The False Anointed Ones
Spiritual Building-Stone No. 117

St. Matthew 24:24-25, "For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before."

Let us listen what God's Prophet has spoken:

I want you to notice here in Matthew 24, Jesus used the term of christs: c-h-r-i-s-t-s, christs, not Christ, but christs, plural, not singular: christs. Therefore the word "Christ" means "the anointed one." And then, if it's anointed, there will be not only one, but many anointed: the anointed ones.
And otherwise, if He wanted to break it down so we would more-or-less under-stand it better, He'd say, "In the last days there shall rise false anointed ones." Now, that seems almost impossible. See? The terms of anointed... But notice the very next words, "and false prophets": p-r-o-p-h-e-t-s, plural.

Now, anointed one is "one with a message." And the only way the message can be brought out is by one that's anointed; and that would be a prophet--anointed. "There shall rise false anointed teachers." A prophet teaches what his message is: anointed teachers, but anointed people with false teaching, anointed ones: christs, plural; prophets, plural. And if there is such a thing as a Christ, singular, then these would have to be anointed ones that their prophecy of what they were teaching would be the difference, because they are anointed ones, anointed. Now, it's a Sunday school lesson; we want to try to bring this to a real showdown by the Scrip-tures, not by what someone else has said about it, but just reading the Scriptures.

You may say, "How can this be? Would the anointed ones... What were they?" Christs: c-h-r-i-s-t-s, anointed christs and false prophets: anointed ones, but false prophets.

Jesus said that the rain falls on the just and the unjust (Mat. 5:44-45). Now, some-one might say to me, "Do you believe that that anointing on those people means that it's anointing of the Holy Spirit?" Yes, sir, the genuine Holy Spirit of God upon a person, and yet they are false. Now, listen close and see what He said: "And they shall show signs and wonders, insomuch that it would deceive the very elected if it were possible." And they are anointed with the genuine Holy Spirit. I know this sounds very foolish, but we're going to take time and explain it by the Word that that's absolutely THUS SAITH THE LORD, the Truth.

Remember the Bible said, "In the last days there shall come false Christs," not false Jesuses. They wouldn't stand still for that, but false Christs: false anointed ones. They're absolutely anointed with the Spirit, with the Holy Spirit, and still false. There's three people of you; the outside is the body. You got five senses that you con-tact your earthly home with that. The inside is a spirit. There's five senses there: love, and conscience, and so forth you contact. But the inside of that is the soul.

Remember, the rain falls on the just and the unjust. The same rain that'll make a grain of wheat grow, makes a cocklebur grow too. See? What is it? At the inside of that seed is a nature, and that nature displays itself. It can stand in the same field, right there with the weed. The weed and the wheat stand together, rejoice just as much. It's head down; it's starving for a drink. When a rain comes, the cocklebur can shout just as loud as the wheat can. But by their fruits you shall know them (Mat. 7:15-20).

Christians, I may never see you again. May never see you again. Line up with God's Word. Look in the mirror. How do you look in God's Mirror? Does it reflect a daughter or a son of God?

And now, there'll be false anointed ones in the last days, not false Jesus; they wouldn't stand for that, but false anointed. They are anointed. Yes, sir. But they are antichrist. They are anointed with the Spirit to do the signs and wonders that Christ did, but won't line up with His Word. See? "Many will come to Me that day and say, 'Lord, have not I prophesied and cast out devils in Your Name?'"
He'll say, "Depart from Me, you that work iniquity, I never even knew you."
"I was Pentecostal, Lord. Glory to God. I shouted; I spoke with tongues; I laid hands on the sick and healed them, cast out devils.
"Depart from Me, you that work iniquity, I never knew you." See what I mean? (Mat. 7:21-23).

The denominational system is dead. It's gone. It'll never rise again. It'll be burned. That's what you do with the husk on the field. Flee from it. Get into Christ. Don't say, "I belong to the Methodist."; "I belong to the Baptists."; "I belong to the Pentecos-tal." You get into Christ (I Cor. 12:19). And if you're in Christ, there's not a word written in here but what you believe it. I don't care what anybody else says. And then God makes that thing manifested, 'cause you... When He pours the Spirit upon the Word, what happens? Just like putting water on any other seed. It'll live, and it'll bring forth of its kind.

You say, "I got the baptism of the Holy Ghost." That don't mean that you're saved, not by a long ways.

Looky here, you are a triune being. You are... Inside this little fellow here is a soul; the next is a spirit; and next is a body. Now, you got five senses in this body to contact your earthly home. They don't contact the rest of it. You got five senses of the spirit here: love and conscience and so forth like that. But in here is where you live. That's what you are.

Didn't Jesus say the rain falls on the just and the unjust? Put a cocklebur out here, and a wheat out there, and pour water on them, and keep them under fertilize and things like that, won't they both live by the same water? Sure. But what is it? One of them will bear a cocklebur, 'cause that's all he is. The cocklebur will raise his hands and shout just the same as a wheat.
Don't the Bible say in the last days there shall come false christs, not false Jesus now, false christs, anointed ones, falsely anointed to the Word. Denominational anointed but not to the Word, for the Word will bear record of Itself. It don't need nothing else; It'll bear record to Itself. And there will come false anointed ones. You got my tape on that. Oh, if you'd call one and say, "Oh are you a Jesus?", "Oh, cer-tainly not." They wouldn't stand for that. But when it comes to an, "Oh glory, I got the anointing..." And it's a genuine anointing.

Remember, Caiaphas had it too and prophesied (John 18:12-14). So did Balaam have it and prophesied (Numbers 24:15-19), but that don't have nothing to do with this inside. Unless that was God's seed, His gene from the beginning, predesti-nated, you're finished. I don't care how much you shout, speak with tongues, run, shout; that has nothing to do with it. A cocklebur can count just as much as any of the rest of them. I've seen heathens raise, and shout, and speak in tongues, and drink blood out of a human skull, and call on the devil. See? So you don't... Any of them sensa-tions and things, forget it. It's your heart in that Word, and that's Christ. Bring it in there, and watch It make Itself known just as It opens up like any other seed and declares Itself for the age It's living in.

Luther could bring nothing but sprigs. These others could bring these other things. We're in the wheat age now. Lutherans, genuine Lutherans had to bring forth genuine Luther. Genuine Pentecost had to bring genuine Pentecost. That's all. But we're passed that age and going on.

Like on my Message of the antichrist, "There shall rise false christs." Now, He didn't say false Jesuses. See, nobody would stand still to be called "Jesus," in the term of the Lord. But false christs means "the anointed." Oh, they, each one thinks they got anointing, "Glory to God, he can do this and do that." But put him on the Word test and find out where he comes out at, on the message of the hour. They had anointing in the time of Jesus, but not on him. They had anointing in the time... Even Dathan had anointing in the time of Moses. He said, "Now, don't you think you're the only holy one among us; God's got plenty. We'll just start an organization here, a group of men." (Numbers 16:1-35).

God said to Moses, "Separate yourself from him." He opened up the earth and swallowed them up. He had give His original Word to Moses, His prophet; that's the only way He ever did do it, and the only way He ever will do it. He doesn't change His plan. See?

Listen: He said, "They that cannot stand chastisement are bastard children and not the children of God" (Heb. 12:4-11). See, they're worked up on the emotion.

See, these seed that I talked about awhile ago, that soul wasn't there to start with. It was anointed with the Spirit, and he done all kinds. And when your spirit's anointed, you can... It's a real, genuine Holy Ghost, and you could still be a devil. "Oh," you say, "Brother Branham..."

False prophets. The Bible said, "In the last days there'd be false prophets." Jesus said, "There shall rise false christs," Not "false Jesuses," now, nobody stands still for that; but "false christs." "Christ" means "the anointed ones." Falsely anointed; they are anointed, but they are false at the bottom of it, and do great signs and wonders, speak in tongues, dance in the Spirit, preach the Gospel.

Judas Iscariot did it. Caiaphas prophesied. Balaam, the hypocrite... Sure, done all the signs, everything, all the religious moves.

But, you see, you put a cocklebur seed and a wheat seed in the same bed and pour the water down upon them and anoint them, they'll both rejoice. They'll both grow by it, the same water. "The sun shines on the just and the unjust, and the rain falls on the just and the unjust, but by their fruits you shall know them." How can you keep from lining up with the Word? Amen. See what I mean? "The water falls on the just and the unjust," anoint it.

Jesus said, "They will come to Me in that day, say, 'Lord. Lord. Have not I cast out devils? Have not I done prophesied? Have not I done great things in Your Name?'" He'll say, "You workers of iniquity, depart from Me; I don't even know you. Go into eternal hell that's been prepared for the Devil and his angels." You see? What a Word. Falsely, worship in vain (Mark 7:6-9), striving in vain. Why do you do that when you don't have to do it? Why take a substitute when the heavens are full of genu-ine? See? You don't have to do that.

Now, compare that with Matthew 5:24 again. Notice, Jesus said the rain and the sun comes upon the earth, that God sends it to prepare the food and the things for the peoples of the earth. And the rain is sent for the food, the herbs. But the tares, weeds, being in the field, receive the same thing. The same rain that makes the wheat grow is the same rain that makes the weeds grow.

How I had such a lesson on that one time when I first met the Pentecostal people. And it was a great lesson to me. I seen two men, one... Never heard speaking in tongues before. One spoke in tongues; other one interpreted, vice versa. And would tell the truth; say that, "There's many in here should repent tonight. There's women and men both." And people would raise up and go to the altar.

I thought, "How glorious." And then, with the little gift of the Holy Spirit, I talked to those men, just you know how--and in discernment, just a little way to find out. And one of them was a genuine Christian. And he was a real servant of Christ. And the other one was a hypocrite. And one of them, the one that was a hypocrite, was living with a black-headed woman, running around with a blond, and had children by her. Well, it was right there in a vision, couldn't be denied. And I spoke to him about it. He looked at me and walked around the building.

Now, I was confused sure enough. I thought I'd come into angels, then I won-dered if I wasn't among devils. How could this be? I could not understand it. And for years I kept my hands off of it, till one day... And after a couple of days, the Holy Spirit brought this Scripture back to me: "For the rain cometh oft upon the earth to dress it with herbs, but thorns and thistles live by that same rain, and whose end is to be burned." Living by the same life giving resource of God... Then I understood that by... Jesus said, "By their fruits they are known."

Now, therefore, the rain dropping down upon the natural vegetation of the earth is a type of the Spiritual rain which gives Eternal Life, dropping down upon the church; for we call it the former rain and the latter rain. And it's a rain, pouring out of God's Spirit upon His church.
Notice, it's a very strange thing here. See? When them seed went in the ground, however they got there, they were thorns to begin with. But there the wheat that went in the ground... And the herbs were herbs to begin with. And each herb producing it-self over again, showed that it was in the original beginning (Mat. 5:43-45; Heb. 6:1-8).

"And they will deceive the Elected if it were possible," 'cause they're getting the same rain, same blessing, showing the same signs, same wonders. See? "They will deceive, or shall deceive the Elected if it were possible." Now, a thorn cannot help being a thorn, and neither can wheat help being a wheat; it's what the Creator of each one determined at the beginning. That's the Elected.

The sun rises of a morning and spreads across the earth, as it had this urban day that we live. And same sun that rises in the east is the same sun that sets in the west. And that sun is sent to ripen the grain upon the earth, which our bodies are made from.

We are living by dead substance, that's the only way you can live. And if some-thing has to die every day so you live natural, then isn't it true that your body has to live by dead substance for natural life, then you've got to have something die spiri-tually to save your spiritual life. And God became material, flesh, and died that we might live. There's no church, no other thing in the world can save you but God. That's the only thing that they live by.

But you see, He sends the rain on the just and the unjust. Jesus tells you here now in Matthew 24 it would be a sign at the end time. Now, if this sign is only to be known at the end time, then it'll have to be after the opening of those Seals. See? It's a sign of the end. That would be, when these things happens it'll be at the end time. And it'll be a sign, now, so the Elected will not be confused in these things. You see it? Then it's got to be revealed, exposed.

Notice. Both the wheat and the weeds live by the same anointing from heaven. Both of them rejoice over it. I remember this referring back to this instance up there that day at the Green's Mill. I seen that vision come up, and there was a great earth, and it'd been all disced up. And there went a Sower forth first. I want to keep that be-fore you. Watch what goes forth first, then what follows it. And as this Man with white on came forth around the earth sowing seed... Then behind Him come a man, dark clothes on, looked very sneaking, slipping along behind Him sowing weeds. And as this taken place... Then I seen both crops come up. And as they come up, one was wheat and the other was weeds. And there come a drought, that when--looked like both of them had their heads down just crying for rain. Then there come a great cloud over the earth, and it rained. And the wheat raised up and said, "Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord." And the weeds raised up and hollered, "Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord." Same results, both of them perishing, both of them going away. And then the wheat comes up and gets thirsty. And because it was in the same field, the same garden, the same place, under the same spout, there come up wheat and there come up tares by the very same thing.

Notice. The same anointing water brings forth the wheat, brings forth the weed. The same Holy Spirit that anoints the church, that gives them desire to save souls, that gives them power to perform miracles, It falls on the unjust the same as the just: the very same Spirit. Now, you can't make it another way and understand Matthew 24:24. He said, "There shall rise false christs," false anointed ones, anointed with the genuine thing, but be false prophets of it, false teachers of it. What would make a man want to be a false teacher of something that's Truth? Now, and we'll get down to the mark of the beast in a few minutes, you'll see it's denomination. See, see? False teachers, false anointed, anointed christs, but false teachers. It's the only way you can see it.

The true vine and the false vine both had the same anointing. The water fell on both of them. No wonder He warned us it would deceive the very elected if it was possible.

Notice. They looked the same; they're anointed the same. But notice, "By their fruit..." How do you knowed it--how do you know that isn't an orange? Because it's bearing a grapefruit. That vine's all right; it's living in the tree; but it's bearing a grapefruit. It isn't like the first one. And if a church says they believe Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever, and deny His power, deny His works, deny His Word... The church that believes in Jesus Christ will do the works of Jesus Christ; it'll have the Life of Jesus Christ. No matter if the life is pouring into it, if it isn't predestinated from the roots, it'll bear grapefruit every time or something different. But if it's the predestinated Life in the Roots, it'll bear Jesus Christ the same yes-terday, today, and forever, if it's the Word coming up through the Root, which He is the Root, the beginning of time.

Notice. But it's what they produce that tells you the difference. "By their fruit," Je-sus said, "you shall know them." Man does not gather grapes off of a thistle even though the thistle be right in the grapevine. That could be possible, but the fruit will tell it. What is the fruit? The Word for the--fruit for the season; that's what it is, their teaching. The teaching of what? The teaching of the seasons, what time it is--man's doctrine, denominational doctrine, or God's Word for the season.

But you might see that the anointing gets on the unjust, the false teachers, and causes them to do exactly what God told them not to do; but they'll do it anyhow. Why? They cannot help it. How can a thistle be anything else but a thistle? No matter how much good rain's sprinkled on it, it's got to be a thistle. That's the reason Jesus said they'll be so close it would deceive the very elected (which is in the roots), if it were possible. But it ain't possible. A wheat can do nothing but bear wheat; that's all it can bear.

Oh, you false teachers, listen at these tapes all these years and seen God confirm exactly what He said, and you set in your study and know it's the Truth, and because of your denominational differences, you dispute them and tell your people they're not so. Woe unto you. Your time is close at hand.

Balaam, anointed with the same Spirit that was upon Moses... What was the dif-ference? The teaching of Moses was perfect. The Bible said here in II Peter 2:15-16 that it was the teaching of Balaam that Israel received that God never did forgive: unpardonable sin. Not a one of them got saved. Though they had come out under the blessings of God and seen the hand of God moving by this mighty prophet and seen it exactly vindicated by God, and because another prophet come in with a teaching contrary, and disputed with Moses, and tried to prove to the people that Moses was wrong... And Dathan, Korah, and many of them agreed with him and taught the chil-dren of Israel to commit fornications, to go after his organization that we're all the same, "Whether we're Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, or Pentecostals, and what-more, we're all the same." We're not the same. Ye are a separated people, holy unto the Lord, dedicated to the Word and the Spirit of God to bear fruit of His promise of this day. And you're not of them.
I know that's awful strong, but that's the truth just the same. Dedicated to a service in this last days... Come out from amongst it. Now, the teaching of Balaam... Not the prophecy of Balaam, that was all right; that was God (Numbers 22-24). How many believe that? The prophecy of Balaam was exactly right, 'cause He couldn't speak nothing else. The anointing of God wouldn't speak nothing else. And God vindicated it by proving it was the truth. But it was the teaching of Balaam (Numb. 25:1-5). Now, compare that with Matthew 24:24.

Now, you're the congregation. Now, which one's right, both of them prophets? The only way you can tell the difference in them is check it by the Word. Don't you fail to get this message.

So close it would deceive the elected if it were possible.

Every sign, every wonder, anointed men, prophecy, all kind of things going forth, all kinds of signs, all kings of wonders, how you going to tell the difference? Watch the Word for this hour. The Holy Spirit is the Prophet of this hour. He's vindicating His Word, proving It. The Holy Spirit was the Prophet of Moses' hour. The Holy Spirit was a Prophet of Micaiah's hour. The Holy Spirit which wrote the Word comes and confirms the Word.
"Oh, you false teachers, so saith God, someday you'll reap what you're sow-ing, you blind leaders of the blind." I'm not angry; I'm just telling you a Truth. And I wouldn't have said this if up there in that room if the Holy Spirit didn't say, "Say it in that manner." Have I ever told you anything wrong, but what God proved it to be right? Wake up, my brethren, before it's too late.

But let me say this. How could've thorn wake up and be a thistle, when it was predestinated to that? How could the elected keep from seeing it? Because they're elected to see it. "All the Father has given Me will come," said Jesus, "but none of them can come unless He's give it to Me from before the foundation of the world, when their names was put on the Lamb's Book of Life," not on a church record, but on the Book, Lamb's Book of Life.

But watch. Jesus said that in this end time again the two spirits would be real close together again. Is that right? Now, notice. It will be closer than that was; this is the end time. Oh, children. God have mercy upon us. Till it would even be so real till it would deceive the very elected if possible. Now, how you going--how did we tell it in them days? How you going to tell it today? The same way, stay with the Word: Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever. Now, care all this Message. And when you listen to the tape--even maybe I'll be gone someday when the Lord's finished with me here on the earth--you'll refer back to this. Listen to my voice, what I'm telling you. If He takes me before His coming, just remember, I've spoke to you in the Name of the Lord by the Word of the Lord.

Now, notice, when Moses went down to Egypt with a message of THUS SAITH THE LORD, and was vindicated, called on Israel, which was a people, not a church... Israel was a people; they never was a church, 'cause the word "church" means "called out ones." They were the people of God. Then when they become anointed under the Word and called out, they become the church of God, and then backslid, because they believed not the Word of God and listened to a false prophet. I hope that sinks in. Israel being a people of God, come out under the hand of God, anointed with the Word--with the power of God, seeing the signs and wonders of God; and then when God was moving on with them, a false prophet come in, anointed, and taught some-thing contrary to the original Word of God, that they heard; and every one of them perished in the wilderness besides three people. Now, hold it.

Notice, not false Jesuses, false christs. They believe they're anointed, but they know they're not Jesus. See? That's too plain. If men went up and said today, "Look at the scars in my hand. Look at on my brow, I am Jesus"; well now, we know that that's wrong. And remember, Jesus never said that them guy's would appear. He said there'd appear false christs: christs, plural, denominations and so forth, anointed ones, anointed with a denominational spirit and not the Word. You follow it? Not false Jesus, false christs, false anointed ones. See? Oh, how plainly, how we... Surely you won't miss it.

Look at the last days, it'd be so close it'd deceive the very elected if it was possible. Oh, my. The reason the elected won't be deceived, you know why? Is because they are the Word. Just like the Life that's in the root, it can't deny itself. It is the Word and in the season of the Word. That's right.
The reason the elected, Jesus said, won't be deceived, because they are that Word. They can't be nothing else. They can't hear nothing else. They don't know nothing else.

Reference: "The Anointed Ones At The End Time", par. 23-28, 32-46, 57-60, 66-70, 88-102, 115, 132, 176, 182, 186 / "Things That Are To Be", par. 100-103, 113-116 / "The Rapture", par. 143-149 / "Christ Revealed In His Own Word", par. 29-30 / "Trying To Do God A Service" (Vol.7 No.2), par. 144-147 / "Leadership" (Vol.7 No.7), par. 258-264

Spiritual Building-Stone No. 117 from the Revealed Word of this hour, compiled by: Gerd Rodewald, Friedenstr. 69, D-75328 Schömberg, Germany
Phone: (+49) 72 35 76 13, Fax: (+49) 72 35 33 06

There's coming one with a Message that's straight on the Bible, and quick work will circle the earth. The seeds will go in newspapers, reading material, until every predestinated Seed of God has heard It.
[Bro. Branham in "Conduct-Order-Doctrine", pg. 724]