A Trial

Our Heavenly Father, we thank Thee for the privilege that we have of gathering under this roof this afternoon, again, to hear the Word of God, and to see the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. We're under great anticipations, Father. And we pray that You'll receive us this afternoon, and respect our efforts that we put forth to come to worship You. Bless every soul that's here. We realize that good things are those that's hard to get. So we pray, that because of their sacrifice, there won't be anyone left out but what will be healed this afternoon. Save the lost and get glory to Yourself. We ask in Jesus Christ's Name. Amen.

You may be seated.

Our tin roof kind of makes it hard for you to hear. We won't take but just a little bit, to speak to you. And then we'll go right on with the prayer line, 'cause that's what we designated this afternoon for, was to pray for the sick.

And now I want to say this. I don't know when I have ever enjoyed of being with a group of people any more than I have this group here. You've been really fine. I was telling Brother Johnson, a while ago, that I don't know when I ever enjoyed a meeting any better. Such a wonderful spirit among you people, and belief, faith. I'd like to stay here about a month, so we could really get acquainted with one another. Usually, about time you get acquainted, then it's time you have to say “good-bye” and go somewheres.

I don't know who this little policeman is out here, standing out there in all that rain, bareheaded, trying to direct that traffic. If anybody knows him, thank him personally for me, will you? I tell you, he's done a real good job.

I want to thank the man who come in here and cleaned out this place, and fixed it for this, so this meeting could be here today. I tell you, the community owes a great tribute to men of that courage, that'll do that. I owe a great tribute to you, for a people that will come out on a day like this. Most people would stayed home. I—I appreciate your courage. And you standing here in the midst of all this difficult, setting under this roof, can hardly hear what's going on, but yet determined to stay anyhow. That's, that's the courage. I—I like that. I always think of that song:

Must I be carried home to Heaven

On a flowery bed of ease,

While others fought to win the prize,

And sailed through bloody seas? (Yeah, difficult!)

I preached, some time not long ago, in South Africa, where it was raining so hard in the time of the monsoon, until women, just setting everywhere and their hair streaking down, been setting there all day in that rain. I never seen such a meeting of healing in my life!

In Mexico, not long ago, I remember standing down there preaching, when it been raining like this, out in that bull ring there, all day. And them people was there at nine o'clock that morning, setting in the rain. And a woman with a dead baby in her arms. The baby had died the night before, and that little baby laying stiff, in her arms. A fellow had give out the prayer cards, and done give them all out. There was no more prayer cards. They let me down on a rope, back behind the ring, to get into the ring like this. And Billy come running to me. He said, “Daddy, I don't know what I'm going to do.” He said, “I've got three hundred ushers standing there.”

And how many knows Jack Moore? Most all of you know Jack Moore, here, I guess. He was with me.

“And there's a little woman out there,” he said, “that's got a baby that's dead, died this morning.” That was about nine o'clock that night. Died that morning in a doctor's office. And said, “She wants that dead baby brought into the line.” Said, “I haven't got no more cards, and I got the line lined up.” Said, “I don't know.” And it pouring rain just as hard; just standing there in it, cold rain. Looked out there, and them little Mexican women, their hair hanging down, just drenched, wet, under them lights. And you couldn't hardly see out, through, it's raining so hard. Well, I said... “Well,” he said, “I can't hold her,” said, “we got—we got three hundred ushers.” Said, “She climbs right over the top of them, and she's got this dead baby.”

I said, “Well, Brother Moore, why don't you go down and pray for her?” And I had been preaching about ten minutes, I guess, something. And I said, “Why don't you go pray for her,” I said, “because she wouldn't know who I am, or nobody; been several speakers.” I said, “She don't know who I am. You go pray for the baby and that'll satisfy her.”

He said, “All right, Brother Branham.” He started to go off the platform.

And there was a rick of old clothes, that high, all the way for, oh, maybe twenty or thirty yards. A blind man had received his sight, the night before, and so they were really interested. Ninety percent Catholic.

So then I started to preach. I said, “As I was saying, faith is the sub-...”

I looked, standing before me, and there was a little Mexican baby; a little black face, little gums, no teeth, just shining, little gums like that. And I thought, “That must be that baby.” I said, “Wait a minute, Brother Moore. Tell the little lady to bring the baby here.”

So they opened up, the room; no—no prayer card. She wasn't really supposed to get in, but she was persistent. That's—that's what you want. So she had brought the baby up.

I said, “Heavenly Father!” Course, they don't interpret the prayer. I said, “I don't know whether this is the baby, or not. I just seen the little baby. But if it is, it's Your respect to that woman making this sacrifice.” I laid my hands over on that little blue blanket, and that little stiff frame about that long, hanging out in the woman's arm.

And the baby let out a scream and begin kicking, the top of its... just screaming so hard as it could. The baby was... Now the little lady fell down and started hollering, “Padre!” Padre means “father,” you know. Had beads in her hand.

I said, “That's not necessary.”

And I said to Brother Espinoza, a Pentecostal preacher. Many, I guess, I guess you know him. Yeah, Brother Espinoza. I said, “Now don't you write, 'that baby was dead.' I don't know. The only thing I seen was that there, that vision.” I said, “You follow a—a runner after that woman, and let her go and let the doctor sign a statement to it.”

And the Christian Business Men's Voice just recently packed the statement, “The doctor give testimony, 'the baby died with double pneumonia,' in his office that morning, 'at a quarter till nine o'clock.'” And that was ten o'clock that night, the Lord Jesus give it back its life again, because of a sacrifice. Now, that is so true! God in Heaven knows that's right. Doctor's certified statement! The statement now is in the hands of the Christian Business Men, which Demos Shakarian is nat-... international director. He has the statement signed by the doctor, “The baby died with double pneumonia, that morning.” And at ten o'clock that night the baby was made live, because of a faith of a mother that was persistent to do it. That's so.

Just the same as the little Shunammite woman was persistent to get to Elijah!

Just the same as the Greek Syrophenician woman was persistent to get to Jesus. She knowed she had a daughter had epilepsy. Though, she was not even a Jew. The revival wasn't to her people. And then when He got, she got to Him, He said, “It's not meat for me to take the children's bread and give it to the dogs.” Called her a dog.

She said. “That's truth, Lord.” See how the real faith will witness the Word to be Truth! “Truth, Lord, but the dogs are willing to eat the scraps under the master's table.”

He said, “For this saying, your child is healed.” And she got it the same way, because she was persistent.

Thank you, very much, friends. The Lord bless each one, the musicians, Sister Ungren here, and all my friends. I see here many of my friends has come in for this meeting. I seen, today, Brother and Sister Evans. I don't know whether he can even hear me, or not. They're from over in Macon, Georgia. Sister Ungren here and—and all of them from up in Memphis, Tennessee. And Brother Palmer and Sister Palmer, and their friends. And Brother Parnell, a minister friend of mine there. I see them just setting all around here now, of friends, personal friends. Brother J.T. here, from—from over in Georgia, also, his friend. And we're certainly thankful to have all of you here, and your faith and confidence. Some of them people drive plumb to Jeffersonville, Indiana, every Sunday I preach up there, just come up to hear. Then I tell you, that, the world is not worthy of such people, to my opinion. That's me thinking it. You people here, we're one great unit of Christ. We believe in Him.

And now it wouldn't be a meeting unless I taken a few minutes to read the Word and pass a few comments. Cause, if you are faithful enough to set here that long, I want to be loyal enough to that, to read the Scripture and pass just a comment or two, and then we'll start the prayer line.

Now I'm going to read today from the Scripture from Mark, the 16th chapter, just for a few moments. To draw from this a context, I'm going to begin at the 14th verse:

And after he upbraided them ... appeared unto the eleven and sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Now, remember, “all the world, this gospel, to every creature.” Some says it ceased with the apostles. He said here that His last commission to the church was all the world, to every creature.

And these signs shall follow them that believe.

Where? All the world, to every creature. Note, there's where He give it to the church. Show me where He took it away ... all the world.

He that believeth ... shall be saved; ... he that believeth not shall be damned.

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

They shall take up serpents; ... if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not harm them; they shall lay their hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

So ... after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat at the right hand of God.

And they went forth, ... preaching every where, the Lord working with them, ... confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

Now, I believe that scripture to be the truth.

Before I forget it, my son told me awhile ago, some little lady and her husband, from Arkansas, baked me a birthday cake and give it to me. Many of you has give me cards and things I haven't even had time to get into yet. Thank you very much. God bless you. And I hope you have a ... we all spend an eternal birthday over yonder, where we'll sit down. And I want ten thousand years with each one of you, just sit down and talk. And we won't have any less time to talk, than we did when we began. That's the truth.

Now, I thank you for all that you've done. I ...

just for about ten minutes, or fifteen at the most maybe, the Lord willing, to just pass a few comments. I want to say this: that I trust that my feeling leading to come.... You pastors' feeling led to sponsor me to come—that give me an open door. You people were loyal to come out. And Jesus has not failed but what He's appeared to us each time, in the sign of the hour that we're living in. And I trust that His resurrection, everlasting eternal being, and His presence has influenced you to love Him, and serve Him more than you ever did in all your life; to purpose in your heart to live true to Him and live closer, better.

I heard a story once that was told me, about when they had the slaves here in the south. They used to sell them on markets, and so forth, like they did when ... the time of the slave days. The Boers brought them in out here at Jamaica Island. Then the people over here, they smuggled them in and they bought them for slaves, which was legal in them days. And they'd go by and buy them. And they'd find good heavy slaves. Why, they would breed that big heavy slave to a heavy woman. That would make a better man. That's the reason they're champions of the world today in things, in their fighting. They're just ... had a ... bred in like cattle and so forth.

But then we find a buyer.... One time a broker came by to buy on a plantation, where they had about a hundred slaves. And those slaves were ... they were sad. They had to whip them to make them work, because they was away from home. They were smuggled away, captured, went into captivity, and was smuggled away. And they'd have to whip them to make them work, because they were discouraged. They were away from home, they'll never see papa and mama no more, they'll never see their wife or children. It was a sad affair.

And this broker one day come by a plantation said, “How many slaves you got?”

He said, “About a hundred.” Said, “Look them over.”

And he went out there, and he noticed them, how they was all.... But one young fellow, they didn't have to whip him. His chest was out, his chin was up, right on the dot. And so the broker, the buyer, said to the owner, he said, “Say, I'd like to buy that slave.”

He said, “Oh, no. He's not for sale.”

He said, “Well,” said, “is that slave, is he the boss over the rest of them?”

He said, “No. No, he's not a boss.”

Said, “Do you feed him different?”

Said, “No, they all eat out there in the galley together. He's just a slave.”

Said, “What makes him so much different from the others?”

He said, “I wondered a long time myself what made him different. But one day I found out. Over in the homeland, where they come from—Africa—his father is the king of the tribe. And, yet being an alien, he knows he's a son of a king, and he acts like one.”

Oh, what ought that do to us! Though we be alienated, though we're in a dark world with unbelief, and sorrow, and sickness, and death, yet let's act like sons and daughters of God. We are the sons and daughters of the King. It ought to change our attitude, everything. No matter what the rest of the world is, we must hold up the rights of God. We remember that this is not our home. We are not of this country, we're not of this world. We're borned of the Spirit of God, which is above.

Going with my wife here, not long ago, to a grocery store, I seen a strange thing in the summer time in Indiana: a woman had on a dress. They don't wear them no more, you know. And so my wife said, I said, “Well, looky there. Wonder if the woman's a Christian.”

She said, “Well, all these women, I know some of them here. They sing in the choir at the churches.” She said, “Why is it, Bill, that they do that?”

I said, “Of course....”

“And our people doesn't do that.”

I said, “Of course, we're of a different nation.”

She said, “We're Americans, aren't we?”

I said, “Oh, no. We just camping here. We're not Americans.” I said, “See, we are from above. The Holy Spirit came down, united our hearts with God. And we professed like Abraham, 'We're pilgrims and strangers. This is not our home. We're seeking a city whose builder and maker is God, coming from above.'” Yes, we are sons and daughters of the King.

Now, I'm going to bring a little thing that sounds funny just for few minutes. But I'm going to have a trial, a court trial, here. Can you hear me? How far back can you hear me? Raise your hand. Well, fine. Back this a-way, can you hear me? Good. I'm talking as loud, almost, as I can. I'm going to have a court trial, and the case is, the Word of God's promise versus the world. Now we're going to set it like a court trial for just a little bit, before you come through this prayer line—the Word of God versus the world.

Now, the case, the cause for this indictment is a breach of promise, that God's promises ... they claim that God hasn't kept His promise. The prosecuting attorney in this case is Satan, and he is the world's witness because he is of the world. The defendant in this case is Almighty God. The defense witness of this case is the Holy Ghost. We're going to call Him to trial just for a few minutes. The prosecutor's witnesses, that he's bringing up to defend his case, is Mr. Unbelief, Mr. Skeptic, and Mr. Impatient.

We're going to give them a trial.

Court is called to order now. The prosecutor calls his witness, Mr. Unbelief. He takes the stand first. Can you still hear me? Say “Amen.” All right, good. Now I feel a little more relaxed.

Now you understand? It's a case against God, that Mr. Unbelief, and Mr. Skeptic, and Mr. Impatient is calling God to a trial because He don't keep His Word, they say. All right. The prosecuting attorney in this case, he always represents state, so the prosecuting attorney in this case is Satan himself. And he's....

We're calling the trial. All right. They call the first one to the witness stand, that's Mr. Unbeliever. He complains this, that all of God's promised Word is not true. Now He's going to be tried for this. Listen close now, don't miss it. He claims that Mark 16, that I just read, was ministered to him in a so-called Holy Ghost meeting where others claimed to be getting healed. And that was ministered to him two years ago, and there's no difference in him yet; that “these signs” does not follow the believer. He said ... he made this claim against it. All right, he sits down.

We call the next witness. That's Mr. Skeptic. He takes the scripture of God's Word of James 5:14. And he said he was in a place where they claimed that the elders was called, and he was anointed with oil and prayed over, and that was over a month ago, and there's been no change in him yet. So he knows that that's wrong. He's calling God, and indicting God for it.

The next witness is Mr. Impatient. He's a awful guy. All right, Mr. Impatient. He claims that he read out of God's Word in Mark 11:22 and 23 that when, if you prayed, if you believed that what you prayed for you received, you should have what you asked for. And he said that he asked to lay down his crutches. After he read the Word and asked God to heal him, and he asked to lay down his crutches, and that's been five years ago; and he's never been able to lay them down since.

So they ... so they claim God is not justified in putting such rashal promises in His Word.

Now do you understand the case, now, against God? He's not justified in doing that, placing such scriptures as Mark 11:(23), 22 and 23, and Mark 16, James 5:14 and such promises as that.... They're indicting God, because of a breach of promise that He has broken His promise and is not able to stand by it. And they're indicting Him for putting such in His Word. For His believing children are not identified by the claims, and it causes them to be persecuted because they are not.... God doesn't identify His Word after He's made the promise.

Oh, we got a real case here now. I.... Look at them, how they can testify! Yet.... Hear the witnesses stand up again, and say, “Yet we are believers. [They claim to be believers themselves.] And it said, 'These signs shall follow them that believe.' 'The prayer of faith shall save the sick.” 'If you say to this mountain be moved and don't doubt in your heart, it shall happen.'

And we are believers.“

And yet again, one stands up and says yet, “He [that is God] promised all things are possible to the believers.” What an indictment against God and His Word!

Yet again, He claims to be alive after He was crucified, and claims that His scripture on Hebrews 13:8, that He's just as much God today as He was yesterday, and will be forever—identical to the same God. And they indict Him for that because it isn't so. They can't make it act right. All right.

Also he claims (this is the complainant, now), He claims that both heaven and earth will fail, but His Word will never fail. That's supposed to be believers talking.

Now, what an accusation, what a complaint we have against God—that He's made these statements, and not big enough to stand behind them. What do you think of that? And Satan, the prosecutor, is sitting there representing the world, to claim these ... a breach of promise to God. Because these people has come and been in these meetings, and has accepted these things that God said was right; and yet there's been nothing happen to them. Now, now let's let the prosecutor's witnesses step down just for a minute, so....

We got another side.

Now we will call the defense witness, the defense witness of the defendant—that's God. The defense witness for God is the Holy Ghost. Bring Him to the stand. Let's hear His testimony. My!

First, He calls the attention to the prosecutor's misinterpretation of the Word to the people—right, for he is the same interpreter that Eve had. He's the same interpreter that Eve had: “Oh, surely this ... or this is all right, but that isn't.” See, the same interpreter—the prosecutor is—'cause he's a devil, the same one that....

God fortified His children behind His Word. And the very first time you step from behind it, you're a target to the devil. But he can't get you as long as you're fortified by the Word.

Now, a promise is.... He said (again I want to call your attention), says.... Now this is the defense witness, the Holy Ghost. He said, “The promise is only to believers; not make-believers, and skeptics, and unbelievers. The promise is only to the believers; not to others.”

Now, this is the defense witness. And the defense witness should know, because He is the one that quickens it to them. He knows whether it's true or not. He also wants to call the attention here, being the quickener of the Word, He also calls the attention that the Word is a seed. And if the seed falls into the right fertile ground, it will produce exactly what God said it would do. But it's not fell in the right kinds of ground, so there's not soil enough (faith enough), to make the seed grow. I think, as the one who quickens the seed, He ought to know. Don't you think so? How many believe that, say “Amen.” [Amen.] He should be the one who knows. He's a real defense witness. All right.

The defense witness now is going to call his first witness. Now you see, the prosecutor called his witness, Mr. Unbelief, Mr. Skeptic, and Mr. Impatient. Now the defense witness has a right to call one of his witnesses. The Holy Spirit has a right to call it, 'cause He is the defense witness for God's Word.

Now, these men claim they believe, but the Holy Spirit knowed nothing about it. And He's the only one can quicken it. Just like your body here, see: your body is dead without the Spirit. So is the Word of God dead without the Holy Ghost to quicken it. The Spirit quickens the body, and the Holy Ghost quickens the Word. You get it? Now, He ought to know.

Now He's going to call the first witness. Let's see who He's going to call. Noah. He's going to call Noah. Noah said, “In the days that I lived was a scientific age—way smarter than they are in this day. And the Lord God told me there was going to come rain down from heaven. It had never rained, remember, upon the earth. And they could take instruments and prove there was no rain up there. Remember, it never rained in them days. God watered the earth through irrigation. But He said, 'It's going to rain, and going to destroy the world. There's going to come a great flood all over the earth. It will cover it over and destroy it.'”

He said, “Yet, I got orders from God to build an ark. I went to work on this ark, showing my faith that I believe what God said was the truth, regardless of what science had to say about it. [I think he makes a good witness, don't you?] And no matter what anybody else says about it, God said that it was going to rain. So if there's never been rain up there, He can put rain up there. I'll build the ark anyhow, making ready for it.

“Although I had.... That fellow on the witness stand here awhile ago, Mr. Unbeliever—he scoffed at me all along. He made fun of me. And I seen Mr. Skeptic. He come around and he laughed at me. Mr. Impatient, all of them, they laughed at me for believing in such a miracle. But I waited. When I finished the ark, the rain never come. And I waited for 120 years before it come. But it come. Amen!”

Sit down, witness. That's a good testimony. Let's call another. Witness number two: Abraham. Bring him up. We just been talking about him.

“Also,” he said, “I heard the word of God, when I was seventy-five years old, tell me something that was absolutely against all reason. It had to be a super times super miracle: that I was going to have a wife sixty-five years old, to produce a son to me when she was sixty-five years old. We went out and got everything ready. Because God said so, we believed it. And I told all of my friends that these things was going to happen. After ... this had to take place because God said so.

“I waited patiently. The first month come along. I asked my wife how was she feeling.

“'No different.'

“All right, I believed God anyhow. There was Mr. Unbeliever, Mr. Scoffer, Mr. Skeptic, and all of them standing around. They scoffed and laughed at me, called me 'Father of Nations' when I had no children. And I kept believing every month, every month it would happen. She got older and older all the time. But it.... And twenty-five years later, God kept His word true. It happened!”

Abraham, that's a good witness. The word never said when; He said he would. He said, “I'll give you a child, son, by Sarah.” Not next month. He never said “Next month.” He said He would; not when.

They had prayed. “They shall lay hands on the sick. They shall recover.” That's the idea. “The prayer of faith shall save the sick, and God shall raise Him up.” “Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until you're endued with power on high.” Not for one day, two hours, ten days, ten years—until the power comes. A real defense witness, these fellows are.

“He never said when we'd have the baby,” Abraham said; “but He said we would have it. And all the time the odds was building up against me, I stayed steady. Because I didn't stagger at unbelief of the people. I held right on.”

Good, Abraham. Sit down. Now let's have another witness, number three witness. Let's bring Moses up. See what he says.

“Now,” he said, “I was a scientist. I'd been forty years in the wilderness after failing on the job. But one day I met God. And that voice, a pillar of fire back in the wilderness, told me (a scriptural voice) that the hour was at hand, that He had heard the cries of His people, remembered His promise, and He was going down to deliver them. And He was sending me for the job.

“I asked Him for a sign. He give me a sign; and He give me another sign. Both signs would have a voice. He said, 'Then if they won't believe all those signs, just pour water from the ocean upon the ground, and it will turn to blood.' That's it. That's all of it. Pharaoh was finished then. Said 'If you ... if they won't believe those signs, those voices....'

“And yet, I went down in the line of duty, just as God told me to do. Jehovah, the I AM, told me to go down and do this sign. And I took this sign down before Pastor Pharaoh, and I throwed down my rod. And you know what? He tried to make it look shady, like it was some magic trick. And he got some carnal impersonators to go out and mock it, do the same thing.

“But I knowed it was God's word. And I come to take those children out of there, no matter what taken place. I still believed the word of God so I held steady with it.”

Moses, you're a real witness. Don't make any ... try to copy it, and try to make it look like it. He held steady. The magicians come up, see. Pharaoh said, “See, it's some cheap trick. It's Beelzebub, some mental telepathy, or something. I got men here, magicians, can do the same thing; fortunetellers to mock it—whatever it is.”

That didn't stop Moses. It was the word of the Lord, because it was a scriptural sign following it.

“Oh,” and said, “Mr. Unbelief, Mr. Skeptic, and all them hung around my shoulders. But I stayed right straight with that word, knowing it was God that said the word. It's God that take care of it, not them.

“He told me I was going to take those children to the promised land. He told me I was going to take them out of there, and I was going to come back to this mountain, where it happened. I don't know how. Pharaoh threatened my life, and everything happened, but I stayed true to the promise.

“Finally God overpowered the enemy, and I brought them through the Red Sea as on dry ground. God kept His promise and I got right straight to the mountain, where He told me I'd come to, the same mountain.”

He had believed that it was God, and he held steady. Let's bring witness number four, a bit. We're in a hurry. Let's bring witness number four, Joshua, who succeeded Moses.

Joshua said, “I went down there with the spies. I was sent out. Twelve of us was sent, one out of every denomination.” And said, “We went down there, and we looked. And here they come back scared, and said, 'Well, we look like grasshoppers up aside of them fellows. Oh, my! They're greater than we are. They're mighty men, what all they are. We look like grasshoppers,' they said.

“At Kadesh-barnea, I stilled the people. Said, 'Wait a minute. You're looking at a giant in the opposition. I'm looking at the promise of God. God said, ”I'll give you the land.“' I got the people quiet, because the word promised it.

“Then day after day, come around and say, 'Where's the land? Where's the milk and honey, Joshua? You promised it to.... Where's it at?' God will take care of it! And He let all them unbelievers die. He kept me alive, raised up another generation. Forty years later we took the land. God said so!”

Remember, they was only two days' journey away. He held them back just ... for forty years because of their unbelief. Your healing might not be five minutes away. Your unbelief will keep it away from you, as long as you live. Got to believe it! He's a real witness, Joshua. Yes, sir! They took the land forty years later.

We got so many witnesses we could call. But if you'll excuse me, I'd like to be His next witness. I'd like to put myself up for His witness, if it don't sound too personal. I'm His witness. I want to be His next, His fifth witness.

How can God take a cocklebur, and make a grain of wheat out of it? A sinner, come from a sinful family—all of them with guns, and died with their boots on—bootleggers and whatevermore you have. Well, I had nothing to do with it.

My mother, that's in glory today, said the hour when I was born that angel of the Lord come in the window, stood over the cradle where I was at. They got the picture of it in the scientific halls of the art of religion today. It's world-wide known. God promised to do these things.

As a little boy, a voice spoke to me, said, “Don't never smoke, chew, or drink, defile your body in any way. There'll be a work for you to do, when you get older.” Scared me, of course. What'd I know about religion?

My people formerly were Catholic. How did I know anything about these things? I never was in a church in my life. They both married out of the church, so they just.... Mother and father both was Irish, and so they just married out of the church, and we had no religion. We just lived like a bunch of dogs. We was all pulled about like campers from post to post, wherever we could find a little shack we could pay the rent, over three or four dollars a month. That's the way we lived.

A little old barefooted boy packing water to a whiskey still one day, when God in His sovereign—still keeps His Word—come down in a whirlwind and stood there, and said, “Don't you do these things!” Said it.

When I become a young man.... Visions began to break over my eyes, from a little bitty boy. It scared me. I got saved, and I joined a Baptist church. I told my Baptist brethren about going.... I didn't know what to call it—a vision. I called it a trance. Now I went and said to my brethren about that, they said, “Billy have nothing to do with that. That's the devil. That's the devil. Don't you have nothing to do with that.”

One night, a little camp where I was fishing way back in the mountains, I was laying back there about three o'clock one morning. I seen a light coming. I'd just been reading the Bible. I thought it was somebody coming, shining through a knothole—a lantern, or something. Was way in the wilderness. And I thought, “Somebody's coming up.”

The light was on the floor, spread greater and greater. I heard somebody walking. When it did, it was a man. He was barefooted. He had hair to His shoulders. He had on a robe. And I ... like to scared me to death. He said, “Don't fear. I'm sent from the presence of the Lord God, to tell you that your peculiar life.... Don't try to get from these things. That is your calling. And God will be sending you to different places all over the world, to pray for the sick. And if you'll get the people to believe, and be sincere, nothing'll stand before the prayer.”

It scared me to death. Certainly it did.

I stood there, and He kept talking. I said, “Sir, I'm here because of those trances, and things like that.”

He said, “There'll be three things happen. First, you'll know by taking your hand to hold the people. Then it'll come to pass after that, if you're sincere, that you'll know the very secret in their heart.”

And I said, “That's what I'm here to talk about. Was ... my brethren told me that that was of the devil. I'm a Christian. I don't want to be nothing of the devil.”

He said, “As it was back there, so is it now. When they were arguing on what kind of buttons they should wear on their coats, and things like that, and the ministers saying that Paul and them turns the world upside down, what was it? But it was a evil spirit that said, 'These men are servants of God that turn the world upside down'; that Paul and them....” Said “The evil spirit testified that they were true servants of God.”

He told me, said, “Don't you remember in the Scriptures, that's the thing our Lord did, and that's what He promised He said would happen again in the last days?”

I thought, “Well, what can that be?”

He said, “Well, it's the Spirit of the Lord Jesus. He is the Word. And He's promised this in the last days. Now don't be afraid.”

I went down then, to baptize a bunch of people on the river. When I was baptizing there, where about five thousand people standing on the bank, right in the middle of the day (two o'clock in the afternoon—hot, hadn't had a rain for a week or two—and standing on the bank), here come that pillar of fire whirling out of the air, coming down where I was standing, and a voice saying “As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the first coming of Christ, your message will forerun the second coming of Christ.”

The newspapers packed it, and it swept into Canada on the Associated Press, around the world: “A local minister, Baptist minister, baptizing...” and said, “a mystic light appears over him,” the very one that they caught the picture of here, and done it in Germany, and everywhere. And it's done.... My pastor said to me, he said, “Billy, what kind of a dream did you have? Why, you know you didn't see....”

I said, “There were hundreds standing there, witnessed it.”

And said, “Aw, that's a mental delusion.” Tried his best.

That's old man Unbelief, and Mr. Skeptic.

I held straight to the Word. Stayed there, because I knowed it was God's promise. Amen!

Luke, the 17th chapter, He promised “As it was in the days of Sodom....” As I seen the world heaping up as it was, I knowed something has to come to pass. I seen in Malachi 4, where He would restore back the faith to the Word, that they'd scattered out from. I knowed that had to come to pass. And I stayed true to the Word. I find Jesus Christ today, the same yesterday, today, and forever.

(Congregation, it's raining. I'll stop right here.) I want to say this. I've brought all these witnesses, my own witness. Many of you are witnesses this week, that thing is true, the message. How can I...? Dr. Davis said to me, “A boy, a grammar school education, go to pray for kings and potentates, and light a revival that will go around the world? Billy, get next to yourself.” But it did it! It did it! Thirty-three years later, the revival over, and it did it! God said so! I am His witness. He didn't say when He would do it; He said He would do it.

I waited for the time when the Word would be so real, put into my hand, as it was, a sword—and was going to discern with that, the very thoughts of the people's hearts. I thought “How can that be?” I waited, believing it; and it happened. The scoffer, the unbeliever, the skeptic, the impatient still waits and looks on. But God, after thirty-three years has confirmed it, universal, around the world, where papers, magazines, and articles has been wrote throughout the world. You be the judge.

Your mind is a jury. Every jury has to make up its mind. I'm closing the court.

You be the judge, your mind is a jury. And your actions from hereafter, this afternoon when we lay hands on the sick, that'll spell what your verdict was. The way you act after you're prayed for, that'll tell what your intellectual mind has made up, what the jury of your mind has made up. That'll tell just exactly, your action from hereafter.

I declare that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. I declare there's nothing can stand in His presence, to men and women who will believe it. Do you believe it? Let us bow our heads.

Lord Jesus, just a word from You now, make the people believe. They're sitting here. I wasn't going to do this, Father, but they've been so patient. And asking now ... won't You, on my own witness...? We can read in the Bible the witnesses of those characters, the witness of unbelievers. We see where they've always condemned it. Them Pharisees, religious people in them days, condemned Jesus Christ, but it proved out He was the Son of God. They said, “You make yourself God.”

He was God. He acted like God, He preached like God, He healed like God, He raised from the dead like God, He ascended on high like God, He is God. He's coming God. We believe it in the midst of all troubles, You're still God.

Your witness stands out, Lord. I give witness of the ... spoke have these other men's witness. Thousands times thousands I could of called of both sides, the skeptic, the unbeliever, and the man that just can't wait long enough. You never said when. You said, “If they lay their hands on the sick, if they believe they shall recover,” no matter what time it is.

You never told Abraham when the baby'd be born. You never told Moses what day You'd bring the people back to that mountain. You never told Noah what day the rain would fall. You never told them any certain time. Neither did You tell us. You said, “If thou canst believe ... if you say to this mountain ... don't doubt in your heart, it shall come to pass what you've said, if you believe it.” You said, “These signs shall follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover.”

Lord, I place it right back in the peoples' lap. It's up to them. I proved to them by the Bible, and we all know it, that the atonement's made. He was wounded for our transgressions. With His stripes we were healed. It's past tense. They shut the skeptic's mouth, and the unbeliever that said He didn't raise, and trying to make it some kind of a historical God, under religion.

Lord, I pray that You'll appear again this afternoon among us, and prove to this audience that You're here—the One that said the word, the God that we've had on trial. To me, you're justified, Lord God. You've proved yourself God. Make yourself so real that every man and woman (these poor people sitting here in this dripping barn here, trying to hear the Word) make it so real to them, Father. Show thyself to be God among us.

How the people in all ages has come, kind of a ... strange to people.... When they was on the sea that night in the ... and You come to them. They thought it was scaredy. They didn't know what it was, and they cried out. But that voice come back, “It's I.”

The voice of the Scriptures speaks this afternoon, that this is the hour. This is the time. Sodom and Gomorrah, and all these other things are sitting just the way they're supposed to be sitting. And here You are, showing to the royal seed of Abraham that You're alive, and the Son of man is being revealed in this day of Sodom.

Heavenly Father, grant that the people see, and when they come by, that they'll take God's word just like Abraham did. No matter when the baby....

We could call Isaiah on the scene, and Isaiah could have testified. He would have said, “The Lord said to me, 'A virgin shall conceive.'” If he could rise and talk to us this afternoon, no doubt but what he'd say, “Every young Hebrew girl, all through my days, looked to be conceived by the Holy Spirit, every one. But You said it, had it wrote down. You identified me as Your prophet, and my words that I said was backed up by You. My visions were true, and the people believed it for a generation or two, and then it faded out. Yet after eight hundred years a virgin conceived, and a baby was born. His name was 'Counsellor, Prince of Peace, mighty God and everlasting Father,' eight hundred years later.”

O Lord God, what's the matter with these people, of us on this earth today? We call ourselves the royal seed of Abraham, when he waited twenty-five years—hoping and having faith against the impossibles to see a miracle performed—and You did it! How much more can we take Your Word, when You're the same visible God that appeared to Abraham that's appearing here to us, in human flesh in the same manner that you did to Abraham.

God grant that they'll, everybody will see it this afternoon and prosper. Every time the people passes through, and get ... hands are laid upon them, may they go from this building rejoicing, and never take it back; but believe, like Abraham and all the rest of the patriarchs. You said it would happen, and it will happen if they faint not. Grant it, in Jesus' name. Amen.

I do believe. I believe. You believe. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I believe that He's raised from the dead. I believe He's more than able to perform any promise that He promised to do. He can keep every word that He ever said, and He'll do it for us here this afternoon if we'll only believe it. Now He never said, “Go ye therefore, and jerk the people up out of wheelchairs, and take the heart cases and do this....” He didn't say that. He said, “Lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.” That is believers.

Now the Holy Spirit is His defense witness here. He knows whether you believe it or not. Don't just come guessing. Take that guess, and take that hope, and take that imaginary, and put it under your feet and say, “I have faith. I know it's going to be.” Something will happen.

What do you think it is to me, standing here, friend? What do you think to me, standing here, like it is now, before audiences—sometimes up to thousands and hundreds of thousands? We make our claim that He's a-living, and His Spirit told me that the word that He'd give me.... Could God do anything without being able to back it up? Told He would do it—that's the Word—and stand here before the audiences where skeptics, unbelievers, and everything else sit by the tens of thousands, and yet see Him calling on the scene. You believe He's here? All right.

Someone close, not my friends now, if you're, if you're sick, anybody, my friend.... How many, right here in front of me, knows that I don't know you? Raise up your hands like this. Now there's some in here that does know me, see, along here—they do know me, right in here. That's right, isn't it brethren, all you along.... Look here, see. They know me. But out in here, you don't know me.

How many in this one row here, don't know me? Raise up your.... Is there anybody in these three rows here, right in here that does know me, knows that I know something about you and everything? Raise up your hand.

Do I know you back there? Do I know you, brother? I don't believe he understood me, 'cause I don't know him. He don't know me. You don't know me, do you, sir? You know me? Do you know that I know what's wrong with you? Who are you? He don't understand me, 'cause I don't know the man. I, what is.... Do you know that I know what's wrong with you, without being spiritually, I just know you as a man, and know what's wrong with you? Certainly not, sure. See, it's raining—you can't understand.

May the Holy Spirit help us now.

All right, starting this section then, you believe in here? That one man ... I might not even know ... the man sitting there, he's got his hand up, see, I don't think.... He doesn't know me. I know he doesn't, but he just put, had his hand up anyhow. I won't touch him, see. You all, the Lord bless. Somebody praying here....

Do you believe, every one of you? Do you believe with all your heart? Here's a little lady. Let me just call one person, start talking, just talk to somebody, get it, get the Holy Spirit moving.

The little lady sitting there, do you believe me to be God's servant, you little lady sitting right here? You? All right. Two of you nodded your head; we'll just have both of you then. All right. The lady here, nod your head like this (pink dress on). If Jesus Christ can tell me what's your trouble, or something about you, will you believe me to be His prophet, and know it's Him? Your trouble's in your back. If that's right, raise up your hand. That's right. Now, you little lady out on the end, you didn't get it, 'cause the weather was bad. You have colon trouble ... a heart ... a colon trouble. It's in your colon. This woman sitting next to you has a heart trouble. If that's right, will you three women raise up your hands. Now, I'm a stranger to you. Now do you believe? Have faith, that's all you have to do.

A little lady sitting right here, looking right at me. I don't know you. You're a stranger to me. Do you ... you don't know me, sitting right there, with a little white ... looking right at me. Yes, you. You don't know me, but you're suffering, aren't you? You kind of ... just a little worried about something. It's a lump that's in your breast. If that's right, raise up your hand. Now. You say, “You seen a lump.” There's no lump shows, is that right? No lump showing, and I don't know you.

Do you believe God can tell me who you are? Will that make you ... help you some? Would it help the audience? Now remember, the woman's got her hand up. Put your hand up, I don't know you. God, help me. Mrs. Patterson. That's right. Do you believe? By the way, that's your mother-in-law sitting next to you there. You believe.... She wants to be prayed for. She come for that purpose. You believe God can tell me what's the matter with her? Her trouble's in her eyes, and her ears. That's right. Raise up your hand, that's right. He lives! He's still God.

Here's a lady sitting back there, having epilepsy. She has epilepsy, and she's got female trouble, and her name is Miss Woods. If that's right, stand up on your feet. Stand up on your feet, if that's right. I never seen the woman in my life. The devil left you there, sister. Praise be to God! If thou canst believe.... You just believe.

Here's a lady sitting right back here. She's very weak, she's sick, she just come from the hospital. She's got ... she's got stomach trouble. Her name is Miss Kitchens. Stand up, and believe with all your heart. Jesus Christ makes you well. Never seen her in my life.

Here's a lady with gall bladder trouble. You believe with all your heart, too, that God'll heal you? A Mrs. Whitaker. You believe with all your heart God'll.... If that's right, stand up on your feet if we're strangers to one another.

Do you believe He's here? What is that? That's God's defense witness. Hallelujah! Oh, people, believe with all your heart. That's God's defense witness. How do you judge Him? Do you believe He's right? Do you believe His Word's true? He promised—all week long I preached on it, and showed it in the Bible—that He'd do this in this day. Do you believe it's the truth? Do you judge.... What's your judgment? Do you believe?

Let those who have prayer cards in this side over here, stand up in the middle of the aisle over here—that's got prayer cards on this line over here. Stand up in the middle of the aisle this way. Those on that side who has prayer cards, stand up in that aisle, this way. Those over against the other side, stand up in that aisle. Those that's up in the top there that has prayer cards, walk down in front. Those who's in this line here that has prayer cards, stand over on that side. Those on this side has prayer cards, stand over in this aisle right here. Those who has prayer cards here stand over in this aisle. Now. Stop right there now, we'll get the other side just in a minute. Form your line, come right down. I'm.... Now, hold still just a minute, where you are. Stand just where you are, just a moment.

Look. How many ministers are in here that believes? Real God-fearing men that believes that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and His last commission to His church was, “These signs shall follow them that believe. If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover.” How many you ministers believe that? If you do, come here and stand with me right here, while we pray, so that when these people are healed they'll see it wasn't just Brother Branham, it's you, too. Stand right along here, form a double line, right here where the line'll pass through. Oh, my! What else could God do? I don't know nothing. Look at the ministers coming, the witnesses. Go right down, make your line down this a-way. [Brother Branham speaks to someone aside.]

Now, I'm going to have Brother Borders, the manager, to come here to this microphone. And I want him to keep the line in order so they'll come this a-way, go back around that way, go back to your seat, see, when you come.

Now all that can hear me, raise up your hand. Look. Let these, the farthest back, come in first and come around this way, and go around. Then let the next go right around, behind the ministers here. As you're prayed for, go right back and take your seat. Then let Billy, he'll motion you right around, and tell you how to get in the line. And then as soon as this is over, then we'll have them stand down that way, and come this other way. Now, all understands raise up your hand now. All right, good.

Now, Brother Borders will be right here at the microphone, to give witness on what you must do. All right.

Now, look. The reason I'm doing this, is because I want you to understand. I don't know these brothers here. I know two or three of them. They may be Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian; I don't know who they are. No need of me saying that, see. Now, I want you to know that after I'm gone.... Most time, evangelists come in town, and he does everything, see. He does the praying for the sick, and everything. See, that's not right. I want to keep out of that picture. I want you to see Jesus. This week I've tried my best to show you that He's here. And if you have faith, just reach up and get Him. You don't need to come in the line. But if you want to follow the Scripture, His divine presence, you've touched His garment. Just look what....

These people standing here a while ago, God in heaven knows I never seen them in my life. And I'd start right here, in a few minutes they'd faint. How many knows that Jesus, when that happened to Him, that woman using God's gift, He got weak? How many knows that? Virtue went out of Him—was His strength. And I'm a sinner. But Jesus said, “More than this shall you do, for I go to my Father.”

Now, we're going to offer prayer, and I want these ministers with me—I'm going to stand right here, too—lay hands on every one of the sick. And now, if you....

Remember, listen, hear ye to it! Believe it! Unless you come through believing, “Right now it's settled forever,” don't come. It'll only make you worse. It'll hinder your faith. But if you believe that you're in the presence of Jesus Christ (and not we, His servants) and we're only carrying out witnesses; we lay our hands on you that we believe this to be the truth.... And when we lay hands on you, you believe it and go out of here rejoicing, saying “Thank You, Lord. It's all settled.” Don't you never change your mind.

Now remember, let me quote this again. Listen close. Your mind is your jury on this case, and your actions from here out will be ... will pronounce what your judgment is. You come in here and say, “Well, I don't know,” see, you see where you judged Him. He's on trial to each one of you. He's here in your presence, His Word is here, He vindicates His Word. You're here. He's on trial to you; not on trial to me. I believe Him. He's on trial to you. If you believe Him, and if you judge Him faithful to His Word....

Now they're just about to get the line straightened out so they're forming around, you see, just.... I'm just waiting. He got it straightened out. Just move right on out. Form your long line, go right straight back the way you come, when you get out.

If you believe Him, then something's going to happen. Remember, now, there is no power in none of these ministers. There's no power in me. There's no power in any man to heal. But we have authority from God to do this. We don't have power; we have authority. Here is our authority, God's Word. And the presence of Jesus Christ proves that He's here. What? You should be healed, every one. Now let's all bow our heads while we offer one prayer, and Brother Borders will be standing here leading the songs, and directing the people. As you come through now, pray and believe.

All you gather, brother ministers. You see why I've done this. Then when I leave, your congregation knows too, these people that get healed, you're God's servant also. It just ain't one. God don't just have one servant. He has thousands of them, all that will believe it. Now let's bow our heads. You have just as much right to pray for the sick as me, Roberts, or anybody else.

Heavenly Father, I thank you again. In my heart, and I know hearts here, You are justified to put this in the Word, for we've seen it work and we know it's the truth, and we know it will work on every person. And we're praying to you now, Lord, conditioning our own souls, while we know You're here. You've answered, You've spoke Your Word out to us, You're here. Now, may You anoint us, Lord. And when we lay our hands upon these sick people, poor, sick people, sitting here in this rain this afternoon, may every one of them recover, and go home and be well. May they be like Abraham: call those things which were not, as though they were, because God made the promise.

And You was the one said, “If they lay their hands on the sick, they shall recover.” You never said they'd recover right then; but you said they would do it. And we believe it, Lord. Help everybody to believe it, Lord, as we commit the meeting to Your hands. In Jesus Christ's name, we follow Your commandment. Amen.

Now, let the prayer line start. Brother Borders, take the place. [The prayer line is ministered to.]

...believes? The Lord bless you. The reason I got my hands together with you minister brothers, that was because some of you all are suffering too, you know. And you put yourself out here to pray for others, let alone.... It's not right. I believe as we caught our hands together, I believe that God honored that.

Here's those who couldn't get to the meeting. Now, let's pray for these handkerchiefs. Heavenly Father, we're taught in the Bible that ... that they'd taken from the body of St. Paul handkerchiefs and aprons. We're not St. Paul, but You're still Jesus. And we pray God that You'll send Your blessings on these handkerchiefs, and heal each and every one of them. Make them well, Lord, for Your glory. In Jesus Christ's name we pray, and send them. Amen.

I want to say this, that coming through the line, I've seen women and men holding babies, and they were wet. You just remember me, my pastor brothers, that weeks from now, you'll find out there's a great thing took place here. They will recover. I'll say that 90% of them will recover. That's right. It was ... I've never felt such a bond of faith. It was really wonderful.

I see, you're now ... just act, go on, act like it was all over. No matter if you didn't feel.... He never did say, “Did you feel it?” He said, “Did you believe it?” Did you believe it? And we believe it. And He's here now. And we believe. We give Him praise and glory for all that He's done.

And dear Christian friend, I know they'll be closing the meeting in a few minutes, and I want to say this to you. If I don't meet you no more this side of the river, I'll see you there with this same gospel, this same thing. Now just remember what you've accepted this afternoon. Your mind has been your jury, it's made up its mind, made up the verdict. Now you just go on acting. I don't care if you was paralyzed, and couldn't move. Just still keep on believing it. He said “They shall recover.” They shall recover. That's what the witness said, every witness today, all the way down through the Bible. He ... unless He said something spontaneously would happen.... But in this case, “They shall recover,” that's what laying on of hands.... Now, if a vision happened, and said “This is going happen, a certain time, a certain time,” then He designates a time. But on this case, He said “They shall recover.” Believe it with all your heart.

Let's sing one time:

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!

Now, just before.... Let's shake hands with somebody near you, say “God bless you, Christian friend.” Don't move, just stay, shake hands around. God bless you, Christian. God bless you. God bless you, Brother May. God bless you. God bless you, Roy. Now, let's raise our hands to Christ and sing.

Till we meet! (Let's close our eyes, and

raise our hands now.) Until we meet!

Till we meet at Jesus' feet;

Till we meet! Till we meet!

God.....................