Romans 50

We Know not What we should Pray

Brian Kocourek

 

Romans  8:26   ¶ Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: ( As we ought what? What does Paul mean when he says, : for we know not what we should pray for as we ought… as we ought - what? As we ought to know… we ought to know what we should be praying for in this hour, because we ought to know God’s plan and purpose for us in this hour, but Paul tell us we don’t know… therefore he concludes…  therefore,  the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what [is] the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to [the will of] God. What Paul is telling us here in verse 27 is that although we do not know what we should be praying for, yet the Holy Spirit knows and since He knows, and He knows God’s will and plan for us, He then prays for us and intercedes within us to bring about God’s perfect will in our lives. Therefore, Paul concludes,  28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.  Now, this promise is not for every body who claims to love God. Many people claim to love God and worship Him, but they are worshipping God in vain.

 

MATTHEW 15:7   [Ye] hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,   8    This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with [their] lips; but their heart is far from me.  9    But in vain they do worship me,(how do they worship God in vain?) by… teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men.

 

And in Matthew 7:17 Jesus likens men to trees…    Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; Now, let’s stop here just a minute… Jesus is telling a parable here. What is a parable? A parable is a story that is meant to teach a doctrinal truth. And we find Him speaking of trees. What does a tree signify here because after all He says, “every good tree bringeth forth good fruit (that means to manifest good fruit)  but a corrupt tree ( a tree that worn out,) bringeth forth evil fruit. (In a physical sense: diseased or blind). We’ll look at this thought in just a moment… And then He says,  18   A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, (diseased or blind doctrine) neither [can] a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. The word good means, “excellent in its nature and characteristics”,  19  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.  Now, before we can move on with the next verse, we have to know two things…What does a tree signify and what is fruit.

 

1st of all let’s look at what these trees are. He is speaking of a good tree and a corrupt tree.  Now, we find our explanation of what a tree is in Psalm 1:1-3, Verse 1   Blessed [is] the man (this is speaking of a man who is blessed….)  that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.   2    But his delight [is] in the law of the LORD;(that’s the Toreh which is the body of prophetic teaching,    and in his law (prophetic teaching) doth he meditate day and night. 3    And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth ( or manifests ) his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

 

So we see that God likens man to a tree, and if he is blessed of God, He will not walk in the council, advice or purpose of the wicked. He doesn’t go to the wicked for advice…  nor does he stand or remain in the way which is the course of life of the sinners. In other words, he separates himself from all forms of unbelief and unbelievers… In fact we often here brother Branham tell us that our calling as a Christian is to separate ourselves from all unbelief. He even told us that God could not bless Abraham until he had finally separated himself from his nephew Lot.  We also read that the man who is blessed does not sit or place himself in the assembly of  the scornful which are those people who arrogantly make fun of the Word.

 

II CORINTHIANS 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers (what does Paul mean by being unequally yoked) It means to come together with someone who is not your equal… In other words, if you are a believer and they are not, then stay away from them, and don’t even think about  coming together… why? ) Paul answers,   “for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15    And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? (unbeliever)  16    And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in [them]; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. (this speaks of relationship).  17    Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean [thing]; ( that means; do not fasten or adhere yourself to the unbeliever) (and notice if you follow this word, there is a benefit to you)… and I will receive you, 18    And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.  And why would anyone want to marry a serpent seed and have a greater chance of having serpent seed kids…. Do you know it takes 4 generation to breed out bad genes?

 

EXODUS 20:5  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me; 

 

EXODUS 34:6  And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7  Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear [the guilty]; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth [generation].

 

II KINGS 10:30  And the LORD said unto Jehu, Because thou hast done well in executing [that which is] right in mine eyes, [and] hast done unto the house of Ahab according to all that [was] in mine heart, thy children of the fourth [generation] shall sit on the throne of Israel.

 

Now, we are in the third generation of believers in this message, and I believe by the time we get into the fourth and they are ready to have children the Bride will be in glory and completely bred back tot he way God wanted us in the beginning. Now, that doesn’t mean that every one who claims to believe, but of those who truly do believe and have had parents who truly believed and grand parents who truly believed, that when that fourth generation is married together, God will have bred out of us the corruption and we will be ready for the incorruption.  But that will only come by God’s grace and rapturing of His elect, because this earth as we know it must pass away…  Therefore, I don’t believe it will happen on this side of the resurrection… But look at the hope for your offspring when you who truly believe marry another who truly believes.  But what if you don’t marry as true believer? Then you break the chain right there.

 

Now, in getting back to Matthew 7:17  we read…  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. And then He says,  18   A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither [can] a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.  Now, we’ve seen what a tree signifies, it is man whether he is good or bad, blessed or cursed… But what is the fruit?  Is it the fruit of the spirit like the Pentecostals might have you believe? ….  Absolutely not, and neither is it your good works…

 

Brother Branham said in the Message, ANOINTED ONES AT END TIME  65-0725M   59   042   But it's what they produce that tells you the difference. "By their fruit," Jesus said, "you shall know them." Man does not gather grapes off of a thistle even though the thistle be right in the grapevine. That could be possible, but the fruit will tell it. What is the fruit? The Word for the--fruit for the season; that's what it is, their teaching. The teaching of what? The teaching of the season, what time it is--man's doctrine, denominational doctrine, or God's Word for the season.

 

Therefore in getting back to Matthew 7:21       Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

 

Therefore, we can conclude that not all people who claim to believe are believers, and not all who claim to love God actually do…In fact John tells us that although they love God., they love darkness more… JOHN 3:19  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, to a greater degree,  because their deeds were evil.

 

People in general do not love the light.  In Matthew 6: 22 we read, …  “ The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.  23    But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great [is] that darkness!

 

The Wuest translation, says, The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is in single focus, pure and  sound, your whole body will be well lighted and healthy. But if your eye be diseased, your whole body will be full of darkness.”     And that is the problem with this Laodicean age, because the people are blind and miserable, and don’t know that they are naked…. But the Holy Ghost said to this age, REVELATION 3:18 … anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

 

And how is it that Laodicea has need of eyesalve? Because she is sick, sick, sick… From the MESSAGE TO THE LOADICEAN CHURCH 58-0609 037 Brother Branham said,   I tell you, brother, there's been a cold spell in the church. And the Pentecostal church has caught a bad cold somewhere. And it'll take more than coon grease to open their eyes to the Truth. He said,  "I'll give you some eyesalve." And that eyesalve will open your eyes. And if the preaching of the Word don't do it, I don't know any other eye salve. The Holy Spirit warms up the Word, and tonight across the church... And the church loves that Word. Certainly. And It opens the eye.

352-3 LAODICEAN.CHURCH.AGE  -  CHURCH.AGE.BOOK.CPT.9 "And anoint thine eyes with eyesalve that thou mightest see." He does not say that you have to buy this eyesalve. Oh no. There is no price tag on the Holy Spirit. "Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith?" Galatians 3:2. Without the Baptism of the Holy Ghost, you can never have your eyes opened to a true Spiritual revelation of the Word. A man without the Spirit is blind to God and His truth.

 

SPEAK TO THIS MOUNTAIN  57-1215 God, be kind to every one. And may their hearts be open tonight. May they understand. Anoint their eyes with eyesalve. And anoint mine too, Lord, that we might see the invisible God living among His people as He promised.

 

Now, in getting back to what we were speaking of earlier, Jesus told us the evidence that we do love Him is that we will keep His Word… JOHN 14:15       If ye love me, keep my commandments.  And since God is the same and changes not we can also find Him telling us the same thing in the old testament as well.

 

DEUTERONOMY 30:19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, [that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:  20    That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, [and] that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he [is] thy life, and the length of thy days:

 

Now, this brings us back to Romans 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, ( and how do we know that we love Him? By keeping His Word and obeying His Voice).. But notice also he is not just saying those who love and obey God but there is another qualifier in this verse… to them who are the called according to [his] purpose.

 

Now, if you don’t like election and predestination you’re out of luck, ….  29   ¶ For whom he did foreknow, he also did (past tense) predestinate [to be] conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

 

I Love the Weymouth translation here… 8:29 For those whom He has known beforehand He has also pre-destined to bear the likeness of His Son, that He might be the Eldest in a vast family of brothers;  (And what is the image of His Son) In the beginning was the what? The Word! And the Word was with God and the Word was God.) Therefore, if you can’t take this Word, it is obvious that you will not be conformed to His Image.

 

8:30 and those whom He has pre-destined He also has called; and those whom He has called He has also declared free from guilt; and those whom He has declared free from guilt He has also crowned with glory. 8:31 What then shall we say to this? If God is on our side, who is there to appear against us?

 

Look, I don’t think you are getting it. So let me bring things into a better perspective for you. Paul says, here… If God is on our side, who is there to appear against us?  And we know that God is here in the last attribute of His Presence as brother Branham said in the Message Identified Christ of All Ages… He said, here He is in His last attribute… Remember, that was the last thing that Abraham saw before the fire fell and judged the Gentile world…. And what did Abraham say? Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?

 

“If God is on our side, who is there to appear against us?” “If the Judge is on our side, who can speak out against us?”

 

8:32 He who did not withhold even His own Son, but gave Him up for all of us, will He not also with Him freely give us all things?  8:33 Who shall impeach those whom God has chosen? ( impeach means to indict for misconduct) (so, whose going to kick you out, if the judge has declared free from guilt) Therefore,  Who shall impeach those whom God has chosen?  God declares them free from guilt. 8:34 Who is there to condemn them? Christ Jesus died, or rather has risen to life again. He is also at the right hand of God, and is interceding for us. 8:35 Who shall separate us from Christ’s love? Shall affliction or distress, persecution or hunger, nakedness or danger or the sword? 8:36 As it stands written in the Scripture, “FOR THY SAKE THEY ARE, ALL DAY LONG, TRYING TO KILL US. WE HAVE BEEN LOOKED UPON AS SHEEP DESTINED FOR SLAUGHTER.” 8:37 Yet amid all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who has loved us. 8:38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither the lower ranks of evil angels nor the higher, neither things present nor things future, nor the forces of nature  39  Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which rests upon us  in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

 

 

Then what are we worried about?  If God be for you who can be against you. It doesn’t even matter who would try. Look, what am I trying to tell you this morning. I’m trying to tell you that it is later than we think.    We have got to come to the place where our focus is either 100% focused on God’s presence among us or we are lost. If our focus is not single, then it is not focused at all. And then if our eyesight is halt or withered or bad in any way it is because it is diseased and is in need of a good dose of Scriptural eye-salve.   And I don’t care what age you are, or who you are, or who you are not. We are called upon by God in this hour to focus on one thing, and that is, “the One True God who is here”. No matter what your plans, they had better take into account the day and hour we live, and that alone.

 

Look, when Peter kept his eyes on Christ he could even walk on water, but when Peter got his eyes off of Christ what happened, he began to sink. But even when he did sink, Jesus was still there to give him a helping hand. 

 

Then what am I trying to tell you this morning…. Let’s see what the Scripture tells us this end-time will be all about. LUKE 17:  26    And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.  27    They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all. 28    Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;  29    But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed [them] all. 30    Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. ( what does He mean, even thus, even thus what? He is saying they were so caught up in every day living, that they were not aware of what was happening…) That is what it was like in Noah’s day, they were too busy for the Word of God. And so is it today…  31    In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: ( in other words, don’t place your stuff before your life).   and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back. ( and don’t place your job before the deliverance through this word either). 32  Remember Lot's wife. (What about Lot’s wife? She looked back on what she was leaving behind, and that is all it took.) She crystallized… 33    Whosoever shall seek to save (or hold onto) his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life( or to put it out of the way entirely)  shall preserve it. 34    I tell you, in that night there shall be two [men] in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. 35    Two [women] shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 36    Two [men] shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 37    And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? (Where will they be taken?) And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body [is], thither will the eagles be gathered together.

 

We are too late in the day to be turning back like Lot’s wife. Too may of you are taking this word seriously enough. Too many of you are not coming to church on Wednesday night’s. Where are you. Do you love suzy more than you love God? Are you being caught up into this Word? Believe me when I tell you, this word has placed us on a journey and those who come know what I am talking about. This Word of God is progressive and you can’t take it once in a while and think it is doing you any good.

 

 Paul warned us that we need to come together even more as we see the end approaching, and yet where are we when these church doors are opened?  Paul said in the Book of Hebrews 10:  21    And [having] an high priest over the house of God;  22    Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. 23    Let us hold fast the profession of [our] faith without wavering; (for he [is] faithful that promised;) And how do we do that?  24    And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:  25    Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.  26    For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

 

Now, Paul said, 25    Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is];  notice he said, as the manner of some [is … in other words, some have a habit of not assembling as they ought….Now, we know that we are to find our selves in the Bible, right? Then is this where we are finding ourselves? I hope not, but it seems to be the case….

 

If you truly believe that this is the end-time, then you won’t put your job ahead of your soul. You won’t put your  feelings ahead of your soul, you won’t put your health ahead of your soul. I don’t know how many of you are fully aware that you need to come together. You need to feed your soul on this Word.  Brother Branham said the same power that Rebecca watered is the same power that packed her home to Isaac. And the same Holy Spirit that you water is the same one who will pack you home too.

 

 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 1156-58   035  When you're borned again, you're not borned of physical, like the baby was; but what's happened, the spiritual birth has come to you. And while this spiritual birth is growing into your heart, of God, there is a physical or a celestial body growing to receive that spirit. And when the life leaves this body, it goes to that body. Just as when the body is presented to the earth, the spirit comes in, and when the spirit goes out of the body, there is a body waiting. "For we know that after this earthly tabernacle be dissolved, we have one already waiting." See? That's it, the spiritual body of the people.

 

EXPLAINING HEALING AND JAIRUS 54-0216 What you are here is a reflection of what you are somewhere else. "Those who He called, He justifies." Is that right? "Those who He justified, He has glorified." Already in the Presence of the Father, we have a glorified body. Whew! Wasn't that deep? All right. We'll find out whether it's right or not. "If this earthly tabernacle be dissolved, we have one already waiting." Is that right? That's right. So right now, and what we are there, is a reflection. Here, what we are here, is a reflection of what we are somewhere else. So if your deeds are evil, you know where it comes from. You know where your other body's a waiting.

 

Then my question is this… If my earthly body is only reflecting where my heavenly body is, then where is my earthly body… is it in church, fellowshipping around the Word of God? Or is it off lolly gagging with the world.  Where does my joy come from, that will tell you where your soul is….

 

I 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 Parousia?

 

PSALMS 16:11  Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence [is] fullness of joy; at thy right hand [there are] pleasures for evermore.

 

JUDE 1:24    Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present [you] faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,  25    To the only wise God our Saviour, [be] glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

 

MATTHEW 6:21   For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

 

Then if your real treasure is this word, you won’t be able to hold back from talking about this Word. Jesus said so…

 

LUKE 6:45     A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: And how do they do this?  Jesus said,  “for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.”