This post is part of a series that exists in my mind dealing with not allowing the devil to take singular scriptures/quotes or scriptures/quotes out of context and using them against us. We don’t want to allow the devil ONE INCH. So to be spiritually built up, I wanted to address an unfortunately common question that exists in our world today, even amongst the believers.
Recently I have been asked the question about what happens to children born out of wedlock or some otherwise illegitimate births. Can they be bride? Can they go to heaven?
Now, this may seem like a shocking question to some, especially in our culture today where over 50% of births ARE to unmarried couples. However, the basis of this question comes from the Biblical principle.
DEUTERONOMY 23:2
» 2 † A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the LORD.
So serious is this sin that they can’t enter the congregation of the Lord on earth, for 10 generations, well then, how about heaven?
You can see from that scripture alone how serious the issue is. We are not to have sexual relations outside of marriage. Period. The consequences are heavy. Therefore it would behoove a minister to really hit that sin hard. Bro Branham does in the following quote:
Dear Brother Branham, if a baby is born of a–out of wedlock, can this child ever be saved or go in the rapture?
Saved? Why sure, I believe the child could be… The child can’t help what’s been done. That is true. But I… About going in the rapture… Saved, I’d say, “Yes.” But in the rapture it’s a predestinated seed that goes in the rapture. And I can’t believe that adultery was a predestinated seed. You understand? See? I believe the people can–the baby can be saved; it has no–no rights of its own. It’s a awful act and things.
But now, in the Old Testament when a baby was born a bastard child, it could not even enter the congregation of the Lord for ten generations, four hundred and something years, that curse was so bad. Just think of that. A innocent baby, its great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandchildren, just think, the baby’s great, great, great, ten great grandchildren could not even come in the congregation of God. That’s right. (64-0823E)
Now, someone had the question and Bro Branham gave a serious Biblical answer. He didn’t go all grace and love and God is all moosy gooshy and doesn’t care anymore because He died for you anyway – no – he told it the way it was.
If you stopped there however as most people do, you’d miss the following paragraph:
But you see, there was nothing there strong enough to forgive that sin. The blood of the Old Testament did not forgive sins; it covered sins. But the Blood of Jesus Christ divorces it. That’s different now. When the Blood of Jesus Christ comes in, it’s the different. (64-0823E)
So there Bro Branham brings in Grace. But only AFTER he hit on the reality of how bad the sin really was.
Let’s key in on the word Bro Branham uses: “divorce” He says “The Blood of Jesus Christ divorces it”.
What does that mean? Let’s look at how Bro Branham defines this word in the same type of scenario in a different message.
Like sins at one time were covered. But now they’re not covered; they’re divorced. They’re completely gone, put in the sea of forgetfulness to never to be remembered no more. I like that. (62-1124E)
Completely gone.
We also need to look at Ezekiel 18:
EZEKIEL 18:1 – 3
1 ¶ The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying,
2 What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge?
3 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel.
Later it says:
19 Yet say ye, Why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live.
20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
Now, at this point you may be saying, “Bro Trevor, none of this discounts what Bro Branham said in that Questions and Answers message about not being able to go in the rapture.” I completely understand.
Now, I’m not trying to say that our beginning “Questions and Answers” quote has no merit. I’m not the one to say who goes in the rapture and who doesn’t anyway. I merely want people to understand there is MORE than just that one quote on the matter.
Consider the following quote as well:
That’s how someone got it the other day. I’ve–I’ve got a lot of letters on that, Hybrid Religion, that I made a remark over in… The Bible said that a illegitimate, called “bastard child,” could not enter the congregation of the Lord for ten generations, which would be four hundred years that a illegitimate child could not come into the congregation of the Lord. That’s how bad that hybreeding was; that was a woman that let another man live with her in order to bring forth a child, that that child was hybrid, not by its father but by some other man. See? And that was so evil before God, it taken ten generations to ever breed that out again, before God.
But that doesn’t apply to this age. You have a new Birth now. They don’t… They had just one birth back there, that was the actual sexual breeding. We have this new Birth now which is the spiritual, that breeds out all the cull. And we are new creatures in Christ Jesus, born again of the Spirit of God. New creatures! (60-1211M )
THAT DOESN’T APPLY TO THIS AGE.
I didn’t say it… He said it.
This also applies Spiritually as well:
And hybriding was such a horrible thing in the Old Testament. He said, “A bastard child shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord for ten generations.” There’s nothing to breed him out, only that sin. Think. Ten generations, four hundred years before a illegitimate child could ever come into the Kingdom of God. There was no serum to take care of him. He had to just breed it out through the family. Four hundred years ‘fore a illegitimate child could come in the congregation of the Lord.
But today, since the Blood of the Jesus Christ has been shed and you’ve been interbred by all different kinds of ideas, the Holy Spirit is here this morning to breed you back to the original, bring you back to Pentecost, breed you back. And we sit together this morning in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, letting the Holy Spirit [Blank.spot.on.tape–Ed.]…?… work. What is circumcising? Cutting off all the hybrid, the surplus, the things of the world, the things of the church age, bringing us back to Pentecost like it was at the beginning. (60-1127M)
Now that we have covered some of the quotes and Scriptures surrounding this topic, I do want to close with a final thought.
Many have fallen away because of this topic. They think to themselves “if I can’t be bride, what’s the use of me trying to serve the Lord?”. Now I understand this sentiment, however it must be said, that if you have repented and believed on the Lord, solely for the rewards, then you missed something. God is so worthy of our repentance and our service, no matter the reward we would receive. Should not we rather say like Job, “though he slay me, yet I’ll trust Him”! How also should we say like Bro Branham:
But I don’t serve the Lord because I think He’d send me to hell if I didn’t; I serve Him because I love Him. I serve Him because there’s something in me. If you go out and say, “Well, I have to quit doing this because my church don’t believe in it,” you’re just playing the part of a hypocrite. That’s right. But if you do it because that it–you love it, and–and it’s a contribution to God, and something in your heart making the love of God so greater to you than these things, now you’re on the right line. (59-0628E)