Faith Precedes the Miracle

Throughout the Church hundreds of thousands of faithful Saints have truly
consecrated their lives and their energies to the work of the Lord, secure in the assurance
that thereby they please him.
It is a disappointment, however, to find many others who are not willing to trust the
Lord—or to trust in his promise when he says, "Prove me and see." I often wonder why
men cannot trust their Lord. He has promised his children every blessing contingent upon
their faithfulness, but fickle man places his trust in "the arm of flesh" and sets about to
make his own way unaided by him who could do so much.
The Lord has challenged us:
. . . prove me . . . if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there
shall not be room enough to receive it. (Malachi 3:10.)
The prophet Moroni stopped abruptly in his abridging to offer his own inspired
comments concerning the matter of faith:
I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute
not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith. (Ether 12:6.)
Father Adam understood this basic principle:
. . . an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: Why dost thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord?
And Adam said unto him: I know not, save the Lord commanded me. (Moses 5:6.)
He showed his unwavering faith—and since the witness and the miracle follow rather
than precede the faith, the angel then sought to enlighten him, saying:
This thing is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father. . . . (Moses 5:7.)
In faith we plant the seed, and soon we see the miracle of the blossoming. Men have
often misunderstood and have reversed the process. They would have the harvest before
the planting, the reward before the service, the miracle before the faith. Even the most
demanding labor unions would hardly ask the wages before the labor. But many of us
would have the vigor without the observance of the health laws, prosperity through the
opened windows of heaven without the payment of our tithes. We would have the close
communion with our Father without fasting and praying; we would have rain in due
season and peace in the land without observing the Sabbath and keeping the other
commandments of the Lord. We would pluck the rose before planting the roots; we would
harvest the grain before sowing and cultivating.
If we could only realize, as Moroni writes:
For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them. . . .
And neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith; wherefore they first believed in
the Son of God. (Ether 12:12, 18.)
John said:
But though [Jesus] had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him. (John
12:37.)
The Lord made it clear that faith is not developed by miracles.
But, behold, faith cometh not by signs, but signs follow those that believe. (D&C 63:9.)
To the scribes and Pharisees who demanded signs without the preliminary faith and
works the Lord said:
An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign. . . . (Matthew 12:39.)
In our own modern times we have eloquent evidence. Sidney Rigdon did not retain
his membership in the kingdom even though he had, with Joseph Smith, witnessed
marvelous signs. Had he not participated in the great vision and had he not been the
recipient of many revelations? And in spite of all these manifestations from our Heavenly
Father, he did not remain in the kingdom.
Oliver Cowdery saw many signs. He handled the sacred plates; saw John the Baptist;
received the higher priesthood from Peter, James, and John; and was the recipient of
many great miracles, and yet they could not hold him to the faith.
Amassed evidence in signs and works and miracles failed to touch the stony hearts of
the Galilean cities:
Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they
repented not:
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! . . .
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty
works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
(Matthew 11:20-21, 23.)
Paul, speaking to the Hebrews, said:
By faith Noah being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the
saving of his house. . . . (Hebrews 11:7.)
As yet there was no evidence of rain and flood. His people mocked and called him a
fool. His preaching fell on deaf ears. His warnings were considered irrational. There was
no precedent; never had it been known that a deluge could cover the earth. How foolish
to build an ark on dry ground with the sun shining and life moving forward as usual! But
time ran out. The ark was finished. The floods came. The disobedient and rebellious were
drowned. The miracle of the ark followed the faith manifested in its building.
Paul said again:
Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when
she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.
Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in
multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. (Hebrews 11:11-12.)
So absurd it was to be told that children could be born of centenarians that even Sarah
doubted at first. But the faith of a noble pair prevailed, and the miracle son was born to
father multitudes of nations.
Exceeding faith was shown by Abraham when the superhuman test was applied to
him. His young "child of promise" must now be offered upon the sacrificial altar. It was
God's command, but it seemed so contradictory! How could his son, Isaac, be the father
of an uncountable posterity if in his youth his mortal life was to be terminated? Why
should he, Abraham, be called upon to do this revolting deed? It was irreconcilable,
impossible! And yet he believed God. His undaunted faith carried him with breaking
heart toward Mount Moriah with this young son who little suspected the agonies through
which his father must have been passing. Saddled asses took the party and supplies. The
father and the son, carrying the fire and the wood, mounted to the plate of sacrifice.
"Behold the fire and the wood," said Isaac, "but where is the lamb for a burnt
offering?" What a heavy heart and sad voice it must have been which replied: "My son,
God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering. . . ." (Genesis 22:7-8.)
The place was reached, the altar built, the fire kindled, and the lad, now surely
knowing, but trusting and believing, was upon the altar. The father's raised hand was
stopped in mid-air by a commanding voice:
Lay not thine hand upon the lad. . . . now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld
thy son, thine only son from me. (Genesis 22:12.)
And as the near perfect prophet found the ram in the thicket and offered it upon the
altar, he heard the voice of God again speaking:
And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
(Genesis 22:18.)
This great and noble Abraham—
Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the Father of many nations. . . .
And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred
years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb:
He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. (Romans 4:18-21.)
Father Abraham and Mother Sarah knew—knew the promise would be fulfilled.
How? They did not know and did not demand to know. Isaac positively would live to be
the father of a numerous posterity. They knew he would, even though he might need to
die. They knew he could still be raised from the dead to fulfill the promise, and faith here
preceded the miracle.
Paul again said to the Hebrews:
By faith they [the children of Israel] passed through the Red sea as by dry land. . . . (Hebrews 11:29.)
The Israelites knew, as did Pharaoh and his hosts, that "they are entangled in the land,
the wilderness hath shut them in." (Exodus 14:3.)
And as Pharaoh's trained army approached with all the horses and chariots of Egypt,
the escaping multitudes knew full well that they were hemmed in by the marshes, the
deserts, and the sea. There was no earthly chance for them to escape the wrath of their
pursuers. And in their terror they indicted Moses:
Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? . . .
. . . it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness. (Exodus
14:11-12.)
No hope on earth for their liberation! What could save them now? The gloating armed
forces of Egypt knew that Israel was trapped. Israel knew it only too well. But Moses,
their inspired leader with supreme faith, knew that God would not have called them on
this exodus only to have them destroyed. He knew God would provide the escape. He
may not at this moment have known just how, but he trusted.
Moses commanded his people:
Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you to day: for the
Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more for ever.
The Lord shall fight for you. . . . (Exodus 14:13-14.)
The mighty warriors pressed on. Hope must have long since died in the breasts of the
timid Israelites who knew not faith. Deserts and wilderness and the sea—the uncrossable
sea! No boats, no rafts, no bridges, nor time to construct them! Hopelessness, fear,
despair must have gripped their hearts.
And then the miracle came. It was born of the faith of their indomitable leader. A
cloud hid them from the view of their enemies. A strong east wind blew all the night; the
waters were parted; the bed of the sea was dry; and Israel crossed to another world and
saw the returning sea envelop and destroy their pursuers. Israel was safe. Faith had been
rewarded, and Moses was vindicated. The impossible had happened. An almost superhuman
faith had given birth to an unaccountable and mysterious miracle that was to be
the theme of the sermons and warnings of Israel and their prophets for centuries.
Israel was later ready to cross into the Promised Land, the productivity and beauty of
which could probably be seen from the higher hills. But how to get there? There were no
bridges nor ferries across the flooding Jordan. A great prophet, Joshua, received the mind
of the Lord and commanded, and another miracle was born of faith.
. . . and [as] the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water. . . .
. . . the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap . . . and those that came
down . . . failed, and were cut off: . . .
. . . and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.
(Joshua 3:15-17.)
. . . the soles of the priests' feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto
their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before. (Joshua 4:18.)
The elements find control through faith. The wind, the clouds, the heavens obey the
voice of faith. It was by and through the faith of Elijah that the drouth which devastated
Israel, prolonged for three interminable years, was finally ended when repentance had
come to Israel.
. . . Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were
before him. (1 Kings 16:33.)
And Elijah the prophet declared:
. . . there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. (1 Kings 17:1.)
The brooks dried up; rivers ceased to run; forage was scarce; famine was upon the
land; and a king and his people were begging for relief—a people who had lost
themselves in the worship of Baal. At Mount Carmel came the contest of power. At
Elijah's command, fire came down from heaven and ignited the sacrifice and shocked the
Baal worshipers once more into repentant submission.
Miracle followed faith again, and though the heavens were still clear and there was no
indication of rain on the parched land, the prophet warned King Ahab:
. . . Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. (1 Kings 18:44.)
With his face between his knees, as he sat on Carmel, Elijah sent his servant seven
times to look toward the sea. Six times there were cloudless skies and calm sea, but on
the seventh he reported: "Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's
hand. . . ." (1 Kings 18:44.)
Soon the heavens were black with clouds, and the wind was carrying them to
Palestine, and "there was a great rain" and a dry, parched land was drenched in moisture,
and the miracle of faith had again made good the promises of the Lord.
It was by the supreme faith of the three Hebrews that they were delivered from the
fiery furnace of their king, Nebuchadnezzar. And the king asked:
Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, true,
O king.
He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt;
and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
. . . these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither
were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them. (Daniel 3:24-26, 27.)
Now, if you would discount these miracles of the Old Testament, how can you accept
the New Testament? You would also have difficulty in accepting Paul and his associate
apostles, and the Lord Jesus Christ, for they have verified and documented those
miraculous events.
How can these stories of faith be brought into our own lives? Faith is needed as much
as ever before. Little can we see. We know not what the morrow will bring. Accidents,
sickness, even death seem to hover over us continually. Little do we know when they
might strike.
It takes faith—unseeing faith—for young people to proceed immediately with their
family responsibilities in the face of financial uncertainties. It takes faith for the young
woman to bear her family instead of accepting employment, especially when schooling
for the young husband is to be finished. It takes faith to observe the Sabbath when "time
and a half" can be had working, when profit can be made, when merchandise can be sold.
It takes a great faith to pay tithes when funds are scarce and demands are great. It takes
faith to fast and have family prayers and to observe the Word of Wisdom. It takes faith to
do home teaching, stake missionary work, and other service, when sacrifice is required. It
takes faith to fill full-time missions. But know this—that all these are of the planting,
while faithful, devout families, spiritual security, peace, and eternal life are the harvest.
Remember that Abraham, Moses, Elijah, and others could not see clearly the end
from the beginning. They also walked by faith and without sight.
Remember again that no gates were open; Laban was not drunk; and no earthly hope
was justified at the moment Nephi exercised his faith and set out finally to get the plates.
Remember that there were no clouds in the sky nor any hygrometer in his hand when
Elijah promised an immediate break in the long extended drouth. Though Joshua may
have witnessed the miracle of the Red Sea, yet he could not by mortal means perceive
that the flooding Jordan would back up for the exact time needed for the crossing, and
then flow again on its way to the Dead Sea.
Remember that there were no clouds in the sky, no evidence of rain, and no precedent
for the deluge when Noah builded the ark according to commandment. There was no ram
in the thicket when Isaac and his father left for Moriah for the sacrifice. Remember there
were no towns and cities, no farms and gardens, no homes and storehouses, no
blossoming desert in Utah when the persecuted pioneers crossed the plains.
And remember that there were no heavenly beings in Palmyra, on the Susquehanna;
or on Cumorah when the soul-hungry Joseph slipped quietly into the grove, knelt in
prayer on the river bank, and climbed the slopes of the sacred hill.
But know this, that just as undaunted faith has stopped the mouths of lions, made
ineffective fiery flames, opened dry corridors through rivers and seas, protected against
deluge and drouth, and brought heavenly manifestations at the instance of prophets, so in
each of our lives faith can heal the sick, bring comfort to those who mourn, strengthen
resolve against temptation, relieve from the bondage of harmful habits, lend the strength
to repent and change our lives, and lead to a sure knowledge of the divinity of Jesus
Christ. Indomitable faith can help us live the commandments with a willing heart and
thereby bring blessings unnumbered, with peace, perfection, and exaltation in the
kingdom of God.