Hearing, Receiving, And Acting

Thank you very much. You may be seated. Brother Clair Hutchens said he was going to shoot me ... and he got by with it. So good to be here tonight. Brother Weston and, I suppose, Brother Mattsson's around here somewhere. Well, I'm glad to see you, Brother Mattsson, again. I asked about you last evening. So good. That makes me feel real good seeing so many, and Brother Clair Hutchens, and bringing greetings from overseas. Wonderful.

Last evening I believe that David DuPlessis ... I don't see him. I thought I'd look around first and see if I could see ... here he is. I believe he did this congregation an injustice when we were on the road home. We got in the car together, and I looked down, I said, “Oh, it's almost ten o'clock.” I said, “Brother David,” I said, “I suppose I've kept those people too long.”

He said, “Brother Branham, I think them people feel about like I do. We're tired of hearing sermonettes by preacherettes to Christianettes.” That might encourage me to preach two more hours tonight. Oh, I'll usually let out before one o'clock, but I ... used to I didn't. We just getting started good at one o'clock. We'd stay and praise the Lord all night. It's too bad we ever got away from that, isn't it? It sure is, Brother Sullivan.

And got into a twenty-minute intellectual sermon, and I just wonder where all that come from. I wonder if we're not trying to pattern after the world a little too much. I believe if that hasn't worked into our ranks too much. Think we should get out of it.

You know, I just love to sit and mince and eat, and mince and eat, when I'm at the table, and at the Lord's table I like to stay a long time. Our pastor the other night, preached about forty-five minutes. I see him look up at the clock, and I think, “Yep, Brother Neville, you're getting into it also—forty-five minutes.” That's not long enough to get started. We should have ... He was just getting interesting. I was just getting stirred up to a place where I was feeling pretty good, you know—then he cut it off. What a shame.

But now, each day there's services out here. And I know you're all having a wonderful time. How many people here that's not from Ohio, let's see your hands, people not from Ohio. Wonderful! That's fine. I guess over half of the congregation is from out of the state of Ohio. We're sure happy to have you here. Pray that God will multiply His blessings to you. May you go home, back to your home state, rejoicing, happy, praising the Lord.

Now, I wish tonight to read some scripture found over in Romans the eighth chapter, and we're going to begin to read here about the eleventh verse ... of the ninth chapter, rather. Let's begin about the tenth verse:

And not only this; but when Rebecca also ... conceived by one, even by our father Isaac;

(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to the election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)

It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.

As it is written, Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated.

I would like to take a text from that on about three words: hearing, receiving, and acting.

Before we approach it, let's bow our heads now a moment while we talk a moment to the Author. Our gracious heavenly Father, we thank Thee tonight for all that Thou has done for us, for Thy goodness, and Thy bountiful mercies that's been poured out upon us by Thy grace. Not that we have did anything to deserve them, but because that Thou has been good to us and has not looked at our unrighteousness, but has given us unlimited measures of Thy grace. We thank Thee for it.

And as we are hearing tonight, as coming on the ground, the testimony of doctors—speaking of those who were going to die a few weeks ago, and now the place is healed up—doctors and nurses sending in word, “Have them to pray for us.” That makes our heart feel real good, Lord. And we prayed for them doctors and them nurses who is willing and recognizing that the hand of God moved in on this person when they had passed him by to be dead, or was going to die, and now he's alive and well. How we thank Thee for this.

Then last evening, to see this great row of people marching down in file to the room to be born again of Thy Spirit, seeing sinners standing here at the altar weeping, old and young, all together it makes our hearts happy above words to express. Surely Thou art still the great God of heaven.

We'd ask tonight that You'd bless the reading of the Word, and may You give us the context of this text tonight. Let the Holy Spirit come and interpret this Word to our hearts. May we now pull down the curtains all around us from the outside world, and just live with our hearts turned towards Thee. May our hearts be open, and may the pressure of the Spirit be so great in this building tonight till He'll move Hisself in every crack and corner of our hearts, filling every fiber that is clean and ready for filling. May You heal every sick person that's here, save every lost soul, and fill every hungry heart with the Holy Ghost. Grant it, Lord.

Inspire Your servants, the ministers, our gracious and precious brothers, the shepherds of the flock that You've called out and set apart, dedicated lives to the service. We pray for them, Lord, for they are the men who will carry these ... the innkeepers that'll take these sick people of soul and body, and keep pouring in oil and wine until they are well. It is said in the parable that he gave them two pence—that was both for salvation and healing—and said, “If there's anything more, I'll pay it when I come by again.” And if we're lacking anything today, Lord, which we know we are, we pray that the Holy Spirit will give us that tonight which we are lacking. Help we ministers, Lord, that we might be able to serve Your people with a pure conscience and a clean heart. Grant it, Father. We ask this most humbly in the name of Thy Son, the Lord Jesus. Amen.

The world today is being gripped by two great forces, two great religious forces, that is soon coming to a head, or a showdown. It's well represented in our Scripture reading tonight of the two sons of Isaac, Esau and Jacob. And when ... they represent both these forces. And they both come from the same father and same mother. The holy one that was foreordained of God, Isaac.... And was told by God to his father twenty-five years before he was born he'd have this child, by a separated and consecrated mother, Rebekah, a virgin. And these two sons was in the same womb. They came to the world fussing and fighting, at war with each other. They've been at war with each other ever since, and will be till the end time. And the world is seriously gripped tonight in these forces.

Now, the remarks that I have to say, and some scriptures I have written here and so forth, I want everyone to know that when sometimes I refer to a condition of church, or a denominational, or something, many times my brethren mistake me when I say that. I'm not referring to Spirit-filled men who stand as shepherds and feed the flock of God, that's ordained by the Holy Ghost to do so. I'm talking about carnal believers who try to take the place of these men.

And we find out that Esau truly represented the carnal believer. He was a earthly man, and was of the earth, and was very religious inclined. He had his religion, just like the world has today. Most all people that you talk to, they got a religion of some sort, whether they attend their church or not. But they maybe once a year ... or the women like to go on Easter to show their new bonnet, and the men like to go once in awhile when they're having something going on that'll entertain. And they was, as a baby, sprinkled, and names put on the book of the church, and they are property of the church.

I never could go for that. Man is not property of the church, neither is man property of the state. Man is property of God, sons and daughters of God. We belong to Him because we are bought with a price. And what a precious price, the Son of God. But Esau well represented that group of being religious, and “I'm just as good as the next one, and my religion is as good as yours, and I'm well satisfied.”

But Jacob, his twin brother, by election—which was by predestination, by foreknowledge—came into the world and was a spiritual man, to represent the spiritual people. And he had spiritual discernment of what was right and what was wrong. And if you'll understand that the entire church of the living God is built upon the revelation of Jesus Christ.... How did Abel offer unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain if it had not been revealed to him what the sacrifice was required ... what sacrifice was required, rather?

When the disciples were asked, “Who do you say I, the Son of man, am?”, Peter, without hesitation, burst forth like a man speaking in tongues, said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus said, “Blessed art thou, Simon, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you. You never learned this through any intellectual educational program, but my Father which is in heaven has revealed this to you. Thou art Peter, and upon this rock [not upon Peter, not upon Himself, but upon the spiritual revelation of who He was] upon this rock I'll build my church, and the gates of hell can't prevail against it.” Showed they would be against it, but it'll never prevail. So the church, the spiritual church, will move right on into eternity, just as sure as there's a God that ordained it to be there.

So what a satisfaction it gives us then to know that when you're born of the Spirit of God, you are sons and daughters of God.

Now this Jacob, it meant so much to him, but the birthright meant nothing to Esau. Frankly, he despised it. And I say this with all reverence, his children still does. That's right. He despises it. “Why do I have to do that for? Why should I receive the Holy Ghost? I'm as good as you are. My religion's as good as yours. Why should I go through all of that there? I'm just as good as you are. I go to church, I got my name on the book, I'm just ... I'm so-and-so.” That's what you are, but what are you in the sight of God? You've got to be born again, spiritually minded. So it didn't mean anything to Esau. He despised it. And the carnal believer today still despises that birthright.

And the birthright is the Holy Spirit, we know that, and the carnal believer despises that. “Oh,” he said, “them days are past. There's no such a thing as receiving the Holy Ghost anymore. That was back in the apostle's time.”

I heard a great man say one time in a fine church, he said, “Pentecost was only the scaffold work to the building.” And he said, “Then after the building is made, why,” said, “they don't need the scaffold anymore.”

So at the end of the service I come around to shake hands with this great man. I said, “I want to compliment you on your message this morning, doctor.” I said, “I'll agree with you that Pentecost was the scaffold work. And as long as we're building on it, we still have to have the scaffold.” That's right. The scaffold is the last thing to take down. Till you put the end of the spire up on the tip-top, you still have to have the scaffold. I'm glad tonight to be working on the building, standing on the scaffold then, aren't you?

Now, we find that this birthright meant everything to Jacob. Now, he didn't care for nothing else but that birthright. He didn't care what it cost him. If it was a mess of pottage, he was glad to give it back to Esau. So is it with any man or woman that has been ordained to eternal life, that God has called to eternal life, is willing to sell out anything, anything of the world, to obtain that birthright. You can call them anything you want to, you can tell them they've lost their mind, gone off on the deep end, bunch of holy rollers. I don't care what you call them, they're seeking for that birthright, and that means more than anything else. They are after that birthright. No matter how they have to get it, they're ready to get it.

The carnal mind wants God to bring the birthright down to their level. But for me, and I believe all true born Christians, we meet it on God's level. I don't care what I have to do, or what I have to say, how I have to act, the only thing—I want it. That means more than my popularity. That means more than my job. It means more than my mother. It means more than my wife, more than my children, more than every friend I've got. Let me have that birthright! I don't care what I have to pay.

I want to meet God on His requirements, whatever He requires. If it's fall in the dust, if it's speak with tongues, if it's run through the building and act like a maniac, or stand on my head, I don't care what it is. Just so I get it, that's the main thing. That's the spiritual minded people. They want the birthright, regardless. They want it.

And as soon as they get it, it sets up the same reaction there was in that family. Finally it'll come to a place till there'll come a separation. A man will have to obtain ... if he obtains this birthright, he'll have to separate himself from the world, just as Jacob had to.

My, sometimes it means walk alone. But if you really are sincere, and you really receive the birthright, you don't care to walk alone. If the neighbors won't invite you anymore over to dinner, if nobody will have anything to do with you, what difference does it make to you as long as you've got the birthright? That's the main achievement of your life. Long as I'm born of the Holy Spirit, what difference does it make? As long as I'm on my road to heaven, what difference does it make what the people say, as long as we're walking in the Spirit?

And all that's born of the Spirit of God are led by the Spirit of God. Sons and daughters of God are led by the Spirit of God, always walking in the beautiful light of holiness, cleanliness. But Esau, that birthright, he was carnal like the world, so it didn't make any difference to him. He thought he was religious, and his papa and mama was religious, and that was good enough for him.

So we find out that in every revival that's ever been born in the world, it produces twins. That's right. Every revival has twins. They have a bunch in there that's carnal believers, and a bunch of spiritual believers. Every revival produces that, an Esau and Jacob. And as they go along, first thing you know, the carnal begins to think, “Well, these guys are getting off the deep end. I'd better separate myself from them.” They go back to the intellectual part. They want a pastor that'll speak to them of pleasant things. They don't want that Spirit-filled pastor that'll obey the Holy Spirit from the platform, just preach the Word just like it is.

As John said, “Lay the axe to the root of the tree,” let the chips fall where it will. Most of the churches today will vote that out of their pulpit. That's right.

It'll come a separation, always does that. It did it in the Methodist age, it did it in the Baptist age, it did it in the Pentecostal age. It'll do it in every age.

One time John Wesley ... I was reading an article on him. And it said that he was coming down a little pathway. And he was kind of protesting the Anglican church, of their sin and the things that they was doing, and they called him a crazy man. “And all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecutions.” You'd be despised and rejected. “And if they call the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call his disciples?”

And there was one of these officials of the Anglican church, great huge man, saw John coming, and he was a small man. So this big fellow just blocked himself right in the way. Mr. Wesley walked up close to him, and he couldn't get around him. And he said, “Pardon me, sir. Would you step aside so I can go by?”

This man said, “I never get out of the way for a fool.”

Mr. Wesley politely tipped his hat, stepped around him, and said, “I always do.” So I think that just about settles it. He always does.

Now these differences has always been since Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel. The first human beings that produced life on earth, Adam and Eve, brought forth two, one of one kind and one of another. There was Cain and Abel. There was Esau and Jacob. There was all along down the line, there has always been that. The two spirits warring against one another in the churches. We've had plenty of it. And it always come to a place where there had to be a time of separation.

Abraham and Lot started out to find the city whose builder and maker was God. Lot was a carnal character, and it finally came to a place that Abraham and Lot had to be separated before they could ever ... Abraham could ever obtain the promise. They had to separate one from the other, and so is it tonight.

You've got to separate yourself from the things of the world. You've got to walk with Christians. I'm a great believer in Christians fellowshipping with Christians. Yes, sir. You cannot walk together unless you're agreed. And you agree first with Christ, and every man agrees in Christ will agree with you.

And Abraham and Lot had to separate before God could bless Abraham. And Lot, did you notice the carnal condition, yet as a lukewarm church member? He knew that Abraham was living up there in a tent. But did you notice? His religion was so straight till Lot didn't ask the angel, “Let me go up with Abraham, my uncle.” But he said, “There's a little city down here. Let me go to that one.” He still didn't want anything to do with Abraham. See, that's the way it is today. No matter what you do, the carnal can't associate with the spiritual, no more than you can make oil and water mix. It will not do it.

Therefore the church needs a good cleansing. What we need today is some old fashioned revivals, some sweeping revivals, some power of the Lord. We need men and women who is willing to sell out to everything in this world, to burn every bridge behind them. We need to take the world today, we ministers, like the old Norwegians used to take a country. When they went in by ship, they hit the shore and set the ship afire, and burnt it behind them. They had no way of escape. That's the way we ought to do: burn every bridge and every escape. Sell out everything for the kingdom of God and keep moving on.

There's no place of stopping. There's no place of compromising.

God don't like compromisers. God don't want His church to look like the world. He don't want it to act like the world. He doesn't want it to have anything to do with the world, only to preach the gospel to the world, and to call those. God wants separators; the church wants mixers. They want a pastor who will not be so hard on them, and tell them good things, and not dig right down and just rake the hide off of them. Brother, that's what we need.

Here a few weeks ago, in a certain place, I had a vision. And there was a little kitten laying on a pillow, and I was raking him like that, and he was just purring. And I noticed above him he had a name. And I thought he was the cutest little fellow, and he was just purring away like he was sleeping away. And the Spirit said, “Rake him back the other way once.” When I raked him back the other way, all the snorting and squalling you ever heard, them green eyes shining. He was the horriblest looking monster I ever seen.

Oh, as long as you can let people just go any way they want to, they'll give you some catnip all right; but when it comes to a place.... We don't need catnip! We need the power of the Holy Ghost back into the church, back into the building, the resurrected life of Jesus Christ that cleans us up, makes us new creatures. We need strong wine, not catnip. That's for babies.

Mama used to give it to the kids, I think, some kind of catnip when they got the tummy ache. The church has got more than a tummy ache; it's anemia. What we need is a blood transfusion, the power of the Holy Spirit to clean up the church world from the life of sin.

Women, men—professing Christianity—out to dances, out to big worldly parties, gambling, smoking, dancing. Women cutting off their hair, wearing shorts, slacks, all kinds of stuff like that. And then call themselves Christians? There's a weakness somewhere. It isn't in the power of God. It's either in your pulpit or in you, one. Now that's all there is to it. It's the truth. We need a cleaning out. The carnal, always enmity. Oh, sure, it's a hard fight, but I believe if you've been ordained to eternal life, “All the Father has given to me will come to me.”

Now, you say, “Well, I'm just as good as you are.” But brother, you're going to be judged by the works you've done. Your works is going to ... it proves what you are.

A man said to me some time ago, said, “If I am judged by my faith, I am saved. If I'm judged by my works, I'm lost.”

I said, “Your works proves your faith.” Right. If you love the Lord, you'll go right in with everything God says, and you'll stay right with it.

The carnal mind will say to the Word of God, all that intellectual, well-trained minister will say, “Oh, now look children, that's fanaticism. Don't believe in that, there's nothing to that. Don't you believe that.” That's really catnip. Now, I'm telling you, that'll put them to sleep.

But the real servant of God will tear that skin off of you. Yes, sir. He'll shake you with the Word of God, and he'll tell you what's right and what's wrong. If he doesn't, I wouldn't give you a nickel for his preaching. That's exactly right. Any man that's afraid of his meal ticket, or something or other, that won't stand and tell the truth of the Word of God, what he needs is get in a Pentecostal meeting sometime and get a real Pentecostal filling. That'll take care of it.

Like some of those men who had to give up everything they had to walk with the Lord. What was it? They were ordained of God. They don't care what they had to leave. Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterians, everywhere is coming out.

David DuPlessis can tell you those things better than I can. He's better acquainted with it. But he'll tell you in his messages that it's a shaking thing. Brother DuPlessis is well known everywhere amongst the intellectual groups. God in this last days is a-calling those people out: Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians. Let me tell you, Pentecostal friend, you better get on your toes, for God's able of these stones to rise children to Abraham. God is going to move. He's going to have a church without spot or wrinkle.

He's going to have something He can put His hands on and say, “They are mine! That's My church, that's My people. Have you beheld My people?” like He said to Job. “There's none like them on earth. They're perfect. Certainly. They live for me. They don't care about the things of the world. They settled that a long time ago. I can tell this one go, and he'll go; this one come, and he'll come.”

You know you cannot have this, you cannot understand it, until it's revealed to you. The whole thing is built on spiritual revelation. You've got to hear, and then recognize, and then act. It's revealed to some and not to others.

One man can read, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever,” the carnal mind say, “Well, in a way He is.”

The spiritual mind will say, “In every way He is.”

Jesus gave a commission, “Go ye into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature. These signs shall follow them that believe.”

The carnal mind say, “That was for the apostles.”

The spiritual mind will say, “He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, in all the world. I'm part of it.”

Yes, His people is peculiar people, spiritual people, separated people, His church. The very word church means the called out. God called His church out. Means the called out of the world, not to be with the world any more. Separate yourself from the things of the world. The Bible says, “If you love the world or the things of the world, the love of God's not even in you.” No matter how good a church member, that has nothing to do with it. Although men should belong to church, women should belong to church, children, all of us, we should belong to church; but first we must be in the church of the first-born, be born into the church of God.

Now, we find out that these revelations come, and a man hears it. He recognizes it to be God, then he acts on it. The carnal mind hears it, says, “Foolishness,” and walk away from it.

Now, could you imagine, way back in the Bible times, when Noah was out in his field one day (and he was a farmer) and he heard the voice of God? And the voice of God said, “There's going to be a rain. It's going to cover all the earth. I'm going to destroy all the wickedness of this world. It has to come to an end.”

Could you imagine Noah going up and saying, “Well, maybe perhaps I'd better build me an ark, because it might rain”? No! The Word of God was revealed to him. Why, if he'd just took it like that, the first scoffer come by and said, “Why, look at that old holy roller,” he'd have throwed the whole thing up and said, “My, let's quit.”

That's the way people do when you say, “I got started; the devil made me go back.” The devil didn't do it. You did it yourself. Everyone that comes to God has got to be tempted and tried. They certainly do. A real believer has heard the Word of God, He's recognized it to be the Word of God, He'll act on it. That's all.

Now, Noah. Certainly not. The scoffers come by and made fun of him; he pounded away on that old ark. Why? He was positive that that was the Word of God that he heard. He recognized it to be God, and he acted on it. He was acting, and it came to pass because God said so. Certainly.

Could we imagine Moses, could you imagine Moses out there saying, “Well, I'll tell you what. I believe now I'll go down to Egypt again, where I failed once. I've been studying a lot of psychology, and I believe I could really put it over on old Pharaoh. I believe I've got ... I could take another degree. I believe if I was only somewhere where I could get it, they'd give me another degree, maybe a B.A. or D.D. or something. They might give me something else. Could you imagine Moses saying that, when his intellectuals had got him in trouble to begin with? But the trouble of it is today, the church is getting into that condition, the carnal mind.

Did you know that Moses was a missionary? You know that a lot of churches today (I just heard), that before a missionary goes over, the church will send him over, he has to be examined by a psychiatrist to see if he's got enough mental powers, to see if his powers is right in mental attitudes, before he can go over. Could you imagine Moses saying, “I better go down here somewhere and find me a psychiatrist now, to find out whether I've got the right mental powers to go down to Egypt or not.”?

Let me tell you, that's not only out yonder in the nominal church world; that's in Pentecost.

Could you imagine Moses having to ... have to stand before a psychiatrist to find out whether he's able to go down and take over Egypt, after he heard the voice of God? No, sir! No man has to do that. Psychiatrists don't call men; God calls men. The Holy Ghost is what sends men! When the church gets to that place, it's backslid miserably. Yes, sir. But they'll be that way—they're intellectual. God calls a man, makes a missionary out of him. The Bible said the first thing is apostles—that's missionaries. Second thing is prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists, and so forth. God set in the church, not the medical association, but God's Holy Spirit set in the church missionaries and prophets, pastors, teachers, and evangelists. God put them in church. They didn't have to stand before any psychiatrist. Never did, never will.

God gives a man a message, he hears it. He recognizes it to be God, then he acts on it. Nobody else's business, it's his business. God sent him on God's business. He's on the business of the King, and everything should make room for the King. That's right. You go to England and start down the street, have a message on the king's business, every policeman will direct the traffic, everything else, because you're on the king's business. That's right. Any country has a king, as long as you're on their business, you got the right-of-way.

I tell you, we ought to have tonight the right-of-way. Let me tell you something, brother, whether they want to recognize it or not—here it comes—we got the right-of-way! Amen. That's right. The Holy Spirit gives the right-of-way, if you'll only stick out your chest, and up your head, and march on. Amen!

I feel tonight, Brother Sullivan, like Joshua and Caleb did: “We are more than able to take it.” We're more than able to have a real old-fashioned God-sent Pentecostal revival.

God made the promise, “In the last days, I'll pour out my Spirit upon all flesh.” We're more than able to do it. The quality is right here. Right under here tonight is all kinds of gifts, all kinds of powers of God. The only thing, we're kind of taken back on it. Stand right up to it. Amen. God don't want cowards.

Old Joshua hushed the crowd and said, “Stand still a minute. This bunch of borderline believers here already tasted the grapes of Canaan, then afraid we can't take it. God promised us down yonder four hundred years ago that we could take it. We're more than able to do it.” On into the land they went and took it.

Not any of them that murmured ever did go in the land, and Jesus said, “They are dead.” Dead. That's eternally separated.

Said, “Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness for forty years.”

He said, “And they're all dead. But I'm the bread of life that come from God out of heaven, and if man eat this bread he shall live forever.” Amen.

What different food we got today! With this food that we're getting ought to give you a backbone like a saw log, and put plenty of knowledge in the gable end of your soul.

And as Buddy Robinson said, “Let me fight the devil as long as I got a tooth, then gum him till I die.” Stand up there to the collar and fight the thing.

You say, “But, Brother Branham, I just can't throw these cigarettes down.”

No, you just haven't hit ... got the right remedy yet. You just haven't got the cure of it yet. You just get the Holy Spirit in there and see how you can do it then.

Say, “I just can't keep from doing this.” Oh, you just haven't got the right thing yet.

Like David in the Old Testament. You know, he said, “There's honey in the rock.”

You know, used to be in their little scrip bags they carried some honey. When a sheep would get sick, they'd take this honey and put it on a limestone rock. So the sheep would go to licking on the rock. And when he'd lick the honey off the rock, he got the limestone in him by licking the honey. And it healed the sick sheep. Now that's what we need.

Now look, brother, I got a whole scrip bag full of it here. And I'm going to put this honey here on the rock Christ Jesus. Not on something else, but on Christ Jesus. And you sick sheep go to licking. I'm telling you, while you're licking on the honey, raise up your hands and praise Him! That's the way you do it! And in there, you'll get some of the limestone. You'll get some of God's healing virtue. You'll get some of the sins forgiven—not some, but all of them. And you'll get the Holy Spirit. While you're licking on that honey, something will happen to you. It'll separate you from the things of the world and it'll [unclear words] that you might live for Christ, do Christ. Certainly. Yes, sir.

Moses, why certainly he didn't go out to some school, or stand before some psychologists, to find out if he was able to go down to Egypt. He had saw that pillar of fire wound up in the top of a bush. And when he seen that, he thought.... You know what? It attracted his attention, so he begin to hear a voice coming out of there saying, “Now I've heard the cries of my people, and I've remembered my covenant, and I've come down to deliver them.”

First thing he did, he heard. And he recognized it was God because it was the Word. Now, when we see things going on, examine it by the Word. If God makes a promise in the Word, God'll send that to back it up. Amen. Oh, brother. Oh, how I like that. That hit me. I got some honey that time. Yes, sir. Oh, how He does it!

He had promised Abraham's father ... or, Moses' father Abraham, rather ... He said that his people would sojourn in a strange land for four hundred years, but He would bring them out again. And Abraham knew that God would do that. And now here was Moses hundreds of years later, and he heard that voice; and the voice was speaking to him was purely Scripture, so he was in action. Amen. There you are! Amen.

God promised on the day of Pentecost. When them people begin to scream out, “Men and brethren, what can we do?” Peter said, “Repent every one of you, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to them that's far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.” Hallelujah!

When I see a church speaking in tongues, shouting, praising God, prophesying, and doing great miracles and signs, I look down the Scripture. It's a promise. Then I heard, I recognized, and I went in action. Amen. I've been in action for thirty-one years with it. Glory! I feel good, feel very religious. Amen. It put me in action. That's what the Holy Spirit does.

You say, “What do I have to do?” Just surrender. He'll take care of the rest of it. I got in action. Moses was in action. It makes you act funny sometimes. Sure does.

Could you imagine an old man, now eighty years old, whiskers hanging way down like this, and maybe the hairs hanging over his shoulder, with his wife sitting straddling a little old mule, with a kid under her arm—her baby—and here he is with an old crooked stick in his hand, just a-hobbling along.

Some might've said, “Where you going, Moses?”

“Going down to Egypt to take over.”

How ridiculous to the carnal mind! They'd say, “Poor old Moses. I guess the sun got too hot on him, that's all.”

No, the sun might not've got too hot, the s-u-n. The S-o-n got close to him, that's what it was. That pillar of fire was in the burning bush. Remember, Jesus said He was that person. “Before Abraham was, I AM.” That's right.

Now, if you notice, God gives a promise, and when His Spirit comes, it fulfills that promise. Now, first thing, you hear it preached, then you recognize that that's God's truth, then you go into action. The carnal mind thinks you're just off the deep end. But the thing ... that looked like a one-man invasion going down to Egypt. Like one man going over to take over Russia. Sure, that's the same thing. But the strange part of it is, he did it. Why? He heard the right voice, he recognized, and he obeyed.

You say, “I can't do it.”

Yes, you can! If God speaks to you, recognize it to be His promise, go into action. See what God does. We'll take over.

The cripple says, “I can't walk.”

Yes, you can. Jesus said so. Amen. That's right. “Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe you receive them, you shall have them.”

Maybe the man's got cancer, says, “I can't live.” Yes, you can. God said so.

Say, “Moses, you going down to take over Egypt? Why, it's impossibility.”

“I'm going to take it anyhow.”

“What kind of a weapon you going to use?”

“This stick.” An old crooked stick.

“What kind of a weapon you going to use?”

Why, certainly! The thing of it was, God said so. That did it.

When God says so, the spiritual mind catches it, and that's all they need. He didn't have to have an examination by a medical doctor or a psychiatrist to see if he was able, had mental powers to do it. God told him so, and that settled it. So he went on. That's the way every believer is. They just believe what God tells them, if it's in the Word, the Bible said so.

Like when you Pentecostal people first started about fifty years ago, why, the churches said you were a bunch of idiotics. Why, it would burn down in twenty-four hours. Said, “There won't be nothing to that.” What is it? Huh! It's not burning down; it's burning up. Amen. The Pentecostal church is on the move. Most conversions, the Catholic Sunday Visitor had it here not long ago, that they had more conversions than any other church there was in the world, in one year's time. What is it? Men on fire. Men that has been by the burning bush. Men that's heard, recognized, acting on His Word.

They don't care what they're called. It's a birthright. They don't care where they have to preach, it's in the street corner or out in the barnyard, or wherever it's at. They'll preach the gospel, because they've heard and recognized it to be God, and they acted on it. And the Holy Ghost came. Their hearts are burning with zeal. They must go, young or old, or whatever it is. He hits the fields, because why? God called him. God said so. That settles it.

What if He took Elijah on Mount Carmel, when ... imagine him up there, and all these other people praying and saying, “Oh, Balaam, come do certain things.”

He said, “Kill me some ox and lay them up on there,” and got all the water poured on there.

They might've thought, “Well, that poor old fellow. You know, something's wrong.”

Maybe Elijah, if God hadn't spoke to him, he might have said, “Now wait a minute. I better be sure of this. Maybe that fire won't fall.” Oh, if you could imagine Elijah saying that! Because God had told him so. He recognized it was the voice of God. He said, “Bring me barrels of water. Pour them barrels of water on top of it. I know the fire's going to fall.” Why? He had to get things in order. He had heard, he received, and he was acting on what God said do.

If you don't believe God'll give you the Holy Ghost, hear it, recognize it, come up here and see if He will or not. You come with a clean heart, come with a sincere will, and surrendered to Him, and you believe it with all your heart, find out what takes place. Yes, sir. If it's not an intellectual conception of some mental something that you've had, if God's down in your heart a-calling you, He'll fill you with the Holy Ghost as certain as my name's Bill Branham. He'll sure do it if you'll act upon what you hear and recognize it to be God. But now as long as you say, “Well, it might not be. It might be maybe that preacher is telling me something wrong.”

Somebody wrote me here not long ago, and said, “Brother Branham,” said, “I tell you, we all believe you to be a prophet.” Said, “As long as the Spirit of the Lord is upon you and you're discerning people and things like that, that discernment, we know that's a prophet. But,” said, “your teaching is horrible.”

Why, brother, he don't even know what a prophet means. What did the word of the Lord come to? The prophet. What does a prophet mean? It doesn't all together mean a foreseer, a foreteller, or a forth teller. A prophet means this: that that is given to him to vindicate that he is an interpreter of the divine Word. Absolutely. Glory! How can you be so dogmatic? Shows you're carnal, when people do that. They got a little bit of creed or something that they hold onto, that they'll go read this catechism, or say something or other. But when it comes to the Word of God, brother, they don't know no more about it than a Hottentot knows about an Egyptian knight. Now, that's right.

The Holy Spirit gives record, God sends signs and wonders. That's why you find healing meetings amongst Pentecostal people. They've received the Holy Ghost. There's something in them that tells them that God's real. They look up to it and believe it. That's the reason the Methodists and Baptists are coming out. God's called them. “All the Father has given me will come to me.” Hallelujah! I feel like traveling on. Yes. “All the Father has given to me will come to me.” That's right. God knocks, you just answer.

Now, Elijah said, “I've done all this at thy command. What you commanded me to do, Lord, I've did it. I heard your voice, I recognized it was You, and I'm acting. No fire's fell yet, but here's the bullock, here's the water, here's the stone, here's everything. Everybody against me, I stand alone; but I'm acting.” Amen.

“Mama said if I went to the meeting again she'd run me away from home, Papa said he'd come and jerk me out of the meeting and stomp me, but, Lord, here I am. I'm here, I recognize, I'm acting.” That's it. Amen.

“Husband said he'd run me away, wife said I couldn't come back home no more,” what difference does it make? You hear, you recognize, and you're acting. Amen. I don't care what the neighbor says, what anybody else says, hear it, recognize it, and act on it. Amen.

Elijah said, “I done all this at your command, Lord, just as you told me. I heard You, I recognized it was You, and I'm acting on it. Now, there it is. ”Lord, let it be known today that I've told the truth and this is You.“ And about that time the fire begin to fall. You just get things ready. You hear the Word of God, and know it's a promise of God. God promised Elijah He would do that. There wasn't enough priests in that country to talk him out of it, not enough kingship in Ahab to ever fool him with it. He knowed God, he'd heard God, he recognized it was God, He was acting exactly what God told him to do.

That's the way you've got to come.

If this convention, if this Pentecostal convention of you interdenominational brethren, and denominational brethren, and whoever you are, Pentecostals, if you'll only recognize that we're living in the last days just before the coming of the Lord, if you'll realize that our churches are heaping up—the natural and the spiritual is coming together in that conflict. It's got to be that way. That's the reason God's calling out of Methodist, Baptist, Catholic, Presbyterian, everything else, receiving the Holy Ghost, because it's God moving. They're acting! If we can only catch that vision, there'd be a revival start on this campgrounds and we'd never leave here. That's right. It would be a wonderful time.

If we can hear and recognize that it's God's promise, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I'll pour out my Spirit upon all flesh.” Oh, if you could only recognize it's God's promise. “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel. These signs shall follow them that believe.” No matter what the intellectual world says, you don't associate with that. You heard, you recognized it was God's Word because it's in the Bible, then you act upon it.

I remember my own father put me out of the house. I had my clothes in a paper sack. Said, “You can't act like that around here.”

I said, “There's a whole big world to act like that in.” So I took off. Sure. I had the Holy Ghost, something burning in my heart. I heard, I believed it, I received it, I recognized it was God's promise: “'And I'll pour out my Spirit ... these signs shall follow them ... the promise is unto you and your children [that was me] ... whosoever will, let him come [that was me].” I wore great big thick glasses. My head shook all the time with astigmatism. I was only just a boy, like. But I believed divine healing. Why? I heard it, I recognized it was God's promise.

I went to my own Baptist church and said to the pastor, “Got some anointing oil?”

He said, “What do you want with anointing oil?”

I said, “I want to be anointed.”

Said, “What for?”

I said, “I'm sick.”

“What's the matter with you?”

I said, “I can't ... eyes is bad. I can't hardly see. Take these glasses off, and they have to lead me around, astigmatism.”

“Oh,” he said, “Billy!”

I said, “That's right. You ain't got any? I'll bring you some.”

I went down and got me some oil and prayed over it, and come up and handed it to him. He anointed me with oil like that. I said, “Hallelujah!” Here I went. That was it.

Doctor said if I ate one mouthful of solid food it would kill me. Said my stomach was nothing but one big bloody ulcer. And I went home, and Pop was sitting there, and we had some corn bread and beans (you know how poor people live). And I said (we'd never had a blessing asked at the table), and I said, “Will you all bow your heads just a minute?” And I know Dad looked at me, and Mother looked at me strange. I said, “God, I don't know how to pray, but somehow another I believe You. I believe that You healed me. I've been anointed and I'm taking your Word.” Now, Mama set me out some boiling water and prune juice, and that's all I had. Been eating that and graham crackers for about a year.

And Mother said, “You're not...? What you going to eat?”

I said, “Some beans and cornbread. Give me a piece of that onion.” Why, she thought I'd lost my mind. She called up the doctor.

The doctor said, “It'll kill him. Just as soon as that goes in his stomach,” said, “it'll kill him. It'll give him acute indigestion. He'll die.”

I said, “The doctor said that, but I have heard, I believe, I have received. Now I'm going to act on what I believe.” Hallelujah! Right.

I heard it. I recognized this to be the Word of God, this Bible. It come out of the Bible, “The prayer of faith shall save the sick. Ask the Father anything in my name, I'll do it.” That's what He said. I recognized it was God's Word, it was God speaking to me, so I went into action. Oh, my. What took place?

Sure, that's what Elijah done. That's what Moses done. That's what Noah done.

John the Baptist, after he'd been recognized as a prophet amongst the people.... Oh, you know, they thought John was a good prophet, too, until he recognized Jesus, and said that that illegitimate-born child (so believed among the people) that that fellow was the Messiah. Why, Jesus got out there and begin to lambaste them priests and everything. And, why, he said, “Why, John, you'll have to take that back.” Said, “Well, that man's just tearing down all of our community here. Why, he's saying there's going to be a baptism of Spirit come, and all those things like that, the sacrifice is going to be done away with, all those kind of things.”

John answered this, “He that said to me in the wilderness, 'Go baptize with water' said, 'Upon whom thou shall see the Spirit descending and remaining on, he's the one that'll baptize with the Holy Ghost and fire.'” Amen! He said, “That's all I'm doing. I heard that voice in the wilderness, I recognized it was God, and I went and baptized. When I seen that Spirit come down and remain on Him, He's the one that'll baptize with the Holy Ghost and fire. I'm only acting on what God said do.” Amen.

Yes, he seen, he heard, he recognized, and he went into action.

That's what the church needs. We hear it, we recognize it, but we're afraid to go into action on it.

That's what's the matter with the sick. Last night here when the Holy Spirit was baptizing the place over, I said, “Put your hands on one another. How many believers?” And everyone put up their hand. “Lay your hands on one another.” Then you ought to go into action after that. Praise God! Just step right out and say, “This is it.” Go into action, that's all.

You say, “Well, I had to take so many pills.” Oh, well, you did, but not now, see. Go into action on it, believe it with all your heart. Just keep on going, no stopping place.

John said, “I'm only doing what the Lord told me. I reckon I heard it, I recognized it to be God, I was born of peculiar birth, I've lived in this wilderness since I was nine years old, He told me to go baptize with water. And He said, 'Upon whom thou shall see the Spirit descending....' I never seen it on any of you priests. I never seen anything like that. I never heard no voice speaking out of heaven over you all saying, 'This is my beloved Son, whom I'm well pleased. Hear ye Him.' I never heard nothing like that over you. And that's the one it said ... and that's the reason I recognize Him and say He is the Son of God. I'm only acting on what I have heard and I've recognized to be God.” Amen.

Jesus Himself, when He was here on earth, He said, “I do that only which the Father shows me.” St. John 5:19. He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing except the Father shows Him. The Father worketh and I worketh hitherto.” In other words, He heard the Father speak, He knowed it was the Father, and He went and acted out just exactly what the Father told Him to do, see. You hear, you recognize, then you act.

That's why He went up around ... had need go by Samaria, and He found that woman there. How did He go by Samaria, when He was on His road to Jericho? See. But He went by Samaria. Why? The Father said, “Go up to Samaria, sit down there and wait.” That's all He knowed to do, sit there and wait. Here come a woman up. The Father said, “That's the one I want to talk to. Now speak to her.”

He went to speaking to her, and finally He found what her trouble was, and said, “Go get your husband.”

She said, “Don't have any.”

“That's right. You got five, and the one you're living with now is not yours.”

See, He heard, He knowed it was the Father, and He was acting exactly what God told Him to do. Amen. If we could only do that!

A hundred and twenty people went in an upper room one time, under a persecution. I can imagine hearing those people come by, say, “You know what? That bunch of holy rollers is up there for ten days. What are they doing for eating? [They're fasting.] I don't see the grocery boy going up there.” Oh, no. They were fasting, they were waiting. And said, “What do you know, they're up there. Why? They got the doors all barred. A fellow couldn't get in there. Go up this little old steps up here at the top of the temple. Just about one man at a time can go up to that room. And we get up there, why, you can't get in. So might as well let them stay up there, I guess, and starve to death if they want to.” Why? The carnal mind, yet they were religious. They were all up there at Pentecost, and they were very religious—the Esau bunch.

But, you see, the Jacob bunch was up there waiting because they had heard God say, “Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until you are endued with power from on high.... After this the Holy Ghost is come upon you: then you shall be witnesses of me in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the world.” What? “Wait first. Go up to Jerusalem and wait there until this promise comes.

“Lord, You've called us. Isn't that good enough?”

“Yes. That's all right.”

“You give us power to cast out devils. Is that all right?”

“That's all right. But I want you to go up there and wait.”

They heard God say it, they recognized that He wasn't some illegitimate person. He was God made flesh among us. And he knowed that was, so they went up to Jerusalem, because God said so. They went up there and waited. They recognized it to be God. And all at once they went into action. You know what the results was. They staggered like drunk men. They spoke in tongues. They... Oh, the awfullest outfit you ever heard in your life till people said, “These men are full of new wine.” No... [Blank.spot.on.tape]

It was Paul out in the ocean. (Closing now.) Paul, out in the ocean, obeying the commandments of God. God was having them to sail somewhere. They let loose of the shore. But when God told him to tell them, and he told them not to do it, but the shipmaster, you know, he was an intellectual, He knowed more about the sea than God did. He couldn't believe God's prophet. So he just let loose the ship and started sailing, and there was fourteen days and nights there was no moon or stars. The little old ship was waterlogged. All hopes was gone. They throwed everything overboard, just about, to unload the ship. And it was just all hopes was gone.

I imagine Paul was down there walking up and down the galley somewhere, or up in the bulkhead of the ship, saying, “Well, Lord, I'll come to You on the ocean, I suppose.” Just walking up and down having a good time that night, rejoicing, dragging those chains behind him. And all at once the next morning, here he comes running up on top of the deck. Them little old hands chained down, his feet dragging like that with chains behind him, shaking the hands like that, like a man hysterically, and saying, “Be of a good courage! Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!”

“What's the matter with you, boy?” That little hooked-nose Jew up there just a-shaking his hands and carrying on. “What's the matter, Paul?”

“Be of a good courage. Go ahead and eat something. You ain't ate for too long, been fasting too long now. Eat yourself something. Be of a good courage. Nothing's going to be lost.”

“What are you so sure about, Paul? What's happened to you? Have you gone out of your head? Maybe you fasted so long till you become delirious.”

“No, no. Last night the angel of God, whose servant I am, stood by me and said, 'Paul, don't you get scared. [Hallelujah.]' He said, 'There's not going to be any life lost.' And I believe God. It'll be just as He told me.” What? He heard, he recognized it to be God, and he was in action.

Before anything took place,

the moon was just as far away as it ever was, the sun was just as black as it ever was, the stars were still not shining, the ship was just as ready to go down as it ever was, the devil was sitting on every wave, a-cleaning his mouth and shining his teeth and saying, “I'll get him on the next one. I'll get him on the next one.” But the angel beat him there. Oh, my!

Paul heard, recognized, and went into action. Said, “Hallelujah. We're as good as sitting right on the bank right now. Why? God said so. It's all over. God said so. I'm on my road.” So that's just the way it was. That's the way it always is, hearing, acting and believing.

Oh, this great time that we're now in. Now, I'm going to say a few cutting things here in a minute, and I want you to listen. The great day that we're living in.... All these powers is gripping the world. That's why there's so many nervous people. Why, everything, the insane institutions are filling. There is a grip amongst the people. They don't understand what it is. It's these big powers coming to a head. Look here. Everything's at the head. Everything's at the end.

Look here. Let's take, for instance, politics, politics in our nation. Brother, if something takes place on this next one, it'll just need about one more wave and that's all. That's all. The carnal mind! Oh, my! How that they can do it! Everything's shaping right up exactly according to Scripture. Politics is rotten on every side.

Governmental laws, look at them. Look at our city laws. Buy them off for ten dollars. Yeah, depends on who you know, just buy it off. Too many other cities are like that in the nation. I know it to be true.

Other powers ... look at educational powers, look at science. Science has got down till they broke up atoms and molecules and what more, see, until they got to a place until national relationship is at the head. Now nothing.... Between the nations, there's a disturbance. That's what the Bible said there'd be, distress between the nations. Every little nation's afraid. Russia would push that bomb over here right now if they wasn't afraid we'd push one back. That's right. Now they don't know what to do, they're at the end of the road. Science is at the end of the road.

Oh, moralization is at the end of the road. Motherhood and womanhood is at the end of the road. The church is at the end of the road. The carnal church is heading right towards the federation of churches. That's exactly right.

And the spiritual church is at the end of the road! It's heading towards its head, the coming of the Lord Jesus! It's all heading up. That's right, heading up in the coming of the Lord. The Lord Jesus, the headship of the church, is coming. What's He going to do? Resurrect all the saints and give them a glorified body. Hallelujah! I'm glad to know that she's heading up!

It's heading up in two great things, coming to the end time: the mark of the beast and the seal of God. And the seal of God.... Any minister knows that the seal of God is the baptism of the Holy Ghost. That's exactly right. Ephesians 4:30 says, “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby you are sealed until the day of your redemption.” Amen! Why, I know you think I act funny. Maybe I ... I feel good. Oh, my. Coming towards the end.

Now, remember what is the mark of the beast? The mark of the beast is the carnal Esau to reject that birthright. Didn't Esau weep bitterly trying to restore that birthright again? But there was no place of repentance? When you reject the Holy Ghost, you seal yourself outside of God's mercy. Amen.

Now, you say, “Now, Brother Branham, if you'd tell us our diseases, and so forth, you'd be a prophet. But now you're....” Well, I'm still the same person. That's right. I've still got what the Scripture says. That's exactly right. Amen. It's still the truth. And it's heading up to the mark of the beast.

And people say, “Oh, there'll be a mark....” It's already marked. Just reject the Holy Ghost, and you're marked. Receive the Holy Ghost and you're marked. Amen. That's right. Receive it once and see what takes place! Receive it once. That's the mark of God, and you're sealed to your eternal destination. Like a car out on the road, the inspector comes by. Now if some of you didn't get the Holy Ghost last night that went in there, check up tonight. The inspector, the Holy Ghost, is here, coming, inspecting you over.

I used to work for the Pennsylvania Railroad. We'd load a car, maybe with cans and so forth, and the inspector would come around. He'd shake everything, see if there's any looseness. That's the way God does His church—shake it, see what's the matter with it. See if there's any looseness in you before He pours His Spirit into you. And if the church is a little shaky, He won't pour His Spirit into it. If you still love the world and want to do the things of the world, you'll never get the Holy Ghost upon that. You might get a confusion, you might get a stammering lip, you might get ... or you might speak with tongues, but still that don't mean you got the Holy Ghost. When you got the Holy Ghost you're sealed by God to your eternal destination. That's right.

When that inspector come along and shook that thing, and the car was good and solid, he shut the door and put a Pennsylvania seal on there. Woe unto that person that'll break that seal until that car has reached its destination. And when God sees that you're really sold out for Him and He fills you with the Holy Ghost, you're sealed by the Holy Ghost until your destination. Yes. “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby you are sealed until the day of your redemption.” That's exactly what the Scripture says. So don't get scared, just keep on moving. Receive the Holy Ghost. It's all winding up into that.

How the people that's honest, the true children of God, what they've got to live for today, what you got ahead of you, if you could only realize it!

Tomorrow night or the next night or sometime, I want to tell my vision to see what lays ahead of us. Everything lays ahead. How much we've got to live true for! How can you who once breathed the name of Jesus Christ go back out in the world and turn your back upon that blood that sanctified you? How can you do it? I'm persuaded you didn't have it to begin with. That's right. Every man that's ever tasted the goodness of the Lord, why, the things of the world becomes as dead as midnight. That's right. Come in and receive the Holy Ghost.

Don't play church. Don't act like your neighbor. Come in and say, “Lord, I want You to fill me with the real Holy Spirit.” Why would you take a substitute by shaking a preacher's hand, and be sprinkled a few times, or something like that? Why would you take a substitute of theology of some man-made creed when the skies are full of Pentecostal power? Amen. The real genuine Pentecost.

The believer, has something to live for. We ought to live like it, reaching every day for everything that we can get ahold of from God, leaving the world behind, burning the ship, every day burning the track behind you. Keep on moving, reaching, pulling, seeking, hungering, thirsting for God. Be real fanatically about it, just move on. A fanatic is an over enthused person. I'm really a fanatic. I'm over-enthused about my Lord. How did He ever save me? How did He ever give me the Holy Ghost? Why did He ever let me preach? How did He let me love people and people love me? Oh, I'm so thrilled over Him. I just keep reaching with all that's in me, stretching my skin to try to get to Him, just moving with everything that I've got. That's what we should do.

Reminds me of a story I heard some time ago. A bunch of American artists went down into Rome to study art. I seen, I believe in tonight's paper, where there's some artists coming in one of the cities here pretty soon to start an art gallery. I love art. God's in art, the right kind of art. God's in music, the right kind of music. God's in dancing, the right kind of dancing. God's in shouting, the right kind of shouting. Sin is perversion. It's taking the right thing and made it wrong.

Now, like a certain church was on (somebody called me here not long ago) ... a great church, and it was on the television. A fellow called me and said, “Come here, preacher, come down here a minute. I want you to see a television program.” And there was one of our great denominations in the church had some of the things covered over—not just in the Catholic church, this is a Protestant church—covered over the things, and was practicing this rock'n'roll. And they said that long has the church forsaken and overlooked the beautiful art of rock'n'roll.

Well, if that ain't a perverted spirit, I don't know what it is. Rock'n'roll is of the devil. I don't care how many religious songs people can sing, rock'n'roll and booglie-wooglie and that kind of stuff come out of the jungles of Africa. That's exactly right. It's the devil.

That's the reason I say this: that paint and make up (if you only knowed where that come from), it's a heathen trait. Look at them. Go over there to Africa and look at them women, how they make this mud and paint themselves, hundreds of years before your grandma ever used it. Sure. You see what it is? It's of the devil. It's got no business in the Pentecostal churches. It's got no business in them rings.

I tell you, we need a good old Holy Ghost washing, all the way from the pulpit plumb to the janitor. That's exactly right. A Holy Ghost washing, cleansing our people. Men, Pentecostal men, saying, “I just can't keep from smoking.” A man married two wives, and be a deacon in a church. Kick him out. Certainly, that's the thing to do. You got to get things.... The Bible said that the deacon should be the husband of one wife. That's exactly right. Some of them have two or three, in Pentecostal ranks. Brother, we can't have a revival till we get this thing cleaned up.

How can you build upon a foundation that's not right?

As I said to you last night, Mexico down there that built that beautiful city, but they was so sure they was going to make it so glamorous with all the outside. Now the city's sitting backwards, the big fine buildings are rocking back. Why? They didn't get to the foundation. Certainly not.

I heard a certain minister the other day bring a little child to the phone ... the microphone, four or five of them. And stood there (after he said there was no such a thing some great Bible teaching), brought that little child in, took a salt shaker and throwed three drops of water on their head and said, “I baptize thee in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,” and passed that little child on to be a member of the church, not six months old yet. Why, the poor little fellow hasn't got a chance. He got started on the wrong foundation to begin with. That's not even in the Bible. That's a heathen trait. It's not even in the Scripture.

Brother, we'll never get started till we get on the foundation and start right. Build by the Holy Spirit upon the Word of God. That's exactly right. No one in the Bible was ever sprinkled, no such a thing. The Greek word baptize means “be covered up, buried, hid away.” That's exactly right.

Now, but what do we do? We get a bunch of creeds and things, and go to living by them, and all such stuff as that. “Dr. So-and-so said so.” I want to know what the Bible says. I want to hear it, and recognize it to be God by His Word, then let me act upon it.

These artists, a bunch of artists went to Rome to study art. All of them would go out at nighttime, most all of them, get on a big drunk. Boy and girls would lay out together, just as some of the modern Americans do, lay out....

I went to a place here in this very state where they was having a convention, and I never was so embarrassed in all my life. There was a great big fellow sitting up there with a big hat on, all flowered up like this, all kinds of robes and things on. And the little boys and girls of sixteen and seventeen years old sleeping together in the hotel room. The next morning all of them coming down, bowing down to Father So-and-so. Oh, my! Just to think, perverting them poor children's mind into such stuff as that, when God raised them to be sons and daughters of God, to be pure and holy, sanctified by the power of God, washed in the blood of the Lamb!

I know that makes people hate me sometimes, but you'll love me when I meet you over yonder. I'll tell you the truth. It's the foundation. No matter what it costs, you'll be sincere and tell the truth. Recognize it to be God. “Be holy, for I am holy,” He said. Quit living in sin.

These people would go out and drink and carry on. But one young man, they noticed, that young man, he didn't carry on like that. He lived clean. At nighttime he come home and went to bed. He lived like a gentleman should live. And one day the old caretaker said, “I'd like to take a walk with you, son.”

He said, “All right.”

They started up the hill, walking together towards the setting of the sun. And he said, “Young fellow, you came over with that bunch of Americans, didn't you?”

He said, “Yes, sir, I did.”

He said, “I want to ask you something.”

He said, “All right.”

He said, “Why is it that you don't go out and drink, and carry on, and lay out with the girls, and things, all through the night, and come in the next morning the way they do?”

He stopped, put his arm around the old man. He said, “You see the way that sun is setting yonder in the west?”

He said, “Yes, sir, I do.”

He said, “Beyond that setting of the sun there's a certain state in the New England states.” And said, “In that certain state is a certain city, and in that certain city is a certain house, in that certain house is a girl. And that girl, I vowed before I came here, to be true to her, that when I return we were going to be married. She made a vow to me, a promise. Therefore, sir, all of my attention is attracted, as far as it comes to women, towards that girl at that place.” And he said, “I live today for tomorrow to come.” What a testimony.

What a Christian can say!

“Why don't you smoke?” “Why don't you have a little fun?” “Why don't you do this like the rest of them are doing?”

“Oh,” you can say, “beyond a certain star there's a certain city, and in that certain city is a certain person. Hallelujah! Oh, I live for Him for He died for me, and some day He's coming, and I live for that life that is to come.”

Oh, brother, believe me, I tell you the truth. I tell you what is the truth. God knows that I'm telling you the truth. You just believe me with all your heart. Maybe you can't understand this about the coming of the Lord, and the carnal church, and so forth.

And there's some of you, right from this state, wrote me a letter and said, “When the anointing is on you, you can discern spirits.” Said, “Then, of course, we ... then we believe you're a prophet.” Now, I never said I was a prophet; you said so, see. But you say, but then say, “In your teaching, Brother Branham, about all that fanaticism about receiving the Holy Ghost and all this stuff and living, we can't believe that. And all this other stuff about you were eternally, before the world ... elected, and....”

That's what the Bible said you was. I never had nothing to say about it, the Bible said that. I'm just saying what the Bible said. Yes, sir.

And the beast deceives all upon the earth whose names are not written in the Lamb's book of life before the foundation of the world.“ That's right. That's the reason people today, when you're not called, how can you come? That's right. I don't know who's called or who isn't, I just cast the net. And I might get crawfish and snakes and water spiders and everything else, but the only thing I can do is pull in the net. God's the one who judges, that's all. I tell you, the Spirit of God is here. And if the Spirit of God can tell me the secret of your heart, the Spirit of God can recognize His Word and come right back and preach the Word.

I've never preached nothing else yet but what was in this Bible. I've stayed right with it. I believe in the baptism of the Holy Ghost. “You said you was a Baptist.” I'm a Baptist that received the Holy Ghost. I received the baptism of the Holy Ghost. I believe in the second coming of Christ. I believe every word that's wrote in that Bible, and preach it just the way it's wrote. I don't turn one thing or spiritualize anything. I just say, “It's wrote, that's the way I believe it. I hear it, recognize it to be God, and act upon it.” Amen.

The Holy Ghost is just as real today as it ever was. We don't have to have any counterfeit make-belief. The real Holy Ghost is here. The real Jesus, He's not dead, He's alive. He is not dead. He told the disciples, “A little while and the world won't see me no more, yet you shall see me, for I'll be with you, even in you, to the end of the world.” I believe that. I believe that He said, “Wherever two or three are gathered together in my name, I'll be in their midst.” Do you believe that? That's what He said, I believe that. I believe He's here right now, don't you? He said, “The works that I do shall you do also.” Do you believe that?

There was a woman one time pressed through and touched the hem of His garment. He turned around and said, “Who touched me?” And when He did, all of them looked around and didn't know what to say. He found the woman, and told her what her trouble was, and she was healed. Said her blood issue had stopped. I believe that same Jesus is the high priest tonight, that same one. He just hasn't failed.

We're going to have a healing service one of these nights, bring the people up. Got a new ministry that's been given to me. That was my old ministry. Say.... No, there isn't any prayer cards, is there? No one's got a prayer card, because we haven't give out prayer cards. All right. If you believe this message come from the Holy Ghost....

How many sick people's in here? Raise up your hand, that you know that I don't know you. All right. You have faith and believe. You believe with all your heart. We'll see whether the same Holy Ghost that preaches the sermon is the same Holy Ghost that knows the secret of the heart. We'll see whether the Word comes ... the Word of God comes to the prophet or not. I'm not the prophet; He is. He's the one. You believe, have faith. May the Lord God of heaven grant it for His glory.

Will you believe this is the Word of God that I've preached if He'll do it? Just keep praying, be real reverent a minute. Just quieten a minute. Find the Holy Spirit moving on someone. Just keep praying, saying, “Lord God, I'm sick, I have need. I really need, Lord. I must have You. If I don't have You, I'll perish.”

This man sitting here. Did you raise your hand a few minutes ago, sir? You raised your hand? Do you believe God knows you? I'm a stranger to you, is that right? I don't know you, but God does know you. You believe that God can heal you? If I tell you what's wrong with you, will you believe it? It'll have to be truth if it is. You believe if God'll tell me, that you'll accept your healing? You will? Think the ulcers will be gone? Think you'll get well of them? All right. Got bleeding ulcers. That's right.

You've been a lot of places for them. You went to Mayo Brothers, I see you going to Mayo Brothers. That's “Thus saith the Lord.” Right. Right. And they turned you down. But God don't turn you down. Do you hear it? Do you recognize it? Will you act on it? Then in the name of Jesus Christ, go home and be well.

Do you believe God? Now the same Holy Spirit preaching the Word is doing the divining of it, making the Word real. Telling to you what? That it's the truth.

There's another ulcer case sitting right out there, man with no shirt on, black mustache ... or, mustache out there, no shirt ... collar open, I mean, here at the top, no necktie on his shirt. You believe me to be God's prophet? We're strangers to one another. But you have ulcers. That's right. And you want to be healed, don't you? You're not from this city. No. You're from Cleveland. That's right. Let me tell you something else. You got two handkerchiefs in your pocket that you're wanting to get ahold of me for me to pray for that for two loved ones at home. If that's right, wave your hand like that. Take it and put it on them, they'll be well, too, thus saith the Lord. Do you believe?

What kind of a spirit preaches? The same kind of a spirit that discerns.

Here, there sits an elderly lady, sitting right back there. She's praying for her son-in-law that was hurt in an automobile accident, sitting right out from that post there. Do you believe, sister, with all your heart, that he'll be healed? If you believe it with all your heart, you may receive it.

That heavy-set lady sitting behind her there has got high blood pressure, sitting right back out here by the post. If you believe with all your heart, believe that breaking out on you will leave you? Alright then, you can have it. Amen. Put your hand over on her. That's right. God bless you, sister. Amen. Do you love Him?

Way back in the back of the building, a man back there. You're praying for your daughter. I mentioned an accident a while ago; she was in an accident, too. She hurt her spine. That's right. Got a sister-in-law, got trouble with her neck, head also. You believe that God'll heal them? Mr. Golden, will you recognize God, being His voice speaking to you? Alright, sir. Stand up on your feet then. All right, go home and find them well in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The same Jesus, the same yesterday, today, and forever! Can't you get that soaked through you, that it's Jesus Christ, the Son of God? Can you hear? Can you recognize? Then act on it!

Every sick person that's in here, God's already healed you when He sent Jesus to die for you. Do you believe that? Then stand to your feet and accept Him as your healer and as your Saviour. Raise up your hands. Go into action. Get out of the wheel chairs, whatever it may be, in the name of the Lord Jesus. Raise up your hands and praise Him, and believe with all your heart.

Lord Jesus, we bring these people to You in the name of Jesus Christ. May Your power be sufficient, Lord, to grant this. And may every power of the devil turn loose in this building tonight, and may the people be healed. I cast out you, Satan. I come against you on the charge that you're a deceiver. I come in the name of Jesus Christ as His servant. I pray over these people while the Holy Ghost is anointing them. They hear. They recognize it's God. They're going to act upon it. Come out Satan, in the name of Jesus Christ, leave these people. And be healed, every one of you. Amen.