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They were gracious enough to allow us to post this on "The Christian BBS" so let us honour the conditions set forth. ======================================================================== A PROPHET SENT FROM GOD? Examining the Life and Claims of William M. Branham by Stephen F. Cannon At PFO we get many requests for information on different religious groups and personalities. One request that arises periodically is for information on William M. Branham. Even though Branham died in an automobile accident in 1965, there are still small groups of his followers around the country that propagate his teachings, and occasionally his name will be spoken with awe by Christians in the Pentecostal/Charismatic tradition. Usually these will recount Branham's miraculous ability to heal the sick and obtain special "words of knowledge" from the Lord. Very few of these, however, seem to know much about his background, claims or teachings. Early Life Born to Charles and Ella Branham in April 1906 as the first of nine children, William's early life was said to have been marked by many supernatural signs and angelic visitations: A visible light or halo over his crib at birth (Footprints on the Sands of Time, William Marrion Branham; (Spoken Word Publications; Jeffersonville, Ind., 1975; pp. 2, 21, 93); an angelic voice at seven years of age cautioning him to "never drink, smoke, or defile your body in anyway, for I have a work for you to do when you get older" (William Branham: A Man Sent from God, Gordon Lindsey; William Branham Publisher, Jeffersonville, Ind. 1950; pg. 30); and shortly thereafter a vision wherein he foresaw a bridge built over the Ohio River where 16 men would be killed in a construction accident (William Branham: A Prophet Visits South Africa, Julius Stadsklev; Julius Stadsklev Publisher, Minneapolis, Minn., 1952; pp. 3-4). Branham was raised in abject poverty in rural Indiana. Even though he many times heard the mysterious voice of the angel, Branham's upbringing "was not religious." He did, however, manage to follow the angel's advice from his "first visitation" and never did smoke or drink. This led the young Branham to always feel different from the people around him. "There was always that peculiar feeling, like someone standing near me, trying to say something to me, and especially when I was alone. No one seemed to understand me at all. The boys I associated with would have nothing to do with me, because I wouldn't drink or smoke, and all the girls went to dances of which I wouldn't partake either, so it seemed that all through my life I was just a black sheep knowing no one who understood me and not even understanding myself." (A Man Sent From God, pg. 31). When he was about 20 years old, Branham was overcome by toxic gas while working for the Public Service Company of Indiana. He was hospitalized. Upon hearing that he needed surgery, Branham feared he might die and realized that he was not ready to meet God. During and just after the operation Branham said he had a series of visions that ultimately drove him to the woodshed behind his house crying out to God: "Suddenly there appeared a light in the form of a cross and a voice spoke to him in language he did not understand. Then it went away. He became frightened and wondered as he said, 'Lord, if this is you, please come back and talk to me again.' The light reentered the shed. As he prayed, it appeared again the third time. Now he realized that he had met God. He was happy; he was thankful." (A Prophet Visits ... pg. 9- 11) Branham immediately sensed a calling from God to preach. His early association was with the Missionary Baptist Church, but he also had contact with some Pentecostal Holiness groups. Because of his mystical leanings it was with these "oneness" Pentecostal people that Branham felt most comfortable and accepted. Ultimately, it was through them that he was catapulted into worldwide recognition as a great miracle worker. (All Things are Possible, David Edwin Harrell; Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Ind., 1975; pp. 27-40.) In May 1946, Branham received yet another angelic visitation. He was informed that if he would be sincere and persuade the people to believe in him, nothing would be able to stand before his prayers, not even cancer (A Man Sent From God, pp. 76-77). It was after this visitation that Branham's healing and deliverance ministry grew to worldwide proportions and touched thousands of lives (All Things pp. 27-40; 159- 164). During the late 1950s, the healing and deliverance rallies of the previous decade began to decline. Branham began to devote more time to his home church, Branham Tabernacle of Jeffersonville, Ind. Away from the influence of the more orthodox leaders of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement, Branham soared to new heights of heterodoxy. He was idolized and even worshiped by most of his followers, who thought he could teach no error. His teachings included the claim that he was Elijah the prophet, that he was the seventh angelic messenger to the Laodicean Church Age (Footprints, pg. 620), that anyone belonging to any denomination had taken "the mark of the beast" (Footprints, pp. 627, 629, 643, 648) and that he received divinely inspired revelations (The Revelation of the Seven Seals, Branham; Spoken Word Publications, Tucson, Ariz., n.d.; pg. 19; Questions and Answers, Book 1, Branham; Spoken Word Publications, Tucson, 1964; pg. 60.) These revelations included: an elaborate but unscriptural eschatological system known as the Revelation of the Seven Seals, the idea that the fall of man happened when Eve had sexual relations with Satan, that his sexual union produced Cain and in so doing begat a fallen race with Satan's nature (An Exposition of the Seven Church Ages, Branham, Branham Publisher; n.d. pp. 98-99, 101). As a corollary to this, Branham said that "every sin that ever was on the Earth was caused by a woman....the very lowest creature on the Earth" The Spoken Word, Vol. III Nos. 12, 13, 14;, Branham; Spoken Word Publications, Jeffersonville, Ind. 1976; pp. 81-82. Quoted in The Man and His Message, pg. 41). Evaluation of a Ministry That there were healings and supernatural occurrences at Branham's rallies is historically verifiable. That Branham was a "man sent from God," a "prophet to bring the Christian church into final truth," is highly questionable because of Branham's bizarre and unscriptural doctrines. Branham's acceptance as a great "man of God" by ministers such as Oral Roberts, Ern Baxter, Gordon Lindsey and T.L. Osborn, and the public seems to rest on two factors: his humble spirit and his power to work miracles. It is the opinion of this writer that there is no clear scriptural justification for using either of these to authenticate spiritual orthodoxy. There have been many well outside the ranks of orthodox Christianity who have clearly demonstrated a meek and humble demeanor. Certain Buddhist and Hindu holy men are noted for these traits. Kindness, humility, and a meek character in and of themselves mean absolutely nothing apart from the indwelling Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible is very clear that even miracles are by themselves not true indicators of doctrinal orthodoxy. The magicians of Pharaoh's court were able to duplicate many of God's miracles performed through Moses (Exodus 7:10-13; :6-7). And in the New Testament, Paul speaks of lying signs and wonders ascribed to the power of the evil one. (II Thessalonians 2:8-9) How then is one to come to a conclusion about whether or not Branham was indeed a "man sent from God." As with Joseph Smith, Ellen White or Mary Baker Eddy or anyone claiming to be a prophet; Branham's teachings about God must be measured against the Bible. The role of a prophet is nothing more than being a "mouthpiece" for God. He merely relays what God tells him to say. Jesus, in Matthew 7:15- 24, tells how to recognize a false prophet. The fruit that we are to examine is not the fruit of life, as many would have us believe, but what he says God says. Deuteronomy 13:1-3 and 18:20-22 give us other criteria for testing a prophet: He will work signs and wonders, but even if he does and then teaches us to follow after strange gods, he is to be rejected; he will predict future events, but every one of those predictions must come true, or the prophet is to be rejected. Branham fails both the Matthew and Deuteronomy tests. Evidence exists that Branham was doctrinally aberrant from the inception of his popular healing campaigns. Charismatic evangelist Ern Baxter was with Branham at the height of his popularity from 1947 to 1954. In an article in the December 1978 New Wine Magazine, Baxter wrote: "when he would speak, especially in those early days, he would say some things that were terribly provocative. To me, (they were) unnecessarily so. So when we talked together, we agreed that apart from his giving testimonies and relating his life story, I would do all the speaking and he would do all the ministry to the sick. That was the way it was when we were together" (pg. 56). As time progressed, Branham's doctrine deviated further and further from the standard. As mentioned above, there is evidence that supernatural signs did occur at Branham's meetings (A Prophet Visits pp. 48-195). The healings and prophecies purportedly came through an angel that was always with Branham on stage and continually gave him counsel and revelations (William Branham: His Life and Teachings, Kathie Adler; Narrow Way Ministries, Holbrook, N.Y., 1986; pp. 3-5) This has given rise to the charges by some researchers that Branham practiced occult healing (Between Christ and Satan, Kurt E. Koch; Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, Mich., 1971; pp. 149-150). But it is equally evident that Branham taught an unscriptural view of God that would put him under the "strange god" clause of Deuteronomy 13:1-3: "What is God? God is a great Eternal. At the beginning, way back before there was a beginning, he wasn't even God. Did you know that? A god is an object of worship, and there wasn't nothing to worship him; He lived alone. And in him was attributes. What is an attribute? A thought." (The Spoken Word, Vol. III, pg. 79) Moreover, true to his early oneness Pentecostal teachings, Branham denied the biblical triune Godhead. He pronounced it a "gross error" (The Spoken Word, pg. 79) and as a prophet with the authority of a "Thus saith the Lord," revealed that "trinitarianism is of the devil" (Footprints, pg. 606). Signs and wonders? Yes. Strange gods? Yes. False prophet? Absolutely! Branham also failed the test of a true prophet in that his predictions did not come true with 100 percent accuracy: "Based on these seven visions, along with the rapid changes which swept the world in the last 50 years, I predict (I do not prophesy) that these visions will have all come to pass by 1977. And though many may feel that this is an irresponsible statement in view of the fact that Jesus said that "no man knoweth the day nor the hour," 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. 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 system and usher in the Millennium". (Seven Church Ages, pg. 322). Despite the fact that Branham tried to qualify his statement by saying he "predicted" rather than "prophesied" certain events, any time a prophet of God speaks under divine inspiration, it is a prophecy. It is now 1988. The United States has not been destroyed, the world's systems have not been terminated, and the Millennium has not begun. Therefore we can conclude that Branham was not a true prophet of God. It is fortunate for researchers that almost every word Branham uttered from the pulpit in Branham Tabernacle was recorded and transcribed. To the Branham follower, it is the "spoken word," on an equal footing with the Bible. To the investigator, it is confirmation that Branham's teachings were definitely not from God. The ready acceptance of Branham by a large portion of those in the Pentecostal/Charismatic tradition points to a serious flaw in that way of thinking. Instead of a clearly articulated theology based on inductive Bible study, the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement has by and large derived its teachings from personal experience and then tried to find scripture to authenticate the experiences. Where no scriptural authentication can be found, "special revelation knowledge" is often appealed to. This has led to a superstar mentality that unfortunately pervades the movement. "Apostles" and "prophets" abound in this milieu and like Branham receive extra-biblical revelations. Also, like Branham, they point to miraculous signs and wonders as proof that their aberrant teachings are from God. Christians can learn a valuable lesson from the life and teachings of men such as Branham: In God's economy there are no superstars. All are subject to the same scriptural scrutiny. Anyone who stands to proclaim the word of God must "speak according to the law and the testimony". By speaking he is automatically subjecting himself to a close "fruit inspection" by the household of faith. This is true whether his name is Joseph Smith, Charles T. Russell or William Branham. (c) 1988 - PFO. All rights reserved by Personal Freedom Outreach. Reproduction is prohibited, including BBS, except for portions intended for personal use and non-commercial purposes. For reproduction permission contact: Personal Freedom Outreach, P.O. Box 26062, Saint Louis, Missouri 63136.