<TITLE>08. Par 74-85</TITLE>L-74   Now, the whole 1st chapter, is, exalting Jesus, and separating Him from being a prophet. That's the whole theme now. I'll try to get to it just as quick as can now, so we won't stay too long. The whole theme, is, separating the new chap-... new... The 1st chapter, is, separating Jesus from any prophet, or any law, or so forth, and showing Who Jesus is. Now look, "God." We start out, the first word, "God."
God, at sun-... who at sundry times...
Sundry means that "way back," back time.
... sundry times and in divers manners spake in the past unto the fathers by the prophets,

L-75 Now, see, "God, in sundry times, way back, He spoke to the fathers by the prophets." That's how He had to give His Message, through His prophet.

L-76   God would send His prophet like Elijah, Jeremiah, Isaiah. And if you'll notice, never in all the history of the world, did ever the church produce a prophet. Search it in the Old Testament, New Testament, or in this day, in the latter day. Show me any prophet was ever raised out of the church in the last day. Show me one ever come up, out. And show me one time that a prophet, a real servant of God, that the ecclesiastical system of the world didn't condemn him.

L-77 Just think of it. Jeremiah, Isaiah, all down through the Old Testament, they condemn it. Jesus said, "You garnish the tombs of the prophets and make them white, and you put them in there." That's right.

L-78 The church continues that. Look at Saint Patrick. You Catholic people claim him. He isn't no more Catholic than I am. That's right. But you claim him.

L-79 Look at Saint Francis of Assisi. Claim him. He isn't no more Catholic than I am.

L-80   Look at Joan of Arc. You burnt her to a stake, as a witch, because she saw visions and is spiritual. Burnt her to a stake. And that woman screaming for mercy, and they burnt her to a stake. About a hundred years later, they found out that she was a prophetess. She was a servant of God. Oh, course, you got a big penalty: you dug up the priests' body and throwed them in the river.

L-81 "You do garnish the tombs of the prophets, and put them in there." Right. Never did the ecclesiastical system ever produce a man of God; never did, hasn't today, and never will. Organized religion has never been God's theme.

L-82   The oldest organized church in the world is the Catholic church; Luther, second; then come Zwingli; after Zwingli, come Calvin; Calvin, on, the Anglican, Anglo-Saxons taking up, then the Anglican church; and King Henry the Eighth, when he protested, and so forth; and on down to the Wesley Methodist, and Nazarenes, Pilgrim Holiness; and on down to the last, is Pentecostal, all organized. And the Bible plainly teaches that the Catholic church is a--a ill-famed woman, and the Protestant churches and their organizations are her daughters, Revelation 17. That's exactly right. So they're...

L-83 Not the people, now. There is good in all them churches; sainted, saved people. But God doesn't call His people by an organization. He calls them as individuals. God deals with individuals, whether you're a Methodist, Baptist, Protestant, and Catholic, or what you are. God, before the foundation of the world, knew you, and predestinated you to Eternal Life, or either you was predestinated to Eternal loss. Not...

L-84   He wasn't willing that you should be perished, you would perish. But, Him being infinite, He had to know the end from the beginning, or He isn't God. So Jesus never come to earth just to say, "Well, I'll see if somebody be mercy... If I act and die, in a hard way, they'll probably think, 'Well, I... ' It'll--it'll persuade their hearts, and they'll..." God don't run His business like that.

L-85 Jesus came for one specific purpose, that's, to save those who God, before the foundation of the world, knew would be saved. He said so. That's right. So you're... "It's not him that willeth, or him that runneth; it's God that showeth mercy." Paul said that. Same man here.


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