”Therefore, I say unto you, it shall be better for them than for you, except ye repent. For behold, had the mighty works been shewn unto them which have been shewn unto you, yea, unto them who have dwindled in unbelief because of the traditions of their fathers, ye can see of yourselves that they never would again have dwindled in unbelief. Therefore, saith the Lord, I will not utterly destroy them, but I will cause that in the day of my wisdom they shall return again unto me, saith the Lord. And now behold, saith the Lord, concerning the people of the Nephites, if they will not repent and observe to do my will, I will utterly destroy them, saith the Lord, because of their unbelief, notwithstanding the many mighty works which I have done among them. And as surely as the Lord liveth shall these things be, saith the Lord.”
Scripture contains accounts of various miraculous events. There is Moses and the parting of the Red Sea. Elijah calling down fire from heaven to consume the water soaked sacrifice. Many examples of Jesus healing the sick and even raising the dead. And many more. While it would be amazing to witness any of these events, there is a cost for admission.
After Jesus performed many miracles, he bemoaned the result and reaction of the people to the miracles they witnessed, ”Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not: Woe unto you, Chorazin. Woe unto you, Bethsaida. For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long since in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment than for you.”
Why did Jesus upbraid these people? These miracles were not performed for entertainment. There is a price for witnessing such things. While there is no cost in terms of money, you don’t get to experience such miracles for free. The cost is repentance.
There are some people who would believe what Jesus has to say without experiencing any miracle. There are those who, after experiencing a miracle come to believe. Then there are those who experience a miracle and still doubt.
Jesus expects the people to repent. It is more blessed to believe and repent only upon hearing the word of God, than it is to believe after being compelled to believe by a miracle. Those who repent after only hearing the word of God are much better off than those who must experience a miracle before they will believe. They are in a blessed state because of their sensitivity to the truth and readiness to respond to even a small part of the word of God.
More blessed are those who have not seen, yet believe than those who must see before they will believe. Those who must see before they will believe often show dependence upon repeated miracles rather than developing greater sensitivity to the truth with less miraculous, even smaller means. Without being compelled to believe by the demonstration of a miracle, they will not continue to believe. There is no pleasure for God in this. It demonstrates that the truth does not resonate independently, inside the person. Rather, the person is dependent upon outward forces to compel action before they will respond. They must be acted upon by outward forces before they will act.
One of the reasons little children can learn things so quickly is because they will believe almost anything you tell them. All they need to believe something is to be told. They will respond upon simply what they have heard. It is a blessed state to be as a child who will believe upon simply hearing alone.
Unfortunately, many take advantage of those who are quick to believe. They feed them lies in order to manipulate and control them to their own advantage, or even for entertainment. Lacking the wisdom to discern the truth from the lies they are told is why children are not accountable for believing what they hear. With experience and a wise hand to guide them, they can learn to discern the lies from the truth.
The possibility of being lied to, does not take away from the blessed state of child who needs to only hear something to believe it.
Being the victim of believing a lie, can harden the heart against simply believing what someone says. After being taken advantage of, how can one continue to believe upon hearing alone? Is it simply being naive or gullible to believe when there is nothing more than words to rely on? Or is it possible to grow to discern the truth from lies when relying on words alone?
One way to discern truth is to ask whether acting upon an idea will make anyone a better, more Christ-like person or not. Will acting upon the idea bring a better understanding and appreciation for the true nature and character of God?
When a clearer understanding of the true nature of God is made known, it is up to a person to act consistent with that truth. Developing character that is consistent with God brings an inner peace that can be found in no other way. It is not dependent upon outward things, or external stimulus for happiness. It is a happiness, or peace from within that exists regardless of outward circumstances. It is this kind of peace that can live forever and cannot be destroyed by outward things. It is a fruit that is sweet. It is like living water that springs up inside.
Acting consistent with the truth that brings this kind of peace is what godly truth is all about. That is how you can know if an idea you are acting upon is the truth or not.
In contrast, if acting consistent with what you believe to be true causes you to be proud, or arrogant or to look down upon others less blessed than you, that is a form of “happiness” that is inconsistent with the character of God. It is a fleeting happiness that can turn sour or cause anger when triggered.
While it might sound amazing to be there when the Lord works some mighty miracle, if the response to such a miracle does not include repentance, you would have been better off not having witnessed the miracle. You’d be much better off being like a child who can believe the word of God when you’ve only heard. And you’ll be even better when you have the wisdom to correctly discern the truth from lies without being hardened by lies to only accept the truth after being compelled to believe.