my soul before this meeting closes”? Raise your hands. God bless you, you. That's right. Just.... No, just keep your heads bowed. Just raise your hand. God bless you. How many here without the Holy Ghost would say, “Lord, I pray that You'll give me the Holy Ghost before the services are closed.” Let's see your hands. Oh, my. There's so many. All right. God will grant that, I'm sure.

Gracious heavenly Father, as we approach Thy throne of mercy and standing in the shadows of Thy justice, we are humbly bowing our hearts as well as our heads to You, for we realize, Lord, that some day we must stand in Thy presence to give an account of the life that we have lived on this earth, that You have given us. And we know there is just one way that we'll ever be reconciled—that is through the blood of Thy Son, the Lord Jesus. That's why these conventions are held. That's why we preach and why we try, is to see people press into the kingdom of God.

Lord, I pray that those sinners that raised their hands will be Christians when this service is closed tonight. May every one that raised their hands to receive the Holy Spirit, may He fall in abundance upon them tonight, filling them with His goodness and mercy, to lead them through the rest of life's journey. Heal the sick and the afflicted, Lord.

May there be an old-time revival among us, Lord, in our hearts, that'll cause the outside world to thirst.

It's written, “Ye are the salt of the earth,” and salt creates a thirst. God make the Christians on the grounds, and around the buildings, wherever they are met together, may they be so salty until the unbeliever will say, “Lord, let me be like that man or that woman.” Grant it, Lord.

Take us into Thy care. We are walking in a world of darkness, looking upward from whence cometh the light. Grant these things, Father, and may this be one of the greatest conventions that we have ever had. Bless every speaker, every minister, and every Christian, and all that attends the meetings. May it be a glorious time for us all. And when we are finished, services is closed, revival is over, or the convention, may it be said with all of us, like those who come from Emmaus, as we return to our homes, “Did not our hearts burn within us as He talked to us by the way?” We ask it in Jesus Christ's name, Thy Son. Amen.

The convention, of course, is for the speakers and so forth and get together, but we have another reason for a convention: that is for the blessing of our souls, and for the healing of the sick, the saving of the souls. And now, let us make this convention ... each one of us put our shoulders to the wheels, and in our differences of one belonging to one denomination, one the other, that doesn't mean a thing.

I'm a man, I love a Ford, and I rode over here in my son's Chevrolet, so ... I didn't fall out with him because he bought a Chevy. I like the Ford because I never had nothing else hardly but a Ford, so I liked them. And you know, I find out his Chevy takes me anywhere my Ford will take me; so, just so we head it in the right direction is the main thing. And that's the way I think it is. God wants us all to be headed in the right direction, and that direction is towards Jesus Christ.

Now, let us turn for a Scripture reading tonight in the book of St. John the sixth chapter, and let's begin with the sixty-sixth verse, reading, if you're keeping the scriptures down.

And from that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.

Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will you also go away?

Then Simon Peter answering him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.

And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

May the Lord add His blessings to the reading of the Word. And if I should call it a text, I would like to speak on this subject for a few moments: “To Whom Would We Go?”

You know, man hasn't changed very much. He's still wandering about in the world, seeking pleasure, restless, never satisfied, never coming to any right conclusions, never finding rest. He's just about in the same condition that he was when he left God in the garden of Eden and went out to shift for himself. He's been shifting ever since, and he finds it's a rough way to go. And it looks like he doesn't care very much—too many—just where this life will end up for them. And if we could sit down and take inventory, and ask the question of “Why are we here? How come that we ever come on this earth, and what brought us here, and where is our eternal destination going to be?”....

I believe if we would all think that way for five minutes of our lives, seriously, we would all speak like Peter did, because Peter had found something in Jesus Christ that isn't in other men. That's the reason he asked, “To whom would we go?” He didn't say, “Where will we go?”; “To whom will we go? for Thou hast the words of eternal life.”

And wonder why that Jesus was so much different from other men? Why was it that He ... or, what was it He had that other men does not have? There was something about Jesus that no man has, or had had till that time; and it made Him different. And I think it's the same thing tonight—that a man, when he becomes a Christian, there's something about him that's different from all the other walks of life. No matter how good he may be, a good citizen, go the second mile, or be a good neighbor, but when he comes in contact with Jesus, there's something changes him. There's something makes him different, noticeable different.

A few days ago (I'll tell you about it later in one of the services), something happened to me. And all the visions that the Lord God has ever given me.... I had something to happen that's made a change, a definite change in me, because I was taken somewhere that I never was before, but I certainly hope that I go back some day; and I will tell you about it in another meeting.

But speaking of to whom would we go, or could we go, let's just look at about.... I've got seven things written down here, the reason that we should go to Jesus to find this that no one else had but Him. Seven reasons. There's thousands of reasons. But I thought maybe we could draw from these seven reasons something tonight that might give us a hold to get started on, something that would give us an enthusiasm, something that would encourage us to take a better hold.

The first thing we are thinking of: that as we are going out of this world (we are sure of that), we do not want to go the wrong direction. We want to go to heaven when we leave this world. Every person wants to do that. And there's only one heaven. We all know there's no four or five heavens. There's one heaven, and there's one way to get to that heaven, and Jesus said, “I am that way.” That's the reason why that we must get to Jesus, because He is the way.

Now, I know that there are other claimed ways. There are ways that people try to say, “If I live the golden rule, or keep the ten commandments, or stop eating meats” or some religious act, which is all right if they want to believe that.... But, still, that isn't the way to heaven. Jesus is the way. I do not say that you that want to do those things won't go to heaven; but you'll have to find Jesus first, because He is the way—the only way.

And now, there is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end is death. And there's a way that we try to go. Many people belong to lodges. Our pastor buried his sister-in-law the other day, that we tried to get her to turn from thinking that her lodge was what was going to take her to heaven. But because she belonged to a certain society in a lodge ... which the lodge is up to them. We are not here to condemn men for ... sinners for sinning. We are here to condemn the man on a higher level than that. We're here to condemn sin, not the sinner. Man does not lose his life because he is a sinner; he loses his life because he refuses to accept his life. And his life is in Christ Jesus. He's the only one that has eternal life. And this woman would not give up the idea that her lodge was just as good as any church or anything else. Woman with cancer, and the pastor buried her, day before yesterday.

Now, there is a way that people think that they just live a good life and can get to heaven. Well, that's an error. You do not get to heaven by living a good life. The people under the Mosaic law lived a good life.

And then there is a way of church, that we try to go to heaven by the way of the church. But the church, as good as it is.... And I think that every person ought to belong to some church. But in the church, and as good as it is, it still is not the way. The church can only point you to the way, but Jesus is that way. Some has perverted that way to change it into learning a catechism, or saying creeds, or going by a book of rules. All that may be ever so good, but that's not the way. Jesus is the way. He's the only way. “No man can come to the Father except by me,” said Jesus. The only way to get to heaven is through Jesus Christ.

Today, I'm astonished many times as I ask people, “Are you a Christian?”

They say, “I'm Methodist.”

“Are you a Christian?”

“I'm Baptist,” or, “I'm Presbyterian,” or even Pentecostal, or Pilgrim Holiness, or some church. Now, them may be all right, but that isn't the question. The question is, “Are you a Christian?” And you cannot be a Christian until you have received Christ—Christ in you.

Now, many people say that “I will go to heaven because my faith tells me so. I belong to church, and my faith tells me that I'm all right.” Now, I believe in the grace of God, too. But look, no matter what your faith is, you're not going to be judged by your faith. You're going to be judged by your works. And when you die, death does not change your spirit; it only changes your dwelling place. It only changes houses for you. And if you die in your sins, you go to a worse habitation what you're living in now. But if you die in Christ, you shall be with Christ, for He is the way.

There was a man one time, we know, in the Bible, and he came to the wedding supper. And he sat down at the table, and when the king come in, or the bridegroom, he looked at this man, and he wasn't dressed for the wedding. And he said to him, “Friend, whence comest thou?” In other words like this, “How did you get in here?” Now, many of you that's been in the Orient know that their wedding customs never change, it's just the same today. And in that notable parable of our Lord, the wedding is set and the bridegroom gives out the invitations. And he signs each invitation to all that's invited. And then he has his servant to stand at the door of entrance to the building, and laying in a little container near the door, he has a great pile of robes. He has a robe for every invitation.

And then when the person comes up, maybe a good dressed man, well-groomed, but when he comes to the door, there's a robe put on him, and he goes in with this robe on. Then the man comes in that's just fairly dressed (we'd say mediocre in his dressing), and he has the same kind of a robe put on him that the rich man had.

Then may come the poor brother who doesn't have fit clothes to get to the wedding, or attend the wedding. But he doesn't have to feel ashamed, for when he comes to the door, there's given him a robe. It's the same kind of a robe that was give to the rich man, and to the middle man, so that when they're set at the table, they all look alike. That's the way every child of God looks to Him. We're all alike if we come by the door.

Now, this robe symbols the Holy Spirit, which is Christ in spiritual form.

Now, when this man.... He was speechless, he couldn't say nothing, and he was.... The bridegroom ordered him to be bound and cast into outer darkness. But he'd gotten there all right, but what did it indicate? That he'd ... either he might have come in a window, or come in the back door, or he'd come some other way besides the provided way—and he was cast out.

And there is a provided way today, that isn't by our creeds or by any other thing but by Jesus Christ. He is the way. And a man comes to God through Jesus Christ, receives the Holy Spirit, and is robed just like the rest of them that comes—rich or poor, all made alike. No one can enter in only by Him. In one place, in St. John 10, He said, “I am the door to the sheepfold.” If we enter into the sheepfold, we have to come by the door. He is that door.

Reminds me of a man in Louisville, here about two years ago. He got something wrong with one of his ears. And he was doctoring with a local doctor. The case begin to get advanced, and he couldn't understand it, so he sent him to a specialist. And the specialist said, “I do not know what the disease is.”

So, they sent him to an ear specialist at St. Louis. Upon arriving, he found out that the old doctor had retired, and he lived down in New Orleans. So, he got on a plane and flew down to New Orleans, and he inquired around until he found this old doctor.

And he said to him, “I have an ear condition that they are afraid it's a certain disease.” I don't know what it was; and if I would speak it, I wouldn't know what I was saying, and I doubt whether you would know either. So only thing, it was just ... it was a ear disease of some kind, had a name on it, a great long name. And, however, when the old doctor looked at his ear, he said that's what it was, and it was an advanced case.

The young man said, “Then, doctor, will you operate on me and try to save my life?”, for if it goes farther, it goes into the brain, and then he was hopeless.

“Well,” he said, “young man, I'm too old. I could not perform that operation. And there's just one doctor left in all the world that I know of that could perform that operation.”

He said, “Then, where can I find him?”

He said, “He's in New York at this time, going over to Europe for a six-month's vacation. And if you wait till he comes back, you'll be dead. You cannot wait till he returns; you must get ahold of him now.”

And the young man become frantic. He said, “Do you know any way I could get ahold of him? Call someone, do something!”

Now, could you imagine that young man to have said to that doctor—after diagnosing his case and telling him that he was on the road to death, just his case was advanced, and that he must do something, and there's only one person he could get to, to save his life—could you imagine that young man to have said, “Very good speech, doctor. That was very striking. I will come back to hear you again at some convenient season.” No, sir. His life was in danger, and there was only one doctor could save it, and he wanted to know who it was. If we'd just be as much concerned about our soul tonight as that man was about his life and his ear condition....

There's only One that can save us, only one way, and Jesus is that way. No other way that we know, but through Jesus Christ. He is the way to God. He's the way to eternal life. Now, He is the only way.

Secondly, He is the truth. Now, many people.... I've went into churches, and I've heard them say, “We have the truth. Our creeds are right. They were handed us by our fathers. We have the truth. We do certain things.” And others say, “We keep these kind of days, and we keep these months, and we do this. We got the truth.” Altogether, it's wrong. Jesus said He was the truth. Jesus said, in St. John 17:17, “Sanctify them, Father, through the truth: thy word is the truth.” And, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” He is the truth. There may be other truths, but Jesus is that real truth—that heavenly-born truth, God's eternal truth sent to us, the only way and the only truth. Other things may be true; but Jesus is that truth of God, the truth of God's salvation, the truth of God's plan is Jesus Christ, the way, the truth.

Thirdly, He is the light, the only light. Oh, I know we have Russellites, Campbellites and what kind of “lites”; but Jesus is the true light. He is the light ... cometh into the world that we might not have to walk in darkness, but walk in light. He is that eternal light.

Oh, when I think of it, there is really only one plan of giving life: that's the sun, s-u-n. And in wintertime when the leaves goes down off the trees....

A few months ago, I was down in Kentucky squirrel hunting with Mr. Woods last fall. And there was a man down there was supposed to be an infidel. And Mr. Woods said, “Let's go over and hunt on his place, because it's got ditches and so forth, and it's dry. We can walk through those ditches.”—about the middle of August.

I said, “Is he an infidel?”

Said, “Yes.”

I said, “I doubt very much whether he'll let me hunt.”

And he said, “Well, let's go over and ask him.” So, I sat in the car. And Mr. Woods went up and he spoke to him, and he called him by name.

He said, “I wonder if we could hunt a little bit.”

He said, “Are you Jim Woods's son?” And I think both Banks and Jim is here tonight.

And he said, “I am.”

He said, “Well, you can hunt anywhere on my place. Your father was an honest and just man; therefore you can hunt anywhere you want to. I've got five hundred acres of woods here. Just help yourself.”

And he said, called him by name, and he said, “I brought my pastor along. Is it all right for him to hunt?”

The old fellow took off his hat, with a great big chew of tobacco in his mouth, spit down on the ground, and he said, “Woods, you don't mean to tell me that you've got so bad you have to carry a preacher with you everywhere you go.”

And I got out of the car and walked over. They were sitting under an apple tree. He said, “This is our pastor.”

And I said, “How do you do, sir?”

He said, “Well,” he said, “I tell you,” said, “it's all right for you to hunt, too.” He said, “I don't have nothing against you preachers, but,” said, “you know, I'm supposed to be an infidel.”

And I said, “Oh, I don't believe that's much to brag about.”

He said, “No, I realize that.” He said, “It isn't. But,” said, “I've always wanted to find something to me that looked like something that was God.” He said, “About two years ago there was a preacher come over here to Acton, out at the Methodist campground [just about like this], for three nights' meeting.” And said, “A certain old lady lives up here on the hill, she had cancer in the stomach. Wife and I went up there to pull the sheet from under her. She couldn't even move her anymore to either ... for her to get onto the bedpan.” And said, “We had to pull the sheet, turn her in the sheet, she was so bad.” Said, “Her sister attended that meeting that night.” And said, “This preacher was never in this country before, and turned and told this woman, 'Take that handkerchief that you got in your pocketbook, go down to your sister (That's her name, whatever it would be), lay it upon her, for thus saith the Lord, she shall be healed.'” And said, “I thought that night they had the whole Salvation Army up on top of that hill.” And said, “The next morning, she was up frying ham and eggs. And she's been working ever since.” He said, “Now when he comes back, I'm going to hear him.”

Mr. Woods looked over to me and I shook my head at him. And I said, “You mean, if you can see something like that happen, then you will become a believer?”

He said, “Yes, sir.”

Said, “Yes, sir. That's very nice.” And squirrel blood all over me, dirty whiskers about that long, camping out there in the woods on two weeks. Then I said, “How old is this apple tree?”

He said, “Oh, it's about thirty years old.” Said, “I planted it there about thirty years ago.”

I said, “Yes, sir. And it produces apples each year?”

Said, “Yes. That's right.”

I said, “I wonder, sir. It's only about the first or second week in August, and all the leaves are falling off of that tree. What's the matter?”

“Oh,” he said, “the sap's gone down into the roots.”

I said, “What made the sap go down?”

“Why,” said, “if it stayed up, the winter would kill the tree. The sap's up in the tree, it would kill it.”

I said, “Then something caused that sap to go down in the roots to hide so the winter wouldn't kill it?”

“Yes, sir. That's right.”

“Now, it comes up next spring bringing you more apples.”

“Yes, sir. That's right.”

“Well,” I said, “tell me, sir ... if you can tell me what intelligence makes that sap leave that tree before we have even a cool spell and go down into the roots to hide through the winter, I'll tell you it's the same One that told me to go tell that woman over there that she'd be healed.”

He's the same God! He works in all nature! You can see God anywhere you look. The sun brings forth all botany life, plant life. The little seed.... Did you ever lay your sidewalk, in the winter time ... lay a big rock down, make your sidewalk, pour concrete three or four feet apart ... or, wide, rather, pour it down a long strip. Where is the most grass at the next year? Right around the edge of the concrete. Why? You can't hide life. When that sun begins to shine, that life will come forth. A little seed laying way back in the middle of this sidewalk will press its way around out through that concrete, over, around, under rocks and sticks and everything else till it gets out, and sticks its little head up to praise God. You just can't hide life. It'll bring forth life as sure as that springtime comes and the warm sun begins to bathe the ground. All plant life lives if it's got life in it. That's s-u-n.

And there's only one thing that can bring eternal life: that's when the S-o-n comes, the Son of the living God. Nothing that's ever died in Christ Jesus.... You might bury it in the sea or wherever it might be; it'll come when that light begins to shine. He is the light. He is the only true light.

The sun, s-u-n, is the only true light that we have to walk by. These lights are artificial lights, and it shines in darkness. We don't have to walk tonight by artificial light. We are children of the day, not children of the night. We have Christ, and He's the eternal light; and we walk in Him, for He is the light, the way, the truth, and the life. “No man cometh to the Father except by me.” That's why we got to get to Christ. That's the reason He was different from anyone else. He's the only one that has these things to give to us. So, where could we go?

Go get some light somewhere, some other light. You know, evil things travel at night. Snakes, bugs, all kinds of insects, they fly at night, because it's evil. But let the sun rise, they take to a dark place just as hard as they can go. Why? They are of the darkness, they don't want light. That's the way the world's getting today. It doesn't want the real true gospel light. The real light of God shows a man's deeds.

There can be someone so foolish as to say, “I refuse to believe the sun's a-shining,” hide his face, go into his basement, close the doors, and say, “The sun's not shining. I don't believe it. You bunch of fanatics just go on out there.” Well, we can't help that fellow. He's mentally wrong. Now, if he wants to stay there and wait till nighttime comes, and gets his little lantern, and starts out looking along, thinking he's got some light, he can go ahead like that. But you can't tell him, neither will he be able to enjoy the blessing of the sun. He'll never enjoy its great rays that shines down, health-giving rays. He'll never be able to see the beauty of creation, until he comes out really with that and walks in the light—and Jesus is that light.

Now you can go ahead and join church—it's a good thing. Or you can serve your creed—a good thing. You might belong to lodges. You might do these things. I have nothing to say against them. But what I'm trying to say this is: you need light, and the light is Christ. He is the only one that can give light.

You might turn that light on a bunch of dirt down here with ever so many grains of corn in it; that light will never produce life. No, sir. That artificial light won't produce life. It takes the sunlight, the rays of the sunlight. You say, “What difference is it, if it's just as light as the sun.” It hasn't got the power of the ray in it to bring forth life,

and neither has the light of any creed or anything else outside of Jesus Christ. He's God's light. He's the One that gives us the Holy Spirit. And when we live in His presence it makes us act different, look different, talk different, be different, because we are walking in light, children of light. You live in it, bathe yourself in it, enjoy its life-giving flows. That's the reason we have to come to Him to find it.

You don't find it by some creed. You don't.... Your creed, I'm not condemning your creed if you've got your creed and got Christ, too. Amen, see. But, if you've just got your creed without Christ, you're in a miserable shape. That's right. Don't try to get in like that, because it won't give light. You'll walk along, stumbling all your life, never able to understand why these people cry, why they shout, why they clap their hands, speak in tongues, divine healing, the powers of God. You'll never know it by some artificial light. You'll have to come into the real light, the light of Jesus Christ, who lights every man that cometh. Come into that light. “I am the way, the truth, and the light; no man cometh to the Father except by me.”

Fourthly, I want to say: He is the only eternal foundation. That's right. We have many other foundations, but Christ is the only eternal foundation. Everything else will fall, except Christ.

You might build your foundation upon riches. You might have plenty of money, and leave plenty of money for your children. What will it cause? What does riches lead to? Heartaches, disappointments, fusses, disagreements, falling out, shooting, rape, murder, and finally, sometimes, to suicide. Money.... The banks can go broke, close up, or something happen that you would gamble. You lose your money, then take a gun and blow your head off. See? That foundation is not eternal. Your money doesn't have an eternal foundation.

You cannot have a eternal foundation upon popularity. That's the great sin of America, is trying to be popular. Women trying to dress popular, men trying to act popular, all these little things going on, the way it's taking place.... (I don't have to start on that the first night, but ... I didn't say the third night, or ... we'll coast on that tonight.) But being popular.... Popularity usually leads to sin and disgrace. Certainly it does. Three or four marriages, and all kinds of stuff, and it has no eternal foundation.

Sometimes a pretty girl, her beauty becomes a curse to her. She finds it out, somebody tells her about it. She wants to be like some movie star or something, instead of trying to pattern her life after Jesus Christ. She builds her whole foundation upon that, not knowing that she's only got five years of real life, from fifteen to twenty; then she starts dying. And you base your whole hopes upon that, knowing that you got to get old, if you live. You've got to get old, you've got to break down. And the beautiful face that you have will rot out there in the grave some day, and the bugs will eat it up. So, there's no eternal foundation on popularity—who you are or what you are. That has no real foundation. It's not there.

Like some people try to build their foundation upon building material. Look at America today and its big building programs. I went up the other night and preached in a church where there's almost a city; and no more than ten or fifteen years ago, I used to squirrel hunt in that woods. And now there's a big city built in there. I go over to where I used to hunt rabbits, why, it's housing projects everywhere. It's a building day, and everyone's mad, building.

A man, a certain man, a fine man that I know of, that went just wild in building everywhere. Got plenty of money, and kept building more and more. He and his wife both, they lit a cigarette in Mexico a few weeks ago, blowed to bits by gas escaping in the room. And what foundation have you? There's no foundation upon those things. They are hay and stubble, and they cannot have a eternal foundation built on them. There's only one true foundation—that's Jesus Christ.

Here some years ago, I was standing up here in New York with a Brother Berg. We had passed by a building, and there was a mammoth big building. Oh, it was beautiful, and the architect had taken so much pains with how he'd build it, and its class. And when we got to the building, the surprise, it was just almost completely finished but it had been left sitting there. No one was occupying it. And I said, “What's the matter?” to this man that I was with. I said, “What's wrong?”

He said, “That building only serves for one purpose.” Said, “The contractor was so interested in what he put in the building that he forgot to go deep enough to put on the right foundation, so it was condemned. And almost any time that building will rock down. No one will rent it. Nobody wants it. No matter how pretty it is, it wasn't placed on the right foundation. Brother, sister, may I say this in respects of Jesus Christ: I don't care how good you go to church, how well you dress, what good neighbor you are, unless you've took time to dig down to that foundation of Jesus Christ and lay your hopes in that Solid Rock yonder.... Your beautiful church buildings, your robed choirs, whatmore, (which is fine), but it'll rot down some of these days. God will condemn it, because it's not laid upon the rock Christ Jesus. He is the only foundation.

Mexico City, where we had a great meeting, where the little baby was brought back to life.... And there in that great place where we were having the meeting, one of the brothers taken me the next day out to look the city over, which Mexico City is a beautiful place. But what did I find when I got out there? Looking down over the city, some of the most modern architecture I'd ever seen. Oh, they went all together out, but what it was, they never dug down to find the right foundation. A great percent of Mexico City is either pitched forward, the buildings are backward or sideways. They never went to the rock. No matter how pretty the building looked, it wasn't built solid on the rock.

And when you're starting out for God, don't lay down on some false foundation, don't lay down on emotions, don't lay down on some creed; but lay your life in the hands of that eternal foundation Jesus Christ, that chief cornerstone. Then build from then on. No matter how fast or how slow, you got the right foundation. Lay upon Him, for He is the only foundation that has security. But you are secured in Jesus Christ. As long as you are in Him, you're safe from the storm. He is the only foundation.

That was fourthly.

Fifthly, He is the only eternal happiness and joy, peace. What more could I say? He is the only eternal joy, eternal happiness, eternal peace. “My peace I give unto you, not as the world give I unto you. Let not your hearts be troubled.” He is the only peace and only happiness. Oh, you might laugh like a loon, you might just go into hysterics over some movie star cracking a joke or something; but what is it? You're only making a noise. It soon wears off. In a few minutes it's all gone. But when a man has come to a place to where he has found the joy that there is of knowing that his sins are forgiven, that he is dead and his life is hid in God through Christ, sealed by the Holy Ghost, it's joy unspeakable and full of glory, and the power of eternal God, knowing that you're resting securely in His love and grace! Whether the school keeps or whether it doesn't, what difference does it make?

I would like to say that we'd all like to go back, Brother Sullivan and I, go back to when we were eighteen years old. Sure, we would. But what if we could go back to eighteen years old, and then live five hundred years. Would we not be an antique? Certainly. It'd be better if we went on and lived and got old, and long whiskers and so forth, and lived the five hundred years. But we couldn't go back to eighteen years and be ... because we couldn't grow as modern life grows like that, because the teenagers of this day wasn't like they was in my day. And the next day it'll be the same.

What if tonight if you had perfect health? What if you wasn't ... a ache or a pain, and yet...? You know that you're a Christian, yet in this life (just this life alone) you have no satisfaction, no eternal happiness until you are anchored in Christ.

How do you know tonight...? You say, “I feel perfectly well, Brother Branham.” How do you know your mother's not dying at this time? How do you know Dad didn't get killed just a few minutes ago? How do you know the baby didn't get run over and killed? How do you know these things? See, in here, it's unsettled peace. You don't have no peace. It wasn't meant for you to have peace here. If you did, you'd get customized to the world. God don't want you customized to this world. He wants you to rest in Him. Come to Him, then you have peace.

I don't care what takes place. If you said the Russians was fixing to pull the trigger at this minute to send an atomic bomb, a real born-again Christian has eternal peace in his heart. Nothing, there's nothing then can harm him. Let the bullet fire. Why, the smoke won't be scattered out across the street here, until we'll be in glory with Jesus, standing there immortal, in His likeness, never to be sick, never to have a heartache, never to have a disappointment.

I want you to find some place that you can build a foundation on something that'll take you there besides Jesus Christ. I want you to find something that'll give you that much satisfaction. You find it and then come tell me. I've done everything I was big enough to do, and some things I wasn't big enough to do, I tried; but I have never found nothing yet that's ever touched the place as that life-giving flow of the power of God. When the Holy Ghost come upon me, brother, that night and anchored my soul in His eternal salvation, peace like a river.... Old Brother Shakarian used to sing “Peace Like a River.” Something happened. Live or die, what difference does it make? We're going to be in His presence, turn back to a young man and woman, live that way forever and forever, eternally. So what have we got to worry about? There's no perfect happiness outside of that. He is....

First, He's the way; second, He's the truth; third, He's the light; fourth, He's the only eternal foundation; and fifth, He's the only eternal happiness and joy.

Sixth, He is the only lasting achievement. He is. You tell me somewhere, or some place, that you could go, or something you could do, or something you could achieve, that would be everlasting outside of Jesus Christ. Tell me if you could build a house that would be everlasting. Tell me you could build a popularity that would be eternal. Tell me you could get enough riches that would be eternal riches. You cannot do it—nothing outside of Jesus Christ. He is the eternal achievement; and if you have achieved ever so much in your life, you have never achieved the eternal thing yet, until you have found Christ Jesus and have got Him into your heart. He is the eternal achievement.

Seventhly, and last, I might say this: He is the only translation. That's right. Only One that you can be translated in, for those that are in Christ will God bring with Him when He comes. That's the only translation, is in Jesus Christ. Oh, we have all other kinds of things, like.... Here some time ago I was speaking at a businessmen's breakfast (I believe it was in Puerto Rico), and someone said to me, said, “You are a preacher, and what are you doing here in with these businessmen?”

I said, “I am a businessman.”

Said, “What kind of a business are you in?”

I said, “Insurance.”

He said, “What kind of insurance you sell?”

I said, “Blessed assurance, life insurance.” I said, “If you're interested in a policy, I'd like to talk it over with you.” That's right. I'm interested.

One day a boy friend of mine, Wilbur Snyder, a very good buddy, we chummed together.... He was selling Prudential Life Insurance and he came to my house, and he said, “Billy, I'd like to talk to you on some insurance.”

And I said, “Oh, I have assurance.”

And he said, “Oh, pardon me.” Said, “I didn't know that, Billy.” Said, “I believe your wife told me that you didn't have any.”

“Oh,” I said, “I have.”

My wife looked at me as if ... “What's happened to him?” And she said ... looked at me, said, “Billy.”

I said, “Oh, sure, honey, I got assurance. I never said 'insurance,' I said 'assurance.' I said 'I got assurance.'”

And Wilbur Snyder said to me, he said, “What assurance do you have, Billy?”

And I said, “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine; oh, what a foretaste of glory divine. I'm an heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.”

“Oh,” he said, “Billy, that's very nice. I appreciate that.” Said, “I got a brother that's a preacher. You know Howard.”

And I said, “Yes.”

He said, “But, Billy, that won't put you out here in the grave yard.”

I said, “I know it, but it'll get me out. I'm not worried about getting in there; I'm just.... I'm not a bit interested in getting in there; the thing I want to know is how to get out.”

That's right. But Christ is the only assurance!

Yes, sir. We pay so much to the undertaker; let's give some thoughts about the Uptaker once in awhile that'll take us up some of these days. The only translation, the only one who can bring us from the grave, the only one who can present us before the Father without a fault, without a spot, without a wrinkle! Hallelujah! Sure, Baptists shout. Yes, sir. Anybody's got good religion shouts—got something to shout about.

An old colored man used to talk to me down the lane. He said, “You believe in that shouting religion, don't you, Billy.”

And I said, “Yes, sir.”

And He said, “You know what...?” The next morning, he come by (he was about ninety years old), he said, “I want to tell you something.”

I said, “All right. What is it, Rip?”

He said, “Well, I tell you.” He said, “You take an old rooster. You can tie his feet, nail him down into the box, any way you want to, but,” said, “when it starts to get daylight, he'll turn over and crow. That's right.” He said, “What makes him do that, Billy?”

I said, “He's a rooster, and it's breaking day. It's his nature.”

And when a man is born of the Spirit of God and has this eternal life in him, when the Holy Ghost comes, you got to scream out! Something has to happen.

You believe. A good old-time heart-felt salvation brings tears of joy and happiness and peace that passes all understanding. Oh, He's the river and He's the.... Oh, He's my everything. I just can't praise Him enough and say enough about Him for what He means to me. Certainly, no wonder we.... It's the nature in you. When you're born of the Spirit of God, you got a nature in you to make you scream out.

Why, Jesus said one time to one of those Pharisees.... Said, “Them people ... [otherwise] make chills run up my back. Make them hold their peace,” when He was riding in on this little mule. He said, “Why don't you make them hold their peace?”

He said, “If they hold their peace, the rocks will immediately cry out.”

Something had to take place. Hallelujah! When we see Him coming down out of heaven riding on that white charger, you talk about some noise! Oh, there's going to be something happen then, when we see all of these things that we've talked about brought into reality. Certainly. He's the only hope that we have. Nations are breaking, all nations are failing, every ... health is failing, the world is failing, sickness is on the increase, sin is overriding. But there's one thing that cannot fail—that's Jesus Christ and His precious Word. He's the only security, He's the only hope, the life. He's all that we have to look to, our only translation.

I tell you what you do. If you want to find out.... You start out in the morning and go down to these big cities here, and go to every drug store you can, and buy you a bottle of translation from some medical research. You tell me where you could buy some translation power. You'll have to come to Jesus to get it. You go down to the doctor and tell him you want a operation next week performed on you, and you want all sin cut out of you, and made so light that you can go in the translation. See what a job you're going to have.

Jesus is the only translation. He's the only one that can take you from the grave. “I am the resurrection and life, saith God, He that believeth in me, though he were dead yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.” Hallelujah! “Oh,

I am He that was dead and alive again and alive forevermore. I have the keys of both death and hell.“ He's a fountain of life. Oh, He's the everlasting one—the only foundation, the only way, the only truth, the only light, the only foundation, the only eternal happiness, the only true achievement, the only translation. He's all in all. That's right.

In this Bible we have these blessed promises. How could we ever...? Who could we go to? Tell me what drug store, tell me what place, tell me what lodge you can join, tell me what church you can join, tell me anything that would bring you these things. Then to whom shall we turn? To whom would we go?

What if we wanted to find eternal life? Now, I'm not saying don't go to the drug store. I'm not saying don't go to church. Those things are up for you to do. But be sure that you get your foundation right, get started right. Get Jesus first, then go on down and join church, and go on down and be baptized, go on down and sing in the choir, go on down and do whatever the Holy Spirit tells you to do—but get on the foundation first!

You got a little tree. It's got ... apple tree.... It'll bear apples if you'll just put it in the right foundation. If you got a heart hungering for God, you want to see the power of God, you want to feel the vibrations of His eternal life, you want to see if the Holy Ghost is real or not, just plant your little tree in its right foundation, and you'll find out something goes to work. Oh! You begin to draw the waters of life, and that little tree will begin to bear blossoms and fruit. It'll start growing, certainly, because you are planted right. You got to get started right, get the revival right.

Now, there's many in here seeking the Holy Ghost. The thing you want to do is not let this night go by until you receive the Holy Ghost. If you haven't got it by daylight, just keep on through the daylight. Then if you haven't got it by nighttime, just keep right on through the nighttime. And just stay there until you have received the Holy Ghost. You don't have to wait one more minute. He's right here now, pour it out upon you right at this minute, just fill you full of the charging power of His resurrection life, and give you a hopes—an eternal hopes—of that resurrection, because something's happened.

Excuse me, my colored friends. An old colored sister here not long ago was giving a testimony, and they'd been making fun of her, said, “Ahh, you ain't nothing.”

She said, “That might be true.” Said, “There's one thing I want to say.” Said, “I hain't what I ought to be, and I hain't what I want to be, but there's one thing I do know: I hain't what I used to be.”

So, I think that's a good thing. We may not be what we ought to be we, may not be what we want to be, but there's one thing we know: we're not what we used to be since we found Christ. We come to the foundation. “There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel's veins, where sinners plunged beneath the flood lose all their guilty stains.”

That's the hope of eternal life. It's all God's promises right here in the Book. Every one of it is to you. This is His Word, this is Christ, this is His promise: whosoever will, let him come drink from the waters ... fountains of the waters of life freely. Not cost you one penny. Every price is already paid.

You'll have nothing in the world that you can offer for an excuse. Jesus went ahead as your sin bearer. He took your sins. He took all your iniquity. He put it upon Himself, went to Calvary, an innocent man. The Son of God went there and took our sins and was crucified. And God slayed Him at the cross because of your sins and my sins. And how are you going to answer to God, the way you treat Him? How you going to answer to Him? How you going to give an account for your soul, some day? Say, “I went and joined church; but I tell you, I knowed there was a way that they called holiness and things, but I didn't think them people acted right.” Come in and investigate awhile. Just walk into the waters.

When I was a little boy, we didn't have many clothes. And we used to dare each other, who would be the last one to jump in a hole of water. We'd all run back out to the old swimming hole. Well, I can tell you one thing—I was the first one in, because I had the least clothes to take off. I just had a pair of overalls and had an old fodder twine across it, with a nail in it. Yes, sir. And I'd run ... we'd all be a-running.... Each of them had to take off shoes and things, and take off a shirt, maybe an undershirt. I didn't have to fool with that. Only thing I done was run just as hard as I could, and pull that nail, and jump right in, see. That's all, I was in. And they'd always depend on me finding out how the water was. Well, if I held up one finger, that meant it was cold—“Don't come in, boys. Take your time,” just a shivering. But if I held up two fingers, the water was fine. Boy, clothes went to flying every way and kids jumping in.

I tell you, tonight, you that's never received the Holy Ghost, I've got up two fingers, brother. It's fine, the waters are warm! Come on in! Lay off all the old self-righteousness, and all the old yesterdays, and the old parties, and the old friendships of all long ago—sinful life—and lay it on the bank; and jump into that “fountain filled with blood, drawn from Immanuel's veins, where sinners plunged beneath the flood lose all their guilty stains.” You'll never regret it. Oh, wash all my sins away. “Ever since by faith I saw that stream thy flowing wounds supplied, redeeming love has been my theme, and shall be till I die. Then in a nobler, sweeter song, I'll sing thy power to save, when this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave.”

Every promise in the Book is yours. “Whosoever will, let him come.” Come, everybody's invited. The promise is unto you, and to your children [break in tape] ... find out, it's really fine. Yes, sir. Peter said at the day of Pentecost, “The promise is unto you, and to your children, and to them that is far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” Those scriptures of private interpretation.... That meant, whosoever will, let him come.

The last book in the Bible said, “Whosoever will, let him come. And he that will take away or add to, the same shall be taken out of the book of life for him.” We don't want to take anything away from it or add anything to it, but invite everybody—whosoever will may come.

Don't let someone tell you this promise is for another age. This promise is for right now. This promise is good now. It's for whosoever will. Maybe you don't know, you haven't tried it yet. You've been so close to it and wouldn't know what it was. You can be close, that way.

Now to these people at Jeffersonville, I'm going to give you an invitation. You, especially, been seeking the Holy Ghost down there for quite a little bit. We brought.... A boy up on the road, baptizing some people last night in my church, come down to the baptistry and wanted to use it ... one of my boys that went out and established a tabernacle. I guess Brother Ruddell may be here tonight. He brought nineteen down last night to be baptized. And when ... these people had never heard anything about the Holy Ghost. I preached Saturday night, and they come to the altar and got saved.

And last night, when they pulled the curtains, and they brought some woman in there, and as soon as they baptized her, she come out of that water speaking in tongues just as hard as she could go. Oh, you ought to've heard that. Everybody come running over there, and them people from up there said, “What does that mean?”

I said, “If this ain't that, I'll just keep this till that comes.”

“This is that which was spoke of by the prophet Joel; it'll come to pass in the last days, saith God, I'll pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and upon my handmaidens and maidservants will I pour out of my Spirit. And I will show signs in the heavens above, and in the earth below.”

God is calling, God is moving. We're at the end of the road. We're at the end of time. Time is at the end. I can prove that to you, brother. When it's going to be, I don't know, but it may be before morning. It may be in the next hour. It may be in the next five minutes. Whatever it is, it's near at hand. There's nothing else to happen but the coming of the Lord Jesus. The church is rallying itself, getting itself together, shaking itself. Did you ever see such a stirring amongst the people? Sure, something's fixing to happen—the coming of the Lord. The whole earth is waiting for the manifestations of the sons of God.

Nature out yonder, which man is given the domain.... When God made man.... First, when He made him, He was called “Elohim,” which means the self-existent One. But when He was called “Jehovah” in the next chapter—knowed that He had made something, give man, which had a domain over the earth—He was God.

He was a God of the earth—the man was.

Jesus said, “Didn't they call...? Why do you condemn me? They called them to who the Word—in your own law—who the Word come to, 'gods.'” He said, “If I call myself the Son of God, and they're gods, you say, who the Word come to, the prophets, then how can you condemn me for saying I'm the Son of God?” Sure, the whole world is waiting for the coming of the Lord Jesus, when man will again take the domain on the earth here; and all trees and everything else will live, and all animal life and everything else—waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Oh, brother!

They say life begins at forty. That's a lie. Life begins at the altar, that's where life begins—eternal life, when you come to that Jesus Christ. Every promise is yours. It's all yours. It's to you. Maybe you haven't searched it. Maybe you haven't looked down to find out whether the promise is for you. You can't come and receive the Holy Ghost unless you really believe you're going to get it. Why, God's more anxious for you to get it than you are to receive it—more anxious. He wants you to have it. It's yours. It's your personal property. He sent Jesus to die that He might bring you to Himself, that He might have something to worship Him. When He was Elohim, He was by Hisself. But in Him was attributes. Them attributes was to be a Father, was to be God, was to be worshipped, was to be a healer, was to be a Saviour, and all these things. Your life displays them attributes.

As soon as you come to Him, you become His son. You worship Him. It's what He really was to be, what He made you to do. Your purpose here is to worship God, and you cannot worship Him correctly till you worship Him in spirit and in truth—St. John 4. That's what Jesus told the woman: “The Father's seeking such that'll worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

First, get the truth foundationally right. Jesus Christ is the only way to come. Not by shaking hands, joining church. That's good, shake hands, sure, join church, sure. But that's not it. Come to the foundation first. Lay yourself upon Him; and then after you've received Him, then shake the pastor's hand and join the church. That's right. After you've done these things.... But get started right, first. Get headed right. Like David with his slingshot—he had to head that rock right, first. You got to take aim, you got to zero in. And if you want to zero in, put it on Christ Jesus, for He's the way, the truth, the light, the foundation. All of it is for you.

Here some time ago, a woman here in the United States, poor old thing was so poverty stricken, they wondered what they'd do about her. And finally they sent the charity up to see what they could do for her. And when they come to her, they investigated and found out she was real poor, and had nothing to eat, and had sold all of her furniture. She was in a terrible shape. And they said, “Haven't you got any children?”

She said, “Yes, sir. I have one son.”

“Well,” said, “where's that son at?”

Said, “He's in India.” And said, “He's a businessman over in India.”

“Why,” said, “why can't he take care of you?”

“Oh,” she said, “I tell you [you know how mothers are],” said, “he's such a darling boy.” Said, “He writes me the sweetest letters that you ever read.” And said, “He writes me such sweet letters, I can't ask him for any help.” Said, “I just couldn't do it. He tells me 'Darling Mother, how are you getting along?' and things like that.” Said, “I just hate to tell him. And so, I know he'd do anything to help me.” Said, “Then he sends me some of the prettiest pictures I ever seen.”

And said, “Sent you what? Pictures?”

Said “Yeah.”

Said, “What kind of pictures?”

Said, “Wait just a minute, I'll tell you. I've got them in my Bible. I've been saving them for two or three years.”

And she went back in the Bible and begin to bring them out. You know what it was? She was worth tens of thousands of dollars. Them was India money orders with pictures on them. She didn't know what it was all about. But she found them in her Bible. She was rich and didn't know it. Dying of hunger, dying of starvation, and up against charity because that she didn't know what she had.

And sometimes ... it may be that way with many people tonight. You don't realize the joy unspeakable and full of glory. You don't know the power, the everlasting life. You don't know how rich you are until you go to looking in here and finding out that those promises that was give to those apostles was give to whosoever will, let him come. That is right. It's all yours freely.

Would you like to receive it? Would you like to be filled with the Holy Ghost, be saved, your sins under the blood, filled with the Holy Ghost, be baptized in the Spirit and have translating power in your heart, go up to meet Him in the air, go out of this building tonight with that blessed assurance? If a car runs over you, what difference does it make? My, if it does, we'll just change this old house for a brand new one. That's all. Just moving from an old broke-up man or woman to a young one that'll never die. Just going to a place where there's no yesterday, nor no tomorrow; it's all today. You're there with somebody that's the same yesterday, today, and forever—the I AM, the eternal. And you're eternal with Him. And there you are; never to be old, never to be sick, never to have a heartache, never to have any disappointments. There you are. It's just exchanging this for that.

Now listen, my friend. If you die without the Spirit of life in you, you cannot go to that place. Listen. As I said in the beginning, death does not change your spirit; it only changes your dwelling place. I was teaching on that a few nights ago, and I come to this subject on where that Saul, when he had backslid on God and the Urim Thummim wouldn't answer him, neither would a prophet prophesying could answer him.... He couldn't even have a dream from the Lord. And he went down and had the witch of Endor to call the spirit of Samuel. And Samuel had been dead nineteen years (I just looked it up to find out for sure), he'd been dead nineteen years. And when the witch of Endor called the spirit of Samuel, he hadn't changed his appearance. He was still standing there, thin, with a mantle on his shoulder. Not only that, he hadn't changed his life any—he was still the same Samuel and was still a prophet.

“Oh,” you say, “now that's kind of shady. That was the witch of Endor.”

Well, the Bible said it was Samuel.

How about the Mount Transfiguration, when Moses had been dead eight hundred years in an unmarked grave? How about that? How about Elijah, went home in a chariot about five hundred years before that? And there they was standing there so real till they recognized them. And they had a human body, and they were talking to the Son of God. Hallelujah! God bless your heart, brother.

Let me tell you, you got to have life to go there. Without life you cannot rise. You take a seed and put it in the ground, and let a little bug get into that seed and kill the germ in that seed, it'll never rise. Exactly right. But if you can keep that bug out of it, it's got a heart. It's got something in it. It'll rise just as sure as the atmosphere gets right around it. And that it is tonight. If you've got the least desire in your heart to receive God, to receive the Holy Spirit, get in the right atmosphere, the right mood before God, and life will come into you, just as sure ... and you'll start rising to translation.

Oh, I know what we receive here is just a shadow of the shadows of the shadows. But when you die, the shadow becomes a shadow of the shadow to the shadow to the sprinkle to the moisture to the branch to the lake to the.... Oh, my, go right on into eternal presence, then you're there forever.

Could you turn down such an opportunity as that? What achievement could you make any greater ... investment could you make ... than to achieve Jesus Christ as your Saviour? What more could you do than receive the Holy Spirit tonight, the very Spirit that He was baptized with Himself, to be upon you? The same Spirit that raised Him up on the third day has promised to raise you up at the last day. Amen. Oh, isn't He wonderful? Let's bow our heads, now, for a word of prayer. If the pianist, whoever you are, will....

How many in here tonight that doesn't know Him as a Saviour, say “Brother Branham, I've built my house upon ... just like Mexico did their city, or that contractor in New York that built that building.” It only was for one purpose. He climbed to the top of it and jumped out when he found out he had lost everything he had, because he wasn't on the solid foundation. What will it be in your death, when you found out that you've just joined church, that you put your name on a book somewhere? You thought you were all right, but still living on with that temper and sin, the things of the world, you still love it. “

If you love the world or the things of the world, the love of God is not even in you.“ Why take a chance on that, friend? Let's settle it tonight.

I want every sinner that's in here to come up here and stand here just a minute for a word of prayer before we go farther in the service. Will you come? Let every sinner that's in the building, while we're praying, Christians praying. Sinner friend, come here just a moment. Come here—just do that much, show that you believe in God, believe that you want to do it, you want to be built upon ... you want to get started right. Come right here and shake my hand, just come here. God bless you, ladies. Someone else come, now? Come on, every sinner. I want you to come right up here just a minute. I want to talk to you just right here at the altar. On the outside, wherever you are, come right on. God bless you. [Brother Branham leaves the microphone.]

Come, now. As I said to these women, these four women, there might've been a lot of great things they might've done in life. This is the greatest thing they ever done. You started right, now. One time in life, you pointed right. You might've done many other things that were good and loyal and everything, but it won't last. Some day it'll go away. You'll go out of the memory of the people. But now, you're coming now, because that you believe, and you're coming to stand on the rock Christ. This is the greatest thing you ever done. The greatest achievement you ever made, is when you're coming to accept Jesus.

Let every other sinner come, will you? Come, stand here just a moment. We just want to have a word of prayer together. I just want to come pray with you. Will you come? Young or old, come right ahead. God bless you. Someone else? Get right up and come. Come, young lady. That's right. Just come here, it won't hurt a thing. You come here, and you're sure not going to do wrong. That's it. God bless you, my brother. [Brother Branham moves away from the microphone.] Come on, sinner friend, while we're waiting just a moment. Let's sing softly now, “There is a Fountain Filled with Blood.”

There is a fountain filled with blood,

Drawn from Immanuel's veins,

And sinners plunged beneath that flood

(Come to the only lasting thing there is,

Jesus Christ.) ... guilty stains.

Won't you come now, while the fountain's open, while you have the opportunity to come? Come to the only great achievement you could achieve in your life. Come to the way, the truth, the light. Where could you go for it? Nowhere else but over to Christ.

Lose all their guilty stains;

And sinners plunged beneath that flood,

Lose all their guilty stains.

I wonder, now, while we're keeping quietly for a moment, how many in here has not received the Holy Ghost, and you want to receive it, you mean business with God? You say, “Lord, I've come to the way, I've accepted You as my Saviour, but I want the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Now I know that it takes that translating life in me.”

“Except a man be born again of the water and Spirit, he can no wise enter in.” Now, there's plenty of water out here on the bank, right here from the bank of the river, and there's plenty of ministers. Now, we want the baptism of the Holy Spirit, to be born again. Come, now, while we sing this next verse. Everyone who wants the baptism of the Holy Ghost, won't you come stand right here with me just a moment, with these dear penitent people. I want you to come and stand for the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

The dying thief rejoiced to see

That fountain in his day;

And there may I, though vile as he,

Wash all my sins away.

Wash all my sins away,

Wash all my sins away;

And there may I, beneath that flood,

Wash all my sins away.

We want to wait to be sure that every seeker comes. I got standing before me tonight a lovely little brother, a Methodist preacher, come up here with me to receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Brother Collins, want you to get it tonight. This is the hour. Amen. His brother is one of the outstanding Methodists in the field today. I want him to receive the Holy Ghost so he can go tell his brother what joy it is, how much different it is after you're born again. I believe it's tonight, Brother Collins. This is the hour, this is the time.

Is there any more?

Now, if you're seeking the Holy Spirit, this is the time to start. Don't let it go over the top of your head. Come right down. It's simple—little simple preaching like that. You know what it means. Come on now. This is the place, the foundation, the way, the truth, the life, the only achievement, the only happiness. You've never knowed happiness till you get this. This is it. These sinner people standing here now confessing their sins, they're going in, too. I want them to go in with them to receive the Holy Ghost. If you haven't been baptized, there's a lot of preachers around here, plenty of water, so, we'll see that everything is ministered just as properly as we know how to minister Christian works as we can. And you take the church of your choice. Go somewhere where they preach the gospel and believe in the Word of God, believe in the coming of Christ. It's your choice.

Oh, my. This is what....

In a few nights I want to tell you what happened to me. Then you'll realize why I'm doing this. When I seen a woman that threw her arms around me (she looked to be about eighteen).... I looked back down to where my body was sitting. I looked up here and looked at her, and she called me her brother.

I said, “I don't get that.”

Said, “She was past ninety when you led her to Christ.”

Past ninety, and there she was back young to be forever. No wonder she was saying, “My darling brother.” That burned my heart.

You're standing tonight, friends, reaching for the Spirit of God. It's in reach of all of you. I tell you what we are going to do. We're going to make a congregational prayer, right here, for you. Then we are going over in this little room where the brethren has got ready, right around there; and we're coming in there, whole groups of us, and we're going to pray until you receive the Holy Ghost. That's all. That's what we're here for. Is that right, brethren? That's what the meeting's here for. All right. Let us bow our heads now. Now, to you with the Holy Ghost, you that's seeking the Holy Ghost, just keep it on your mind, now. I'm going to pray for these ones that come up that wasn't Christians and wants to accept Christ as their Saviour. I want to talk to them first, just for a moment.

Jesus said in the Word, “No man can come to me except my Father draws him first.” John 5:24, “No man can come except.... He that heareth my word, [I mean] believeth on him that sent me, has everlasting life.... I'll raise him up at the last day.” “No man can come to me except the Father draws him.” Something knocked at your heart, you rose up and stood to your feet, walked down here to the aisle. Something drawed you. Now, let me give you what the Scripture says, “All that he foreknew, he's called [that was God calling you]; those who he has called, he has justified; and those who he has justified, he has glorified.”

Now, you're in the stage of glorification the moment you accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour.

Then go in the room there, where they will be seeking the Holy Ghost, and God will pour out the Holy Spirit upon you, and then you'll be filled with the Spirit. That'll give you power to live, live as Christians, until the time of the restoration of all things, when Jesus comes. Then you'll be taken up into glory with Him for that three and a half years, and return to the earth for a millennium, and then live with Him forever. Now let us pray for these people. And you, now, that's going to ... wants to receive the Holy Ghost, remember, “Blessed are ye that do hunger and thirst for righteousness, for you shall be filled.”

Now, don't go in just to say, “Well, I'll go try it again.” This is convention, we got six more nights in here. This is the hour to receive it. Go in there and stay there until you have received the Holy Ghost. You mean business with God, you that wants the Holy Ghost tonight. Raise up your hand, if you're ready to die right now, or receive the Holy Ghost. That's it.

Do you women that stood here just a few minutes ago with this little boy along, and you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and you want to accept Him as your Saviour, you believe that He's called you to this altar tonight, raise up your hands, if you believe that it was Jesus Christ that called you. God bless you. That's right. “He that will confess me before men, him will I confess before the Father and the holy angels.”

Now, we are going to make a congregational prayer while the people are waiting. Then we are going back to the room here to ourself, where we can be alone to pray. Let's bow our heads everywhere now, and every Christian.... These are people that you'll stand forever with.

I believe that many of you know me well enough to know that ... if I'm a fanatic, I don't know it. Something happened the other morning. I'll tell you about it later in the week. I can never feel the same no more. And I know what visions are. Thousands of times, it's happened. This was not a vision—I went somewhere. And since then, my heart has burned to get people to Christ. Oh, why, every move I want to make is to get people to Christ.

I want each one of you Christians to pray for these people, each one of you, while I pray.

Heavenly Father, the first we bring to you is these women and this little boy tonight. They walked up here to this altar, as far as I know, may be the only ones that was not saved on the grounds tonight. I trust, if there was any more, that they'll come, too; but they have come out publicly. They want eternal life, and You have said, “He that believeth on the Son has eternal life.” And now they have come to confess what faith that they have, that they accept You as their personal Saviour, and believe that You will give them eternal life.

Father God, I pray that You'll grant each one of them tonight the forgiveness of sins. May it be washed away in the bonds of Calvary. May they be forgiven of every sin. May they have peace like a river. May they have peace that only Christ can give. May these women go home to their husbands and to their children, this little boy to his papa and mama, a new creature, a new person, going home to live to testify in the neighborhood, to be instruments to bring others to You, for we realize that we're at the end-time and You're making your last call across the nation.

I pray, Father, that You will grant them these blessings.

And now, as they go with these others, may our prayers be together that every one of these, now, that's going to receive the Holy Ghost.... God, some of these here ... this Brother Collins—that I know personally—that's hungering and thirsting, his little wife back there crying and begging out to God, just received the Holy Ghost a few days ago, and she wants her darling husband to receive the Holy Ghost. Now, Father, fill him tonight, O God. May he set that country afire with the gospel.

Others are standing here, young men, old men, middle-aged, young women, and all. God, may there rise ministers, and evangelists, missionaries, and different workers, out of this group, tonight, Father. Fill them with the Holy Ghost, Lord.

Oh, “The promise is unto you, and to your children; to them that's far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” You promised it, Lord, and they're here to receive it. And Lord, hear my prayer: may there not be one come from that room without receiving the Holy Ghost. Grant it, Lord. May it fall just all over them. And may there be a meeting here that'll go through the night and day, just pouring out of Thy Spirit. Grant it, Lord. Hear the prayer of Your servant.

You said, “Say to this mountain 'be moved' and don't doubt, but believe that what you've said will come to pass, you can have what you've said.” Lord, I pray that every heart that's in condition tonight will receive the Holy Ghost that goes into that room. Hear it, Lord. I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Now, the ministers here will lead you. Is there somebody there? This man right here, this fellow right here, just move right this way, now, to the room, while I deal with the rest of the congregation just a few minutes. Some of the ministers here that wants to go in there, there's people in there instructing now. Every one go right in, now, to receive the Holy Ghost. And I want you here, you Christian ladies here, just received Christ right here, won't you go in with them? Now, you in there, you believe Brother Branham for this one time as the servant of God. You go in there and say, “Lord, give me that eternal life that he's talking about.” You will receive it. Everybody will wait for you, your loved ones will wait. You go in, honey boy. I pray that God will make a preacher out of you, sweetheart, that'll save souls in the days that is to come. That's right. Oh, my.

Jesus is calling,

He's tenderly calling today.

Jesus is calling, calling today,

Calling today, calling today.

Is any of the rest of you like to follow them? Go right in. There is believers going right in now to receive the Holy Ghost. Won't you go with them? You're invited.

Calling today, calling today.

Jesus is calling,

He's tenderly calling today.

Oh, do you feel real good? Don't the gospel just scour you out, and you feel like that you're just refreshening from the presence of God? Don't you feel good?

Now, how many out there's sick and afflicted, wants God to heal them? Let's see your hands. Oh, just look at the hands. A brother and sister sitting here.... Are you Christians, both of you, in these wheel chairs? Three of you. Well, two of you there.

Oh, I want to tell you a little something happened day before yesterday, about three, four days ago now. I want to say this while they're back in there now. (All taken care of? Good.) Now, they're back in there to receive the Holy Ghost. The ministers are invited now, if they will, to go back with those so they can be instructed in the right way.

You ministers, now, that's got the calling of God and wants to see people correctly brought through to the baptism of the Holy Spirit, we cordially invite your cooperation at this time, and then invite them to your church. Take them over and baptize them at your baptistry and take them into the church. They're yours. You're needed back in the room now, every gospel minister here. All right.

Now, while we're going to pray for the sick just for a few minutes....

Mr. Wood had painted my porch the other day, and I locked the door and come out the front door and pulled it together when I went out on a sick call. When I come back, my door was locked and I couldn't get in. I had my family in the car. Well, there wasn't but one thing to do, is go out and get the hammer and break the window out and go in. So I went out and broke the window out. And when I hit it with the hammer, it just splattered a little glass everywhere. Well, my young daughter Rebekah, she goes and sweeps it all up, little beat-up glass. And she sat in the kitchen the next morning when she was washing the dishes—she was talking to her sister Sarah—she broke a glass, and she dumped it in the box and some stuff on top of it. And the first thing you know, a little hound come by and got in the garbage can and eat that glass with that food. The poor little fellow was laying on the bank, just having fits and rolling over and.... Oh, I never seen a dog suffer so. And I couldn't find no one he belonged to. And Mr. May, next door, said, “Billy, I believe the best thing for us to do is take him and shoot him.”

“Oh,” I said, “we wouldn't want to shoot somebody's dog. It looks like a nice hound.” I said, “I wouldn't do that.”

And he laid around there about four or five days bleeding, and, oh, just in a terrible shape. Little fellow couldn't get up no more, was just going.... I never seen a dog so sick, jump, jerking like that.

And I said, “Why don't you take him out to the veterinary?”

Said, “A veterinary'd put him to sleep.”

So, I said, “Well, there's no need taking him to a veterinary.”

And little Joseph and I walked out there in the yard and taking him some beef broth and things. The little fellow couldn't eat it, he was too sick. Now, this is true, friends. I'm your brother. Joseph looked up to me as if to say, “Daddy, can you help him?”

I said, “Joseph, you hold Daddy's hand. I'm going to lay my hand on the little dog.”

God's my judge. Knelt down and had prayer with that little dog. He got up, and eat his supper, and went on down through the field just as happy as he could be.

Now, that is true. It wasn't but about fifteen feet from where the old mother possum was healed at. That's right. You've heard that ... about fifteen feet. If God would hear a prayer for a hound dog, how much more will He hear for a human being, a child of His, that's washed in the blood of the Lamb.

Brother Kidd, sitting there, maybe you know him. You might ask his doctor; he's just had about three days to live. Billy said, tonight, he was just beating him in the back, said, “Boy, I feel fine.” That's wonderful. God hears prayer. Do you believe that? How many of you people in here are believers in God's healing power? Let's see your hands. All right, watch.

You know, I got a money order the other day. It was sent to me from heaven. Oh, here it is: Mark the sixteenth chapter, “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” All the world. How long how does it last? To every creature. How long will that be? Till every creature's heard it. Not just to the apostle's age—every age, to all the world, and to every creature. “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned.” And “These signs shall follow them that believe: in my name they shall cast out devils, speak with new tongues, take up serpents or drink deadly things, it shall not harm them. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover.”

Do you believe that? We're rich and don't know it.

How many believers are here? “These signs will follow them that believe.” Then lay your hands on one another. That's all. Lay your hands on one another. We're not divine healers; we're believers. Amen. Christ is the healer. The work's already done. We just have to lay hands on one another. Do you believe that? Lay your hands on somebody by you. Now, let's pray. You pray for the person next to you. Don't pray for yourself; pray for the person next to you. That's it. There you are.

Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus, the Son of God, the way, the truth, the life, that made this promise that cannot fail in the light of this gospel, we condemn all sickness, every devil, every power of the devil, break every fetter. Come out, Satan. You're charged by Jesus Christ in the name of the holy Son of God to leave this audience. Come out of them, Satan, and turn those people loose, that they be made free so that the Holy Ghost can have right of way. Amen.