Questions and Answers #33
Brian Kocourek, Pastor
November 18, 2007
Isaiah,
30:5 In
quietness and in confidence shall be your strength.:...”
And in 1 Thessalonians. 4:11The Apostle
Paul tells us we should Study to be quiet.
The most important
thing in this world is to get your mind under the control of God, be cause your
actions come out of your mind, Don’t go by your feelings! What about Daniel or
the three Hebrew children?
If the mind is not
under control the actions will be erratic, because you can only do what your
mind indicates. Therefore we need to put on the mind of God if we are going to
walk and act like Jesus Christ. We are going to have to think like He thought
concerning every circumstance, and then act as He would have us act. The mind
must not be overcome by emotions.
The Word of God
says just as much about our “talking” as It says about our “thinking,”
Hebrews 6:16-18. For men verily swear by the greater and an oath for
confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
Now, let’s just talk a minute about that.
Did you ever stop to think about the implication of that little verse where It
says here that “For
men verily swear by the greater and an oath for confirmation is to them an end
of all strife.”?
Now, if you just
walked up and gave your word to somebody, do you think he’d take it? Why, he’d
laugh in your face. You can’t even trust a contract because of the fine print,
and then with the fine print you still can’t trust the contract, because the
law can break the law and defeat the law, But It says here that all men used to
do was give their word and that was it. Now can you feature the 20th century
accepting that?
Now listen all God did was give His Word.
But men don’t accept each other’s word, Well, first of all, why should they?
You’ve got the Hebrews. Let’s look at these Jews, If you did not know it, you
know it now. At least once a year they have an “oath revocation day.” in other
words, they revoke their oath. So they know that today, the next 24 hours, they
can revoke every single oath they made. So they can skin you and skin you good,
and rejoice, because they are very religious doing it, “Hallelujah! Glory to
God!’
You see, that’s why we have a time
believing God’s Word because we just can’t believe anybody’s word; because,
generally, it’s not worth believing. We can’t even believe our own word,
because even we may renege or sneak out the back door. I’ve had that happen to
me so many times that it’s not easy to have too much confidence anymore. But,
see, that’s what destroys faith in God’s Word, because how can you say you love
God when you hate man made in the image of God? So nobody even puts too much
faith in God’s Word on the ground that he’s already gotten out of the
systematic habit of believing God’s Word, because he sees all that’s going on
in the lives of men. You know what the word “faith” means in the
dictionary?
It means: “To accept on the grounds of personal
testimony, without further proof, the word of a man, or to give credit to the
word without any proof.” That’s the same with God, God doesn’t have to
prove any thing to you. He said it and that’s it, You say, “God, give me a
sign. God doesn’t have to give you a sign, that’s it!
Hebrews 6:17: Wherein God, willing more
abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel,
confirmed it by an oath: 18 That by two immutable things,
in which it was impossible for God to lie, we
might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the
hope set before us: …. God is
immutable and that means God is not Not
subject or susceptible to change and His Word stands fast. Man is God’s
only earth creation that can both reason and speak. “The heart of the righteous” (the mind of the
righteous) “studieth to answer, but th emouth of the wicked out evil things.”
A true believer will stop and think
before he talks. But a wicked man is characterized by the fact that he doesn’t
think for any length of time. He just lets it roll. That’s what the Bible
teaches, so we will have to believe and accept it.
With this in mind we
will study faith in relation to the confession of our thoughts, or the speaking
out of our thoughts. Now, let’s get back to our text. Notice, For men verily sware
by the greater:: And an oath of confirmation is an end to all strife.” That’s the initiative. Wherein, God, willing more abundantly to
show forth unto heirs of promise the immutability of his Counsel, confirmed it by an oath.”
With whom did God
take counsel? With man? No, sir! With the angels? No, Sir! God took counsel
with himself. Then what is the counsel of God? The counsel of God is the
thoughts of God. Now, notice, It says, “God confirmed His counsel with an Oath.”
Listen to me carefully. Were the counsels of God confirmed, or the thoughts of
God confirmed, until He spoke them to man? No, sir! Until God spoke His
thoughts to man and made them known by speech, He could have had other
thoughts. That is right. He could have thought other thoughts; He could have
changed His mind. Of course, we know that God doesn’t do that, but He could
have and man would not have known one thing about it. But the minute God
revealed His thoughts to man by speaking them, He couldn’t take it back, they
were confirmed. God has identified Himself.
And, when you and I
speak, you confirm your own words Do you get it? Speaking has something
tremendously important to do with your thinking. What you say is what you think
And when you say it, you have confirmed it, You have put the stamp upon it.
That Is It You have identified yourself.
2 Corinthians 4:3 “We having the same spirit of faith, according
as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe
therefore speak.” According to the
Word of God, Faith talks, It thinks, and It speaks.
Faith thinks in a
certain way, and therefore Faith must talk in a certain way. Now, how does
Faith talk? The Word of God tells us; but in order to stress it and to make it
clear, it first of all tells us how Faith does not talk Turn to Romans, the 10th
chapter, verses 6 thru 11: “But the righteousness which is of faith
speaketh,.”
It “Speaketh on this
wise,...”It’s going to tell you how faith talks. Then it brings in
the negative to emphasize it: “Say not in thine heart, who shall ascend up to heaven?
(That is to bring
Christ down fro above:) Or, who shall descend into the deep? (That is, to bring
Christ up again from the dead.) But what saith it?”
So how doesn't Faith talk? It never,
never, never asks questions.
Romans 10:8-9 But what saith it? The word is
nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart:
that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That
if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine
heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Faith says what
God has already said about the condition. Do you see? (Rom. 10:10 For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Notice there again the
heart and mouth, mind and mouth. Remember in the Hebrew and the Greek "the
heart" signifies "the mind" almost in every single instance, and
I looked through over 500 single places and traced them down.
Now, " For with the heart
man believeth unto righteousness;_" And what is the heart in
this case? The whole moral being of man. But it doesn't get down here (heart)
until it gets here (mind) first. It's got to come by way of the Mind; and as
the moral intelligence of man accepts it, it then becomes a part of him, and It
says: "...
with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
Now notice, It says,
if you will believe and confess you'll get it. That's what people have to
believe about healing to get healed. You've got to confess it to get it. You
can't teach people that. They want to believe in their feelings. Like the man who
came to me years ago who had divorced his wife 25 years after brother Branham
told him not to do it. And he came to me with all kinds of reasons that he
thought were good in his mind to divorce her, and I told him not to do it, and so
he did it anyway.
Listen, if you have
your mind made up, don’t come to me for advice, because you’re going to do what
you are going to do anyway. But if you are sincerely wanting help to make up
your mind, then come, because al I’m going to give you is this Word of God.
Well, anyway, this
fellow left church first and then went and divorced his wife. I guess the
conscience can rest a little easier when they separate themselves from God’s
people. That way they don’t have to look into the Faces of God’s Seed and feel
sick in their stomach for being so sinful. It’s much easier to continue in
their sin when they go off somewhere and hide from God’s face. That’s what Cain
did. He went out from the presence of the Lord.
So the man left church
and then divorced his wife, and stayed away from church a couple or three years
and then one day he came around church and wanted me to marry him to some bobbed
haired woman who looked Tammy Fay Baker, axel grease and all, and he came with
this story that God wanted him to marry her because he could feel it in his
heart. And then to tell me he knew God wanted him to marry this woman because
he had gone for a ride on his motorcycle with her, and when he got back he
kissed her and according to him, the Holy Spirit welled up inside of him when
he kissed?
Well, first of all he
rode around
You know sometimes I
just say things that are awful hurting, but let me tell you something, it was
the truth. And the problem is, the Truth hurts a whole lot more than some soft
soapy half baked nice words you can say as you watch them go right straight to
hell.
You know people worry
more about what they put in their mouths than what comes out of their mouths.
And just like in the natural, if you take in a lot of sugar it’s going to cause
you a lot of problems in your flesh. Well, what about words we say. A whole lot
of sugar can do a lot more damage to their soul than you might think. So just
take me for the truth I tell you, and don’t worry if it hurts. It’s not easy
for me to say it either, but I’ve got to say it if it’s the Truth, because it’s
the antidote for your unbelief. And if I don’t give it to you when I know you
need it, then I will be accountable. And if I don’t give it to you just like He
gave it to me to give to you, then I would be found a false witness.
So let’s face it, if I
give it to you then you are accountable, and I would rather you be accountable
for yourself than for me to be accountable for you. I’ve got enough trouble
with my own accountability, much less be responsible for yours. So the easy way
out for me in the end is to tell you straight without mincing Words, what His
Word says, so then it’s off my hands and on yours. So he commits adultery and
says the Holy Ghost welled up inside of his heart. So now God is in the
business of confirming adultery. And you wonder why so many preachers have
nervous breakdowns.
I had a good preacher
friend of mine years ago who hade several hundred people in his congregation,
and he told me, “Brian, If I had just one brother in this church I could talk
the word to and know they understood what I was talking about, I would feel I
had reached heaven. Now, that is pretty sad, but Paul told us in Galatians 4:27 “many more are the
children of the desolate than she which has a husband.”
So God doesn’t care
what you feel, and you shouldn’t care what you feel. Did God say it or did He
not say it. That is what you should focus on. And therefore, you're shouldn’t waste
your time on what you think – and you shouldn’t waste your time on what you say.
You are to think what God has thought, and talk what God has said.
Now listen. God
said don't question or you'll never use your Faith. Matthew, 13:53-58 And it came to pass, that when
Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence. 54 And
when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue,
insomuch that they were astonished, and said, 1) Whence hath this man this wisdom, 2) and these
mighty works? 55 3) Is not this the carpenter's
son? 4) is not his mother called Mary? 5)
are not his brothers, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?
56 6) Are not his sisters, are they not all with us? 7)
then whence hath this man all these things? 57 And they were offended in him. But Jesus
said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in
his own country, and in his own house. 58 And
he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Seven questions they
asked instead of thanking God for what He was doing. Seven, questions showing
the complete folly of man; and He didn't do one mighty act. He walked off from
them.
You start questioning
God and how He's going to do things. Okay. He'll walk right off ! Preacher
says, "God gave me a revelation. We're going to have some great missionary
something. We're going to invade the island, or build a church, or do
something; but where is all the money coming from? “ Right there you lost it!
You cut your throat. You don't believe in a "revelation. Noah said,
"It's going to rain!" "Where's the rain going to come from? Never
heard of, it. No rain around here." They all died! They all died! Faith
talks; but it never asks questions. It says what God says.
One thing you
never do is to question God. The minute you question God, you cut your
life-line of Faith. Forget it; you've lost the answer. Then you've got to go
down to the bottom of the ladder and start over again; because Faith does not
question. It talks, but it doesn't ask questions. It says what God has said.
II Corinthians, 4: 8 We
are troubled on every side, yet
not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but
not destroyed; 10 Always
bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11 For we which live are alway
delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that
the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you. 13 We having the same spirit of
faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we
also believe, and therefore speak;
So you see, you speak
what you believe. Let’s look at this Scripture again and read it one thought at
a tie. Paul said, We are troubled on every side…That’s what the eye sees.
That’s what the flesh is facing. That is the circumstance that are all around
you, but what does Faith in the Soul profess? yet not
distressed. Huh? troubled on every side…that’s what is happening
all around you, yet you yourself are not distressed. Look
at the next thought…The conditions say we are perplexed,
but faith says, but not in despair; The conditions
say, you are cast down, But your faith declares,
but not destroyed;
The conditions say, 10 Always
bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, but your
answers back to the conditions, that the life also
of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
Oh, yeah!!! For every
negative thing the devil can point you to in this life, the Faith of God says,
there is something positive taking place here. 11 For we which live are always delivered unto
death for Jesus' sake, And the devil wants you to look at that, but
the Faith of God says the reason for that is, that
the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
Verse 12, the
circumstances say, So then death worketh in us, But your faith comes
right back and says, but life in you. In other words, we can see this death
all around us, but Faith raises the dead.
And so the Living Power
of Christ becomes manifest in us because we've tapped into His Faith, and have
thus confirmed our Faith in His Faith by the things we say. We have confirmed
it with our words.
And that is why we see
the Apostle Paul tell us in verse 13 We having the same spirit of faith,(the
same spirit of Faith as Who?) according as it is written,(well, who write it?
God wrote the Word, So according as God hath written in His Word,) I believed, and
therefore (believing) have I (God hath) spoken; (now notice what Paul says,
)we also believe,
and therefore speak;(In other words, just as God believed and then
spoke what he believed, so too we believe and therefore we speak what we
believe.)
Don’t just
think it and say what you think, but think what God thought and say what God
said. This is what the Word of God teaches us.
If you do not believe
me, just read Hebrews chapter 11 and see what Faith really is. Those people went
through battles. It says the women received their dead, and some were sawn asunder.
They met death with Faith. These all died in Faith. And you say, that’s just
the point, they all died in Faith. They died!!! Yeah, but they were all raised
in Christ.
Look, what hurt is
there to die if you have a promise to live again. The hurt can only be
temporary then, but the promise is eternal. You see the difference. God says,
you give up a dime and I will give you a silver dollar. Don’t worry, he is the
author and finisher of your Faith. He’ll do it for he said He would. He said, Let not your hearts be troubled, so don’t let them
be troubled. He promised you that all things shall work out for the good of them that love Him
and those who are called according to HIS purpose.
So let Him fulfill His
purpose in you and all things are guaranteed to work out for your good.
Psalm 138: 3 In
the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and
strengthenedst me with strength in my soul. And
verse 7 Though
I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth
thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me. 8 The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own
hands.
What is David saying?
David is saying to God, "It is alright if I'm deluged by the forces of the
enemy; You're with me, so that takes care of it." Well, isn't that what he
said?
What's the conditions? He's got trouble, he's got a problem, he's got an
emergency. What does he say about it? Well, what I read: " Though I walk in
the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: "
Did he say, "Lord, when can I get away from this
thing, and have a good sleep, and nobody bother me, and I'll feel so good, I'll
be revived?" No He didn’t!!…
He said, "I'm
in the midst of trouble; but God will be my strength, "
But that’s the problem
with the people in this luke warm Laodicean age that we live.
(Revelation 3:17): "...I am rich, and
increased with goods, so that means I need nothing, but does it? (but
don't know that they're) "wretched, miserable,
naked, and blind”…
Talk about not seeing
what God sees? And so God tells them to anoint their eyes with eye salve. Why? Because
they can’t see what God sees.
Joshua 1:1 Now
after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD
spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying, 2 Moses
my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all
this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even
to the children of Israel. Joshua was called a "minister of
Moses". Now he must go forth by the Word and under the Word of Moses.', And
we can see it right in this hour, because our vindicated prophet, with the
Elijah' ministry, placed Joshua and Caleb right at the end-time as leader and
true Bride. Notice what the Bride has to follow, because She follows Joshua,
and Joshua is motivated by the Word.
Now, here’s the promise 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall
tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great
river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great
sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
So God not only promises them the land, but also that
he will fight for them to protect the land.
5 There shall not any man be able to stand
before thee all the days of thy life:
And then God adds
another promise as I was with Moses, so
I will be with thee: Now, how was God with Moses? He was Present
in the form of the Pillar of fire. To me this is the same as we heard in this
hour, “The Pillar of Fire will lead us into the Millennium…
And then a second time
God promises that he will not fail them, I will not fail thee, and He
also promises that His Presence will go with them. nor forsake thee. 6 Be strong and of a good courage: So how
can you possibly not be strong and of Good courage with these promises, unless
you don’t believe them. for unto this people
shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers
to give them. 7 Only
be thou strong and very courageous, Now, why would God say once
again Only be
thou strong and very courageous? Because He is telling them that
they will be tested with His word to see if they will hold to His word. that thou mayest
observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee:
Now, notice next what
God says to Joshua about the people… turn not from it to the right
hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper
whithersoever thou goest.
Notice what God is telling them. He says, make sure
you don’t deviate from what I am telling you, because if you stay with it, you
will prosper, but if you don’t then your prosperity will end. And then notice
the instruction God gives the people. He says I want you to read my Word and
study it, and meditate upon it day and night, so you will learn to observe how
to walk in my word. Look, you want to
prosper, it is very easy, just do what I say and you will prosper.
8 This
book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate
therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is
written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou
shalt have good success.
Notice what It said? It says what you think about, and
what you talk about, you will do, Now if you want to live God's Word, you've
got to think and talk it, then you'll do It. Huh? And then God commands them again to
be strong and of good courage for His presence will go with them. 9 Have
not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a
good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God
is with thee whithersoever thou goest.
How, easy it is to
know that when the tests come God will be right there with you, so you won’t
have to go trough it all alone. Did not He show up in the Lions Den with Daniel? Did
not he show forth His presence with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?
Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our
faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that
promised;)
1 Peter 4: 11: 11 If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; If any
man talk , let him say what God said or shut up if any man minister, let
him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may
be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and
ever. Amen. 12 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery
trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: 13 But
rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his
glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 14 If
ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye;
for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil
spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.
Hebrews 11: 13 These
all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar
off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them,
and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
So
what they believed in, were persuaded in, they embraced it, and then confessed
it. And what they confessed is what you are confessing. We are seeking a city
whose builder and maker is God. 14 For
they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. So you see their
focus was on the things that God had promised them, but what if they lost that
focus? 15 And
truly, if they had been mindful of
that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. 16 But
now they desire a better country, that is, an
heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath
prepared for them a city.
So you see, if you are
focused on where you are going you will be talking about where you are going.
And then you will get there. But we are warned that if they had been mindful,
of where they left, they might have made themselves some excuses to go back. And
if you go back you back slide. Now, how do you get mindful of anything? You
think about it, and you talk about it. So that is the key to faith, is to think
God’s thoughts and then you will talk God’s thoughts. Don’t think your own thoughts because your
thoughts are not God’s thoughts. They are your thoughts period.
Isaiah 55: 8 For
my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the
LORD.
And when you think
your thoughts and not God’s thoughts that is the moment you stop right there. God
has already thought It. And yet their confession is not what God said, but what
they think about what God said. And that is what Eve did. She tried to reason
the circumstances with the Word of God. That’s a compromise and God hates
compromisers. That’s why he hates politics.
They say what they
have thought in their own minds. And then they go right back. They lose the
Promise. Do you want God to give you something? You want to be healed? Then you
better think what God said about you, and show plainly that you really do want it,
and you'll get A. You say, "Don’t even think about failure. Thomas Edison
never stopped to think “well, I’ve already tried to make this light bulb 9,999
times. He said, if this time doesn’t work then maybe the next time. Be
persistent with God’s Word. He promised it, and He is here to deliver on that
promise.
God promised David as
a boy he would be king. So what happened, he had to face Goliath first. Then
what happened, he had to face an angry and jealous Saul who hunted after him
with a vengeance to try and kill him. Do you think for one minute David said in
his heart, maybe Saul is going to get me? No chance, he knew He would one day
be king.
We are to confirm our
thoughts with words even as God confirmed His thoughts toward us. We are to think
Faith
thoughts, and we are to confirm them by confessing those same thoughts.
As we see in (2 Corinthians 4:13): "...We also believe and therefore we
speak."
What do you believe? I
believe that God is my Healer (say it). I believe that God is my healer (say
it). I believe God is my Provider (say it). I believe God is my protection, my
deliverance (say it). I believe God is my Righteousness (say it). See? You've
got to say what He said. Think what He thought. "Yes, but I'm not very righteous;
I'm not doing so good, but praise God he said “I am the sinless unadulterated bride of Jesus
Christ, so that’s what I am.” He said, he no longer calls us church
but Bride, so that is what I am.
Think what He
thought and say what He said. God warns you in Romans 12:3: Not to think more highly of yourself than you
ought to think. And again in 2 Corinthians 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing
that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity
every thought to the obedience of Christ;
In other words, don't
you dare say, "I'm an independent thinker.” There's too much of that
today; that's anarchy. Because what you think you will say, and you will
confirm what you think, and if it's against God, you'll , destroy yourself.
Because you'll never lick God.
Nebuchadnezzar tried it. God brought him so low; and when he snapped out of it,
he said, "Let
there be known this: He doeth what He will in the armies of the Heavens and
earth; He setteth up whom He will; He bringeth down whom He will.
And even Moses began
looking around at circumstances, and he went back to God crying. And he said,
"Oh, God, You didn't only not do it, but things are worse." And God
said, "Be quiet. I told you what would happen. I AM the LORD; this is how
I do things, and you get in line. Proverbs 18:20 A man's belly shall be satisfied with the fruit
of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips
shall he be filled. 21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it
shall eat the fruit thereof.
Look,
your mind is like a garden full of thoughts. Those thoughts are seeds, and when
you say what thoughts are in your mind, you are watering them, and giving life
to them. It’s like watering a seed. You water it to grow, so if you don’t want
it to grow and take over, then don’t water it. If you hear gossip and don’t say
it, it’ll die right there. But the minute you say it, just once ...you’ve
watered it, and watch it grow like a weed and take over your thoughts.
That's the way
people are when they talk about their problems. You start talking about your
problems and the trouble is you hear what you say, and it grows bigger in your
own ears. That confirms it and then it gets bigger, and pretty soon that’s all you can talk about
is your problems. And the fumy thing is, you're happy and satisfied in a morbid
sadistic manner. And that's pure psychology. So, if you will, dare to say what
God has said, which is LIFE. Remember: any other word but God's is DEATH. His
Words alone are LIFE GIVING. Jesus said in John 6:63 My words are spirit and they are life. "
Let me just close with a thought from Brother Branham’s
sermon called, Word Became Flesh India Trip 54-1003M paragraph 175 Every Word in the Bible is God's thoughts laid in seed form, that if received into the human
being, and spoke by the same thought that materialized the Bible, brings the
thing to pass. See what I mean? How powerful could the Church be? The Bible
said, "Let this mind that was in Christ be in you. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Now, your thoughts, if they become expression...
Like, God said, "Let there be a world."
Before it could be a word, it had to be a thought. So God in the creation,
created the world by His thought first, then spoke it, and the thought, expressed became material. See what I mean? 180 Now, you can express it by mental
conception, but if it becomes a real revelation of God, that you see it before
it happened, and express it in word form,
that word takes a hold and becomes material: a thought expressed. Oh, my, how God could... See? If your heart and your mind is so, and
infilled with God's Spirit, until your thoughts become His thoughts...
Amen. There you are. When your mind, and your leading, and your guiding,
becomes a direct place, or a direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit that's
moving your mortal being... Oh, my. What kind of people should we be? If the very Holy Spirit has you so
embodied or empowered, that you don't use your own thoughts, you don't use your
own mind, you don't use your own opinion; but the Holy Spirit has you so built,
until your thoughts and your being is God's Spirit expressing Itself through
you, what kind of a church would we be? What kind of a people would it be,
this morning, if this Branham Tabernacle, this morning, was so filled with the
Presence of God, why, when you didn't even use your own mind, didn't even use
your own thoughts, didn't even have no alternative of your own, but just to be
led by the Spirit...? 212 "As a
man thinketh..."It has to become a
thought before it can become a word. And a word expressed, materializes. I
believe in my heart that I am a Christian, because I have accepted the Lord
Jesus Christ; if I don't cry, if I don't move, if I don't do a thing. In my heart first, I believe that
Christ died for me in my stead. Amen. I accept it as a Christian; I believe it
as a Christian; then it's in my heart.
Then I express it in a word, "I am a Christian." Hallelujah. Then I start walking as a Christian, talking as a Christian, living as a
Christian, being as a Christian.
And by my fruits I'm recognized by the world as a Christian. Hallelujah.