Covenants – Treasure Up The Word

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.