The confused teachings of William Branham
It is amazing how often William Branham contradicted himself. This has had a huge impact on his credibility and also on those that try to follow his theology. From a credibility perspective, a person who can't tell a story the same, from one telling to the next, clearly appears to be lying - or to have made up the events and therefore can't keep the story straight. From a theological perspective, contradictory positions allow people to prove one point or another, depending on the quotes they use.
These are are a few examples that don't fit in with our other articles on this subject. For details on the problems with William Branham's honesty, please see our article on Credibility. For details on his often confused theology, please see our article on William Branham's Theology
Are we in the Christian dispensation?
No, we are not!
Now, all the Old Testament and all of Its characters and characteristics was only a foreshadow of the—the wedge or the keystone, the New Testament that joins law and this dispensation together. Many people has referred to this as the Christian dispensation, but it isn't. This is the Holy Spirit dispensation. The Christian dispensation lasted three years and six months. The law lasted for several hundred years. And then, the Christian dispensation was what bridged or keystoned the New and Old Testament together.[1]
Yes, we are!
But we're at the end time now. This is about fifty years later. Now, is He the same, yesterday, today, and forever? Does He know the secret of the heart. Is He still going to keep His Word? And if God made Hisself known through Jesus as the Messiah by that sign, He would be unjust, and gave them something that He didn't give us, if He doesn't manifest Himself the same way to this church today. If He did it to the Jews and to the Samaritans, He's obligated, by His holiness and by His righteousness, to manifest Himself at the end of this age. For we're living in the closing of the day of this Christian dispensation.[2]
Incompatible doctrines
William Braham also brought confusion to a number of scriptures with these incompatible doctrines:
- The importance of Signs & Wonders
- Judas had power to perform miracles and cast out devils.
- Mark 16 says that “These signs shall follow them that believe.“
- Jesus’ secret public coming:
- Jesus second coming will be universal sign, and not in private.
- There will be a secret rapture of the church