The Man from Windsor: Difference between revisions

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:And he grabbed me by the pants leg, he said, "I didn't..."
:And he grabbed me by the pants leg, he said, "I didn't..."
:I said, "I can't help. You go right ahead. That's up between you and God. You wrote your doom right on your card." And that got him. That was all of it.
:I said, "I can't help. You go right ahead. That's up between you and God. You wrote your doom right on your card." And that got him. That was all of it.
=Video Script=
William Branham tells the story of a man from Windsor, Canada who attended a Branham campaign meeting.  He got a prayer card, wrote on it a number of diseases that he did not have and then got in a prayer line to see whether William Branham’s discernment was real or not.  William Branham first related this story on tape in early 1950.
:''…he come walking up. I said, "Good evening, sir." He said, "Howdy do."
:''And I took a hold of his hand. There was no vibrations. I looked at him; I seen him and two men, standing in a room across a table making that up.
:''I said, "Why would you purpose in your heart to try to deceive somebody?" I said, "God is apt to strike you dead right now."
:''And he fell down on the floor and begin to screaming to the top of his voice. He said, "God, have mercy on me."
:''I said, "Why would you do that, friend?"
:''He said, "Brother Branham, I--I thought it was just make-up. I--I--I honestly, is there forgiveness for me?"
:''There was.''  MOSES HOUSTON.TX 50-0110
The apostle John said that “This is what love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the means by which our sins are forgiven.”
We serve a God of mercy, a God of Grace, a God of Forgiveness.  William Branham recognized this and this story is a perfect example of how God freely offers forgiveness when a sinner repents.
However, the story changed dramatically over the years to increasingly reveal the power of William Branham and the severity of his God of judgment and punishment.  Over four and a half years later, he retells the story again, dramatically changing it from its original version…
:''And after while, then it broke to a vision. And I seen him setting at a table with another man. And they were setting. And a woman was standing there with a dotted dress on. And there was a green thing hanging over the table, like this. And they had made up together that it was mental telepathy, and they was going to prove it from the platform. And that was revealed and told him who he was and what church he belonged to.
:''Brother, I said, "Now, the things that you put on the plat--on your prayer card, is on you. You have it now." That was right. He fell down, grabbed a hold of my pants leg. I said, "Sir, that's between you and God, not me." I said, "That's between you and God."
:''Far as I know, the man's in eternity today, dead.''  SOUTH.AFRICA.TESTIMONY NEW.YORK.NY 54-0902
Why did God change in this story from a saviour full of compassion for the sinner to a God of wrath, ready to strike down those who dared to question the Prophet of God?
The first time he told the story, William Branham indicates that man was forgiven. 
Why did the story change?  And why did it keep on changing?
:''And the man grabbed me by the pant's leg, he said, "Pray for me, Brother Branham."  I said, "That's between you and God now. It's out of my hands. He's done spoke it. That's you now." And the man's laying bedfast to this day.''  BLIND.BARTIMAEUS CHICAGO.IL 56-0407
:''And screaming, he run from the building. There it was. I don't know what ever happened. See?'' JEHOVAH.JIREH BROOKLYN.NY 56-1209E  
:''The man died about a year later.''  BLIND.BARTIMAEUS LIMA.OH 57-0127E  
:''But the last time I heard him, I never heard no more, just a letter from some of the people, that he was in a serious condition. So we're not playing church.'' THIRSTING.FOR.LIFE CHICAGO.IL 57-0630  
:''He died about six months later with a cancer.'' THE.QUEEN.OF.THE.SOUTH SOUTH.BEND.IN 58-0208  
:''They took him out paralyzed, and he's still paralyzed.'' CHRIST.KNOCKING.AT.THE.DOOR MIDDLETOWN.OH 58-0330E  
:''And he died about six weeks afterwards.'' JEHOVAH.JIREH LONG.BEACH.CA 61-0212M
Can you see why we are a bit puzzled by the multiple endings to this story?
We will never know for sure what really happened or whether it happened at all, but the God of forgiveness certainly sounds more like the Jesus Christ we read of in the Gospels.
Why did the God of wrath become more important that a compassionate saviour?
Why did William Branham feel that it was necessary to make up all of the various endings to this story?
Was it to put fear into people’s hearts?  A fear designed to prevent people from questioning the man who held himself out as God’s prophet?
Can we really believe anything that he had to say?


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