Treasure Up The Word

Leveling Up to God

Imagine you’re sitting on your couch, controller in hand, playing Super Mario Bros.

*It’s a metaphor. Stay with me.*

You want to win this game. You are determined to make it to the very end. Eight different worlds, containing four levels each, will need to be conquered.

However, you’re a novice game player. You’re not sure what the rules are, or what all of the buttons do. You are unfamiliar with the terrain and you’re not even sure what the objective is. You persist, but each time you figure out the level and move up, you’re faced with another set of problems to puzzle through.

As you work your way through the game, sometimes you can beat a level in only a couple of tries. Other levels seem to be completely unwinnable and you want to throw your controller at the TV and give up. But you know that getting to the end will be worth it, so you keep going.

Luckily this game gives you endless chances to progress. It’s not as if you have to sit down and win it all in one shot because the game will self destruct after one attempt. You’ve got time. An eternity of it, in fact.

What if one of those levels was called Telestial. And what if we were trying to win that level right now?

Have you ever considered the idea of multiple mortal probations? Perhaps this life isn’t the only chance we get to progress toward godhood. First, let me say that there’s a good chance my understanding of this subject is flawed, and it is certainly incomplete, but I hope you’ll at least join me in pondering.

Think about it for a minute. We know that God is a just God. He is no respecter of persons. He doesn’t play favorites.

1 Nephi 10:18 For he is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him.

I have a friend who had a faith crisis several years ago. She looked around at the world where we live. She saw the way she lived—what she was taught, how she was raised—and she compared it to everyone else out there. Those who lived in squalor during the dark ages, those who have never heard the name of Christ or considered the concept of life beyond this one, those who sat at the feet of Abraham, Moses, or King Benjamin, those who saw Christ for themselves, those who live in darkness their entire lives. She thought of the disparity of all these situations and simply could not fathom a just and loving God who would put us all in such disparate circumstances and then expect us all to be able to achieve the same level of glory. Calling it unfair would be putting it mildly.

For a long time though, I didn’t realize that it could be any other way. I just figured that the Lord would figure it out and make it fair in the end, even though logically I couldn’t imagine how that was possible. It felt like we were all expected to turn on that all important game of Super Mario Bros and get every level exactly right with only one try. A few would be able to do it by sheer luck, but the rest of us would be doomed—damned even.

So what if this isn’t our only chance?

The course of the Lord is one eternal round.

What is an eternal round?

Perhaps an eternal round includes:

*A war in heaven. We are given the choice to accept Father’s plan
*The creation of man and woman on a world
*The lives and experiences of all of their children through thousands of years
*The coming of a savior to atone for all of their sins
*Multiple losses and restorations of the Lord’s gospel as truth is corrupted and then reclaimed
*The coming of the savior in judgment
*The Lord’s millennial reign
*The unleashing of Satan and a final battle to test the souls of men. We will choose God or Satan.

At the end of each eternal round/creation cycle/mortal probation, the Lord determines how much we have grown and progressed and decides whether we need another shot at this level, or whether we have learned enough to move on to the next level.

Every cycle has the same objective—to move people closer to godhood. These mortal probations provide experience, a chance to be outside of the Lord’s presence so that we can utilize our agency and show Him what we will choose.

What if we compared this chance to come down to earth (or this eternal round) with an attempt to complete a level of a video game?

It sounds so silly, I know, but what if that’s what it’s like? There are those of us here on the earth who are complete novices. We jump when we’re supposed to duck, we can’t figure out how to get the coins. We died within the first quarter of the level. At the same time, there are others who have been playing this game for a while. They’ve got a good handle on the terrain and they know where the pitfalls are. They’re going to make it farther, maybe even get to the end.

The good news is that all of us get to try again. Those who completed this level get to move on to the terrestrial level and give that a go. Those who didn’t make it here get another attempt, and this time they’ve learned a few things and will be better equipped to make it farther next time.

“The glory of God is intelligence or in other words, light and truth.” We’re here to gather glory, little by little, to gain as much light and truth as we can. It’s okay that some of us fall in the first hole we try to jump and others make it more than halfway to the end, because we’re all learning. All experience will be for our good. Some will learn faster than others, some will master mercy but not grace, others might master meekness but not love unfeigned. Some will have to overcome the pride of abundance and privilege, and others will have to overcome the gut wrenching plight of poverty and abuse. Whatever we do learn, we take with us on the next eternal round. Just keep in mind we’ll have to wait for the next creation cycle, so we really should learn as much as we can while we’ve got this body and this agency, but at least this won’t be the end of our progress. This life is not hopeless. God never has been, nor ever will be, hopeless.

This concept is filled with hope and mercy. The first time I considered it, it was a light bulb moment. It fit into the cracks of my understanding and brought the picture into focus. Yes, God is just. Yes, God it loving. Yes, God is patient.

I had always wondered how Christ was able to be who He is. How could He come down to this fallen world and be sinless? How is that possible if He was just a new unexperienced spirit like the rest of us?

It’s not possible. The reason that Christ was able to be our savior is because he’s been through all the levels. He knows the terrain, he’s developed all of the essential skills to become like God. That why he was able to condescend below all things (below all of the levels of glory that he had attained) and come to this earth as a worthy savior. And if WE expect to become like God (and we do) then we have to take the same path and progress in the same way.

In Abraham 3:22-24 “Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones; And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born. And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell.”

If we believe that we were all brand new little spirits before we came to this earth, then those verses make no sense. Did God arbitrarily create some spirits to be great and some not? Did he decide that some brand new spirits who had never had to utilize their agency while out of the presence of God were somehow fit to rule over others? And what about the one who stood among them “like unto God.” How in the world did that spirit manage that?

The only logical conclusion that I have been able to come up with is that we weren’t new unexperienced spirits. We had done this before—twice, ten times, a thousand—regardless of the number of attempts we’ve made, I have to believe that we have had the opportunity to live mortal lives before. That is why God can point to some and say “these are noble” and point to another and say “this one is like unto God.” Because He’s been with us through many rounds and he’s seen what we’re capable of.

In the Lectures on Faith, Joseph taught that Christ is the prototype of the saved man. “Where is the saved being? We conclude as to the answer of this question, there will be no dispute among those who believe the bible, that it is Christ: all will agree in this that he is the prototype or standard of salvation…and if he were any thing different from what he is he would not be saved; for his salvation depends on his being precisely what he is and nothing else.”

This idea of multiple mortal probations is something I’ve started jokingly referring to as “leveling up” (hence this metaphor). I really hope that in this lifetime I can level up because I don’t want to be stuck in a crappy telestial life again. This life we’re living, this level that we are at, is hard. We are so far from where God is. The good news is that the farther we are from God, the greater the chance for progression. If we seek truth and take hold of it in this life, and then DO what the Lord requires, then perhaps when it comes time for the next round, the Lord will be able to view us as noble, as one of the servants that can be trusted to help bring others to salvation.

That should be our goal: to be a trusted servant of God, to be so good at hearing and HEEDING the voice of the Lord, that he can trust us to do his will in all things.

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Becoming Children of God

“And now, these are the words which king Benjamin desired of them; and therefore he said unto them: Ye have spoken the words that I desired; and the covenant which ye have made is a righteous covenant. And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters.” (Mosiah 5:6-7)

In my last post, I talked about how we are all born to this earth as children of men. So then, How Do We Become Children of God?

It’s all well and good to talk about becoming, but that’s one of those metaphysical, non-practical words that doesn’t really mean anything by itself. We can’t stand still and look to heaven and start becoming just because we really, really want it. So then, what is required?

Let’s start with the basics.

“I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was crucified for the sins of the world, even as many as will believe on my name, that they may become the sons of God.“ (D&C 35:2)

We must believe on His name. To do that we must believe that despite the fact that we are trapped in a darkened, telestial world, Christ will help us overcome it. If we were to rely only on justice, then each of us would have earned death and damnation. But when we believe in the words of Christ, we believe that in His mercy, He has made intercession and satisfied the demands of justice.

“And thus God breaketh the bands of death, having gained the victory over death; giving the Son power to make intercession for the children of men—

Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, taken upon himself their iniquity and their transgressions, having redeemed them, and satisfied the demands of justice.” (Mosiah 15:8-9)

After we learn to believe on his name, then what?

“And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God, that they might repent while in the flesh; wherefore, their state became a state of probation, and their time was lengthened, according to the commandments which the Lord God gave unto the children of men. For he gave commandment that all men must repent; for he showed unto all men that they were lost, because of the transgression of their parents.” (2 Nephi 2:21)

We need to repent. And repentance isn’t a one time fix. “I’ve repented and come to Jesus, and now I’m saved!” No, repentance is something we do over and over and over. Because as we experience life and learn more about God, we will recognize that we’ve started to veer off the path. We will have to make course corrections. Big ones, small ones, day after day. We will need to turn and face God each time we realize that our feet are taking us away from him.

Mosiah 27 says we “must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness.”

What is righteousness? When you boil it down, righteousness means that whatever the Lord asks us to do, we do it. Obedience to God is righteousness. So first we must become acquainted with the voice of the Lord so that we will recognize it, and when we do, we must be willing to do everything he asks of us.

So, let’s say we’ve believed Christ’s words, and have taken the time and effort to become familiar with His voice and have learned to obey it. Say we’ve learned to repent, and we are pointed in God’s direction, heading down that narrow path. Then what can we expect? How can we know that we have become a child of God?

In my last post, I quoted Romans 9:8 which said “the children of the promise are counted for the seed.” What promise?

Psalm 2:7 states “The Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.” These words are a promise. These words are a covenant. They are spoken by the mouth of the Lord to those whom he adopts into His family.

When we receive the promise from God that we have become His son or daughter, then we will be a child of the promise. We will be a covenant member of God’s family.

That is the Lord’s purpose. His work and his glory is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man, to exalt all the children of men who rise up to become children of God.

All these references to being born again aren’t just about the symbolic act of being baptized. Baptism is an essential step, but to truly be born again, we have to enter into a family that we had not been a part of previously.

Think about the records we have in the Book or Mormon. All of the righteous prophets that recorded their experiences have one big thing in common. They sought the Lord, they heard His voice, and His voice gave them a promise of eternal life—a life dwelling with God, in His house, as part of His family.

What happens if we don’t rise up and become a child of God?

“And it came to pass that Enoch continued his speech, saying: Behold, our father Adam taught these things, and many have believed and become the sons of God, and many have believed not, and have perished in their sins, and are looking forth with fear, in torment, for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God to be poured out upon them.” (Moses 7:1)

Fear and torment and the wrath of God. That’s what awaits those who do not rise up. When reading over all of these references to becoming children of God, you’ll notice that none of them say that everyone will become sons/daughters/children of God. They say “many have,” not “all have.” They say “ye may become,” not “you will become.”

This isn’t a guarantee. It’s conditional. We have our agency and we must use it well.

“Behold, thou art one in me, a son of God; and thus may all become my sons. Amen.” (Moses 6:68)

God is no respecter of persons, so the opportunity is there for everyone.

So then, where does that leave us? How should we proceed?

“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.” (Moroni 7:48)

Pray. Pray with true intent. Pray with all the energy of your soul. Ask hard questions. Praise his name. Ask for miracles. Ask that your heart be filled with love. Tell Him about your day, about everything that you care about. Get to know the Lord.

On the one hand, it’s so simple. On the other, it can feel impossible. That’s because there needs be opposition in all things. The Lord wants to know you, and Satan wants to prevent it.

Do it anyway.

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Children of God or Children of Men?

“For, said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit. And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;” (Mosiah 27:24-25)

Are we children of God?

“I am a child of God, and he has sent me here…”

I grew up singing those words. For me, the fact that I was daughter of God was a given. It was something innate and irrefutable.

But then, why does the verse above speak of becoming His sons and daughters? Are we children of God or not?

No, we’re not. At least, not yet.

I know that feels completely contradictory to our fundamental beliefs, but I promise it’s worth considering, because becoming a child of God in this life is what it’s all about.

That’s not to say that it’s inappropriate for us to call God our father. He is the creator of our spirits and he loves us as his children, but to become a literal son or daughter of God, there is more required.

If you search the scriptures for the phrase “become a child of God” or “become a son of God,” you’ll probably be just as surprised as I was to discover how often it’s used.

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” (John 1:12)

“And as many as have received me, to them have I given to become the sons of God; and even so will I to as many as shall believe on my name…” (3 Nephi 9:17)

“…our father Adam taught these things, and many have believed and become the sons of God.” (Moses 7:1)

“…that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him.”Moroni 7:48

“Behold, thou art one in me, a son of God; and thus may all become my sons. ” (Moses 6:68)

“…as many as would believe might become the sons of God.“(D&C 34:3)

“…that they may become the sons of God, even one in me as I am one in the Father” (D&C 35:2)

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If not children of God, then what?

The scriptures describe those who are not children of God as children of men or children of the flesh.

“And our spirits must have become like unto him [the devil], and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself; yea, to that being who beguiled our first parents, who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder and all manner of secret works of darkness.” (2 Nephi 9:9)

“Wherefore, he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved.” (2 Nephi 2:9)

Paul, the Apostle of the New Testament distinguishes between the children of the flesh and the children of God, in the book of Romans:

“That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.” (Romans 9:8)

It goes right back to the allegory of the olive tree. When we have a covenant with God, then we become part of His family. Just as Paul said in the verse above, the children of the promise (those with a covenant) are counted for the seed (or counted as offspring) of God, while the children of men are not.

All were born to this mortal earth through mortal parents, making us children of mortality. The atonement of Christ gives us the opportunity to choose to be born again, to become children of the promise.

“Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God.” (Mosiah 27:25)

“And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.” (2 Nephi 2:26)

Christ stretched forth His arms of mercy, and if we are willing to accept Him fully, to choose to be obedient to Him and Him alone, then we can be born again as part of His Family, as a child of God.

When we’ve spent our entire lives believing we are already children of God, it’s easy to feel abandoned and confused when we realize that we don’t yet qualify. But just the fact that the Lord has given us this opportunity to become His, is evidence of His incredible love. The Lord wants us to be like Him, and I don’t know about you, but I am far (and I mean FAR) from being like Him. I have so much to learn before I will feel as though I’ve moved even one step toward being where God is. Yet, He wants me to do it. He wants US to do it. He’s given us this opportunity for learning and growth—this opportunity to become HIS. This dark and dreary world is our school and our testing ground, because this mortal experience is the only way for us to learn godly attributes. Here, separated from His presence, we have the chance to exercise faith. Here we have the agency to choose God.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

God wants us to be like Him. That is His purpose, His work, and His glory. It is God’s desperate wish that we will each rise to the occasion and come to know Him, so that we can BE HIS.

*In my next post I’ll be talking a little bit about how that is done.

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Sweet or Bitter Fruit

Thus saith the Lord, I will liken thee, O house of Israel, like unto a tame olive tree, which a man took and nourished in his vineyard; and it grew, and waxed old, and began to decay. (Jacob 5:3)

It’s taken me a lot of years to feel like I really understand what the allegory of the olive tree is talking about. Maybe I’m slower than most, or maybe there’s just a lot there to be deciphered. So I thought I’d write down some of my understanding.

This post will only scratch the surface of what’s contained in Jacob 5, but hopefully it will be of use to someone.

A Summary

Jacob 5 tells the story of an olive tree, valued and cared for by the Lord of the vineyard and his servants.

This tame olive tree begins to wither, but because the roots are good, the Lord works to preserve the tree in any way he can. He cuts off the bad branches and grafts in new branches taken from a wild olive tree. He nourishes and prunes it, then when the tree produces new, tender branches, he takes some of those branches and plants them in different spots of ground. He takes other young branches and grafts them into the wild olive tree. Then he nourishes it more, hoping to preserve the tree and its fruit.

Time passes, and the Lord of the vineyard returns. The wild branches that were grafted into the tame tree have taken strength from the roots and brought forth good fruit. This gives the Lord joy, as he is able to lay up much fruit unto himself.

He checks on the trees that have grown from the tender branches of the tame olive tree and discovers that three have brought forth good fruit, but the one planted in the best ground only brought forth some good fruit and some bad.

A long time passes, and when they come to check on the tame tree again, it has produced all sorts of bad fruit. The Lord is grieved, knowing the roots were good, but that the bad branches have overrun the tree anyway.

The other trees he planted have also become corrupted and there is no good fruit to be found in his vineyard. He is sorely grieved, not knowing what more he could have done to preserve his trees and produce good fruit. But the trees are of no use to him, so he determines to cut them down and burn them. But his servant convinces him to spare them a little longer.

So they try again. They pluck off only the branches that produce the most bitter fruit, and the rest they nourish, returning the tame branches to the tame tree, hoping the branches and roots together will strengthen each other and produce good fruit.

He calls his servants to labor diligently one more time. The season is ending, this will be the last pruning and they must do everything in their power to nourish the trees. The servants obey, and the Lord labors with them to save the good fruit and clear away the bad.

There efforts pay off. The fruit produced is sweet, able to be laid up unto the Lord, who rejoices with his servants.

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What is the tame olive tree? The house of Israel.

When the Lord talks about the House of Israel, or about “my people,” he’s referring to those people who have received a covenant from him. Jacob was given the name “Israel” when he received a covenant from God, that by extension, was offered to all of his descendants. The blood lines of Israel are, by birthright, a covenant people.

So, imagine that tame olive tree as Jacob and all of his descendants. Jacob is at the roots. He received the covenant and both he and the Lord hope that this covenant will go forth to all the branches of the house of Israel and produce good fruit.

What is the fruit? The souls of mankind.

However, we can clearly see from the allegory that the fruit (or souls) produced by this tree are not guaranteed to be good, or to be partakers in the covenant, but some can be.

The entire purpose of the Lord laboring in the vineyard is to produce good fruit, to produce souls who can receive a covenant from the Lord and be saved. His work and His glory is the bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of men.

Good fruit=saved souls

Bad Fruit=unsaved souls

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What is the nourishment the Lord gives? The Word of the Lord.

And it came to pass that he pruned it, and digged about it, and nourished it according to his word. (Jacob 5:5)

The best way to nourish a people and produce souls worth saving is by the word of the Lord (scriptures). We need to be familiar with and understand His teachings, His expectation, and His covenants.

Having a covenant as a birthright isn’t enough. The allegory teaches us that many of the branches of the tree withered, just like there have been many children of Israel who have not been partakers of the covenant. But the Lord keeps trying. He removes the withered branches and commands his servant to:

“Go and pluck the branches from a wild olive tree…Take thou the branches of the wild olive tree, and graft them in.” (V. 7,9)

What is the wild olive tree? The gentiles.

Everyone not of the blood lines of Israel is a gentile. That’s me, and probably you. We are likely not direct descendants of Israel, so that makes us gentiles. We’re wild, without a covenant.

So when the covenant people no longer respect that covenant, the tree withers. And when the tree withers, the Lord brings wild branches (different groups of gentiles) and grafts them into the tame tree (offers them the covenant) in the hopes that they will take nourishment from the roots of the tame tree (accept the covenant) and thus produce good fruit.

But what about the few young and tender branches produced by the tame tree?

And it came to pass that after many days it began to put forth somewhat a little, young and tender branches; but behold, the main top thereof began to perish. (Jacob 5:6)

The Lord hedges his bets and transplants some of those branches to other parts of the vineyard.

And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard went his way, and hid the natural branches of the tame olive tree in the nethermost parts of the vineyard. (V.14)

What are the young and tender branches? Family lines in the house of Israel.

Like Lehi and his family. Though Lehi grew up in the traditions of the Jews, he had gone to the Lord, conversed with Him and obeyed His directions. Lehi honored and accepted the covenant with God. He was a young and tender branch who was separated from the majority of the house of Israel and transplanted to the americas with his family.

The Lord saw the iniquity and unbelief in Jerusalem and he took those few willing to hear and obey his voice, and he planted them elsewhere to give them a chance to keep the covenant. By doing so, Lehi and his family avoided the takeover of Babylon and the corruption of all their religious traditions.

But what about the dying branches?

We will pluck off those main branches which are beginning to wither away, and we will cast them into the fire that they may be burned. (V.7)

Agency. The Lord honors agency. The house of Israel was given a covenant. They had an opportunity, but it was up to each individual to accept or reject it. Will they be sweet fruit or bitter? If a group of people (or branch) is so lost in wickedness and unbelief that they cannot be recovered, then the Lord will remove them and destroy them. That branch will be burned in order to preserve the rest of the tree. This pruning will likely be offensive to the tree, but is necessary for the Lord’s purposes.

The Lord of the vineyard knows that not all the fruit will be good. God knows that not all will accept the covenant, but He gives endless opportunities for us to do so. He wants us to take strength from the roots and accept the covenant, to come to Him. He doesn’t care if the branch originated from the tame tree or the wild tree, he doesn’t care if the fruit grows from the tame tree, from the wild tree, or from one of the tender branches planted afar off.

All he cares about is what we little pieces of fruit make of ourselves.

We can’t rely on the fact that we originated from the tame tree, or that the branch we come from produced good fruit several harvests ago. That’s irrelevant to whether we’ll be sweet or bitter.

However, if branches (a person, or a group of people) spring forth, young and tender though they may be, he’s going to give them the best chance he can think of to bear good fruit. He will provide all the nourishment he can, but in the end, he cannot force a tree to bear good fruit. The Lord cannot force a people to accept the covenant he offers.

So the bad branches are cast off. The Lord of the vineyard plants the young branches elsewhere, he grafts the wild branches into the tame tree, and he nourishes. His labors pay off. Both the tame tree and the branches produce fruit worthy of preserving.

But, behold the tree. I have nourished it this long time, and it hath brought forth much fruit; therefore, gather it, and lay it up against the season, that I may preserve it unto mine own self. (V. 23)

The Lord and servant rejoice, but not all the fruit is good, and they know their labors must continue. More time passes, and when they next go to harvest, they are met with disappointment.

The Lord of the vineyard said: Behold, this long time have we nourished this tree, and I have laid up unto myself against the season much fruit. But behold, this time it hath brought forth much fruit, and there is none of it which is good. And behold, there are all kinds of bad fruit; and it profiteth me nothing, notwithstanding all our labor; and now it grieveth me that I should lose this tree. (V.31-32)

It grieves Him to think that he’ll have to give up on the tree entirely, because he cares about the fruit, every single piece. He knows the roots are good, the covenant is good. If the fruit would just takes nourishment from the roots instead of from the other branches, the fruit would be good. Yet the tree produces “all kinds of bad fruit,” and later it produces “evil fruit.”

And it came to pass that the Lord of the vineyard said unto the servant: Let us go to and hew down the trees of the vineyard and cast them into the fire, that they shall not cumber the ground of my vineyard, for I have done all. What could I have done more for my vineyard? (V. 49)

How frustrating to be the Lord of the vineyard, to pour his everything into saving this tree, these pieces of fruit, and to have it fail time and time again. He reaches the point where he is ready to throw in the towel and burn the trees entirely.

But, behold, the servant said unto the Lord of the vineyard: Spare it a little longer. (V. 50)

The servant intercedes on behalf of the tree, and because the Lord of the vineyard values the tree, and the fruit, he agrees. He labors with all diligence. He tries every trick in the book. He nourishes, digs about, dungs, grafts, prunes, transplants. He takes the natural branches that he had removed and he grafts them back into the tame tree.

Yea, I will graft in unto them the branches of their mother tree, that I may preserve the roots also unto mine own self, that when they shall be sufficiently strong perhaps they may bring forth good fruit unto me, and I may yet have glory in the fruit of my vineyard. (V. 54)

He calls more servants to labor with him. He directs them to prune and graft and nourish, clearing away the bad fruit and branches to prepare a way that perhaps the trees might bring forth good fruit.

And you know what? It works.

And there began to be the natural fruit again in the vineyard; and the natural branches began to grow and thrive exceedingly. (V. 73)

The Lord is able to preserve much fruit, and he has joy because of the fruit of his vineyard, and shares that joy with the servants that labored with him. The work is done, and the Lord is able to declare:

I will lay up unto mine own self of the fruit, for a long time, according to that which I have spoken. (V. 76)

What does it mean when the Lord says, “I will lay up unto mine own self of the fruit?”

When the Lord gathers fruit unto Himself, that fruit no longer belongs to the tame tree or the wild tree. That fruit belongs to Him. Those saved souls are now part of His family, and He will protect them. The Lord does this work himself. It’s not a servant who lays up the fruit, it’s the Lord of the vineyard that does the gathering into His family.

That’s the end goal—to be part of the Lord’s family, to be called by His name, to have Him give us a new identity.

We don’t want to stay on the tree. We want to be gathered up unto the Lord, because only then can we be safe from the burning.

And when the time cometh that evil fruit shall again come into my vineyard, then will I cause the good and the bad to be gathered; and the good will I preserve unto myself, and the bad will I cast away into its own place. And then cometh the season and the end; and my vineyard will I cause to be burned with fire. (V. 77)

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When the season ends, it’s not just the bad branches that are going to be burned. It will be the entire vineyard—every piece of fruit left on every branch of every tree. Nothing that we have built here on this earth—no earthly family we have claim to, no organization we’re a part of—is going to be preserved.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve got a lot of work to do to sweeten my soul.

Quicken

For no man has seen God at any time in the flesh, except quickened by the Spirit of God. (D&C 67:11)

What does it mean to be quickened?

I’ve always known that it had something to do with our bodies being changed into a better, or higher, state. But I’d never really considered the logistics of that until recently. So what if we can put it into scientific sorts of terms?

In D&C 131:7-8 There is no such thing as immaterial matter. All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be discerned by purer eyes; We cannot see it; but when our bodies are purified we shall see that it is all matter.

If all spirit is matter, then it should follow the known rules of matter. So, just for fun, let’s compare spirit to water.

What happens when you change the temperature of water? If you cool it down, the molecules move slower. If you heat it up, the molecules move faster, or quicker.

Say you live in the telestial world, like earth, and your spirit is at the telestial level of progression as well. A telestial spirit would be rather slow moving, perhaps like ice. The Terrestrial world and spirits would be like water, and the Celestial world and its spirits world be like vapor.

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Your spirit will always be made up of the same spiritual matter, but as we draw closer to God who lives in everlasting burnings, we have to be brought up to snuff so that we can survive the temperature (glory) where he dwells.

The Lord spoke to moses out of a burning bush. A pillar of fire was used for Him to speak with Joseph Smith. Alma the younger, when he fell asleep for three days, gave this account:

Nevertheless, after wading through much tribulation, repenting nigh unto death, the Lord in mercy hath seen fit to snatch me out of an everlasting burning, and I am born of God. (Mosaic 27:28)

Was he truly removed from the burning? Or was the matter of his spirit quickened by his repentance and the Lord’s mercy so that he could bear the heat? I can’t say for sure, but I think the question is certainly worth asking.

Therefore, O Lord, deliver thy people from the calamity of the wicked; enable thy servants to seal up the law, and bind up the testimony, that they may be prepared against the day of burning. (D&C 109:46)

The Lord isn’t going to burn the world because he’s vengeful and mean. It’s not a punishment, it’s a natural consequence. When the Lord returns, so too will his glory. His glory is very fast-moving. Of all the quickened beings, he’s the quickenedest. 🙂 Or to use scientific terms, his temperature is the highest.

JSH 1:37 For behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall burn as stubble; for they that come shall burn them, saith the Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

The righteous will survive the day of burning and the wicked won’t. But that’s not because the Lord has laser precision aim and only strikes the wicked, it’s because the righteous will have spirits that have been quickened to the point where they are the same state of matter as those that the Lord sends to do the burning.

Now, I think that when JSH refers to “they that come shall burn them,” the “they” is likely the seraphim, which (as I understand it) is the highest level of angel. They’re also known as the fiery ones. There’s a description of the seraphim at the beginning of Isaiah 6 when Isaiah sees the Lord sitting on His thrown, with the seraphim behind him. It’s interesting what happens next.

Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. (Isaiah 6:5-8)

When he encounters this vision of God, he’s undone, horrified by his own uncleanness before the Lord and His glory. Then one of the Seraphim takes a live coal in his hand (he can hold a red-hot coal without hurting himself because he’s obtained that level of glory) and touches Isaiah’s lips with it as a sort of purifying ordinance. This is so affective that when the Lord asks “whom shall I sent?” Isaiah, who had previously been cowering before the Lord because of all his iniquity, speaks up and says, “send me.” That’s quite the turn-around, but that’s what the Lord can do if we repent and allow our spiritual matter to be purified. Often, we see examples in the scriptures of those who are quickened for a short time in order to bear the presence of the Lord. Whether or not that purification lasts, I don’t know. I would imagine it is dependent on the person and situation.

What about us? What can we do to repent of our iniquity like Isaiah, repent nigh unto death like Alma, or overcome the darkness like the one that seized Joseph when he first attempted to pray? Everyone’s answer will be different because we all have our own iniquities and unbelief to shed. We have to approach the Lord asking, “What lack I yet?” and we must be willing to act when He answers. Then perhaps our spiritual matter will be quickened just a bit.

My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word. (Psalm 119:25)

Thy Faith Hath Made Thee Whole

“I will tell you of the wrestle I had before God, before I received a remission of my sins.” (Enos 1:2)

I was reading in Enos (short, but packed full of the pathway leading back to God), and one phrase jumped out at me. The Lord has just forgiven Enos of his sins. His guilt is lifted and he asks the Lord how it was done. In response, the Lord tells him:

“Because of thy faith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen. And many years pass away before he shall manifest himself in the flesh; wherefore, go to, thy faith hath made thee whole.” (Enos 1:8)

Thy faith hath made thee whole. These are the exact words that Jesus uses during three separate encounters in his mortal ministry.

Mark 5, Luke 8, and Matthew 9 all tell the story of the woman who was plagued with the issue of blood. She is healed when she touches the hem of Christ’s garment, and each account agrees that the Lord 1) addressed her as “daughter” and 2) said the words “thy faith hath made thee whole.”

“And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace and be whole of thy plague.” (Mark 5:34)

The second instance of this phrase being used is in Mark 10. A blind beggar hears that Christ is near and calls out to Him. People try to shush him, but he persists. Christ asks what he would have Him do, and when the man asks that his sight be restored, Christ answers:

“Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.” (Mark 10:52)

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The third is in Luke 17. Ten lepers ask to be cleansed. The Lord tells them to go show themselves to the priests. On their way, they are all healed, but only one returns to thank Christ. Christ responds:

“Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.” (Luke 17:19)

What does it mean to be made whole? On the surface, when looking at the examples from the bible, it seems to refer to being physically whole. So then why use the same words in Enos?

While the healing of the leper, the blind man, and the woman were wonderful example of mercy and the miracles that Christ can perform, I don’t think that’s the most important part. The nine lepers who were healed but did not return were made just as physically fit as the one who did return. So then, what is the significance of the Lord’s words to that one leper?

What is the significance of the woman being called ‘daughter?’

What is the significance of the blind man using his sight to follow Jesus in the way?

The faith of these people didn’t just allow their infirmities to be healed. Their faith resulted in purification, because they saw beyond what Christ could do for them physically, and saw the value of following in his path.

They didn’t wait for Christ to come and offer them a miracle. They cried out to Him, touched His garment, thanked Him. Just as Enos cried out to the Lord in mighty prayer and received forgiveness, these others took action. They acted in faith.

It’s one thing to say we have faith, but acting on our faith brings power.

I believe the Lord recognized the sincerity of their faith. He knew their hearts, and in telling them that their faith had made them whole, he was forgiving their sins, offering purification, and pointing them in the direction they needed to go.

Our Lord is always there, eager to forgive us, to teach us, to bless us. But it will be a struggle. Enos tells us of the ‘wrestle’ he has before receiving a remission of his sins. In verse 11, he “prayed unto Him with many long strugglings.” The woman, the blind man, and the leper all struggled with serious physical ailments. What is your struggle? And how will you use it to cry out to the Lord in mighty prayer so that he can help you overcome it?

May our souls hunger, and may we cry out to Him who can save us so that we will one day be called blessed and be able to say, like Enos, “I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest.”

Believe in the Words

Did not my father Alma believe in the words which were delivered by the mouth of Abinadi? And was he not a holy prophet? Did he not speak the words of God, and my father Alma believe them? And according to his faith there was a mighty change wrought in his heart. Behold I say unto you that this is all true. And behold, he preached the word unto your fathers, and a mighty change was also wrought in their hearts, and they humbled themselves and put their trust in the true and living God. And behold, they were faithful until the end; therefore they were saved. (Alma 5:11-13)

The story of Alma is a profound example of the power we have to change, to come unto Christ, and to be a force for good. Alma had been ordained as a priest to the wicked Kind Noah, and was surrounded and immersed in the wicked culture of Noah’s court. So then, what was it that Alma did to turn his entire life around? How did he pull himself out? He believed the words of a prophet.

Did not my father Alma believe in the words which were delivered by the mouth of Abinadi?

Can you imagine the humility that would have required? He had been taught that he and the other priests were the religious authority. What humility would it have taken to accept that some nobody prisoner had come with a genuine message from God? Yet, somehow he did. He recognized Abinadi as a prophet. But how?

Was he not a holy prophet? Did he not speak the words of God?

Prophets speak the words of God. Prophets come with a message. The prophets in Jerusalem during Lehi’s life came with the message from the Lord about the fall of Jerusalem. Lehi believed them, and because he believed them—and acted on that knowledge, and sought the Lord—he himself became a prophet. It took time. It took effort. It took a pillar of fire and a vision where he wasn’t sure if he was in his body or out. But he received a commission to become the Lord’s servant.

The same thing happened with Alma. He listened, he believed, he had a mighty change of heart. Then, because of that mighty change of heart, he was able to commune with the Lord and receive a commission to go out and preach.

He preached the word unto your fathers, and a mighty change was also wrought in their hearts.

Just as Lehi heard the message, received it, communed with the Lord, and became a prophet himself, so did Alma hear the message, receive it, commune with the Lord, and become a prophet himself. He converted and baptized many. That’s the power of a mighty change of heart. A soft heart can receive truth, and God can and will utilize a soft heart. To hear and speak the words that the Lord has given you to preach is to be a prophet.

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I love the story in Numbers about the two men who prophesied in the camp. Some were offended by it, thinking that only Moses should be able to prophesy. When they ran, concerned, to tell Moses and insist that he forbid those men to prophesy, Moses’ reaction is beautiful.

Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them! (Numbers 11:29)

Moses knew that he didn’t have a monopoly on God’s word. He rejoiced when others were able to hear the Lord’s voice and prophesy themselves. He wished for it to happen more often!

This is so important to remember, because when we read about these prophets—and the people that they brought to Christ, and the visions they saw—it’s easy to think of them as inherently better than us, or on a higher level that we can’t reach. This is unfortunate, because not only do we turn them into idols (which is a no-no), but we also imagine that it’s not our place to become like them. And when we do that, we handicap ourselves. If we think that we are by default unable to ever purify ourselves enough to receive the words of the Lord, then what chance do we have of doing it? We cripple our faith when we put limits on what we believe we can become—when we decide that the prophets we read about became prophets only because they were extra special. That utterly contradicts the principles of agency, and the fact that God is no respecter of persons. We are all commanded to become perfect, and if perfection is attainable, then there is no communion with God that we cannot have.

We are extraordinarily good at limiting ourselves because of our own imagined, impenetrable barriers. The Lord is not the one to set up those barriers. With God all things are possible. By ourselves, perfection is impossible. But with Christ…

Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness… that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. (Moroni 10:32)

“The Record Which I Make is True”

“And I know that the record which I make is true; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge.” (1 Nephi 1:3)

This is from 1 Nephi, so I’ve read this verse many many times, but it was just a few nights ago that I started to wonder why is was important for Nephi to point out that the record he made was “true.” Especially since he acknowledges in the same verse that it’s “according to my knowledge.” It’s from his point of view. It’s bias, even. But still, he calls it true.

truth-1123020_1920 I have always viewed the Book of Mormon as a historical record. It was only recently that I heard someone talking about how it might just all be one big metaphor. It’s not a historical account so much as a collection of stories meant to teach lessons about God.

I don’t agree with that supposition. I still believe that it is a historical account, though only a portion of what was written. Mormon combed through all of the records and picked out the events that would be most applicable in their lessons to our day. So while it is not the whole history, it is historical.

Which brings me back to Nephi’s true record. If the Lord knew that the legitimacy of the Book of Mormon as a historical record would be questioned, then it would make sense for Him to have Nephi make that claim at the very beginning.

It’s like Nephi is putting a disclaimer at the beginning: Look. This is a record. It’s true. I wrote it with my own hands. I wrote it to the best of my knowledge. Yes, it might be flawed, but these things happened.

Why is it important that we know that these things happened? Well, what kind of events do we read about in the Book of Mormon? We read about visions, angels and visits from Christ. We read about the Lord’s voice sounding from the heavens after Christ’s crucifixion. We read about missionaries who had the power of God protect them as those they had striven to teach tried to burn them alive. We read about people who heard a prophet speak, believed their words and then sought to know the truth and in doing so, came to know the Lord themselves.

Why do we need to know that these things happened? Because if they truly happened to others, then they can happen to us.

We can see visions.

We can hear the Lord’s voice.

We can receive revelation.

We can be brought to the throne of God.

There is a path that leads to a reunion with our Lord in this life. And we can walk it.

“Behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and there will be no more doctrine given until after he shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh. And when he shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh, the things which he shall say unto you shall ye observe to do.” (2 Nephi 32:6)

Perfect Love Casteth Out Fear

There is No Fear in Love

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:18 )

We all wish to be perfect in love, but we cannot do that if we fear, and unfortunately, we can be afraid of anything. As a teenager, I started making a list of everything that I feared. Drugs, alcohol, being unloved, being unwanted, messing up, needles, spiders, etc…

After filling a couple pages, I realized that the exercise could go on forever. There is no limit to the things we can fear. We can be afraid of everything. Satan knows that better than anyone. Fear hath torment. No one leverages that better than Satan. If he can cripple us with fear, he has won.

So how do we get rid of fear? Love. More love. More love for God and more love for those around us, because we can’t love God if we don’t love our brothers and sisters here.

“We love him, because he first loved us. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” (1 John 4:19-21)

Do We Choose to Love Our Brother?

We cannot truthfully claim a deep love of God if we hold on to hate for those around us. Many years ago, I met a girl who proudly ticked off on her fingers all the people that she hated, including her mom, her brother and one of her step-parents. I remember at the time wondering if she realized what she was saying. She seemed so proud of it. As if hating them made her powerful. Did she mean what she said? Did she really hate them?

Words are a powerful thing. We mortals like to abuse words. We like to say we hate something, when often what we really mean is that we don’t understand it, or that we were hurt, or confused, or offended, or that we just don’t agree. But the more we claim that hate, the more we’ll believe it’s true. Let us choose to set aside hate. Misunderstandings can be cleared up. Hurt can be healed, offense can be overcome, but the only way to get rid of hate is to choose to set it aside, to choose love instead.

Fear and hate do not make us powerful, they make us weak.

2 timothy 1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

Fear is not Godly. Power does not come from fear.

In Helaman 5, Nephi and Lehi are imprisoned for their preaching and converting. After they are encircled about by fire and a voice is heard from the heavens, those who witnessed the miracle went about telling of their experience and converting even more souls. The result of this conversion was this:

Helaman 5:51 “And as many as were convinced did lay down their weapons of war, and also their hatred and the tradition of their fathers.”

They laid down their hatred. They didn’t demand retribution, or even an apology, they just laid it down. That is our choice. We can choose to lay down our hatred, our anger, our hurt, and all our broken pieces. We can choose to lay them down at the Lord’s feet.

We have agency and we must use it well. That means not only choosing good and taking responsibility for our choices, but it means respecting the agency of others. Even if you are completely right about something, that does not give you license to force your view on someone else. It’s ok to disagree. It’s ok to walk different paths. It’s not ok to use force or unrighteous dominion. It is not ok to compel. Choose truth. Teach truth, and let others make their choice.

2 Nephi 10:23 “Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves–to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life.”

Do We Choose God?

How else can we love God? How else can we choose God?

Moses 7:33 “And unto thy brethren have I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood.”

To love one another and to choose God go hand in hand. We are commanded to do both. No matter how diligently we seek the face of God, if we hold on to our hate, we are not choosing God.

Being commanded to love is one thing, actually doing it is another. But how do we love those who have hurt us? Or rejected us?

Overcoming Hurt with Love

We have all suffered offense and hurt. And in the midst of that hurt, it’s easy to lose sight of our relationship with the Lord if those who should be loving us unconditionally have decided to set us aside. So while we seek God’s love in order to forgive, we must also remember that despite the choices of whatever group we identify with, nothing can stand in the way of our relationship with Father and with Christ. If you feel you have been cast out—by your friends, or your family, or your church—do not let that come between you and the Lord.

Remember your agency. You are free to choose.

Alma 33:2 “And Alma said unto them: Behold, ye have said that ye could not worship your God because ye are cast out of your synagogues. But behold, I say unto you, if ye suppose that ye cannot worship God, ye do greatly err, and ye ought to search the scriptures; if ye suppose that they have taught you this, ye do not understand them.”

The lord does not require a synagogue for us to worship in. What the lord has asked of us is a broken heart and a contrite spirit. He’s asked us to believe in him and be baptized.

3 Nephi 11:33 “And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

The only person who can keep us from God is ourselves. That’s the beauty of Joseph Smith’s legacy. When we lack, we go to God. When we hurt, we go to God. When we anger, we go to God. When we are confused, we go to God. We have to stand at the door and knock. No one else can do it for us. We can’t send a messenger. We can’t ask a priest to do it for us. We have to stand at that door and ask for entrance.

Knocking

2 Nephi 9:42 “And whoso knocketh, to him will he open; and the wise, and the learned, and they that are rich, who are puffed up because of their learning, and their wisdom, and their riches–yea, they are they whom he despiseth; and save they shall cast these things away, and consider themselves fools before God, and come down in the depths of humility, he will not open unto them.”

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We want the Lord to open the door for us. But he cannot if we are puffed up. What are we puffed up in? Because we’re all puffed up in something. Is it our knowledge? Do we think we know it all? Is it the image we project to those around us? Are we striving to LOOK righteous instead of BE righteous? Are we puffed up in our money, or a special talent we possess? Whatever it is, we have been told to cast it away. Because if we show up, knocking at the door, still clinging to our pride, he cannot open the door.

It can be frightening to give those things up. They make us feel secure and in control in this uncertain world. It’s the same way with our unbelief.

And what is unbelief? I used to think that unbelief was the same as non-belief, but that’s not the case. Unbelief is false belief. It’s a belief in something that simply isn’t true. And no matter how passionate we are about defending our beliefs, if they aren’t true, they’re not going to help us. That goes right back to Helaman 5:51 and laying down the traditions of our fathers. We all inherit traditions, but it’s our responsibility to determine whether or not they are true. It can be a frightening thing, but the Lord has asked us to seek the truth anyway.

2 nephi 9:40 “O, my beloved brethren, give ear to my words. Remember the greatness of the Holy One of Israel. Do not say that I have spoken hard things against you; for if ye do, ye will revile against the truth; for I have spoken the words of your Maker. I know that the words of truth are hard against all uncleanness; but the righteous fear them not, for they love the truth and are not shaken.”

We should not fear truth. We all like to be right—we hope to be right. It’s just another part of our mortal nature. But in order to learn truth from God, we have to stop being afraid of discovering that we were wrong. We have to practice letting go of falsehoods. Take satisfaction in identifying truth and letting those truths replace your unbelief. Reviling against the truth isn’t going to make it false. The Lord speaks against all uncleanness. We can cling to our unbelief as tight as we want, but truth will still condemn us. So instead of being mad that our uncleanness is being condemned, let us strive to be rid of it. Choose to let it go. Lay it at the Lord’s feet.

God is a God of truth, and if we fear truth, then we will fear Him. And we know that fear hath torment.

2 nephi 27:25 “Forasmuch as this people draw near unto me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their hearts far from me, and their fear towards me is taught by the precepts of men—”

It is the precepts of men that teach us to fear God. It is the teachings of men that tell us we cannot go to the Lord ourselves. Men convince us to praise God with our words but hide our hearts from Him out of fear. The truth is that we should continue to honor the Lord with our words, but ultimately what the Lord really wants is our hearts. He wants us to come to a point where we can declare like Moroni, “I fear not what man can do; for perfect love casteth out all fear.” (Moroni 8:16)

Fear God?

Now there’s a little quandary, because many writers in the Book of Mormon state that they DO fear God. Or they preach that others SHOULD fear God.

“Work out your salvation with fear before God.” (Alma 34)

“The Nephites did not fear them; but they did fear their God.” (3 Nephi 4)

“I do not fear your power nor your authority, but it is my God whom I fear;” (Alma 60)

How do we reconcile that? We’re not supposed to fear, but these men of God are admitting fear and sometimes encouraging fear.

Fear of God may be used as a tool in some cases, but before I talk about that, I want to point out that if we are motivated by fear of anything but God, we’re going to get ourselves into trouble. Fear of man leads either to worshipping them as idols, or allowing ourselves to be manipulated by them, or both. It strips us of our agency and enslaves us to this world. Fear of men will lead us away from God, not toward Him. Fear of men puts man between us and God and acts as a barrier.

So then how can fear of God be a good thing? How can it be recommended by prophets throughout the scriptures? Enos used fear of the Lord to motivate his people to not completely destroy themselves.

Enos 1:23 “And there was nothing save it was exceeding harshness, preaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions, and destructions, and continually reminding them of death, and the duration of eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things—stirring them up continually to keep them in the fear of the Lord. I say there was nothing short of these things, and exceedingly great plainness of speech, would keep them from going down speedily to destruction.”

When a society has fallen into wickedness and chaos, sometimes it’s necessary for a prophet of the Lord to pound the fear of God into them. And even then, the only thing this accomplished was to prevent their utter destruction. It did not lead to salvation or raise them to a higher plain, it only restored a little order.

Fear of God cannot exalt us, and it will not bring us into the presence of the Lord. In order to rise up to meet our Savior, we must get rid of our fear.

And the way that we do that is to replace it with love. Perfect love casteth out fear.

Let me ask: who is perfect love?

Christ is perfect love.

When we invite Christ into our lives, when we do His will, when we fill ourselves with the light of Christ, our fear will be cast out.

He will cast out our fear. And when that fear is gone and we are made whole in Him, then we will have no more reason to fear God because—like King Benjamin’s people—we will have no more disposition to do evil.

Mosiah 5:2 “And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.”

We must allow the Spirit of the Lord to cause a mighty change in us. We must continually seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit, allowing the light of Christ to work within us.

And THEN we can be filled with perfect love, with love unfeigned.

Loving Like a Little Child

The Lord has good reason for commanding us to be as little children.

3 Nephi 11:37-38 “And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things. And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.”

Little children love without limits, they forgive easily and they are very often fearless. Little children have perfect love because it comes without judgement and without reserve.

We have a story in my family from before I was born and my parents only had two kids. They were driving on I-15, along a long stretch of desert road when a biker gang came up behind them. My dad could see in the rear view mirror that they were Hells Angels and that they were passing the other cars very aggressively, almost like they were picking a fight. This made him more than a little nervous and he told my mom that they needed to just look straight ahead, don’t make eye contact. He didn’t want any trouble. But as this big group of bikers came up behind them and started passing, he noticed that most of them were waving. He and my mom were utterly flummoxed, but they didn’t dare wave back.

Finally after all the bikers has passed, my oldest sister, who was about 3-years-old at the time, says, “Daddy, those were nice mens! I was waving at them and they waved back!”

She wasn’t afraid of them. She didn’t know that men who rode motorcycles were supposed to be tough and dangerous. She didn’t judge them for their leather jackets or tats. They were just people, and she treated them with the loving enthusiasm of a child.

1 John 4:7-8 “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”

Love others. Don’t just act like you love them. Don’t love them only when you are in direct communication, but love them always—even if they post something dumb on Facebook, even if they refuse to understand you—strive to have loving thoughts about them. Love them even when they aren’t affected by it. Love them when you speak of them to others. Love them when you disagree. Love them when they make huge mistakes. Love them when you are ashamed of your own mistakes.

2 Nephi 9:41 “O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One. Remember that his paths are righteous. Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name.”

1 John 4:11 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”

Let Christ into your heart. Let his perfect love cast out your fear.

A Man in a White Robe

“And it came to pass that I saw a man, and he was dressed in a white robe; and he came and stood before me. And it came to pass that he spake unto me, and bade me follow him. And it came to pass that as I followed him I beheld myself that I was in a dark and dreary waste. And after I had traveled for the space of many hours in darkness, I began to pray unto the Lord that he would have mercy on me, according to the multitude of his tender mercies. And it came to pass after I had prayed unto the Lord I beheld a large and spacious field.” (1 Nephi 8:5-9)

For a long time, I thought that this man dressed in a white robe was an angel sent from God to guide Lehi in this vision. I’m not sure where I got that idea, because if I go back and read it, I realize that’s not what it says. This is what is does say:

A man, dressed in a white robe.
Bade me follow him.
As I followed him I beheld myself in a dark and dreary waste.
Traveled for the space of many hours in darkness.

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Hold up. Does it really say that this man led him into darkness where he remained for many hours? That doesn’t sound like an angel. But all this time, I thought that an angel led him to the tree of life. If that’s not the case, then who did lead him there?

“I began to pray unto the Lord that he would have mercy on me…after I had prayed unto the Lord I beheld a large and spacious field.”

Ok. So God did that himself. Immediately after Lehi decided to pray and ask the Lord, he was delivered from the darkness. This shouldn’t surprise me, since the Lord is always the one who delivers us with his mercy and grace. I’m not sure why I made the assumption that it was an angel, but I love that it was the Lord himself that delivered Lehi from the darkness, as if He was just waiting to be asked.

It’s also interesting to note that Lehi (who had the vision), and Nephi (who recorded the vision), were both familiar with the glory of God and what it looked like. When they describe heavenly interactions, they don’t talk about just plain whiteness or just plain brightness. They are always described as exceedingly bright/white/fair. Or above the brightness of the sun/stars. That’s a stark difference from his description of “a man…dressed in a white robe.”

“And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day. And he also saw twelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament.” (1 Nephi 1:9-10)

“And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the great city of Jerusalem, and also other cities. And I beheld the city of Nazareth; and in the city of Nazareth I beheld a virgin, and she was exceedingly fair and white.” (1 Nephi 11:13)

“And I beheld the Spirit of the Lord, that it was upon the Gentiles, and they did prosper and obtain the land for their inheritance; and I beheld that they were white, and exceedingly fair and beautiful, like unto my people before they were slain.” (1 Nephi 13:15)

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Theses descriptions of exceeding whiteness tie back to the pillar of fire that I wrote about last time. When mortals come in contact with—or have visions of—beings or symbols of glory, they know they are encountering the glory of God. It’s manifest in the bright whiteness that they see. It’s unmistakable.

“Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, son of man, worship me. And it came to pass that Moses looked upon Satan and said: Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten; and where is thy glory, that I should worship thee? For behold, I could not look upon God, except his glory should come upon me, and I were transfigured before him. But I can look upon thee in the natural man.” (Moses 1:12-14)

Moses wasn’t fooled by Satan’s attempt to gain his worship. It was obvious that Satan did not have the same glory as the Father has because Moses had no trouble looking on him with his natural eyes. Once someone has encountered the glory of God, anything else looks dim in comparison.

When Lehi encountered the pillar of fire that dwelt on the rock, he saw and heard much. He was taught by the spirit, and the encounter was so intense that it left him exhausted (much like Joseph Smith after being taught by the angel Moroni throughout the night). However, when Lehi encounters this man in the white robe, there is no knowledge taught, and nothing miraculous is shown. He simply wanders in darkness for many hours. So it’s no wonder that Lehi describes him as merely a man in a white robe. In contrast, when the Lord delivers Lehi to the spacious field and he encounters the tree of life, and the fruit:

“…I did go forth and partake of the fruit thereof; and I beheld that it was most sweet, above all that I ever before tasted. Yea, and I beheld that the fruit thereof was white, to exceed all the whiteness that I had ever seen.” (1 Nephi 8:11)

If Lehi had never encountered the glory of the Father as he did in 1 Nephi 1:8, or seen the vision of the fruit which was exceedingly white—if he didn’t have anything to compare it to, he probably would have made the same assumption that I made, that the man in the white robe was an angel, a heavenly messenger or guide. It’s another reminder that no matter how much I think I know, there is always more truth and light to be sought.