Has Jesus Christ Shown Himself to Any Mere Mortal?

My Come Follow Me studies for this week took me to Ether 1-5 in a lesson titled “Rend That Veil of Unbelief. The lesson was introduced by the following information. 

While it is true that God’s ways are higher than ours and we should always submit to His will, He also encourages us to think and act for ourselves. That’s one lesson Jared and his brother learned. For example, the idea of traveling to a new land that was “choice above all the earth” seemed to start with Jared, and the Lord granted the request, saying to the brother of Jared, “Thus I will do unto thee because this long time ye have cried unto me” (see Ether 1:38-43). And when the brother of Jared needed light inside the barges that would carry them to their promised land, the Lord asked a question that we usually ask Him: “What will ye that I should do?” (Ether 2:23). He wants to hear our thoughts and ideas, and He will listen and give His confirmation or counsel us otherwise. Sometimes the only thing separating us from the blessings we seek is our own “veil of unbelief,” and if we can “rend that veil” (Ether 4:15), we may be surprised by what the Lord is willing to do for us.

The principle that I feel prompted to discuss comes from Ether 2; 3:1-6; 4:7-15: I can receive revelation for my life. In the opening session of the April 2018 General Conference, President Russell M. Nelson was sustained as the Prophet, Seer, and Revelator and the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The next day he gave an address titled “Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives” and discussed the process of his new calling (Ensign or Liahona, May 2018). He discussed the process of revelation in the Church of Jesus Christ and then discussed the process of revelation in the life of each member. Following is part of his counsel to all of us.

I urge you to stretch beyond your current spiritual ability to receive personal revelation, for the Lord has promised that “if thou shalt [seek], thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things – that which bringeth joy, that which bringeth life eternal.”

Oh, there is so much more that your Father in Heaven wants you to know. As Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught, “To those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, it is clear that the Father and the Son are giving away the secrets of the universe!”

Nothing opens the heavens quite like the combination of increased purity, exact obedience, earnest seeking, daily feasting on the words of Christ in the Book of Mormon, and regular time committed to temple and family history work.

To be sure, there may be times when you feel as though the heavens are closed. But I promise that as you continue to be obedient, expressing gratitude for every blessing the Lord gives you, and as you patiently honor the Lord’s timetable, you will be given the knowledge and understanding you seek.

Every blessing the Lord has for you – even miracles – will follow. That is what personal revelation will do for you….

Our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, will perform some of His mightiest works between now and when He comes again. We will see miraculous indications that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, preside over this Church in majesty and glory. But in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost.

My beloved brothers and sisters, I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation. Let this Easter Sunday be a defining moment in your life. Choose to do the spiritual work required to enjoy the gift of the Holy Ghost and hear the voice of the Spirit more frequently and more clearly. (“Revelation for the Church, Revelation or Our Lives,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2018, 96).

Today’s scripture block tells the story of a man known as “the brother of Jared” and how he learned to receive revelation from God. Ether included the experience of the brother of Jared seeing the finger of God touching sixteen stones that he had prepared. Then the Lord showed his spirit body to the brother of Jared as well as many other wonderful things. Here is a video about the experience – “The Lord Appears to the Brother of Jared.”