Mystery of Iniquity

Mystery of Iniquity

Bro. Lee Vayle - ?? - ?? - 1970

We're sure all glad to be back again in the House of the Lord, and usually you find that a little break between services is nice not too long a break, many times in the morning we come to church and we’re away so long in the afternoon, that we sort of lose our enthusiasm. But if you have a little break only you notice everybody's even much more under expectation Bro. Branham said for the Word, then they were in the morning. It seems like the morning service builds up for the night. And that's very, very good, and we trust the Lord will bless us together in the Word.

1. Now remember, Bro. Branham said, "The mystery of iniquity is the church actually worshipping Satan, thinking that they're worshipping God." The church worshipping and serving the devil, (of course he's incarnated here in this wicked end time person) and the church is doing it. And they don't know that they're doing it, and that's exactly the way it was in Jesus' day. They didn't know what they were doing. They really didn’t. They thought that they were worshipping the Lord, that they were children of God, but they weren't, they were deceived.

End time deception in this same mystery is that people will believe that they're born again, that they're going to make it, and they won't. As Bro. Branham said, I think he mentioned he preached it on 'The Judgment', or some such Message. Where he said, "Remember how I told you the drunkard he isn't going to be surprised, because he doesn't figure he'll make it. And wicked people that will be there on Judgment Day. But, (he said) the person that's surprised is going to be the one that thought he would make it, but he doesn't do it."

2. So, that's the thought we have here, and remember also that Bro. Branham mentioned that the end time prophet would sow the seed of the entire Bible, from the serpent to the prophet in the former rain, which was certainly done by the messenger at the end time. And also, he said, "The Seventh Seal which was the Seal of silence could be traced from the Book of Genesis to the Book of Revelation." And this to me only means one thing, and that is that the Seventh Seal is the complete revelation of the Word of God by Revelation 10:7, all the mysteries fulfilled brought into view by the prophet.

3. And you'll notice that serpent seed is one of those mysteries in Genesis, that’s silent. Actually, the Bible does not say who the serpent was, what he was with any real definitive explanation, or description concerning him. And It doesn't say exactly what happened in the Garden. It doesn't say what the tree was. But, it's in there in a mystery, I suppose esoterically set forth, and the prophet comes on the scene and he doesn't add one Word to the Bible, and he doesn't take one Word from It, but he brings the Word which are the mysteries into full view. So that you know exactly what each mystery is. I say exactly, to the extent that God can give you a revelation.

Because, as I said this afternoon if you got to believe, you might not be able to explain it point by point, and no one did it. Paul didn't do it. None of them did it. God withheld it, but they believed it. And this is where we stand today on our faith, we put our faith in a vindicated Message.

4. Now, speaking then of the fact that there is a mystery of iniquity, and it's written over here in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, which we read this afternoon. So, I don't need to read It again, but just use that Scripture for our comment. Now, let's first of all notice here that the mystery of iniquity is manifested in a man. Now, it comes into full manifestation in a man, and it's in verse 7-8

(7) For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: …

Now, in other words, we got a principle working. We have a spiritual principle already working. and It says,

…only he who (hindereth will hinder, till) he be taken out of the way.

(8) …then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: (Now, it's a man.)

In other words, we find here it will be the embodiment of Satan, because It says in verse 9,

(9) …whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

Satan incarnated in a man, and I suppose it's going to be just as it was in the time of Judas. Because the Bible says at a certain given time, when it was time to betray Jesus, then this spirit, (Satan) actually entered into Judas.

5. And remember, that Jesus said in John 6:70

(70) …Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is (the) devil?

It doesn't say, one of you is a devil. That's a very major mis-translation in the Bible. "It's one of you is diabolus, which is, one of you is the devil."

And so, we find that this spirit that's been in the church all these Ages. Just like the spirit was in the people and in the Old Testament, finally came into a full manifestation through a man which was Jesus Christ, the Word. So, we have the perversion of the truth and the spirit coming into a full manifestation in a man, which is the antichrist.

Now, this mystery of iniquity which is finally headed up in a man is related to the Coming of the Lord. There is a direct relation to the Coming of the Lord. Because It says in verse 2, "That you be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled neither by spirits, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that day of Christ is at hand." [2 Th 2:2] Now, as I mentioned this afternoon this word 'Christ' is a wrong translation, it is 'Lord', which is 'J-a-h’, which is Jehovah. "The day of Jehovah is at hand." Now, the day of Jehovah usually represents the day of the battle of our God, when God fights for Israel and defeats the enemy.

6. Now, we can find that over here in the Book of Jeremiah 46:10, It says:

(10) For this is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood: for the Lord GOD of hosts hath a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.

Now, you can see the description of the day of the Lord is one of battle, one of vengeance, one of great blood when God gives Israel, (His people) a great victory by His Own mighty sword.

7. Also in Isaiah 2:12 It says here;

(12) For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low:

You notice here how His judgment of course is the retributive wrath of God upon the world for their rejection. And now remember, as Bro. Branham mentioned that 'God in Simplicity' [63-0317] He veils Himself in the same, in order to reveal Himself in that simplicity. So, those who reject do so, because of the wisdom of this world. And you'll find that God is reaping His judgment upon them, because of their lofty spirit, and they wouldn't humble themselves.

8. And over again in the Book of Acts 2:20 It says:

(20) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord come:

There again is Jehovah, the day of Jehovah, God executing swift wrath upon the entire world who have been taken in by the beast system.

9. And then over here again in 2 Peter 3:10

(10) But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Now, of course we know that this is the very end time. But there again you see a picture of the day of the Lord. What we're trying to show you is the fact that it always represents the day of wrath and retribution, and anger in all against the enemies of God. God doing a might thing in retributive justice is what it mostly sets forth. God coming in great power and judgment upon the world.

Now, at this time of course when this happens the Bride has already been Raptured. (You see.) And then it's related to this time the Bride having gone, God going to pour all His wrath in judgment that the antichrist comes into full manifestation in the flesh, and this mystery of iniquity, which is headed up in a man. And the man is worshipped as God in the church system. It's into full bloom, and then God must bring His wrath down upon the world, and because the church has done this very thing.

10. Now, you'll notice also about this mystery in the day of the Lord, over Acts 1:6-7, It says there:

(6) When they therefore come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

(7) And he said…It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

Now, with this notice in 2 Thessalonians [2:]6 It says:

(6) And now (you) know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his (own) time.

Now, both comings, that is the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, (that is the day of wrath and judgment) and the coming of the antichrist in the full manifestation. Both must be fully manifested. Both of these comings are in their own season. They have a special season, and they cannot come at any other time. Now, both of them are secret. In other words, there is nothing set forth here that will give us an exact time as far as a time table is concerned. But, because they're secret they'll have to be made known by the Lord if we are to know them and to understand them.

Now, I heard a man preaching on the air today about this very thing, and he missed it a million miles. Because he doesn't have a revelation. It's a secret to him and will remain a secret. And no doubt if God doesn't illuminate him, he'll be caught in the whole entire mess. Now, notice also in verse 3, that there cannot be either the day of the Lord, or the manifestation of the man of sin, unless there is a falling away. There is going to be a great apostasy, a great falling away.

11. Now, to help understand this from an Old Testament view point, to understand what's in the mind of God, because you watch this, the day of Jehovah of the Lord is an Old Testament phrase. So, we're dealing here with an Old Testament picture that cannot be fulfilled until God is through dealing with everybody, and saving Israel to Himself while He destroys those that come up against Israel at that time, when He defeats the beast system and all.

So, the best way to know what some of these words mean, what actually is taking place here, (this falling away, this apostasy) is by studying the Greek from the Old Testament. Because the New Testament is written in Greek, and so is the Old, translated by the seventy scholars under Paul of Origen of Alexandria. and this is the very translation that Paul used, and Peter used, he quotes It out of Pentecost and Christ used. So, it's good to look and see from the Old Testament what this really means.

12. Now, let's go back to Joshua 22:22. Now:

(22) The LORD God of gods, the LORD God of gods, knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if in transgression against the LORD, (save us not this day.)

Now, the very word here in the Greek that we translate 'apostasy' is the same word that they use here translating the Hebrew to the Greek and its 'rebellion'. Now, here's what happened over there in the Book of Joshua. You know that all Israel did not plan to go into Palestine, the Promise Land. They liked what they saw on one side of the River Jordan. So, they said, "Now look, we'll help you fight, and we'll help you go in, but we ourselves will not go in." (See?)

Now, that's quite a wonderful type concerning at the end time too. Because many people will fight for this Message, they'll do everything they can for it, but they'll not go in. They're fighters. They won't let God take them in. They'll defend it, but they'll never be a part of that reality. But speaking of the time of this occurs, you will notice that Israel that stayed over on the other side of the flood, (as the Bible says) they erected an altar. Now, the Israel that went over into Palestine, (into Canaan Land) they became very fearful. And they said, "Those people are rebelling against God, because there's only one place you can worship God, and that's where the Ark of the Covenant is, and you have no right to set up an altar and to sacrifice, and to approach God." And so, they were ready to have warfare with the Israel that stayed on the side of Jordan. And they said, "What are you doing rebelling against the Lord?" (See?)

13. Now, you will notice here that Israel was failing to worship God according to the Word of God, which there was one place to meet and worship God, which today is Christ the Word. (See?) They turned It down then, it was rebellion. And the rebellion is against God's own dedicated, indicated, vindicated way of worship. (See?) And that's what Joshua and those men thought. They thought that there was a rebellion.

Now, that's exactly what apostasy is. It is a rebellion against Almighty God. And that's what we have today, Laodicea. Laodicea is anarchy, or rebellion, because it's called 'people's rights'. They say, "Look, we've got our rights." And they base those rights upon anything they choose to base them upon. They based them upon their physiological makeup. That's why you've got such a tremendous decadence today in human race, especially concerning sex. There's no interest anymore of people getting married, they just shack up together. Why? They think that it’s a biological urge, and therefore it's fine. Okay, let them reap the hell they've sowed. They're going to do it. They've got VD [venereal disease] now so rampant you don't have to have sexual intercourse to get it. You can get it off a drink from somebody's cup. It is so virulent they're flesh will drop off their bones. But they asked for it. Let them have it, let them have it.

14. You say, "Bro. Vayle you're not sympathetic? No, I'm not sympathetic. I don't pray for a dead horse. America died in 1956 when it showed its rebellion against the Word of Almighty God by vindicated prophet.

They said, "We'll worship God our own way, or we'll drop dead doing it." They'll drop doing it. (See?) Apostasy is rebellion. This is the age of rebellion. Listen people, don't let it creep amongst you. That Nicolaitaine spirit is in the pews today so thick it is pitiful. The rising up against authority in the church. There is an authority in the church. It is God's ordained authority, which is by the ministry teaching the Word of Almighty God. (See?)

If a man be caught in a sin an elder says, "Take two witnesses." Stay with the Word. But, we've got such a turning away from the Word of God today, it's pitiful. Remember, Christ outside the church is the rejected Word. There was one place of worship with Israel. And to disobey the entering into that worship by the designated proven way was rebellion against God. Remember, the prophet said, "Only rebel you not against God." Only don't apostatize, only don't follow it. This is one of those falling away things.

15. Now, the next time we notice this Word in the Bible is in 2 Chronicles 29:19

(19) Moreover all the vessels, which king Ahaz in his reign did cast away in his transgression, have we prepared and sanctified, and, behold, they are before the altar of the LORD.

Notice, what He did, He cast them away in his transgression. There was a time then when Ahaz destroyed the sacred vessels from the altar. He took the sacred vessels away from the service of Almighty God. Maybe like people don't believe in communion anymore, or foot-washing, or baptism in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, or these other things. You cannot take them away from the church. We can take nothing away from the church. People don't like passing the plate.

Now, I don't care what you do, that's your business. Put a box on the wall. Bro. Branham said, "Pass the plate." Now, either he meant it, or he didn't mean it. He said, "It's a part of spiritual worship." I don't know why preachers want their own way. If he said do a thing, do it. He had a reason for it. He told us not to question him. He said, "Do it my way, because I'm responsible to God." There has got to be a supreme authority. There cannot be two of them. He said, "I am your ultimate, and God is mine by that Word." Read your church order. (See?) We don't fool with these things. We cannot take away church order.

Some of the biggest mess in this country right today, is because a certain preacher did not line up with Bro. Branham, and taught his own theory of church order. And said, "Dave, there is ribaldry, there is drinking, there is malison [means: a curse] mayhem." Rebellion, is not brother/sister in our makeup, or we're children of God. "The meek shall inherit the earth." [Mt 5:5] Neither do we take away. The apostasy is the taking away of those things which God revealed in His Word, and the way in which we are to worship Him. This is a must.

16. Then in the days of Jeremiah, they turned to idols, having gone down to Egypt. (You see) The Egyptian method will not do one thing for us. The Egyptian method is based upon gold and silver. It's based upon programs, it's based upon great manifestation. We don't go for those things. That's apostasy, that's falling away from the Word. (See?) Keep with the Word of Almighty God, and stay where the prophet put it. Or, we are going to find that we are partakers with the Laodicean system that put Jesus Christ out from amongst us, and reject Him by means of rejecting the Word. This is exactly what happens in the end time, it's the rejection of the Word of God.

Now, it is in the church, it is the church in its apostasy that brings on this man of sin. Now, that's exactly right. It's the church in this apostasy, this falling away, this rebellion, this taking away from the servants of God, and this going your own way, setting up their own system that brings on this man of sin. The mystery of iniquity in the church brings the man of iniquity. (See?) And we can be fooled, there's nobody so smart he shouldn't take heed less he, fall.

17. Now, notice how verse 10 tells you it is brought about. That's in 2 Thessalonians [2:] 10

(10) And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. (See? They received not the love of the truth.)

Now, that was their apostasy in a nutshell. (See?) They didn't receive what the prophet said was the correct interpretation, and what he said was the correct authority in the church. They wouldn't do it, they went their own way, and this is what's bad, they left the Word, (the truth) and therefore they apostatized.

Now notice, what they called this fellow who is the antichrist in [2 Th 2:] verse 3 he is called, the man of sin. He is called the son of perdition, and in verse 8, he is called the wicked one. Now, two of these titles are identical, 'man of sin', and 'wicked one', are lawless ones. That's what it really means. It shouldn't be call man of sin, a wicked one, they really are, 'lawless ones', as what the Greek really said.

18. Now, what is the lawless one? To fine this we turn to the Book of 1 John 3:4 (that's the epistle)

(4) Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is (lawlessness)…

Now, It tells you…that It doesn't say sin is a transgression of the law, that's not the right translation. Who so committeth sin, cuts across God's law. Sin is lawlessness.

Now, I think I've told you before there is no such thing as lawlessness. If there's such a thing as being lawless, there's nothing there, because everything is based upon a law. (See?) Now, there is no such thing a breaking a law, or you destroy the law. Whoever broke the law of gravity? Ridiculous, you can't break the law of gravity. You use another law to go against it, but you can't break it. If you ever broke the law of gravity there'd be no more gravity. We'd fly off in space. You don't break any laws, it's impossible to break laws. It's impossible to have anything without a law. (See?)

What is killing? You don't actually take a life, that life goes somewhere else. You merely disembody that life. (See?) Then the body down to the dust. But you can't break a law, there's no such thing as breaking a law. There's no such thing as lawlessness, it tells you what it is. It's going against the law. It's you going against the thing that God prescribes, and the way to do it. It's just like you talk about that altar. They built the altar, and Israel said, "Don't you dare do that." If you're going to worship God you've got to come over here." And they were so sincere they said, "We-we we'll just annihilate you if we got to, to save your own life." That's a pretty tough was to look at a fellow says, "I'm going to kill you to save you." But they meant business. You know why? Because they weren't going to stand for pollution. (See?) They weren't going to stand to be polluted.

19. Now, you take the very laws then that God, (I don't mean you here, I mean that's what happened, but you as a principle out here) they take the very laws that God laid down for an intended purpose, and use them for something else, or they try to attain the same purpose God wants, by using some other law that God never ordained. (See?)

Like Miriam, now, she did a great job dancing with her tambourine and prophesy. And she attempted to lead Israel away from Moses by doing it. And God said, "It were better is her father spit in her face, and fed her to the crocodiles." I just added that part, because I think that's what God meant. Spit in her face, disown her. Better she didn't have a thing to do with it, then the trick she pulled off. That's exactly the way women preachers are.

The Bible says, "to go into all the world and preach the Gospel," but not women. (See?) It says, "teach that Word," but not women. (See?) And the women still can't get rid of that spirit to say they believe this Message. They're on that phone day and night, making those wires hotter than a fire-cracker. And I'm going to tell you, the way to tear your church up is to put several phones in your house and keep your women blabbing, if you blab. I don't know if you do or not, but if you do, God have pity on your soul. Because you're going to reap a harvest you never dreamed of.

20. And you know what happened, that men are to blame because they shut up, or they should put their home in order. Now, that's apostasy, right there. That's leaving this Word right there, because you can't have you cake and eat it. You cannot go against the laws of God laid down. And you know what these women are doing, and the men are allowing it? They're allowing the church government to be sustained that way when it's invested in the supreme authority, which is the pastor who brings the Word. And then there's people say, "Well we don't want any pastors, thank you."

I'm glad you people want a pastor, or I wouldn't be here today. You can fly your own kite, but don't fly it near me. I wouldn't give you the time. I'll be honest I wouldn't give you the time of day. But, I can prove right there, you're nothing but a bunch of rebellious people. Even Paul said, "You put elders in every church. You do, and the elder is a man who could lead you astray. If he's a real man, he wouldn't do it. (See?)

21. Now, you see what we're into today? Anybody can say they believe this Message. But, to take a stand on It is a different thing entirely. To stand with that Word, that apostasy is here in the world, and the devil is going to use everything he can to bring everybody into it, because he wants them all. (See?) He does, and he's going to try to get them all.

So, here's what they do: they take laws that God did not intend to be used to bring about a certain result. That's happened in the Garden. Adam and Eve. Serpent defiled the woman. Then Adam took her back, copulated to bring forth children when it shouldn't have been done. Because the command was given when they were in the spirit. It's a spiritual reproduction. God by creating, (see?) of course He creates anew, He's getting His Own way.

22. Notice, the original sin, iniquity, as found in Genesis 2: 9,17.

(9) And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Now, in verse 17, He said:

(17) … (Don't eat of (that tree of the knowledge of good and evil, if you eat you're going to) die.

Now look, the Bible distinctly says that everything God's made was good. How in the name of common sense can God, a Father, look down upon that'll kill you and then said, "I've made it all good, hallelujah." He said, "Even I couldn't swallow that."

You say, "Bro. Vayle, don't you have blind faith?" How can I have blind faith when God gave me revelation? I got open eyes, spiritual revelation faith. I've got no blind faith. My blind faith is to turn down every single thing that somebody may give to me, to appeal to me, to take me away from my revelation. My revelation eyes wide open in Christ. (See?) Not of my own self saying, "I see." But now I see, because the prophet came. Now, I see, before I was blind. You see.

23. Now, God made everything good. And let's face it, therefore if a thing can kill you, it's not good. So, God never made any tree that would kill you. You kill yourself by perverting the law that God laid down to a certain end. Now, that law was 'bring forth', but you don't do it by sex. You bring forth in the church in the same way, but you don't do it by creed or a dogma. Or by women preachers, or by social, or wiener roast and all those things; but you do it by the Word! You don't do it by solely preaching, preaching about mother and father. Yeah, and a cowboy’s heaven going to see Will Rogers. I turned the radio off, I said, "Hogwash." I don't care two cents Will Rogers… and the rest of those birds. If I don't go there to see Jesus, forget the whole man. There's nothing to any of it.

Now, anybody can have a mother's heaven, or a father's heaven, or an uncle's heaven. I've got about as much sentiment as a hog has. I can't deal with sentimentality. Life is too important and too precious to be frittering our time away on sentimentality. If you're going to sentimental, get sentimental with Jesus, and above all, with the Word. (See?)

24. For what it is, can't you see this it's the perversion. It's taking those laws that God laid down. It's like the law of 'faith and fasting.' People go around saying, and boasting, that they fast the whole week, or they fast thirty and forty days. Bro. Branham said, "Don't you dare do that!” (See?) Oh yeah. They boast.

You know what happened? They break into a dimension, they have no right breaking into. And they come back with gifts and everything else. And they'll pay a price on that day. Why? Because they're trying to get to a certain place by a wrong law. That's just the same as a carnal man playing politics in church to head up a church, or to be looked upon by a lot, …oh, that's a great guy, isn't he wonderful? Hogwash. Who in the name of common sense that's got an ounce of Spirit of Christ wants to be looked up to? (Huh?) Who? Who wants to be and authority, or this or that? Stay with the Word. (See?) You follow me now with this lawless thing is? This idea is leading the world into chaos. Now, there’s iniquity we saw it, is the perversion of truth.

25. Now, notice how Cain carried this on after Eve got fooled. Notice Cain. That's over here in 1 John 3:9 Now:

(9) Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

Now, that's a mouthful right there. Because you know jolly well, that the Bible also says, "If any man says he doesn't sin, he's a liar and the truth is not in him, and if any man says he's got an advocate, even Jesus Christ the righteous." And who in the name of common sense needs an advocate, or intercessor unless there's something to intercede for? Just a waste of time. (See?) You've got to have something that matches up.

In other words, Bro. Branham said, "If God had not allowed us to sin, the full attributes of God could not have been on display." But, God being a Savior, He had to make a sinner in order to bring forth His attributes. Well, if…one of His attributes as an Intercessor, then there's got to be someone to intercede for. And remember, the mediator brings you in, the intercessor keeps you in.

Now, you know very well there's no such thing as Jesus sitting here as a man, and here's God over here. And God says, "Well, I don't think I like John anymore, out."

He says, "Oh no Father, please, please, please don't throw John out. Now John hasn't done a thing, he's a good boy really, and You know there's not an easier choice."

“I think I’ll go show him anyway."

You think that's how God works? How ridiculous.

26. We know that the Spirit of God is grieved with sin. And John does something that's wrong. Why? Because somebody threw the ball at him and he caught it. Maybe some half naked woman when down the street and he hasn't learned turn he eyes yet. [snaps fingers] Caught a thought like that. Now, the Spirit of God sees. What is the Intercessor doing? “I died for that person." (See?) Now, we understand what we're talking about. No, but It says here in this book there's a mystery. And the mystery is, that there's this one born of God cannot, does not sin, because he cannot sin.

So therefore, there's something that God calls sin that we don't call sin. We've been talking about it right there. It has to do with twisting the Word of God. It's something in here about that Word.

27. Now, let’s find out. It says, "In this thing, this thing here, is evident." [1 John 3:10-12]

(10) (It’s manifested) … children of God, and the children of the devil:

whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth

not his brother.

(11) For this is the message that (you) heard from the beginning, that we should

love one another.

(12) Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And

wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, …

Now, It says that his brother, that Cain killed Abel, because Abel had done a righteous work, and Cain had done an unrighteous work. That's what brought about the killing. Now, the killing was unrighteous, sure, but that's not the unrighteous act. The unrighteous act was an act of worship whereby Cain brought the first-fruit offering instead of the blood offering. Now, his offering was perfect, it was right. There's nothing wrong with the first-fruit offering. (See?) But you've got to … have rather had the blood offering first of all. And Cain [Abel] brought the blood offering by revelation he rightly divided the Word. And that's what sin is. And that's the difference between the one that's born again, and the one that's not. The child of God will never mis-divide that Word, that's the mark of the Holy Ghost every time, it all dovetails in Genesis to Revelation. (See?)

28. Now, we understand that then, what this mystery of iniquity is. It is the church worshipping God its own way literally ending up worshipping the devil, and doesn't even know it. Worshipping him and serving God apart from God’s predestinated foreordained way. That's what Jesus said to Israel, "In vain do you worship Me, having for teaching the doctrine of men." [Mt 15:9] In vain.

"Now, just a minute Lord, in vain does this man worship, because he's got a woman on the side."

"No." Now, that's bad, but that's not it.

"Well, he's vain Lord, that this man do, because he like a little bit too much wine."

"No, that's bad but that's not it."

You say, "Bro. Vayle, are you pleading for those guys?"

I'm not pleading at all, I'm just showing you the truth.

29. It says, the difference between the manifested sons of God and those that aren't, it lies in this one thing, this one fellow cannot sin. He does righteously, and he loved his brother. (See?) Who does he love? He loves his brother. Do you find him doing anything against his brother? No, you don’t find him. You find him trying to be helpful in grace and time. But you'll there's one thing the guy doesn’t go for, he will not step outside that revealed Word. The other fellow does, who calls himself a brother.

And then the man who calls himself a brother, will come against the man that does have the Word, while the one that's with God will simply stand up for the Word. That’s exactly the way that Cain was against his brother Abel. Abel stood with the Word, he simply followed through what he was supposed to do. There's no doubt that he loved Cain, Cain refused that Word then turned on his brother. You're going to find more and more of that, because that's the way it's got to be.

30. Now notice, how Jesus called Israel of the very same seed as Cain. In the Book of John, (that's the Gospel) [John 8:]

(44) (You) are of your father the devil, …

In other words, your source, which the word 'father' is source in the Greek and the Hebrew. Your source is the devil.

(44) …and the lusts of your father (you) will do….

Now, now that word 'lust' is too strong. The word is really 'pleasure'. Remember, the Bible says, "They take pleasure in unrighteousness." [1 Thessalonians 2:12] They like doing it. Cain loved his flowers, he loved the fruit, he didn't like the blood. (See?) He didn't like division of the work, he wouldn't. The Bible says back there in Genesis, "You have not rightly divided." [Gen 4:7a] What? The Word. Now:

(44) …He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because (there's) no truth in him….

How in the world can you stay with the Word, and there's no Word in you? Creeds and dogmas. Jesus said to Israel, "Israelites, (He said) I know you're Abraham's seed, but you seek to kill me, because My Word has no place in you." [Jn 8:37] There was no place in them for the Word. Something in there was missing. No place for the Word. (See?) They lacked something. Now:

(44) …When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

(450 And…I tell you the truth, (you) believe me not.

(46) Which of you (can confute) [me of sin?]

In other words, convince me of sin. "Which of you, (as Bro. Branham said) can find me wrong in one word?" And the word really is confute.

(46) …And if I say the truth, why do (you) not believe me?

(47) He that is of God heareth God's words: … (See? Say, "Well, I hear His Word." No, just a minute now, you) therefore hear them not, because (you) are not of God.

Now notice, what It says up here in another place. "Why do you not understand My speech? Even because you cannot hear My Words." [Jn 8:43] To understand the Word of God is to hear the Word of God. To hear the Word of God is to understand the Word of God. And remember, nobody can hear the Word of God with understanding, except a child of God. (See?) Now, no doubt Abel didn't know exactly why he was offering that blood, but he did it. There was just a certain amount of revelation there. (See?) But, it takes the Spirit to reveal the Word.

31. Now, let's go also to Matthew 15:3-13

(3) …he answered and said…Why do (you) also transgress the commandment of God (for) your tradition?

What is it that transgresses the Word of God? Tradition. (See?) He didn't say, "I can't stand the fact the you break the Ten Commandments." He said, "You've destroyed yourselves by teaching a corrupted Word." He said, "Your tradition, what you teach has transgressed the Word of God."

Now, what happens after that? Watch how they begin to deteriorate, watch how they begin to go downhill. Like in 'Marriage and Divorce' [65-02-21] You teach something other than the Word of God in Marriage and Divorce, and you're going to have people say they believe this Message, and say, "I can put away my wife for anything and marry somebody else, as long as she's a virgin." You, lusty dirty old dog you. I you think I don't know what you're talking about, you're not kidding me. You got to be a halfwit sixteen-year old kid and know what you're driving at. Nothing but pure lust, unabridged, unadulterated. (See?) Sure, pin it down where it belongs.

You come against this Message here the way Bro. Branham taught It, you'll end up in hell, and you'll take people to hell with you. (See?) Why? Because they take what they want to believe, and cut against what the prophet taught. (See?)

(4) Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die…

(5) But (you) say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; (I don't even what this means here, it's something I could never figure out.)

(6) And honour not his father (and) mother, (He said) he shall be free. Thus (said Jesus, you have) made the commandment(s) of God of none effect by your tradition.

(7) (You) hypocrites, …

32. What's a hypocrite? Well, he's a fellow with a mask. But he's also a guy that pretends he's something that he's not. He's a shady character. (See?)

(7) …well did Esaias prophesy (concerning) you…

(8) This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

What's your heart? Out of your heart comes issue of light. When it comes down to the light, they don't want it.

(9) …in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. (See?)

Here's where it is, this is where Eve went astray. This is where Cain went astray. This is where everybody goes astray. Get back to the Word and you won't be astray. If we can get back to the pure unadulterated Word, we get right back to Eternal Life. and I mean pure unadulterated Word, is the Word of God in your day. And this is the Word of God for our day, to walk into Eternal Life without even dying. Walk to the Millennium.

(10) …he called the multitude, and said (to) them, Hear, and under- stand:

(11) Not that which (goes) into the mouth (defiles) a man; but that which (comes) out of the mouth, this (defiles) a man.

You see why, because that's the Word. Now, if the perfect Word of God comes out of It, there's no defilement. If we say what the prophet said, there's no defilement. And that's where Eve got her trouble. She did not say what God said. Because she said, "You can't even touch it." The Word of God was eat, to be a partaker.

33. Now,

(12) (So,) the Pharisees (here became very) offended.

(13) (And Jesus) said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be (up)rooted.

(14) Let them alone: (these tares) they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both fall into the ditch.

Now who’s the blind person? The blind person is one who has been blinded like in Laodicea. And his blindness is, he says he's sees but he can't see. If he hadn't said that he could see, his sin would not have remained. But the minute they say, "We see, we don't need this revelation." Then they're finished right there. Their sin remains. There is no Blood sacrifice, I don't care how they plead the Blood sacrifice, there is no Blood sacrifice for them. (See?) Now,

(15) Then Peter (declared) and said…Declare this parable.

(16) And Jesus said, Are (you) also without understanding? (And so on, see?)

The turned away from the Word of Almighty God.

34. Now, as I said awhile ago, this lawless one can only come at a certain time. That's right. He's got to come at a certain time of Matthew 24:24.

(24) … (when) there shall arise false Christs, (even lying) prophets, (who) shall shew great signs and wonders; (that the even the very elected would be) deceived (by his subtlety except for the intervention of Almighty God.)

Now remember, if it were possible. And remember, it's impossible to deceive the Elect. And it's impossible for a man born again to sin. (See?) They'll never fool by the wrong interpretation, they come right down the line.

Now, this is a whole lot different explanation then you've ever heard in your life before the prophet came. See, we didn't know what this was all about, we know now though. Why? Because the mysteries are open. We know what it is now. We're not one of those falling away people who say, "Well, if you're born of God, you won't sin. I saw a man sinning, …must be wrong.” No, they're not born again themselves, because they believe in a sanctified holy doctrine doesn't apply at all. Their doctrine are a million of miles off road. Because if you had the root of sin taken out of you, how in the world could you backslide? How could you be tempted, if you can be tempted? (See?) They got a lot of funny theories. I know one thing, Wesley never taught them, because I read his book. They say they follow Wesley. That's like Israel said they follow Moses.

Now, I was reading in Matthew 24:25-26 now It says:

(25) Behold, I have told you before.

(26) Wherefore if they shall say…he is in the desert; go not forth: behold the secret chambers; (don't you) believe it.

35. Now, with that we read over here in Acts 2: (which I've read many times) 2:16, where Peter speaks of the Spirit of God falling upon (a -double- l) flesh. So, that there are two groups of people anointed. God's anointed one, and the devil's anointed one. And they're both going to have the same signs and wonders. (See?)

Now with that, Acts 2:16-17, let's read verse 21, and It says:

(21) And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Now, in the end time when this takes place, you've got to call upon the Name of the Lord. But what is the Name of the Lord? 'Jesus'. But they don't know that. They don't know that Bro. Branham vision was absolutely scriptural. Remember, he speaks of that in, (he repeats it in) 'A Thinking Man's Filter' [65-08-22] you know, where he said he was out hunting, going out that early morning sunrise, he saw that beautiful streams of light going up and they turned into the Seven Church Ages, them seven golden candlesticks. And a voice said to him, the angel of God said, "Jehovah of the Old Testament is Jesus of the New." You see, what's the Name of the Lord? It's Jesus. They're not three gods, not two gods, there's one God. (See?)

36. Now, notice in there, as I talked this afternoon in Matthew 7:15, and Matthew 24:24, and Matthew 7:21-23, It speaks of there, that tree. It says, "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, and a corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit." [Mt 7:18] (See?) What is it? He brings you right down to this day when you have prophet who show the signs and the miracles of Almighty God. They teach the Word of God with their own creeds and their dogmas was mixed in it, and they're leading the people astray. But, you've got those that stand right with that Word, and they don't try to do one thing, except God is in it having His Own way, bringing forth His Own Word.

Now remember, He also says over here in Matthew 7:22-23

(22) Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? …cast out devils? and (did) wonderful works?

(23) …And He said,) I never knew you: depart from me, (you) that work iniquity.

But remember, those people could not do those things, It was the Spirit of God that did it. What was their iniquity? The wrong division of the Word of God, and taking a manifestation of the Holy Ghost to attempt to prove themselves right, and thereby deluding the people. (See?) And they end up with this system worshipping the devil thinking it's God. Imagine, putting a man on the throne.

37. Now, so here, we have the end time iniquity abounding as It says in Matthew 24:11-12 Let's look at that:

(11) And many false prophets shall (arise), and deceive many.

(12) And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

The love of what? The love of the Word shall absolutely wax cold, because you're getting away with your creeds and dogmas. Ha…my people can see that. Here's a Pentecostal church, Lima, Ohio, South Bend, you go wherever you want, you got it. Roman Catholic’s, all come together now. And they're all talking in tongues, and the preacher is a good tongues talker too. And here's a Pentecostal he talks in tongues, and he says, "Praise the Lord." That dear brother was a Roman Catholic he's got his collar on backwards, sure he has and he's vindicated. But I want tell you he's got the Holy Ghost, hallelujah, he talks in tongues.

And I say, "Now, hold it, doesn't he that claim he's God when he takes confession of sin?"

"Well, sure."

"Now, can that be the Holy Ghost?"

"Well, (he said) he talks in tongues, that's the Holy Ghost. And I talk in tongues and that's the Holy Ghost."

"Well, (I say,) just a minute now, he says the pope's infallible, you believe that?"

"No, we shouldn't have a pope, but you see he talks in tongues, and I talk in tongues, he's got the Holy Ghost, and I've got the Holy Ghost."

And I say, "Hold it now, he said, 'Hail Mary', he prays to Mary which is spiritism."

"Now, I admit that, that's a good strong point, but you see, he talks in tongues, he's got the Holy Ghost, I talk in tongues, I got the Holy Ghost."

And so, he says, "What does it really matter anyway?"

They don't love the Word of God, they love the icing on the cake, never mind the baker, kill him. And so, they do their best to kill God the second time, and they literally crucify the Son of God the second time by crucifying the Word.

Now, what do they stand on? They stand on a manifestation. The wickedness is not those gifts in operation in the sense the people are getting healed and all, (though that's wicked) if you're going to take something off a man of God put on there. That's wicked to do that. But, you see what it is, it's that perverting of the Word of God to the people and making it stick by signs and wonders. You see?

38. Now, false to the Word, but true to the power. Pentecostal shuck foreruns the antichrist, because all the poison of all the Ages pour into her. Now listen: you got to understand this. I know people don't like this kind of preaching, I hope you do, because you…because of what the prophet taught. But at the end time all the poison pours into it, because Pentecost is the last. Remember, God visits the sin in the fourth generation. (See?) The third and the fourth generation, under the third and the fourth generation, usually, especially the fourth one.

Now, let's look at this thing. Luther, Wesley, (remember?) Pentecost when it had the right thing, but at the end, (that's the tail end) when the Bride Age comes in, they go into what is literally a fourth generation and God is going to require at their hand, all the corruption of all the Ages. Just like she did with Israel.

39. Now, this is how God works, and there's no use to you and me trying to change it. Why should God do it at this Age? Why not punish that fellow way back there? Why did He kill Adam, and so and so? Listen, just why not let God mind His business? He's God, He knows what He is doing. And believe me, we're going to find one day He's done a far better job of grace, then we ever believed He was doing. Give Him credit the best you can. (See?) No, people don't understand it. The poison of all the Ages is poured into the chaff, because He says, "Burn it up, and save the wheat."

The last plague to hit Egypt was physical death. And today, the last thing is spiritual death. And remember, this is the last Age. It's in the last Age that spiritual death comes to the whole world. Now, I hope we see it. Remember, what Mr. Pentecost [David du Plessis] said. He said when he was in Rome, and the curia was talking in tongues, it was a breath of fresh air. As I said before, I wonder where his nose was before that period?

40. I read a story, it may not be nice to say here, but is read a story years ago of a man that stole into somebody's attic. And every night he replenished this attic with food. And he was up there for years, and people couldn't figure it out what it was. He heard a little noise, and they thought, "what is that?" But they never got too suspicious, until one day somebody said say, "I saw a man go in your house."

"They said, "Impossible."

"Oh, (they said) no, it's not, we saw him get in."

So, they called the cops. The cops went through the house with a fine comb. Finally, they said, "There's nobody here."

"But, (they said) there's got to be somebody."

They looked up in the attic, when the opened the trap door, the stench almost killed the police-man. They had to get masks, because the man had not used their restroom, he had put all his waste up there. But of course, you know, air comes in the attic a lot of times and blows out, and it never got down below. How it didn't get down below, how, don' ask me. But I know one thing, they had to get gasmasks.

41. Now, here's the point. The fellow himself in his mess, (his own mess) he wasn't bothered at all anymore, than a hog is. So, I wonder where this man's nose was before he found Rome a breath of fresh air? And he said, "Pentecost in Rome will bring a world revival." Ha! Pentecost in Rome will bring the deception that destroys the world.

Now, notice that this man is finally, because you can't crown a spirit, it takes him to be a man, so he becomes a man and he is crowned. Notice now, how this crowning takes place: the crowning can only take place, because Pentecostal people could not be taught church order. Now, if the prophet of God could have taught them church order they'd have stopped in their sins right there, but they couldn't be taught church order. They could not be trained and shown that tongues, was not the evidence. They put everything on the line by a manifestation, and therefore they have gone into perversion and lawlessness. And the Pentecostal church is lawless, because the Angel of God said, "You cannot teach Pentecostal babies doctrine." Which is the teaching of the Bible. You cannot show them the mysteries, you cannot open their eyes. (See?)

42. Now, let's take a little time with this word 'iniquity'. Okay, you know that's 'lawlessness' of course.

Matthew 23:27-36

(27) Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for (you) are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but (they're) full of dead men's bones, and all uncleanness.

Now, what is nicer than great healing campaigns; and a positive Gospel; and a jolly good God? Why beautiful, but they're full of dead men's bones. Why? Because it spells death at this time. (See?) No!

(28) Even so (you) outwardly appear righteous…but (inwardly you) are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

You are full of lawlessness. You're full of rebellion against the revealed Word of God. Though you claim to be in It. and you're doing a lot of work. "Oh, I'm doing these works doesn't the Bible say, "go out and heal the sick, raise the dead'?" Sure, It does. Sure, It says that. But It also says you can be judged guilty on judgment day, you that work iniquity. (See?) You that perverted the Word of God. You that destroyed people by signs and wonders, claiming to be of God, when you were a false prophet, or a false teacher. (See?)

43. Now, He said here:

(29) Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! (You) build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchers of the righteous,

(30) And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. (didn’t that happen in every generation? Uh?)

Haven't the people today in the Baptist church say, "Well, it looks like we made a mistake?" This Catholic lady told our daughter in Lima, she said, "You know what, I've been taught against this for twenty years that we've been making a mistake a mistake for twenty years."

They'll say, "Well, you Pentecostal folk, you we were wrong. Yes sir, we were wrong. Our father's were wrong. We want to tell you we're right, shake hands, hallelujah. We're all the children of God, glory to God." Whited sepulchers.

Now, what does He say here: now listen, He says, "At the end time (He's) going to bring the blood of everybody down of their heads for this very thing. (See?)

(31) Wherefore be witnesses unto yourselves, (you) are the children of them which killed the prophets.

44. Why do you Roman Catholics and you Baptists and Presbyterians, you bunch of Lutherans, you're the very ones whose parents excoriated those ones that had the Holy Ghost, and spoke in tongues and had wonderful acts back there in 1906 until 1925, '30, whatever it was; when the Holy Ghost came restored the Word of God was restored in manifestation of gifts? Why weren’t you talking pretty back there? No, you said everyone was lying, everyone was doing this, that, and you're the devil. You Christian Mission Alliance, you're the ones that blasphemed, most the Nazarene church. Bro. Branham had a vision of the Nazarene church. What was it? It was a man kissing a corpse, making love to a corpse. I heard of some pretty awful things, but that's about the worse I ever heard of. That's about the worse thing I ever heard of. Sheesh, making love to a dead woman. Nazarene church, Missionary Alliance, whole bunch of them. Yeah.

What were you doing back there? Sure, what happened in Nyack, [New York] A little bit of wildfire, sure, so they branded the whole thing of the devil. God Almighty said you'd speak in tongues under proper orders in the right place, and the right way. Bro. Branham said, "As long as the church would last there will be a real gift of tongues in the church." Where is it? I don't know, but it's out there. But it sure isn't what a lot of people call the real thing. But now, you see, they're all getting on the bandwagon.

45. (31) (Therefore) be witnesses unto yourselves, that (you) are the children of them (that) killed the prophets.

You're a bunch of killers. Just a bunch of killers. That's what he said, yeah, hypocrites, breeding hypocrites. Killers breeding killers.

(32) Fill up then the measure of your fathers. (He said, "You do it.")

Now, He said, "Do the very thing your fathers did." Which was what? Disbelieve the Word in their day, and you'll disbelieve It now, and you'll have all the signs and wonders, make it gooder, and gooder, and gooder, until you're so deceived and the world with you, you'll worship the old devil, saying, "He's God, hallelujah, glory to God." Go right to hell and get caught in the trap. Now, I'm not making this up brother/sister, that's the Word of the Lord taught by the prophet .

Notice, He said,

(33) (You) serpents, (you) generation of vipers, how can (you) escape the damnation of hell?

(34) Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: …

He said, "I've sent you revealers of the Word. I sent you a man to explain the Word. I sent you those who just read you the Word,

(34) …and some of them (you) shall kill and crucify; and some (you) scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:

(35) That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel…

Notice, that at the end time now, there is no place to go, He's going to bring the whole thing under condemnation. He said, "I say, verily this will all that I say would happen to this generation." What generation? The generation of the end time, who see these mighty works, and get fooled by them, because they turned down the vindicated prophet with 'Thus Saith the Lord'. (See?)

46. Now, what is it that Jesus said they were? "Hypocrites." That's right, playing a part on the stage. A make believer. Okay? 2 Thessalonians 2: (where we're getting our reading from) alright, here he is:

(4) Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God (the hypocrite, sits) in the temple of God, (lying and pretending) he is God.

You talk about a hypocrite. That's right, a hypocrite. That's what he is, the great hypocrite of all Ages. The hypocritical spirit that's in the world today. People pretending they're Christians, and turning down the vindicated Word. Claiming they've got the Holy Ghost and denying the very ministry God sent upon this earth. As Bro. Branham said, "You cannot go behind that veil and into the Shekinah glory, and come out calling Jesus a fortune teller." Sure, it's right. They claim that they're behind the Shekinah glory where the showbread is. Where the Life of God is, behind the veil. And they come out saying, "Well, Bro. Branham had a familiar spirit, that's just a show-manship." He had 'Thus Saith the Lord', and nobody else had.

Now, the great hypocrite comes on the scene. Notice how Jesus avoided iniquity. Jesus was never caught in a sin. He said, "I only say what I hear My Father say, and I do what He tells Me to do." (See?) When the Word of God became revealed in human flesh, what was it? It was the actual out working of the Word of Almighty God Itself. The Word in manifestation. Jesus fulfilling every single Word. (See?)

47. Now, notice what He's done for us in Titus 2:14

(14) Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, …

Ha, how many times have you ever seen anybody repent because they were wrong in the Word? None. You know why? Because they don't even know 'repentance' means 'repentance', change the mind. How many people have godly sorrow, because of wrong belief in the Word? No sir! They only thing they've gotten…they only repent for, and they think they feel bad about it, is when they did something bad. Maybe like, poison the neighbor's dog, or throw a brick through somebody's window, or fall by the wayside awhile. Sure, and that's what they repent about.

How many repent for being wrong in the Word? Nobody, unless it's this group. (See?) Hear what he says again in verse 14.

(14) Who gave himself…that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

What's the first thing? Get right on the Word, redeem us from our wrong word. He paid the price of the perversion of the human race. (See?) Now, if He paid the price for it, how can the Bride be off the Word and be Bride? She cannot be off the Word. Bro. Branham said, "Give them the Word test." (See?) And purify unto himself. He purifies it, teaching us the Word, bringing us up to the end time. Sure, we're zealous of works. Zealous of what works? Zealous of works, which coincide with the Word. Not some manmade scheme, or some golden calf scheme. (See?) No, that's what Jesus did for us. Why? Because He was that perfect Word revealed, and not one time did He ever go off that Word. (See?) Tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin. Now, never went off the Word.

48. Now, going back to those titles, because that's what he's got, titles. He's the son of perdition. Perdition means 'destruction'. Spiritual, eternal disaster. The absolute ruin as far as the purpose of existence is concerned. It's like Jesus said about this man Judas, "It were better that man was never born." [Mk 14:21b] His very existence is destroyed.

In other words, every reason and purpose of being is a total failure. (See?) How tragic for those of that spirit. They are living for God in their own ways, and they are utterly lost just like this man the antichrist.

Now, notice in [2 Thessalonians 2:]

(4) Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, …

Here you've got two more titles, the opposer and the exalter, because that's what the Word is, to oppose and to exalt makes him the opposer and the exalter.

49. Now what does it mean to oppose? Again, we've got to go back to the Septuagint, the Old Testament in Greek. We go back to Zechariah 3:1

(1) And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him.

Notice here, it is Satan standing to resist. The word 'opposer', then is the great resistor.

50. Now, let's notice what's in the New Testament, just to sort of give us an idea to what this Word works like in the Bible.

Luke 13:17

(17) And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him.

You know, here was Jesus being opposed by the devil. Satan was His adversary. (See?) And when He said these thing, all His opposer's were ashamed, all those who opposed Him. …

[1 Timothy 1:]

(10) For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; (Opposing the sound doctrine.)

So, here you see at the end time, this one is man of sin. This mystery of iniquity that heads up in a man of sin, is opposing Christ, is opposing the Elect, is opposing the Word. See, there is it. In total opposition. And when he sits of that throne, (of course the Bride will be gone) but he'll hate the Elect of God, (which is the Jews he'll try to destroy them) hates the Word, and hates Christ all the time pretending that he is the real thing. (See?)

51. Now, for a literal translation for opposed is; one who sits over against. To oppose me, is to sit over against. It doesn’t mean to just come against you…blam…it's opposes against. See, there you are, that's the antichrist, that's the old pope. He pretends that he's the vicar of Christ. He pretends he's the one that God put here. And you know what? The Catholic's never have, nor ever will stand with the Word of God. They stand with the church. They don't care that for the Word, they even claim that…the claim that they made the Word. That's a lie from the pit of hell. Those popes were too busy having their paramours, and their girl-friends to worry about the Word. Anybody ever kid you, bunch of licentious dogs. You know that as well, that's your history.

Three popes at one time, telling us the history their papal choirs with their own bastards, living licentious with their own sisters. Living in sodomy, everything else. Three popes at one time cursing each other, from three parts of the earth. And then the Roman Catholic people knowing this, dare to stand up and call a pope infallible. (See?) You can see how rotten the whole church system is. They don't care two cents for the Word of God.

52. I got a young buddy of mine went down in Newfoundland, (you know that's in Canada, up there in Canada) and when he began arguing the Word with his father, he took the Bible and said, "Here it is dad!"

And he said, "I don't even want him to see the Bible! I’ve got my little black book”

A little black book of the Pentecostals, the same diabolical crud that’s in the Roman Catholic church, it's the same spirit. But, he talks in tongues, so that does it. He's zealous, he's boisterous for God. Anybody can get zealous for God. He said, "The zeal at my house is eating me up." You can actually eat up God, and get rid of Him by your own zeal for Him. (See?) They got a zeal, … not according to knowledge.

53. Now, he's called the exalter. He exalts himself. Now of course, this is quoted, this also is found in the Old Testament, over here in Daniel 11:36

(36) And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, …

Isn't that exactly what the elders did when they picked the chief elder and they made him the pope? You know something, there would never be a pope except for the bishop. It's the bishop who are the elders who vote in the hierarchy above them who finally end up with the pope. And every time that you've got an organization, I don't care if it's Roman Catholic, or Protestant, the thing will end in bringing about an antichrist. He is the exalter.

54. Notice also the Book of Ezekiel 28:14-19 now listen:

(14) Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; (you) walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.

(15) Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.

(16) By the multitude of thy merchandise (thou) have filled the midst of thee with violence, …

Notice, that who brings on merchandise and schemes and all? The devil does.

(16) …and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: (in other words, God says, "I'm going to destroy, get rid of you.") …O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.

(17) Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

(18) Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; …

Notice the iniquity, what we're talking about is the perversion of the Word. Creeds and dogmas, and church codes and ethics.

(17) … therefore, will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

There you find a picture of that one that exalts himself above all things. Notice It says here of course, in verse 14, we saw that he was leading the worship of Almighty God upon the Holy Mountain.

Now remember, the Holy Mountain can be Mount Zion, which is a type of what's in Heaven. It can also be the people. Because if he's going to sit upon the Mountain, (and remember people is often represented by authority of people.) So therefore, he sits upon the highest authority of the people. And the highest authority of the people is God, which is the Word. But, they turned It down and they take the creed and dogma.

55. Okay, also in the Book of Isaiah14: 12-17 (more on Satan)

(12) How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

(13) For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: ...

What's the stars of God? That's the believers of God. I'm going to take over the whole thing he said, even the Saints of God. (See?)

(13) …I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

(14) I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

(15) Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. (See?)

He exalts himself, but God will bring him down.

Now, you'll notice that this is a case of a man exalting himself. Giving himself a position before the people, and taking over in a system of worship. Now, can you imagine a prophet would do that? A prophet's vindicated, he's got to testify of himself, he's got to bring the Word of God, but he can't do it the way this man does it.

Now, notice here that this man is the opposer, he in the opposition to the Lord. Opposition to authority is anarchy, which is Laodicea. An exaltation is also Laodicea, because they say, "We are rich, we're increased in goods, and we don't need a thing." [Rev 3:17] They exalt themselves. This generation exalts itself spiritually. It says it's great it's wonderful. And what happens then? They bring forth a chief exalter amongst them who is the antichrist. The church brings forth the very devil himself. The Bride brings forth Christ, while they bring forth the devil.

56. Now, see where this leads them. It leads them to 2 Thessalonians 2:4 now watch that 4th verse? ]

(4) Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God (sits) in the temple of God, (manifesting) himself that he is God.

He makes an absolute manifestation that he is the God of this universe. Right. He absolutely will show that he is God. He proves to the people sufficiently that he is the Lord. This is what Bro. Branham calls the overspreading of abomination, where the pope in Jerusalem takes over the whole world forgiving their sins and demanding complete worship to him.

Now, how does this terrible thing fit in spirit, fit in today? It is very simple, because as I said, men are operating in the Holy Spirit apart from the Word of God, and if these men are anointed Christ, then what will that man be but great anointed Christ, so called? (See?)

57. Now, this is according to as I have said to Acts 2:16-18, wherein Peter said, "Your sons and your daughters will have ministries, and my servants will have ministries." Christ the Holy Spirit speaking now, but remember brother/sister this does not lead to worldwide revival it leads to the great tribulation. Why can’t you understand that? They won't go, they don’t. They don't. They won't read their Bibles! They just go on screaming their own ideas. And said, "You watch God will back it up, and God will back it up." That’s right, that's why you've got all this trouble in Pentecost. "God will back up." Why? "Because I'm praying and I've fasted, God said so." Hogwash. "Every plant the Father has not planted, is going to come to naught." [Mt 15:13]

Now, do not the people with this anointing today act as Satan? What did Satan do? He bypassed the Word of God, and exalted himself with the power that God gave him. So, do these people exalt themselves with the power that God gave them, and they work against God.

Now listen, if you don't think that you can exalt yourself with the power of God, then tell me how come that Moses did? Moses did, Moses glorified himself before the people with the very power of God when he acted contrary to the Word of God that used the power of God. And Moses died for it. Now, this Age will die for doing the same thing. That's why the church has better be set in order. (Right?) And we had better put the gifts where they belong, and we had better do what the prophet said, or we're going to be exalting ourself against God too.

58. Now, I know people don't like this kind of preaching, I know you do, or I wouldn't be here, and you wouldn't be here, you'd walk out now. But, it's all around. It's all around, stick with the Word, never mind what it costs you. You know what the farmers do? They even plant the wheat in the fall and it stays there all winter until the rising sun breathes upon it, (so to speak) rays upon it and brings it up. So, we must wait perhaps in our winter too, until the Word of God comes forth manifested.

Now, (See?) bypass the Word until you can come to God, and worship God only through the church. You see how they're worshipping through the church? By creeds and dogmas. I don't care what they say, they're worshipping through a church system, not by the Holy Ghost. And remember, the Bible said, God will send them strong delusion when they turn down the truth. God will do it. (See?) Oh, they don't like that, they owe the devil. No, no, not the devil, the devil doesn't. It says, "God sends strong delusion." [2 Th 2:11] (See?)

59. Now notice, is this what it means when He said, "He makes himself God?" Sure. Sure, he makes himself God. Remember, the we build the image to him, and he couldn't do anything unless we allowed him to do it. Remember, the Word of God says, "That Satan is in thy borders are in the midst of the sea." [Ezek 28:2] And the word border is a limitation, or a fence, and the sea is the people. So therefore, it's the people that makes the antichrist that makes the worldwide system to worship the devil thinking it's God. The church is doing this. (See?) And they fail to recognize the teaching of the prophet on this subject.

Now then, in [2 Th 2:] verse 8, It says God destroys this one with the brightness of His Coming." Here is where he becomes the son of perdition, or the son of destruction and ruin. It does not mean annihilation, because the comes later.

Now listen, he and his system, and all those that built it, all those that laid their whole hopes in it. Now remember, beautiful churches, oh they cost money, oh my, look at these poor old preacher boys that paid a price. You know it's the most pitiful thing to realize their work is going to go down to the ground and they with it. That's why It says the last Babylon, and I can feel sorrow for them. Here's this old boy gone out maybe in his youth, works his head off, sweats, struggles, got a group together, took the tithes, and instead of living on the tithes, built a building.

60. Now listen, you've got no right to do that. The tithes goes to the ministry, it's his living. It doesn't build a building, or do one blessed thing beyond taking care of the preacher. But, those poor ignorant preachers, they struggle, and they work, and they beat themselves to death, only to have beautiful churches now, and the preachers with their system bringing on the actual worship of the antichrist. And then the whole thing goes down in the dust, everything they've worked for. Everything they've struggled for, everything they believed for. The fasted for, they cried for, they prayed for, they denied for, the whole thing goes down in ruins with the son of perdition. Total loss of everything they strove for.

All the wealth, all the accumulation, everything goes down. Just like It says in Hebrews 12: where It says, "Once more I speak from heaven. And when get through everything can be shaken will be shaken down." And also, He says in Revelation 18: It says, "Babylon is fallen," the whole thing is gone. (See?) Only treasures in heaven will matter today brother/sisters. As the prophet used to sing, "Covet not this earth vain riches." (See?) Don't covet, don't try to build here, and build your treasure in heaven with the Word of God.

61. Now, notice also, verse 9, actually belongs to [2 Th 2:] verse 4. Because in verse 4, It says the he's going to oppose and make himself God. But It also says then,

(9) …whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

Now, It tells you here how he's going to do it. It's what we've been saying all along. The mystery of iniquity is a great power ministry that deceives the people. Now, I used to say because I didn't know any better, (because it looks like it says here in the Greek, in the Bible here) "with all power and signs and lying wonders."

I used to believe that they were that they were, 'lying signs and wonders', but the Greek does not say that. The Greek says that the miracles are genuine, but it brings them to the lie. It's the Word that they lie about, it's exactly Matthew 24: in one person. See, they don't have the Word. (See?) That's the iniquity. That's what makes him the man of iniquity. That's what makes him lawless. That's what makes the people just like him, because he's the superman of iniquity produced by a super race of iniquitous people. And he has the full embodiment of what the whole people stand for.

In other words, just like everything we have is in Christ, and are partakers of it, so it is with this world system, they've raised up an antichrist, they're partakers with him, one hundred percent. (See?) Now, iniquity here. Lying signs and wonders. But the wonders are not lies, it leads the people to the lie of which is the Word of God, perverted.

62. Now, notice here, according to the Greek all is legal, but the purpose is to destroy by lies, making them believe the lie. (See?) It's exactly true, because the Bible says here in [2 Thessalonians 2:] verse 4, that he shows that he is God, and this means, he actually proves by demonstrating that he is God. He actually proves it by demonstration.

Stop and think a minute: what will this man do, to make people believe that Jesus Christ is actually come down to earth after all? He's really going to have something to do with it. I don't what to be here to find out myself. Because, I had a taste of it by watching, 'The Anointed Ones at the End Time' [65-07-25] (See?) Because when you look at them, they have a dedication and everything else about them, then you'd have to swear was of God, but it is not of God. (See?)

63. Notice, in Deuteronomy, (which we don't need to read) chapter 13: this tells you about the prophet that comes to deceive the people. But, let's go to 2 Chronicles (that's the one we'll look at now.)

(19) And the LORD said, Who shall entice Ahab king of Israel, (king of Israel) that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one after another spoke) saying after this manner…saying (and) that manner.

(20) Then there came out a spirit, and stood before the LORD, and (he) said, I will entice him. And the LORD said unto him,

Wherewith?

(21) And he said, I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said, Thou shalt entice him, and thou shalt also prevail: go out, and do (it.) (See?)

64. What's going to do it? He's going to tell them what they want to hear what they love to hear, he's going to lie to them. And he's going to have such authority and power that his lies will be very graciously received. And they'll say, "Isn't it wonderful, we've been looking for this all of our lives, oh my, this is wonderful." (See?) That's exactly what is going to happen. What a terrible thing, but it's going to happen just the same. Can you image a church system?

Now remember, these people are not throwing beer parties as far as I know. They are not throwing their keys of the motels in to a hat, so they come out living lasciviously with the woman's exchange club, not as far as I know. They're not organized like the mafia to go out and kill and destroy. Remember, Bro. Branham said, "At the end time that the devil would come will the repeat of all cunning and deceitfulness." And it's the repeat of the lie in the Garden, where people are taken off the Word with high morals and great respect, and great talk and great joy, and great worship, and they're taken right into a false worship and they think it's God.

Now, that's what it is brother/sister, it's that awful deceit that's coming on the world. And what a man will this be? He will be a fabulous person. Oh, he must have personality and vigor, and understanding, and wisdom, and charm, and there must be something about him that's so compelling. (See?) Now, oh he'll be humble and sweet you watch, till the day come and he shows his teeth. (See?) It's got to be that way. There isn't any other way that he can do it. (See?) Because it's a lying spirit that takes over.

66. Now, for further proof, notice the word whose coming is after the coming of Satan. This man works on Satan's plan, he does what Satan did. It to get…to get contrast now on how Satan works, and how the Holy Spirit works, let's go to 2 Thessalonians 2:13, this will help maybe to clear it up. I know I'm trying to give you a lot of material here, but I just can't do anything else, and ever get this covered. I mean, I've got to either cover it now, or forget it. (See?) Because it's all one section of Scripture. Now notice what the Holy Spirit does.

(13) …we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit (even) belief of the truth:

What does he get them to do? Deny the truth, believe the lie. If the Holy Ghost brings you to the truth, antichrist will take you from the truth. And remember, this was done in the Garden by Cain and Abel. One had a revelation of the Word, he divided It correctly, he brought the right gift at the right time, the other did not, he brought the wrong one at the right time. And so, there will be an absolute misunderstanding of the Word, and thereby a false worship towards God. See, Satan wants beauty and great power like Cain. He wants a kingdom like Nimrod. God is in simplicity and humility, we simple believe the Word.

67. Now then in verse 10 [2 Thessalonians 2:]

(10) And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. (See, that's true, they would not receive it.)

The antichrist system and ministry takes hold of the people will all deceivableness of unrighteousness. Now remember, what the original unrighteousness was. It was a wrong division of the Word. Now, where is this, (now watch) where is this unrighteousness? It is in them that perish. Who's perishing? All those that take the mark of the beast in worship in this system, which is organization, antichrist. (See?) Them that perish, all that take the mark in worship. (See?) What is it? The mark of the beast, is to have church membership in the church system which make the antichrist. Now, why must this occur? (See?) It must occur, because they turned down the truth.

Which is Hebrews 6: said, "They are enlighten once and for all. They taste the Holy Ghost. They see the power of the world to come. They taste of the good Word of God, and then they turn right around and deny it." (See?)

68. Now listen, remember, in Exodus 28:30 in the Septuagint, the Urim and Thummim is manifestation and truth. Bro. Branham said, "We don’t have a Urim and Thummim like they did, we have the Bible." What was the Bible? Manifested by power and signs lead them to the truth. 'Thus Saith the Lord' is power in ministry which nobody but He had was to let the people know. This was the prophet's you're to hear, and It says in Acts 3:21, "If you don't hear that prophet, who has 'Thus Saith the Lord', then you'll be destroyed among the people." Exactly right.

To turn down the Elijah Spirit of Christ at the end time, both in the prophet to the Gentiles and the last one that goes to the Jews, is absolute death. Because remember, only the 144,000 are sealed at the end time. Remember, they're the only ones living. The Bride does not go into the tribulation, neither do the 144,000 die, they are saved, because they cannot be destroyed, (see?) because they received the truth.

69. Notice now, and we must not cringe at the Word of God. It says, "Because for this cause, because they turned down the vindicated prophet who had 'Thus Saith the Lord', God will send them strong delusion," like I said awhile ago. Now, strong delusion that they'll believe the lie.

What is that strong delusion? Bro. Branham said when he is gone off the field there'll be more anointed ones than you can shake a stick at." You're going to see a sweep of discernment, and anything else. Don't you get fooled by discernment. Don't do it. Bro. Branham categorically said, "Leave it alone." He took a friend of mind aside and said, "Don't ever use discernment." He took me said and said, "Don't ever do it."

Why? Because that belongs to the prophet, the sign of the Messiah where there is never one mistake made. Nobody else could read the hearts, and ever had anybody not escaped. Bro. Branham could say, "I challenge you, I take every spirit under control in this building in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the glory of God." And there wasn't one person could hide. You could take every other person with any discernment at all, and anybody could hide from them. There was no man living outside of William Branham had the sign of Messiah. That's right. (See?)

And God saved me from it. I was sincere and honest and did not understand these things. I had a lot of genuine…but I could not get through in every case, William Branham alone had the power to take and stand in the trans-vision, nothing could hide from it. That was his sign. We all try to counterfeit it. Flee from it, because this is what he said would happen. And God would send strong delusion, there'd be many, many people rise up and they claim to have great ministries, and there would be a spirit of lie upon them. Signs and wonders would be done, but they would only the people away from Almighty God.

70. Look at Isaiah 28:15-18, to get out picture a little more clearly. I know I talk fast, I can't help it, you got to learn to listen fast that's all. Now, here's what It says. It says:

(15) Because (you) have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; (that's the grave) when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come (nigh) unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:

Now, that's what happened to people. They hid themselves under the refuge of their own lies when the Word of the Lord came to them, which would have saved them from the great tribulation.

(16) Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: (What's that in 1 Peter? The stumbling stone is the Word of God.) he that believeth shall not make haste.

God said, "I am laying the Word of God for you at the end time. But, (He said) you're going to stumble at It, you are not going to take It." (See?)

Now, they said here, "We are not going to die." Isn't that what Satan said? Satan said, "You're not going to die." And now, millions of people believe they're not going to die. They say, "Well, we've got a covenant with death. We're not going to have the great tribulation hit us. We're not going to die, we're going to Rapture. Millions now living will never die." Have you ever heard such nonsense, millions now living will never die? That's supposed to be a secret Rapture. Ha, I've never heard anything so stupid in my life. Millions disappear, and not…be in a secret? Not that you could ever guess it, it's going to be just a handful, a few at a time, they'll not be missed.

They said, "We've got a covenant." Your covenant has been annulled, because you took to a lie. You see, we cannot serve God apart from His Word. We cannot believe God apart from His Word. There is no covenant that will exist outside of a revealed faith. Can't do it. Why? Because brother/sister, for the first time in all these Ages, God sent a prophet with the fully revealed Word. But the people being blind said, "We see." Now, their sin remains. (See?)

71. Now, they took pleasure in believing their own lies. Their stimulation, their joy is always screaming, "Hallelujah, we love the Lord. Look at the miracles. Look at the signs. Look at the wonders. We love Jesus, we're going to go in the Rapture, glory to God." No, they're not. No they're not. No, no sir, not for millions that claim it. No sir. No sir, it won't work, because God says so. “Now, I'm not trying to de-Christianize anybody,” Bro. Branham said. I'm not trying to take anybody away from this Message, I'm only trying to preach the truth the way the Lord put it down here. And when I preach the truth, I have got to come under the same thing that I preach.

Notice now, at the verses we read. But what does He say to the Bride? He says to the Bride what Paul said to the Bride. [1 Thessalonians 2:]

(13) …we are bound to give thanks (to God always) for you brethren that love) the Lord, (you won't be with that antichrist bunch,) because God hath chosen you, (election, unto) salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:

(14) Whereunto he called you by our gospel, …

Notice that. Look at the big thing Paul said, "Why, (he said) you won't be with that antichrist crowd." He said, "You won't be condemned, you haven't got a thing to do with them." Why? He said, "Because God chose you by election unto sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth, by my Gospel." That's the door you come through brother/sister. "Make you're calling an election sure." [2 Pet 1:10] Come by the vindicated Word of Almighty God.

[1 Thessalonians 2:]

(14) Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of…Jesus Christ. (Called them by the pure Gospel.)

(15) Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the (teaching) which (you) have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

(16) Now (the) Lord Jesus Christ himself, (even) God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,

(17) Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work. (Not works, although but word and works.)

Now, what's God going to do? By this Word that we know was so vindicated, we can enter into consolation. And remember, consolation follows the Word. That's right. Remember, that after Christ showed that He was the Word, they were consoled. We too have the consolation, because we have the Word.

72. Now, to my very last words, I'm closing, back to [2 Thessalonians 2:] 3 It says:

(3) Let no man deceive you… (let no man beguile you, let not man deceive you) …

Once Paul said, "Don't be fooled that that day is a long way off." Today we say by the vindicated prophet, "Don't be fooled it's just around the corner."

Now, that word 'beguile' is ‘exapatao’ [Greek] Which is the same thing used in Romans 7:11 where It says:

(11) For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.

Don't be deceived. (See?) Don't be deceived. It sets forth the influence of sin. But, it also means self-deception. Don't be deceived within yourself saying, "Aw, it's okay, I'm going to make it, I love the Lord. Why I got this God…"

You know, I phoned a fellow a long time back about that little film that we now have, in color, (you know) some of you saw down in Jeff… the last time. And you know, he was about as deceived as any man I know.

He said, "Well, (he said) you know Bro. Branham went off in false doctrine."

"Oh, (I said) is that so?"

He said, "Yeah."

"Well, (I said) that might be pretty hard to prove brother, because it said a lot of people believed what he believed in. How does that… (I said) remember, he was vindicated."

"Oh, (he said) I want to tell you brother I was vindicated too. Why, (he said) I had a vision and it came to pass."

Well, I almost said, "Look, I had several visions came to pass. I prophesied, it came to pass. In fact, should we compare notes it's ten to one I could beat you hands down."

I didn't even have a golden calf scheme. I didn't razz the guy, but I knew I could if I'd wanted to. I let him mouth off, because that's all he was doing. I could have said, "Brother just tell me one time that you had 'Thus Saith the Lord'? And be my guest, I'll rent the biggest auditorium in the world, because I've got friends who would pay for it, and let's see if you've got one 'Thus Saith the Lord', just one time." I didn't do it. Oh, I couldn't do it, because I was trying haggle for that film which he didn't give me anyway. And I'm just as glad that I didn’t (you know) bust out at him. There'd be no point. You can't tell them anything. They can't be told anything. (See?)

73. Why? Because they're deceived. They've been fooled by the devil, they're self deceived, because they've had a few things happen to them. (See?) They've had a few things happen. "How could our church be wrong?"

You even give the Roman Catholics one little cure as they went through water somewhere, and that makes the Roman Catholic church vindicated, glory to God, hallelujah, we've got it. Get a Pentecostal talk in tongues and live like the devil, glory to God, he’s got it. Let the priest talk in tongues and then call the pope infallible, say, "Hail Mary," and pray to the dead, and forgive sin. Glory to God, it's okay. (See?) That's how they do it. Absolutely deceived, through self deception. They are deceived through the lie, self deception, and again the instruments of Satan, which are men who come to them in sheep clothing.

Now, just note here on the fact of Satan deceiving. How did he thoroughly beguile Eve? Satan himself did not do it. He used the serpent. Satan got to the human race by serpent seed, and he keeps his hold by that means. And therefore, people say it's communism. Naw, it's not communism. Nope, it's not communism at all. It's not somebody setting himself up saying, "There's no God." No, that's not it at all. He comes as he did it in the Garden. He uses something to do it. And the something he uses is organized religion that is gone to its creeds and its dogmas.

74. Now, reading in 2 Timothy 3: were Bro. Branham read to us so many times, beginning at verse 8.

(8) Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: ...

They don't resist good works, they don't resist power ministry, they don’t resist all of that, they're for it. Just like Jannes and Jambres were for it. They said, "Sure, we can do it, glory to God." Bro. Branham said, "Jannes and Jambres could do anything and everything that Moses did." Now, they didn't do it, but he said they could. He said, "They'd do it at the end time too."

Now listen, these men resist truth.

(8) …men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning faith.

75. There is the crux of the whole thing. The crux of the whole thing is, they resist the truth by the vindicated prophet. That's the whole thing. That's exactly what It says in 2 Thessalonians. They turned down the truth, they don't have any love for it. No, they don't, but we love it. That's where our love is. "The love of many waxed cold." What? Towards Christ the Word. But you take this little group loves that Word. Now, they like singing, but that's fine. Singing is fine. But, we don't love singing like we love the Word. We love to pray and to shout, that's great! But, not like we love the Word.

You can always find a tension amongst our group until the people get to the Word. Then they relax…ahhhh.

"Well, don't you like all this?"

"Oh yeah."

"You like it all?”

Sure, we like it all, but that Word, yeah.”

You notice, every meeting the same thing. "What's… what's this?" There's something about there, worded. But who else was it? Nobody. They think we're crazy. (Yeah) The more we talk about serpent seed, the happier we get. The more we talk about that no tongues evidence, the happier we get. The more we talk about this and that that the prophet taught, the happier we get. Oh, we get happy that all these little lights come shining in on us, all the little thoughts come out of the Word, and the more the preacher digs, and the more he brings it on the very thing , joy oh joy, the happier we get. Yes siree!

76. It's just like the people that love children, they have a child every year, they get more and more happier. It may wear them down, but they sure love those kids coming. Why? There's life there. So, it is, with the Word of God. There's life coming every time someone brings a new thought on the very thing that the prophet brought, oh they get happy. They say, "Never saw that, glory to God.?" (See?) That's what I'd like to do is go to a meeting and people never have heard the perversion the way I have preached it and bring out that thought there that the Bible said, "Every tree fit for food come out of the ground." Now, as I said, "If the tree kills you, it's not fit food."

They say, "Yeah."

I said, "Did they come out of the ground then?"

They never thought of that before. Oh, they love it. I would have loved to see their faces light up. Why? Because they love this Word. That's where their food is. That's where their joy is. (See?)

77. Now, but these people don't love the truth, they don't want the truth. They resist it. They resist this the truth. (I'll preach on that another time.) What are they? Men of corrupt mind.

You say, "Corrupt mind? What do you mean corrupt mind? Now listen, Bro. Vayle, that old fellow I know, that old preacher friend of mine, he wrote a wonderful book. All day long he speaks praises to God. All day long he talks about the Lord."

What did he say about the prophet?

"Well, (he said) William Branham had a familiar spirit."

Corrupt mind. But he doesn't think any dirty thoughts. He doesn't say and dirty words. Yeah, but his mind is all foggy concerning the Word, that's what corrupt. And because that's what made the virgin a harlot, she was deceived through her mind.

Paul said, "I fear, lest she fall, by her mind being deceived." So, these men are corrupt, and they're reprobate concerning faith. "Do you mean to tell me they're reprobate." That's what he said they were. "Well, I thought a reprobate was some old booze artist. Some lecherous, licentious booze hound, that, was the most rotten fadinger the world ever saw." No, no, you've got it wrong there. These are the boys here that God hates. These are the pretenders. These are the fellows that God hates right here.

78. But, It says [1 Timothy 3:]

(9) (Their folly,) shall proceed no further: (they'll proceed no further and) their folly shall be manifest unto all men, … (See?)

(10) But thou hast fully known my (teaching, not in) manner of life, … (but his teaching first.)

Remember, teaching comes first and the rest. I don't care what we produce, if the teaching isn't there, the rest goes down the drain. So, there we have the picture brother/sister, right down the drain here. Right down the line. This is our hope, we have the Word, and It has been delivered by a vindicated prophet. What is going to bring on the antichrist? I'll tell you what's going to do it, turning down the Word of God for the last day. Right, we're heading for it right now. Right now, we're in the midst of the complete organization of the Roman Catholics and the Protestants into one great system, to which the communist will lend their influence for one hour, until they can burn her flesh with the atomic bomb.

As Bro. Branham said, "They'll drop a bomb on that Vatican, and hit America at the same time and this world will be nothing but a land of craters, especially America." What's doing it? A vindicated prophet came on the scene, and they said, "We don't want it.”

79. And brother/sister, do you realize that, that 'Thus Saith the Lord' is the thing that set him apart? It's what it was. When a prophet comes in the Name of the Lord, you hear him, and fear him, because he's proved he was that prophet. And the Bible said, "God will raise up a prophet like unto me said Moses." [Deut 18:18] (See?) And that is true, that was Jesus Christ, it was true. But the real fulfillment of that is in this end time, when the end time prophet came, and they turned him down. Because when Jesus was turned down, He did not destroy those from amongst the people who did not believe Him, because Israel went out blinded, till He got a Gentile Bride. But, when the Word comes this time brother/sister, there is nothing for it to happen, except Jesus turned back to the Jews for a little three-and-a-half-year tribulation, where a 144,000 come out, then we go to the Millennium. It's all over. They didn't love the truth.

So many things used to puzzle me, and I say something's still do puzzle me. But you know, there's not one third as many things puzzle me now, as there was a little while ago. The puzzles are going, it's all fitting into place. I don't believe that God gave us the Bible as a jigsaw puzzle that couldn't be put together. As Bro. Branham said reverently and it is true, it is a jigsaw puzzle, but when the Master hand begins to put the pieces in place and He leaves a few for you and me to fit, I don't think it's too hard at all to keep the cow from eating grass on top of the tree. I believe we can put it right down where it belongs. And we put the Word where It belongs. See the system that’s coming, it's antichrist.

80. It's here, but you'll never tell the people, they'll never believe it. They can't believe it. No matter how it's explained, they won't see it until it's too late. Always the Word of God takes effect too late in the non-elect. The Elect always get it, there’s no problem there, the Elect will always see it. But the non-elect will take it too late. And I believe that’s why I say this Message must keep going out. No matter how people hate it going out, it's got to go out.

Remember, right today there are many people leaving organization, they know that something is wrong, but they don't know what it is. They know something is wrong, but you see they're coming out, but they're not going in. But, we are coming out and we're going in. There is going to be a group of people. I don't say we're all going to take it by the Rapture that is living here on earth. We'll all go by Rapture, yes, but a lot of us may die. I believe that. I believe in the short days ahead of us there'll be many of us go. I'm glad about that, I've got no fussing with the Lord. Every single Church Age messenger has gone to the dust. Certainly, and brother/sister, it's no different whether you stay or go, not at all. It's just at the end time God is doing some special thing to take His people who don't die, because there is no provision except for this mystery, (see?) at the end time where she can be ready to go.

81. But in the mean time our eyes are open today, and we see so much. Thank God, we never said, "We see it." Thank God, we have said, "I'm glad I'm in a position to see it." See, when Israel said, "We see, (He said) you're sin remaineth."

We can say, "We don't need it." Today Laodicea says, "We're rich and increased in goods, we don't need a thing." [Rev 3:17a] But the Bride doesn't say that. The Bride, she knew that she was wretched, miserable, naked. You know that? And only today of all the people I believe in the world, those who have heard this Message are the ones who feel less worthy then all the rest. And yet, this is the group that is going to have to make it, out of this teaching nobody else will do. Nobody else but out of this teaching, because nobody else stands with the vindicated prophet. We stand with vindication. We are more right, than anybody else in this world could possibly be right.

I don't care if we understand all of it, because I don't say we do. I don't care if we understand only twenty percent of It, we are more right than all the rest of the world, because what we're right on, we're really right on, and they are right on nothing. They're not. All tables full of vomit. Hand the Book to the man that we learn from, what he said. "I can't read It, (he said) the Book is closed." Hand it to the ignorant man, he said, "I can't read it, I'm uneducated, I can’t read it either."

Then He said, "The Word of the Lord will come precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little, there a little." [Isaiah 28:10] And it will become a snare to all those in the earth. (See?) Open the eyes of one, blind the eyes of another. It never fails it's the same story over and over again. But today brother/sister we're at the end of the line. We are, it's all but over tonight. See, we haven't go long to go, we don't have long to go.

We won't be old people as Bro. Branham said to Billy Paul, "You will not be an old man before where you're standing, the sharks will be swimming, and that’s right over there at the corner of the Fairfax (I believe it is,) on about 4th or 5th Street, there in Los Angeles. Been there, dozens and dozens of times, right in that same area, the big May Department Store. And the fish will be swimming there. (See?) Well, we could be gone by then, or some of us could be departed by natural death. We don’t know. But there’s one thing that we do know brother/sister, this vindicated Word, this Message will bring the dead out of the ground. And we’ll prepare a Bride for Rapture. And we’ll all be going. Because that’s the Word of the Lord.

Thank God there’s no doubt about it. Other men may wonder and worry, and strive. We don’t have to. We’ve entered into our rest. It’s all over, the rest of faith. The Lord bless you. What is it, Wednesday night, seven thirty? We’ll have a service, I’ve asked Bro. Thompson here by then. Certainly, hope so. And I know you’ll have a blessed time. Shall we rise then, and be dismissed.

Gracious, Eternal Father, it is so good to be with Your people here. To study the Word together, Lord. To know there is a God who lives. And all sort of comes to His mysteries. To realize what a wonderful thing. It’s so simple, to be mind boggling. So, clear to be devastating. And yet here It is, brought to us in all Its glory. The mysteries of God, revealed. Christ Appearing amongst the Bride. He which was to come, having come. And now, we’re waiting for the Bride to be the revealed Word. Oh, Hallelujah. Like a sweep going over us. Lord, I know tonight, that this is the truth. We know Your witness to us. O Jesus, just help us to get all humbled and broken down to be worriless. O Christ, not to be ever of ourselves to be worthy Lord. But, Jesus, help us to praise You, and to worship You.

O with the clarion voice of a trumpet that knows what it’s blasting out. That every heart O God, be in perfect tune. Worshipping and praising You in gratitude and love and honor and glory. With such sobriety included in it, Lord. Such tenderness. Such depth. Such utmost sincerity, Lord. Not that we want to be where Bro. Branham was. But, Lord, that we might worship in the same manner. In the same heartfelt spirit led worship unto Thee, O God. O Lord, tonight when we say we love You, let it be Lord, with the depth of the love of Christ, that was known upon Calvary. Let it be with the revelation, Lord, of the apostle Paul, who saw Thee in Your glory. O God, let it be in these lives I pray. Help us, Lord, to this end. Go with us as we go, Jesus. Protect the folk on the road. Bless them, O God, in their thoughts.

May every meditation of the heart, even our dreams, be filled with Thee. For Thou, O Christ, are all in all. Let that little lamp that You gave us, burst into such fullness and brightness, it becomes a sun. O God, I pray. Lord, I know that You’re going to do It. We’re just hungering and thirsting, Lord. And You said, if we would, we’d be filled. We’re looking for It, Lord. And thanking You for It, Jesus. Because that’s Your Word. Lord, bless dear Bro. Thompson, as he comes. Get him souls free, higher Lord. Get him souls right in the people here, that they put their trust in him. And he as a faithful servant, guard them well. Feed them well, nourish them as the lamb in the bosom. Keeping the people, Lord, in peace, and the beauty of the Word, until conduct, O God, can become exemplary. Help them we pray, Jesus. Help us all, O God. Let all of us who aspire to be in the Bride, make their calling and election sure.

Help us, Lord, to forgive everyone his trespass against us. With freedom and joy, Lord, help us to get shuck of everything that’s made any imprint upon our soul, other than the Word of God. Let It alone be the impress. For It alone, is eternal. Lord, I want that, I mean that, Lord, when I said that this is what I want, and I believed Your people all want that same thing. This is what we want. Help us, O God, tonight. This is the reality, and we want this, Lord, and we mean it. And we’re asking this for Your glory sincerely, and You’ve got to give it to us. Lord, we’ve go to have it. So, Lord, You’ve got to do It. Because You said You’d do for It’s in Your Word. And this is exactly what is in Your Word, Lord Jesus. Your people will become one with the Word. They surely will. In order to approach unto You, to be united with You, that’s exactly, and we’re exactly holding It up.

Amen, Hallelujah, Lord. For You said, You’d write the Word in our minds and our hearts. And that’s exactly, where we stand. So, thank You for It, Jesus. We leave It in Your hands now. It’s up to You, and You receive the glory and the honor. And You’re worthy of it, in Jesus’ Name. Amen. God bless You.