Body, Soul and Spirit Bro. Lee Vayle July 8, 1987 Shall we pray. Heavenly Father, in the still of this late hour, Lord, when it seems the voice of God is stilled throughout the land, and yet we know it actually thundered on earth, opening up seals and revealing mysteries; we come to you, Lord, for that revelation that you have given to us in this last hour that it might be meat and drink unto our souls and eternal life to us, Lord. Help us, Father, to be nourished tonight. We pray, oh God, to know if there are mysteries herein, to know them Lord; not things, Father, that are mysterious to us and vague, Lord, in the sense that they are sort of titillating and pleasing and something there tickling, Lord. But let it be that, Lord, which the prophet gave to us and we can look at it and understand and know these things, Lord. We know it’s all important, it’s all laid out before us, oh God. For some reason far beyond ourselves, we know when it’s all over that there’ll be--the dead are going to come out of the ground, Lord; and we shall be changed and be going to the Wedding Supper. So Father we are very grateful for that and thank You for this privilege. In Jesus’ Name. Amen. You may be seated. 1. Now, I want to take this subject “Body, Soul, and Spirit,” continuing what we have been looking at. And there are many areas we will look at but not pursue fully, of course, I am not able to do that and I wouldn’t have the time if I did have that much ability. But, we will look at especially the soul and the spirit; and yet it’s all there--Body, Soul, Spirit. Now, I do not know that I, or anyone else, can perfectly define or be perfectly definitive at speaking on the spirit and soul or even the body. However, from what Bro. Branham taught us, there are certain things that we are aware of and we can look at. 2. Now, first of all we might say that most of the Scripture will be taken from the New Testament. And that is all right, because the New Testament is more likely to be much more definitive than the Old, because the New is really an elaboration and an expansion of, and further description of the things that are in the Old Testament. To begin with, Bro. Branham told us and others have told us the same thing, it’s in the Bible, that man singular is made up of three components or three parts: body, soul and spirit. And of course Bro. Branham often told us, which we know to be physiologically correct, that the body has five inlets or attributes that contribute to its enlightenment and well-being. And these are five senses of seeing, tasting, smelling, hearing, and feeling; which are made available through the five organs of the body: the eye, the tongue, the nose, the ear, and the skin; which are all receptors that receive all sensate messages. And then there are nerves that transmit the impulses to the brain where the mind interprets and uses this knowledge to set up a channel of response if it is required. 3. All right. So, there are five inlets to the body, there are five senses, and it channels information to the mind or the brain which then adjudicates or makes decisions as is necessary, or stores the material for a time that it might be required. Now, let us make a note here of a very important statement that Bro. Branham said concerning the body as from birth: “ The baby body, or the body of the baby, and I prefer the baby body, is not alive but it leaves the womb and receives the spirit allowed of God, but not of God, in order to make it alive. Up until that time it breathes and cries and the spirit enters it, it is nothing but twitching muscles and nerves.” And Bro. Branham illustrated that. He said, “You could take the onerous woman in the world a couple of weeks before the birth of her baby, a sweet spirit will begin to more or less overtake her and there is a sweet spirit, an atmosphere there that wasn’t there before, created by a spirit that is there to receive the body.” I don’t think he used the term, for the body to receive the spirit. It was more or less the thought of the “spirit to receive the body” which will make you to understand when you’re dealing with soul and spirit, the body has the function which is far less in importance than the function of the soul and the spirit, though they’re all interrelated. Now, we have to accept this statement as absolute truth because he was a vindicated prophet. And as we do, we must still not forget, that there had to be some kind of a life there previous or there would have been no growth of a physical body. And at this point, you just might call it a power; an existent power. 4. Now, 1 Cor 15: 35-39 compares the birth of a resurrected body to a body that comes naturally. So, we’ll look at that in order to get the natural connotation or principle more than we’re looking at the resurrected. But, this is where it came up. (35) But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? (36) Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: (Now, here’s what we’re looking at, you see, this breaks it sort of away from the resurrection but it’s part of it in the sense it goes to a more natural now.) (37) And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat or some other grain. (38) But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body. (39) All flesh is not the same flesh (though it comes by a seed): there is one kind of flesh of men (which comes by a certain seed), another flesh of beasts (that comes by a certain seed), another of fishes, another of birds. Now, you notice that we do not speak in terms of animals and things having the same way of birth that the humankind has. Bro. Branham does not establish any thought that anything is born the way a human being is born. But what we’re looking at here is a thought that there is a body to come forth and that body coming forth from some special life, something there, and it will determine exactly what that body is going to be because of that particular element. 5. Okay, we go to Genesis the 1st chapter 11 and 12. We read this previously. (11) And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. (12) And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw it was so. Now doesn’t say, “Its” kind, it gives it a human characteristic by using the personal pronoun there, “His.” Showing you now that we are using Scripturally correct an illustration here that can look toward man. See? And the 29th verse of the same chapter. (29) And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of the earth, and every tree (in the field,) which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; and it (that’s the fruit) shall be as meat (or it shall be as food.) Then in Gen 3:15. (15) And I’ll put enmity between you and between thy seed and her seed; (Now notice, the serpent is given credit for having seed. And then it says the woman will produce seed) and it’ll bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Now with that we go to Gen 4:25. (25) And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. Now, you notice the fruit of the seed is the individual. It’s just like the life of the tree comes forth in a fruit, a product in which there is the same life for multiplication or replication, whatever you want to call it. So, here we have the same thing. We have the passing on of life which is going to bring forth a human body identical to the body which that original life produced. And it’s in the form of a seed. Now, thus we see there is a life which is allowed physical expression and multiplication by sperm and egg which is not the life that has yet to come to the body to make it truly sensate and mobile. 6. Now, I trust you are listening to get this. What you’re looking at here, according to Bro. Branham, according to Scripture, is the passage of life in a physical form. And the physical form which the life is in does not give you a clue to the body that’s going to be produced from the specific life that lies within the chemical substances that become carriers. That’s what you are looking at. So, thus we see there is a life which is allowed physical expression and multiplication by sperm and egg, which is not the life that has to yet come to the body to make it truly sensate and mobile. Now, that’s going to be foreign to you on the grounds that you might want to extend this principle to animals and fish and things. And you can’t do it because they are in an entirely different stage of evolution, and the evolution we talk of is spiritual, wherein God started with low forms and in their own element category with the inability to mutate to another form and He kept it there and He got the highest form. Now, science thinks it’s got something between man and chimpanzee, that’s not true. It was between the serpent. They were the only two that could cross, blend or multiply. 7. So, I want you to see here then that there is a life which is allowed physical expression and then multiplication, and it’s going to come by sperm and egg, because it is, which is not the life that has to yet come to the body to make it truly sensate and mobile. You understand what I’m saying? The baby is twitching muscles and nerves. People say, “Well, there is life there.” Well, you better be careful what you’re talking of. Because, it’s not life as we know life, as man knows life. We’re talking about life as the prophet taught it. Thus, this is very important--what I am saying. This life that is allowed a physical expression, to actually build a tabernacle, is not the same one that’s allowed of God, that comes in to the tabernacle that the tabernacle came from the ability of whatever lies there to make an expression. 8. So listen now, carefully. Thus it’s important to know: This life of which we are speaking, has nothing to do with the senses or the body as we know it. Let it sink in. Hasn’t got a thing to do with it. When you’re talking now in terms of living and existing, it doesn’t have a thing to do with it. Now, hold that in your mind, because I don’t want you confused. You’ll understand as we go along. This life has nothing to do with the senses, (see?) or the body as we know it. Yet, it is what takes chemistry or chemicals and produces physically exactly what lies in it, though invisible. It is a veritable creator. That life is the real you; you as seed. Now, don’t look at the carrier part now. You’re looking at the invisible, and the invisible is limited. It has a specific way of operating, how it operates; and it stays within that realm. Now, that life is the real you; you as seed. And as Levi was in his great, great grandfather, clean back to Adam, so were you. And Adam was a son of God. So, all were in God as it says in Ephesians--chosen us in Him. That we were in Him. “For all things are of Him, and to Him, for Him and by Him.” So, what came from God but the soul, the true you. Now, that’s what we are looking at. You, yourself, a gene of God and from God, a part of God. And, therefore, a manifestation of zoe (see?) and the cosmos of God. 9. Now watch: Gen 2:7 says, (7) And God breathed into Adam the breath of lives and man became a living soul. The soul was brought to manifested life through a body brought to life. Absolutely. The soul was brought to manifested life through a body brought to life, because God had to breathe in him the breath of life. Now, what you’re looking at there... I will just keep on going along. Now, in other words, the soul can and will produce a body, but unless the spirit, given of God, joins the body, the soul can’t become an operative visible being, by way of the body, which it needs to express itself. This is the exact pattern God used in the beginning though man went to sexual procreation. 10. What He did was, [Genesis 1:] (27) God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (28) And said, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the whole earth. And there was no way they could do that except to bring forth children which were entirely invisible, except maybe to God, except to God and angels or something, but entirely invisible to animals and those things. They had no visibility. Then what God did was put them in a human body which He molded and framed and then He breathed into it the spirit of God, giving it life. Now, there is the picture whether you want it or not; can understand or not; follow or not; or think it does any good or not. That’s one of the mysteries of the end time. You wouldn’t know these things outside of a prophet. And the clue, of course, was the baby’s--is twitching muscles and nerves. It isn’t alive. And yet you know, you have to know that there was something of a creative force building the body, though not alive. There was something there; and there was blood flowing through the fetus and everything else. 11. Now, I know this is where people always criticize Bro. Branham when he talks about the hemoglobin, the male carrying this and that. And people don’t understand and they don’t want to understand. But it’s not hard to understand if you got any spiritual understanding. If you begin to go back to Genesis and see how God began to see things, how that Eve was in Adam. And the wife is actually a part of that male through the sovereignty of Almighty God. If you were ordained of God to be man and wife in this building... I don’t know what you are ordained to. I credit myself to be 100% ordained to what I’ve got--got no problem. Therefore, then the whole thing becomes of God. That’s what people don’t want to recognize. They want to put God out here somewhere and mix Him where they want to mix Him. You stick with this Word, listen to what the prophet said, take it right back to the Word and watch where it goes, and don’t let your minds bend. See? 12. That’s what you’re looking at here. In other words, the soul can and will produce a body. But unless the spirit--given of God, that’s allowed of God, led of God, but not of God, not the Holy Ghost--joins the body, the soul cannot become an operative visible being, by way of the body which it needs to express itself, and which it had a hand in bringing out. This is the exact pattern God used in bringing forth man, though man went to sexual procreation. See? What you’ve got there, man could have had by the infinite God; what he had within him was that ability for that soul to begin to take on a form, and the spirit of God then lighten it by way of bringing into mobile and moving body--sensate body. And again we refer to Levi. Levi the person, a soul. A life was actually in Abraham and of course that life was transmitted down through the form of seed, what have you. And you look at a little sperm and you never know what lies in it; you can’t tell. The fact is, I suppose you could take different sperm under a glass and one might look human. It might not be human at all. I don’t know too much about that. 13. All right. Bro. Branham said, “Within the body were five senses by which we gain knowledge and direction from the outside to the inside.” And notice carefully here, as William Branham is Elijah, he told us that, “Just inside the body was the spirit which was allowed of God. Then inside the spirit was the predestinated soul.” And the premise I see through this, is that the soul and body are two very different entities. The body can die but not the soul. Now, what am I looking at here? I am looking at soul and body. Now, I’m looking at the fact that the body has to get a spark to become a conveyor for the soul. So therefore, I have two specific entities which are vastly different and cannot come together as a composite unless there is a spark which is called the spirit. So, you’re looking at two vastly different entities that need a catalyst. You all following what I’m saying? All right. So, therefore they are two very different entities. The body can die but not the soul. The Bible says, “Fear not him that can destroy the body and not the soul.” So, don’t have fear at all about that. So therefore, it lets you know if your body’s shot, you can get another body based upon the premise of the soul that must have brought it forth in the first place, necessary to it but not a one hundred percent. It was literally trivial and an expendable vehicle. That’s why, “Labor not for the bread that perishes.” See, we’ll get into that some more. 14. Okay. The soul goes on and is aware of itself and its surroundings and, according to Bro. Branham, which is true, takes on, in 2 Corinthians 5, a spirit-form body, in which it is completely sensate except to the degree of eating. And perhaps even manual labor for all I know, and things like that, which will come in the Millennium. But the body completely disintegrates and can go back to gases with no feeling whatsoever. And could only come back by measure of grace given to by Almighty God and in an entirely different form of atoms, although perhaps the structure... you’ll be completely the same looking person, but you won’t have blemishes handed down by generations of sin. All right, now watch, 1. We are going to take about seventeen points here: 15. 1. The invisible becomes visible form. The soul in the seed form (now the visible, becomes visible, becomes visible) the soul in the seed form or seed-soul life, created through chemistry, a body or a house to house it. This is zoe. We know that. The soul has in it the power to become a part of the physical and material existence that God had created. The same as He said, “Let the earth bring forth the beasts,” and so on. Now man has that power--the invisible can become visible. In other words, the soul in seed form, or seed-soul life created through chemistry, a body to house it. This is zoe. In Him was life and He did it. In--that same thing is in us. The life principle, all part of zoe and cosmos. 16. 2. A spirit came in to spark to life the body for the soul can’t go further than to build the house. In other words, the sparks creatively chemicals and those things that can build the body. The soul is not the life of the flesh per se then. But, it is contingent to it, because if the soul left, the spirit wouldn’t do any good and reside there. Actually, the spirit goes first, then the soul. The soul is not the life of the flesh per se. Soul and body eat different kinds of food. See? Now, they got a lot to do with each other. But, you cannot feed the soul meat and vegetables and potatoes. That’s why you don’t labor for the bread that perishes. That’s why you lay up treasure in heaven; that’s why you don’t care what your body puts on or takes off; although you are told to do it and you don’t expect anybody to do it for you. There is no place in the church for a person who won’t work--I’m sorry--unless he’s an idiot or she’s an idiot or entirely incapacitated. But, you don’t labor for the bread that perishes. Now remember, the rich young man said--or the man that got rich, he said, “Soul thou art increased in goods and don’t lack anything.” You’ve got goods laid up for many a year. He mistook the food of the soul and the body, and therefore he was absolutely led astray. That’s why your social gospel is no good. And that’s why you’ve had to have a revised message, a regenerated message, a restored Word, in order to give your soul the body the strength to get the body that it’s going to have or you’re not going to get out of here. 17. Now, I am telling you folks how to live as good as you can for your own sakes. Because, if you don’t and the Lord tarries awhile, you’ll be suffering. And you’ll find out that you’d wished you’d lived properly and kept your-- your passionate appetites down for the wrong food and things. Because remember, the knowledge of your body that you have from doctors and nutritionists and those things, is knowledge based upon what God Himself created. So, if you defy the laws of nature, then you’re going to pay for it. But in the meantime, correct food is not going to give you the body that you’re looking for. That’s why you’ve got to have a soul that’s fed. And if you don’t feed the soul the right thing, that’s what I said awhile ago, then when you talk of the body and soul there is a distinct separation there, though a relationship. They are entirely different, because the soul quits. It doesn’t come--the body and all does not come to life until it’s sparked. That’s exactly what happened. A spiritual figure God made, put into human shell and then sparked it. The same thing goes on now, even though it is by sex. See? They are different and the food is not the same. But the point is, if you starve one, you will starve the other. And if you feed the one, you will feed the other if you start with the soul. You put the body first, you’re out of luck. Why? Because the soul is first, then the body, then comes that spirit that makes you a sensate. So, in other words, you’ve got a sensateness already toward God in your soul, and the sensate by the spirit coming in, makes you relevant to this. So, you can lose all of this, but you’d better not lose the inner. So, that’s what you’re looking at. Okay. 18. 3. This living spirit is now the link between the soul and the body. Now that’s true. The Scripture says, “The spirit is the lamp of the Lord.” All right. 4. All knowledge from the five senses is channeled by the spirit to the brain in which resides the mind. The mind is kindred to the spirit. In fact, it is a part of the spirit. It’s the domain of the spirit according to Bro. Branham. That is true. You would know that. Now, they all come together. 5. The definitive knowledge of the spirit-mind can now go to the soul. What knowledge that is gathered by the five senses, channeled through body, life the spirit going through the mind, can now go to the soul. And that’s what happens. It gets down to the soul. Now, 19. 6. Watch what it can and will do: Gen 2:7. Now let’s watch this. We’re starting there. (7) And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives. And at that point only, that man became a living soul. He became a true entity; a true soul, a true being--tripartite, a perfect integration. And it’s all got to be there or there’s no integration. See? Okay. The baby can be still-born and still a person. Okay. Gen 2: 16, 17. (16) And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: (17) But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day thou eatest thereof (dying) thou shalt surely die. Now, He’s telling you right here, there’s something that if you do, is going to take your body away from you; if you do a certain thing. Now, it said, “The tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” (17) But of the tree of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat: in the day thou eat (dying) thou shalt surely die. 20. Okay, Gen 3:1-7. Now, here they are in a sensate form. The soul is placed within a body, and the spirit comes in animates the whole thing, sets it into zoe. This is what’s going to bring zoe down. That’s why only zoe from God can bring it back. It’s got to come back. (1) Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall eat of every tree of the garden? (2) And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: (3) But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. (4) The serpent said, You shall not surely die: (5) For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. Now notice, especially the 5th verse says, “Your eyes are going to be open.” So, He’s telling them right there that you can gain something by way of the senses now. You don’t have to rely upon the knowledge of God, you’ve got something going for you, through your five channels entering into your body. And you can use those; and that has to do with life. Now remember, in the beginning it didn’t. So He’s pointing her absolutely to a sexual problem here. See? (6) When the woman saw the tree (Notice now, her eyes are brought in here) and was good for food, pleasant to the eyes, a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave her husband also to eat with her; (7) The eyes of them both were opened, and they knew they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. (Notice, the knowledge that they got, through the senses, went to the mind, hit the soul, made a decision to try to cover up.) Now, they got a knowledge here which is a very correct knowledge, but a very wrong knowledge. See? That you can take pure oxygen and throw a match into it and blow you higher than a kite, is true knowledge but is the wrong kind. And that’s what they got here. In other words, it’s definitely right but it’s definitely wrong. Now notice, the physical got to her through the spirit and down into the soul and that’s where corruption then began. 21. Gen 3:8-16. (8) When they heard the voice the Lord God walked in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. (9) The Lord God called Adam, said, Where art thou? (10) And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. Now notice. You notice what happens there, he’s got a knowledge he didn’t have before. Where did he get it? He got it from the sensate (See?) through the 5 channels. (11) And he said, Who told you, you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded you should not eat? (12) The man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. (13) The lord said woman, What is it thou hast done? The woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. (14) And the Lord God said to the serpent, Because thou has done this, thou art cursed above all cattle; and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly thou shalt go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of your life. (Notice, what he’s taking now and he’s making a problem here out of creation.) (15) And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. (16) Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow with thy conception; in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. (All right, it’s setting forth here then a physical routine here and it is all truly a physical thing.) Now watch, also Gen 3:17-24. (17) And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and ate of the tree, which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat [of it] all the days of thy life; (18) Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; (19) In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it thou was taken: for dust thou art, and dust thou shall return. (20) And Adam called his wife’s name Eve; because she was the mother of all living (Doesn’t say Adam was the father of all living now, just Eve was.) (21) Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them. (22) And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: (23) Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. 22. In other words, God took His government from off of this earth and took His hand off of Adam. So that now he would go through 6000 years of free moral agency under the dominion of Satan who took the title from Almighty God, he got it by deceit from man, took away the authority and the authority cannot be restored until 6000 years, the day of man’s expire. (23) Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. (And notice Adam was not taken out of the garden of Eden; Christ was. He was not taken from the ground of God. See? You got to watch those things.) (24) He drove the man out; and placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life. (I like what Danny said about that the other night.) All right, you can see what it can and will do. You see. You can see what the spirit can do through the mind. What it’ll do for you. Now, 7. As soon as soul-man became flesh and spirit-man as well as soul; his choice, which lay in the soul, could be influenced by the 5 senses as well as the Word of God. Now, we saw that. 23. Back to Gen 1:26-28. Now that’s …in the spiritual form right there. He said do this and man was able to look to the--you know to have a source of that. Then in the Gen 2:7, when He formed him into a living creature, a living soul. Then 8 and 9. He said, “Don’t take of the tree of the life, of the tree in the garden …of the good and evil,” though He put them in there where all that was before him. And he had a choice. Then in 15-17, He put them in the garden to dress it. And He said, “You can eat of every tree, but the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Don’t do it, because if you do then you die. So, you notice right there the power of choice lies in the soul. Why? Because man was in spirit form when he was given the ability to do what God wanted him to do. So therefore, you can find the power of choice lies in the soul. In other words, every predestinated son of God has within him the power of choice. And everybody else does too. 24. 8. Spirit and body cannot produce a spiritual understanding or revelation. Now the spirit or body cannot produce a spiritual understanding or revelation. Now don’t say for one minute that the choice does not lie in a spirit; it does in the particular sense that it can feed the soul all the information which the soul then could take in a wrong way and make a wrong decision. But remember, Adam was given the power when he was a soul figure without any trappings on him--in a body. Now, as I said, number 8, spirit and body cannot produce a spiritual understanding or revelation. 25. Let’s go to 1 Corinthians the 2nd chapter and in there we’ll see this. And we read 9-14. (9) But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, (so you don’t come by the eye-gate) neither ear heard, (so it doesn’t come by the ear- gate) neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. So therefore, it is not already in there, even though you are the elect of God. It’s got to come from some source, and it gets down into the heart or the soul by virtue of the mind or the spirit which has to be thoroughly linked to the senses and the physical out here. (10) But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God. (11) For what man knoweth the things of man, save the spirit of man which is in him? Even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. (12) Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; (That’s not what you’re born with, that’s what you’re baptized with) that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. (13) Which things also we speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teaches; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (14) But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: Now, He tells you right there, before Adam was a natural man, and the Bible speaks of the natural man in 1 Corinthians 15. Just hold your finger and go back here in 1 Corinthians 15: verse 46. (46) Howbeit, that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. So, Adam was positively taken from the ground outside of Eden. He was not created as a heavenly figure; he was created as an earthly figure. Then he put on the physical. Now it says, and it showed, when he put on the physical, he didn’t have enough on the ball to actually come through for God. He was innocent, but he wasn’t righteous. And in him was the full potential to fall and to die. So all right, it tells you right here, “The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” 26. Now, the spirit that he had breathed into him did not give him evidently what he needed to fortify him to the place that he could not do it. No Sir. Now, you get this whole thing today, where a man doesn’t have in him at all to know the things of God. He hasn’t got it in him, he can’t do it. Also we are going to go to Romans the 8th chapter. Beginning at verse 5. (5) For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. (6) For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Now it tells you right there. Now, that spiritually-mindedness does not come by your own spirit, because that is simply allowed of God. This has to come by the Spirit of God, because the carnal mind is enmity against God. That’s where it gathers all its knowledge in from the senses. It has body energies and body senses. (7) …for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. (So the spirit that you have is allowed of God, but not of God.) (8) So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. (And flesh is a soul-man put in a body with only a human spirit.) (9) But you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be the Spirit of God dwells in you (you’re born again). Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. (So, if you’ve got the Spirit of Christ, you are Christ’s.) (10) And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin: That tells you’re going to die anyway because you’ve sinned (not Adam’s sin,) but you’ve sinned on your own, but the spirit is life because of righteousness. So it tells you, you’re going to go some place and be existent until you come and get a new body. (11) But if the spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you ( because of His Spirit that is dwelling in you.) (12) Therefore, brethren, you are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. (Now, there you see you got the power of choice and you’ve got the ability to get the right choice and do the right thing.) (13) If you live after the flesh you shall die. (In other words, if you’re simply born of the flesh, you’re gone) but if you, through the spirit, mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live. In other words, through the Spirit of God you have now the energy and the power to decide and go with God. You will do it. (14) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. (15) You have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; (you have received another spirit, the spirit of adoption.) The placing of sons whereby you know your father and you call on Him. (16) The Spirit bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: (In other words, the baptism with the Holy Ghost proves you’re a child of God.) And if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ; But notice, you got to suffer with Him to be glorified with Him, because you see, the power of decision now lies in you and the power to do good. And you’re just right in the very place where you can put your hand either way. Then he talks about the reckoning of this life, we’re not worthy and you know He also tells about how all creation is waiting for man to be redeemed. 27. All right. So, the spirit and body cannot produce a spiritual understanding or revelation, only the Spirit of God can, the baptism with the Holy Ghost. And only the Holy Ghost person can bring a revelation through the seven messengers; and by that we get the revelation. 9. But we noticed in Rom 8:9. (8) But you are not in the flesh but in the spirit, if so be the Spirit of God dwell in you. (And 14,) (14) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. That, once the Holy Spirit quickened the soul of man, because that’s what He’s got to quicken. Because that part is of God; the spirit is only allowed of God and the body is only a product. And remember, Eve was a by-product of man, so therefore it’s not that she wasn’t worth fooling with; the point is that she was the part that caused the fall. Therefore, the same thing exists today. A by-product does it. Now, you got trouble because you’ve got a by-product and a product that’s up against the product of God, two and one. See? Okay. Now we notice in Romans here, that once the Holy Spirit quickened the soul of man, whatever the senses in the spirit and mind, fed the soul. The soul could separate it and make a right decision. 28. Okay in Hebrews the 4th chapter, the 12th verse. (12) For the word of God is quick and powerful (that’s Holy Ghost revelation), and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, [End of side one of tape] So what does Holy Ghost Word do? The life in the Word? It can separate the soul from the spirit. So, now if that Word goes down in the soul, separating from the spirit which gathers the material from the sensate, and the five senses which we’re controlled by, then you can walk in victory, and not before that. Soul and spirit, joint and marrow separates the body now, and discerns the thoughts and intents of the heart; makes literal judgments. 29. Now then, if man ever came to the place of a perfectly revealed Word of God by the help of the Holy Ghost, he could walk to the Tree of Life. He’s ready to be made out of the ground of God, which is absolutely Holy Ghost creation. You get a body here you’ll never regret having. You’ll wonder why you were happy in this one. See? (13) Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Showing it’s now become a personal representation Himself that brings you to this place, which is this hour. Because, this doesn’t happen to just anybody. No way. Won’t do it. See? Remember, Hebrews is a great book on exodus. We’re talking of exodus. 30. Okay. Let’s go now to Ephesians the 4th chapter. And this is very interesting here. Better pray for the Rapture to hurry up because my Bible’s about all torn to shreds. And I’ve been putting this off for years. I got two sitting there, just like this one, brand new ones. And I still don’t do it. All right. [Ephesians 4:] (22) That ye put off concerning the former (behavior) the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful (pleasures of life;) (23) And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; (that’s in the womb of your mind) (24) That you put on the new man, which after God is created in [righteousness] and true holiness. Now what’s he been talking about? The Word of God through ministries to the Bride. That’s what he’s looking at here. So, we notice what the Spirit of God can do, how it can make this final complete separation and put man into a real high spiritual channel. 31. Okay. 10. What we’re looking at here now, then, is: 1 John 3rd chapter and verses 8-12. (8) He that committeth sin is of the devil; the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, he might destroy (or bring to nothing) the works of the devil. (9) (For) whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for God’s seed remains in him: (That’s the soul that’s got that seed that remains there) and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. (This one will always believe God somewhere down the line, he is going to be a believer.) (10) In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. (11) For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. (12) Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. Now, you got a little trouble here with John because he sort of doesn’t speak English too well. Maybe got his Greek lined up too good. But what you should read, verse 10 is this: “In this the son--the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God,” See? And then it says here, “Not as Cain, who was of the wicked one, and slew his brother. Because, his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous.” Neither can you not love your brother. You can’t do it. In other words, it tells you flat if you’re the kind of person who wants to destroy somebody, you haven’t got it in the first place. 32. Now, I’ve seen too much in this message where people are out to destroy people. Preachers take leadership and God knows what a preacher will do against this and do against that. No more got born again than nothing. Your lives are to help these people. You don’t destroy your hand unless you’re completely looney. So, you see right here this what we have here from the Holy Ghost to separate conclusively the body, the soul, the spirit into three component parts which work together, and understand how they work and what each one is entitled to, to receive and what not to receive and what to do. As you look at it, you can see exactly what the Spirit of God does. It moves right in to your soul, and in there gives you the ability by the enlivened Word to make the right decision. Which is, you will work the works of righteousness and you will serve God. You will not be led astray, you’ll not be deceived. Neither then will you be causing problems. Maybe this Sunday we might deal with some of those things as a warning. See? 33. All right. Now, 11. This what we’re talking about here in 1 Jn 3:8-12 now brings us to Rom 12:1-3, to begin with. Now he says here: (1) I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, (Totally sacrificial, put it on the chopping block, don’t let it get fooled by the spirit that’s in you, that’s allowed of God. If that had not been there allowed of God, we wouldn’t have one bit of trouble with the other part) which is your reasonable sacrifice. (2) And be not conformed to this world: but be you transformed (a transfiguration, a metamorphosis) by the renewing of your mind, (Now, you see the mind channel of the spirit is a big thing, and it’s used to being born with and doing exactly where this spirit leads us which is not of God.) The only gene you’ve got is down in your soul. Now, though what are you going to do? You’ve got to take and look for a transformation through the mind channels which embraces the spirit. Which now is your knowledge, the food you’re taking for your soul must come through the revealed Word and no longer what you think you see or hear or anything else. You got to become entirely blind to these things out here. And you can do it, because you got Christ as the example. 34. All right. This also leads us to 2 Corinthians the 3rd chapter, beginning at verse 13. (13) And not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: (14) But their minds were blinded: (see?) until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in reading the old testament; Now, “reading”--in other words, the mind is being fed, but it is being fed entirely wrong. It’s fed the creeds and dogmas and man’s revelation). (15) Unto this day, when Moses is read, the veil is upon their heart. (Right down in the soul). (16) Nevertheless when (the veil shall be taken away and the heart) turns to the Lord (that’s what you’re looking for.) Now watch, 17 tells you how it’s done for Jew and Gentile. (17) Now the Lord is that Spirit: (and we’re talking of God Himself) and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is a liberty. What liberty? The power of a choice to be entirely free from every creed and dogma. Now, what does it bring us to? (19) But we all, with open face (no more veil now, it’s all been unveiled) beholding as in a glass (a mirror) the glory of the Lord (that’s Christ) are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. Now, it tells you right here, here is where you get your transfiguration, the rebirth of your body from the carnal to the spiritual. [2 Corinthians 4:] (1) Therefore, seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; (2) But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, Every creed and dogma, forgetting those things which are behind, I press into the first resurrection. That’s what you’re looking at. You put Philippians with this--the 3rd chapter. And the Word of God is not being handled deceitfully by manifested evidence that God backs the man’s word up. How can God be not deceitful if He’s backing up a lie.? So, this man is proven that he doesn’t handle the Word of God deceitfully. He hasn’t been fooled by the devil. He’s a 100% replication of God Himself in a human form giving God’s Word. And you can trust him the same as you trust God, because that’s the only way you will trust God. God revealed in human flesh, that very Spirit doing it. 35. Okay. Manifesting the Truth (that word “manifest” means, in its absolute, undenied source) commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. In other words, He knows that there is no problem there. Let me read you about it here. He says the spirit of wisdom and revelation comes into the church, you know, to bring this revelation. Then he says here also in “Desperation.” Now, the entire Holy Spirit visits the church making God in flesh as He did before Sodom--God in human flesh. 36. All right. Here’s where you are then, bringing us to this very hour. 12. Thus coming this far we see the truth of Jn 10:11. Let’s go back to Jn 10:11. (11) I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd gives his soul for the sheep. This is not Jesus giving the Holy Ghost that He got from God. The Holy Ghost went back, God left Him. Now, was there a spirit breathed in Him when He was born? I don’t know, there could well have been, and maybe perfectly was. But, what did He have from God? What He had before there was ever a body. That’s why Bro. Branham categorically said that “God sent back the soul of Jesus upon the people.” 37. 13. Now, thus coming thus far we see the truth of Jn 10:11. Pouring out His soul unto death.” And this explains John 10, [verse 10] the last part, (10) I am come that they might have life (zoe) and might have it more abundantly. See? What is it that brings that forth? There is a life there, invisible, that you cannot see, but it being a creative power of God, can actually take the inanimate and make it animate. That’s hard to understand. I’m trying--I’m just telling you what the prophet said, best I can tell you. 14. This also makes us see Eccl 12:7. (7) Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return to God who gave it. Doesn’t say a thing about the soul, because the soul might not go to God, it won’t go to God. It’ll go to a place of detention, good or bad, upper or lower Sheol. 38. All right. This also makes us to see Mt 10:28 which I quoted. (28) And fear not him which can kill the body and not able to kill the soul; but fear Him that is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Because, the body will be raised up at the White Throne and wherever that body’s indicated, it is fit to go to the place indicated. God will change it. There will be a body to go to the Lake of Fire and be in pain for some length of time. And there’ll be one to go to--to the Millennium--to the New Jerusalem. 15. This makes us also see how God sent back the soul of Jesus Christ upon us. 16. This also makes us see how to feed the Christ within us. And it is very necessary, and most people aren’t doing it. So, Bro. Branham said, “They are taken up with the things of the world.” They are not getting their spirits under control of the life which is in the Word, so that the soul is fed. That’s why we have meetings like you have on Friday nights and so on. And that’s what (so) all the churches across the land need. I don’t know if this church is going to have a heavier concentration in the rapture than any other church; I don’t know that’s true for one minute. We may even miss it for everything we’re doing, but we’re trying to do something. 17. And in conclusion, makes us see the necessity this hour of Rev 22:18 and 19 which says, “You cannot add to the Word or take from it.” Because, you are trying to get back in the harmony of innocency ,plus righteousness, which you have by grace at this moment. 39. Once the thunders have thundered, the seals are unsealed--nothing more can done. You’re locked right in. People don’t realize that. You can’t seal the book again. You can’t stop time from this point on; it’s over. You want to get in the divine flow and that’s where your soul enters in. And you got to watch your spirit. “He that keepeth his spirit is greater than he that taketh a city.” Because, you see, your spirit is entirely linked to the sensate. But your soul had its origin in God. Now, if you don’t get your life-line cleared, your soul-line with your mind-line to feed the soul, you’re out. Let me tell you something; this works. You say what you want about it. It works. This then--and this in turn will get us ready for the resurrection and the rapture, bringing us to what we already mentioned over here one time in 1 Th 5: 23. (23) And the very God of peace… Now remember Jesus said, “If you had only known what belonged to your peace--to Israel when He stood there. And the same thing with the Gentiles in Matthew 12. If you only knew Matthew 12 belonged to you, then you would know this is the day of the cursing and the blessing. But, you cannot have a blessing without the blesser. But, neither can you have a blessing without the curse. So the great curser-blesser is here. And I put curser ahead of blesser, because He does say, “I will come and smite the earth with a curse”. Then He says, “I will arise with healing in my wings.” So, what he’s trying to do is get the people aware when you see these things going on. If you’re not shaken by it, it’s too bad, you should be. But, you should be shaken by the fact of God manifesting Himself. [1 Thessalonians 5:] (23) The very God of peace sanctify you wholly (and He did with His own verdict, coming down as the Judge, I declare you the innocent, righteous, didn’t do it at all, virtuous Bride of the Lord Jesus Christ) sanctify you wholly. And I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of the Lord. That’s the Parousia. Be not ashamed in His Presence. 40. In other words, the adulteries and the fornication’s and the spiritual negativity that the people have gotten into through the duplicity of Satan, now is put to one side. And you have a perfect sanctification by God. So what? The Body, the Soul, and Spirit. Therefore, the mind of man is for the first time in position to be renewed through the Word that brings about the effect in the soul and in the body to put a man right in the resurrection and the rapture. So, that’s what’s going on today from what I gather Bro. Branham taught us concerning Body, Soul, and Spirit. Of course that doesn’t cover everything. I didn’t intend to. There are other facets there we may dwell on as time goes on, but for the time being, it does open up some keys to us, and shows us some things that perhaps we were not aware of, because we just didn’t understand at this point what Bro. Branham was saying. So all right. Let’s just be dismissed at this time. Shall we rise and be dismissed. Gracious heavenly Father, again we want to praise and thank You for Your love and mercy allowing us to come together to study more about ourselves from the Word of the Living God. Now, Father, may we take to heart what we really know here. As the prophet said, “If we never had representation back there, we don’t have it now. If we got it now, we had it way back there. He said, “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth, when all the morning stars sang together.” Putting us way back there, not knowing these things because we passed our theophonic forms, but Christ did not. Lord, they are mysteries to us but they’re not as great as they once were. We can accept them and believe them and, Lord, in accepting them, rest and rely upon it, knowing it is all part of this great mystery that you’ve unfolded. And Lord, we know that there isn’t one mystery unfolded, or one thing that is not very necessitous, that is not very right for us. Help us, Lord, to believe and to glory in these things, knowing that in them is the well-doing and of our soul and this is what you ordered for us. And, Lord, this being the children’s meat and the meat in due season, may we not allow one crumb to fall by the roadside, knowing that the woman at your table when you were there in the form of the body, now here in the form of the Holy Ghost, said: “Lord give me that crumb off the floor that the dogs would pick up.” And she got a tremendous blessing, her daughter was healed, Lord, devil cast out, things brought into divine order. How much more, Lord, should we respect every crumb from Your table, and realize no Word of God, no crumb (we can hardly call it a crumb, Lord) is void of power but every one, Lord, help us to gather ‘em in baskets and feed on them, Lord, not letting anything drop to one side, or to count it as though it were not tremendously utile and profitable to us. For you said not one Word can be added or taken. Therefore, how wonderful is the Word that is contained in the Word that you brought us. Help us to see these things, Oh God, and know the value and rejoice in them, Lord. We are pleading tonight the best we know how because we’re so infirm within ourselves. But grace and mercy comes from you, Lord. Heap grace and mercy upon us, Lord, to the overflowing, even as You said in Romans the 5th chapter, if sin came, how much overflowing is the righteousness of God. If judgment came, how much more over--it was an overflow--how much more overflowing, Lord. And we see today floods upon the land as never before. Then one day we saw tremendous flood in the Scripture; we see floods upon the dry ground, Lord. Flood us we pray with Your Word and may these souls within us hunger for that Word, reach for that Word and nourish that Word until that Word comes forth in the life that is destined to this hour. Bless each one as we go our way, Father God, may there not be one home represented here that is not blessed. Bless those that could not be with us, Lord. Help those who could have been, and have not much use to come, Lord. We realize that always there’s a little--little backsliding every now and then, a little turning around, that we’re heir to, Father. But in this hour, surely, God, that should not be amongst us, there should be a going on and on and on. Help us to go on, Lord, not just to serve you in spirit and in truth but, also, Lord, in any way we can to serve our brothers and sisters in Christ--to see that anyone i⹳⸮眠慨獴敯敶⁲慭⁹敢栠汥数⁤潴慷摲琠楨⁳湥⁤ 楴敭洠祡戠⁥敨灬摥‮圠鉥汬朠癩⁥潹⁵桴⁥汧牯⹹† 湉䨠獥獵ₒ慎敭‬敷瀠慲⹹†流湥മ鄍慔敫琠敨丠浡⁥ 景䨠獥獵眠瑩⁨潹⹵ඒ഍ഠ䈈摯ⱹ匠畯湡⁤灓物瑩† ⴠ†倠条⁥–䅐䕇ᐠ㐲―഍潂祤‬潓汵愠摮匠楰楲⁴† ‭†慐敧 –䅐䕇ᐠ23 Body, Soul and Spirit - Page PAGE 1