Things As They Really Are, And Things As They Really Will Be

"Behold, my brethren, he that prophesieth, let him prophesy to the understanding of men; for the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls. But behold, we are not witnesses alone in these things; for God also spake them unto prophets of old." (Jacob 4:13). Going back to the original Latin, reveal means to unveil or uncover. When we receive revelation, we are stripping back the veil of forgetfulness, we're removing the fog of confusion and fear and anxiety that distorts our view of how things really are, and how they really will be. Sometimes, when God gives us revelations, He tells it to us straight. He gets real with us. He doesn't sugar coat things. He helps us to see that things really are hard right now and they're not necessarily going to get better as quickly as we would like, but He shows us how even in the midst of terrible circumstances we can learn and grow in wisdom and in compassion. Sometimes, when God gives us revelation, it is to provide us with cheer and with comfort. We may be facing a fearsome and seemingly overwhelming enemy, but He can open our eyes and allow us to see that those that are with us are far greater that those that are against us. Seeing things as they really are and as they really will be can be sobering or comforting or both. Look at the people of Limhi and the people of Alma. Because both groups originally rejected the message of Abinadi, both groups were going to have to be brought into bondage under the lamanites. The people of Limhi, after several fruitless attempts to fight their way out of the consequences of having rejected the prophet eventually had to come to terms with their situation. This was actually happening. They had to have some harsh reality checks, including far too many widows and orphans, but eventually they were able to see things as they really are and as they really will be. Their lot did not improve immediately, but once they were able to see the reality of the situation, they gradually improved their situation and eventually were saved. Revelation was a hard thing for them to bear, but it was better than continuing to deny the reality of their situation and suffer more than they needed to. Contrast this with the people of Alma. They were brought under the same circumstances, but their eyes were much more open to what was really happening, and they had a greater faith as to what would happen in the future if they trusted in the Lord. Thus, to them revelation was a comfort. Yes, they had heavy burdens placed upon them, but they had such clear visions as to why they were asked to go through this trial and how deeply the Lord loved them and provided for them even with these heavy burdens that they did not feel the weight of it. Revelation means none of the comfortable fictions, none of the self deceptions or half truths can stop us from seeing things as they really are. Revalation also means that none of the fears and anxieties about how tomorrow is going to be so much worse and we must abandon all hope, that none of our distorted nightmares need cloud our view of what's going to happen to us. Revelation shows things as they really will be.