Faith Still Precedes the Miracle ~ Part One

 Good Morning or Good Afternoon or Good Evening, 

this post should take three minutes to five minutes to read from start to finish.

This post focuses on BYU (Brigham Young University) Devotional in October 2019, and it is called "Faith Still Precedes the Miracle" by Brother Mark Pace. This post is part one, and I would like to share with you some highlights while I was reading the Devotional. 

Brother Pace has mentioned the following; "... So I share with you that request from the prophet of God and thank you for your personal efforts this year in reading the New Testament. You may not realize this, but by accepting and acting on the prophet’s invitation, you are strengthening the Church. How? 

As you study the scriptures throughout the week, you welcome the Holy Ghost into your life. This increased influence of the Holy Ghost builds your faith in the Savior Jesus Christ and deepens your conversion. The collective strength of the conversion of each member is, in a very real way, the strength of the Church. ... The promptings of the Spirit have led me to talk of the importance of acting in faith and to remind you that faith still precedes the miracle.

Inspiring Discourses on Faith

In the Book of Mormon there is an absolute jewel in Ether 12. ... We learn from Moroni’s abridged record how the Jaredites were brought to the American continent and became a great civilization, with periods of righteousness and prosperity as well as periods of wickedness, war, and apostasy.

In Ether 12, Moroni recorded the continued slide of the Jaredites. They rejected the prophets, and the blessings of heaven were withdrawn. One prophet in particular, Ether, prophesied “great and marvelous things unto the people, which they did not believe, because they saw them not.”

And with that phrase “they did not believe, because they saw them not” - Moroni suddenly paused his historical narrative and launched into an inspiring discourse on faith. It was as if Moroni had just realized that faith could have been the antidote to the wickedness that led to the destruction of the Jaredite nation. 

If only they had been able to believe before seeing, maybe they would have repented and been spared. Of course Moroni knew that it was too late for the Jaredites, but he wasn’t writing to the Jaredites. He was writing to each of us, and it is not too late for us. Moroni wanted us to know that faith is the antidote to the wickedness of the world in which we live. 

"FAITH requires work." - Marcos A. Aidukaitis.

So Moroni took the opportunity to teach us that “by faith all things are fulfilled.” “faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.” 

“if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them.” “neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith.” In other words, Moroni taught that faith precedes the miracle. He gave multiple examples in support of this truth. 

When Alma and Amulek were in prison and the walls tumbled to the earth, that miracle was preceded by their faith. When Ammon and Nephi and Lehi converted thousands of Lamanites, those miracles were preceded by faith. Even the appearance of Christ among the people could not have happened “until after they had faith in him.”

To Moroni’s list we could add another example. In Mosiah 24 we read of the great faith of the people of Alma, who were, at that time, in bondage to the Lamanites. The Lamanites persecuted them, forced them into hard labor, “and put task-masters over them.”

... And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage. Note again that the Lord did not say how He would deliver them, just that it would happen “on the morrow.” 

But that was enough for Alma and his people. They spent all night gathering “their flocks together,” preparing for their promised deliverance. And in the morning the Lord caused a deep sleep to come upon the Lamanites, yea, and all their task-masters were in a profound sleep. And Alma and his people departed into the wilderness.

It was a miracle, and it came after the people of Alma had submitted cheerfully and with patience, preparing all night long without knowing how the miracle would happen, only that God had promised that it would. You see, they didn’t need to see the miracle before they would believe it. That is faith, and faith still precedes the miracle.

Patterns of Faith

My dear friends, examples of faith are not confined solely to the scriptures. Great faith was also demonstrated by Saints early in this dispensation. And it is clearly evident among our fellow Saints with whom we live day to day. Your lives are full of such faith and devotion. I wish I could talk to each of you and hear about the patterns of faith that have brought you to this point in your life. Even though that isn’t possible, you can rest assured that your Father in Heaven knows of your faith and is blessing you accordingly.

I would like to suggest five patterns of faith that you can make a part of your day-to-day lives to demonstrate your faith in Jesus Christ and qualify you for the miracles that God has prepared for you:

1. Following the Lord’s living prophet 2. Attending our Sunday meetings

3. Participating in home-centered gospel learning

4. Paying tithes and offerings

5. Attending the temple"

Stay Tuned until next time.