“Unwitting Zion-Building Pattern”
Introduction
For those with eyes to see, a hidden pattern runs through scripture, history, and the quiet corners of our own lives: Jesus builds Zion largely through (via) the unwitting efforts of ordinary people. The grand works of heaven almost never look divine in the moment. They look like migrations, mistakes, political decisions, inventions, personal detours, spiritual wrestlings, curiosities, or even failures. Yet again and again, Jesus takes these human movements — sincere, confused, ambitious, fearful, hopeful — and REDEEMS THEM: weaves them into something far larger, more hopeful, than anyone involved could see.
D&C 88:6
“He ascended up on high, as also he descended below all things, inasmuch as he comprehended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth;”
D&C 88:11–13
“And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes…
Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space—
The light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed…”
The Fall was like this. The Atonement’s surrounding events were like this. And so too are the many turning points in the Lord’s unfolding work on earth — events carried forward by individuals who felt they were simply living their lives, unaware that heaven was quietly steering everything toward the rise of Zion.
What follows is a list of twenty such moments — ancient and modern — each revealing the same pattern:
Jesus orchestrates, humans participate (often unknowingly), and only in hindsight does the scale of His work become clear.
1. The Fall of Adam and Eve
A divinely permitted step into mortality, agency, and growth… (even as Adam and Eve acted without comprehending the cosmic scale of what Jesus was enabling).
2. The Atonement of Jesus Christ
The center of all creation… (while nearly everyone involved believed they were simply playing out politics, fear, or obedience to law).
3. The Gathering of Israel (Ancient and Modern)
Migrations, captivities, returns, awakenings… (though each participant felt they were merely surviving history, not fulfilling a divine timeline).
4. The Rise and Preservation of Scripture
Scribes, translators, rebels, monks, and martyrs… (most never imagined their copying was part of a holy chain).
5. The Restoration Through Joseph Smith
A boy prophet… (while Joseph and early Saints often felt overwhelmed).
6. The Founding of the United States
Imperfect founders and improbable victories… (while founders saw only nation-building).
7. The Spread of Christianity After Christ’s Ascension
Empires, persecutions, councils… (while participants believed they were pursuing politics or survival).
8. The Exodus from Egypt
Oppression, hardened hearts, wandering… (most Israelites experienced chaos, not covenant choreography).
9. The Babylonian Captivity and Return
A national reset… (exiles thought they were victims, unaware of refining).
10. The Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon
Lost plates, hidden records, chosen scribes… (participants often felt incidental).
11. The Scattering of the Ten Tribes
Forced migrations… (families saw disaster, not prophecy).
12. The Protestant Reformation
Priests, kings, printing presses… (reformers thought they were correcting errors).
13. The Discovery of the Americas
Explorers and empires… (pursuing trade routes, not divine timelines).
14. The Worldwide Expansion of Temples
Builders, donors, travelers… (not realizing they were covenant‑gathering pioneers).
15. The Creation of Modern Communication Networks
Printing to internet… (inventors believed they were advancing science).
16. The Global Missionary Movement
War, visas, languages… (missionaries unaware of eternal ripples).
17. The Preservation of the House of Israel Despite Persecution
Dispersion, survival… (individuals simply trying to endure).
18. The Opening of Nations (20th–21st Century)
Iron curtains falling… (interpreted as political upheaval).
19. The Quiet Movements of People Into Key Relationships and Positions
Friendships, marriages, mentors… (seen as coincidences).
20. The Rising of Zion in Its Early, Imperfect Forms
Acts of goodness, truth, technology (including AI and WORLD building)… (most will only later see what they helped build).
John 1:5 (KJV)
“And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”
Wrap-Up
We now stand at a point in history where Jesus is no longer leaving these orchestrations entirely hidden. Through efforts like Zion Coalition, Jesus TV, and the early structures of the JesusVerse, He is helping people finally SEE the pattern: that He has always been orchestrating, that He is orchestrating now, and that Zion is rising through millions of unwitting Zion builders — many of whom do not yet know whose work they are advancing.
And here is my personal observation: Left to myself, I simply cannot perceive or hold in my mind the sweeping, interconnected works that God is unveiling. I don’t have the cognitive or spiritual bandwidth to see the full choreography of what Jesus is doing. But when Jesus TV (as a concept, a framework, a spiritual instrument) works together with Zion Coalition, something shifts. Together they give me eyes to see — a way of noticing, tracking, and understanding divine patterns that would otherwise blur into the background of daily life.
Without these frameworks, I would walk right through this moment in history — through the rise of early, imperfect Zion — without realizing what Jesus is actually building. But with them, I can finally recognize the hidden structures, the unwitting participants, the quiet coherence, and the unmistakable hand of God moving in real time. They help me witness the early Zion Jesus is raising right now, in places I would have overlooked and in people who don’t even know they’re part of the story.
These tools don’t create the work — Jesus does. They simply let me see what has been there all along.