Ewald Frank

preached on 30. 3. 1991, 14:00, Villach,

Topic: “A man who speaks in the name of the LORD on God's behalf must have a divine calling!”

broadcast on 19. 7. 2026

I’m grateful to God that we are able to experience this day together.

And I believe that this day will be a truly decisive day for all of us, not only for this life, but also for eternity.

I assume that we all believe in God. I also assume that we believe that the Holy Scriptures are God’s Word. Not merely that it bears witness to God’s Word, as some theologians put it, but that it is God’s Word speaking to us, binding upon us from God in all that we believe and teach, and in that upon which and in which we place our hope.

We heard it in the brief opening word. And I would also like to put it succinctly. It is not merely a matter of talking about God, perhaps even philosophizing, or speaking about religion, including Christianity. None of that is enough. We must connect with God, become one with him, allow ourselves to be integrated into his plan and become part of his work of redemption, which is now drawing to a close.

This afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, you will certainly hear a number of things that you have not heard before. It must be said, however, that everything became known to everyone for the first time at some point or came to us. What is important is that what is presented is true. And it is true only if it comes from God and is confirmed in the Word. Then it is true. The touchstone or the yardstick for everything we believe and teach is, of course, Holy Scripture. And if we look at Christianity today, and this is not a judgment nor a criticism, if we look at Christianity today, we have around 310 denominations united in the World Council of Churches. We have major religions when we look across the whole world. We have Buddhism, we have Hinduism, we have Confucianism, and we have who knows what else. And all claim to bring salvation and show people the right path.

I’m not speaking here as someone who has merely heard about it. I have carried out missionary work in exactly 104 countries. I have gained certain experiences that not everyone can have on a daily basis. So I can certainly say a few things from my own knowledge. And I would like to begin by saying that first of all, we must recognize God and God’s plan for humanity. And secondly, allow ourselves to be brought into this plan of God in accordance with his Word. Since there is only one revelation of God for our salvation, we must take this revelation of God in Christ seriously and forget everything else. It is only where God revealed himself personally to humanity on earth that we can encounter God. Had God not revealed himself in Jesus Christ for our salvation, we would have to seek him elsewhere. But if he has, and this is what we believe, revealed himself in Christ for our salvation, then there is no other way, no other truth, no other goal. Then everything comes from him and leads back to him, to the source of all things.

We will not be discussing politics today, although we did announce a number of things in our pamphlet Vision 7000, which some of you have read. For example, are we facing the greatest event in human history as we transition from the sixth to the seventh millennium? We have set out a few key points and wrote it on paper here. The main idea, however, is that we are indeed being acquainted with what God has done, what he is currently doing, and how he will bring his work to a close with his church very soon.

As far as the division of time is concerned, it is relatively simple. One need only look at the biblical division of time. There, approximately 2000 years are noted from Adam to Abraham. There are another approximately 2000 years from Abraham to Christ shown. And now we stand at the end of yet another 2000-year epoch. In total, that makes 6000 years. And we read in 2 Peter chapter 3, verse 8 that “one day with God is like a thousand years” to us.

And God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh day from all his toil and labor. [Gen 2:2] And according to Revelation 20, the seventh millennium will be the millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ here on this earth. [Rev 20:1–6]

So this is not a guesswork, but a real certainty based on the Word of God and the signs of the time, that we are living in the end times, and not only that, but at the very end of the end times. And the Lord’s return is truly very near.

And you must understand, ladies and gentlemen, that we are not presenting an event with a big smile as a pastime with a little framing and some atmosphere that we create ourselves, but that this is a matter of the utmost seriousness, the proclamation of the Word of God upon which our eternal destiny depends.

With this solemn seriousness, we shall now turn to the Word. Before we watch the film, that is to say, a video recording, I must say straight away that the footage dates back many years, over 30 years. And that this industry was in its infancy at the time, which is why the black and white quality is, on top of everything else, very poor. But it is not the quality that matters, but what we will see and hear there. I shall say a little more on this later, when I show some photographs and provide some explanations.

First of all, I would like to read a few scriptures and briefly comment on them. For human words pass away, but God’s Word remains forever. [1 Pet 1:24–25]

1 Peter chapter 2, the last two verses. 1 Peter chapter 2, verses 24 and 25.

[24] Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

[25] For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

For the sake of truth, it must be emphasized that the natural man can neither understand nor comprehend spiritual and divine things. [1 Cor 2:14] When our Lord Jesus said in John chapter 3, “ye must be born again, otherwise you cannot see the kingdom of God”, [Jn 3:3] he knew exactly what he was saying. He said, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” [Jn 3:6]

First and foremost, a person must have a personal experience of salvation with God, undergo a genuine conversion to the Lord, be renewed and born again, so as to gain access through the Holy Spirit to the Word, which was inspired and dictated by the Holy Spirit. If we approach divine content with our intellect, we will not succeed.

Paul writes to the Corinthians, “the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.” [1 Cor 2:10]

In chapter 14 and also in chapter 16 of the Gospel of John, our Lord points out that the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, will come, who “will guide us into all truth.” [Jn 16:13]

May it now be granted to us that each one send up a sigh in prayer to God and say in his heart, “Lord, send your Holy Spirit and reveal to me through your Spirit the Word that is now being proclaimed.”

Believe me, the mind has its place, all our skills, our knowledge, even science, everything has its place. But when it comes to the divine and spiritual, then we need God to help us. Then we need an introduction by the Holy Spirit to the precious and holy Word.

Two scriptures: one from the Gospel of John, which states, “he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God.” [Jn 3:34]

Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 34.

[34] For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God.

Very important! A person who speaks in the name of the Lord on God’s behalf must have a divine commission.

In the Gospel of John, chapter 20, our Lord speaks to those whom he sends out after his resurrection. Gospel of John, chapter 20, verse 21.

[21] Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

And on this subject, the Word from 1 John chapter 4, verse 6. 1 John chapter 4, verse 6:

[6] We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

There were men of God on earth who did not appoint or send themselves, but who were commissioned and sent by God. Of such men, our Lord says, “whoever heareth you heareth me” [Luk 10:16] and “whoever receiveth you receiveth me.” [Mat 10:40]

This is how seriously we must take matters concerning God.

When we read in the Gospel of John, chapter 1, that a man sent by God appeared [Jn 1:6], it brings us great joy. But we have nothing of that today. Today, we need to know what God has done in our day. Today, we need divine and spiritual guidance. And we can only obtain that if we know the promises that apply to our time.

Gospel of John, chapter 1, verse 6:

[6] There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

[7] The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.

We might immediately say, dear God, there were scribes and Pharisees and Sadducees, priests and high priests. There were religious associations. And you simply say that one man is to appear here and that all should believe through him might believe? We would say, dear God, where is the justice in this? Can we no longer vote here? Must the majority not decide? In the kingdom of God, God alone decides. And we simply have to respect that. And I’m grateful to him for it. Imagine if people could vote, if they could incorporate democracy into the kingdom of God, what chaos that would cause. God has sent his men at all times. And blessed are the people who in their own time recognized this divine commission and received the Word addressed to them, so as to come into connection and harmony with God and his work, thereby agreeing with God and taking his side.

I am incredibly fond of this saying: “There came a man sent from God.” [Jn 1:6]

In the days of the prophet Micah, there were many prophets. Ahab summoned them all, and Jehoshaphat listened to what they prophesied. One of them, Zedekiah, even made himself horns and said, ‘Thus saith the Lord, in this way, you shall drive out your enemies and win the victory.’ And then this man Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, said, “Do you not have another man whom we might consult who might give us an answer from God?” Ahab said, ‘Are the 400 not enough? They have all prophesied. And there is indeed one more, but he does not belong to our fellowship. And if he starts prophesying, then judgment will fall upon me at once.’ And then he said, ‘Let this man come.’ To cut a long story short, the difference between the 400 and the one was that the 400 were prophets in Israel, and the one was a prophet of God who simply said, ‘Only what God reveals to me will I proclaim.’ [1 Kings 22:6-14]

These are men of God. They do not come under the influence of others. And that influence can sometimes be very religious. I have attended charismatic gatherings, particularly ones in Berlin, where people actually immerse themselves in something from which they can scarcely extricate themselves. Today, it is not the atmosphere that matters, which we can influence ourselves through music and many other things. Today, what matters is that we submit to the divine influence of the Word, and that the same inspiration of the Holy Spirit touches us. And that we then also have the courage to swim against the tide. For that is how it has always been.

I would like to explore this passage from John in a little more depth: “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.” [Jn 1:6-7]

We are familiar with the story of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. We know him as Paul. I would like to read what was said to him Acts chapter 26, from verse 15:

[15] And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.

[16] But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

[17] Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,

[18] To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

Here too, one might say: Dear Lord, that is all well and good. But now you are appointing a man and telling him, “You shall open their eyes so that they turn from darken to light and from the power of Satan to God.”

Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen, there is a divine order in the kingdom of God. And when people had the privilege of hearing the Lord’s voice directly, of being enlightened by God, these are the men who through the proclamation of the Word that becomes divine light, are used to bring the light of God to others.

I would like to read a scripture from 2 Peter. We will get straight to the points. You can be sure that we will not run over time. Perhaps the first passage from 2 Peter, chapter 1, verse 19.

[19] We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place…

When we read in Psalm 119, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet,” nearly 800 million Christians across the globe read this. [Ps 119:105] And they all go their own ways, unless God reveals himself to them, and his Word and his will.

We do not judge, but by nature, we are all in error. By nature, we are all born into this world in sin and transgression. And unless we personally accept the reconciliation with God that took place in Christ on the cross of Calvary, establish a personal connection and fellowship with God, and are thus born again as sons and daughters unto a living hope… it is simply very important that we do not merely receive instruction about the kingdom of God and about God, but that we are born of God, so that we may truly and rightly say, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” [Mt 6:9–10]

If anyone says that we are all children of God, and you, ladies and gentlemen, are well aware of the trend of the time. Even in the Vatican, religious leaders come and go. Recently they were all in Fatima, where many apparitions are said to have taken place. There were Hindus, there were Muslims. And today, we are truly dealing with the trend of the times, where people say, “We have only one God. We are all children of God.”

Only those who know and recognize God as Father are children of God. Not all children in the land are your children; the children you have begotten, there you are the true fathers. And so it is in spiritual matters too. We must have been begotten through the seed of the Word of God and through the Holy Spirit. Of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, it is said, “Thou art my Son; today I have begotten thee.” [Ps 2:7, Acts 13:33] So it is written in Psalm 2 and Acts 13. We too must be able to say the same, for according to Romans 8 from verse 28, “he is the firstborn among many brethren.” In him, God has brought about the beginning of the new divine lineage. And we must simply respect this, and experience it by grace, that we receive the divine seed of the Word within us.

And I can read it to you, so that you know it is also written in the Bible, and not merely spoken about. I shall read it directly from 1 Peter, chapter 1, verses 23 and 24.

[23] Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

We must have experienced this. That is the necessity. Our Lord said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” [Jn 3:3]

And the tragedy lies in this—please do not be angry with me, but I heard it with my own ears when people say at the cemetery, “It has pleased the Lord to take our brother to himself into glory.” And then I later learned that this brother is not in glory at all, but that he has ended up somewhere in purgatory, and that masses must be said there, so that things might proceed a little more quickly. No one can do that to me. If God’s salvation were dependent on what dignitaries or civil servants can do, where would we all be then? Salvation comes from God alone, and whoever wishes to be saved must turn away from every institution and turn to God. Help and salvation come from him alone. Everything else is a cheap consolation that leads to eternal disappointment.

You may say, “he has Prussian blood in him.” No, that is necessary. If I were here, ladies and gentlemen, and were to tell you what you might sometimes be itching to hear, as Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4, that in the last days people will turn away from the truth, and heap to themselves teachers who will preach to them what they wish to hear. [2 Ti 4:3–4] Paul writes in Galatians in chapter 1, verse 10: “If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ at all.”

If anyone—and I don’t want to talk about myself today, but I would not be standing here today if I had not heard the Lord’s voice directly and been actually commissioned to preach his Word. But, as I just said, I don’t want to go into that in detail.

What is today’s message about? Today it is about recognizing that the current world order, civilization as we know it, is truly coming to an end. And we need not stir up a mood of panic, but simply read Matthew 24, Luke 17, Luke 21, various passages in the Gospels, right up to the last book of the Bible. Then we will see very clearly that we are now living in the last days. And when the Lord spoke of the end times, and set out all the signs of the times, he said, “When you see all these things coming to pass, lift up your heads, for you know that your redemption is drawing near.” [Lk 21:28] Today, it is no matter of guesswork. Today, it is simply a beautiful, harmoniously interwoven sequence of events in the end times, where one event follows on from another, and things take their natural course, that we may indeed lift up our heads, for we know that our redemption is drawing near.

As was said here in the opening word, albeit very briefly, yet very meaningfully, that the things God has done are kept from the public, that they are not even taken note of. I, too, can bear witness to this.

And when we look back at the days of our Lord, it was the religious leaders who said to the people, “Do you believe in him too? Only the common people are following him. None of the leaders believe in him.” [Joh 7:47–49] One must imagine that they had waited so long for him, for the Messiah, for the Savior, and when he came, they said, “We do not want this man to rule over us.” [Luk 19:14] They completely misunderstood him and his ministry, even though, if Dr. Larken’s calculations were correct, 109 prophecies from the Old Testament had been literally fulfilled at Christ’s first coming. Yet, the teachers and professors of that time taught past God, sang past God, preached past God, and all the church services went past God. And that, that was the tragedy.

If someone says, “I’m an atheist,” well then, let them be. But when people claim to be believers, and then ignore what God does, and some are not content with that, they trample it under foot, make fun of it, attribute it to the devil, just as in the days of our Lord. They said, “This is Beelzebub, he has the devil, and in league with the devil he does all this.” [Mar 3:22]

Imagine, the Son of God, proven in power among his people, born in Bethlehem according to the Scripture, as it is written in Micah 5, verse 1, suffered under Pontius Pilate. And anyone who reads Isaiah 53 has the whole account from Gethsemane to Golgotha.

Whoever reads Psalm 22 will find, “They have pierced my hands and my feet,” and “For my garments they have cast lots.” “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” [Ps 22:1, 16, 18] It was all written in the prophets, from the first promise in Genesis 3:15 concerning the seed of God who would come through the woman to crush the serpent’s head, right up to Malachi 3, verse 1: “And the Lord will suddenly come to his temple, the angel of the covenant whom you desire, whom you long for.” And there were the heavenly hosts praising and glorifying God, the whole area around Bethlehem was lit up at night. And what was the result? Because it did not come from the highest authority and was not announced from above in an earthly sense, but rather from above in a divine sense, it was not enough for the people. Shepherds came running to worship the child Jesus because it had been told to them, “Today, the Savior, the Lord, has been born to you in the city of David. Go, and you will find him.” [Lk 2:11–12] They went, and they found him.

I have only mentioned this to emphasize that it is possible today to look back and say, “Goodness me, can you believe they did that?” Looking back today, we can say, “That wasn’t right. They should have realized.” But what about us? Have we recognized what leads to our peace? Have we recognized that God wants to gather us together to reveal himself to us, and make known the promises for this time?

I come to the scriptures that speak of the end times, of the day of the Lord that is to come and will burn like an oven. [Mal 4:1] And that before this great and terrible day of the Lord, which is indeed to come, there is the promise: “Behold, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.” [Mal 4:5]

We have in the Word of God the promises extending to the point where time flows into eternity, including for the days in which we live. And just as God sent a man to prepare the way, to bring the hearts of the people into harmony, to bring them into alignment with the Word, so it has been necessary that in these last days a calling out should take place from the very heart of Babylon, where Christendom finds itself, so that we may clearly take God’s side, without entering into a new intermingling.

I would also like to emphasize this point, ladies and gentlemen: people always want to intermingle. So it was in the days of Noah, the sons of God saw the beauty of the daughters of men, and the intermingling between the line of Seth and the line of Cain took place. [Gen 6:2] In the days of Moses, it was Balaam who advised Moab to intermingle with one other.

Today, it is exactly the same, regardless of what is believed and taught. There is a massive intermingling, right up to the highest level of the World Council of Churches. And people say that everyone can believe what they want, what matters is that we join forces. I don’t have time today to go into this in more detail, but we will set out in writing what the consequences are if we turn our backs on the Lord and are drawn into all this intermingling. Let us get to the point, for time is running out.

I read from the book of Acts, chapter 3, verses 19 to 21.

[19] Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

[20] And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

[21] Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

You may read this text again at home in quiet prayer. And you will find that it clearly shows that Christ remains in heaven, waiting until all things have been divinely ordered, restored to their proper state, and the confusion brought to an end, so that the Lord may once more build up, unite, bless, and set his church apart as a blessing, for the end must be like the beginning. Christ is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last. [Rev 22:13] As he was, so is he, and so shall he be forever. To bring this about, a proclamation was necessary to direct our attention to what God had promised to do.

From the prophet Malachi, the last chapter, the final verses, we know them almost by heart, verse 5:

[5] Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.

Elijah was a man of God. He stood among the people and cried out with a mighty voice: “How long will you waver between two opinions? If Baal is God, follow him. If the Lord is God, serve him.” [1 Ki 18:21] Who does not know the story of Mount Carmel?

It is necessary that in these last days a divine separation be effected between light and darkness, between truth and deception, between truly apostolic, New Testament preaching, and all the traditions that have been invented and introduced over the centuries.

We are faced today, and I say this not with a loud voice, but with great inner pain, we are faced today with a Christianity that has broken away from Christ. Outward appearances are maintained. People sing, they play music, they light candles, all manner of prayers are said, saints and others are invoked—they cannot hear them, of course, but that is not my fault—so much is done.

And do you know why it happens? People want to be saved. They want to do the right thing. Do you think anyone becomes a priest or a nun because they don’t truly want to or aren’t convinced of it? Everyone is convinced.

But let’s be honest, can we be saved on our own terms? Can everyone decide what God’s path should look like? No, we cannot.

We must face God and realize there’s only one who could say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” [Jn 14:6]

And Holy Scripture also teaches clearly “there is only one God, and only one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.” [1 Ti 2:5]

Only one intercessor. In so-called Christendom, there is a whole host of intercessors.

Who can intercede? Only he who gave his life for us on the cross of Calvary. Only he who became man for our sake.

And here, the divine mystery is revealed.

Our Savior had indeed to be both.

He had to become human, that is, to be born into this world, to become mortal in body, wrapped in swaddling clothes, laid in a manger, and to grow up just like any other child on earth, but he was more than a man.

He had to become man in order to die, to suffer, to be able to empathize. He had to be God, in order to overcome death, to conquer hell, and to strip the devil of his power.

Those who died have all been in the realm of the dead.

Our Lord died in the flesh, descended in the Spirit, and preached to the spirits in prison. [1 Pe 3:19]

Rose from the dead on the third day, conquered death, hell, and the devil.

And said to John on the isle of Patmos, “I live and ye shall live also.” [Jn 14:19]

Hallelujah!

His resurrection guarantees my resurrection. The victory of Golgotha is the victory of all of us, who believe in the Redeemer, and in the redemption that has been accomplished.

Forgive me if I am so deeply moved.

At such times, I do not wish to give a lecture, but to preach. And you can well imagine what that looks like.

I am deeply moved by these things.

When a person has experienced what they proclaim, when they have become part of the Word, then it is not a lecture that comes from the intellect.

It is something that God conveys, in order to invite and include others.

Let us note:

It is God’s decision not to do anything on Earth that is connected with his plan of salvation unless he reveals his secret to one of his servants and prophets.

Let me read it to you from Amos chapter 3, verse 7. Here it is written, Amos 3 verse 7:

[7] Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.

At all times, when special things were to happen on Earth, God sent his servants and prophets.

He had Abraham, Moses, Noah, Elijah. He had his servants and prophets whom he could always send.

And as we hinted at earlier and also read briefly, at the transition from the Old to the New Testament, he sent John the Baptist.

In Luke 16:16 it is written:

[16] The law and the prophets were until John: and from that time on, the kingdom of God is preached, and the violent take it by force.

In 1 Corinthians 4 verse 1 it says:

[1] Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

[2] Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.

Two more scriptures that confirm this line of thought, this divine truth.

Ephesians chapter 3 verse 4:

[4] Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ,

[5] Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.

Not to the scribes, not to those who think they know it all better, but to his holy apostles and prophets.

“Apostle” means a messenger. But not just any messenger, but a messenger of the Lord.

In the Epistle of Peter, we read something similar, namely 2 Peter chapter 3, verse 2:

[2] That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour.

God has a plan. From the very beginning, God has arranged and determined all things.

In his kingdom, he does as he wills, and not everyone else as they will.

And all people who wish to share in what God is doing on Earth, and who wish to spend eternity in glory with him, must here on Earth recognize him and his plan for mankind, must submit to it, experience God, and have fellowship with him, in order to be able to share in what he is doing.

One more word from Revelation chapter 1, the first two verses:

[1] The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

[2] Who bare record of the Word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.

Here on the isle of Patmos too, there were not many; one was enough.

One man of God, in the hand of God, acting as God’s mouthpiece is enough, if only humanity were willing to listen and would listen.

We do not need a thousand messengers of God, whom we ignore.

One servant of God with a divine message is enough, provided we hear it, believe it, take it to heart, and act upon it.

Let us now turn, please, to what God has done in our own days.

And I ask you, at the very least, to acknowledge that I am not foolish enough to chase after some mirage.

I have personally convinced myself of the things I am passing on.

That is very important to me.

I would not pass on anything simply because others have said it.

I must be convinced before God and the Word, have tested it and know that it is true.

As hinted at earlier and also read, that the Lord wanted to send someone similar to Elijah, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come. [Mal 4:5]

I cannot read all these scriptures, but I may quote them.

2 Peter 3 verse 10:

[10] But the day of the Lord will come like a burning oven and the elements shall melt with fervent heat.

We don’t have time to go into that.

There are many scriptures on this subject: Isaiah 13, Joel 2 and Joel 3, and many scriptures in the Old and New Testament.

Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5:

“No one knows day or hour, for the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” [1 The 5:1-2]

But before this day of the Lord comes, which will burn like an oven, as Malachi writes, and also Peter, and Isaiah, and the prophets and apostles in general, and especially in Revelation, before this day comes, God wanted to do something once more.

He wanted to send the time of refreshing, to restore all things and arrange everything in the Church according to God’s will.

And just as the prophet Elijah gathered the twelve stones according to the twelve tribes of Israel, and rebuilt the altar of the Lord, so now, the doctrine of the twelve apostles, everything as it was preached and practiced in early Christianity, must be preached and practiced now.

We must break away from all traditions and customs, and allow ourselves to be cleansed in the water of the Word, so as not to provoke God to jealousy and wrath, but to present ourselves to him.

I would like to briefly introduce to you the man of God, whom I personally knew for exactly ten years, from whom I still have, be it 21 or 22 letters, filed away, with whom I traveled in the same car, ate at the same table, and whom I saw and experienced in meetings in Europe and the USA.

His name is William Branham.

Just as there was Paul and others in those days, so there was a man in these days.

I shall show you some photos in a moment.

On June the 11th, 1933, in the town of Jeffersonville, Indiana, this man held his first evangelistic campaign, as a newly ordained Baptist preacher.

Several 100 were converted, and he went to the River Ohio, after the last morning meeting.

It was about 2 PM, when he was about to baptize the 17th person.

There were about 4,000 people on the river bank. About 300 were to be baptized.

And as he was about to baptize the 17th person, he prayed to God, “Lord, as I baptize in water, so baptize me with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”

And at that moment, a bright light broke through the low-hanging layer of clouds, visible to everyone present, to all believers and unbelievers alike, through the layer of clouds, remains suspended above him, and the mighty voice said: “Just as John the Baptist was sent to forerun the 1st coming of Christ, so you are sent with a message that will forerun the 2nd coming of Christ.”

It goes without saying that there is no message from God apart from the Holy Scriptures. God’s message will always be God’s Word.

So the point was, that all those buried truths, all that had been lost, should be placed back upon the lampstand, proclaimed anew and made accessible to people once more.

And behold, God has vindicated this man.

Then came that truly unique day, in May 1946, when the Angel of the Lord came to him, and commissioned him directly.

You know, half the world lay in ruins, especially Europe, after the Second World War.

That was in May 1946, around 11 PM.

This man of God, a very poor man from the mountains of Kentucky, who didn’t even own a pair of shoes, in those days everything was expensive, and the Angel of the Lord, whom he described as coming down in the light, he saw him in full stature, beardless, with a clear face, he weighed by estimate about 200 pounds, and brother Branham described his stature: he wore no sandals, was barefoot, had a light tan, not dark skinned, but as we get when we sunbathe and put a bit of oil on.

He described him exactly.

And this Angel of the Lord said:

“Fear not. I have been sent to you from the presence of God to give you this commission. You will pray for kings and princes. Your prayers will be answered. Even cancer will not be able to stand before you.”

God arranged it so that this man prayed for the sick, not for those with a stomach ache or some ailment that comes and goes, but for the blind, the lame, the mute, the deaf.

I have watched as those born blind have received their sight.

I have seen great signs and wonders with my own eyes.

I have often wept like a little child, I was so overwhelmed myself to witness how the presence of God was spontaneously demonstrated on the spot through the power of God.

I do not wish to go into this in any more detail because we are running out of time.

The film is due to be shown in a few minutes.

This here is a recording from January 1950, with the light above his head.

So it came to pass that brother Branham was preaching in the great Houston Coliseum, and there was a Baptist preacher named Dr. Best, and he objected, saying “what is written in the Book of Acts and what happened no longer applies today. That was back then, it cannot be today. There are no more healings…” and so forth.

And lo and behold, it was Dr. Bosworth, whom I also know personally, who then engaged in the discussion with this Dr. Best in front of thousands of spectators.

And right at the very end, brother Branham came down from the gallery where he had been seated, and there were professional photographers, Mr. Ayers and Mr. Kipperman from Douglas Studio in Houston, Texas, commissioned directly by the Houston Chronicle, the daily newspaper, they were to take photographs so that they could report on these meetings and the debate the following day.

And lo and behold, when brother Branham came to the front, he uttered only a few words.

He said something like this: “If it is God who has sent me, then he will bear witness for me. I do not need to do that.”

And at that very moment, another photograph was taken. They had taken so many before with Dr. Best and brother Bosworth. And now this shot, with that light.

None of the other photographs in the film turned out. Not a single one out of the whole film. There was only one photograph that turned out, and this is it.

At midnight, the photographers woke brother Branham from his bed in his hotel room and asked him: “Do you know that there was a supernatural light above your head?”

He said to them: “I know it. It didn’t happen for my sake. I believe it anyway. It happened for your sake.”

The negative was then handed over to Dr. George J. Lacy, a man from the FBI, who was responsible for examining questionable documents.

We have published his statement.

He wrote: “Double exposure ruled out. No retouching took place. The light was there, otherwise it could not have been captured by the lens.”

I myself heard it from brother Branham when he said that this photograph hangs in Washington in the art gallery where religious paintings are exhibited.

And as I said, my instinct told me to stop off in Washington on my next flight.

I spent the whole morning searching and was almost ready to give up.

It was between 11 and 12 in the morning, but I plucked up my courage and said to myself: “You didn’t fly all the way here to give up.”

Just before the deadline, I, Ewald Frank, with the Bible open before you, saw this photograph with my own eyes in the art gallery in Washington D.C., perhaps two miles from the White House.

This elderly gentleman opened a drawer after we’d spoken at length, pulled out the drawer, and said: “Sir, there is no public interest in this picture. I believe it will soon end up in a drawer like this.”

Whether that is the case I cannot judge today. In any case, the Lord God has testified to himself, and critics, unbelieving people, have had to bear witness that this is so.

And I say this also for the following reason: When you, ladies and gentlemen, watch the film later, you will hear brother Branham say: “Now the light is here and there, over this man or over this woman.”

When brother Branham prayed for the sick, he waited until this light came down.

And when the light remained over a person, he knew that God now wished to deal with that person.

And then he saw what was shown to him and heard what was said to him, and then he spoke it out.

Among the thousands of cases over some twenty years, there has not been a single instance where he was wrong.

Great man of God, Demos Shakarian, the international president of the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship, he was a special friend of brother Branham.

One day, Demos Shakarian’s sister was very sick, and people prophesied, “Daughter of Zion, fear not, you will not die, you will be healed.”

Brother Branham sees this Florence Shakarian. He sees the clock. He sees the clock stop at a quarter to two, and he sees this lady lying dead in bed.

Demos Shakarian came to him and asked, “What will happen? They have all prophesied that the daughter of Zion will live.”

Brother Branham said: “Demos, we are old friends. I must tell you, your sister will not recover. She will die on such and such a day, at such and such a time. I have seen it.”

And so it was. I met this man Demos Shakarian in person. I spoke at the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship at the Clifton Cafeteria in Los Angeles. I know all the backstories. We won’t go into that in detail.

God used brother Branham after the Second World War, when the Full Gospel lay in ruins, just as half of Europe did here.

God used this man so that a ministry accompanied by mighty signs and wonders could begin.

And if you all look up the history of the great evangelists whom I also know personally, you will find no beginning before the year 1949.

In the years 46, 47, 48, there was only one man of God and that was William Branham.

Then came Roberts, then came Osborn, then came Tommy Hicks, then came Billy Graham, then came all the rest, and I now know hundreds who came after him.

But God used this simple man who had a divine calling to bring about the breakthrough to the full gospel.

And it was not William Branham, it was God who used this simple man.

There is one more thing I must say. I have also brought Life magazine with me today.

And I have brought Science magazine with me for a very specific reason.

You, ladies and gentlemen, can see here the cloud that was photographed high up in the sky, which Brother Branham saw in a vision on the 22nd of December 1962, and which then came down on the 28th of February 1963.

Here, in Life magazine, one of the best-selling weekly magazines like Stern or Spiegel magazine here in Germany—that’s what Life is in the USA.

It says here, “A high cloud, ring of mystery.”

Dr. James McDonald and others have been unable to explain it.

It was there, in that supernatural cloud, that Brother Branham was told, “Return to Jeffersonville, for the time to open the seven seals has come.”

Ladies and gentlemen, we have written about this, there is literature on the subject. You can read up on it at your leisure, and then you will have the opportunity to criticize and object vigorously, and you will also have the opportunity to believe wholeheartedly and to give thanks to God.

What anyone chooses to do is up to each of us.

For my part, I would like to be able to face you all on the day of judgment with a clear conscience.

I would like to be able to say that on that day I did not fail to make use of this brief time to tell you briefly what God has done and what he is doing in these days.

One can only say, Hebrews 13:8:

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

I would urge you not to be put off by the simplicity of this American citizen.

Over there, everyone wore white suits in the summer; he did the same, not as conservatively as we are.

But it is not the outward appearance that matters, but what God has placed within this man.

Truly, he was a man sent by God with God’s message to God’s people in these days. Whoever is of God hears the voice of God. [Jn 8:47]

And from today onwards, you too will take upon yourselves a sacred obligation to study the Word, the Holy Scriptures, to ask God to open your understanding, to grant you clarity, to bless you, and to include you in his plan, in the completion that is now taking place.

Before the rapture of the church, it must be called out, prepared, and made complete, so that when the Lord comes, it may be transformed to enter with him into glory.

May this day bear fruit for eternity in all of us. May God bless us. Let us rise for prayer.

As we bow our heads, I would like to ask right now whether there are any here who truly wish to dedicate their lives to God, who have simply realized that it is not a man speaking to us, but only the Word being passed on, and that it is the Lord who has spoken to us today.

Let us now stand before the Lord, dedicate ourselves to him, and ask him to be with us.

Lord our God, we thank you with all our hearts and with all our souls for the great privilege of having been able to recognize you and your work during these days.

We thank you that we may share in what is now taking place through you.

We thank you for your precious and holy Word.

We thank you for the redemption that took place on Golgotha, for the new eternal life that you have graciously bestowed upon us.

Beloved Lord, have mercy on us all and be gracious to us. Grant us space for repentance and conversion, that we may turn to you, and you will cast none out but accept us all, forgive us, and bless us.

Beloved Lord, be with us now as we watch this film, speak to our hearts, and bless us, in Jesus’ name. Amen.