By Eric Pement
(This originally appeared in the May/June 1998 edition of the MCOI Journal beginning on page 4)
When he is remembered at all, he is remembered with a reverence befitting a legend. Yet, what did this obscure evangelist teach?
The name of William Branham probably will be unfamiliar to most of our readers, but to the Christian world a generation ago, he was as well known as Pat Robertson or Jerry Falwell is today. He was also as different from these two gentlemen as you can imagine.
William Branham was an American evangelist who achieved world renown for a powerful healing ministry which began in 1946 and lasted nearly 20 years. He traveled freely among Pentecostal and “full gospel” audiences, yet he taught several questionable doctrines and denied both the Trinity and the eternity of hell. At the time of his death in 1965, he claimed he was the only prophet on earth sent from God to bring the Christian church into final truth.
Since Branham’s death, hundreds or churches have been formed around his messages, while his sermons, now meticulously transcribed, have become virtually new Scripture for these churches. The story of William Branham is important because some of his teaching has become seed for aberrational doctrine among Christian groups today.
Branham’s Early History
William Marion Branham was born on April 6, 1909, near Burkesville, Kentucky, to Charles and Ella Branham. He would be the first of nine children. Within a few years, the family moved to Jeffersonville, Indiana (unofficial headquarters of the Branham movement today.)
Miraculous visitations and supernatural events supposedly followed Branham from his earliest days. He claimed a visible light hovered over his crib the day he was born (similar to the Star of Bethlehem, marking the birthplace of Jesus). 1Branham’s biography has been derived from the following books: Pearry Green; The Acts of the Prophet (Tucson; Tucson Tabernacle Books, n. d.); David E. Harrell, Jr.. All Things Are Possible: The Healing and Charismatic Revivals in Modem America (Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 1975); Gordon Lindsay, William Branham: A Man Sent From God (Jeffersonville, Ind: William Branham, 1950); Julius Stadsklev, William Branham, A Prophet, Visits South Africa (Minneapolis: The author, 1952); Lee Vayle, Twentieth Century Prophet (Jeffersonville: Branham Campaigns, [1963?; and Footprints On the Sands of Time (Jeffersonville: Spoken Word Publications, 197:;), a compendium of Branham’s teaching, containing his autobiography, Visions, experiences, and prophetic utterances. The incident involving the light over Branham’s crib appears in Green, p.39; Stadsklev, p. 1; Vayle, p. 35; and FootprInts, pp. 21, 93[/mfn] Branham apparently converted to Christianity at the age of 19, and within five years he was pastoring a Baptist church in Jeffersonville. His visions and revelations continued.
Branham attended a “Jesus only” Pentecostal revival in Mishawaka in 1936, and felt God wanted him to leave Indiana to evangelize other cities with these people. Yet, disapproval from his in-laws caused him to decide against it. Branham’s first wife and one-year-old daughter died the following year, and he say it as God’s judgment for not going with the oneness Pentecostals.
His Public Ministry
Branham reported that in May 1946, God led him to a secret cave in Indiana, “which no man can find,” where he met with an angel who told him God has commissioned him to carry the message of divine healing to the world. The angel said that if Branham would be sincere and could convince the people to believe in him, nothing would be able to stand before his prayers, “not even cancer.” Branham would be given two supernatural signs; first, the power to diagnose diseases through physical changes in his left hand, and second, the ability to tell the secret thoughts and deeds of people. If the first sign didn’t convince people God was at work, the second sign would. Branham’s public ministry began that same months and spread like wildfire across the United States. 2The angelic commission is reported in Footprints, pp. 73-75, 79-80; and in the books by Green, Harrell, Lindsay, Sproul, Stadsklev and Vayle. The secret cave is reported in Green, pp. 67-68. It seems that the cave Branham described on several occasions did exist, and recently (ca. 1991) photographs of the cave interior were published in a movement magazine, Only Believe; the precise location remains undisclosed to safeguard its interior from over-zealous followers.
The angel from the cave accompanied Branham onstage during healing services. This angel also directed Branham in other ways, sometimes telling him to cancel scheduled meetings. 3See Kathie Adler, William Branham: His Life and Teachings (Holbrook, N.Y.: Narrow Way Ministries, 1986), pp. 3-4; Pearry Green, p. 115; Kurt Koch, Occult Bondage and Deliverance (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications 1970) pp. 49-50′ and Dick Leagatt, “New Wine Interviews Ern Baxter,”New Wine, Dec. 1978, p. 5. It is widely reported that many remarkable physical healings occurred at his services. David Harrell, premier chronicler of the healing and charismatic revivals of the forties and beyond, agrees that “the power of a Branham service … remains a legend unparalled in the history of the charismatic movement.” 4Harrell, p. 162
Lifelong Pentecostals stood in awe at the specific detail packed into Branham’s gift of “discernment” (as he called it), as Branham would reveal names, addresses, ailments and personal details of people whom he had never seen before. Gordon Lindsay, founder of Christ for the Nations Institute in Dallas, wrote that Branham’s gift “was practically infallible. In the many hundreds of times I saw him speak under the anointing, he would unerringly speak for the secrets of men’s hearts — things which he had no possible way of knowing. 5Gordon Lindsay, ‘William Branham As I Knew Him,” The Voice of Healing, Feb. 1966, p, 11
An incredibly grueling schedule was laid upon Branham. Often, he literally was carried from the speaker’s platform in total exhaustion, although a contributing factor may have been the presence of an angel. On one occasion he admitted that, “after hundreds of times of visitations, it paralyzes me when he comes near. It sometimes even makes me … I almost completely pass out, just so weak when I leave the platform many times. If I stay too long, I’ll go completely out.” [6. Footprints, p. 74 ] Branham nearly left the filed in mid-1948, [partly from overwork and partly from finding groups of followers who literally were baptizing converts in his name and who carried photos inscribed “Brother Branham, our Lord.”6Sermon: “Revelation Chapter Four (Who IS WIIIIiam Branham?),” June 11, 1961; Green, p. 199.
Branham returned to the evangelistic circuit later that year, and went on to go overseas: Finland in 1950, South America in 1951, India in 1954, and Europe in 1955. In 1955, interest in Branham’s ministry began to wane, and for the first time in nine years, the William Branham Evangelistic Association was unable to pay its bills The Internal Revenue Service investigated Branham the following year, claiming he owed exorbitant amounts of money for back taxes.
When his ministry was still young, Branham restricted his sermons to personal testimony and God’s power to save sinners and heal diseases. Many of his crusades were organized by Trinitarians, and he was content to let others teach while he focused on healing. However, at Branham Tabernacle (his home church in Jeffersonville), he had free rein to promote his real beliefs. Consequently, when his popularity died down in the late ‘50s, Branham turned his attention to the churches which not believed his message, and his doctrinal peculiarities became more and more pronounced.
William Branham and the Trinity
From his earliest days, Branham rejected the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. He thundered, “Trinitarianism is of the Devil! I sat that ‘THUS SAITH THE LORD!’” 7Footprints, p. 606 Branham insisted that the Trinity doctrine originated with Satan, and that it taught there were “three gods.” Therefore, he directed that any believer who was baptized according to the triune formula given in Matthew 28:19 should be rebaptized “in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Branham generally described the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as being three “titles,” “offices,” “attributes,” or “merits” of God. 8William Branham Adoption (Jeffersonville: Spoken Word Publications, n.d.), pp. 21, 31, 62, 69. The problem with this explanation is that titles, offices, attributes, or merits cannot relate to one another on a personal level.
The Bible shows that a personal relationship exists between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. “The Father loves the Son” (John 3:35); the Son glorifies the Father (John 17:4); the Son sends the Holy Spirit (John 16:7); the Father “knows the mind of the Spirit” (Romans 8:27); the Holy Spirit listens to Jesus and testifies to others of Him (John 15:26, 16:13). If the love, communication, and relationship between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit is to be meaningful, there must be a distinctly personal self-consciousness between the members of the Godhead.
If the reader will forgive this intrusion, perhaps the problem can be clarified with this illustration. This writer is both a son and a father. I also have the office and title of “deacon” and “assistant editor.” Yet there is no way that I meaningfully can say that my “sonship” loves my “fatherhood.” My office as a church deacon cannot communicate with my office as assistant editor. Persons can engage in meaningful communication, but attributes cannot. Offices, attributes, titles, or merits — none of them can say, “I.” Only persons can say “I.”
Serpent’s Seed and Predestination
Branham also claimed God revealed to him a complex doctrine known as “serpent seed.” 9On serpent’s seed, see “Serpent’s Seed,” The Spoken Word, VoL2, No.4; _An Exposition of the Seven Church Ages_ (Jeffersonville: Spoken Word Publications, 1965), pp. 97-107; and Conduct, Order, Doctrine of the Church (Tucson: Tucson Tabernacle Books, n.d.), Vol. 2, pp. 821-23, 1131-36] In a nutshell, Even’s sin in the Garden of Eden was not eating a fruit but having a sexual relationship with the serpent. Before the fall, the serpent “was somewhat in between a chimpanzee and a man, but closer to a man.” 10Seven Church Ages, p. 98-99 Satan entered the serpent and seduced Eve. Thus, Cain was begotten by Satan not Adam.
Ever since, there has always been a race of people whose ultimate ancestor is Satan. When Jesus told the Jews in John 8:44, “You are of your father the Devil,” He was speaking literally. These descendants of Satan never can be saved because they are the “seed of the serpent.”
At the same time, there is also a “seed of God,” a lineage or people irrevocably predestined for salvation. This group is the true Bride of Christ. They are predestined to hear and receive the “message” of Brother Branham.
Furthermore, there is a middle category of humans who are neither the seed of God not the serpent’s seed. They are not predestined to at all but are saved or damned by their own choices. Branham taught that the vast majority of the traditional Church is in this category. Those Christians who reject Branham’s message will suffer through the Great Tribulation when it arrives, whereas the Bride will be raptured off the earth before the Tribulation begins. 11On this middle category, see Seven Church Ages, pp. 275-286. On the rapture being limited to the Bride, see The Revelation of the Seven Seals (Tucson: Spoken Word Publications. 1967), pp. 57-58; Conduct, Order, Doctrine, Vol. 2. p. 1040
Miscellaneous Teachings
Branham taught other doctrines of questionable validity. He denied that hell was eternal, and maintained that Satan and all the wicked would be annihilated. He claimed that the passageways in the Great Pyramid and the twelve signs of the Zodiac, though inferior to the Bible, were also revelations from God.
He decreed that for a woman to cut her hair was grounds for divorce, according to the Bible (see Matthew 5:32 on this one!); and that unborn children are not alive until they take their first breath. “You say, ‘Oh, it’s alive!’ No, it isn’t! That’s little nerves jerking muscles … the baby hasn’t received life till it’s born.” 12Conduct; Order, Doctrine, Vol. 2, p. 1121
Branham’s concept of Jesus was unscriptural in at least one important respect; he asserted that during the days that Jesus lived on the earth, He was the Son of Man, not the Son of God. Branham declared, “He never said He was the Son of God.“ 13“This Day This Scripture Is Fulfilled. The Spoken Word, Vol.19, No.5, p. 7. The same teaching is given on another occasion, in a sermon of the same title; see The Spoken Word, Vol. 3, No.8, p. 26. Branham taught that Jesus became the Son of God (i. e., the Holy Spirit) after His ascension into heaven.
One need only to read the New Testament to refute this claim. In John 10:36 our Lord directly says, “I am the Son of God.” (See also John 3:18. 5:25, 9:35-37, and 11:4 for further testimony from Jesus’ own lips when He was indeed “the Son of God.”) When Peter gave his famous confession in Matthew 16:16, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” When Peter gave his famous confession in Matthew 16:16, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus certainly did not correct him, saying, saying, “No Peter, not yet.”
Perhaps Branham’s most drastic claim was that he was the “angel” referred to in Revelation 3:14 and 10:7, the Prophet to the Laodicean age, the final era of time. Branham’s message would set the Christian Church in order, and then Jesus would return. Indeed, Branham insisted that the true evidence of possessing the Holy Spirit was to follow “What God’s prophet gave for his age.” 14Seven Church Ages, p. 165; see also pp. 155, 169 In short, following Branham was the test of who was “in the truth.”
Influences on Modern Teachers
One of Branham’s doctrines, which seems to have affected some of the modern “word/faith” teaching, involves the power of the “spoken word.” Kenneth Hagin, an extremely popular teacher of the “word/faith” message, seems to pay a good deal of respect to Branham’s teaching – in one of his publications he calls WilIiamBranham “a prophet.” 15Kenneth E. Hagin, The Ministry of a Prophet (Tulsa: Faith Library Publications, 1979), p. 8.
Branham believed that one of the marks which would identify him as the prophet for this age was the power to call things into existence out of nothing. Branham’s term for this gift was “the third pull,” and he believed this “new ministry” could never be duplicated by anyone else. In essence, though, it involved the power of the spoken word to create things – anything – ex nihilo, “Just speak the word, and there they would be standing there.” 16William Branham. The Easter Message (Jeffersonville: Spoken Word Publications, n.d.), p. 100, para. 171. For further information on the “third pull: see The Easter Message, pp. 98-105; Seven Seals, pp.558-64; Footprints, pp. 480-94; and Green, pp. 75-86
Modern faith teachers seem to have appropriated this doctrine. The idea that faith is a force — which, when activated by the spoken word, inevitably brings things into existence — may well owe its genesis to Brother Branham.
Another carry-over from Branham into contemporary circles involves the doctrine that the Bride of Christ is different from the assembly of born-again Christians generally. Branham taught that only the elect Bride would be raptured, while the great majority of Christians — those who had not accepted his message — would face the Great Tribulation.
This two-story version of Christianity is replicated in many “higher light, deeper truth” groups, who basically have developed their own variations on the above theme. With the purest of motives, members of these groups often come to see their spotless and unblemished condition (Ephesians 5:27) as a consequence of following the prophet (whomever he might be). Subtly, the believer’s acceptability with God is no longer based solely on the blood of Jesus, but on adherence to dress codes, baptismal formulae, and following a proposed “divine order.” At the end of this road lies the cultic doctrine of the “one true church,” pushing ordinary Christians who are merely born-again off to one side.
Evaluating Branham’s Claims
It is imperative that we evaluate Branham’s claims by the only valid test there is: conformity to the Word of God. Some followers of Branham would claim that his many miracles and the accuracy of his words of knowledge (or “discernment”) must make his doctrines true, validating his subsequent revelations.
However, we feel that Branham, himself, has given an adequate answer to those who would make him an infallible teacher. “Now, can’t you see that you can’t put your trust in healing campaigns? You can’t put your trust in any kind of a sign like that. The only thing you can put your trust in is THUS SAITH THE LORD from the Bible.” 17Footprrnts, p. 656
In subjecting Branham to his own standard, we sincerely feel his claim to be the only prophet for today should be rejected on several levels. To begin with, the concept that each period of Church history has its own prophet is pure conjecture. There is no biblical evidence that the seven churches of Revelation are meant to be interpreted as seven successive periods of time, nor is there any command in the New Testament to follow a “prophet” other than the Lord Jesus Christ.
Second, if Branham really was sent from God to correct the Church, he would have been theologically sound on basic doctrinal issues such as the Trinity. Branham’s modalistic view of God, basically a variation of the “Jesus only” churches, cannot answer the Bible’s evidence for personality within the Godhead. He also should have been sound on such a basic issue as whether Jesus was the Son of God while He was on earth.
Third, we should expect that a true prophet would describe his opponents accurately. A prophet who denounces heresy must be able to “lay his finger” on the real problem. Branham regularly claimed that Trinitarians say there are “three gods,” when in actual fact, Trinitarians always have said there is only one God. If Branham was a true prophet, he wouldn’t have misrepresented the teaching of his Christian brethren.
Finally, those who accept Branham’s message ultimately teach that a Christian’s depth of spirituality is not gauged on whether he merely follows the Bible, but on whether that person also accepts Branham’s revelations. In essence, Branham taught that if you accept his special teachings (“the word for your age”), you are in the Bride of Christ. If you reject them, it is evidence that you are not “in the truth.”
The New Testament gives a different description of how we can know we are in the truth. Note that it has nothing to do with following a human messenger, but is based solely on following Jesus Christ:
“And hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments … Therefore, let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and the Father.”
“My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but indeed and in truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him … Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by His Spirit whom He has given us”(1 John 2:3, 24; 3:18-19,24).
Postscript
Although William Branham was sincere and felt he loved the Lord, he did not adhere to biblical truths. As we have seen, he was not informed about the teachings of the Bible, and he was deceived in several respects. There were many more doctrinal irregularities than we have had space to explore in this brief article. To those who believe that Branham’s healings vindicated his authority, we reply that divine healing is meant to draw people to God, the Healer, not to any human vessel.
The Journal would like to thank Eric Pement for untangling this issue’s “Spider’s Web.” Eric is a Senior Editor of Cornerstone magazine.This article was reprinted with Eric’s permission. It originally was published under the title, “William Branham: An American Legend” in Cornerstone, vol. 15, issue 81, pp. 14-17. 1986.
We recently had two men come to our fellowship. They were immediately recognized by one of the elders and promptly publickly told to leave the premises. They haven’t returned.
I wish u knew that all his messages are real
If u think it’s a lie look at all the signs God gave him before his coming u will prove that he was a true man of God
After going through the above article and the analysis of Branham ministry, I realise that people have not yet understood well the ways of The Lord. When Jesus came, the clegy of then never managed to understand Him and His ministry until they condemned Him to death. Very few prophets were understood and accepted by the peoples of their time. If a prophet has to be agreeable to the erring clergy of the time, how can you judge the prophet by he who is standing in the wrong misinterpretation of the scriptures. That’s why they killed Jesus. He said He was God and they said it was blasphemy, which was correct to their misinterpretation of the Scriptures, yet Jesus was correct according to the interpretation of the hour. We should not fight for God, we should not just be comfortable with what we have already learnt. The things of God are never obvious!
WILLIAM BRANHAM IS TRUE PROPHET VINDICATED BY GOD
A True Prophet Vindicated By God Always Compliment The Scripture. John6:38, 7:16-18,28. He That Is Sent From God Speaks The Infallable Word Of God John15:15, If He Is Really A Prophet Vindicated By God, How Did He Get All Those Anti-Scriptural Theories And Doctrine? Any Angelic Commission/spiritual Vision That Contradict Scriptural Teaching Is Not From God. Visions And Commission Must Agree With The HOLY BIBLE Which Is The Supreme Final Court Of Appeal, And The Only Tool To Judge If A Doctrine Is Of God Or From The Pith Of Hell. I Beseech You All To Read Your Bible On And On Over And Over, Then Stand On Its Truth And Practice It. Shun Falsh Teachers And Prophet, Escape For Your Dear Life, We Shall Meet In Heaven.
You need the help of the holy ghost .
I am not a branhamite.
I don’t believe the message of brother branham to show myself to be another denomination, but I believe his message to reveal the RIGHTEOUSNESS of God for this hour.
Only by THUS SAITH THE LORD, can you be converted to accept this prophet.
Your study will fail you , only the holy ghost Can annoint you with an eye salve to reveal the revelation of Jesus Christ for this age, brother branham was a THUS SAITH THE LORD PROPHET , what I mean is he preached his doctrines according to THUS SAITH THE LORD, not just mere study , so how can you accept by study.
The GRACE of God for this hour, is the solution to your blindness.
You just merely believe the bible , but you don’t understand the kingdom of God.
You need the grace of the hour, the apostolic faith.
God bless and help us , AMEN.
The already revealed word of God is the guide and measure of testing those who declare “THUS SAITH THE LORD” The test of true and false prophets is in Deuteronomy 13 and 28. Jesus warned to beware of false prophets in Matthew 15 and following. Branham is demonstrably a false prophet. I would highly recommend Jim Jones – The Malachi 4 Elijah Prophecy which is an excellent treatment of the issues and origins of Branham and others.
Hello Caleb,
The “righteousness of God” for this hour is “the righteousness of God which is by faith” in Jesus Christ. This is all over the New Testament. It is seen clearly in the Gospel (Romans 1:16-17). It is prophesied by the Law and the Prophets (Rom 3:21), it is “unto all and upon all them that believe” in Jesus (Rom 3:22).
The Jews “have not submitted themselves unto the Righteousness of God” (Rom 10:3). God the Father has set forth Christ Jesus to be our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1 Cor 1:30). When I trust in Jesus, I “do not have mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ—the righteousness which is of God by faith” (Phil 3:9).
Since the righteousness of God is found in Jesus Christ, there is no reason to look to William Branham to give us more of it. We are “complete” in Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:10).
My article showed that Mr Branham taught false doctrine and gave prophecies that did not come to pass. We should not be “converted to accept this prophet”!! If we believe in and follow Jesus Christ, we have all that we need.
Thanks for listening.
Now there is a big difference between faith and the faith .
If your faith is not on the the faith of lord JESUS CHRIST, (the full gospel of our Lord JESUS CHRIST , no compromise) your faith is invalid .
You have believed a lie.
Anything less than or higher than what the apostles have preached can’t be the rock JESUS was talking about.
There is only one rock that can stand the judgement, and that is the revelation of Jesus Christ in totality.
If u take half and doubt the other half , u missed it already.
Now we understand by the scriptures that there are church ages , according to the prophecy of John , and each age had a messenger with a message .
And by the scriptures , we understand that each messenger is a prophet because the word of the Lord comes to the prophet.
And the real messengers of God can’t lie , NEVER!!!!
Now if you don’t know who he is how can you receive the message you can’t accept the message unless you know who he is .
If you know who he is you will stop judging his messages by trying to find fault .
If he is the messenger to the last church age just watch for what the scriptures says the seventh angel will reveal all the mysteries of God , not some or part but all.
Anybody can claim to be anything , but don’t just say he is a deciever .
If he says he is JESUS CHRIST , watch out , what did the scriptures says about the second coming of Christ .
That is the way to judge by the scriptures , not that the moment you hear a certain thing you will start looking for scriptures to counter what you heard ,NO!!!.
That is not how to go about things that are spiritual, you have a revelation of what you are doing .
He says he is the major prophet then what message has he preached , has he revealed the seven thunders which was not written , because the bible says all the mysteries will be revealed .
Look!! , Brother their are a lot to say.
If you are just looking for a fault in the message , you are bound to see errors.
If they called God , BEELZEBUB , THEH WHO IS BROTHER BRANHAM????.
But Christ was the revealed word of the hour , those who knows the signs of the messiah and understood times , could recognize JESUS to be the annointed messiah, they judge by what the scriptures says he will do , Jesus Christ said search the scriptures for in them you think you have enternal life , for they testify of me (paraphrase).
Christ is the word , but they had their wonderful teachings with their different beliefs and doctrines , some say , Nothing like ressurection , some say , there is.
This where the same people who could tell where the messiah was born , how did they did it , they had their bible , the laws and the prophets .
Christ was clearly revealed therein but they couldn’t see it because they corrupted the word with their selfish and self glorifying interpretations , how do I mean , they left the word and started building big cathedrals , and presenting themselves to be more holy and upright according to the law , and for that reason should be respected , u see??
Come out of self reasoning the truth will set you free!!!.
Judge him by whom he says he is .
What was spoken of Christ in the law and in the prophet , is exactly what Christ did.
Remembering David , he said, I SHALL NOT SUFFER MY HOLY ONE TO SEE CORRUPTION.
JESUS CHRIST SAID DESTROY THIS TEMPLE I WILL BUILD IT UP IN THREE DAYS , IF HE HAD STAYED LONGER THAN THREE DAYS HIS BODY WOULD HAVE SEEN CORRUPTION (DECAYED ) .
BUT YOU SEE PROPHET COMPLEMENT PROPHET.
BROTHER BRANHAM SAID THE SPIRIT OF JESUS IS THE SPIRIT OF DISCERNMENT.
NOW HE POINTED US TO THE WORD.
WE CAN DISCERN BY THE REVELATION OF THE WORD GIVEN TO US BY RHE HOLY GHOST.
THE GOSPEL IS BUILT ON THE TEACHING OF THE APOSTLES AND PROPHET.
U SEE WHY HE SAID HE PREACHED WHAT THE APOSTLES PREACHED??
THE MINISTRY OF RESTORATION ACCORDING TO MAL 4 VS 5-6.
DON’T JUDGE HIM FALSE OR WRONG IN DOCTRINES, THE FIRST QUESTION WHO IS HE , AND THEN GO AND SEE BY REVELATION WHY HE PREACHED WHAT THE APOSTLES PREACHED , BECAUSE IF YOU GO AND DO SHALLOW OR DEEP STUDY WITHOUT THE REVELATION OF THE HOLY GHOST YOU WON’T UNDERSTAND OR ACCEPT THE SEVEN THUNDERS VOICE , WHICH CAN ONLY BE REVEALED BY THE PROPHET.
THE SEVENTH MESSENGER.
HE REVEALED ALL THE MYSTERY , HE RESTORED THE APOSTOLIC FAITH.
THEY HAD THE MYSTERY IN THE TIME OF PAUL BUT CATHOLICISM , DEVELOPED OVER THE AGES AND THE TRUE GOSPEL WAS LOST.
BUT THERE IS A RESTORATION TODAY , BY THE SEVENTH ANGEL MESSENGER.
IF YOU DON’T KNOW THE MESSENGER YOU CAN NEVER RECEIVE THE MESSAGE.
GOD BLESS US.
William Branham was not a true prophet vindicated by God. He was a false prophet who gave prophecies that did not come to pass. In 1965, he told Billy Paul that Los Angeles would slide into the ocean before he’s an old man. He gave a “Thus Saith the Lord” on it also, but Billy Paul is almost 80 years old, an old man by any standards.
WMB said that the Angel of the Lord told him personally that Marilyn Monroe (age 36) died of a heart attack, when she actually died of an overdose of Nembutal and chloral hydrate sleeping pills, 60 to 90 pills, enough to kill 10 people.
WMB said he had a vision of a cruel woman running the United States, and said it was Jackie Kennedy (before the assassination of her husband). That vision did not come to pass,
WMB had a vision of himself inside a revival tent, doing miracles and healings so powerful that no one could imitate or duplicate them. But that vision also failed to come to pass.
In fact, if you check the record of all of William Branham’s major visions and signs, you will see that they failed to come to pass. If a prophet speaks in the Name of the Lord, but the thing does not follow or come to pass, this makes him a false prophet, not a vindicated prophet.
For specific details, see http://en.believethesign.com/index.php/William_Branham%27s_Visions
Also, see http://en.believethesign.com/index.php/The_Prophecies_of_William_Branham
And today…the New Apostolic Reformation people say that they have to learn to be prophets and that if what they say doesn’t come to pass they are still learning. Not what God’s Word tells us, is it!!
False prophets will abound in the latter days.
The General Public Should Take Note Of These Point, That Any Miracle, Be It Healing, Deliverance, Discerment, Word Of Knowledge, Prophecy And Whatever Gift Manifestation That Is Meant To Draw People To The Human Vessel Is Not From God. Signs And Wonder Is Meant To Draw People To God, That Work The Miracle. Act3:1-26, 4:1- 4, Whichever Multitude That Follow A Human Vessel Instead Of God Are Mist Multitude.
I appreciate the view of the writer. When Jesus walked the earth the Jews had the Old Testament as the alpha and omega of their religion. But when Jesus came on the scene these religious Jews couldn’t see Jesus in the scripts yet Jesus claimed the scripts were all about him. Jesus called them children of the devil. The Bible is solely interpreted by God and God shares His glory with non. The question is, who is God? What form is He? If God is not the Holy Spirit then what is He? Now the house and its occupant are two different things right? Paul tells us that when this tabernacles we are living in fall down there is one already prepared awaiting. Unfortunately even Christians don’t live knowing that we are actually spirits put in a housing called the body. The body and the spirit are two different entities yet the carnal man can’t see the difference. The carnal man saw Jesus doing great works but Jesus said the Father who lives in him does the work. Thomas the Apostle asked Jesus to show them the Father, what did Jesus answer? Thomas was like most Christians now who are looking at Jesus the flesh (the veil of God) and not the Spirit living within that veil. As for Mr. Branham he didn’t say he was the only Prophet, rather he was the only MAJOR PROPHET for the age. Down through the Bible no two major Prophets were ever sent by God at the same time. Noah? Abraham, Moses, name it all were alone in their time. When Jesus came on the scene John had to fade away. That is how God works. Certainly there can be minor prophets who prophesy like the ones found in local churches. Major Prophets are meant for major programmes of God. They are like saviors sent for an age or generation to deliver them from an imminent looming judgement of God. The Bible tells us that God would do nothing unless He first reveals it to His servants the prophets. This is true for ALL GENERATION OF MAN. On the issue of the trinity one needs the same revelation that Peter had when he preached the first message and commanded that his listeners should repent and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ. Peter was there when Jesus said go and baptize in the name of Father Son and Holy Ghost. Did Peter make a mistake immediately after Pentecost? The answer is no. Before Pentecost Peter was a carnal believer just like many others today. But after being baptized by the Holy Ghost the same poured in him the revelation of who the Lord Jesus Christ is. We all know that Jesus had told the disciples that He had many things to tell them but they could not bare it then, but Jesus said when the Holy Spirit would come He would teach and lead them into all things.
I hope this is helpful to somebody. The scriptures are not for private interpretation. Let’s allow God to show us what is veiled in His WORD.
GOD BLESS YOU. YOU
God bless you.
I think you are wrong on the point where you said ” only those who believe his message will be raptured ” sir you get it all wrong see,
If you don’t not have the HOLY SPIRIT you can not be raptured wether you are a message believer or not without the HOLY SPIRIT you can not be raptured.
The rapture is not for everyone but for the Bride of Chirst, the elected before the foundation of the world.
My Brother, why are offices in your church being compared to The Holy Spirit? You’re just a human and you can’t compare your offices to God, the most high, creator of all heavens and earth. And I feel so led to tell you this that any comment about the Prophet’s teachings is speaking directly against the Holy Spirit, because Bro. Branham never said anything of his own but only what the Lord shown him. It is important that all remember, ‘you say anything about man it can be forgiven but when the Holy Spirit speaks through the brother/sister and you say one word against that, there’s no forgiveness for it’…. God bless you Brother and May God speak to your heart!!
That is an interesting and, as it turns out, a false accusation. The criteria we draw on are not of our own invention but, as we point out in False Prophets Prophesying Falsely, directly from God, Who gave the criteria for testing prophets who claim to speak for God or, in Branham’s case, channel God. Can false prophets make true prophecies? Sure, and as we point out in True Prophecies by False Prophets? God has spoken to that as well. Your argument is really not with us but with God and His word. Perhaps you could let him know that His word has errors in it.