<TITLE>19. Par 138-142</TITLE>L-138 But God, in the midst of all of it, He raised up a prophet, a son of a priest. Never... went into the wilderness at nine years old. Couldn't read his name, if it was in letter the size of a box car. Why, why did he do it? He was a prophet. If he had been trained in the education of his father, he'd a-probably been a Pharisee or a Sadducee, or one of their groups. But he had an important job, that was to announce the Messiah. Cause why? God kept His Word, and proved it. "A voice of one crying from the seminary, 'Behold I've got my doctor's degree'"? That--that might be in the Old Ladies Birthday Almanac, but not in God's Word. He said, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way of the Lord, and make His paths straight!'" Was He preparing the way of the Word then, that the Word could be made manifest? Hallelujah!

L-139   Don't you see, in shadows? Stop here a minute. In the last days, there's got to be a place prepared for the Word to be made manifest, and we're now living by the evidence of the new Land, amen, the Son of man.

L-140 John's commission, without education, without anything, stayed in the wilderness. His sermons was in types. "Ax is laid to the root of the tree," that's what he saw. Cut with the ax, make his shack, make some fire to burn his wood. "Oh, you generation of snakes," that's what he saw. The nastiest thing in the jungle, to him, in the bush, was a snake. Said, "You generation of snakes, who has warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Don't begin to say, 'We've got this, and we belong to this, and we belong to that,' God's able of these stones to raise up Children to Abraham. The ax is laid to the root of the tree, and every tree that don't bring forth good fruit..." What does he do in the wilderness when it won't... bring up some locusts and things for him, he cuts it down and burns it up. See? "He'll gather the wheat into the garner, but the chaff he'll burn with an unquenchable fire." A man like that, not even with his clergy coat on, not even his priest's bonnet. See? He come with a piece of sheepskin draped around him, with a piece of leather cut off of a camel's back, ragged around him, and come out there with his whiskers and hair bushed out like that, said, "The ax is laid to the root of the tree." Amen. He come, daring. Why? It was God's Word being proven, "God's able of these stones!" God promised it, "Behold, I send my messenger before My face." Not a very religious, not a scientific or a religious proof, but God's Word's proof. God was keeping His Word, see. Not a scholar at all, but a prophet, sent in the Name of the Lord. He did that, why? To confirm His Word.

L-141   Now, them priests said, "Now, we know there's coming one in the last days, so we'll school every boy we got, and get ready for it. Every one of you boys must have a college education. You must come in here. No doubt but what it will be in the lineage, he'll come in the way of the Levites, because there's where the priesthood come from." But he wasn't a priest, he was a prophet! And that's of God's choosing. He don't have to come from a certain denomination or certain lineage. It's God's choosing, by predestination, foreknowledge. He comes by God's way of choosing. So they wouldn't believe him, because he didn't come the way that they had made, thought he was coming. That could repeat again, you know, usually does. But we find that he come the way that God did, to prove His Word.

L-142   Notice, He caused the virgin to conceive, to prove His Word. Isaiah 9:6, and we find out that, "Unto us a son is born, a child is given." Now, we find out that He had said that a virgin should conceive. And God caused a virgin to conceive. What? To prove His Word. Now listen just a few minutes, we'll be closing. He caused a virgin to conceive, to prove His Word. That was absolutely... It stumped all scientists. [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.]... to go.


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