PARADOX #6

And he said, (93) “We’re here. Now paradox,” he said, “That’s a paradox.” People just don’t believe that. And that’s exactly true. There’s no way that people will believe what he said even though it is said in 2 Peter that at a time of the Kingdom, when the dead are to be raised and the rest made immortal, the Rapture to take place, the promise would be revealed in the same manner it was given, which was by a prophet. That is, one can not speak the Word unless he’s given the ability by the Holy Spirit; neither at this time can he interpret the Word without that same Holy Spirit.

4. Now he goes on, and talking about this age that we’re looking at, which goes back like to the time of Joshua. You remember that at the time of Joshua, there was sufficient manifestation of what lay ahead. Had they used their faith, they would have gone in and taken it.

5. Now, if you go to Hebrews 6, you’ll see a repeat.

(1) Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on to perfection (to finish it all off); not laying again foundations...

(2) Not going into doctrines and all of those things.

(3) But this we’ll do if God permit. (Now watch what intervenes.)

(4) It’s impossible for those who were once for all enlightened, even having tasted of the heavenly gift, made partakers of the Holy Ghost.

(5) And taste the good word of God, and the power of the world to come.

(6) Having fallen away, to renew them again to repentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

(7) For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom was dressed, receive a blessing from God.

(8) But that which beareth thorns and briars is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.

Now, you notice that we are products of the earth. The same Word that came to Adam, that he was taken out of the earth, came to us too. Because even though we’re sexually brought, through the chemical factor of the womb, we’re still of the earth. And you notice in here, the earth is going to bring forth. And the time it brings forth, the last group of people are brought forth. And there’s 4.8 billion people on earth right now. So by the time of the Rapture there could be five billion people.

All right? Now they had been brought forth, and the majority of them will be distinctly destroyed. Now that’s what he’s talking about here. The blood that fell upon the earth to purify it, there would not be a legitimate bride that numbers very many at the end time. At the end time they’ll see all of these things. They’ll turn it down flat. And they’ll be burned.

6. 6. Now that’s exactly what you’re looking at in the time of Joshua. The twelve spies went in, they saw the land was good, they knew they were going to take it, they brought the Word of God, “This is it. We’re marching in.” And the rest said, “Hogwash.” And they’d seen the power of the world; they’d seen the sun stand still. They’d seen the, not the sun stand still at that time, they’d seen the Red Sea open up. They’d seen the miracles, the water come out of the rock. They’d seen the wonderful things that God did and also saw the time that they actually, when they lifted Moses’ hands up, the battle would go for the Israelites. All of those things they saw, and they turned them down. Now, this is what Bro. Branham is talking about here.

7. 7. Now;

(94) There are some people, of today, that do not believe in miracles. They say they just “can’t believe that there is such a thing as miracles in this modern age.” Well, I don’t mean to say anything bad about that person, but they are spiritually numb. They’re spiritually blind. They have no spiritual sight or spiritual feeling, at all. No man can sit in a crowd of people, wherein the Holy Spirit is falling, no matter if he’s absolutely a sinner, or she, but what they’re bound to sense the Presence of God, when you see the Word He promised being fulfilled. Then you’d have to be numb; when you see it with your own eyes, happening, then you’ll have to be blind, spiritually, I’m not speaking physically. You can certainly be spiritually blind, and have twenty-twenty physical sight.

(95) Now you remember Elijah down at Dothan, when he went out and smote that whole army blind? The Bible said he did. And led them right into ambush, when they didn’t know who he was. And he was exactly just what he was supposed to look like, and so forth, and he went right out to them. But they were blind. Now see the blindness was not because they couldn’t see around them, there was no recognition. They were struck blind too; who was there.

(96) And you can stand in the Presence of the living God, you can stand under the anointing of the Holy Spirit and see It moving, and It still won’t touch you. You can see what God said, preached to you perfectly and then manifested, and still don’t go in, “don’t believe It,” then, there, you are beyond reach. You’re already dead, numb, blinded, gone on. They were completely. Now people don’t understand that this age parallels the age when Christ was here in flesh, that He did the same miracles that were done today, and they still turned [It down]. They just couldn’t take it. And they were blind as Isaiah said. And blindness is to repeat.

(97) I wonder, if that same person that doesn’t believe in a miracle, I wonder if to them the only things that are real, are those which are scientifically proven? I wonder if you could have any scientist, or anybody that doesn’t believe in a miracle, explain to me how this world stands in its orbit.

What he said, “There are those that, you know they’ve got to have everything given scientifically.” Well he’s telling them here, “Why don’t you just tell... Let a scientist tell me what gravity is.” They can’t do it. Gravity is the glue that holds everything together. And what does it? Well, electricity. No, that’s not gravity. So they tell me.

I was talking to Bro. Ungren and he said, “That when the...” What is that formula of Einstein’s? E’mc squared, or something. All right there was an ‘h’ in there to begin with, and they took it out. That’s right in New York museum. And they left the ‘h’ out, and that’s gravity. No body can explain gravity. Well, I can tell you about gravity. There’s nothing to it. The Scripture distinctly says, “All things were made by the Word, and all things are are maintained by the Word.” That’s gravity. You see? Well, you can’t explain... You can’t scientifically do anything about gravity. There’s lots of things you can do nothing about. So Bro. Branham said, “Well people have to...everything explained scientifically.” Then they believe what he said. Hogwash.

How far did he go with that? Well you go, you go play any farther, [and] you [will] go plumb to hell and maybe six miles beyond. I never do, you know, I never do cut that too short, because I got no time for nonsense. Of course I’d praise God that my eyes have been enlightened, but that’s how I know. But on the other hand, a Christian doesn’t have time for folly either.

8. Now he says:

(97) You can’t explain how that the world stands in its orbit. How does it keep perfect time, around the equator the way it goes, just perfect? We haven’t got a machine, or a watch, of any kind, that can keep time like that; it’ll vary a few minutes every month. The most perfect watch in the country, I think, what does it vary? About two seconds a month or something. But the sun’s exactly on time. Thousands of years roll on, and she never moves; perfect.

(98) How the moon can, thousands of miles off the earth, can still control the tide. Tell me how that in this galaxy that we live in, how the moon could have any effect on the water on the the earth? Scientifically, tell me how it’s done. It could not be done, they can’t, they can just tell you it’s done. Because there’s no scientific way of telling it. God set the moon to watch the sea. And when the moon begins to turn it’s back, when the earth turns away, here comes the tide in. When he wakes up, next morning, looks back this way, the tide runs back to its place again. It’s a watchman. “Oh,” you say, “That’s just seashore.” No.

(99) Right up here in Arizona, plumb back in the state of Kentucky, whenever you dig a hole in the ground far enough to find salt water. You’ll find out, that when the tide goes out, that salt water goes down in the pipe. And when the tide comes in, it also raises, hundreds of miles from the sea shore. Now I understand that there are wells that do that without being salt. Because it’s been found that they do. But you see, they’re hooked up sometime, somehow with the flow of the water, and it works. But that’s right, you go down to salt it will sure do it. But you don’t have to go down to salt, from what... There are some wells that just do that.

(100) Now how a person could preach a sermon on that. How that God, no matter, He’s in Glory but His orders there made just the same effect on the whole world and anybody that takes the promise. His order is given.

He’s telling you there, if it sounds a little garbled, but it’s not. He said, just telling you that, “You don’t think of, Thy will be done in Heaven only; God’s will is done on earth too.” Nebachnezzer found that out. Just don’t put God too far off in His ways, because everybody has to account for everything. He’ll bring out that a little later on, how that you don’t even move your hand, but God knows it. All right?

(100) He has laws of nature, and they will absolutely carry themself true, from Pentecost or any other time. Any time that God made the promise, He will stay with that promise regardless of where the people are at, how many thousands of years off. His laws remain the same. In other words it’s seed time and harvest, as long as the earth’s to last. And the promises He gives the bride, they are far more infallible. See?

(101) Now the seed falls into the ground, and it rots, to bring forth life again. Now that’s a law of nature. We’ll watch this one. Looks like, if it was ever going to bring forth life, it’d be, if it’s in its perfect shape. Did you get what He said? Said if you… Now let’s read again how the seed falls into the ground, and it rots, to bring forth life again. Looks like, if it was ever going to bring forth life, it’ll be, it would be, when it’s in perfect shape. Not rot, see? If life was ever in it, then why wouldn’t it just come forth? Put in the ground, the life springs forth. Why does all that’s around that life, all that’s around that germ that no man can find, how is it that everything material around that germ has to die? So it can spring forth in a new life. But everything around it must also die and rot, before it can spring forth into life.

Well, that’s very true. And of course that speaks of Christ dying; that speaks of the earth falling, the church falling in the ground and dying. But I believe that also speaks of the fact, that this last age in which we’re in, where everything of the earth has gone into decay, man has gone into decay, spirituality has gone into decay, it is out of that, that the resurrection is going to take place. It is out of that, that a bride comes. It’s out of the church that’s wretched, poor, miserable, naked, and blind, and doesn’t know split peas from buttermilk, or anything else, spiritually speaking. Out of that church is going to come a bride. See? And it’s going to come to an Ephesian age--right back to where it should be: virgin of the Word.

(102) So it is with an individual. As long as there is... Now watch what he says as long as there’s any human injection, human ideas, then God’s germ of life, the Holy Spirit, cannot work. Now he’s talking about then, that’s all got to go, the same as life comes out of a seed that has to rot and decay. You cannot be healed as long as there is just a fraction somewhere, that’s not rotten yet; it’s got all the human elements, all the scientific ideas, all the “days of miracles is passed,” and so on. All that has to, all, not only die, but rot, then from there grows the germ of Life into a new life. That’s the only way it can grow.

All right? That’s exactly true. When he speaks about the end time age, it’s completely gone. It’s wretched, miserable, naked, blind, doesn’t even know it. And then He said, “Behold I stand at the door and knock. And if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I’ll come into him.” But you’ve got to see this, that everything that you formally believed in has to go. You’ve got to put it all to one side. Every doctrine, every thought you knew, every experience you ever thought you ever had, it’s got to go right down and be scrutinized. And if there is one thing that’s wrong, it’s got to die.

Now notice he’s relating that also to Divine Healing. And as long as there is one scrap of doubt, the person doesn’t get healed. Neither can there be any doubt when it comes to this age in which we live.

(103) That’s the reason we don’t get what we ask for. We try to take with us too many of our own ideas. Then where will rapturing faith come in? See?

(104) That’s the reason the Lutheran church couldn’t advance any further than it did, Pentecost and the rest; ‘cause they inject, by a bunch of theologians, “This oughtn’t to be this way. This is for another day. This is for that.” There it stays. It cannot grow to that perfect image of Christ...now watch...until every Word of God is received into you, and then you become that Word, just like the seed that went into the ground.Thus for the image of Christ to appear, it is got to take a process of divestiture of our own lives, even to the extent of a complete recognition of complete rot. In other words, you’ve got to understand that, that everything you ever thought you had is suspect. And it’s got to be examined in the light of the Word.

9. Now, there definitely is a promise of this hour, of the image of Christ in the individual, and Bro. Branham explains how it is. In 1 Jn 3:2 “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it has not yet come into existance.” This what we’re talking about has never been and can only happen one time, where a whole group of people become glorified while in a human form, without dying. “But we know that, when he shall appear”-- That’s that word ‘phaneroo,’ which means to come forth in a perfect manifestation, as to exactly what it is, appearing is light to us--we’re going to be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Now, to see Him as He is, is not to see Him in the light of what He was yesterday, except in the sense of the intrinsic quality. Now I know that’s over your head, but it shouldn’t be by now. In other words God doesn’t change per se. He doesn’t. But all right, He is in the form of the evolution, Judge. Now there it is right there. That’s what was seen. The camera caught it. All right, He wasn’t that previously as to manifestation, and inculcation, and performance. Although He always had it. So that’s what we’re talking about. See?

10. All right. Now, this is the hour for the manifestation of Him to be once more the Resurrection. “I am the resurrection and the life. And he that believeth in me, though shall actually live, and whosoever believe in me, shall never perish.” Also, you must remember that, “He that liveth and believeth in me, shall not even die.”

11. All right. You’ve got to receive the Word of God into you, in order for you to become that image. Now how do you do it? It takes a ministry. And right here again is what they don’t like. “Joshua a m a n, a man;” yes a man. Oh yes, Joshua was a great man. Hallejuah. Just love that Joshua. Oh my, I could just rhapsodize over Joshua.

Another man will speak and mountains will fall in the ocean. What if it was that man? [Pointing to the picture of the Pillar of Fire with Bro. Branham.] “Not that guy, he’s just a man. He’s just a man. He’s just a man.” Merciful God! It’d be nice if they were the man. Oh my, watch them tippy-toe across the platform. Listen brother/sister. I may burn with the tape some time, but God give me grace to burn. 2 Corinthians 3. Now Paul says here:

(12) Now we’re using great plainness of speech (we’ve got an earnest expectation)

(13) Not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which was abolished.

(14) But their minds were blinded; for until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which veil was done away in Christ (That’s 2 Cor 3:14.)

(15) But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. (Now remember, you should hold your fingers there. In 2 Peter, there’s a prophecy that said, “We better take heed to when the light shines in a dark place until the day dawn, and the day star arise in our heart.” And that’s just previous to the Kingdom. It’s previous to the resurrection. It’s previous to immortality.)

(15) Now, in that day, Moses’ veil is upon the heart.

(16) Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away.

(17) Now the Lord is that Spirit; (now It tells you, you’re dealing with Spirit. You’re not dealing with an incarnation) and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is a liberty. (Now it’s a special liberty.)

(18) But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. (All right, you’ve got your perfect picture here. Now watch. [Chapter 4])

(1) Therefore seeing we have this ministry, we faint not. (Now, when’s it going to come.)

(2) We’ve denounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, not handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

12. Now at the end time, there is going to be a ministry of the Word, through the Presence of Almighty God, the Spirit. A special manifestation, that’s going to bring about this image. Now, remember he categorically said what Ephesians was. John announced it. Who did he announce? He announced the Lord God of Israel. All right, Who is the Lord God of Israel? He is Spirit. So okay. We go to the Book of Ephesians, and there you will find what he’s saying, very, very beautifully. In the seventeenth verse, of chapter one. “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him.”

So there you are right there, there’s your Ephesian. Now, that is Rev 10:1-7. Right. At that time it is the shout that is going to bring about, or be basic, the basic reason, as per immortality. Because we do not become a part of the Resurrection through resurrection. Because we don’t go down. All right.

13. (105) I’d like to explain, I’d like for them to explain Hebrews eleven and three. The greatest scientist we’ve ever had, as far as I know, is Einstein. When not long ago, in New York, I was listening to what he said. He’s talking about the galaxy, about how far out it was, and he proved that there was an Eternity. How that the man, going so many million miles an hour, would take him so many, million light years an hour, would take him so many years to get there, three hundred thousand, something like that, and then three hundred thousand years to get back. And then prove by it, somehow, that the man had only been gone from the earth fifty years. Eternity!

(106) That’s just a little galaxy, when God blew them off his hand! The Bible said! Einstein finally wound up with this, “There’s only one way any man can explain the origin of this world, that’s found in Hebrews thirteen, and one. ‘We understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God.’“ And that’s period. That’s exactly right. Science cannot even touch it. And then you say you don’t believe in a miracle? How could you be that way? Now you can see here that Bro. Branham was encouraging the outreach of faith. See, there’s so many things that you haven’t got an answer for, you just believe. Then why are you stumbled about the things you’re asked to believe? Just because there’s some little thing seems to stand in your way. Like when it comes to healing. See?

(107) How can any scientist ever explain Noah’s rain, when there never had fallen a drop of rain upon the earth until that day? But Noah said there’d be a rain! When Noah’s rain came, contrary to all science; there was no cloud up there, never been any rain up there. They could prove there’d been no rain up there. And then when God opened up the heavens and poured out a gusher that washed the earth away, that was a paradox; how that it’s certainly unreasonable, unexplainable. But we know that God did it, because the Bible said so. And we have evidence on the earth, today, that it was so. God did it. That was a paradox. And sure, how do you explain, time and eternity blending together? The prophet said so. People don’t want to believe it. But that’s exactly what it says in Revelation, the tenth chapter, that time and eternity are going to blend right together. That was a paradox, certainly. There’s a paradox today in that a Message is going to bring about a resurrection. It’s going to do it. They don’t want to believe it.

14. All right; then he goes to Abraham now.

(108) When God took an old man, by the name of Abraham, at the age of seventy-five years old; and his wife, sixty-five, many years past the time of life, menopause and so on. But when He took that man and gave him a promise, seventy-five years old; and this woman, married to his half sister. Lived with her since she was a girl; they had been married probably a teen-ager, and here she’s sixty-five years old. And said, “You’re going to have a baby with this woman.”

(109) What if Abraham would have said, “I don’t believe in paradoxes. I just can’t accept that”? It’d never would have happened.

(110) But you see, when you say you believe anything then you’ve got to put it in action. Then Abraham was commanded to separate himself from all unbelief, and walk with God alone.

Now you’ll notice that Bro. Branham said in October 23, 1964, his wedding anniversary, that (that’s when he’s up there in the mountain)...And the Lord spoke to him, said, “How would you like to take a walk with Me?” And at that time he lost all sense of guilt. Then in December 1965, just before the accident, meeting with God again, personally told me, “He has absolutely no fear.” All right?

There now, what is it? You separate yourself from unbelief. How do you do it? You simply absorb the Word of God, till there’s no room for unbelief. You simply can’t have two thoughts at one time, nobody can, not actually. It just cannot be done. Man isn’t given to be full of faith and unbelief at the same time. And there’s only one place where faith is, and that is in the Word. We must remember that. All right.

15. (110) It said, Abraham was commanded to separate himself from all unbelief, and walk with God alone. Which would be the Word; look at it only. And instead of getting weaker, he got stronger. Now that’s the thing you see that people don’t understand. They always looking for something like the human body to decay, the inner man always gets stronger, the outer man goes to pot. But that’s nothing. That was that picture, we don’t have it here, where the flames of fire... That was the outer man perishing, the inner man being renewed. All right.

(111) How could Abraham take his son, way back three days’ journey, probably ninety miles from any civilization, up on top of a mountain where the Lord had showed him, go offer up his son, Isaac? Isaac packing the wood up, as we know, which is the type of Christ. And up on this mountain he was to offer Isaac as a sacrifice, and when he fulfilled everything that God told him but, except stabbing his own son to death, through his throat… What’d you think of that? Everybody else has the knife poised above the heart, this says throat. That’s where Abel got his, everybody thinks it was on the head. His throat was actually gashed by a rugged rock. And here was going to cut his throat. You know that’s what they did to the sheep? They cut his throat. All right? ...when he pulled his knife out of the sheath and raised his hand to obey God, to the word! The Bible said, that, “He knew that God could not make a promise unless He kept it. And he received him as one from the dead, that He was able to raise him up from the grave and give him to him again.”

Now you notice in here, what really happened was this, that God said, “Now here Abraham, you’ve got your son.” Abraham said, “Praise God, this is the continuation of my life. This is the fulfillment of law and my hopes. This is everything right here, right here.” And then God says, “Now kill him. Now take everything that’s been fulfilled--everything that’s come to this place, that you’re satisfied, this is it. Now you take it and kill it.”

16. And that’s the way this age has to do too. Because this age is increased in goods and thinks it doesn’t miss one little trick in the book, and they missed everything. Now He said, “Ditch it all.” They’ve got the finest churches, the finest schools, the finest people. They’ve got the most money. They’ve got everything, and the old whore is going to get it all. The Protestants are a bunch of whoremongers. No whoremonger is going to go anywhere but the Lake of Fire. Now this is rough language, but I purposely use that language. Let’s get her down flat. There’s got to be a separation unto the Word of Almighty God.

Bro. Branham said, “There’s many a preacher right today, he will not give up his pension.” Ha, I’m waiting for mine to burn. But I’ll be out of here. I care less about it, I don’t have anything. People say, “Well you got to be crazy.” Paradox. Just don’t call it crazy, call it paradox. This is a Branham message. It’s a paradox. The Branham people, that he has brought to Christ, are paradoxes.

17. (112) Now when he was ready to obey God, in His fullness, God caught his hand and said, “Stay your hand, Abraham.” There was a ram hooked in the wilderness, around the vines, with his horns, on top of that mountain, where there was lions, and wolves, and hyenas, and jackals, and ferocious beasts that eat sheep. He was way up on top of the mountain where there is no water. How’d that ram get there? Abraham had picked up stones all around, to build an altar. But there was no ram anywhere. It was a paradox. Bro. Branham said, “That God created that ram.” What happened? Ram was already there. Just God said, “Let the earth cloth it.” As they did in the beginning? Here’s the earth here brand new; unpolluted too, by the way. Yes, pure one.

(113) Any man that believes God that takes Him at His Word, no matter what the situation is, God will perform another paradox, to keep His Word. Paradox, paradox. He’s telling you, everything right from this point on, is a paradox.

18. And if you can’t handle the paradox, get out. There’s no room for you. See? That’s why I tell people...Look here, alot of folk are trying to sit on a fence. They’re still trying to sit on a fence. How do you sit on a fence, when the prophet said, “You turned a corner?” How do you stay on one side of the house, when you went to the other side? Now I guarantee you flat, you stand at that corner and you come around the corner, you are no longer on the east side, you’re on the south side. And how do you sit on the fence? See, people can’t understand, we say, “Well if this isn’t it, forget it.”

You’ve got to get just exactly where James Mayfield was. Got to say, “Well James,” he said, “what about” he said, “now if you’re wrong?” “Well”, he said, “I’ll go to hell with Bro. Branham. You’ll go to heaven with Ern Baxter.” I’ll leave that on the tape. I don’t intend to take that off. He says his things; I’ll say mine. And I’ll stand with the prophet in quoting. A hundred percent with James. You say, “What if he repents?” Hope he does. I hope he does. But you can’t say the things that he said, and have any revelation or any clues to what Bro. Branham was, and what he did also.

19. (113) Any man that believes God and takes Him at His Word, no matter what the situation is, God will perform another paradox, to keep His Word. For, Abraham called the place Jehovah-jireh, “the Lord has provided for Himself a sacrifice.” He can still cause a paradox to happen. He can do that this afternoon, if you’ll just take Him at his Word.

Now he’s going to bring paradoxes to the people. The big paradox of course is what? The shout. The Lord descended with a shout. They can’t take it. Now I ask the reason, why cannot they take it? Tell me what it is? Tell me what it is? Well, it’s a military command. That’s what they say. All right, fine. Go from there. They can’t do it. They don’t know as much as I know, and I know how to go to 1 Corinthians 15.

There’s no theologian knows what I know, and I’m not boasting. I’m telling you the truth. He doesn’t. There’s no way he can know. Because I’m working from revealed Word. You say, “Vayle, you’re boasting.” You do what you want. Rip the tape out and go home. Stay there. Drop dead for all I care. I preach rough to you and any body else. I know what I stand on, and everything, everything I live and breath, is bound right up in what I’m saying right now. I know that I know that I know. What the other fellow knows, that’s his business. Things he doesn’t know.

20. (114) Daniel, from a den--den full of hungry lions, how could it be that that man...How could it be that that man, on a group of hungry lions, stayed in the cave with them, all night, without any harm? The Angel of the Lord, unseen to anyone else, was standing there. It was a paradox. Something had to keep that lion from getting to him.

They didn’t know what did it, Daniel had to tell them. He had to tell us too. And a heathen king had more brains than the theologians. A heathen king who didn’t claim to know the God of Israel, the theologians claim to know, the Lord God of the Gentiles, wouldn’t listen to God’s prophet. Now if anybody should have known what’s going on, he should know what’s going on.

They’re smart on this guy Smokey something, down here in Florida. He’d been able to convert the hot air from the manifold, run the gas through it, and it works like a charm. Doesn’t even burn up the valve. And so the big shots in GM [General Motors] came down, they said, “Well Smokey, we know how it’s done.” He said, “I know, you always knew how it was done”. But he said, “But you can’t make it work, and I can, so I want the millions, or you don’t get it.” Good for Smokey.

21. We had a man called Smokey Branham. Oh, they knew what was going on; but they didn’t and they couldn’t make it work. He could take every spirit in control, and he could say, “Thus saith the Lord.” He could make the chandelier come around, back again. He could prove what he was exactly, the same as Joshua did, proving the Lord God is in the midst of His people. Another Ephesians has come. It’s been announced. The Spirit is here. But they don’t want that. See? I’m going to tell you something brother/sister. I’ve preached this message straight as a dime the last two years, and I’ve been konked on the head bitterly for it. It’s okay by me. I’m going to preach it this way until He comes. That’s the way it’s supposed to be.

God was in that hour proving Himself to the heathen back in Daniel’s day. And God is here today proving to a bride, the Christians, whoever wants to pick It up.

22. (115) When the Hebrew children went into the fiery furnance, that was against all scientific understanding, in that age. It was unscientific for a man to be thrown in a furnace, that was, that that man took them there perished, and they fell in the furnace and lived in that furnace, and the only thing that it did was to loosen their shackles. That’s a paradox. It was unexplainable, unreasonable, but yet it’s the truth. What about the squeeze?

(116) Here is Joshua, we’re speaking of. How that man, just an ordinary man that come through a group of creeds that men had formed, and laws and ceremony, but nothing in it that says anything about giving a man power to stop the sun. Yes, that’s right. Why don’t you put that in the book? Creeds. We’re going to take a book, the Bible now... We’re going to write a book up, and we’re going to tell our clergy that they can do this. I want to stand back and see it done. Watch what he said here. He said, “Where was that in the book of Joshua’s creeds that they gave you?”

(116) But he said, There was a commission from God given. “I’ll give you every piece of ground the sole of your foot sets upon. I’ll be there.” Instead of he’ll be there, I’ll be there. And the enemy was routed.

(117) The sun was gong down. And those kings had time to get themselves together again the next day, he would surely loose more men in battle. But Joshua knew he needed sunlight. He looked up to the sun, and said, “Stand still over Gibeon. And, moon, stand over Ajalon.” For the space of a whole day, and all night long, the sun stood still and the moon stood there. That’s a paradox. A man walking in the will of God could do such a thing, for he was again in an Ephesian, an Ephesus, with the Gospel.

Now he’s talking about, Jesus could do it. Make the storm stand still. Now he’s talking about Ephesian in this hour. A man’s going to speak and mountains are going to fall in. Going to throw a rock in the air and judgment’s going to hit the west coast. That appears up there and they say, “Ah, nothing to it.” I wonder.

You know Velikovsky could prove that absolutely. You know they... When Elijah was up there, called down fire, that fire hit the land. They got the traces they claim. But they say, “Well, it was a meteor.” And they say, “Sure there was red came when Moses prayed, but you see a volcano blew up, and it filled the air with red ashes and waters looked like blood.”

Now isn’t it just nice that those things just happened at that time. Will somebody please make about a million dollars just happen. I really would enjoy it. Call the whole stinking, cotton-picking, world and all the devils in hell to do it; they can’t do it. You know people have got to be sick. People have got to be sick and don’t put this, brother/sister, down there in some of the poor heathen. Put it right in the churches that talk the most, and blab the most. I don’t have to produce any of this. It’s been produced. These guys are standing around trying to produce something. Why do you want to produce something? Fap. You produce all the cars, just give me one. I’ll drive it. Oh brother, you talk about insanity.

23. (118) Moses with a stick in his hand, to go down there with the children of Israel, it’s a paradox, when Egypt had all the armies and well-trained men. It’s a paradox. All the theologians couldn’t do what he did.

(119) The virgin birth was a paradox. How could a virgin, against all scientific understanding, a woman that knowed no man, could bring forth a child; and not only a child but Emmanuel, Who proved to be exactly what it said it would be. How could that happen? It was a paradox. Because God spoke to His prophet, hundreds of years before, and the prophet obeyed the Word of God, and the Word was spoken. “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.” It had to because, you see, it was spoken. We believe that. Certainly, it was a paradox.

But now who believes he that’s coming to the Gentiles? The same prophets prophesied it. The prophet came on the scene and explained it. “Ah, who needs it? He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. And all you got to do is believe it.” Well that isn’t so! He’s supposed to appear, and you’re suppose to see Him to get your change.

24. Let’s get my little blackboard here or little white board. [ ] The Bible distinctly says here, and let’s understand this very carefully. The dead are going to rise. Right? Dead rise--people resurrect. Okay? They’re going to come out of the ground. So they’ve come up here. Okay? The people here now, living, they get changed. Now that ‘living’ is ‘liv’ng,’ living and get changed--that’s changed to their life. Now then, He’s up here in the clouds, up here, and we’re suppose to get caught up. Now everybody knows positively that you’ve got to get changed down here to get caught up there. But the Bible distinctly says, “You’ve got to see Him to get your change.” And we ain’t up there. So then He’s got to come down here. Anybody knows that, but they don’t know it. Now they’ll wiggle out of that, if they can, because you know worms have a lot of power to wiggle, and snakes even more so. So that’s how it is.

25. (120) How that He, could walk on water, that was a paradox. A human being, according to the size of your feet, couldn’t do that. But He did. What was it? Unexplainable, paradox. God did it. We believe it.

(121) Five thousand people, fed with two fish with five biscuits? He did it. Multiplied not only fish, but cooked fish; not only bread, but cooked bread. How could He turn water to wine? All it’s a paradox.

(122) He healed the sick, even leprosy. Today science can’t cure leprosy, but Jesus healed it with His Word. It was a paradox.

(123) He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. Now right there, they take it again, and they said, “It runs in continuity.” It does, but it doesn’t, because he’s talking about manifestation in both places. The same One. I’m going to tell you something brother/sister, it’s a big difference in father having amassed a fortune, and then spent part of it, and leaves the rest to you, and then suddenly comes back thirty years later and picks up his fortune and starts spending it. I’m trying to show you, the same money is being spent all along. But father doesn’t come back. But this One does come back, in the form of the Holy Spirit and does anew what He did in the beginning. And this is what they can’t see! That’s Ephesians, and that’s the John the Baptist who announced It--See?--who showed the Ephesians. And Eph 1:17, which ends in a Resurrection and a Rapture.

(124) Now, He raised the dead, after mortal life had gone from them; Lazarus, the widow’s son at Nain, Jairus’ daughter. Raised the dead, with His Word, because He is the Word. That’s why there’s a resurrection, because He is the Resurrection.

(125) Then another great thing, in closing, to prove He is Messiah. To prove what He was, He had come in order, to answer, to the Word. The Word said, when He spoke to the prophet. “The Lord your God shall raise up a Prophet like me.”

Now it says, “At the end time,” in Acts the third chapter, again. See? Now notice, He was raised up to the Israel, and He gets raised up to us. And that has to do with the resurrection.

(126) There had been many man, many people, raised up. And there had been, for hundreds of years, no prophet. They had priests and great men, we read history between Malachi and Matthew, four hundreds years, they had great men. That’s a Macabee, see? But there was no prophet.

(127) But when He come on the scene, to prove that He was that Ephesians made manifest, John announced it. But Jesus said, “That, He was the Word manifested, Himself.” [End of the first side of the tape.]

Now lest you forget that’s Mat 12:17-21, when He appeared to the Gentiles.

(19) When He doesn’t raise His voice in the street.

(20) The bruised reed doesn’t break, the smoking flax he doesn’t quench. (He doesn’t strive. He did that in Israel. But He doesn’t do it this time.)

(21) And it’s in His name shall the Gentiles trust. (They go for a name. We don’t look for a flesh, in that flesh. It’s the name, because the power lies in the name. Also, that’s Eph 1:17. It’s also, Ephesians 4, because Bro. Branham categorically said, “that headship returns.”)

26. Now let’s go to Ephesians 4, so you understand what we’re talking about. Now;

(8) Wherefore he ascended up on high, led captivity captive, gave gifts to men.

(9) Now that he ascended, what’s it but that he also first descend into the lower parts of the earth. (Now He went down there in Spirit, remember?)

(10) He that descended is the same that ascended above, far above heaven, that he might fill all things. (He went back, and He came down as the Holy Spirit.) In other words, the same Pillar of Fire that came down to baptize people, the same One came down and ordained amongst those baptized with the Holy Ghost.

(11) Apostles, and prophets, and teachers, and evangelists, and pastors. (And that’s a horse of a different color. Those people are already born to ministries, the same as the others to other ministries. But this is to a five-fold effective ministry in a certain thing that the rest don’t have. Prophecy, tongues, and healings, everything else. Nothing compares to that. Because this is the One that does the job. The same Holy Spirit, and there’s somebody ordained over that to get the Word.)

(12) To perfect the saints, the work of the ministry, to build the body of Christ;

(13) Till we’ve come in unity of faith, out of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (That’s what Peter said.)

(14) That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

(15) But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things... (Now notice you, you got to hold the truth in love. You got to have the love of the truth. And love not your lives unto death, no anybody elses. Doesn’t mean to hurt anybody, but it means that you’ve got to stand apart from people.)... grow up unto him which is the head,

(16) From whom the whole body fitly joined together.

27. So you notice, head to head. From Ephesians to Ephesians. Headship is here. We preached a sermon on it. I gave you Bro. Branham’s quotes on it. Comes down, sets Himself, the head of the church. It’s the capstone. He explains the capstone. I brought some quotes on that not too long ago. All right? Now, remember this is life.

28. (128) When Peter came to one day, with Andrew, his name was Simon. And Jesus stood there, never saw the man in His life, listen close, when He was there, looked at the man, He said, “Your name is Simon, and you’re the son of Jonas.” That’s a paradox. Sure was. Certainly a paradox. All right? Ephesus is going to bring forth then a prophet with the same paradoxical sign.

(129) Philip, stood there, heard this and knew that all identity that this was the Messiah, he certainly was. He believed it. He wasn’t dumb, neither was he blind. He run around the bank, for a few miles, got his friend, called Nathanael. Came walking up...The faith of that man, that could bring another man to the meeting, to see!

(130) He walked before Jesus, and Jesus said, “Behold, an Israelite, in whom there is no guile.”

(131) It astonished the man. He said, “When did You ever know me?” Now watch, how unreasonable. Yes sir. It’s unexplainable. He said, “How did You ever know me?”

(132) “Before Philip called you, you’re under a tree, I saw you.” Paradox!

(133) He had a need, go by Samaria. And when He went by Samaria, the city of Sychar, He was sitting out there waiting for His disciples to go in and buy food. And, notice, a woman came out to the well, of ill fame. And He said to her, “Woman get Me a drink.”

(134) She said, “It’s not customary for You to ask that. I’m a Jew, we’re...You’re a Jew, I’m a Samaritan. We have no dealings with You.”

(135) He said, “But if you knew Who was talking to you!” Watch this paradox fixing to happen. Don’t miss it. Said, “How--how can you do this? I’m a woman of Samaria, and You’re a Jew. We have no dealings.” Now see watch, he said, “Watch the paradox.”

(136) He said, “But if you knew Who you were talking to, or Who was talking to you, you would ask Me for a drink.” And He went ahead till He found where her trouble was. And he said, “Go get your husband and come here.” Now notice the same Spirit, He’s telling them is working through Him. That’s the Son of man ministry. And the visibility, he said, “Is revealing the Son of man.” He said, “Get you husband.” She said, “I don’t have a husband” See? Now that was the heart being revealed.

(137) He said, “That’s the truth. You don’t have a husband, because you’ve had five, the one you’re with now is not your husband. Therefore, you’ve said the truth.” Now remember he said, “The seed, the outer part of the seed has got to die before the life can come.” All right, he preached a sermon on, you cannot be married to the church, the world and the organization, your creeds and dogmas, and be married to Christ. There is no way. All right? He said, “Now you’re living with the wrong one.” See? You’ve got to ditch him.

(138) She said, “I perceive You’re a prophet. We haven’t had one for hundreds of years. When Messiah’s coming, we know that He’s going to tell us these things.” He said, “I am He.” All right?

(140) Now let me give you a great paradox here, just a minute. John 14:12, Jesus promised that, “The believer that believed on Him, would do the same works.” Is that right? God, Who makes a law or a promise, must keep that promise, to be God. He does keep it. To think, that God...Why, It’s a paradox, Itself; for God, Who makes a promise and cannot break that promise, to give that promise of the things that He did, to His people, to follow throughout the age until He returned again. “Go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature; every creature, all the world. He that believes and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believes not will be damned; and these signs follow them that believe.” And He’s got to keep that Word, because He said it, it went from His mouth, it’s got to be fulfilled. Now that’s true. That’s got to be fulfilled. Now watch.

(141) All Scripture has got to be fulfilled. So it’s a paradox, alone, to hear Jesus, the Son of God, make such a statement as this, “The things that I do will you do also.” Now the Bible said, in Hebrews thirteen, eight, “He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever.” That’s a paradox, because it has to be done. “Heaven and earth will pass away, but not any Word of Mine, that ever was said will fail,” He said. It has to be done.

(142) Now, friends, I believe He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever. I believe He’s able this afternoon to cause, in this building, a paradox, because He promised it would happen.

Now he’s telling you right there, that this which happened through the ages is a command. There has been given a further command, wherein an individual would do the same and even more works than what Jesus Christ did. Now he said, “That’s a paradox.” You see?

29. Now, you’ll notice what he’s saying here. “That this is not contingent to our belief upon God, but God is going to do it anyway.” See? Now, he said, “Let’s look at this thing.” Now what is this thing we’re going to look at? We’ve been reading it over here in Epistle of Peter. Now 1 Pet 1:10-13. He said:

(10) Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you... (Now that’s not the death of Jesus and the resurrection. That is this hour he’s talking about.)

(11) Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the suffering of Christ, and the glory that should follow. (Now this is the glory that should follow what they were looking into, they couldn’t get it. All they could understand, the suffering.)

(12) Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

(13) Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, and be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

It’s something they didn’t have. It’s a revelation that was left in abeyance. Now it was contingent with what Jesus did in His death. But there’s something concerning the glory down the road, that can only be revealed at that particular time.

Now this is where people are haywire. They think the commandment, “Go into all the world, and preach the gospel. These signs follow.” It dididy, dididy, dididy, diddy, dot; goes down; it’s over. It doesn’t. It starts; it goes: dididy, diddy, dot; up in the air. Because one comes in and repeats at the end what was at the beginning. The Holy Ghost in the building once more, in a human form, in a man. See? God moving. They don’t understand It.

30. And I don’t know if half the people understand what I’m saying, when the tapes and things go out. I can tell you one thing. By telephone calls I get and conversations I have, they sure don’t. They’re still back in the never, never land of creeds and dogmas. If the church said, “No,” that’s just dididy, dididy, dot, goes down. It’s got to be a lie, because it won’t conform to the Word. So you know jolly well that’s not it. See?

Let’s understand, we’ve got confirmed faith for a Rapture, brother/sister, and the dead will come out of the ground. They’re not going to get it any way outside of this Word. There’s no way, shape and form they’re going to have it.

A man said, “Well I preached the Presence of God for twenty years.” His own sister says, “What does he mean? I never heard him.” I’d like to know what he means. You don’t have the prophet say the things he said, and it’s just...all along. That’s what Peter warns of. [ ]

31. He appears to the Gentiles in the form of the Holy Spirit. Now, I was reading in 1 Peter here, something to come. Now let’s go to 2 Peter 1 and find what it is. He tells you here;

(11) For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (Now he’s telling you there’s a Kingdom coming for an abundance entrance.)

(12) Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them, and be established in the truth which is opened before you. (Which is presently before you. Under your consideration.)

(13) Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;

(14) Knowing that shortly I must put off my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me.

(15) Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance. (The things that are before you. What’s before you? The Kingdom; and you getting in it. All right.)

(16) We have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

(17) For he received from God the Father, glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

(18) And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when were with him in the holy mount.

Now that was nothing but a vision. Now he said, “We have the Word of prophecy being confirmed to us.” Now he said, “I’m going to tell you about it.” Now he said, “That Scripture can only come at a time at the revelation, the grace of a revelation, at that period which even the prophets, who tried to figure it, couldn’t figure it.”

32. Now he says here:

(19) Take heed therefore, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star rises in your hearts.

Now It tells you right there, that that grace is going to be revealed as the light, and it is going to shine right into your hearts and do something for you. And that’s exactly what Paul said takes place. The hour of glorification. There’s that “grace” in Joshua’s time Bro. Branham speaks of.

(20) Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. (It tells you no man is going to figure this out on his own. What’s it going to be?)

(21) Prophecy came not in old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spoke as they moved by the Holy Ghost. (A prophet will come thoroughly authenticated by God, that that’s a prophet, that’s the one you hear.)

33. Now he said, “Paradox.” Now how many people believe that? Hogwash. They won’t believe that. People run around the world, say they preach this message; don’t believe that. So what do they believe? I’d like to know. Hogwash and hot air. It’s all it can be.

(142) Now, friend, I believe He’s the same yesterday, and forever. I believe He’s just as able this afternoon to cause, in this building, a paradox, because He promised it would happen.

All right that’s fine. We have had all through ages like a paradox. There’s a great paradox in one thing alone, how can you go to the foreign field and simply stand there as a man and not produce one sign or one bit of evidence, simply stand there and tell about the love and grace of Jesus Christ, Who died, and people get saved? You tell me. If that’s not a paradox, I’ll eat it. That’s absolutely against common sense, and anything that even sounds decent. It sounds like a play upon the emotions and some type of universal insanity, running around the world somewhere. But no, It’s the Spirit of the Living God. Paradox. And when it comes to this hour, a manifestation of Almighty God, wherein He in Person, comes in like we see right here. It’s turned down flat as a fritter. And they’ll put it all back to where it just was nicely… It won’t work brother/sister. It won’t work. Listen.

(143) And how much more has He promised, how much more is it leaving in the Bible, to this very age we’re living, the Ephesians again, of the church ages. You’re going to make people believe that? [] We’ve got seven church ages, and we’re promised at the Laodicean age there would be another Ephesian.

What promise in the Laodciean age? “Behold I stand at the door and knock.” Getting back into the church. The Person. “And at that time I’ll grant you to sit in My throne as I am set down in My Father’s throne.” And when the Lamb took the book, He ripped off the seals, put the book in the Father’s hand, the Father got off the throne, came down here and the Lamb sat on the throne. You do what you want with It.

Now you tell people they’re going to believe that. Ain’t going to believe nothing. That’s one of the mysteries not known from before the foundation of the world, how it was going to be. Jesus Himself said, “It’s in the Father’s hand.” And the Book of Revelation is the revelation that God give to Jesus. And that’s the thing down here. And everybody says, “You can’t know. You can’t know. You can’t know.” Then why did the prophet tell us to know? I suppose that’s a paradox. That would be a lie, not a paradox, to me.

I’d hate to have a man turn around and say, “Now listen son, here’s the house here, and here’s the key, and it’s all yours.” And I go there, and there’s no house, and the key wouldn’t fit anyway. Who needs a prophet like that? Now, I can’t buy that. I can’t buy it.

I believe when every creed and dogma was stripped off, I believe we saw the mercy seat in plain view. I believe we know Him, Whom to know aright is life eternal. I believe things are going on right now, and I believe we’re part of It.

(144) I said in my last message, standing over there against the wall, when I was here a few weeks ago. Every time you move your finger, that goes around, around the world, never stops. “You move it once,” he said, “That motion never stops. It’s recorded eternally.” Not for eternity, but it’s recorded. Every move you make, you’ll see at the Judgment. Television proves that it’s here, the fourth dimension. Television doesn’t manufacturer the picture, it’s only the channels that wave it into a tube, and you see the picture. Color, everything, everything moving that’s happening in the world, is going through right now, making a record. Someday, your record is going to be closed, and you’re going to answer to that record. That’s right.

(145) God let me be so planted, let me be so dead to myself and everything around me, be conscious of the Word of God living among us. He’s telling you, right there’s your seed. You get that Word in here, and you’ll just kill everything else around you. Just kill it, just be dead to everything else, and you watch how It’ll work.

35. All right, just jumping now.

(161) Now look. I want you to give me your undivided attention. Jesus made a promise, “A little while the world won’t see Me, yet you’ll see Me.” Do you believe that? The “world”, the world, is “the order of the world.” See, that, He knew they’d go off in fashion and things. “But they won’t see Me no more, you’ll see Me.” He promised, “I’ll be with you, even to the end of the world.” Is that right? And the Bible said, “The same yesterday, today and forever.” He’s always been that way through revelation, at the end time He’s perfectly revealed.

Okay, let’s keep moving.

(181) Now, if the Lord Jesus Christ, lady, can reveal to me what’s wrong with you, or what you’re here for, something about it, that you know I don’t know nothing about, or something in that order, would you believe it was Him? It would have to be Him, wouldn’t it? [The sister says, “Yes.”] It would have to be Him. If He will do it, then and be thankful that we know His Word is right, then we can put confidence in that.

Now remember he said, “I’m going to demonstrate a paradox. I’m going to demonstrate an Ephesians.” Okay, here’s your Ephesians.

(182) If He can reveal your trouble to me, and me not knowing you, and you know that; but now if He can reveal to me what your trouble is, or something about you, then that shows there’s a Spirit here, somewhere, that knows you, and you know I don’t. Now that’s not the baptism. So it wouldn’t be man, it would be the Spirit. That’s what God promised at this time of Ephesus. Now he doesn’t call it a gift, he puts it where it is. Do you believe that to be the Truth? All right?

(187) Now if I can just get myself, and that man can get himself out of the way, then that part is dead, then let the Spirit of Life go to work.

William Branham just says, “Okay, I got no feelings on the subject. I’ve got know thought. Here I stand Lord. What ever You want, and I don’t even have to have faith. Don’t have to have anything, just standing here.” That person gets himself out of the way. Now watch God begin to move. See? I’ll just wait a minute. Now he said,

(192) That’s right. Now if He’ll do that for you, between you and me, and the audience...not a show, but that they might see that the Ephesian is here, the Ephesus is here, that this is the thing that bridges between denomination and the Glory Land. Joshua, paradox. He promised it, that they might be assured that we’re telling, what we’re telling is the Truth.

He’s telling you right there, “What ever I show you is the vindication of the Word of the hour. He is here. He has vindicated Himself. He has therefore vindicated His Word. If you believe this, you are in that Promised Land that’s going to take you over into the Millennium.” Now it’s just that simple.

36. You say, “Well, I’ve got to have this. I got to put something to it.” Well why don’t you just give me all your money, and bake all your cakes and everything else? I’ll help you out. Do you want to cut yourself? I’ll give you the knife, and I’ll help you. Do you want to make alot of things right? That we all should. Let’s all go and help each other make them right. That isn’t going to do the trick. I’m sorry. You want to give yourself to be burned? Starve yourself to death? Run to the mission field? Leave your wife and kids? Make unreasonable sacrifices? Be my guest. There is the answer: prophet, God, Word. And you stand there and rot, to all your crazy crack pot ideas you’ve always had.

Say, “Well Bro. Vayle, if I had a great gift.” You’d have your great gift, you’d make a lot of money, be a perfect jackass. You wouldn’t know what to do with it. If you had a million dollars, there’s not one person here could handle it, not one of you, not all together combined, couldn’t handle a million dollars. You think you could. I’d like to see you make the test, but for your own soul’s sake I wouldn’t want to see you have a test. So what do you think you could do? See? This is the whole thing that the prophet’s trying to tell us, “He’s trying to put something into it.” See?

37. Now he said, “If I’m just standing here now, and everything I’ve taught, everything hinges on what I’m doing now, what I’m going to say, hinges on what I’m going to do, what I’m showing you here, this is the thing,” he said, “It’s already here. This is that Truth.” Do they believe it? Well I don’t know.

(214) Now, how many believe He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever, sensing His Presence? Now you’ve seen His Presence. Now your eye has seen, your ears have understood, and God has confirmed before your eyes, His Presence. Now it’s not baptism.

(215) Is there one here, is one here in the midst of us, that’s never been a Christian; never had any confession? Would you stand up, “I want to stand, not to you, minister; but I want to stand while I’m in the Presence of that Person, Jesus Christ--He wants the person to say that.--Who is the Holy Spirit over us. Doesn’t say in us now, he said over us. I want to stand and say ‘I want You to save me from my sins.’“?

(216) Is there one in the building? You give your testimony, stand up and say, “I’ve been wrong.” I’m just closing all this off.

(218) Has there been anybody that’s been suspicious of this ministry, and you’re convinced now it’s true? Raise your hand up and say, “God forgive me.” Just raise up here and say, “I was a little suspicous, Bro. Branham; it’s all gone now.” Raise your hand. Not one? Thank you.

(219) How many believes This? Ah fap, I was there, I was there. I never caught it, wasn’t one person caught it as far as I know. William Branham alone caught it. How many believes This? Couldn’t be me; but it’s Christ, Son of God. Thank you. That’s different, see? They’ll believe that then. Then you shall see greater things than this done, as long as you believe. Just stay with Christ.

What’s the greater thing? See the dead come out of the ground. Paradox. There it is. Incredible but true. How can a person believe these things? Come on, they didn’t believe Moses. They didn’t believe Joshua. They’re not going to believe this. They didn’t believe Jesus Chris. And it wasn’t the guy in the street. It wasn’t the harlot and the prostitute. It was the theologian and the church member. It was the nice guy. See? He couldn’t stand to hear, or to see, what he trusted in exploded.

38. I’m going to tell you something brother/sister, there’s a lot of fish in the ocean down there. If you bring them out of the depths, they’ll explode. You get them out of their creeds and dogmas. They’re pressurized to it. They’ll explode. This Word is no good for them. Won’t do them one thing. You get out of your creeds and dogmas, let the light shine on you, and you’ve got a chance of surviving. In fact you will survive.

39. But that’s what the Message is all about. It’s a paradox. A man stood there, and when he spoke, nature listened. The sun and the moon stood still. It’ll never happen again, just can’t. But there would come a day when a man would speak, as Christ spoke to the fig tree, and the fig tree died. There would come a day when a man out of season, because the fig tree was out of season--and William Branham was out of season--He wasn’t born in Pentecost, he was out of season. Like Paul, one born out of due season. would come on the scene and he would speak, and the mountains would begin to fall in the ocean.

40. The sixth seal would open in March of 1964. People say, “I don’t believe that.” That’s fine by me. He said what that was. They said, “We don’t believe it.” He said what that was. They said, “We don’t believe it.” That’s certainly fine. Then I want those people to show me one sign. “Oh, we’ll bring our church and show you what a great thing our church did.” What great thing did Jesus do? They still can’t understand. If He really was God, which He was, He’s the biggest flop the world ever seen.

41. I like exactly when Woody Allen said, “What do you think of Jesus?” “He was an underachiever.” What’d you think of William Branham? He was an underachiever. What do you think of us? Underachievers. It’s the way it’s got to be, in the eyes of a man. But what about Jesus in the eyes of God in redemption and those that know Him? He was an over achiever. What about William Branham? One sign could bring in hundreds of thousands of native Africans. A hundred thousand signs, could hardly bring in one American.

42. Paradox. If this does not continue to be a paradox, if everything that Bro. Branham brought out was not a paradox, let me assure you, you’re believing wrong somewhere. Yes, you’re believing wrong somewhere. Let’s rise.

Gracious heavenly Father, Lord God of the universe, Creator of all things, and Author and Finisher of our faith. We love You tonight and adore Your matchless, wonderful. Name. Knowing that, how true it is, everything was a paradox. We go right back to the very beginning of Genesis, and the earth was without form and void, and people say, “Now how in the world was that anyway? Why would it be that way? Why would it be chaotic?” Paradox. “Why would You put a light there, then put other lights in?” Paradox. “Why would You do this, and do that?” Everything became a Paradox, and we haven’t realized that that’s exactly the way It is. But You said that when You came here upon the earth in the form of a man. Thank You Heavenly Father. We thank You O God, the source of all wisdom, we’re so grateful that He could say, “As I had, You revealed it unto children” and You kept it from the wise, the prudent, the smart ones. All they’ll do is be confused, but a child will come by and say, “Isn’t that great?” And fall heir to it.

And we see today these things and we wonder, and yet, we only wonder in so far as it is a marvellous attitude, and a marvelling attitude rather, at the goodness and the power of our God. We just marvel at that, Lord, how wonderful. But we believe it, all the way down the line. I cannot help believe what I’ve seen, and I do believe it. And Lord by Your grace I shall ever more believe. And that which is around me as the life and the seed, that clothing that’s outside, that shell has got to rot. Everything has got to rot, Lord. Let everything in my mind, pre-conceived rot, as it’s been a careful picking away, and a blasting away, and a hoping away, Lord; but now let it be a complete erosion. Let it just rot all away. Let the Word of God, let the hammer, the chisel, the fire, the sword, the power of It, not only erode but hammer, chisel, burn, scorch and simply reduce to nothing, to a form of annihilation, everything in our hearts and our minds, which are not fully congruent with being a part of the Word. Lord, let it all go.

We’re tired of all these other things. We want to be right there, if it’s part of the great paradox, hallejuah. Lord God let it be that way. Spur us, Lord, to be more amiable to Your Holy Will in every manner or form, so that we simply love You with an undying love and a great gratitude. And nothing is too difficult, nothing is too tedious, nothing is too anything, but a great joy in our Lord. And even those things, Lord, which we don’t understand, let them now become a source of inspiration, knowing that further revelation on this great light and Word that’s before us, is just waiting to break upon us. So we’re not walking in doubt. We’re like Abraham, didn’t find it difficult at all to take the knife to slit his son’s throat, knowing that the promise was there, knowing that the day star shall rise in our heart. That dawn’s broken forth, revelation is our portion. The image is coming, closer and closer to reality.

Then therefore, Lord, we wait in anticipation for every ray of light and every change that You bring to us in this great metamorphisis, the great transfiguration. For we are not any longer of the earth, earthy, no way. We have now come under the quickening Spirit, the Lord of Heaven, waiting for the entire transformation. Father, we cannot thank You enough for it. We believe it. And now, Lord, we’re so happy for every one who’s a part of this lovely bride of Jesus Christ. And we look at each other now in the light and the life of transformation, to see our brothers and sisters, no longer at what they might have thought they were, we might have thought they were, but we see them now living members in Christ Jesus our Lord. Lord, we want to go the whole way, we don’t want to stop at any point. There is no turning back; no turning back. We believe the Word of God has triumphed and You, Lord, at the head of Your church, putting all things in order. We commend ourselves to you and commit ourselves to You, the grace of Almighty God. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen.

All right, let’s just go singing, “Take the Name of Jesus With You.” Sunday morning again at eleven o’clock. All right. Let’s sing it.