God's Provided Way

Thank you, Brother Reed.

Good evening, friends. Very happy to be here this evening to be in the service of the Lord to do ... to try to do His work. And we pray that it'll be a blessing to many of you. It's a blessing to us to be here with you, in His service. So, I think....

I'm very conscious of cameras. [Brother Branham and the congregation laugh.] All right. I remember, many times in the services, of the pictures and things, why.... The Lord bless you, brother.

So, I remember it's kind of the hardest thing for me to look right in one; I'm blind for an hour after looking at one. [Brother Branham laughs and the congregation laughs.]

This has certainly been a privilege to be here. Looks like homecoming sure enough, to see them all lined up around the wall again. The people out ... standing out in the rain and so forth. It looks like being down in Arkansas.

And so, we didn't advertise the meetings because that we were, you know, for a few days where we could teach and preach a little while, and kind of get the things lined up. We hope to be back with you again soon, if the Lord tarries.

I'm going home now to get ready for Africa and India, and Palestine, Germany, many places overseas. Our Lord just give us the greatest meeting, in Africa. We had thirty thousand converts in one day—thirty thousand in one day. And when they seen the glory of God coming down.... The missionaries has been over there telling them about it. Then when they seen our Lord come in and do just what ... that they had been taught He would do.... I asked for the altar call and thirty thousand raw heathens come to Jesus Christ at one time. We had about three or four meetings. There was a hundred thousand altogether, but thirty thousand with one altar call.

So, we're going right back to the same place again, where the Lord has promised me, by a vision. Many of you wants to hear about if a vision speaks and what it will come to pass. Now you write this in your Bible, like you did the little boy to be resurrected from the dead in Finland. You remember that? You seen it in The Voice of Healing and so forth. After two years it had been predicted. We're going to have a meeting there, which will be three times the size of the other. There will be three hundred thousand people in the meeting. See if that isn't true.

And oh, how our Lord will bless this time, more than He did the other time. Now, you write that down on something, just put it away and see if that isn't right.

There's going to somewhere, I don't know where. There's a little baby, got a little white shock of hair set in front of its head here, just about eight, ten months old, something like that. I'm a very poor judge of age. It's going to die. Something is in its throat or chest that will kill it. It'll be carried out on a canvas stretcher, colored green, to an undertaker wagon to take it away. I'll be coming by at that time, and will recognize the vision. God will give the baby back its life. It'll go back into the house again, and be well. Now, just see if that isn't true.

I'm watching for a little boy, red-headed. His mother will have one of those things that women wear around their heads, scarves, you know. And she's tall, thin woman, the little boy is about so high with polio, very badly crippled. He's going to be made instantly whole. When I see him, I'll know him—the vision. And see.... You watch, and you'll see those things that will come to pass.

Our Lord is here tonight. Many are standing, been standing for quite a while, no doubt. And I feel sorry for you to have to stand like that. Some day, there's some of the brothers out on the field that ... well, they was probably a little more prosperous in the financial ways than I was, and they got great big tents. And many of them now are not using them. So, several of them has called me and told me I could have their tent, if I wanted to use it. Some of them seat as many as fifteen thousand.

I was talking to Brother Reed; I'd like to bring that right outside of Jonesboro and pitch it for about a month, somewhere out there; have a good old-fashioned meeting. We get all the churches everywhere to cooperate; no matter who they are, let them cooperate. Now, of course, we know there'll be many that won't. And many that would not cooperate. But, there's some that doesn't believe in divine healing. They've never had a touch of God, they can't believe. They just can't believe. There's nothing there to believe with, see. If there's no life, there's just no life. That's just it.

So you, well, you don't want to argue with the people. The Bible said just let them alone. We've had them all through the ages, started back there with Cain. They come all down through the age, and now the whole vine is going to seed, and we're.... Sure, it'll be these days, so, be very, very ecclesiastical, very Orthodox, too, in belief. But just simply, strictly unbelievers, born in the world for that purpose, and couldn't believe if they had to; the Bible said so. That's the Word of God. Born in the world, foreordained to this condemnation. So we just have to have that. But, where the carcass is the eagles will be gathered. Where God is moving, people will come to worship God. It has always been.

Now, very thankful and expressing my thanks tonight, to Brother Reed, and to Sister Reed, to the officers of this church, to every member, for your fine cooperation during this time. We are.... Little party has been scattered, different ones are home resting. Mr. Sharritt is in Phoenix, Arizona. Mr. Bosworth is in Durban, South Africa, setting the meeting together. Baron Von Blomberg is in India making ready a dinner. I'm to have a dinner with Mr. Nehru, which is the prime minister of India. And then, he goes from there to the King of Trans-jordan for a little dinner. And then we go in from there, from the Mohammedans over to Israel, and from there up to Luxembourg, Germany. Mr. Baxter, the speaker, he's in British Columbia.

My next meeting, known, will be at Connersville, Indiana. We will have seating capacity there for around twenty thousand at Connersville, Indiana. That meeting has been set up now. There's forty-three full Gospel churches in the district there, cooperating with it, with many, many dozens or more, plumb over in Toledo, Ohio, and all through there. We begin on the thirty-first of this month, at Connersville, Indiana, in a big Holy Spirit rally, preaching the Gospel, praying for the sick, expecting many to be there. And we invite you. If you're anyway around that neighborhood, come.

If you've been converted during the time of this revival, and you don't have any church that you've taken up with yet, I'd ask you to come join this little church. It's a wonderful little place here to come, serve the Lord. If I lived here in this neighborhood, I'd be a member of this church. I am a member of it, anyhow, I'm an associate pastor. And so, I have to come back once in awhile to see about my church. And I look around, you know, so I will be back to see you, the Lord willing, pretty soon.

And all you people that's around in these other cities, that belongs to these churches, go to church every day, every day that you can, every day that they have service, go. Attend your church, be real loyal. Just stand by your church. Stand by your pastor, help him out with everything you got. Give him spiritual support. Fast and pray for him. And have faith in him, and God will lead the church on to that glorious day that we're looking forward to come. No matter, you say, “Well, our church don't believe....”

Well now, as long as you believe the main fundamentals and are born-again of the Spirit of the God, well.... You might believe Christ coming on a white horse, and some believes He's coming on a white cloud, but that won't stop Him from coming. He will come anyhow. So, you just believe Him, you see, and He will be here.

And now, I appreciate all. Brother Reed said they taken a love offering for me, which I did ... and, I mean, a missionary offering tonight, too.

What I do with money.... The reason that I don't own a big tent, or have places like that.... I spend every penny of money—God, who is my solemn judge, knows—that everything that I don't have to have to live on, I put it in foreign missions, and go over to the heathen lands to preach the Gospel to the heathens, to bring them the same type of ministry that you see right here. And then when that day comes, I want to be counted a steward that did just exactly what God would have me to do. And if I know I take it myself, and go over there and do.... Well, it won't be altogether ... I won't receive the reward. It'll be you people that sent me, because I couldn't go without you sending me (that's right), without you making a way. God put on your heart, and I will use every bit of it, the best of my knowledge, for the outgoing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I pray on that day when the crowns are given out to the saints, that I will be standing back when I see the Jonesboro group come up there. I'll be awful noisy, I'm afraid, when I see Him place.... I think of what it'll be when the last Supper is set there in Glory. And we've all overcome, sit across the table from one another. I look across the table and see old battle-scared saints sitting there, tears of joy running down their cheeks. We will just have to reach across the table and take one another by hand.

I'll say, “Oh, brother, I'm so glad to see you.” Just think of that long supper table. Then the King will come out in His beautiful garments and wipe all tears from our eyes, saying, “Don't cry no more, we're all here now, it's all over. Last prayer meeting is over now. No more fasting. No more praying, we're all home. Now enter into the joys of the Lord.” That's what I want to hear. That's what I'm working hard, day and night, all the time that I can, to do.

Now, the Lord bless you. And I hope to be back with you. The latch string hangs on the outside of my door at home. Coming through there, drop in, say, “How are you, Brother Branham?” There's a crowd there, usually, so just push right on through. Say, “I'm from Arkansas.”

I want to read some Scriptures for about a ten-minute talk. Then we'll try to call a prayer line. I don't know how we're going to do it, but we're going to try, if the Lord willing.

(Now, if you want to turn your air conditioner on for a few moments, it's getting pretty warm, why, you go right ahead. That's all right.)

I want to read some Scripture out of Saint John the 3rd chapter. And I'll make it quick so that we can go right into the line. Now, first verse ... beginning at the 9th verse of the 3rd chapter.

Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?

Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

Verily, I say unto you, We speak that what we know, ... testify of that what we ... see; and ye receive not our witness.

If I have told you earthly things, and ye have not believed, how shall ye believe, if I tell you ... heavenly things?

And no man ... ascended up to heaven, but he that come down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

If I'd put some.... A little what I would call a text ... I've been speaking this week upon: Who was Jesus? What type of a ministry did He have? What did the world think about Him? How did they receive Him? And then comparing His ministry with today, and see if it's the same yesterday, today, and forever. With all bases on Hebrews 13:12: Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Tonight I would speak: God's Provided Way, for a subject. We've often thought of how ... if we were looking for Jesus, what we would have to look for. If He promised He would be with us to the end of the world, then surely, though our faith failed, yet, He's here. If our faith failed, yet, He is faithful; He cannot disown Himself. He's here.

What I think, friends, that what we fail is our faith fails to believe that we take Him as something way off somewhere else, when He's right here with us. He's just as real in this room tonight as this light is. Darkness can't come in this room as long as this light is here. No matter how dark it is outside, it'll never get so dark but what this light will overcome the darkness. Is that right? No matter how much dark tries to press through that window, as long as that light is there, light is more powerful than darkness.

And when faith comes in, no matter how much unbelief stands around, the light is greater than the darkness. And I believe God is just as real in this room tonight as that light is. As the light on my hand.... It's just as close as the light is on my hands.

Now, if we seen Him in His earthly ministry, He went about.... He didn't claim to be a great person, He didn't claim to be a healer. I hear so much slam that the devil has give upon people who pray for the sick; call them “divine healers.” Well, because a man preaches divine healing, doesn't make him no divine healer. If it does, it makes the man who preaches salvation a divine saviour. Would you think it would be nice to call a preacher: “There's my divine saviour, going there.” Well, certainly you wouldn't want to do that. Well, that's just a Scriptural as saying, “There goes as divine healer.” A man preaching divine healing doesn't make him a healer, no more than it makes a man a saviour. A minister can't save you. He can tell you the Word and point you to Christ, and Christ can't save you, what He has already done. He saved you nineteen hundred years ago. You just have to accept it. Well, then, man can't heal you; he can only point you to Christ who healed you nineteen hundred years ago when He died.

Recently I was in a place where there was Stewart Hamilton, a few great outstanding fundamental preachers, which probably would not like for me to call their name here before this mixed audience. And this one minister walked up to me, and he said, “Brother Branham, as a man I admire you.” He said, “But your doctrine of divine healing is all wrong.”

I said, “Well, then the Bible is all wrong.”

And he said, “Oh, you can't.... Do you preach divine healing by the Bible, by the atonement?”

I said, “Yes, sir.”

He said, “Brother Branham.” 'Course he knowed I didn't have any education. And he said, “Brother Branham, if I will prove to you that you're wrong by the Bible, will you accept it?”

I said, “Yes, brother. Certainly. Anybody can show me wrong by the Scripture, then I will accept it. I don't want to be wrong.”

And he said, “All right. And you preach divine healing by the atonement?”

I said, “Yes, sir.”

He said, “Isaiah's prophesy there about....”

I said, “Yes, sir.”

He said, “Brother Branham, if divine healing....” Now, listen close, everyone. He said, “If divine healing was in the atonement, there wouldn't be any more pain. A man couldn't even have a pain if divine healing is in the atonement, because the atonement makes it so covered that there wouldn't be even pain.”

I said, “Brother, do you believe there is salvation in the atonement for the soul?”

He said, “Yes.”

I said, “Is there temptation?”

And he said, “You apply it to Isaiah?”

I said, “Yes, sir.” Of course, without education, I have to depend on the Holy Spirit for His wisdom.

He said, “Don't take no thought what you will say, it'll be given to you at that minute.”

I've been twisted around—crossed the world three times now; He has never failed yet. He won't.

He said, “Well, Rev. Branham, I want to ask you something.” He said, “If I'll prove to you by the Bible that Isaiah's prophesy has already been fulfilled and done away with, according to....” He said, “Took our infirmities and so forth and bruised for our iniquities....

And I said, “Yes, sir.”

He said, “All right, Matthew 8 said that when evening was come, they brought to Him the multitudes of people that He might heal them, and He healed them all, which was to fulfill which Isaiah the prophet said, 'Himself took our infirmities.'”

He said, “You see, Brother Branham, that proved that it was fulfilled right there, because the Bible said that it was fulfilled.”

I said, “Brother, would you mean to say that you believe that Isaiah's prophesy, 'He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities,' and so forth, 'and with His stripes we're healed,' the healing taken place there that fulfilled it?”

He said, “That's what the Bible said.”

I said, “Then the atonement had more power before it was made than after it was made, after it come in effect, because that was a year and six months before Jesus even died. The atonement hadn't even been made. So how could it be?”

And he said, “Then....

“Well,” I said, “I want to ask you something, brother.” He got to using great big words, and I said, “Now, don't go to speaking in unknown tongues to me, because I can't understand it, see.” I said, “You just talk plain every-day English, just like used here in the King James version.” And I said, “We'll understand each other.” And I said, “I want to ask you something. Will you admit that divine healing is in the Word? In the Word?” I just wanted him to say that. See, it knowed.

He said, “Yes, it's in the Word, but the atonement is over the Word, see.” And he said, “Because in Mark 11....” Some of them said Mark 16 is not inspired, but “Mark 11:24 said, 'Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe you receive it,'” see. Whatsoever!

He said, “Yes, it's in the Word, but it's not in the atonement.”

I said, “You mean God put it in the Word without putting it in the atonement?”

Said, “The atonement is over the Word. That's where you make your failure, Brother Branham.”

I give him a little parable. I said, “Brother, one time there was king, and he had a great kingdom. And in this he made the rules, and the atonements and so forth, of the king.” And I said, “There was a slave committed a crime, and that crime required death. And so, he called the slave up, read off.... And it was death. So there wasn't nothing for the slave to do, but die. So he said, 'What can I do before I kill you?'”

“And the slave said, 'Get me a glass of water.' And so they brought him a glass of water. And the poor fellow knowed he was going to die, so he was shaking so hard, he couldn't hold the glass in his hand. And he said, 'Now wait a minute. Before I take your life, I'm going to.... You drink that water before I take your life. And I'm not going to take your life till you drink that glass of water.' And the slave throwed the water on the ground.”

I said, “Now, what's he going to do? If he's a man of honor, he has got to keep his word. No matter what the law says, he has got to keep his word.”

“Well,” he said, “of course, Brother Branham, that was a slip-up on the king.”

I said, “Then God is so loose He let it slip up, and put it in His Word and not put it in the atonement? No, no, don't talk that to me. No, He can't do it. No.”

You can't deny but what it's in the Word, and if it's in the Word, the atonement is to back the Word up for every word of God is inspired.

Said, “Do you believe Mark 16 is inspired?”

I said, “Yes, sir. Every....”

“All from 9th verse on?”

I said, “Yes, sir. 'They take up serpents, and drink deadly things.'” I said, “Yes, sir, I believe it's inspired. I don't believe in tempting, no more than anything else, but,” I said, “I believe that it's inspired Word.”

One time there was a woman, her boy went away to college. And he learned a whole lot, you know. And while he was gone away to some great college to learn all about God and everything, his poor old mother got sick, and the doctors about give her up. She had pneumonia and was going to die.

So, this little old woman, lived down the street, went to a mission, the Full Gospel Mission. So it come back up, told her, said, “Now, lady,” said, “do you believe, your pastor believe, in praying for the sick?”

Said, “No, I don't believe we believe in divine healing down there.”

Said, “Well, our church believes in divine healing. Let me get my pastor come up, and pray for you.”

She said, “Well, all right.” And so the pastor come up, and anointed her with oil, and prayed for her. The woman got well. So, her boy came home from the cemetery ... seminary a little later on. So when.... (I get those two mixed up, and they're are so close together, anyhow.) So, I got.... He got up there.

So the first thing you know, he said, “Mother, dear, I'm so glad to see you,” and rejoiced with her. And said, “Now, the thing I was wondering, mother,” he said, “you was telling me, being so sick, and I was ready to come home, then all at once you wrote and told me you were well.” Said, “I never did get the meanings of that.”

Said, “Oh, honey, didn't you understand?”

Said, “No.”

Said, “You know where that little mission is downtown there?”

“Yes.”

Said, “That Full Gospel preacher come up and prayed for me, anointed me with oil, and the Lord healed me. Hallelujah!”

“Why,” he said, “mother, the very idea. Why,” said, “of course, those are illiterate people down there.” Said, “They do not understand.” Said, “We have learned, at the seminary, that Mark 16....”

That's where she said, said, “Why, he prayed over me, and laid the Bible,” and said, “'they lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.'” And said, “I believed it.” And said, “God healed me.”

“Why,” he said, “mother,” said, “Mark 16 from the 9th verse on is not inspired.”

She stood there a little bit. She said, “Well, praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!”

He said, “Mother, what's the matter with you?”

Said, “I was just thinking. If God could heal me with uninspired Word, what could He do with that really is inspired?”

If the uninspired Word would heal, what would that was really inspired? What Mark 11:24 do? What would others do? John 14:12, and so forth, see. It's all inspired.

Now, God has a provided way for His people. There's many people, many of us get out of that way. God has always got a provided way. Do you believe that? Now, Jesus said, “As Moses lifted up the brass serpent in the wilderness (where I just read) so must the Son of man be lifted up.”

Now, in a moment we'll pray for the sick. God always had a provided way. He's got a provided way for nature. He's got a provided way for everything.

Here, sometimes I go up into the mountains, when I try to get away in the fall of the year to myself for a week or two, to go hunting. And I noticed up there, one of the most peculiar things, along about September, way up in northern Canada, why, there's little lakes up there. And, these little old ducks you have down here in these rice fields, they fly up there, and go up there and make a nest up there in that lake. And they lay their eggs in the marsh, and they hatch out their young ones. And then, the little fellow, time fall of the year comes on, he's great big duck. Well, he's swimming around there on the pond, you know, and the first thing you know, the first cold breeze comes across and the snowcap comes on the mountain, that cold breeze sweeps down through the hallow. There's one of them little old fellows on there is the drake. He's a leader, he's a born leader. He'll run right out in the middle of that pond, stick that little honker up in the air, and go, “Honk-honk, honk-honk.” Every duck on the pond will come right to him. And he will raise....

Now remember, he has never been off of that pond. He was born and raised on that pond. But every one of them ducks know that he's a leader, and know that God has sent him for a leader. And that little duck will fly right up from there without a compass or anything else, and come just as straight to Arkansas to your rice fields as he can come. Is that right?

Why is it? You say, “It's instinct. The duck has instinct.” Well, if God provided a way with a duck to have sense enough to escape the cold, what about a man led by the Holy Ghost? What would you call that? How do you escape your sickness and your diseases and your troubles and your cold spells? God leads. The Holy Spirit leads men. But the trouble: duck know their leaders, but we don't. The Holy Spirit talk to us about something, you let Dr. So-and-so explain it all away for you. That's where it's at.

You look in the paper, and you get out here, and you look at the news, they say, “Tomorrow it's going to be pretty weather, fair.” And watch that old sow take the sticks and corn cobs off the north side of the hill, and come around on the south side of the hill and make her bed. Don't you pay no attention to that newspaper. That sow knows more about the weather than what that newspaper commentator does. Yes, sir.

You go rabbit hunting and watch them rabbits right down under the grass, sitting way back. Watch out for cold weather, no matter what the paper says. God has give them instinct. He made them with instinct.

One time I was plowing, dad and I. We were going down through the field—pretty. We was plowing corn—June, July; I believe we was laying it by. And when I was pulling my horses around, an old pair of lines, old rope lines.... Did you ever plow with rope lines? Oh, my, they cut your neck to pieces—no shirt on. Sitting there, an old plow. Directly my horses kept snorting and going on. I said, “Dad, what's the matter? Look at these horses, how they're acting, and yours too.”

He said, “Son, there's coming a storm.”

And I said, “Storm? Why, I don't see no storm.”

He stopped. I'll never forget the old fellow, he said, “But, son, you don't understand.” Said, “God has given a horse an instinct. Now, he can smell that storm. It's way away.”

And you know, we hadn't plowed two or three more rows, till a big cloud was coming up; we had to hurry to get to the barn. God give an instinct, see. An instinct to know, and to make a way of escape. God provided a way for them when they could smell the storm, way away to get to shelter, see. He has made a way for us, but we refuse to accept it.

I remember, hunting up, one day, in the mountains. How beautiful up there in Colorado. I know we go elk hunting, not to kill the beasts, so much, as it was just to be alone. Remember, one day, up there, I was walking around; come a storm, early fall, about October. And I was way back, seventy miles from civilization, camping back there, and it come a real hard rain storm. And I got behind a tree; the rains blowed over. The elk hasn't come down yet. They was way high in the mountain. And as the rains begin to blow, I got behind the tree, and it turned cold. After the rain was over, I looked out, and the evergreens was froze where the rain hit it. And a rainbow come out, like that, across the valley. Oh, my! You talk about deep calling to the deep. I got to feeling real good. You know what I mean!

And after while, I heard an old gray wolf howl up here, and a mate answer down in the bottom. Oh, my! My mother is a half-breed. So, you know I couldn't stand it much longer. Something crying out.

I thought, O God, look at there at the great eye of Jehovah sitting yonder looking across the mountain there was His rainbow, His covenant. He will no more destroy it with water, but fire next time. I could see Revelations 1, where He was sitting on His throne to look upon as jasper and sardius stone, the First, the Last, He that was, which is, and shall come, and with a rainbow over His head, a covenant, made with His own blood to the people; by grace would He save them. Oh, something begin to call out.

I heard a noise over here, a lot of fussing, and going on. There was a little old what we call “pine jack,” little old squirrel about that long, eats pine cones, fussy little fellow. Oh, my! He is like the Irishmen's owl, just all fuss and feathers. I looked at him. He was sitting on a stump, just a chirping around. I thought, What's he fussing about? Maybe scared of me. And I happened to look, coming up under an old blow-down there, where some trees had blowed down years ago, and there was a big, great big eagle coming out from under there. Did you ever see a big white-head eagle? Oh, he's a beautiful specie. He comes pulling out of there. And that little old squirrel was barking at him.

So, I seen him come out, and I seen him sit down there. I thought, Oh, my! Look how brave he is. He looked towards that little squirrel. He looked over towards me. Those great big gray-looking eyes was flashing. I thought, Oh, what does that mean? Why did God put that eagle before me for? I believe all things work together for good to them that love God, everything. Everything.... You're here tonight for some purpose. You're here because God led you here.

I thought, Lord, what'd you got me standing here crying? And I was having a spell. I would run around and around that tree, and scream to the top of my voice, and jump up and down, and throw my arms.... You would have thought I was a fanatic, sure enough, if you'd seen me then. Wasn't nobody there to hear me, but the Lord, but I was shouting to Him. I set my gun down, and around and around and around the tree I went, hollering, “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!” Around and around and around the tree again. I guess that eagle thought I was a peculiar specie. So he looked over at me.

And I said, “Say, fellow, are you scared of me?” He just sat there and looked at me. I thought, Oh, my! I see! God, You want me to see that eagle because he's brave. That's what it is. God don't want cowards. God wants brave men. He don't want you to say here in the tabernacle you're healed, and go out there, and meet some fanatic that don't believe in divine healing. Yeah, he's a fanatic, that's right. He calls you one, but it's just vice versa. Now, and you're afraid to tell him about your healing? You're afraid to testify at your work about the saving grace of Jesus Christ, about having the baptism of the Holy Ghost? Ha! God don't want people like that. No, sir. I thought, How brave he is! I thought, What makes him so brave? And I watched him. I thought, Maybe he's scared of me. And I grabbed my gun like that. And he just batted those big eyes, looked at me. I thought, He's not afraid of me

I wondered, Why aren't you afraid of me? Why, did you know I could shoot you? And, of course, I wouldn't have done it, because I was admiring him. I thought, I could shoot you. He was sitting there. And I noticed what made him so brave: he was taking them big wings and going.... I thought, Oh, I see why you're so brave. God gave you two wings to get away with. God provided you some wings, and you can trust in them. You know what they are. And you believe them. And no matter how quick I try to get that rifle up, you'd be in them bushes and I couldn't even see you. That's the reason: As long as you can feel them wings there, you're all right.

I thought, O God! That's right! As long as I can feel the Holy Spirit there, I know there's something. Let the devil say what he wants to. Something's there! Yes, sir. Something there.

And I watched him a few minutes. Finally he got tired of that little old pine squirrel barking at him, and he just give one big jump like that, flopped about twice, (not run here, and run there, and run there), just give about two flops, and he set his wings. He never flopped his wings one more time. And I watched him. He just knowed how to ride them air currents and he went on up. The air hit him again and he went up, up. I stood there crying with my hands up. Left that little old earth bound, “Chatter, chatter.”

I thought, That's it, Lord! It isn't run here and there, jumping here and there. It's just knowing how to set your wings in the power of God. And when the waves come through, ride up, on, on, up, up, up, up, leave this earth bound “Chatter, chatter”; says, “The days of miracles is passed. There is not such a thing as divine healing.” Christ died nineteen hundred years ago; He's alive tonight. Hallelujah! Alive among His people, the same yesterday, today, and forever. He's here; nature.

If I would go out tonight and look up through them clouds out yonder.... You see sitting out in the bush here.... I was noticing where I've been staying, there's an old nightingale sits out there. Oh, my! If he don't sing; these dark nights. And I've studied the nightingale. The reason he sings, he looks around, he can see one star. And as long as he can see one star, he'll sing to the top of his voice. Why? He knows the sun is shining somewhere, shining on that star. So he sings. So, oh, my! If I can hear one good old-fashioned “amen,” if I can hear something take place, I can sing to the top of my voice to know that Jesus Christ is still the same yesterday, today, and forever, as long as the light is a moving. If I should look to that star, and say, “Little star, I sure think you're pretty and shining.”

If he could talk back to me, he'd say, “Brother Branham, it's not me shining; it's the sun shining on me making me shine.”

A doctor said to me a long time ago, he said, “Brother Branham, don't you think those people are just a little nervous and worked up?”

I said, “No, sir.” I said, “I don't believe it.”

Said, “They just get a little bit noisy and carry on.”

I said, “No, it ain't. It's something.... It's not them shining; it's something shining on them. That's what does it.”

I stopped by an old pool up in the mountains here not long, where I used to lay down and drink. And I wondered what makes that pool so happy. Just bubbling, jumping, bubbling, jumping, bubbling, jumping. And I said, “What makes you so happy? Maybe deers drank out of you and that's what makes you happy?”

He'd say, “No!”

I'd say, “Maybe bears drink!”

“No, that ain't what makes me happy.”

“Well, what makes you bubble? Because I come by every year and drink from you.”

“No.” If he could talk, he'd say, “Brother Branham, it's not me bubbling, it's something behind me pushing me making me bubble.” So that's the way it is with every man that's born-again. There's something in a man that has got the baptism of the Holy Ghost that makes him believe the supernatural, makes him believe in God. Led by the Spirit. It's not the man; it's Something inside of him pushing out. He can't hold it. He just can't stop himself. There's Something there moving. God provides a way.

God provided an ark for the saving of the household of Noah and his family. God prepared twelve stones by Elijah, one time, for the reserving of the children of Israel. God has always made a provided way. When they was in the wilderness and the first thing you know, sin set in. Now watch! Here's one for the unbeliever. When they begin to chide against Moses and they sinned, God told Moses to lift up a brass serpent. We had time to go in details to see what that serpent meant, what the brass divine judgment, what the serpent sin already judged, so forth, and the symbols.... And when this serpent was lifted up, it was for a compound reason, a reason that men had sinned, and were sick. And they looked, and asked forgiveness and looked on the brass serpent. And whoever looked and believed was made whole.

Now, Jesus said that as Moses lifted up the brass serpent—just the same purpose, the same reason—so must the Son of man be lifted up. And if the type would let the people get well, how much more ought the anti-type to do. If the brass serpent and a shadow would do it, what ought the reality to do? My! Amen. Well, here we go. Oh, I just feel ... I feel pretty religious right now. I really do. Yes.

All right. The Lord bless you. God's provided way for you tonight.... No matter how many unbelievers, they could build big ecclesiastical troughs and run all the water off here, and all the water off there. But just the same, the rain is a falling, “for whosoever will, let him come and drink.” That's right. For Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever.

When you hear somebody say, “Brother Branham, a divine healer?” You know that man needs to go to the psychopathic cells, because he's not right, here. Something is wrong. For anybody that would know ... think a man to be a healer, that's just a.... The man is working under the inspiration of the devil. I could prove that by the Bible. That's exactly right. It was the devil who always put a question mark across the Word of God.

Looky here. When Jesus was on earth, He was a prophet. Do you believe it? He said, “I don't do nothing till the Father tells Me.”

They said, “Come down here and heal this one. Come over here and heal this one, we'll believe You.” Them same old ecclesiastical devils still live, live right on. People; unbelievers. That's exactly.

Notice here. They put a rag around His face, and they hit Him on the head. Said, “Now if You're a prophet, tell us who hit You. We'll believe You then.” Jesus never opened His mouth. He didn't clown for people. Yet, He knowed the woman at the well, where her sin was. He knowed where Nathanael was when he was under the fig tree, what had happened. He knowed where a fish was had a coin in his mouth. He perceived the thoughts of the people. Is that right? But when it come to clowning for somebody, no, no, He didn't do that. He only done what the Father told Him.

Then they pinned Him on a cross. And here come the holy, renowned scholars of the day. Let that soak in. Scholars, holy, renowned, without a blemish teachers, high-ups, come and said ... before Him said, “Now we'll give You a proposition in this wise: ”You come down off the cross and we'll accept You as the Messiah.“

Jesus said, “Father forgive them; they don't even know what they're doing.” He could have come off of there.

I believe that there's an Angel sitting in every bush, saying, “Lord, just point Your finger; we'll change this scene here.”

They said, “He saved others, but Himself He can't save.” The greatest comment was ever give Him. If He saved Himself, He couldn't save others. He had to give Himself to save others. But how little did they know it. Blind leading the blind, see. The same spirit.

Look. I'll prove it to you it's of Satan. When Satan met Jesus, he said, “If Thou be the Son of God, You can do miracles now. You're a divine healer; You're all this. Make these stones bread and I'll believe You.” Is that right? See where the fatherhood of that spirit is?

Took Him up on the temple, said, “Now, look. It's written in the Scripture here,” like they'd point Mark 16 to us today; “it's written in the Scripture here, 'He give the Angels charge over Thee, lest any time Thou dash Thy foot, will bear Thee up.' Jump down off of here, and then when you get to the ground, just bear Yourself back up, like that,” see. Give Him Scripture.

Jesus turned around to him, said, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord Thy God.” That's right. “It is also written.” That's right. He put the Scriptures right back to him.

God has a provided way. If the doctor.... Sure, it's your duty to go to your doctor. It's your duty to do whatever you can for yourself. But, look, brother. When you get to a place where the doctor can't help you, you've got a right to call on God. That's exactly right. And you believe it.

And God has a provided way, and that provided way tonight is what? Not your Brother Branham, Brother Reed, or any other minister. It's Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who healed you nineteen hundred years ago. And we're only pointing to it. Brother Reed, as a minister, is pointing to it by the Word. God gave a divine gift to the church, that points to it and says, “It's Jesus Christ.” Then you believe Jesus Christ, friends. And Jesus Christ has already.... Listen. Scripturally, here it is: Christ has healed every sick person in this room right now. That is in the scripture.

“He was wounded for our transgression and with His stripes we were healed.” Past tense. The only thing in the world you can do is look and believe. Look and live! That's not pointing towards the Pentecostal church, or the Baptist church, or any other church. It's pointing towards Jesus Christ. Look and live!

And you look to Calvary now. Accept your healing by faith. If you can believe it by the Word, by signs, by wonders, and whatever. God's sovereign grace going down after His Word, give signs and wonders and other things to get other people to believe Him. Oh, I trust that you will. God bless you. I'm sorry I kept you standing that long. But the Lord bless you.

God has a provided way if you're ready to walk in it. Are you ready? Are you ready to believe Him? If He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, He'll do the same things today that He did yesterday, and will forever. Is that right?

Let's bow our heads, inside and out, if you will now.

Heavenly Father, we're at the closing ... just before a great meeting closes, I should say. We're standing before You, crowded in this little building. “Where the carcass is the eagles will gather”—hungry-hearted people. Bless them, Lord. God, be with them.

Bless my Brother Reed and Sister Reed, and the little fellow. That little guy, I pray that You will bless him; give a vision of him five years before he arrived here on earth that he was coming. Bless the church.

Here's handkerchiefs laying here, Father. I pray that You will bless them for their intended purpose. May every sick person that wears these be made well.

They say we taken from the body of Paul handkerchiefs and aprons. We know we're not Saint Paul, but we know You're still Jesus. It wasn't Saint Paul, it was Jesus that was within him. And the Holy Spirit is still here tonight, the same as He was, doing the same. Same critics from the outside, same believing from the inside. How we thank Thee.

And now, Lord, as Thy servant stands tonight, may Your Spirit come near. Sitting here is a picture of the Angel of God, the pillar of fire that led the children of Israel through the wilderness. Jesus Christ, the Angel of the covenant, the same yesterday with Israel, the same today with us, and will be forever. Bless us now together. Send Your glorious Gospel in operation. May the Angel of God come and may Thy servant be anointed, for we ask it in Christ's name that many be healed, and saved. Amen.

Now, Christian friends, Billy was telling me, while I was sitting back there in the room listening to the preaching and so forth tonight, that he had give out prayer cards all along each night. He has give out, X, W, Q, Y, everything else, of different prayer cards. People are holding them in here. We call from somewhere in there. Have a few here at the platform, and are you all willing to wait a little while, are you? Raise your hand if you're not too hot or tired, just to wait a few minutes.

Let's pray. Now notice: If Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, He can do the same as He did yesterday, today, and forever. You believe that don't you?

Now He would know your heart, but He couldn't heal you, because God has already done that. Isn't that right? He has already done that. All right.

[Brother Branham speaks aside: “Now, where would we call the prayer line? I don't know just how.... If you want them to come from there, maybe get that group ... walk across.... Is them rooms all packed out in there, too, are they? But maybe if they could move back a little bit and start a prayer line till they get the prayer line lined up, then they could come back in. You think that could be done? What do you think? What say? No, right here. Maybe, this group right here by the door. What say?”] [A man speaks to Brother Branham.]

[All right. Maybe that would be good. Well, then the people have to have a place to come down. Oh, we might let them go right back the same route and go back.]

Say, I wonder if some of you people right here would mind come standing right back in here, so we can line a prayer line up. Thank you very much, that's very gallant of you.

Now, let those that are in the room, kind of back there.... Don't push in the door, if you will, brother, sister, so we can get a little place for a prayer line.

Now, let's see. Give me some of those numbers, Paul, some of those letters. [Billy Paul says, “V, W, X, Y, Z.”] Oh, my!

Well....