Sermon Texts (Adding Now)
Sermon Texts Beginning With I
I Will Restore (57-0309B)
| I Will Restore (57-0309B) |
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E-1 I thought I was going to get to eat again. I laid a Bible down here somewhere. You don't...?... confidence in [Someone speaks to Brother Branham--Ed.] when... Yes... When a soldier will lay his--his sword down... but it's around his friends.
E-2 Sometimes I think I fly a little too free. You know, you can excuse that by being an Irishman? Someone said, talking about their nationalities... I said, "Well, if--if He will save an Irishman, there's hope for the whole world, 'cause they're just up and down," and I said, "especially from Kentucky."
E-3 To be assembled this morning, here at this breakfast, with such men as I am assembled with, and women, it certainly is a--a privilege that kings of the earth don't have. Because on assembling like this, we have a promise that the King of Kings will be with us: "Wherever two or three are gathered in My Name, I'll be in their midst." And I just love that.
E-4 I'm grateful to you brethren, the sponsors of this meeting, that is assembled here this morning and for this Christian Businessmen, who I love and speak for them much. We was coming along this morning on the line, and I said something about the Christian Businessmen will all this being ministers and their wives, Brother Moore said, "No, there'll be some Christian Businessmen."
E-5 And you know, I read a piece of paper the other day in our... article, rather, in one of our local papers. It had the picture of the famous evangelist, Billy Graham, and it said up at the top, "Wearing Thin." And that he had made a statement that (amongst some theologians), that he wasn't a match for us like he used to be, that he believed that some of the Bible really could be not inspired, and a few... Said he might pretty soon, leave the field of evangelism and--and become some... take some kind of offerings for some great college or something on that order. Which to me, I don't believe he said it. I--I got better confidence in a man of God like Billy Graham, than to make a statement like that.
E-6 You don't know what it is until you go through it once. I know you can wear down. Jack Coe wore just a little too thin once. And you know what? Tommy Hicks was wore thin, pretty thin, and you know that. Just as soon as he comes from overseas, somebody grabs him here and there. He's had a breakdown.
E-7 Now, I would like to approach a subject here, that I--I know is entirely too much of a subject for me, and before ministers, anyhow, that I'm kindly a little ticklish about approaching it, a little skittish, I should said. But I trust that you'll bear with me till I express my thoughts on a Scripture, that I want to read out of the book of Joel, the 1st chapter, a verse, and the 2nd chapter, a verse: the 4th and the 25th. In Joel the 1st chapter it said:
That which the palmerworm has left has the locust eaten;... that which the locust has left has the a... (I beg your pardon, I'm reading it wrong.) That which the palmerworm has left has the locust eaten; and that which the locust has left... the cankerworm has eaten;and that which the... (I mean) the caterpillar has eaten; that which the caterpillar has left has the... a... cankerworm has eaten has the caterpillar...
I'm all mixed up again, but... Standing here with tears in my eyes and shaking, I... Well, I'll read it again.
That which the palmerworm has left has the locust eaten; and that which the locust has left has the cankerworm eaten; that which the cankerworm has left has the caterpillar eaten.
And then over in Joel 2:25:
I will restore unto you...
E-8 So that... Now, let's just bow our heads. Our precious Lord, as a bunch of pilgrims and strangers, we humbly bow in Your Presence, first of all, to ask You to forgive us for all of our trespasses, and to say within ourselves that we are unworthy of any blessing that You should give to us.
E-9 Now, may the Lord add his blessings to His Word. And now, on this subject that I would just like to briefly say, because I know we got lots of things to do, and it's ten minutes after ten...
E-10 And in our religious beliefs, we find the same thing. We find that some believe one thing and some another, but I've always tried to make it a policy to never try to cross up anybody, to do anything wrong. I... When I come out of the Baptist church, I never went across the country telling what a bad bunch of people the Baptists are. I'd go across the country and telling people what a fine bunch of people the Baptists are, because they are. I might not agree with them just on everything, but I certainly would take one of them before, I would take an unbeliever, before I would take a Communist, or... As long as they are mentioning the Name of the Lord, though I wouldn't believe with them, I certainly... we might not believe on every principle, but we believe on Christ, and that's the main thing.
E-11 And now, in our short message I have just... The first time I've ever tried to write down something, just a point that I want to make in...?... because, not only to preach... I didn't come to preach, I just come to speak to you. And I'm... I preach by inspiration, I try to, but in speaking like this, I just want to talk to you.
E-12 First it was the--the palmerworm, and the next was the locust, and the next was the cankerworm, and the next was the caterpillar. Them were destroyers, and what they were destroying was the heritage of God, the vine.
E-13 Now, if Pentecost was God's vine, which was the new vine, that has growed up, then these four destroyers has been the one that's eat the vine down. Now, let's find out what Pentecost had and find out what we got lacking, and then we ought to find out what the destroyers are, who they are. Well, what's did it.
E-14 Jesus said, "This will all men know that you're My disciples, when you have love one for the other." Pentecost had that. I'm speaking Pentecost, meaning the first group of the apostles and the disciples. They had that brotherly love. They wasn't greedy. They sold everything they had, for the furthering of the church. They was so together, till even when one heard the other one died, they said, "Let us go and die with him." Such a feeling.
E-15 And now, in the Pentecostal church of today, comparing the two and what's happened... Now, if you'll notice the routine of the gifts: the first is a gift of wisdom. (Thank you.) The first is the gift of wisdom. That is the best gift of the group. And if we don't have wisdom, we won't know how to use knowledge, is the second gift. And if we can't use the second gift without wisdom, how are we going to use the last gift, interpretation? or next to the last, speaking in tongues? Our zeal has eat up our wisdom, and our zeal for our denominations and our enthusiasm has eat up the wisdom off of the vine, brotherly love.
E-16 When we get to a place, if you want to different with a man... Why, is man that I know that I could see eye to eye with, as close in Scriptures as anybody in the world is Brother Moore, setting here. But oh, do we get times when we're a million miles apart. But did that ever touch us? No, sir. Hearing him... With a little wife over yonder, answering the phone so much till she's got almost a nervous breakdown--called last night, crying on the phone. And he loves me well enough... Not because he gives a penny of money, no, sir. But he flies on an old Lockheed plane and everything else, to get over here to be with me, every little bit. I don't believe the night would ever be too dark or the rain would ever fall too hard, but what I'd climb and crawl through the jungles to get to him. It's a love. And yet, we wouldn't agree on Scriptures by a hundred miles on millenniums and so forth like that, or on security of the believer. But that don't make it. I'm even... He's... Even in our difference, I am elected associate pastor to him. I'm so glad that the palmerworm hasn't touched us yet, Brother Moore.
E-17 I went to his church here not long ago. And I thought he never would invite me back. Oh, I come to find out, that godly bunch of little saintly women he had there, was bobbing off their hair and wearing lipstick. I tore the thing apart. Sure did. But I thought he wouldn't ask me back. But you know what? There was such anointing of the Holy Spirit around the vine, till that old palmerworm couldn't touch it at all.
E-18 I don't care what a man believes. Whatever he believes... Now, he's got a right to come right back and tell me he don't believe little things that I believe. I got a right to say little things that he doesn't believe and this church, the Methodist, the Baptist, the Presbyterian, even to the Pentecostal. See? Whatever... I'm with the Pentecostal people; I am Pentecost. I don't belong to the Pentecostal denomination, because Pentecost is not a denomination; it's an experience...?... hear that Lutheran say awhile ago?
E-19 Now, the next great thing come up was the locust. And he was the one who was to destroy the unity of the believers. In the Bible there were... In Pentecost there was a unity. And these people were with one heart and with one accord. And Paul said, I believe in Romans the 7th chapter, that there was nothing could separate us from the (8th chapter of Romans) of the love of God that's in Christ Jesus. There was nothing...
E-20 But I might not look like it this morning, but I used to herd a few cattle. And up there in Colorado, where we graze on the Arapaho forest, and--and bring the cattle down on the Troublesome River Association... Hereford Association grazes the... has the ranches down on the Troublesome River. At roundup time at the spring, when we brought the cattle up to put them on there, many times have I set there with my leg across the horn of the saddle, and watch the ranger count those cattle as they went through. And I was amazed to look; some of them had the Lazy K brand on them. Some of them has the Diamond Bar brand on them. Ours was the Tripod. But others was different brands. The ranger... The brand didn't make much difference, but every one that passed through that gate had to be a registered Hereford.
E-21 So not only among the Pentecostal denominations, but all denominations, this great palmerworm has broke down brotherhood. It's did it with the Lutherans. It's did it with the Baptists. It's did it with the Presbyterians. It's did it with the Nazarenes. It's did it with the Pentecostals. It's always been that old worm in there to make them isolate themselves. "We got it. You ain't got nothing." What a pity.
E-22 By and by that corn matured. And after while it become a tassel. I said, "The first two leaves were you Lutherans, first Reformation. And after while, along come the tassel. That tassel looked so pretty. It looked back down to the leaf and said, "I haven't got nothing to do with you. I'm a pretty tassel, and you aren't nothing but just an old green leaf."
E-23 But brother, remember, the ripeness in the grain come out of the leaf also in the tassel. It's nothing but a corn, further matured. So don't laugh at the Lutheran and the Baptists, Methodists. Remember, it's a further maturing of the ear. E-24 I got a little note wrote out--wrote out here I was going to read on it. All the operation of the gifts and so forth... And in unity they stood as one great big union church. But we find out that that church stayed that way, with brotherhood, and they loved not their lives unto death. They went down in martyrdom. Many of you man here who is scholars, you've read of the... well, the early ages of the church, and books like Foxe "Book of Martyrs," and so forth, and many other church--church histories. And how that they stuck together; nothing could separate them. E-25 Then during the dark age, they come forth with an organization. They come forth with a manmade policy. The locusts begin to fly then. The same devil that broke up brotherhood is trying to break the unity of man. And they made their first organization, and that was the Catholic church. God's church never was organized until Catholicism. And then it was a forcing, that you had to do it or they pulled them apart with ox, they burned them, they fed them to lions, they done everything. And they forced in a false unity. The locusts begin to sting. And it's too bad... After the caterpillar had got into the Pentecostal church and broke up the brotherhood, then the locust comes around after that, and begins to stinger it to organize different little groups to break up our unity. That's one of the destroyers. E-26 If the old general council, when the Pentecostal move was first brought in, issued in by speaking with tongues (the bottom of the gifts, bringing it up), if they would've just stayed put and would've never organized, and just let it be a Pentecostal fellowship, in the stead of any organization, we'd have been a million times better off, brethren. And let it stay an experience and not a denomination... E-27 Now remember, I'm stating myself; I'm not against the denominations. It has to be that way or God's Word wouldn't have said it would be that way. If these caterpillars and bugs are going to eat the church, they're going to eat it. That's right. God said so. That's just as plain as He said He'd pour out His Spirit. What God says for one thing, whether it's good or evil, it's going to be just that way. But I'm just--I'm just bringing out something to your ears so you can see.
E-28 Now the caterpillar begin to eat, or the locust, rather, and he broke up against unity. And they organized the first church. Luther organized the second, and on down through the age, and it's constantly one organization... And when you do, you tear down the very principles of brotherhood. Brethren, to my opinion, if we are mentally right, we don't... we speak God's Bible and look out upon the thing, and you see that it's that way. We are not divided; all one body, we. One in hope and doctrine, one in charity. What are we going to do about it? Here we are. Could we help it? No, sir. God said so; that's it.
E-29 But to think that old locust, what it done... And then another thing that they had back in the Bible times, now, besides brotherhood, perfect brotherhood, perfect unity, they had a worship of one true God. And it's too bad that we got away from that.
E-30 I wouldn't want to say that it was a grand privilege, but I was given the privilege to be interviewed by the Pope, when I was in Rome. And I seen many diplomats, and great men, and kings, and potentates, monarchs, and have met them. And they told me different things I should do, and how I should address them, and when I went to them, "Your honor," and so forth, and--and "majesty," and so forth, I was to say. So I asked this person what I was to say at three o'clock the next afternoon when I was to meet the Pope of Rome, the head of the Catholic Church. And he said, "The first thing you must do, will be bow down on your knee, and kiss the ring, and call him, 'His Holiness.'"
E-31 But they had the worship of one true God. In that little faction, they set up in the program (which many of you historians know), of making the trinity three different Gods. They had one God, the Father, with a long beard. I seen the pictures right at the Vatican. They had another one, God, the Son, with a younger man and a little bird flying around like a dove, calling the Holy Ghost.
E-32 Now, of course, we people today, we believe that there's three, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost is the three persons of the one true God. It's three offices, not three Gods. But that same... Listen now, we think that was ridiculous in the Catholic church, but we went right down here at Pentecost and tore yourselves to pieces with it--set up another organization, started something else.
E-33 And if the Oneness faction hadn't have went off to one side, and made an issue out of it, and would've stayed with their brethren, and let the Holy Ghost anoint them, that thing would've never spattered and broke up brotherhood the way it did. But what happened? The locusts begin to fly. It broke up brotherhood. You had to have a little unity of your own. Unity is not an isolated thing, brethren. Unity is for the whole body of Christ.
E-34 But they had in the beginning is unity of the one true God. Just a few days ago I got a letter from Africa, Brother Judy. Now, I want you to know that there was two factions of them there. They have a triune baptism. And one side baptizes three times: once for the Father, and once for the Son, once for the Holy Ghost, face forward. Said, "Jesus, when He died, we're baptized in His death, and He fell face forward."
E-35 Paul said, "Some preach for one thing and some preach for gain, and what difference as long as Christ is preached." He had a right to call out and said, "I know that after my departing grievous wolves will enter in, not... and some among you will raise up with perverse things and so forth." E-36 I believe we have to go through these things before we can really do the real meaning of them. John, who was the one who wanted to call fire down out of heaven, and burn up Samaria, that day, because they wouldn't give them something to eat, the same one become the very funnel of love. I wonder, brethren, if some day when all of our differences, when we really see the vision that God's trying to get before us, if it just won't break us right down at one another's feet...?...
E-37 Another thing that they had in that day, was absolutely astounded a Bible teaching. That was one of the things they had which the palmerworm and the caterpillar... And did you notice it's the same insect all the way down. Now, this old devil cankerworm has come in, and he crawls in the skin too, you know, cankers you up. Once they ever find a little thing and when he does, it don't make any difference what somebody else tries to say, he will just hold to that, and he will isolate his little group into something, "but this is this." Brother, it ain't, "This is this."; this is "that." That's the thing. A fellowship, a true Bible teaching, not going out after one thing or another. We've got genuine, Spirit filled, Holy Ghost brethren.
E-38 Now, we know the Holy Ghost is here. We know the Holy Ghost is life. But brethren, do you realize it's only working in a stump? Did you think that? Do you realize that's a part, my friend? The Spirit is only working in a stump? The Bible said it would be a stump. What is it? We've got disunified body. We've got brotherly love scattered from side to side. Way down in the heart of every borned again man, this morning, in their hearts they want to embrace one another. They...?... want to do it. There's a many a preacher here in Phoenix that belongs to the churches of different denominations would love to walk in here this morning, and take the Oneness, and the Twoness, and the Threeness, and forget their differences, and...?... Christ is in their heart.
E-39 Then we find out all these great things, and here we are just stumped. Here this vine will start, and when it does the palmerworm will cut down the brotherhood.
E-40 And now, for our real thought of this, if God said these insects would eat down His heritage, can't you see, brethren, Divine healing, why it doesn't operate right? Can you see how our gifts don't operate right? The spirits, they'll get in the church and some with tongues will speak irreverently. Some of them pay no attention to it. Others will say, "That message wasn't right." They let this go and that go. |
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