Believe From The Heart

...neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, be nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:

And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

Confess your faults one to another, and pray ye one for the other, that you may be healed. For the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth for the space of three years and six months.

And he prayed again, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one converteth him;

Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from his error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sin.

In the last chapter of the book of Mark, the 16th chapter and the last verse of the 16th chapter, Saint Mark, we read these words.

After he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had ... risen from the dead.

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name they shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

“The prayer of faith shall save the sick.”

Now, as we bow our heads in prayer, let us all together in our way, and every man in his way, let's pray the prayer of faith for these sick people this morning. Then I want to lay hands on them with the elders. Then we've done exactly what God's Word said, because there's where I'm going right to, in my message. Now, let us pray.

Our heavenly Father, as we bring to You this song, the melody of: Only Believe. It is expressing to Thee our feeling towards Thy Word. And as the sick has been anointed according to Thy Word, and now we're going to pray this prayer of faith the best of our knowledge to obey Your commandments. And we realize even in our weakness, Thou art more than able to overcome our weakness with Your power and goodness.

And then we're going to bring the elders down to lay hands on the sick, fulfilling every commission that we know that's been given by our Lord. And we pray, Lord, that we have found grace in Your sight. After all these years, still we're trying to obey Your commandment.

And now, I pray with this little group this morning, such as You have sent us, for they're needy. These people that's here to be prayed for, and we're offering this prayer for each of them. You know their hearts, and You know their desires. And I pray this prayer of faith, along with this church, that You'll make manifest to them every desire that they have. May it become a reality just now, and may as they leave this church today, may they go like Abraham of old, calling those symptoms as though they were not there, and denying anything that would be contrary to the blessing that we've asked. Thou has promised in Thy Word that it would come to pass, and we believe it.

Now, with these men that You have chosen and called to be ministers, and elders, we're going to lay hands upon them just as we were ... as though we were baptizing them. And they've been anointed, the prayer of faith is offered, and hands are being laid on them. We pray that their faith now will look to Thee, O Almighty God, and be made well. In Jesus' name we pray.

Now, I asked the elders come right down here along the line as we lay hands on them. And as each one places your hand on the sick.... [Blank spot on tape.]

If you will give me your undivided attention just for a few moments, if you please. I'll try not to take too much time, as I lay my watch here to be sure. Brother Beeler, I think you're on the recorder at the other end, and Leo and Gene isn't here. So, I want you to, if you will, to recording of this testimony that I shall give in a few minutes to be sent to Brother Boze. He picks this up.

I wish to read this morning from the book of Saint Mark, the 12th chapter. We want to take a portion of this, and read it, because it is God's holy unadulterated Word. And we believe that God is in His Word. Do you believe that? And we are praying that God will add His blessings to it, as we read it. And I'm sure that He will.

And then I want to take another portion of His Word out of Acts the first chapter. And we shall read from there. And I'm asking the Lord if He will add His blessings to the reading of His Word. I was just looking here, I had a mark here in my Bible that I wanted to read from first, but I don't think I can find it just at the time. Just excuse me for a moment, till I can find it, if I can, I thought I had it.

... Jesus ... said unto them, Have faith in God.

For verily I say unto you, if ye shall say to this mountain be ... moved, ... and do not doubt in your heart, but ... believe that those things ... you say will come to pass; you shall have what you say.

Now, over in Acts the 1st chapter and the 8th verse.

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the utmost parts of the earth.

I'd like to draw your attention to the Word of the Lord this morning for just a while. I want you to pay the utmost attention to it, listen closely: the value of this Word! After twenty-five years of ministry for the Lord, in His work, and in His Word, and after this being coming in my twelfth year of international evangelism, and by the grace of God to meeting tens of thousands of people, and seeing our Lord in our own campaigns. Now, as I have seen to Him, or right in towards two million people, or million five hundred thousand somewhere along in there, in the meeting. I've come to this conclusion (and of all of our efforts and so forth): it's impossible for God to do anything for the people, until the people first get settled on whether it's truth or not.

You just can't ... no matter, I have seen great masterpieces of our Lord in the Word, who could explain the Word better than anyone I ever seen, and yet could not make the program go over. And I have on my mind this morning a certain man that I think has one of the best radio programs on the air, but there's somehow the man can't put his program over, that's Dr. White, a real teacher, but there's something wrong. I don't know where it's at. He has got the vision. He has got the idea. He has got the ability. But, he just simply can't get the program to moving somehow. The program that he has got is strictly on the Word, and it should bring the world to their knees.

And I seen here not long ago in Louisville, when I seen Dr. Mordecai Ham and many great theologians that I know, which is far better preacher than the young thirty-eight, or forty year old red-headed evangelist, walked out to the platform passed those men, and they took a back seat, and stood there that night. Wasn't one tenth, or one hundredth of preacher that the man was sitting behind him, though he had the program of God, and put it over: Billy Graham. I've noticed those things.

And noticing them, then I come to this conclusion: No matter what you are, God has got to furnish the audience. And no matter if I could stand here this morning and bring the dead to life, and to bring the cripples to their normal condition, and yet, God is not in the program it would go nowhere. God has to be in the program. And any man is known ... his character is known by his works. No matter who he is, his works prove his character.

If you take a man, no matter how good he tries to be, if his works are evil, all his goodness won't amount to nothing. And a man's word is his characteristic. A man that his word is no good, then you'll never have confidence in that man because his word's no good. So, therefore God, our Father, His character and His works prove what He is.

Now, we know that this world come here by some great Creator. It could not have just happened to be. Now, I want this, just a few moments, to be just as simple as possible, but I want you to get it in praying that the Holy Spirit will move it right into the light that it belongs in.

Now, if you would just look and see the trees growing, and the limbs, and the leaves how they come and go, and the flowers, the spring, the fall, the winter, the summer. Something's got to be behind that. There could not be a tree unless there could be an intelligence to make it a tree. No matter what kind of a life would be in it, there has to be behind that, an intelligence, to make it what it is. Now, think that straight now, don't let it go over, think of it deep.

For, if you notice, our Scripture lesson, Jesus said, “If you will say in your heart....” Not in your intellects, it'll never work there. No matter how much you try to make it work, it won't work, because it's intellectual and it has an end. But when anything's eternal, it has no end, and it had no beginning. Anything with a beginning has an end. But it's just those things which has no beginning. And only God has no beginning, or no end. And then, to have these things that has a beginning, there had to be something without a beginning to start the beginning.

The first tree that was ever made, like the one that Jesus cursed here.... Said, “No fruit grow on thee from henceforth. No man eateth from thee.”

There had to be somewhere, that tree had to have a beginning, and it had an ending. When the word that ... from the lips of the One who gave it the beginning, took it to the end. So, you see how eternal His words are.

But we have just accepted the Word on the intellectual basis, and seen so many total failures, till it has brought people to a place that they just hardly know what to believe. They've just got a lot of loose ends to their religion. They run out on limbs this way, and limbs that way, which comes to the end, and here they come crawling back.

Great movements start and they run out like the Methodist, the Baptist, and the Pentecostals, and all this. And the first thing you know, they get a little psychic idea, and they run out to the limb, and they're having a big time; but the first thing you know, they find themselves at the end. But the only things that ever lasts, is the eternal things. And the eternal things are God.

Now, if you notice, a man known by his character is known by his works. If we would think of how God shows His character by His works.... He's got His own character, and He made His works, and if you look at His works how great they are.

Now, let me challenge every scientist in the world to build me one tree. Let me challenge every scientist in the world to make me one little simple sprig of grass. And it's totally impossible.

Well, it seems like then, upon thinking those things, that there could be a placing, by reading the Word of faith, that would go beyond the intellectual conceptions into the heart. Jesus said, “If thou shall say in thy heart....”

Now, we get all flusterated in our minds, and we go out and say, “Oh, I've seen that done, yes I....” And once in a while it just hop, skip, and so forth, but it seems like it just can't get moving right.

It's because we try to mix the intellectual with the supernatural. They have no dealings with each other at all. Intellectuals will say one thing, and supernatural will say another. And any man that's ever led by the Spirit of God does not take any thought of any intellectual, but he's led from his heart by the Spirit of God. He's misunderstood.

People say, “Oh, how could it be?”

Right now I'm getting letters and phone calls, “You mean, Brother Branham, that you wouldn't be going overseas after all this great....” But it looks wonderful.

But something way down inside, said, “Be careful.” And therefore, we don't look at what we see, we look at those things we do not see, by what God says in the heart. And if we could pay attention to those things, how much more by divine healing?

If God made the promise, and it anchors in the heart, well, what good do we need intellectuals anymore? I don't look at my affliction. I don't look at my symptoms. I look at what God said about it, because, after all, He is the Boss, and the Supreme Boss.

If the doctor said, “So-and-so....” Now, if you try to bluff that, it won't work. If you try to reason it in your mind said, “Yes, God's Word's right. I believe that. I believe it will come to pass. I think that.” Now, if that's intellectually, you just might as well stop thinking it.

Until something comes down on the inside of you that just says it's so, and that's all there is to it, there is not enough demons out of torment could ever shake it from you. It's something on the inside called the heart. There's where real faith finds its resting place.

Intellectuals will try to reason about it. “Now, let's just be reasonable.” But faith has no reasoning. It just has one thing, and that's: God's Word is right. Oh! There's where the soul sets its feet, and rests eternally right there, for God said so. Not a bluff, but knowing it.

And the earth, being God's work, it absolutely speaks and testifies of His being.

There has to be a God or there would be no earth. There has to be a Creator or there'd be no creation. And if this Word that He created the earth by, gives the promise, it has to create exactly what this earth created by His Word in the beginning. When God said, “Let there be.” And it might have took ten billion years, I don't know how long it taken. But how long it taken, that meant nothing, because God's eternal.

And He said, “Let there be,” and it began to develop, for God took His own Word and believed. And if His Word of His creation, His work here, proves that He is the Creator. Then why can't we take His Word at what it says and believe it, because it's the same Creator's Word.

Now, His works bear witness. And now before God, the infallible One, could speak anything it has to be perfect because it can only ... it can only, if it comes from God, it's coming from a perfect channel.

Now notice this: All people, everything, men are knowed by their works. When the great Municipal Bridge was built in Sidney, Australia, when they sent around the world to get bridge builders, architects, and from ... one across the peninsula at Sidney, Australia, to span over to South Sidney. The architects and all came and dug up the soil, and tested it. And all of them come to this conclusion, “It cannot be done.” Said, “The whole bay is full of quicksand, and the soil will not hold together enough. It'll shift from place to place. Therefore, if the bridge would be built, it would be a dangerous thing to try to pass over it.”

And finally, there was a man who was a man of vision, a bridge builder, in England. He came over, and he looked at the sand. He surveyed it. He tested the soils. He sounded the water. He looked it all over first. Oh, I love that. He looked it all over first.

Jesus said, “A man buying a ground, or going to meet an army, first he sits down and counts the cost.”

If everyone of you here at the altar this morning, would sit there in your seats before you come to be anointed, and would count what it means, it wouldn't be just going through a prayer line haphazardly. It would be going there with a firm confidence, that God had promised it, and God was able to keep His Word.

So, this man tested the soils, he tested each bed in there that had the quicksand. And finally he went to the officials, and he said, “I will build the bridge and it will be safe.”

The bridge builders of America and different parts of the world only laughed and said, “The man is mentally ill. No man could put a bridge across that.” Said, “Even if a chicken should walk the bridge that would be built, it would sink. The bridge cannot stand it. The vibrations of even the dog running across the bridge, (which will vibrate the bridge)” said, “it would shake the sands, and the bridge would go down. It cannot be done.”

But this man was a man of vision. And he knew what he was talking about, for something down in him, told him he could do it. God give us men in the church like that.

Now, from all of the scientific research, that it could not be done ... science proved that it could not be done, but this man had a vision he could do it. So, he took the contract. Quickly he went to work. He went to testing the soils. He went to testing and sounding the depths of the quicksand bed. He tested every bolt. He tested every piece of wood, every piece of metal, every concrete. Everything had to be perfectly tested, because his great name, and his character, and his ability rested on whether that bridge stood or not.

And if a man of this earth, by a vision, would be sure that everything was tested perfectly before he put it in a bridge because of his character, and because of his name, how much more did our blessed heavenly Father test every word that was ever said ... or, wrote in the Bible. He tested every word, every prophet; and every son that cometh to God must be tested. The material that goes in this great highway, every rock, every material, before it's placed into the body of Christ has to be tried, chastened. Every son that cometh to God must first be tried. No exceptions! Every one! Every prophet before he could write in that Bible, he was tested by the Holy Spirit.

Just as the bridge builder.... (I'm sorry, I forget his name; I knew it.) Couple days ago, I was reading the article how that he had everything tested. He got the best mechanics he could find. He got the best concrete man. He got the best that he could find to put together the best that he had.

Oh, my soul would cry, “Hallelujah to God!” When I think that God puts in His church, the best that He can find. God takes His children and tests them with an acid test. Then He places them into the body of Christ because they are tested, they believe. They've went through the trials. They've had the experience. They are witnesses of His, and know what they're talking about. Not just an intellectual conception, but they've been born again of the precious Holy Spirit, and time-tested, and tried until their souls are set like flint towards Calvary.

Yes, they are time-tested. They are witnesses of His power. And through that, God's building a bridge from earth to glory, that the wayfaring man may come on the highway, sit down under the tree in the cool of the day. By time-tested materials, those who take God at His Word. No matter what the symptoms are, the circumstances; that doesn't stand in the way. God's got time-tested material as a witness, and He places it.

And this great bridge builder, when finally the architect stood along on the side, and said to the builder, many of the critics, “It'll never stand.”

So have they said the church will never rise. So have they said the days of miracles is passed. So have they said that old time religion cannot be enjoyed anymore.

But, oh, when this man placed all those materials together, he dug, he got blowers, and he blowed out those quicksand beds. He went on down, down, down for hundreds of feet beneath the water, until he blowed that shifting sands away, until he put the concrete anchored in the rock on the bottom of the sea. Oh, it was a price, yes. And anything that's worth having has a price attached to it. How great this salvation, what a great price!

But, he finally got down under the shifting sands. And God has taken Christians and tried them, and tried them, had to brush them off, and brush them off, and brush them off till finally one of these days He comes down to the solid Rock. Some men just takes this little wishy-washy of experience of shaking hands, and joining the church, and being sprinkled a few times, or baptized, or something. And he washes all the shifting sands back until he's anchored on the Rock, Christ Jesus. All devils in torment can't move him.

The bridge builder knowed what he was doing. And when finally it was completed, some of them said, “It won't stand. It'll be dangerous for anything to cross it.”

He got around a bunch of engineers and with railroads.... And that day, when they passed from South Sidney going to North Sidney, across the span, he put about eight big freight trains loaded down. And he put the mayor of the city in a car, and he got in the front of it, walking, packing the flag. And as the great army and the big ... eight big steam engines loaded down, marched across that bridge, with the builder taking the first place, going in front, she never even moved.

And Jesus Christ, God's Son, who is the architect of the church, come to this earth, and laid down the foundations. When He met the devil, he was tested by the Word of God and He said, “It is written, man shall not live by bread alone.” When he took Him to the pinnacle of the temple, He said, “It is written!” See the material He was putting in His church? He took him to the mountain and showed Him all the great programs He could have. He said, “It is written!”

All the Word of God was time-tested. And He's the great Captain that's going before us with His own bloody coat waving, that, through the redeeming love of the blood of Jesus Christ, has bought a church by the Holy Spirit that's tested every bolt, and every person that's ever anchored in this great church of the living God. It's a time-tested material. That does it.

And as He marches on, the great regime coming behind Him, as the borned-again church of the living God, she don't move because we have received the kingdom that cannot be moved. It's dug plumb to the solid Rock, that's Christ Jesus, being the chief cornerstone. And if He goes before us with His own bloody coat making the way, it's a sign of redemption. “Witnesses, ye shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in Judea, and in Samaria.” His church stands as His witness.

Now, this morning I'd like to say this, to leave this to you. We are His witnesses after you have received the Holy Spirit. For there can only be one thing you can witness, that is what you know to be the truth.

That fellow could witness after he had blowed all the sands away and found the solid rock. On the breast of the earth, he was a witness that that would hold. He put the Geiger's and the machines on those great pieces of material, and tested every one of them. He was a witness that they would hold. For he had seen it put to its strength and she held.

And we, who are born again of the Holy Spirit, that's been filled with God's power, that faith in the eternal life ... or, the eternal God, and that dwells in us are witnesses of His goodness, and His Word, and His power. It's no more guess so. It's a know so, by experience.

Noah, when he built the ark, he gave witness to the unrighteous world that there was a righteous God. Although it seemed to be crazy while it was being built. But it proved out, that it was the only boat that would float through the storm. And as it was being erected it was ... he condemned the unrighteous world and justified those who believed in it.

How ridiculous sometimes God does things, and in the eyes of men. Did you ever stop to think what kind of wood that Noah built that boat out of? It was built out of shittim wood. And that is the softest wood that can be gotten.

It's just like balsam. It's just like.... You'd throw in the lake out yonder, it would sink in five minutes. It's balsam wood ... or, shittim wood has holes through it. And isn't it a strange thing, that an ark was to stand the test of the great antediluvian destruction, was made out of soft wood?

Well, it was pliable. And sometime when we get so hard and set in our ways, God can't apply us to anything. But, here's the reason He did it. Did you notice: After he made it, then he boiled some tar ... or, some rosin (it was) out of the other trees?

Now, what does this mean? When he put the ark together, it was made out of this real light soft wood; you could lift it around very easy. It's so light, and pliable. And then he cut down another tree, which was a pine tree, and they beat (that the way they use to get it), beat it, and beat it until they beat the rosin out of it. And then he took this rosin and poured it into this light wood, and the little holes that was in the light wood filled up with the rosin and cased, made it harder than steel.

And God, taking His church, who empties himself out.... And nothing but the pliable in the hands of God. God cut His own Son down, and took the life from His Son, by beatings, and bruises, and poured it into the believer and he becomes casened, ready for the judgments.

That's the only thing that will take the judgment. It passed right over the judgments, because she went right through the ... the water was the judgment, and it passed through the judgment. It was a witness that God knew what He was doing. Noah followed the Word of God. Many things could be said....

Daniel was a witness that there was an Angel in heaven ... or, a God in heaven, that knowed the secrets of the heart. For he sent His angels, and delivered Daniel. Many others was witnesses.

When Jesus died on the cross, the heavens give witness. There is the material. That is the thing. If you'll notice, all creation give witness to it. Right in the middle of the day, when God had prophesied before when the Sabbath would cease, said it'll be a time when the sun goes down in the middle of the day. And from the sixth until the ninth hour it was darkness. What was it?

The sun.... Darkness, doesn't mean it's got a little light in it. Darkness is absolutely total darkness. So, dark like it was in Egypt, till it could be felt, not a ray of light. And the sun gave witness: There's the One, that's the material that God's going to build a church out of. The moon and stars gave witness. When He died the heavens gave witness, the earth belched up, the rocks rent out, the earth give witness. And the saints that slept in the dust of the earth, rose, gave witness.

The people at Pentecost, when they were making fun, Peter stood up and gave witness. But some of that same light that had been beat out of Him at Calvary, was poured into Peter in the form of the Holy Ghost. And he stood there as a witness, God's Word. And he gave witness with a text out of the Scripture, that said, “You men of Judea and you that dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known unto you, and hearken to my words. For these are not drunk as you suppose, but this is that, that was spoke of by the prophet Joel. 'It'll come to pass in the last days I will pour out of my spirit upon all flesh.'” It was a witness.

Now, we're coming into these last and evil days, when He's going to have witnesses. He's got to have witnesses. God lives. God's Word's eternal. Now, let's take back to our Scripture reading.

Jesus coming off the mount, He was hungry, and He looked at a tree, and there was no fruit on it. He, perhaps, never raised His voice. He never stood up and said, “Now, gentlemen, stand to one side I want to show you My power. Now, I have power to make that tree do such and such.” He never said that.

He just walked up to it, and He didn't find no ... nothing on it. So, he said, “No man eateth from thee.” Walked away.

Peter heard it. And the next day when he come by, oh, the tree was still there, but it was dead. And he remarked about it. How quick that tree had dried up from its roots.

Jesus said, “No....” and look it wasn't the tree's fault. It was not time for figs yet. But He did it to magnify Himself, to prove Himself. He was the Messiah and that was one of the testimonies that He was the Messiah; that was a seal of His Messiahship. The last seal was His resurrection and His ascension; that was the last seal of His Messiahship. What He'd done was the proof that He was.

Now, He never went around said, “All you trees die.” He just did it there so that the disciples, that was going to write this Scripture later, would know that He was Messiah, see.

Now, then when Peter asked this question, “Behold, how quick the tree withereth.”

Then He said to them, “If thou should say to this mountain, be moved and cast into the sea, and don't doubt but believe that what you say will come to pass. You will have what you say.”

Now, listen. That's part of the material in this great economy of God, this great ship that we're in, the old ship of Zion, in the body of Christ.

Now, to the testimony. It has been some time. I've watched this. And now, listen close now, for a little teaching. There has been times in life when oh, when I've looked at the suffering and see those who were afflicted and tormented with demon powers. My heart just bleeds for them. And yet I've had them to call me on the telephone, and in the meetings, that clamor and move, and draw, and pull, and it's so hard to say no to those people. Frankly, I can't do it; somebody says it for me. I can't get to them. How my heart just bleeds for them.

Day after day I go through the tortures of that. And I wonder sometimes, and then I console myself by going back to Scriptures, seeing Him going through that place of Bethesda, and seeing all those cripple and afflicted. And went over to one man, healed him lying on a pallet, and walked away, and left the rest.

But still down in my heart, that makes me ... it doesn't take away that burning. Oh, how I wish there was something that could happen.

Then I've noticed, yonder in Portland, Oregon, when that maniac, that night, run to the platform to kill me. I remember there was something happened, and it wasn't in the intellectuals at all. Intellectually I would have run like the rest of the preachers did, but I didn't run; there was something. God was getting ready to display His power. One time He said, “Be still and know that I am God.”

If the church would only stand still long enough. God will do a little something, and they'll get all excited and run around doing it, see: get out of the will of God. Be still.

One time He was going to show His power in the Red Sea. He said, “Red Sea, you just stand still.” And He marched His children right through it.

What if they'd turned around and said, “Let's do it again, Lord.” It wouldn't have happened. Certainly not.

One time he needed a little time to fight a battle through. God just made the sun stand still yonder to watch what he was going to do. “Now, sun, you just stand still yonder a few minutes; I'm going to show you something.”

Now what if the next day Joshua'd say, “Sun stand still.” It wouldn't have done it.

God was going to do something. He was going to give a witness to His power. His Word is Almighty, and He's give a witness to it.

One time there was a blind man come out from Jericho. And as Jesus passed through, the blind man screamed, “Have mercy on me.”

And the Bible said, “And Jesus stood still.” Said, “Bring him here.”

Oh, my! Christ stood still, for God was going to use Him to show His power. There might have been a hundred more blind men down the road; I don't know. Perhaps, the priest saying, “Come here a minute. Will You who raise the dead, raise me a graveyard full of them? We heard you raised Lazarus.” But God was confirming His Messiahship; that's what He was doing. Certainly.

Now, I've often wondered what takes place. But there is a place that men can live so close to the presence of God. It's not by your choosing, it's by God's election, that you live in that spot to where your own intellectuals has nothing no more to do with it.

Down in South Africa, I was challenged by a bunch of witch-doctors. And standing there, one among the dozen or more, and them trying to throw spells on me. But God just made them stand still, and watch the glory of God to restore sight and blinded and stuff to the afflicted people.

Yonder in Karlsruhe, Germany, one afternoon when the spiritualists come out to ... they wanted to fuss with me at the hotel. The man wouldn't let them come in. They said, “We'll throw a spell on that meeting this afternoon, and there'll be no one come....” No, they said, “We'll blow it down with a storm.” And the sky's was just and pretty and bright.

But when we got over there, and just started the singing, up come a great powerful storm. There was about twenty on one side of me, and twenty on the other, and they were all going through their enchantments and cutting their feathers with scissors, and going through things like that to throw the spell. And all of a sudden, that great thirty thousand tent begin to quiver, and shake, and the winds blowing. And I was preaching and Something said, “Stand still!” Hallelujah! (I don't say, “Excuse me.” That means “praise our God.”)

And God made that storm stand still, move back to see the praises of God, where about forty thousand souls that day and night swept into the kingdom of God by it. Stand still. That's right. He gives witness.

Yonder in Sweden ... or, Switzerland ... well, here.... I say, over in Finland one day, a little dead boy was laying on the side of the road; automobile had run over him, mashed his little body to pieces. He was so broke up until his foot was even through his stocking. The car run over him, and racked him up like a rag like that, and kicked him way up in the air, and throwed him across the road. His eyes was bulged out, his mouth was open, his tongue was hanging out, blood running from his ears.

But two years before there, God had showed the vision of it. And I'd walked up so stupid, and looked at the child, walked away crying. And the Lord, or Someone supernatural, put their hands on my shoulders, said, “Isn't that the boy I showed you?”

Oh, what a feeling! There stood the mayor of the city (the chief man, he's called), and many standing by. And God had them to stand still, that He could show His mighty power to raise the dead, bring him back to life again. Stand still, believe God. Be a witness. His Word's eternal.

It was a few days ago, when we were.... Just to see how God does things so simple. And we're so flusterated till we look for great big things. Be satisfied with little things. Watch Him when He does His glorious works: how He protects you. Don't be looking way over the top of something—look down here.

Notice, I've begin to think this, that it is possible that, when a man (like the apostles), and when you can live close to God, and God through His grace operates through you, that the more God you get, the more godly you become. The more eternal life comes in, the more of the intellectual it pushes out. Now, I don't mean to be a fanatic. I mean to be a real sane, sound believer, see. Not a bunch of isms, but a real, solid, true, sensible, intelligent believer.

And now watch, I've seen it work. And to think that if you get into that contact with God, it becomes till it isn't your voice anymore. It's not your thought anymore. It becomes God's thought and God's voice. You are just a vine ... or, just a branch. He's the vine. And it's His Spirit that goes in and energizes; as long as you can get yourself out of the way, He will fill it up. And then you can be a witness, just like Noah's ark was a witness, like Jesus was a witness of God.

He become so full of God, till him and God was one. God dwelt in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself: the very expression.

A man's work declares his character. Christ was God's work. And Christ declared God's character, His feeling for the sick, His longing for saving the souls, till even He gave His own life. God's work ... God's character was declared in Christ.

And if you can just empty your own intellectual thoughts out and give God the right of way, He can declare His character through the work of your yielding. Empty out, get the world ... get your doubts out of the way.

If you come to the altar to be prayed for, and say, “I will go up and see if I will get healed.” God can never declare His works. You've got to get your own thoughts out of the way, and let Him fill you.

Now, the way I'm noticing these things ... like this old bull up here was going to kill me that time, like them hornets back out yonder by the fence, like many other things that has taken place—the bear in the woods—it's a study of nature. It's something that happens.

I'm saying this, now excuse it as being a personal experience, but I want to tell you because it's a modern time. Someone said, “Oh, well, those things happened back in the days of the prophets, in the days....” Well, God was showing examples.

But did you know today, God's building a church? You say, “Well, they had prophets, they had to speak the Word of God.” But, He has got a church of God today.

Notice, there's something takes place. Wished it could be all the time. I would to God that it could be all the time, but it doesn't. It just comes at His will.

Now, a few days ago ... or, about two or three weeks ago, I was praying for people with leukemia. I was praying with people waiting for vision, that's sick and suffering. Many I've waited on for years, for instance, little Edith Wright, crippled. I remember when her daddy was laying dying and God showed a vision for her daddy, and let Edith lay there.

There's a little woman, I guess she's still in here, Mrs. Geiger, from Fort Wayne, pitiful looking little mother, young woman. She gave birth to a baby, and the baby was so big, she was so little, it run her into cancer, and God healed the cancer. And now, she has got almost a mental break from nervousness, she's into menopause. And the poor little thing—and a real loyal husband—and the little fellow has went everywhere praying, and seeking, and crying, and me praying for such as that. And you know what happened?

Brother Woods, back there, his daddy came down, a Jehovah witness. Brother Woods was a Jehovah witness. God witnessed and declared Himself to him by healing his boy, David, cripple. Then his brother came down, and his brother was living an immoral life, and there the Holy Spirit turned around and rebuked him, seen the woman he was running with. And he surrendered his life, and let every devil go out of him that day. And he's walking the streets down there doing everything he can to serve God, testifying to his people.

Then his poor old daddy, honest as he could be, in all of his dealings as a farmer, and so forth. And when his daddy come down, he wanted me to go fishing with him. And we went down to the lake.

On the road down, a vision came that morning. And He said, “Every lake that you cross and every stream of water will be muddy: no fishing. But, when you get down to Wolf Creek there, to the ... (a dead hollow),” said, “that's going to be pretty and blue. And you have never caught a catfish in that water, but you're going to catch a whole string of them.” And said, “They're going to catch one or two little ones, and then you're going to catch a big fish, with a scale fish. It'll be big of a specie.” I turned around and quoted it to them. I watched the old man's eyes as he looked over towards his boys.

When we went down there and got in the water, every lake was muddy going down. When we got there it was just as blue, it would hurt your eyes nearly. And we fished and we couldn't catch a bass, crappie, or anything. And all of the sudden I started catching cat fish, and caught a whole string of them. Some of them five pounds a piece, and sometimes two on one line, with holding line. We fished and got a string of fish.

And the next morning, I went back fishing, I caught one great big blue gill ... or, what we call the red belly sun fish: the biggest I ever seen. Then, when the man come to me, I said, “Now, sir, the Bible said, 'If there be one among you who's spiritual, or a prophet, and if what he says comes to pass, then hear him, if it doesn't....'” And I took four outstanding prophecies of Jehovah Witness, and showed him that none of them had come to pass. Everyone of them has failed. I said, “Now, what about the fish?”

And God showed that vision to change that man and turn him around, for that one man, where there was thousands laying suffering. It's the sovereignty of Almighty God to let you know that He declares His doings by His works. And His character is declared by the same.

Look at the pool of Bethesda, you say, “That don't sound like God doing that.” Look at the cripple, lame, halt, blind, withered, waiting, and here come Jesus right through there, garments full of virtue, and walked to a man, and went to a man who could walk, do anything he wanted to; but had some kind of retarded disease, and healed him and left the rest of them standing there. See, His character. He wanted to show His powers, He wanted to do something, yet the world stands still to notice it.

Now, notice, day before yesterday, when we went back.... I come back from the Indianapolis meeting, and I thought I'd have to stay just a little while away from the people till I got kind of rested up, because I'd have twenty or thirty a day on private interviews, and those visions coming. I was just about dead when I got home. No one knows what I go through on that—no one. There's no way to explain it.

But then, Brother Woods, and his brother, and I, run off down to the place to fish again for a day and night. And that afternoon, sitting back there, Brother Woods began to speak about an old woman that use to belong to the Anderson Church of God up here, when they were in their bloom. How good. Said, how she used to take them little Jehovah Witness boys and love them.

And Brother Woods said to his brother, Lyle. He said, “Lyle, would it not be great now, if we would go find that old sister and let her know that we're saved?”

Now, that word found favor with God. After we'd been talking about God for a long time, but that word found favor. Those two Jehovah Witness boys, both of them aged men, wanted to find an old woman and tell her that they were saved, two brothers. When they said that, the Spirit of God, in His sovereignty, fell on me, sitting there in that boat. Oh, how I wished I could have had voice some way that I could sink that into the people's heart.

I could not no more control myself than you could fly to the moon, just by that word. And I said, “Boys, there's something fixing to happen. It's a little animal of some sort; it'll be brought to life. There's going to be life connected with it, and you will see it right away.”

And I thought, “Now, what have I said?”

And I began to think of some things: What made me say that? No vision, it was just something spoke. What was it? It wasn't my intellectuals; I couldn't even think of such a thing. It was down below that. It was in the heart that God had come into. He was doing the speaking. I didn't even ... wasn't thinking of such a thing. And It spoke.

I think there's where Jesus said, “If thou believeth in thy heart, and shall say to this tree ... or, to this mountain. And then don't doubt, but believe that what you say will come to pass, you'll have what you say.” There's my point.

Get to that spot to where something is not yourself. It's something beyond your reasoning that speaks it.

We went on.... In closing I say this (Brother Woods and them are sitting here as a witness.): The next morning ... that night we went, and the Lord gave us a great night of fishing. No one catch any fish, and we caught three there just in a few minutes. And the three weighed nearly twenty pounds. And we just had great strings of fish.

The next morning we went back, and was putting the baits new on the line, and not one fish. It was over. I said, “Let us go into this little cove and rest a few minutes, brethren. And we shall fish for blue gills with a fly line.”

We went back up there, and was fishing for blue gills, back in the little cove with their boat. And every time we'd just stop long enough, the motor would stop.... We wasn't fishing, we were talking about God.

And Mr. Lyle, which is now ... he went to his sister to try to get her out of the Jehovah Witness. And she told him ... she told him he was listening to devils, that we were devils. Said, “Lyle, you know better than that,” and all these certain things.

Then Lyle caught a little blue gill about like that, and he was talking. So, he let the little fellow swallow the big hook. It went plumb down into the stomach of the little fish. And when he got a hold of it, he couldn't pull it, so he just squeezed it in his hand, wrapped it around, and pulled the entrails out of it. Had to get this hook out of the mouth, for if he cut the hook off it would kill ... dead fish; going to die anyhow.

And here's the words that he said, “You sure shot your wad, little fellow.” And throwed him into the water, and he flipped three or four times, and went circling down through the blue waters till he hit the bottom. Laid there just a few minutes till he come back up to the top of the water, and fluttered three or four times, his little fins straightened out like that, laid sideways curled over. And for about twenty minutes—us fishing—he had done floated back into the wilderness, back up into some trash.

And someone said, “Them little fish is really having a breakfast, they're feeding.”

I said, “Yes, that's right.”

And we said, “Oh, isn't God great?”

Brother Woods said, “Oh, it's so great, Brother Branham, we have the privilege of being here with you.”

Oh, I said, “Don't think that, Brother Woods.” I said, “It's not a ... it's not the holy mountain, it's not the holy place. It's the holy God. Not a holy man, but a holy God.” [Blank spot on tape.] And while we were talking, Something moved on me. Said, “I'm going to show My power now.”

Before I knew what I was talking about, that scripture come to my mind, “Whatsoever thou saith, believe that it shall come to pass, in your heart, say it, and you'll have what you say.”

I can just almost ... it was flooding out of me. I thought, “What's this going on?”

Lyle and Banks sitting there, we were fishing. The little dead fish been laying about twenty minutes all curled over there, floated back into the place, his little entrails hanging out of his mouth. And I looked at that little fish, and the thought come to me: He said to the fisherman, “Cast on the other side of the boat.” They took His word.

Peter said, “Lord, we've fished all night, and caught nothing. Nevertheless, at Your word we will throw the net.”

There it is: at the Word. Something said to me, “God knows the fish, just speak the word, and watch what happens to that fish.”

I said, “Little fish, in the name of Jesus Christ come back to life.” And God my solemn judge, with them few men standing there, that little fish turned on his side, and swam away from there as hard as he could go, alive again. Speak the word. The Almighty God, as I stand here before Him in the presence of this company, and this Bible, knows that's the truth.

When people are dying, and yet God showed His power to those two Jehovah Witnesses that He is the resurrection and life. And there's nothing, but what He told you about. “Thou sayest and believe that what you say comes to pass, you'll have what you say.”

What was it? God showing His power. Not me, just a vine ... or, a branch. He energized the branch till I couldn't keep from uttering them voices. What would I ever thought of a little dead fish laying there? When we even had them cut up, and baited on the line, that little fish hanging there, laying there dead.

Mr. Woods, and them sitting right here looking at me now, a witness of that. And the Spirit of God swept down through that valley. And we would thought the rapture was coming. Even till Mr. Woods screamed out and said, “Oh, it's good to be here.” Said, “Brother Branham, we're so happy to be here.” The only expression they could give, was to me being they're brother.

And I turned quickly, because they seen that God had used me to speak life to a fish, and I know it sounds crazy, but that's the same God that spoke life to that dead opossum laying there in the yard. He's Alpha, and Omega, the beginning, the end. He's the life, the resurrection. He's the power of the everlasting One. The same yesterday, today, and forever.

That gives me to know this: that some day when life is gone from this mortal body, and I lay yonder still ... if He's interested in a fish, surely He's interested in me and you, who are trying to serve Him. And some glorious day He will come. Not the branch, but the vine itself will speak from it's headquarters in Glory, and those which are asleep in Christ shall rise and go to everlasting life. What a feeling! No one could express it.

When you see a dead fish laying on the water with its entrails pulled through his mouth by a big handed man who squeezed the fish like this, and took it and wrenched it, you could hear it tearing, when he tore the entrails from the fish. Throwed the little fellow in the water, he quivered four or five times, and kicked over, and that was it.

To see that little fellow, just in a moment of speaking that Word, swing himself back into condition just as lively as he ever was, and swim down through that water, just as hard as he could go, going back out to join his fellow fish.

He's God. He knowed that fish was there, just the same as He knowed that one had a coin in its mouth. Just the same as He knowed if He'd throwed ... if those people they'd say ...

in Saint Mark the 5th chapter, it said that Jesus borrowed Peter's boat there and went out fishing.

Now, He said, “Let down for the draught,” and they had fished ... when they knowed they had fished all night and caught nothing, just as we had done the same thing—ain't caught nothing. But, God wanted to see if they'd take His word. So He said, “Let down the net for the draught.”

If there was no fish there, taking God as His word will put some there. That's all there was to it. Then that same God, in His same character that was in the beginning is the same God by the same character today. He's the first, the last. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. He's still God.

So, you who are here this morning and prayed for, let me tell you something. Seeing these testimonies, and God's witness whether they're true or not. That's right. You're looking for great things. You're trying to look over some great big something over here, when it's right next to you. That's right.

The very God that put the hunger in your soul to come be prayed for, is the very same God that gave life to that fish. The very same God that stopped that bull in the field. The very same God that slayed that maniac there in my presence. The same God that brought Daniel from the lion's den. The same God that said, “Cast your nets on this other side and take for the draught.” He's the same yesterday, today, and forever.

His works cannot fail. His character cannot fail. And His works declare His character so He's risen today, and is here in our midst: The same yesterday, today, and forever. And we're witnesses of His character. His character has changed me.

When it come to me, I was once a sinner. And now I'm saved. I was once lost, now I'm found. I once loved the things of the world, I hate it now. I once cared not for God, I love Him now. Something happened to me. Something happened to you.

What is it? It's God's Word declaring His character. He loves us. He's interested in your welfare. He's interested in your healing. He's interested in your soul. Won't you let Him have His way in your life? Don't you doubt Him for nothing. You go believing Him, and God will give you the desire of your heart, for it's His good will to do it. He longs to do it. But, the thing of it is, we get all flusterated. Stand still.

Look at it, say, “God, that means me. No matter who prays for me, what prays for me.”

It doesn't take a Oral Roberts, a Billy Graham, or a William Branham, or a A. A. Allen; it takes God. That's right.

It takes your faith anchored yonder, and God say, “God, it is the truth.” There alone I stand. And let's just keep in here until it drops down into here—from your head to your heart—till it becomes a reality. Then it will work. Only can it work when it comes to the heart. The Lord bless you now, while we bow our heads.

Put your desire on your heart, place it before God right now. Will you do it? While we pray, if it's for salvation, if it's for ... whatever it's for, you place it before God right now when we pray.

My faith looks up to Thee,

Thou Lamb of Calvary,

Saviour divine.

Now, hear me while I pray,

Take all my guilt away,

O let me from this day

Be wholly Thine!

While life's dark maze I tread,

(Get quiet now.)

And griefs around me spread,

Be thou my Guide;

Bid darkness turn to day,

Wipe all my fears away,

Nor let me ever stray

From thee aside.

[Brother Branham begins humming.] Blessed Lord, we could say like those who stood on the mount that day and said, “It's good for us to be here. And we would to build three tabernacles, put pastors in each,” but the Voice quickly turned and said, “Hear ye Him, He's My Son.”

Now, let us turn from pastors, from the Moses, and Elijah's, and from the great men of the earth, although we're thankful for all of them. But, You said for us to hear Him. And His Word said this (not the pastor's word, neither the evangelists), “Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe you receive them, you shall have them. If you should say to this mountain, be moved, and be cast into the sea, and don't doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say shall come to pass, you shall have what you say.” Not necessarily would it be momentarily, neither was in momentarily with Abraham and Sarah.

But, You said, “If you believe, that what you say shall come to pass, you shall have what you say.”

Now, Father, here by prayer: Take us just now. Take our heart into Thy hand, and squeeze them real tight with love, pushing all the fear and unbelief from them, making them hollow and empty, and then fill them immediately with Thy Spirit, as the tar and pitch went into the ark, to keep fear and doubt from ever coming to our hearts again. And make us of Thy workmanship, that You might declare Your character to the world through us, as written epistles read of all men.

May everyone that's been anointed (that's what You said do), may they be healed today, from every person, from the common toothache, to the blind, afflicted, or whatever it might be. May that faith anchor now into that heart that was fearing and doubting when it come in.

And O God, I will always remember myself, we three men, as Peter, James, and John stood on Mount Transfiguration and seen what You did there. We will never forget that little cove down yonder in Fannon Creek, as long as we have memories and recollections. It might not mean much to the world. But, when we see the omnipotence of God, the omnipresence of the living God, move down and have sympathy enough upon mankind to show Your power through bringing the little fish that was dead on the waters, back to life again, that goes plumb over the top of a skeptic or an unbeliever.

But how it registers in the Christian's heart; we know that thou art God. You're the same God here in this room this morning. How much more do You care for the people in this room of men and women as You do for a little fish? What did that little fish mean to You? Nothing; just declaring Your work.

And I pray, God, that You'll declare Your works in every man, and woman, boy, and girl in here today. If there be some here, Lord, who does not know You as their Saviour, have not yet experienced, and would want to empty their heart out today from all the things and the trash of the world, that You might fill their heart with love, as Noah did the ark with the pitch. I pray that You'll be with them in these fleeting minutes now that's left in the program. Grant it, Father, through Jesus' name. And while our heads are bowed.

May Thy rich grace impart

Strength to my fainting heart,

My zeal inspire;

Now, if you want Christ while they're singing, want to empty up your heart this morning, and God to take you just as you are there, would you raise your hand to Him, say, “Remember me.”?

God bless you, sir. You, sir. You, sister. You, brother. You. Someone else over on my right? Raise your hand. God bless you, sister. Someone else say, “I want to empty my heart.” God bless you, sister, back there.

Let me from this day

Be wholly Thine!

Someone else want to raise their hand now, just before prayer?

Father God, You've seen every hand, seven or eight, ten hands went up. They're now emptying out all their fears and unbelief. They're now claiming Thee as their all sufficient One, as their lover, as their Saviour, as their healer. All doubts and fears, they're desiring to be taken from them. I pray that You'll grant it, Lord, by Your great grace. Let it happen just today.

You could speak life to a fish, speak life to a little dead boy, speak life to “Lije” Perry laying there dead, and his hands crossed; speak life to a little dead baby yonder in Mexico; spoke life yonder in Lazarus after being dead four days. How much more can we take our stand today on the Rock of His eternal Word, and look beyond this shadow of doubt to Him that said, “I am the resurrection and life.”

May faith take its resting place now on Him that solid Rock, Christ. And may they receive everything that they've asked for. Hear our prayers as we pray in Christ's name. Amen.

I love Him, I love Him.

Because He first loved me

And purchased my salvation

On Calvary's tree.

Now, while we sing again, shake hands with someone near you. Just sit still now; we're ... service is not over yet, see.

I love him..........

...................

... purchased my salvation

On Calvary's tree.

You feel all scoured out? Do you feel better now? Do you feel like the Word ... it's the cleansing blood of the Lord Jesus that goes right through the heart, cleanses us from all sin and iniquity.

And purchased my salvation

On Calvary's tree.

Now, Brother Neville....