Be Not Afraid, It Is I

Good evening, friends. It's another privilege to be here tonight in the service of the Lord, to try to do what we can to help the people to know the Lord Jesus better. We've been having a great time this week. If there's some newcomers tonight, we are having just an old-fashioned revival. When I see people walk down the aisle here to accept Christ as their Saviour, go in to seek and to ask God for deeper walks with Him and to receive the Holy Spirit, that means that there is a revival in the making. So we're thankful, very, very, thankful for that. And I'm trusting that the Lord Jesus will bless us tonight exceedingly.

Now I want you to remember tomorrow morning's breakfast. I think it's been taken off just for ministers and their wives, but it's “whosoever will,” and somewhere here on the grounds of the school where the breakfast will be. And then immediately after breakfast I want to speak, address the group that's there, on an evangelistic message. And I would certainly be glad if you could find time in your schedule—being it's Saturday—if you could just drop in for a few moments and have breakfast with us and listen to the message.

And then, Saturday night, tomorrow night, at regular time—seven thirty, I think, is the beginning of the regular service again, tomorrow night. And then Sunday afternoon at two o'clock we're anticipating another great rally of praying for the sick, on Sunday afternoon—the leaving, before we leave the city. Thank you for your invitation back, and I trust if it be the will of the Lord I get to come back with you again sometime. It's been a glorious time.

Now, I don't want to take too much time tonight. I say that each night. We leave about ten o'clock or ten-thirty, or somewhere like that, but you're such a nice audience to talk to. Now I want ... because that tonight we're going to pray for the sick. 'Course each night we have prayed for the sick, I think—each night. And now, that we might get a good clear understanding in everyone, and I'm ... I will ask if you'll be just as reverent, and give me your undivided attention. Because sitting here and out in the audience is people that are here ... and if they do not get help from God they're going to be leaving us right away.

Now, what if this was your mother laying on this stretcher? What if this was your father sitting in this wheelchair? What if that was your child laying there?

You see, you might not believe in divine healing, but you've never been sick enough yet. You've never had the doctor to shake his head and say, “Takes God next. I've done all I can do.” You'll believe in divine healing then. So, you remember there's something written in the Scripture, if you would spurn Him in the days of your health like this, and when your calamity comes, He said, “I'll only laugh at you.” So it's best to know Him now while you're healthy and mentally right, and can walk up to Him and accept Him, and believe his Word and express yourself to Him. It's best to know Him now, that when the hour of trouble comes.... He's a very present help in the time of trouble.

Now, let it be known to everyone that I do not believe that there is such a thing as a man being a divine healer. Whether he's doctor, or whether he's a psychiatrist, whatever he is, there is no divine healer. There's only one healer and that's God.

Now we have doctors, and medical institutions, and scientists to research in medicine, which we are grateful. And as Christian people we should not let a day pass without praying for the help of those men who are trying in research to find something to help relieve the suffering. I think it's a real thing, a real Christian act, for men and women to pray for men to find something another to help us. Because what if it was you sick, see? You'd want anything that could help you. Well, then, when a person gets to a place that they have ... that the doctor can do no more for you, then I think we have a right to call on God, we who believe God.

Now it's undisputed in the Scriptures about Jesus Christ and the early apostles. They did, by faith, heal the sick. Jesus claimed that He never healed the sick. He said “It's my Father that dwelleth in me, He does the healing. And I only do as He shows me by a vision.” Now any Bible student knows that's true. St. John 5:19. Jesus never performed one miracle in his life without first God the Father showing Him a vision to do it; or He told something wrong in the Bible, for He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing in Himself; but what He sees the Father doing that doeth the Son likewise.”

Now, divine healing is not based upon some emotion. It's not based upon some laying on of hands, or some strange feeling or sensation. It's based upon a faith in a work that was done for you by Jesus Christ at Calvary. It's a finished product. And every person here tonight that's sick and afflicted, as far as God is concerned you are already healed, see. And every sinner here is already saved, for it was finished at Calvary. And now to the deans and teachers of the schools, if the old covenant, the old atonement, included healing, and this is a better atonement than the old one was, how much more has this got healing in it.

The Bible said in Isaiah that He was wounded for our transgressions and with his stripes we were healed. Now, someone tried to speak and say that was fulfilled in Matthew 12 when He said He took upon Him the infirmities of us, and He healed them that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, “He bore our infirmities.” That was a year and six months before the atonement was ever made. Then if that be true, where many trying to argue against divine healing, then the atonement had more power before it came in force than it did after it's come in force.

So you ... and I can show anyone, or any Bible reader, where that Christ gave his church—whether it's called Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Pentecostal, whatever it is—He gave them power to heal the sick. Now I'm asking for any man, any student, any Bible student or historian, to produce to me one piece of scripture where Jesus taken that power back from the church and told them they didn't have it anymore. He never took the power from the church; the church is afraid to exercise or to practice what Christ told them to do.

Now to the critic, a few years ago you could make remarks; but now we have tens of thousands of documented statements by doctors, clinics, hospitals, everywhere across the world, of absolutely outstanding miracles of blind, deaf, dumb, raised from the dead when the doctor pronounced them dead, documented statements. So there's ... the unbeliever's mouth is hushed. You don't hear much more of it, do you? Nothing to be said.

Now, that doesn't belong just to the Pentecostal people. That doesn't belong just to a certain group, or a certain man, or a evangelist come by like myself or Mr. Roberts, or some other man. That's to every believer. Not only to the pastor, but to the laity, to any man or woman that's borned of the Spirit of God, that's got faith in healing—has a right to pray for the sick just with the same results that any other man would have.

It's not ... I am not one of the believers in the Nicolaitane taking all of the ... conquer the laity and put it all on the pastor. It's in the laity. The Holy Spirit just doesn't baptize the pastor; it baptizes the laity too. It's all in the laity, and pastor is just one of us. Means “the shepherd,” pastor, which means “the feeder of the flock.” The Holy Spirit gives overseer to watch it, control it.

Now remember, if Jesus of Nazareth stood here on this platform tonight, wearing this suit that He gave me, and any of you precious people here would come to Him and ask Him to heal you, He could not do it. Now, that seems strange, but He could not—because He's already did it. You are redeemed, see. He would say, “If you believe it, it's already healed.”

Someone said, “I was healed, I was saved last week, Brother Branham.” I beg your pardon. No.

“I was saved ten years ago.” No, you were saved nineteen hundred years ago.

When Christ died He settled the sin question. And how can you ever preach salvation for the soul without preaching divine healing? because that sickness is an attribute of sin. Before we had sin we had no sickness, and sickness came because of sin. Maybe not something you done; something that you inherited.

Today in the private interviews, which, there's a place where you should see the Holy Spirit. There's men and women sitting here tonight that even ... the Holy Spirit goes plumb back today in to three generations; and brought down the people and told them their name, and what they did, and all about it, and why this thing was on this person; and took it off of him, and healed him standing right in the room. Tell them their grandmother, their grandfather, who they were, where they come from, what they did. The third generation they couldn't think, but the next generation brought it out, and the next generation. And then, to them, of course, they knew, see. He knows all things.

Now, that did not heal the person, but it raised them to a place that they had faith to be healed. That's the reason we do ... of acts. Why do we baptize? Water won't save you, but it's the obeying an act. Taking the communion won't save you, but it's following the commandments. You're only....

Beating on the altar won't heal you. Beating on the altar won't save you. You could beat on the altar until you just went out of breath and died there. You'd still be unsaved until you accept and believe that Jesus died in your stead. And you accept Him as your personal Saviour. Every minister in here could lay hands on every sick person in here and pray from now until day after tomorrow night. There'd never be one thing happen until you accept what Jesus did for you. So therefore it doesn't lay in ministers, in one another, but it lays in our own individual faith in a finished work that Christ did for us at Calvary.

Now, the first.... Now, many people has called me a divine healer, and other men have that. Brethren, surely you know better than that. If you believe ... if your pastor preaches salvation, and you get saved because salvation is in the Bible, and when you get saved under his preaching does that make him a divine saviour? No more did it make any other man a divine healer who preaches healing, because we're only ... we are confessing what Jesus said.

And Jesus is a high priest of our confession, sitting at the right hand of God to make intercession upon our confession. I know the King James says profess, and confess is the same word, but, a confession. And He cannot do anything for you until first you believe it, accept it, and confess that it's right. Then He's the high priest to make intercession on what you confess that He has done for you. That's just as plain as I know the gospel. That's ... frankly that's all I ... that's the only gospel that there is, is that. Now, everybody that understands that....

And another thing I want to say, before I ask ... or say again. Now, first, faith cometh by what? Hearing, and hearing the Word of God. Now, at ... that ought to be sufficient. It would be for me, it would be for you. If they don't believe your word, let them alone. But that isn't so with our Lord Jesus. No, it isn't so.

He sends gifts in the church. There's no one can deny that gifts isn't in the church of the living God. I Corinthians 12 says there is nine spiritual gifts in every body, and there's also five spiritual offices in the church. First, there's apostles or missionaries. Both of them means ... the word means “one sent.” Apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors, evangelists—they are all God's ordained gifts to the church. Pastors, evangelists, prophets, and missionaries or apostles, into the church. Those are sent there, and nine spiritual gifts put in every local body.

And why would some of you people... ? As great a church as the Presbyterian church, I have their folder, said, “Long has the Presbyterian church forgot the principles of the early church. We must get back into the Presbyterian church speakers with tongues, interpreters of tongues, gifts of healing. And the signs of the early church must again accompany the church, or we'll never go any farther.” God bless the man who wrote that. We've got to go back to the original beginning. We just denominated it and made man-made dogmas until we got the poor people till they don't know what to believe. It's a pitiful sight.

Now, remember, that what Christ was yesterday, He is today. And anyone knows, that reads the Bible, that his sign that He proved to the people that He was the Messiah.... How many knows what his Messiahic sign was, after this week's of teaching? Raise your hand. How many's here for your first time then? Oh, many. How He proved that He was the Messiah is because He was a prophet, for Moses said that He would be this prophet.

Now, I'm going to speak, and immediately as quick as I can, we're coming in then to pray for the sick. Now, remember, it's not just going to be my prayers; your prayers. And please, my friends, that's come here sick and afflicted very, very bad—sitting, some of you, in wheelchairs, some of you almost dying I suppose, some sitting out there in the audience, not a chance to live outside of God—just remember, what I say here I've got to meet you with that message at the day of the judgment and give an account for it.

What good would it do me to be here, away from my family and loved ones? What would I be doing here? I don't take money. It's not popularity. It's ... I don't ... I shun that. You know it. So what's it for? It's because that God told me, sent me; and showed me in the Scripture and confirmed it by an angel of the Lord that I was born to pray for sick people. And because that I love God and love his children, that's why I am here tonight. Exactly right.

Now at the judgment we'll all meet that. There's probably fifteen hundred people in here tonight, I guess that many. [A brother tells him how many.] Pardon, I'm a very poor counter. He says there's around nineteen hundred. I'd rather make it ... there's so many evangelistic count that tries to make it so much bigger than what a crowd is. I have preached before five hundred thousand at one time at Bombay, India. And in Durban, South Africa, it was discussed where there was 150-, 200,000. A hundred fifty-, two hundred thousand people is nothing in them lands. In Thailand and places like that where you ... really the people come out, and you see them by the tens of thousands and thousands.

That doesn't mean ... the crowds don't mean anything. It's the faith that's in the individual that counts. Jesus could never help the audience of one of the ... priests, or Caiphases, or some of those people. Neither could any of us in religious circles ever hold a meeting bigger than the Catholic church. You know that. But it isn't in.... We put too much stresses on how many people and try to boost up something. Don't boost up anything. Just be truthful about it. Tell the truth. Then you're always right.

And when you're going to talk about healings, don't try to say, “I got something in my hand. Feel it?” Well, you might feel your hand, but healing's not in your hand; it's in Calvary. It's in your faith, where it was finished at Calvary. And let the people.... That's ... and if you're a sinner, repent. Tell God that you're sorry, you're a sinner, and you're sick. Maybe sometimes He had to lay you on your back so to get you to look up. And then get right with God, and then everything'll be all right. You're more apt to get healed if you'll do that.

Now, I know it's hot, and I'm going to try to be just as brief as I can, so we can pray for the sick. Now all you people that understands that it is your faith in Jesus Christ that heals you, say “amen.” Understood.

Now, there's gifts in the Bible; and those gifts, what do they do? They only declare the presence of the one that made the gift. Now if Jesus stood here tonight Himself on the platform, and you knew that He'd come down from heaven, and you knew it was Him, and He stood here, would it raise your faith? Sure, it would. Well, He is here.

You say, “How do I know He is?” Well, then, if He does the same thing here in us.... Now, He don't have any hands. How many knows that? No, his hands ... your hand is his hands. He is the vine; we are the branches. And the vine doesn't bear the fruit; the branch does. But if the branch is energized with the life of the vine, it'll do the same things that He did. Then you know it's Him.

He said, “A little while and the world sees me no more ['course, the word there cosmos which means ”the world order“], but ye shall see me [that's the believer] for I'll be with you [how long?] to the end of the consummation, the end of the world.] Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever. And now to the ... may be spectators, I don't ... hope there's none of them here tonight. But if there is, don't be just a spectator; put your faith with these believers. Won't you do that tonight, for the sake of these poor sick people?

And remember, when Jesus came to his own country, listen what the Scripture says. We hate to read it like this but it says so. “Many mighty works He could not do....” You couldn't hardly think of Christ not being able to do it, but He couldn't. He could not do it, because of their unbelief. What did He say to the boy with the epilepsy, or to his father? “I can, if ye believe, for all things are possible to them that believe.”

What a joy it would be tonight to see man after man from these wheelchairs, person after person laying here dying on these cots, rise in the splendor of health and walk out! Wouldn't it be wonderful? Those out there—here sits a young lady, a beautiful young lady. I watched her last night, sitting here sitting bound in a wheelchair. Here sits a little lad laying here, with his stomach all wrapped down, his little hands, and perhaps maybe his mother a-fanning him. And how that mother's heart would jump for joy, how that little lady would feel, to know that something had struck her.

Now, it don't have to happen spontaneously. No, no. No, only thing has to happen is something happen in your heart, that you believe it. And when you believe it.... Now, there is such a thing as a mustard seed faith. You've heard Jesus speak of it.

Now a mustard seed is the smallest of seeds, which it was spoke of Him. But why did He say that? You cannot hybreed mustard. It won't cross with nothing. It ... you can hybreed kale, get red, and so forth. But you can't hybreed mustard. It won't cross. No, sir. It's genuine mustard. And if you've got great big faith, a miracle'll happen. But if you've got just a little bit of faith, and it's genuine mustard seed, watch it bring you right on through every case, and bring you right out.

So now, don't notice what happens to you now, but I want you to try to have miracle faith, or faith to be healed. I'm going to have faith for you, and do all that I can to help you to have faith, putting your faith.... Now I want us to bow our heads just a moment, and approach the Author before we approach his Word.

Gracious Father, the hour has arrived that when we must bring this Word to a showdown. We must bring God to a test, as it is written in the book of Malachi: saith the Lord, “Prove me,” saith God. What a challenge! “Prove me.” It is written that we should prove all things, and we read in the Bible that it is written that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and that He promised the church that what He did they would do after Him. We are told by the prophets that there would be a day that would not be night nor day—could be called neither. A dismal day, but in the evening time it should be light.

Father, we know that civilization has traveled with the sun, from the east coming westward, the early settlers, and so forth. Now the east and west has met. The same sun that rises in the east sets in the west. We've had a day, Father, where we have done great things by your grace. We have led people to believe on You, since that morning sun shone down upon the Eastern people. And out of it came forth a Pentecostal-filled church, with signs and wonders with the Son of God living in them—on the Eastern people.

Now, them were the Jews and the Samaritans, and the Greeks, but in ... the Gentile people is the Western people. And You said it shall be light in the evening time. We've had enough light in this dismal day to make great organizations and rise up great theologians, cause people to be borned again of the Spirit of God. But You promised that that same Son would shine on the Western people, and it would come to pass in this day that our Lord would make Himself known. Jesus promised it, just as He was then.

And there would be a latter rain, and it would show forth and be like the former rain, and both former and latter rain would be together. We know we've had many bogus names and cults that's went out by it, under it, but still the Word of God remains true. Now, heavenly Father, we pray that your infallible words, which cannot fail.... May You show Yourself alive tonight among us, by doing and performing the things that You did when you were on earth, because You promised it.

And You said when You were on earth You did nothing except the Father showed You first. And we pray that that will take place among us tonight and we will see the Lord God Jehovah, to which we're all worshippers of. May He come forth in his great power, and will shine forth his glory into every gloomy heart, bring forth faith, life.

We pray that every church that's represented here may go from here tonight with a fresh vision; and a revival spirit break out into this country and in the schools, that there will be prayer day and night, and hungering and thirsting. May the salt that seasons our life come tonight and make us all thirsty to be like Him. We commit the service unto Him now, the Author, who said Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. May He come shining forth through his Word, and then after, the Word shine forth in the people. And we'll praise Him for it with humble hearts, bowed heads. In Jesus' name, his Son, we ask it. Amen.

And in the sacred readings of St. Matthew's gospel, the fourteenth chapter and the twenty-seventh verse, I've selected this for a little drama for tonight. And I will ask that you will listen closely and quietly so that everyone in the back and around might hear because it's ... difficulty and the building hot. But I want to make it in a drama, like this little fellow here and the little ones could understand real plain.

But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of a good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.

I want to take for a text “Be Not Afraid, It Is I.”

Now it must've been about the time the sun was going down. It'd been a terrible day, hot. The crowds had come from everywhere and had gathered. And all were tired and weary, and the sun was way sinking in the west when the service ended. I can see the big brawny back of the big fisherman as he begin to move the boat off of the little Galilean shore, on the banks of the gravel, as he pushed it into the water; and the people standing on the bank waving, bidding them all “Come back to see us again.”

And as soon as the boat was pushed out.... Called a ship in those days, which was a large boat that usually had a sail on it. And when the winds were blowing they could make their travel faster by sail than they could by oar. And in the boat there were ... an oarsman sat on each side and sometimes taking six or eight, or maybe more, oarsmen to oar, because it was really a fish boat.

And this day the wind was quiet, as it usually does at the setting of the sun, and the blue Galilee was beautiful and calm. And as the little waves begin to float ... as the big fisherman climbed down through the midst of the brethren and sat down by the side of Andrew, his brother; picked up his oar, and wiping the perspiration from his face, waved back to the audience again as the thousands stood on the bank waving, and weeping for joy of what they had seen during the day. Every once in awhile the oarsmen would stop and wave again, as the ones on the bank, waving, “Come back and see us again, because our eyes have seen great things today.”

There's something about it, that when.... People always want to look a-past the curtain where they come from and who they are and where they're going. And there's only one book, of all the writings that we have, that tell us that. That's this Bible. It tells us where we come from, who we are, and where we're going. And when they had seen the author of that Bible, and had knowed that it was truly the Jehovah who created the creation, they were so happy about it they were wanting them to come back again.

And as they rode on through the twilight, and finally so far out they couldn't see any farther.... And they were waving farewell, and perhaps the last farewell, and they faded out of sight, as the little ship made its way with the little waves behind it, as the oarsmen pushed it into the depths of darkness of Galilee.

After rowing awhile, it must've been the young John—young men's usually full of enthusiasm, as a student—he stopped. Must've been he that stopped, and said, “Brethren, we are well out into the sea, now. I'm beginning to get a little bit tired, so let's stop just for a moment and rest.” And each man stopping, pulling the great oar into the boat, begin to wipe the perspiration from their foreheads.

Young John sat for a moment, he said, “Brethren [He must've said something like this], we can certainly rest assured that no matter what our priests have said and what the majority of the people think, we are not following some fanatic. We are following the Son of God. I was a little in doubt until today, but when I seen those five thousand people, longing to hear Him speak a few words.... And had come out in that hot sun, them mothers with those little babies and how patiently they sat; the ones that had the crippled and the lame and the blind, fanning them, trying to hear what He had to say. Then when they ... the question come for food. And we got this little boy (that had probably played truant from school) and had a little ... five biscuits and two little fishes, that He called, and had all of us sit down.”

He might've said something like this: “I climbed up on a rock behind Him to just ... wonder what He'll do. Because I have somewhat, in my heart, believed it, but it's been so real till I could hardly comprehend it—to be a man that eat with us, and slept with us, and walked with us, and talked with us, and was just an ordinary man. And I noticed Him, when He took those biscuits in his hand, them little loaves. He broke them and handed them out to we brethren. And as soon as those hands reached back, there was another piece of bread growed on to that where He had broke off.”

I would like to ask the scientist teacher of this school, or whatever school, what kind of an atom did He turn loose? Not wheat; but wheat growed, milled, shortened, baked, and ready to eat. What did He do? And when He broke those fishes—a fish sired, borned, raised, scaled, cleaned, and fried, and was there in a second when He reached for it—what did He do?

“And when they taken five biscuits, and fed five thousand people off of five biscuits and took up basketsful [I can hear young John say] that took all of the doubt away from me. Because I remember that my Jewish mother used to tell me.... Oh, I can remember her pretty, big brown eyes looking at me, and saying, 'John, my son, I want to speak to you of something's real, that'll mean something to you someday. Of all that you ever do, John.... My ambitions is for you to be something great, but above all things I want you to be a believer in Jehovah, as I and your father are, and are trying to raise you.'

“And I remember as a little boy, when my little eyes would look up to hers, and she'd say, 'John, when God Jehovah brought his people up out of Egypt, out into the wilderness where they had nothing to eat, Jehovah rained down bread out of heaven every night and fed all his children.'

And brethren in this testimony meeting, I would ask my mother, 'Mother, has God got a whole lot of angels that's professional bakers, and He's got a great big sky up there full of ovens, and every night He'd bake that bread, and bring it down by the angels, and lay it all out on the ground? Is that the way He done it, Mama?'

“She'd say, 'No, John, you're just a little boy, so you do not understand. Jehovah is a creator. He just spoke the Word and the bread came down.'

“Now, my brethren, this afternoon when I seen a man who eat with us at the table, who wears the same kind of clothes we wear, who cries when we cry, drinks at the same fountain we drink, has his ups and downs and flusterations as we do, but when I seen Him take that biscuit, break it five thousand times, I knowed He was associated with Jehovah. He was that same Jehovah that my mother told me that brought bread out of heaven, because here He was doing the same thing that Jehovah done. He was not....

“To me, from henceforth,” said John, “He's more than a man. He's Jehovah, because He does the works of Jehovah. And do not we remember that He said, 'If I do not the works of my Father, then do not believe me. If you cannot believe my teaching, then believe the works that I do. And if I don't do the same works that Jehovah done, then believe me not.' And there He did the same work that Jehovah did, and only Jehovah could do it.”

So to men today who teach that He was nothing but a good man, or merely some prophet, that social gospel won't stand up. He was God, the creator, represented in a body that's called Jesus Christ, the Son of God. John said, “That settled it for me.”

Well, of course, you know Simon. He's always got to put his part in too. He was an ignorant man, the Bible said, unlearned. He did not have an education. Fourth chapter of Acts says—or third chapter of Acts, I believe—said that he and John both were both ignorant and unlearned. I've been told that he could not even sign his own name. But Jesus gave him the keys to the kingdom because he had the revelation of who He was.

He had something to say. He said, “Well....” I can see him put his arm around Andrew, his brother, and say, “Andrew, I remember when you used to come tell me about some wild-looking fellow coming out of the wilderness, by the name of John, that was baptizing the people with water, saying that a Messiah was coming. Well, now, of course, I could not believe such a thing as that. But one day Andrew persuaded me to come and listen to this man, and to see if He really was the Messiah.”

And he said, “I have been taught by my father....”

(Now I'd just like to make a little statement here. Let's just dramatize him for a moment.) I can hear Peter say, “You know that I was a Pharisee. My father was one of the head men of that Pharisee church. And my father told me, one day when we got through seining, 'Simon, we have made our living day by day off of this lake.' [Now listen close.] We made our living. And father and I and mother, and Andrew and all, so that we would catch fishes every morning, we prayed that God would give us our daily bread, give us our fishing.

One day when Dad come in, and set me upon the bow of the boat, and said, 'Simon, my little boy, Daddy has always believed that someday the Messiah would come in my day. All of us Jewish people has looked for that. But perhaps I won't see Him. I'm getting too old. But, Simon, when He comes there'll be a lot of stuff go out before He comes that'll cause the whole country to be confused. There'll be false messiahs and everything come. But, Simon, I want you to be taught.' “

Oh, how it would do good if we American people would teach our children such things, instead of tap dancing and rock-and-roll and the stuff that we so do today, and just let them join the church—but tell them what to look for. “Now said, 'Simon, when He comes, our prophet Moses said that He will be a prophet. ”The Lord your God shall raise up a prophet likened unto me.“ And we as Hebrews are knowed to believe that God's Word comes through the prophet and nothing else. Now, I want you to remember, Simon, when He comes He will be this prophet.'

“And when I walked up into his sight the first time....” [Listen close—Simon testifying. We got a testimony meeting now out on the Galilee.) And said, “When I walked up first in his sight, when this man looked at me in the face, He said, ”Your name is Simon, and you're the son of Jonas.' Not only did He know my name, but He knowed that godly old father of mine. That settled it to me. I knowed He was the Messiah. That finished it for me.“

Philip said, “Can I testify, brethren?” So he said, “I was standing and seen that (Now, Nathanael, don't feel bad.), but I run to tell Nathanael, because I knowed that Nathanael was a Bible student. So I run around the mountain to find Nathanael, and I said, 'Nathanael, come see who we have found—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.' ”

And he might've said this: “Nathanael, you know where I found you?”

“Yes, I was under one of my fig trees, praying. Yes, and he said, 'Come see who we have found—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. That's the prophet that Moses told us would come.' ”

“Oh, now,” said Nathanael, “now, Philip, you've gone off on the deep end. Why, if the Messiah would come, He'd have to come to Caiaphas first, or He'd have to come to our church. If He was real Messiah, you know he'd have to come to us Pharisees. That's all there is to it. But just to say He would come out of Nazareth, a bunch of holy rollers [Excuse me. I oughtn't to have said that. Excuse me. I didn't mean that, see.], He wouldn't come to a bunch of people like that. If He ever done anything it would be amongst us smarter people, if He did it.”

But you see, God does what He wants to—that's his business.

And he said, “No one would come like that.”

And Philip gave him one of the best answers that any man could do. He said, “Come see for yourself.”

Now that's a good idea. Don't stay home and criticize. Come find out for yourself, and search the Scriptures, for the Messiah will certainly be scriptural. Come find out for yourself.

And when on the road around, I can just hear them talking. And he said, “You remember what ... we went, got some fish that time, and the old fisherman could not sign his name to it, that fellow called Simon?”

“Yes, I remember.”

“When he walked up into the presence of this Messiah, he told him his name was Simon. And do you remember his daddy?”

“Sure.”

“What was his name?”

“Jonas.”

“All right. He said, 'You are the son of Jonas.' Now, Nathanael, you are a scriptural student. What will the Messiah be when He comes?”

“He'll be a prophet.”

“Well, does that fulfill it?”

“Oh, yes, if He could do it, but I don't believe He'd do it.”

I can hear Philip say, “It wouldn't surprise me but what He tells who you are when you come up.”

Walked up then, and they got into the presence of the Lord Jesus, and Jesus looked around and seen him. He said, “Behold an Israelite in whom there's no guile.” Now you say because he was dressed.... No, all Easterners dress the same. They have beards, turbans, dark-complected. Said, “Behold an Israelite in whom there's no guile.”

He said, “Rabbi [rabbi means teacher], when did You ever see me? I'm a total stranger to you. When did You ever see me?”

He said, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the tree [fifteen miles around the mountain], I saw you.”

He said, “Rabbi, thou art the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.”

You remember what the Pharisees and the teachers said, standing there? Said, “This man's Beelzebub. He's a fortune-teller.”

Jesus said, “I forgive you for that, but someday the Holy Spirit's coming to do the same thing. And you speak one word against it, it'll never be forgiven.” That's today.

Now, what a testimony! Then it must've been Andrew (as I draw a little closer to my testimony). Andrew said, “Could I testify just a minute, brethren? You remember the day that...?” Now, it's getting darker and darker. The evening star had come out. And so said, “Could I have a little testimony?” (Is the lady just going out, she has to...? Is going out, she'll be back in a few moments? All right. I was going to say, if she.... Don't let her leave without being prayed for. We want everybody prayed for.)

So now said, “Do you remember that day that Jesus, our Lord, said that He had to go down to Jericho?” Now from Jerusalem to Jericho, if you've ever been there, it's right down the mountain. But He had need go by Samaria. Why? The Jews had heard it, and the Samaritans hadn't heard it. Now the Gentiles wasn't looking for no Christ.

And let me say something right here to you, you sick people. He only comes to those who are looking for Him; when you talk of Him, like on the road from Emmaus. And He only comes to those who believe Him. He will never have nothing to do with an unbeliever. He only comes.... And Gentiles, we worshipped idols in them days.

And there's only three races of people—that's Ham, Shem, and Japheth's people. That's where the whole human race sprang from; and that's Jews, Gentiles, and Samaritans. Look at Peter with the keys—opened it at Pentecost, opened it to the Samaritans, opened it at the Gentiles, and then she was free to the world, see.

Now, and so now we notice, said, “He sent us down into the city of Sychar there to get something to eat, some vittles. And you remember when we come up we was surprised. A woman with a mark of prostitution upon her was on her road to the well, and there was no one there. So we thought we'd just see what she said to our master, and see what He did when He met a woman. So we hid in the bushes. [Now listen close to the testimony.] And the first thing happened when He walked up ... she walked up to let down the kettle, the pot, for some water, started to raise up the pot like that, why, He said, 'Woman, bring me a drink.'

“And we thought, 'Well, did we leave our Lord without a drink of water?'

“And she said, 'Why, we have segregation here. You Jews shouldn't ask Samaritan women such things as that.'

“He said, 'But if you knew who you were talking to, you'd ask me for a drink. I'd give you water you don't come here to draw.'

“Said, 'Well you have nothing to draw with.'

“You remember, the conversation went on, and we were listening. And after awhile He looked her right straight in those big brown eyes of hers, and said, 'Go get your husband and come here.' And the woman flatly denied of having a husband.

“And we thought, 'Oh-oh, oh-oh, here's a slip-up. Now what's He going to do?' He tells the woman that she has a husband and go get her husband, and she says she does not have a husband. You remember, brethren, how we looked at one another?

“And then we noticed our Lord, in his still manner, as He looked her in the face, and said, 'Thou hast said right, because you've had five husbands; and the one you're living with now is not your husband, and you said well.' And that woman, did you remember, brethren, what she said?”

How much different her testimony was to the preachers of that day. The preacher said he was a fortune-teller, a devil, Beelzebub. Anybody knows that fortune-telling is of the devil. And that's the reason that Jesus said to speak that, to call the Holy Spirit working a fortune-teller or a devil, was blasphemy of the Holy Ghost and was unpardonable—calling the Spirit of God a devil.

So then he said.... That woman looked Him in the face, and her in her condition, a sinner.... (I hope I don't hurt anyone, but I've got to say something.) In being a prostitute, living with five husbands, six husbands, she knowed more about the Bible than half of the scholars in this nation knows.

What did she say? She looked straight at Him. She said, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.” Not Beelzebub, like the preachers said, but a prophet. Said, “We know, we Samaritans, we know that when the Messiah cometh, He'll tell us all these things. That's the sign of the Messiah, when He comes. We know Jesus, who ... I mean, Messiah, who's called the Christ, He'll tell us these things. That's the sign'll follow Him, because He's a prophet. You must be a prophet also. But the Messiah.... We haven't had a prophet for hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of years, so ... but when He comes He will tell us these things. You must be one of his servants.”

Jesus said and the only one that ever could say it, or ever will say it—He said, “I am He whom you're looking at. I am that Messiah.”

She dropped that water pot. She had something more interesting then than the waterpot. Into the city she went, and here's what she said to the men of the city: “Come see a man that told me the things that I have done. Isn't that the very Messiah?”

What would they say today? Mental telepathy, psychology, mind-reader, fortune-teller. No wonder we got an atomic bomb with our name on it. You've got to spurn mercy, and there's nothing left but judgment after you've spurned mercy. That's right. You step over the borderline. You do it so simple. Many people think you have to do something great. Why, if they had only knowed who John was.... You'd never know who's who until they're dead. He comes to the elected church and that's the only one that knows Him.

I challenge you to go back to the Bible and find any prophets that they didn't do the same thing. Jesus, they didn't know who He was until He was dead, buried, and rose again.

Let me ask you Catholic people something. What about your saints? What about Joan of Arc. You were so infallible. What did your priests do to that woman? She was a prophetess. She saw visions. She prayed for the sick and they were healed. And what did your church do? You burned her to the stake as a witch. Oh, of course, you seen your mistake a hundred and fifty years later, and you done repentance—dig up them priests' body and throw it in the river. That's a lot of repentance. It goes right over the head of the wise and prudent, until it's past; and then they're already in judgment.

Let me say to you, church, the true Holy Spirit is here in this nation tonight, in this world tonight. Don't you let it pass over your heads. Recognize it now. Healing's here for you, the Holy Spirit forgiveness of sins, all the benefits of Calvary is for you. Don't pass it by. Don't close yourself in on some denominational doctrine and forget to look at the Bible. See if this isn't the day that we're supposed to see these things. Don't notice a bunch of illiterate preachers, maybe like myself, that's trying to explain it, but look at what the Bible says and watch what it does.

If it's the Spirit of God it'll act like the Spirit of God. It'll do the things the Spirit of God did. If it doesn't, then it's not the Spirit of God. If I preached the baptism of the Holy Ghost, that Jesus was raised from the dead, and God doesn't confirm that with the same works that Jesus did, then I'm a liar. But if I preach that message and God turns around and does the same things, if I don't even have a grammar school education what difference does that make? It's God using something. He can use a stick if He wants to. He can use anything He wishes. He's God.

Now, let's let one more testify, will you? It must've been brother Matthew said, “I know it's getting a little late, brethren. But let's let me testify.” Said, “Do you remember when we got down in Jericho that day, you remember that little brother Zacchaeus down there? He was a businessman, a tax collector. We always thought he was a little shyster [Excuse that expression. I didn't mean it that way.], just a little renegade. But you know our sister Rebekah, she was a believer on Him. She believed the Lord Jesus. And you remember how she asked all the women to pray down in Jericho, when we heard that Jesus was going down to hold a campaign.

“And when He got down there in Jericho.... Little Zacchaeus told us later, you know. One morning he got up early. He knowed Jesus was coming, so he went down there. And he was a little bitty short fellow. So he stood up to the gate where He was to come in, the South gate. And he noticed he was too little. He couldn't see Him. He said, 'Whenever I see that fellow, I'm going to give that holy roller a piece of my mind.' ”

Remember, He was called a heretic. He was called an insane person. We know that. “You're mad, and have a devil.” Is that right? What does mad mean? Crazy. “We know that you're a Samaritan, you're crazy, got a devil on you. That's what's doing all these things. You're a devil and mad. You don't join our organizations, so we know you're a devil.” Now that spirit still lives.

Now we notice that he said, “I'll just wait. Rabbi Levinski....” I hope there's not a Rabbi Levinski here. [blank spot]

“Sure, Jehovah just expects you to come on to church, and pay your tithe, and live a good life, and that's all. Don't.... Look, that Messiah may be a million years from now, might not even come at all.” There's a lot of Bible schools today teach that, the physical. I believe it's eighty-something percent of the so-called Christians don't believe in the physical return of Jesus. I heard it. I got some government statistics there of the different denominations and I forget.... It's worse than that, that don't believe in the virgin birth. How can anything happen? How can we build a revival in this nation? When you take the virgin birth out of Christianity, you knock the foundation from under it.

If He was the blood of a man, then He's no more than I am, or you are. But He's the blood of God. God, Holy Spirit, overshadowed the virgin and created a blood cell, and that's the blood of God. The Bible said we are saved through the blood of God. Not a man; God. But they deny it.

So little Zacchaeus, little bitty short fellow, he said he got up that morning.... Let's give him a little drama, for this little girl sitting here. Watch him (her little bright eyes, and little hair combed down), I can imagine seeing....

You know, Rebekah, his wife, she believed Jesus, so she was just praying all the time. “O Jesus, I pray Thee, that whenever He comes into the town here that my darling little husband.... He's a good man, but he's just all tied up with them—all kind of Kiwanis meetings, and lodge parties, and all these things.” Now I ain't saying nothing on Kiwanis now. That's all right, see. Just some people take.... Because I believe that the Masons are all right, but the Mason Lodge will never take the place of the church, or the blood of Jesus Christ. All my people are Masons, and they're all right as a lodge, but it won't take the place of the church.

And the trouble of it is, you've got the church till it's no more than a Masonic lodge, or any other lodge. The church is a house of God where Christ lives and manifests Himself amongst the people. That's right.

Notice, so Zacchaeus, see.... I see him go out there. He said, “Now here they're climbing all over the gates and everything else. I'd never see Him, so I'm going.... Here, I know He always goes down Hallelujah street [He still does], and He turns on Glory avenue. And so I'm going down there to the corner and wait for Him.”

So he goes down there, and he has his best garment on, you know. He was standing down there on the corner with his best garment, all groomed up, you know. “Wait till I see that there so-called prophet from Galilee. I'll tell him a piece of my mind when I see him. He don't know how many degrees I got. And my good friend, the Rabbi, has taught me a lot of things. I'll tell him something. And I'll tell him if He don't quit with his witchcraft around my wife, I'm going to do something to him. I'll give Him a piece of my mind. I'll not have my wife out there on those long night prayer meetings and things. No, sir. She's left the clubs, she quit playing cards. She's got ... oh, my, got all ... the Rabbi's wife and all them, all these other people, all tore up, I tell you, with that fanaticism. I'll tell him when I see him.”

Standing there grooming his little self, he thought, “Wait a minute. That crowd will follow him. [That's right. They usually do.] That crowd will follow him. So if he comes up here, well, I'll be no better off than I was down there.” So he says, “You know what I believe I'll do. There's a sycamore tree standing there, so I believe I'll just get up there. When I get up in that tree I'll tell him when he passes by!”

So he looks around, and say, there set the city garbage can sitting there. “Well, maybe if I could get that over here ... I can't shinny up the tree.” (Shinny—I meant climb up the tree, see. Excuse my language. I'm just a Kentuckian.) So he goes over and gets his arms.... Now he backs off. “My, I got on my best clothes. How can I...? I couldn't be caught with that garbage can.” But there's something another about it. If you're trying to see Jesus, you'll manage someway to see Him. You'll do things you didn't think you did. You didn't think you'd ever do it, but you do it anyhow—if you want to see Jesus. You lay where some of these people are, and you'll just lose all of that old prestige.

So he slips over and holds his nose and gets the garbage pail. (You understand, honey?) Here he comes over, you know, packing....

And he happened to look up, and here's his competitor, saying, “Well, you know what? There is Zacchaeus. He's working for the city now, the garbage disposal.”

Well, he was determined to see Jesus, so he didn't care. Maybe some of you all might feel the same way. Some doctor of divinity sitting back there saying, “I wouldn't want to be caught amongst this bunch of people,” but you're exposed now, brother. You're ruined now. But if you're determined to see Jesus, you don't care anyhow. That's right. You don't care anyhow.

Here he comes with the garbage pail, walks over and sets it down by the tree, and shinnies up the tree and gets up there—sits up there picking splinters out of his hand, wiping the garbage off his new clothes. But he wants to see Jesus.

He said, “You know what? I remember Rebekah told me that that guy was a prophet. Now I believe there's a hoax in that somewhere. [They still believe the same thing: there's a hoax in it somewhere.] Those disciples, somehow they work it up among them, something another. They go get somebody that he knows, and he tells him them things. So I know ... you know what? I'll tell you what I'll do. I'm just going to hide from that fellow.”

So he sat down where two limbs meet. And you know, that's a good place for you to sit awhile, where two ways meet—yours and God's. Make your decision from there. So he sat down on this limb, and he reached over and got some of the big sycamore (Sycamore ... actually it was an olive tree.) So he just pulled over the ... and covered himself all up everywhere. Said, “He'll never see me sitting up here, but I'm going to get a look at him when He comes by.” He covers himself all over, and he leaves one big leaf there so he could raise it up and look out, like this. So he sits there.

And he says, “Now, I'll be able to know, because somehow or another, everywhere he's at there's a lot of noise.” You know, that hasn't changed. Where Jesus is, there's usually a lot of noise. So he said, “I'll hear the noise coming a long time before he gets there.”

So after awhile he heard the noise. And coming in front a great big, sturdy, fellow finally, Peter, saying, “Will you stand aside? We're very sorry. Our Master's tired. He preached all night long last night. He healed many of the sick. Would you stand aside, please? We're sorry. People with their children, well, would you just stand aside, please? Our master has got to have his breakfast yet this morning. Would you just stand aside?”

So Zacchaeus said, “That ain't him. That's that old ignorant fisherman up there I used to buy fish from. That ain't him.” So about that time, he said, “He must be a great big, princely, guy with a crown on his head, walking sturdy, you know.” You know, I hate to see anybody put on the dog. That's a stuffed shirt. That's not a man of God. So here ... but they noticed when He come along, a little humble fellow. Not with his collar turned around in the back, and turbans on top of his head; but he was just an ordinary man dressed like an ordinary man.

So as He comes walking by, Zacchaeus pulled his leaf down, said, “You know, there's just something about that man that I like.” You can never get a glimpse of Him but you love Him, I don't care who it is. I know the first time I took a look, by faith I saw Him, what He was. Put my hands on his feet, seen Him dying there for me, and looking down to me. Oh, that was enough!

Zacchaeus pulled his leaf down, said, “Oh, is he coming closer? Now he can't see me. He won't know I'm here. Now he don't know, because if he'd see me up here.... But he can't see me, because I'm all covered up. I'm in this tree, a little bitty fellow sitting up on this limb here, and I'll watch him.” So we noticed Him. He come walking, just as his ordinary manner, walking quietly, walked down. I can see little old Zacchaeus looking under the tree leaf, like this, you know, looking as He come by. When He just got passed by, he raised his leaf up.

Jesus stopped, said, “Zacchaeus, come down. Going home with you for dinner.” Not only knew he was up there, but knowed what his name was. That settled it.

“Well,” he said, “remember when we was going out the gate, blind Bartimaeus ... when blind Bartimaeus said.... He'd been sitting there, thinking about how that Messiah would be when He come, and so forth; and how that if the prophets lived, he'd go by and ask him for to receive his sight. And all at once he heard them coming by, a howling mob—there we were again. And he was sitting there shivering in the cold. You remember his testimony? And he said, 'Who goes by?'

Said, “Everybody said, 'Oh, shut-up.'”

“And he heard somebody holler, 'Hey! Hey, you! You, the Galilean prophet! You! We hear You raise the dead!' It was a priest. Said, 'We got a whole graveyard full of them up here. Come up and raise one for us—we'll believe you.' [That same old devil still lives, you know.] 'We heard you raised the dead. We got a graveyard full of righteous men dead up here. Come raise one of them—we'll believe you.'”

Never bothered Him a bit. He just kept walking on. The souls of the world was resting upon Him. He was going to Calvary, going up the hill.

Bartimaeus said, “Who passes?” and they shoved him down.

After awhile some nice, courteous lady come by and said, “Oh, poor fellow.”

Said, “Who's passing, lady?”

“Oh,” she said, “don't you know who it is?” Said, “It's Jesus of Nazareth.”

“No, I don't know who Jesus of Nazareth....”

“The Galilean prophet?”

“No, I never heard there was such a person.”

“You know who the Son of David is, coming to be?”

“Oh, the Messiah?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, if I could only see Him.”

“How do you know it is?”

“I'm one of his followers.”

And I want to say something here. His followers always show courtesy to everybody. They're ready to help somebody, ready to do something for somebody else, his true followers.

And said, “Yes [And might've ... let's say it was Rebekah.]. My husband was just saved a while ago, and I'm so full of joy.”

“Well, now, you mean that that is the Messiah that we're taught was to come? The prophet that Moses said? How far is He?”

Now if you was ever there, and looked where he was supposed to be sitting, he was a good two hundred and fifty yards away, with about four or five thousand people screaming “Hosanna to the prophet, Hosanna to the prophet; other one hollering, ”Away with him!“ and throwing overripe fruit at Him and things like that. All those kind of things, how could He have ever heard ”Jesus, Thou Son of David, have mercy! Thou Son of David, have mercy!“

So let's think that Bartimaeus thought this: “If He is that Messiah, He's a prophet.” I can just see him kneel down on his knees, shivering, and saying, “Oh, Jehovah, your Messiah, that I've longed to see all my life. And if that's Him passing by, let me touch Him, Lord. I can't get to Him, but can my faith reach Him? Oh, let me touch Him, Lord.”

About that time, Jesus stopped, and said, “Bring him here.” He couldn't have heard him—he was too far away from him, with all that hollering mob—but his faith stopped Him. And look where he was going—to Jerusalem with the sins of the world on Him. But look, the faith of one blind beggar (amen) stopped Him. And the faith of one person here tonight will bring Him from glory down here to do the same thing.

Oh, we could go on with the testimony, but I've got to hurry. Yes, I'm past time. Just let me wind up one more little statement. They were testifying. You know what? While them brothers was testifying, the devil happened to look over the banisters, over there somewhere over across the hill, and said, “Oh-oh. Oh-oh, I got 'em now. They went off without Him.” And that's what the church has done today. We've had such big building programs, so much money, so much fashions, trying to pattern after the next people, till I'm afraid we've gone off without Him. Our lives prove it—gone off without Him.

Devil says, “Now I can get 'em.” So he began to blow his poison breath. The sea began to go plumb to the bottom, with big waves leaping up. That's what he does today when he sees you go off without.... A church just as a bunch of cold, formal, theology; an amen would cause somebody to stretch their head around, wondering what happened; no spirit, no more all-night prayer meetings, no more burden for the sick, no more burden for the dying, no more burden for the sinners. Then he begins to blow his poison breath, saying, “And the days of miracles is past.”

He begins to whip the little boat from side to side. “Is it real? Could it be real? Maybe we've been wrong. Maybe our fathers, who said to receive the Holy Ghost, maybe it's wrong. Wesley could've been a little out of his head. Luther could've been wrong also.”

Knox, Calvin, all those fellows, and John Wesley, preached divine healing, and believed in divine healing, and practiced divine healing. Every time we ever had a revival any time through the history it started with divine healing. That's right. See if Luther didn't heal. The rest of them, all the way down, practiced divine healing. Then they organized it, and then the winds begin to blow; because when you organize it you go off without Him, and you got your own theology then. If you'd make your doctrine and end it with a comma—“We believe this, plus as much as that God will reveal to me.”—that's all right. But when you write up your doctrine, you end it with a period. “We believe this and that only.” Then you've shut God plumb out of the thing. God just keeps moving on. He just moves.

The pillar of fire, as soon as Luther saw it he come out of the Catholic church. What did they do after Luther's death? They built an organization under it. The fire left. John Wesley saw it. He wanted sanctification. He went out after it. Left Luther, left the Anglicans, and went out after it. What did they do after Wesley and Asbury and them died? They made an organization. God pulled right straight out and went to the Pentecostals. Here they saw it and away they went with the baptism of the Holy Ghost. What did you all do? Organized it, and He's pulling right away from you, going right on.

He'll just go right on, because you go to fighting and fussing with one another. When you do that, you're finished. You are finished, brethren. God is love. “... this will all men know you're my disciples, when you have love one for another,” with a hand out and a heart out. Some of the finest people in the world is in these churches, but the system of the thing, you see, is what gives it. Fine people in the Catholic church, but it's the system that keeps them from serving God.

Now, he saw them, and there they was, tossed about, all hopes gone. That's where you're laying, where you're laying—this poor mortal, laying here just about dead, that little baby. You out there with the heart trouble, with cancer, that's where you're at, just all hopes about gone. But you know what? In all of our sin, in all of our differences, let me give this encouraging word before we pray. He hadn't left them. He climbed the highest mountain there was, so He could watch them. All the way across, He was sitting up there watching.

When He died at Calvary, brother, He never left us. He climbed the hill of Calvary, on and above the moon and stars, on and above the Milky White Way, until He sat down at the right hand of God in heaven. And his eye is on the sparrow, and I know He's watching us tonight. He hadn't gone so far. He seen them in trouble. He saw the devil was about ready to get them. He sees the devil is about ready to get you-all. He sees that—just about ready. You're going to a premature grave. Some of you is going as a sinner, if you don't repent. Some of you will go premature because Satan's sickness has set in and gripped the life out of you. But remember, He's sitting on high, a-watching, waiting to confirm his Word. He watches over it to confirm it. Is that right?

What happened? When the oars had broke, the mast pole had fell, the little ship was water-logged.... That's about like our churches are tonight—water-logged. Fussing about all kinds of baptisms and everything else, we're water-logged. Baptizing this way, sprinkling, forward, and fussing, arguing, carrying on—the oars are broken, the sails are gone and there's no more rushing wind. If it come it couldn't blow us anywhere. There you are, see, all gone.

But here He come walking on the water. Oh, my—walking on the water. And what did the disciples think when they saw Him come walking? They thought He was a spook. They said, “Oh, it's a ghost. Oh, we're scared. We're afraid if it gets right ... oh, it's spooky.”

“Don't have nothing to do with it. It's mental telepathy. It's fortune-telling.” Just as they did then so do they do now, same thing. Afraid of it. “Well, our church don't teach that. I'm afraid of it.”

But the Bible teaches that. If He could speak tonight, you know what He'd say? “Be not afraid, it is I.” And if it's Him, He'll do his same works. Jesus said, “If I do not the works of my Father then believe me not. But if I do the works of my Father, then believe the works.”

If I told you (listen, in closing), if I told you the spirit of an artist was in me, well, you'd expect me to go out here and paint a picture, like the artist, if that spirit's in me. Is that right? If I told you the spirit of a mechanic was in me, you'd expect me to understand almost the beat of that motor, what was wrong. If I told you the spirit of John Dillinger was in me, I'd have guns, and be dangerous to stand before me, if that spirit was in me. If I told you the Spirit of Jesus Christ was in me, then I'll do the works of Jesus Christ. So will his church, because that's his life.

Now what He was then, and what them people testified of, if He will do that same thing tonight, will you realize that your faith has called Him from glory to this building tonight? Will you accept it? Then what would you say? “Be not afraid,” that's what He'd say. “It's I.”

Some of you say, “What is it, Brother Branham?” Every night when this meeting starts, I feel you say, “You know, I believe he's reading their mind.”

One says, “It's telepathy.”

One says, “It's nonsense, brother.

You're only sealing your own doom. If He could speak Himself, if that isn't the same Word He.... How many knows that Jesus Christ is the Word of God? 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. Is that right? How many knows that Hebrews, the fourth chapter, the Bible says that the Word of God is sharper than a two-edged sword? That's preaching—slice her down, cutting both ... two-edged coming and going.

Some people thinks humility is something that ought to wear a skirt. No, no. You misunderstand that. Jesus, the humblest man that ever lived, He could plait ropes together and look on them with anger, and run them out of the temple. Yes, sir. Certainly.

You say, “He had compassion.” He did. Why did He pass through thousands of people that were laying blind, halt, withered, and found a man laying on a pallet, maybe he had prostate trouble? He could walk. He said, “When I'm coming down, somebody beats me.” He ... wasn't going to kill him—he had it thirty-eight years. And the Bible said He passed through great multitudes of lame, blind, halt, and withered. Is that right, brethren? A compassionate God, passing through that kind of people, and found a man laying on a pallet.

How many knows what a pallet is? I was raised on one, so.... Then, you ... laying on this pallet. And there he was, laying there. And Jesus looked around until He found him, and the Bible said that He knew he had been in this condition. And He said, “Will thou be made whole?” Why not the twisted man? What about that woman there with the dying baby? What about these? What about them? “Wilt thou be made whole?

He said, “I have no one to put me in the water. When I'm coming, somebody steps down.”

Jesus said, “You've had that for thirty-eight years.”

“That's right.”

“All right. Take up your bed and go unto your house.” He never questioned. He just picked up the bed and went walking on. Is that right?

And the Pharisees and the Sanhedrin court (the church), questioned Him. “What about all the rest of these?”

He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son does nothing in Himself; but what He sees the Father doing, that doeth the Son likewise.” That's compassion. Compassion is follow the will of God. Not human sympathy, but compassion. Oh, it's two different words altogether—sympathy, and compassion, see. If it wasn't, Jesus sure made a rude mistake when He did that.

So you must realize that the compassionate Christ, again, He has healed every one of you. You're all free, if you can believe it. Now do you believe this is the Word of God? That that's exactly what Jesus done, what they were testifying about? Raise your hands.

Now if He was standing here—the one who wrote the Word—if He was standing here, and would tell you and prove to you that He was standing right here on the platform, would you be willing to accept Him, and say, “That settles it for me.”

If He's standing here, and wrote the Word, and said, “Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, I'll be in their midst, and the works that I do shall they do also.”.... Is that right? St. John 14:7, 14:8—“The works that I do....”

Now here's a broad challenge before ... as the brother said, nineteen hundred people. Here lays a Bible on the desk. Here's two or three sheets of paper of some kind, and something, I don't know what even's on.... They belong to some of the brethren here. Here's a Bible. There's nineteen hundred people. There's not a person here that I know. I can't see one living human being that I know in that audience. If you're all strangers to me, raise your hand.

I'd like to even, maybe if I had time, to have this minister who was on one of the private interviews this morning, let him stand, and tell you what the Holy Spirit done up there this morning—beyond the shadow of doubt what He did. Went back and brought out, and showed, and revealed, and.... But if you believe that Jesus Christ dwells in his people....

Look. All that God was, He poured into Christ. Do you believe that? “In Him dwelt the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” Do you believe that? Because He was God. He was the Son of God, but yet He was God. God changed his cast from a Spirit, and stretched his tent and begin.... He become us. He become us that we, through his grace, might become Him. Amen. Brother, surely you get that, see.

God was made flesh, so we could.... I Timothy 3:16: “Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness, for God was manifest in the flesh, and believed on in the world, and is gone ... received up into glory.” God made manifest.

God was in Christ reconciling the world to Him. So all that God was, He poured into Jesus; and all that Jesus was, He poured into the church. That's the reason he commissioned us to baptize. Said, “Go ye therefore, teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” Why? Not three different gods, but three offices of the same God—the Fatherhood, the Sonship, the Holy Ghost dispensation. Now Father, Son, and Holy Ghost—that's God. Not three or four or five different gods, but one God manifested in three manifestations of one God: Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, the trinity.

Now we notice that same God, then, that was in the pillar of fire was the same one that was in Jesus, because He said, “Before Abraham was I AM. I am the rock that was in the wilderness.” And He said, “I come from God and I go to God. At that day you'll know that I am in the Father, the Father in me, and I in you, and you in me.” There we are, all together, God in us. God in you, that same God.

The problem is with you Pentecostal people, you Baptists, you Methodists, you've failed to recognize your God-given privilege. Hear me. Thus saith the Lord. You believe it with all your heart. He promised it in the last day. Hasn't been for two thousand years, because the Bible said it wouldn't be. But Jesus said, as it was in the days of Sodom, when that angel come, turned his back to the tent, and asked for Sarah, and told what she said in the building.... How many knows that?

Jesus said, “As it was in the days of Sodom, so shall it be at the coming of the Son of man.” When? Just before Sodom burnt. That's just before this world's going to burn. The whole unbelieving world will be ... go into chaos, and burn with fervent heat. We know that. And just before that time.... Remember, thus saith the Holy Spirit, “This is your last sign.” Write it in your Bible. If something rises besides this, and greater than this, call me a false prophet.

That's quite a statement. I watch what I say. I'm in contact with better than ten million people around the world, so I have to say that, and I know I didn't say that myself.

Now, He's here. I can't heal you. I have nothing to heal you with, but the one that has healed you is here, trying to get you to believe it and accept it. Now I ask you, as my brother, my sister in the name of Jesus Christ, believe this gospel message.

And if you don't want to believe me because I don't belong to your denomination.... I don't belong to any denomination. I am a Methodist. I'm a Pentecostal Methodist Nazarene Pilgrim Holiness, see. I'm your brother. I'm a Mennonite, Amish. I'm all that, see. I'm your brother. I'm the Assembly, the Church of God. Every one of you fine brethren that's helped, your people around the world has sponsored my meetings, and stayed behind me in foreign fields, and backed me up, brethren, I'm right here to represent I'm your brother. I'm for you one hundred percent.

I'm happy for you tonight in this great dark hour to know that you're men and women of God, sitting here to represent this great gospel that we're preaching. Don't be ashamed, brethren. You've got the truth. Stay with it. Don't divvy from it, right or left. Stay right with it.

How many out there that doesn't have prayer cards that's sick? Let's see you raise your hand, wherever you are. There was a woman in the Bible, as we said the other night, didn't have a prayer card; but she said, “I believe that story about that man. If I can touch his garment, I'll be made whole.” How many knows that story? When she touched Him, she went out and sat down.

And Jesus said, “Who touched me?”

And Peter rebuked Him, saying, “Everybody's touching you.”

He said, “But I got weak.”

How many knows that that virtue means “strength”? Weak, He got weak. That's the reason you can't go. Soon (here it comes again) I'll be leaving the field. My ministry's going to change. I can't be an evangelist and a seer at the same time. It builds the people under a false hope (That's twice). Now (My, I wish that wouldn't do that), but look.

Now in this audience, for tonight, if God will show one sign like that, that He is here with us, will all of you believe it with all your heart?

Then if that woman touched his garment, and then He turned around and told her that she had a blood issue, and said.... He never said, “I did it.” He said, “Your faith did it.” Is that right? Now it's going to be your faith that does it. Is that right? Your faith that does it. And have you noticed your clergymen, your ministers, tonight? Each night they sit up here behind me, to pray for me, instead of getting out there to be called in the line. There's a certain one already healed. I know it. They're sick too, they're needy, but they prefer their congregation first. That's shepherds. Now you believe.

Now, how many knows that He's that same high priest tonight that He was then. Where's He at? Sitting at the right hand of the Father. Is that right? A high priest that can be touched by what? The feeling of our infirmities. Is that true? Can be touched by the feeling of our infirmities. All right. If He can be touched, and He's the same high priest, how would He act tonight if you touched Him? The same way He did then. Is that right? Everybody believes that raise your hand. All around everywhere. All right.

Now I'm just going to wait a moment. I'm waiting for the audience to get quiet, reverent. The Holy Spirit is so timid. Oh, just one little thing, He'll go away. He'll just leave me, then I have to walk away. You believe.

Now you people I say that don't have a prayer card, raise up your hand. I think there's no prayer ... I don't think he give out any prayer cards, did he. We're going to give them out tomorrow or Sunday, one for Sunday afternoon service—or tomorrow, whenever the Lord will lead. Now you pray. You say, “high priest”? Not William Branham. William Branham's a man, sinner saved by grace, just like you are. “But, Lord, I believe the man told me the truth. It's the Bible. He tells me that this is the day that God promised it.”

Now I want some of you people that's not crippled first, and then we'll get to the cripples afterwards. Now if I was over here, say, “This little girl, she's crippled.” I'd say, “This little boy here with this brace on his leg [I might guess that]” say, “probably he had polio did that.” Oh, sure, anybody can look at that. See, “This boy's crippled, this woman's crippled.” Sure, anybody sees that. Certainly. That wouldn't be no miracle. But what about you out there that looks good and healthy? That's the one. That's the one. You pray now.

Our heavenly Father, here's a bunch of handkerchiefs laying here, and they represent the sick people. And they bring these because that in the Bible they took from the body of Paul handkerchiefs and aprons, and the Bible said that unclean spirits went out of them. Devils left them. They were healed. These people in another age believe the same. Because they had seen you moving in Paul, they knew that he was your servant. And Paul is gone long ago, Lord, to glory, but You're still the same Holy Spirit that was on him. You promised that You'd do the same thing, and You're doing it now.

One writer said that when Israel was cut off from the promised land, and the Red Sea was holding it back, that God looked down through that pillar of fire with angry eyes; and the Red Sea got scared and it moved back, and the children of Israel passed over it into the promised land. Now, Lord, look tonight through the blood of Jesus, and every one of these handkerchiefs, when they're laid on the people, may that devil get scared and move back; and may that sick person cross into that good promise of divine healing. As You said, “Above all things, I would you prosper in health.” Grant it, Lord, through Jesus Christ's name, I pray. Amen.

Now as we're sitting, I want everyone reverently quiet. Be reverent, be quiet, just be in prayer. And in your heart say, “Lord Jesus, let me touch your garment. I know Brother Branham doesn't know me. He has no idea who I am, or where I am, or nothing about me. But if You'll just turn.... And he tells me that we read where that people are born in the world for certain things, for certain ages. He said since a little bitty baby boy he's heard these things come. If You'll just let me touch your garment, maybe You speak through Brother Branham, let him tell me what I'm praying about, what I'm here for, and what something or other, I'll believe You.” Just say that. Say, “I'm not doubting, Lord, but I'm in need.” You just have faith and believe. Just ... we're waiting—humbly, sweetly, waiting. Nobody pressing, now, just relax yourself.

Now if everyone can see what I see, if you want to look.... There's a man sitting right back there. He's got heart trouble for one thing. Another thing, he's got a blood clot on his chest. (I believe he'll miss it.) He's from Michigan. Mr. Hannah, stand up on your feet, sir. Receive your healing. Jesus Christ makes you well. While you're on your feet, sir, are you and I strangers to one another? Raise up your hand. Those things that was said, everything was said was true? Wave your hand like this to the audience. Wasn't you praying for God to touch you, the high priest? If that's right, wave your hand like this. You are healed.

Forty feet away from me—what did he touch? What did he touch? Does that make the Bible true, brethren? He's a high priest that can be touched by the feeling of our infirmities. Do you believe it? Now someone else somewhere pray. I can only say as I watch that light and feel your spirit drawing. It's not my selection; it's the Father's. I just speak. But if I do not the works of Jesus Christ, then I'm not his witness.

Now I don't have to do that. That's my ministry. These men don't have to do that. They won't. There's not—and I'll say this in the name of the Lord—there has not been, or will not be, till I'm gone. That's exactly what He told me when He ordained me.

A man sitting right back here, shadowed to death. Just had a cancer operation, but it was no good. Mr. Holtzinger, stand on your feet and believe. Am I a stranger to you, sir? Raise up your hand. Are those things right? Everything right? Wave your hand like this if that's right. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you'll be well. Believe with all your heart.

Cancer spirit somewhere—you just feel that the devil shadowing.... It's not me. Now you quit thinking that. Not me; it's Him.

Here, look right down there. Can't you see that light, brother? Look, standing back there, see. It's right over that man sitting there with that red tie on. The man has leukemia. If that's right, stand on your feet, sir. If you was sitting there praying for that, stand on your feet, if those things are right. Are we strangers to one another? Wave your hand back and forth. The things that were told you right? Wave your hand again. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be healed.

Look. Look here. See this lady sitting right here? You're praying for that baby. The baby can't live outside of God. Do you believe me to be God's prophet, his servant? I tell you what's wrong with the baby, do you believe it will get well? if you're in contact enough to believe. The baby has a hole in its heart. If that's right, raise up your hand, sister. Do you believe now? Put your hand on it, just where you got it. God, I rebuke that devil. Let that baby live in the name of Jesus Christ.

Here. This woman was so sick, this lady laying here. Look around this way, sister. Right here. Seem to be the sickest one of the group. You were praying. Do you believe me to be his prophet, his servant?

I see a wheel chair somewhere. That man sitting right there. He's had a stroke. He's a preacher. He can't.... Mr. Ferguson, you believe on the Lord Jesus. I do not heal people.

Excuse me, lady. I had to call it, I ... though you was so sick. Certainly. Your sister here, watching you, she loves you. You're shadowed to death. You know that. You can't live outside of God. Mayo's knows that, don't they. You've come from Mayo's. You've been to Mayo's up there, Mayo's Clinic. Cancer killing you. They brought you down here for this meeting, and it's true. Your sister's been with you.

I can't heal you, but let me ask you something. There was three lepers one time sat at a gate when Samaria was being besieged by the Syrians. They said, “Why do we sit here till we die? If we stay here we're sure to die. If we go into the city we're going to die anyhow, because they're eating one another's children in there.” But said, “What if we go down to the camp of the enemy? If they kill us, we'll just die anyhow. But if we're saved alive, we live.” God honored that, didn't He? And they were saved.

The same ... you're sitting in the same place. Mayo's turned you down, Mrs. Mason. Strange I knew you, who you are. Now, but I want to ask you.... They turned you down. There's nothing they can do for you. If you lay there, you'll die. If you go to Mayo's, you'll die. You're not asked to go to the enemy's house; you're looking to be ... come to the house of the Father tonight and be healed. Do you believe with all your heart? Then rise up and take that stretcher and walk out of here and go home. You're healed.

What about you, lady over there on that stretcher, looking this way. Do you believe me to be his prophet? Yes. Do you believe with all your [unclear words] will leave you? Do you believe? Do you believe me to be God's prophet? Then rise up out of there in the name of Jesus Christ. Stand on your feet! There she goes—a crippled woman on her feet!

Do you believe? Everyone believe with all your heart. (Come here, brothers. Come here and lay your hands on these people.) I want to ask you, is that the works of Jesus Christ? Raise your hands and say “Amen.” Here comes God's servants now to lay hands while I pray.

Every one of you, in a wheel chair, no matter where you are, this is your hour. This is the time for your healing. I'm going to pray. Let the audience stand, and if you'll believe, I don't care who you are.... Every one of you men of God go down there and lay hands on these people. I'm going to pray for them while you lay your hands upon them. Look at the wheel chairs! Lay your hands on each other. Almighty God, who raised up Jesus Christ from the dead and has triumphed over every enemy, over the devil. I challenge every devil... Come out of these people in the Name of Jesus Christ. Leave them, Satan. They are healed...