Today If You Hear His Voice

Can Christians hear from God today, or is the Bible the only source of His voice? This episode promises to unravel this complex question, guiding you through a balanced approach to biblical revelation. By acknowledging the Bible as the final authority while staying receptive to God's ongoing communication through anointed messengers, we explore how to avoid the extremes that lead to misinterpretation. Updates on upcoming missions and free resources on our website will also be shared.

Preaching remains a vital channel for God's voice in contemporary times. We dive into the foundational teachings of Brother Branham and Paul's scriptural instructions, emphasizing the need for present-day, Spirit-led ministry. While recorded messages from revered figures are valuable, we argue that active ministry is crucial for spreading God's word and safeguarding against attributing infallibility to any human messenger. This episode underscores the principles of sola scriptura and affirms that God continues to guide us through living vessels today.

The transformative power of the ministry of reconciliation, the role of the Ascension Gifts ministry, and the journey toward becoming a mature bride of Christ are thoroughly discussed. We reflect on the distinct roles within the body of Christ and the importance of adhering to biblical principles for a faith-centered family life. This episode is a deep dive into how God's word continues to resonate in our lives, both through Scripture and through the Spirit-led ministry today. Join us and deepen your understanding of how to live a life aligned with God's perfect will.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Balance in the Word is key. What I want to talk about in today's podcast is today, if you hear His voice, harden, not your hearts as in the provocation. Everyone is always praising God for what he once did, looking forward to what they think he's going to do, missing what he's doing now. The Bible is the final authority of the church. When there is any preaching, when there's any teaching, we take it back to the Bible. However, an extreme position on this is that God has finished speaking and it's only through the Bible. And of course, we understand God's authoritative revelation is only through the Bible, but God can still speak. However, we never put that speaking above the Bible. God can speak in a number, a myriad of ways. He speaks to us as individuals and he leads us supernaturally. He also speaks to the church through men that he has anointed to send to that church age. As we understand, each of the seven church ages throughout the Grace Age has had a messenger that's sent to it, but then it's also had, under that messenger, continued men that are sent to help people to understand the Word. Now, those men are not on the same level as the messenger of the age. Messenger of the age is not on the same level as the Bible. The Bible's inspiration is what every messenger is subject to, but God continues to speak. We just have to understand and bring it to the right balance. And there's other aspects, too. We can get an idea and start to present things as though the Bible brings death. Now, there's a whole aspect to that that we need to look at as well, and if we take this, you can take this to an extreme direction. Right, you can take all of these things to an extreme direction, but we want to stay balanced in the Word, and that's what our desire is to do, and to show a balance in these things. Greetings Bible believers and followers of the End Time Message.

Speaker 1: 2:41

Welcome to another episode of the Jason DeMars podcast, the place where we explore the incredible mysteries hidden within the pages of the Bible. I'm your host, jason DeMars. It's time to get started on another journey into the heart of God's word. If it's your desire to grow in revelation and see the message in the light of the Bible, you're in the right place. Today, brothers and sisters, we delve into the scripture, guided by the extraordinary revelations that God chose to unveil through Brother William Marion Branham, a messenger with a unique calling to fulfill Malachi 4 and Revelation 10-7 and unlock the secrets of the end time message. Our purpose isn't to have another basic Bible study. We're going to dig deep and peel back the layers of prophecy, decoding the signs and perhaps discovering how the Bible resonates within the very fabric of our present day and time. In this podcast, my purpose is to help you grow in your faith through solid Bible teaching through the lens of the message of Malachi 4. So grab your Bible, a cup of coffee and let's get started. And remember that your feedback, testimonies, questions and prayer requests are always welcome. Please send them on social media or at jasondemarscom.

Speaker 1: 3:55

Before we go into today's episode, I want to share something with you. Head over to jasondemarscom, where I'm giving away free books. These books have been ordered by believers around the world and many testimonies have been given about the great blessing they have been. I also want you to know that, by God's grace and provision, we are also covering the shipping costs. Free books and free shipping. My purpose is not to sell books, but to proclaim the message of the hour free of charge. I've written these books to build your faith, increase your spiritual revelation and be a witness for God's message in the end time. Here's a list of a few of them A summary of the Revelation of the Seven Seals, the End Time Message Handbook, the Mystery of the Malachi for Elijah, holiness to the Lord and Foundations. Head over to jasondemarscom right now and claim your free books.

Speaker 1: 4:54

With that said, let's get into today's podcast. I'm excited to be back recording. It's been a while I worked in I think it was February, early March to really get ahead of the game and get quite a bit recorded, and I thank the Lord for that because it gives me a little bit of a break when traveling and having family come visit us from Minnesota. But we're back recording. This is in early June. I'm about to take a trip to Edmonton. I think this will be releasing at the end of June. So by the time this is released I'll be back from Canada. So the joys of pre-recording. But just asking that you'd continue to remember me in prayer. I'll be having a number of missions trips coming this year going to Honduras in July, zambia in August and in November going to India. So remember me in prayer throughout the year. I appreciate that very much Spiritual warfare always takes place when you get on the missions field and having people back you up by prayer means more than you can imagine, so amen. Prayer means more than you can imagine, so amen.

Speaker 1: 6:36

Well, we're going to speak on the subject today, if you hear his voice, and there's a number of things that caused this topic to come on my mind and we'll just sort of I don't have really extensive notes, just a few things written down, and we'll kind of go back and forth between the scriptures and just speaking from my heart about this. Come across some people arguing for the tape church and put Brother Branham back in the pulpit and so forth. And I think, looking at that attitude and approach to things, attitude and approach to things and you see the dangers, I believe, of multiple things is lack of foundation in the Bible. That's the first thing that I can see there. That I can see there Also is just sort of throwing the baby out with the bathwater If preachers cause the problem facing in the church.

Speaker 1: 7:54

Therefore, get rid of preachers, except for this. Just one preacher, because we know he's the messenger to the age and it's never been that way before where Martin Luther is the messenger to the age, so no one else needs to preach. They just need to read Luther's books in the pulpit or in Paul's age age. No, we don't need preaching in the pulpit from ministers breaking down the Word. What we need is to read. Just read the letters. And again, no one's here to say Luther's works are terrible, we don't need them. No one's here to say we don't need Paul's works.

Speaker 1: 8:52

Paul wrote the Bible. But to put it this way is to you take away the Spirit of God moving today. Okay, brother Branham brought the message to the age, but that message has to go from being preached by him to accomplishing the purpose that it was sent through him. And if we take it and we put it, hey look, we don't need preachers, we don't need present tense, manifestation, we just need what Brother Branham did and taught.

Speaker 1: 9:35

I want you to look at what Paul told Timothy 2. Timothy 2, verse 1 and 2. Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also. This is the principle. The messenger of the age comes and brings a message. Those that hear him and that have a calling to ministry are to commit those same words to faithful men, so that those men can then in turn, teach others also, and on down the line.

Speaker 1: 10:23

God's purpose is not to merely have the Word in a book, not to merely have the Word on a tape, in a writing, but the Word actually needs to enter into human hearts and be proclaimed again. Hearts and be proclaimed again, and through the power of the Holy Spirit, it's God speaking through those men unto others. Again, now we have separate things going on. Is what God is doing present tense? He doesn't work through mechanical devices, he does not work through merely the means of a book. God is a living God, he's the Holy Spirit, he's working present tense to speak to his people. You say, well, we have the voice of God on magnetic tape. It's different today, so we don't need preachers anymore. We can just let Brother Branham preach Again.

Speaker 1: 11:30

Brother Branham had a prophetic message. I believe we all should be feeding on that message, listening to that message. However, this does not bypass what the scriptures say. He is still sending men, he is still working through men. Understand the men are not perfect. Neither was brother Brandon perfect, neither was Brother Branham perfect. People look at that and they take this idea and they put on to Brother Branham that he is flawless, infallible. Every word that he spoke is thus saith the Lord. Again, I believe the message of the hour. With all my heart, I believe Brother Branham had inspiration. However, if we take this to mean he had inspiration on the level of the Bible, we are misplacing Brother Branham's words, we are misplacing reality.

Speaker 1: 13:38

This is what Paul said, even concerning himself 2 Corinthians 4, 7,. This is what Paul said, even concerning himself, 2 Corinthians 4, 7,. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us, the earthen vessels. This is God's great purpose to take the word and to deliver it on through earthen vessels. Paul was a man, paul made mistakes, paul was weak in some ways, and that was just. God's purpose in all of it is that he put that treasure and revelation into an earthen vessel.

Speaker 1: 14:27

What do we call preaching? Paul calls it this 1 Corinthians 1, verse 18, we'll start with For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness. Unto us, which are saved. It is the power of God, For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and will bring to nothing? The understanding of the prudent? Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. God's purpose is to have a living vessel. Preach, and to the world. To the outside it looks like foolishness, but it is the wisdom of God. The Bible is the absolute. The Bible is the final authority. The church is subject unto what is in the Bible.

Speaker 1: 15:43

In other words, when we look at the idea of sola scriptura, there's one approach to sola scriptura which says this that God is no longer speaking. God doesn't speak to you as an individual. God doesn't speak to you any other way than through the Bible. Okay, so this is an extreme position. It's the position of some Reformed people, but it is an error. Sola Scriptura means that God is done, revealing the canon of Scripture. That is closed, but God is still speaking. But how is he speaking? Through preaching of the Word. The Word is the Bible, but that Bible must be preached, right? It's through the foolishness of preaching that people are saved, and it is the power of God working through preaching that brings salvation to the lost, and it can't be reading the words of a preacher past tense, but it must be an anointed preacher.

Speaker 1: 17:00

Today. I want you to see this in the book of Hebrews and I want to spend some time breaking this down. Hebrews, chapter 3, verse 7, wherefore, as the Holy Ghost saith today, if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, verse 2. Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God, but exhort one another daily, while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, for we are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end, the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end. While it is said today, if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation Today, if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Speaker 1: 18:27

The Holy Ghost is speaking today. It's not just a past tense, it's not a situation where we say, well, he spoke back in the 40s, 50s and 60s, so he's still speaking today through those tapes. That's true, but it also has to go through a living preacher, to a specific situation, to our lives today. And God speaks to us today through the foolishness of preaching, through taking the message, lining it up in the Bible and bringing it forth to the people, for a message today, in this day, in this hour. It's not taking the message and bringing new revelation the mystery of God is finished but it's taking what has been preached and bringing it to our understanding, bringing it to our remembrance. And the Holy Ghost speaks today. If we're putting it off just on a tape, we're saying God spoke yesterday, but today he can't speak. And again, god takes his word and makes it relevant for every day, but he does it through his chosen vessels that are living, breathing, walking.

Speaker 1: 19:55

Today. I'll say it this way the tape church keeps everything in past tense. Of course they believe in miracles, that they believe in Mark 16, but they put the revealing of everything in a past tense and they're seeing it in the glare of another age. Instead of seeing it seeing the word present tense, they're seeing it back in the 40s, 50s and 60s. The situation is different today. 60s. The situation is different today. The church world is different today. Liberalism is a battle that we're facing today on a great level and that spirit is creeping into the church and if we simply go by the glare of another age, we'll miss what the Spirit is speaking unto us today. I want you to understand again this is not discounting Brother Branham's message. This is bringing it to the level that Brother Branham himself brought it to. I want you to look at this.

Speaker 1: 21:05

Two different important quotes applicable to this from the Laodicean Church Age in the Church Age book. When the Methodist failed, god raised up others, and so it has gone on through the years until in this last day. There is again another people in the land who, under their messenger, will be the final voice to the final age. It doesn't say that under their messenger they'll play the tape. What does it say? It says under their messenger, they will be the final voice to the final age. They will use their voice to preach the message of the hour to the world. God never intended that it stay limited just to one voice, but that one voice, through the messenger, by revelation, gets assimilated into the hearts of a body of people and that they take that message to the whole world.

Speaker 1: 22:10

Now also, I'm going to save this quote. I'm going to save that next quote and we'll look at more later, but let's go to. I believe it's 2 Corinthians 3. Now I want to see that there are ministers of the new covenant. All right, so the old covenant was written in stones and it was live by the commandment. Okay, the new covenant is different. He says I'll give you a new covenant. I'll write your word, my word, my law, in your hearts and in your minds and remember your sins and iniquities no more. Now let's look at this, 2 Corinthians 3. It's oft quoted, but I want to break it down and I want to go into detail in this because it's critical. It's critical to see this. You know what I'm realizing.

Speaker 1: 24:55

Before I go to 2 Corinthians 3, I need to head over to Romans 10. All right, verse 5, for Moses, describes the righteousness which is the law, that the man which does those things shall live by them. But the righteousness, which is of faith, speaks on this wise say not in thy heart who shall ascend into heaven, that is to bring Christ down from above, or who shall ascend into the deep, that is to bring up Christ again from the dead. But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thy heart. That is the word of faith which we preach, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart, man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation, for the scripture saith. With the mouth, confession is made unto salvation, for the scripture saith, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed, for there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek, for the same Lord, over all, is rich unto all that call upon him, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. All right, this is the place that I want to get you to Romans 10, 14,.

Speaker 1: 26:21

How, then, shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? They can't, obviously. And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they hear without a preacher? How shall they hear without a preacher? My, so God must send a preacher to a herald to proclaim, after a manner of a herald to publish, proclaim openly something which has been done. It's used of making the public proclamation of the gospel. So in order for them to hear, they have to have heard a preacher. And how shall they preach except they be sent as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of good things? You cannot bypass the word. There must be a preacher sent to proclaim the word. And how shall they preach except they be sent? Sent of God, as it is written? How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of good things? But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah, saith Lord, who hath believed our report? So then, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God, all right. So it is important to understand there must be a preacher sent, not just past tense, because the people have to hear today.

Speaker 1: 28:15

This is God's program. God sends a messenger for an age. That messenger takes a message to that age. That messenger then says commit this, those who have heard and learned from me, take this word, commit it to faithful men, who shall then, in turn, teach others also. This is God's program. It never changes, all right. And what does it say? What does Brother Branham say? God raised up others. So has it gone through the years until in the last day. There is again another people in the land who, under their messenger, will be the final voice to the final age. This is God's program, this is God's process. This is how he works in birth pains. Brother Branham says this now.

Speaker 1: 29:04

Her messenger is promised in Malachi, the fourth chapter. He's promised to do it and the message is to bring back the word, bring the people back to the word. Birth is to be, she's to be delivered of a new birth from, according to Malachi 4. These men, if they pick up this speaking of the message and goes out with it, they can make more sense to it. See, to bring it to a place you would. I just want to lay this seed, then hope they make it come to life.

Speaker 1: 29:36

Notice C so it has to be taken by a ministry of men, preachers, who take the word and then make more sense to it, to bring it to the point where it should be, so it will come to life in the people. That's God's program. You can't bypass that. It is not God's permissive will to do that through a preacher. It is not a surprise to God that none of us men who he's anointed and sent make mistakes. We have this treasure in earthen vessels. Through the foolishness of preaching, god will bring a message to his people. That's through the messenger of the age. That's through the men that's been committed to. That's through the men who have committed it. Further, as we take and study what Brother Branham taught, we can see how God has put it together in the Bible and God is using that to present a message to the bride.

Speaker 1: 30:52

It's not a perverted way of doing it. It's not a failed way of doing it. It it's not a failed way of doing it. God doesn't fail. When God sets forth to do something, he does it the way that he desires to do it. It might not be the way you think you should do it. It might not be the convenient religion. Every man wants to make a pope. He wants to turn the man of God into the absolute. Well, we have an absolute. That's Jesus Christ. We have men that God sends to bring a message and they can be an absolute, but they can never be the absolute. If you make a man the absolute, you are making a horrible mistake. Only Jesus Christ is the absolute. He is the final authority of the church, it's the headship of the word. The Bible is the final authority.

Speaker 1: 31:47

Brother Branham, when they came to him, someone came to him trying to goad him into, trying to say you could write another Bible, brother Branham, with your ministry. Like that, you could write another Bible with those seven thunders which aren't even written. Brother Branham said you can't do that. The Bible is finished, you can't add to it and you can't take away from it. Take away from it, that would be wrong. It must be whatever is revealed today. It must come from the pages of the Bible. And God speaks today, today, if you hear his voice, not just back in the days of the Bible, not just back in the 50s and 60s when Brother Branham was on the scene, but today he speaks, not a new message, we're not going to have a new message, but it's back to the Bible and revealing the contents of what's in the Bible 2 Corinthians 3, 1.

Speaker 1: 32:55

Let's begin to break this down, because there is a ministry, a preaching ministry of the new covenant. Do we begin again to commend ourselves or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you? Letters of commendation from you? You are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read of all men. So he's saying you're our letter of recommendation to others For as much as you are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but with the spirit of the living God.

Speaker 1: 33:53

Now let's take the big picture. Paul is going this is a new covenant approach. What is the new covenant? I will take my law and I'll write it in your hearts and in your minds. So Paul is saying you are the word ministered through us, and that word ministered through us, it's taken by the spirit of the living God and written on your heart so that you are the letter of recommendation for us. Your life is the letter of recommendation for our ministry because your life is a result of our ministry, ministry. And it's not written in a stone tablet like the Ten Commandments, it's written in you. This is God's purpose that the word be written in you and you be a manifestation of the word.

Speaker 1: 34:54

All right, verse four. And such trust have we, through Christ, to Godward. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God. So Paul's not saying this, is not lifting ourselves up in the ministry of reconciliation up in the ministry of reconciliation. No, this is simply what God is doing. The Spirit of God is using us to preach and proclaim and teach the Word, to write it on your heart. So then that Word becomes the epistle of Christ, and the sufficiency is not from us, it's from God. And the sufficiency is not from us, it's from God. No one can do this without God doing it.

Speaker 1: 35:44

Verse 6, who also made us able ministers of the New Testament, the New Covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit, for the letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. All right. There's our oft-quoted verse. Again, this is Old Covenant, new Covenant. Imagery Old Covenant, new Covenant. Old Covenant is written on a stone tablet. New Covenant is written in your heart.

Speaker 1: 38:27

But if the ministration of death, again written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? So the new covenant is the ministration of the Spirit. Be rather glorious, so the new covenant is the ministration of the Spirit. Okay, that ministration of the Spirit is to take the word and write it on your heart. So what is the letter that killeth? It's not the new covenant Bible. No, the letter that killeth is the old covenant. The old covenant is take my 10 commandments and live by them.

Speaker 1: 39:11

That kills, not because. Why does it kill? Not because there's a problem with the word. It kills because you are dead in sin and iniquities, and giving you a law doesn't solve that problem. What solves the problem? Giving you a new heart, writing the word in your heart, changing your nature.

Speaker 1: 39:36

The new covenant is the baptism of the Holy Ghost. The book of Acts is the new covenant in action. What is the new covenant? What is all the preaching done in the book of Acts Was to get them to the baptism of the Holy Ghost. And so the baptism of the Holy Ghost is the ministration of the Spirit, the ministry of death, written and engraven in stones. Why is it death? Because it shows that you're a sinner. It produces death. Here's the word. Live by it. We can't. We're dead in sin and trespasses. We need something else. Okay, I'll give you the spirit to change your nature. Write the word in your heart and in your mind. This is the ministry of the spirit. All right Again. Now you, the people, are the epistles of Christ.

Speaker 1: 40:41

This doesn't discount the writings of the New Testament, the writings of the New Testament. Anything written in the Bible without the Holy Spirit living in you brings you further to death, because you are dead. You're born in sin, shaped in iniquity, came into the world speaking lies. If I hand you the Bible and say live it, it's impossible. If I hand you the Bible and you begin to read and you begin to understand I need the Holy Spirit, I need to receive the Holy Spirit in order to live the word. Okay. Now that's something different. Jesus said my words are spirit and they are life, right, but if they're just left on the pages of the book without the Holy Spirit changing your nature, it will only bring death. Now, the words in the Bible are life, right. They're only death because I'm dead. The Word is life. The Word brings the new birth. If you see the Word and you trace it through, it will bring life.

Speaker 1: 41:59

But I want to point this out to you is that's why there needs to be a ministry of reconciliation. All right, let me continue reading here and we'll continue on this line of thought. All right, how shall not the ministry of the Spirit be rather glorious, for the ministration of condemnation be glory. Much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory, for even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect by reason of the glory that excelleth. Now I'm going to come back to finish chapter 3, but I want to skip over to I believe it's chapter 5. Verse 17,.

Speaker 1: 42:53

Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, a new creation. Old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new and all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, to wit that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now, then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in Christ's stead, be reconciled to God, for he made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. So the ministry of reconciliation is committed to us.

Speaker 1: 43:40

This is a finished work. Christ finished the work right, but it's not enough for there merely to be knowledge about a finished work. The finished work must be applied to us. How is that finished work applied to you? It's through the ministration of the Spirit. How is the ministration of the Spirit come? Well, first it is preached to you. How shall they hear unless there be a preacher?

Speaker 1: 44:08

The word comes to you by living preaching. Now, that living preaching now comes to you. Present tense word that's coming for today. You present tense word that's coming for today. That word comes to you by the foolishness of preaching through earthen vessels. You hear the word and the Lord opens your heart. The light strikes the seed that's in the soul, the predestinated gene of God that's in the soul, and you say that's it. Amen, I want that word for myself.

Speaker 1: 44:46

The Spirit then comes to dwell in you and write that word in your heart and the word keeps being preached to proclaim to you and that word keeps being written in your heart. This is the foolishness of preaching. This is the treasure in earthen vessels. This is the ministry of the Spirit and reconciliation and it's absolutely necessary and we can't bypass this, even though we have tapes, and the tapes is a great part of it. But it must be preached and proclaimed by living vessels for living people.

Speaker 1: 45:27

Today, god is not the God of the dead, but of the living. All right, all right, for even that which is made glorious had no glory in this respect, by the reason of the glory that excelleth. So the new covenant, ministry of reconciliation, is the glory that excelleth, for if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious. Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech and not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look to the end of that which is abolished. So again the old covenant is abolished.

Speaker 1: 46:17

Now, to understand that correctly is the means of getting right with God has totally changed. It is now a new covenant, but that new covenant takes what's in the old covenant and writes it in our hearts by the Spirit. But their minds were blinded. For until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away. In the reading of the old covenant, which veil is done away in Christ. But even unto this day when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. Nevertheless, when it the heart shall turn to the Lord, the veil shall be taken away.

Speaker 1: 46:56

Now the Lord is that spirit, and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all now again, where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all now again, where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. We are not under the bondage of the law because of the weakness of our flesh. We are new creatures in Christ Jesus, set free. So our liberty is not that we're free to do whatever we please in the flesh, but that we've been set free from the bondage that comes from being under the law. But we all, with open or with unveiled face, beholding, as in a glass or a mirror, the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Speaker 1: 47:44

Now I want to speak to you that it is through the ministry of the Spirit. What is the ministry of the Spirit? It is the fivefold ministry. It is the messenger to the age and those ministers who, under their messenger, stay faithful to the message and become the final voice to the final age. And then, when you receive that word, you also become the final voice to the final age. But it is. How do we behold him? We behold him through the ministry of the Spirit. How did the people in Paul's day see Christ? It wasn't an image, it wasn't a crown of thorns that they carried around, it wasn't a cross that they put on their back. It was through the Word being preached.

Speaker 1: 48:34

The Word being preached is the ministry of the Spirit today, and that Word brings a transformation in people's life and that Word brings a process of transformation. We are transformed by the renewing of our mind. How is our mind renewed? It's by the Word coming forth through the ministry of the spirit to write it upon our hearts. Romans, chapter 12, verse 2. And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. We are being transformed. Our lives are being transformed by the Word. How is the Word coming? It's in the form of the Bible, it's in the form of tapes, it's in the form of the preaching of the Word today.

Speaker 1: 49:33

But we have to understand the final authority is the Bible, the absolute is the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. It's revealing God through the Lord Jesus Christ right, and that is to take on flesh in a body of people. In the new covenant Christ is preached is when Christ is seen and the preaching is the ministry of the Spirit. Live preaching. It always must be live preaching. We listen to a tape. The tape points us to the absolute which is Christ in the Bible. The ministry of the Word is taking what's on the tape and what's in the Bible and making it live today. And that Word must live in a body of people and that body of people is going to be transfigured Literally. Their body will be changed by receiving the Word that is preached now. That is preached now.

Speaker 1: 50:48

The letter killeth, but the Spirit giveth life. It must go from letter form in the Bible to spirit form in you. That's the significance. It's the word that's in the Bible brings life only by the Spirit, and the Word comes to life in every age only by the Holy Spirit speaking through those chosen vessels. In this day, how do we know that God is speaking? We take it back to the Bible and we pray and we search and seek by the Bible. And we pray and we search and seek by the Bible. That's what Brother Branham taught us again and again, and again. And it can't merely be a church walk or a tape walk. If we're just sitting at home listening to tapes, if we're just sitting at home streaming services, all we're doing is taking in. But we're supposed to be also under the ministry of the Spirit and we're supposed to be a part of the ministry of the Spirit.

Speaker 1: 51:55

Now I want you to look at this. Look at this. Christ's intercessory ministry is through the preaching of the Word, right, not merely through the preaching of the Word. We understand prayer goes into this, the fruit of the Spirit goes into this, all of those things going in this. But I want you to see this Christ ascending is him giving gifts unto men and that is his reconciliation ministry of intercession to his people.

Speaker 1: 52:37

All right, ephesians 4.8,. Wherefore he saith. When he ascended up on high, he led captivity, captive and gave gifts unto men. So when he ascended up, he gave gifts to us. All right, keep that in your mind. This is we call this ascension gifts. That in your mind, we call this ascension gifts. Now that he ascended, what is it? But that he also descended, the first of the lower parts of the earth, he that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens that he might fill all things. Now, what gifts did he give? And he gave. So here's his gifts some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers, four. So what's the purpose? He gave a ministry of intercession and reconciliation. His gifts that he gave to men are a five-fold ministry. So the five-fold ministry we could call their ministry the Ascension Gifts Ministry for the perfecting of the saints. So what is the purpose of the Ascension Gifts? To perfect the saints.

Speaker 1: 53:55

Again, this word perfecting is different than the normal word perfecting. Perfecting is different than the normal word perfecting. The normal word perfecting is telios bring to completion, bring to maturity. This is a part of it. Maturity is a part of that. That's why it is the same translation perfecting. But it speaks of a furnishing, complete equipping, catartismos. It means a complete qualification for a specific purpose.

Speaker 1: 54:25

What is the specific purpose For the work of the ministry? So the body is called in whole for the work of the ministry. Every believer becomes a lived voice. They live the life of Christ, men and women, but they also become a testimony unto others, not only their life but also their voice. What they speak becomes a ministry of reconciliation, for the edifying of the body of Christ. Now, I'm going to leave that there and I want you to understand that the ministration of the Spirit is not just given to the preachers. The preachers are men only. The overseership of the church is men only. There's no women overseers, because the overseer must be the husband of one wife, and we have no same-sex marriage in the Bible. Must be the husband of one wife, and we have no same-sex marriage in the Bible. What is it? It's the order of the Word, the order of the family, the patriarchal order, the headship of man, the headship of Christ coming through men, the ascension ministry of Christ coming through men for the full furnishing of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.

Speaker 1: 55:48

Let's turn to 1 Corinthians 10 or 12. 1 Corinthians 10. There are diversities of gifts but the same Spirit. There are differences of administration but the same Lord, and there are diversities of operations but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal for the common good, and profit withal means the common good, for to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom, another word of knowledge by the same Spirit, of another faith, by the same Spirit to another. Gift of healing, gifts of healing by the same Spirit to another. The working of miracles to other. Prophecy. Another discerning of spirits, another diverse kinds of tongues to another interpretation of tongues, but all these work at that one and the self-same spirit, dividing every man severally as he wills.

Speaker 1: 56:44

So it's a body ministry that God has ordained for this age. It's a body ministry, and so the Holy Spirit is ministering unto the whole body of Christ by the word. It starts with the Ascension Gifts ministry. He firstly sets this ministry in the body. That's the first order of ministry is by the word, through the Ascension Gifts ministry. This is the ministry of the Spirit, the ministry of reconciliation, to bring the Word to the people, to then write that Word on their hearts.

Speaker 1: 57:26

The Bible is the basis. The canon of the Bible, the 66 books, is the final authority. The preaching of the Word is based upon that, but it must be proclaimed. It must be preached, it must go on to the hearts of called and sent men. How shall they hear? Except there be a preacher? The preacher must be sent to proclaim what's already written and revealed by the Spirit through the messenger to that age, for the full furnishing of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.

Speaker 1: 58:01

The whole body ministers to itself and builds itself up, and I want to show you that this is the whole body ministry and it's not just the five-fold ministry that has the ministry and that edifies the body. They're the start, they're the beginning of it, but they're not the whole thing. Because it says in verse 16, whom the whole body, fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies according to the effectual working and the measure of every part, makes increase of the body under the edifying of itself in love, the final voice of the final age, starts with the ascension gifts ministry. But it doesn't stop there. It goes to all believers ministering to one another and building one another up. All right, but what is the purpose of this spoken word preaching ministry that's subject unto the messenger of the age and the Bible? It's till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. It's to produce a mature bride that's transformed by the renewing of their mind and made ready for the rapture and made fit to rule in the millennium with Christ, that we henceforth be no more children, see, not babes in Christ, but to mature, tossed to and fro, carried about with every wind of doctrine by the slight of man and cunning craftiness whereby they lie and wait to deceive, but speaking the truth in love. See, the motivation of the heart is love. May grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even christ, from whom the whole body, fitly joined together and compacted by every with that which every joint supplyeth according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, makes increase of the body under the edifying of itself in love. So Christ is operating his intercession ministry through apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers, right, he's operating that ministry through them with the word of reconciliation, with the ministry of the Spirit to write the word on the hearts of the people, so that they then become that living epistle, read and known of all men, so that they then become that ministry for the edifying of the body of Christ, the building up the body of Christ and for the reaching the lost out in the world. And then this process keeps happening and going on through the Ascension, gifts ministry to the body, and that body takes and lives the word and manifests the word and becomes a living testimony amongst the people, and together this transforming takes place until we come to full maturity in the word.

Speaker 1: 1:01:06

And I'm sorry, I'm sorry tape people, I'm sorry, tape churches. You're bypassing this process and you're missing the process of maturity. You're missing the next step. What the messenger speaks has to go into the hearts of a ministry. It's earthen vessels, it's the foolishness of preaching, it's God doing something so supernatural that he brings a people to full maturity through men who are flawed, men who are weak, men who make mistakes. But it's God doing it and it shows this whole sufficiency is him, not us. Oh my, now, again, again.

Speaker 1: 1:02:04

We mentioned before it can't be a tape walk only, it can't be a church walk. It can't be a preacher, fanboy walk, preacher, fanboy walk. It has to be a living word, walk by the Spirit, written within us, living out the manifested word, a supernatural word living inside of you. And it will have. Number one it starts with recognizing the word for your age. It starts with recognizing the word for your age. Number two is it is the word written in your heart, producing the fruit of the Spirit love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control. That's the nature of Christ in you. Christ in you, the hope of glory and the gifts of the Spirit as we just read, the ninefold gifts of the Spirit operating through the body of Christ, all of these things, the supernatural power of God, the same Spirit. If the Spirit of John Dillinger were living in you, you'd do the works of John Dillinger. You'd be a gangster and a murderer, right. But the Spirit of Jesus Christ is living in you. You'll do the same works as Him in your measure. You're not the fullness of the Word, he's the fullness of the Word. You're a part of it and you'll have a measure of it.

Speaker 1: 1:03:37

A few things that I want to speak about. A few things that I want to speak about. Ascension gifts are not in women. The overseer is male, not female. The headship of Christ comes through the male to the body Right and we have to have that in order. If we don't have that in order in the church or even in the family, we're out of order. It is not a feminist system and our families. It has to come down. This headship is coming down from Christ into the man, towards the woman and children in the family. And men must be strong in the word to lead their families in their homes, and the wives must be subject unto the word coming through their husband to the family, through their husband to the family, and the children will learn to respect. If father is in order and mother is in order, children come into order. And this is a huge and unbelievably important part and aspect of being under headship of the word and it being manifested in our lives. If it's not manifested in our homes, then how can we expect it to be manifested outside of our homes? It's impossible.

Speaker 1: 1:05:11

And so having strong families, children, children are important and children are a part of our legacy and heritage and that's why we don't send, like some churches, they send their children off to children's church or they send their children off to the nursery. They want to get rid of their children, but we must. We bring our children, of course, to Sunday school, but our children should worship with us. Children's church and Sunday school that bypasses regular church for children is a huge error. Families should sit together and worship together and bring their children into church. Wonderful to have Sunday school before the regular service. But I don't believe doing Sunday school for kids during the regular service or sending them off to get rid of them and have them in a nursery. The nursery's there to meet the need in our churches, but bring them back into church. That's how children learn to worship God.

Speaker 1: 1:06:29

The biggest mistake that the modern church has done and has caused so much apostasy is to have a separate church service for the children and sending when they're young little, sending them off to nursery and not bringing them into church. They must learn from the time of baby, worshiping as a family, growing as a family. The headship will come down properly from Christ to the body. If it is done this way and it's critical families worship together. Husbands, dads, lead your family in worship. Pray with your family, show them the importance of the word lived in your life. We do this together.

Speaker 1: 1:07:26

That's why family is important, and when a woman gets out of her place, she's trying to lead the man. This is not representing Christ correctly, and when a man shirks his responsibility and puts it onto a woman, he is destroying the picture that's to come to the children. And this is a picture, make no mistake, when a man is out of order. When a woman is out of order, this is showing the weakness of the church. This is showing the weakness of the church as a woman expresses a woman. When women are out of order, dressing immodestly and taking authority in the church, then you know that the church itself is out of order. Right, and so this headship is coming down by the ministry of the spirit to the body of Christ.

Speaker 1: 1:08:24

Now, this doesn't mean that the pastor is the head of the men. This means that Christ's headship is coming to the people, but we understand it's. Christ is the head of the church, not the apostle, not the evangelist, not the pastor. It's a fine balance. And the head of the home, not the apostle, not the evangelist, not the pastor. It's a fine balance. And the head of the home is not the pastor. The head of the home is the husband. The head of the husband is Christ. That's what the Bible tells us. The head of the woman is the man, and the woman is called to do what? Go off and get a career and work a job. No, the woman is called.

Speaker 1: 1:09:03

What does the Bible say? I would that young women marry, bear children and keep the home. This is what it says. The older women should teach the younger women to love their husbands, to raise their children and to be keepers of the home.

Speaker 1: 1:09:25

When we get this out of order and we send our women off to perverted universities to get a degree and to have a career, we're getting things out of order of the Word. We got to come back to the order of the word. Train our young men not to be video game players and irresponsible, but train them from young age to take responsibility and that it's their job to have responsibility, take responsibility for a family, to provide for a family, and it's our responsibility as parents to teach our young ladies there to be keepers at home and to prepare them from that from young ages and to give them that understanding and that a marriage is to be a joyful unity between a husband and wife and that they live their life and they go through their life in Christ together and they bring their family, their children, into this so that there's an understanding and they're entering into this walk of faith together and then produce more families. Just like the ministry of preaching is to reproduce more preachers and to teach and train them to go and preach to others, same thing with families. This is the living word manifested in a body of people.

Speaker 1: 1:10:48

Amen. Well, I hope that's a blessing to you. As always, questions, prayer requests, testimonies please send them my way. I want to pray for you. I want to answer any questions. I've got a few requests for topics that have come in that I want to study and begin to process that as well. So, thank you all. God bless you.