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1933 Ohio River Experience: Difference between revisions
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<div style="border-bottom:2px #B87333 solid; text-align:left; padding:1px; margin:1px;"><font color='#800000' size='+1'>'''The Voice on the Ohio River'''.</font> </div> | |||
<mediaplayer width='800' height='300'>http://youtu.be/Zcx7KVwizew</mediaplayer> | |||
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==Video Transcript== | |||
Followers of the message believe that Bro. Branham was anointed with the spirit of Elijah as prophesied in Malachi 4, verse 5. | |||
But where does this belief come from? | |||
Believers will most often point to a light that appeared on the Ohio River in August 1933 and a voice that spoke from this light saying "As John the Baptist was sent to forerun the first coming of Christ, your Message will forerun the second Coming." | |||
Let’s look at the progression of this testimony over the years from William Branham’s own words to see how this mystery unfolded. | |||
The story was first told in three published documents. | |||
In a tract that was written and distributed by William Branham entitled “''Jesus Christ the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever''”, | |||
In Julius Stadsklev’s book, “''A Prophet Visits South Africa''” | |||
And in Gordon Lindsay’s book “''A Man Sent From God''”. | |||
None of these reports mention a voice speaking as we just mentioned. | |||
In 1951, Bro. Branham told the story of what happened: | |||
:''About twelve years ago, I was baptizing my first group after my--one of my revivals at Jeffersonville, Indiana, where I lived at this time--my home is, rather. And standing on the banks of the Ohio River where [Blank.spot.on.tape--Ed.] had gathered out. And while I was baptizing... It was two o'clock in the evening, on June. And the seventeenth candidate, I was baptizing in water at the Ohio River at the foot of Spring Street. And I heard Something speak, and I felt Something take a hold of me. And I looked up. And when I did, coming down from glory came this whirl coming down where I was at. | |||
"Courier Journal Newspaper" packed an article of it, said, "A mystic star appears over a local Baptist pastor while baptizing in the river." They couldn't make out. Oh, up to probably ten thousand people saw It as It moved down where I was at, and went back up in the skies. Come right where I was and went back up into the sky. Well I... Many asked me what It meant. And I said, "I do not know."'' MY COMMISSION Los Angeles, CA 51-0505 | |||
So in 1951, Bro. Branham said that he didn’t know what the event meant. But by1952 he said that he knew exactly what it meant… | |||
:''Recently when I was baptizing on the river at Jeffersonville, when all the local newspapers packed It, two o'clock in the afternoon when I was praying, here It come right down out of the heavens, right at two o'clock in the evening, June, or in the afternoon, rather, in June, about the middle of June, hung right over where I was, and a Voice from It, saying, "As John the Baptist was sent to warn the people of the first coming of Christ, so is this Message to warn the people of the second coming."'' DO YOU NOW BELIEVE BATTLE CREEK, MI 52-0817E | |||
Lee Vayle states in his book “''Twentieth Century Prophet''” that William Branham was the only one that heard the words that were spoken. And while William Branham indicates that Lee Vayle read of the event in a newspaper, Lee Vayle makes no mention of this in his book. | |||
We have also been unable to locate any newspaper stories that relate to this event. | |||
In the Book “''A Man Sent from God''”, Gordon Lindsay mentions a message interpreted in a service by Anna Schrader. He wrote that the gist of this message was “''that as John the Baptist was sent as a forerunner of the Lord’s first coming, so was He sending forth this evangelist and others like him to move the people and prepare them for His second coming''.” | |||
In 1962, William Branham welcomed Sister Schrader over the pulpit, and recalled her interpretation… albeit slightly differently: | |||
:“''...you gave the interpretation, and said the very same thing that the Light did, when it come down over me down there, when I first was a Baptist preacher. Said, “As John the Baptist was sent forth to forerun the first coming of Christ, you’re sent forth, and your message will forerun the second coming.''” The Way Back, November 23, 1962, Par. 203 | |||
So what can we conclude from this? | |||
First, William Branham never mentioned a voice referring to “John the Baptist” until 1952, and neither Gordon Lindsay nor Julius Stadsklev refers to the voice in their books. | |||
Second, William Branham was the only one who heard the voice. | |||
Third, Gordon Lindsay recorded a different interpretation given by Anna Schrader than the one that William Branham remembered years later. It is interesting that Anna Schrader’s interpretation is the first reference to a message like that of John the Baptist’s, but it covers not only William Branham but also the other evangelists associated with the healing revival. | |||
Is this the voice that William Branham actually heard? | |||
Another problem is that there do not appear to be any newspaper stories in existence that reported on the story told by William Branham. | |||
These changes to the story over time are very significant, and don’t agree with the earliest records of the story. Isn’t that a little suspect? | |||
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