Bible Believers' Newsletter 622

"We focus on the present Truth – what Jesus is doing now. . ."
ISSN 1442-8660

Christian greetings in the precious Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We extend an especial welcome to our new subscribers and invite those who do not have our PowerPoint presentation, "The Second Coming of Christ," to advise their mailing address and we will send this important CD.

Our main article, written in 1983 by Chicago pastor Alfred RAA Olsen with our additions, distinguishes the rhema, gamma or "letter" of the spoken or written word "which without the Spirit kills," from the logos or understanding of the thought expressed by the same Word quickened by God's Life-giving Spirit (II Corinthians 3:6).

This essential teaching is timely in these closing hours of the Gentile dispensation when everyone within the circle of this Message has heard, read, and even memorized the rhema of the Prophet as Caiaphas, priests, Levites and the believers of Jesus' day had heard, read and could recite the rhema of Moses and the prophets, but without the Spirit to impart the logos they murdered their very Messiah! And only a precious few believers see the logos of Brother Branham's Message.

Just this morning I received an outrageous email from a Brother with absolutely no revelation of the Message, the Bible or historical fact; he made egregious, dishonest, unsupported and self-righteous accusations all because he has read the rhema, gamma or "letter" of the Bible, the Message and the filtered lies of history without respect to the admonitions of Jesus and Paul to "prove all things, hold fast that which is good," and Brother Branham to "treat me like the Dutchman, take me for what I mean and not what I say.

Paul explained such people "have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, not having submitted themselves to the righteousness of God" measured by faith (Romans 10:2-3). The Prophet explained the foolish virgin are without the Spirit, either because they were dilatory and neglected the admonition of those noble Bereans to graduate from the rhema to the logos, which is the mind of God, or because their pastor and those with whom they spoke did not possess the Spirit to introduce the logos that they might be born-again.

This Newsletter serves those of like precious faith. Whoever will receive the truth is welcome to feed their soul from the waters of the River of Life. Everything here presented should be confirmed personally in your own Bible.

Your brother-in-Christ, Anthony Grigor-Scott

Road to Armageddon: Insane Drive for US Hegemony threatens Life on Earth

February 26, 2010 — There will always be Americans who will believe whatever the government tells them no matter how many times they know the government has lied to them. Despite expensive wars that threaten Social Security and Medicare, wars based on non-existent Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, non-existent Saddam Hussein connections to al Qaeda, [non-existent al Qaeda], non-existent Afghan participation in the 9/11 attacks, and the non-existent Iranian nukes that are being hyped as the reason for the next American war of aggression in the Middle East, more than half of the US population still believes the fantastic story that the government has told them about 9/11, a Muslim conspiracy that outwitted the entire Western world.

Moreover, it doesn't matter to these Americans how often the government changes its story. For example, Americans first heard of Osama bin Laden because the Bush regime pinned the 9/11 attacks on him. Over the years video after video was served up to the gullible American public of bin Laden's pronouncements. Experts dismissed the videos as fakes, but Americans remained their gullible selves. Then suddenly last year a new 9/11 "mastermind" emerged to take bin Laden's place, the captive Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the detainee waterboarded 183 times until he confessed to masterminding the 9/11 attack.

In the Middle Ages confessions extracted by torture constituted evidence, but self-incrimination has been a no-no in the US legal system since our founding. But with the Bush regime and the Republican federal judges, whom we were assured would defend the US Constitution, the self-incrimination of Sheik Mohammed stands today as the only evidence the US government has that Muslim terrorists pulled off 9/11. . . Full story: globalresearch.ca

Comment: Do you still doubt the bloodied USA is the "image to the beast" of Imperial Rome (Revelation 13:11-18)? In the third public warning on the US-controlled NATO expansion since last month, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad correctly stated, "The West's ultimate goal is not Iran, but India and China" and "named the recent concentration of NATO forces around India and [MOSSAD/CIA-orchestrated] unrest in Pakistan as an argument." He added that NATO now "almost completely surrounded Russia" and advocated that "Russia should respond to the deployment of NATO forces along its borders." Full story: globalresearch.ca

A Sign of Empire Pathology

January 12, 2010 — Here is a shocking statistic that you won't hear in most western news media: over the past nine years, more US military personnel have taken their own lives than have died in action in either the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan. These are official figures from the US Department of Defence, yet somehow they have not been deemed newsworthy to report. Last year alone, more than 330 serving members of the US armed forces committed suicide—more than the 320 killed in Afghanistan and the 150 who fell in Iraq (see wsws.org).

Since 2001, when Washington launched its so-called war on terror, there has been a dramatic year-on-year increase in US military suicides, particularly in the army, which has borne the brunt of fighting abroad. Last year saw the highest total number since such records began in 1980. Prior to 2001, the suicide rate in the US military was lower than that for the general US population; now, it is nearly double the national average. . . Not included are the many more veterans—officially classed as civilians—who take their own lives. . . It is estimated that the suicide rate among veterans demobbed from fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq is as high as four times the national average. The US Department of Veteran Affairs calculates that over 6,000 former service personnel commit suicide every year. . . Full story: globalresearch.ca

Comment: More US military personnel have taken their OWN lives than have died in action. As at February 23, 2010, 1,661 Coalition troops have been killed in action is Afghanistan, of whom 1,006 were US military (see icasualties.org). The objective is to steal a strip of land upon which to run oil and gas pipelines in order to compete with Russian and Iranian oil whereby diminished prices at the wellhead will upset the economies of both nations. As stated in Newsletter 555, the United States has greater reserves of oil that the rest of the world combined—enough crude to fully fuel the American economy for 2,041 years straight"—not counting additional reserves discovered since 2006. After exporting US inflation to the rest of the world by creating demand for Federal Reserve fiat money required to purchase US dollar-denominated oil, and supporting her imports with trillions of dollars of Treasury IOUs, alien Bankster-owned US oil companies can break the economies of OPEC countries at any time by cutting oil imports and exporting, crashing the market and US Treasuries to cents in the dollar, and bankrupting all nations.

Our World balances on a Sea of Debt

February 21, 2010 — As was customary among prisoners who became friends, Tommy allowed me to read his legal papers and I quickly became fascinated by the Judge's sentencing speech, the gist of which was that Tommy's activities had been parasitical. By creating money out of little more than thin air he had reduced the purchasing power of more deserving members of society. What would happen if everyone behaved like him? . . .

Inflation, just like counterfeiting, dilutes the value of the community's hard-earned wealth and as such constitutes a terrible social evil. Creating too much money—'real,' just as much as 'fake'—can wreck an economy. . . legal tender represents, at its absolute highest, only 3 per cent of the total money in circulation in the global economy . . . even were Tommy responsible for printing every single note in circulation throughout the world his power to dilute the rest of our wealth would amount to only a tiny fraction of that of the real manufacturers of money . . . that the activities of my friend Tommy and the activities of the bankers are in essence identical: the creation of money—which is to say claims on the rest of us—out of nothing. . . a simple and devastatingly effective swindle, a swindle largely invisible because it has become so deeply embedded in our culture. . . Full story: telegraph.co.uk

Brooksley Born, the head of an obscure federal regulatory agency—the Commodity Futures Trading Commission—not only warned of the potential for economic meltdown in the late 1990s, but also tried to convince the country's key economic powerbrokers to take actions that could have helped avert the crisis. "They were totally opposed to it," Born says. "That puzzled me. What was it that was in this market that had to be hidden"? Full story: pbs.org

The Complete Guide to Killing Non-Jews

January 27, 2010 — There is, of course, the issue, where the Khazars presently living in Palestine (called "Israel" by them) should go once Israel breaks up. It would not be a good idea if they fled to Europe, or, to the USA.

It is however well known that for 81 years a real homeland has existed for these people, Birobidjan. This country is situated in Eastern Russia and everybody considering himself Jewish is welcome there. Lady Renouf furthers the idea of Jewish immigration to that beautiful country on her homepage, where she presents the case in a 10 minute video. Another professionally produced video is posted on YouTube where her commentary on Birobidjan, the first and sustained Jewish homeland runs from 6.16 to 7.28 minutes into Part 10 of a videoed seminar held in England's House of Lords.

When is it permissible to kill non-Jews? The book "Torat ha-Melekh" [The King's Teaching—INT], by Rabbi Yitzhak Shapira, dean of the Od Yosef Hai yeshiva near Nablus, together with rabbi Yossi Elitzur from the yeshiva. The book contains 230 pages on the laws concerning the killing of non-Jews, a kind of guide for those who ponder if and when it is permissible to take the life of a non-Jew. Reviewed by Roi Sharon, Maariv, Israel, November 9 2009. Full story: globalfire.tv

Comment: Those who do not familiarize themselves with the rhema of God's Word will never receive the logos. From Nebuchadnezzar's invasion to the consummation of life, Israel will be ruled by Gentiles as it is today (Daniel 9:27). "A brief History of the Terms for Jew" states: "Strictly speaking it is incorrect to call an Ancient Israelite a 'Jew' or to call a contemporary Jew an Israelite or a Hebrew" (1980 Jewish Almanac, p. 3).

Soon two thirds of Israel's population of non-Semitic anti-Semitic self-styled Jews: so-called 'Israelis,' not Israelites, "will be cut off and die. Then the Lord will gather all nations against Jerusalem which will be taken, the houses rifled, the women raped and half of the city's population exiled. After this the Lord will turn His hand to the little ones," that is to the blood descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob with whom He made His Covenant, not Jews with whom He has no Covenant (Zechariah 13:7 – 14:2; Revelation 16:19). At that time, the children of the House of Israel and of the House of Judah will return to the land of the Covenant (Psalm 17:7; Isaiah 6:10-13; 11:11-16; 27:13; Jeremiah 3:12, 18; 16:15; 23:8; 31:8; Ezekiel 37:14; 39:27; Micah 5:3; Zechariah 10:9-12; Matthew 24:29-31; Revelation 12:14), mainly from the Muslim lands of the ancient Assyrian Empire.

WORD: the Logos and the Rhema

Based on the book by Brother Alfred Raa Olson

"I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You" (Job 42:5).

In I Corinthians 1:21 the Bible teaches, "It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe." With the vocabulary of our speech we go forth proclaiming the Good News—"Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior." Those who have ears to hear what the Spirit has to say, and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, shall be saved.

For over thirty years I have journeyed to more than 70 countries preaching the Gospel. I generally can't speak their language, but tell the old story of Jesus Christ, and the plan of salvation, through an interpreter to those in whose eyes I am a stranger, with strange tongue and peculiar mannerisms. I pray they may come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, through the words I speak. When I'm through preaching and depart, my language and speech is still foreign to them. If through hearing the interpreter, they become knowledgeable of God and His ways, they have heard all I had to say. My language and manner of speech were not important. What is important is that they perceived God in the Light of His Truth.

The ministry of William Branham has gone forth in these closing hours of time just before Christ returns for the glorious millennium: this ministry was promised by our Lord Jesus Christ, to "finish the mystery of God" and "restore all things" for the Rapture of His Church. Jesus testified the vast majority of people always rejected God's prophets, or misinterpreted their Message. Those associated with the Message Brother Branham brought are no exception. They reiterate his words by quoting the "letter" of the Spoken Word books, as those in previous times quoted the letter of prophets before him, without understanding what the Spirit was saying through them. When matters of doctrine arise, instead of searching the Scriptures, as the Bible instructs (II Timothy 3:16), people typically respond "I'm going to stay with what the prophet said!" Few perceive the God he preached. Had they truly heard what the prophet had to say then their hearts would have been restored to the faith of the Pentecostal fathers (Malachi 4:5-6), the Gospel of Jesus Christ laid out by the apostle Paul (I Corinthians 3:10-11), and they would diligently search the scriptures to "prove all things. . ." (I Thessalonians 5:21).

So many preachers of this last day Message are so preoccupied with the words and speech of William Branham and trying so desperately to be "in the message," that they have lost sight of the foundation of our faith as laid out in the scriptures, "which are able to make you wise unto salvation" (II Timothy 3:15). The baptism of the Holy Ghost, Christ dwelling in you in the Form of the Holy Spirit, is the Seal of God's promise to you that He will return for you. The evidence that you have the Holy Spirit is that you believe God's Word, the Bible. For if Christ does dwell within you, you cannot deny what He wrote in His Gospel, the Scriptures. But these preachers have not had their hearts turned back to the truth in the Gospel of Christ. Instead, they repeat only words and speeches, not perceiving the Message of Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever. Confusion and uncertainty follow them, as it is written in Job 38:2:


Brother Branham taught God wrote three Bibles: one in the heavens, one in stone, and the written Scriptures we know as "the Word."

The Gospel was first declared in the stars (the Zodiac), and was a witness to the ancient world testifying to our Lord's first Coming, the purpose for His sufferings and to His Coming again (E.W. Bullinger, The Witness of the Stars). According to ancient astrologers, the Zodiac began with Virgo, the Virgin, and ended with Leo, the Lion. Our Lord Jesus Christ came born of a virgin and will return as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. This is but one of many examples of how "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork" (Psalms 19:1).

Often, when people meet me in Chicago, I take them to visit the planetarium. Visitors to the planetarium sit in a circular auditorium in soft, cushioned chairs, which lay back so you can look up at the ceiling. The lights are turned off, and a machine in the center of the room projects lights up onto the ceiling, each representing a star or planet. A narrator explains what the sky looks like tonight. He can also show us how the heavens looked two thousand years ago, about the time Christ was born, and how they will look a thousand years from now. Why, the very heavens declare God's predestination, nothing is hidden from Him. The Bible says the righteous shall shine as the stars. He knows the path our lives will take, for He is omniscient. He knows the thoughts going through our minds, even the number of hairs on our heads. God knows where we will be tomorrow, next year, and where we will be a hundred, or a thousand, even ten thousand years from now. And by His foreknowledge He knew, even before I was born, that I would be writing this booklet. By His foreknowledge He chose me through Christ Jesus, and from the foundation of the world He wrote my name in the Book of Life (Revelation 17:8).

The Word of God is written, secondly, in nature. This is made evident throughout the Scriptures where situations in nature were used to illustrate God's ways. In John 12:24 Jesus spoke of His impending death saying, "Except a corn of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone: but if it dies, it brings forth much fruit".

Jeremiah compared the man who trusts in the Lord to a tree: "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreads out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat comes, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit" (Jeremiah 17:7-8).

Even the seasons give testimony: spring brings forth life; summer is youth; fall older age; and winter is death. But after winter, comes spring—the resurrection. Everything testifies of the Word of God.

The second Bible was built of stone by Enoch as a witness before the Flood. The Great Pyramid sits geographically in the center of the earth so the sun never casts a shadow around it and types Christ and His Bride. Notice how it is broad at the base and constantly narrows as it nears completion, like the elect Church which becomes a tiny minority as it nears the Caagsone. The great pyramid and its unplaced caagsone with the all-seeing eye of God is "The Great Seal" of the United States and has never been used for sealing, and rarely for any other purpose, aside from its reproduction on the US dollar bill where it is drawn with thirteen rows of masonry, (thirteen is the number of woman), and above the Church Age saints the caagsone represents Christ incarnate in His end-time Bride overshadowed by the Glory of God. The "Seven Thunders" of Revelation 10 are the revelations contained in the Seven Seals that literally turn the hearts of the children to the faith of their apostolic fathers, forming the Caagsone on the Body of Christ under preeminence to the Word for the manifestation of the Sons of God.

For the instruction of those who are wise, the Great Pyramid is a prophecy that the same Light which shone in the East, would be restored in the West, to Seal and complete that which He has begun: He is Alpha and Omega. Latin mottos above the Great Seal announce: "He has Favored Our Undertakings" and under it, "A New Order of the Ages."

Then God wrote a third Bible—the final one. And that is the Scriptures are often referred to as "the Word." We use various terminologies today, in referring to the Word. Some of it is good, and some of it is bad. We have, for example, the "living Word;" we have the "written Word;" we have the "revealed Word," and we have the "restoration of the Word." This last reference to God's Word isn't good. There is no such thing as "restoration of the Word." Restoration means to restore back to its original state of being. You might be able to restore a building that is beginning to crumble, but you cannot restore God's Word. The Word of God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It never changes. Therefore, there can be no restoration of the Word. Instead of speaking about a restoration of the Word, let's speak about a restoration of the Bride or Church back to the Word. There's a big difference. If you say the Word has been restored, then you testify that the Word has failed. Jesus said: "Heaven and earth shall pass away or change, but My Words shall not change" (Matthew 24:35). It is man that has failed and not the Word.

The New Testament, as you know, was originally written in Greek. The Greek language is far more precise than the English language, with more words giving finer distinctions in meaning. Take for example, the word "love." Two Greek words: 'agape' and "Phileo" are both translated "love," however they have entirely different meanings. The Greek "parousia," a present participle meaning "arrival and subsequent presence" is translated "come," as in the Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; "erchomai," also means to come but is used only in the present and imperfect tenses. Debate and confusion arise where these two different Greek words are translated by one English word. Now, I don't know a lot of Greek, but I know a man—a Greek scholar—who teaches Greek at a seminary near Chicago. He thinks I'm rather a fanatic, perhaps, but when I have questions about the Greek New Testament, he's always willing to see me and explain it. I appreciate that.

If you were to look up the word "word" in the Greek, you would find that there are two words for "word." One is Logos and the other is Rhema, both are translated "word." It is interesting to look in a concordance at the different scriptures in which the word "word" is used. Let me give you an illustration:

The word Rhema means "that which is spoken; what is uttered in speech or writing. In the singular, a word" (i.e. noun, pronoun, or adjective, etc.). Rhema is what is uttered in speech. Let me illustrate from Scripture: "every idle word (Rhema) that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment" (Matthew 12:36). When Jesus was brought before Pilate and they were making all manner of accusations: "Jesus answered him to never a word (Rhema) insomuch that the governor marveled greatly" (Matthew 27:14). In II Corinthians 12:4, Paul describes "How he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words (Rhema), which is not lawful for man to utter." One last example, from John 8:20: "These words (Rhema—utterance, speech, what is spoken; the spoken word) spoke Jesus in the treasury as He taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on Him for His hour was not yet come".

Now, let me give you an illustration of Logos. Logos is an expression of thought: a concept, an idea, the reasoning behind the Rhema. Galatians 5:14 says: "For all the Law is fulfilled in one word (Logos—concept, thought, or idea), even in this; you shall love your neighbor as yourself." In John 5:24 Jesus says, "Verily, verily I say unto you, He who hears My Word (Logos), and believes on Him that sent Me, has everlasting Life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life." And in John 8:43, "Why do you not understand My speech? Even because you cannot hear My Word (Logos)."

This next example is probably one of my favourites. It's found in the tenth chapter of Acts. There was a certain devout man in Caesarea called Cornelius, who feared God, but did not know the way of salvation. He gave alms to the poor and did good things but he was not born again, and he was a Gentile. An angel appeared to him one day and told him to send his servants to Joppa to find one Simon Peter and bring him back. So Cornelius sent his servants to Joppa. In the meantime Peter had seen a vision; a sheet came down from heaven "wherein were all manner of four footed beasts of the earth. . . And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat. But Peter said, Not so Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean: And the voice spoke unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call thou not common" (Acts 10:12-15). Gentiles, you see, were considered to be unclean. As soon as the vision was over, there came a knock on the door, and it was the servants of Cornelius. They took Peter back to where Cornelius had gathered his whole household: his mother, father, sisters, brothers, slaves and servants, etc., to hear what Peter had to say.

Peter began to preach Christ unto them. And "While Peter yet spoke these words (Rhema), the Holy Ghost fell on all those who heard the Word (Logos)." Do you see the difference? I had thought they ALL got the Holy Ghost. But it doesn't say that. They all heard his speech, his Rhema, the spoken words, but only those who caught the Logos, (the concept or idea behind what he had said) received the Holy Ghost.

We can hear a man preach, listen to his tapes, and read books. We can all hear speech or read words, as Cornelius' household listened to Peter. But we've got to catch the Logos, or thought behind what is spoken or written. Many believers today are saying, "we'll say just what the prophet said, or quote the Scriptures." Beware! You can quote a prophet, the Bible, or any other book word- for-word, and still not say what the speaker or author has said. Let me quote a Scripture: When Jesus was brought before Pilate, the high priests wanted to find some reason for putting Him to death and needed an accusation to bring against Him, but could find no witnesses. At last, there came two false witnesses. One said, "This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days" (Matthew 26:61). The man had heard Jesus' speech, but did not catch the thought behind what Jesus had said. He wasn't talking about the Temple in Jerusalem: Jesus was talking about His own body—"Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up" (John 2:19). This witness had heard Jesus' Rhema but had not heard the Logos. Do you see the difference?

Another illustration: Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, wanting to know the ways of the Lord. He was a Pharisee, yet he knew that Jesus was a man sent from God. Jesus told him, "Except a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). Nicodemus did not understand: "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit" (John 3:4-6). Nicodemus heard the Rhema, the words Jesus spoke. But he didn't catch the thought or Logos behind what He had said. (Oh, I hope you're getting the Logos behind what I'm trying to share with you). The Bible says, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says" (Revelation 2:7). ". . . For the letter (Rhema) kills, but the Spirit gives Life" (II Corinthians 3:6). The Spirit has to reveal to you the thought or concept behind what is being said.

I went to college for a few years. Before I had graduated, however, I met my wife and we were married: I had to quit school and find a job to support us. I remember an incident in advanced math while I was still in college. One day the instructor wrote some equations on the blackboard—they were, I think, algebraic equations. Well, he explained the first one, and when he had finished, he turned around. There we were scratching our heads with blank expressions. He looked at us and said, "You didn't get it. Did you? You haven't been doing your homework, have you? I'll explain it again." So he went through the equation again and explained each portion of it. When he had finished, he turned around to find us still scratching our heads with blank looks on our faces. "You still didn't get it did you?" And explained it one more time part-by-part. Suddenly, I caught the idea behind what he was saying: the thought or concept behind the equation. Now that's what we Christians need to do—make sure we have the thought behind what is being preached or written, as regards the things of the Lord.

I go to France, sometimes, to preach. One day when I was in France I was trying to talk with a Frenchman. Now I don't know any French, and he spoke very little English. I was trying to explain something and the more I tried to make him understand what I was saying, the more confused he became. I was trying hand signals, anything I could think of to make him understand. After quite some time, when I was about to give up, his face suddenly changed. It was almost as if a light had come on: he caught my Logos—the thought behind what I had been saying.

Another example: Suppose each of us was a missionary preaching to sinners in different parts of the globe. In preaching to the unconverted church-goer, the best place to start bringing the plan of salvation is Acts 2:38. We have to show them who the Lord Jesus Christ is, and their need to repent of their sins and be baptized in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that they might receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Now, one of us might go to China and be speaking in Chinese. You might be using an illustration of some type to emphasize their need to repent, accept Jesus Christ as Saviour and be baptized in His Name. Another of you might go to another country—maybe an island in the Pacific—and use different words and illustrations, and a different language understood by those people. Still another might serve in a third country and use different words, different illustrations, and different scriptures. But no matter how we went about it, each is presenting the same concept—that which is found in Acts 2:38. Why, it's like chicken: you can boil it, you can fry it, you can stew it, or you can grill it, no matter how you cook it, it's still chicken! The situation is much the same with us Christians as we learn the things of God. Whether we hear a preacher, listen to tapes or read Brother Branham's sermons, we must get the thought behind what is spoken or written. And we can't "say what the prophet said," unless we have the Logos behind what he was saying. Do you see that? Amen!

Now we know that "God watches over His Word."—He watches over the Logos. Let me explain. Theologians today are unsure what language Jesus actually spoke. For the moment let's presume He spoke Galilean, the language of the common people. After His death and resurrection, the apostles wrote what He said, as well as things that happened, and they wrote it in Greek. Twelve or fourteen hundred years later, it was translated into English. Not long ago, I was in Bangladesh preaching in English with an interpreter. Just imagine—from Galilean to Greek, from Greek to English, then into Bengali. It's a wonder anyone knows what original the story was. You can tell someone a story and let them pass it on. By the time it returns, it's often a different story altogether. But "God watches over His Word:" He watches over the Logos. Those in Bangladesh who were predestinated caught the same thought and as came forth when Jesus preached it two thousand years ago. Do you see that?

Years ago people used to debate the issue of water baptism. "Should we be baptized in the Name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost?" some asked. "No, we should be baptized in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ!" others said. They argued back and forth until they got the thought behind it, the Logos. "Lord Jesus Christ" IS THE NAME of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Without the Logos there was confusion.

Revelation 22:18-19 says we cannot add or take away one Word from Scripture—the "word" here is Logos. You cannot add a single thought, because the Bible is the complete revelation of Jesus Christ. You can add one Rhema or utterance: there are many words written in italics to indicate they are not in the original, and have been added to make grammatical sense. Words are sometimes added because there's no English equivalent. The Bible is God's thoughts, or Logos, expressed in writing (Rhema); and although the various translations use different words we cannot add one Logos. Unless the Holy Ghost reveals it personally, we can never get the Logos in the first place.

The Bible says, "All should be taught of God." Now you're either taught of God, or you're not taught at all. You can go to college or Bible school to learn many different things, but you cannot go to school to learn God. You either learn from Him or you don't know Him at all. I'd like to quote here from I Corinthians 2:9-16:

    "As is written, eye has no seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for them that love Him. But God has revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teach, but which the Holy Ghost teaches; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ."

We don't know what another person is thinking. He can say one thing and think another. Only the spirit within the person knows what he is thinking. Likewise, no man can know what God thinks, but the Spirit of God. When the Spirit of God indwells us in the Form of the Holy Ghost, you have the mind of Christ, and understand His thoughts.

I John 2:20-27 says: "But you have an unction from the Holy One, and you know all things." The unction is the Holy Ghost. "But the anointing which you have received of Him abides in you, and you need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teaches you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it has taught you, you shall abide in Him." Though a man preaches the Gospel, the Holy Ghost must take what was said and reveal the thought behind it. Do you see that? The revealed Word is the Logos, the concept made known to you. Praise the Lord! That puts all preachers on the same level. God is neither helped nor hindered by our vocabulary, or eloquent speech. Paul said, "I came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God." Regardless of our words, God takes what is said, and reveals the thought behind them by His Spirit. Otherwise we could never hear it. We have got to get the Logos of God. We can receive nothing unless it be given from above.

Our Lord Jesus prayed in John 17:21, "that they all may be one; as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that You have sent Me." On the day of Pentecost that prayer was answered! God sent the Holy Ghost, Which is Himself, "and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost" (Acts 2:4), making the oneness between God and man! Jesus Christ comes into the believer, by the baptism of the Holy Ghost, doing the same works as when He was yet with them.

Jesus said, "My sheep hear my Voice." Because those listening all heard His Rhema did not mean they were "His sheep." One day, Jesus said to His disciples, "Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that You are John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." They all had different ideas who Jesus was. Then He said to them, "But who do you say that I am? Simon Peter answered, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus replied, Blessed are you Simon bar-Jona: for flesh and blood has not revealed it to you, but My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 16:13-17). No matter how well a man can preach, or express himself, Christ is building His Church on the rock of God revealing the Logos personally to you. Amen! We all hear different concepts and different ideas, but those who hear the Logos from God, hear the same thing. Amen! Paul asked, "Is Christ divided?" The Corinthians knew more than many in this day because THEY KNEW He is not divided. By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body. And if we are baptized into the Body and His Spirit dwells in us, we will hear His voice and be hearers and doers of His Word (James 1:22). Everyone with the Holy Ghost will hear the same thing. Let me give you a scripture to back that up.

After Paul was converted on the Damascus Road, he didn't go to Jerusalem to confer with men, but spent three years in the desert where God could reveal His Word or Logos without human influence. When Paul met with the apostles in Jerusalem, they all had the same revelation. Those with ears to hear believe alike by the same Logos; there is one God, and everyone who has the Holy Ghost receives the same Logos or concept.

I am hearing among Christians today, a variety of "requirements" to be in the rapture. People say, "Brother Olson, we're trying to make the rapture. And I say, "Brother, the rapture cannot take place without me, because I'm sealed unto it."

God's only requirement to be in the rapture is that we are sealed with Holy Ghost. If we are sealed by the Holy Ghost, we are sealed unto the day of redemption. Only the elect can be born again. When we're sealed we're a finished work and He has to take you. Once we've been sealed, we obey His Word: not so we might be accepted—we are already accepted and we want to please Him. Law says if we do certain things, we'll be accepted; Grace says because we are accepted, we desire to do the things which please Him.

Now you may disagree with me, but it seems to me that many of these "requirements for making the rapture" come about because so many of the preachers in the circle of this Message preach in the negative. They use what we call reverse psychology. I'll give some illustrations: If I got up here and said to you, "Listen, brother, in order for you to go in the rapture you've got to have rapturing faith." I would be implying that you don't have it. I could get up and say, "If you're going in the rapture you've got to have power. You've got to have the resurrection power in you." I would be implying that you don't have the power. I might tell you, "If you're going in the rapture you've got to have perfect love. You've got to have the love of God—Agape love—in you." What I'd be doing is implying that you don't have it. And that would be destroying your faith.

Brethren are uncertain because they lack a clear revelation. The "rapture" is a revelation, a process of coming into oneness or agreement with God by putting on the mind of Christ. This began with the revelation of the Seven Seals in 1963 which gave us the perfect interpretation of the Word. THIS is That which is Perfect. It has done away denominational part Word and is calling Christ's Bride into the fullness of the Word, for the manifestation of the sons of God. The rapture is the separation described in Luke 17:22-36, II Thessalonians 2:1, and Revelation 18:4.

Faith, which is a clear understanding of the Word, is still the separator, knowing the Logos, rather than the Rhema. The rapture is the second Coming of the Lord, we would all agree on that. The Greek word for "Coming" is "parousia," which refers to "the arrival and subsequent Presence" of the Word as the Son of Man, not to His millennial Coming as Son of David. The second Coming is "as a thief in the night," so it is a mystery. It is also "universal," and clearly cannot His second physical Coming when He returns as Son of David with the saints of all Ages for a thousand years of peace.

According to the Rhema, the "parousia" or second Coming is the Logos of the fullness of the Word—Christ, incarnating His Bride by the baptism of the Holy Ghost, or new birth, separating His people from the churches through faith in the fullness of the Word. Luke 17:34-37, "there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left: Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other one left. And the Disciples said unto Him, where to Lord? And Jesus said unto them. Wheresoever the Body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together." He did not say, "To the Wedding Supper." Did he? This is the rapture, not the translation, spiritually catching up the living Bride in the revelation of the fullness of the Word, which brings Her into Oneness with the Father, and under preeminence for the manifestation of the sons of God.

The baptism of the Holy Ghost or new birth is Oneness with the Word, and it is a revelation. The rapture is a revelation. If we are going to receive glorified bodies at the end of the Gentile dispensation, we've got to have "rapturing faith." Rapturing faith does not mean technically understanding how God manifests the saints in glorified flesh. Rapturing faith is simply a clear understanding in the Logos, not Rhema, of the end-time Message of Revelation 10:1-7 and Malachi 4:5-6. What is this? It is the faith of the apostolic fathers restored in this last day, plus the mystery of the Seven Church Ages and the Seals. This places the Church in history, identifying the true and false churches—the Church of God, and the churches of Satan. It shows what part of the Word is fulfilled already and therefore what part God is fulfilling in His elect today. "Rapturing faith," is oneness with the fullness of the Word. Until the revelation of the Seven Seals "finished the mystery of God," oneness with God was only possible through Christ's mediation for ignorance of the pure of the Word.

People say, "You've got to have the resurrection power in you." Or "You've got to have perfect love. You've got to have the love of God, Agape love, in you." If you have the Logos of the Word God is fulfilling today—your part of the Living Body Word of God—you have the resurrection power in you already. Paul spoke of it in the first chapter of Ephesians. "Agape," is God's own love for you confirmed by your new birth. The "love of God" is Jesus Christ, the hope of glory which enters into you by the Spiritual Marriage Union of the Bride and Christ. What the Holy Spirit has joined together: neither death, nor life, nor angels, or principalities, or powers, nor things present, or things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Faith is a revelation. If you have a clear revelation of the present Truth and can see that part of the Word coming to pass in your life that is the evidence of your new birth. The love of God is in you, and you are already in the rapture. You don't have to prove it to anyone: you can't, because they'd have to receive the Logos from God before they could understand. If the same Spirit which raised up Jesus Christ from the dead dwells in you, it will quicken your mortal body to every Word, and the Life of Christ will be on display.

If you're truly born again, there is not one thing you need do to be in the rapture, or Jesus Christ died in vain. Don't be provoked by carnal folk who challenge you to prove you have 'agape' by fleshly comparison with the charitable works of the world church system. If after the first and second admonition they cannot receive the faith, just walk away from them.

Adolph Hitler once said, "If you repeat something often enough, people will believe it." He was [not commending deception but referring to the subterfuge of the Jews' Weimar Republic], and he was right. The best way to paralyze faith is to let men persuade you you've got to get this, do that, or you'll never make it. The old devil will always tell you what you lack, but he'll never tell you how to get it. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." Men who imply you don't have it without proving their point in God's Word, are sowing doubt. And if there is no faith in the church of Jesus Christ, it must be the fault of the preacher—he must not be preaching the Word. If you have to have love to go in the rapture, there's only one way to ever get that love—the love of God is shed abroad in your heart by the Holy Ghost. If you have the Holy Ghost, you have perfect love.

Preaching in the negative destroys faith. Brother Branham talked about the time when the angel appeared to him and said, "If you can get the people to believe, nothing will stand in the way of your prayers." If ever you were in his meetings, you know he would testify to what the Lord has done. He would generate faith. The people saw and heard God do great and wonderful works. POSITIVE! They would think, "He's no respecter of persons, what he has for done others, surely He will do for me." He would then challenge their faith by saying, "I challenge you. If the Lord will reveal what your problem is, will you believe He will grant you the desire of your heart?" What can preachers do but challenge people to have faith in God? Christ is NOT divided. There might be differences of opinion; there might be groups which argue; there might be brethren who say, "We believe one way, and he believes another." But Christ is NOT divided. The elected will eventually believe the same thing, for His sheep hear His Logos.

I recall hearing a man preach years ago. He said something very good. He said, "Do you know what wisdom is? Wisdom's taking the mysterious and deep things of God and making them so simple a fool can understand them. Do you know what foolishness is?" He asked. "It's taking the simplicity of the Gospel and making it so complicated nobody knows what's being said."

I remember after Brother Branham had finished preaching the "Seals" and the "Church Ages," and all those different revelations, they were so plain and simple, we wondered how we'd missed them all these years. THAT WAS WISDOM!

On the other hand, let me tell you about a friend of mine who is a Doctor of Divinity. I hadn't seen him in years when he came to Chicago to preach, and I had the opportunity to hear him. Well, I want to tell you this man had one of the largest vocabularies I'd ever heard, with theological terms for every expression and situation. He is a gifted and eloquent speaker. After service all the people said, "Oh, that was such a wonderful service. Wasn't it beautiful? Have you ever heard such wonderful speech?" But most had no idea what he'd been talking about, and were embarrassed to say, "I didn't get his point," because someone else might think they were not very spiritual. He took the simplicity of God's Word and presented It with such complex terminology, he caused confusion. THAT WAS FOOLISHNESS! That kind of preaching breeds doubt and confusion, "For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints" (I Corinthians 14:33).

We see so many different interpretations of the Word. Even among those who listen to Brother Branham's tapes and read his sermons, there are different opinions as to what was actually said. Many are saying we've got to get together. They are saying that we've got to get unity. THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN. You see, the Body of Christ is ALREADY one through the baptism of the Holy Ghost and they all hear His voice. Those that have been sealed with the Holy Ghost will hear the Logos—and they are already "one".

Paul told the early churches "heresy" must come (I Corinthians 11:19). In Greek, heresy means "sects." Different groups and ideas MUST come. Why? So that so those who are approved of God might be made manifest. If you think it's bad now, wait. It will get worse. It has to be that way. However, the elect cannot be fooled: they have unity in Christ, the Word (Logos), and will not be confused by different ideas that come along! The non-elect are and will continue to be confused by those God has raised up to bring confusion.

Think for a moment: if the devil wanted to deceive you, what do you think he would do? If he told you to go and rob or swear, or commit adultery, you'd know right away that was Satan. But when the devil comes, he's usually 99%—almost 100% right! What he says is mostly truth. In Matthew 16:6-12, Jesus said, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees"—meaning their doctrine. Leaven is likened to corrupt doctrine; a little sin eventually affects the whole lump. It takes just a small amount; it would almost deceive the very elected, IF that were possible.

I hear so many people say, "Brother, are you in the Message?" And they all have different ideas what the "Message" is. It's not whether you're in the Message, or the Message is in you—that isn't the point. The question is, "Are you in Christ?" If you're in Christ you have the baptism of the Holy Ghost; you've heard His Logos, which is understanding the Message. Do you see the difference? Many believe the Message and can quote it by page and paragraph. Only the elect can receive the Holy Ghost; they hear His voice and will not be confused.

We hear it said so often, "the evidence of the Holy Ghost is to receive the Word for our day"—to believe the Logos of God revealed in our day. Everyone who heard Brother Branham preach, however, didn't hear the same Logos. There were many logos' of men, but there is only one Logos of God—and not everyone heard the Logos of God. One man gets up and says, "I believe Brother Branham was a prophet. I believe the 'Church Age' Message. I believe the 'Seals'. I believe that the cloud appeared. I believe all this. Then, over there you have another brother who says, "I believe Brother Branham was a prophet. I believe the 'Seven Church Ages' Message. I believe . . . etc., etc., etc. But I don't agree with the first brother. I see it this way." Somewhere else there is another brother. He says, "Hold on. Brothers—I love you and all that, but you're both wrong. I believe Brother Branham was a prophet (remember the devil believes too! He knows the Message better than you and I). I believe this, that and the other. . . But you're both wrong. This is the way it is. . ." Then people stop and say, "Wait a minute, who is right? They're either all wrong, or one is right and the others are wrong. How do I know who's right and who's wrong?" And how do you know if what I am saying is right? You can't know unless the Lord shows you.

There are so many different ideas; so many have the Rhema without the Logos—the letter without the Spirit. Many were in Brother Branham's meetings, but only the elect heard it right. Brother Branham did not have a formal education. But although his grammar may have been limited, the elect heard God's Logos. God was not restricted by his choice of words. Education is an accumulation of knowledge without faith. That's all it is. In America today there are men with only a few years of schooling, who head large corporations. It thrills me in this day of specialization and high tech, to see God chose an unlearned man to reveal His mystery of His Word This proves God does not require our intellectual accomplishments. Either we get it from Him, or we don't get it at all.

How do we know, then, who is right? How do we even know if Brother Branham preached the truth? "Well," you say, "there were signs and wonders." How do you KNOW there were signs and wonders? Were you there when that cloud appeared? Did you see all those things happen? How do you know? You say, "The signs and wonders prove what he preached was truth." Many have signs and wonders—and not all preached the truth! Back in the sixties, it was Oral Roberts. Then, there was Kathryn Kuhlman. People would come into her services, just to see what she had to say, and they'd be healed. I knew a "Jesus Only" man who visited her service out of curiosity. He had a heart condition and the Lord healed him in her service, though he himself was not prayed for. Others had signs and wonders also. Signs and wonders are not proof Brother Branham preached the truth.

According to the Scriptures, Aaron had a breastplate, called the Urim and Thummim. The breastplate hung in the temple, its twelve stones are said to be the birthstones of the Patriarchs. If a man had a vision, a dream or a revelation, he would tell it before the Urim and Thummim. If it was of the Holy Ghost, a Light or rainbow would flash, vindicating it as truth. However, if the Light did not appear—then it was wrong.

The Bible is our Urim and Thummim; every revelation is already within its pages. The Greek for "revelation" means to "unveil" or "uncover." Brother Branham's Message is the "revealed Word" which finished the mystery of God, veiled under symbols in the Apocalypse, or the Revelation of Jesus Christ, uncovering Jesus Christ, the Logos of God. The prophet simply preached the Logos veiled in the Rhema. Brother Branham proved each Seal by Matthew 24. They may have been hidden, but they were already there. As we listened to him preach those Seals, the same thing happened to us, as happened on the Emmaus road—the Lord drew nigh and opened our understanding. Beginning with Moses and the prophets, He drew back the veil and uncovered the Logos, just as "the Message" does. Amen! These things were always there.

And so you say, "What happened, Brother Olson? How come there are so many divisions—so many different concepts and ideas?" I'll tell you why. It is because some believers are making the Rhema of Brother Branham's Message rather than the Bible their Urim and Thrummim. Not comparing it with Scripture to find the Logos, they've veiled Jesus Christ once again in the Rhema of the Message.

Years ago there was a ministers' meeting. Now, I don't like ministers meetings. The council of Nicaea, Rome was a ministers meeting. I believe the gospel is open to whoever wants to hear it. But these preachers got together and said. "Let's, all gather together, discuss our differences of opinion, try to work them out and get some kind of unity." And so they met at Spoken Word Publications. They had a big hall up above the office and that's where they got together. They came from all over. "Listen," they said, "each one will have the opportunity to express his thoughts or opinions on the Message, but you have to use the books of Brother Branham's Message. You cannot use the Scriptures." They threw out the Urim and Thummim—the Bible! And they argued back and forth and never came to any conclusions. In fact, they were more confused at the end of the meetings than they had been when they first came together.

Everyone in this so-called "last-day Message" has a choice to make and will make that choice in many cases, unconsciously. They must decide what is going to be their absolute or final authority when it comes to the things of God. Most people in the circle of this Message are saying that William Branham and his Message are the supreme authority, making the Message superior to the Scriptures. The devil's got them! OUR ABSOLUTE HAS GOT IO BE JESUS CHRIST AND THE LOGOS THAT'S IN THE BIBLE.

There is only one thing that is infallible. "Infallible" means something that can never fail. Jesus said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away but My Logos shall not pass away" (Matthew 24:35). Amen. We can only know the truth by applying the Word test—the Bible test. We talk about the "Word." Do you know the "Word" is a Title? "Father" is a Title. A Title is a word that describes or identifies a person or thing. Son, Holy Ghost, I Am, Alpha and Omega, are all Titles. The Title itself is not God, but an Office which identifies certain attributes which reveal His nature. God was expressing Himself in Christ Who is the whole concept, the Logos or idea of God, made flesh. In the Scriptures, the Logos is likened to a seed: "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which lives and abides forever" (I Peter 1:23). "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit" (John 3:6). Therefore, until you have been born again of the Spirit, the seed of God is not in you: God is not your Father. Adam's seed and the serpent seed are both corruptible: the seed of God, which is the Word or Logos, is incorruptible. We are born again when we receive incorruptible seed, or Logos, through the spoken Word or Rhema, whereby God imparts His Life through faith in Jesus Christ, the Logos, and we put on a new nature, a spiritual Life through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

James 1:21: "receive with meekness the engrafted (Greek 'Emphutos,' means 'implanted') Logos which is able to save your souls." In other words through preaching the incorruptible seed, which is Christ, the seed of God is implanted in us through faith, and we are born again (I Peter 1:22-25).

The Bible is God's thoughts (Logos) put in written form (Rhema). Everyone who's been born again is filled with the Holy Ghost, which is the Spirit of Christ expressing Himself through the believer by manifesting the Logos for his day. We act like Him and do as He would do, because the Holy Spirit expresses the nature of Christ through our faith.

The Bible says that in the last days there will be a famine—not for food or water, but for the hearing of the Word. In this day and age, the Gospel is being preached more than it was at any other point in history: Christian stations preach the Gospel over radio and television. It is recorded on cassette, and printed as literature. The famine, you see, is not for the preaching of the Rhema, but for hearing the Logos. You see the difference? Only the elected can hear His Logos, and because the non-elect are offended it cannot often be shared.

When you listen to Brother Branham or some preacher, you hear his Rhema. Jesus said, "Why do you not understand My Rhema? Even because you cannot hear My Logos." They all heard His Rhema, but we must have the Holy Ghost to understand the Logos. The Holy Ghost reveals to us the thought behind the words. It says in Mark 16:19-20:

    "So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, He was received up into heaven and sat on the right hand of God (meaning absolute authority). And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the Logos. . . (not Rhema) . . . with signs following".

The Lord confirms the Logos! He stands behind His Word.

We talk about vindication—the vindicated prophet. We say Brother Branham was a vindicated prophet. God confirmed the Gift He gave the man through the signs and wonders that followed him. In Ephesians 4:7-8:

    "But to everyone is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore he said when He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men".

Now, the MAN is not the Gift. The OFFICE of the man is the Gift of Christ. When God vindicates His prophets, He is confirming to others the Office of prophet, or the Gift of Christ that is in the man. God did not vindicate the words of the man, William Branham. He vindicated His Own Words (Logos) expressed through the prophet.

How do we distinguish between Brother Branham's words, and the Word of the Lord? When a prophet pronounces something in the Name of the Lord, or says something is THUS SAITH THE LORD, he is saying the thought was not His own, but God expressing Himself through his lips. Our test, or Urim and Thummim is the Bible. Anything a genuine prophet speaks in the Name of the Lord, must line up with the Bible, then it is THUS SAITH THE LORD. If what a man says does not line up with the BIBLE, it is just the words of the man. A genuine prophet will NEVER fail the Word test.

In his sermon, "He Cares, Do You Care?" on July 21, 1963, Brother Branham cautioned "be careful what you're listening to. See? There's so much of it that it's just the human side. . ." God uses human substance to bring forth a divine Message, we must discern what the Spirit is saying (Logos) through the words (Rhema) of the man (". . . the human side. . .")

"The Word," or Jesus Christ in the Form of the Holy Ghost, comes to every believer, or we couldn't be a believer! That's what makes you one with the Word—a Word believer or Word Bride. But we receive It SECONDARILY, for "The Word is FIRST revealed to the prophet."

Amos 3:7 says, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he reveals His secret unto his servants the prophets." Before God can bring judgment or destruction, He reveals His counsel or plan to His prophets in advance as a warning to the people, providing an escape to those who hear and obey.

Brother Branham was a prophet, and he had open visions. Open vision is the sovereignty of God over which Brother Branham had no control. He waited on the angel to come and rest upon someone before God would give him a vision. Brother Branham said to me one time, "Brother Olson, I have to go by faith. I can go into a congregation and we'll have a healing meeting, I don't know if the angel will come or not. I have no control over it. HE has control over me. By faith I believe if I go in His Name, He'll be there." When he went in His Name the angel came, because God honored His faith. God stands behind the Gift, not the man. When Brother Branham had a vision it was the sovereignty of God. He could say, "Your name is so-and-so, you live here, etc.," and it never failed, because it was the grace of God. Visions come under a certain anointing; preaching requires another anointing. They are two different operations or manifestations of the Holy Spirit. How many times after preaching, did we hear Brother Branham say, "I'm going from one anointing into another, and the people don't understand what that's like." Then he would wait for that change of anointing.

The Bible says Balaam was a prophet. Balak wanted him to curse Israel, but as a prophet of God, he could not do it! He got up to prophesy evil but he prophesied good, because the Gift or Office of prophecy was the sovereignty of God. He couldn't help himself! So in order to gain Balak's reward, He taught them error when he preached. Like modern preachers who know there is no such thing as a Trinity or baptism in three Titles, but for the sake of denominational reward, will twist the Rhema and cause the congregations to believe the lie. Don't claim Brother Olson said Brother Branham taught error—I'm using the example of Balaam to show you the difference between administrations. As a prophet, Balaam could not prophesy to curse Israel; but as a preacher he could teach contrary to the Word and bring the people into idolatry by departing from Exodus 34:14-16, ". . . you shall worship no other God etc." This illustrates that the gift of a prophet is a separate manifestation of the Spirit distinct from the operation of a Gift to teach. They are not the same thing. Balaam was a prophet; his prophetic Gift was the sovereignty of God over which he had no control.

When Brother Branham received a revelation, or Logos, it was up to him to faithfully preach what God had revealed. The same is true of your pastor; when the Lord reveals something, or uncovers the Logos, he's responsible to preach it to the best of his ability. The Holy Ghost takes what he is saying and reveals to you the thought behind it. We must be careful not to look to the man—we have to look to the Gift that God gave to the man.

Brother, the Bride of Christ will not be deceived. She hears His Logos and knows how to apply the Urim and Thummim, or Word, proving everything that is preached from Genesis to Revelation, which is the complete revelation of Jesus Christ. If it's in the Word it was always there: we must not add one idea, thought, or concept to what lies within its pages.

The apostles were anointed of God. Paul was ordained of God to write the New Testament, and lay the foundation or basis upon which our faith rests. "Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." It's already there and always has been. Through the Dark Ages the faithful were martyred and the faith was lost, but the foundation was always there. In the last days, God sent a messenger to restore us back to the original foundation. Malachi 4:5-6 says the spirit of Elijah would turn the heart of the children back to the faith of their Pentecostal fathers.

It says He'll "turn their HEARTS." In Greek as in Hebrew, the word "heart" signifies the seat of intellect—the mind, purpose, intention, knowledge, understanding and insight of a person. We read, "out of the abundance of the heart" (Matthew 12:34); "to love the Lord your God with all your heart. . ." (Mark 12:30); "Why reason in your hearts?" (Mark 2:8); "Jesus perceived the thought of their hearts" (as the Holy Ghost did though Brother Branham, Luke 9:47). In Luke 21:14 it says, "Bear it, therefore, in your heart for a purpose. . ." Luke 24:38 says, "Why do thoughts arise in your heart?" You see? The heart is the intellect, your mind. That's the real you. Malachi 4 is to RESTORE our understanding or knowledge, to agreement with the faith of the Pentecostal fathers. After Brother Branham had finished preaching, I looked up my Bible and knew what Paul had been talking about, I knew what Peter had been saying, and what John meant, because I was turned back in my understanding and intellect to the faith of the apostolic fathers.

Now brother, if you've never been turned back in your heart—no matter how well you know the Message and profess to believe, you've missed it. We must have the same faith they had in the beginning. Paul said, "If our Gospel be hid, it is hid from those who are lost . . . other foundation can no man lay." It was already there when Brother Branham came. God's messenger was not sent to deliver a new gospel, but to RESTORE our faith to the original foundation laid in the early church.

It says in the last days there will come a great falling away, people will not endure sound doctrine, and shall turn away from the truth and be turned to fables. "The last days" is the time of the end, when Christ's Mediation has ended, and the Seven Seals have been revealed.

There was no apostasy during the Dark Ages. Churches did not meekly accept dogma; the saints were faithful unto death at the hands of Rome. In order for you to apostatize you must have something to fall away from. Lutherans could not fall away in their Age, they weren't restored back. Methodists couldn't fall away in their Age, they were not restored. But at the end of the Pentecostal Age, God sent a prophet and "finished the mystery of God," to restore His people back to the faith of the fathers. They did run well, but the Pentecostal denominations and those of other Ages, all rejected the messenger and His Message, fulfilling Revelation 3:20; the Gentile churches end in apostasy.

The "falling away" or apostasy could not take place until first the faith was restored back to its original foundation. God permits it, all who will fall away, will fall away. It's also happening today in "Message" circles. Only those with the Seal of God will remain steadfast. If you have the Holy Ghost within you, you will believe the Word, and that will hold you. Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. The Message is, "Come out of Babylon and be filled with the Spirit!" Jesus Christ, the same— yesterday, today, and forever.

We talk of the Message. Just what is the Message? There IS only one Message. I John 1:5:

    "This then is the MESSAGE which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all."

The Message is Spiritual LIGHT, faith, or revelation of the Word on which Christ said He would build His Church. Zechariah 14 describes how the denominational Ages culminate in apostasy: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Light shall not be clear, nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at the evening time it shall be Light".

Proverbs 4:18: "But the path of the just is the shining Light, that shines more and more unto the perfect day." After the centuries of Dark Ages, the people saw Light. When Luther preached "the just shall live by faith," the Light began to shine. Wesley followed with sanctification and that Light grew brighter. Pentecost, with the baptism of the Holy Ghost shone more of the same Light, "a Light to lighten the Gentiles." The Holy Spirit working through Brother Branham caused that Light to shine brighter still. Today as in every Age, the Message is Jesus, the Light of the world. As in every Age its greatest enemies are those who claim to be the household of faith but who are impersonating the glare of an Age gone by, NOT walking in the Light Jesus is manifesting.

Judas Iscariot was chosen by the Lord Jesus Himself as one of the twelve apostles Jesus sent forth saying, "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand: heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, etc." Judas was thought to be "in the Message," for his day, but he betrayed the Word and never made it to Pentecost!

In the Eternity to come, in that Holy City, the New Jerusalem, "there shall be no night; and they will need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God gives them Light: and they shall reign forever and ever".

Dear Christian, "He that is of God hears God's Words" (John 8:47). "And ALL Your children shall be taught of God" (Isaiah 54:13): being ONE WITH THE WORD proves whether you are of God and Spirit-filled. No other criterion. It's Christ the Logos in you that is your hope of glory.

Why don't you stand up now and say out loud, "I CHOOSE JESUS CHRIST!"

Jesus Christ the same—yesterday and today, and forever is the Message and the spiritual food for today. If you believe on Him and obey His Word, He will lead you into that way everlasting and open your understanding to His Word.

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Brother Grigor-Scott is a non-denominational minister who has ministered full-time since 1981, primarily to other ministers and their congregations overseas. He pastors Bible Believers' tiny congregation, and is available to teach in your church.

Bible Believers' Church
Gunnedah NSW
Australia 2380
 
e-mail Bible Believers URL Bible Believers' Website
PowerPoint presentation The Second Coming of Christ
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