Miracles

For it shall come to pass in that day that the churches which are built up, and not unto the Lord, when the one shall say unto the other: Behold, I, I am the Lord’s; and the others shall say: I, I am the Lord’s; and thus shall every one say that hath built up churches, and not unto the Lord--

And they shall contend one with another; and their priests shall contend one with another, and they shall teach with their learning, and deny the Holy Ghost, which giveth utterance.

And they deny the power of God, the Holy One of Israel; and they say unto the people: Hearken unto us, and hear ye our precept; for behold there is no God today, for the Lord and the Redeemer hath done his work, and he hath given his power unto men; Behold, hearken ye unto my precept; if they shall say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of the Lord, believe it not; for this day he is not a God of miracles; he hath done his work.

2 Nephi 28:3-6

The mainstream interpretation of this scripture makes it difficult to identify these last days church's that are "built up, and not unto The Lord."

As LDS we read this and excuse ourselves and cast the blame on every religion but the one for whom the warning is written for: the LDS church. Who is being warned? Why would Nephi warn churches who will never read the book? Just so we can point the finger of accusation and pat ourselves on the back? 

This post will deal primarily with verse 6 and the idea of miracles, to see if we can get a better understanding of that term so that we can see if we are guilty as charged by Nephi, or if we can just go on singing "all is well, all is well". 

The primary question is does our church say:

"Behold, hearken ye unto my precept; if they shall say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of the Lord, believe it not; for this day he is not a God of miracles; he hath done his work."

Let's break it down:

1. Behold, hearken ye unto my precept;

2.  if they shall say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of the Lord, believe it not; 

(The "they" in this line is unnamed, it appears it is some unnamed persons who come among the church and "say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of The Lord". Why would someone come and tell the church that The Lord has performed a miracle, and why would the leaders of these false churches tell its people to "believe it not? Hopefully this will become clear as we move forward. 

3. for this day he is not a God of miracles; 

4. he hath done his work.

These are all interrelated, with the primary assertion that these last days churches built up to get gain will tell the people to hearken unto their precept. This is fulfilled by our church in so many ways, but the easy one, is that we follow "current doctrine" out of a handbook, instead of the pure gospel and doctrine of Christ as found in the Book of Mormon, the most correct book on the earth, which Joseph remarked, that a man will get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts than any other book. 

Miracles. Our church believes in miracles, I can hear them say, "We have miracles all the time!" And in a way I agree. Miracles happen. The question is, how does the most correct book define and describe miracles? Does it describe miracles simply as miraculous events, or something else? Before we turn to the Book of. Mormon, Let's look at an interesting and perhaps confusing quote by Jesus:

22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Matthew 7:22-23

Wow! People come to The Lord who have worked miracles in His name, why would God profess to not "know them" and command them to depart? Is it because these people were really wicked people and they somehow faked some miracles or perhaps stole Gods power. Growing up in the church this was how I understood other church's healing's to be be judged by God at the last day. Sure they performed miracles but they did so illegitimately, but in the end God will show them we had the priesthood and they did not, and he will cast them off. 

Let's assume we know nothing about the New Testament and the miracles Jesus performed in those accounts. If we could get that out of our minds for a few minutes and we take a look at this "most correct book", maybe we can find a new idea about "miracles". Maybe The Lord is telling us that for a miracle to be counted as qualifying of The Lord approval, it is a different kind of miracle than we typically think of. 

Here is Ammon speaking to the King:

13 Now Ammon said unto him: I can assuredly tell thee, O king, of a man that can translate the records; for he has wherewith that he can look, and translate all records that are of ancient date; and it is a gift from God. And the things are called interpreters, and no man can look in them except he be commanded, lest he should look for that he ought not and he should perish. And whosoever is commanded to look in them, the same is called seer.

14 And behold, the king of the people who are in the land of Zarahemla is the man that is commanded to do these things, and who has this high gift from God.

15 And the king said that a seer is greater than a prophet.

16 And Ammon said that a seer is a revelator and a prophet also; and a gift which is greater can no man have, except he should possess the power of God, which no man can; yet a man may have great power given him from God.

(As an aside, this power of God's is His. No man can possess it, own it or have a monopoly on its distribution. We can have power given us to use, but it's God's Power and it is therefore it is through an association with the Powers of Heaven or God that man is given power. It is not something man just has by virtue of having priesthood confirmed upon us by other men. And there is not some guarantee a man will always have it. It is perishable because this priesthood is from God. He still ministers to those of sound mind and it is those to whom. He grants holiness and power.)

But a seer can know of things which are past, and also of things which are to come, and by them shall all things be revealed, or, rather, shall secret things be made manifest, and hidden things shall come to light, and things which are not known shall be made known by them, and also things shall be made known by them which otherwise could not be known.

Thus God has provided a means that man, through faith, might work MIGHTY MIRACLES therefore he becometh a great benefit to his fellow beings.

O how marvelous are the works of the Lord, and how long doth he suffer with his people; yea, and how blind and impenetrable are the understandings of the children of men; for they will not seek wisdom, neither do they desire that she should rule over them!

Mosiah 8:13-20

According to this passage, miracles are "unfolding mysteries" through the "marvelous works" which he then equates with seeking wisdom and not only seeking her, but allowing her to rule over them!! This then is a different "miracle" or work indeed. 

Also miracles are:

--things which are past, 

--and also of things which are to come

--by them shall all things be revealed

--shall secret things be made manifest

--hidden things shall come to light

--things which are not known shall be made known by them

--things shall be made known by them which otherwise could not be known.

No "healing". No raising the dead. These miracles seem to have another function outside the physical realm in which we find ourselves. These miracles are all about having knowledge and things revealed to us, so that we can see and hear and understand, and then God is hoping, we will act. Why "works"? Why The reference to Wisdom? Who is she? Would it be a miracle in our day, in the LDS church to find her and have her rule over us? Hmm... A miracle indeed. 

6 And as sure as the Lord liveth, so sure as many as believed, or as many as were brought to the knowledge of the truth, through the preaching of Ammon and his brethren, according to the spirit of revelation and of prophecy, and the power of God working miracles in them--yea, I say unto you, as the Lord liveth, as many of the Lamanites as believed in their preaching, and were converted unto the Lord, never did fall away.

Alma 23:6

Here the miracle is receiving knowledge, by "God working miracles IN them, and this is then compared to being "converted unto The Lord." How does working miracles "in" them, receiving knowledge of things past present and future, and being converted unto The Lord relate? Why is that a miracle? Who is involved and directly responsible? Is this something another man can give you? Is this miracle related to having God perform or press something "in" your flesh like the Brother of Jared account?

12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

Why does Ammon "do" all things? What does that mean? Is that a miracle? Is Ammon's example here, exactly how someone gets power from God? By humility. and not claiming to be great, but praising God? 

13 Behold, how many thousands of our brethren has he loosed from the pains of hell; and they are brought to sing redeeming love, and this because of the power of his word which is in us, therefore have we not great reason to rejoice?

14 Yea, we have reason to praise him forever, for he is the Most High God, and has loosed our brethren from the chains of hell.

15 Yea, they were encircled about with everlasting darkness and destruction; but behold, he has brought them into his everlasting light, yea, into everlasting salvation; and they are encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love; yea, and we have been instruments in his hands of doing this great and marvelous work.

16 Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel.

Alma 26:12-16

Here we come to the whole purpose and divine law of miracles and what purpose they serve in Gods great plan. 

--"he has brought them into his everlasting light, yea, into everlasting salvation; 

--and they are encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love"

--"how many thousands of our brethren has he loosed from the pains of hell;"

--"and they are brought to sing redeeming love"

--"and this because of the power of his word which is in us"

The great miracle here is salvation. Salvation that comes from the divine light of Gods very Person and Presence. "Being brought into His everlasting light is to be brought into Gods very Presence; to see Him face to face! Encircled in His arms! Can you imagine? Loosed from the pains of hell! Singing redeeming love! Having the Power of His Word "in" us. Here we have this idea of "in" idea again. What is happening here?

What do we do with instruments? We perform them. How can we allow God to "perform" with, in and through us? Like Ammon said, "we have been instruments in his hands of doing this great and marvelous work."

What did Ammon do? I mean I can hear your doubts already: "I don't think that all that actually means to see God face to face. We don't need to do that until the next life!"

Let's look at the account to see exactly what Ammon did:

6 Now, this was what Ammon desired, for he knew that king Lamoni was under the power of God; he knew that the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness--yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and that the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul, yea, he knew that this had overcome his natural frame, and he was carried away in God--

Alma 19:6

This is the same language of light, even marvelous light of His goodness infusing Lamoni's soul with joy. What does that look like? How do I get some of that? Why light? Is this a sparkly shiny manifestation? Or is this light and truth, or in other words, knowledge being given Lamoni? Or as mentioned earlier, is this knowledge of mysteries, past present and future?

Joseph said, "A man cannot be saved in ignorance", and "a man is saved no faster than he can get knowledge". It's not just a sparkly experience. It is light, it is truth, it is knowledge that is conveyed to the mind of Lamoni here. The content matters! What the spirit is saying to you is one way how you know whether the message is true or whether you are being deceived. Lamoni gets filled with saving knowledge and that infuses his soul with joy!  

"And it came to pass that he arose, according to the words of Ammon; and as he arose, he stretched forth his hand unto the woman, and said: Blessed be the name of God, and blessed art thou. For as sure as thou livest, behold, I have seen my Redeemer; and he shall come forth, and be born of a woman, and he shall redeem all mankind who believe on his name. Now, when he had said these words, his heart was swollen within him, and he sunk again with joy; and the queen also sunk down, being overpowered by the Spirit. ,

Alma 19:12-13

"I have seen my Redeemer"

This is face to face. This is the light of Gods countenance shining upon Lamoni and his house and redeeming them all from the fall. Ammon introduced them to these things and they found salvation in his message by receiving the message and then doing what Ammon invited them to do, and that is ride the chariot up the fiery conduit into the Presence of God!  Here is another example of the definition of salvation in the most correct book. This is the "precept" of the book which is required of us to perform or abide by in order to remove the condemnation.  And we just aren't good enough. But it is a come as you are party, and if you'll come to Him He will clean you up. And if you keep returning He will, grace for grace, bring you along to where and what you need to be. 

[The Queen] arose and stood upon her feet, and cried with a loud voice, saying: O blessed Jesus, who has saved me from an awful hell! O blessed God, have mercy on this people! And when she had said this, she clasped her hands, being filled with joy, speaking many words which were not understood; 

Alma 19:29-30

This is what those who have this experience do: they sing the song of redeeming love! Can you feel to sing this song? If you have in the past, can you feel to do so now? Is this a one off event?

34 And behold, many did declare unto the people that they had seen angels and had conversed with them; and thus they had told them things of God, and of his righteousness.

Alma 19:34

These are the things you are going to have to encounter and become one with if you want to get closer to God. Adam waits for "messengers from Father", because that ministry by holy beings is necessary to give you the knowledge you need. 

Let's go to the lords ministry in Bountiful:

25 And it came to pass that Jesus blessed them as they did pray unto him; and his countenance did smile upon them, and the light of his countenance did shine upon them, and behold they were as white as the countenance and also the garments of Jesus; and behold the whiteness thereof did exceed all the whiteness, yea, even there could be nothing upon earth so white as the whiteness thereof.

3 Nephi 19:25

30 And when Jesus had spoken these words he came again unto his disciples; and behold they did pray steadfastly, without ceasing, unto him; and he did smile upon them again; and behold they were white, even as Jesus.

3 Nephi 19:30

32 And tongue cannot speak the words which he prayed, neither can be written by man the words which he prayed.

33 And the multitude did hear and do bear record; and their hearts were open and they did understand in their hearts the words which he prayed.

34 Nevertheless, so great and marvelous were the words which he prayed that they cannot be written, neither can they be uttered by man.

35 And it came to pass that when Jesus had made an end of praying he came again to the disciples, and said unto them: So great faith have I never seen among all the Jews; wherefore I could not show unto them so great miracles, because of their unbelief.

36 Verily I say unto you, there are none of them that have seen so great things as ye have seen; neither have they heard so great things as ye have heard.

3 Nephi 19:31-36

Here again we have the same language as Ammon and King Lamoni. And we have even more clarification, because Jesus a smiles upon them and they become white as He is white! 

Christ could not show those in Jerusalem the miracles He showed the Nephites! What miracles? Because He showed the Jews healing and raising dead etc. Right? So what miracles does Christ lament he could not show the. Jews? Yes, He could not show them the saving miracles. The "Mighty" miracles. These words mean things. They are things. And there is a big difference between healing someone who is sick and redeeming them from the fall. Even non-Christians heal people! And surely Christians, including the Mormons heal by faith. This miracle though is one only heavenly beings and The Lord are able to perform! 

Let's take a look at the three disciples miracles:

5 And there were great and marvelous works wrought by the disciples of Jesus, insomuch that they did heal the sick, and raise the dead, and cause the lame to walk, and the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear; and all manner of miracles did they work among the children of men; and in nothing did they work miracles save it were in the name of Jesus.

4 Nephi 1:5

Finally! Some real New Testament "Jesus miracles"! Or are they?

Heal the sick

Blind to see

Deaf to hear

"Dead" to rise

These are the same things which Lamoni and his household, the Nephites with Christ, and all who receive this kind of salvation receive. Are we not all sick, blind, deaf and dead? I hope that these miracles are both temporal and spiritual, but I desire the spiritual more than the physical. Mankind has power given them to exercise faith to physically heal and even raise people from the dead. And many of those that do these kinds of miracles are going to be denied entrance by the Holy One of Israel who is the gatekeeper. Remember the scripture of Christ that He will command them who do these miracles to depart! Why? Is it because the miracles that those who know Him will perform are of a spiritual and saving nature? What is Gods work and glory? Yes, to bring men to pass Immortality and Eternal Life! So wouldn't His Mighty Miracles also do the same?

Let's return to the record to see if these healing's of sick, deaf, blind and dead are miraculous healing's or something else. 

13 But wickedness did prevail upon the face of the whole land, insomuch that the Lord did take away his beloved disciples, (these are the three who tarried, the same referenced in the above scripture about healing) and the work of miracles and of healing did cease because of the iniquity of the people.

14 And there were no gifts from the Lord, and the Holy Ghost did not come upon any, because of their wickedness and unbelief.

15 And I, being fifteen years of age and being somewhat of a sober mind, therefore I was visited of the Lord, and tasted and knew of the goodness of Jesus."

Mormon 1:13-15. 

Verse 15 clarifies that the three disciples healing of blind, deaf and sick was spiritual in nature. For they come and minister to Mormon and he "tasted and knew of the goodness of Jesus."  He too entered the Divine Presence and was redeemed from the fall thereby. And all this in the context of despite the three being taken and no more miracles being wrought, they still came to Mormon and he still was redeemed!!

15 And now, O all ye that have imagined up unto yourselves a god who can do no miracles, I would ask of you, have all these things passed, of which I have spoken? Has the end come yet? Behold I say unto you, Nay; and God has not ceased to be a God of miracles.

Have all the Powers of Heaven "passed"? Are They no longer? The answer is a resounding, "NAY!" For God has not ceased to be a God of miracles. What miracle? God has not ceased bringing men into His Presence to redeem them! He continues still! Will you behold The Lord?

18 And who shall say that Jesus Christ did not do many mighty miracles? And there were many mighty miracles wrought by the hands of the apostles.

19 And if there were miracles wrought then, why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.

20 And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.

God will come to you. He has not ceased to perform this miracle of salvation and redemption! If so, it is because of our own unbelief or false notions of who God is. It is because we seek for the miracles that will get us cast off, and all the while we ignore His miraculous work and a wonder! It truly is miracle to save even one of us. 

And how does it begin? We see how to begin a few verses later: 

23 And he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned;

24 And these signs shall follow them that believe--in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover;

25 And whosoever shall believe in my name, doubting nothing, unto him will I confirm all my words, even unto the ends of the earth.

26 And now, behold, who can stand against the works of the Lord? Who can deny his sayings? Who will rise up against the almighty power of the Lord? Who will despise the works of the Lord? Who will despise the children of Christ? Behold, all ye who are despisers of the works of the Lord, for ye shall wonder and perish.

27 O then despise not, and wonder not, but hearken unto the words of the Lord, and ask the Father in the name of Jesus for what things soever ye shall stand in need. Doubt not, but be believing, and begin as in times of old, and come unto the Lord with all your heart, and work out your own salvation with fear and trembling before him.

28 Be wise in the days of your probation; strip yourselves of all uncleanness; ask not, that ye may consume it on your lusts, but ask with a firmness unshaken, that ye will yield to no temptation, but that ye will serve the true and living God.

29 See that ye are not baptized unworthily; see that ye partake not of the sacrament of Christ unworthily; but see that ye do all things in worthiness, and do it in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God; and if ye do this, and endure to the end, ye will in nowise be cast out.

Mormon 9:15-29 

Miracles. The doctrine of Christ. Tied together. It is one work compounded in one and God is going to fulfill His word and His work. The question is, will you get out of bed with the whore? Will you arise and leave your false religious beliefs and false beliefs of God behind? Ask Jesus for whatsoever "things" ye lack yet. Ask with faith, not to consume it on your lusts, not to be able to tell some sycophant a fascinating experience or manifestation. Don't do that! Get The Lord to press into your own hand 20 stones. Do that!  Look at the following verses after Christ commands those who perform certain miracles but "knew Him not":

"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:

And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock."

Matthew 7:24-25

Founded on a rock. 16 stones taken up to the mountain... And the wise man builds his house upon a rock! Coincidence?

Finally, here is how Christ can minister and perform His great miracle:

And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people.

And after all this, after working many mighty miracles among the children of men, he shall be led, yea, even as Isaiah said, as a sheep before the shearer is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.

Yea, even so he shall be led, crucified, and slain, the flesh becoming subject even unto death, the will of the Son being swallowed up in the will of the Father.

And thus God breaketh the bands of death, having gained the victory over death; giving the Son power to make intercession for the children of men--

Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, taken upon himself their iniquity and their transgressions, having redeemed them, and satisfied the demands of justice.

"after working many mighty miracles among the children of men"

Hopefully you have a better understanding of this phrase. For while He certainly performed healing's and raising the dead, these were signs and symbols of His real miracle: the atonement and doing all He did and still does for the redemption of mankind. His ministry and miracles continue still will you be a partaker?

Here is Christ about His thoughts on those who would deny Him His personal, face to face ministry among mankind:

6 Yea, wo unto him that shall deny the revelations of the Lord, and that shall say the Lord no longer worketh by revelation, or by prophecy, or by gifts, or by tongues, or by healings, or by the power of the Holy Ghost!

7 Yea, and wo unto him that shall say at that day, to get gain, that there can be no miracle wrought by Jesus Christ; for he that doeth this shall become like unto the son of perdition, for whom there was no mercy, according to the word of Christ!

3 Nephi 29:6-7

To all those who deny Christ can or must needs come minister to us in the flesh, Yes, now, To you, To me, In the flesh, Face to face. To all those who say we don't need to see Christ in this life. We just need ordinances in the temple and odds are we'll be exalted. To all those who preach a gospel of procrastination and hesitate or delay your repentance for another day because some leader hasn't told you this is important, and that you should or need to do it, or because you doubt or fear or just don't know where to start, or you claim, "God doesn't speak to me". Yea, Wo unto all who shall say that there can be no miracle wrought by Christ, even the miracle of Him coming and redeeming you from the fall because you also know these things and can stand in His Presence while in the flesh; while in this mortality. Wo unto to you shepherds for going not in and hindering those who would enter in! 

God is not dead, nor does He sleep! The bells toll for the dead prophets and heaven weeps and the devil laughs, because so many fall for the sophistry and misdirection. He is not done with His work! He has not given His power to men. He is a God of miracles and I know that because I know how much of a miracle it is for Him to save me. Only He can do it. He is personally involved in doing so. That's the only way. Don't allow some precept of men and the churches they've built up, to replace your relationship meant to be between you and God directly. His arms are extended still. Will he deny Him further?

"Repent, and come unto me", saith The Lord. 

For if you'll repent, the miracle He will perform will include: 

--unfolding mysteries" through the "marvelous works"

--seeking wisdom and not only seeking her, but allowing her to rule over you. This 

We shall see and know:

--things which are past, 

--and also of things which are to come

--by them shall all things be revealed

--shall secret things be made manifest

--hidden things shall come to light

--things which are not known shall be made known by them

--things shall be made known by them which otherwise could not be known.

And

-- receive knowledge

--have God working miracles IN you 

--be "converted unto The Lord

--in his strength do all things

--be brought into his everlasting light

--into everlasting salvation

--be encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love

--be loosed from the pains of hell

--be brought to sing redeeming love

--receive the power of his word which is in us

--have the dark veil of unbelief cast away from your mind

-- have the light, light up your mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which           was a marvelous light of his goodness

--yea, have this light infuse such joy into your soul

--have the cloud of darkness having been dispelled

--have the light of everlasting life lit up in your soul

--to be overcome in your natural frame

--to be carried away in God--

-- to see angels and converse with them; 

-- be told them things of God, and of his righteousness by these angels

-- to have Jesus bless you as you pray unto him

-- to have his countenance smile upon you 

--have the light of his countenance shine upon you 

--to be as white as the countenance and also the garments of Jesus, even a whiteness that does exceed all the whiteness, yea, even there is nothing upon earth so white as the whiteness thereof

--Heal the sick in you 

--make the Blind in you to see

-- and the Deaf in you to hear

-- and the "Dead" in you to rise, be a flame on earth again

-- to have Him smile upon you again

-- to be white again, even as Jesus.

-- to have Christ pray words that tongue cannot speak, neither can be written by man the words

-- to hear and bear record; and have your heart open and understand in your heart the words spoken by Him

-- to be shown greater miracles

-- to see so great things and to hear so great things 

--to taste and know of the goodness of Jesus 

--speak with new tongues

-- to take up serpents

-- to drink any deadly thing and it shall not hurt you 

--they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover;

-- to be counted as one who shall believe in my name, doubting nothing, unto him will I confirm all my words, even unto the ends of the earth.

-- to have the rain descend, and the floods come, and the winds blow, and beat upon your house; and have it fall  not: for it is founded upon a rock

--to be able to declare:

"I have seen my Redeemer!"

Now that would be a miracle indeed!!