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But for some, the light is not enough. They remain asleep despite the light. Some people's nature is to sleep on until something disturbs them. Therefore, in His mercy, God "disturbs" the spiritual sleep of those without faith, in order to awaken them. At Christ's Coming, the people were disturbed by the events that came to pass. The Jewish people, who witnessed with horror the birth of the Christian Faith, experienced distress that was conducive to their spiritual awakening, and some were, indeed, awakened to faith in Christ. For most of them, however, even this failed to rouse them from their slumber. The Faith of their Saviour moved primarily from them to other peoples. But God does not want them to sleep forever. In His mercy, He continues to watch over His beloved and chosen people. He has not forgotten them and has continued to give them heaven-sent trials that they may awaken. Although their history has been one filled with sadness, they are assured that ultimately they will come to a glorious and joyous age (70:2) At the time Christ came, the followers of the Hebrew Scriptures had fallen into a deep sleep. They imagined that they were following God's Faith, but it was mere illusion. In actuality, they had drifted so far from the true teachings of their Faith that when the Christ came, He did not proclaim their victory, as they had fondly expected. Instead, He denounced them (70:3) The Chosen People were denounced. Of course, they were not denounced in their inmost nature, or forever, but for their behavior and wayward attitude toward Christ. From the Old Testament, however, it is clear that they were not always worthy of reproach. In the early days of their Faith, the Jews did follow the spirit of their sacred teachings, and for this they received manifold blessings from God. But by the time their Messiah had come, all was changed. Although seekers after the Christ, they themselves persecuted Him (70:4) The persecution of Christ by the Jewish people, and its effect on His Church, can also be understood by our analogy. The Jewish people, being out of touch with reality, imagined that persecution could crush the Faith of Jesus of Nazareth. But just as a mere dream has no power over reality, mere persecution has no power over the Faith of God. A conscious person is aware of this. The Christians were aware of this. This explains why the smallness of their numbers in the face of a hostile world did not dampen their vision or cause them to turn away from the task their Lord had given them. They knew that His Faith would grow and fulfill its mission despite whatever opposition the world could produce
(70:5)
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