<TITLE>05. Par 18-21</TITLE>L-18 Now, He didn't say, "I want you to go now and be my witnesses." He said, "You shall receive power, after the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and then you shall be witnesses." See, you must be... You must have a first-hand experience. If I go down here to the--the worst roadhouse or whiskey place that there is in Phoenix tonight (a gambling devicities), and every person in there that would be drinking, I'd walk up to him and say, "What do you think of Jesus Christ?" Say, "The Son of God." That doesn't make him saved.
Then I'd say this, "How do you know He's the Son of God?"
"Well, my mother said so."
"Well, maybe mother was right, but what about you?" See?
If I went out here to a church member, and I said, "What do you think of Jesus Christ? Who was He?"
"Why, He was the Son of God."
"Well, how do you know?"
"My pastor said so."
"Your pastor's right, but what do you know about it?" See, see? Mother's right and the pastor's right. But before you know He is the Son of God... The Bible said no man can say Jesus is the Christ, only by the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost has to witness it to you: must be a personal experience. I hope you see that.

L-19 No matter how much you go to church, how well your name is engraved on its stained windows, or whatmore, or on its book, it'll never mean nothing to you, until you are a witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ by the infilling of the power of the Holy Spirit. You are taking somebody else's word. Why, I'd say...
"Well, Brother Branham, I know that Jesus is the Christ, 'cause the Bible said so." The Bible is right, but what do you know about it? See? It's an individual affair with every individual. It must be a personal witness that every person must have in order to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, is when His Spirit bears record with your spirit, in the Spirit of the new birth, borned again and you cry, "Abba, Father."

L-20 Oh, my. If we had a world like that tonight, the millennium would be on, wouldn't it? That's right. When your spirit bears record with His Spirit that you're sons and daughters of God, then you are witnesses of God.
Someone said the other day, said, "Brother Branham, you believe God by faith. Abraham believed God by faith and that's all that you can do. There is no experience with it."
I said, "Oh, yes, my brother."
He said, "How... What more can you do than believe God?"
I said, "That's all you can do."
Said, "That's what I thought."
I said, "But Abraham believed God. By faith he believed God and God gave him the confirmation of his faith by the sign of circumcision. And we believe God by faith, and God gave us the baptism of the Holy Ghost as a sign of the seal of the promise of our faith." See, see? Ephesians 4:30 says, "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby you're sealed until the day of your redemption." That's the seal of the covenant now, is the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

L-21 You believe God and say you believe God, and haven't received the Holy Spirit, there's something wrong with your faith. 'Cause God's under obligation to give every believer that repents and is baptized, is under obligation to give you the baptism of the Holy Spirit. And He's more willing to give it to you, than you are to receive it. That's right. So there's something wrong somewhere. You just got a mental faith and instead of a heart faith. For God's under obligation to keep His Word.
He said, "Repent, every one of you, and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and your children, to them that's far off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call." That's true. And God's got to keep that promise. Yes, sir.


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