Rising of the Son no 63
Organize and you die
May 3, 2017
Brian Kocourek, Pastor
Matthew 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees,
hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom
of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves,
neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
This evening we will take just one thought from
paragraph 128 that brother Branham speaks in his sermon, Rising of the Sun (Son). And that concerns the
organizational Spirit that would prevent people from coming to the Truth. In this paragraph brother Branham speaks to us
of his desire to hold more meetings in Africa, but how the ministers have tried
to prevent his coming again. This is exactly what Jesus was
talking about in Matthew 23 which we read for our text, and this is what I have
experienced as well all over Africa, from A to Z Angola to Zimbabwe, The local
ministers in Tanzania, and DRC and Uganda tried to prevent the people from
attending our meetings, and even the government of Gabon who would not allow us
a visa.
When I was in Congo in
2004 the government sent two spies to see what I was preaching because
ministers came from several countries of which some countries had opposed the
new Congo government.
After attending in
secret, they exposed themselves to be spies sent by their government and
not actually ministers.
They told the hosting
pastor that they had never heard the Word of God preached so deeply
yet so clearly, and they said they wanted what we have.
Some places the ministers were successful in preventing others from
attending our meetings, and in other places I agreed to hold three to four
meetings, and ended up with one. And I paid for the meetings. But this is the
fake ministry that holds the people away from the Word.
Brother Vayle told me of this happening to brother Branham in New York.
Br. Branham was invited to come and speak in a big place and they advertized
all over the city to get people to come, and then when the service took place
brother Branham was not even allowed to come to the platform to speak, he was kept
in the study for the entire meeting. Br. Vayle was so upset he said to brother
Branham, "Br. Bill, do you want
for us to bypass the ministers altogether and hold meetings for the people".
And brother Branham said, "No
brother Vayle, God's way is to use the ministers, we cannot bypass them."
With that in mind let's read from paragraph 128 of the Rising of the Son.
128 God
bless you. I've kept you here a long time. If them
people is still on that telephone, they sure, at fifty cents a minute, they'd
really paid this morning, but I just couldn't stop at that hour; I just had to
go on. Now, the Lord willing, I'll be back tonight to talk with you again. And
if I can't, and then you all know... I suppose we're not on, we're on telephone no more? Not on telephone
no more. You all know where I'm going, don't you? Africa. I've called for a long time, for
years I've tried to get back. Now, a vision, the Spirit of the
Lord has prepared the way. They said when those poor natives heard it, that I
didn't come the last time when , there, they laid on the ground day and night
and moaned and cried, saying, "Lord, what have we done?" - thousands
of them. Those people don't even believe they got a soul. See? And they cried,
and they moaned, and they cried, "Don't you send no word ahead. Please don't."
See? If that visa
would happen to go through there and get amongst of them ministers, they'd stop
me right there. I have to go in as a hunter.
E-1 This
is one of the highest moments of my life. I have waited fifteen years for this
time. My heart has longed to see you again, ever since I left you. I have
prayed very much to get to come back. And a few weeks ago, I was under great
anticipations, believing that I would get to come and have a meeting. But when
I got the visa, "restricted," I almost had a heart
attack. I wanted to come so bad. But I
do believe that through God I will minister again in the Name of the Lord Jesus
among the people of Africa. God has promised to give us the desire of our
heart. And that's one of the desires of my heart. I can remember the great
meetings here in Johannesburg. I remember the boy with the short leg coming
long again, normal. And the lady that, the little girl was healed from a back
condition and her mother fainted and fell back in the--the cot. [The
translator says, "That's my wife's cousin"--Ed.] Your
wife...? Oh my! There's so many great things. No doubt, there is many of those
people attended those meetings are with the Lord now. I have gotten old too
since then. It won't be too long till my time to go up. Then we will be together
forever. No visas. Ha Ha. I would feel like bringing
the Message. Ha Ha. But it is written in the
Scripture, "Give
unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God, the things that are God's." I am
expecting to meet you here in a few moments, shake your hand, and have
fellowship again together. I appreciate all these fine man. I wish I had all my
brethren in Africa here today of all the denominations. That we could just get
together and talk all evening. And I would like to hear what the Lord's been
doing over here for you. And I would like to tell you what He's doing for us
across the sea. Maybe he will permit that some day. Until that
day, I will be praying for you. Will you be praying for me? God bless you.
So you see brother Branham was not
allowed to hold meetings in that country. When he returned from Africa he spoke
of what happened in his very first sermon after he returned called Ashamed of Him. That is a very appropriate title to that sermon because it speaks
of the attitude of the churches and how they are ashamed of the Gospel of
Christ.
In this
sermon, Ashamed of Him 65-0711 P:7 brother
Branham said, "And I want to get with the trustees and the elders here,
while I'm here. This
is becoming everywhere. We're living in these last days,
to where the Gospel does
not have the preeminences as It should have.
It don't have the rights that It should have. It's all sewed up in politics
and things, and just like a union. And that's what it's finally coming
to, because the mark
of the beast has to come by union, we know. So we... 'Cause it's a boycott,
"no man can buy or sell, save him that have
the mark of the beast."
Church Age Book Chapter
3 - The Ephesian Church Age P:64 89-3 But as usual people don't heed God's warning.
That revival fire built upon the sacred Word is so wonderful, and the
manifestation of the Spirit so blessed, that a little fear creeps in and a
whisper in the heart says, "How can we protect this truth we have?
What can we do to see this revival goes on?" That is when the
"antichrist spirit" comes in
and whispers, "Look,
you have the truth now, see that it doesn't get lost. Organize and set up your
creed of what you believe. Put it all in a church manual." And they do it.
They organize. They add to the Word. And they die just like Eve
did for taking One wrong word. It's God's Word that brings life. And it's not
what we say about the Word that counts, but it's what God said.
I have heard but now I see
65-1127E P:83 That critic saying, "Why would a God of mercy,
could open up the Red Sea, stand let them poor Christians be eat up with lions,
and burnt, and everything? Set up, just like He laughed about it." The
poor ignoramus. Did he not know, "Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground..."? It
had to die through those dark ages, like any other corn of wheat has to go
beneath the earth and be buried, to bring forth in the first reformation them
two blades of Luther, the stalk. It had to come forth in the Wesleyans, out
yonder, to bring forth the pollen, the tassels, the great missionary age. Had
to come forth in the Pentecostal, for the restoration of the gifts, almost to
deceive the very Elected (looks like a wheat grain); open it up, there's no
wheat there at all, it's only shuck. But back in there then they begin to form the oneness
organization, the trinity organization, the twoness
organization, and Church of God organization, and all organized, and just
death exactly. And now what happens? But it's a shelter for the
wheat; it's been growing through it all the time. Now, it's begin to pull away,
the wheat's begin to be seen. This is not a Pentecostal age; this is the
latter-day age, this is the Bride Age, this is the Evening Light, this is when Malachi 4 must be
fulfilled to follow God's pattern; this is Luke 17:30 to be fulfilled; this is the book of Jeremiah and all the
rest of them, that Joel has spoke of
these days. This is that day. "I have heard, Lord, that It was coming, but now I see It with my eye."
I have heard but now I see
65-1127E P:82 Now, everybody knows that we have a promise of the
church condition in the last day. The church, in its present condition, can
never fulfill the commandments of God, the great commission, could never call
the Bride out. Which one would do it? The Pentecostals? I should say not, none
of the rest of them. That's the shuck that's on the wheat, that come out,
looked just exactly like the wheat, but there was no wheat to it. It opens up,
but the grain comes out of that. They organize; they kill themselves. There's where they die.
They're stalks. But the wheat has come up through there, and now it's begin to
form in the Bride form. The corn of wheat that fell into the ground through the
dark ages; it had to die.
Trying to do God a service
65-1127B P:122 And any man that builds anything, any organization, or anything
outside of upon the Word of God, it's shaking sands and will fall. It'll die as
sure as anything, because the Word of God is a growing Body of
the Bride. You can't have it all foot, all arm, all thigh. These things come in
their season. And Pentecost, you made it all one thing; therefore you can't
accept new revelation. That's the reason you stay right where you're at and
die; moves on. (So much, don't want to wear you out.) But God doesn't change
His mind. His first decision is exactly right. So God doesn't change His mind.
He just let you go on in your permissive will. "God's a good God," as
Oral Roberts says. He's also a fearful God.
Power of transformation
65-1031M P:77 Here come a Pentecostal along, he can't... Look
what it done: organized. It can't rebreed itself. They can have Oral Robertses and everything else, all over the country; it
cannot do it. It'll hang right back to that old natural breed of the mule. It
cannot. No matter how many injections it has, it's still; how many of the
spiritual affairs it has, and whatever it has is... And You're adults; you know
what I'm talking about. No matter how many husband and wives it has, and
whatever more, and how many little sisters it builds up out here, and little
churches and organizations, it cannot breed a revival. It's finished. It
crossed up to the world, from the Word of God, and it cannot reproduce itself
again. God will raise up some other something and start His Word moving on.
And if it organizes,
it'll die too. That's right. It cannot reproduce itself, because it's a hybrid.
That's correctly.
In brother Branham’s sermon entitled the
Masterpiece paragraphs 119 he shows how the church is rejecting the Word
and Squeezing out the Life of the Word. The cares of this Life has entered into
the church and the people have lost their heart for the Word of God because
they have become soft and they have lost their focus on God’s Word in favor of
focusing on the cares of this life.
In paragraph 136 brother Branham said, when "But what
denominated, dies. Like Life in Luther went to make Wesley. And from the
Wesley It went to Pentecost, and from Pentecost to make the original seed. On
to, Pentecost comes out of the Wesley until that time. The reason that
Pentecost come out of Wesley, because it was no denomination, Pentecost was.
Then Pentecost went to denominate. And what did it do? It turned to the husk.
It looked like the real thing."
And then what happened? It died right there.
Notice he said, “As soon as it
begin to denominate, right there it died.” And so we see that denomination shows that the
Life has gone out, because to denominate means to set a specific value on that
thing. When we talk in terms of currency we say what denomination of bills do
you have?
The word denomination according to our
dictionary has several meanings but they all speak of one central theme. While
I read the definitions, I want you to think in terms of what theme carries
throughout these definitions. 1. A
large group of religious congregations united under a common faith and name and
organized under a single administrative and legal hierarchy. 2. One
of a series of kinds, values, or sizes, as in a system of currency or weights: Cash registers have compartments for
bills of different denominations. The stamps come in 25 ¢ and 45 ¢
denominations. 3. A name or designation,
especially for a class or group.
Notice that each example of denomination speaks
of an
assessed value, size, or kind. So you see when we think in terms of
denomination we must think in terms of what value or assessment is associated
with the denomination we speak of. And it does not matter what they
hold to, for a vindicated prophet told us when they denominate they die right
there.
So you see that to denominate means certain
death to the church. And what does that mean? It means that the Life has left
it and they are now holding to a value that they have assigned. In other words
if the word they preached and emphasized was a certain, certain thing, then if
God brings further light upon that certain thing, or even upon another thing,
and the people see that other thing does not hold the same value to them as the
thing they already have, then they turn it aside and right there they have
denominated. And right there God can no longer help them because they have
turned down further light from His word.
That is why those that hold to the attitude that
“bless
God we have a prophet” and will not open themselves to other God sent five-fold
ministries that God has placed in the church, those people dry up and the Life
goes out of them.
And what if God sends them a teacher and they
refuse the teaching, then they refuse the Holy Ghost because the Apostle John told
us that the Holy Ghost is The Teacher. And what if that teacher leaves and the
people refuse any other Gift God has placed in the church, then the people will
never come to maturity and the Life will move on and they will dry up and miss
what God continues to do through the gifts he has placed in the church.
Paul told us that the Five-Fold ministry is for
the perfecting of the church. That means the finishing off or coming into
maturity and full expression. So to turn down the five-fold ministry and to
make it a one or two-fold ministry means the people have placed a certain value
upon that one or two ministries, and they have shut themselves off from further
Light upon God’s word.
Now, I'm not talking about further light as
though that light is additional light. I am talking about further understanding
of the Light God has given to us.
So you say, well we have had brother so and so
and so we don’t need any other. You know that is so carnal that you sound just
like the Corinthian Church where Paul said, “Some say, I am of Apollos, and some say they are of Cephas, and
others say they are of Paul, and then the Apostle Paul said, “Are you not carnal. Did Apollos die for you, did Cephas die for you,
did Paul die for you?
I Corinthians 1:12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith,
I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. 13 Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for
you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?
And again in I Corinthians 3: he said, 1
¶ And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but
as unto carnal, [even] as unto babes in Christ. 2 I have fed you with milk, and
not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able [to bear it], neither yet now are
ye able. 3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas [there is] among you envying, and
strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? 4 For while one
saith, I am of Paul; and another, I [am] of Apollos; are ye not carnal? 5
¶ Who then is Paul, and who [is] Apollos, but ministers by whom ye
believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? 6 I have planted, Apollos
watered; but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth;
but God that giveth the increase. 8 Now he that planteth and he that watereth are
one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9
For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's
husbandry, [ye are] God's building. 10 According to the grace of God which is
given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid
the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let
every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
11 ¶ For other foundation can no man
lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if
any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay,
stubble; 13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare
it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's
work of what sort it is. 14 If any man's work abide which he hath built
thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man's work shall be burned, he
shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
So you see, if the light that God continues to
shed abroad by the Holy Ghost is turned away because it did not come from your
champion, then it shows that you have never received the Light and thus the
Life of God, but rather the vessel only that God used. And when you resist the
working of God in any form it shows you also resist God Himself.
Even Jesus Himself said, John 13:20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth
whomsoever I send receiveth
me; and he that receiveth me receiveth
him that sent me.
So to say, I accept his prophet but not this
teacher is to say I really don’t trust that God can keep His Word. And to say,
I accept His teacher but not His Apostles or His Evangelists or His Pastors,
etc. means that you are carnal as the Apostle Paul told the Corinthian church.
And to be carnal shows the Life is not there, and so they are relying on form
only. Having a form of Godliness
but denying the power thereof, and God told us the power of God is His Word.
From His sermon called Seed is not heir with shuck 65-0218 P:65 Brother Branham was talking about how that
Sarah tried to make the promise happen by giving her concubine to Abraham,
thinking that would fulfill the promise that God had made to Abraham. That is
just like so many people who call themselves believers, but they think God
needs their help to fulfill his promises. And that is how carnal believers
always think. They do not trust for God to work out His Promises sovereignly,
because they really do not trust God to fulfill His own Word. So they try to
work them out for themselves and in doing so they always miss the
promise.
That is what Brother Branham was saying in this
sermon, Seed not heir with shuck
65-0218 P:65 How true it is, Sarah trying to get the promises
all fulfilled (You see?), in a great, like the church today, a great revival in
our time by what? By a perverted promise. How are you going to do it when God
never did bless organizations. He never did use an organization. When a message went forth, and
they organized, it died right there. I challenge any historian
to show me where it ever raised again. It died right there and stayed
right there. God just moved right on out of that carrier into
another one, right on out of the Lutheran into the Methodist, right on out
of the Methodist into the Pentecostals. Now, He's moved right on out of the
Pentecostals into the Seed, because it has to be the Seed. You
can't beat nature. There's no nothing else there for it to happen but the Seed.
So the Seed will produce Itself, He's the same yesterday, today, and forever,
the same Pillar of Fire, showing the same signs, the same power, the same God,
the same miracles, the same things. Vindicated the Word and the Bible just
exactly, He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. He's leading tonight. God
help us to see it and believe it. Sure.
Again from his message Jehovah Jireh 61-0209
P:48 He said, What happened to Luther as soon as Luther saw the Pillar of Fire?
Why, he followed It. But what did he do? After Luther's day, they
organized a church called Lutheran. Then it died right there on the organization,
'cause it's just like the Catholic church. Then, the first thing you know,
along come Wesley. The
Pillar of Fire moved right out of the organization and went on.
Wesley saw it, and away he went after it. And as soon as the first
round died out, they organized it, called it the Wesleyan Methodist, or the
Methodist church. When
they organized it, it died right there. Then the
Pentecostal seen it, going out, not from justification, under Luther, and
sanctification under Wesley, but they saw the baptism of the Holy Ghost, back
to the original blessing. Here they went after it (Oh, my.), went out and begin
to speak with tongues and the power of God working through them. But what did
they do? Organized it. It died right there. But now the Pillar of Fire
is moving out. It's moving again. It'll never... 49 Never
one time did an organization ever rise up that didn't die and never come back
again. I challenge any historian.
And so you see, the minute men begin to talk of
organizing the Message or the Doctrine of Christ, or the minute they try to
take over a man’s ministry whether to protect it or for whatever motive they
have, right there they die and if that ministry allows it, then that ministry
dies along with them. And the Pillar of Fire will move right on.
And those who gravitate to organization will miss the Rapture.
It will all be over very soon, my brother so be very careful not to organize
what God is doing. Just let go and let God have His way. Now, let’s follow
through with what brother Branham is saying here because he really nails down
the attitude that lets you know the attributes and characteristics of organization.
Brother Branham continues, Jehovah Jireh 61-0209
P:49 49 I'm looking in the
face there of one of the best there is in the nation. That's right. A historian
of the historians is setting right with us. And I'll ask that man, or any other
man, to ever show me one time that a church ever organized, but it didn't die
and stay dead. It never did rise again in the history of the churches of the
world: never did. God don't want that. God wants us to be free in Him. He wants
us to a place where we can accept all of God. Not stay on this mountain; move
out. Abraham's seed. Now, you say, "You're against organization?" No,
sir. Organizations is all right, but you draw a boundary line, cut everybody
out but the fellow that don't believe just like you do. The thing we got to
do is stretch out our arms to Lutheran, Methodist, and all, to a place where we
can have fellowship one with another, while the Blood of Jesus Christ, God's
Son, cleanses us from all sins. Till we get to that, we'll just die.
Sit right here and shrivel up like and old
shriveled-up apple. And there you become as puckery
as a persimmon, and sit around, "Well, I belong to so and so." Oh,
my. No more life coming into it. You see? We just can't do that.
No, we've got to come and be in Christ Jesus. We're heirs, joint
heirs with Him. Now, till we separate our self from the things of
the world...
Now in his sermon, The Masterpiece
64-0705 138 brother Branham said, How many ever seen a seed of wheat start to grow?
What's the first little thing? It's just exactly like the seed, but it's the
husk. See the three stages? Stalk, tassel or the pollen, then the husk. And
then, out of the husk comes the original seed. Not a seed, it was the Life of the seed growing through this to come to
the seed. Amen, amen. Do you see it? What is it? A resurrection, coming back to a Masterpiece again, like the one that went in. Pentecost came out of the Wesley,
because Wesley was an organization. Pentecost come out as no organization and then turned to one.
It had to, to make the husk. The true Word of Life on it was on its way then to
the original grain through these stages: through the stalk, then into the
pollen; from the pollen into the husk; and from the husk it made seed. No...
Stalk, tassel, husk. 140 Living, they produced in their early revival
a holder of a certain portion of the seed Life; but when they
organized, the Life moved out of it. That's proved by all
history. Never an organization ever done a thing after it
organized. It was dead.
That's right. Watch, the life's traveling on now. It's moving on. Notice. What
they have done, all these have done, is proved by history just exactly the way
the church has come, never to be useful to Him again. Organization is laid on the shelf. There never has been in all the history of church after it
organized, but what it died. And the
organization died and never did raise again. Can't you see it? Men who are blind, open your eyes. Nature
and the Word coordinating together and proving it right here that this is the
Truth, that it is the Truth: That Life leaves the stalk to make the tassel;
from the tassel it makes the husk; and from the husk it goes into the original
again. Notice, never again to be useful to Him. 143 How noticeable
this life is in its travel in the corn of wheat than it is in the tree. God
called His people like a tree. See? The life goes down in a tree and comes back
up again, goes down and comes back up. See? It goes down and comes back up. But
in the corn of wheat it goes up from the original stalk through the stalk,
tassel, and husk; and the thing that it passed through dies so it can't get
back through it again. What is it? It's no use any more. It goes on to its perfection.
Amen. Don't you see why He never used an organization? He can't
get back in it again. It's dead. But the Life passes on from one
to the other. See? They put creeds and
inject... "Whosoever shall add one word or take one word
out..." See? He's blocked
off from it. It must be the Life seed traveling on.
Now, notice brother Branham hits hard against
organization, and the sad part is, that people who should know better end up
organizing around a certain ministry or personality instead of holding only to
the Word of God, and focusing on that Word and drawing the Life from that word.
But to organize is death,
and to organize is no different than to denominate.
To do so is to die spiritually. Even Jesus taught us that. He said those that
organize are to be gathered for the burning. You don’t burn fresh green things.
You burn old dried out things, whether wood or stalks, or husks, or whatever.
Green shows life, and it does not burn easy. But that which is old and dried
out burns quickly.
Matthew 13:24 ¶ Another parable put he forth unto
them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: 25 But while
men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat,
and went his way. 26 But when the blade was sprung up,
and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27 So the
servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow
good seed in thy field? From whence then, hath it tares? 28 He said unto them,
An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go
and gather them up? 29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 30 Let both
grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the
reapers, Gather ye together first the tares,
and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.
Notice Jesus points out the fact that two very
different types of life (seed) will be planted alongside of each other in the
same field. The field represents the world, and the sowing is done first by the
owner of the field, and then his enemy comes into his field and imitates his
sowing, but with a different life (seed).
Notice two seeds are allowed to grow up side by
side until the time of the harvest. Then a separation is to take place. First
there will be a gathering together of the seed, which the enemy sowed. The
Tares will begin to gather together first.
Jesus uses the word "deo" in describing this
binding together. The word actually means “to bind by placing under
obligation.” Now, this binding is needed in order to control
the assembly of tares. And by placing the
people under “obligation,
or binding them through fear”,
it takes the people from having a focus on the Word, and turns them towards organization.
So we see from this parable that organization binds the people,
keeping them from searching further for more light than what is available in
their church. This is done through programs. Look at every big church and you
will see that the people are not content to come and hear the minister preach,
but you will find many programs going on in those churches. The larger the
congregation, the more programs to keep the people content.
After the tares are bound, Jesus tells us they
are then placed into bundles. Bound first then bundled making it easier to cast
into the fire for burning.
He says the reapers will bind them into bundles. He never said into one bundle, but into bundles.
Thus we see the word "bundles" further defines the process that these tares must go through,
before they are ready for the burning. They are bound first and then bundled.
The use of the plural tells us that there will be many different bundles, just
as we see there are many different denominations. They are gathered first then
bound into bundles which makes it easier to cast into the fire.
Now, a bundle is not just a pile of sticks
thrown together in any old direction. But a bundle suggests to us that all the tares in each bundle will be lined up together, all going
in the same direction, all having the same size or value, (measure or purpose).
Their Union into a bundle or (assembly) will make them, "a
more efficient means," by which to burn them all.
And so we see how organization, is the means by
which the tares are gathered and assembled together. The
church is bound first by a false word, and then by organizing around that
false word, they assemble the people into a more efficient, and profitable means
by which the whole group can be readied for the burning. And thus when
they have captured the minds of the people through fear or organization, they
cause the people to receive in their mind a certain assessment, or a certain
valuation, and that valuation or assessment is denomination. Thus we should see
clearly that the False-Vine is the organized church. For organization is what binds them together.
Then, if this be so, one of the main attributes of the false vine will be its
ability to organize in numbers and thus utilize efficiencies to preach their
false Gospel.
Now a bundle does not represent a loose knit
organization, but one, which has structure and symmetry. Every stick
is heading in the same direction, and they are there for the same purpose, and
they must conform to some standard in order to fit within the bundle. Now,
let's see if this is not exactly the picture Jesus Himself speaks of concerning
the two seeds.
To Fear is not of God. Paul said in, 2 Timothy 1: 7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but
of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. So then we can see by this that to have fear
shows you don't have a sound mind.
In paragraph 118 Lean not to Thy Own Understanding 65-0120, brother Branham said, You know, the Bible said you can believe a lie
and be damned by it. See? That's exactly the truth. They form, no matter what
the Word of God says, they lean to their own understanding. They lean on it;
they believe it; they think it's the Truth. You can keep
believing a lie over and over and over till it's the truth to you.
That's right. But how do we know whether it's Truth or not? God proved it's
Truth, 'cause it's in His Word and He a-vindicates It. He does His own
interpretation of It. How do they do, get to this? They do it by their culture,
their education, of their understandings of the degree of doctor's degree, and
so forth, that they have come from some certain seminary and learned these
things.
Because it is not of God to fear. Every time the
Angel of the Lord came to man, the first words out of His mouth would be "Fear not! For I have come from the Presence of the
Lord." We find also
in 1 John 4: 18 that perfect or mature love casts out fear because fear
has to do with punishment.
Fear causes damage, because when a person is
afraid they become bound by their fears. We read in 1 John 4. That perfect or mature
Love will cast out fear because fear has a penalty, it has to do with you freezing and
crystallizing in your thinking. Joseph began to fear that Mary had not been
faithful and so God sent His Angel to tell him not to fear to take Mary as His
Wife. What did fear do here? It caused Joseph to doubt and it caused him to
stop moving forward with the plan of God for his life.
Then when they stop walking in the Light as he
is in the Light the Life goes out and they dry up and become like the shuck
that the wind drives away.
John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the
light of the world: he that followeth me shall not
walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
John 1: 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of
men.
Man That can turn on the Lights 63-1229M 74 So life is only by the Word of God made manifest. Life comes only by the Word of God made
manifest. As long as it is just in the
Book like this, it still can be questioned; but when it's made manifest, then
you see the product of what It spoke of being manifested; then that is Light on
the Word. See? That's what brings... The Word said so, and then
when it comes to pass, that is Life in Light, Light bringing Life. Light brings
life. Plant the wheat out here, it'll... You put it in a basement, cover it all
over, and it'll never bring forth anything, because it can't; there's no light
there. But as soon as light strikes it, then it'll bring
forth life if it's a germitized seed.
That's the same thing it is in the Word. See, the Word is God, and when the
Light strikes It, it brings the Word to life again. Every age has always been
that.
How else could we Manifest with Him. He is the
Word. Then we must become a perfect reflection of that same word in order to
manifest as He Manifests. "In Him was Life and the Life was the Light of men ". Notice that he said, “the Life is the Light of men, His Life is His Light or Word. If He then is our
Life, our Life must come from His Word.
Then When His word shall manifest Itself, our
Life must also manifest the same thing. Then as Paul said, it is not really our
life but His Life in us that is manifesting. Jesus said, My Words are Spirit and they are truth. Then what is manifesting? It can only be His
Word. And where does fear fit in? Not at
all. Fear has no place in the kingdom of God. But fear is one of
the main rules that are set up to hold and maintain a large body of people.
Let us pray