"Take Heed" Ministries

Cecil Andrews, 29 Edengrove Park, Ballynahinch, BT24 8AZ, Northern Ireland

Telephone/Fax 028 9756 5511. E-MAIL - takeheed@aol.com

WEBSITE - http://www.takeheed.net

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NEWS FROM THE FRONT
 

June 2010

 
"Be not afraid or dismayed by reason of this great multitude for the battle is not yours but God's" (2nd Chronicles 20v15)

 

Dear praying friends,

 

I want to begin by saying a very big ‘thank you’ to the many folks who contacted me in the wake of the personal letter that I enclosed with my March newsletter. I was very touched by the expressions of concern and also helped much by the constructive comments and suggestions. As I said in that letter I hope to include a further letter with my September newsletter [DV]. We are still considering a number of possible options concerning the future and ministry so please do continue to pray on that the Lord will make His will for us ‘crystal clear’.

 

Whatever circumstances unfold in our lives we will endeavour to adopt the following (latter) attitude – this quote was passed on to me by a good Pastor friend who jotted it down when his church hosted a visiting missionary. The missionary said "Circumstances can come between us and our faith in God, OR we can put our faith in God between us and our circumstances".

 

Worldwide there is much uncertainty ‘in the air’ at present but as children of the living God may we, through faith, know that peace that passeth all understanding.

 

Your servant for Christ

CECIL ANDREWS

 

 Pages 2-5: John Piper invite to Rick Warren:  

Pages 6-10:  A Total Eclipse of The Sun - Quirk of Fate?

Pages 11-16: William Branham:

 

 

 

JOHN PIPER invite to RICK WARREN

 

In my December 2006 ‘News From The Front’ I included an article called ‘Defending my Father’s wrath’ that had been written by John Piper. I included it in the context of warning about people like Steve Chalke and others who had publicly denied and denounced the very heart of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ – namely His ‘penal substitution’ – that on the cross He, as a substitute for His chosen people, endured the penalty of His Father’s wrath against sin. At the conclusion of the article by Mr Piper I included the following ‘caveat ‘–

 

By including this article by John Piper it should not be construed that this is a blanket endorsement by ‘Take Heed’ of all that he writes or does by way of ministry – I believe there are areas that currently do give rise for some concern such as his recent willingness to afford a platform to Mark Driscoll

[a great ‘fan’ of the Roman Catholic mystic Thomas Merton]. However, following ‘Take Heed’s’ own defence of ‘penal substitution’ due to the publicly expressed attack upon it and denial of it by Steve Chalke and Brian McLaren I felt this article by John Piper would be helpful in that context.

 

It is with growing concern that I now need to draw attention to Mr. Piper’s ‘courting’ of another controversial, so-called ‘evangelical’, and that is Rick Warren. Earlier this year Mr. Piper announced that he had issued an invitation to Rick Warren to be a participant speaker at his ‘Desiring God’ conference planned for later this year. A video of Mr. Piper explaining the reasoning behind his decision has been posted online and several ministries have sought, quite rightly, to challenge some of the comments made and to question also the motivation for the invite. The full text of what John Piper said is as follows –

 

"I had mentioned some negative things earlier about the emergent church, I said the black community didn't get into it BUT the observation was the black community at least some of you, DID get into 40 days of Purpose. Uh Mainly from Purpose Driven Life and Purpose Driven Church and Rick Warren and [2] Rick Warren isn't emergent, BUT maybe not totally separate and Mark Driscoll just preached there, and preached from the cross, and Rick was moved. And do I, what do I think about all that? Well I put my cards totally on the table here, um I have invited Rick Warren to come to the Desiring God National Conference this fall. And he's coming. Now I will get a lot of criticism for this from my Reformed brothers, because... not because Rick Warren is openly non calvinistic or non reformed. I don't think he wears his theological distinctives on his sleeve, but would be probably theologically more at home with where I am than where an arminian is. I believe that. What makes Warren a problem, and I'm gonna... well, when I wrote him, here's what I said. And he'll probably watch this video too. I said the conference is called "THINK: The life of the Mind and the Love of God." I want you to come. You are the most well known pragmatist pastor in the world. I don't think you are a pragmatist at root. Come and tell us why thinking Biblically matters to you in your amazingly pragmatic approach to ministry." "I want him to lay his cards on the table. I want him to tell us what makes him tick. Because he does come across in much of what he says and does as very results-oriented and pragmatic and not theologically driven, and yet, I met him for the first time last year at Ralph Winter's funeral in Pasadena. And we sat beside each other on the platform for three hours. I like him because he sings. He sings badly. And anybody who's willing to sing when they sing badly, I like em. And we were talking beforehand and he said to me 'I'm reading all the works of Jonathan Edwards this year. I pick a great theologian every year and I read all of his collected works. I'm on volume 17 of the Yale series of Jonathan Edwards' works.'" "'You've gotta be kidding me. Nothing you've ever said would incline me to think ...' (laughter)  "So these guys are gonna go interview him tomorrow I think so you can quote some of these things. I do think he's deeply theological. He's a brilliant man. He wouldn't have the church he does or the Peace Plan, or all the influence he does and of course the greatest sentence in the Purpose Driven life is the first one isn't it? It's not about you, it's about God. The Glory of God. So I don't think he's emergent. At root I think he is theological and doctrinal and sound. And what makes him tick? Actively and doing [3]  church? I intend to find out. So. I like him and I'm frustrated by some of his stuff."

 

 

On the American Radio VCY ‘Crosstalk’ blog Ingrid Schlueter picked up and quoted the very crucial and incredible portion of what John Piper said regarding his invite to Rick Warren that I have highlighted in bold and from the responses posted to what Ingrid had quoted, I noted and extracted the following incisive, discerning comments (particularly the one that I have underlined) –

 

‘I personally was for years, a follower of Warren, and was deceived in ways you cannot imagine, and to hear (John Piper say) that he is theological at root?’

 

‘I’ve been talking with my family about this, as we all come on crosstalk once daily or weekly. We are, all of us as a family, praying for Pastor Piper in hopes that he will recant his decision to have Warren speak at his conference’.

 

‘I’m truly saddened by John Piper… It’s time to view John Piper as a sly wolf and distance ourselves from him until he repents. He can say whatever he wants about the motive behind inviting Warren, but the truth will be revealed in time as we watch John Piper’s ministry unfold. I really hate to see another preacher endorse the false teacher Rick Warren.’

 

‘There is no reason to offer RW yet another forum to “show us his cards”.’

“He’s a brilliant man. He wouldn’t have the church he does or the Peace Plan, or all the influence he does…” This reminds me of something a friend told me years ago. He said that the number of people that believe something is true is not a testament to its validity. To illustrate this, he said “millions of Mormons can’t be wrong, can they?” It was rhetorical, [4] whereupon he answered his own question: “yes, they can, and they are.” I’m not impressed by “the church he has,” or the “PEACE plan,” or “influence.” I am interested in biblical truth and doctrinal purity’.

‘Since the invitation to (Mark) Driscoll, I have tried to overlook Piper’s downgrade. How much he has meant to me in his writings and preaching! If Warren is theological in his thinking, he is even a greater hypocrite than I would have thought possible. To know truth and then to ignore Biblical truth is inexcusable. What a sad day for historical Christianity!’

‘Every time Piper speaks I get a little nervous. He talks in a way that is a little squirrely, I’m not sure where he’s going with a particular thought, you just hope he stays on track. I would find it hard to sit weekly under his leadership. It doesn’t surprise me he would hook up with Warren.’

‘I don’t know what to say to this. Piper is saying he’s sound because of the church he has, peace plan, etc?! What has happened to John Piper? This is craziness and he knows it. The size of his church doesn’t prove he’s doctrinally sound, and the peace plan… I won’t even dignify that by addressing it.  I’m just stunned.

During my recent ministry trip to the Isle of Man I was asked specifically to speak at the midweek meeting there on the topic of ‘Rick Warren and things Purpose Driven’.  Should anyone want a CD of that message then I will gladly send a copy to any who request it.  

 

By way of conclusion I would simply state that what John Piper has said about Rick Warren being ‘theological and doctrinal and sound’ would be in direct conflict with the views clearly expressed by myself in my talk, and so my concern about the ministry of John Piper continues to grow.

                                                                                                          [5]

A Total Eclipse of the Sun:

A ‘Quirk of Fate’ or ‘the Glory of God’?

On Sunday 7th March 2010 a new series began on BBC 2 Television called ‘Wonders of the Solar System’ (repeated again the following Tuesday). This was how this new series was described in the Daily Mail TV guide – ‘New Series: The galaxy’s role in creating some of Earth’s most spectacular landscapes. It seems the BBC is in educational mode; no sooner has ‘How Earth Made Us’ come to an end, than a majestic new, five-part series slots into the science section of the curriculum. Pop star turned physicist Professor Brian Cox explains how the laws of nature have shaped the worlds beyond our planet, starting with the sun’. It was fascinating to hear and see how this professor of physics referred during the first 8 minutes of the first programme to something that is uniquely observed from planet earth – A Total Eclipse of the Sun. In truth it was quite ‘mind-boggling’ to hear Professor Cox explain, or rather ‘pass off’, how this unique phenomena is able to occur. Quite correctly he explained that the diameter of the moon is 400 times smaller than the diameter of the sun but, because the sun is 400 times further away from the earth than the moon, this is why the moon, a much smaller body than the sun, is able, on occasions, to totally eclipse the much larger body, the sun. Shortly I will quote the terminology of how Professor Cox referred to or ‘passed off’ these dimensions and alignments but let me first just quote a couple of other sources that refer to these facts.

On this link http://www.icr.org/article/moon-faithful-witness-sky/ there is an article by Dr Donald B DeYoung Ph.D. called ‘The Moon: A Faithful Witness in the Sky’ and in the article we read the following – ‘The moon is 400 times smaller than the sun but it is likewise 400 times closer to the earth. Because of this purposeful situation the moon is able to occasionally eclipse the sun exactly, providing a precise time record. Computer studies furthermore show that this perfect eclipse condition is unique among all the known moons of the solar system.5 The significance of eclipse data for Biblical studies is great, for it provides confirmation that the chronological systems employed by Old Testament scribes were perfectly accurate’.

5 Mendillo, M., and R. Hart, "Resonances," Physics Today, 27:2 (February, 1974), 73.                                                                                                                  [6]

On this link http://evolutionoftruth.com/abennett/lunarevi.htm we find the following written by a man called Alan Bennett – ‘Evidence of Divine Design of the Moon: While the material on this page is not part of Solar Geometry, the Earth's moon should also be considered as evidence that it is not of natural origin. Have you ever considered that our moon is a near perfect sphere, precisely distanced and aligned with the sun in a way that creates two identically sized spheres in the sky, 93 million miles apart, and capable of creating a total solar eclipse?  This only happens because the moon is 1/400th the size of the sun and 1/400th the distance of the sun, and perfectly aligned on the same plane as the Earth and Sun.  What are the odds of that happening "naturally?" Mr Bennett who was born in 1936 died in 2003 but in a tribute web site maintained by one of his friends we read - ‘It was his (Alan Bennett’s) passion and pleasure to bring this knowledge to you in hopes that it will bring us to a deeper understanding of our universe, and of our Creator, who crafted it with such amazing perfection’.

In these 2 references you have seen the moon/sun dimensions and alignments referred to as ‘purposeful’ and ‘crafted with such amazing perfection’. How did the physicist, Professor Brian Cox, refer to these moon/sun dimensions and alignments? He referred to them as ‘a quirk of fate’, as ‘sheer coincidence’ and as an ‘accidental arrangement’. This expression, an ‘accidental arrangement’ was incredible, even unbelievable, when we consider the vast implications of the moon/sun dimensions and alignments that flow directly from their size and positioning, quite apart from any ‘total solar eclipse’ consideration. In his book, ‘The Battle for the Beginning’, Pastor John MacArthur writes –

‘First of all the stars and heavenly bodies were given to separate day from night… There were two “great lights” – a greater light (the sun) to rule the day, and a lesser light (the moon) to rule the night. These two great heavenly luminaries were positioned above the earth to provide light and to govern the passing of day and night… The sun of course radiates light while the moon merely reflects light… The moon, like the sun, helps keep the perfect balance of earth’s life-sustaining environment. Ocean tides are caused by the moon’s gravitational pull. High tides align with the moon on both sides of the earth. The earth bulges slightly both toward and away from the moon and this affects the water level of the oceans. As the earth rotates on its axis, those bulges move across the face of the earth. That is [7] why there are two high and low tides each day… The sun’s gravity also has an effect on earth’s tidal ebb and flow. These tides are vital to the balance of earth’s ecosystems… Scripture gives a second reason why God created the sun, moon and stars. These heavenly bodies would not only mark the passing of days and nights, but they would also be permanent signposts: “Let them be for signs and seasons and for days and years” (Genesis 1:14)… They were markers to indicate times and seasons… And in that way they regulate our lives. They set our calendars. They determine the length of a year. They divide the year into seasons. And they mark the passage of our days and nights. In that sense the whole pulse of human life is governed and regulated by the heavenly bodies. The sun determines our days. The moon determines the months. And the stars, sun and moon all determine our season and years… even seasonal weather patterns are determined by the sun and moon. Because the earth is tilted on its axis, the sun’s rays strike different parts of the earth at different angles throughout the year. That produces the seasons that are so critical for the rejuvenation of life, the growing of crops and the flourishing of the earth. It is all in perfect balance and works to bless humanity with a variety of climates and weather patterns. The perfection with which these all operate is one of the great proofs that they were designed by a wise and gracious Creator. The length of our days and even our sleep patterns are set in perfect harmony with the amount of time it takes the earth to complete one full rotation… all life on earth is perfectly suited to a twenty-four hour day, and according to Scripture, that is because the same Creator who made all living things also determined and fixed the length of our days… Think of it: The rotation of the earth on its axis is what determines a twenty-four hour day. The moon’s orbits around the earth determine our months. And the earth’s revolutions around the sun determine our years… The third and perhaps most obvious reason for the heavenly bodies is to provide permanent light fixtures that illuminate the earth “And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth” (Genesis 1:15)… Almost every segment of the light spectrum is essential for sustaining life on earth… It ought to be the most natural thing in the world for us to gaze at the expanse of the heavens and echo what the psalmist wrote “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork” (Psalm 19:1).                                                                                                          [8]

John MacArthur wrote ‘The perfection with which these all operate is one of the great proofs that they were designed by a wise and gracious Creator’ but Mr. Cox referred to this vast array of coordinated intricacies, that are so essential for life itself here on earth, as an ‘accidental [big bang] arrangement’ as ‘sheer [big bang] coincidence’ and as ‘a quirk of [big bang] fate’. The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 8:1 “O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is they name in all the earth, who has set thy glory above the heavens’. Taking this verse with Psalm 19:1 quoted earlier we learn what the supreme purpose of God was in creation – it was to display His glory. Scripture teaches that an understanding of this is actually to be found in every human heart – “that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shown it unto them. For the invisible things of him [God] from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made [us] even his eternal power and Godhead” (Romans 1:19-20). Those who like Professor Cox reject that all this was divinely designed and teach that it is merely the product of [big bang] ‘accident’ ‘coincidence’ and ‘fate’ – will they have a ‘case to make’ or ‘have a leg to stand on’ when they stand before their Creator and Judge – verse 20 of Romans 1 that I have just quoted in part ends with these words “so that they are without excuse”. Those who gaze up to the heavens and refuse to acknowledge the obvious, glorious handiwork of a Creator God are as Paul wrote in Romans 1:22 “Professing themselves to be wise they became fools”.  In verse 25 Paul adds that they “exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature more than the Creator who is blessed forever”. Professor Cox spoke of ‘the laws of nature’ and of ‘the laws of celestial mechanics’ – the Bible speaks in these terms “Have ye not known? Have ye not heard? Hath it not been told you from the beginning? Have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he who sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are like grasshoppers; who stretcheth out the heavens like a curtain and spreadeth them out like a tent to dwell in… Lift up your eyes on high and behold who hath created these things” (Isaiah 40:21-22 & 26).  In Revelation 10:6 we read of “him that liveth forever and ever, who created heaven and the things that are in it, and the earth and the things that are in it, and the sea and the things which are in it”. Are all these things upheld and sustained by ‘the laws of nature’ and ‘the laws of celestial mechanics’ – in secular human understanding and terminology that is how they operate but God’s Word tells us in John 1:3 that “All things were made by him and without [9] him was not anything made that was made” and Hebrews 1:3 refers to Christ “upholding all things by the word of his power”. Professor Cox stated ‘When the sun goes it will be the end of us all’ but God’s Word teaches us that when The Son comes again it will be the beginning of eternity for everyone (see Jude 14-15). The Lord is coming again and He will “judge the world in righteousness” (Acts 17:31) – Christians who have died will experience the “resurrection of life” whilst non-Christians who have died will experience the “resurrection of damnation” (see John 5:29).  Non-Christians have the fearful prospect of spending eternity in a place called hell where there is “outer darkness… weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25:30) whereas Christians can look forward to an eternity in God’s new creation as we read in Revelation 21:1 & 5 “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away… And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold I make all things new”. Will there be any ‘total eclipses of the sun’ where Christians will spend eternity – it appears to be unlikely for we read firstly in Revelation 21:23 “And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it; for the glory of God did lighten it and the Lamb [Christ] is the light of it”. Then secondly we read in Revelation 22:5 “And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light”. In this first, present creation, the heavenly bodies that have illuminated planet earth and that were created by God and placed in the heavens, were put there not only to be functional but also to point to ‘the glory of God’ but in the new creation to come, where “God is with men and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God” (Revelation 21:3) there will be no ‘light-pointers’ to God’s glory but rather the very presence of His glory will light up the eternal dwelling place of His people. That glorious and assured prospect will not be the result of any ‘quirk of fate’, or of any ‘sheer coincidence’ or of any ‘accidental arrangement’ but it will be the climax of the grand divine plan of redemption secured by the Lord Jesus Christ when He died on Calvary’s Cross (see Romans 8:18-25) and it shall happen with the “brightness of his coming” (2nd Thessalonians 2:8) and nothing and no-one shall eclipse the Son’s radiant return “For as In Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father” (1st Corinthians 15:22-24) “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).                                                 [10]

‘End Time Fellowship’ Glengormley

and William Marrion Branham

In recent weeks adverts have been placed in the Belfast Telegraph for meetings being organised by a group called ‘End Time Fellowship’ and as you will see from the under noted copy of their advert they are promoting the teachings of William Marrion Branham. Just recently I also received an inquiry from a brother in Christ who had been made aware that a fellowship in Spain was likewise promoting the teachings of Mr Branham. After the advert I will set out some of the main false teachings of the late Mr Branham who most certainly can be classed as a heretic.

 

                                                                                                                                            [11]

1. Back in the early 1990’s I produced a little handout detailing some of the false teachings of Mr Branham.  Having quoted part of Proverbs 30:5-6 that read “Every word of God is pure… Add thou not unto his words” I then gave the following quote from his book ‘An Exposition of the Seven Church Ages’ that underscore his false ‘serpent’s seed’ teaching (based on Genesis 3:13 where Eve said “The serpent beguiled me”) as it has come to be known. This is what Mr Branham wrote –

‘Here is what really happened in the Garden of Eden. The Word says that Eve was beguiled by the serpent. She was actually seduced by the serpent… This beast was so close to a human being (and yet was pure animal) that he could reason and talk. He was an upright creature and was somewhat in between a chimpanzee and a man but closer to a man. (Cecil’s comment – Sounds like one of those evolutionary ‘missing links’ that are of course still missing)  He was so close to being human that his seed could and did mingle with that of the woman and cause her to conceive… man and animal did mingle…It happened right back there in the midst of Eden when Eve turned from Life to accept Death’

Despite the clear warning from Proverbs 30:5-6 not to “add” to God’s Word Mr Branham has added some repulsive thoughts and descriptions to what God’s Word says about this incident. There is not one word in the bible to suggest or confirm his fanciful description of some half ape/half man creature ‘beguiling’ Eve in the manner he has described. The Apostle Paul makes reference to this Garden of Eden incident in his second letter to the believers in Corinth – Paul wrote “But I fear, lest by any means as the serpent beguiled Eve  through his craftiness, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” [2nd Corinthians 11:3] and in the next verse he goes on to specify and identify his fear that the believers in Corinth might be open to false teachers proclaiming “another Jesus (by) another spirit (resulting in) another gospel”.

In Vines Expository Dictionary in the NT section on page 58 we read this ‘a strengthened form of the word ‘deceived’ in 1st Timothy 2:14 is rendered “beguiled” in 2nd Corinthians 11:13; the more adequate rendering would be ‘as the serpent thoroughly beguiled Eve’… this stronger form is used of Satan’s DECEPTION (Cecil - NOT SEDUCTION) of Eve, lit. “thoroughly beguiled”.                                                             [12]

Paul’s over-riding concern was to ensure that the Corinthian believers would not have their minds deceived by false teachers in a similar fashion to Satan’s deception of the mind of Eve in the Garden of Eden. He was not in any way concerned or even remotely suggesting that they could possibly have their bodies corrupted in a manner similar to the vile (bestial), unscriptural teaching posited by Mr Branham – Paul’s concern was for the deception of minds.

2. In my little handout I went on to quote further from Mr. Branham’s book – pages 321/322 – under his heading of The Laodicean Age’. Michael Moriarty in his helpful book ‘The New Charismatics’ wrote this on pages 49-50 ‘Branham believed Jesus’ messages to the seven churches in Asia Minor expounded in Revelation 1:20-3:22 were directed towards respective churches at various stages in history. Branham claimed that the angels (messengers) to the churches were men who appeared at divinely appointed times in church history to restore truths… Branham believed he was called to be the angel to the church of Laodicea – the end-time church. (Cecil – note the terminology that ‘squares’ with the ministry placing the adverts)  Branham listed the following men as the ‘messengers’ at various times throughout church history:

Ephesian church – Paul

Smyrnean church – Irenaeus

Pergamean church – Martin

Thyatiran church – Columba

Sardisean church – Luther

Philadelphian church – Wesley

Laodicean church – Branham                                                 

Now, returning to what Mr. Branham wrote in his book under ‘The Laodicean Age’ we read

‘As a servant of God who has had multitudes of visions, of which none has ever failed, let me predict (I did not say prophesy but predict) that this age will end around 1977. If you will pardon a personal note here, I base this prediction on seven major continuous visions that came to me one Sunday morning in June 1933. The Lord Jesus spoke to me and said that the coming of the Lord was drawing nigh but that before He came, seven major events would transpire. I wrote them all down and that morning I gave forth the revelation of the Lord. The last and seventh vision was wherein I heard a [13] most terrible explosion. As I turned to look I saw nothing but debris, craters and smoke all over the land of America. Based on these seven visions… I predict (I do not prophesy) that these visions will have all come to pass by 1977… I still maintain this prediction after 30 years because Jesus did not say no man could know the year month or week in which His coming was to be completed. (Cecil - The Lord stated clearly in Matthew 24:36 that only His Father knows the “day and hour” of His coming again, He repeated that truth again in Acts 1:7 and to His listeners in Matthew 25:13 the Lord said “watch therefore for ye know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of man cometh”.) So I repeat, I sincerely believe and maintain as a private student of the Word, along with Divine inspiration that 1977 ought to terminate the world systems and usher in the millennium’.

In response to what Mr Branham had written I wrote in my own leaflet –

A. Mr Branham is here making a ‘prediction’ based upon 7 visions he claimed to have received from the Lord and on page 167 of his book he also wrote ‘the visions God gives me NEVER FAIL. NOT ONCE’ [Emphasis Mr Branham’s]

B. Mr Branham ‘predicted’ that all the visions revealed to him, supposedly by the Lord, would have come to pass by 1977 – they did not all come to pass!

C. In relation to his ‘prediction’ that ‘1977 ought to terminate the world systems and usher in the millennium’ he also claimed that this ‘prediction’ was founded on ‘Divine inspiration’. If this ‘prediction’ does not fully qualify therefore as a ‘false prophecy’ then what is the value of his claimed ‘Divine inspiration’? Peter wrote in 2nd Peter 1:21 that “prophecy came not in old time by the will of man but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost” – that means that true prophets spoke by ‘divine inspiration’ – Mr Branham clearly engaged in semantics and is playing around with the  words ‘prediction’ and ‘prophesy’ but the reality is that by publicly stating his claim to ‘Divine inspiration’ he did therefore claim to ‘prophesy’ and as what he prophesied did not come to pass by 1977 he has been shown to be a  GENUINE ‘false prophet’.

 

3. In my leaflet I also cited several quotes by Mr. Branham that show his rejection of the doctrine of The Trinity. – These were the quotes                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             [                                                                                                                                          [14]

‘The polytheistic religion of the enemy began with the Trinitarian doctrine. It was way back there in antiquity that the “one God in three persons” idea came into existence. How strange that our modern theologians have not spotted this; but evidently just as duped by Satan as their forebears were, they still believe in three persons in the Godhead (p 184)… Satan is a liar and the father of lies… And in his doctrine of the trinity has destroyed the multitudes and will destroy until Jesus comes (p 185)… There is ONE God with three titles, Father, Son and Holy Ghost. This mighty revelation is what the early church had and it must be restored in this last day along with the correct formula of water baptism (p 18)

This last quote bears all the hallmarks of ‘Oneness’ that I dealt with in my March 2010 News From The Front. In relation to what Mr. Branham referred to as ‘the correct formula of water baptism’, in the section on Mr. Branham in the ‘Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements’ on pages 95-96 we read ‘Branham’s insistence that believers baptised by a Trinitarian formula must be rebaptised in the name of “Jesus only” was a view shared by a number of Pentecostals”.  There’s another interesting little comment in this section on Mr. Branham on page 95 – ‘By emphasising healing and prosperity and neglecting his Oneness theology Branham was able to minister in Trinitarian Pentecostal circles as well’ [Cecil – if the doctrine of ‘The Trinity’ was as Mr. Branham claimed the means by which Satan ‘has destroyed multitudes and will destroy until Jesus comes’ then why would he ‘neglect’ it to enable him to minister in Trinitarian circles and presumably give the impression to these people that he and they were fellow Christians?]  Mr. Branham claimed to have received an angelic visitation in May 1946 in which he was informed that he would be given supernatural healing powers and also the ability to ‘discern’ past events in the lives he was ministering to. In view of the fact that Mr Branham was clearly a ‘false prophet’ as has been earlier demonstrated is there any reason to doubt that this ‘angelic visitation’ and the ‘ministry of Mr. Branham was evidence for the fears expressed by Paul in 2nd Corinthians 11: “But I fear lest by any means as the serpent beguiled Eve through his craftiness so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus [Cecil – as in ‘Oneness’], whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel which ye have not accepted ye might well bear with him (v 3-4)… For [15] such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light (v 13-14) In the advert reproduced earlier in this article you may have noticed something appearing as ‘light’ above Mr. Branham’s head. In Michael Moriarty’s book ‘The New Charismatics’ Mr Moriarty wrote on page 51 ‘In a 1950 deliverance campaign in Houston, Texas, a photograph of Branham was taken that revealed a halo of light above his head. His followers took this as a further divine vindication of his ministry. Whether this halo was a manifestation of God or Satan or a doctored up or flawed negative, we will never know for sure. Nevertheless, the photograph became the most famous relic in the history of neo-Pentecostalism’. The ‘Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements’ reproduces this photograph and includes this comment – His followers described the light as “the pillar of fire” so that explains the use of that same terminology in the Belfast Telegraph advert. A measure of the devotion of Mr. Branham’s followers is captured in these quotes firstly from Michael Moriarty’s book on page 56 ‘Branham’s unexpected death in 1965 divided his ministry into several feuding groups. Many of his followers expected him to rise from the dead, believing that he was “the Lord Jesus Christ”, born of a virgin’ and then secondly from the ‘Dictionary’ previously mentioned on page 96 ‘He died in 1965, but many of his followers expected him to be resurrected, some believing him to be God, others believing him to be virgin-born’.

By way of conclusion I don’t think I can better the comments of Michael Moriarty as found on page 123 of ‘The New Charismatics’ where he writes ‘The danger of men like William Branham lies in the exalted view they have of themselves and the mediatorial role they play between the believer and the Word of God. Because their followers have been taught that everyone outside of their movement is wrong, or because they fear divine fury coming upon them for disobeying their anointed leader, they read the Bible through the glasses of their prophet’s theology. Tragically, they see in the Bible what they are programmed to see and refuse to listen to anyone else’.                                    [16]