Mormon Direction

Here are some of my thoughts, a commentary, on prophecies and 2012.

I was pondering a few days ago when the thought came about prophecies, which said that we receive prophecies in accordance to our faith in God. This applies to all people in the world no matter the beliefs. Prophecies generally speaking, when given, are not meant to encompass all people. Said another way, there is not any one prophecy and one outcome that applies to everyone, save the prophecy of the second coming of Jesus Christ. I will explain.

Would it be proper for God to apply a prophecy to his faithful on one hand and to the people in the world of no faith on the other? Is this not what God spoke of, how the left knows not of the right?

Prophecy must fulfil its purpose, but it must apply in a just manner. Justice is one of God’s foremost requirements, to be just and true at all times. This is why God told us that he will judge each person in accordance to their faith and works. A prophecy to the wicked will certainly not apply to the faithful because that would be unjust. For example a prophecy of death and destruction because of wickedness would not be a just and fair prophecy to wield against the faithful.

When rain is to fall on the righteous and unrighteous, as described by the Bible, is a statement that refers to the principle of trial and tribulation given in a just and fair manner. All people will suffer trials in their life, yet trials for one person or a group do not apply to others, so the type and manner of the trial will vary in accordance to the people it affects. And so the same with prophecies.

Prophecies given to the world are given in accordance to the level of faith and works of people. Since the world is diverse in the manner of beliefs, faith and works, one prophecy cannot apply to all equally unless the common element between them are the same manner of sin(s). Propheceis that warn of dire happenings or events, for example the prophecy of pestilance, will be against people who draw this prophecy to them and other prophecies as wars and rumour of wars apply to others, but the faithful are separate from these.

Remember the prophecy against Sodom and Gomorrah? Lot and his family had to leave and God warned them to not look back. Lot’s wife looked back and she was smittened, but Lot and the rest of his family, being faithful, were spared from the prophecy. Lot’s wife was not spared due to her lack of faith and desire to turn her heart back to unfaithfulness.

So it is by example, prophecies apply to those who shall suffer it.

What of prophecies from other sources? It seems that the source of the prophecy determines to whom the prophecy applies. It is not race specific but it is faith specific, no matter the race, faith specific refers to the type and level of faith to God. For example, the true in faith and practice will be the ones who will receive prophecies pertaining to their faith. Those who are wicked and evil, prophecies will apply to those of that level of faith (or lack of it), but both will not share the same prophecy. The faithful will suffer prophecies from God but not from Satan. The wicked will suffer prophecies from Satan and in the end from God by his final judgment. To whom their faith is focused, so shall their prophecy first come. It has been warned that Satan shall make miracles, so with that same power he shall also mislead many with his prophecies that he inspires through those people who allow his influence. These are called false prophecies and miracles because the source is not of God. This is the reason why people are fooled by psychics and fortune tellers, their faith was not unto God, but to witchcrafts and false sources of light.

Hopefully you see that the word “false” means not of God, such as a false light means a light not of God. Satan can appear as an angel of light and deceive many, he is a false light because he is not of God. A false prophecy is from another source. Consider that when reading the scriptures that speak about false prophets and false prophecies. It is known that even a false prophet may predict something to happen and it does. We have the Bible telling us on one hand that a false prophecy is one that does not manifest, then on another it said false prophecies can come true at times. Is this a contradiction? No, it speaks of the source of these prophecies and they are false because they did not come from God. False prophecies can come true, but they are not from God.

At all times, when God had his Church on the earth, a prophet lead the Church. At no time was there an absence of a prophet when God’s true Church existed on the earth. The idea Jesus is the only prophet of the Church and there is no need for a human prophet is a fallacy and certainly not supported by the scriptures. In the Book of Mormon, Lehi was God’s prophet who lead his family and those that went with him, throughout there has always been a prophet. There must be a person who is capable of receiving God’s revelation since this ability is not widespread among the people as much as the scriptures promotes personal revelation.

Prophecies for God’s faithful will apply only to them and no one else. When these prophecies do not happen to those it does not apply, these others try to claim it is a false prophecy because it never happened to them. It does not matter if those people never see the manifestation of these prophecies, since God may say to let them suffer in their own disbelief.

As God said in the scriptures that he will chasten those he loves. This says negative things will occur to the faithful, but only in a manner appropriate to the faithful and if they endure it, will obtain blessings in this world and the world to come. Sad is the state of affairs to the unfaithful, for these will have their reward in God’s timing and their reward will not be the same as given to the faithful. Hence the application of prophecy specfic to the faith.

The truly faithful are not meant to suffer false prophets, for they have the Spirit to assist them in recognizing false prophets and ward them away, but for those who abide in false doctrines and have less faith to lead them, even believing revelation has ended with the Bible, those may likely be the ones who will suffer the false prophets because they do not have the Spirit at their side. This makes sense since God did say there are many who are faithful but have fallen to the doctrines of men.

Wars and runour of wars, I believe the true faithful will not suffer. These wars and runmours of wars may be upon those whose wickedness and disbelieve draw this prophecy to them. Pestilance may fall upon another group of people who will suffer this prophecy and so forth. Have you not noticed that these prophecies are coming true, but seem isolated to parts of the world or to a group of people? What does the disbelievers say about these prohecies as they sit in their comfortable homes and watch parts of the world suffer? Nay, they say, that is not a prophecy come true because there is always some suffering in the world at any time. How they generalize and fail to see how prophecies work.

What of Nostradamus or the Mayan’s with their calender prophecy for 2012? Will there be an end to the world for all of us, even the faithful?

No, according to your faith, you will be either part of the prophecy or you will not. God has prophecized that certain things must occur before the second coming of Jesus Christ and many of those things have not occurred. For example the two prophets of God that will bring havoc to the world for three and a half years (see Revelation 11). This has not occurred and must occur first before the real “end”, as we know it, comes closer. It is 2012 and if these prophets appear this year, we must suffer them till 2015, thus 2012 is not the complete end as some claim, but for some, it may well be. Will the 2012 doom prophecy occur as described? Time will tell, but false prophecy it is, as it was not from God through his chosen prophet.

As a leaving note, to ponder, God gives prophecy for our benefit, that we may heed his words, repent and go unto him. If the prophecy is one of great blessings, then it is a reminder of what is to come for our faithfulness. What this says is that a true prophecy from God is designed to encourage us to repent to return to him, or to continue in faith to him and endure. When these things are absent, it is not of God.