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William Branham: | |||
#believed the doctrine of the Trinity from the start of his ministry until 1958; | |||
#rejected the doctrine of the Trinity sometime in 1958 | |||
=William Branham's Critique of the Trinity= | |||
While William Branham initally accepted and taught the doctrine of the Trinity, in the latter stages of his ministry (1958-1965) he could not accept the concept of three persons in the Godhead. This appears to have been the result of both his [[Lazy Theology|lazy theology]] and his desire to be seen as a prophet that was restoring long-forgotten truths to the church. '''His argument against the Trinity is referred to as a "straw man" argument''', in that he constructs what he thinks Trinitarians believe (but which in fact they deny vehemently) and then attacks that incorrect view. | |||
:''Now we find in the Scripture that many people teaches that, "three personalities in the Godhead." So, you cannot have a personality without being a person. It takes a person to make a personality. | |||
:''...You cannot be a person without being a personality. And if you're a personality, you are one personality to yourself. You're a separate, individual being." <ref>WHO.IS.THIS.MELCHISEDEC_ JEFF.IN V-5 N-10 SUNDAY_ 65-0221E</ref> | |||
William Branham's rejection of the Trinity is not based on scripture, it is not based on sound reasoning and it is not based on what the church has historically taught. He simply rejected it out of hand because '''he did not take the time to understand the concepts'''. | |||
A doctrine about the Godhead cannot be refuted simply because it "doesn't make sense". The doctrine of the Trinity was not adopted by the church because it "makes sense". It is considered orthodox because that is what comes out of considering the totality of scripture: | |||
:A. There is one God | |||
:B. The Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God | |||
:C. The three are distinct. | |||
All heresies relating to the Godhead are the result of attempting a "simpler" explanation by removing either A, B, or C above - the result being polytheism, Arianism, or Modalism - all of which must necessarily ignore something in scripture. Much like the concept of eternity, the Trinity is difficult to wrap our heads around, but even harder to debunk with an honest, responsible review of scripture. | |||
=William Branham believed in the Trinity initially= | |||
William Branham was ordained as an exhorter in the Pentecostal Baptist Church (see article on [[Roy Davis]]) and, early in his ministry, believed in the Trinity as evidenced by the following: | |||
:''And now, there are those sitting here who are feeble this afternoon, that's in need of physical healing. And we have chosen these few words to read from Thine. And may '''the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity''', come in now, the Promise, the Comforter, that You said You would send. And He would take the things of God and would show them to us.<ref>THE RESURRECTION OF LAZARUS ERIE.PA 51-0729A</ref> | |||
:''Truly, we're not much in this world, we're looked down upon, but, God, we believe we're accepted in Christ Jesus, and He in return, has give us the Holy Ghost. We love Him, that great, '''third Person of the Trinity''' Who burns through our hearts. And we love Him. O Holy Spirit, I thank You for Your Divine leading...<ref>EARLY SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES HAMMOND.IN 52-0713A</ref> | |||
:''The same God the Father was made manifest in flesh, and now in the Holy Spirit. That's the reason the baptism is in the Name of Father, Son, Holy Ghost (See?) '''the Trinity'''--the Trinity, not three gods, but '''three persons in one God'''...<ref>THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST CHICAGO.IL 53-0829</ref> | |||
:''Now, of course, we people today, '''we believe that there’s three, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost is the three persons of the one true God.''' It’s three offices, not three Gods. But that same… Listen now, we think that was ridiculous in the Catholic church, but we brought it right down here at Pentecost and tore yourselves to pieces with it—set up another organization, started something else.<ref>William Branham, 57-0309B - I Will Restore, para. 32</ref> | |||
In his early ministry, William Branham was very inclusive and extended open arms to both Trinitarians and Oneness believers (see the vision of the [[Plum and Apple Trees]]. | |||
In his sermon, ''The Godhead Explained'', William Branham tells of when he was confronted by ministers of both the Assemblies of God (Trinitarian) and the United Pentecostal Church (Oneness) and forced to clearly define his doctrine. At the end of their discussion, William Branham had both representatives acknowledge that the other had the Holy Spirit. He then explained his method of baptism, which both representatives accepted. In this same sermon, William Branham tells of another confrontation with a UPC minister. This minister said ''"You know what we are going to do? We are drawing a little ring and drawing you right out of our circle."'' William Branham responded, ''"If you draw me out, I will draw you back in."'' | |||
While William Branham's view of the Godhead was hard to accurately pin down, he did appear to have changed his beliefs fundamentally on this subject in 1958, as his last reference to a Trinitarian understanding of the Godhead was in March 1958. He gradually became less and less tolerant of the Trinitarian view until he eventually classified anyone that believed in the Trinity doctrine as a non-Christian: | |||
:''I said, "Then you have to refuse Jesus Christ, for He is the revelation of God, God revealed in human flesh." Unless you see it, you're lost. Jesus said, "Except you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." He is the revelation of God, the Spirit of God revealed in human form. If you can't believe that, you're lost. '''You put Him a third person, second person, or any other person besides God, you're lost.''' "Except you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." A revelation! <ref>THE ANOINTED ONES AT THE END TIME JEFF.IN 65-0725M</ref> | |||
=William Branham's flawed view of history= | |||
William Branham believed that prior to the Council of Nicaea, which met in 325 A.D., the doctrine of the Trinity did not exist. However, his understanding was wrong. He also incorrectly believed that the Nicene Council made a determination between the doctrine of the Trinity and Oneness. The actual dispute was between the doctrine of the Trinity and Arianism, a belief that Jesus was a created being. | |||
The problem that non-Trinitiarians must address from a historical context is that '''no significant leader in the Christian church in the last 1700 years has been non-Trinitarian.''' They all believed and stood for the doctrine of the Trinity. | |||
=William Branham's Flawed Critique of the Trinity= | |||
William Branham's arguments against the doctrine of the Trinity can be referred to as '''"straw man"''' arguments: | William Branham's arguments against the doctrine of the Trinity can be referred to as '''"straw man"''' arguments: | ||
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It is important to notice that William Branham's critique of the doctrine of the Trinity is not backed up by a lot of scripture. So first, he misrepresented the doctrine of the Trinity through a straw man argument (no Trinitarian believes in three Gods), and then critiqued his own misrepresentation of the Trinity. | It is important to notice that William Branham's critique of the doctrine of the Trinity is not backed up by a lot of scripture. So first, he misrepresented the doctrine of the Trinity through a straw man argument (no Trinitarian believes in three Gods), and then critiqued his own misrepresentation of the Trinity. | ||
==Three Gods?== | ==Three Gods?== | ||
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:''I no more believe in three Gods than I believe in thirty gods. There is but one God to me, and therefore I am in that sense a Unitarian, and Socinians have no right to the name merely because they deny the Godhead of our Lord Jesus. We believe Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to be one God; but Jesus Christ is God, and whosoever casts that truth away casts away eternal life. How can he enter into heaven if he does not know Christ as the everlasting Son of the Father? He must be God, since he has promised to be in ten thousand places at one time, and no mere man could do that.<ref>C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, Vol. XXX, 46 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1884).</ref> | :''I no more believe in three Gods than I believe in thirty gods. There is but one God to me, and therefore I am in that sense a Unitarian, and Socinians have no right to the name merely because they deny the Godhead of our Lord Jesus. We believe Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to be one God; but Jesus Christ is God, and whosoever casts that truth away casts away eternal life. How can he enter into heaven if he does not know Christ as the everlasting Son of the Father? He must be God, since he has promised to be in ten thousand places at one time, and no mere man could do that.<ref>C. H. Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, Vol. XXX, 46 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1884).</ref> | ||
== | =Quotes of William Branham= | ||
William Branham believed the doctrine of the Trinity: | |||
:'' | :''The same God the Father was made manifest in flesh, and now in the Holy Spirit. That's the reason the baptism is in the Name of Father, Son, Holy Ghost (See?) the trinity—the trinity, '''not three gods, but three persons in one God,''' one… three gods… One person in three dispensations. See?<ref>53-0829, The Testimony Of Jesus Christ</ref> | ||
:'' | :''God does everything in threes. He wrote three Bibles. He had three comings of Christ. There is three dispensations of grace. '''There's three persons in the Godhead''', three manifestations of the one Person in the Godhead, rather. And all those things. See?<ref>54-1006, Law Or Grace</ref> | ||
:'' | :''Anyone that knows God, and knows His Bible, know that those three are One. Not three gods, '''one God, manifested in three persons'''.<ref>56-1207, Gifts</ref> | ||
: | The Oneness doctrine was wrong: | ||
:''Now, of course, we people today, '''we believe that there’s three, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost is the three persons of the one true God.''' It’s three offices, not three Gods. But that same… Listen now, we think that was ridiculous in the Catholic church, but we brought it right down here at Pentecost and tore yourselves to pieces with it—set up another organization, started something else. | |||
:''Instead of coming like brethren with brotherly love and with unity, the first one begin to see the—that the three Persons of the Godhead was in one Person, Christ Jesus; He was the manifestation of God in flesh, not another man. And then '''you set up and got the little dogmatic idea of the oneness''', so-called. Then you started on that, '''begin to harp on it, and you made God one like your finger, one, and you know that’s wrong.''' You better scholars know better than that. But what was it? It was because the palmerworm begin to eat first. Instead of setting and reasoning together when I come into the factions of the Pentecostals they set a table bigger than that, with their heads around, “You go this, and you can’t go to this. You preach for them, you can’t preach for me.” | |||
:'' | :''I said, “We are brethren. Absolutely.” | ||
:''And '''if the Oneness faction hadn’t have went off to one side''', and made an issue out of it, and would’ve stayed with their brethren, and let the Holy Ghost anoint them, that thing would’ve never spattered and broke up brotherhood the way it did. But what happened? The locusts begin to fly. It broke up brotherhood. You had to have a little unity of your own. Unity is not an isolated thing, brethren. Unity is for the whole body of Christ.<ref>William Branham, 57-0309B - I Will Restore, para. 32-33</ref> | |||
:'' | :''And you Oneness brethren, many of '''you get off the wrong track when you try to think that God is one like your finger is one. He can't be His Own Father.''' He can't be.<ref>59-0823, Palmerworm, Locust, Cankerworm, Caterpillar</ref> | ||
William Branham believed both Trinitarian and Oneness were wrong: | |||
:''Now, there is a group of people, call themselves '''the “Oneness” or the “Jesus Only.” I don’t agree with them upon their theory. Neither do I agree—agree with that trinitarian group''' that says that there are three different Gods, the extreme of the trinitarian. But I believe that the three, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, is One, that they are three offices of one God. He lived in the Fatherhood, in the Pillar of Fire; He lived in the Sonship, in Jesus Christ; and He lives now in the Holy Ghost, in His Church. The same Lord Jesus that was made flesh and dwelt among us, is with us this day, among us, in the form of the Holy Spirit.<ref>William Branham, 61-0827 - The Message Of Grace, para.37</ref> | |||
:'' | |||
William Branham incorrectly believed that the doctrine of the Trinity did not exist prior to 325 A.D.: | |||
:''Now, I’m not a… don’t… And I say… And some people say, “He’s a ‘Jesus Only,’” You’re mistaken there. I wouldn’t have that kind of a spirit on me. There that dogmatic, ungodly thing that… No, sir. I’m not Oneness. Not at all. I’m not trinity either. I’m a Christian. I believe in God. I believe in God manifested in three offices. Now His office is in my heart, in your heart. Not another God somewhere else; another God somewhere else; another God somewhere else. That’s as pagan as pagan can be. '''Never one time was that even thought of until the Nicene Council. Find it in the Bible, or find it in history—till that time. It’s not there.'''<ref>Wiliam Branham, 61-0318 - Abraham's Covenant Confirmed, para. 71</ref> | |||
William Branham incorrectly believed that the Nicene council pitted Trinitarians against Oneness believers: | |||
:''Now, at the Nicene Council, they come to two great decisions. On the…Oh, many of them in that day of the early church fathers, they had two extreme views. One of them was a triune God, a trinitarian. And the other one was a—a one God. And they both come into existence and went out on two straight limbs, out like that. The triunity became a place of a three-god person. The oneness became a unitarian, just as far wrong as the other one was. | |||
'' | :''...And in the Nicene Council, to do this, in order to do this, they had to take a trinity, because in the Roman world they had many gods. They prayed to their dead ancestors. I’ve got the history right here where we can quote it. See? They prayed to their dead ancestors. That’s the reason they have Saint Cecelia, and Saint Marcus, and saint, saint, saint, saint, saint, saint.<ref>William Branham, 60-1204M - The Revelation Of Jesus Christ, para. 171, 175</ref> | ||
:''That issue come up at the Nicene Council. Both sides went to seed; when the Catholic church took the extreme trinitarian side, and the other one went to unitarian, and both sides went out. Exactly right, because men had something to do into it.<ref>William Branham, 61-0425B - The Godhead Explained, para. 154</ref> | |||
Trinitarianism is of the Devil: | |||
'' | :''Now, my precious brother, I know this is a tape also. Now, don’t get excited. Let me say this with godly love, the hour has approached where I can’t hold still on these things no more, too close to the Coming. See? '''“Trinitarianism is of the devil!” I say that THUS SAITH THE LORD!''' Look where it come from. It come from the Nicene Council when the Catholic church become in rulership. The word “trinity” is not even mentioned in the entire Book of the Bible. And as far as three Gods, that’s from hell. There’s one God. That’s exactly right.<ref>William Branham, 61-0108 - Revelation, Chapter Four #3, para. 169</ref> | ||
'' | :''Jesus said, "Except you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." He is the revelation of God, the Spirit of God revealed in human form. If you can't believe that, you're lost. '''You put Him a third person, second person, or any other person besides God, you're lost.''' "Except you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." A revelation! | ||
:''...Now denominational brother, set still just a minute. Don’t get up and walk out of the room, back out there on this radio, telephone hook-up. Don’t turn your tape recorder off. Set still just a minute, and listen. You’re born of God, you will. 240 A trinity of frogs! A frog is an animal that always looks backward. He never looks where he’s going; he looks where he’s come from. See? Don’t you see? Where was trinitarianism born at? Remember, “three unclean spirits,” individual spirits. Are you getting it? [Congregation says, “Amen.”—Ed.] 241 Notice, they look back to the Nicaea Council where the trinity doctrine was born at, not in the Bible. There’s no such a thing. They look back to the Nicaea Council at Nicaea, Rome, where the trinity was born at. Notice where they come from. Notice. And the trinity of frogs came out of an old trinity, give birth to a new trinity, their mother. What’d it come out of? A trinity, “the dragon,” see, “the beast,” and “the false prophet.” A trinity, new. For when were these frogs come out? When did it? Notice, they was there all the time, but it wasn’t manifested until between the Sixth and Seventh Vial, just before the Seals opened (Hmm?) to reveal it. “For in the Message of the seventh angel, the mysteries of God would be known,” all these trinitarian things, and false baptisms, and everything was to be made manifest. God help us to see what’s Truth! And not think it’s somebody trying to say something to… 242 I feel that spirit resenting That, you see. I’m not speaking of myself, brother. I’m speaking of the Angel of the Lord that’s in the camp. That’s exactly right.<ref>William Branham, 65-0725M - The Anointed Ones At The End Time, para. 55, 239-242</ref> | |||
Arguments of William Branham FOR the doctrine of the Trinity: | |||
'' | :''But here, remember, there was a Gethsemane conference come one time, '''when God and His Son had to get together'''. After all, there was no one else could die for the sins of the world. There was nobody worthy to die, no man.<ref>William Branham, 63-0608, Sermon: Conferences</ref> | ||
:''That's God. God in a trinity is One, and '''without a trinity He's not God'''. He can't be manifested any other way.<ref>William Branham, 65-0815, And Knoweth It Not</ref> | |||
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[[Category: Doctrines]] | [[Category: Doctrines]] | ||
[[Category: Godhead]] | [[Category: Godhead]] |