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{888} Seeing God vs. Walking by Faith
Message #61
Date: Oct 20 1999 11:14:17 EDT
From: "Sterling D. Allan" <sterlingda@greaterthings.com>
Subject: {888} Seeing God vs. Walking by Faith
the following is posted to
www.greaterthings.com/Essays/see_God_faith.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Walt and David Z.,
Add me to the list of former frustrated seekers of the face of God and his
angels.
I, like Walt, fully believe that this privilege will someday be granted to
me in abundance.
Why do I say in one breath that I am a "former frustrated seeker" and yet in
the next breath say that that privilege has not yet been granted? It is
because the frustration of not having yet had that privilege has been
significantly diminished for the following reasons.
One of the major revelations I was given personally, while doing my study on
the doctrine of Christ, came when I was pondering III Nephi 12.
Here Christ had appeared and ministered to those who had been gathered at
the temple, let each one of them feel the marks in his hands and in his
feet, and would soon bestow magnificent blessings upon them including the
baptism of fire that they desired, as well as the ministering of angels and
the healing of all their sick.
Yet in 12:1,2 he says, "...Therefore blessed are ye if ye shall believe in
me and be baptized, AFTER that ye have seen me and know that I am. [...BUT],
more blessed are they who shall believe in your words because that ye shall
testify that ye have seen me, and that ye know that I am...."
Yes, those who heart the testimony even without having the eyewitness first
would likewise be baptized by fire and by the Holy Ghost, and they too could
eventually behold his face.
The clincher is that to believe without seeing, and then later seeing, is
far more blessed than believing after seeing.
What occurred to me with great force at that point was that my willingness
to do all that I have done for the Lord, without having yet seen his face or
that of one of his angels, was a far more difficult and blessed path (for
me) than if I had beheld his face early on and then had that to ride on when
things got hard.
I have come to believe that before I was born I requested that my beholding
of the face of my Jesus and of his angels would only come after a very long
period of sustained obedience to the will of God, day after day, week after
week, month after month, year after year. I wanted the more difficult path.
I wanted to please the Lord by my obedience without first requiring a big
manifestation before I would comply with his will.
I can't help but think too that I requested that like the captain who is
willing to go down with the ship after helping everyone board the lifeboats,
that I also requested that I have to walk by faith so long as others
deserving are also having to walk by faith because of this state of
condemnation we are laboring under generally for neglecting the Book of
Mormon, which clearly teaches that this privilege of beholding the face of
God is available to all and that we should seek it.
So friends in frustration, hang in there. It's going to happen. He won't
withhold his face forever, though in a little wrath he holds it from wayward
Israel at present (for the most part).
Furthermore, I believe that one of the lessons we are to learn is that God
is in each one of us, and that to a certain extent everywhere we turn, every
person we see, is God, for God is in them -- or at least can be if they will
but let him shine.
That is what the indwelling of the Holy Ghost is all about, letting God's
face shine through our own.
I am convinced that in the city of the New Jerusalem, where God and angels
will freely walk in our midst, that one of the reasons for this will be that
we will see the godliness and angelic nature in each other (which nature is
a gift that comes because of the salvation of Christ).
Just a few thoughts on the subject.
Have a wonderful day my fellow veiled angelic/godly beings.
Sterling
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-----Original Message-----
From: Weappel7@aol.com <Weappel7@aol.com>
To: davids_outcasts@listbot.com <davids_outcasts@listbot.com>
Date: Tuesday, October 19, 1999 11:36 PM
Subject: Re: 888 Zaitzeff testimony
David's Outcasts -
http://www.GreaterThings.com/OpenForum/Davids_Outcasts.htm
David,
I too have shared your frustration in not seeing God or hearing His
voice, or even an angel! This quest still drives me. Looking back I can
now
see that I have been at times a sign seeker. Over time I've come to the
simple desire to just KNOW. I too fell for the idea that one could not see
or speak to God unless you were nearly as perfect as He. But the scriptures
have the stories of many people who've seen Him. 70 of the Elders of Israel
on one hand and Cain on the other. And there are some within this audience
who claim this witness also. I can only suppose such visitation occurs when
both the individual and God are ready by Gods standard. I have blessings
which say that I will see His face and know that He lives that I will bear
that testimony to others, and I look forward to that opportunity. If there
are those out there that can truly speak from experience and feel to share
more publicly or privately, I should welcome the wisdom
Walt
