For I am God, and mine arm is not shortened; and I will show miracles, signs, and wonders, unto all those who believe on my name. And whoso shall ask it in my name in faith, they shall cast out devils; they shall heal the sick; they shall cause the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak, and the lame to walk. And the time speedily cometh that great things are to be shown forth unto the children of men; But without faith shall not anything be shown forth except desolations upon Babylon, the same which has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And there are none that doeth good except those who are ready to receive the fulness of my gospel, which I have sent forth unto this generation. Wherefore, I call upon the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised, to thresh the nations by the power of my Spirit; And their arm shall be my arm, and I will be their shield and their buckler; and I will gird up their loins, and they shall fight manfully for me; and their enemies shall be under their feet; and I will let fall the sword in their behalf, and by the fire of mine indignation will I preserve them.
God continues to be a God of miracles. And for those of faith, miracles are granted. I have spoken before about the need to obtain the will of God before expecting a miracle. The topic verse explains what we can expect without faith: "But without faith shall not anything be shown forth except desolations upon Babylon, ..." The world is becoming more and more engulfed in Babylon. Last week from the time of writing, a 14 year-old opened fire on innocent children at an elementary school. There were riots in North Carolina. Two bombings happened; one in New York and one in New Jersey. Terrorist groups operate with impunity in many parts of the world, killing innocent people. We had a presidential debate between two candidates; one of which is the poster child for ego and materialism, the other, one who sold national secrets for personal gain; an act that would send a normal person to jail for decades.
Truly, the last days are encroaching upon us. It is as we are told: "... it is by the wicked that the wicked are punished." (Mormon 4:5). Not to say that the children in the school yard were "wicked", on the contrary, concerning the fate of the innocent and the wicked who commit these crimes we are told:
... for behold the Lord receiveth [the innocent] up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that [the wicked] may do this thing ... unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day. (Alma 14:11)
I believe most people are generally good, but as the bumper sticker goes: "Evil wins when good people do nothing." And in that aspect, many - probably most of us stand convicted, and the judgements of God hang in the balance. I'm not in any position to judge, but like anyone else, am observing the things that Paul prophesied:
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:1-5)
Acting according to faith becomes more difficult in an increasingly secular world. We feel judged. We worry about what others will think of our actions and devotion. And if we heed that feeling, we lose faith. Jesus pointed this out to the scribes and Pharisees of His time:
How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? (John 5:44)It takes faith to disregard the shame that the world would heap upon us for practicing faith. And we must continue to hold on no matter what:
But, behold, the righteous, the saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it, they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever. (2 Nephi 9:18)And I repeat the last part of the topic scripture:
Wherefore, I call upon the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised, to thresh the nations by the power of my Spirit; And their arm shall be my arm, and I will be their shield and their buckler; and I will gird up their loins, and they shall fight manfully for me; and their enemies shall be under their feet; and I will let fall the sword in their behalf, and by the fire of mine indignation will I preserve them.
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