Any William brahnam believers here?

[Anchris]

It's the group I grew up in.

 

[VanillaSunflowers]

Never heard of him but I sought out the name on YT.

Welcome to the community.

 

[Alithis]

It's the group I grew up in.

you grew up among the Branhamites?

 

[Deadworm]

I was born blind in my right eye due to glaucoma. My condition made my parents worry that I might become totally blind. They heard about Branham's miracle meetings, but they lived in Canada far from their locales. So though very poor at the time, they spent much of their savings to take me to Branham healing rallies in Elgin Illinois. Thousands attended these meetings; so it was hard to get in line and actually receive prayer, but my parents waited patiently until they succeeded in one meeting. Branham was psychic and told people facts about themselves that he had no natural way of knowing. He accurately described a scene in my parents lives and how they had been dressed at the time.

Then the big moment came. Branham read the card describing my one-eyed blindness and laid hands on me. I was only 3 at the time, but I have a dim memory of the occasion. Then he waved his hands over my eyes and I blinked. Branham shouted to the huge crowd that I had just been healed of blindness, and the crowd went berserk, shouting praises to God. But it was a complete fraud. I could see just fine out of my left eye and that is why blinked.

My parents had been strong believers in Christian faith healing and now were bitterly disillusioned. All that money spent and all that time for travel with nothing to show for it! I grew up feeling guilty for my parents' sorrow over my condition. As a toddler, I sometimes felt that they were sorry I had been born! The seed was sown in my very young heart of a fierce passion to get the bottom of the line between divine power and fraud in miracle claims. I think that was the impetus for my ultimate decision to get an MDiv from Princeton and a doctorate from Harvard in New Testament, Judaism, and Greco-Roman backgrounds.

Since then I have experienced marvelous answers to prayer during my career as a theology professor and a pastor. I continue to be fascinated with the line between latent psychic abilities and the gifts of the Spirit. And my sight has allowed me to live a normal life, driving a car, etc. I have since discovered other examples of ministers who use their clairvoyance to persuade people that God heals through them. And I'd wager that some people Branham prayed for really were healed in response to their faith. But fraud in this area has done grat harm to the cause of Christ.

 

[Alithis]

no one likes fraud .. none should promote putting your trust in a man either .


Were the claims that Jesus made the blind see fraud also ?

 

[tturt]

Anchris, welcome to the forums.

Deadworm's experience was awful, disastrous, and most unfortunate.

But I've been in healing services and know that some were healed and sometimes I was healed. I've read God's Generals and a book on Maria Woodworth-Etter. Wondering what was it like growing up in this group?

 

[Alithis]

Anchris, welcome to the forums.

Deadworm's experience was awful, disastrous, and most unfortunate.

But I've been in healing services and know that some were healed and sometimes I was healed. I've read God's Generals and a book on Maria Woodworth-Etter. Wondering what was it like growing up in this group?

this wont go down very popular but by the same reasoning of doubt in regard to deadworms tale ,one could reason that deadworms tale is a fraud ...after all we have only that post to go on. do not know the person nor the motive for posting it .
not saying it is ..just being fair "_

 

[tturt]

I don't know of a single ministry that's ever been discussed on these forums where there wasn't criticism.

As absolutely awful as Deadworm's report is, it's not for me to determine anything about it. Yahweh still could have healed folks and worked in their lives, etc.

Since Anchris was there, still think a first hand account would be interesting, could be learned from, etc.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

I don't know of a single ministry that's ever been discussed on these forums where there wasn't criticism.

Corrie ten Boom.

Tried, tested, and proven all her life- true testimony of Y'SHUA.

Most others named were men promoting men - test them each and every one before trusting or even accepting. Goodle specifially each one to see and compare who passes the tests and who does not.
(most never do).

After finding results, let it rest a while, and see what they themselves say themselves - the ones exposed always condemn themselves with their own words.
Their own words straight from their own teaching or their own testimony judges them guilty. (when they are guilty).

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

this wont go down very popular but by the same reasoning of doubt in regard to deadworms tale ,one could reason that deadworms tale is a fraud ...after all we have only that post to go on. do not know the person nor the motive for posting it .
not saying it is ..just being fair "_

see above post.
test and keep testing, or waiting on YHWH, until proven.

 

[RodofMoses]

Branham was psychic and told people facts about themselves that he had no natural way of knowing. He accurately described a scene in my parents lives and how they had been dressed at the time.

That's a ridiculous statement.
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Heb 4:12

William Branham was simply a gifted man of God.

He was not Elijah and he never claimed he was. There was a group of people who decided he was 'Elijah' returned in the flesh and when Branham heard about it he became very upset and he announced publicly during a service that the lie upset him so much that he even thought about killing himself because it didn't glorify God. I read the transcript of that service where he addressed the people.

I'm sorry that you did not receive healing in that service. However, if what you described actually happened and is a true account and you remember it correctly at that young an age, you need to remember that people and giftings are not perfect.

When William Branham was teaching a revelation God had given him about the 7 Spirits of God, it is documented and witnessed by the congregation he was teaching that the hand of God showed up during that service to confirm the truth that was being taught as a fire of the Holy Spirit and all in the room saw it. Each one bore witness and there were many visiting. It was not a demonic event.

 

[RodofMoses]

this wont go down very popular but by the same reasoning of doubt in regard to deadworms tale ,one could reason that deadworms tale is a fraud ...after all we have only that post to go on. do not know the person nor the motive for posting it .
not saying it is ..just being fair "_

That's sort of what I was thinking myself.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

he announced publicly during a service that the lie upset him so much that he even thought about killing himself because it didn't glorify God. I read the transcript of that service where he addressed the people.

This pretty much clinches what others have already said, eh?
i.e. not by itself, but with all the other 'evidence'....

 

[RodofMoses]

- test them each and every one before trusting or even accepting. Goodle specifially each one to see and compare who passes the tests and who does not.
(most never do).

This is not wisdom.
Googling anyone in ministry will usually bring up negative testimony about them. You cannot rely on what other people say about another person. The only way to truly know if a minister is from God is by listening to them yourself. But you will not be able to know anything if you do not have discernment. The gift of discernment is missing amongst too many who claim to be Christians, instead they have the gift of being "judgmental" (picking apart people's words and making them an offender).

Remember that the enemy had the Pharisees pay the guards to say the disciples stole Jesus' body. This sort of thing (false negative testimonies) still happen today.

1. Ask God for a pure heart and the gift of discernment
2. Go to the source and determine via the Spirit of God for yourself who is true and who is not

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

Googling anyone in ministry will usually bring up negative testimony about them.

Test everything.
You did not do what I posted either.

Google Corrie ten Boom. There are few who come out clean.

If anything comes up on anyone, continue testing until you find out what the person actually did or said themselves(the one being tested).

 

[Deadworm]

RodofMoses: "William Branham was simply a gifted man of God...However, if what you described actually happened and is a true account and you remember it correctly at that young an age, you need to remember that people and giftings are not perfect."

Now it is you who are guilty of willful distortion. First, my parents passionately believed in Branham until they witnessed his duplicity in person. Second, they clearly explained that I was blind in only one eye. Therefore, his act of making me blink and declaring me cured of total blindness was fraudulent. Third, yes, I do remember the incident, but as a toddler, I didn't grasp the incident at the time. It was my parents who grasped the deliberate fraud and thus were profoundly disillusioned. They never viewed faith healers the same way after that.

 

[Alithis]

RodofMoses: "William Branham was simply a gifted man of God...However, if what you described actually happened and is a true account and you remember it correctly at that young an age, you need to remember that people and giftings are not perfect."

Now it is you who are guilty of willful distortion. First, my parents passionately believed in Branham until they witnessed his duplicity in person. Second, they clearly explained that I was blind in only one eye. Therefore, his act of making me blink and declaring me cured of total blindness was fraudulent. Third, yes, I do remember the incident, but as a toddler, I didn't grasp the incident at the time. It was my parents who grasped the deliberate fraud and thus were profoundly disillusioned. They never viewed faith healers the same way after that.

How do you know he did not fully believe at that moment that you were healed? Could he hop in your head and look out your eyes ? many were certainly healed ,so why would he think otherwise in your case ?

i can't say he was not fraudulent, but i cant say he was either , neither can you .

 

[tturt]

Just because he knew facts about people's lives doesn't necessarily mean he was psychic. Taking psychic to mean ungodly.

Are you familiar with words of wisdom and words of knowledge? I Cor 12 states these manifestations are of The Holy Spirit. Of course, the key is the source of the information and its purpose. Also, it would need to be within Biblical information.

 

[ToBeLoved]

How do you know he did not fully believe at that moment that you were healed? Could he hop in your head and look out your eyes ? many were certainly healed ,so why would he think otherwise in your case ?

i can't say he was not fraudulent, but i cant say he was either , neither can you .

Well if that is the case then it is his own arrogance that would make him think that he could pronounce anyone healed. When people do that in front of large groups of people, they are making an authoritative statement that God did some healing. It is just like the Old Testament prophets who were struck down dead for saying God said something He did not.

Sounds to me like you want to believe something and are searching for any way to make him right. But he did not heal all and that is documented.

 

[tturt]

Would you post Scriptures that state which prophets were "struck down dead for saying God said something He did not"? Thanks.