The message this morning is meant for one group of people: The Bride of Christ. It’s a wonderful glimpse of what is in store for those who overcome. All we need to do is close our eyes and listen to the prophet paint a picture of our Future Home.
The sermon is a little more than 3.5 hours long, but Brother Branham packs the design of the Heavenly City into these 16 minutes. The quote starts on paragraph 367 and ends on paragraph 405 if you want to follow along.
Here are a few more highlights from this prophetic preview of our Future Home. We look forward to enjoying all 216 minutes with each of you.
1 This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:
2 That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:
3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.
5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
15 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
God is always first. And I want Him to be first, and you want Him to be first.
I feel you're my children. You're--you're the stars that I... If I ever have one when I get there, you'll be that jewel, outshining part, in the--in the crown of my ministry. When it's crowned, you'll be that jewel.
By these passages, one might think, or be led, rather, to believe that the whole planet, of this earth, will be destroyed, "I make a New Heaven and a New Earth," see, that the heavens will be gone and the earth will be gone, completely annihilated. But a close study, and with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can see the Truth of this; and that's what we're going into.
It is only the atmospheres around it, and the sin that's upon the earth, that will be destroyed.
Yet, Noah was a type of the remnant that's carried over, not the translated bunch. Enoch, one man, went in the Rapture before the flood came, showing that the Church does not go into the tribulation or anything around it. Enoch was translated, one man. Oh, the church may be a number; but the Bride is going to be a very small group that'll make up the Bride.
"Let the mind that was in Christ be in you. Let the mind that was in Christ be in you." See, then it isn't your thinking. It's His thinking, through you. And you're not expressing your own words; you're expressing His Words.
"And--and heavens will pass away with a great noise." Did you notice here? "Heavens will pass away with a great noise." Listen! The whole earth will be on fire, and will ignite the gases that's in the earth and explode it. That's exactly. Talk... The Bible said here, Peter said, "And the heavens will pass away, and earth, with a great noise." Such an explosion will rock it, oh, my, 'cause it's got to kill every disease, every thistle, every thorn. Everything there is to be done, the Fire will burn it up. And, remember, it's not altogether just a literal fire, it's also a holy Fire, see, that will take away Satan and all of his, all the devils."
The evidence of the Holy Ghost is when you can receive the Word; not some system, but have a clear understand.
But it's got to be the entire Word. To be the Bride, you have to be part of Him. He is the Word.
Remember, this is feast of tabernacles, tabernacles, "gathering places." Amen! Where, "In the Millennium," the Bible said, "they shall build houses; they shall inhabit."
But in the New Earth, He has already went and prepared the place. It's built. We have nothing to do with the building of it. Amen. Eternal! Oh, I just love that Word! My! A Holy Convocation, the eighth day. Which, is only seven days. Then on the eighth day, which comes back to the first day again, comes right back to the first day, the eighth day is a Holy Convo-... Convocation.
After the world is on fire and baptized, its baptism of holy Fire from Heaven; all sin is gone, all germs is gone, all devils is gone, all imp temptations is gone, all evil is gone. (Type now.) Then what does God do? He can sit upon the earth, see, because all sin is gone.
That's the same thing He does when He gives you the Holy Ghost baptism with Fire.
The Kingdom of God is in the earth now, in the hearts of His saints. It's His attributes that He begin in the beginning.
Notice, no graves, no teardrops, never, no more bloodshed. She'll never be moistened by a teardrop or a blood. No. Be no more wars. No. No clouds of winter. No cold snow upon the breast of her; won't lay there no more on it. The hot sun will not, never burn its grass. Hallelujah! Even the desert shall bring forth roses. "That old, sticky desert will blossom, one day, like a rose," God said so; when she is redeemed, when she takes her Fire baptism. There is all kinds of cactuses and stickers and everything there now, but she's got a Fire baptism coming.
Like the man was, when he still had hatred, malice and strife in him; when the Fire baptism come, it cleaned it off. No more jealousy, no more of nothing; it's just absolutely is a dwelling place for God. And, remember, that's His delegation that's going to meet Him over yonder. Amen!
And Christ has gone and is preparing a Place, that's been on its construction for many, many thousands of years, preparing a Place. "And if I go and prepare a Place, I will come again, and receive you; that wherever I am, there you may be also."
"And the breadth and the height are the same." That would make it fifteen hundred miles this way, fifteen hundred miles that way; fifteen hundred miles; the length by the breadth by the height. Fifteen hundred miles, think of it, transparent gold. And the City had a wall around it.
Jesus comes three times. Come, once, to redeem His Bride; next time, to get His Bride; next time, with His Bride. See?
And there'll never be no night there. Him on top of the Mountain, floods it with His glory. His Glory Light will be there all the time. There'll be no night there. Jesus, the Headstone!
Death doesn't change you. Death only changes your dwelling place. See?
I'll know you, my people, my jewels in the crown. When they come from the East and the West, to the City; when fifteen hundred miles square, she'll be setting there, and the City built foursquare. When you're setting there in the holy Mount, where God sets upon the Mount, and Jesus on the Throne.
Now, if you think it's wonderful when we drive hundreds of miles to set here and feed on His Word, which this is only a shadow, what will it be when we live in the City with Him! When I live next-door neighbor to you, and when we eat of those trees, and we will walk in those streets, when we walk up those streets of gold to the fountain, drink from the fountain, walk into the paradises of God, with Angels hovering the earth, singing the anthems, oh, what a Day that will be! It's worth all. The road seems rugged, sometimes it gets hard, but, oh, it'll be so little when I see Him, so little. What will the bad names and things that they've said, what will that be when I see Him in that beautiful, beautiful City of God?
Then, one great morning, the break of the Millennium, for the--the Honeymoon will start.
"And then the rest of the dead lived not till the end of the thousand years." Then, at the end of the thousand years, there was a Judgment, showing that Ham was in the ark. And Ham is still there in the remnant. Ones that heard It and rejected It will have to be judged.
Now, grant it, Lord, that we'll not be considered among them, but will be in the call to the Wedding Supper. For, we do recognize Jesus among us today. We're going in with Him; out of the world, into Him. Let us walk forth in that City, come out with Him.
We profess that we're pilgrims and strangers. We're outcasts. The heathen, the world, laughs and makes fun; the religious denominations ridicule; but we are not moved by such things. Make us part of the Word, Lord, unmovable. "It shall come to pass in the last days." May it be us, Lord, may we be a considered among them. We ask it in Jesus' Name. Amen.
That's why you come here, that's why you come to Christ, you are feeding on His Word. And if you can have a time like this, here, just by His expressed attributes, what will it be when we come into His Presence? Oh, it'll be wonderful! Each one of you has the right to heal the sick, lay your hands upon the sick. Each one of you has the right to baptize.
But, think, this little group will be, lovely as we are, will be broken up, one of these days. We'll dream of this.