Chapter 15—"You Have Eyes but Fail to See"
Jesus healed the blind at least four times in His ministry. Just prior to restoring a blind man’s sight, He miraculously fed 4,000 with loaves and fishes. When unbelieving Pharisees contended with him, He warned, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6). The dangerous leaven “is hypocrisy” (Luke 12:1) and false “doctrine” (Matthew 16:12). When disciples took His words literally and thought the warning was “because we have no bread,” Jesus asked,
When His disciples saw a beggar born blind, they asked, “Master, who did sin, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2). Jesus said he was born blind so “the works of God should be manifest in him” (John 9:3). This healing was unprecedented. “Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind” (John 9:32, ESV) but the time had come, for just prior Jesus had proclaimed, “I am the light of the world” (John 9:5) to remedy spiritual blindness.
The blind man is nameless because he represents all who have false traditions and iniquities to overcome. All are spiritually blind from birth, an effect of the Fall. Education, culture, presumptions, prejudices, impatience, beliefs, and pride all interfere with our ability to see clearly.
Opening our eyes is a process that leads to restoration. The humble see and understand with spiritual eyes, looking to Christ as the object of faith. When Jesus healed a lame man, we are told “faith in his name hath made this man strong . . . [and] given him this perfect soundness” (Acts 3:16). Soundness, holokléria (G3647), is health, wholeness, and being made complete. This comes from belief, faith, and relying “upon the merits of Jesus Christ” (D&C 3:20). He asks, “Believe ye that I am able to do this? . . . according to your faith be it unto you” (Matthew 9:28–29).
The born-blind beggar likewise had faith to be healed and was sent to the pool of Siloam. Christ, the Sent One, heals our blindness.
Because they “feared the Jews” more than God, his parents shifted questions to their son who, when asked, “How opened he thine eyes?” (John 9:26), did not shirk from faithfully proclaiming Christ as the source of the miracle. “I have told you already and ye did not hear; wherefore would ye hear it again? Will ye also be his disciples?” (John 9:27). In other words, would again telling the Jews convince them to be true disciples or were they determined to remain in unbelief? The chief priests asked, but they did not want the truth. In spite of miraculous evidence, they rejected this powerful witness of Christ’s divinity.
The man born blind testified, “He hath opened mine eyes . . . If this man were not of God, he could do nothing” (John 9:30, 33). In response, the Jews pledged allegiance to Moses, not Christ, refusing to accept the miracle. They “cursed him and said, You are his disciple but we are disciples of Moses!” (John 9:28, NLT) and cast him out. They revered Moses, but failed to recognize Christ to whom Moses pointed. “If ye had believed Moses ye would have believed me, for he wrote of me” (John 5:46).
Though they prided themselves on following a former servant of God, blindness caused them to reject Christ even as He was among them.
Because it was against their policy, Jesus was criticized for healing on the Sabbath, one of seven miracles He performed that day. Is there any better way to honor the Sabbath than by turning to God to be “restored” (Mark 8:25) and sanctified? Opening our eyes begins our sanctification, the purpose of the Sabbath. God’s first command in the endowment is to see, and one of the first charges is to awake. Both deal with opening our eyes. Conversion begins as we faithfully are “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2) to be made whole.
After being cast out for testifying his physical sight was restored, the once-blind man had his spiritual eyes opened. Jesus asked, “Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him” (John 9:35–38). Spiritual blindness is an inability to discern truths that are plain to those whose eyes are opened. Scales of darkness that cover our eyes can be replaced with wisdom and knowledge. While churches may reject those who seek God, Jesus said, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37).
Spiritual blindness is caused by “the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary” (1 Nephi 15:24). The shield of faith quenches “all the fiery darts of the wicked,” confirming faith is the remedy for blindness. Fiery trials refine us. When the children of Israel became “impatient” and “discouraged because of the way” (Numbers 21:4), His spirit withdrew. “The serpent which does not murmur concerning its food (the dust of the earth) will come and rule over the people which has murmured.”
All who looked to others instead of the Lord die a spiritual death.
Remember, a man with authority, “dressed in a white robe,” encouraged Lehi and others to follow him. But when Lehi followed this man, he found himself “in a dark and dreary waste,” without light (1 Nephi 8:7). “After I had traveled for the space of many hours in darkness,” then Lehi did what is required to rend the veil of unbelief: “I began to pray unto the Lord” for guidance, light, and knowledge (1 Nephi 8:8). Once Lehi turned to the Lord, his eyes were opened and he beheld “a tree whose fruit was desirable to make one happy” (1 Nephi 8:9–10). Following one who appeared to have authority did not bring Lehi to the path that leads to the tree of life. Only hearkening to the Lord and firmly grasping His word could bring such blessings. To rely on authorities who fail to obtain divine power keeps us shut out of His presence.
However, LDS leaders encourage people to “keep the eyes . . . on the leaders of the Church . . . We will not and . . . cannot lead [you] astray . . . Teach your missionaries to focus their eyes on us.” Other LDS presidents agreed, though it contradicts scripture. Nephi recognized such delusion could exist among the covenant people.
Any variations of God’s way is poison. “I did not make an error in anything because I obeyed the Truth. For error flees away from it and meets it not; but the Truth proceeds in the right path and whatever I did not know, it made clear to me, all the poisons of error.” Those who looked to God are healed. “Thy right hand destroyed his wicked poison; and thy hand leveled the way for those who believe in thee.”
We must look to Christ, the glorious serpent who dwells in everlasting burnings, instead of hearkening to a counterfeit serpent.
In spite of rampant evil, Noah “became heir of the righteousness . . . by faith” (Hebrews 11:7). Though he walked with God, his message of repentance was preached to an apathetic “generation that would not hear” so “the end would follow hard.” Noah did not depart from God’s way although the world mocked him. Having the eye of faith, Noah was “warned of God of things not seen as yet” (Hebrews 11:7). Physical eyes can deceive us so spiritual gifts are of great worth. Faith moves us toward those “things which are not seen, which are true” (Alma 32:21).
“Only the remnant will be saved” from a wrathful and long overdue judgment against those who “become like Sodom . . . [and] Gomorrah” (Romans 9:27, 29, NIV). Sodom chose wickedness. Sodom’s pride, indulgence, greed, blindness, and rebellion plague us today. In 2004, the LDS were warned, “Nothing happened in Sodom and Gomorrah which exceeds in wickedness and depravity that which surrounds us now . . . [These sins] are among us.” Elder Scott warned, “Nobody in this wicked society will survive without faith in Christ and the power that comes from coming unto Christ.”
Even if many are interested in celestial glory, few are willing to do what God requires to receive it. “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to” (Luke 13:24, NIV). If we have faith, uphold His word, and fully submit our soul, He will gather all who “look for me . . . He that watches not for me shall be cut off” (D&C 45:44). “Watch therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come” (JST Matthew 24:49).
If we are faithful, “the veil shall be rent and you shall see me and know that I am—not with the carnal neither natural mind but with the spiritual.” This “is your privilege and a promise . . . When ye are worthy, in mine own due time, ye shall see and know” (D&C 67:10, 14).
The foolish are blind and in the dark, for they have no light. “If your eyes look straight ahead, your body shall not be dark. If your eyes grow dim your whole body will become dark; and if the light which is in you becomes dark, all your ways will be dark.” Looking to God has no deviation. The foolish do not know Him.
Faith comes from hearing God’s word, believing it, and doing what He requires. “There were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith, and they were glad” (Ether 12:19).
If we are not prepared, light “shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness” (Matthew 25:29–30). “Wicked, unfaithful, and unjust stewards . . . hypocrites and unbelievers” are unprofitable (D&C 101:90–91). “Our sins testify against us” (Isaiah 59:12). Without a wedding garment, we are cast “into outer darkness . . . Many are called, but few are chosen” (JST Matthew 22:13–14).
Outer darkness is the state of “the spirits of the wicked, yea, who . . . have no part nor portion of the Spirit of the Lord,” having succumbed to wickedness, “being led captive by the will of the devil. Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them” (Alma 40:13–14). The wicked do not respond to God’s voice or call.
“A man is his own tormenter and his own condemner . . . The torment of disappointment in the mind of man is as exquisite as a lake burning with fire and brimstone.” Refusing light or truth limits progress, so faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is essential to all mankind.
For footnotes and references, click HERE.
Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don’t ye remember [the miraculous feeding that just occurred?] . . . Do you still not understand? (Mark 8:17–18, 21, NIV)Associating blindness with hard hearts, dull ears, and not understanding primed His disciples to appreciate the miraculous healing they were about to witness. When people in Bethsaida “brought a blind man to Jesus, they begged him to touch the man and heal him” (Mark 8:22, NLT). This miraculous healing occurred in stages, with Jesus first taking the blind man out of town to work the miracle because people in Bethsaida refused to repent.
And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town. And when he had spit on his eyes and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought. And he looked up and said, ‘I see men like trees, walking.’ After that He put His hands again upon his eyes and made him look up. And he was restored and saw every man clearly. (Mark 8:23–25)Some are troubled by a supposed ineffectiveness of Jesus’s first attempt to heal, but removing blindness is a process. Distortion remains as we work through unbelief, for scales of darkness are removed by degrees. Just as a seed does not sprout immediately, so too must we grow in our understanding until we are whole. What began as a glimmer of light increased in clarity until it matured to clear vision and understanding. It was only when the blind man did “look up” (Mark 8:25) in faith to Him, the source of all light, that he began to see clearly and know.
When His disciples saw a beggar born blind, they asked, “Master, who did sin, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2). Jesus said he was born blind so “the works of God should be manifest in him” (John 9:3). This healing was unprecedented. “Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind” (John 9:32, ESV) but the time had come, for just prior Jesus had proclaimed, “I am the light of the world” (John 9:5) to remedy spiritual blindness.
The blind man is nameless because he represents all who have false traditions and iniquities to overcome. All are spiritually blind from birth, an effect of the Fall. Education, culture, presumptions, prejudices, impatience, beliefs, and pride all interfere with our ability to see clearly.
Opening our eyes is a process that leads to restoration. The humble see and understand with spiritual eyes, looking to Christ as the object of faith. When Jesus healed a lame man, we are told “faith in his name hath made this man strong . . . [and] given him this perfect soundness” (Acts 3:16). Soundness, holokléria (G3647), is health, wholeness, and being made complete. This comes from belief, faith, and relying “upon the merits of Jesus Christ” (D&C 3:20). He asks, “Believe ye that I am able to do this? . . . according to your faith be it unto you” (Matthew 9:28–29).
The born-blind beggar likewise had faith to be healed and was sent to the pool of Siloam. Christ, the Sent One, heals our blindness.
[Jesus] spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay and said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing. (John 9:6–7)Instead of recognizing the divine miracle, they criticized Jesus and persecuted the healed man. “The Jews did not believe concerning him that he had been blind and received his sight until they called the parents” (John 9:18). When interrogated, the parents testified their son was born blind and could now see, but they did not have the courage to admit it was a divine healing—to do so meant excommunication.
Because they “feared the Jews” more than God, his parents shifted questions to their son who, when asked, “How opened he thine eyes?” (John 9:26), did not shirk from faithfully proclaiming Christ as the source of the miracle. “I have told you already and ye did not hear; wherefore would ye hear it again? Will ye also be his disciples?” (John 9:27). In other words, would again telling the Jews convince them to be true disciples or were they determined to remain in unbelief? The chief priests asked, but they did not want the truth. In spite of miraculous evidence, they rejected this powerful witness of Christ’s divinity.
The man born blind testified, “He hath opened mine eyes . . . If this man were not of God, he could do nothing” (John 9:30, 33). In response, the Jews pledged allegiance to Moses, not Christ, refusing to accept the miracle. They “cursed him and said, You are his disciple but we are disciples of Moses!” (John 9:28, NLT) and cast him out. They revered Moses, but failed to recognize Christ to whom Moses pointed. “If ye had believed Moses ye would have believed me, for he wrote of me” (John 5:46).
Though they prided themselves on following a former servant of God, blindness caused them to reject Christ even as He was among them.
Because it was against their policy, Jesus was criticized for healing on the Sabbath, one of seven miracles He performed that day. Is there any better way to honor the Sabbath than by turning to God to be “restored” (Mark 8:25) and sanctified? Opening our eyes begins our sanctification, the purpose of the Sabbath. God’s first command in the endowment is to see, and one of the first charges is to awake. Both deal with opening our eyes. Conversion begins as we faithfully are “looking unto Jesus” (Hebrews 12:2) to be made whole.
After being cast out for testifying his physical sight was restored, the once-blind man had his spiritual eyes opened. Jesus asked, “Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him” (John 9:35–38). Spiritual blindness is an inability to discern truths that are plain to those whose eyes are opened. Scales of darkness that cover our eyes can be replaced with wisdom and knowledge. While churches may reject those who seek God, Jesus said, “Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37).
The Jews cast [the man born blind] out from the Temple and the Lord of the Temple found him; he was separated from that pestilent company, and met with the Fountain of salvation; he was dishonored by those who dishonored Christ, and was honored by the Lord of Angels. Such are the prizes of truth.Jesus came to remit sin and open the eyes of the blind, but those who think they see, but are not made whole, remain blind and in sin.
Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind. And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also? Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin; but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth. (John 9:39–41)If we see in Christ something we need to reach toward, we are on our way to Him. But if we see nothing to be desired or assume we already have what He offers, we remain condemned. Only those who realize they are blind can be healed. Christ cured the sick, healed the lame, and raised the dead, so how much more need of Him we have if we suffer in blindness! Blindness is the reason we must come to Christ. Blindness is removed as we turn our hearts to Him to boldly testify, “Whereas I was blind, now I see” (John 9:25). Only after Christ opened the blind man’s eyes did Peter testify with knowledge, “Thou art the Christ” (Mark 8:29).
Spiritual blindness is caused by “the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary” (1 Nephi 15:24). The shield of faith quenches “all the fiery darts of the wicked,” confirming faith is the remedy for blindness. Fiery trials refine us. When the children of Israel became “impatient” and “discouraged because of the way” (Numbers 21:4), His spirit withdrew. “The serpent which does not murmur concerning its food (the dust of the earth) will come and rule over the people which has murmured.”
The Lord sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against thee; pray unto the Lord that he take away the serpents from us. Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole [‘an elevated place,’ Targum]: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. (Numbers 21:6–8)The remedy was looking to Christ who would be lifted upon the cross. “The word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18, NASB). A fiery serpent, saraph (H8313), is the same word as burning from poisonous venom (H8314). A wayward tongue is “full of deadly poison” (James 3:8), which makes all who preach error serpents of destruction or ministers of poison. Jesus called hypocritical scribes and Pharisees “a brood of vipers” and “serpents” (Matthew 23:33).
All who looked to others instead of the Lord die a spiritual death.
Remember, a man with authority, “dressed in a white robe,” encouraged Lehi and others to follow him. But when Lehi followed this man, he found himself “in a dark and dreary waste,” without light (1 Nephi 8:7). “After I had traveled for the space of many hours in darkness,” then Lehi did what is required to rend the veil of unbelief: “I began to pray unto the Lord” for guidance, light, and knowledge (1 Nephi 8:8). Once Lehi turned to the Lord, his eyes were opened and he beheld “a tree whose fruit was desirable to make one happy” (1 Nephi 8:9–10). Following one who appeared to have authority did not bring Lehi to the path that leads to the tree of life. Only hearkening to the Lord and firmly grasping His word could bring such blessings. To rely on authorities who fail to obtain divine power keeps us shut out of His presence.
However, LDS leaders encourage people to “keep the eyes . . . on the leaders of the Church . . . We will not and . . . cannot lead [you] astray . . . Teach your missionaries to focus their eyes on us.” Other LDS presidents agreed, though it contradicts scripture. Nephi recognized such delusion could exist among the covenant people.
He sent fiery flying serpents among them; and after they were bitten, He prepared a way that they might be healed; and the labor which they had to perform was to look; and because of the simpleness of the way, or the easiness of it, there were many who perished. (1 Nephi 17:41)Lehi said those who fell away “did cast their eyes about” (1 Nephi 8:25). Looking anywhere except to Christ keeps us condemned and ashamed. Adam and Eve were ashamed after hearkening to another. It is tempting to look to leaders instead, particularly if they claim they are the way.
Any variations of God’s way is poison. “I did not make an error in anything because I obeyed the Truth. For error flees away from it and meets it not; but the Truth proceeds in the right path and whatever I did not know, it made clear to me, all the poisons of error.” Those who looked to God are healed. “Thy right hand destroyed his wicked poison; and thy hand leveled the way for those who believe in thee.”
We must look to Christ, the glorious serpent who dwells in everlasting burnings, instead of hearkening to a counterfeit serpent.
O my son, do not let us be slothful because of the easiness of the way; for so was it with our fathers; for so was it prepared for them, that if they would look they might live; even so it is with us. The way is prepared and if we will look we may live forever. And now, my son, see that ye take care of these sacred things, yea, see that ye look to God and live. (Alma 37:46–47)Hebrews 11’s ‘great cloud of witnesses’ notes Abel’s faith in God, Noah’s witness for God, and Enoch’s walk with God. All overcame by faith. In Noah’s day, like Enoch’s, perverse doctrines or worship and grievous abominations infiltrated the land. False prophets, wars, natural disasters, pride, unethical behavior, business prosperity, lavish living and indulgences, ignorance of God’s word, hard hearts, disdain for scripture and prophecy, blindness, distraction, and forms of godliness without power were the norm. “All flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth” (Genesis 6:12). God’s “very good” creation was now so far removed from Him that He could no longer permit its continued existence. “The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled” (Genesis 6:6, NIV).
In spite of rampant evil, Noah “became heir of the righteousness . . . by faith” (Hebrews 11:7). Though he walked with God, his message of repentance was preached to an apathetic “generation that would not hear” so “the end would follow hard.” Noah did not depart from God’s way although the world mocked him. Having the eye of faith, Noah was “warned of God of things not seen as yet” (Hebrews 11:7). Physical eyes can deceive us so spiritual gifts are of great worth. Faith moves us toward those “things which are not seen, which are true” (Alma 32:21).
There was no other way by which [Noah] could have heard of the coming judgment of the Flood. There was no other way by which he could have known he was to be delivered out of it; or how he was to be saved through it. There was nothing in what he saw to give him any indication of what was coming. If he had reckoned from the outward ‘appearance’ he could never have concluded what would be the end of the ‘things that were seen.’ But he was Divinely instructed concerning them . . . He ‘heard’ the Divine instruction. He believed it. Hence, he knew what others did not know: for what he knew was ‘not seen as yet.’
If he looked on things as they appeared, he would have seen building, and planting, and marriage, and giving in marriage going on, on all hands. He would have seen outward progress and advancement. Others thought the progress was upward and the advancement was onward, but Noah knew that it was downward to destruction and onward to judgment.“As it was in the days of [Noah], so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man” (JST Luke 17:26). Peter testified, “I saw the time that is to be after us, full of offenses and evils and sins and lying: and the men in that [time] will be crafty, perverse, and depraved, men that know not God and understand not the truth.” There are similarities between Noah’s day, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the last days.
Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed. In that day, the disciple who shall be on the housetop and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he who is in the field, let him likewise not return back. Remember Lot’s wife. (Luke 17:28–32)Lot’s wife is the example of what not to do. As they left Abraham’s camp to establish themselves near Sodom, Lot’s family put themselves in a path of great temptation. Sodom was “kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains” (Jude 1:6, NIV). Lot’s family was deceived if they thought they would not be influenced by Sodom’s wickedness. By ignoring repeated calls to repent and going after “strange flesh,” Sodom’s “suffering the vengeance of eternal fire” was justified (Jude 1:7). Lot was warned Sodom would be destroyed but his family lingered after being commanded to depart from the doomed city. “Escape for thy life; look not behind thee” was His command but Lot’s wife disobeyed. She “looked back from behind him and she became a pillar of salt” from the “brimstone and fire . . . [that rained] out of the heaven” (Genesis 19:17, 26, 24).
“Only the remnant will be saved” from a wrathful and long overdue judgment against those who “become like Sodom . . . [and] Gomorrah” (Romans 9:27, 29, NIV). Sodom chose wickedness. Sodom’s pride, indulgence, greed, blindness, and rebellion plague us today. In 2004, the LDS were warned, “Nothing happened in Sodom and Gomorrah which exceeds in wickedness and depravity that which surrounds us now . . . [These sins] are among us.” Elder Scott warned, “Nobody in this wicked society will survive without faith in Christ and the power that comes from coming unto Christ.”
And, in consequence of rejecting the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Prophets whom God hath sent, the judgments of God have rested upon people, the case with the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, that were destroyed for rejecting the Prophets.Jesus urges us to “remember Lot’s wife” (Luke 17:32), to not looking to or trust that which ultimately will destroy us. “Let not your minds turn back” (D&C 67:14). “Whoever . . . looks back is not fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62, NLT).
Even if many are interested in celestial glory, few are willing to do what God requires to receive it. “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to” (Luke 13:24, NIV). If we have faith, uphold His word, and fully submit our soul, He will gather all who “look for me . . . He that watches not for me shall be cut off” (D&C 45:44). “Watch therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come” (JST Matthew 24:49).
If we are faithful, “the veil shall be rent and you shall see me and know that I am—not with the carnal neither natural mind but with the spiritual.” This “is your privilege and a promise . . . When ye are worthy, in mine own due time, ye shall see and know” (D&C 67:10, 14).
This Church has before it many close places through which it will have to pass before the work of God is crowned with glory. The difficulties will be of such a character that the man or woman who does not possess a personal knowledge or witness will fall. If you have not got this testimony, you must live right and call upon the Lord, and cease not until you obtain it. Remember these sayings: The time will come when no man or woman will be able to endure on borrowed light. Each will have to be guided by the light within themselves. If you do not have the knowledge that Jesus is the Christ, how can you stand?“That body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things” (D&C 88:67). “The lamp of your body is your eyes.” “Watch over your life that your lamps are never quenched” (Didache 16:1). Faith and obedience put oil in our lamp to enlighten our whole body. “In the enlightened man there will be light, and in the wise man understanding” (1 Enoch 5:8). “The foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps” (Matthew 25:3–4). Our bodies are the vessels to be sanctified. “Bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord” (Isaiah 66:20).
The foolish are blind and in the dark, for they have no light. “If your eyes look straight ahead, your body shall not be dark. If your eyes grow dim your whole body will become dark; and if the light which is in you becomes dark, all your ways will be dark.” Looking to God has no deviation. The foolish do not know Him.
For my people are foolish, they do not know me. They are foolish children, and they have no understanding . . . They have no knowledge. (Jeremiah 4:22, New Heart English)Spiritual sight requires the eye of faith. “It is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire” (JST Mark 9:47). “Be faithful, praying always, having your lamps trimmed, burning, and oil with you that you may be ready at the coming of the Bridegroom” (D&C 33:17).
Faith comes from hearing God’s word, believing it, and doing what He requires. “There were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith, and they were glad” (Ether 12:19).
Faith fused with light and power rends the veil that conceals and reveals God.The promise is, “In that day that they shall exercise faith in me, saith the Lord, even as the brother of Jared did, that they may become sanctified in me, then will I manifest unto them the things which the brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations” (Ether 4:7). What is it the brother of Jared saw that He desires for the faithful?
For it was by faith that Christ showed himself unto our fathers, after he had risen from the dead; and he showed not himself unto them until after they had faith in him; wherefore, it must needs be that some had faith in him, for he showed himself not unto the world . . .
And behold, we have seen in this record that one of these was the brother of Jared; for so great was his faith in God, that when God put forth his finger he could not hide it from the sight of the brother of Jared, because of his word which he had spoken unto him, which word he had obtained by faith. (Ether 12:7, 20)“There never were greater things made manifest than those which were made manifest unto the brother of Jared” (Ether 4:4). The Lord promises these things if we “exercise faith . . . [and] become sanctified in me” (Ether 4:7). All who receive truth and are faithful to Him will receive divine knowledge: “Blessed art your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear” (Matthew 13:16).
If we are not prepared, light “shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness” (Matthew 25:29–30). “Wicked, unfaithful, and unjust stewards . . . hypocrites and unbelievers” are unprofitable (D&C 101:90–91). “Our sins testify against us” (Isaiah 59:12). Without a wedding garment, we are cast “into outer darkness . . . Many are called, but few are chosen” (JST Matthew 22:13–14).
Outer darkness is the state of “the spirits of the wicked, yea, who . . . have no part nor portion of the Spirit of the Lord,” having succumbed to wickedness, “being led captive by the will of the devil. Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked, yea, in darkness, and a state of awful, fearful looking for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them” (Alma 40:13–14). The wicked do not respond to God’s voice or call.
[You] obeyed not my voice when I called you out of the heavens; ye believed not my servants and when they were sent unto you ye received them not. Wherefore, they sealed up the testimony and bound up the law, and ye were delivered over unto darkness. These shall go away into outer darkness, where there is weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth. (D&C 133:71–73)God cannot force us to remain in light if we choose darkness, so this judgment is just, permitting us to dwell in the very circumstances we have chosen. This fate is reserved for those who refuse light and knowledge until they have none. Being so far away (outer) from truth and light (darkness), they are miserable forever.
The judgment is measured by our works. Our punishment will be the heavy regret that we might have received a greater reward, a higher kingdom, and our lives conformed more nearly to truth. Such remorse may yield keener pain than physical torture.
“A man is his own tormenter and his own condemner . . . The torment of disappointment in the mind of man is as exquisite as a lake burning with fire and brimstone.” Refusing light or truth limits progress, so faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is essential to all mankind.
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