From The Second Comforter, Chapter 5

When the Lord came to visit the Nephites, the Father introduced Christ three times before the audience gathered in Bountiful could recognize the words He spoke. This voice was described in these terms: “It was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear it to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn.” (3 Ne. 11: 3.) This is the Father’s voice. They had heard it before. It reminds anyone who hears it of their primordial existence, when as a spirit being you dwelt with Him. He is familiar to your spirit, because your spirit came from Him. Yet here in mortality, you have not yet seen Him. And so you are both familiar with Him and will recognize Him the instant you hear His voice again, and you are a stranger to Him because in the flesh you have not yet seen Him. That underlying spiritual familiarity with the Speaker is what caused the Nephites to “quake” to their “very soul.”

There is a veil to the flesh. This veil causes the spirit within us to forget what went before. But our spirits retain awareness of this Being. It is the longing for Him which makes mankind search for what is missing in their souls. It is why men resort to hero worship, and want celebrities and people who are ‘larger-than-life.’ We long for this Being whose seeming lack of presence has left us all incomplete here in mortality.

You may not be able to see Him here without first developing the faith to rend the veil, but you can still feel Him here anytime you are willing to do so. There is no veil to your feelings. Fasting helps in the process because it weakens the flesh, and thereby strengthens the spirit within. Similarly, as we grow old and infirm, the veil of this flesh draws thinner and our spirits are freed, in a measure, to greater promptings of the spirit.

This perfectly mild voice is generally not heard when it is in competition with the distractions, noises and offenses of daily life. You need time apart where you can listen. You will recollect Christ was often found apart, praying and meditating during His ministry. If Christ needed time for contemplation, prayer, and pondering, then how much greater need do we have to do the same?

Authors:
Tags:
© 2012-2024 Gospel Fulness. All rights reserved.