Q & A - Church Order
Questions 221 (COD Page 875)
Is it sufficient to say openly from the pulpit that tongues and interpretations should be done in a meeting before the service?
That’s the second question on this slip of paper that I have here, which is a little card.
16 Now, this would be pertaining to the pastor here, see. Because he–he, after all, over the spiritual part, he’s the head of that. Deacons are policemen in the church, to keep order and to take care of these things, and feeding the poor, and so forth. The trustees are over the finance and the building; that’s what they are to look after. But the pastor is over the–the supervising of the spiritual part, and this would go to you, Brother Neville.
17 Now, there...sometime ago when the order was set, the church. I do believe in speaking in tongues, and interpretation, and all the fine spiritual gifts that’s ordained of God to be in the church. But we are living in a day just like it was in the Bible time, where the churches...Now, you notice Paul, he founded the church at Ephesus, the Ephesian church, which was a well-established church. Did you notice? We believe that Paul, and did say so himself, that he spoke with many tongues, and we know that he had gifts of tongues. Not ones that he had learned, but those who were spiritually given to him, because how he speaks it in Corinthians there. And to save time, I’m not just turning in the Bible and reading it for you, because it would make our–our stay here too long tonight, as I don’t have too much time. And now...but just so that you could openly see.
18 Now, Paul never one time had to speak to the Ephesian church or to the Roman church, or any of those other churches, about their spiritual gifts, about how to put them in order. But he did have to speak to the Corinthians continually about it, because they made it an issue all the time. And Paul said, when he come among them, if they found out that one had a tongue and one had a psalm, and he thanked the Lord for all their fine gifts and things like that. And if you’ll notice in the first chapter or two of Corinthians, Paul was
telling them, positionally, what they were in Christ, how he...they were positionally in Christ.
19 Then after he told them, then like a father he begin to let the whip down on them, and say, “I hear there’s contentions among you, and I hear that you get drunk at the Lord’s table.” He didn’t unchristianize them; and don’t you brethren do that, unchristianize them, but it’s the way they’re behaving themselves in the house of God. That’s where it’s at.
20 Now, I would say this, that as Paul of old said, that, “When you come together, if one speaks, let another one interpret. There be no interpreter, then hold your peace. But if there be an interpreter...”
21 Now, I’ve watched the church here, and I’ve seen you grow up, and I’ve seen many spiritual gifts operating among you. Frankly, one I had to come to Brother Neville about with a Word from the Lord, to correct him on something that he was doing.
22 And if I...if the Lord has...The Holy Ghost has made me a overseer of the Flock, then it’s my duty to tell you the Truth. And I’m very grateful to Brother Neville, he heeded to the Truth. I can only say It as He tells me.
23 Now, on this, as I have noticed your church growing, and noticed it. And in the church, here’s the way we had it first, and this is the way we–we want it again.
24 Now, if you don’t watch, when babies...The first thing a baby does is try to talk when he can’t talk. See? He makes a lot of bubble, and noise, and–and so forth, but he thinks he’s just...he can out-talk the preacher at that time. Well, we find that not only in the natural life, but we find that in the spiritual life also. It’s a little one. And if you try to correct that baby and spank him a little bit because he’s “gooing” and trying to talk, you’ll ruin the child. See, and you’ll hurt him. And it’s best to let that baby grow a little while until he actually can speak his words right, and then tell him when. “Not when papa’s talking or when mama’s talking.” But when it’s appropriate time, let him have his say. Do you understand me? Now, let him talk when his time comes to talk.
25 Now, if I’ve ever had anything that’s been a thorn in my flesh, out in the meeting, it’s someone to rise up when I’m speaking and then give a message in tongues and break the Spirit. I just come out of a meeting in New York and different places to where ministers let that go on, time after time, and it’s nothing but–but a confusion. See, when God is dealing in one line of thought, He...it would be–it would...He would be defeating His Own purpose, if He’s trying to get a line of thought to you, to the congregation, to make an altar call and something butt in.
26 For instance, like this. We’re setting at the table, talking, and we’re talking about the Lord. And junior runs in to the table, real quick, takes all the attention away from what we’re doing, and is, hollers, scream out, “Dad! Mom! My! My! I just hit a home run down at the team! And we doing all this, that, and the other!” And when we were right on a real right-down sacred subject. Now, him hitting a home run, that’s all right; at the baseball game, that’s all right. But he’s out of order when he breaks in on the message that we’re talking about. Let him wait till his time comes and then tell us what he did at the baseball game.
27 Now, that’s just the same thing we find with gifts today. That’s the reason God cannot trust too many spiritual gifts with people, they don’t know how to control them. That’s what’s the matter today, the reason we don’t have no more than we do.
28 And we do find there’s a lot of impersonation of spiritual gifts. But I don’t believe that’s so here in our church. I’m thankful for that. I don’t believe it’s an impersonation at all. I believe we have genuine gifts, but we must know how to control those gifts.
29 And then when you go to doing something good...Just like you was working for a boss and you started out on the first of your job and you’re willing to take orders, then the boss has confidence in you and will keep raising you up to a higher office all the time.
30 Now, I believe that time has struck the Branham Tabernacle, to know what...to take the gifts that God gives us, that God can trust us with something even greater than what we have got. But we cannot go along...and you see a man that’s always have to be tell him and everything. And remember, “The spirit of the prophets is subject to the prophet,” says the Scripture. When you see a man that you have to correct, or a woman, and that person gets out of order, and then you’re telling him the Scriptural Truth, then it shows that the spirit that’s on them isn’t of God. Because the Bible said, “The spirit of the prophets,” or, “prophesying,” that’s, testifying, preaching, speaking in tongues, or whatever it is, ’cause tongues interpreted is prophecy. So it’s subject to the prophet, and the Word is the prophet. So we–we see that it’s out of order for a man or a woman to jump up and give a message, no matter how much they want to do it, while the preacher is in the pulpit.
31 Now I suggest this for the Branham Tabernacle, that being that our–our gifts that we find...And we have some very fine gifted people here. Now, each one of those gifts are a ministry of their own. They are gifts, just like preaching is a gift, like healing is a gift, like other things are gifts, these are gifts, they are ministries of their own. And each man is commanded to wait on his own ministry.
32 Therefore let the Branham Tabernacle be operated like this, and in the day, especially this day when we’ve had so much (I don’t want to say this, but), so much make-belief. We don’t want make-belief. No man, no honest person wants to have a make-belief. We...If we don’t...can’t have the real, let’s not have any at all, let’s wait till we do get the real. Now, I believe you–you men would agree with that. We don’t want nothing make-belief. Brethren, we can’t start on make-belief something and leaving this world. We got to have what’s real, and what’s genuine. If we haven’t got it, let’s wait till we do get it, and then say something about it. See?
33 Now, I would say, let all these men and women who speak in tongues, and prophesy, and give messages...And I’m–I’m believing with you men that they are genuine. Now, the Bible has said, “Prove all things; and hold fast to that what’s good.” “For with stammering lips and other tongues will I speak to this people, this is the rest that I said that they should enter into,” in over in the Book of Isaiah.
34 Now, I would suggest this so that the sanctuary will only be ministered by one gift at a time, for it brings us straight back in order again of what I’m trying to say: if one’s speaking, let the spirit of the prophets be subject to the prophet. Do you understand? Now, let those who have a ministry to the Body of Christ...And now it’s being said, now let it be done. Let those who have a ministry to the Body of Christ wait on their ministry, because it is a ministry from Christ to the church. But you can’t all minister the same time, there’s got to be one at a time.
35 The Branham Tabernacle shall be like this. Let those who speak with tongues, and those who interpret tongues, and those have prophecy that’s to be given to the church, let them come among themselves early in the...before the meeting starts, let them gather in an appointed room, and wait on the ministry of the Lord.
36 As the pastor has to do himself before he comes into the audience; he must take the Bible, study in the quietness of his room, in the Spirit, and be anointed to come out before the audience to speak. If he doesn’t, he’s going to be confused when he gets out there. (Let each man and each woman, with a spiritual gift, come before the Lord.) And being that the pastor has a single ministry, he is a prophet; the English word, a preacher, means “a prophet,” that’s a forth-teller of the Word.
37 Let those who have ministries that has to be part of someone else, like one to speak with tongues and another to interpret, they wait together on their ministry. They cannot stay in a private study and speak in tongues and then come tell the other one what he said, because he’d have both tongues and interpretation. See? Now, if he has that, very well, we want to receive it like that. And we want the church to benefit by these gifts that’s in our church. God sent them to us, and it’s...we want our church to benefit by these spiritual gifts.
So let the man who speaks with tongues, and the one who interprets, and the one who prophesies, let them come together before the–the church ever meets. Let them meet in a room to themselves, waiting on the ministry of the Lord to the church. Is it understood?
38 And then, like this, if Brother Neville, say, well, now let me, pardon me, let me say this: If Brother Collins speaks with tongues and Brother Hickerson gives the interpretation, then they have a ministry together for the church. Now, that isn’t the ministry of Brother Neville; that’s your ministry to the church. I’m giving this as example. Then you brethren should be just as interested in getting your ministry in the place in the house of God as the pastor is interested in getting his, because it’s just as essential that you do it. But you can’t do it in the privacy of your own room, if you speak and you interpret, you’ve got to come together. Now, come together in the church, off in a room to yourself, because you have a private ministry. It’s not an openly ministry, it’s one that’s to help the church. See? It’s something to help the church, but it isn’t to be done in the main congregation, only the way I’m going to tell you it is to be done. See? Then, whatever Brother Collins speaks, and Brother Hickerson gives the interpretation, as example, then let Brother Somebody write this down, what it is. And then if it’s coming...
<39 Now, we all know that the Lord is coming, we’re aware of that. And if Brother Neville got up each night and said, “Behold, the Lord is coming! Behold, the Lord is coming!” that would be all right, see. But he’s saying that (the pastor) at the platform, for he’s got the Word for that. And if he be a pastor, prophet to the church...or a pastor, rather, he’s to study the Word of the Lord and tell you what’s written in the Word of the Lord about the coming of the Lord, and you’re warned by that. A ministry otherwise (to the church) which he wouldn’t have any connection with, is tongues, interpretation of tongues (which is prophecy), or a prophet speaking, that’s something that’s not written in the Word. What’s written in the Word, he’s to bring it; but what’s not written in the Word, is what you’re to tell him. Like, for instance, “Tell Brother Wheeler, THUS SAITH THE LORD, ‘Tomorrow, in his sand pit, not to go to it, because there’ll be a truck turn over,’” or something like that, and it’s got to be done. And you’ve spoke it and he’s interpreted it, and then lay that on the platform after your ministry is finished, then, in the night, after the church (the hymn) start singing and so forth; if your ministry is finished then, let them come forth with what prophecy has been given.
40 And I do not think that we have...Or if you do, put this in there. When these people meet together, let them who have wisdom first come. Because, you see, if one speaks in tongues and gives an interpretation according to Scripture, that cannot be received unless it be witnessed by two or three people, two or three more witnesses, see, has to witness to that, that they believe it to be the Word of the Lord. Because...And sometimes in these minor ministries, just like in any other ministry, you get spirits that’s wrong; see, they’ll fly in there. And we don’t want that. No. We want these ministries ready to be exposed if they’re to be exposed, because anything of God can...you don’t worry about exposing it, I mean, it’ll–it’ll stand the test, if it’s of God.
41 Just like the pastor, if somebody challenges him on the Word, he don’t have to back up about it, he knows just exactly what he’s talking to, “Come on up here.” See? And same as these other ministries, got to be the same way.
42 Now, if–if one speaks in tongues and gives a message...Now, some people speak in tongues when they’re just “edifying themselves,” the Bible said, they just have a good time. They speak in tongues, they feel. And they do speak in tongues, they actually speak with tongues, and it’s the Spirit doing it. But if it’s setting out there in the audience, speaking in tongues, just edifying themselves, then it isn’t any profitable thing for the church; the man’s edifying himself, or the woman, or whoever’s doing it. See?
43 To speak in tongues is a gift of God to edification, as Paul says in the Scripture, that it’s to edify the church. So it had to be some direct message from God to the church, outside of what’s wrote here in the Bible. See? It’s something that...
44 If you could ask me, “Brother Branham, how must I be baptized?” I can tell you right quick. You don’t have to speak in tongues and tell me that, it’s wrote right here in the Bible what to do about that. See? I don’t have to...you don’t have to ask no questions on that and have somebody speak in tongues and tell you. See, that’s already written.
45 But if you say, “Brother Branham, what must I do? I’ve got a decision here I’ve got to make whether I should take this church or go to another church,” or something like that. “Or should I do this, that?” Now, that’d have to come from God. See, God has to tell us that. But that would have to come through another ministry, ’cause the Word don’t say “Let Orman Neville leave Branham Tabernacle and go to the Fort Wayne Gospel Tabernacle.” See, it don’t say that in the Word here, see, so that’s what these gifts are for.
46 Like a person come up here and say, “Do you believe in Divine healing?” We preach that, we believe it, we believe in anointing, the oil.
47 But here’s some man says he “Can’t get through, what’s the matter?” Then it takes God, through tongues, interpretation, through prophecy, or some way to go down in that man’s life and pull out that thing that he’s done, and tell him about it. That’s a ministry that doesn’t belong to the pastor, it belongs to these ministering gifts, but they’re not to be done out there in the audience. See?
48 Now, Paul never one time had to tell those–tell those Ephesian church anything about that, they were in order, the Roman church, or none of those other churches; only the Corinthian church, and they never could get themselves...Now, Paul believed in speaking in tongues. He had speaking in tongues in the Ephesian church, the same as he did in the Corinthian church, see, but he could speak to the Ephesians greater things than what just speaking in tongues, interpreting of tongues.
49 Now, then if someone writes a message that’s been given in tongues or given in prophecy, and laid upon the platform, it must be read by the pastor before the service starts, of “THUS SAITH THE LORD” from these people who spoke and interpreted. And if that comes to pass exactly the way the interpretation said, we raise our hands and give thanks to God for His Spirit among us. If it doesn’t come to pass, then don’t do it anymore till that evil spirit’s out of you. God don’t lie, He’s always truth.
50 Then, you see, you’re old enough now to act like men, not children (“goo, goo, goo”), you got to have some meaning to something.
51 Let the church now, as it’s coming in order, come to this order. If one prophesied...If one come among you, unlearned, and you speak in tongues, you’ll be a barbarian to him, he don’t know what you’re talking about. See? And really in this day where there’s been so much confusion about it, it causes a stumbling block. But let one speak in tongues, and another interpret and give the message, and let it be read off right here at the platform, of what’s going to take place, and then let it happen, you see what happens. Tell them that “Tomorrow at a certain time, or next week at a certain time, it’s going to be a certain thing,” then let the unbeliever setting there listen to that and see it’s foretold before it happens. Then they’ll know what kind of spirit’s among you, it’ll be God’s Spirit. That’s what Paul said, “Then if one can prophesy and reveal the secret things, won’t the whole congregation fall down, or, the unbeliever, and say, ‘God is in the midst of you’?” See? Because it cannot be...
52 But now we don’t want... “When we was a child,” Paul said, “I acted like a child,” he told the Corinthians there, “I spoke like a child.” He had a child mind. “But when I become an adult, I put childish things away.”
53 Now, I’m telling you all, see. Now, a few years ago, you were children with these gifts, playing back and forth. But you’ve been to a long school now, it’s time to be men, not use these just to play with. These gifts, they’re sacred, they’re of God, and you don’t play with them. Let’s let God use them. That’s what your ministry wants to be. That’s the way to put the Branham Tabernacle in the service. And–and if this is questioned, anytime, let this tape stand as a witness that that’s the way it’s to be done in the Branham Tabernacle.
54 If there would be a stranger come in, cause you have them all the time, because this being an interdenominational tabernacle, there’s people come in that doesn’t have this well training, they don’t have it, they know no better. And their own pastor, they’ll jump right up and break his message up, and tear a altar call up, and speak in tongues and everything like that. You are better trained men than that. See? Then after the service, if he gets unruly, then it’s the deacon’s place to go to them. Don’t let your pastor have to do it unless it comes to a spot where there’s no deacon here, but a deacon is supposed to see to that. See?
55 Now, after the service...If the person just raises up and gives a message, the pastor, if he wants to stop just a minute and go ahead, very well, see, that’s up to the pastor. But then immediately let the deacon, before that person gets out of the building, take them to one side and talk to them about it. And if they question it, bring them to this tape and say, “This is what the bishop, or, the overseer of the church...” (Which is bishop, the...any overseer, see, that’s what it’s called in the Bible, “bishopric,” see, so that’s general overseer of the church.) “let... this is the orders and the way our church does it. Now, we love for you to come give your message. But if you’ve got a message from the Lord and it’s...let it be given, come up here and lay it on our platform, and our minister will read it to the congregation, a message to this congregation.” But it must not be just repeating Scriptures, and things like that. It must be a direct message to the people, of something that’s fixing to take place, or something they should do. Is it understood? All right.