Ewald Frank

preached on 3. 8. 1991, 19:30, Krefeld, Germany

Topic: "God has a divine order into which the bride must be brought!"

broadcast on 5. 9. 2026

For a believer there is nothing more beautiful than to dwell in the house of the Lord forever and to hear the Word of the Lord, not thinking of others, but allowing the Word to speak to oneself. Everyone feels addressed. We are after all addressed by the Word of the Lord.

What struck me was, that in one of the hymns we sang, “Satan does not approach Christ, the risen one.” I liked that. That is true. Our Lord has overcome Satan, has disarmed him, has put him to shame, has triumphed over all Satan’s powers, as it is written, and has claimed victory. [Col 2:15] You know, in every battle there are not two victors, but always only one. And so we have only one victor, the victor of Golgotha. And that is the Lord, our God, who has loved us dearly and redeemed us.

That reminded me of two scriptures, one from Revelation 12, where the archangel Michael will seize Satan and cast him out. [Rev 12:7-9] Not our Lord. Our Lord has already defeated him. So it is enough for Michael to say: “Now you can no longer remain here.” You all know the scripture. But I notice that some of you are bowing your heads, and this time not in prayer, but to search the scriptures. So I’ll just read the verse quickly. Revelation 12, verse 7:

[7] And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

[8] And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

As you know, the enemy still has access. He is the accuser of the brethren. [Rev 12:10] But the time is coming when God’s victory will be fully accomplished in heaven and on earth for time and eternity. Praise be to the name of the Lord.

The other scripture is in Revelation 20, verse 1. Revelation 20, verse 1:

[1] And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

[2] And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years.

Anyone who reads scripture carefully will notice in Revelation 12 Satan is cast down from the heavenly realm in so far as he still has access there, unto the earth. [Rev 12:9] And then, once he has caused sufficient harm, the time comes for him to be bound and cast into the abyss for a thousand years. The holy scriptures truly provide such marvelous insight into everything. When one considers how faithfully God has shown us his love, made his Word known and revealed the connections, we can only be grateful.

Before we move on to our bible study, I too would like to extend the warmest and most heartfelt welcome to you all. I am fully aware that we do not come here to hear what a human being has to say. We come here to hear the true Word of God, not human opinions, not interpretations of scripture, but the Word in its original form as it came from the mouth of God. And we are glad that there are people, even if not in their millions, but people whose hearts yearn to hear the true Word of God. And we may also add, the Lord has never disappointed us. This weekend too, his Word will dwell richly amongst us.

The one who needs to be careful is Brother Frank. You see, I have been politely told a few times recently: “you are preaching a little too long.” And as I said, I don’t look at the clock, but the Word of the Lord is simply so precious. I resolve to keep it short and then it probably ends up being a little longer after all.

Amen. Praise the Lord.

How refreshing are the words of our God. And when we are in harmony with the testimony, and when even our lives are in harmony with the testimony and the Word, what will happen then? Then God will reveal himself in all his glory. And we believe that this is what will come to pass, that it must come to pass, a complete harmony between the bride and the bridegroom. A complete harmony of the church of the firstborn with the Word of God.

Now as our dear brothers and sisters are from Hamburg and as I have heard from the Elim congregation on Bach Street, Bach Street held great significance for me in 1949. That was where I first heard Hall Hermann and Richard Ruff, two men, one a German-Swiss and the other a Swiss-American. And one of them was the man who had been commissioned by the US government to be on board the plane when the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima. And this man was filming, he was a man from Hollywood. And this man later heard Brother Branham preach in Los Angeles and became a believer and then gave his testimony in Hamburg on Bach Street. That was actually the first time in my life that I heard the name William Branham in connection with a wonderful testimony from a man who had heard this man of God and then dedicated his life to the Lord as far as he knew and was able.

May the Lord grant us all grace to recognize the times in which we live, so that we may press on with the Lord and not stand still spiritually. For this has always been the problem in church history, that after every revival a new organization was formed, a new standstill set in and the Lord had great difficulty in moving forward with his people.

When after 15 years of ministry, Brother Branham was asked to found a kind of “Latter Rain” church, it was particularly brothers from Canada who urged him to establish an organization called “Latter Rain”. And the “Latter Rain” is of course promised in the Word of God as an outpouring of the Holy Spirit before the harvest is brought in. [Joe 2:23; Jam 5:7] There are of course the promises, in both the New and Old Testament.

But Brother Branham then said: “No new denomination will emerge from this final revival, nor will it become an organization. This revival, which will take place within the Bride, will be brought to completion at the return of Jesus Christ, when the dead are raised and those living in Christ are transformed and then caught up to meet the Lord.”

And so we shall see it and experience it.

How often have I been asked in various countries: “Why don’t you establish churches?” How often, not just once, but time and again have I been asked this question, even when our beloved brothers and sisters from the Soviet Union came to us, not just once, but time and again, at every opportunity: “Why don’t you establish churches in the various cities?” And in response to this, I must quite simply say, with the Bible open, in the presence of God, in the name of the Lord: Establishing churches is not our task. There are already enough churches. Our task is to proclaim the true Word of God to all the people of God, from all peoples, tongues, and nations, from all churches and denominations. And you know full well that the Lord said: “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” [Mat 16:18]

Now is the Lord’s time, not the time of the evangelists, not the time of the brothers who wish to carry on according to the old traditional pattern. Now God’s hour has come, so that He may do among His people what He has set out to do and bring to completion, with those who do not merely play church but who belong to the Church of the Living God. And that is a world of difference. One can be pious, one can play church, but not before the Lord. In the Lord’s sight, only what He does counts, everything else merely stands in His way. The actions of all those who wish to serve Him, without having been commissioned by Him, stand in the way only of themselves, of many others, and of the Lord, unless God can send someone who does not prepare the way for himself or for a church, but as it is written: “Prepare ye the way for the Lord, make straight a path for our God.” [Isa 40:3; Mat 3:3] So it was at the beginning of the New Testament, during that prophetic period, so it is at the end of the New Testament, likewise during this prophetic period.

On this side, since we are on the subject, I have reported this at least two or three times, it is the truth. On the 2nd of April 1962, before daybreak, the sun had not yet risen, the Lord spoke to me, and amongst all that was said was this: “Do not establish any local churches and do not publish a hymn book, for that is the mark of a denomination.” There are certain things that the Lord commands which he tells me which he does not need to tell anyone else. Every divine commission is unique in itself. It cannot be copied.

I said that somewhere recently as well. Billy Graham came to Louisville, Kentucky, just as Düsseldorf and Krefeld here are separated only by the Rhine river, so these are twin cities, Jeffersonville in Indiana and Louisville in Kentucky. And Brother Branham went to this huge gathering of preachers and evangelists that Billy Graham had organized. And when he came back, or even whilst he was still there, he thought to himself: “I could never take the place of this man, Billy Graham; he is one of a kind.” And then he went a step further and said: “I doubt he could take my place.” And that’s how it is. Everyone in their own place, wherever God may have placed them. Well, so much for that topic.

Whilst the singers were performing their song, did anyone think of a psalm? After all, they were singing: “From the palaces of ivory.” [Psa 45:8] Is that in the Bible? Is that in the Bible? I can hardly hear the audience. I’d like to hear more. Is the phrase “He comes from the palaces of ivory” in the Bible? Pardon? My! Well then, I just read it out to you; why should I keep you in suspense? We are going to read a few verses from Psalm 45. Here too we find the phrase: “ivory palaces.” And of all the 150 psalms, it is the only one that describes the relationship between bride and bridegroom, the only psalm that actually describes the completion of the bride and the bridegroom. All the others cover many themes and provide many answers, but Psalm 45 is in itself quite special.

I’ll read from the beginning:

[1] My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

And now it comes:

[2] Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.

[3] Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty.

[4] And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness…

[5] Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies; whereby the people fall under thee.

[6] Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.

[7] Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee…

Hallelujah! Where is this found in the New Testament? Hebrews chapter 1. [Heb 1:8-9]

[6] Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever: the scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter.

[7] Thou lovest righteousness and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God… [Psa 45:6-7; Hebr 1:8-9]

You see, our Lord was God manifested in the flesh. And God in the spirit anointed this earthly body. Hallelujah! Praise be to God!

[7] …therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

[8] All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

[9] Kings' daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen [or bride] in gold of Ophir.

What a marvellous passage in the Old Testament. And for those who then read on to the call in verse 11, namely those who are called to be part of this:

[10] Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house;

Everyone must do this, just as Abraham did: “Leave your home and your people and your land, and go to the land that I will give you.” [Gen 12:1]

[10] Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house;

[11] So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him.

Amen. Hallelujah! What a wonderful Word. Oh yes, he longs for us, as a bridegroom longs for his bride. And he goes on to say:

[12] And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour.

[13] The king's daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold.

[14] She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee.

I wish we could turn to the Gospels here. Someone might think: “On the one hand, this speaks of the bride, on the other of the virgins, who will then form the retinue.” Do not worry, both are correct. When the bride comes down after a wedding feast, the 144,000 on Mount Zion will already have been sealed, and they are simply waiting for us to come with the Lord, with the King, to take up our royal reign. [Rev 7:4; Rev 14:1] Everything has its place. The men of God, indeed all those upon whom the Spirit of God came, have already seen these things. We must now put them into context.

Someone was very angry with me and said: “Brother Frank, I can understand a great deal, but the fact that you even have to put what Brother Branham preached into a biblical context, that’s going too far for me.” All I could say was: “Beloved brother, that is precisely my ministry, not so that things grow wild left and right and people give their own interpretations to what has been said, but so that everything is traced back to Scripture and the Lord’s people are thus brought back to the true Word of God, so that in the end there are no differing interpretations of the Word and the message, but rather that a divine unity may emerge by grace, namely the Word bride united with a bridegroom who has revealed and made known the Word to the bride.”

And I am convinced that all who think rightly in their hearts will also understand this remark correctly.

Just a few more Scriptures from the Word of God to show us how important it is not to speak from memory or to decide or present things arbitrarily, but that everything must be grounded in Scripture, and that the proclamation must stand up to the testimony and scrutiny of the Word. The preaching must be such that we can stand before God with it. From the Book of Acts, chapter 15, I would like to read two verses, which I read almost last of all last Sunday in Zurich.

Acts 15, and then we shall move on to other Scriptures, verses 17 and 18:

[17] That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.

[18] Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.

A marvellous Word! We all know what this was about. Here the door was closing more and more for Israel, whilst the door to the Gentiles was opening wide, and questions arose concerning circumcision and various other matters. And then the answer came from the Word of God. And that is how it was in the beginning, and so it must be in the end. But listen once more to this phrasing: “that the residue of men.” We could now turn to Romans chapter 11, where we see that God also has a remnant in this age. We could turn to the prophet Daniel. We could turn to the prophet Isaiah.

God says: “Even if Israel were as numerous as the sand of the sea, only the remnant among them would be saved.” [Isa10:22; Rom 9:27]

And then the Scripture: “He that is left in Zion shall be called holy to the Lord.” [Isa 4:3] There are plenty of Scriptures that do not speak of the masses, but of the chosen ones, of the remnant, of those who believe God, who trust in him, who receive his Word and say yes to it, so that the people who remain may seek the Lord. Who doesn’t automatically think of Isaiah 55, verse 6:

[6] Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.

You can look it up for yourselves. Perhaps I should do so, so that you know that this is what is written. But everyone knows those well-known verses. Isaiah 55, verse 6:

[6] Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.

And then it lists what is to happen in connection with this.

There will be people, there always have been, who seek God because God draws them. No one can do it of their own accord. But when the Lord draws them, “all whom the Father draws come to Me. And whoever comes to Me, I will never cast out.” [Joh 6:37, 44] Why have we come to the Lord? Because we have felt His drawing. As the Word says, “Draw me, and I will follow you.” [Song 1:4]

He then goes on to say that “the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles upon whom My name is called.” [Acts 15:17] He has a people of His own. The blood-bought multitude does not belong to itself, nor does it belong to any denomination. It belongs to the Lord, because He paid the price for it on Golgotha. And Holy Scripture says, “Therefore glorify God, for ye are bought with a price.” [1Cor 6:20] Peter then writes, “Not with silver or gold, but with the precious blood of the Lamb of God, without blemish.” [1Pet 1:18-19]

I also like the saying, “Thus saith the Lord.” It is simply beautiful. Every time the words, “Thus saith the Lord,” are spoken, and I think I can safely say, since the days of the Apostles, there have been no men with a direct “Thus saith the Lord.” There have been men of God, there have been preachers and evangelists, there have been reformers, there have been men who burned with love for God. But a direct divine calling, combined with the authoritative “Thus saith the Lord,” has not existed until our own time.

Preachers have read the Word, have given their opinion on it, have passed on their interpretation to the people. But that is not enough to bring the bride church to perfection. She does not live by interpretations of the Word. She lives by the original Word itself, because the Word must after all find fulfillment within her. She must after all become a part of the Word made real in these days.

We have often said the beginning of the new covenant was such that promises simply took shape and became reality. What was written was suddenly there. Take for example Isaiah 40, verse 3:

[3] A voice cries in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord.

Eight hundred years had passed since Isaiah gave this prophecy, and it only came to pass when the time was fulfilled.

The same applies to Malachi 3, verse 1:

[1] Behold, I send my angel before me, to prepare the way before me.

And suddenly these prophetic words became reality in the form of a man sent by God, bearing God’s message to God’s people in those days.

This is how God makes history in the plan of salvation. People, churches, denominations, Christian organizations make church history. God makes history in the plan of salvation. He links His work on earth to His people and the promises given to them.

Have we understood this? Have we grasped that we must be part of what God is doing now? As I said earlier, not just a church, but the church of the living God. Not interpretations of the Word and Scripture, but what does Scripture say? That is what interests us, namely “Tthus saith the Lord”, who accomplishes this, and He will indeed accomplish it, at the very latest, by the glorious day of His magnificent return, when He will bring home the bride He has prepared.

“…who doeth all these things, known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world.” [Act 15:17-18] Paul made particular reference to this mystery in his epistle to the Ephesians, writing, “What was hidden from the generations of men, the Lord has now revealed to His apostles and prophets.” [Eph 3:5]

Let us continue reading in Acts 15 from verse 7. Here it says:

[7] And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

We are all familiar with Scripture and know that Paul shook hands with Peter, John and James and said, “We will work amongst the Jews and you amongst the Gentiles.” [Gal 2:9] You can read about it in the epistle to the Galatians. I can turn to that passage and read it out to you if you’d like. Here it says, Peter bears witness to this, he says, “Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God chose me.” He doesn’t say Paul, he says, “chose me from among you that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel and believe.” [Act 15:7]

Let us now read from chapter 10, a few verses from chapter 10 of the book of Acts, familiar to us all. But I would like to emphasize this one point this evening. God has an order, and within this divine order the church is placed and the ministries are established. The bride must also be brought into this divine order now at the end.

What good does it do us if we say and believe from the heart, “the Lord remains in heaven, as it is written in Acts chapter 3, verse 21, until the time comes. “Heaven must receive Him until the time comes when all things are restored, as God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.” What good is our theoretical knowledge that our Lord Jesus, our Redeemer, remains in heaven and waits until the time comes, when we may not even realize that this time has already come, and that time is pressing, and that God also wishes to fulfill the promises He has made.

Here in Acts 10 from verse, well, one could read from verse 9 here, I will just say it, you know the story, Peter went up onto the roof, he was hungry, and lo and behold, God linked an earthly need to a heavenly revelation. I’ll read it to you. From verse 9, perhaps it’s always better to read it out aloud:

[9] On the morrow, as they went on their journey and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour,

[10] And he became very hungry and would have eaten, but while they made ready, he fell into a trance.

And do you know what he saw? He saw many things, but then said, “I have never eaten anything unclean.” [Act 10:14] I’ll continue reading from verse 11:

[11] And he saw heaven opened and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet, knit at the four corners and let down to the earth,

[12] Wherein were all manner of four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.

[13] And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter, kill and eat.

Some people fast and pray. He became hungry, as it is written. He went up to pray. Then hunger came over him. And, lo and behold, God takes this earthly need as His starting point and shows him, falling from heaven, all manner of creatures and birds of the air, but all were unclean. He knew, of course, the law concerning which animals are clean and which are unclean, which birds are clean and which are unclean. [Lev 11; Deu 14] God had after all clearly named them all to Moses.

[13] …kill and eat.

Verse 14:

[14] But Peter said, Not so, Lord, for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.

[15] And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

You all know this lesson, of course. Later on, in chapter 15, Peter refers to what was shown and revealed to him. [Act 15:7-9] But let me read from chapter 10 here, specifically from Acts chapter 10, verse 28. Acts 10, verse 28:

[28] And he said unto them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

God has opened the door to the Gentiles. Here was a Jew whom God used, and to him he showed all manner of unclean creatures. And the man of God says: “Lord, I have never eaten anything unclean or unholy.” And the Lord gives him the answer: “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common” [Act 10:14-15]

What a marvellous word! Cleansed and sanctified through Jesus Christ, through his sacrificial death, through his precious and holy blood, cleansed with the washing of water by the Word, and sealed with the Holy Spirit.

[15] … What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

Let us now read verses 34 to 36 in chapter 10:

[34] Then Peter opened his mouth and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons;

[35] But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.

And then he goes on to say:

[36] The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)

“He is Lord of all.” We know that he only had to continue preaching for a very short while longer, and lo and behold, the Holy Spirit descended upon all who heard this simple, yet so powerful divine message of the Gospel. [Act 10:44]

Oh, if only we could all combine what we have heard with living faith, what would happen amongst us? Sinners would be pardoned, the sick healed, the lost saved, and the Lord would baptize with the Spirit and fire. Let us engage more deeply with the proclamation of the Word, seeking and finding our connection with God. As I have also often said, the sermon is not intended to establish a connection from the pulpit to the congregation or from the congregation to the pulpit, but rather to bring people into fellowship with God, so that His Word penetrates us all to the very core and finds fulfillment through us and within us.

Returning to Acts chapter 15, we have already emphasized this. The issue here was, that the question had to be answered, what then should be laid upon the people from the nations who have become believers. [Act 15:19] And behold, only four things are mentioned, four things, Acts 15And here I shall read two passages, perhaps verses 19 and 20:

[19] Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God:

[20] But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.

That is all that God has given the New Testament church to follow. No other regulations, and Peter confirms this in verse 21:

[21] For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

We do not sit in Moses’ seat. We have received grace from God to recognize what has been left to us as a duty in the New Testament. The same is summarized in chapter 15, verses 28 and 29.

[28] For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us…

Do you see? Not merely the decision of the church, not merely the decision of the council of elders, but “it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us.” May it indeed remain so and be true of us, that every decision is God’s decision, revealed in the Word through the Holy Spirit, and that God’s decision becomes our decision and divine proclamation becomes our proclamation.

[28] For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things,

[29] That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

We can see the shepherd’s heart with which all this was written. Brother Russ has after all given us some very serious words to take with us in his opening word. From Hebrews 13, I am reading this only, because I simply must say what we all already know, that in these end times, days have dawned in which people no longer recognize any boundaries. I do not wish to elaborate further on the term fornication here, but we live in an age in which this word has found its way into human society under the term pornography. I am sincere and honest, I have never read a single one of these magazines, but I know in substance what they all contain, namely every kind of sexual act except the natural one given by God, everything else but not what God originally gave, intended and ordained.

And this characterizes the last days in a very special way, when the state of humanity, not the state of the church of the living God, but the state of humanity would be like that of Sodom and Gomorrah, where licentiousness runs rampant, where divine order is cast aside. And as Paul explains in Romans, people have fallen into a perverse state of mind because they did not recognize God. Therefore he has given them over to defile their own bodies. [Rm 1:24] Did you know that this is written in the Bible?

And I am one of those who hardly ever watch television at all, because I need enough time to see what is close at hand, namely what needs to be done in the kingdom of God. But I did happen to see this once at 11 pm, when the program was broadcast, in which it was suggested that homosexuality should be legalized in our country, and that women, if they marry one another, should be given a certificate. And what was being proposed there, and the way the discussion was conducted, was so abhorrent, so manipulated, that one knew full well, the presenter of the program was a woman possessed. She knew exactly who would be there, and how she had to ask the questions, so that the whole thing would go her way.

But this is what the Lord said: “In the days of the Son of Man, it will be just as it was in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah.” [Luk 17:28-30] And back then it was homosexuality, everyone knows that. The men of Sodom wanted the two angels who came to Lot. They did not want the daughters, who were still virgins. But the men of Sodom wanted the two visitors who came to Lot. And so he offered them his virgin daughters. [Gen 19:1-8] Everyone knows that in those days this was considered as sin, alienation from God, an act contrary to God and contrary to nature.

And here in Romans 1, verses 26 and 27, Paul wrote:

[26] For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections. For even their women did change the natural youth into that which is against nature.

[27] And likewise also the men, leaving the natural youth of the women, burned in their lust one toward another, men with men, working that which is unseemly.

What can one say to that? You all know full well that I am no moralist preacher. I am grateful to the Lord, that by His grace I stand my ground before Him. But I cannot comprehend such things at all.

Only those possessed by Satan can be so driven and twisted as to mock and scorn what God has given. One man even went so far as to say what exactly makes the difference and how much more valuable it is for a man. One can only shake one’s head at it. These are people who have turned their backs on God.

However, here is the point. As I said on Sunday in Zurich, so let it be said here today, this state of affairs is not that of the church of the living God, but that of this world. And the Lord says: “Ye are not of this world, just as I am not of this world.” [Joh 17:14, 16]

I spoke to a Catholic priest, not to these two young men, about this. It is also written somewhere. And he said: “Yes, it is indeed written that David said to Jonathan: ‘Your love is more precious to me than the love of women.’” [2Sam 1:26] And they want to draw that conclusion from this verse. We will not allow them to draw that conclusion from it. The love of God in one man of God for another man of God surpasses all love that exists on earth, and it withstands all trials.

But here we have also had it read out to us from Hebrews 13:

[4] Marriage is honorable in all, and a bed undefiled; but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.

Indeed, this divine order belongs directly within marriage. Not that which is sexually immoral, not that upon which the curse rests, but that which God has blessed. “For whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.” [Heb 13:4]

I am convinced that the Lord helps his own, and I am actually grateful that over the course of all these years I have not met a single believing preacher or person who was of a twisted nature or mindset. Thanks be to God that the people of God are of a normal disposition, both physically and spiritually. Should there be any problem anywhere, let us also bring that before the Lord.

Then we read on:

[5] Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

[6] So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Whom should we fear? The Lord is our help. As the Psalmist says: “If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would already be in the land of silence.” [Psa 94:17]

Even today God wishes to help us. Even today he wishes to do us good. Even today he wishes to save, to set free, to forgive, to bless. Today he wishes to bring us into harmony with his Word. Today he wishes to show mercy rather than justice. Today he wishes to bless this place and all those who call upon him.

We believe that the proclamation is given to us for the purpose of correcting and setting us right, indeed until we reach the state God has ordained for us, into which we must enter before the return of Jesus Christ. And I do not know whether we should put everything off until the last few days. It would be better if the Lord could begin with us today, and lead us into this divine order which is laid down in his Word, and reveal himself to us all, and bless us from the riches of his grace.

Just as Peter was able to say at that time, or rather as it was first said to him: “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.” [Act 10:15] And we see that this divine revelation, the proclamation of this divine revelation by a called mouth, has brought such a blessing upon the listeners that they have experienced conversion, renewal, new birth and the baptism in the Holy Spirit all at the same time. May this divine revelation also be bestowed upon us. What God has cleansed and sanctified, no one may declare unclean.

And we say in accordance with the Word of God, that we have been cleansed and sanctified by the blood of the Lamb. We are God’s holy possession. For this we wish to thank Him today. We have forgiveness of sins. Our guilt has been settled. We have found grace before God. Praise be to His holy name.

“Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? Christ is here who has justified them.” [Rom 8:33] Thanks be to God for the blood of the Lamb that flowed on the cross of Calvary. In this redeeming blood we have been justified, cleansed and sanctified in Christ. May God fill our hearts with joy over this.

It is not half and half. We have been pardoned. We have been redeemed. We have become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Let us stand and give thanks to the Lord together. Brother Russ, will you come to give thanks to the Lord?

Heavenly Father, we thank you most sincerely for your precious and holy Word which has been bestowed upon us at this hour. Lord, we wish to heed your Word. May it have taken root in our hearts. May we ponder on it and reflect, O Lord, on how important it is. For your Word is indeed spirit and life. [Joh 6:63] It seeks to save us from this evil and perverse generation.

And we can say, you have saved us, Lord. You have drawn us out of the mire of sin and ruin and made us your own people, Lord. To you be the glory, the praise and the worship, even for this evening, our Lord.

We see, Lord, that your Word must also be fulfilled in this, for the true men of God have spoken it from the very beginning through the Spirit, and we see that the time has come for it. O Lord, it is being fulfilled before our very eyes, but to your own you grant grace. And open eyes, Lord, so that they may escape all that is to come, Lord.

For we know that if the wrath, the divine wrath, did not fail to come in those days, then it will not fail to come in our days either, Lord. It will come upon all unbelief, upon all immorality, Lord. We worship you, Lord, that we may stand firm with you, and you will preserve us and take us to yourself, Lord. Thanks and honour, praise and worship be to your glorious and marvellous name of Jesus. Hallelujah. Amen.