The Masterpiece 84

The End-Time Restoration

September 3rd, 2006

 

Joel 2:25  And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.26  And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 27  And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel (in other words, you shall know that I am in your midst,  because Israel means “the prince with power before or with God” or in God’s presence, and so God will be in the midst of this People, that have power in His Presence), And ye shall know that I am in the midst of THEE and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people (see? There you are. He said, “My People”) my people shall never be ashamed. 28  And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:29  And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

 

Let’s bow our heads and hearts in a word of prayer.

 

Dear gracious and loving Father, we express our devotion to Thee first of all, as the One and Only True God. But we also know Thee Father, as our loving Father, Who is also the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ. And we acknowledge Father, that You Yourself indwelt Your Son Jesus. And we believe that He is our Brother, the Eldest Brother in a vast Family of Brethren as your Apostle Paul told us in Romans 8. And Father, we know that you used His body to manifested yourself to the world nearly two thousand years ago. But we also know and believe that in these last days you have come down again with a Message, showing your Presence by the same Pillar of Fire that you showed yourself to Moses, and to Paul and we have seen that same Pillar of Fire in this hour Lord. And we know you came to us with a Shout, which is a Message, and we know that Your very presence in our midst is what vindicated your servant William Branham to us, we whop are your people, your children, and we saw the great display of Thy great power in vindicating your Message to your people.  Therefore, Father we would ask that you might open our eyes this morning to what you have declared to do in this last hour, for we ask it in Jesus Christ’s name, that wonderful name you gave your Son by inheritance, Amen.

 

Now, this morning I would like to continue in our series on the Masterpiece and I would like to read from paragraph 158 of brother Branham’s sermon on The Masterpiece.

 

THE MASTERPIECE 64-0705 158 How is this Bride going to do this? How is this Wheat going to do this? Malachi 4 said in the last days it would be restored back. What? Restored back like the beginning, take it back. "I will restore, saith the Lord, all the years the palmerworm, and cankerworm, and all these other things has eaten. I will restore again." Malachi 4 said He will restore the hearts of the people, and the faith of the people back to the original fathers again. See? We see this right before us, Church. Where are we at?

 

Now, in order to better understand what he is talking about, let’s turn in our Bibles to Malachi chapter 4. But before we read, do not forget that God promised to do the restoration work.

 

We already read it in Joel 2:25  And “I” will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.26  And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 27  And ye shall know that I am in your midst…

 

So we see God prophesying of a time that He will come and bring a restoration. Yes, God Himself will come and restore what the locust, and cankerworm, and caterpillar and palmerworm destroyed. And in the process He promised us plenty of Spiritual food, for he said, And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, and then he promised that we would be fully aware that it is His Presence that is doing this great thing. And ye shall know that I am in your midst…

 

Now, the Apostle Paul speaks of this in the book of ACTS 13:40  Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; 41  Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for “I” work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you. Notice he is quoting what God said He will do, but it will be declared by a man. That is the way God always works since he declared it in Deuteronomy chapters 13 and 18. Notice He said, “I” work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.

 

So we se that God promised that He will come to perform a certain work that will restore what was eaten away from the original. Because the word restore means to bring back to the original.  

 

Now, brother Branham quoted from Joel 2 and Malachi chapter 4, so let’s turn to it top see what he is talking about concerning this great end-time restoration that God said he will do. 

 

Malachi 4;1  For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. So we see here what is coming for the unbeliever, but what about the elect of God. We see our answer in verse 2.

 

2  But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; (that’s healing campaigns. God will show this event is in the transition when he comes with a great healing ministry. ) and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. (Now, the thing about calves of the stall is that the only thing they are concerned with is eating. And so there will be a people that will be concerned not with works programs and what they can do for God in this hour. No, these people are only interested in one thing and that is eating, just as these calves of the stall.)3  And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.4  Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, (Now, notice that God is telling us to remember what he told the people at Horeb, so we need to know what that was.)

which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. 5  Behold,  I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: 6  And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

 

Now, look God promised right here, that He will send someone in the Spirit and Power of Elijah and this one will restore the hearts of the children to their Father, and if He doesn’t do this he will strike the earth with a curse.  So we need to know what it means to restore  the hearts of the children back to the Father, for if we do not know this then we will most certainly miss it when it happens.

 

Now, people always miss God when He comes although God makes it plain in His Word how He will come, and that he will come.  Yet when He does come, the religious world have missed Him each time. That is because they try to figure it out for themselves, when God interprets His own Word by bringing it to pass. The whole Christian world today is lost in its own interpretation of the Scriptures. Especially the Pentecostal world, because when God sends them a prophet with “Thus Saith the Lord” they think they have something too. Just like Dathan and Korah did, and God opened the earth and destroyed them all.

 

Now, the Apostle Peter said, in 2 Peter 1:19  We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: 20  Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.  

 

Now what is a more sure word? It is Word that has come to pass, and as Brother Branham taught us that God interprets His own Word by bringing it to pass. That’s how you know it when it happens, because it will happen just like he said it would, but most people miss it because it did not happen as they thought it would.

 

 And so we see that Malachi 4 spoke of a ministry of Elijah coming to earth that would restore the hearts of the children to their fathers. So what are these hearts that are being restored, and who are these children and who are the fathers.

 

Well, first of all when the scripture speaks of the heart it speaks of the understanding. That’s what Jesus said in Matthew 13.

 

Matthew 13:15 For this people's heart is waxed gross,(Now, he is not talking of the fleshly heart that goes pitter patter because you can see by what he says next that he means the understanding.) and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. So Jesus tells us here that the heart is what you understand with.

 

We see the same thing in  Colossians 2:2 That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;

 

John  12: 40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.

 

Ephesians 4:18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:

 

Acts 28: 27 For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

 

Daniel 10:12 Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.

 

Proverbs 2: 2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;

 

Job 17: 4 For thou hast hid their heart from understanding: therefore shalt thou not exalt them.

 

1 Kings 3: 9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?

 

Proverbs 15: 14 The heart of him that hath understanding seeketh knowledge: but the mouth of fools feedeth on foolishness.

 

Proverbs 14: 33 Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the midst of fools is made known.

 

So we see that God likens our hearts to the seat of our understanding. In fact the Scripture tells us that a man thinks with his heart.  Proverbs 23: 7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.  So we are looking at a change of the understanding by this ministry of the Spirit of Elijah at the end time just before the burning is to take place.

 

Now, the Apostle Paul speaks to us of the Spirit that will change the hearts o the people in  2 Corinthians 3: 1-18  1  Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? (You know that is the denominational way they do it. They have letters from the head presbyter or the head quarters and if you are not in the inner circle they will not give you letters, but Paul said we don’t need those kind of letters because when the people see you and your life then they know what we stand for.  And did you know that if you cause someone to stray away from the truth because of your life or something in your life that is hypocritical in nature, then you will be held accountable for that persons falling away. Jesus said, Matthew 18: 7 Woe unto the world because of offences! (the word offenses actually means a stumbling block) for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!

 

Woe to that man by whom the stumbling block cometh!

 

 

Then Paul says the reason he does not need those kind of letters is because, 2  Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men: 3  Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. 4  And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: 5  Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; (Notice Paul here is telling them that God used him to write in the people heart, that means to change their understanding. And they are written epistles known and read of all men, because God used Him to take a hold of His Spirit by His word to etch that Word into the hearts or the understanding of the people. )

 

Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. (Notice Paul says he is a minister of the Spirit, not of the letter of the Law but of the Life that is in the Word. Then Paul speaks to the people about the time when Moses came down from the mountain with His face glowing from having been in the presence of God.) 7  But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away: 8  How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?

 

Now, Paul is talking about the Law here in contrast to the Ministry of the Holy spirit in the end-time. And Paul said that the ministration of the spirit will be more glorious than what took place back there.

 

Now, Paul is talking about the scene recorded in the Book of Exodus where Moses came down from having dwelt in the presence f the Lord for a period of time and the people were so afraid of what they saw glowing from His face that they had him put a vail over it to cover it.

 

Exodus 34:29  And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. 30  And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him. 31  And Moses called unto them; and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned unto him: and Moses talked with them. 32  And afterward all the children of Israel came nigh: and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him in mount Sinai. 33  And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face. 34  But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he took the vail off, until he came out. And he came out, and spake unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded. 35  And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone: and Moses put the vail upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

 

And then Paul says,  9  For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. So we see that there is to come a ministry of right-wise-ness that will be so much more glorious than what took place in Moses day. And it will be the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the end-time. The Scripture tells us a man does right because he is right.

A good tree cannot produce bad fruit and neither can a bad tree produce good fruit, and a tree is known by its fruits. And William Branham vindicated prophet of God told us the fruit if their teaching.   

 

10  For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth. 11  For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:  13  And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: 14  But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.

 

So you see their ability to know and understand was kept dark because of the vail that was upon their minds. And that vail was their traditions and creeds.  15  But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. Notice that the vail is upon their heart, their understanding. Therefore their understanding is vailed by their creeds and their traditions. In fact Jesus said in Mark 7:7

 

Mark 7:7  Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. 8  For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. 9  And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

16. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, (when what shall turn to the Lord? The heart, the understanding, then ) the vail shall be taken away. Then their will be no more creeds and traditions of man to get in the way. Then they will see the word as it comes to pass and the Word shall become a living word to them and they shall come alive to the Word.  

 

17  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18  But we all, with open face(that mean’s a face without any traditions and creed to blind us) beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, (in other words when we without any traditions and creeds look into the Word of God and See Him for Who He really is, then we) are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

 

That is exactly what John told us would take place at the appearing of Christ in the last days.

 

1 John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 3  And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. So seeing Him as He really is makes us to know who we really are, and every man that  that has this earnest expectation purifies himself even as God is pure. And how can you purify yourself? Paul said in Ephesians 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,

 

And David asked the same question in Psalms 119: 9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.

 

So you see it is the Word that cleanses and washes us clean, not some form of works that you can do. Because the more of God’s Word that liveth and abideth in you, the more of God’s Spirit will remain in you.

For Jesus told us in John 6: 63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

 

So we are looking at a restoration of the understanding that the early church fathers had and this understanding will bring the children, that’s us, back to the understanding of the early church fathers. And it must come via a prophet that God will vindicate by His very presence. Because that is God’s way and he changes not.

 

Deuteronomy 13:1 If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,2  And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods,(notice He said, “gods” plural, that’s not One God, that’s more than one God like Trinity worship, where they believe there are three gods, one who is called father, another god who is a son, and a third who is a Holy Spirit. That’s what God is warning the people about here. Not to be drawn away by anyone who would teach a Trinitarian dogma.) which thou hast not known, and let us serve them;3  Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.4  Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, (and if you walk in the light as he is in the Light you will be walking after the Lord your God.) and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, (Now we know that His Voice is His word through His prophets) and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.  That’s all God wants from us, to walk with Him in His Presence.

 

Now, brother Branham said if you have a Trinitarian in your pulpit you have a false prophet in your pulpit. So you see where that spirit come from. It come from the Pagan deities. The Babylonian triad of Anu, Ea and Enlil. Anu the Father of the Babylonian gods, and Ea, the son god, and Enlil the wind god, which they just call him spirit now. So you see where it comes from? It comes from  Babylon, because it’s a bunch of babel.  And mystery Babylon is the Catholic church, and Trinitarianism is nothing but Pagan Roman mythology. Jupiter the Father of the gods, and then Hercules  the part man part god etc.

 

And because God so hated that spirit of error, he said, 5  And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee. 6  If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers;7  Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth;8  Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him:9  But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people.10  And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 

 

Now, that sounds pretty strong but that is how God feels about that Trinitarian dogma. Who ever heard of a god that is made up of a committee. Sounds Baptist to me, but they just love their committees.  And you might say, well that’s old testament. Let me tell you brother or sister if you got that in your head, that God is not the Judge of all the heavens and earth,  then something is wrong with your thinking.

 

He said in the old Testament, in the Book of Malachi chapter 3, “I am God, I change not.” And then in Hebrews 13:8 Paul said, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” That’s Old Testament and New Testament, So God doesn’t change.

 

And in the Book of Deuteronomy chapter 18 we read. 

 

Deuteronomy 18:15  The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; 16  According to all that thou desiredst of the LORD thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not. 17  And the LORD said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. 18  I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. 19  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.

 

So I do not care who you think you are. If you disagree with a vindicated prophet that comes with Thus Saith the Lord, and God does not allow His Words to fall to the ground then you had better shut your trap and listen to what that man has to say.  And believe me that man is a man, not a woman. There has never been a prophet of God that was a vindicated word prophet that was a woman. Oh there were prophetess in the bible that had gifts and dreams and the sort like Miriam did, but she got puffed up with her gifts and look where it got her. God filled her with leprosy because she shot off her mouth against Moses.

 

Don’t come around me with your gifts. That means nothing to me. I’ve seen too much over the years to know better than that. The Bible says, Romans 11:29Gifts and callings are without repentance. God may give you a gift but if you use it outside of His Will which is His Word, then what good will it do you. Balaam was a genuine prophet of God but he was a false prophet not because his gifts were false,  but because he used them outside of God’s Will.

 

Many will say to me in that day, “Lord, Lord did we not prophesy in Thy name and in Thy Name cast out devils?” And He will say unto them, depart from me, ye that work iniquity, for I never knew you.”

 

Did you know that having a gift from God means nothing to God? The Bible, God’s Own Word tells us that God gives gifts to the rebellious also.  Psalms 68: 18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.

 

So don’t come around me thinking you are something because you have a gift. So what. It doesn’t move me in the least. The Bride in this hour has the Word of God and the Mind of God to know what to do with His Word. And she could care less about playing with gifts.

Why would you care about having gifts of the spirit when God the Giver is here? Look, as long as the Giver of God gifts is here there will be plenty of gifts to go around, but that doesn’t make you a son or daughter of God. Satan led in the worship at the beginning before he got so puffed up about his gifts. And let me say this, also, if you think that you are somebody because you lead in the worship of God, that doesn’t make you any bit more than satan was because he did the same thing and he got puffed up about it.

 

As the Apostle Paul said, 1 Corinthians 14:34   36  What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only? And that is the problem we have with so many people today. Everyone wants to be the leader. Every one wants to be a somebody, and I am so sick and tire of all that slop that I don’t have time for it any more. Did the word come from you? Or did it just come to you? That’s what he’s saying here and then he said, I’ll tell you one thing, if you think you got something and it goes contrary to what I’m telling you then you ain’t got nothing. 37  If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. 38  But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.

 

And what was Paul saying before he said that? Read it for yourself. He said,  Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. 35  And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church. 36  What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only? 37  If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. 38  But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.

 

Yeah, Paul was addressing the women who were out of line thinking they had something because they might have had a gift or two. And I don’t care if you are a man or a woman, if you speak anything contrary to what God speaks through his vindicated Prophets, then let you be accursed. That’s what Paul told the Galatians who were going off after strange doctrine concerning the Godhead.

 

Galatians 1: 8  But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9  As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. 10  For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. 11  But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. 12  For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

 

And Paul said to Timothy, 1 Timothy 2: 11  Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12  But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 13  For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 14  And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. 15  Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.

So say what you want to say, but most women who claim that they have a call from God will don’t believe the Apostle Paul. Many of them think he was just a woman hater like they think William Branham was a woman hater, but that is the Word of God, and to add one word to that will bring you the plagues and to take one word from it will remove your name from the book of Life. So do with it what you will, but as for me and my House we will serve the Lord.

 

Now, look what God says in Deuteronomy chapter 18:20  But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. 21  And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken? 22  When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.

 

That is why John said in 1 John 4:1   Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

 

And how do you try the spirit? You give it the word test. Brother Branham said he checked every vision with the Word. He just didn’t see the vision and say, “oh, goody I got a vision from God” but he checked those visions with the Word, and if it didn’t match then it wasn’t from God.  Look, every thought that enters your mind is either from God or the devil, so don’t tell me because you hear things or feel things that means anything.  I’ve heard just about everything you can possibly hear over the years. And the older I get and the more I experience in life, and amongst the so called believers, the more skeptical I become about the goodness of mankind.

 

God said all your righteousness is as filthy rags, so what are you going to do about that? I’ve been around people that could talk in tongues until they turned blue in the face and they could cry in church great big crocodile tears and then the next weekend go to a rock concert with the Rolling Stones and claim they felt the Spirit of God in that concert. I had one brother tell me that after he kissed a woman that was not his wife, he said the Holy Ghost welled up inside of him. I told him, brother you don’t know the difference between the Holy Ghost and the spirit of lust, and he thought he was going to lead the Bride of Christ into the Rapture.

 

Don’t tell me, I’ve dealt with quacks for over 30 years in the ministry. One guy went around teaching that you had to have a vision of Jesus to be filled with the Holy Ghost. In his dream he said Jesus stroked his dog, and his dog had not been the same since. And where’s he today? He’s backslid, and living like a hermit, and  his wife who had the same dream left him, so  don’t tell me about your dreams, and visions unless it lines up with this Word.

 

Look, most people believe in the God of their imagination anyway. And that is all they got. So let’s compare your god, the god of your imagination, with the God of William Branham who came down and did things no mortal has ever done. And who did more things in his ministry than in all of the Bible put together. Then if you got a God who is doing all that then you can talk to me. But until you do, I’m not interested in what you have to say.

When the Apostle Paul came to Jerusalem and had a shown-down with the other Apostles, he didn’t flinch for even one second. And he could care less who they thought they were.

 

Galatians 2:1  Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also. 2  And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.  3  But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised: 4  And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: 5  To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you. Paul said, I didn’t put up with their pushy ways no, not for an hour. Then he said,  6  But of these who seemed to be somewhat, whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: (In other words, he said, Look, There were even some guys who seemed to be leaders among them, but you know what? I could care less what they thought they were, because it didn’t have one thing to do to me. It didn’t add to me nor did it take from me, because what they believe is their own business. And if some men think because they have an elevated position in this church or that church that they are somebody. Who gives a rip what they think. When they stand before the Great Judge at the white throne you think they will have that same attitude?  God accepteth no man's person: for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:

 

And if God accepts no man’s person then why should we be any different. Paul wasn’t. So don’t come around to me as though I have to hear from you. Or that you are going to teach me anything. If it isn’t from God why should I waste my time. Brother Steve and Sister Patty have been around here the longest of any of you with the exception of my own family and they know what I’m talking about.  Brother Ron knows what I’m talking about as well. And let me just say like the Apostle Paul, said in Hebrews 5: 12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.

 

It’s time the bride of Christ stops vacillating and takes a stand with this vindicated Message that God by His Very own Presence came down and vindicated. Look it’s too late to be playing church anyway. And it’s too late for anyone else to rise up with gifts to draw away disciples after themselves, because I have seen what God has done, and I’m not interested in anything outside of this vindicated Truth.

 

So I guess I’ve done my damage this morning, and if I’ve hurt any feelings in here or those out over the internet, I’m not going to say I’m sorry. The Word is a very sharp sword and it cuts coming and going because it is a two edged sword. But I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the Power of God unto Salvation. And if God said it then why should we be afraid to say it.

 

Let’s pray. Dear Father we thank thee for thy Word this morning because it is a living Word and just as real as the hour you first thought it and then spoke it. Thank you father for making your Word so real to me that I do not care who wants it or doesn’t because I want it and that is all that matters to me, and I pray that each one here will want it with the same zeal as you have given it to us. Keep us in thy Word and Thy Will, for it is Life to us. Amen.