Faith, Seeing, and Knowing
The Book of Ether contains a story of extreme faith. The brother of Jared’s faith opened the veil between heaven and earth, and he saw everything from beginning to end. He did not go to the Lord with the intention of being enlightened; he was simply trying to solve a problem. Not only did the Lord touch the stones prepared to give them light on their upcoming journey, but he also revealed himself to the brother of Jared.
We read this about Jared’s brother, “And the brother of Jared being a large and mighty man, and a man highly favored of the Lord.” Was that why he saw the Lord and received the vision, or was it because his circumstances warranted it? “And the Lord said unto him: Because of thy faith thou hast seen that I shall take upon me flesh and blood; and never has man come before me with such exceeding faith as thou hast; for were it not so ye could not have seen my finger.” From this, we learn that faith removed the veil from his eyes.
From reading the scriptures, we know that several others have had similar experiences—Moses, John, and Joseph Smith, to name a few. So, what about us? Do we need to see all things from the beginning to the end?
Could we handle such an experience? Could the Lord trust us with that knowledge? Speaking for myself, I don’t know if I could keep it to myself, so it is improbable that I will have such a vision. However, I am very confident that the Lord will make things known the things I need to proceed on my journey. That is why this story is relevant to me and you.
The story’s details follow a pattern that should be very familiar to anyone endowed in the temple. As we consider the details of this story, think about the parallels to each of our lives. I will point out some things I see as I recount some details.
The Jaredites had problems because of the Lord’s commandment to separate themselves from the rest of the world and travel in an uncharted wilderness. Following the commandments is not always easy. Like any good story, the protagonist is called on an adventure filled with challenges and peril. Each of our lives is this kind of story, and we are the main characters.
The first thing that the brother of Jared did was have a worthiness interview with the Lord. “And it came to pass at the end of four years that the Lord came again unto the brother of Jared, and stood in a cloud and talked with him. And for the space of three hours did the Lord talk with the brother of Jared, and chastened him because he remembered not to call upon the name of the Lord.” Before we enter sacred spaces, we need to be worthy and prepared to enter; otherwise, we will recoil from holy things and be unable to endure them.
The main problem the people had was that the vessels had to withstand the battering of wind and waves during the journey, which precluded them from having a way to get light in them. Windows were too fragile, and fire too dangerous. If we consider these solutions metaphorically, both the windows and fire are man-made and, therefore, unreliable and temporary. The brother of Jared recognized this and knew that the only solution was to have God as the source of light.
The next step was to go to the place where God is. In ancient times, high mountains were generally where people communed with the Lord. In our day, the temples represent God’s dwelling place. As we have already discussed, the faith and preparation of the brother of Jared not only allowed the Lord to solve the light problem but enabled him to see virtually everything from beginning to end.
So it is for each of us. If we have enough faith and present our best solutions to the Lord, he will take what we do and make our way possible. Just like the Jaredites, we will face mighty winds and mountain waves that come crashing down on us. Occasionally, we come up for air and need to be prepared to breathe when we can. If we have enough faith, we, like the Jaredites, can see from beginning to end and reach a promised land.