Rising
of the Son no. 16
Appreciating
Life
November 13,
2016
Brian Kocourek, pastor
Peter 1:13 Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath
begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from
the dead,
Let us pray...
Now, before we begin our
reading from brother Branham's sermon "Rising
of the Son", I want you to recognize that when brother Branham
uses the word Easter,
he is referring to the resurrection. And resurrection speaks of Life.
1 ...
bow our heads. Lord, as we gather here this fine Easter morning, see the little buds pressing their
way out, the bees flying in and getting their portion, the birds singing like their
hearts would burst with joy, because there is an Easter, we believe that You raised up
Jesus from the dead many years ago today, and we celebrate this memorial day. And let there come an Easter among
us all today. May we, as His servant, understand His Word, that we were in His
fellowship then, and that now that we are risen with Him and setting together in heavenly
places. Bless the service here in the tabernacle and across the
lands where it goes by this telephone. Heal all the sick and the afflicted. May
it be a Easter
for them also and an
exodus from sickness unto strength. And those who are
dead in sin and trespass, may they live today through Christ. And we'll
praise Thee, for we ask it in His Name. Amen.
Now, before we begin to read
further into this message, let's just stop for a moment and look at what
brother Branham has spoken so far. Because sometimes we read these words and
overlook the significance of them, but God Hides in simplicity.
Brother Branham opens this sermon
by speaking of nature, life and resurrection. And he talks about life, all
kinds of life. he speaks of Plant life, animal life, insect life.
First he mentions plant
life: "see the little buds pressing their
way out,".
Then he mentions insect
life, the bees flying in and getting their portion.
Then he moves up into a
higher form of life, Animal life: the birds singing
like their hearts would burst with joy,.
And then brother Branham
points out that all of this is made possible because it all speaks of
resurrection Life. "because there is an Easter,(there is a
resurrection) And then he confirms to God that we look to the resurrection of
His son and realize that it made a way for our own resurrection. He says, "we believe that You raised up
Jesus from the dead many years ago today, and we celebrate this memorial day.
Therefore let's look at this
thought on resurrection
life and the significance of it this morning.
Now, with this thought in mind that brother Branham
lays out the simplicity of life in the budding of the trees, in the flying of
the bees to seek out their portion, and the birds making melody as they are
sing their hearts out. have you ever stopped what you are doing and just listen
to life?
Just think about it for a moment. Our Great God Who is
also our father, created all life. And he placed within each form of Life
certain attributes and characteristics that each form of life is to express.
And when we just kick back and set for a while, and listen to nature it tells
us a wonderful story.
I think that this generation has missed out so much on
the joy of life because we have become trapped into a mindset that is not very
healthy. It evolves around things and not around life.
Have you ever noticed people setting in a restaurant,
husband and wife and each has their nose in their cell phones, instead of
looking into the eyes of their spouse and without a word, they are
communicating from their soul.
You don't see that any more. You don't see the joy of
Life, and the expression of life in couples, nor in husband-wife relationships,
nor hardly in parent child relationships,
I envy the American Indian and his way of Life. They lived in nature and learned to become one with
nature very much like Adam and Eve did before the fall.
In 1871 Colonel R.I Dodge traveled along the Arkansas
River through an immense herd of American bison (Bison bison). Dodge estimated
that the herd was at least 25 miles across and
after consulting with hunters and other travelers, concluded that it must have
been at least 50 miles long.
The Buffalo was a way of life for them and they tribes
followed the herds and lived their lives in thanksgiving to God for providing
them the herds. And great were the herds. It is said that there were herds
roaming the plains that were and the Bison numbered around 100 million in
number, and yet the prairie grass was sufficient for them to live. They ate the
meat for their protein, they used the skin for their clothing and housing, they
used the sinews for tying things together, and the bones for cultivation of
crops. I have a list below of the uses, and we won't spend much time on this
because our sermon is not about the buffalo but rather the way men and women of
the native American Indian was so respectful of the life of the buffalo that
they used every part of it for almost everything in their societal living.
Here are a few examples:
Horns: |
Arrow Points |
Bones: |
Knives,
Pipes |
Fat: |
Candle Tallow |
Tails: |
Ornamental
Decoration |
Hair: |
Decorative headdresses |
Muscles: |
Glue |
Stomach Liner: |
Water container |
Gall and Blood: |
Decorative
Paint |
Skull: |
Rituals |
Beard and Teeth: |
Ornamentation |
Bladder: |
Medicine Bag |
Hooves: |
Glue |
Scrotum: |
Ceremonial rattle |
Liver: |
Hide
Tanning |
Manure Chips: |
Fuel |
Tendons: |
Sewing |
Hide: |
Moccasins |
|
At one point in time there were some 100 Million bison
(buffalo) roaming the prairies in the United States, and the American Indian were
very respectful of the buffalo because they knew their creator had provided it
for their necessities of life, and they were very thankful. But by 1873 we see the bison almost
decimated by the whote man. In 1873 the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fé Railroad
shipped 2,743,000 pounds of buffalo bones, and in
1874 it handled 6,914,950 pounds.
The Northern Pacific Railways shipped even larger
quantities.
As
late as 1886 overland travelers saw immense heaps of bones lying alongside the
tracks waiting for shipment at stations throughout South and North
Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas. This trade continued until the bones were gleaned
so far back from the tracks that it was longer profitable to
seek them.
Thus we see the European had no respect for life and
came into the prairies and slaughtered tens of millions of the buffalo just for
sport, and to kill off the food supplies of the Native Indians so the white man
could conquer a hungry and weak people. The hides were sent back to Europe for
processing into leather.
The bones were shipped back east for fertilizer. The
white man called the red man who worshipped the Creator God, an uneducated
heathen, while the white man worshipped his creeds and dogma's and knew no more
about God than nothing. So who really was the heathen?
And so we begin this sermon of brother Branham, who
Himself was part Cherokee Indian, with his pointing out the nature of buds,
bees and bird life, and showing in simple illustrations that each form of life
is very special in God's economy and were given certain specific attributes to
perform the tasks that their creator had made them for. And all together
contributing to the God-ecology of this wonderful planet he placed them in.
And when we read what he spoke concerning the buds,
bees and birds, we see in each form of life certain attributes and
characteristics and how they work together and are satisfied with doing what
God meant for them to do.
Man is the only creature God made that seems to never
be satisfied with doing what God meant for him to do.
When I read his opening dialogue and looked at these
three little forms of life, the buds, bees and birds, and the expression of
life that each performs, it made me think of God hiding in simplicity, and how
we have totally missed the whole picture God has for us.
The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 8 that all of nature has been
waiting for us as sons of God to come to the place where we will manifest as
sons of God.
Romans 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this
present time are not worthy to be
compared with the
glory which shall be revealed in us.
Now, just think about that. All the suffering we go
through in this life is not worthy to be compared to the Glory, the Doxa, the
opinions and values and judgments of God that are ordained to be revealed or
manifested in us. Yes, IN us.
19 For
the earnest expectation of
the creature waiteth for the
manifestation of the sons of God. 20 For the
creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
21 Because the creature
itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the
glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we
know that the whole creation groaneth
and travaileth in pain together until now. 23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, (that is we that have the Holy Ghost) even we ourselves
groan within ourselves, waiting for the
adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Oh, my, what a time it will be when all of creation
will live outs it's life knowing that the sons of God are set for their
defense. When sons and daughters of God will not slaughter them, but will take
care of them.
Can you imagine the crying and sighing that went on
among the American Indian when he witnessed the wholesale slaughter of their
precious Buffalo? I imagine they sighed and cried for the abomination done by
the city man. But that is what Paul tells us the whole creation is sighing and
crying about. They long to see Sons and daughters of God who act like sons and
daughters of God. Who respect Life, and appreciate with joy all the various
forms of life, and al the many attributes and characteristics that are
expressed through their life forms.
What ought our attitude be concerning God and His
creation? what ought our attitude be when God placed us on earth as stewards of
the Life forms he also placed here for our benefit.
What was Adams attitude towards the creation God set
on earth for his stewardship.
Notice what God said in Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air,
and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that
creepeth upon the earth.
"Let him have dominion
over" all the life forms God set upon the earth. The word dominion was translated from a Hebrew word
which simply means to have the rule over.
So what does it mean "to have the rule over"?
And what is God's expectation of our gift to "rule over" all the
life forms on earth? That is a very good question, because the carnal man
thinks the word "rule over" means to dominate and control by any
means. But that is not what dominion means at all. dominion
means "the power or right of governing and controlling; a sovereign authority.
Notice God has given his sons "A
sovereign authority". He has given us the power or right to govern and
control.
Brother Branham explains what this means to have
"dominion over" in his
sermon QA on Genesis COD 53-0729 P:18 He got all those things together, and made all the other things, all the animal
life, the birds, the bees, the monkeys, and whatever
it was, put them all here on earth. And then He asked this question now.
"Let us (Who? Father and Son) make man in Our own image." Now, if a man was made something like that little sacred Light
yonder, or something like that, It could not be seen (which is a
spiritual Being). He manifested or unfolded Himself a little more to make a
trinity of Himself by Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And here was God, unfolded
Himself now, down into "let us make man (which was His son, an offspring from Him) man in Our own image (He was a supernatural being.), and let him have dominion over the cattles
of the field, and so forth." Now, the man led, the man led the cattle and everything, just like the Holy Spirit leads
a real true believer today. The Voice of God out there... The
voice of man, rather, would speak and say... call the cattle this way,
call the sheep over to this pasture, call the fishes to this water. See, he
had dominion;
everything obeyed him.
Now, listen, we are going to a millennium, where we
will be one with nature again. we are going back to a garden of Eden setting,
where man had a right kind of dominion over the life other forms God set upon
the earth to cohabit with us, and so it is time we begin to look at what God is
expecting from us. Because if we get there and have not His mind and His Spirit
we would end up doing what man has historically done, and that is to use this
authority as a weapon rather than a stewardship.
Brother Branham said man was supposed to have dominion
over the animals in the same way the Holy Spirit has dominion over us.
Now, when has God's Holy Spirit ever ruled over man as
an iron fisted dictatorship?
When has God ever butchered men? When has God ever
taken advantage of man's weaknesses for his own benefit? When has God ever used
and abused man for his own joy?
My Bible tells me God loves us and long suffers with
us. I see nothing in my Bible or the history of mankind where God ever used and
abused man for his own pleasure.
27 So
God created man in his own
image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28 And God blessed
them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful,
and multiply, and replenish the
earth, and subdue it: (bring it
into subjection) and have dominion over
the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing
that moveth upon the earth.
And how are we to do this? Like the Holy Ghost does
the believer. And remember the Holy Ghost is timid like a dove, so don't get
any idea that this speaks of using force at all. The Holy Ghost leas the
believer like the dove leads the lamb.
29 And
God said, Behold, I have given
you every herb bearing
seed, which is upon the face of all the
earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall
be for meat. 30 And
to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the
earth, wherein there is life, I have given every
green herb for meat: and it was so. 31 And God saw everything that
he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And
the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Notice
how God gave and he gave and he gave and all was for the benefit of his sons
and daughters. And he told us to have dominion over all the forms of Life he
had given to his children. But we seem not to understand this dominion is
actually a Stewardship.
From his
sermon, God making His promise 56-1209A P:39 brother
Branham said, "Then notice and go back to the lamb. Now, he's so meek and
so gentle. And the day that when a lamb comes into the earth, he's born
meek and gentle. He's a lamb to begin with. And when a Christian is born
into the Kingdom, he takes the nature of the Lamb. Now, the lamb is not, as
I said, he can't take care of himself. And a lamb cannot find his way
around. A lamb
has to be led by the shepherd. And how beautiful to see the
dove leading the lamb to Calvary. Amen. God leading, just like Abraham led Isaac
to his death that would have been at the sacrifice block, God led Christ to the
sacrifice, being led.
Church and its condition
56-0805 P:33 Now, another thing the lamb
is, the lamb is
willing to submit its rights. Now, God wants us to be lambs, but there's so
many times that we don't want to submit our rights, forfeit our rights. So
many of you say, "Well, I've got rights, Brother Branham." That's
true, but are you
willing to forfeit your rights? Are you willing to give your
rights that God could lead you? That's what's the matter with our churches
today in the great majority, that the gentleness of the Lamb of God... We are supposed to be lambs;
we have become everything else but lambs. And that's the reason, as soon
as we get that attitude, the Dove of the Holy Spirit takes Her flight and leaves.
Lamb and the dove
57-0325 P:36 Now, the lamb cannot lead
himself. But we call ourselves God's lamb, and we want to figure out our
own way. "I'm going to see if I can stand this or not." See? You
try to figure out your own way. And as soon as the Dove comes and lights on you,
and you try to figure out your own way, and how you're going to do this, and
how you're going to do that, God can't lead you anymore, so the Dove just takes Her
flight.
Then if we are led by the Holy Ghost, and
the Holy Ghost is so much like a dove in its
nature that he when he came to impart His Life into His son Jesus,
He came in the expression of a dove, John saw a light like a dove, coming to
Jesus and resting upon Him and dwelling in Him.
Then
what ought our attitude be towards others who struggle to receive that lamb nature, and who struggle to
understand these things of God that He has shown to u His Seed?
Jesus never just wrote them off because they did not understand.
He went after them, not with a whip, that was for the unbelievers who hated the
Light. What Jesus did was to give them example after example of resurrection
presence, resurrection evidence, and resurrection life.
And that is what brother Branham is beginning this
sermon with. Signs of Life, attributes of life, characteristics of life,
resurrection Life.
Then what will this God-Life resurrection nature
produce in us? It will produce in us a
Resurrection and Rapture.
The Apostle Paul told us in Romans 8:11 If the Spirit that raised up Jesus
from the dead dwells in you, it will also quicken (make alive) your mortal bodies.
For, "if the spirit"
(pneuma) "if the
spirit" (the nature)
"of Him that
raised up Jesus from among the dead dwelleth in you, He that raised up Christ
from among the dead shall make alive again your mortal bodies also on account
of His pneuma (spirit or nature)
that dwells in
you."
From brother Branham's
sermon Easter Seal 65-0410 he
said, "And now,
if that same Spirit that was upon Him to be the Redeemer in that age, that we
have accepted... Now, the promise of in this last days what would take place, if you become part of that Word,
you are redeemed with
Him, because the
same Spirit that dwelt in Christ is dwelling in you, quickening your life to
this age.
And it will also in the end time quicken your mortal bodies, resurrect them,
bring them up again. That takes the gloom away when we look at it in that,
and that's the truth. Romans here, Paul has proved it to us. See? "If the Spirit that raised up Jesus
from the dead dwells in you, it will also quicken your mortal bodies." This is the same Spirit
that raised Him up that quickened the true believer to Eternal Life. The Spirit
that raised up Jesus from the dead dwells into the believer, quickens the
believer to Eternal Life.
Look, brothers and sisters,
what we are looking at this morning is Life, and Life is so beautiful, and life
is so joyful, and life is pleasant, and good to the eyes, and to the
hearing. when I go to the lake, and look
out over the water, it is living water, and it is so soothing to my soul. The
waves are like a melody, and they bring comfort and relaxation to my spirit,
and to my body.
Oh, if we could only take
time to appreciate life. Because we have a promise of Eternal life.
In John 3:15 we read, “whosoever believeth” (ὁ
πιστεύων) in him should
not perish, but have eternal life.
Now, what good would Eternal
life do you if life was so horrible. What good would it be to live forever if
life was full of disappointment.
We read again in John 3:16 For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that “whosoever
believeth” (ὁ
πιστεύων) in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.
"everlasting", the Greek word is aionios: its
perpetual, and it means from age to age to age, without end, everlasting.
Again we read in John 3:36 “He
that believeth” (ὁ
πιστεύων) on the Son hath (echoes) everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of
God abideth on him.
Look, this ought to tell you one thing, If you are a true believer and
brother Branham taught us that a true believer is one who is filled with the Holy
Ghost, so if you are filled with the Holy Ghost you will echo life. And what
does that mean? You will lie Like He lived, and breathe like he breathed, and
think like he thought, and appreciate life like he appreciates life. And we
don't appreciate life like we ought to because we are too concerned about our
jobs and our things. There is no generation in history that was caught up into
things like this generation, and that is only a distraction to keep you from
looking at and appreciating life.
The mother that has no material possessions to distract her attention,
she looks at her children and that is all she wants out of life is to watch her
children grow in nowledge and grace and to express the attributes and
characteristics they were born with, and that is what brings joys to her life.
We see another promise of God to us concerning Life in John 6:47 "Verily, verily, I say unto
you, “He that believeth” (ὁ
πιστευων) on me hath (echoes) everlasting life."
So what does that mean
to echo life? Why is that a promise of God for the believer? Why is that so important to us?
In examining this word “hath” we find the word was translated from the
Greek word “echo” and is used over 600 times throughout the Scriptures. The
Greek word “echo” has various application of usage, including “to have”
or “to hold”, both usages showing possession or relationship, and so we can see that the root
meaning of this word speaks of relationship, whether directly or remotely, and
thus the main strength of usage concerning this word has to do with continuity
of relationship.
Now the word continuity means 1. The state or quality of being
continuous. 2. An uninterrupted succession or flow; a coherent whole. 3. a. A detailed script or scenario consulted
to avoid discrepancies from
shot to shot in a film.
And as you can see all these descriptive
meanings show the attributes of what an “echo” really is. The purpose of an “echo” then,
is to bring about continuity, an uninterrupted succession, or flow, so to
speak, to avoid
discrepancies from shot to shot or from voice to voice, if we are to be more
scripturally accurate.
Thus you can see that an echo will keep the continuity of thought and
speech, because an echo not only will say the same thing, but will
bring forth the same inflections, and dynamics of the original speech time and
time again as it proceeds forth in its course of life. Thus the Spoken Word we know is the
Original Seed, and as a
seed is subject to the commands of God concerning all seeds, that He spoke in
Genesis 1:11, that “every
seed must bring forth after its kind” or nature.
Thus in each seed that comes forth from
the original seed, there must be an ability to echo or repeat what that seed
is. And if the Original Spoken Word is a Seed, then that spoken Word Seed must
bring forth after its kind. Thus
an ability to echo will guarantee the continuity that each time that Word is
repeated it will not only say the same thing, but the same thought as the
original will be behind it, because the expression or dynamics of that word
will be the same from generation to generation as it repeats itself over and
over again, and the repetition being reflected from echo to echo, will carry along with it the same
expression and dynamics, and will sound exactly as the original seed sounded.
And if we echo what life was in the Son, then we will virtually do what
he did, and say what he said, and live the way he lived, and what a time it
will be for us in bodies that will be made unto his own incorruptible
body.
John
11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the
resurrection, and the life: “he that
believeth” (ὁ
πιστευων) in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
And again he said in 1 John 5:10 “He
that believeth” (ὁ
πιστεύων) on the Son of God hath
(echoes)
the witness in himself: he that
believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record
that God gave of his Son.
In closing brother Branham
said in his sermon, Adoption 60-0522 2E 180 And what is
it when you're way out
there in redemption, with a brand new body, you've turned back to a
young man altogether again, or a young woman, you're never going to die no more.
And you look down on earth, and think, "I could enjoy some grapes and some
good cold water, but, you know, I don't need it here." But someday Jesus
is coming, and this angelic body, this theophany that I'm living in, will not
come through the womb of a woman anymore, it'll not come through sexual desire
anymore; but because that He was born without sexual desire, I'll be
resurrected without it, and He will speak someday and the dead in Christ
shall rise, and that body that I once lived in will resurrect into a glorified
body, and I'll walk and I'll talk, and I'll live and I'll enjoy life
(hallelujah) throughout the glorious ages that is to come through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
Notice he's talking about enjoying life. Not
hurry up here and hurry up there, but enjoying Life, because
we have become are aware of Life.
Not only we are aware of His Life living itself out in our life, but we have
become aware of all Life that He created, and every form of life in His
creation, and all forms of life are just waiting for you and I to be conformed
to the image of the first born son.
Colossians 3:4 When Christ, who is
our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.
Let's
read one more scripture and then we will close. Let's turn in our Bibles to
1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, or
joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus
Christ at his coming?
I would like to conclude this
message by reading an email from brother Conrad in Australia. It touched my
heart to think that an Eternal Word has reached down into his little girls
soul. The Bible said, "Train up your child in the way it shall go and when it gets
old it will not depart." To me that is not only imparting life,
but it is appreciating Life as well.
"God
bless you, I'm really proud to share this little testimony with you all.
Br Branham taught us to apply the token and to always present our
token with our prayers. Every day I pray for God to bless my little children
and to anoint their ears and eyes. I always thank God for his Word of truth
because the Angel of the lord encamps around those who fear him.
Today
my sister in-law drove up the drive way, and my two little ones ran to
meet her. They jumped into her car and where playing with their aunty. So I let
them play a little well. Until my sister in-law turned up some music and
was encouraging my children to dance, I walked over (because the token must be
applied) and as I was approaching the window my sister in-law was asking
my 2 year old baby girl Aurora to dance.
What
happened next was amazing: Instead of my daughter listening to her aunty, my
little girl did not move a muscle but just looked at her aunty and then turned
to the radio and put the music volume all the way down. Wow I was taken back,
so I kindly asked my sister-in-law not to encourage them. I was so proud of her
as the scripture says in 3 john 1:4 I
have no greater joy than to hear my children are walking in the truth."
Let us pray...