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Sermon Texts Beginning With C
Church Choosing Law For Grace (61-0316)
| Church Choosing Law For Grace (61-0316) |
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E-1 Again sometimes without the anointing on the people they fail to get it. So glad tonight to be here and fellowship with all you believers and our dear brother pastor here, Brother Sullivan, precious brother. We praying today together and talking. E-2 And there's my daughter-in-law. When she'd been on the meetings this last long eight weeks' journey, when she come home she went to bed for three or four days just to rest: said she was nearly dead. Well, the boys, all of them is just drooped around. I come home and no more got half my suitcases out, till here I was going, going, going, going, going all day, all night; and going, going, going, all day and night; just keep on like that, on and on and on. And I said, "Well, now you think it's rough just to go around, just to stand in the meetings, and come down, set down at the meeting, enjoy it, go home, go to bed, and sleep half the next day, if you wish to, get up, go to the next meeting. Then you get tired." Just take the responsibility of one of them meetings upon your shoulders and know that you're responsible for it (See?), answer to everything. Then preach, when twenty minutes of influential speaking is compared with eight hours of hard work, so science says, to your body. Sometimes I preach a hour and a half, two hours. And besides that, what one vision will tear you down more than three days of preaching would do. See? And then have thirty of those a night... See? See, there's no way... It's just--it's a miracle, a outstanding miracle in itself, that God lets me live. And He does that for your--for your sake.
E-3 How many ever heard of Raymond Richey, Brother Raymond Richey? No. In Los Angeles the other night, he knelt down by my side and prayed. You know Richey, Brother Richey's in a... [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.] Did you know that? [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.] Very bad, throwed him into strokes. He thought he could just do as much as the next one, so he took off, and took the mission fields and come back, and took a revival, and he's finished. And stroked him, nervous, and, oh, a terrible shape... And he's such a fine little brother.
E-4 So glad to see some of my friends in here tonight. Our--my private secretary, Brother Maguire and his wife... [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.] Canada, Saskatchewan. And I'm glad to have them in. And my two brothers here from down in Kentucky. I can never think of their names. They're... I believe you're actually from Arkansas, aren't you, brethren? And come up to the meetings... And I see my Brother Dauch, or Dauch. Dauch setting out here from down here in Ohio, and his lovely wife behind him there. I'm so happy to see you all in tonight and the different ones along the road [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.]...?.. recognize, Brother Charlie, and Rodney, and Roger, Brother Sothmann. And I understand... [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.]... tonight some, Billy was telling me this afternoon. So glad that he's here from way down in that sunny Georgia. Some of them said, "How you getting along?"
E-5 Now, the Lord ever bless Brother Sullivan for inviting us here. He's taking the sponsorship upon himself, under God, to... I think you people, as I understand, Brother Sullivan is going to leave you pretty soon, going away. And you're going to miss a great man. For a man that'll stick hisself out there before the public to sponsor such as this (See?), it shows that he loves you; he's trying to do something for the people or he wouldn't do that. That's right. A real true servant of God, true blue... I appreciate Brother Sullivan with all my heart.
E-6 We appreciate the--the people that's over this armory here, that lets us have this armory too. If they are somewhere they can hear my voice, I sure appreciate this kindness of you men. The Lord ever bless you. It's been a... Now, it's the United States Army, and we do pray that God will bless them richly and help them. And I tell you we're on a defense program; we know that, up with the other nations, and so forth, and trying to beat them in a missile race. E-7 I don't believe you hear me too good, is there a bounce on that? Can you hear it out there all right, way back? I thought it sound like a rebound. Let's see if I can change this. Is that better? Can you hear that better way back? Nobody makes a move. Can you hear this better here? I believe I broke my pulpit. How's that? That better? All right, we'll try to leave it there. E-8 Now, we want to get quickly to the Word. I kept you up late last night over at Brother Sullivan's church, but we... I especially enjoyed the--what the Lord gave us on the sounds, "The Uncertain Sounds." And we tried to describe a lot of uncertain sounds of this day. And then, after we got through with all the uncertain sounds, then we brought over a sound that was certain. Thank you, Brother Gene, maybe that'll help us just a little. All right. On the certain sounds of the day. And we found out that there was one sound that was certain. That was the Gospel sound. And how the Gospel came not in Word only, but through the power and the manifestation of the Holy Ghost. That sound that came on the day of Pentecost like a rushing mighty wind, that was certainty that life had come, for it was spiritual Life.
E-9 Can you hear me better if I back up? Back it up? All right. I'll try to take some of Paul Rader's ideas. How many ever seen Paul? I laughed at Paul. He used to get way back, like this, always pulling up his trousers. Then he'd get his point and run right towards the platform as hard as he could and throw both hands up. And so he'd get way back away from his microphone. E-10 Now, I wish to bow... If you will bow your heads just a few moments while we pray. And before prayer with your heads bowed, if you have a special request, will you let it be known as you lift your hands to God. Just hold your request in your heart. God bless you. May God give each of you your request.
E-11 Our heavenly Father, we are approaching Thy throne of grace, not Thy throne of justice, Lord, we could not stand it. We do not ask for justice; we'd be lost; but we ask for grace. And we come because Thou hast bid us to come, and we have the promise that we will receive what we ask for if we'll come boldly, not doubting, and ask it in the Name of the Lord Jesus. For it is written, "Whatever you do in word or in deed, do it all in the Name of Jesus." He said Himself, while on earth, "If you ask the Father anything in My Name, I'll do it." And we're sure that we get what we ask for, for we come in faith believing with all that's in our hearts to believe with, and we ask it in Jesus' Name for grace and mercy and courage to surround us tonight and give us a great portion of Thy Spirit in our hearts as we need it.
E-12 Now, you that keep down usually Scriptures, I'll ask you tonight to turn to the book of Deuteronomy and the 2nd chapter and the 3rd verse for the text.
Ye have been on this mountain long enough: turn you northward.
I like to teach from the Old Testament, because the Old Testament is a type of the New. As we approach this most solemn, sacred text tonight (like all of His Word is solemn and sacred), I wish to set up a parallel of the Old and New Testament of days gone by and days that now is.
E-13 Little did Israel believe, if someone would've told them, that they were forty years from the promised land when they were singing, shouting, and dancing in the Spirit on the other side of the Red Sea. They would've never believed it. If someone would've said, "You have come up out of the tribulation now and the persecution. God has delivered you and crossed over." And they wasn't but just a few day's journey away. But yet their unbelief kept them in the wilderness for forty long years. And our fathers come to that same place about forty years ago, or a little more, the same condition was existing. E-14 Now, that's a solemn thing; we should think on it for a little while. Little did they believe that there was the waters of Marah laid before them, or the wilderness of Sin, or the Mount Sinai, or the Kadesh-Barnea, where they totally failed God... When from Kadesh there was only eleven days to the crossing. They couldn't believe it, because they had already seen so many great things done. They were sure that they were in the will of God. Just as our fathers was a few years ago. And they were, but there's where they made their great fatal mistake. They... The greatest mistake that Israel ever made was when it renounced grace and accepted law. It made its greatest mistake in Exodus 19, was one of the fatal mistakes that Israel made. The covenant that God made with Abraham was completely grace. But grace had provided for them a deliverer, a prophet, a sacrificial lamb. It had provided the greatest revival they'd ever had. And yet, they wasn't satisfied with it. They wanted something that they could argue about. They wanted a place where they could have something to do into it.
E-15 That's the way it is today. That's the way it was forty years ago with our fathers, our Pentecostal fathers. Grace had given them a revival, and had brought them out of the world, and out of the chaos that they were in, in their formal denominations and organizations, and so forth, and had brought them to a greatest revival that they'd ever had, poured out the Holy Ghost upon them, filled them with the Spirit. They were singing, dancing in the Spirit, having a wonderful time. And little did they know that they were all these years away from the full promise.
E-16 Now, notice, but they were all this a way because that they refused to accept what God had provided for them, and they wanted to add something to it. There's where we always make our mistakes, is when we try to add something to what God has done and what God has said. Just let it alone. They have been for two thousand years trying to add one word to the Lord's prayer to make it better, or take one word away to make it better. And you can't do it, because when He speaks it's perfect. And if you add anything more to perfection you're out of order. God does anything, It's perfect.
E-17 Now, we find out that all these things... They had a passover lamb provided. God had provided them manna out of heaven for the journey. He had provided them a rock to drink from when they were thirsty, a brass serpent to heal them when they were sick. And yet, with all that, they had to have a law. They wanted a--a theological experience so that they could have something to fuss and organize and break themselves up.
E-18 Where did we make our mistake? Like Israel did, we couldn't get along just getting--going the way the Holy Spirit was leading us. We had to add something to cause unbelief to come in. If Israel would've went ahead following the way the Lord was leading them, within two weeks they had been in the promised land. But they had to substitute something. And if the Pentecostal church would've moved on in the Spirit, the way God ordained it to go, and had already proved that He was in it, we'd have been living in the millennium. But they did the same thing they did back there, as the Bible said in Corinthians, those things were our examples. What happened to them happens to us. E-19 So they had formed and what made it. Somebody got a revelation that people ought to be baptized in the Name of Jesus instead of Father, Son, Holy Ghost. Instead of that then what happened? The old general council had to become the Assemblies of God then. What happened with Jesus' Name? Had to made them a organization called P. A. of W., the P. A. J. C., and all different ones: one coming on a horse, and the other one coming on a cloud. There's where you make your mistake. There's where you horribly sin. Why didn't you leave it alone? If that Name Jesus, and all the little things you've got, and so forth, wasn't right, God said every--Jesus said, "Every plant that My heavenly Father hasn't planted will be rooted up." It'll come to naught if it's not of God. And if it is of God, who's going to stop it? That's it. Let it alone. Let God be the ruler. But we had to organize. Now, we got Oneness, Twoness, Threeness, and ooh, my, broke up, fussing one another. Little groups, "We're the biggest," We're in the minority; we're the majority; we're this; we're that. We got the best; we got more money; we got more missionaries, we got..." Oh, my. We are not divided. We shouldn't be. All one body are we, one in hope, in doctrine, one in charity. Yes, charity. "Onward Christian soldiers marching as to war," with one thing before us, not an organization, "but the cross of Jesus, going on before."
E-20 It's always been that man wants to add their part, do what they think that should be done. Same thing happened when Israel took a notion they wanted to have a king. God was their King. God has always wanted to be All in All to His people. But man wants to make themselves something in it, 'cause we have to have district presbyters, we have to have Ph.D.'s, and we have to have all these other great titles and so forth to make us somebody to look up to, that the rest of the brethren that say, "Well, they'll fuss and fight and stew and cut corners to get a feather in their hat," we call it. Why, it's disgrace. It brings unbelief. The Bible said, "How can you have faith when you have regards one to the other," and things like that. How can you do it when you try to say, "The district man is in. We have to listen to him. The Bishop is in, we have to listen to him. The presbyter's in; we have to listen to him." Trying to be somebody in your organization, you can't do it and then have faith in God. You've got to sell out to everything and have faith in God. That's what Pentecost begin at. That's what Penteco--made you Pentecost.
E-21 When Israel wanted a king, good old Samuel, the prophet, called them up and he said, "Listen, I want to tell you something." In other words like this: "You don't want to be like the Philistines; you don't be like the other nations of the world. They had their kings, but you got one King; that's Jehovah." Any true prophet would tell you that, not steer you into something else; put you back on Jehovah; let Him lead you; let Him guide you. Well, they wanted to be like the other nations anyhow. And old Samuel stood up; he said, "God is your King."
E-22 Now, we notice what taken place, Samuel said to--to Israel; he said, "God sent me to be your prophet. Have I ever told you anything in the Name of the Lord that didn't come to pass?" Think of that. And he said, "Have I ever begged you for your money? Have I ever took money from you?"
E-23 Samuel said, "Now, you tell me if I ever said anything to you in the Name of the Lord that didn't come to pass."
E-24 They try to bypass the very issue of the new birth. That's what takes place. Now, people can't think of this new birth, the baptism of the Holy Ghost and so forth. How did you ever get here to come into existence without the natural birth? You couldn't do it. There's no way at all for you to do it, for you to come into existence and--and be able to walk around and to know without having the natural birth. Is that right? Well, the same thing it is in spiritual. If you're not borned again, you just don't know nothing about it. How could you take a man that was going to hire a big bunch of people, saying, "I've got a business out here." A man going over to the cemetery just as hard as he could run, running to the cemetery. "Where you going, sir?"
E-25 Your job will never get done when you tell people the Lord is a coming, and to evangelize, and to go out on the streets and testify, and do something for God. How can you do it when they're dead? You got to get somewhere where there's life. A man's got to be born again. The church has got to come back to the principles of Christ, back to new birth, back to the Holy Ghost, back to all night prayer meetings, places on fire for God...?... E-26 Now, notice, oh, just a little weight on the Gospel... What we want to do is place it where it belongs. And the church made its fatal mistake when it first made its first organization. What did you do? You say, "Well, they--they begin to make issues." Well, if you was a true believer in God, God has promised us that if He didn't plant it, it'll never go anywhere anyhow. Let it alone, it'll come to its end. "Every plant that My heavenly Father hasn't planted will be rooted up." Exactly right. But they just had to do it.
E-27 Now, we notice after all the blessings had come to Israel, yet they wanted (Exodus 19), they wanted to have a--they wanted to have a law. They wanted to have something that they could do themselves, some Sabbath days they could keep, or some ordinances they could do, or--or something another that was in--brought in to them that they could do themselves. E-28 And when men and women get to a place... "Well, I really ought to stay at home and see this good play tonight and... But I--I'll tell you; they'll think I'm backslid if I don't go on down to church." And you set there and sleep anyhow. You might as well stayed home and looked at something you'd enjoy more. But when your joy becomes the Lord, and the Lord is your joy, you can't stay away from church, then you're getting somewhere. The church was in better shape forty years ago for the coming of the Lord Jesus than it is tonight, way better. They were closer to God. They had more God among them; they had more Spirit among them than they got tonight.
E-29 What did it? Because we separated ourself, each little group to itself. Go on out there and telling the other--other one, "Well that's old buzzard roost over there; this is that there. They haven't got it; we got it." And your little differences of doctrines and so forth... And God wouldn't pay [Brother Branham snaps his fingers--Ed.] that much attention to it. If we haven't got love, what good does it do anyhow? "Though I know all mysteries, and understand all the mysteries of God; though I can have faith to move mountain, and give my--all my goods to the poor and have my body burned as a sacrifice, and have not love, I'm nothing," said Paul: I Corinthians 13th chapter.
E-30 See, but we have to have something to do into it ourself. We want to be like the Methodists, like the Presbyterian, the Baptist, the Catholic. We have to make an organization. We have... That's the same thing Martin Luther failed on. Not Martin Luther, he didn't start it. John Wesley didn't start it. It was the groups after them started it. That's right. They didn't start it. No, sir, they kept it clean. But when they left, then the next round of them begin to organize. E-31 God will provide the works. If you'll just walk in grace, you'll be more at work than you are right now with the Ladies Aid Society and all this other nonsense that's been added into the church. Soup suppers to pay the preacher, where'd you ever get such a thing as that Scripture? Tithes pays the preacher. He's to live by the tithes of the people. But we had to get something else to do. We have to have our part into it. And then if the--they can't make it up, there's another society will do it, another society. God's way is right. Tithes and offerings goes to Levi, which was the minister. If everybody would pay their tithes you wouldn't have to have any soup suppers. See, you adopted something else and leave the tithings off. Say it's an Old Testament ar--argument. I'd like for you to prove it to me. That's right. You can't do it by God's Word; it's a New Testament order too. God makes one order, it can never be changed. It has to remain that way. E-32 Like the Blood. Somebody says, "Well, we--we... I tell you, we--we do this and do that, and we have creeds, and we try to educate people to Christ, we try to denominate them to Christ." We're just fighting the wind; it's no good. There's only one way to Christ; that's through the Blood. That's God's program to begin with, and He cannot change. We come through Christ by the Blood. And after receiving the Blood we--the chemistry of the Blood to take away our sins and clean us from our iniquity, then we receive the Spirit that's in the Blood which is the Holy Ghost that comes back upon us and makes us sons and daughters of God. That's right. Then you're new creatures in Christ. Then you have the same experience they had at the beginning. You live the same kind of life, and do the same kind of works that they did at the beginning. Yeah, Exodus 19.
E-33 Then the Bible said it's eleven day's journey from Mount Sinai to Kadesh. Eleven days after they received their indocumate of theology, their works they wanted to do, they made the greatest mistake they ever did make. At Kadesh is where they doubted God's Word. From the time they was following in line with God until they got indocumated, and then when they did, they made their fatal mistake to believe that God's Word was true.
E-34 God promised the Holy Ghost to whosoever will, let him come. You don't know split beans from coffee, what difference does it make? If you can't say your ABC's, what difference does it make, as long as you've received an experience.
E-35 Now, we come out and look, and look around, and see: eleven day's journey from theology to total unbelief, from the days they got the law until they finally went into total unbelief. Here come two back that had evidence. The Pentecostal church forty years ago brought back one good evidence that there was a land beyond there, because they had a evidence of speaking in tongues. But brother, that ain't the only evidence. Not only did it have good grapes in it, but it had milk and honey flowing; it had everything. But they was satisfied just with the grapes and said, "That's--I guess that's all it is." That's what the Pentecostal church has done. Acts 2:4, Acts 2:4, Acts 2:4, till you got so many grapes I believe it become from real grapes down to possum grapes, sour grapes. Acts 2:4, Acts 2:4, till you almost become a 2 by 4 preacher (that's right) to suck around a organization. Huh. E-36 Not nothing wrong about the organization; the organization's all right. The law was all right;, it served its purpose, that's true. But the law didn't do nothing for them; it didn't give them any grace. The law didn't take them over to the promised land. No, sir. The law ceased. Joshua took them over, and Moses, the lawgiver died. And so is the church organization going to die out, and grace and the power of God and the Holy Ghost back to the church to rapture the church to the promised land. Yes. Yes, it served its purpose, but it wasn't a thing that God was wanting. The law died, ceased to be. Moses, the lawgiver, died. Joshua, the one that believed the promise, he went on and on.
E-37 Now, notice, all of them said, "Oh, we can't do it." What will it do? "It will mar our inheritance." That's what you Methodists thought. That's what you Baptists thought when you walked up to that borderline and looked over: said, "Oh, I can't do it... I--I tell you, if they do, they'll--my Methodist organization will put me out." "My Baptist organization will put me out." "My Presbyterian will put me out." "If I go to speaking in tongues and stand in my pulpit and somebody in my audience goes to speak in tongues, if I don't turn them down, why, they'll put me out of the organization." There you are. Same thing...
E-38 Here it is. A man's called to be a preacher, yes, sir. "The Lord called me." Fine, all right. He comes and repents of his sins: justified. He becomes a good believer. Now, the next thing he does, he still smokes; he still lusts; he watches the worldly people, the worldly womens, and he--the lusts and things is in his heart. He knows that's not right. That isn't becoming to a preacher. So he goes down and asks God to sanctify him. He's on the second step then. Take that thing out of him. Now, he looks over into the promised land, the borderline. He comes up to the place where he can't go no farther; he's got to cross Jordan; that's all, or stay back. See? "Was been partakers, made enlightened and receive the knowledge of the truth." And Christ is the Truth.
E-39 But--the once has received the knowledge, he comes there and he looks over, he said, "Yes, oh, that's wonderful. But if I receive that, my denomination will put me out. I can't do it, because they don't believe in it. I can't let my people do that. If I teach that in my church, what'll they have? They'll have a district presbyters come up together; they'll have great men walk up and say, 'If you do such a thing as that, you permit that, out of the organization you go. If you have so and so here, we'll just excommunicate you from the fellowship.'" Oh, God, to a wishy-washy preacher like that, he needs to go back to Calvary. There's something wrong with him, when you're convinced that it's the Word of God and not enough real Holy Ghost conviction to stand on what's right. Hallelujah.
E-40 So does God when He finds a man that He could put enough trust in him to reveal His Word to him, that he will stand, stand on the Bible conviction and say, "Prove it to me." That's right. Then you take God's Word, every Word just the way It's written and preach It just the way It's written, God's obligated to come right behind there confirming It with signs and wonders first, as He said He would do it. E-41 I got an exhortation; I won't read it now, but here it is. Demas Shakarian's having it documated. By a man, a Hollywood man, that come up to shake hands with me, and begin to speak in French, and the U.N. interpreter there gave the interpretation with a French woman. Said, "Because you've chosen the hard way, but that's My way; don't you fear what people say about you, for I'm with you, and I'll be with you, and I'll bring to pass exceedingly abundantly." I got it written right here and signed by... And--and Brother Demas Shakarian's getting it documated by a notary public. And that man, a Baptist, knowed nothing about it, but I was trying to stand there and condemn the thing that's blinding the eyes of the Pentecostal people: Hollywood into the churches, Hollywood evangelism.
E-42 A fellow passed out some envelopes and say, "Put twenty-five dollars in it and I'll pray for you," tell you your crops are going to go bad if you don't--let--put in so much in the offering. When did it come to pass that Pentecost was after money? Why, brother, in the Bible times they sold what they had and distributed it to the church. And today we got to have a fleet of Cadillacs or you're not spiritual. It's a sin; it's a disgrace. We're trying to see if we can't build a better church than--than they got over there, the Presbyterian a better church than the Methodist, and saying that Jesus is coming soon. They laugh right in your face. That's right.
E-43 We're in a terrible condition, the church itself. What did it? Because we separated ourselves. One separated to this one, one separated to that one; we become great organization minded and everything. Just showing you exactly, in type, what they did then. And we would've went on over and been in the millennium. E-44 Remember the other brother's pulling for some cover too. The blanket's big enough for both of you. God made it that way. Don't jerk it all and wrap yourself up in it and say, "Freeze to death." If you're cold, let me help you. When it comes to a place you don't want to help a fallen brother... You think he's fallen, help him some way; stand between the gaps. Gap up the way with love. That's the cement that puts the church of God together, is the cement of God's holy love among brothers. "This will all man know you're My disciples" when you belong to the Assemblies? All man know you're My disciples when" 'cause you're Oneness, cause you're Church of God? "This will all man know you're My disciples when you have love one for the other." That's when they--we'll know; that's when the world will know that we're Christians. That's when the world will know that we're brethren and sisters, when we have love one for another. That's the mark of Christianity, is love one for another. When we get that, then God will begin to work among us and bring us milk, honey, great things. Why, it's good when we find what God's plan and move into it.
E-45 Now, we notice that... What did they do, the borderline believers? "For it is impossible for those which were once enlightened, and been made partakers and--of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted of the good world to come, and--and had a knowledge of the truth," received the knowledge of the truth, walk up and look into the land and say, "Well, I just can't do it," go back. That's exactly what them borderline fellows did in that day. And what did they do? They every one perished in the wilderness.
E-46 Don't watch your organization; watch the way the Spirit's a leading. And if the Spirit is leading you, It'll never lead you contrary to the Word. It'll never misbehave Itself uncommonly, long as It stays in that Word.
E-47 I stood not long ago in a--a meeting. A brother setting here now was setting present, Brother Fred Sothmann, when I was talking one night in Kingston, Jamaica, and I was with the Full Gospel Business Men, the very man that I used to...?... in to try to bring my message to the people to show that through this organization of business men... Why, then the business men of the church comes out to that meeting, it'll bring... Well, if the pastor don't come it kinda embarrasses him. So that way I can work in there to try to get the message of the Lord to the people that I see, my brethren, my brethren.
E-48 This leader that night stood up; he said, "But Brother Branham, I want to tell you something right now." He said, "That's when the Pentecostal, that group of people made their greatest mistake they ever made, when they sold their homes, and they give it to the poor." I'm not asking nobody to sell your homes; I'm just asking you to follow Christ. But I'm telling you--I'm just quoting Scripture. And then he said, "Well..." E-49 Thing of it is, you remember who the Holy Ghost is going to seal in the last days, you know what the Bible said? "Those who sigh and cry for the abominations did in the city," Ezekiel the 9th chapter. Tho... I want to ask some of you people. How many fingers can you raise up tonight of any person in this city, or your city you come from, that's sigh and cry day and night for the abominations of the city? Raise your hands. Tell me, that, "I can point out five people in my city. I can point out two people." Or can I point out one person? If you can't, keep your hands down. There's not a hand up. There you are. "As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the coming of the Son of man." See what I mean? We've lost the zeal. The--the Pentecostal church has got to come back to its original condition.
E-50 What have we done? We've just got fattened up, and furred up, and set down, and let it go, dressing like the world, acting like the world, going to worldly entertainment, doing the things the world did, having our organizations, denominations, competing with them, and our church buildings and everything, preaching... "Oh, yes, hallelujah." As David duPlessis once said, "That's grandchildren; that ain't sons of God. And God don't have any grandchildren." God's not grandpa; He's Father. Right.
E-51 Watch just a minute. They stayed there; they married wives; they raised children; they had good crops; they were blessed, yeah. And they--they had a great time. They was in there... They stayed there how long? The Bible said, "Until all the old fighters was dead." That's right. All those said, "Glory to God; we are the Assemblies." "Well, glory to God, we are the so and so." "God, we are the Oneness, hallelujah, the rest of them's wrong." "Bless God, we're the Church of God of Prophecy." "Hallelujah, we're so and so." All right, go ahead. What'd they do? They kept arguing their doctrine till they stayed there till they died. And that's what's happened right now. They're dead. Dead with their organization.
E-52 What was it? One day there come one from among them, said, "This is not all's written here." What'd they do? Right back over the same old grounds every night, right around and around that mountain, right around and around and around, right around: same old thing, "Acts 2:4, Acts 2:4, Acts 2:4, Acts 2:4. Hallelujah. Receive the Holy Ghost; speak in tongues as the Spirit give utterance. Glory to God. Pray for me that I be the last--the one God's called in these last days. Acts 2:4. Glad I got the Holy Ghost, speaking in tongues." That's right; that's all right. But why you traveling on this same old mountain when there's a promised land before you? E-53 What was it? That was a shadow and a type of the Pentecostal church today. Forty years later here we find ourselves still Acts 2:4. God might come in with something else, with some more of His blessings, and they say, "Glory to God, we didn't have that. Hallelujah, we believe Acts 2:4. Well... Here, our forefathers organized this; if they don't come up to this, bless God, we won't--we won't cooperate with it." You poor degenerated, backslidden... What's the matter? Miserable... How can you follow God? How can you go where the Spirit goes? Your organization'd be fine if you end your doctrine with a comma. "We believe this, plus what God can add to it." But you end it with a period. "We believe this, and you toe the mark to this, or that's it." That's what Luther done. That's what Wesley done. That's what John Smith done. That's what Alexander Campbell done. That's what they all done. And that's what Pentecost done. There you are: dead forty years on your tracks. And the promised land of the fullness of God's blessings lays right before you.
E-54 What happened? One day little old Joshua, he believed every Word God said. That's right. He said, "It's all truth. God took care of us and kept His promise; He said He'd supply our needs while we're out here. But that's not all of it. There lays a promised land; let's go to it. You been on this mountain forty years; turn now; turn northward and upward and cross over. Amen.
E-55 Remember, He said, "Now, as you journey, you're going up there along the borderliners. Now," said, "don't you touch Esau." Now, Esau's Mount Seir. Said, "Don't you touch him." Said, "I give him that. If you go by, if you--if you eat anything, pay him for it. If you drink any water, pay it for him. Don't touch the borderline believer, because I'll not bless you in it." See? "Don't beat him any more; just pass by quietly."
E-56 There's Esau, had his inheritance right there by the borderline. And God told him, told Jacob as he passed by, said, "Don't you fool with Esau. Don't join any of his organizations. Don't do any of these things here. Now, you done seen what you've had yourself down here for forty years. You want to stay another forty years?" You brethren, you want to spend another forty years in a denominational racket, fussing with your brother? Let's rise and go over. Let's go to the promised land where every promise in the Book belongs to you.
E-57 Now, when he passed by the mount of Esau, passed by the organization, what did he do? Now, there was Moab. Sure, Moab was an organization. Said, "You'll pass through his land. Don't--don't say a word to him. I give him that." Now, He gave the Methodists their place. He gave the Baptists their place. He give the Pentecostal organizations their place. Don't say a word to them. Just pass right on by and say, "How do you do, brother? How do you do?"
E-58 People try to wonder why visions and great powerful things isn't happening in the church, and greater healings and so forth. God wants to take the church over, and we're back down here in this mount moving around and around. What kind of a mountain? An organization mountain. "Oh, wait a minute, Brother Branham, you get..." Oh, no I'm not. Mount Seir, a mount belonged to Esau, his great organization. And Israel formed themself a mountain. They were on a mountain too. But one day God said, "Leave this mountain. I'm going to take you over yonder in the plains. You can't get nothing on these old stony hills here. You can't do no good. Get over yonder where I can bless you with milk and honey and pour in the good things of God in you, and settle you down.
E-59 You cannot break the types and shadows of God. That's what Israel done in the natural. That's what they've done in the spiritual. We realize that those things happened to Israel. Now, they've happened to the church today just as they did then. And we're about the end of the road now, brethren. It's time that something happened. I want to cross Jordan (Don't you?) over into the promised land where we can see...
E-60 Oh, don't you love Him? Don't you believe Him? Don't you want to serve Him? Oh, that's the intents of my heart, if I know it. Lord, let me see Jesus. Let me see Him only. Let me reach out and get every Assembly brother there is. Let me reach out and get the Oneness brethren. Let me reach out and get the Church of God. Let me reach out and get all these other brethren, whoever they are, and say, "Brethren, brethren, let's leave this mountain." Come on Assemblies of God, come on Church of God, come on you Oneness, Twoness, and whatever you might be, let's put our hearts together; the days of fighting's over. Let's march towards Canaan. Hallelujah. "On Jordan's stormy banks I stand (tonight by faith), and cast a wishful eye, to Canaan's fair and happy lands, where my possessions lie. Oh, who will come and go with me? I'm bound for this promised land." If it takes everything that's in my life, every...?... of everything else, I'm bound for the promised land. Do you want to go? You want... Let's stand to our feet then, just a moment.
On Jordan's stormy banks I stand,
And cast a wishful eye,
To Canaan's fair and happy land,
Where my possessions lie.
Raise your hands now as you sing it.
I am bound for the promised land,
I am bound for the promised land;
Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
All o'er those wide extended plains
Shines one eternal day;
Where God the Son forever reigns,
And scatters night away.
I'm bound for the promised land,
I am bound for the promised land;
Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
E-61 We don't want anything leading us. God the Son forever reigns and scatters all other disfellowships away. Oh, we want to meet Him. Don't you want to see Him?
I am bound for (Turn right around and shake hands.)... mised land,I am bound for the promised land;Oh, who will come and go with me?I am bound for the promised land.
E-62 Oh, don't it make you feel better? Let me show you. I was in one of our prominent denominations about three weeks ago, or four. What happened? I made an altar call. Four or five sinners come around the altar. When I did, I said, "Will someone come and pray for these people?" In a Pentecostal church... Nobody come. I said, "Would some of you saints please come and pray..." I was wore out. I said, "Will some of you saints please come and pray for these people?" You know what? I couldn't persuade them to come. Ah... Oh, brother, forty years ago one of them would've started to the altar, there'd been fifty around them 'fore they could've got there. Their hearts were burning on fire. See? You talk about Baptists. I'll take you over here to the state of Kentucky, to that old Missionary Baptist church back there, and they're not just cold formal like some of you northern Baptists, they get down at the altar, beat one another on the back till they come through. They get something down there. Yes, sir.
E-63 And I was down there not long ago, at a decoration where my grandma and all of them's buried down there; and I was preaching on God coming, the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Them old women swinging them old sun bonnets and shout. Back up there in them hills where you can't even get a--you can't get a car in thirty miles of it, back in them hillsides there the old people shouting, the women. Them up and down the floor praising God.
E-64 And I come right over here to a Pentecostal church, and sinners pouring out their hearts around the altar and couldn't even persuade, as a servant of Christ, somebody to come and kneel around them. Whew. Have I lost my mind? Is there something wrong with me?
E-65 A great prominent minister said to me not long ago, said, "Brother Branham, I believe you to be a man of God. But let me lay my hands on you and pray for you. You're criticizing the people too much."
E-66 One great man of a great organization said, "Brother Branham, if you'll just compromise on a few things, we'll fly you to the main--ma--ma--main nerve centers of the world in our planes and let you preach, if you'll just come and join up with us."
I am bound for the promised land,
I am bound for the promised land;
Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
I am bound for the promised land,
I am bound for the promised land;
Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
E-67 I wonder, in silence, the music playing, if you will, sister, "I'm Bound For The Promised Land." Is there a sinner in here that don't know nothing about this what I'm talking about, but yet you believe it to be the truth, that Jesus Christ is God's Son, that the wrath of God was poured out upon Him and He died at Calvary the death of a sinner to take your place? He died your death at Calvary, and only in Him can you be saved, and you've never done it yet, I'll invite you to this altar. Come here now and be reconciled to God through Christ.
E-68 If you're without the Holy Ghost and you want to receive the Holy Ghost, will you come to the altar and stand here while we sing again? All you pilgrims that wants to join with us and by faith and the grace of God tow--go towards the promised land, sing with me now. All right.
I am bound for the promised, (I invite you to come; that's all I can do.)I am bound for the promised... (God bless you, brother.)Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
I am bound for the promised land,
I am bound for the promised land;
Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
When shall I see my Father's face,
And in His bosom rest?
E-69 I want to tell you, whi--while we're singing this song, the... I was standing, five hundred at the Jeffersonville, thirty-one years ago, my first revival, singing, "On Jordan's stormy banks I stand, and cast a wishful eye, to Canaan's fair and happy land, where my possessions lie." And I walked out baptizing five hundred that afternoon, as a Missionary Baptist preacher. The seventeenth person I baptized, all at once I heard Something say, "Look up." And I looked, and here come that Pillar of Fire circling down out of the heaven. Stood right over where I was at and said, "As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the first coming of Christ, your message will forerun the second coming of Christ." When the Baptist preacher laughed at me... That went on the associated press. "A Mystic Light Appears Over A Minister While Baptizing." All up into Canada and everywhere else it went on the associated press. Hundreds and thousands of people saw it. Look at it today, brother. Look, it's promise is true. "On Jordan's stormy banks I stand, and cast a wishful eye." We been in this wilderness long enough; let's go towards the promised land.
E-70 Here stands a group of people around here seeking God, wanting God, wanting to go to the promised land. I wonder now, if some of you ministers, some of you brethren who's got a burden on your heart for lost souls, will stand around here with them. You that wants to still receive Christ, will you come, make your way up around here too? Stand around the altar. These men and women, boys and girls are here to receive Christ as their Saviour. If you want... While we sing again, "On Jordan's stormy banks I stand, and cast my wishful eye."
Jordan's stormy bank I'm stand,And cast a wishful (Will you come, young people, old, whoever you may be, join with us.)Canaan's fair and happy land,
Where my possessions lie.
I am bound for the promised land,
I am bound for the promised land;
Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
E-71 Now, everybody reverent for a minute. I want to talk to these people here. My loving friends tonight, something had to speak to you to make this stand. Jesus said, "All that the Father has given Me, will come to Me. And he that comes to Me, I will in no wise cast out. He that heareth My Words, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath Everlasting Life." There's only one form of Everlasting Life, Eternal Life, and that's the Life of God, Zoe. Because that you raised up from your seat and walked up here, it showed that some Spirit... All these years that you've been wrong, Something stood by you tonight and said, "You're wrong." That was the Holy Spirit. "Stand, come forward." And you did. "He that will confess Me before men, him will I confess before My Father and the holy Angels." That's His promise. He cannot take it back. It's His promise. There's no taking back to it. He's here to give you... E-72 Our heavenly Father, these people standing here are ashamed of their past lives. They are standing here because they heard Your voice saying that they were wrong, and they've come to take You as their personal Saviour. They stand here under the stage of justification. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." I believe You, Lord. I believe Your Words are true, and as I stand tonight as Your servant, one of them, that's interceding for these people, and I'm bringing back to Your remembrance what You said. Here they are. They've got up out of their seat and moved up here, because they were convinced that You were the Son of God, and You died for their sins; and they want Your pardoning grace. It would be an impossibility for them not to receive it. You promised it. It's theirs. They believe it. They've come to witness it. You said he that will--will--ashamed of You before men, You'd be ashamed of them before the Father and the holy Angels, "but he that will confess Me before men, him will I confess before My Father and the holy Angels."
E-73 Lord, they are Yours. They were convinced they were wrong. They stood up here by the Word of God to witness that they're wrong and want forgiveness. I plead for their souls, Lord. I give them to You, Father. They're the trophies of Your Word that condemned their sinful life, and they've come to accept You as their personal Saviour. I'm pleading to You Your promise, bringing back to remembrance that You said that, "He that heareth My Words, and believeth on Him that sent Me, has Eternal Life." They now accept Your Word. They are sorry for their sins and have demonstrated the same and manifested it by taking a stand for You tonight.
E-74 Now, with our heads bowed, and these who come to the altar, there's not a thing that you can do. You don't have to feel nothing. Jesus never did say, "Did you feel it?" He said, "Did you believe it?" Do you really believe now that in the sinful condition that you was, that you... Something convinced you that you were wrong. You come here upon the basis of the Word of God that promised you, if you would confess your sins, He was just to forgive them, and you now renounce your sins and accept Him as your personal Saviour, if you will, with your heads bowed, raise your hands. Every one of you at the altar, that stood here, now accept Him as personal Saviour... One hundred percent, everyone. Thanks be to God.
E-75 Now, to you who wants the baptism of the Holy Ghost, will you come forward at this time? Walk forward now while we sing one more time. Say, "Brother Branham, I've longed for the Holy Ghost for years, but I've never yet received it." Come up here. If you believe me to be His servant, if you believe I'm telling you the truth, come here and let me pray for you. Prayer changes things. It makes new creatures. If you're deadly sincere, come forward now while we sing.
On Jordan's stormy banks I standAnd cast a wishful eye,To Canaan's fair and happy land,Where my possessions lie.
I am bound for the promised land (All that hasn't got the Holy Ghost, I'm call you in Christ's Name; come forward.)Oh, who will come and go with me?
I am bound for the promised land.
E-76 Are you sincere? Is this all in this building that doesn't have the baptism of the Holy Ghost? Brother, sister, how can you, under such pressure of the Holy Spirit, come to a place that you haven't got the Holy Ghost and won't stand for prayer? How can you expect healing when you won't even get your soul healed from unbelief to receive the Holy Ghost? How are you ever going to receive Divine healing for your body? Won't you come? You're invited. Brethren, sisters, fellow citizens that's already accepted Christ as your Saviour, are you wanting the baptism of the Holy Ghost? E-77 Our heavenly Father, these people are seeking for the baptism of the Holy Ghost. They're tired of these grapes. They want milk, honey. They want to go to the promised land. I pray Thee, Lord, with all my heart, as men have hands laid upon one another that in the Name of Jesus Christ, that You'll give them the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Grant it, Lord. The prayer of faith will do this; we know. We present them to you in Jesus' Name for the glory of God. Amen.
E-78 Amen. That's right. All who wants Divine healing, raise up your hands. All that wants to be healed, raise up your hands. Now, somebody put your hands on them out there. Put your hands on one another. There they are. Pray one for the other. We're bound for the promised land, every promise that God made. |
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