ADTT: Learning from God’s Generals [William Branham]

William Branham
April 6, 1909 – December 24, 1965

We have moved on to the next level of our Apostolic Discipleship Training Track. For the succeeding Wednesdays, the class will be focusing on the lives of the revivalists, evangelists and preachers who have been chosen by God to do great work in past years. This is in line with our congregation’s preparation for the revival outbreak that will come to the Philippines.

Last week, we studied and discussed the life of William Branham who became known for the notable signs and wonders that followed his ministry. We based that night’s class on the video on Branham’s life in the series called “God’s Generals”, presented by Roberts Liardon.

The class was asked to take down notes on the strength and weaknesses of this revivalist in order to learn from his victories and avoid his mistakes.

One of the things that I thought was Branham’s strengths was his constant confession of his dependence on God; that he was just being used by God, always identifying himself to the people as “just like one of you”. This, to me, spoke of his humility as a vessel and a servant of God, and his reliance on what God can do through him, not on what he thought he could do on his own.

Another thing that I thought was really positive in Branham’s life was the fact that he always waited for the “angel” of the Lord to be present in the healing crusades before doing anything. Again, this goes back to dependence on God. He didn’t go ahead of the supernatural but waited for the presence of the Lord before doing his calling. After all, God is the one who does the healing – Branham was just the vessel.

I also was amazed at how simple his prayers were and how non-theatrical his presence was in the videos that we saw. The people that he prayed healing for didn’t even fall down. I liked the fact that there wasn’t that much drama in his meetings but the power of the Holy Spirit was undeniable.

The most important lesson I learned from Branham’s life was to stick to one’s God-given anointing and calling, because going out of the parameters of ministry, which God gave means going out on your own. This was clear in the later part of Branham’s life. He wanted to be a teacher because it was the trend of the time. So he changed office at will. He moved out of his covering and away from his anointing. The Lord then confirmed to me to stick to my anointing and not try to be someone else He didn’t make me to be.


More on William Branham on God's Generals.