Why Little Bethlehem

1 Nice to be here this morning. And now I believe we're going to have a special, Brother Williams was telling me, by someone from his church. [A sister sings, "Fill My Cup, Lord."--Ed.] That's what we're here for this morning, raising up our cups, "Fill it, Lord." This is the only time that we'll have the opportunity to ask this. There'll come a time where we'll be on the other side and then we won't have that opportunity. So while we do have it, and in our right mind, I think one of the most sensible things that anyone can do while God has given us the opportunity to do so, is to do it, get our cups filled now with His love and mercy.

2 There is one who set with us long ago, not too long ago, neither, and he's passed on. And it's a great sorrow in our hearts for Brother Williams. It's Brother Williams, our chapter president here, his father. How old was your father, Brother Williams? Eighty-eight. That'd be about eighteen years, I guess, past the--the... no, it'd be, yeah, eighteen years past the promised time. A gallant man. It hasn't been too long ago since, sitting in the meeting, I said to him, and no disregards to Brother Williams, I said, "You look younger than your son, Carl." It just goes to show that we're here today and tomorrow we're not here. We don't know when that time comes, when it is coming, but we know it's coming. I was thinking, but life is a great thing, it's, life is an opportunity.

3 We just had a great tragedy, of one that come to our church so long, from Chicago, was killed the other day coming home, a mother. She was close, I guess close to seventy, and she and her husband riding along and up Kansas, Missouri, one, a blizzard going through. A man driving, car out of control, her neck was broke instantly. And we just don't know when this is coming. When I... they called me to tell me about it and I called up all the children around across the nation, telling them. Course, being their pastor, like, I was the one to notify them. Thinking of how quick we can go, and then there set a box of candy setting before me that she made me about a week ago, and gave to me. Just to see how quickly we can be snapped out. But, if that, if this life only was where we had our hopes, we'd be a miserable people. Job said, in the 14th chapter, "Oh, that Thou would hide me in the grave and keep me in the secret place."

4 Have you ever noticed how nature testifies of God? We find the trees, the leaves go off the trees, and the life in the tree goes down into the ground, like the grave, and stays there until the wrath of the winter is past, then comes back again, bringing forth new life. It's a testimony that we live again. The sun rises of a morning, just a little baby, it's weak; after a while it's this time it's in school, high school; then at noon it's in its strength; then the afternoon it begins to turn to the other side; then in the evening it gets weak again and dies. But, that's not the end of the sun, it comes up again the next morning to testify to another generation, that there is a life, death, burial, and resurrection.

5Even nature everywhere speaks of Him. And nature is a great testimony in another way, that is, that we cannot have this resurrection Life unless it serves God's purpose. Now, if a seed is planted, and that seed is germitized, it brings forth a new flower. But if it isn't germitized, it will not bring forth a new flower, if it doesn't serve God's purpose. Yet, not just because it's a flower it rises, because it serves God's purpose. That's the reason the sun rises, is because it serves God's purpose. And we rise when we serve God's purpose.

6 I believe that Brother Williams served God's purpose in life, a real father. And I see his darling companion, Mrs. Williams, sitting here. A real husband, that's one of God's purposes. A father, one of God's purposes. And he was germitized to God, by the Holy Spirit, God's main purpose. So, to say that Brother Williams will not rise and be with us again, we'd have to say there's no--there's no going down of the sap, there's no rising of the sun. Everything speaks of his resurrection again, to be with us again, everything. First, the sun, the flowers, the nature, botany life, everything speaks of it. And then the Word of God speaks for him. And, besides that, the very faith that's in our heart pulsates that we'll see him again. God rest his soul. Just as a little salute to him that once set with us, let us stand to our feet just a moment.

7 Heavenly Father, we have never tried to make a gathering like this a purpose just to be seen or heard. We have come together each time, for the edification of Thy Son, Jesus Christ, and to give testimony to those who are without Him, that they might find Him. We are, our hearts are burdened for those who are left behind from the parting of our brother, one that set with us not long ago, has many times set right in this same chapter. But we believe that You let him live out a good, full round life, and his soul is with You today. Rest him, O God, until that day when we shall see him again. Bless his son here, his other children, his darling wife, and those who loved him, and that's all of us, Father. And may we take notice to this, that we too are frail and we must go someday, so let us prepare ourselves for that great hour. And if there should be some here this morning who has not prepared for this same event, may this be the day that they'll say "yes" to the Lord Jesus, and also be germitized to Him by the Holy Spirit. For we ask it in Jesus' Name. Amen. Be seated.

8 Now, we want to announce a--a few announcements. My wife sitting back there this morning, I told her, I said, "Honey, I'm going to be out of the breakfast..." We had to go downtown and do some things. And I said, "I'm going to be out at ten o'clock." She looked at me. I said, "If I'm not out by ten o'clock, I'll buy you three new dresses of your choice." So I--I know what's going to happen, I owe three dresses right now, 'cause it's twenty till ten now. But I will try to hurry as quick as possible.

9 We're glad to be here in Jericho with you brethren this morning, and we invite you, Monday night, up to Jerusalem, at Tucson, to at the banquet down there. See, Phoenix is in the valley, like Jericho. Tucson, where I live, is on the mountain, that's--that's Jerusalem. Where you at, Tony? Why don't somebody say "amen" around here. Here, now I'm in a trap, Tony didn't even show up. Well, tomorrow, or Monday night, is the banquet at--at Tucson, and we certainly would be glad if you're around that way, would drop in and see us. My subject that night, if the Lord willing, is, We Have Seen His Star In The East And Have Come To Worship Him.

10 And now the nineteenth of this month, or next month, rather, nineteenth of--of January, I start a revival here, right in this room, the Ramada Inn here, and the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first. And then the twenty-second, I believe, starts the... twenty-third, I have four nights here, and as a revival. Many of you minister brothers, we're certainly happy to have you with us this morning, and we cordially invite you out to bring your people. The ones especially, that's, that you know here in the city that doesn't know Jesus as their Saviour. And then, secondarily, to those who are sick and--and believes that God answers prayer, we aim to pray for the sick during this time just prior to the great National Convention is to be held here beginning the twenty-second. And I'm sure you want to hear that, because there's many outstanding speakers come, and I'm sure you'll have a great time.

11 Now, this morning, I have thought about speaking here to this chapter, which Phoenix has always been a place on my heart. I like Phoenix. I was here when I was a little boy, out here at Wickenburg just above. And lived down here at Sixteenth and Henshaw. It was a desert then. But I see it's right in the metropolitan, and, well, really in the heart of the city. Goes to show that there's a changing time, changing. But there's one thing I want to speak on this morning, is the unchanging One, that's God. God, in His program, His Word, It never changes. Times change, men change, systems change. But God never changes, He ever remains the same.

12 And I thought, being that we were facing the Christmas time, that we would... maybe I'd speak on a--a Christmas message. And now if you have your Bibles, and like to read, sometimes people do, behind evangelists or speaker, I want to read from Saint Matthew's Gospel, the 2nd chapter, for a portion of the Word.

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Saying, Where is he that's born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

When Herod the king... heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

And when he had gathered all the chief priests and the scribes of the people together, he demanded... them where Christ should be born.

... they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophets,

And thou Bethlehem, of the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: but out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

13 May the Lord add His blessings to the reading of His Word. And now with some notes here, and some Scriptures to refer to. I like to have your undivided attention for a little while on the subject of: Why Little Bethlehem.

14You know, at Christmas, I think we all, too many of us, I wouldn't say all, but too many of us lose the real value of what Christmas is. As I notice out here, even the palm trees are decorated; and in the East it's always the fir tree, or the evergreen. And months, or weeks, rather, maybe a month or six weeks before Christmas ever begins, it's always the tinsel and--and the great... They made it a commercial in the stead of what it really means.

15 I don't believe that Christ was born on the twenty-fifth day of December. I--I do not believe that at all. It would be impossible for the things to happen. The hills of Judaea are snowier than, why, snow is waist-deep in there in the month of--of December, up in Judaea. But we realize in studying history, Christ was probably born in the spring, along maybe April or May, somewhere like that. But when it was changed, this, they brought it, when Christianity was converted into Romanism, they made the sun-god's birthday, which was the solar at the twenty-fifth, from the twenty-first to the twenty-fifth of December, the sun setting, like, almost hardly changes at all. And then that was the sun-god's birthday, so they changed it to the Son of God.

16 But, remember, what ever what day it might be, we still doesn't take away the sacredness of what it's supposed to be. Where Satan has robbed us of this, has made the great commercial, and Santa Claus stole all of the worship. And it's become a--a day like Easter, like bunny rabbits and pink ducks. And--and then what's that got to do with Easter? What's that got to do with the resurrection of Christ?

17It's just like the world today, they, the kids on the street can tell you more about Davy Crockett than they could about Jesus Christ. They can tell you more about some outlaw, some criminal of days gone by, than they can the Prince of Life that--that was born nineteen hundred years ago. But that doesn't take the real thing away from we Christians.

18 You see, always light shines its best in the darkness. The forked lightning in the black cloudy skies at night, shows there can be light in darkness. And when the light is shining, you don't see... If the sun's shining, you don't need the lights too much. But darker, the smaller the light, greater it will shine in the darkness. Darker, the better, shows itself better. And that's more the less that... We Christians ought to be testifying to the glory of God giving His Son to us. This Christmas ought to be an outstanding thing. We Christians ought... No matter how much it looks, it'll make it shine that much better. The whole world's got tinsel. We've got Christ, and that's what we ought to be letting shine in this dark hour that we're now living in.

19 We think of how God does things in unusual ways, because He is unusual Himself. God is unusual. He's--He's the Supernatural, the Infinite, unto we finite. So, anything He does is--is so unusual. And God is so--so great, till He takes the unidentified things of the earth to identify Himself by it.

20We notice here in my subject, of Why Little Bethlehem, that smallest of all of Judaea, the princes of the other cities of Judaea, why did God choose to send His Son to that place? That's what we want to talk on. God taking the things of the world, I believe the Scripture says, "By the foolishness of preaching, it pleased God to take the unidentified things." What we make great, God calls foolish. What we put so much glory to, God says it's--it's--it's no good. And what we think is no good, God glorifies it.

21 Was thinking of just before the birth of our Lord, when all the prophets, and so forth, had spoke of the forerunner coming, "how every mountain would be brought low and the low places brought high, and the mountains would skip like little rams, and the leaves would clap their hands." And it was a--a minister, a prophet by the name of John, came forth out of the wilderness, not from even a theological school, whiskers all over his face, and a piece of sheepskin, not in a clergy clothes, come out and announce, "The Kingdom of God is at hand!" And the people could hardly understand such an outfit as that coming, with no identification of any--any system, anything that he belonged to, any fellowship card, or any denominational that he was backing him up. The--the Message was too great, he couldn't take man, God schooled him out in the wilderness. His Message was not on some kind of a--a theological terms. He spoke of serpents and axes and trees, and that's what he was used to, nature, watching how it worked. And that was the--the way he approached. Not as a clergyman, but as--as a man of nature.

22And the people could hardly understand him. Didn't even have a pulpit, and probably wasn't welcome in any, but he preached on the banks of the Jordan, probably standing in mud up half to his knees. But the people come out to hear it, those who were honest in heart. They wanted to hear because it was something different, it had a ring of Truth to it.

23Today we ought to be at this, at the approaching of the birth of Christ, our Message, it ought to have a ring of Truth to it that would make people thirst to find Him.

24 God took that simple man, without education, not one day in school, and yet said he was the greatest among all the prophets that ever lived, because God identifies Himself in unidentified things.

25When Jesus chose His disciples, it was. There were many men better qualified for the job than those disciples, they were clergymen, He never called one. There were clergymen in them days, great men, priests, men of education, renowned men, but He never called them. He took fishermen and tax collectors, and so forth, to--to send His Message out. He always does that.

26 In the days of Noah, He chose a farmer, just a common farmer, to announce the destruction of that age. Just a common farmer, not a clergyman, just a farmer! In the days of Noah, He took a--a... Pardon me.

27The days of Moses, He took a runaway slave, not a clergyman. And He let him get out till He was satisfied, out in the backside of the desert, and lose his education, and appeared to him in a burning bush, and sent him down with a crooked stick in his hand, to take over a nation that had... that He had run him from.

28See, God takes the simple things to identify Himself through. See, taking His, It's just His Word. He made the world out of the things that--that does... has not appeared.

29 A few days ago I was at the Morris Auditorium, one of our great New York campaigns, and I was hearing a lecture on Einstein speaking of this galaxy, that said take a hundred and fifty million years of--of light time, to go out to it, and a hundred and fifty million years to get back. And then, just think, a hundred and fifty million light years, that would be three hundred million light years. And then when you got back here, you'd only been gone fifty years. Think, why, how fast light travels, a hundred eighty-six thousand miles per minute, and think of how many billions and trillions of years it would take to go out there and come back. A hundred and twenty... three hundred million light years. And that's just to a galaxy in the constellation that God just blew from His hands, and He made the aeons of time in light years beyond that, and there looking down upon them.

30 Then this Russian said that's he was about a hundred and fifty, two hundred miles, up in the air, and said he never seen no God or Angels. How simple can man get? And then think of all them billions and trillions of years; and only fifty years from here, what did he do, broke into Eternity.

31They say this astronaut that just went up, was up so many hours, went so many, seventeen times around the world, or whatever it was, they said it never even... it wasn't one second in his life. He was traveling with the time. So, you see, you break into Eternity. That's the greatness of God.

32Our minds cannot fathom how great He is. And yet when He gets ready to reveal Himself, He makes it so simple, takes the simple things to do it, the simplicity of it.

33 David, he seemed to be the--the... All Jesse's seven sons, he was the last one to be brought before the prophet. Why, even his own folks could have laughed, they couldn't imagine a little ruddy-looking David, a little stoop-shouldered, ruddy-looking man to be the man that would be the king of Israel. He might not have looked like a king to those people, but he sure must have looked like it to God, 'cause they... He anointed him king, anyhow. See, He took the simple of David's family, or Jesse's family, to--to make kings. Something that the world had turned down, the... he had turned, sent him back to take care of the sheep. He brought forth his--forth his first son, a great strong stately-looking man, probably could stand erect and look like a king of Israel, and that's the one they thought would look good with a crown on his head, that's the one with the... wear the--the kingly garment and could pack the staff, and whatever must be done to a king. He--he looked good to the eyes of the people.

34 But the prophet, with the anointing oil in his hand, said, "Haven't you got another one?" And he brought them, one by one, until finally he said, "Haven't you got another one?"

35He said, "I've got one, but perhaps he wouldn't be nothing. He's just a little dried up sort of a fellow, we got him out there herding sheep."

36He said, "Go get him." And as soon as he fell in the eyes of the anointed prophet, he poured the oil upon his head--head, and run to meet him. Said, "This is the one God chose." See? See, it's not tinsel always, of the world. It's God's choosing.

37And by grace He chose us, so we're grateful for that this morning. And it doesn't take those great tinsel things of the world. The humblest can be a servant of Christ, takes somebody who's willing.

38 God anointed him, see, takes the little things. Now, why did He take little Bethlehem? Seemed like there would have been greater places that the King, great King of kings could been born.

39Usually when we fix up an event here on earth, we try to get it in the highest, most glittering thing that we can think of, we take it to the biggest places and spend the most money, and the most elaborate things. That's the way we do it.

40But God don't do it that way. He takes something that's nothing, so He can show Himself to be mighty, that He can. If He'd have took a high priest or a well-trained man, in the days when He was calling the apostles, if He'd have took that instead of an ignorant, unlearned fisherman who couldn't even write his own name, they could have said, "Oh, that, see, your education pays off." But God took a man who couldn't even write his name, that He could take something He could get in His hand, something that He could make something out of, to show that He's God. We get to a place that we realize that we're nothing, then get in God's hands, and He can mold you and make you the way He wants you to be. But as long as we feel that we're important, then you'll never get nowhere. You can't even get in the hands of God until we realize that we're not important.

41 One of my little girls was asking the other day about importancy. I said... Well, talking about some important man. Well, it was the President that was just assassinated, and our hearts was grieved over it. And I said, "Well, he was an important man." The papers played it up, and the television shot it, billions and billions of dollars it cost the government to broadcast that. Which, that's all right, that's their business. But I said... This little Pentecostal preacher up there in Carolina, that a man walked in, a drunk with a shotgun, called for his wife and shot the man plumb out of the pulpit, then shot his wife, and shot himself, a little piece in the back of the paper about that big. Let me tell you, brother, no matter who we are, "You want to know how important you are," I said to my little girl, "stick your finger in a bucket of water and pull it out, and try to find the hole." We're nothing. There's only One important, that's God. We must remember, He's the One.

42 Looked like that if they wanted to... man had been fixing a place for the King to be born, there was more greater religious places and historical places for the King instead of this little Bethlehem. Places, for instance, like Shiloh. Shiloh was where the ark was pitched first, we know, as we come across where... come across the Jordan to this side in Palestine, and where the ark was set up for its first worship place. Or Gilgal; Zion, Zion a great place; Gilgal, also.

43Or the proud great capitol, of Jerusalem, where the heads of all the organizations gathered at, their headquarters, looked like they'd have fixed a place up there at Jerusalem for the great King to be born, if they wanted a place, a historical place or a grand outstanding place. That's where the religious headquarters was, of their religion to which the King came to. He came to represent their religion. And He... and when He did, instead of them fixing Him a place at Jerusalem or one of those great historical spots, He was borned in Bethlehem, the smallest of all the cities. "Art thou not least among the princes of Judaea? But out of thee shall come a--a Governor that shall rule My people." And this great proud Jerusalem and all the other cities was rejected.

44 Or maybe they could took some of the places of refuge, the great place like Hebron, Kadesh, or Ramoth-gilead, one of those great refuge cities, because He was to be our Refuge. If we would try to fix in our own mind, we might have took, say, "Well, now, if this great King's coming, which will be our Refuge, He should be born in one of these great memorial places of a refuge, like Ramoth-Gilead, or Kadesh, or one of those." We would have tried to fix it like that in our minds.

45But, you see, God has other ways of doing things. He knows how to do things right. And now by the mind of God and the help of God, we'll try to say why that this happened, because everything works just exactly right in God's great program. And I want you people here at Phoenix, and around, to--to--to try to get This. That remember, that God knows what He's doing. See? And He takes simple means to do it by. Because, if He does something by some great outstanding something, then... God never does do things like that, He never did in all the history of the Bible. God never did deal, never did in any time, take any group of people to do anything. God takes an individual. You're the one, you, one person. And God never changes His program. Because, His first program, He must always remain with that program.

46 In the days of Noah, He had one man, Noah. The days that He brought Israel out, He had one man, that was Moses. We know Dathan and many of the others tried to think, well, they "had the same authority" and so forth. You know what happened to them. The days of the coming of the Lord, the days of John the Baptist, and the different ones, He has one individual He works with. And He deals with us today as one individual, not as a group. One person! It's going to be up to you and I, of how we stand before God. Because, He's dealing with you and I as individuals, not as a group that we're in, and not as the denomination church we belong to, but as you and I as individuals.

47 Now, Joshua, in dividing up the land, give this little spot to Judah. Many of you, I--I got some places here jotted down to where it sets at, but we're all aware of that, where it sets up in the corner. And it was just a little place that they give it, Joshua, in dividing the land, give that to the tribe of Judah.

48And now when Israel come over the river of Jordan, now try to catch this, when Israel crossed over into the land, the promised land, there was a Gentile woman that we know as Rahab the harlot. And she asked for mercy, and she received mercy, she received mercy as long as she stayed under that scarlet cord. And that's the only way she could have mercy. It was a sign, a token that was given her.

49We have a Token today, also, and we're safe as long as we stay under our scarlet cord, the Blood of Jesus Christ. As an individual, not a group, an individual, we each must stay under that scarlet cord of the Blood of Jesus Christ.

50 And then this Rahab, after she was spared, she got all of her people in, everything that was under the cord was--was saved. Just like when God in Egypt, when all was under the blood was saved. All was under the scarlet cord was saved. All under the Blood of Jesus is saved, all out from under It is lost and is ready for destruction. And we find out now, in doing this... Then we understand by history that she courted some general, I don't know his name right now, in Israel's army. And she finally married this man. And they settled up here in this, near this little place, and her son, Salmon, was the one who founded Bethlehem. See, a Gentile is connected with it to begin with, a Gentile, Rahab the harlot.

51 Now, we find out that Salmon founded this little city of Bethlehem. And he begot Boaz. And Boaz was the one who married Ruth, another Gentile. And we're following this lineage now. Ruth, she got, she was a Moabite, and she married Boaz, and came into this little city just in barley season. Oh, if we had the time this morning, till, on that, I'd owe my wife six dresses, afterwards. But how to dwell on that subject!

52 Naomi, representing the orthodox church, was went away on the account of a famine, went over into the land of Moab; like the scattering of Israel, all out among the nations. And then as she came back, she brought back Ruth, the Moabite, and she returned just in barley season, just the gathering in of the first barley. That is that the Gentile Church coming to God just at barley season again. What a beautiful picture there. And then she and Boaz being married, and their famous son, Obed, was begotten there, and also born. And then his son, great son, Jesse, came from Obed. There also he begat David, his son, the king David come out.

53 Look at this coming up now. From Rahab the harlot, her son, founding it. From that come--from that come Boaz, which brought in another Gentile. And then from Boaz come Jesse. And here Jesse, to Jesse was born David. And David, right here at this same little Bethlehem, was anointed by the prophet of God, to be the king of Israel. All these spiritual things hid from the eyes of the world, was happening here in this little city of Bethlehem. See, that's the way God does.

54 Now, I trust that the Holy Spirit will be present now to give you correct understanding, that God doesn't work out in these big things. It's by the Spirit. "Not by power, not by might, but by My Spirit," saith the Lord. See? God working in the Spirit among the people. See, these great backgrounds, He could only come to this city. That's the only place He could be born. God following His same line. God always does that. God follows the--the line of His Word. He cannot go back on His Word, by no means, and then remain God. He's got to stay with the Word. He can never leave That. Today, our traditions and so forth take us from the Word. We have creeds and things we inject into the Word, which pollutes the whole thing. But God can never leave the line of His Word. His Word is true, always, because He is the Word. God and His Word is the same.

55 Now, we see here how that this little Bethlehem, yet being unnoticed, a little place not noticed too much to the outside world, just a smallest of the cities, nobody paid any attention to it. But yet God had in His purpose that that there's where all these things would happen. Now, the spiritual mind would pick that up, because the prophet said here, you see, the prophet said, "Thou Bethlehem of Judaea, art thou not the least among the princes? But out of thee shall come a Governor that shall rule My people Israel." The prophet, the mind of the prophet found it.

56Watch those spiritual, Holy Spirit today leading those things. Don't make any difference what the world says in all of its tinsel. Watch the Holy Spirit in the Word, there's where it come.

57 How about when Job died and specified his burial place? Along came Abraham, Abraham bought the parcel of ground to bury his wife, Sarah. And Abraham, when he died, wanted to be buried with Sarah. Abraham begot Isaac. Isaac, when he died, wanted to be buried with Abraham. Isaac begot Jacob. Jacob died, plumb down in Egypt, but he made Joseph (his prophet son) sware by him, with his hand on his limping hip, that he would not bury him down in Egypt. Why? Said, "Take me up into the land and there let him be buried." And Joseph, when he died down in Egypt, made mention of the departing, and Israel going out according to the prophecy, but said, "Take my bones out of this land." Why? They knew the firstfruits of the resurrection was coming up from that land, because Job said, "I know my Redeemer liveth, and at the last days He'll stand upon the earth; and though the skin worms destroys this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."

58 They knew that firstfruits of resurrection was coming out of the promised land, not Egypt. They were spiritual, they were prophets. And when Jesus died, on--on Good Friday, and raised up on Easter morning, the following Sunday morning, the Bible said that, "Many of the saints that slept in the dust of the earth, raised up and come out of the graves, went into the city, went on into Glory with Him." Why? It was them prophets that knowed exactly where to be buried, at the place and at the time. It was hid from the eyes of the wise. But they knew what--what, they looked at the Spirit side. The--the firstfruits of the resurrection was to come out of Palestine, not out of Egypt.

59So is it today, friends. So many people hold onto things of the world, or some great system or something. Bury me in Jesus, for those that are in Christ will God bring with Him in that resurrection. And I don't care what the world's got to say, how much they try to tinselize things. It's in Christ, those that are in Christ that God will bring with Him. The spiritual mind catches those spiritual things.

60 Here the prophet said, "Little Bethlehem, art thou not the least among all the princes of Judah? But out of thee shall come this Governor," not out of the big self-styled capitol, not out of some historical church grounds or something, where the Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, or whatmore started. "But out of the least of these, out of a little insignificant place will I bring forth this place, My Ruler of the people."

61But today we want to say, "Our fathers did this, and our fathers did that." See, God ignores every bit of that. God does what He wants to. Watch the line of the Spirit, watch the way the--the Scripture reads. They were ignorant to that. But, you see, the Scripture is what's right. Always, God is right.

62 David was anointed by this great prophet, to be king. No doubt that Samuel, this great prophet, knew these things beforehand. And it was there that his great promised spiritual seed... for God swore by an oath, that He would raise up Christ to sit on the throne of David. Then where else could Christ be born? Here's His father born, His grandfather, His great-grandfather, great-great-great-great- great- on back. See, His people in the line of the Gentiles brought in. And now the Bible said that, "In His Name will the Gentiles trust."

63 See, it all has to be brought in so you can see it. We'd like to stay there for a while and dwell on that, and show you why the Gentiles, but I'm sure the spiritual mind will catch this right away now; because, being the mothers, and not the father. Now, 'cause it--it was a woman, the Bride. The Gentile will be made up, the Bride, will be made up of Gentiles. The Gentile, "He'll take a people out of the Gentiles for His Name's sake." That's His Name. He took a wife, see, out of the Gentiles. And that's how it had to be, woman come in, church, and she. They were Gentiles, the grandmothers back in the line of the seed.

64 Now, just as Isaac was in the line of the seed otherwise. Now notice this, we find out then that David had this promise of a son. Now, we notice how that parallels again with Israel. When Israel... Or Abraham was promised that his seed, what it would be, that out of his seed would come this great Saviour, and he'd be father of the nations. His natural seed, of course, was Isaac, and it failed. But his spiritual Seed, by the faith that he had, come Christ, which brought in all of the nations.

65Well, now the same thing is paralleled here again. David's natural seed was Solomon, and it backslid just like the other seed of Abraham did. It backslid. So did Solomon backslide. He got too many women and, the first thing you know, they led his heart away from God. And the way he went and backslid, died that way, backslid. Israel died in the same way, backslid.

66 But we find out that this spiritual Seed, which was promised by the natural seed as a lineage of people coming through Abraham, but as the kingship come through the spiritual promise of David. And David was born in Bethlehem. And he was anointed in Bethlehem. And we find out then that when his real Royal Seed, Heir to his throne was born, in this same city, little Bethlehem. "Thou art least amongst all the princes of Judah, but out of thee shall come a Governor that shall rule My people."

67 In this little town, little stable, city stable down on the side of the bluff, was a cave back in the bluff, and out of there came forth through its little doors, the Prince of Peace, born in a stable, in a--a little box of--of straw sitting somewhere, manure piled up in the barns, and so forth, but out of there came that great Prince, the Seed of the woman, out of there came the Saviour of the world, out of there came Jehovah Himself, in a form of a man, came out of that little humble stable in Bethlehem. Not in some king's palace, born in royalty; but there He came from that humble place, to a manure stack down in there, and was wrapped in swaddling cloth. As tradition says, it was taken from the yoke of an ox where they had been plowing with it.

68 Poor people! Joseph and Mary, both real poor, and here they was in this little stable. How humble God makes Hisself! And then we try to make ourself something great. Can't you see how God humbles Himself and takes the things that's not, that He might bring to pass His great promises. How that little Jehovah laying in a manger, wrapped in the--the cloth taken off of the back of a yoke, the neck of a yoke where ox had been. And wrapped the Prince of Peace in it! My! Who are we then? What do we deserve? If God can humble Himself like that, oughtn't we to be able to humble ourself to become His servant, if He did things like that? Can't we forget our great dignities and things of this world, and pass from that, and humble ourselves before Him this Christmas? And be a... Show Him our appreciations of that birth and that humility, by humbling our ownselves and receiving His Word. No matter what the tradition says, it's His Word that counts. That's what He'll take, His Word, and That only.

69 Now we find out, this little stable, it was there that the first noel was ever sang on earth, and it was sang by Angels. Think of it! The first noel, not sung up there with Caiaphas, not down at some great fine church where a wonderful pastor was, but at a stable in Bethlehem, the least among all of them. But the first noel was sang by Angelic Beings in the little city of Bethlehem. See what I mean?

70No matter how poor you are, how little or insignificant you--you might be, God can use you if you'll just let Him do so. God wants you. He don't want you to... you don't have to belong to some great society, some great order, some great brotherhood, or whatever it might be, that don't mean nothing to God. God wants you! And if you're... if you feel that you're great, get that feeling out of you. You got to get it out. You say, "Well, well, I have a Ph.D., LLD." That just takes you that much farther from God. Forget the thing. Come back to God. Come back to the humility of the Spirit, and love God and take His Word.

71 "And if ye abide in Me and My Word in you, then ask what you will, it'll be done for you." God promised that. "If you say to this mountain, 'Be moved,' and don't doubt in your heart, but believe that what you said will come to pass, you can have what you said." "He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he also. Even greater than this shall he do, for I go to My Father." What promises!

72 There's something lacking somewhere. What we try to do is twist it up and make it some great something up there, put flower and tinsel on it, and we pollute it just like the nations has done Christmas. That's right! If we could get the tinsel off of the things, and the--the humility back in the human heart! If we could bring the humility back to Christmas of what it ought to be! Not a commercial day, not lights and Santa Claus'es! But back to worshipping the God of creation Who come in a stable and was borned a Baby, God made flesh and dwelt among us! If we could come back to that, get away from the tinsel and the big things. God don't even deal with it at all.

73 You say, "Well, I belong to the biggest organization." That takes you that much farther from God. You say, "I do this, that." That just takes you that much further.

74You've got to humble yourself until you see that, until, "If ye abide in Me and My Words abide in you, then ask what you will." What we try to do, as soon as God gives us a little shower of blessings, we try to twist it all up and get dignitaries in there that's going to make great big names and outdo the other one. This one starts this way and that way, God leaves the whole thing. What we need today is a fresh pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon hearts that's humble. We need a real Christmas, a birthplace. If you could realize that you're nothing but a stable! God didn't go to Jerusalem, to Shiloh, or Ramoth-Gilead, He come to a stable that was polluted. When you let God, you become... and realize in yourself that you're nothing but a stinking stable. But welcome, open your doors, when these great big places and inns are turning Him away, open your doors of the manger of your heart and let Jehovah come in to that, and watch what takes place, for He is the Word. He said, "If ye abide in Me, and My Word in you." He is the Word. Let Him come into you, and watch what takes place. Then ask what you will, and it'll be done for you.

75Yes, it was there the first noel was sung by Angels, many years ago. And when He...

76 [A brother speaks in another tongue. Someone gives an interpretation. Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.]

And now we know the message must be very important, that God wanted to say that, or He wouldn't have broke in on a message to do something like that. "Humble yourselves under the hands of God," was the message of it, friends.

Now, our Heavenly Father, we know that Thou art all wisdom and does everything just right. We pray that You'll grant now that this might be a--a message to the people, that they truly must humble ourselves, all of us, and come under the hand of the mighty God. We commit ourselves to You, Father, that You'll grant this to us. In Jesus' Name, Thy Son. Amen.

77 Now, to continue on, I was speaking of when the first noel was sang, was sang by Angels at little Bethlehem. There's where all these great men were born. There's where the promise of the King was born. The promised King came to that. Now, the word... to get quickly now, so I won't hold you too long. The--the promise, the word was this, the word "Bethlehem." Let's break it down. I skipped over a few notes here in order to take up the time. Now, Bethlehem. The word B-e-t-h means "house." E-l means "God," in Hebrew. E-l-h-e-m is "Bread." Bethlehem, "the house of God's Bread." That's what the word means.

78Words, names, they have meanings. Many people don't believe that, but that's true. If names don't have some meaning, why did Abram's name have to be changed to Abraham? Why did Sarai have to be changed to Sarah? Why did Saul have to be changed to Paul? Why did Simon have to be changed to Peter? See, all these has meanings, everything has meanings.

79 And the name Bethlehem means "the house of God's Bread." Now, how fitting that is to Jesus, the Bread of Eternal Life. Christ is the Bread of Life. We all believe that, don't we? How fitting Bethlehem there, the bread center of the world, was the bread center of Eternal Life. That's why the King had to be born there. He said, in Saint John 6:35, "I am the Bread of Life that come from God out of Heaven. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and all dead. But this Bread, if a man eats this Bread, he shall live forever." Then, Jesus is the Bread of Life, so the Bread of Life had to come at Bethlehem. He is our Bread of Life for the journey, like Israel. God gave Israel bread out of the skies, for their journey, as they journeyed from where they left Egypt unto the promised land. Bread, nightly, rained down from the skies. And God gave us the Bread of Life for our journey, come at Bethlehem, God's house of Bread. See how it had to be? It must be where that name is called, Bethlehem, "the house of God's Bread." Then how could He be born in Jerusalem? How could He be born in Ramoth-Gilead? See, He come to where His Name was, "house of God's Bread."

80 Oh, notice, Israel received a new fresh bread every night, coming down from Heaven, for their journey. Christ is our Life, Bread of Life, and every day we receive a freshness from Christ, from Heaven, the Holy Spirit coming down upon the believer every day. Fresh!

81Yesterday's experience, many of us live on yesterday's experience. We mustn't do that. It's today's experience! That's what's the matter with our denominations, they're living on the experience of John Wesley, upon the experience of Dwight Moody, Finny, Sankey, Knox, Calvin, many of those back there. They're living on that experience. But, remember, the bread that fell, and they tried to keep it over, it got contaminated, maggots got in it, little wiggletails. And that's what's the matter today, contaminated cisterns, living on past bread that's contaminated.

82 We must have something fresh from Christ, His Word today for this hour. See? He is our freshness, our Bread that falls every day from Heaven upon the believer. He is our Bethlehem, God's House of Eternal Life Bread. Christ was born in Bethlehem, and became God's House of Eternal Life Bread. He is the Bread of Life. He is our Bethlehem. Christ is our Bethlehem. Natural bread is called the "staff of life." We call the natural bread, like our light bread, and stuff we get, is called the staff of life. Jesus is God's Life Staff, a--a--a Bread of Life Staff for Eternal Life. As a staff of life is called bread, Jesus, being the Bread of Life, is God's Staff of Eternal Life Bread to us. See?

83 We can't go, something must die so we can eat. This morning when you eat, you eat dead substance. If something doesn't die, then you cannot live, 'cause you only live by dead substance. If you eat meat, the hog died. You eat pork, the hog died, of course. And then if you eat beef, the cow died. You say, "But I eat bread." Then the wheat died. "Why, I ate greens." The greens died. You only live by dead substance, and that's the only way you can live.

84Then if you can only live natural, by dead substance, something had to die so you can live natural, how much more did Something have to die so you live Eternally! Christ died, that we might live Eternally. And He become the House of God's Eternal Life Bread, that we catch, freshly, every hour of the day, coming down from God out of Heaven, in the form of the Holy Spirit, feeds our hungry souls as we set together in Heavenly places. He is our Bethlehem.

85 Then all true believing sons of God are born in Bethlehem with Him. If Christ had to become the Bread of Life, to be born in Bethlehem, which is Life's Bread House, then every one of true believers in Christ is born in Christ, they are born in God's Bethlehem. Amen. Then, only, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, I was born in Bethlehem, you were born in Bethlehem. How did you do it? Right here in Phoenix, Arizona, this morning in the Ramada, you can be born again in God's Bethlehem, House of Eternal Bread Life. Eat It and live forever!

86 Why little Bethlehem? That's today, "Why a bunch of little holy rollers? Why this, that or the other?" The people don't know what It's all about.

87But the Spirit reveals It. The Word shows It. It's the manifestation of God's Word. We have Life through Christ, and Him alone. Our organizations, our denominations, our differences, only separates us from God. We have one access to God, and that's through Jesus Christ. There's not another way that we can come through Him; by no priest, no preacher, no system, or nothing else; only Jesus Christ and Him crucified. He's God's Bread of Life, and we are borned in Him. And if He is God's Bread of Life, then He is Bethlehem. And being born in Christ, we are then God-born in Bethlehem, in Christ Jesus, sitting together in Heavenly places, eating of Him. Eating of Him! Who is He? He's the Word. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." And when we can sit with one objective, the Word of God, and feed upon That, we are in God's, spiritual Bethlehem, eating God's spiritual Bread, and our souls punctuating every Word that He spoke, with an "Amen!" We enjoy this Heavenly angel Food.

88 When It says, "These signs shall follow them that believe." The creed or denomination says, "Oh, It isn't so." But the real man who's born in Bethlehem, says, "Amen!"

89"The works that I do shall you do also." The denomination says, "It's a bunch of work-up emotion." But the real Bethlehem dweller says, "Amen," because he is satisfied, That's angel Food.

90"If ye abide in Me and My Words in you, ask what you will, and it'll be done for you." Amen.

91Oh, the high and prudent will never see it. We hold so much to our traditions of the elders, so much that we have to pack cards and everything else to get in some pulpit. They ain't it. You can get in God's pulpit by humbling yourself. Come into the House of the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ, and live forever in His Presence, and lifted up in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus, feasting on the Word. That's God's Bethlehem.

92 How many of us is in It this morning? How many's willing to forget your traditions, how many's willing to forget your creed that disagrees with the Word? Why ain't we got a revival? Why haven't we got these things going on? What's the matter with Pentecost? It organized itself. That's it. You can't organize Pentecost. You can make an organization. But the pentecost is a blessing, it's the Power of God. And if it's a genuine pentecost, it'll never bypass the Word for a creed. It'll take the Word. Right, because it's circumcised from the world and the things of the world. It sits only on the Word of God, and believes It. We're in Bethlehem, candidates for the Kingdom of God. We're eating God's Eternal Life Bread. Born, God Bread, born in Bethlehem, to become the spiritual Bread of Life, of Eternal Life, in the house of God. Oh, my! Born in Bethlehem, we are, this morning, when we're born in Jesus Christ, for He is God's Bethlehem. Jesus is God's House of Eternal Life Bread.

93 He also is our Water for the journey. Now, we know that He is the Water. Like Israel in their journey, either they smote a rock and their bread come down out of Heaven, but a rock was smitten so that they could drink from it for the sustainings of their life in the journey. God smote a rock, or had Moses to do it, His prophet, smote the rock. What was it? Open the rock. If... The Rock was Christ. Do you believe it? All right. Then if the prophet opened the rock so life could come out, then, if it is the Rock today, we need the Holy Spirit in some man who will smite back the Rock, amen, and let the Word come out, because He is the Word.

94 We've bypassed on creeds and drinking stagnated water from cisterns. What we need today is an opening of the Word that lives, and He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. He cannot fail. They can call it mental telepathy, they can say whatever they want to, or spiritualists, or--or a devil, as long as that Word is flowing free and producing exactly what It said It would do, It's a Fountain in the house of David again, back in Bethlehem, where that Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, forever, to His Bethlehem dwellers. Live with It, live in It, it's Life-journeying Water for us as Israel had.

95 One of great David's great experiences, if you want to read about it in II Samuel 35:15, beginning, we read out there that David, being born in Bethlehem, but yet he become a fugitive. Oh, what a sight! The Philistines were garrisoned at that time, in the land, because Saul, the great man that brought all Israel into sin, had fell away from God and become an enemy to God, and had--had been garrisoned, the Philistines were garrisoned around Bethlehem. And David, trying to get back to his own home, could not do it, was out in the wilderness because he had become a fugitive to the people, or, there was ousted.

96 What a beautiful picture that is of Christ today, a fugitive. He is. Now, you say, "That can't be." Well, if you believe the Bible, it is. The Bible said, in the Laodicean Church Age, that Christ was on the outside of the church, knocking [Brother Branham knocks on the pulpit--Ed.] trying to get back in His own church. A fugitive is something's been refused, rejected. And the Word and the Holy Spirit is rejected. That's right. You can't get in there. If you ever receive Him, you got to get out of there to get Him. You got to go out to Him. He can't get in. They're so set on their creeds that they--they won't let you preach them things, they won't let you believe those things.

They say, "You believe He's the same?"

97"Oh, in a way, He's the same." Now, that's not living in Bethlehem. No, no. That's drinking at a stagnated cistern, way back, old contaminated bread that fell several years ago. "What did So-and-so say about It?" They might have been all right in their day. This is another day. This is the Day of the Lord! This is another church age, not the Philadelphian. This is the Laodicea. It's a rejected, and Christ has become a fugitive in His own church, pushed out. He's foreign.

98 He can come right down and work right among the people, and do the same things that He did here, saying that He would do it in the last days, give the same signs and things that He said He would do as it was in the days of Sodom. We know what He done to the Church there.

99We see Billy Graham, as it was. Them messengers went down in the church denomination, and preaching down in there, and there call them out, tell them to believe the Word and to come out of Sodom.

100 Abraham's group wasn't in Sodom, they was already called out. Watch the Angel, what He did up there for them, for a sign, that they knowed. And the same thing can be done, and people say, "Oh, well, don't believe It." Why? Why? Because that they have made Christ a fugitive to their organization, they're so foreign with It, Pentecostal and all together. Now, that's just exactly the Truth. I know that scratches. But, listen, if anything that don't... If--if it's Truth, it will scratch. And that's right. It's got to be Truth.

101 Now, now watch David, when he was up there, David dreamed of his mighty victories. He was in a cave, staying back, and way away, about fifteen miles out of the city. And he come up and noticed that there, his own beloved city where he had been born, and where he had been anointed king, and--and so forth there.

102The dwellers in Israel, in them days, was something like it is today in Germany. They have the little cities. And then they live in the cities for protection, and then they take their sheep and their stock out in the country and feed them, and drive them back in. And the evening time, put them in the corrals.

103 And David, looking down upon the city, begin to remember the mighty deeds that God had done by him, the great mighty victories that God had won by him. How that one day while he had his sheep up there in the mountains where he was, laying down there by the green pastures, and so forth, a bear come in and got one of the little lambs and took it out. And he went after it, and he killed the bear. God gave him victory because he was detailed by his father to take care of those sheep. That was his--that was his job, take care of the sheep!

104O pastor, that's your job! And they eat sheep Food, not almanacs. Sheep Food, God's Word!

105Someone come in and got one, run out. Someone come in and got one and took out, he went after it. A lion come in and took one, he went after it. He wasn't satisfied until he got it.

106 That give him that great victory one, day when he seen Israel all backed up. See, Israel had been hearing all the creeds and everything. They had all, they all went to church. They had all been circumcised. They all went to the priest and got their blessings before they went to battle. But when it come down to the showdown, of the Supernatural, they were, every one, cowards, because they seen something was in opposition. And they didn't have the audacity, they--they didn't have what we would call today, the--the street word, they didn't have the--the--the "go get it." There was something lacking. They could not go out there and face that giant. Why? But they was all blessed by the priest. They had the holy blessings upon them, and they had knelt and probably been anointed with the holy waters, and whatever it was, and there they was all standing out there. But when the opposition was so great, they didn't have it. There stood Saul, the general overseer or the bishop, standing out there, head and shoulders above his army.

107 And he made a challenge, Goliath did, and said, "If I kill him, then you'll serve us. But if he kills me, then we'll serve you." But the opposition was too great. He had fourteen-inch fingers, that'd be twenty-eight inches across his hand. Look what a hand he had! His--his needle, weavers needle, like his spear he had. And think how big his head would be, be about like a tub. And there would be a--a helmet, an inch or two thick, of brass, hanging over his head. Look at the armor, pieces of armor like one of these jalousie windows, where he could breath and move himself, that's the way the armors worked. With the great coat of mail hanging on him, may have weighed a hundred pounds, or two hundred pounds, of brass, hanging over his chest. With a--with a needle, spear in his hand, maybe thirty-five-feet long.

108What the enemy can do when he thinks he's got the odds on you! What he thinks he can do, how he'll make the boast! "The days of miracles is past. You can't get by with such a thing as that."

109 But there come up a little ruddy-looking fellow that hadn't had no theological experience, but he had an experience that God still remained God. God keeps His Word. And here he come up. And Saul said, "Wait, I'll--I'll give you a bachelor of art."

110He put his helmet on him, and it went, sunk him down. He didn't know nothing about that. Said, "I don't know nothing about them kind of things." Said, "I don't know. But I know one thing, that are you afraid to go fight that giant? And you stand here and call yourself the Church of the living God, and let that uncircumcised unbeliever stand out there and make such boast as that?" Said, "I'll go fight him!"

111Oh, we need man like that today, man who's had an experience!

112 What did he do, what did little David of Bethlehem do? He went out there to fight the giant. The giant cursed him in the name of his gods, gods, plural, cussed him in the name of his giants, or his gods, and went out there and said, "Today I'll take you by my spear and I'll hang your carcass up there in the tree and let the birds eat it."

113He said, "You meet me as a Philistine, in the name of a Philistine, with an armor and a spear, but I meet you in the Name of the Lord God of Israel." What was it? The Word! The Word, "I'll meet you with the Word." Said, "Today I'll cut your head from your shoulders." That giant laughed and took after him. And David didn't back up, he took after him, too. There's only one little place, and God directed his rock.

114 David, laying up here as a fugitive, was thinking about that, how that great victory was. Then he must have got to thinking about the psalms, how sometimes out there in the mountains he'd lay and meditate on God. He said he tied His commandments on his--his bedpost and his fingers, and everywhere he go. "I always got the Lord before me, always, and I shall not be moved." He kept God before him. And the great victories he had! When he'd get so inspired, he was a psalmist, he'd jump up and take his pen and write down the psalms and sing them. He'd get into the Spirit, and dance and dance and dance in the Spirit. How he'd get so carried away in the Spirit, he'd dance in the Spirit by writing these psalms. And he must have come over the different psalms, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures," the 23rd Psalm, "He leadeth me beside still waters. He restoreth my soul. Oh, He leadeth me in paths of righteousness for His Name's sake. And, yea, though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, I'll fear no evil. Thou art with me."

115 And as he thought on those things, it must have been a hot day, he got thirsty, hot and sweating. He could look way down in the valley from the top of the mountains, on the east side or the west side, or east side it is, of the city, when he looked down and seen where the Philistines all down there, thousands of them garrisoned around. He seen that old well where he once drank from. Oh, he begin to think of a morning when he'd take his sheep, go out to--to feed them, he would pass by this old well, because it was a great place of water. And then he'd go there and he would drink water, and drink, let his sheep drink. How there at Bethlehem, where he watered his sheep.

116That's exactly where God waters His sheep again today, right back at Bethlehem, Its cool fresh Water.

117 He cried out, "If I only had a drink from that well again!" I'm going to close now, listen close. "If I only had a drink!" Inside of him cried out, "If I could only drink once more from that well at Bethlehem." His desires was a commandment to those who loved him. Remember, his soul was crying for a drink of that water. And those who loved him, his least desire was a command. We're told that one of... three of those men got together, great men. One killed eight hundred, by himself. The other one jumped into a pit and killed a lion. One took a stick and knocked a spear out of an Egyptian's hand, slew him with his own spear, and stood on a field of lentil like that, and killed three hundred around him. Great men! They were Gentiles. Watch where they come from.

118 David here is a type of Christ, Bethlehem, 'cause Christ is David's Son. Here he's standing there, crying for a drink of that water. And his desire was a command, I said, to those who loved him. Three of those men pulled their swords and fought fifteen miles of men, down to that city. While others fought keeping... Them were gallant fighting men, those Philistines, twice their size, some of them. But they were men, gallant, who could fight. One of them slew, stood alone-handed, and killed eight hundred men right around him, in one day. They were great men, they trusted God. They had faith in their leader. And they cut his way down through, until while some of them cut and the other one got a bucket of water, and they cut their way back through another fifteen miles of men, and brought that up to David so he could drink it.

119 Here Christ is represented here in this, both King and Warrior, because He cut His way through. He broke the enemy's lines of death. He broke the enemy's lines, that, well, we might have Eternal Life, the Waters of Eternal Life. He come through even to death, and took death upon Himself, and died the death, and come back that we might have Eternal Life. He's both King and Warrior. We didn't conquer, it's already conquered! We never conquered death, He conquered death for us! He's our David of this day. He conquered death. Bethlehem's Bread and Water.

120 Bethlehem was the center. You historians know that, that it was the center. It was a great wheat country in there, from the irrigation and stuff. They could have great wheat crops. And it's also the best water. It was the bread center and the water center of Palestine.

121And today, no matter how many organizations we got, how many other so-called brethren, and, which, they may be, still Christ is the believer's Bethlehem. He is the place of Bread and Water. Methodist, that's good for you; that's good for you Baptists, you Pentecostals, the rest of you. It's all one place, that's Bethlehem. It's where Bread and Water of Life comes from. Yeah.

122 Here He is our Bread, God's Bread and Water for us. He's the center, the only place that you can come and get It, is from Him. God's House, in the person of Jesus Christ, our Bethlehem, Bread and Waters of Eternal Life. And He is the Word made flesh. Here is the Word, the Bread and Water of Life. Hebrews 13:8 says, "He's the same yesterday, today, and forever." That makes Him our Bethlehem, our place of Bread and Water, the only place of Eternal Life.

123 Notice David, in getting the waters, he never drank it. He said, "God forbid. This is the blood of these men that jeopardized their lives," to go out and to bring him that drink. Watch! He poured it upon the ground, for a drink-offering to God. Amen! Men and brethren, rise your faith just a minute now. He refused to drink it, himself. He poured it upon the ground, for a drink-offering to--to God.

124How fitting that is to John 3:16, when God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. Jesus, the Prince of Life, come here, didn't have to die. He conquered death Himself, and poured His Own Life's Blood out upon the ground, amen, as an offering for our sin. He's our smitten Rock. Upon the ground, His precious God-given Blood.

125 I heard someone say the other night in a message, said that they come to... I believe it was Billy Graham, last night, was watching him as he said that he went to Israel and he went into Palestine, and he said, "I come to believe your people," something on that order. And I certainly admired him as he appeared on that worldly program last night. Many of you turned the man down for doing that. But, look here, he got before the whole nation then. And he never took it back, he stood just exactly on what he believed. And I certainly admire him for that. And he said, "I went to Israel and I told them, 'I worship one of your Children,' in other words, like this."

126I thought, "Billy, that's wonderful. I'd like to see that God-given power that you have to stand there in the midst of all that Hollywood glamour and give a testimony by Jesus Christ, but He was not a Jew." Jesus was God, not a Jew. Remember, the blood cell comes from the male sex. And He was not no man, Jew or Gentile, He was God created in flesh. We're not saved by the blood of a Jew or blood of a Gentile, we're saved by the Blood of God. He was God, nothing less. He wasn't Jew nor Gentile. God's creative Blood in Him, we become... If He was a Jew or a Gentile, we're all lost. He was God in flesh. Right.

127 I don't worship a Jew, I worship God when I worship Jesus Christ. I don't worship some fiction or some kind of a historical something. I worship Jesus Christ, the Presence of Jesus Christ right now, which is His Word that's manifested in this age.

128God in every age allotted His Word from the beginning, and every time in which one of those ages passed by, God sends down an anointed prophet for that age. In the days of Noah, days of all the rest of them, when He made the promises. I don't care what kind of a condition the church got into, He always does that, He sends a man anointed. For the Word of the Lord comes to the prophets. And here he stood there, each prophet, and was condemned by the organizations of that day, but he stood on the Word and made the Word live.

129 Jesus was the fulness of God's Word, for He was the fulness of the Godhead bodily, and in Him dwelt the fulness of God. God lived in Jesus Christ. God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Not Jew nor Gentile, but God! There He stood, making Hisself. How fitting! And God's Own Blood had to shed upon the ground, from the innocent blood of Abel on down, to redeem us. He didn't take His own life, He didn't hold His own life; He said, "Father, is it possible this cup should pass from Me? But, nevertheless, not My will, Thine be done." He give in to the Word.

130Today we can do the same thing. You can either take your creeds, take your so-and-so, and go wherever you want to with it; but you can say, "Not my will, but Thine be done." Come back to that Word of God. Take your tinsel and Christmas and do what with it you want to. But give me Jesus Christ in my heart, no matter how humble It is, and how people laugh at It, or what of It. Watch--watch its nature, see if it does just like He did. If it didn't, and it don't compare with this Word, leave it alone, it's not Christ; 'cause Christ is the Word.

131Now we find how fitting it was, our Rock, smitten, His Blood Life poured upon the ground, a sin-offering for the sinner. Our Bethlehem, Water, Bread and Life, offered to cleansing for us unclean sinners.

132 Oh, sinner friend of mine, how can you refuse, so foolishly, such an offering, when God gave His only begotten Son, a sin offering, that whosoever believeth in Him, in Him, shall not perish but have Eternal Life? How do you get into Him? By one Spirit we're all baptized into one Bethlehem, the Word of God, which is Christ made manifest for this age.

133And every promise that the Bible gives of this age, He's waiting for some prophet to rise on the scene to manifest that, He promised it according to Malachi 4. It'll be done. No matter how foolish the people think, it'll be done anyhow! God said so! He's able of these stones! Our creeds won't receive it, if our churches won't receive it, God can go back to the stable, He can go anywhere He wants to. But there'll be somebody stand up for this Word spoke for this day. Something has to manifest It. It won't be a group, either, never was.

134 O sons, warriors, as I close. I don't want to keep you here too long. I'm going to close right now, the Lord willing. Five minutes till eleven, or six minutes, rather. Notice, O warrior sons, you man here that claim to be son! Did you know what David represented? David represented Christ, He was, Christ was the Son of David. Now listen, in closing. Those Gentile warriors, many of them, notice they come from everywhere, but they knowed that that fugitive was anointed. They knew David was rejected by his own people, but they knowed the anointing was on him. They could see it. So they stood right by his side, die or live! They were gallant man, no matter how much the outside world didn't believe it.

135His own people kicked him out. They didn't want nothing to do with him. Saul run him out, the head of the denomination kicked him out, and have nothing to do with it, the council kicked him out, and he become a fugitive. They had to go to wherever he could. There he was up in the mountains, but there was a little group of men, of Gentiles and so forth, made up, that they looked at that man and they knowed he was coming king.

136 So is it today with real gallant soldiers of faith of that Word, who knows that Word promises that Jesus Christ will return. We ain't interested in millions of dollars of this and millions of dollars of that. I'm interested in the return of Christ Jesus. O warrior sons of God, what's the matter with you, how do you stand today? When we see that the Bible predicts that He's a fugitive today, turned out of His church, turned out of the organizations. And you know it. No need of hiding around about it, it's the truth. The Bible said it would be that way. Come out from them marks of the beast!

137 Look at these men! They pulled their swords. What was it? His desire was a drink of cool water. David! What a type of today, our David, Christ, we know He's called a holy roller, He's cast off to one side, a fanatic in everything, rejected by the churches. They've got their creeds and things drawed up in this Christmas like they did at the first one. We know that, but we know that this Word ever remains true, and It's got to be fulfilled. And the desire of Christ is for men, warriors, to stand! Amen!

138 Oh, come, stand with me, by my side. I'm standing in a terrible place. I challenge today! These tapes go over the world. I challenge some man, some warrior who loves Jesus Christ, that knows that these things has got to be fulfilled today, brethren, come stand by my side and pull the Word of God. Forget those dried cisterns and stagnated denominations you're living in. Pull the fresh Word of God, let's give Jesus a good drink of fresh pentecostal Water! That's His desire today, back to original Pentecost, back to the Word! It's prophesied we'd do so, in Malachi the 4th chapter, "Returned the Faith of the children back to the fathers again." Who would stand this morning?

139 Like David, we know that David is coming into power. Jesus Christ is going to take the world. He inherits the earth, He is going to be King over the earth. He's rejected today, He's a fugitive among His people. Course, He's a fugitive to the world, always was. But today He's a fugitive to His own church, they reject Him, they love their creeds and big dignitaries instead of the Word. They won't let Him be manifested. They won't let Him be preached in His power. They've cut away from It, just like the Bible said they'd do in Revelation 17. What are they doing? Going up here today, and all going in this Council of Churches. Catholicism and Protestantism uniting together, making the mark and the image of the beast. And Protestants falling right for it, Pentecostals everywhere. Dignitaries going into Rome, from Pentecost, and coming back, said, "Most spiritual place!" And in Texas and everywhere else, they're opening up and giving understanding of the stations and so forth, knowing that that's creeds been injected to this Word.

140 Oh, you Bethlehem dwellers! Hallelujah! I call for men, warriors who's not afraid. I don't care if there's eight hundred standing on one side and ten thousand on the other, I want warriors who will come with me and cut a hole through this line of unbelieving Philistines the World Council has got garrisoned around the Word of God, trying to make it creeds and feed the people. There's a Well, there's a Fountain open in the House of David, Bethlehem, for sin and uncleanliness. Brother, sin is unbelief in His Word!

141Who warrior that can see the Millennium coming? What warrior can see this great Holy Spirit come in the form of Jesus Christ, the literal body of Christ to take over again, stand with me. Stand by me! Let's cut a hole through this denominational creed. Let's get in there! He's crying for a good fresh drink of pentecostal Water, original Pentecost, not a bunch of carrying on, screaming, hollering, here. I mean a genuine Holy Spirit baptism that produces the Life of Jesus Christ back into the person.

142 Forgive me if I hurt you. No, don't you do it. I'm doing this in the Name of the Lord Jesus. Come back! Stand, you gallant man who see David standing yonder! Jesus Christ, a fugitive from His church, barred out by their creeds. There's a fresh Fountain hanging yonder. Amen. There's power to make this Word live again, it's prophesied in this day to come to pass. God said it would come to pass. It's got to come to pass. You'll never do it in the army you're in now. You're garrisoned yourself, Pentecost, right around with the rest of the organizations, cutting it into a creed.

143 O men of God, where's that Sword? Our Lord desires a fresh drink. I don't care if it's life or death, let's cut through this thing. It's so hard standing by yourself. I'm calling for men to stand by me, stand with the Word! What that Word says, do it just the way the Word said. I don't care what anything else says, stay It that way, for That's the only thing that will cut. Let's get to Bethlehem, the true Water of God.

144"If a man abide in Me and I in him, if ye abide in Me and My Words in you." Abiding, not just jumping from place to place, and swapping your fellowship card from a oneness to a twoness and a threeness, and back to a Presbyterian, Lutheran. "Ye abide in Me," and He is the Word, "My Words abide in you! Don't be afraid of eight hundred or eight million. I'll stand by your side. I desire to drink from that Well again."

145 God's going to have a people that will drink from that Well! Hallelujah! You might think I'm crazy, and maybe I am, then I'm crazy about Jesus Christ and His Word. If I have to be called a fool, let me be called a fool for His Word. I've never been against the men in them organizations. I'm against that system that's barring the Word of God out. Let's cut, warriors. Stand by us. Let's go into that Well. He is our Bethlehem.

146These old cisterns, the World Council of Churches organizing now. Let's restore the fresh Word of God, not a denomination. Let's not take a creed, that's old stagnated cisterns that fell forty years ago, twenty years ago, thirty years ago, or either last year. I want God's Word that's promised for today. That's the drink He wants me to have, this Word today! It's a little Bethlehem, it's rejected.

147 It's, I know, it's just like, you think, "Well, if my..." Yes, that's right, they thought He should be born in Jerusalem. They thought He should be born where their denomination heads was. But He turned by all that. He come to the name Bethlehem, for that's what He was. Hallelujah! He's not coming for Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian or Pentecostals. He's coming for the Bride, Jesus Christ. That's who He's coming for. It may seem strange to you, but believe It!

148 See, these types, they can come no other way but by the Word. That's the only place He could be born, is by that Bethlehem. That's why it had to be that little humble place. That's the way it has to be this morning, has to be the same way by the promised Word. Yes, sir. The Philistine Council of Churches now organizing, garrisoned everywhere around our Bethlehem. Around this Christmas, they're garrisoned around there, everywhere, it's all decorated up with worldly tinsel. "Oh, we'll bring world peace." Pope Luther, John, or whatever his name is, he'll get together, and all the great bishops of the church, the United Council of Churches and the World Council all coming together. How can two walk together unless they be agreed? Amen!

149There's only One you can walk with, that's Jesus Christ. How--how can you walk with Him? When you agree with Who He is, the Word! Don't you let that leave you.

150 I don't care about how much tinsel they got, "You got to do this or were going to close up your church you're with." I don't care what they close up, and has nothing to do with the Word. Yes, sir. Where you going? Just exactly what the Word said you was doing, going right back, all dressed in worldly tinsel, with all kind of worldly promises, but it's away from the Word a million miles. There it is today, Christmas again, to keep us from the promise of the Word. But It shall be fulfilled. God's able of these stones to rise children to Abraham. Ah, trying to keep the real, true Bethlehem dwellers away from Eternal Life, that's their purpose.

151 Rise, ye sons and warriors, let's cut back to our original Bethlehem! Remember when David come to his throne. These men stood by him because he knowed, they knowed he was coming to the throne. They knowed that David was going to be on the throne, no matter how much he was rejected out. He was the worst fugitive in the land. And so is the true Word of God, this morning, It's foreign to organizations. Look what they done. That shows it right before you.

152People try to say, "Brother Branham, you're knocking the church." I'm knocking them systems. The Church is Jesus Christ, not a system.

153 And today, look what they've done, look what they're doing. And you can see what they're doing, they're trying to keep the people from That. They're garrisoning more and more around that Well, to be sure that nobody will drink from It. But, O warriors of God, I believe that Jesus Christ will come someday in glory, I believe He'll come and sit on the throne of his father David. Though He be a fugitive, His Word this morning, rejected by His Own people like David was, the organizations turned out His Word, they turned out, when God comes and vindicates His pure Word. Don't tell me! For years, across the country, and they get farther, away from It all the time.

154 I said the other day, about Jacqueline Kennedy, how many times I've rebuked you women for cutting your hair, wearing makeup, you Pentecostal women cutting your hair, which God said it's you--you--you make yourself a--a street harlot when you do it. And, according to God, your husband has no right to live with you any longer. A woman that cuts her hair, dishonors her head, which is her husband. That's exactly. What do I say about it? And you call me out on it, I get the letters, "You old crank." All right, they called Elijah the same thing. They called every Word of God, every time the Word is made, call It.

155 Somebody said the other day, "Why, we believe you to, be a prophet."

156I never said that, I don't tell. I ain't no prophet, I'm just God's servant here trying to tell you the Truth. That's all. Let me tell you, the Word of God stands for that! He said, "The daughters of Zion, the branch that escaped in that day of all its contamination, it'll be glorious in the sight of the Lord." Cut through, women, you got your place to cut through, worldly Hollywood and picture shows, and all this television stuff that you try to pattern after, dress yourself sexy out on the street.

157And someone said, "Why, the people want you to teach them how to receive the Holy Ghost and how to get..."

158Say that you got the Holy Ghost, and then deny the Word? Your own life proves you haven't got It. See? Now, I'm not angry, I'm just telling you what's the Truth. Look at yourself and find out. Paul said, "If an angel from Heaven taught anything else, let him be accursed," Galatians 1:8. That's right.

159 What if Jacqueline Kennedy... She did set the pace of women with all these water-head haircuts and things that they have, all these sexy dresses, and like motherhood dresses and things. Every women in the country wants to wear them, you Pentecostals, too. Look, Jacqueline Kennedy never did hear a Message like this. If she would have heard It, she might have repented long ago. But you Pentecostal women hear It, day in and out, and year in and out, and still you do nothing about it! Hallelujah! God's going to get tired one of these days! God will get tired. Well, I know you think I'm crazy. Go ahead, it's all right. They thought that all down through the ages when the Word... See?

160 O warriors, pull that Sword, let's stand for everything that Sword stands for! Let's get to that Well where there is a Fountain filled with Blood, drawn from Immanuel's veins. Not a Jew. Immanuel's veins, God with us, where sinners plunged beneath the flood lose all their guilty stain.

161"And there shall come forth a Ruler out of Bethlehem that shall rule over My people." The Holy Spirit today rules over the people, and the Holy Spirit is the Word. Is that right? Now, in closing, reverently. He rules the people. No matter what you think; you cope with the Word. If you don't, the Holy Spirit is not there; you bear record of your own testimony, no matter what you say. You could jump up-and-down, speak in tongues, and run all over the floor, still have bobbed hair and doing the things you're doing; it testifies against you, that it's not so.

162 Bethlehem dwellers, God bless you, let's go through! Christ wants a real Church. He wants a Bride. Let's cut our ways through. Get out of here, get these creeds away, that the real drinkers might come back and get a drink of real, cool pentecostal Water that once flowed from this great Well. It's still flowing. Won't you come today and believe that with all your heart, while we bow our head just a moment.

163I got many things here I should speak on. Time won't permit it, it's eleven o'clock now. I wonder how many warriors in here, you ministers, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic priest, whatever you might be, you're convinced? I know I'm not a clergyman. I might have come out of the wilderness, with chopped up this, that and the other, but This is the Word. And you believe It's so, and you believe It's the Word, that's the Bethlehem. Jesus said, "Man shall not live by bread alone; every Word that cometh from the mouth of God." And the Word is here, the Bible. Man shall live by That, and He is that Word.

164 O warrior, will you pull the Sword of God and say, "I'm through with these traditions, I'm coming back to the Word, I'm coming back to Truth"? Women, men! Women, ain't you ashamed of yourself, the way you been doing? Are you willing this morning, at this Christmas, to come back and reflect the real Jesus Christ?

165Now with your heads bowed and every eye closed, would you raise your hand, say, "Pray, Brother Branham. Truly I want to do that in my heart. I am, I believe it"? God bless you. My, ministers, women, everywhere!

166 In Bethlehem, Bethlehem, the place of the Bread and Water of God, Christ our glorious Bethlehem. How do we get into Him? I Corinthians 15, "By one Spirit we are all baptized into the mystical Body of Jesus Christ."

167We feed upon His Word, not anything else, sheep Food alone! That Word! Nothing else. You can't put no creed in It, we won't listen to it. No, sir. You go to say, "Why, it's this way." If the Bible says it's This way, This is the way we want It. We don't want It seasoned up. We want It just the way It is.

168 O God, our Father, today there's hungry hearts still left on the earth. Why little Bethlehem. In my poor unlearned way, Lord, I've tried to let this little group... which loves me, I know they do, Lord. And I love them. And I love them so much till, Lord, I--I'm zealous of them. I don't want to see them mixed up in these great things, and get cut off then when it's too late, and see them poor souls yonder in prison, and know at once had the opportunity.

169Lord God, today, no matter what the great Jerusalem's thinks, and what the Gilead's and the Ramoth-Gilead and whatevermore, Shiloh's, and the great worship places, wherever they are. There is a Bethlehem. "Art thou not least among all of them? But out of thee!" Out from the Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian; Catholic, the great capitol; and the Ramoth-Gilead's, where Luther fought; and--and the--the Shiloh's, where maybe Wesley fought; and--and many other places. But, Lord, Lord, You raised up a Pentecostal group, and if they haven't turned right around and done the same thing!

170 Jesus of Nazareth, I pray Thee, Lord, to let warriors, out of every one of these creeds back there, rise in Your Name, cut through all these creeds and get back to the true, unadulterated Word, laying aside every weight that does so easily beset them, laying aside every hour that they're out here foolishly dropping around trying to make members of an organization. Lord God, let them come back to get converts to Jesus Christ; not to glorify any organization or any persons, but Jesus Christ, He alone.

171It was David those men fought for. It was David they set their life in jeopardy for. And them great mighty warriors, without fear, they moved their way through there, because it was his desire. It was his desire to have a drink from that well.

172Lord God, maybe we don't feel that, just that tug, but, look, it's Your desire that these things be done. As You said to John, "Thus it is behooving to us, or becoming, that we fulfill all righteousness."

173It's becoming to us, as ministers today, to see that this Word is preached, to see that it's done. It's becoming to us, a man of these hour that we're living in. Great men in the earth today, O God, they're out there, let them see it and grab the Sword! No matter what the opposition, if God be for you, who can be against you? We don't care, jeopardizing our social living. We don't care, jeopardizing this, that, or the other. We want to get the Water of Life back!

174 Let us go to Bethlehem, Lord, let every one of them. Let all these women, that, surely, if they put up their hand, they was ashamed of themself. Let them realize that these men will be like Mr. Kennedy one of these days. They'll--they'll be like the rest of men, they have to die. These women are dying. I'm dying. We're all burning up here on earth, and know that just a short time, we've only got a very few days left. And, God, instead of trying to build big systems, Lord, let men and women see this morning it's the coming of a King.

175O God, the coming of that great King, Jesus! And it... And we realize, God, that every one of those men that pulled that sword and fought for David when he was a fugitive, when he come into power, he made them rulers over cities. Every one of them had cities. And You promised that in the Bible, that we would have cities. O God, as Gentiles, fell heir through the Gentiles, that we might be partakers of His holiness and His righteousness! Let us today, Lord, as men warriors, take that Word, knowing that, those who stand for Him in this hour, they'll be rulers over cities. Not as we want to be rulers, but we want to be servants to You, Lord. O God, we see the vision of this little minority, this little group, this what's called "fanaticism" in the... Paul said in his day, "In the way that's called 'heresy,'" crazy. That's where I want to fight, Lord. Thy Word is Truth! And Thou art the Word, the same yesterday, today, and forever.

176 O God, anoint us with Thy Word, and bring Thy Word promised to this day to pass. May we leave this building this morning as shining instruments of God. May we go with the Sword, It glittering in the air, cut away every weight and everything else, till we can get back the people to Christ, and bring a cool fresh drink to our Lord, instead of all these old stagnated creeds. Let the people drink from the Fountain, a real, cool refreshing pentecostal blessing, that it might bless His heart and bring Him back among us again. Grant it, Lord. In Jesus' Name, I pray.

177 While we have our heads bowed, if the pianist or organist, or whatever it is, will go to the organ, piano, I want us quietly to sing this, "There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Immanuel's veins; when sinners plunged beneath the flood..." Sinner, what is sinner? Unbeliever. "Unbelievers plunged." Unbelief in what? The Word. Oh, those Jews they didn't want to believe that they were unbelievers, they thought they were saved, but God knowed they needed a Saviour. They was praying for a warrior, God give them a Baby, a Saviour. He knowed what they need. That's their Christmas Present. That's what you need today, that's what I need today, a Saviour for my unbelief, a Saviour from your unbelief. While we sing, let's just pray about it now in our hearts. Just pray sincerely, please, church.

There is a fountain filled with blood,

Drawn from Immanuel's vein,

And sinners (unbelievers) plunged (not a church member, now) beneath the... (that's where church members plunge)

Lose all their guilty stain.

Lose all their guilty stain,

Lose all their guilty stain;

And sinner...

178 Lord Jesus, I pray now that You'll receive us. I'm putting myself right here with this group, Lord. Take all my unbelief, Lord, away from me. Let me die, Lord, as Samson cried, let me die with these Philistines. Let me do whatever it may be for me to do, but, God, cleanse my soul. Take all doubt away. If there's anything in this Word that I don't believe, Lord, and if--if there's not something here that You've promised, that I can't see my own life being vindicate that Word for this day, then, Lord, forgive me. Forgive me, Lord.

179Give me courage. O Lord, I need courage to cut down this thing, cut this wall, for I know it's Your desire. You've spoke it, it should be in this day, "As it was in the days of Sodom, so shall it be in the coming of the Son of man." We see this last move, this last sign that's been given to the church. That was the last sign of Abraham's natural seed saw before the fire burnt up the Gentile world. And so is it the last sign that His royal Seed will see before the fire burns up the Gentile world. You... Lord, may they see that's just exactly the reason Jesus had to be born in Bethlehem. It's Your Word. It's Your promise. Bless them now, Father. I give them to You, as trophies. And may we, together, Lord, pull the Word today, and march forward in Jesus' Name. Amen.

180 God bless you. Do you love the Lord Jesus? Do you believe that's the Truth? Raise up your hands if you believe it's the Truth. Thank you, friends. Look, I am... I guess the tape's off. See, in speaking here, I'm not just speaking just to you. That tape goes around the world, and men and women around the world hear That. We got to nation after nation after nation, they just they set there with little tubes in their ears and--and speak That right out to hundreds and hundreds of people around the world.

181 And know, it's not... Now, you women, I don't want to hurt your feelings when I tell you them things. But if your pastor don't tell you That, there's something wrong with him. He ain't--he ain't got the audacity to do it. He's hiding behind an organization. Or he's like Lot, sitting down, before the fire fell, he--he just didn't have the real--the real stuff it take to stand out there. He... The Bible said that, "The sins of Sodom vexed his righteous soul daily." His soul knowed better, but he didn't have the real thing it taken to stand out there and condemn it. And a pastor that won't tell a women it's wrong to cut her hair, there's something wrong with that man, and to wear these clothes.

182 And you men, you men that'll let your women do such things as that, what's the matter with you? What's the matter with you? Lead your wife around through town as like a public prostitute, and then slap some man in the mouth if he'd insult her. You're the one needs slapping in the mouth. That's right, and God will do it someday, too. That's right. We need to get back to this Word.

183Not only that, that's just a little, little thing. But how you going to get the big things if you refuse the little ones? How can you learn algebra if you don't know ABC? You can't count to ten, how you going to know your mathematics? You've got to start from the bottom. You're trying to begin at the top, come down here and get started right.

184This is the time to do it, now, Christmas. It was the birth of Christ, let Christ be born in us. What is Christ? Christ is the Word. How many knows that? "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

185 Somebody said the other day, said, "Brother Branham, you, people know that you're a woman-hater." I am not. I'm not. I got genuine love for my sisters. Some men will turn around, think you look nice with red eyes and green eyes, and bobbed hair, that man has got a different opinion than what I'd have. Your... I love that soul that's in you, that's got to meet God. That's what I'm... my sister for Eternity, not some little sex thing here on earth will...

186 How many ever read the decline, of the fall of Rome? Sure. Look at there, just the same thing we're doing, sex appeal. Youth in the condition it is, just exactly the way we got now, racial problems. And youth taking over, and man and sex. Just the way the Roman Empire fell, eighteen hundred years ago, and here it is right back here again amongst Gentiles. See? The confusion amongst the religions and things. Oh, what an hour that we're living in!

187[A sister gives a message. Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.] Amen. The Lord God has spoke. I believe that.

188 Now let us stand. When He speaks, it's time for us to give reverence. [Someone speaks to Brother Branham--Ed.] What say?

By God's grace, and by God's help, I'm more determined than I ever was, stand by this Word and try my best, by the help of God, to cut a way down to Bethlehem again, where Bethlehem dwellers can drink from that Fountain. How many will join with me, with your hands up, say, "I promise to God I'll do it"? God bless you.

189Now bow your heads just a moment, and I believe some brother here, Brother Jeffries, come here. He's going to dismiss the audience while we bow our heads in prayer, if you will. All right, brother.