Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.
And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.
The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:
In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
Hch 8:29-35
Martin said Satan appeared to him one time, great golden crown on, three or four decks of stars in it like that, glistening and beautiful, great big fellow, nice, handsome, correctly combed and groomed, a great beautiful robe on, and his shoes on his feet was gold, walked out and said, "Martin, do you know me?"
Now, people that don't see visions, this might not--this might not--you might not understand it (See?), but how things come to you in different spirits, and how deceiving they are. The Bible said they would deceive the very elected if it was possible. See? The elected, that's those who are predestinated and born for that purpose. See, see?
So he come to this elected; he said, "Martin, do you know me? I am Christ." He said, "Will you recognize me?" Martin hesitated: seemed strange, he waited a minute. And he said again, he said, "Don't you see me? I am Christ. Do you recognize me?" He said it three or four times to him.
Christ said, or Martin said, "Satan, I know you. My Lord is not crowned yet, but His saints shall crown Him." There's the Word back.
61-1231M YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN JEFFERSONVILLE (161-163)
Now, we've played church for years and years, but the hour's come now that when Jambres and Jannes will withstand Moses as the Bible said they would. And it's going to be spiritual battle: conflict. There'll be some just continue on. The denominational church will just move right on into domination, and go on the way it goes. But I mean the real true believer is coming to that battlefield. And you'd better be versed and know what you're doing, or you could take an evil spirit so easy and not know. If it's contrary to this Word, don't believe it. Stay with that Word.
Idolatry, idolatry's old. It's old here in the United States. And years ago the Pueblo Indians and--out in Arizona, they had an idol-worship. And that was, they--they had a rain god. And the rain god would take a--a mud turtle, and they made an image of a mud turtle. And they put specks all over him like he come up out of the mud. And they would throw themselves before this mud turtle, believing that there was a rain god came down into this mud turtle hull, and spoke to them through this mud turtle, because they believed that the--he lived in the mud and moisture, and he was a god over it. They had a... It's a mythology, just a--a make-belief that it is true.
Now, and they worshipped devils in doing so. Worshipping a mud turtle, thinking it was a rain god, they brought spirit upon them, sure, 'cause they opened their hearts to it. But it was the wrong spirit.
So many people today are opening their hearts to the wrong thing. You get a spirit all right, but many times it contradicts the Word, saying, "The days of miracles is past. There's no such a thing as this or that." Remember, that's a devil under the disguisement of Christianity. God help us when we get down into this in a--after a bit, that you see it (See?), that it's an evil spirit in the disguisement of Christianity. But it isn't the Spirit of Christ, because the Spirit of Christ comes to the Word every time. He can't deny His Own Word.
61-1217 CHRISTIANITY VERSUS IDOLATRY JEFFERSONVILLE (79-82)
Now this messenger of Malachi 4 and Revelation 10:7 is going to do two things. One: According to Malachi 4 he will turn the hearts of the children to the fathers. Two: He will reveal the mysteries of the seven thunders in Revelation 10 which are the revelations contained in the seven seals. It will be these Divinely revealed 'mystery-truths' that literally turn the hearts of the children to the Pentecostal fathers. Exactly so.
But consider this also. This prophet-messenger will be in his nature and manners as were Elijah and John. The people of this prophet-messenger's day will be as they were in Ahab's day, and in John's. And since it is "ONLY THE CHILDREN" whose hearts will be turned, it is only the children who will listen. In the days of Ahab only 7,000 true seed Israelites were found. In the days of John there were also very few. The masses in both ages were in the fornication of idolatry.
I want to make one more comparison between the Laodicean prophet-messenger and John, the prophet-messenger who preceded Jesus' first coming. The people in John's day mistook him for the Messiah.
John 1:19-20,
"And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ."
Now this last day prophet-messenger will have such power before the Lord that there will be those who mistake him for the Lord Jesus.
(There will be a spirit in the world at the end time that will seduce some and make them believe this.
Matthew 24:23-26,
"For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Behold, I have told you before.
Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth; behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not.")
But don't you believe it. He is not Jesus Christ. He is not the Son of God. HE IS ONE OF THE BRETHREN, A PROPHET, A MESSENGER, A SERVANT OF GOD. He needs no greater honor bestowed upon him than that which John received when he was the voice that cried, "I am not He, BUT HE IS COMING AFTER ME."
Before we close this section on the messenger of the Laodicean Age, we must seriously consider these two thoughts. First, this age will have ONE Prophet-Messenger. Revelation 10:7, says, "When he (singular) shall begin to sound." There has never been an age where God gave His people two major prophets at one time. He gave Enoch (alone); He gave Noah (alone); He gave Moses (he alone had the Word though others prophesied); John the Baptist came ALONE. Now in this last day there is to be a PROPHET (not a prophetess--though in this age there are more women purporting to give God's revelation than men), and the infallible Word says that he (the prophet) will reveal the mysteries to the end time people, and turn the hearts of the children back to the fathers.
There are those who say that God's people are going to come together through a collective revelation. I challenge that statement. It is a bald, invalid assumption in the face of Revelation 10:7. Now I do not deny that people will prophesy in this last age and their ministries can and will be correct. I do not deny that there will be prophets even as in the days of Paul when there was "one Agabus a prophet who prophesied of a famine". I agree that is so. BUT I DENY UPON THE INFALLIBLE EVIDENCE OF THE WORD THAT THERE IS MORE THAN ONE MAJOR PROPHET-MESSENGER WHO WILL REVEAL THE MYSTERIES AS CONTAINED IN THE WORD, AND WHO HAS THE MINISTRY TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE CHILDREN TO THE FATHERS. "Thus saith the Lord" by His unfailing Word stands, and shall stand and be vindicated. There is one prophet-messenger to this age.
On the basis of human behavior alone, anyone knows that where there are many people there is even divided opinion on lesser points of a major doctrine which they all hold together. Who then will have the power of infallibility which is to be restored in this last age, for this last age is going to go back to manifesting the Pure Word Bride? That means we will have the Word once again as it was perfectly given, and perfectly understood in the days of Paul. I will tell you who will have it. It will be a prophet as thoroughly vindicated, or even more thoroughly vindicated than was any prophet in all the ages from Enoch to this day, because this man will of necessity have the capstone prophetic ministry, and God will shew him forth. He won't need to speak for himself, God will speak for him by the voice of the sign. Amen.
The second thought that must be impressed on our hearts is that the seven church ages started out with the antichrist spirit as well as the Holy Spirit Who is to be blessed forever.
I John 4:1,
"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world."
Did you notice it? The antichrist spirit is identified with false prophets. The ages came in with false prophets and they will go out with false prophets. Now of course there is going to be a REAL FALSE PROPHET in the grand sense of that man mentioned in the Revelation. But as of now before his revelation there are to appear many false prophets.
Matthew 24:23-26,
"Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Behold, I have told you before.
Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth: behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not."
These false prophets are earmarked for us in various other Scriptures such as the following.
II Peter 2:1-2,
"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord That bought them and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of."
II Timothy 4:3-4,
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."
I Timothy 4:1,
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils."
Now in every case you will notice that a false prophet is one who is outside the Word. Just as we showed you that 'antichrist' means 'anti-Word' so these false prophets come perverting the Word, giving it a meaning that fits their own devilish ends. Have you ever noticed how the people who lead others astray bind them closely to themselves by fear? They say that if the people don't do what they say, or if they leave, then destruction will follow. They are false prophets, for a true prophet will always lead one to the Word and bind the people to Jesus Christ and he won't tell the people to fear him or what he says, but to fear what the Word says. Notice how these people like Judas are out for money. They get you to sell all you have and give it to them and their schemes. They spend more time on offerings than the Word. Those who attempt to operate gifts will make use of a gift which has a margin of error in it and then ask for money, and neglect the Word and call it of God. And people will go to them, and bear with them, and support them, and believe them, not knowing it is the way of death.
Yes, the land is full of carnal impersonators. In that last day they will try to imitate that prophet-messenger. The seven sons of Sceva tried to imitate Paul. Simon the sorcerer tried to imitate Peter. Their impersonations will be carnal. They won't be able to produce what the true prophet produces. When he says the revival is over they will go around claiming a great revelation that what the people have is exactly right and God is going to do bigger and more wonderful things amongst the people. And the people will fall for it. These same false prophets will claim that the messenger of the last day is not a theologian, so he ought not to be heard. They won't be able to produce what the messenger can; they won't be vindicated by God as that last day prophet is, but with their great swelling words and with the weight of their world-wide notoriety they will warn the people not to hear that man (messenger) and they will say he teaches wrong. They are running exactly true to their fathers, the Pharisees, who were of the devil, for they claimed that both John and Jesus taught error.
Now why do these false prophets come against the true prophet and discredit his teaching? Because they are running true to form as did their forefathers when in the days of Ahab they withstood Micaiah. There were four hundred of them and all of them were in agreement; and by them all saying the same thing, they fooled the people. But ONE prophet--just one--was right and all the rest wrong because God had committed the revelation to ONLY ONE.
Beware of false prophets, for they are ravening wolves.
If you are still in any doubt about this ask God by His Spirit to fill you and lead you, FOR THE VERY ELECT CAN'T BE FOOLED. Did you get that? There isn't any man can fool you. Paul could not fool any elect, had he been wrong. And in that first Ephesian Age the elect there could not be fooled for they tried the false apostles and prophets and found them to be liars and put them out. Hallelujah. HIS sheep hear His voice and they follow HIM. Amen. I believe it.
THE LAODICEAN CHURCH AGE (327-1 -331-3)
And then that brings me to thinking of thirty-one years (will be soon) of ministry for the Lord. And I guess every man thinks of sometime when he has to come to his last service, and come to his last hour, and look back down the path, and see what has been accomplished, see what's went on, "Have you did anything?" And as I have just said, it's what you do for others that counts.
I often wonder what would be when I got to the end of my road, which we don't know what time that will be, none of us. So I was thinking about looking back down along the trail where I've come through life, and seen the different hills, and briar patches, and rocks, and hard places, and smooth runnings, and what I did in those kind of times. It'll all show up one of these days at the hour of my going away. And it'll do that on each one of us. We will all be sure of that, that it'll show up to each one when that time comes.
And that brings me or leads me to say something that I would rather run than say. It leads me to say something that I... It grinds my heart to the bottom to say it, but what I say I am forced to say, realizing that this is being taped and the world will hear it, but I have left the ministry for a cause that I am sorry that I have to leave for. And perhaps many of you have heard it; I'm closing my office, and so forth, and leaving the field.
I don't know where our Lord will lead me to, and that I have no control of, or whatever He will have for me to do. But I'm thinking at the end of the road where I must come. And down along life's journeys I have made so many mistakes that I am very sorry from my heart of, because of, I guess, being human and in weakness and so forth, causes a person to do things or say things that, and even act that they would not want to act otherwise. But being the weakness of a human being, why, we have those times. But there...
If there's anything that has been in my heart to do, was to hear those Words of our Lord Jesus at the end of this journey, to say, "It was well done, My good and faithful servant." And many times I have said I'd like to have been standing there when He said, "Come unto Me"; but I did desire to hear it say, "Well done." That I did not hear the voice in the original say, "Come unto Me," back in the times of the writing of the Bible; but I do desire to hear it say, "Well done."
And if anything I always wanted to be, and desires of my heart to be, was a true servant to Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour. I want my testimony to be clean, clear cut, that I stood, in all my mistakes I yet loved Him with all my heart. And I do that this morning with all my heart.
And because of that, it forces me to say I am leaving the ministry, is because that there's something arose up amongst the people that's caused me to do it; that is, that I have been taken from my bracket of a minister or a brother and being called Jesus Christ, and so call... And that would brand me as an antichrist. And I'll meet God as a quitter before I would meet Him as an antichrist to take away from Him.
I heard of it a few years ago and I thought it was a joke. And I met a couple brethren (which I don't see neither one of them in the meeting this morning), two or three of them one time in a fishing trip, and they approached me by the subject of saying, "Brother Branham, aren't you the anointed Messiah, the Christ?"
And I put my arms around the neck of both brethren, or all of them, and I said, "Brethren, as much as I have tried to be a true servant of Christ, I would not that you would say such a thing as that. And if it would ever be said of me, then I will leave the field with a clear conscience, and you who do that will be responsible for every soul that I would've saved during that time (See?), for taking me from the field." And I thought that ended it.
And I heard it a few more times. But it wasn't so. And the other day in Canada a brother showed me a little ticket of a thing he packed in his pocket, said, "William Branham is our Lord," baptizing in the name of William Branham. And a little... a precious... If it'd been an enemy, if it'd been my enemy I would've knowed it was a joke. But a precious, darling brother come up to confess his sins and his wrongs and say his faith in me as being Jesus Christ.
And I have got letters at home, and calls from Chicago and different places, asking me if I believe that dogma.
And I got all kinds of letters that's come in the last few days, and calls from different places, and so--or--or saying that I was Christ. Brethren, that is a horrible, disgraceful, ungodly lie of the devil. See, see? I am your brother. Now, that would run any person from the field. That would make anyone that loves Christ run from the very thing.
I went to the Lord here not long ago, when I first heard it, about a year ago, and then I went to the Lord and He referred to me to the Scripture that when John came forth a-preaching, that they hadn't had a prophet on the earth for so many years, until it would... They was all amazed in their heart, thinking maybe John was the Messiah. So then I... John, they went and asked him, and he said that he was not. You read that in Luke the 3rd chapter, 15th verse. And so then... But that kind of quietened down, so I let it go like that.
But then when it come to this, then I knowed that something must be done. And I say this, that the visions and the Angel of the Lord that appeared at the river, if this is to be my last message or last thing to the church, to the world, "Those things are truth, as far as the Angel of the Lord."
And I stood still if people called me a prophet many times, 'cause a prophet in the English testament is just "a preacher, a prophesier, a foreteller of the Word," and so forth. I'd stand for that, 'cause you could just kind of push that down; but when it comes to be calling anointed Christ, or something, that was too much for me. So I just couldn't stand that.
And so then about... I come... After leaving the meeting at Canada, I found out that way up in the Eskimos or the Indians up there, it had got among them.
And so it just tore me all up. And the hunting trip that I had planned so long, I could not take it. I was afraid of a hunting accident, if you understand what I mean. I got so shaky, worse than I am standing here now. And I just couldn't stand it any longer, to think that thirty-one years of ministry went down the devil's gutter pipe, into the... When I'm gone, what will they say? "There he is; that's exactly what it was." And all the influence that I had upon the people, then you see where it'd be, I'd be an antichrist. And I just couldn't stand it.
I thought, "I'd rather die here in the woods, like I fell on my gun or something, than..." And I seen I was... Then I thought about my little Joseph, and so forth, that had to be raised. And I was no condition to hunt, so I just left the woods and come home.
And I've been tore up about eight or ten days, in such a fix I just... I thought I was losing my mind. And I just asked everybody to stay away from me and let me alone, 'cause I'm in such a fix and nervous and upset and all tore to pieces.
And I wondered; if it would've been some enemy of mine, it would been all right, but I would just have laughed at it and went on; but when it come to being precious brothers, precious sisters, then that's what hurt me. And I said, "Lord, the great--thing's too great for me; I'll just have to walk out and leave it in Your hands. I--I don't know nothing else to do."
A few nights ago, to make it sure, I had a--a visitation from the Lord. And I seen a precious ones, a babying a serpent which was yellow and black, and telling me right along, and--and the thing struck me on the leg. But the blood was so rich it didn't take effect on me. And I looked down, and there's where I had been bit before. And I turned quickly with a gun and shot the--the thing, and it hit it right in the middle of the thing.
And a brother said... I turned with my gun to shoot its head off, and he said, "Don't do that; just pick up the stick laying there by you." And when I turned my back to pick up the stick, it wiggled into some water, just a small puddle of water.
I said, "Well, it can't hurt very much longer now because I believe the brother realizes (the brethren) that what would happen." I said, "It'll... It's mortally wounded, so it'll die."
And I asked many of my members of my church here, in this Tabernacle with Brother Neville and I, that's come approaching me with that same question. Brothers, sisters, haven't I tried to be a true servant of Christ before you? Have not I tried to be your brother?
Now, wherever it is; it's a spirit on precious people. Many people has asked me that. But it's--it's a spirit, but I hope that today that it receives a deadly wound and will die out quickly so I can return back to the ministry. Until then, I'll ask you each one: pray for me. I don't know what I'll do. My place up for sale. And I just can't stand it; I--I--I stay around, I'll go completely stark mad. And I'm... I ask you to pray for me.
And, remember, if you've ever believed me, if you've ever believed me to be a servant of Christ, remember, "That is an error. It's falsely. THUS SAITH THE LORD. It is wrong. Have nothing to do with it. I am your brother. Let us bow our heads:
Heavenly Father, my flesh is trembling; my hands are squeezing together; my toes are drawed up in my shoes. O God, be merciful. What have I ever done, Lord, to deserve this? I pray that You'll be so merciful to me, Lord, and to all. And up there in them precious darling people, may they see their error and what they have did, Lord, to break the heart of their brother and to--not only their brother, but our Saviour; our heavenly Father. I pray that You'll forgive us of our errors, Lord. Let the holy Blood of Christ now draw our beings together, Lord, and blessed be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love and fellowship.
God, may the enemy that's approached our brothers and our sisters with--may it receive a deadly wound that cannot exist any longer; may it just die away, Lord. When You do that, Father, I'll return back to the field again. But until then, Lord, I am Your heartbroken servant, waiting, waiting. It's beyond anything I could do. With tears and with crying and with persuading I tried, Lord, hard (You know my heart.), to stop it before it got that far; but it went beyond anything I could do. So, Father, I commit it into Your Hand from this pulpit to where I've preached for all these years. I commit it into Your Hand.
Now, You see to it, Father, in Your own Divine way. And when it's all finished and everything is over, then Thy servant shall return. Until then I'll be waiting to hear from You, Lord.
Bless us now and give us a great service today; as we're here not altogether for this, but just to make it clear, publicly, before the world. That they might know, Father, that I love You and believe You, and have stood for You, and--and want to... If I have to go, let me go, Lord, with a clean heart and a real record that I have believed You and trusted You. Grant it. And I'll praise Thee and we'll give Thee glory through all ages that is to come through Jesus Christ. Amen.
61-0611 REVELATION, CHAPTER FIVE #1 JEFFERSONVILLE (21-48)
I pray for you. You pray for me. Just don't--don't say, "Brother Branham, I will." You do it. See? I'm depending on that. I'm the one that needs prayer. If He can shove me somewhere... Remember, I'm a human being; I'm not God. I'm just a human being like you are, trying to find the will of God so I can walk in it. No one can know until... "And he that lacks wisdom let him ask of God." And that's what I'm doing, asking of God. And I'm just putting that to you as my church, a heart-to-heart talk. What, where are we at? Where we standing? What hour are we living in? We're at the end time; I believe. I believe we're right here at the end.
62-0527 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS JEFFERSONVILLE (732-232)
A vision. Now, remember, I am not no Messiah. I'm no Christ. But He is here. That's what I'm trying to get you to see. He's here; He's keeping His Word.
64-0311 GOD IS IDENTIFIED BY HIS CHARACTERISTICS BEAUMONT TX (159)
Predicado por el Rvdo. William M. Branham
