In 1933 as he was baptizing some new converts in the Ohio river, a bright light appeared over them and he said that he heard a voice from Heaven say to him, "as John the Baptist fore-ran the first coming of Christ, your message will fore-run His second coming." He didn't mention this right away to anyone, but some 20 years later he first mentioned it in one of his meetings.
Now we know by studying God's Word that He uses signs to get the people's attention so they will accept His Word. The signs that were in operation during William Branham's meetings were used to vindicate that his healing ministry was from God, to get the people to believe and accept their healing.
William Branham's ministry of Divine Healing was very successful and through his ministry God did heal many persons and many more were converted. But as hard as William Branham worked and preached, the message that he attempted to convey to the people was not understood.
Because of this William Branham prophesied that the foundation he had laid with his ministry would continue with another person after he was gone. This he also told the people, but they didn't hear him. Because they failed to hear him and understand his message and his prophecy, most of those that followed him believe that his was the last prophetic ministry that would come to the Gentiles in this age.
William Branham's ministry continued until December of 1965, when he was involved in an automobile accident and subsequently died as a result of his injuries. Most of William Branham's sermons were taped and are being distributed, both in tape and book form and are the basis of what is known as "The Message of the Hour" which his followers use as a basis for their Church doctrine, similar to the basic doctrines that other churches use to identify their respective groups, faiths or denominations.
William Branham made some statements, that his Church just would not accept. Just as he made some prophesies for the future which they didn't want to believe, so they shut their minds to them, saying that they were not actually prophesies from the Lord because he (William Branham) didn't say the words "Thus saith the Lord" at the time.
Just to make one example; his Church was convinced that he was the seventh Church Age Messenger. But when they added his name along with the Messengers of the other six Church Age Messengers, he had it removed. William Branham didn't believe that he was the Messenger to the seventh Church Age, for he said to his Church many times: "there is a Messenger coming after me, he has the last message".
During the last few years of his ministry, William Branham said: "God has promised Malachi 4 for this last day, and Malachi 4 has not been fulfilled". He continued to say again in March of 1963: "There is to be a coming of the true spirit of Elijah, we may be laying a foundation for it now". He went on to say: "Maybe this ministry that I have tried to take people back to the Word has laid a foundation; and if it has, I'll be leaving you for good. There won't be two of us here at the same time. But I have been privileged by God to look and see what it was ... unfold to that much ... Now that is the truth."
In August of 1965, William Branham said: "I'm only building. The hour is close at hand when you're going to see something happen, when something is going to take place. And all this background here has only been laying a foundation for a short, quick message that will shake the whole nations".
Then in November of 1965, just a few weeks before his death, he said: "The very word Prophet means that he is a revealer of the Word of God. And that's why today we're in such a need of this great person that's supposed to be sent to us in the form of the Prophet Elijah, because it'll be the revelation of God made known to us by vindication".
Throughout his ministry, William Branham kept telling the people, time after time, that someone was coming after him with the last message for the Age, but the people would not accept it. They just ignored what he said as not being a prophecy. They were convinced that William Branham was to forerun the second coming of Christ, just as John the Baptist forerun His first coming, but this is not what he said the Heavenly Voice told him. The Voice said that his message would be the fore runner, not him.
Then just a few weeks before his death, William Branham knowing that all things had not been restored, said: "Now we are closer than it seems to be. I may be building a platform for somebody else to step on. And if I'm laying a foundation that another shall stand upon, grant, Lord, that soon it'll happen, that the Word might be fulfilled".
The restoration must take place before the return of Christ, Jesus said so. And according to William Branham, it is not complete. If the faith of the people is to be restored to the same faith of our Apostolic Fathers, if the hearts of the children are to be turned back to the Fathers, if the Church is to be brought to the "unity of the faith", then we must accept the inspired Word of God exactly as it was given to the early Church, and not as it has been taught down through the years.
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