Building Bethlehem
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But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, Though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
Introduction.
Introduction.
Whenever you see God do something you find He has prepared the place for it to happen and the people for it to happen to.
(Women at the well and Jonah)
This is providence.
When you realize: What are we doing here? Where did we come from? Or what business we got being here?
We wasn’t put here just by chance, we were put here for a purpose and we must serve that purpose. 63-1222 - God's Gifts Always Find Their Places
God had His eye on Bethlehem as the place of His birth into this world, from its beginning.
Bethlehem was little, it didn’t have much, just a village, but it had three things.
Well
Fields
Manger
These were all the things needed for the prophecies to be fulfilled in that place.
He didn’t need great crowds, He didn’t need big buildings, He just needed some water, a field, and a place to stay. He still needs that.
Today we want to look at Bethlehem’s Well.
Bethlehem was founded by Salmon aka Salma the son of Caleb.
These were the sons of Caleb the son of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratah; Shobal the father of Kirjath-jearim,
Salma the father of Beth-lehem, Hareph the father of Beth-gader.
The area was called Ephratah “fruitful”.
Before an area can become fruitful it must have water.
(Joel in Egypt)
The rainy period of the year lasts for 5.3 months, from October 28 to April 7, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Bethlehem is January, with an average rainfall of 1.7 inches.
The rainless period of the year lasts for 6.6 months, from April 7 to October 28. The month with the least rain in Bethlehem is July, with an average rainfall of 0.0 inches. (Weatherspark.com)
There is ground water, but its underground.
This would have been the first order of business for someone settling this land. Remember, this was not a great Caananite city like Jericho, this was nothing.
Bro. Branham tells us more about it:
The one that founded it was Caleb’s son, whose name was Salmon, and he founded it. The Bible said he was the father of it, which mean he was the founder of Bethlehem.
In other words, he must have moved in there and started some sort of businesses, and commercial, and the trading, and so forth, that grew it up. 58-1228 - Why Little Bethlehem?
And we find out that it was also became the home of the harlot Rahab. When Israel had passed over the borderline of the Jordan River, into Palestine, we are acquainted with the story of Rahab the harlot. 58-1228 - Why Little Bethlehem?
And then we see her when she was taken in as one of the Israelites. She fell in love with the man which was a captain and a prince in Judah.
He was the captain of the Israelite armies. His name was Salmon, just like the king, Solomon. And he was the captain, and she become in a great romance with this captain, which was the prince of Judah.
And finally she married him. And when the estate was settled up for the Israelites, she and her beloved husband lived in Bethlehem.
It begin to open, as we see that in Bethlehem she lived, being a Gentile bride, to a Jew. Why? Because she believed in a miracle-working God.
And as, look what she come from, from being out of the house of ill fame, of prostitution. Through her conversion, and through her unfailing faith in God, it brought her from a prostitute house, to a beautiful home in Bethlehem. What a difference!
That’s the way it does all of us. From a house of unbelief, and flusterations, and immoral acts, and everything; to a place, position in Christ, which is most beautiful.
From the ridiculous to the sublime, that’s the difference that it makes through our conversion. And did you see? She married a prince of the house of Judah, a captain.
That captain represented Christ, took to Himself a Gentile Bride. From the lowest of lowest, to the principal and best place in the land... 58-1228 - Why Little Bethlehem?
Salmon was a Captain of Israel, he was a warrior. You can make a farmer a warrior, but its very hard to make a warrior a farmer.
Caleb was not Salmon’s biological father. Caleb wasn’t even an Israelite, but he was adopted into the family of Judah.
His natural father was a famous general named Nahshon.
From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies.
And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of the house of his fathers.
Of Judah; Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
And on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch throughout their armies: and Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be captain of the children of Judah.
And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred.
Nashon is named as the main man of the tribe of Judah, tradition says he was the first one to step into the red sea when it was parted.
He was a great man, but he died in the wilderness.
But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.
For the Lord had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
Salmon was born into this great family, but he was one of the younger generation that passed over.
He took Caleb’s example and received his inheritance.
No matter what your natural father did, you stay with the Word.
When Salmon comes to his place after all these years of fighting, there is nothing there. He can’t dig a well with a sword, he must put down his sword and pick up a shovel.
A well is a place for water. He’s creating a place for the water to come to.
He’s not creating water, but he is digging till he finds it.
It wasn’t his job to know who would drink from that well, it was his job to build it for future use.
We are digging a well for future generations. We’ll be held accountable for how we dig.
And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.
Bro. Branham is asked a question:
174. Should evangelists continue on the field?
“In this hour,” of course, what they mean. Certainly, by all means. Don’t change a thing. If Jesus is coming in the morning, preach today like if it was going to be ten years from today, but live like it’s going to be at this hour.
Don’t get scrupled up now. That’s what I’m trying to warn you about, see. Just don’t be odd, peculiar. Don’t change nothing. But if you’re doing something wrong or doing evil, repent, see, come back to God.
Continue on your evangelistic service just as you always did.
If you’re building a house, put it on up. Jesus comes tomorrow, you be found faithful at the duty. If you’re building a church, go on, put it up. I’d rather be putting my money in something like that, than be found with it in my pocket.
So just keep on, continue as you are. Everybody understand now? Continue right on, and just go right on as you are. Now, just don’t stop. Don’t do nothing…Just go right on just as you are. Keep on serving the Lord.
If you’re planting wheat; plant your wheat. You’re digging potatoes; go on, dig them out. Say, “Well, nobody will eat them”? That don’t make any difference. Dig them out, anyhow. Yeah. Just continue on as you are.
We must be a sane, solid Christian, see, that I’m put here to work right up to the last minute. I’ve got a job to do, and I’ll be right found faithful at the post of duty. If He comes this morning, I want to be standing right here in the pulpit.
You say, “Brother Branham, if He was to come this morning, shouldn’t you be out there?” No, sir!
This is my post of duty. I’ll be standing right here, preaching, when He comes, saying the same things I am. Then, when He comes, I’ll just move right on out with Him, see.
If I’m hoeing potatoes, I’ll just be hoeing away, just as hard as I can. When He comes, I’ll just drop the hoe and take off. 63-0324M - Questions And Answers On The Seals
Digging a well is hot, muddy, dangerous work.
I’m sure he came home at night so dirty, and Rahab made him some dinner. How did today go? “Oh, we had a revival today, we hit a little water, but this is a real dry area, I’m gonna keep digging.
Perhaps passers by made fun of him. “What are ya’ll doing down there, what’s the point of dressing that way, having those prayer meetings, going to church, setting an atmosphere”
He was doing it because God inspired him to do it.
Many years later an old Jewish woman and her Moabitess daughter in law came into town, and drank water from that well.
Boaz watered the crops Ruth would glean from with water from the well his father built.
David drank from that well as a little Shepherd boy, and watered the sheep.
And David was then in an hold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Beth-lehem.
And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the gate!
David was a man without a nation. Going through a great trial, with the Philistine enemy taking advantage of the split between him and Saul.
(Preach)
David thinks about Bethlehem, now occupied by the Philistines.
He remembers what life was like in the good old days.
“I can remember when I got so in the Spirit, one day, looking at the clouds and the shady green pastures, till I screamed out, in the Spirit, and sang:
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadows of death, I’ll fear no evil: for thou art with me…”
Oh, my! Here he was, right in the jaws of death, right then, on both sides. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death! Them good old days, when the Spirit was with me, when God was with me! I sang His praises. I enjoyed Him.
He remembered the deliverance from the lion and the bear.
“O God, take me back to that place. Take me back to my first love. Take me back, and give me back my shepherd’s staff. Give me back my herd of sheep. Let me alone, back there, to worship You.”
He couldn’t do that. Now the battle was on.
He said “if I could just have a drink from that well, the water that sustained me then, would sustain me now”.
And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord.
His wish was their command, they knew He would be King someday.
David probably had stagnant water, but he wanted fresh water.
They may have passed many wells on the way to Bethlehem, but he wanted a drink from that well.
Look at these men! They pulled their swords. What was it? His desire was a drink of cool water. David!
What a type of today, our David, Christ, we know He’s called a holy roller, He’s cast off to one side, a fanatic in everything, rejected by the churches.
They’ve got their creeds and things drawed up in this Christmas like they did at the first one. We know that, but we know that this Word ever remains true, and It’s got to be fulfilled. And the desire of Christ is for men, warriors, to stand! Amen!
Oh, come, stand with me, by my side. I’m standing in a terrible place. I challenge today! These tapes go over the world.
I challenge some man, some warrior who loves Jesus Christ, that knows that these things has got to be fulfilled today, brethren, come stand by my side and pull the Word of God.
Forget those dried cisterns and stagnated denominations you’re living in. Pull the fresh Word of God, let’s give Jesus a good drink of fresh pentecostal Water!
That’s His desire today, back to original pentecost, back to the Word! It’s prophesied we’d do so, in Malachi the 4th chapter, “Return the Faith of the children back to the fathers again.” Who would stand this morning?
Like David, we know that David is coming into power. Jesus Christ is going to take the world. He inherits the earth, He is going to be King over the earth.
He’s rejected today, He’s a fugitive among His people. Course, He’s a fugitive to the world, always was. But today He’s a fugitive to His own church, they reject Him, they love their creeds and big dignitaries instead of the Word.
They won’t let It be manifested. They won’t let It be preached in Its power. They’ve cut away from It, just like the Bible said they’d do in Revelation 17.
Oh, you Bethlehem dwellers! Hallelujah! I call for men, warriors who’s not afraid.
I don’t care if there’s eight hundred standing on one side and ten thousand on the other, I want warriors who will come with me and cut a hole through this line of unbelieving Philistines the World Council has got garrisoned around the Word of God, trying to make it creeds and feed the people.
There’s a Well, there’s a Fountain open in the House of David, Bethlehem, for sin and uncleanliness. Brother, sin is unbelief in His Word!
Who warrior that can see the Millennium coming? What warrior can see this great Holy Spirit come in the form of Jesus Christ, the literal body of Christ to take over again, stand with me. Stand by me!
Let’s cut a hole through this denominational creed. Let’s get in there! He’s crying for a good fresh drink of pentecostal Water, original pentecost, not a bunch of carrying on, screaming, hollering, here. I mean a genuine Holy Spirit baptism that produces the Life of Jesus Christ back into the person.
Come back! Stand, you gallant man who see David standing yonder! Jesus Christ, a fugitive from His church, barred out by their creeds.
There’s a fresh Fountain hanging yonder. Amen. There’s power to make this Word live again, it’s prophesied in this day to come to pass. God said it would come to pass. It’s got to come to pass.
O men of God, where’s that Sword? Our Lord desires a fresh drink. I don’t care if it’s life or death, let’s cut through this thing. It’s so hard standing by yourself. I’m calling for men to stand by me, stand with the Word!
What that Word says, do it just the way the Word said. I don’t care what anything else says, stay It that way, for That’s the only thing that will cut. Let’s get to Bethlehem, the true Water of God. 63-1214 - Why Little Bethlehem
Christ was so pleased by the drink offering He received at Pentecost, He wants another drink.
If our children leave and find themselves in the heat of the battle, may they look back at their time here and long for a drink of pure pentecostal water!
That’s why we build the well.
Build the well, then fight to keep it free from Satan’s armies.
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Conclusion.
Conclusion.
Hundreds of years after David, some of his descendants were traveling to be counted in a census, and they drank from that well. It sustained life. Keep on building places for the water to come.
