Exercising Faith - 1 Nephi 7:12

Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him.

The Lord is able to do anything provided that:

1. The thing is according to His will
2. We exercise faith

This underscores many of the things we have discussed in previous posts. That we're not expected, (actually advised not to) exercise faith in something until we have first ascertained His will via prayer and/or study. And secondly, we cannot expect Him to bless us with the fruits of our faith unless we act.

Note that both principles are absolutely essential. We're not allowed to decide what the Lord's will is; We may presume to at times, but it usually results in disaster. And once we understand His will, we're not permitted to sit back and wait for Him to do all of the work. We must be anxiously engaged. We must also do our best with the knowledge He has given us, which means if we don't think we've yet received His will concerning a particular thing, we can't sit idle - we must press forward with our best knowledge and assumptions of what we know to be right. If our heart is right, He will fill in the gaps of what we need to know and direct us according to His will.

This principle is illustrated in the story of Oliver Cowdery who wished to translate parts of the Book of Mormon like Joseph. Initially, he was told this:

... surely shall you receive a knowledge of whatsoever things you shall ask in faith, with an honest heart, believing that you shall receive a knowledge concerning the engravings of old records, which are ancient, which contain those parts of my scripture of which has been spoken by the manifestation of my Spirit. Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart. Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground. Therefore this is thy gift; apply unto it, ...

Note that Oliver was told that indeed it was the will of the Lord for him to translate, and that he should apply himself to that work. However, he did not approach it in the right way:

... behold, it is because that you did not continue as you commenced, when you began to translate, that I have taken away this privilege from you. ... Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me. But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right. But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me. Now, if you had known this you could have translated; nevertheless, it is not expedient that you should translate now. Behold, it was expedient when you commenced; but you feared, and the time is past, and it is not expedient now;

We learn from this that we must seek the will of God (ask), then we must go to work (apply ourselves), but in this, we must not go about the work in our own way, we must constantly rely on Him. He will direct us to do the work in the right way so that we can be successful. Doing things in our own way will not produce the results that God wants, thus He will not help us in that approach.

Faith and Diligence - 1 Nephi 16:28

And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the pointers which were in the ball, that they did work according to the faith and diligence and heed which we did give unto them.

 Here, Nephi is telling us about the liahona and the principles by which it worked. There were devices in the past (and present?) which worked upon similar principles such as the urim and thumim. The important part here is the principles by which they worked. It says "faith and diligence and heed".

Heed means to put into action. This is important to faith. One may believe something with all of their heart and yet not put it into action, in which case they have proven their lack of faith. I may well believe that if I quit smoking for example, that my health will improve, and yet not act on that belief - this is equivalent to lack of wisdom and faith. I may well believe that God will reward me for being generous to the needy and yet never give of my time and resources. Again, a lack of faith.

Diligence is related to heed in that it requires action. But it implies a certain level of constant effort and consistency. To be diligent is to keep trying even when things aren't clear or when they are tough and rocky. This is a very important element to faith because there is not a person who seeks to have faith that is not tried. We may fail our trials from time to time, but if we are diligent, we will not give up in the face of failure. We will seek forgiveness and determine not to fail when next tried.

He Shall Prepare a Way - 1 Nephi 3:7

And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.

 Interestingly, the word faith does not show up in this scripture, and yet it shows up under the topical guide for faith. And upon inspection, it explains a powerful principle of faith, which is that we must believe that God will not ask us to do anything impossible. It may seem impossible, and yet He will not set us up to fail, he will prepare a way for us. Therefore we can rest assured that any commandment or promise from Him will always be fulfilled as long as we are faithful and do our part.

Often we can't see how things will work out, but we can always rest our faith on Him, and trust His word to our souls.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5,6)

Patience and Faith - Revelation 13:10

He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

This passage is thrown into a spot where it seems out of context. It is in the middle of a description of the beast and his power in the last days. The passages before and after this are enumerating a tale of how the world is deceived by the beast into worshiping him. It seems to be a warning to the saints not to fall into the trap of the sins of the beast. It is as if the saints would seek revenge in that day, but are warned against it. They are warned to have patience and faith.

To have patience is often difficult, but of course is essential to faith. We must endure many things for our own good. And the only way to endure well, is to have patience, for without it, we would give up prematurely to our own folly.

In your patience possess ye your souls. Luke 21:19

Contend for the Faith - Jude 1:3

Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

To contend for the faith is to fight an uphill battle. There is so much opposition that without the Lord's help, faith would not endure. I can't possibly list all of the forces that oppose faith, but in essence; all worldly things oppose faith. Materialism, ambition, false doctrines, a misdirected popular culture, pornography, violence, selfishness, greed, lust... you name it, the world not only offers it, but makes it look enticing and even normal, and rudely thrusts it upon you.

The bawling noisiness and blatantness with which the world operates can have a withering effect on faith. Faith is somewhat fragile and has a short shelf-life. While being a gift from God, it is also something that must be consciously nurtured and cultivated. God will not thrust Himself upon us like the world does, we must intentionally invite Him into our lives. We must seek Him through study and prayer and then He manifests Himself. My experience is that when I am conscious of Him, He communicates with me. When I forget Him, His voice becomes more distant.

There is a phrase oft repeated by the prophet Isaiah that describes His position succinctly: "...his anger is not tuned away, but his hand is stretched out still." God will never condone sin, nor look upon it with the least degree of allowance, but He is always right there waiting for us to come back.

Divine Attributes Accompany Faith - 2 Peter 1:5-8

...giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Faith is the foundation for a host of divine attributes. And though it is possible to strive for some of these attributes without having faith, it is impossible to develop robust faith without effort to develop these attributes. For example, I can strive for patience without striving for faith, and I know many who do not claim to have faith who have a great deal of patience. But if I'm honestly striving for faith, I must also be striving for all of the necessary accompanying attributes.

The other attributes; virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity become an appendage or even a manifestation of our faith. They are intricate parts of the entire superstructure of which our faith is the core. They must all grow together or the structure may be unbalanced or may not grow at an optimal rate.

So it's all or nothing. A true seeker of faith must put everything on the table, hold nothing back, and the Lord will add all things to them. If we understand correctly, we understand that not only is total commitment involved, but total reliance is essential; Understanding that while our own efforts are necessary, it is only through His grace that faith is truly realized.

Faith More Precious than Gold - 1 Peter 1:7-9

That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

I love Peter's poetic language. But upon closer inspection, he's not merely attempting poetic allusion. He's speaking literally. The trial of faith, is literally more precious than gold or any earthly possession. Why? Because faith, first and  foremost, is required for salvation. And secondly, is one of few things that we can take with us when we pass on. Gold is actually an inert element and will never rust nor fade, however, when Peter says "gold that perisheth", he's not talking about the specific properties of gold, but material possessions in general. We literally have nothing useful to do with Gold in the next life - even if we could take it with us.

There is an funny story of a man who made a deal with God that he could take one thing with him to heaven when he died. He fretted about what to take and after long last decided to buy as big a suitcase as he could manage, and using his life savings, filled it with gold bars. Finally, as is inevitable, he died, and as promised God allowed him to take one possession. So he lugged his suitcase up to the pearly gates, and Peter, being informed that the man was indeed allowed one single possession, asked to inspect the contents of the suitcase. So the man opens the suitcase to show Peter. Peter, with a quizzical look, finally meets the man's gaze and asks: "You brought pavement?"

Needless to say, pursuit of wealth is a misdirected cause. Jesus, knowing the Pharisees attention to such matters says:

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. (Matthew 23:23)

When our faith is tried, it is like a refiner's fire - the harsher and sorer the trial, the stronger faith it can produce. But we have to be careful not to lose faith in the midst of trials. Job, when he was tried, was judged of his friends and told to "curse God and die." Instead, he said:

Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. (Job 1:21)

He also showed great faith amid his trials when he said:

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another... (Job 19:25-27)

The above quotation is one of my favorites, not only because it is inspiring, but because it is among a unique set of Old Testament scriptures that testifies of the Messiah. What's also interesting, is that Job is not of the house of Israel. He is a man of the east. And yet has the same beliefs as the Israelites. Note that there are others, not of Israel who shared in the knowledge and anticipation of the Messiah. The prophet Baalam prophesied of the messiah, and of course the magi knew of him.

Faith Brings Healing - James 5:14-16

Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Miracles attend faith. Why? Because the gifts of the spirit attend those of faith; Including the gift to heal and the gift to be healed. (1 Corinthians 12:7-11, Moroni 10:8-18) I have seen the gift of healing work numerous times, and it is done on behalf of the faith of those asking for the healing. The important thing about faith is that one attains the will of God before asking for the blessing. I guess what I'm saying is that we should approach these things with an attitude of "Thy will be done" - asking for His will to be done is always the correct approach, since nothing will ever come to pass except it be His will. And we must seek to align our will with His.

The seeker of a miracle should first have a belief in the power of God. That He has the power and ability to do the thing that is needed. (This belief is fundamental.) Next the seeker should pray to know His will. And be assured that the answer will come. Finally, having ascertained the will of God concerning the matter the seeker now has promise in which to place their faith - because He is a God of truth. The seeker then would call those with authority (the Elders of the church) to perform the anointing and blessing.

Every circumstance is different, but the steps are roughly the same. Faith is a belief in a promise from God. Obtaining such promise, is in my opinion fundamental to faith. Again, every circumstance is different - it may take months or years to understand His will concerning a matter, or it may take only a matter of minutes. But I don't believe that we're expected to believe in a miracle or other blessing without first obtaining His promise. I want to point out here that the promise may not be easily recognizable; it may simply be nothing other than an urge to have a blessing performed. The point is to follow such feelings and not doubt or dissuade ourselves from them.

Note that there are also promises which are based on us keeping certain parts of a covenant; Where the Lord has offered certain promises to those who keep certain laws. One such is that if we honor our parents, we will live a long life (Exodus 20:12, Ephesians 6:2), Another is the promise associated with paying tithes and offerings - which is that we will have enough and to spare (Malachi 3:10). In fact there is a principle in which every blessing is based on either our asking for it, or performing the law associated with the blessing:

There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated— And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.(Doctrine and Covenants 121:20-21)

Finally, I want to address the final promise given in this scripture concerning the healed person which is that  if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. This amazing promise is exemplified in the story of Jesus' healing the man with the palsy:

And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him.
And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus.
And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee.
And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?
But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts?
Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk?
But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house.
And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. (Luke 5:18-25)

What's interesting here is that it is not necessarily the healed person that showed faith, and yet they are the ones that receive forgiveness of their sins. It is similar in the case of a person converted, or the receiver of a charitable act, those acts carried out by the faithful can have the effect of cleansing the receiver. (James 5:20, 1 Peter 4:8) To me, this seems strange since it seems that the receiver of the gift (healing, charity, etc.) has done nothing to warrant forgiveness of sins, however, it occurs to me that an honest receiver is in fact changed by the receipt of the gift if their heart is in the right place.

Take for example, the old Charles Dickens tale Great Expectations, where a young orphan performs the simple act of giving food to an escaped convict. That simple act has such an effect on the convict that he completely changes his life.

It occurs to me that the receipt of any gift from God, can quite literally change us, and in fact "hide a multitude of sins" if we recognize the true source of the gift (and all gifts for that matter). So you never know how an act of kindness or faith, no matter how small can affect the life of another for good. Truly, we live in a vicarious universe, where no act, good or evil is performed in a vacuum. All acts ripple into other's lives and quite literally into the eternities. This is a topic which I feel strongly about and must discuss further in another post.