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Let us just remain standing tonight for a moment, and let's bow our heads to prayer before our Lord. I wonder tonight, while we got our heads bowed now, if we got any requests that yet has not been answered, and you want the Lord to answer them tonight, raise up your hand. Let us pray.
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Our holy Father, we are approaching Thee tonight in the name of your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, coming by his invitation to the great eternal throne of God's mercy. And we pray, Father, that You will grant unto us the requests that we are asking for.
Now, Father, each one is making their request known in their way to You, and I'll make mine known to You. God, that You will answer each of their requests, that is mine. And I lay my prayer with theirs upon the offering where our sacrifice is laying there. And in the name of Jesus Christ, answer tonight, Lord. Give us all the satisfaction of faith that we receive what we ask for.
Save the lost. Give joy to those that are pilgriming waiting for the coming of the Lord. Heal the sick and the afflicted. Get glory and honor to thy name. Now with our prayer, and with the reading of the Word, and ourselves, we commit to You. We are in your hands. Use us as You see fit.
Father, we know that there is many people that will not read the Bible, but You have made your church written epistles, the Word of God made manifest. And people can watch lives, and see what the Word of God is, because the life of a Christian expresses the Word. Then what type of Christian should we be, Lord? Help us to be Bible Christians, that the works and life of Jesus Christ may be known through us. In his name, we ask it. Amen. You may be seated.
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What a grand privilege, of having these three nights with you people. I want to thank first Brother Eddie for inviting me over here, and for getting these other fine brethren here to come and help out. The musicians, and sister that played the piano, and the brother and sister that done the singing (You thought I didn't hear it, but I did. I was just sitting right there in the car after I drove up, and I heard the singing), for the Indian friends who sang for us, and the young fellow that sang this special. And I want to get a tape of that. For my own use, I want that. And I've got tapes of people around the world singing, and I want to get my Indian friends on the tape that's the singing.
We thank you each one, and for the gentleman who let us have this auditorium. And we're very grateful. And I trust that this will ... three nights was just the way of introduction, like, just to get acquainted with you. And I hope to come back some day, if the Lord willing and you want me to come back, so we can stay a long time.
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I had the privilege this afternoon of riding down to your reservation, down the river (I guess they called it a little inlet, peninsula, down to where the reservation was), with a brother, Christian brother, in his boat. We fished and come back.
I got to see some of the brethren out on the lake, or on the sea, in their boats fishing. And I thought when I was out there, “Wish I had time tonight to preach a sermon, 'Lord, we've toiled all night and taken nothing. But nevertheless, at your word we'll let down the net.' ” Cast it over on the other side of the boat.
But, talking with this brother, who is an Indian himself.... And he believes that it would be fine, maybe, when I return back just to come down on the reservation, and live down there awhile, from place to place among the people, and speak with them, and pray with them there. You....
5
Honestly, it does the meeting injustice of having to do it the way we do here—just run in, and you look at it, and wonder, and gone, see. And I sat down, and explained today to this Indian brother (and I've already forgot his name. What was his name?), Brother Robert Johnson. He may be able to speak to you, and tell you more about it. We sat up in the cab.
And while I was explaining it to him, I said, “Brother Robert... ,” a certain thing we was to ask for. And he was telling me how the Lord had answered prayer, and gave him his little boy, and so forth; how his wife had fell into the Spirit of God, and speaking with tongues, and speaking in his language, she and he of a different tribe; and how that God had blessed them, and all. And then I said, “Now we'll ask the Lord something.” And when ... I said, “Then in this, Brother Robert, then you'll know to tell the people.” And when we asked the Lord, here He come right down and revealed it.
And just then, the boat just shook all over. And I said, “Did you think we hit a log?” He looked at me. I said, “No, that was Him letting us know,” see. And we looked all through the back. There was no logs or nothing laying there to hit. It was right out in the sea. So, see, when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together, see. And he will always remember it, and so will I—the presence of the Lord—while the rest of them was stretched out on the deck taking a nap. So we had some fellowship together. And I hope to get to come back again.
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You hardly know me, and you have a right to be a little suspicious. Only I'm thankful you're not. Maybe the others will. But I thought maybe ... I've looked forward to such a way that I would see the Lord do something so outstanding that would cause the rest of them down in there to see what had happened. And so, I'm trusting. And I was told that something'd taken place during the meeting, and I told Brother Robert what to tell the parent of the person, and how to continue on if Satan should try to return. So now....
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And I want to thank the white people for your fine cooperation, coming in here with your Indian brethren and those, and standing together, and helping sponsor it—put your shoulders behind the wheel, as we call it, and push with all your might. And God has honored you, too, because there is many of the Spirit.... Many times the Spirit of God went out right through the meeting there, and caught those, and healed them. And I want to thank you. So nice of you. God ever bless you.
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And now, or tomorrow night, we're in Victoria. I guess they have announced it, where it's at, where the meeting will be at, if some of you have friends in there, and want to call them up that's sick. We'd be glad to come down. Now, what I would like to do when I return would be just take a long time, see, and not try to stay so long at night, but just maybe then have a morning service for instruction, and telling what the enemy will do. And let those who the enemy has been cast from, then he returns....
We find out when the unclean spirit's gone out of a man, he walks in dry places, then returns back again with seven other devils. And many people think that sometimes because they got sick, that's a sign, well.... Let's take for instance, just a moment of instruction, 'cause it's hot here, and I know it's bad. But now, for instance like, let me just see what we.... All right, let's take for instance, tumor.
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Now, what is tumor? What is cancer? It's a multiplication of cells, come from a little backslidden cell. Now, you were made from one little cell, too. Now through holy wedlock, your mother and father had to do with you coming on earth. First is the seed. Or really, the egg comes from the female, and the germ comes from the male. Now, the hen can lay an egg, or a bird can lay an egg, and not even be with the male bird. But it'll never hatch. It's not fertile. See, it has to be with the mate to be fertile. Now, and so....
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That's the reason that in the case of Christ some people said He was a Jew. We want to believe He was an Indian. Others want to believe that He was an Anglo-Saxon. Some says He was Gentile. He was neither one. He was God. He was neither Jew nor Gentile, see. The blood cell comes from the male sex. And in this case, the Holy Spirit overshadowed the virgin, and created that blood cell, which.... God is not Jew nor Gentile, and He was the blood of God, his Father, see.
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Therefore, all of us are born by sexual desire, and blood in us, or sinful blood, through a perverted way of bringing children to the earth. God just spoke; Adam come forth. And so the woman was not in the original creation. She's a by-product of a man, taken from his side, a rib. And Adam in spirit was both male and female, both feminish and masculine in the spirit. And God separated the masculine from the feminish, and put the feminish in the woman, and the masculine in the man. And see, both body and spirit, they are one.
That's the reason when Sarah laughed at the angel, said she couldn't be like that, God would have slew that woman right there. But He couldn't hurt her, because she's part of Abraham. He'd hurt Abraham if He took Sarah.
That's the reason our sins today ... would be every one condemned, but God can't take us because if He does, He hurts Christ. We're part of Him. We're the bride, don't you see? So there it is. So, grace holds us in our mistakes until we can see better. So thankful for that.
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Now that blood cell that comes.... Now, we know where we come from. Now, if I could take a man here, and take him cell by cell, and tear him down, it would come back ... of the millions of cells, back to one little cell in the womb of his mother. And that cell began to multiply. And every seed brings forth of its kind: dog after dog, bird after bird, man after man, and so forth. And it brought forth the man. He began growing, growing, building cells, till he come to a certain place. Then he stops, and he's full grown.
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Now we know where your body come from. But in you, say, there is a cancer, or a tumor, or a cataract, or a cyst. Where did it come from? Where come that thing? See, the first thing, the devil cannot create. That's the reason the devil cannot heal. There's only one creator. That's God.
But the cell that backslides, bruised.... Like on a woman's breast sometimes comes a rose cancer. It's because of the baby, or some bruise on her breast. And that little bruise ... the cell breaks and another life gets in that house of the cell. When the cell's been bruised, the life of cancer comes into that and begins to multiply cells.
Now, see, here's a cancer or the tumor, a little bigger, bigger, multiplying cells. What's it doing? Sucking your blood stream, killing you, poison you. Finally it'll get you. The doctor sometimes can operate, if he catches it in a early stage, and take ... cut the whole thing around it. But if one little piece is left, it'll grow right on just the same.
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Now, we're not dealing in divine healing with that growth, we're dealing with the life in that growth. Now, for instance, if you was a cancer on earth, I don't deal with just your body. I would deal with the spirit. If I can get that spirit out of that body, it'll automatically go back to the dust. Well, if you can get the life out of the cancer, it'll take ... nature will take care of itself.
Now, watch. When the cancer dies, or the tumor, now what happens? Immediately, like cataract over the eye, it shrinks. Anything that dies, shrinks. We know that. Ask your undertaker. Watch him take an artificial eye out, false teeth. It'll shrink.
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Now, like you brethren here hunt. You kill the deer tonight. You bring him home, put him on a scale, go tell the rest of them, “That deer weighed three hundred pounds on the dot.” Be careful in the morning. He'll be many pounds lighter. It shrinks. But, just let him lay there a few days, then put him back on the scales. He'll be bigger than he was the first time. Why? The cells are swelling. They're rottening. That's right, begin to rotten up.
Well, that's the same thing that tumor does. The people, first they get a relief, they say, “Whew, my! I feel better. My! All right! I can see. Praise God! I can see.” In about seventy-two hours, what happens? That begins to ... corruption begins to set in. The human body, the nose falls in, see. It begins to rot. Well, that tumor does the same thing inside of you. And when it does, it begins to swell. Then you say, “Oh! I lost my healing. I lost my healing.” Your unbelief brings that thing right straight back again, see.
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As faith killed it, unbelief resurrects it again. When the unclean spirit's gone out, he walks in dry places seeking rest. Then he returns again with seven other spirits, see. Now if the good man of the house isn't there to ward him off (that faith) when he returns.... “I don't care how much I feel, what about it; I know I'm healed,” that shuts him out.
Now, you may get real sick, because why? It's like an infection in your body. The growth dies, and then it rots. And the heart, every time it beats, it goes through and purifies the blood. We know that. The blood picks up this infection 'cause you have fever, and sickness, and you get worse off than you was. And people think they've lost their healing, when actually that's a sign they got it.
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Now, there's just so much that goes with that. I don't have time to explain it, see. But just remember, when you.... The reason I don't take time to explain it now is because if you really believe it, there's nothing going to stand in your way. You're going to have it anyhow. And then, again ... on the Holy Spirit announcing something to be done, watch. It'll tell what was. Now wait a minute, and it'll tell what will be, see. Don't run too quick. Wait. Then if it does, it speaks itself. That was me speaking by a gift. This other is “thus saith the Lord,” what He speaks. Believe with all your heart.
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Now, character.... Always you ... all you people of the church of God, live good, live right. People's watching the way you're living. And if there's anything that's a hindrance to Christianity today, is the way that professed Christians live: dishonest, dishonorable and living any way. Don't do that. We are Christians.
Somebody's watching your life. Correctly. Be honest. Let everybody know. Let your dealings be fair and square, and don't take nothing doesn't belong to you. Don't say nothing but what's the truth. And you can always tell the truth every time, and God'll honor the truth. And always do what's right. Treat everybody right. If they don't treat you right, you treat them right anyhow, see. Jesus treated us right when we didn't treat Him right. And his Spirit in us....
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A little story fits just right. Down in the South they used to sell slaves. You Canadian people read of it, the slavery in the South. Why, they used to go around, buy them like used cars on a lot, have a bill of sale, selling human beings.
I never believed that any man was to be a slave. God made man, and man made slaves. Nobody's to be a slave under the other. We are brothers. We come from one great family tree, Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. Now, spiritually we're born of God. That changes our character.
But just ... these slaves they were brought over from Africa by the Boers, and brought to the islands outside of Florida; and was brought in, smuggled in, and sold for slaves. And, oh, it's pitiful how they were treated. And they were sad. They'd never go back home.
They'd take a great big, strong man—maybe had a wife with some little children—and he'd take away from that wife, and sell him and breed him like cattle to a big woman, to bring bigger slaves so they could pull a bigger load, and so forth. Oh, just like animals! And it wasn't right. Wasn't right. No time was right. Never was, and never will be right.
And so then, in doing that, the people, sad.... And they'd whip them, make them work, 'cause they didn't want to work. They was away from home. They'd never see their loved ones again, maybe, their children, their father or mother. And so....
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They'd go around, brokers would go around, and buy these slaves, and resell them, like you do cars or something.
One time they come up on a plantation, a broker, and he said, “How many slaves you got here?”
Said, “Around a hundred and fifty.”
Said, “I'd like to look them over.”
And he noticed how they'd have to whip some, and make them go. But there was one young man there, they didn't have to whip him. Brother, his shoulders was back, and his chin up, right on the dot. Oh, my! What a different slave!
And the broker said, “I want to buy that slave.”
But the owner said, “He's not for sale.”
“Why?” Said, “Is he a boss over the rest of the slaves?”
Said, “No. He isn't no boss. He's just a slave.”
“Well,” said, “maybe you feed him better than you do the rest.”
He said, “No. He eats out in the galley with the rest of the slaves.”
Said, “Well, what makes him so much different from the rest of them?”
And the owner said, “You know, I once wondered that myself, until I found out one day that over in the homeland his father is the king of the tribe, the chief, the king of the tribe.” And said, “Though he's an alien away from home, he still knows he's the son of a king, and he conducts himself like one.”
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What a lesson for you and I! We may be amongst sinners, and aliens of the world here, unbelievers, but we're sons and daughters of God, of the King, God. Then let's conduct our character, be like sons and daughters of God, act like sons and daughters of God. And not have to be drove around, and made ... try to push to believe the Word. Believe the Word. God's sons believe his Word. God's daughters believe his Word. And therefore we must make our character to be sons and daughters of God—and Holy Spirit mold us into believers.
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Thank you, so much. God bless you. And I hope that the Holy Spirit has done something for you that you'll never forget Him, and you'll always love Him. And if I don't get back to see you again, God be with you. I'll meet you over on the other side.
I'm going to speak to my Indian friends now. Way down along them never-ending game trails in glory, I'll meet you around there. I'll be ... go walking down the game trail. I'll meet all that I love. They'll be there. You know, that's the Indian's prayer at death. So, I'll meet you on the game trail above.
To you white people, He that keeps the moon shining bright so we know how to get along in darkness, may He guide your path also. We'll meet in that glorious land.
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Our heavenly Father, now we commit ourselves to You. Open to us the Word. Grant it, Father. We're sitting in this hot place tonight, people fanning. They don't come here to see how one another's dressed. They come here because they love You. Many of them has saved their money, put their pennies together, to come to the meeting. How we thank You, our Father. God, bless them. Oh, if I've found grace in your sight, Lord, answer my prayer for every soul that's at this meeting. Grant it, God. And those who've attended, and their loved ones, grant their request, Father. I pray, as your servant, with all my heart, in Jesus' name. Amen.
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I wish to read tonight and just a little.... I thought, coming up, I was going to speak about another subject. And I thought.... Well, sitting out there in the car waiting, and I thought.... Here it is already now about twelve minutes to nine. Really, we should be out in thirty-five minutes, see, according to schedule. You're so nice to talk to, I just can't find no place to quit. I just keep on talking. So, you pray.
I'm going to speak on something else, just for a few minutes. Then I think I'm going to call a prayer line, and pray for every person that's here that wants to be prayed for, pray for every one. So that ... you're attending, and maybe believing, and wanting to be prayed for, I'll pray for you, see. And I want you to believe. Now we're just going to try to build just a little faith to make a little bit more of a punch to the meeting, and you listen real close.
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And now, I'm going to read from St. Matthew's gospel, the 12th chapter, 26th and 27th verse—a little text, familiar, right along the message. I don't want to get my Indian brethren and sisters on four or five different things. In this little time, it's better that I stay right on that same line. They just catch that well enough, they'll know it. And they believe it, if I can know what they're thinking about. I say that because I know they believe it. I know they do.
Now. [St. Matthew 14: 26-27]
And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of a good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
Now, my subject tonight is, “A Testimony Upon the Sea,” like we were doing today, Brother Robert, if you're here. Testimony upon the sea, and my text tonight is “It Is I; Be Not Afraid.” So now, may the Lord add his blessings to the Word.
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I want to make it in a little drama like a testimony. How many likes testimonies? Oh, my! Brother Eddie told me, said, “You know, Brother Branham, after the meetings are over out there,” said, “my Indian brethren,” said, “they'll get together and start testifying. And a meeting will break right out among them, and they'll all go over....” And said, “Then they quieten down after awhile. Then somebody else get up and testify, and out breaks the meeting again.” And said, “They just stay there. As long as the Spirit's there, they stay.”
That's real good—good sound philosophy. Not philosophy, but good sense—staying with the Spirit. You know, wherever the Spirit of God moved, that pillar of fire, wherever it moved, then the children of Israel went with it. And when it moved out of the Catholic church, back hundreds of years ago, Luther saw it, and he went with it. But then he built an organization under it. God moved right out from under the organization.
And then Wesley saw it, in England, and he built a church called the Wesleyan church. After his death—him, and Whitfield, and Asbury and those—they built the organization, and God moved right out of it. And a group of people called the Pentecostals, they saw it, and away they went. But what they did, they done the same thing: built an organization right from under it. And God just moves right out from under the organization, keeps going on. Follow the fire. Now, I pray that God's rich blessings on you.
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It must have been about this time of the evening. The sun was going down. It had been a great day, and the big fisherman, those great big shoulders, was pushing that boat off the bank. And when he got the stern off, why, he climbed aboard, and sat down by the side of his brother, Andrew.
Now, in those days they didn't have a boat like we were in today, with a engine in it that went along. They had oars, and they called it a ship. Sometimes they had a sail up. And if the winds were blowing, they could sail, and tack, as you fishermen know.
But then, it's always a mystery to me how that you, by that sail, you can control the wind—go right smack in the face of the wind and the wind, taking you forward right in the face of it. It's just the way you set your sails. That's the way about faith, too. If you just know how to pull your sails of faith around, it'll do something for you—right in the face of difficulty, drive you right on through it, if you just know. Now, you sailors out here know what I'm speaking of. Notice.
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Then he took his oars.... They had big long oars and they oared their boat. And they would sit down, and oar a few times, then wave back on the bank to the people on the bank. They'd just had a great meeting that afternoon. Oh, there was a marvelous meeting. Great things had been done, and the people were so happy, till they were standing on the bank hollering, “Good-bye. Come back and see us again.”
Don't you ... when you got a good meeting like that, brother, don't you hate to leave it? Just like I hate to think this being our last night here for awhile. Just hate to leave. Wish we had about two or three weeks to stay here. And when they were leaving, they felt the same way about those brethren, and they were waving, “Good-bye. Bring Him back. Come back and stay with us again. We want to see you over here.”
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And they were crossing the sea. Oh, it was real quiet, and smooth, and the oars dipping into the water, which is music to a boatman's ears, to hear those oars dip into the water. And they'd wave good-bye, and pull a few more times and wave good-bye. And as the little boat went on, the sun got lower all the time. After a while the people on the bank become smaller and smaller, and the little boat becomes smaller to them. After a while they couldn't see them wave no more, nor could not hear them call “good-bye” to them any more.
And they said, “We must speed up.” And so, they'd pull pretty hard until the sun went down, all the way down. Then it got cool out on the Galilean lake. And it must have been the young John.... He was a young fellow. He must have got tired quick, because he wasn't an old rough salt, like them other fellows was, that knowed them boats, and how to fish, and everything. They were all fishermen, so they knowed how to pull them oars—Simon, and Andrew, and all of them.
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But John was young. I hear him say, “Whew! My! Brethren, let's rest awhile. I'm getting tired.” So they let up on the oars, and young John stood there with his head down a little while, and his dark hair hanging down his eyes. And he brushed it back.
He said, “I'd like to have a testimony meeting. That's a good thing, while we're resting. I'd like to have a testimony meeting. And I would like to be the first one to testify.”
You know, when you've got something to say, you just can't hold it still. You got to say it. Just bursting out of you, you got to say it.
“I'd like to have a testimony meeting,” said young John. “And I'd like to start this testimony meeting. Brethren [as he stood up in the boat, you know], brethren, I would like to say this. That no matter from this day on, how many people tell us we're wrong, they can never be able to tell me no more. I've heard them call our Master a fortune-teller, a devil, Beelzebub, all kinds of names. But I know that they're wrong. For today, when I seen Him do what He did today, it settled it forever for me.”
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Now, he said, “You know, when our people first come over here from Egypt, come up through Palestine, and come over into this country, I used to live on the hill just above Jericho. And as a little boy, little Jewish boy, I used to run on the hills, and play. And in the afternoon after my mother give me my lunch, why, she would call me in and sit me down on the porch. And in the springtime, I'd pick a little handful of flowers, and give her. And my pretty little Jewish mother used to sit there, and stroke my head, and pull my hair back, and tell me Bible stories until I went to sleep.”
Oh, I remember those Bible stories! It's too bad today that we tell our children so much about Davy Crockett, or something like that, instead of about Christ. We tell all kinds of other stories but the Bible stories.
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And so, then the first thing you know, he said, “My mother told me a story every day. She'd tell me, 'John, right down the river here a little piece, in the month of April, Joshua, that great warrior, spoke to God, and God walled up the river, and Israel come across—when the Jordan was in a flood—on dry land. And when he'd come across, he met the chief captain of the host of the Lord, at the gate of Jericho.' And how that in the wilderness ... how God brought our people out.
“ 'Now, John don't you never forget. God, by a prophet, Moses, under a big pillar of fire, led our people out to this promised land. And you know, John, my little boy....'” And said, “I would look up in the face of my mother, and she said, 'John, you know, God told our people, ”You don't have to bring anything to eat. I'm going to feed you while you're in the wilderness.“ And He brought bread down every night, and laid it all nice out on the ground. And the next morning, all our people had to do was go out and pick up that bread, and eat it.' ”
And he'd say, “You know what I said to my mother? 'Mother, God did what? Who was that brought that bread down?'
“ 'God. He brought the bread down, and laid it out so our people could eat, and brought it down every night for them.'
“And I remember, brethren,” he'd say to the rest of them, “I remember I used to say to my mother, 'Mother, has God got a great big line of ovens up there, and a whole lot of angels working at nighttime? And He puts all the bread in the ovens, and He bakes it, and then runs down and spreads it out on the ground?'
“She said, 'No, John. You're just a little boy. You don't understand. See, God is a creator, and God don't have to have ovens. He just speaks, and He created the bread.'”
33
Then he said, “Brethren, today, when I saw Him take those two little fish and five biscuits, little bread, and break that bread and feed five thousand, I knowed that was the same Jehovah that fed our people. Here He is feeding them yet today. There's no question in my mind, but what....
“Look how He looked, on his face. He wasn't excited a bit. He knew exactly what to do. You remember, He told us He did what the Father showed Him. And there He stood, when hundreds ... and five thousand men and women and children, hungry, gone all day with no food, through the dust, just to hear a word or two from his precious lips.
“Tired, He sat upon the rock, and a little boy played hooky from school [you know, truant], and went fishing. And he heard Jesus, and he came by. He's the one had the lunch.”
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Now, listen, little boys, little Indians, and white people, and whatever you are: you see, that little boy had just five little biscuits, and two pieces of fish. It wasn't very much to him, as long as it was in his hand. But when he gave what little he had to Jesus, it fed five thousand. See, we don't have very much; but what little we have, if we'll just give it to Him, He'll multiply it, see, and make it do great things.
What little faith you've got, lay it on Him, and say, “Here's all I've got, Lord, but I'm going to believe with that.” Watch what He'll do with it. Just watch what happens. Stay right with it. Watch Him bring you around through every curve, and bring you right straight to the promise where He made it. Yes, He knows the way. Now.
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“And when I seen Him feed those five thousand, standing there just as calm, broke that bread.... And I climbed around, and got on the rock, looked over his shoulder to see how he was doing it. He got a hold of that bread, and He broke it, handed it out to somebody. And when He went to reach back, there it was again.”
I want to ask you something, brother, scientists, or whoever, what kind of an atom did He let loose?
Every time ... not only wheat and milk, that goes in the bread, but it was already growed, baked, and ready to serve. Every time He reached his hand for it, there it was. Tore that loaf off, hand it out, reached back, it was a new loaf again. Kept tearing, handing it like that.
Every time He picked up these fish, little fish [little minnows, we would call them, little herring maybe, about that long], and He had it cooked. So he just broke the part off of it, hand it out, and reached back, and there was another herring, already cooked. Amen! Oh, my! Now that's the truth. The Bible said so. There it was. He growed that herring, fattened him up, and boiled him and baked him, and had him ready. No more than He reached his hand back, and break it off again; and reached back, and that little herring just kept growing, just breaking him off like that.
Every time He got a biscuit, He'd just say, “Here, biscuit, grow back again. Here you are, here you are.”
36
“And I stood there,” said young John, “and my heart jumped within me because I know in that little frame was Jehovah. God was in there, because that's the same God my mother used to tell me about, who could create bread in the heavens. And here He is on earth doing the same thing.” Amen. Oh!
And he got to shouting. Andrew said, “Wait a minute, John. You're rocking the boat. You'll dump us all over out here. Don't get so excited.” He was just jumping around, hollering, “Glory to God.” And he said, “Sit down, John. You're in a boat. You'll tip us over.”
37
And Simon, sitting there sweating under the collar, “Hurry up, John. I got to say something.” Oh, my! You know, that's the way we do in a testimony meeting. “Oh, I wish he wouldn't say so much. I wish he'd keep still. If I could just say something....” Oh, it's just bubbling over, you know. The Bible said it would be springs of water, bubbling up. Amen. Just can't hold it still.
Jesus told the woman at the well, the water that He give would be wells bubbling up. Whew! My! And I tell you, after seeing that meeting that day, they were all bubbling out there on that sea.
38
And little John finally had to sit down, 'cause big Simon raised up.
He said, “You know, Andrew, my brother here (now, sit still) ... when Andrew come told me about he had found the Messiah, I couldn't believe the stuff like that, because I was a Bible reader. I know what the Bible said. So one day after we had washed our nets and come in, I was taken in the presence of Jesus. And I remember one day when my old daddy .... You all know him, oh, the Pharisee, a real staunch believer. We was out of food. We didn't have nothing to eat. And we were fishermen—we lived by the seaside. And our father had taught us to fish in the sea for our living. He was bringing up us boys to be honest, and do what was right. And I can see my old daddy with them gray hair hanging down.
“And when we went that day.... And mama had done gone on to glory, and just Andrew and I and Daddy. And we owed some bills. And that morning before we left, oh, I can just see my old daddy kneel down by the side of that boat, and say, 'Great Jehovah, You said, ”Owe no man nothing,“ and I'm in debt. I haven't been able to catch any fish. None of the others along the shore here is catching any fish. They're just not running. But, God, You are the creator. I need fish so bad. Won't you help me today to catch fish?' And that day we caught a marvelous load of fish.
39
“And when we come in, and we had washed our nets, I remember Daddy sitting down and putting his arm around me, and saying, 'Simon, my little boy, Daddy's getting old. I'm going to have to go join our people pretty soon. All my life, boys ... come here, Andrew, and sit on my knee. All my life I've believed that I would see the Messiah. I believed I would see the Christ, that all of our people has waited for, for these thousands of years. And no doubt but now I won't see Him, because my days are about over. But you boys may see Him.
“'Now, I don't want you to be all mixed up and all indoctrinated with the modern trend of the world, but I want you boys to remember that when the Messiah cometh, when He comes, remember the Scripture says He'll be a prophet like Moses.'
“And I remember my old daddy, remember when we put him away [Andrew nodding his head, 'That's right']. And when Andrew and I walked up in the front of Jesus, He looked at me and He said, 'Your name is Simon, and you are the son of Jonas.' Oh,” he said, “that settled it forever, right then. I knowed that was that prophet, because not only did He know me, but He knowed that godly old father of mine who'd instructed me to always believe God's Word; and that Messiah would be a prophet. He knowed him also. That settled it with me.”
40
And of course, that time Philip was looking around to Nathanael, just laughing, you know. Said, “Is it all right, Nathanael?”
He said, “Go ahead, Brother Philip.”
“Well, you know when I seen that done, I run around the hill to get Nathanael over there. And what about it, Nathanael?”
He said, “Let me tell it! Let me tell it!”
“Why, don't rock the boat. Sit still.”
He raised up, got up and begin to talk, you know. He said, “Well, I'd always ... Philip and I had studied the Scriptures, and we knowed that the modern church didn't have the trend of it, long ways, because they were looking for some class to come out of heaven. And they didn't believe that God was coming, but we believed that God was going to be man.”
41
It ought to be striking. When God changed his cast, when God became one of us in order to save us, He had.... In the Old Testament, before you could redeem, you had to be a kinsman redeemer. The story of Ruth brings it beautifully, see. Had to be a kinsman. And God had to become kinfolks to us, become one of us. Think of Jehovah God in a manger crying like a baby. Think of Him, playing as a boy. Think of Him, building a house out of the very timber that He created. Amen.
42
They believed He would be, and He would be that great prophet. And Nathanael said, “When I walked up into the face of the Lord Jesus, kind of a little skeptical of what Philip told me.... And Philip told me, said, 'Why, He might even tell you who you are when you get there. Wouldn't surprise me.' ”
But said, “When I walked up into his face, He said, 'Behold an Israelite in whom there is no guile.' And I said to Him, 'Rabbi, when did You ever know me?' He said, 'Before Philip called you when you were under the tree I saw you.' That settled it.
“And you know what I done, brethren? You were there. I run right up and fell down at his feet, and said, 'Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God. Thou art the King of Israel.' And there stood my pastor over there with ... blowed up like a toad frog, sitting over there looking at me. But it didn't make any difference then, because I had seen the real thing. I run right up anyhow, and believed it, because I knowed the Bible said that's exactly what He would do.”
43
Oh, couldn't we start a testimony meeting tonight? What God said He would do in the last days, we are seeing it being done. Amen. Don't make any difference what anybody else says. If they want to be Presbyterian, Anglican, or whatever they want to be, that's all right. That's up to them. But we've seen something. We've seen the Scripture, in the last days, what He was going to do, and we watch Him pour out his Spirit upon the place. Hallelujah! And see signs and wonders be accomplished, see the very presence of the living Christ manifesting Himself. And now, down through the Scripture, where He showed his last sign to a generation that ended it. And here we're seeing the last sign of the generation, as He said in the evening time it would happen.
44
Now. Oh, they must have had a real testimony. Andrew said, “Brethren, can I say just a word? I would like to say something. Do you remember the time that we went up to Sychar, and we was sent off into the city to buy some food? And when we come back....
“Our Master wouldn't go into the city with us, but He sat and rested. And when we come back, we heard somebody talking. And we slipped around behind the bush, and looked up over the bush, and there was a woman of ill fame, a bad woman, a prostitute, talking with our Master. Remember how astonished we were? We thought, 'A woman like that, talking to our Master? Watch Him bawl her out. Watch Him run her out of his presence. [That's what they still think. He don't do that.]'
“But we come to find out that He asked her for a favor. He said, 'Bring me a drink.' Well, we know that no rabbi, or no one of our Pharisees would never ask a woman like that to do anything for him. But here was our Master, the God of creation, sitting here in a body of flesh and asking a woman of ill fame to bring Him a drink, do Him a service.” Amen!
45
That's what makes Him God to me, because He humbled Himself. God is humility. Don't never forget that. Humility is God. Never boastful; it's always humility.
“And we listened at Him. We thought, 'Surely in a minute He'll grab a stick, and run her back down to the city, where she belongs.' But He said, 'Bring me a drink,' and they got to talking religion. She said, 'We worship in this mountain. You say at Jerusalem,' and so forth. And He talked to her for a while. And after awhile, He said to her, 'Go get your husband, and come here.' And she turned, and said, 'I don't have any husband.' You remember?”
46
Matthew said, “Yes, I remember. [He's the one that wrote it, you know.] Oh, yes. I remember it. My heart failed. I thought, 'My, my! Uh-huh. There's our master one time wrong,' see, because He told her she had a husband, go get her husband; and she said, 'I have no husband.' And then He turns around and said, 'You've told the truth.' Then we all were puzzled. Here He says, 'Go get your husband,' she said, 'I have no husband,' He said, 'That's right.' ”
Look. “Go get your husband.”
“I have no husband.”
“You're right.”
Now. “Oh, we were all astonished, and our hearts beat, and we raised up over the bushes behind Him to see what He was going to say next. Oh, He was wrong. She said, 'I have no husband,' and yet we believed Him to be the Messiah. How could that great Messiahic sign be wrong? And we knowed He was Messiah, because He did the sign of Messiah. Therefore we.... [Messiah is God, the anointed. And the anointed is the Word. And the Word was manifested, see.] We knowed that He was Messiah. And here He was. Every time it hit but this time. But now He had missed, for He said to the young woman, 'Go get your husband'; she said, 'I have none.' He said, 'Thou hast said the truth. You said well, for you've had five, and the one you're now living with is not yours.' Oh!
“And we noticed what that woman said. She turned with startled eyes, and she said, 'Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. [Now, that, really, in the King James is mistranslated. It's all right. It's okay like that. But if you'll take your margin reading on that, and run it back in the original Greek (and many of the scholars here read it), it said, ”Thou art that prophet,“ see. That's the margin reading. ”Thou art that prophet. I perceive that Thou art that prophet.“] Now, we know that when Messiah cometh, is called the Christ [that prophet, Messiah, and Christ all the same person], when He comes He'll tell us all these things.'
And Jesus said, “I am He that speaks with you.”
“And that woman run into the city, and began to tell all the men, 'Come see a man that told me the things that I've done [now watch], told me the things that I have done. Isn't that the very Messiah?' And you know, we all went into the city to find out what happened. And all the men in that city believed the woman's testimony. Oh, it was a great time!”
47
About that time Matthew said, “Wait a minute. I got something I want to say. Let me testify right quick. [It was kind of getting a little late, you know.] Let me testify.” Said, “You remember that time that our sister, Rebekah...? She lived in Jericho. And our Lord went down to have dinner down in Jericho, and we went into the city.
“And you remember Rebekah testifying? Oh, you remember she'd request at every meeting, 'Pray that my husband will get saved. Pray my husband will get saved. His name is Zacchaeus, the little fellow.' He was a businessman. Let's believe he run a restaurant, and he had a lot of stiff composition ... competition rather, and he was real upset because that Jesus was going to eat at another place—like his place wasn't well enough.
48
And Rebekah constantly prayed.
“She said, 'Zacchaeus, you may have a lot of competitors, and you may be in good standing with Rabbi Levinski, the priest, the rabbi that comes and eats with you at the Kiwanis Club [or whatever]. You may be in good standing with him. But let me tell you something. This man is a prophet. And He....'
“ 'Why, you know what our rabbi told me? That we haven't had a prophet since four hundred years ago, since Malachi was our last prophet. And tell me that that guy—born down there by the seaside, one of them little huts, somewhere down there—would ever be a prophet? Aw, Rebekah....' [Blank spot.]
“We knew if he ever once sat down and talked to Jesus, he'd be convinced. [And that's the same thing today. If you'll just sit down and talk to Him a few minutes, you'll know.] So you remember what Rebekah told us? Now I'm going to repeat Rebekah's testimony,” said Matthew.
49
“'Now, you know, all night long little old Zacchaeus was restless.' [You know, when you get to praying for a fellow, he kind of gets in bad shape. If you want somebody saved, or something done, just start praying for them. That's the reason we.... Prayer is the greatest thing was ever put in the hands of a man. Prayer even changes God. God pronounced death on a man one time. He turned his face to the wall and prayed, and God spared him fifteen years longer. Right. It's true.]
“So we find out that little old Rebekah prayed all the time. And that night she couldn't sleep. She looked out of the corner of her eye. She said ... Zacchaeus was restless. She said, 'Lord, I know you're dealing with him. I know you're dealing with him.' Now, Jesus the prophet is coming into the town for this meeting down here, and I want him to see Him so bad. Lord, You make a way now. Just make him miserable. Just make him so he can't sleep.'
“And there he was. He couldn't sleep. So all right, that's fine. So the next morning....
“She had dozed off to sleep, laying praying all night.”
50
(And if you want your husband saved now, you do the same thing Rebekah did. Just start praying for him. And you know, out there on that sea when he's out there fishing, or down there in the business, he'll get so under conviction he can't even sleep. Yes, sir. That's right. He just gets.... And if you want your wife saved, you do the same thing, and she'll come away from every card party, and everything else she belongs to. She'll sure do it. Yes, sir. Oh, there's just great power in prayer.)
“And she said she prayed, and then about morning she went to sleep. All at once she woke up. Little bit before day, Zacchaeus was already up. Groomed himself in his very best clothes, and she said, 'Thank you, Lord. I know. I know You're dealing with him.' And so she turned over. She said, 'Oh, dear. What bringest thou up so early?'
“'Oh,' he said, 'nothing. I just thought I'd walk out, and get a bit of fresh air. [You know how you can find all kinds of excuses, you see.] I believe I'll just walk out, and get a bunch of fresh air. You know, it's kind of stuffy in the room.'
51
“'Well,' she thought, 'we've been married for twenty-five years, and never did he do it before. So there must be something wrong now. So we know that, and Jesus is supposed to be here most any time. So I'll just act like I'm not concerned. But he don't believe that Jesus is a prophet. So, if He could ever be convinced that He was a prophet then He'd know the Word of the Lord; 'cause he's a Jew, and he knows the Word comes to the prophets. So he knows that he'd have the Word of the Lord.'
“So she watched him, and he groomed himself in his best, and combed out his beard, and fixed his hair back, and put on his nicest turban. And he goes walking down the sidewalk, looking back to see if Rebekah is looking. And she's over at another window, peeping behind the lattice like this, seeing what he's doing.
“She got down on her knees, and said, 'Thank You, Lord, thank You. He's going right straight down to see it. I know You're going to answer my prayer.'”
That's the way you got to believe: God's going to do it for you.
52
“So then, he goes walking out, you know, and goes down the street, and he looks around. Now, if he was going to do it, he would go up this way under the trees. But instead of that, he went right down towards the South Gate where Jesus come in at, see.
“He gets down there. He thought, 'I'll get down there early,' he said in himself, testifying later. 'I'll get down there early, and I'll see this here false prophet—so-called prophet of Galilee. When He comes by, I'll give Him a piece of my mind.' [You don't realize. See, when they get real irritable, just remember God's still dealing, see. He knows how to do it.]
53
“So you know what? When he got down there, the street was already full of people, had been there all night waiting for Him. You know, He had friends, too. And he got down there and he was so little.... He might've been big in his own congregation, but he was just another man in that one.”
You know, I like this old-time religion. It'll make a tuxedo suit and a pair of overalls put their arms around one another, and say, “Brother.” It'll make a calico dress and a silk one put their arms around one another, and say, “Sister.” It's no respect of person. You're just another man. No matter what you own, or who you are, you're just another man. There's no big shots among us. We're all God's children. That's right. Oh, my!
54
“And here he gets down there, and he thought, 'When they see me, Zacchaeus, the great merchant of this city walking down, they'll all step aside, and say, 'Your Honor, sir.' But they found out he was just another man. And he got there, he was so little among them, he couldn't see Jesus. He said, 'You know what? Now, this.... He comes in ... this is Glory Avenue. Now He's bound to cross Hallelujah, crossing up there, up the street called Hallelujah Avenue. [He always goes them streets—Glory, and Hallelujah, and Amen, and Praise God. He always travels them roads. Just stand along there. You'll get it after awhile.]
55
“And he runs up the street real quick, as hard as he could, and got up to Hallelujah Avenue. And he said, 'Now I'll stand right here, right out on the corner.' He happened to think, you know, 'There's such a press, and it's picking up momentum all the time. And time He gets up here, they'll just walk right over the top of me. So, you know what I believe I'll do? I believe I'll climb up in this sycamore tree here, and then I'll get a good view of Him.'
“So he jumped. He's too short, couldn't get a hold of the limb. So looked over there, and the city garbage collector hadn't got the garbage yet. So he reaches over, and gets a hold of the garbage pail, and here he comes. [Oh, you know, if you're determined to see Jesus, He'll make you do things that you didn't think you would do.] Oh, my! Here he is, the businessman of the city, packing the garbage can.
“And about the time he got out there, his competitor saw him. [Wonder if somebody sitting here tonight is exposed like that. Just, oh, exposed! What if it could be, sitting there! ”Oh, my! I didn't want nobody to see me in here.“ But you know, He knows right where you are.]
“And so, then he set the little can down, and the competitor said, 'Oh, I see he's changed his position—from a merchant, now, he's a city garbage collector.'
“And so, he didn't pay any attention, his little face red. But he was determined to see Jesus, you see. He wanted to get a look at Him. He didn't believe He was a prophet. And if He wasn't a prophet, he was going right down there and really tell Him about it, that's all. Going to say, 'Well, you're an imposter. You oughtn't to be in this city.'
“So, he gets up on top of the garbage can, and shinnies up it. [Oh, oh. You don't use that word here, ”shinny,“ do you? That's a Southern ... that means climb up the tree, you know; get your knees a hold of it. We call it shinny down there, up the tree.] Got up the tree, and he got up there, and he found where two limbs hit like this. And he sat down right on both of them.”
That's where we all come: where two ways meet, yours and God's. There's where you make your decision.
“He sat up there; looky, all groomed up, scraping the garbage off of him, picking the splinters out of his hands. What a mess! But he wanted to see Jesus.”
56
It'll make you get in a mess. That's what's the matter with people today. They don't like the new birth. They try to make it something else. They want to shake hands, say, “I believe in God Almighty, the Father. I believe in the holy Roman Catholic Church, the communion of saints, and I take Him to be my Saviour. I'm borned again.” Huh-uh, No, no, no.
Listen, brother. The new birth's more than that. Listen. I want to tell you something. Any birth is a mess. I don't care if it's in a pig pen, or if it's in a hospital room. Any birth is a mess. And let me tell you, the new birth is nothing less. It's a mess. You'll squawl, and bawl, and wash all the paint off your face with tears. But ... you'll have to die, but it brings new life. That's the main thing. It'll bring new life, and you'll be a different creature. It'll make a mess out of you, but you'll have to do that to be borned again. You have to be messy, see, but it'll bring new life.
57
“And here he was sitting up there, scraping the garbage off of him. And, you know, he said, 'Now, Rebecca told me.... [And she was home, jumping up-and-down, saying, ”God, I know You're answering prayer. Hallelujah! He's going to get it today. That's all there is to it, because he didn't return back. He'd have walked out on the sidewalk and come back in if he wanted a little fresh air. But he went just as hard as he could, and I seen him going out towards Hallelujah Avenue as hard as he could go. I know, Lord. Thank You already—answered prayer.“]'
58
“So then, what happened? Then here sits little Zacchaeus up there, and he said, 'You know, Rebekah said He was a prophet. Now, somebody might see me up here, and point me out to Him before I get a good chance to tell Him what I think about Him.' So he reached around, and got the limbs, and pulled them all around him, and camouflaged himself, sat back in a ... you know, like a crow sitting back in a tree. Got all back there, and camouflaged himself.
“He had one great big sycamore leaf here. He made that a window. He could raise it up, and look, then come back down, see. And directly he heard a noise. [You know, there's something strange. About everywhere Jesus goes, there's a lot of noise.] He said, 'Well, He must be coming. Lot of noise.'
59
“And after awhile, here He turns the corner. And when He turns the corner, looks. Crowds all around Him, four or five men keeping the people away from Him, and He walks around the corner. He said, 'That little bitty fellow?' [You know, the Bible said, ”There's no beauty we should desire him.“ He didn't look like some big king, or priest, or something. He was humble, little fellow.] Walking along there with his head down, head down He walked right down till He got right under the tree. And here's old Zacchaeus sitting up there, you know, holding up this leaf, you know, looking like this.
“And about the time He got underneath the tree with his head down, He looked up there, and said, 'Zacchaeus, come down. I'm going home with you for dinner.' ”
Right! Was He a prophet? Amen! Sure He was. Not only did He know he was in the tree, but He knowed his name was Zacchaeus. Amen. Glory!
60
Must have been Nathanael said, “Just a minute. You remember that time when that old Pharisee went and asked Him down to have dinner with Him?”
“Yeah.”
“They didn't invite us, and we couldn't come without an invitation. But He went, and they let Him sit in there with unwashed feet. Remember that little old woman took her little Roman denarius, and went down there and bought that alabaster box, and slipped around in there. And she was standing there by his feet. And there sat Jesus with dirty feet. Oh, it sounds sacrilegious to say it. But they did.”
61
You know, when you go into their homes there, the first thing they do, they take a foot-wash flunky.... Now, that's the lowest paid man of the bunch, is a foot-wash flunky. He goes out there, and when a guest comes in, he sets up his feet. And he takes his sandals off and washes his feet, because....
They walked on a road, and the animals walked on this road, you understand, where the animals was, and had got into dust. And when they walked, they had a robe on, and it picked up that dust, and it settled on their limbs, and things. And, oh, the stink from the animals! And so, it wasn't nice to go into a home.
So they had a foot-wash flunky. He was the lowest paid man of the bunch. And he'd get out there, and wash their feet, and then make them welcome, you see, put them on a clean pair of sandals. And Jesus became a foot-wash flunky, the lowest job in the earth. And somebody failed to wash his feet.
62
And then, the next thing they do.... The Palestinian sun, them direct rays was real hot, so it'd scorch their neck, and face. And they'd give them some ointment, and they put it on there, and washed their face with it like that. And it cooled ... had a cooling, like menthol. And it come out of a rose bud they found way high in the mountains. The queen of Sheba brought a bunch of it up to Israel, when she come up in Solomon's day. And then they'd wipe it off.
And then, the next thing, they'd kiss their guest welcome. Come here, brother. Here's the way they did it. They'd take their hands like this, and when they come in, they was welcome. They'd take one another like this, and then they changed hands like this, right here, and on this side. And they still do it. Kiss them on the neck, make them welcome, see, kiss welcome.
63
Well, here sat Jesus. Here's this old ... big old rabbi, standing up there, you know, with all of his wine, and all of his fine food out there. And the poor people, they couldn't come. They'd smell that aroma of baked lamb, you know, and oh, my! how they wanted to come. But they couldn't come. Mouths watering.
Oh, them rabbis. They made money, and they could put on a big feed. And Jesus had come in, and all the rest of them was welcomed. And He'd left his busy schedule to come, and they didn't even make Him welcome—let Him sit there dirty.
And you know what old Rabbi Levinski said over there? He said.... And this woman, she looked over there, and she come and she seen Him sitting over there. She said, “Oh, who is that? Do you know who that is?”
And someone said, “That's supposed to be that prophet. He isn't a prophet. Rabbi's going to prove today that He's not a prophet. That's what He had Him down here for.”
64
You can remember, when one of them kind of guys invites Jesus, he's got a trump up his sleeve somewhere. He's got a card there somewhere. He had no business, he had no dealings with Jesus. It was a drawing card or something. So he had all the rest of the priests to come in. He was going to show that He wasn't a prophet.
And so, Jesus come anyhow. No matter how much that you're trying to do something about it, or trying to show Him up, if you invite Him, He'll come. He always keeps his appointments. He never fails. So there He was.
65
There He sat in there that night ... that day. And this little woman said, “If that's who that is, that's that man. I believe He's a prophet, and He was the one forgive Mary Magdalene, that woman just as bad as me, forgive her sins.”
Down the city she went, and up a little old alley, and up a little creaky steps in a little old shack. Reached down there and she pulled out what little money she had collected on her ill way of living. She pulled this out, this money bag. And she said, “I can't do it. He's a prophet. And He'd know how I got this money. But it's all I can do. It's all I got. And I must see Him. I'm a sinner. I must ask Him to forgive me.”
66
And up the street she went, and bought an alabaster box of ointment. She slipped into the meeting. I don't know how she ever got there. And she looked, and there sat Jesus. And when she got to Him, her heart began to beat when she looked at Him.
And she fell down at his feet, and she looked up. And she was so sinful till the tears begin to run down her face, bathe upon his feet, you know. And she was trying to wipe them. She was so afraid she was doing something wrong. She was trying to wipe them, and then go ... kissed his feet, and look up, and the tears running down. She was reaching ... got her hair, and was wiping them off like that.
And she broke the alabaster box, and put it upon them, crying because she knowed she was a sinner. And you know, she thought.... If Jesus would have moved a foot, she would have run out of there. But you see, no matter what it is, you try to do a service for Him, He'll let you do it. He likes for you to do a service for Him. And I can just see Him standing there looking at her.
And she's washing his feet, and she'd cry, “I know I'm a sinner. I ain't worthy to do this. But, Lord, I can't stand to see you sitting there, and your feet all dirty, and smelling like this. It's not right,” washing his feet like that, hysterically.
67
And old Pharisee, the old self-styled, turned around and blowed up, said, “Hmph, Hmph. Oh, if He was a prophet.... He would know what kind of a woman was washing his feet, if He was a prophet. That proves He's not a prophet.”
Jesus just sat still till finally she got her service done. That's the way He does you or me. Go ahead and do your service. Then when He got done, He just stood and looked at her. And she raised back. What's He going to say? He never said to her....
He turned, and looked over to the Pharisees, and He said, “Simon, I've got something to say to you. You invited me down here, and I come. But when I come, you never give me no water for my feet. You never anointed my parching head here, with ointment. You never give me a kiss.” (When you give the Palestinian kiss on the neck, “You're welcome. Come on in. You're a brother. You can go to the ice box, and get something to eat, and take off your shoes, and lay down across the chesterfield, and do what you want to.” You're home, when they kiss you welcome.) But said, “You never kissed me welcome.
“But this woman [He turned to her]” said, “this woman, ever since I've been in here, ever since she come, she's continually kissed my feet, and washed them with the tears of her eyes. [What beautiful water, tears of repentance, doing Him a service.] Oh, she's continually washed my feet with her tears. She's kissed my feet—not my neck; my feet—since I've been in here.”
68
And she wonders what He's going to say. Her mouth is all greasy from the ointment, her big brown eyes are standing open, her hair is hanging down, her face now is strained, and she wonders....
Then He turns and looks at her. Now see if He's a prophet or not. “And I say unto her that her sins, which were many, are all forgiven her. [That's what I want to hear Him say.] Her sins, which were many, are all forgiven her.” Amen. Was He a prophet?
69
One said, “You remember [another one raised up up there],” said, “Do you remember also, that when He went through the gate that day, going out of Jericho? There was a blind man sitting there, and he said ... he had been talking. His name was Bartimaeus. You remember his testimony?”
“Yes.”
“He said that a crowd began to make a lot of noise, and he said, 'What's all the noise about?' and people running over him.
You know, still when Jesus comes, a lot of noise. And there was ... he said he heard the chief, the general counselor, the head of the ministerial association come down there to stop that revival. “They can't have no such revival as that down here.” And so they was making Him leave the city.
And went around, and said, “Hey, we understand that you raised up a man from the dead called Lazarus. We've got a whole graveyard full of them up here. Come up and raise them up. We'll believe you.” See, but God don't clown for nobody.
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There was some time another bunch believed He wasn't a prophet. They put a rag over his face in the Roman yard, and took a stick, with a rag over his face, and hit Him on the head, and said, “If you are a prophet, tell us who hit you. We'll believe you. Tell us who hit you.” But He never opened his mouth and said a word. Of course He knowed who done it, but He don't clown for the devil. He just does things to glorify the Father. That's the same thing.... Yeah, “If you are a prophet....” They all doubted it. That's right. They all doubted it.
Zacchaeus said he doubted, but then he was a believer. He become a member of the Full Gospel church brethren, and was real loyal to it down there, because he believed that He was a prophet.
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Then we find out that old blind Bartimaeus standing out there, and some young lady come by. And he was all ... he'd been throwed over to one side, and she picked him up. She said, “Sir, what is the matter?”
He said, “Young lady, please tell me who passes by?”
“Oh, Thou dost not know? Thou art a Jew, and don't know the day and hour we're living?”
“No, my fair lady. I don't know who it would be.”
“I'm his disciple.”
“Who is He?”
“He's Jesus of Nazareth.”
“I never heard of Him.”
“Why, He's the prophet of Galilee, that the Scriptures spoke of.”
“Oh, the Messiah? The Son of David?”
“Yes.”
“Where's He at?”
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Now, if you're ever in Jericho, mark where blind Bartimaeus was sitting, and mark where Jesus was where He heard him. It was impossible for Him to hear him against one saying, “Hail to the prophet! Glory to God in the highest,” so forth; and the other said, “Get Him out of the city. He's a false prophet. Raise the dead. Show us something here”—a mixed multitude. He couldn't hear it. His natural voice, couldn't have heard it.
But old blind Bartimaeus got on his knees, and said, “O Jehovah God!”
And when he did, Jesus stood still. I wish I could preach on that. “Then Jesus stood still.” He stood still, and said, “Bring him here.”
His faith, the faith of that blind beggar stopped the Son of God, on the road to Jerusalem with the sin of all the world laying upon him, going to Calvary to be crucified. And the faith of one beggar on his knees, crying out, his faith, He felt his faith. Sure, He was God's prophet.
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Oh, what a testimony meeting! Wish we had time to go on, but we haven't. We got to stop the testimony meeting, and close. Oh, it's about maybe ... getting a little later, and it's done got dark. Oh, the old boat was just rocking from one side to the other, hollering, “Glory! Hallelujah!” Oh, they were satisfied. They knowed that He was Messiah.
About that time, back over behind the hills there in Galilee, the devil raised up. He said, “Uh-huh! I got them just exactly where I want them. They've gone off without Him. Now I'll get them.”
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And I wonder, brethren, if our churches hasn't done the same thing. In the excitement of the revival, we're trying to find who can have the biggest church, and the best dressed organization ... the best dressed congregation, rather, and the biggest organization, more members. I wonder if we ain't kind of slipped off in all this without Him, see, leaving Him back, laying ... just because we got a better crowd, and a bigger church.
And that's where my fear comes for my Pentecostal church that I'm zealous of; that it'll miss that real kernel, that real kingdom of God. Remember, brother, sister, Pentecost is not an organization. Pentecost is an experience—Methodist, Baptist, Anglican, whoever will. Pentecost. You can't organize Pentecost, 'cause that's the Holy Spirit, see. And you cannot.... It's an experience that comes to all people.
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And then they seen Him. They'd gone off without Him, so he said, “Here's my chance to sink them.” So he began to blow his poison breath. Whe-e-e-w! The big sea began.... Said, “I'll sink them out there in the middle of the sea now. I've got them out there where they can't help themselves.” Whe-e-e-w! Wave after wave!
What's he saying today with his wave after wave? “Days of miracles are past.” Whe-e-e-w! “No such a thing as divine healing. You Pentecostal people oughtn't to get started in there. You ought to join the great ecumenical churches. You ought to go on into the World Council of Churches.” Whe-e-e-w! waves of doubt floating through the church.
76
And first thing their little bark become waterlogged. The sail pole broke. The oars broke. The little.... You know what it means to have a boat waterlogged. She's about ready to go to the bottom, and there it was. All hopes is gone. The little ... just had to let it drive.
The waves, and the devil sitting on every wave, saying, “Hah! We'll get him on the next one. We'll sink them on the next one. They are disciples of Christ. We'll sink them because they've gone off. They got scared of Him. They've gone away. And so now we'll get 'em, we'll get 'em.”
And there they was, going back and forth, and the devil saying, “I'll sink them next.”
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But you know what? When they left, He didn't leave them. He climbed the highest hill there was in the land, so He could watch them, watch them where they was going. And you know, when He died back there on Calvary, He never left us. He rose again, and He ascended up, up, between Mars, Jupiter, Venus, beyond the moon, stars, the Milky White Way, went into heaven, and went way above heaven. The Bible said He's ascended ... even heaven is his footstool. Why? Farther up you get, the farther you can see. And his eye is on the sparrow, and I know He's watching right now.
When trouble come, He seen them in trouble, and the first thing you know, here He come walking to them on the sea, walking. And the sad part of this story is like this; right here is the most saddest part. They were ready to sink. And if our churches doesn't get back to a revival again, get back to the Holy Ghost, get back, and don't ... keep moving in that line like the denominational churches are going, we're going to sink. That's right. We're going right back, because every church that ever organized God laid them on the shelf.
And I want any historian to tell me where it ever raised again. Never in history did it ever do it, and I have studied the Nicene Council, Pre-Nicene Council, Nicene Fathers, Hislop's “Two Babylons,” Pemberman's “Early Ages.” Oh, there's never a place where the church ever organized, but what God laid it on the shelf and never used it again, and took something else and went on with it. That's right. “God is able of these stones....” There is where our trouble is laying right tonight. Tonight it's laying there.
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And here come Jesus walking on the sea, and they thought He was a spook. They were scared of Him. They said, “Oh!” They cried out, “Oh, it looks spooky. I'm scared it's a spirit.” The only thing that could save them, they was afraid of it.
Now hold real quiet. The same thing's happening. Wherever you go, and they see the Holy Spirit discerning—exactly what He said, proving that He is the Messiah working in his people—the people say, “It's a telepathy. Well, that guy's a fortune-teller,” see. The same thing they called that, see.
The only thing that can save them, they are afraid of it. That's right. But what did Jesus say? He said, “Fear not. Be of a good cheer. It is I.” Amen. “Don't be scared. It is I. Be not afraid.” May He say that to our hearts tonight, friends.
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When we come down through this prayer line, let's remember, fear not. Now, if you got a little superstitious, little suspicion in your heart.... Excuse me for mixing my words. This is eleven straight meetings for me, and about fifteen hundred discernments, in the last two months. I'm about gone. I got three more nights and I got to rest a little, or I just can't stay here. Everything ... I sit and talk to people. Looks like still it's a vision, see. That's the reason I'm tired. You don't realize what I'm going through. But I must work. The sun will soon be down, and there won't be light no more. It'll be dark then.
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They say communism will go take the world over. Don't you believe that. Communism ain't going to do nothing. Show me one place in the Bible where communism will ever take over. The Bible says Romanism will take over, not communism. Look at Daniel's vision, see. Not communism. It's a puppet in God's hands to destroy Romanism.
But Romanism, you fear that; not communism. It's nothing—don't amount to a thing. Only, you hear about Russia, all communism. I've been there. Seen some of the finest people I ever seen in my life. There's only one percent of all Russia that's communist. What Russia needs.... They seen the weakness of the Catholic church, and the way they done (It done nothing. They took all the money out of the land), and they turned communist. That's exactly. Should have held up that standard.
Russia needs a revival. When that little boy was raised from the dead, up there in Finland, I stood there with hundreds of them communist soldiers, with that communistic salute, and tears running down their cheeks. When that went all across the land, they said, “We'll receive a God that can raise the dead.” Yes, sir. Sure. They need a revival.
81
What we need is one.... God only needs one man that He can get complete in his control. That's all He needs. Brother, Christ is here tonight. Don't be scared of it. It's Christ. When you come through this line, just remember this—that it's Christ. I'm going to stand the congregation up, and pray for them. I'm going to have my minister brothers here that believes in divine healing, to come down.
Many times people ... a minister will come into the city, and maybe got a lot more of faith and ... or do all the talking, and all the praying for the sick, and even to baptize the people. Then what happens? Then when the evangelist is gone, the poor pastor looks like he's sat on the back row, and was nothing. After all, that's your shepherd. That's the man who brought you this far. Trust him on.
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And I want you all to know, you don't have to wait till some special gifts come through. If you have any need of spiritual things, consult your pastor. He was the one who led you safely this far. He'll take you on. That's right. God's servant.
And I want you to know that.... The other night I stood in a line where about thirty or forty pastors ... and I jumped up the other end of the line, and picked up the people like that. And a great, biggest percent of them was healed before they ever got to where I was standing—them Holy Ghost-filled pastors, laying their hands on them. That was Methodist, Baptist, and Pentecostals, and all together. They were believing. They had the Holy Ghost, and they were believing it (that's right), and they were getting the job done. That's true.
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Then don't be scared of this discernment. God promised it. And these few little nights, do you believe it? Have faith in God. Let us pray now, as we bow our heads. Now, we're fixing to close. In the next twenty to thirty minutes we'll be saying good-bye to one another.
If I come back next year, there's some of us won't be here. You know that. I may not even be here myself. You may not be here. This'll be our last meeting on this earth. Then we got to meet one another again. That'll be at the judgment ... or judgment seat of Christ. You'll either be standing there justified, or unjustified. It'll be too late then. You can't do nothing about it. And you know, and believe, that God through his Bible here has proved over and over that his presence is here.
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Are you not a Christian? I'm not going to ask you to come up to any altar; I'm just going to ask you a question. I want you to answer me from your heart. If you're not a Christian, and you want me to pray for you to be a Christian, would you just raise up your hand while everyone keeps their head bowed? Say, “Pray for me, Brother Branham. I am not....” God bless you, lady. God bless you. Another one? Say.... God bless you, lady. God bless you, brother. God bless you, over here. God bless you, sir. God bless you, young man. God bless you.
LUKE7:38
“I am not a Christian. I want to be a Christian. I raise up my hand.” God bless you, back there, sir. Now remember, I wouldn't have asked this question if it wasn't already the Holy Spirit struck me. That's the reason I started off of the message. Did you notice the different tone when I got washing that woman's feet ... or washing Jesus' feet, the woman? That light flew right down over me, standing right here before me now. That's the reason I'm just doing as He tells me. “Tell them to raise up their hands.”
God bless you. God bless you, brother. God bless you, yes. I see your hand. Someone else? God bless you. “Be merciful to me, God. I want to be saved.” God bless you, lady. “I want to be saved, and do Jesus a service. The world's pouring dirt upon Him again, the filth of the world. They call Him 'holy roller.' They call Him... , a bunch of crazy people. I want to take my stand. And with my life, that I'll live holy in the presence of this world, I want to wash the dirt from his feet. The criticism that they give his holy church, I want to wash the dirt from his feet with my tears of repentance.” God bless you, son. God bless you. God bless you, lady. That's good.
Oh, I see a lot of the white people with their hands up. God bless you. God bless you. Bless you. That's wonderful. Just believe. All things are possible to them that believe. Just have faith. All right.
85
Heavenly Father, You saw those hands. I'm ... as your servant I'm claiming them. I'm claiming these precious people. Some of them I'll never see again. But God, they broke all scientific rules right then. They raised up their hands. Now, according to science, our hands has to hang down. Gravitation holds them to the earth. But it shows that they've got a spirit in them that can make decisions, and they raised their hands towards their creator, showing that a spirit inside of them.... And there's one outside speaking to them, and they're answering back to that Spirit, which is the Holy Spirit.
And Jesus, I want to quote your words. Heavens and earth will pass away, but they won't. You said in the writing of the blessed Bible in St. John 5:24, “He that heareth my words....” And I just quoted your Bible tonight, “He that heareth my words and believeth on him that sent me has everlasting life, and shall not come to the judgment, but has passed from death unto life.” You promised it, Lord. They've raised up their hands. They believe You. They believe on Him that sent You. They're accepting the Word, and I claim them. And Satan cannot be around them no more. I claim them, for the gospel.
And Jesus gives them to his Father for love gifts. “And no man can pluck them out of my Father's hand.” They're yours, Lord. I believe them, that they'll make their way to a Christian church somewhere, a good full gospel church, and be baptized with Christian baptism, and receive the Holy Ghost. And when the fog of death begins to float into their face one of these mornings when their heart stops, the old ship of Zion shall come pick up its passenger, and land them safely over yonder. Grant it, Lord. I believe it, trusting in Jesus' name. Amen.
86
I believe Him. Do you believe Him? Now, each one that raised your hand.... Now, I believe in making altar calls. Certainly I do. But the real ... that isn't apostolic. The Bible said, “As many as believed was baptized,” see. Prayer meetings has been ... sure. We started making altar calls, coming up and praying, in the days of the Methodist early church in England, when they organized Sunday school, and so forth. But that's fine. I believe in Christians coming around the altar praying, sinners and what more. But right now, see, there's not any room—instruments and everything here.
But I believe that you meant that. And if you didn't mean it, it wouldn't help you anyhow, see. But if you did mean it, you have passed from death unto life. That's exactly what He said. That's right, if you meant it. There's thirty, forty hands.
87
Now, see these pastors here? They're your brethren. Make your way to their church and be baptized. Ask them about how to receive the Holy Ghost. They'll instruct you, how to do it. Now when we pray for you, I want to be sure that the Spirit of God is upon us. All right.
I want to ask you, do you believe? See that picture over there, that pillar of fire that's on the picture? You've seen it. Now, I've seen that since I was a little boy. It's all down through the records. The first time that was ever taken, the Canadian newspaper packed it thirty-one years ago, across the whole provinces of Canada, all the provinces, the Dominion of Canada. Said, “A mystic light appears over a minister while baptizing in the river.” That was in 1930, at the foot of Spring Street at Jeffersonville, Indiana, when around ten thousand people was standing there. And I was baptizing my seventeenth person.
I said, “Heavenly Father....” I was a young Baptist preacher, and I said, “Heavenly Father, I can only baptize him with water unto the fellowship of this church. But I pray that You'll baptize him with the Holy Spirit.” I said that. Something said, “Look up.” I heard it a third time said, “Look up.”
And I turned, and looked, and a great roar shook around over the crowd, and here come that light milling itself down, and stood right over me where I was standing. And a voice came from it, said, “As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the first coming of Christ, your message will forerun the second coming.” Look at it today. A revival broke after that, and around the world it's went—a Pentecostal, Holy Ghost revival. Now Lutherans, Baptists, Presbyterian, Catholics and all receiving the Holy Ghost, everywhere; and the church making ready to go in. The message is coming to the end, see. There....
88
Now we all know now that the angel of the covenant ... that pillar of fire was the angel of the covenant, which was Christ. Do you believe that? Your brethren will believe that, the ministers, sure. See, Moses forsook Egypt, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater treasures than that of Egypt, see. It was ... now that was Christ in that pillar of fire, when He settled down on the mountain.
Now, when He come here on earth, He said, “I came from God, and I go to God.” Is that right? And after his death, burial, and resurrection, after his ascension, Saul, which was later called Paul, was on his road down to Damascus to arrest the people that were in this way. And right in the middle of the day, that big pillar of fire appeared before him, and knocked him down, and put his eyes out. And a voice said.... Now, nobody saw the pillar of fire but him.
Do you believe the Magi followed a star? No observatory saw it, or anything, looking at the heavens all together. They never saw it, because they wasn't looking for it, see. He just appears to those who He will.
Now Saul was struck down. They didn't see no pillar of fire, but it was so real to Saul till it put his eyes out. And a voice come from it, said, “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?”
He said, “Who are you? Who is this pillar of fire?”
He said, “I am Jesus. I come from God. I go to God.”
Now, all that God was, He poured into Christ. He was the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And all that Christ was, He poured into his church. “That day you'll know that I'm in the Father, the Father in me; I in you, and you in me,” see. It's God. It was God above us, God with us, God in us. See what I mean? There it is, the same God.
89
Now, if that light doesn't do the same works that it did when it was in the Son of God, then it isn't the same one. It isn't. But if it does do the same works.... Just like I said, if you could take all the life out of a apple tree, every bit of the life, and transfer the life of a pear tree in an apple tree, it would bring forth pears, see, because of the life in it. That's what it bears. The fruit is in the life, of course.
And that's the same thing here. If you put the life of Christ, and take the life of a sinner out, he has to die first. And then when the life of Christ comes into him, then he'll produce the life of Christ because that's what's living in him, see. “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also,” because his life is in him.
90
Now, your brethren, your pastors, they may not be able to prophesy and foretell things, 'cause prophets are born prophets. There's a gift of prophecy in the church, but prophets are born prophets. Always. The voice of prophecy in the meetings, the gift of prophecy, has to be judged.
But notice. Now, but there is more than ... there's apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, see. Them are all offices. And these brothers.... I'm not a teacher, or preacher, see, because I can't hold their office. They can't hold mine. But God has set in the church.... These men are God's men, too, just as much right to pray for anybody. And I'm only here....
See, we're all like—so my Indian brethren will get it—we're all fishing. We are. And there's just so many fish in this lake that's got to be caught, and that's all of it. The kingdom of God is like a man took a net, and went ... throwed into the lake; pulled it out, he had frogs, lizards, bugs, snakes, and fish. But they was fish to begin with, and they was frogs to begin with. Just a little while, and the frogs will hop back in the water, and snakes will run back, the water spiders will back off, and the crawfish will run under something. But the fish is the Master's.
91
Now, these brethren are seining on different parts of God's great lake. Now, I come up here in this little city to weave my net with yours, so we can reach way out—away from one corner, or one community—reach way out, and pull. It's all our nets put together. Don't you see? We are brothers. We might disagree. If I come ask Brother Byskal here about some theology, we might disagree. And I've never met a finer man in my life, see. We might disagree. But....
My children back there.... I got three children at home. I go to get ice cream, I have to get three different kinds. One wants vanilla, one wants strawberry, and one wants chocolate. When I come with the ice cream, it looks like a rainbow. But look. It's all ice cream. The flavor doesn't count. There we are, brethren. That's right. We're all eating ice cream.
92
By one Spirit we're all baptized in the same body. And the way we can sit here tonight, a rainbow is a covenant. God's a God of variety. Don't you believe that? God don't have everything like Sears Roebuck Harmony House. No, sir. God's a God of variety. He makes big mountains. He makes little mountains. He makes deserts. He makes seas. He makes little men, big men. He makes white flowers, black flowers, blue flowers, pink flowers. He's a God of variety. And that's the way He wants it.
But now, what if the white flower gets in with the red flower, and say, “Huh! I ain't going to be in this bouquet of God. No, sir, 'cause you're not a red flower.” No, they just blend together for the Master. Amen. That's the way we do it. Blend together for the Master. That's right.
93
Now. The Holy Ghost is here, and Jesus said, “If I do not the works of my Father, then don't believe me.” Is that right? They couldn't believe Him, being a man, being God. They just couldn't see it, that that could be anything. Said, “You make yourself equal to God (being the Son of God).” Now we know Jesus was Son. He said, “The Son can do nothing in Himself, but what He sees the Father doeth.”
Thomas said, “Show us the Father, and it sufficeth us.”
He said, “I've been so long with you, and you don't know me? He that seen me hath seen the Father. It's not me that doeth the works. It's my Father that dwelleth in me.” God is a Spirit; Jesus was the man. He was a tabernacle that God dwelt in, see.
Now, He had the Spirit without measure, like all that water out there in the sea. That was what was in Him. But in us, it's just a spoonful out of it. We got it by measure. But remember, the same chemicals that's in the whole sea is in the spoon; not as much of it, but the same kind, see. That's right. That's the reason He said, “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also.”
Now, when he showed his Messiahic sign, that was for some. He was a teacher. Here they are. Here's different things, what all He done. Here it is represented in his church. He's here to help you, and we're here preaching the Word, doing everything we can to help you.
94
Now if I've told the truth, God's obligated to his truth. Is that right? Now, before we come up here ... and you know your pastors, you know they're teachers. You know they're powerful men of God in the Word. And now, that God might speak whether I've told the truth or not, how many in here now is sick? Raise up your hands. Before we pray, just raise up your hand, say, “I'm sick. I want you to pray for me.” All right. Now there's all kinds of hands. 'Course I wouldn't know which was which. Now, let's just pray in our hearts.
Now, the Bible said that Jesus Christ is a high priest that can be touched by the feeling of our infirmities. If that's right say, “Amen.” Right now He's a high priest. And if you touched Him.... In Hebrews 13:8, said, “He's the same yesterday, today, and forever,” He would act the same, see. He's in the form of Holy Spirit. Then if you touch his garment, like that woman did, with the feeling of your infirmities, then He'll speak right back through, 'cause here's a portion of his church as the teachers, and outlets, and channels, see, and just see if it isn't God. Let the people in here know that He's God. He is God, and He remains the same yesterday, today, and forever.
95
Now let us pray quietly, each one, for our infirmities. Let's everybody in your own way pray. Just believe. Say, “God be merciful. Let me touch your garment, Father. I confess my sins. I'm wrong. And Lord God, if You will just let....”
And you people back there just accepted Him, saying, “Lord, the man surely knew there were sinners in here, or he wouldn't have made a call like that. And I raised my hand. I've never seen anything like this done. I heard him tell about that testimony meeting. If I can see it done, I'll start a testimony meeting, too, that I saw it done, because they said You were the same.” Now you pray and say, “Father, let me touch your garment.” In Jesus' name, Amen.
96
Now look this way. Believe. Let's just go by sections so I can just concentrate on the section. Now you believe with all your heart. Now let the Holy Spirit ... solemnly now, everybody just as reverent, and quiet as you can be. And just don't ... look at me, but don't....
As Peter and John passed through the gate they said, “Look on us.” That meant pay attention to what they were saying. Said, “Silver and gold have I none. Such as I have, I'll give you.”
Now, if I could heal any of you, I'd come do it. You know that. I believe you believe that if I could do it.... But I can't. Nobody else can. Not even God can. He's already done it. The only thing, He lets you know that He's here to confirm what He said was right. How many understands that? That his presence confirms that....
97
Looky here. Why, how much greater would it be to see a person out there that you never seen in your life, and reveal their life, or something to them like that, than it would be even just to lay hands on the sick, and see them recover. It's a miracle that we haven't had in the church for two thousand years. But it was promised in the evening time, and here we are. Not to the formal church, but to the elected church, Abraham's seed, only. Now believe.
If anybody don't believe it's God, come up here and take my place. Have faith.
98
There's a little, pretty little girl sitting right here looking at me. A little Indian girl. There's something wrong with you, sister. And down in your little childish heart, you struck a hold of something. I want to ask you something, sister. You felt a real sweet feeling around you, just as soon as I spoke, didn't you? That light come right down over you. You're suffering with an eczema that won't leave. That's right. Isn't it? If that's right, raise up your hand. It's going to leave you, now. Your faith does that. Honey, did you have a prayer card? You had one. You won't have to use it now. I looked down. I thought I seen something in her hand. Just be reverent.
Here, a white woman, sitting way back there looking at me. She's suffering with something wrong in her throat, and in her chest. God, don't let her miss it. Heavenly Father, help us, please. Miss Alexandra, you believe with all your heart. Do you believe? Raise up your hand. All right.
Listen. Listen to this. When I first spoke, you thought it was you, but you wasn't sure. That's right. Then you got real kind of upset, scared. That light went away from her, and then come back, see. Then when it did, I seen her holding something in her hand coming from the post, and it said, “Alexandra.” All right. Go ahead. Your faith saves you. Amen. Do you believe Him? That's all you have to do, is ask Him, and receive.
99
What about somebody in here? Here. Here's a man that's kind of coming between the middle age, and aged. He's looking right at me. He's wondering in his heart, really, if I'm talking to him. It's you. You are suffering with some kind of something in your face, like a nerve that's dying. And it started at a hospital, or something, or some kind of a something you had done. And you can't sleep, it bothers you so bad. If that's right, raise up your hand. Now believe, and it won't bother you no more.
Your wife sitting there, the lady right next to you with the polka dot dress on, it thrilled her like she just didn't know what to do. That's right. Now, I don't know you, lady, do I? You believe me to be God's prophet? Will you receive me as his prophet? If I'll tell you, and you a stranger to me, from here —being that you are a believer because ... happened to him—if you believe me with all your heart, and I can reveal to you what your trouble is, you'll know whether it's the truth or not. Now you're seriously sick. It's a heart trouble. If that's right, raise up your hand. Now you believe with all that's in you, and it'll leave you. “Fear not. It is I. Be of a good courage.”
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Here's an Indian lady, sitting right back there looking at me. She put her hand up around her head, rubbing her face. She's bothered with trouble in her arm. O God, may she not miss it now. Indian sister, I'm speaking to you. Mrs. Jacobson, believe me with all your heart. That's got it! There you are. Amen.
Do you believe? Now do you believe that's the Holy Spirit? Raise up your hand. Then look. Then that anointing is on me now, and believe me as I say I speak the truth, and God confirms it's the truth. Then, that same Holy Spirit, only in another office, is on these men, all of us. Now we're going to stand up here, all of us, anointed with the Holy Spirit, and let every person in the building pass by, and we'll pray and lay hands on you.
And the Bible said, “These signs shall follow them that believe.” Follow them—that's me, and you together; you and them together, see. You believe. We'll lay hands on you, and pray for you as you pass by. Go out of this building, just rejoicing and happy; and don't never turn it loose, and you'll get well.
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Now, if you believe me to be a true servant of Christ.... I've spoke to you to the Word of God. God has come down, and confirmed the Word of God; and I speak back to you showing you that it is God; and God's Word promises this to every one of you. What more can He do? Nothing. He can't heal you, 'cause He's already done it.
The only thing you have to do is pass right by here. And as soon as you go into the water and was baptized, you say, “I'm a Christian, because I've repented, and been baptized.” When you come by here and hands are laid upon you, you say, “I'm healed, because God said the prayer of faith shall save the sick.” Go on right here. Just walk right out from under here like you were walking out from under Calvary, shouting and praising God. It's over. Do you believe it? Amen.
I love Him, don't you? Amen.
There is a fountain filled with blood,
Drawn from Emmanuel's veins,
Where sinners plunged beneath the flood,
Lose all their guilty stains.
The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day;
There may I, though vile as he,
Wash all my sins away.
Ever since by faith I saw that stream
Thy flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme,
And shall be till I die.
Then in a nobler, sweeter song,
I'll sing his power to save,
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue
Lies silent in the grave.
Hallelujah! I believe Him. There's room at the fountain for every one of us. Oh, when we plunge in that healing stream, by faith pouring down from God out of heaven, pouring upon the people showing them his presence.... He's here now. He loves you. He loves every one of you.
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How many of you has got prayer cards now? Raise up your hand. Those who have prayer cards in this row, this section, let them stand against the wall on that side. All with prayer cards, stand over on that side. And all with prayer cards in this section, stand over in the middle aisle. And as soon as they get to the end, you pull right in here behind them. Then as soon as all the prayer cards are out, then let this section stand on that side. And this section hasn't prayer cards, file right in with one another. Brother Borders will take a hold of the microphone and instruct.
And now come here my brethren. (Thank you, Brother Eddie.) Where can we get to it best down there? I wonder. All right. It is. There might be some of them that's crippled. I tell you what we're going to do. We're going to come down there. Let's go right down. That's what we can do right now. All right. Just come right down, right down here, each one of you brethren. Just stand there. [Blank spot on tape.]
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Till we meet! till we meet!
Till we meet at Jesus' feet;
Till we meet! till we meet!
God be with you till we meet again!
Isn't He wonderful? How many believe that you are going to be well and sound? Amen. How wonderful, wonderful. God bless you. Let's close our eyes now, as we part. I hope to see you again. Until I see you I'll be praying for you. You be praying for me. Will you do it? I'll never forget Port Alberni. Only thing I wish, that I just had more time to stay. I love you with undying Christian love. Ever any time I can do a favor for you, the nights won't get too long, and the rain won't fall too hard. Call on me. I'll pray for you at any time. Anything I can do to be a favor to you, until we meet again.
Till we meet! till we meet!
God be with you, till we meet again!
Just hum it. Oh, how wonderful. How sweet it is that brethren dwell together in unity, just like the precious anointing oil that was on Aaron's beard that run down to the hems of his skirt. I hate to leave you. God bless you. Let's sing it again, will you?
Till we meet! till we meet!
Till we meet at Jesus' feet;
Till we meet! until we meet!
God be with you, till we meet again!