<TITLE>11. Par 31-33</TITLE>L-31 I remember the first little Bible I ever got, when I first started to preaching. Used to be in the Baptist church, somebody keeps asking, "Brother Branham, you think it's wrong to smoke? You think it's wrong to drink?"
And I wrote a little answer in my Bible; I had the answer the man. I said, "Don't ask me foolish questions. Make this up in your mind. If you love the Lord with all your heart, you won't smoke, chew, or drink any shine." That still holds good tonight. Right. If you love Him, though you could do it and get by with it, you wouldn't do it anyhow, if you love Him. That's what real true genuine agapao love does.
The Christian loves the Lord. And he loves Him in such a way, that, "There's nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, Paul said, "neither death, sorrow, neither perils, or in prisonments, and anything, can separate us from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus." Oh, my. The real true...
And my brother, when you get that in your heart with that type of love, that'll beat anything else that you could substitute for. That's exactly right. I don't care how much you've spoke with tongues, how much you shouted, how many great services you've had, or been in, how well your name's on the book, how many times you've been baptized, and which way. It never will amount to one thing until that real genuine Holy Ghost love sinks into your heart, till you love Him above everything else there is in the world. Right.

L-32 We put so much stress on the evidence of the Holy Ghost. The Methodist said you have to shout 'fore you got It. A lot of Methodist shouted and didn't have It. The Pentecostal said speak with tongues when you got it. A lot of them spoke in tongues and didn't have It. That's right. But, brother, when you come to a place where you got love, it never will fail. That's right. If my wife trusted me because I give her ten dollars every time I left, well, brother, that wouldn't be very much sign I loved her. I'd be right or true. But when she knows that I love her, when I know she loves me, then there's a perfect trust between each other. No--no worry at all. Then when you got perfect love of God in your heart, you don't question God about anything. When the Bible said, "I'm the Lord that heals all thy diseases," you say, "Amen, Lord, that's right. That's me."
"Tarry in the city of Jerusalem till you're endued with power from on high."
"That was me, Lord."

L-33 Peter said, "Repent, every one of you and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. You shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Promise is to you, and your children, to them afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call."
"Amen, Lord, that means me." That settles it all. Anything God says, you love Him so much you believe it. Oh, I feel real religious right now. To think, that perfect love casts out all fear. You're not scared about nothing; you're just resting. You're not, "Oh, I may backslide tomorrow. I may backslide next week." I won't worry about that. I'm not trying to hold on. I--I... He held on for me. And He put a love in my heart that holds there. It's Him holding me, not me holding Him. If it was me holding Him, I'd probably turn loose. But as long as He's holding me, He will never turn loose. He promised He wouldn't.
"I'll never leave thee nor forsake thee." Amen. Oh. "He that heareth My words, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath Everlasting Life, and shall not come into condemnation, but's passed from death unto Life."


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