How are you blessed with peace as you place your faith in God, and in His servants the prophets?
"14 ¶ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:" (John 3: 14)
"5 For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from heaven among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases." (Mosiah 3: 5)
"2 And behold, he said unto them: Behold, I give unto you a sign; for five years more cometh, and behold, then cometh the Son of God to redeem all those who shall believe on his name.
3 And behold, this will I give unto you for a sign at the time of his coming; for behold, there shall be great lights in heaven, insomuch that in the night before he cometh there shall be no darkness, insomuch that it shall appear unto man as if it was day.
4 Therefore, there shall be one day and a night and a day, as if it were one day and there were no night; and this shall be unto you for a sign; for ye shall know of the rising of the sun and also of its setting; therefore they shall know of a surety that there shall be two days and a night; nevertheless the night shall not be darkened; and it shall be the night before he is born.
5 And behold, there shall a new star arise, such an one as ye never have beheld; and this also shall be a sign unto you.
6 And behold this is not all, there shall be many signs and wonders in heaven." (Helaman 14: 2-6)
"33 And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left." (Luke 23: 33)
"30 And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them:
31 Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel." (Matthew 5: 30-31)
"15 And it came to pass that the words which came unto Nephi were fulfilled, according as they had been spoken; for behold, at the going down of the sun there was no darkness; and the people began to be astonished because there was no darkness when the night came.
16 And there were many, who had not believed the words of the prophets, who fell to the earth and became as if they were dead, for they knew that the great plan of destruction which they had laid for those who believed in the words of the prophets had been frustrated; for the sign which had been given was already at hand.
17 And they began to know that the Son of God must shortly appear; yea, in fine, all the people upon the face of the whole earth from the west to the east, both in the land north and in the land south, were so exceedingly astonished that they fell to the earth.
18 For they knew that the prophets had testified of these things for many years, and that the sign which had been given was already at hand; and they began to fear because of their iniquity and their unbelief.
19 And it came to pass that there was no darkness in all that night, but it was as light as though it was mid-day. And it came to pass that the sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order; and they knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born, because of the sign which had been given.
20 And it had come to pass, yea, all things, every whit, according to the words of the prophets.
21 And it came to pass also that a new star did appear, according to the word." (3 Nephi 1: 15-21)
"Revelation and prophecy on war, given through Joseph Smith the Prophet, at or near Kirtland, Ohio, December 25, 1832. At this time disputes in the United States over slavery and South Carolina’s nullification of federal tariffs were prevalent. Joseph Smith’s history states that “appearances of troubles among the nations” were becoming “more visible” to the Prophet “than they had previously been since the Church began her journey out of the wilderness.”
1–4, War is foretold between the Northern States and the Southern States; 5–8, Great calamities will fall upon all the inhabitants of the earth.
1 Verily, thus saith the Lord concerning the wars that will shortly come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls;
2 And the time will come that war will be poured out upon all nations, beginning at this place.
3 For behold, the Southern States shall be divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will call on other nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it is called, and they shall also call upon other nations, in order to defend themselves against other nations; and then war shall be poured out upon all nations.
4 And it shall come to pass, after many days, slaves shall rise up against their masters, who shall be marshaled and disciplined for war.
5 And it shall come to pass also that the remnants who are left of the land will marshal themselves, and shall become exceedingly angry, and shall vex the Gentiles with a sore vexation.
6 And thus, with the sword and by bloodshed the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plague, and earthquake, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightning also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God, until the consumption decreed hath made a full end of all nations;
7 That the cry of the saints, and of the blood of the saints, shall cease to come up into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, from the earth, to be avenged of their enemies.
8 Wherefore, stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly, saith the Lord. Amen." (Doctrine and Covenants 87)
And here's the beginning part of the commentary entitled: "Peace is found in “holy places.” :
"The prophecy in section 87 warns about physical dangers related to war in the last days. But the counsel in this revelation also applies to spiritual dangers. Ponder questions such as the following:
A prophecy is a revelation from God to a prophet, often about the future. What are some examples of prophecies that ancient and modern prophets have given? (see John 3:14; Mosiah 3:5; Helaman 14:2–6). How were they fulfilled? (see Luke 23:33; Matthew 15:30–31; 3 Nephi 1:15–21).
What are the blessings of accepting the prophecies of God’s prophets?
With those thoughts in mind, read section 87. (For some historical context, you might also want to read the introduction to this outline.) What do you learn about prophecy from this revelation and the way it was fulfilled? What would you say to someone who doubts a prophecy because it is not fulfilled right away?"
Some examples of prophecies that ancient and modern prophets have given are:
- The birth of Jesus Christ, His ministry, and Crucifixion
- Wars among different nations and among citizens of countries so that "the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God"
- Slaves shall rise up against their masters
These prophecies were fulfilled according to the words of the prophets, even to the very small parts, or every whit.
When we accept the prophecies of God's prophets, we are placing our faith in God and His servants, the prophets. And when we place our faith in God and His servants, we will have the assurance that the prophecies pronounced by the prophets will all be fulfilled. And as those prophecies are fulfilled before our eyes we will have peace knowing that those events were seen and pronounced by the Lord's prophets before they happened. And we will see that God truly is the most powerful being, He knows everything. He sees everything. He is in charge. With God, we are safe, whatever is happening around us because He truly is watching over us.
I learned from the revelation in section 87 that prophecies of God's prophets are fulfilled in God's time, not at the time people expected them.
If you doubt a prophecy of God's prophet because it is not fulfilled right away, keep your faith in the Lord because eventually that prophecy will be fulfilled in His timing, and you will be blessed with blessings for those who place their faith in Him.
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