Christ Revealed in
His Own Word #124
Naked and Blind
Wednesday,
August 6 1997
Brian Kocourek,
Pastor Grace Fellowship
[Rev 3: 14-19] [Rev 16:15]
Read .. [ .. Prayer
[159] In the Laodicean age the people were what? Naked (Are they?), blind. What good does light do to a blind man? If the blind leads
the blind, don't they all fall in the ditch? Naked, blind, and don't know it.
Now, before we proceed any
further into paragraph 159, I would like to stop just for a moment to fix our
thinking on these two attributes of the people in this last age. Now, what does
the word blind mean, and what does the word naked suggest to us? Of course we
know that these are two different words, so we’ll need to break these two
end-time attributes of the end-time people down individually first, and then
once we have established there significance with the end-time atmosphere
amongst the people, then we shall attempt to tie them in together in order to
gain a better understanding of how they fit together with what Brother Branham
is teaching us on the Revealing of Christ and why most people will not accept
it.
Now, we find these
attributes being used here to suggest a certain setting among the people
because no matter what we are looking at, we shall know it by examining their
characteristics. Because the characteristics are what distinguishes one thing
from another making them different, or setting them apart from others. As an
example, some people have red hair and others have blonde while others have
brunette. These attributes of coloring in the hair change the appearance of the
individual. And then a blonde has a certain pigmentation in their skin that is
different from a brunette, and red head.
Some people have freckles and others have an olive colored complexion.
Some people are tall and skinny, some are tall and large framed, and others are
short. So the individual characteristics that people possess in their genes
comes forth in their appearance and distinguishes them as being different from
others.
Now, when we speak of
Characteristics we are not just speaking of physical body traits, because you
may have two people who have many similar body features that look close enough
alike that by appearance only you can not tell them apart from one another. But
in their innate character, they have other traits or characteristics that set
them apart from others, even those whom they look exactly alike. I have know a
few sets of twins that look so much alike that by appearance only I could not
tell them apart. But when I got to know them, there were things they did that
gave them away as to their individual characteristics.
Webster says that
characteristics are those things which constitute a special character; a
distinctive or distinguishing trait or
feature or quality that is peculiar to the individual. He said the word
characteristic suggests the indication
of a quality that is peculiar to and helps identify something or someone. And we find further by examination that
there are individual characteristics which set apart the individual from others
of his or her class or kind, and there are characteristics that are peculiar to
the class or kind, and therefore speak of a certain type of nature that is
being manifested.
Now, the attributes that
brother Branham is referring to are not those attributes that are
distinguishing marks in an individual and sets them apart from all other
individuals as much as they are attributes or characteristics that speak of or
are an expression of a certain class or type or kind of people. Because if
these were spoken of as being in only a certain individual then they would be
those traits that set apart only a small few from al others. But when we read
in the scripture pertaining to these attributes they are being used in a way as
to tell us or warn us of a universal trait that will affect most of mankind
with the small exception of an Elect few. In other words, those who are in that
Elect Few will not be found with the characteristics of the majority who are
naked, and blind and don’t even know it.
Now, we’ll begin our study
tonight by examining first what the Scriptures mean when using the word naked or
nakedness. We all have our own understanding what the word means, but let’s
just place our own thinking aside and let’s look to what God’s Word says about
being naked, or nakedness. But what does God define as being naked? That’s what
we want to know. And so, let’s turn to
the Scriptures where this word is used... [Exodus
28:40-42] Here we see that God defines nakedness as being an exposed leg
from the thigh up to and including the loins. Now, we know that this is not
what most people consider nakedness, because most people wear shorts and swim
suits and all sorts of apparel that brother Branham said, the total amount of
material could hardly wad a shotgun.
But God said to show or expose the thigh or upper leg and the area of the loin
is considered to be nakedness to Him.
Now, some of you boys are
too old to be wearing shorts. Brother Branham said, [pg. 21-pp. 3-5 Satan’s Eden 65-0829] She
causes her Adam to lust for her. She took off the clothes that God dressed her
in back in Eden for her journey through this wilderness; she took them off. She
stripped herself down, when God had her wrapped all over in skins; she's begin
to shave a little off each time. Now, she's back to where she was at the
beginning. Now, she's got her Adam to
wearing her underneath clothes. A man,
put on them little old sissy looking shorts, and get out here. I don't think there is much man to him.
He is the biggest sissy I know of. See, she's got her perverted Adam to act
like she (See?), wearing her underneath clothes. She seen what she could do out yonder when she took off all her
clothes, but her underneath ones; that's the shorts, of course that's a woman's
underneath clothes. And here her Adam is wearing them now, which
according to God's original Word is an abomination for a woman to put on a
garment that pertains to a man, and a man put on a garment pertains to a woman:
from the original Word. Think of
it. Now he now wears her bangs also. He
combs them down, puts a curler in them. Some
of the most sickly sights I've ever seen in my life is some of those kids out
here today with their bangs combed down like this, and colored bleached
hair with some kind of peroxide something and bleach in it, and roll it in
curlers making bangs. You big sissy. That's a horrible thing to say from a
pulpit, but judgment begins at the house of God. You don't even know whether you're a man or woman. And I
understand that our United States Army is coming out next in shorts. That's
right. See what the perversion is? It is
a woman's clothes, wears her bangs.
[E-59 Presuming 62-0610M]
Women put on little sexy clothes, and walk out on the street. Say,
"Yes, I'm a Christian." They're presuming that's the thing they
should do. Now, please, sister. I'm your brother. If your mother was the right
kind of a woman, she'd tell you the same, or your daddy, or your husband.
And any man will let his wife get out on the street in them shorts and
things like that, it shows how much man's in him. Let his wife set there
and smoke a cigarette before him, and know that that thing... What's his
children going to be? Don't worry about
communism whipping us. We've done whipped ourselves. It's our own rotten
morals. And where did it start from? Because the Gospel was let down at the
pulpit, where it began: sissified preachers, with not enough real baptizing of
the Holy Spirit in their soul to stand and tell the Word of God. Don't spank
the child for juvenile delinquency; spank the parents. It's parent delinquency.
They let them get by with it.
So we see then that to be
naked is to expose certain parts of our bodies that are to be covered in
humility. Now, that is in the physical sense of the word, we know that the
natural always types the spiritual. I’ve even heard brother Vayle speak about
the washed out look that people like to wear, like the washed out jeans and he
said, that’s because they have a washed out religion. Brother Branham in a
Message called “Countdown,
”said, “All the natural things are types of the spiritual things.” And from the Message, Diseases and Afflictions, He said, “All the natural things of the earth type the spiritual. Everything in
the natural types the spiritual. You know that, most of you.” From the
Message Demonology, he said, “Everything in the natural types the
spiritual. Are you aware of that? Everything in the natural types the
spiritual, regardless.”
So we see then that the
natural types the spiritual, right? So
then we can see that those people who are so willing to expose themselves in
the natural are also willing in the spiritual to do the same. And they are
naked and don’t even know it. Now, remember, you are not held accountable until
you hear the Truth, and then when you hear it, you are from henceforth held
accountable. And when is the age of accountability? Some would say when they
are no longer young children. Others would say, when they are no longer
children period. Because the Scripture reads that a man should not wear that
which pertains to a woman.
[Deut 22:5] Now the word for woman here is a Hebrew word which means
woman, wife or female. And the word for man is a Hebrew word which means one
who is strong and able to fight. [1041-Q-319 Q & A COD 64-0823E] 319. Brother Branham, is it all right for a--a
young child to wear slacks and shorts?
How young? Just let you be
the judge of that; if you're a Christian. A little girl or any little bitty
kid, I imagine, I don't know, I... Only thing I know, the Bible says it's an
abomination for a woman to wear a garment that's--that pertains to a man. See?
"A woman," didn't say, "a child." But now, I just...
You just suit yourself about that, I... For my part, I see nothing wrong with a little bitty kid, little bitty girl four
or five years old with a... When they're little fellows, you know how I
mean, they'll run around out there in the yard. If she's wearing, what you call
slacks or whatever, is a little bitty kid, I don't see nothing wrong with it.
Maybe... See, I'm just telling you
what the Word says. It's an abomination for a woman to wear a garment that pertains
to a man.
[79 Influence of another 62-1013] Did you see this court order this week here in Indiana? What a
shame. Less than fifteen years ago a family here in Port Fulton (I think some
of the family's setting here tonight.)--here in Port Fulton, they sent a little
girl home from school for wearing shorts to school. And this week they're trying to sue and put out of the school (and they did
it), a little girl that refused to
wear shorts in school. What's the matter with our nation? I thought this was
a land of free; I thought we had a right--religious freedom. This father stood up and said, "It's against our religious belief for
our children to wear shorts, our little girl of sixteen, seventeen years old,
to wear shorts; it's against our religious belief." And they dismissed
and expelled the child from the school.
[Luke 8:26-35] Notice when he was in his right mind he was also
fully dressed. [Doors in a Door
65-0206] Now, how can we, sisters, how can we in this nation where we
claim to believe and be Christians, and every year they take more off? When
that person never even heard the Name of Christ, but just accepted Him in their
heart. No, you couldn't tell them they were naked; they didn't know it. But
they covered themselves up like this to walk away. The next day, or two, you'd
find them with clothes on of some kind.
Oh, my. There's something wrong somewhere. It's a twisting up of
theology. The power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, like He did to the man
who called "Legion: we found him clothed and in his right mind." And
I begin to believe that it's a spirit upon the people that drives them into
that Americanism and Frenchism, and all kinds of worldlism and churchism. But
let them once come to that Master, and they feel that knock at the door,
they'll put clothes on and act like women and men, and they'll be borned again
Christians. Amen. Yes.
[Hebrews Chapter 4] And yesterday, while Brother Tony--or Brother
Wood and I were coming through the street, and some more--some of the men... There
was a little lady there in Louisville, coming down the street, lovely looking
little woman, with a--clothes on that was horrible: just a little way up on the
hip, and a little ribbon tied on her hips on each side, and a little bitty
round piece of cloth in front of her, and tied with a string behind, walking
down the street, horribly, and every man on the street looking at her. I said,
"She doesn't realize that she's guilty in the sight of God with committing
adultery with every man that looked on her in that manner. And she'll answer at
the day of judgment for committing adultery with those men." Jesus said, "Whosoever looketh upon
woman to lust after her, has committed adultery with her already." That's
right. So, you see, Brother Wood said
to me, "What do you allow for that, Brother Branham?" I said, "It's either mental deficiency
or devil possession." There's only two things to make it. A decent, clean
woman won't wear those things unless she's devil possessed. That's exactly the
truth. Now, a pilgrim that's on his road to heaven, he lives in a different
atmosphere. You don't have to worry about him looking at her. He'll turn his
head if he's got God in his heart, for he's living in an atmosphere that's a
million miles from those things. That's right. You don't want to be guilty of
that stuff at the judgment. So he turns his head and say, "God, have mercy
on the woman," and on he goes.
We're in our journey. We're on our way to Canaan's land. We're on our
way to that eternal and blessful rest that God has given us. And in the
journey, we're tempted. We're tempted of all kinds of things, but yet be
tempted without sinning.
[135 Token The 64-0308] Then when we pray, we must have the Token to
present with our prayers, as I said, and now believe for ourself and apply the
Token to the whole family like in Egypt, Jericho, or either in Acts 16:31. We
find out that Paul told the Roman centurion, say, "Believe thou, and all
thy house shall be saved." Apply it to your family. If you got a unsaved
child, lay the Token right on top of him, say, "Lord God, I claim
him." Stay right there. If you got a mother or a loved one that's lost,
lay that Token on them, say, "Lord God, I claim it." Move
out, of all the worldly trash, out of your house, get ready for it. Burn up
your shorts. Throw your card tables away. Get rid of your cigarettes.
Dump your unbelief and your church papers in the trash can where they belong. Amen. Then you're getting ready. Then what
do? Then apply the Token in prayer, with
real evidence, real faith. Apply it, apply it with confidence. When you apply
the Token, know that you're cleaned up. "If our hearts condemn us
not, then we have our request."
As long as you people are doing them things that's wrong, how you going
to ask God to do anything for you when you know you're wrong? That's the reason
we just stagger up and stagger back. I'm not saying this to hurt. I'm saying
this to straighten out, to get things right. How you going to build it upon the
chars of a Sodom and Gomorrah?
And that is a key to the
Revealing of Christ that so many are missing Him, and He is Here just as real
as He was when He spoke to Cleopas on the road to Emmaus, In fact, from the Message, [ My Redeemer Liveth 55-0410S] he said, Did you ever stop to think
this morning, as far as returning, that is, to become visible? He's already
here with us now. He... We someday... Now, today just imagine that His Presence
being here today. The Lord Jesus is in another world, or another dimension,
right here today in form of Spirit. His Spirit is blending in with our spirit.
Our eyes can't see Him, because that they're physical yet, unless there would
something happen that we could see vision. But He is here just as visible, just
as real as He was the day that He spoke to Mary at the grave, or He met Cleopas
on his road to Emmaus. His Presence is here. It can be feeled with that, felt
with that inner charge that's on the inside of the human body, called the new
birth. The soul has been magnetized unto Him.
And once in a while, when you let your mind be concentrated on Him,
believing on Him, after while something, a reality, you can feel something
sweep over your being. That's the vindication of His resurrection. It's not a
"guess so." It's not "I hope so." But to every person
that's borned again, it's a "know so." It's... You know it. It's
right there. And when you become contact with Him... I've seen saints say, "Oh, can you... The Presence of the
Lord is near." You say, "Why, there's something..." Why,
certainly. He's right there, right up... He's rose from the dead, and He's
standing right by you.
[Eph 5:13-16] we should be redeeming the time, and I hope we see the importance of keeping
ourselves pure and undefiled in this world that we live. And remember, brother
Branham said they either have a devil or they are mentally gone and that is
what he brings into his thoughts on the condition of the people in this hour as
he continues in paragraph 159 of Christ
Revealed in His Own Word. [159] In
the Laodicean age the people were what?
Naked (Are they?), blind. What
good does light do to a blind man? If the blind leads the blind, don't they all
fall in the ditch? Naked, blind, and
don't know it. Even their mental faculties are gone,
their spiritual faculties of mental--spiritual understanding. (
then notice the scripture that he quotes). [2 Tim 3: 1-6] See? Heady,
high-minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God, truce breakers, false
accusers, incontinent,
and despisers of those that are
good, having a form of godliness but
denying the power thereof (The power of revelation, they don't
even believe in it. See?) And that is a sad indictment on the church today.
They are incontinent, they can’t help themselves. Why? Because they are possessed
with a devil and they have lost their minds. He said they would be mentally
gone and you can sure see it today when you walk down the street. The filth
gets worse and worse each year. And the
problem is that the church doesn’t even believe in the power of Revelation he
said. They say, I can’t help it. If you can’t help it then you are mentally
gone, and there is no hope for you. And Pentecost is the worsted bunch of
illegitimate sex minded, touchy feely, free loving bunch of whore mongering diatribe that calls
themselves Christians today. And they have shown themselves to have gotten
worse than the Catholic church in only 50 years as Brother Branham predicted
they would be. And yet we hear people in this Message wanting to go back to
that? Don't they see the same things were said in Moses day? And those who were
saying it were the ones who had there sex orgies right in the camp of the
Believers while Moses was away.
Oh, God, if the Prophet of
God is looking down upon the camp of those who are claiming to believe His
Message, what’s going to happen when he returns. You think Moses was angry,
what about what is going on now in the name of this Message. Homosexual deacons
and ministers, handling the Word of God and the communion table. Polygamists, Adulterers,
Fornicators, and all claiming to be called to handle the holy Fire of God! Such
filth!
[46-1 Souls in Prison Now
63-1110M] But it's been years since I come off the field, four, about five years
since I come off... What is it? What's done this? Is that been why it was like
it was in the beginning in Genesis, "God's long-suffering"? Remember,
when He made the world, the seventh day He made nothing. He rested. See? God
was long-suffering in that sixth year, not willing that any should perish, but
all might come to repentance. God was long-suffering. Again also in Genesis 15:16 (if you want to put it down) 16:15,
He told Abraham, over in that land of the Amorites, their iniquity (They were
Gentiles now.), "I can't take you in there right now, because the iniquity
of the Amorites, the Gentiles, is not fulled up yet, but I will judge them.
I'll come in that fourth generation, and then I'll judge that nation with a rod
of iron." Is that right?
[133 God of this Evil Age
65-0801M] Notice, but God is waiting
till the iniquity of these modern Amorites is filled. Don't worry; He'll have
His Moses ready at that time. There'll be an exodus someday to the promised
land. There'll be a Moses come along who'll call out, restore the faith of the
children back to the fathers. It'll come one of these days. The... You say,
"Well, look how we're progressing." Sure, the iniquity of the
Amorites is not yet full. It'll come one of these days, let them destroy
themselves. Civilization, knowledge perverts God's Word to suit their own
taste. Every denomination does the same thing. Satan then preaches his own
gospel of knowledge in his own church.
[16-3 The Third Exodus 63-0630M]
Now, we find out that all this has took place because... waited...
revivals... The Methodists, the Lutherans, the Baptist, the Campbellites
and--and all different ones; they've had great revivals. The Nazarene, Pilgrim
Holiness, and Pentecostals, all had great revivals; but the great exodus hasn't
come. Why? God told Abraham He'd keep
him in the land right then, but the iniquity of the Amorites wasn't yet full.
And God has waited patient. Them people trying to figure out; they can see the
Scripture run right into something, run right into something; they say,
"This is the day; this is the time," but you fail to understand that
the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet fulfilled. 17-2
Then there comes an exodus, and we see it; that the people themselves
can see back down the stream of time, that the thing is cursed. They take a
wedge and a fine Babylonian garment again. And that's the thing that curses
amongst the people, when man tries to inject his own ideas about things. We got to stay with that Word; that's
commandments of God was not to touch nothing in that city, that cursed city.
Don't touch it; leave it alone. And
Achan thought that he could take this gold wedge and live pretty decently like
the rest of the world... and fine Babylonian garment. Oh, at the Achans in the
camps... See? But the thing's cursed, and it continually cursed. It was cursed
since the very Nicene Council at Nicaea, Rome. It's been cursed ever since, but
God's let the iniquity fill up until the time of the Amorites is about
fulfilled. 19-1
All right, the iniquity wasn't full yet of the Amorites, so they had to
linger and wait before the exodus. But when the Amorites got their iniquity
filled, then there come a spiritual exodus or natural exodus, to lead the
people to a natural land, where a natural Amorite had once dwelt--called that
their land. And the iniquity of the
Amorite denomination, that's called themselves the church so long, till their
iniquity is about fulfilled. There's coming an exodus where God will show who's
who, where the church itself, the Bride of Jesus Christ will be exodused out
into the land that's promised: in My Father's House are many mansions in this
place. You don't have to go there and fight like they did; it's already
prepared. If this earthly tabernacle dwelling be dissolved, we have one already
waiting. "That where I am, there ye'll be also." The great exodus at
hand. Watch how God did that exodus. What He... what preparations He made, and
study just a minute, then look at today.
20-2 The iniquity of the Amorites was fulfilled. The time that He promised
Abraham was fulfilled, and the time of deliverance was at hand. And God
permitted a pharaoh to raise up who knew not Joseph, and Raamses was born. And
right after Seti come Raamses, and Raamses was that one who knew not the
blessings of Joseph. And he didn't know
what the spiritual side was; he was only a political genius, that he could take
Ethiopia and all the rest of the countries under military might, and that's all
he knew was the--the military might.
[10-4 Why Cry Speak 63-0714M] I think any man with a--or woman, boy or
girl... And I think in the intellectual conception of what they think the Word
is and so forth, never can have a full foundation stand until they have met
that Light that brings that Word to a reality. I think no church in its practice, no matter how intellectual and
fundamental it might be, that church cannot thrive until the supernatural is
made known among that people, and they see it, something that they can talk to
that'll talk back to them that a-vindicates this written Word. Now, remember, when Moses met this burning
bush that Word was a-vindicated exactly. It was the Word. Moses didn't have to
worry, "What's this voice all about? What is this Being here?"
Because God had already wrote on the Scripture in Genesis that, "Your
people will sojourn in this strange land, but they'll be brought back after
four hundred years--will come back into this country again, for the iniquity of
the--the Amorites is not yet fulfilled."
[111 Warning then Judgment 63-0724] Like Abraham, God told
Abraham, "Your seed shall come into this country and sojourn here for four
hundred years, and then I'll bring them out with a mighty hand, because the
iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full." See? God knew that cup was
going to fill up. He was speaking with His prophet. He told him now, "You
see that cup of the Amorites down there (See?), but their iniquity's not filled
up yet, Abraham. Don't say nothing about it now, hold off, but it will come.
And when their cup's filled up, and then four hundred years, I'll drive them
out like locusts before you, and I'll establish your seed here in this
land." Amen. That's the prophet of the Lord.
[159] In the Laodicean age the people were what? Naked (Are they?), blind. What good does light do to a blind man? If the blind leads
the blind, don't they all fall in the ditch? Naked, blind, and don't know it. Even their mental faculties
are gone, their spiritual faculties of mental--spiritual understanding.
See? Heady, high-minded, lovers of
pleasure more than lovers of God, truce
breakers, false accusers, incontinent, and despises of those that are good, having
a form of godliness but denying the power thereof (The power of revelation, they don't
even believe in it. See?)... They don't believe in such things as prophets, and
so... They don't believe in it. They believe that Malachi 4 is to be a certain
church or certain organization. When he come the first time he was a man. When he come the second time
with a double portion, he was a man.
When he come in the form of John the Baptist, he was a man. See? In the last days when the evening Lights begin to
shine, eyes will become open and you'll see where you're going. Then
the Body is already formed, standing upon it's feet, taking motion, moving by
the Holy Spirit. What? The same One that moved upon the prophets that wrote the
Bible, the same Holy Ghost moving in a Body, filled with the Holy Ghost, moved
in the Holy Ghost out of every organization and every kindred, tongue, and
people.