The
Doctrine of Christ no 54
“He that believeth no 8”
Believes God’s report
Brian
Kocourek
This evening we will look at the eighth blessing or
promise of God that the believer receives from Believing in the son of God, and
that is that we believe the testimony that God gave of His Son.
John 12:44 Jesus cried and said, “He that believeth” (ὁ πιστευων) on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. Now,
of course if we believe as some that this “he” speaks of only one person, then
only one person William Branham will believe that God sent Jesus and therefore
only one person is entitled to believe
the record God gave of His son.
Now, wouldn’t that be a terrible thing if only one
person was allowed to believe the testimony or record God gave of His Son? But
I am so thankful that God does not limit Himself or His promises to those who
hold English Grammar as more of an absolute than God’s own Word. And I am
thankful that God sent us a prophet who didn’t know English Grammar and was not
limited by it in his belief. But rather without proper English Grammar he stood
firm on the promises of God until they came to pass. And shouldn’t we do the
same?
1 John 5:10 He
that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself:
he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the
record (witness) that God gave of his Son.
Now, this verse of scripture has two parts to it.
Part Number One speaks of The Witness which we found is the Holy Spirit
Himself, and the second half of this scripture tells us: he
that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the
record (witness) that God gave of his Son.
Now, this evening, I want to just glean a few thoughts
from the Scripture that says, “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the
witness in himself.”
Again we point out that this word hath was
translated from the Greek word echo so this verse should read He that believeth on the Son of God echoes
the Witness in himself.
Now, we know there is a difference between just
being a witness and THE Witness. For The Witness is the Holy Ghost Himself. 1 John 5:6 And It is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
In the book of Romans it is
the Spirit of God that is the Witness, and in Romans
8:16 the Apostle Paul makes it clear that the important thing is not that we bear
witness with God and what He does but that He bear witness to our spirit. He
said, “The Spirit itself beareth witness
with our spirit, that we are the children of God,”
The
problem we find is that many people read this verse wrong and thus try to
convince themselves that it is their own spirit that is bearing witness with
God’s spirit and thus that makes them something. These are those who will not
accept the sovereign position of God that he does not need us, but rather by
taking the assumption that it is their own witness in their spirit and their
own choosing, they thus null and void the witness of The Spirit and the choice
that is reserved for God to make, and Him alone. For what good is your choice
if it is not God’s choice, and what good is it that you witness in your own
spirit that you are what God has not made you to be.
Now, the
whole text of what Paul is saying here is that it is God who bears witness with
our spirit that we are His children. We can claim that God is our Father all we
want but that won’t make it true, unless God claims us Himself. And therefore
it matters not what witness we give of our selves, for we can witness all we
want and claim God as our Father all we want, but if God does not claim us and
bear witness Himself that we are His children, then we are not. End of debate.
In John
chapter 8 we see Jesus
Himself debating this very issue with the Pharisees who claimed first to be
Abraham’s seed, and when Jesus showed them that Abraham had two seeds, One by
flesh and the other by promise, then they denied being the one by flesh and
went straight to claiming themselves as being God’s seed. But Jesus didn’t cut
them any slack, and he denied that they were God’s Seed even though they
claimed to be. He said, I am of God and you are not of God but of your father
the devil, and the deeds of your father you do. He said if you were Abraham’s
seed you would believe me and do the works of Abraham, but because you believe
me not, it shows you are of your father the devil, and he laid it out pretty
plain to them. He said if you were of God you would believe me for I say
nothing but what he tells me to say, and I do nothing but what He tells me to
do, and I have surrendered my will to His will and my thoughts to His thoughts,
and my actions to His actions, and since you will not receive what he told me
to tell you, then it shows you are not His Seed.
Now, that brings us to the second part of our verse
this morning, and let’s just read it again for a refresher.
1 John 5:10 He
that believeth on the Son of God hath (echoes) The Witness (The Spirit of God)
in himself: Now that was a nice study. But the second point
John is making here is he that believeth not
God hath made him a liar; (why?) because he believeth not the record (Witness) that God gave of
his Son.
Now, this word record is the same Greek word as we
read in the first half of this verse that was translated as the word “Witness”.
So we can read this as “he
that believeth not God hath made him a liar;
because he believeth not the record which is God’s Witness or testimony
that God gave of his Son.”
Now, John is telling us here that these people are
making God out to be a liar because they do not believe the Witness, or the
record, or the testimony which God Himself gave of His Son.
So we must ask ourselves this question, how can
anyone make God out to be anything other than what He is. Now, John is not saying God is a liar
because these people say so, but He is saying to them , they believe God is a
liar, because he is not saying what they think He should say concerning His
Son.
“he that believeth not God has made him a liar”;… Now, is it really possible to make God what He is
not? In no way, shape, or form is it
possible. Then what does John mean by this?
The
Amplified
translation says, “He that does not believe God in His Testimony , has made Him
out to be and represented Him as a liar. “
The Weymouth Translation says,
…”he who does not
believe God has made Him a liar, in that he has refused to accept the testimony
which God has given about His Son.”
Now, the first thing we must understand in reading
this verse is that it says, he who does not believe God has made Him a
liar. Now the fact of the mnatter is
this, the first part of this sentence speaks of those who do not believe God.
If they do not believe God then they are unbelievers, right?
And
how they do not believe God, is that they do not believe what God has said
concerning His Son. John call’s this His testimony, or record, or witness of
God concerning His Own Son.
And
as we read this together it says, he who does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar, in
that he has refused to accept the
testimony which God has given about His Son.”
They
refuse to accept God’s own testimony which is His own Word. And that is the
battle we have today with most of so called Christendom. The claim to believe
God’s Word but refuse to accept what God has said about His Son. They refuse
the record which God has given to us from this Bible, God’s Own Word,
concerning His Son.
Then
to believe anything contrary to what God has said concerning His Son means you
are an unbeliever. And to disbelieve the
record that God has given us of His Son is to label God in your own mind a
liar, and that is a pretty serious charge against God.
Because
Jesus told us that to say one word against the Holy Spirit when He comes is to
blaspheme the Holy Spirit, and to call Him a liar is the unforgiveable sin.
Therefore, we must know the record that the God, the
Holy Spirit has given to us of His Son, so we have the benchmark that tells us
if we blaspheme or not.
Now, in order to know what this is, we must go to
the official record Itself and that is the Holy Scriptures and the declaration
of the Holy Ghost that came down with a shout which is a message in this hour.
And remember and never forget, William Branham was
God’s mouth-piece in this hour, and he told us, “My ministry is to declare Him”,…
and the word declare means: To make known formally or officially. 2. To
state emphatically or authoritatively; affirm. 3. To reveal or make
manifest; show. 4. To make a full statement of … and that is exactly what the record of God is… It is
God’s testimony of His Son, it is God’s account, the information and facts,
(especially in writing) that gives us as a means of preserving the knowledge.
And so we read in in the Scriptural record, John 5:19 Then
answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but
what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth
the Son likewise. And what does this record tell us? That the
Son can not do until the Father shows Him to do. Then how can He be His own
Father?
John 12:49 For
I have not spoken of myself; but the
Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I
should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is life
everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so
I speak. And if Jesus can receive a
commandment from the Father, then he the son of God is not sovereign. He is not
independent, and he is not omniscient, nor is he omnipotent.
John 7:16
Jesus answered them, and said, My
doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If his doctrine is not even His then he is not the
author now is he?
John 5:30 I
can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my
judgment is just; because I seek not
mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. 31 If I bear witness of myself,
my witness is not true 32 There
is another that beareth witness of me; and I know that the witness which he
witnesseth of me is true. 37 And the
Father himself, which hath sent me, hath
borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen
his shape.
Notice
he even gave up His own will, which is his own purpose and his own ability to
make to choose for himself.
John 6:38
For I came down from heaven, not
to do mine own will, but the will of him
that sent me.
Hebrews
5:8 Though he were a Son, yet
learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; and if he is his own father then who was he obedient
to?
John 8:17
It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is
true. 18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of
me. Now this statement clearly
distinguishes that there are two person involved here.
John
14:10 The words I speak I speak not of myself, The
Father that dwelleth in me He doeth the works. Here Jesus tells us
he could not even speak all by Himself, He was totally dependent upon the
Father for the words to say.
John
5:17 “My Father worketh hitherto and I work”.
And here we see that he was dependent upon the father to show Him what work to
perform.
Now, William Branham Prophet of God and God’s mouth
piece to us in this hour said he did not believe like the Oneness believed, and
that Jesus and God were not one like your finger is one, and He said that Jesus
was a dual being, and he said that there are two concerning the Father and Son,
and he said that sons have beginnings, and he said, that Jesus could not be His
own Father, and he said that the body was not deity, but deity dwelt in the
body, and he said that God indwelt the son at the river Jordan and left Him in
Gethsemane.
So we have eight definitive statements that the Holy
Spirit has recorded to us on magnetic tape and if you do not believe the
recording or the record which is the testimony of the Holy Spirit you have made
God out to be a liar. And if you do not believe God then what does that make
you.
Now, there are many who are claiming to follow this
message that are nothing more than blasphemers. Reprobate concerning The Truth.
I remember one man, I quoted Him a statement of
Brother Branham’s concerning the coming before the coming, and he said I don’t
believe it. Another man told me brother Branham was wrong when he said that God
left Jesus in
I am sorry, my brothers and sisters, but if the shoe
fits you had better where it. And if you say you do not believe the record that
God has laid down in His Scriptures, that are replete with evidence showing the
difference between the Father and the Son, and you still choose to disbelieve
it, then you are in effect saying that you do not believe God and you know
better than God does concerning His Son.
And to me there could be nothing more arrogant than for a person to deny
vindicated Truth, and think they know better.
Baptism
Of the Holy Spirit
58-0928M 94 He said, "I and My Father are One. My Father dwelleth
in Me." No one
could read that any plainer. They said, "Why don't You show us the Father, and it'll
satisfy us." John 14:8. He said, "I've been so long with you and you don't
know Me?" He said,
"When you see Me,
you see My Father."
As a lady once jumped up, she said, "Why, Brother Branham," she said,
"the Father and the Son are one, just like you and your wife are
one." I said, "Oh, no they're not." I said, "Do you see
me?" She said, "Yes." I said, "You see my wife?" Said,
"No." I said, "Then they're not the same kind of one.
Jesus said, 'When you've see Me, you have seen the Father. The Father
dwelleth in
John 5:28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming,
in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 29 And shall come
forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that
have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. 30 I can
of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment
is just; Why? because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the
Father which hath sent me.
There you have it. Jesus can judge because God, His
Father, knows that he will only judge what God has already judged. He said, I
have not come to do my own will but the will of the father which sent me. Then
he says, 31 ¶ If I bear witness of
myself, my witness is not true. 32 There is another that beareth witness
of me; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth of me is true.
In verse 36 we find out Who the witness is, Jesus is
speaking about. And if Jesus is consistent in what he has been telling them,
then it has to be His Father that He is speaking about as we see in JOHN 5:36 But I have
greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given
me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father
hath sent me. 37 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath
borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen
his shape. 38 And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath
sent, him ye believe not.
Now, let’s stop for a
moment and look at another scripture that Jesus is speaking of this Judging.
Let’s turn to JOHN 8:16 And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not
alone, but I and the Father that sent me.
17 It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is
true. 18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father
that sent me beareth witness of me. 19 Then said they unto him, Where is
thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known
me, ye should have known my Father also. Notice the words of Jesus,
he says, I am not alone. Now, that speaks of another, meaning more than
one is involved here. And he tells us immediately who that other is… I and the Father that sent me. Then he says, 17 It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two
men is true. Then notice
who those TWO MEN are that he uses for his witness. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that
sent me beareth witness of me.
Now if Jesus considered
Himself to be One with God in that way, why would he speak these words? But
they could not see His Father because they did not understand what He was
talking about. And so they looked for one that can not be seen, and missed
seeing that He was living in His Son.
Now, in getting back to John 14:8 we read, Philip
saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 9 Jesus
saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known
me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest
thou then, Shew us the Father? 10 Believest
thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words
that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in
me, he doeth the works. 11 Believe
me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me
for the very works' sake.
Obviously from what we have seen so far, Jesus is not
saying here that He and His Father are one like your finger is one. But what He
is saying is that the same Word that is in the Father, is abiding in Him and
that makes Him one with the Father. Brother Branham further clarified this in the
sermon,
Show
us the Father and It’ll Satisfy 56-0422 E-36 Now, it's many times it's been said that no
man can see God at anytime, the Bible said so. But the only begotten of the
Father has declared Him. Philip, here was very inquisitive; he wanted to see
the Father. Says here He said, "I've been so long with you, Philip, and
you don't know Me?" Said, "When you see Me you see My Father." In other words, you see the
Father express Hisself through the Son. Him and the Father were one in
the sense that His Father was dwelling in Him, not Him doing the works; He
was a Son, Himself, the mortal, virgin born, Son of God. And then in Him was
dwelling the God, the Father, expressing Hisself to the world, His attitude
towards the people. See? Well, that's how Christ and God were one. God
was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Now, He said, "When
you see Me, you see the Father, and why do you say, 'Show us the Father?'"
Again in the sermon, He
Swore By Himself 54-1212 we
can find William Branham clarifying that this is what was meant by Jesus when
he spoke to Philip. He said, "I and My Father are One. My Father is in Me." Said, "Show us
now the Father." Philip said, "Showeth me the Father and it'll satisfy me." Said, "Philip, I
been so long with you, and you don't know Me?"
He said, "When you see Me, you see the
Father. And why say, 'Show me the Father.' I and the Father are One. My
Father's living in Me now. It's not Me that doeth the works; it's Him
that dwells in me, that does the works." Oh, my.How could I tell a man what was wrong with
him? How could I tell him what his future will be ten years, or what he was
forty years ago? It isn't me. Hallelujah. It's Him that lives in me,
that come down, that through His Blood brought me in fellowship with Him.
Hallelujah. How could my hands do anything by healing the sick? It hasn't got a
bit of power. It's not me. But it's Him that dwells in here that does
it.
And since three is a witness, let me share one more
quote with you where William Branham further elucidates my point that Jesus and
God were one by reason of the Father abiding in Him, directing Him by His
Word. Conference 60-1125 E-73 When He said,
"It's not Me that doeth the works.
It's My Father. He dwelleth in
As
I was with Moses 51-0503 E-15 When Jesus of
Gifts
56-1207 E-29
Now,
in Christ dwelt the Fullness of the Godhead bodily. He had all the
Spirit of God in Him. "I and My Father are
One," said Jesus. That's the reason the
people couldn't understand Him. Sometimes He'd say something, might look like
He turn around and say something different. It was Him speaking, then the
Father speaking. See? They were... And even the disciples could not
understand Him. And right at the last, they said, "Lo, now speakest Thou plainly. Now, we believe by this if you
know all things; no man needs to teach you."
Jesus said, "Do you now believe?" After all that time, they couldn't get the... Why? That
sometimes He'd say this and then say that. It was Him and the Father
speaking. E-30 Now, notice
closely. Now, God dwelling in Christ used His voice to speak by. Jesus
said in His miracle, "Verily, verily, I say
unto you, the Son can do nothing in Himself, but what He sees the Father doing,
that doeth the Son likewise." Is that
right?
Super
Sign 59-1227M 86 When He was here on the earth, He proved that He was God,
proved that God was in Him, because the signs of God followed Him. He
said, "If I do not
the works of My Father, then believe Me not. But if I do the works of My
Father, if you don't believe Me, believe the works, the sign": Immanuel. "I and My Father are One. My Father has sent
Me. And as He sends Me, so send I you. The Father that sent Me is with Me; He's in Me and
doing the works of Himself. It's God in flesh."
Show
us the father and it will satisfy 60-0731 E-15 "The works that I do, shall you also." And seeing the same results by human
beings so submitted to God, until the Holy Spirit can work through those human
beings just like the Holy Spirit worked through Jesus, Who just has confessed
that, "I and My
Father are One. My Father dwelleth in Me. He doeth the works. It's
not My words; it's His words."... See? He was so submitted to God.
Revelation Chapter One 60-1204
198 He was the
true and faithful Witness to God's eternal Word. He was the Word, was God's
Word; and being the Word, He was a Prophet. For the Word of God flowed
through Him; He'd say only the things. "I can do nothing within Myself, but what the
Father shows Me to do. Not Me that doeth the works, but the Father that
dwelleth in Me, He
doeth the works. I and My Father are One. My Father's in Me," said Jesus, the Man, the Tabernacle.
Sirs
we would see Jesus 61-1224 21-3 I and My Father are One," not three,
"We are One." God is in Him. God speaks through Him. He's no more
His own, but He's God's voice through human lips. Hallelujah.
Sirs
we would see Jesus
61-1224 24-1 Jesus said so. Argue with Him,
not me; I'm just saying what He said.
"I and My Father
are One. It's not Me that doeth the works; it's My Father; He dwells in Me.
If you don't believe Me, believe the Word, 'cause He is the Word.
QA
Image of the Beast 54-0515 194-282 And God came down and dwelt in His Son,
Christ Jesus, making Him God on earth. When Thomas said, "Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth
us." He said,
"I've been so long
with you and you don't know Me?" He said, "Why sayest thou, 'Show us the Father'?" Why, He said, "When you see Me you see the Father. I and My
Father are One. My Father dwelleth in Me."
He
Swore by Himself
54-1212 156 And God Himself living in this, making a
tabernacle, and He dwelt in Christ. There's God walking around. He said,
"I and My Father
are One. My Father is in Me." Said, "Show us now the Father." Philip said, "Showeth me the Father and it'll satisfy me." Said, "Philip, I been so long with you, and you
don't know Me?" He
said, "When you see
Me, you see the Father. And why say, 'Show me the Father.' I and the Father are
One. My Father's living in Me now. It's
not Me that doeth the works; it's Him that dwells in me, that does the works." Oh, my.
Hebrews
Chapter 1 57-0821 25-158 Thomas
said, "Lord, show
us the Father and it'll satisfy us. Said, "I've been so long with you and you don't know Me?" Said, "When you see Me, you see the Father. And why
say, 'show us, Thou the Father'? I and
the Father are One. My Father dwelleth in Me. I'm just a Tabernacle called the Son. The Father dwells in
Me. Not Me that doeth the works, it's My Father
that dwelleth in Me. He doeth the works, not Me."
Show
us the Father 0722 E-64 God in His Son, do you believe He
was? He looked like God; He acted like God; He said He was God. He cried like
God; He healed like God; He died like a man; and He rose like God. He was God
manifested in the flesh. God was in His Son. Do you believe it? God was
in His universe. You believe it? God is in His Word. You believe it? God is
in His Son. You believe it? Could you see Him in Christ? Jesus said, "When you see Me you see the Father. Why
sayest thou, Show Me the Father?" God was in the Son,
reconciling the world to Himself. Now, God in His universe, you believe it?
God in His Word, you believe it? God in His Son, you believe it?
Unveiling
of God 64-0614M
257 Jesus once said, "When you see Me, you see the Father." See? God and His Word is One.
Now you understand? When the Word is manifested, what is It? Right. See?
260 Jesus said, "Search the Scriptures, you think you have... You believe in
God, believe also in Me. If I do not the works of My Father, then don't believe
Me. But if I do do the works, I and My Father are One. When you see Me, you
have seen the Father."
And when you see the Word made manifest, you see the Father God, because the
Word is the Father; the Word is God. And the Word made manifest is God
Himself taking His Own Word and manifesting It among believers. Nothing can
make It live but believers, just believers.
The
Masterpiece 64-0705 69 There in His own image reflecting God, for He said in
QA
Hebrews part 2 57-1002
281-Q-63 63. Please explain the Trinity. How can the
Son set at the right hand of the Father, interceding to the Father, if they are
not two persons? Well, beloved friend, that's a... That's a
revelation. If Jesus said, "I and My Father are One," then how can they be two? See? Now, they're not two.
A woman once said to me, and I was explaining that, said, "You and your
wife are two, yet you're one." I said, "But God and the Son is
different from that. See?" I said, You see me?" "Yes."
"Do you see my wife?" "No." I said, "Then Father
and Son's different; Jesus said, 'When you see Me, you've seen the Father.'" See? The Father and the Son... The
Father was Almighty Jehovah God dwelling in a Tabernacle called Jesus Christ,
which was the anointed Son of God. Jesus was a Man; God is a Spirit. And no
man has seen God at any time, but the only begotten of the Father has declared
Him. He was... He... His Personality, His Being, His Deity, whatever He was, He
was God. He was nothing less or nothing more than God. Yet, He was a man. He
was a man, a house that God dwelt in. That's right. He was God's dwelling
place.
Notice that brother Branham pointed out that we are
not talking about two physical being like a man and wife are two physical
beings. But he explained that there is one that was a man, and we know to be a
man you must have body, soul and spirit. But in that man that was fully man,
indwelt the God, the Father, who is Spirit. Thus making them one by the indwelling.
But notice in this next quote how brother Branham is more specific and shows
that the oneness of God and His Son is not like Husband and wife and He is more
clear as to why it is different.
Baptism
Of the Holy Spirit
58-0928M 94 He said, "I and My Father are One. My Father dwelleth
in Me." No one
could read that any plainer. They said, "Why don't You show us the Father, and it'll
satisfy us." John 14:8. He said, "I've been so long with you and you don't
know Me?" He said,
"When you see Me,
you see My Father."
As a lady once jumped up, she said, "Why, Brother Branham," she said,
"the Father and the Son are one, just like you and your wife are
one." I said, "Oh, no they're not." I said, "Do you see
me?" She said, "Yes." I said, "You see my wife?" Said,
"No." I said, "Then they're not the same kind of one.
Jesus said, 'When you've see Me, you have seen the Father. The Father
dwelleth in
Therefore if you do not believe the Godhead as in the
way I have shown you God’s very own record and His witness, you are calling God
a liar, and thus you are a blasphemer. Let us pray…..