“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever.”

(Heb. 13:8)

Circular Letter March/April 2006

My beloved Brothers and Sisters far and near, I greet you cordially in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ with the Scripture from Rev. 4:11,

“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”

The chorus “Thou art worthy…” has become our favourite hymn, which we sing with all our hearts while we are worshipping God, our Lord. Truly, the Book with the seven Seals is no longer closed, its entire content has been revealed, even to the last chapter. The Lamb of God took the sins of the world upon Himself and was slain for us on the cross. By His blood the Redeemer has purchased His Own; He has called them out from all the nations and languages and made them kings and priests (Rev. 5:1-10; a. o.).

Since the opening of the Seals we have set foot upon the holy ground of revelation in a most marvellous way. Everything that God showed and revealed unto His servant John on the isle of Patmos is now accessible to all servants of the Lord. Brother Branham was the chosen vessel to whom the mysteries of the sealed Book were revealed in our time.

Peter was the man of the first hour with the special revelation of Jesus Christ, and he was given the keys of the kingdom of heaven (Mt. 16). He was found worthy to preach the first sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), the day the Church came into existence. The last sermon of any true servant of God must and will most certainly be as the first one was 2000 years ago in Jerusalem. Likewise will the last baptism be administered in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ and the gift of the Holy Spirit will be preached and experienced just as it was at the beginning (Acts 2:38-41; Acts 8:14-17; Acts 10:34-48; Acts 11:12-18; Acts 19:1-7). Before the Return of Jesus Christ, the complete restoration, whereby all things are gloriously returned to their original and rightful order, must be taught and experienced, according to the promise (Mal. 4:5-6; Mt. 17:11; Mk. 9:12; Acts 3:17-21; Jas. 5:7-11).

Paul was the man of the first hour to whom the whole counsel of God was revealed. All that has been revealed to the apostles and prophets is foreordained for all servants of Christ and the entire Church. Just as Paul was set as an apostle and teacher (2. Tim. 1:11), likewise will all servants of the Lord remain in the same doctrine of the apostles (Acts 2:42). They will not preach another gospel (2. Cor. 11:1-3; Gal. 1:1-12); they will testify solely to the pure Bible teachings and will keep them unadulterated (2. Cor. 4:1-6). The apostle collectively refers to all of the ministries ordained by God within the Church in this Scripture, “Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” (1. Cor. 4:1-2). Ever since the hidden mysteries in God’s plan of Salvation were revealed unto us, it has henceforth been our duty to be faithful stewards thereof and to correctly pass them on.

Unlike anyone else in our time, Brother Branham was able to show God’s people all the things that were revealed to Peter, Paul and John, in all their fullness. As a servant of God and a divinely authenticated prophet, he had been given the task to restore all things back to their original condition (Mt. 17:11; Mk. 9:12). All things, in doctrine and in practise, had to be rebuilt upon the original foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph. 2:20). Every servant of Christ in our time will be obedient and find his rightful place within the divine order of Salvation. He will carry out his ministry for the edification of the Church, until all of God’s children come into the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God (Eph. 4). The Bride Church must be joined to the bridegroom: He is the head and we are the members of His body. He wants to walk and dwell in the midst of His chosen and segregated people. For He is our God; and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. He is our Father and we are His sons and His daughters (2. Cor. 6:14-18).

It is no secret that all churches go their own ways and have their own teachings and traditions. Nevertheless, in February 2006 three thousand representatives of the 347 denominations gathered in the city of Porto Alegro (Brazil) to demonstrate their unity in multiplicity and to commune with the Pentecostal churches. However, we feel compelled to ask the question: What does the religious and political unification have to do with the divine unity in Jesus Christ? He said, “I in them, and thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one …” (Jn. 17:23). Unfortunately, within the worldly unity the following still applies, “I am in my church and you are in your church; I believe what I want and you believe what you want and thus we create the perfect unity in multiplicity.”

According to the promises in the Scriptures, the unification of the members of the body of Jesus Christ is now taking place by God’s gracious and supernatural intervention, like it did in the early church, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body …” (1. Cor. 12, from verse 13). The biblical baptism by the Holy Spirit is connected to the biblical water baptism of the believers (Acts 2:38-39; Acts 8:15-17; Acts 10:44-48; Acts 19:5-6). The original and only valid example set for us in apostolic times must forever remain the guideline for all doctrine and life in the one true Church.

On the other hand, we are now witnessing how, under the patronage of Rome, the predicted worldly, political, and religious unification of Europe is materialising before our very eyes in preparation for a world government. All the daughter churches are returning into the bosom of the mother church. God’s Word describes this union as “Babylon the Great”. The peace and unification process embraces all religions and cultures. Although we are fully aware of these developments, our main focus rests on what God has promised unto His Own for this time in His Word and what He is presently doing in their midst, namely to turn our hearts back to the faith of our fathers at the beginning, in teaching and in practise.

An inward reflection

The Circular Letter of December 2005 has been met with an unprecedented echo. Brothers and sisters around the globe have come to know what the following really means, “Know that the LORD is leading His saints in a marvellous way.” Many of them read for the first time how the faithful Lord has repeatedly given direct instructions with an audible, all-penetrating voice. It is an undeniable fact that by the apostolic-prophetic ministry of Brother Branham we have been introduced to the promised Word for this time. Thus we have been given the offer to partake in the most important part of the plan of Salvation. Why should the Redeemer not take care of the redeemed? Is He not still walking amidst the seven golden candlesticks? Are the elect no longer on this earth? Are they not hearing what the Spirit is saying unto the churches? What else does the Lord have on this earth besides the Church of the firstborn (Heb. 12:22-24), for which He gave His blood and life (1. Pt. 1:13-22)? The heavenly Bridegroom is now calling out His Bride worldwide and He will take her home very soon. Are not all religions and cultures taking their own road, which will inevitably lead them to perdition? Does not the whole world lie in wickedness, as the Apostle John wrote (1. Jn. 5:19)? Does not that statement about our Lord Jesus Christ still apply today, “This is the stone which was rejected of you builders, which is become the head of the corner …”? In which church is the following still being preached in regards to Jesus Christ, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved …” (Acts 4:11-12)?

Throughout all the ages the servants of God heard the voice of the Lord, they received revelations and directions and preached the true Word. The Lord spoke to Ezekiel about ninety times. I can point out the exact place and say, as Paul did, “Here it came to pass …” (Acts 22:6). And, like Paul, I can testify that I have heard the Voice of the Almighty in my mother tongue (Acts 26:14). It is noteworthy that the Lord always spoke each word noticeably clear and with great emphasis. However, I do understand why some people have trouble believing it, because there are indeed many made-up and fantastic stories in circulation. When, for instance, a preacher states, “I believe the Lord has also spoken to me …”, then even his choice of words shows that it is merely an assumption or wishful thinking, revealing that it did not really happen.

Just like it is with everything else, even when it comes to this subject matter there are some well-meant, but nonetheless misleading, imitations and deceptions. A sister came to me after she heard that the Lord had spoken to me with an audible voice and said, “Brother Frank, I believe it, because the Lord also spoke to me with a very loud voice.” I asked her, “Did the voice come from above? Was it a male voice?” “No,” she answered, “the voice was directly in front of me.” When I asked her to describe precisely how it happened, she said, “I prophesied aloud. That was the voice of the Lord! When someone prophesies it is Thus saith the Lord.” I had to explain to that dear sister that a prophecy is spoken with the voice of that particular individual, whereupon we are required to verify the source of the inspiration. That, however, has nothing in common with the audible voice of the Lord.

There are deceptions in the spiritual realm which can never be made right. A tragic example: In January 2006 a brother came to me after he had read the Circular Letter and said, “Ten years ago yesterday, in January 1996, the voice of God was supposed to have spoken the following words very loud and clear, ‘Because you did not separate from him then, I now separate you from him and you shall live.’” With that statement a mother called upon her daughter to legally separate from her husband, so that she would be healed of her cancer. When did God ever demand such a prerequisite for any healing? Scripture teaches that by His stripes we are healed (Isa. 53; a. o.)

The divorce proceedings were set in motion by the solicitor, but the husband did not agree to the divorce and refused to appear in court in November 1997, and the woman died that December without reconciliation. Ever since then the following accusation is being made: Her husband is responsible for her death, because he refused to get divorced as that “voice” had demanded. Indeed, the devil could not have concocted a more evil scheme. Divorce is Satan’s work of destruction and brings unspeakable sorrow to the entire family. How could that possibly contribute to any healing? According to Malachi 2:16 it is an act of violence – which is then covered up with a religious garment! Even in the Old Testament God only allowed the man to give his wife a writ of divorcement under certain circumstances, but He never allowed a woman to present divorce papers to her husband. It is highly recommended that all who respect the ministry of Brother Branham carefully read what was revealed to him by God about the subject of »marriage« and to apply it personally in harmony with the Scriptures.

Satan, the seducer, turned Eve’s head in the Garden of Eden and thereby managed to plant a seed of doubt about the Word of God. There are false prophecies and also false visions, wherein everything is tailored to fit the situation (Jer. 23; Ezek. 13; a.o.). The people that have fallen prey to this false inspiration can be deadly serious and mean well in their own way, but once they yield to their self-will they place themselves under the influence of the one who once was closest to God. The anointed cherub, the son of the morning said to himself, “I will exalt myself … I will … I will …” (Isa.14:12-14). The self-exaltation, the will to reign, to establish his own throne, the desire to be equal to God resulted in the actual fall. The fall in heaven was followed by the fall into the original sin on earth. Satan, the once anointed cherub, entangled Eve by using the charms of the serpent, giving an unctuous speech about what God had said. He seduced her to give in to her self-will. Among believers there is no greater deception than twisting the Word according to one’s own discretion.

The true Church remains the battleground where the spiritual fight continues to rage. The real thing and the deception are in very close proximity to each other. That especially reminds us of what happened here in 1979. One other remarkable case should be mentioned. During a prayer meeting back then, one sister by prophecy called another sister by name to come to the front to be prayed for, in order to receive her deliverance. Instead of the called sister her husband came forward and declared that his wife couldn’t possibly comply because she was out of town. Would this not have been the right moment for the prophetess to come to the front to be prayed for, so that she might be delivered of the spirit which had enticed her?

People who yield to their own spirit and the ones who also allow themselves to become enticed by them – which, unfortunately, happens all the time – find it particularly difficult to believe the truth. Since they did indeed once experience the true anointing and receive the gifts of the Spirit, their pride does not allow them to confess their guilt. They call all the others to repentance, but they themselves do not even give a thought to self-examination, because they think they are infallible in the spiritual realm. However, Scripture clearly teaches to “Prove all things!” Even prophets should be judged by the congregation (1. Cor. 14:29). Sadly, those people do not submit to that test by the congregation, instead they leave the church because – from their twisted point of view – there is something wrong with it. They simply leave the assembly and openly scorn it after they caused disaster therein. It is very obvious that whatever originates with the enemy brings forth only discord and enmity which will last a lifetime, unless God intervenes by His grace. In the lives of the truly redeemed we find manifested that Jesus Christ did not only conquer the enmity on Calvary, but also within them. By grace He has transformed them into peacemakers (Eph. 2:1-22).

The sad part is that people fall under the direct spell of Satan in both cases: by a false prophecy or by a false teaching, for both are inspirations. A lie binds, only the truth sets free. Those people cannot be delivered unless they admit the error of their ways and ask to be set free by prayer in the Name of Jesus Christ, according to the Word, “Whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven…” (Mt. 18). Our Lord also speaks of false Christs – false anointed ones who can easily manage to deceive everyone, with the exception of the elect. Our Lord gives us this urgent warning for the present time, “Take heed that no man deceive you.” (Mt. 24:4). That, too, is happening before our very eyes. The anointing and the gifts of the Spirit of some charismatic personalities impress the people and their unctuous words deceive them. Without an anointing it would be nearly impossible to commit this religious fraud among believers. After hearing the crystal clear proclamation of the Word, we furthermore have the right to the crystal clear working of the Holy Spirit.

The Focus on Islam

The events of September 11th, 2001, when 19 Islamic fanatics carried out their supposed “holy” mission and after cutting the throats of the US-pilots flew the hijacked aircrafts straight into the towers of the New York World Trade Center, were a rude awakening for the Western World and caused them to take a closer look at the religion of the “prophet” Mohammed. About three thousand people perished and the US-government decided to take up the fight against terrorism. Regrettably, on account of their noble mission the USA is now responsible for igniting even more terrorism and is sadly disregarding the human rights and national laws of the people caught in the crossfire.

There are the many different Islamic-Arabic terrorist organisations as well as all the other various non-Arabic, but Islamic, terrorist groups which are active in many countries, reaching as far as the Philippines. Our main objective is to illuminate the historic background for the deadly hatred against the Jews and the fanaticism driving this religion. In 1982, during a stay in Egypt, I read the entire Koran with all its 114 surahs. The people I met in Cairo and Alexandria were very loving and caring. The hospitality which they extended to me was overwhelming. When I was reading the Koran, I realised that no part of it is in agreement with the Old Testament or with the New Testament. Furthermore, I was unable to find any information about what might have offended Mohammed and caused him to develop such a deep-seated hatred against the Jews in particular. In surah 5:19 it even states in regards to Israel, therein called the “people of the book”, “… Enter into the Holy Land which God has ordained for you.” How can any Islamic statesman now declare that Israel has no right to exist in its own country of Israel?

Only after reading the introduction to the Koran and other books about Islam and the “prophet” Mohammed, I discovered the roots of this hatred. Mohammed could neither read nor write; therefore he was dependent upon what he already knew and upon what others were saying. He abhorred the idea from the world’s Christianity, which states that God has a son in heaven, and considered it a blasphemy. Therefore he paid no attention to the Christians. They were scattered all over and posed no threat to him.

The situation with the Jews, who dwelled as a community in Yatrib/Medina, was a very different one. The main expectation among them was the coming of the prophet Elijah, who was to arrive before the day of judgement. This thought made an impression on Mohammed and he could not get it out of his mind. Inspired by this, he went into the cave of Mount Hirá, which is located about five kilometres north of Mecca. There he heard a strange voice saying, “Read!” He answered, “I cannot read!” And again, “Read!” “I cannot read.” Then he went up the mountain and there the voice said, “O Mohammed, you are Allah’s messenger and I am Gabriel.” He looked up and supposedly saw an angel in the sky that had spread his wings over the earth. The fact of the matter is that angels do not have wings, only cherubim and seraphim have them. Gabriel and Michael appear in the likeness of a man, as we find confirmed many times in the Holy Scriptures.

From that day on he felt he had been called to be the last prophet, through whom the final revelation was to be given to mankind. This developed into the notion that all others, the various Arabic tribes as well as the Christians and the Jews, had to submit to this last message from above. Even until today this has remained as the basic idea of the believers of Islam. They consider it a blasphemy when someone dares to resist this final revelation, which Gabriel himself – as they claim – has given to Allah’s messenger.

When the Jews in Yatrib/Medina did not receive Mohammed as their promised prophet, he was so offended that in the year 627 he called upon all the fighters, who then conquered the Jewish settlement and slaughtered the entire male population (about eight hundred men) and carried off the women and children. Since then this »jihad« has taken its course and today it is keeping the world in suspense.

The religion of Islam requires total devotion and submission of soul, spirit, and body. To this day the hatred is first and foremost directed against Israel, which the Islamic world calls “Satan”, and then towards all those who acknowledge the state of Israel, especially the USA. The recently released cartoon drawings depicting Mohammed are serving as an eagerly welcomed excuse for those who wish to fuel the hatred.

The objective of the religion of Islam remains the same, namely for the half-moon to turn into a full-moon upon subjection of the whole world to Islam. The publishing of the twelve caricatures has fanned the flame of »jihad« into an alarming wildfire. The “holy war” continues and on account of this even a new word was invented for Europe – »Eurabia«. The Western World is gripped by fear and they are doing everything they can to appease the radical Muslims. For this reason the British airline even imposed a ban that nobody who flies to Saudi Arabia with BA is allowed to bring a Bible on board.

Now more than ever, our main focus is on the Near and Middle East: Israel, Syria, Iraq, and more recently Iran. As we can gather from the news and press releases, Russia in particular and also China are taking sides with the Islamic world and are trying to take on the role of mediator in order to gain control. At this time we will not go into further details of Bible prophecy, which speaks of the nations of the North and East – in relation to Israel –, but the current activities are perfectly falling into place with the end-time events.

The radical Islamic President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has publicly expressed his hatred towards Israel several times. He has even gone so far as to deny the holocaust with the remark: If the Jews would have been gassed, then they would not be here now.

At the memorial site Yad Vashem in Jerusalem the individual death camps and all the people who were murdered and burnt there are listed by name and in total numbers. The SS-myrmidons themselves were, of course, keeping a detailed account of their atrocities in every camp. This is not fiction; the information in the recovered documents proves without a doubt that about a third of the European Jews were killed in the “Third Reich” in the cruellest ways. Why the negation of the holocaust should now serve as the reason to deny Israel its right to existence does not make sense to anyone who is of sound mind. It is just further proof that the enemies of Israel will resort to any means necessary to fuel even more hatred.

God Himself gave the promise to Israel in Amos 9:14-15, which has indeed been fulfilled before our eyes, “… And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.” For those who have scattered His people and divided His land He announces the following judgement: “…and I will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.” (Amos 3:2). How this judgement shall come to pass when all the surrounding nations gather against Israel is described several times in God’s Word (Ezek. 38; Joel 4:9-17; Zech. 14:12-21; Rev. 19:11-21).

Revelation 9:13-19 speaks of the four judgement angels that are bound at the river Euphrates and are waiting for the hour, day, month and year to slay the third part of mankind. The stage for this is now being prepared and, without creating a doomsday atmosphere, we may very clearly declare, “Lift up your heads, for your redemption is drawing near!” The Return of Jesus Christ truly is close at hand. What God said to Abraham remains forever true and all the religions and cultures should take it to heart, “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Gen.12:3). Also unchanged is what He said in view of Israel, His people, “…for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye!” (Zech.2:8).

Summary

Hear this, all ye nations: The one and only true, living God has not revealed Himself in any of the many religions on earth, He only and exclusively revealed Himself as Father in heaven in His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and thus became our Saviour. God was in Christ and reconciled the world unto Himself. Jesus Christ is the personal reconciliation, in Him alone do we have the forgiveness of our sins. Only He conquered death and hell and granted eternal life to those who believe in Him. Therefore the testimony of the Holy Scripture is this, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” (Jn. 3:36).

Mankind must be told the plain truth in this respect. Therefore the everlasting Gospel of the Kingdom of God must now be proclaimed to all nations as a witness (Mt. 24:14).

Blessed are those who heed God’s call and turn away from all empty religious activities, separate themselves from all the inherited traditions and in obedience return to the true, living faith taught by the Scriptures. For thus saith the Lord: “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” (Isa. 45:22). Again the Lord saith, “… To day if ye will hear His voice, Harden not your hearts …” (Heb. 3:7-8).

Final Note

Ministering brethren from all over the world have expressed their confidence towards this ministry and have sent in questions in regards to the various statements Brother Branham made. God willing, I shall publish the questions and answers in a separate brochure as soon as possible.

The predominant question seems to be whether there will be a time span of three and a half or seven years between the Rapture and the beginning of the Millennial reign. As an initial response I would like to publish in this Circular Letter the drawing made by Brother Branham himself, which I personally brought back with me from Jeffersonville. The written clarification will be included with the answers to all the other questions.

Senseless questions, like the one about a dove emerging from the grave’s pyramid in Jeffersonville, or whether the colours of the rainbow were supernaturally illuminating the mountain which seems to display the profile of a man, I am obviously not going to deal with.

Missionary trips

By God’s grace I am still physically able to continue with the ministry into all the world as in the past forty years. I am confident that the eight special meetings, which I was finally able to arrange in Pakistan after a nine-year wait, will indeed produce spiritual fruit for eternity. On Friday, March 10th, 2006, about three thousand people gathered in the city of Lahore for an outside meeting, under police protection because of the religious unrest in the country. The true Word of God is going forth into all the world and the last ones are being called out.

My dearly beloved Brothers and Sisters, I would like to express my gratitude for your faithful support of this worldwide mission work and sincerely thank you for remembering me in your daily prayers, which accompany me wherever I go.

By His commission￼

Mission Center

P. O. Box 100707

47707 Krefeld

Germany

Phone: +49-2151-545151

Fax: +49-2151-951293

E-mail: volksmission@gmx.de or

E.Frank@freie-volksmission.de

Homepage: http://www.freie-volksmission.de

© by the author and publisher E. Frank