TG Mortality 32 - D&C 50

The topical guide for Mortality pulls us into this section of the Doctrine and covenants with verse 5. 

"But blessed are they who are faithful and endure, whether in life or in death, for they shall inherit eternal life."

Going forward a full verse offers what is obviously a counterpoise -

"But wo unto them that are deceivers and hypocrites, for, thus saith the Lord, I will bring them to judgment."

If we spiral further outward to contemplate the immediate context we come upon a brief guide to the judgment for those who have found the truth, embraced the good news of the gospel and become members of God's kingdom on earth. 

As members of the church we have become they who "profess my name" (v. 4). There are risks associated with so professing.  Some who so profess become "deceivers and hypocrites" (v. 6).  They introduce "abominations" into the church (v. 4). They may honestly have started well, but somewhere on the road they have been "overcome of the world" (v. 8). Their ultimate fate is to be "detected and cut off" (v. 8) and to be brought to judgment (v. 6).  For reasons of his own, God has some face that fate in this life and some in the next (v. 8). 

On the other hand, "they who are faithful and endure" (v. 5) will inherit eternal life.  Some of them may even get deceived by the hypocrites, which allows Satan's power into their life for a time (v. 7).  But "such shall be reclaimed" (v. 7).  Again, for his own purposes, God will do the reclaiming on this side of death or on the other (v. 5). 

If we spiral out even further we find the contrast between those who inherit eternal life and those who are cut off and brought to judgment is embedded in a long passage dedicated to teaching members of the infant church how to discern and deal with the many varieties of spiritual manifestations common along the American frontier in the 1830's.

In response to the restoration, there has been a quickening of the tempo of activity in the unseen world's attempts to influence our own.  There are "spirits which have gone abroad in the earth".  Some of course are angelic helps from God, but others are "false spirits...deceiving the world" (v.2).  By means of spiritual manifestations of his own (v.3) or those of other false spirits, Satan has targeted the church with two goals - first, to deceive, and then to  overthrow (v. 3).

In their ignorance and lack of experience, members of the church had been deceived and confused by some of the manifestations they had run into.  The had received spirits "could not understand" and "received them to be of God" (v. 15).  God then gives some guidelines and rules.  Spiritual manifestations which are from God

• bring understanding, edification and rejoicing and not confusion (v. 15, 22-23).  They bring light and not darkness (v. 22-25).
• help the church in their mission to proclaim the truth (v. 14, 17).
• testify in such a way that those who hear it are led towards accepting the gospel (v. 19, 21).

It is made clear that the saints are not helpless recipients of spiritual manifestations, but have been given guidelines and power (accessible through prayer, to be used with humility) to know the nature of the spirits that try to influence them and to banish those whose influence is not wholesome.

The Lord then turns our focus from the attention grabbing world of showy spiritual manifestations to the slow, steady (but no less spiritual) disciplines of the kingdom - visiting and strengthening and encouraging one another, being diligent in our callings, putting our trust in the lord, growing in grace and knowledge, becoming more aware of the Savior's presence among us, learning to build upon his rock, seeking his face, watching for his coming and making ourselves ready for it.

TG Dreams 35 - Ether 9:3

"And the Lord warned Omer in a dream that he should depart out of the land; wherefore Omer departed out of the land with his family"

We know nothing about this dream except its function.  Here at the end of our study is a good time to turn back and consider dreams from another angle.  How the Lord uses them.  What are the purposes of divinely inspired dreams?

1. Some, like Omer's dream Contain a Warning.  Among those who were 'warned in a dream' were Lehi (1 Nephi 2:1-2), Pilate's wife (Matt. 27:19), The wise men at Jesus's birth (Matt. 2:12-13), Joseph the husband of Mary (Matt. 2:19-20), Abimelech, king of Gerar (Genesis 20:3-8), and Laban, Jacob's Father in Law (Genesis 31:24-29).

2. Similar to the Dream of Warning is the Dream of Instruction.  Again the recipient is told what to do, but with a little less urgency and less danger.  Lehi's instruction to send his sons to get the Brass Plates came in a dream (I Nephi 3:2).  Joseph was instructed to marry the mother of the Messiah rather than divorcing her in a dream (Matt. 1:23).  He was also told by dream when he should return with the mother and young child from Egypt to the land of Israel (Matt. 2:19-21). 

3. A dream can bring a revelatory answer to a question we make to the Lord.  King Saul's choices had brought him to a point of alienation with God.  And when he desired an answer (out of fear and not out of a change of heart) he found that he could not get an answer "neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets" (1 Samuel 28:6).

4. A dream of instruction can be for an individual or it can provide guidance for an entire people.  Numbers 12 and Deuteronomy 13 both indicate that dreams were a part of the means by which prophetic utterances might be reach Israel.

5. A certain number of dreams give us a knowledge of future events.  Joseph of Egypt was given early knowledge of his future role of viceroy (Genesis 37) which helped guide him away from vengeance and to blessing when his brothers who had sold him into slavery ended up kneeling before him.  Joseph was also given prophetic insight into the future of two of Pharaoh's servants in prison with him (Gen. 40).  Pharaoh was given a dream that foretold the coming of famine to the entire Middle East (Gen. 41).  A Midianite was given a dream foretelling Gideon's victory in the next day's battle (Judges 7).  Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that foretold the imperial history of the Western World (Daniel 2).  Daniel dreamed of end times (Daniel 7).  Lehi was given insight into future trajectories of his children (1 Nephi 8).  Dreams that foretell the future are usually highly symbolic and require a gift of interpretation.

6. Some dreams impart general knowledge of eternal truths.  Lehi's Dream (1 Nephi 8) is an example of such a dream.

7. Some dreams can contain experiences of divine communication so strong and direct that they form the basis of the creation of the relationship between that person and divinity from then on. Jacob (Genesis 28) and Solomon (I Kings 3) both had such dreams.

TG Dreams 34 - Alma 30

In Alma 30, Korihor takes up a position quite familiar to a modern reader.  But its like can be traced back before Lucretius.  Korihor, in contrast to Jacob, emphasizes the unreal, dreamlike character of spirituality and forcefully contrasts it with what he considers to be true reality - the cold, hard facts revealed by limiting our information to our senses. 

He paints religious tradition and religious experience with a very unforgiving brush.  His words attempt to portray it as

• "ignorance" (v. 23)
• "foolish and vain hope" (v. 13)
• "foolish traditions" (v. 14, 23), the "traditions of your fathers" (v. 16), or the even "silly traditions of their fathers" (v. 31).
• "the effects of a frenzied mind" or "this derangement of your minds" (v. 16)
• this frenzy and derangement specifically includes all spiritual experiences, from the sense of guilt attached to our moral sense, the experience of divine forgiveness, and any supposed revelation in the form of dreams and visions (v. 28)
• especially singled out for ridicule among spiritual experiences and traditions is the concept of "prophecies" (v. 6, 14), a belief that through God men could be shown the future.  And among prophecies, he is particularly critical of those that speak of the coming of a Messiah and an atonement.
• not content to style spiritual experiences as mental derangements, he suggests that some of them are deceptions - pretended mysteries and whims (v. 28) of those who want to control others.

From his point of view, this nonsensical approach to life gives believers the following characteristics:

• they end up with a belief in things they "cannot know" (v.15) and "which are not so" (v. 16)
• these are "foolish things" (v. 13), which "keep them in ignorance" (v. 23)
• they believe things about the future (which is really completely unknown)- specifically about the coming of a messiah or "Christ" (v. 6) who should "be slain for the sins of the world" (v. 26)
• they have a mistaken notion that mankind is "guilty and fallen" (v. 25),
• They thus believe in a need for a "remission of sins" (v. 16)
• these things they believe limit their freedom - they "yoke" them (v. 13), deceived people "bind themselves down under foolish ordinances and performances" (v. 23), in a position where they "durst not enjoy their rights and privileges" (v. 27), because they fear to "offend some unknown being, who they say is God" (v. 28)
• In fact religion is a tool of priests "to usurp power and authority over them" and to bring them down (v. 23).  Religious leaders purposefully keep people in ignorance (v. 23), to "keep them down, even as it were in bondage" (v. 27) that they "durst not look up with boldness"
• The motives of these leaders is to get "according to your own desires" and to "glut yourselves with the labors of their hands" (v. 27).

Reality, on the other hand, must be approached with the following assumptions:

• no man can know anything which is to come (v. 13)
• what you know is only what you perceive, what you see (v. 15)
• therefore God is out!  He is "a being who never has been seen or known" (v. 28)
• The only way a person might accept the existence of God would be the evidence of one's physical senses - the reception of some kind of a physical "sign" (v. 43).

The characteristics of the reality he perceives in this way are as follows:

• "Ye cannot know of things which ye do not see" (v. 15)
• "Therefore ye cannot know that there shall  be a Christ (v. 15)
• In fact, there will be no messiah, no "Christ" (v. 12)
• "there could no atonement be made for the sins of men" (v. 17)
• "when a man was dead, that was the end thereof" (v. 18)
• In the cold hard light of the senses it was obvious that life was structured in a Darwinian manner (v. 17)

                    "every man fared in this life according to the management of the creature"
                    "every man prospered according to his genius"
                    "every man conquered according to his strength"     
                    "whatsoever a man did was no crime"
                    you don't have to be ashamed of anything really,
                    men can "lift up their heads in their wickedness"
                    specifically in pursuing sexual desires - "committing whoredoms" (v. 18).

TG Mortality 31 - Moroni 7 (II)

An experience I had some years back connects deeply with my reading of Moroni 7's list of the characteristics of charity. 

I was in Elder's Quorum one Sunday Morning and a brother began to share some experiences from the last weeks surrounding his daughter's birth.  There were serious, life-threatening complications and his father was on his way to help him administer to the new born infant.  To prepare himself spiritually for the ordinance he was quietly reading his scriptures.  He happened to be in Moroni 7 and he was reading through the characteristics of the pure love of Christ and the desire to possess them filled his heart.  But when he reached verse 48 the full meaning of the verse bowled him over - "Do I realize what I have admitted to myself?  I'm not yet a true follower of Jesus Christ?  What would it take for me to become one?"

The blessing went well, the baby's complications healed and became a non-issue, but for this brother the question became central to his thought and desire.  I watched him undergo what from the outside appeared to be a spiritual rebirth, with a noticeable gain in light and commitment, an excitement over what the Lord was doing in his  life on a nearly daily basis, in the quality of his contributions in quorum meetings and his sacrament meeting talks.

TG Dreams 33 - Jacob 7:26

Sometimes it is THIS life that assumes an unreal, dreamlike quality:

"...and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream, we being a lonesome and a solemn people, wanderers, cast out from Jerusalem, born in tribulation, in a wilderness, and hated of our brethren, which caused wars and contentions; wherefore we did mourn out our days."

TG Mortality 31 - Moroni 7

 I've been struggling with writing up Moroni 7 for some time.  I'm just going to post my notes, disjointed and disorganized. We'll see how they fit into the overall pattern that emerges.

Maintaining
 Mormon speaks of those who have "obtained a sufficient hope by which [they] can enter into the rest of the Lord, from this time henceforth until [they] shall rest with him in heaven"

Signs of Maintaining
They are "the peaceable followers of Christ" and can be know by their "peaceable walk with the children of men."
I judge that ye have faith in Christ because of your meekness. (v. 39).
Faith is also signaled by the presence of miracles and angelic visitations, and their lack indicates a lack of Faith sufficient to save (v. 37-38).  Angelic visitations may not be to you personally, however (v. 31, 32).

"none is acceptable before God save the meek and lowly in heart" v. 44

"this love [charity] which he [the Father] hath bestowed upon all those who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ" v. 48



Intentions
It's not a matter of building up points by doing good things to earn an eternal reward.  It's about becoming one who will belong and feel comfortable in your eternal destination.  This means you can't go through the motions.  Your intentions and desires mold you every bit as much as your words and your actions.

"if a man being evil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly, wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift;"

"....if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart...it profiteth him nothing" (v 8, 9).



In the long term you can't split your loyalties
"a man being a servant of the devil cannot follow Christ; and if he follow Christ he cannot be a servant of the devil" (v. 11).


The Two influences
"That which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God, and fighteth against him continually, and inviteth and inticeth to to sin, and to do that which is evil continually" (v. 12).
"Whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him and serve not God, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil" (v.17).

"...that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do Good continually; wherefore everything which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God" (v.13)
"every thing which invited to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ (v. 16)


Judgment
"For behold my brethren, it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil; and the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night.
For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man that he may know good from evil....
And now, my brethren, seeing that you know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge ye shall also be judged.
Wherefore I beseech of you brethren, that ye should search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ." (v. 15 - 18).

And How can we lay hold of every good thing?
1) Faith
Men are fallen, and no good thing could come to them except through Christ through whom all good things come (v. 24).  Men lay hold upon the blessings of Christ through faith.  That faith might be had God has sends angels, speaks by prophets and "did manifest things unto the children of men" through "diverse ways" (v. 22-24). 

Christ atonement has given him the "rights of mercy" towards us (v.27) and he now advocates "the cause of the children of men" (v. 28).  He sends out an invitation to all mankind -
"Repent all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me, and be baptized in my name, and have faith in me, that ye may be saved."

Men began to exercise faith in Christ and began to lay hold of every good thing (v. 25), they cleave unto every good thing (v. 28) and were saved (v. 26) and became the sons of god (v. 26).  To them was made the promise that whatever they asked for (which was good) they would receive (v.26).

This life is a place of answered prayers, of miracles and of angelic visitation.  These help lay the groundwork for men to repent (v. 31) and have faith in Jesus Christ (v. 32) and receive the Holy Ghost.  The power of the Holy Ghost is not withheld from us (v. 36).
2) Hope
Having hope is necessary to gain faith (v. 40)
But the hope that is a sign of our new life is a covenant Hope, the fruit of our Faith (v. 41) - "hope in Him according to the promise" and "through the atonement of Christ" of Life Eternal.
3) Humility
"meek and lowly of heart" (v. 43-44)
4) Charity
As faith seems to be foundational in coming unto Christ, Charity seems to be the keystone.  We "must needs have" it (v. 44).  If not, we "are nothing" (v. 46).

Charity is "the pure love of Christ" (v. 47) and has the following characteristics (v. 45)

• suffereth long
• is kind
• envieth not
• is not puffed up
• seeketh not her own
• is not easily provoked
• thinketh no evil
• rejoiceth not in iniquity
• beareth all things
• believeth all things
• hopeth all things
• endureth all things

Charity has consequences and characteristics that point towards the culmination of the entire process of coming unto Christ.  The terse sentences do not elucidate the timing of Charity's blessings, but they make it clear that Charity is tightly bound with a packet of outcomes that have huge implications both in time and in eternity. 

• It endures forever (all things fail except for it).
• It will be well at the last day with those who possess it.
• It is bestowed on those who are true followers of Jesus Christ.
• Charity helps us become the sons of God
• We will become like Christ
• We gain a hope that we will become purified as Christ is pure.

TG Dreams 32 - 2 Nephi 27

Second Nephi 28 is Nephi's Midrash on Isaiah 27.  Here a dream is first used as a metaphor for the emptiness of human aspirations and ambitions separated from (and even opposed to) God.  Those that "fight against Zion, and that distress her" will find it all to be as an illusion, like a hungry man waking up from a dream of a feast, or a thirsty man waking up from a dream of drinking (v. 3).  Other metaphors of the shock of contact with a true glimpse of their condition are drunkenness (v. 4) and sleep (v. 5).  A drunkenness so strong that one staggers, and a "deep sleep."

But he Book of Mormon itself is prefigured in dream like terms as well - "words of them which have slumbered" (v. 6), "hid from the eyes of the world" (v. 12), "words...as if it were from the dead" (v. 13), and a book that cannot be read.

But in the end, the vivid, violent and powerful struggle of the wicked will prove to be the empty illusion and the seemingly flimsy words from the dust will prove to be trustworthy and clear, enduring, revealing and powerful. 

TG Mortality 30 - 3 Nephi 28

We have found mortality contrasted to immortality already, but here in Third Nephi we find mortality as one end of a spectrum with immortality being on the other.  Somewhere in between them is are two odd states that we Mormons call transfiguration and translation - neither completely mortal nor completely immortal.

Mortality is characterized by pain and sorrow (v. 9), including a sorrow for the suffering of others.  For almost all human beings, passing from Mortality to Immortality involves "tasting of death" and "enduring the pains of death."  It is also a time when the Lord repeatedly (though not always as explicitly as he did with his disciples) asks us "what is it that ye desire"? (v. 1). 

Transfiguration is a condition we know very little about.  It is a temporary condition of change from mortality to "immortality" (v. 15) that allows a mortal to endure certain peak spiritual experiences while in the body, such as being "caught up into heaven" (v. 13), and being able to clearly "behold the things of god" (v. 15), or even (see Moses 1) being in the presence of deity.  That such a condition is not necessarily permanent is inferred from the transfiguration of the Savior (Matthew 17) and of Moses (Moses 1), both of whom later tasted of death.

Translation is a little further along the spectrum.  Nobody ever goes backwards from Translation to regular mortality.  Unlike mortality, translation is free of pain and sorrow except for a sympathetic sorrow for the misery of others suffering under the "sins of the world" (v. 9).  It is still a type of mortality, that will require a change from "mortality to immortality" that will occur "in the twinkling of an eye" at the second coming without having to "taste of death" or, in other words, "endure the pains of death." (v. 7-8).  It is true that those who are translated still "dwell in the flesh" (v. 9). but with enhanced powers of protection (v. 19-22) and the "convincing power of God" (v. 29).  Their condition is similar to that of heavenly angels (v. 30).  They are free from the power and temptations of Satan (v. 39), and "the powers of the earth could not hold them" (v. 39).  Whatever else they still keep of the mortal condition, for them the "probationary state" is over.

Immortality is also free from most of mortality's pain and sorrow, though even at the heights of exaltation we know that God has wept for his spirit children lost in rebellion and for those destroyed in the flood.  Available in immortality to those who go to "the kingdom of my Father" is a "fullness of joy" and a oneness with and likeness to the Father and the Son (v. 10).  To move from Translation to Immortality requires a "greater change" (v. 40) that will occur at the second coming.

In the mean time, translated beings get to have the desire of their hearts (recorded of almost everyone we know of who has achieved this status) to "bring souls of men unto [Christ]" (v. 9).  They also get the opportunity to "behold all the doings of the Father unto the children of men, even until all things shall be fulfilled according to the will of the Father" (v. 7).  Not just witnesses to the events of history, but in on the grand scheme into which those events fit.  Coolness.  Pure coolness.

TG Dreams 31 - 1 Nephi 10:2

Again Nephi blurs the line of Dream and Vision - "it came to pass after my father had made an end of speaking the words of his dream" (v.2), "I Nephi, having heard all the words of my father, concerning the things which he saw in a vision" (v. 17).

Nephi's reaction to his father's dream/vision is also very instructive:

"And it came to pass after I Nephi, having heard all the words of my father, concerning the things which he saw in a vision, and also the things which he spake by the power of the Holy Ghost...I, Nephi, was desirous also that I might see and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek him, as well in times of old as in the time that he should manifest himself unto the children of men.

For he is the same yesterday, today and forever....

For he that diligently seeketh shall find; and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto them, by the power of the Holy Ghost, as well in these times as in times of old, and as well in times of old as in times to come; wherefore the course of the Lord is one eternal round." 

I Nephi 10:17-19

It is interesting to note that the unchanging nature of God and his dealings with men ("from eternity to eternity he is the same") is again conflated with his willingness to share "the hidden mysteries of [his] kingdom," "the wonders of eternity," and "the secrets of [his] will" in the Lord's preface to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon's vision of the eternities recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 76 (see verses 1-10).

TG Mortality 29 - Alma 41

Mortality and its position in the wider framework of eternity was one of Alma the Younger's preoccupations.  He prayed and pondered "many days" to understand them.  In this chapter he lays out  the context of the rules of Justice that govern our present existence and that have powerful implications for our eternal state afterwards

First, our fallen condition.  As long as we are in a "state of nature" or in a "carnal state," we men are "in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity," "without God in the world," having "gone contrary to the nature of God" and "in a state contrary to the nature of happiness" (v. 11).

Second, our opportunity to escape.  We must repent of our sins and follow and encourage our desires for righteousness (v. 6), which brings the power of the atonement into our lives, we are "redeemed of the Lord," "taken out" and "delivered" both from our fallen state in this life and from its eternal consequences in the next (v. 7).  "The way is prepared that whosoever will may walk therein and be saved" (v. 8).

Third - and this is the center of Alma's point in this chapter  - we have been made free to choose between these two conditions, and this choice reveals the deepest wellsprings of our will.  Men repent and their works become good because "the desires of their hearts are good" (v. 3).  On the other hand if they 'desired to do evil all the day long" (v. 5) then  they will not accept the atonement's delivery from their natural state and their works will be evil, "for behold, they are their own judges whether to do good or do evil," and "thus they stand or fall" (v. 7).

Fourth, the person we become in this life is who we are in the next life, and we inherit the consequences of who we become.

4  ....raised to endless happiness to inherit the kingdom of God, or to endless misery to inherit the kingdom of the devil, the one on one hand, the other on the other.

5  The one raised to happiness according to his desires of happiness, or good according to his desires for good; and the other to evil according to his desires of evil; for as he has desired to do evil all the day long even so shall he have his reward of evil when the night cometh.

6  And so it is on the other hand.  If he hath repented of his sins, and desired righteousness until the end of his days, even so shall he be rewarded unto righteousness.

7  ....and thus they stand or fall; for behold, they are their own judges, whether to do good or do evil.

Fifth, the law of justice restores to us in the resurrection what we have made ourselves into by our consistent actions over time - "desired righteousness until the end of his days" (v. 6) or "desired to do evil all the day long" (v. 5).

12  And now behold is the meaning of the word restoration to take a think of a natural state and place it in an unnatural state, or to place it in a state opposite to its nature?

13  O, my son, this is not the case; but the meaning of the word restoration is to bring back again evil for evil, or carnal for carnal, or devilish for devilish-good for that which is good; righteous for that which is righteous: just for that which is just; merciful for that which is merciful.

x

TG Dreams 30 - 1 Nephi 8

Again, the line between dream and vision in the epoch of Daniel is a thin one.  Lehi says, "Behold I have dreamed a dream; or, in other words, I have seen a vision."  And Nephi, when he wants to see what his father saw, has a vision. 

The dream is solid type three, despite the appearance of a guide within the dream.  The images and happenings are symbolic and require an inspired interpreter to understand them.  The personage in Nephi's vision helps him work out the meaning of what his father saw, but Laman and Lemuel attempting to work out the meaning of the dream on their own were pointedly unsuccessful.

We are not given Lehi's understanding of his own dream, but we are given his reaction to it.  He awoke having been comforted about the eternal fate of two of his sons and fearful for the fate of two others. 

Nephi and his brothers approach this dream with a shared interpretive framework.  Individual objects in dreams have discrete meanings in an overall significance.  Nephi was shown the tree his father saw, and then desired to "know the interpretation thereof" (1 Nephi 11:11).  As he was shown more, he came to realize the "meaning of the tree" (11:20).  Similarly, the rod of iron "was the word of God," (11:25), and the waters of the fountain of living water were a "representation of the love of God" (11:25).  Laman and Lemuel likewise asked "what meaneth this thing which our father saw in a dream?  What meaneth the tree which he saw?" (15:21).  Similarly, "what meaneth the rod of iron" and "what meaneth the river of water?" (15:23, 26).  Nephi's responses were either expressions of identitity ("it was") or "it was a representation of" (15:22).

Joseph of Egypt speaks in terms of identity.  "The three branches are three days," "the three baskets are three days" (Genesis 40:12, 18), and "the seven good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years" (Genesis 41:26-27).  Daniel also speaks in terms of identity - "thou art this head of Gold" or likeness - "another third kingdom of brass"- or metaphor - "the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly broken" (Daniel 2:38,39,42).

TG Mortality 28 - Alma 34

Amulek again.  Here he lays out the most basic underlying structure of mortality to Zoramites.

1) Man's unaided situation - Fall and its effects. 
     "all are hardened; yea, all are fallen and are lost and must perish..." (v. 9)

2) The Atonement as God's response to the Fall ("the great plan of the Eternal God" v. 9)
     "...except it be for the atonement" (v. 9).
     "Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people...and he shall atone for the sins of the world" (v. 8).
     "that great and last sacrifice will be the Son of God, yea, infinite and eternal...this being the intent of this last sacrifice, to bring about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice....And thus mercy can satisfy justice, and encircles them in the arms of his safety" (v. 14-16).

3) The conditions by which the atonement is applied.
     "And thus he shall bring salvation to all those who shall believe on his name; this being the intent of this last sacrifice, to bring about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice, and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith unto repentance" (v. 15).
     "...only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption (v. 16).
     "...he [Alma] hath spoken unto you to prepare your minds; yea, and he hath exhorted you unto faith and to patience--Yea, even that you would have so much faith as even to plant the word in your hearts, that ye may try the experiment of his goodness" (v. 3-4).
     "Therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye may begin to call upon his holy anme, that he would have mercy upon you;  Yea, cry unto him for mercy; for he is mighty to save" (v. 17-18).
     "I desire  that ye...contend no more against the Holy Ghost, but that ye receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ" (v. 37-38).

4) Missing the atonement and its consequences.
     "...there must be an atonement mad, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are fallen and are lost, and must perish except it be through the atonement" (v. 9).  
     "...he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice" (v. 16).
     "...harden not your hearts any longer" (v.31).
     "contend no more against the Holy Ghost" (v. 38).
     "For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over you" (v. 35).

5) This life is a time to prepare for eternity by accepting and using the atonement
     "Yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation;" (v. 31).
     "For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors" (v. 32).
     "...Therefore I beseech you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given for us to prepare for eternity, behold if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed" (33).
     "Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God.  Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodes at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world" (v. 34).
     "For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over you" (v. 35).

6) There are immediate results of seeking the atonement now
     "...if you will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you" (v. 31).

7) However, applying the atonement is not a single event, but is a lifelong process
     "come forth and bring fruit unto repentance" (v. 30).
    
     "..this life is the day for men to perform their labors" (v. 32).

     "...behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed" (v. 33).

     "...work out your salvation with fear before God" (v. 37).

7) How to endure/press forward with the atonement
     "Yea, humble yourselves, and continue in prayer unto him.
     Cry unto him when ye are in your fields, yea, over all your flocks.
     Cry unto him in your houses, yea, over all your household, both morning, mid-day, and evening.
     Yea, cry unto him against the power of your enemies.
     Yea, cry unto him against the devil, who is an enemy of all righteousness.
     Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper in them.
     Cry over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase.
     But this is not all; ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your wilderness.
     Yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those who are around you" (v. 19 - 27)

     "after ye have done all these things [exercised faith unto repentance, prayed] if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need...behold, your prayer is in vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites who do deny the faith" (v. 28).

     "I desire  that ye...humble yourselves even to the dust, and worship God, in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; and that ye live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you" (v. 37-38).

     "Yea, and I also exhort you, my brethren, that ye be watchful unto prayer continually, that ye may not be led away by the temptations of the devil, that he may not overpower you, that you may not become his subjects at the last day" (v. 39).

     "I would exhort you to have patience, and that ye bear with all manner of afflictions; that ye do not revile against those who do cast you out...lest ye become sinners like unto them; But that ye have patience and bear with those afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions" (v. 40-41).

   
    

TG Dreams 29 - I Nephi 3

"Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall return to Jerusalem" (v. 2).

Interesting that Nephi's oft quoted determination to follow the commandments of God (v.7) is rooted in the context of a dream given to his father. 

TG Mortality 27 - Alma 12

Alma amplifies Amulek's discourse on mortality with increased detail - he summarized Amulek in verse 12

"Amulek hath spoken plainly concerning death and being raised from this mortality to a state of immortality, and being brought before the bar of God, to be judged according to our works."

Then in response to questions from his audience, he lays out mortal existence in its wider context - carefully balanced between the Fall and the Judgment in history, and between the Fall and the Atonement in choice:

"...all mankind became a lost and fallen people" (v. 22).

"...but there was a plan of redemption laid" (v. 25).

"...men...becoming as gods, knowing good from evil, placing themselves in a state to act, being placed in a state to act according to their wills and pleasures, whether to do evil or to do good" (v. 31).

"...nevertheless there was a space granted unto man in which he might repent; therefore this life became a probationary state; a time to prepare to meet God; a time to prepare for that endless state which has been spoken of by us, which is after the resurrection of the dead" (v. 24).

"But God did call upon men, in the name of his Son...saying: If ye will repent and harden not your hearts, then I will have mercy upon you, through mine Only Begotten Son" (v. 33).

"...he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.  And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction.  Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell" (v. 10-11).

"...but it was appointed unto men that they must die; and after death, they must come to judgment" (v. 27).

"Therefore, whosoever repenteth, and hardeneth not his heart, he shall have claim on mercy through mine Only Begotten Son, unto a remission of his sins; and these shall enter into my rest.  And whosoever will harden his heart and do iniquity, behold, I swear in my wrath that he shall not enter into my rest" (v. 34-5).

"Then if our hearts have been hardened, yea, if we have hardened our hearts against the word, insomuch that it has not been found in us, then will our state be awful, for then we shall be condemned.  For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us" (v. 13-14).

"And now, my brethren...let us repent, and harden not our hearts...but let us enter into the rest of God, which is prepared according to his word" (v. 37).

TG Dreams 28 - I Nephi 2

Here we are not given the dream content, so we do not know which type of dream we are dealing with.  We do know that Lehi felt confident that the dream was a message from the Lord to take his family and flee Jerusalem into "the wilderness" (v.2).  The entire Book of Mormon, all of Nephite and Lamanite history pivot on a dream message.

"And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him" (v.3).  The phrasing my imply a Type 1 dream in which the Lord appears in his own character and delivers a clear and understandable message or command.

TG Mortality 26 - Alma 11:45

Alma's talk to Zeezrom focuses on the outcome of our mortal condition.

His starting point is the atonement - the Messiah, explicitly identified as the "Son of God," and "the beginning and the end, the first and the last" (v. 39), will "come into the world to redeem his people" and "to take upon him the transgressions of those who believe on his name" opening the door for them to salvation and eternal life (v. 40).  They are not saved "in their sins" (v. 34-36), for the cleansing power of the atonement enables them to become clean and ready to live in the presence of  Him with whom "no unclean thing" can dwell (v. 37). 

Those who reject the atonement remain wicked.  The wicked share in the atonement's conquest of physical death, receiving a resurrected body, but even though their bodies are reunited with the spirit "in its perfect form" and "restored to its perfect frame" they stand in it before God with " a bright recollection" of all of their guilt (v. 43, 45). 

TG Dreams 27 - 1 Nephi 1

Lehi is a "visionary man" (1 Nephi 5:2,4).  He (like his contemporaries, Daniel and Nephi) move in world where symbols in dream and trance are full of meaning, message and direction.  Nephi notes that his father's personal record focuses on "many things which he saw in visions and in dreams" (v. 16) as well as on his prophecies and teachings passed on to his children.  The Book of Mormon really starts with Lehi's revelatory experiences - first his concentrated engagement with hearing prophets prophesy (v. 4, 5), then a vision which begins with a pillar of fire in which he "saw and heard much" (v. 6), then a vision seen while lying on his bed in a state of exhaustion (v. 7, 8) whose details we are given. 

TG Dreams - New Testament

From here the topical guide moves on to the Book of Mormon.  What can we make of the fact that other than the experiences of Joseph, the New Testament does not have a wealth of dream material?  Can it be that some people have a gift for receiving messages via dreams and some do not?  That dreams are one channel that the Lord may use to communicate, but that it is not a universal channel? 

TG Mortality 26 - Mosiah 18:13

The Topical Guide next directs us to the phrase "until you are dead as to the mortal body" in verse 13 of Mosiah 18.  The chapter as a whole, in fact, is a picture of Christian life here in mortality, framed as it is by a covenant to "serve [God] until you are dead" with an eye towards "eternal life, through the redemption of Christ."

The chapter begins with Alma the Elder secretly circulating the teachings of Abinidi about "the redemption of the people, which was to be brought to pass through the power, and sufferings, and death of Christ" (v. 2).  Those who "believed on his words" (v. 7) gathered to hear him preach at the Waters of Mormon.  "And he did teach them, and did preach unto them repentance, and redemption, and faith on the Lord" (v.7).  A marvelous spirit had taken hold among those who believed and Alma recognized that they were "desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and [were] willing to bear one another's burdens, that they may be light....willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places, even until death" (v. 8-9). 

Alma invited the people to be baptized in the name of the Lord, "as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you" (v. 10).  This indeed was the "desire of their hearts."

The wording of Alma's baptismal ordinance made the covenant explicit to each person- "I baptize thee...as a testimony that ye have entered into a covenant to serve [God] until ye are dead as to the mortal body; and may the Spirit of the Lord be poured out upon you; and may he grant you eternal life, through the redemption of Christ, whom he has prepared from the foundation of the world" (v.13).

The effects of living a covenant life were remarkable.  Immediately, they "came forth out of the water rejoicing, being filled with the Spirit" (v. 14) and were "filled with the grace of God" (v. 16).  Long term, they took part in the "church of God" or "church of Christ" (v.17) where teachers were provided to "teach them the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God" (v.18) explicitly focused on "repentance and faith on the Lord, who had redeemed his people" (v. 20).

Alma took his group of about "four hundred and fifty souls" (v.35) and taught them that "there should be no contention one with another, but that they should look forward with one eye, having one faith and one baptism, having their hearts knit together in unity and love one towards another" (v.21).  Doctrinally, they united around that "which had been spoken by the mouth of the holy prophets" (v.19).  They set aside one day in the week "to gather themselves together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord their God" (v. 25).  As the bonds of unity began to grow it was natural that they would get together with each other as often they could (v.25). 

Economically, all of them (including the priests/teachers) labored "with their own hands for their own support" (24).  However, they were also taught to "impart of their substance, every one according to that which he had; if he had more abundantly he should impart more abundantly; and of him that had but little, but little should be required; and to him that had not should be given.  And thus they should impart of their substance of their own free will and desires towards God...to every needy, naked soul" (v. 27-8).

The record records that "they did walk uprightly before God, imparting to one another both temporally and spiritually according to their needs and their wants" (v.29).  "And thus they became the children of God" (v. 22).

That's it.  That's how it's done.  Here in a single chapter is described the normal Christian life (lived, interestingly enough, at what is essentially a ward level), the foundation on which that life is based, and the way that the power of the atonement will express itself if an entire congregation takes seriously enough the covenant to serve God "until you are dead as to the mortal body."

TG Dreams 21 - Matthew 27:19

We do not know the content of this dream, but Pontius Pilate's wife is given a powerful warning.  The dream left her with no doubt that the prisoner in question was a "just man" and that her husband should have nothing to do with the travesty of justice that was being attempted. 

The tragedy of Pilate's situation is that the next verse starts with the word "but"....

TG Mortality 25 - 2 Nephi 2 (X)

I want to make it clear that it’s certainly not true that disobedience is better than a blind, mechanical, obedience to the law.  Even without the rebirth the atonement brings, an outward, legalistic conformity to the letter of the law of chastity can prevent the heartache of sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancies out of wedlock, separation from the blessings of church fellowship, deep feelings of guilt, the loss of the spirit and (if you are being unfaithful to a spouse) the betrayal of trust and possibly the destruction of family ties.  It’s just that this kind of obedience is not enough if what you aim for is Lehi’s goal of “liberty and eternal life.” 

It’s also not true that the atonement releases us from obedience.  Again we can look to Elder Uchtdorf’s talk for clarification—

“Sisters, it is very important that we attend our Sunday meetings, but…”

“Yes, visiting teachers need to be faithful in making their monthly visits, all without missing…”

The wording parallels that of the Savior himself—

“Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy and faith:  these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone” (Matthew 23:23).

But in obeying, focusing on the law brings about far different results than focusing on the atonement and the development of that mentoring relationship with the Savior that is discipleship.  A focus on the law can bring about pride, self-righteousness and a harsh judgment of others as shown in Jesus’s parable of the Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18:9-14).  The mechanical, legalistic attitude it brings often blinds us to the “weightier matters of the law” and we find ourselves all bound up in tithes of mint and cummin.  We can find ourselves complying with the letter (sitting in a pew at church, 100 percent visiting teaching) and still completely miss the vision of the spirit of the law.  We go through the outward motions but our hearts our unchanged.  We wear what Elder Morrison of the Seventy once called a “mask of carnal compliance” instead of “receiving His image in our countenance.”  We miss out on the fruit of the tree of life, the love of God.  And ultimately, without the gift of charity, our obedience can’t save us.  The weight of our own unaided efforts can lead to feeling burdened and even to a despair of ever being able to fundamentally change or fully measure up (as in the experience of Colin Douglas).  As Elder Uchtdorf warned, in our carnal state we can even find ourselves questioning inspired standards and counsel.  “Do we really need to obey all of God’s commandments?”

We come back again at last to Lehi’s warnings in Second Nephi 2, but perhaps we finally understand them now – “by the law men are cut off…they perish from that which is good and become miserable...”

A passage from the Tao Te Ching comes to mind, which speaks of

“…propriety and blind obedience,

          which is only the husk

               of commitment and faithfulness

                     and is, in fact, the beginning of confusion.

          For even when propriety’s opinions

               have blossomed from the Way

                    they are held in ignorance.

Thus the wise man

     chooses the kernel

          and not the husk,

     chooses the fruit

          and not the flower.

                                                            (Tao Te Ching, 38)

Lehi would say that the wise man chooses “liberty and eternal life through the great Mediator of all men.”  He chooses the atonement.  He looks to the great Mediator, and hearkens unto his great commandments; and is faithful unto his words, and chooses eternal life according to the will of the Holy Spirit.

TG Dreams 20 - Matthew 2:22

Joseph's last recorded revelation is again a dream.  The specifics are not given, just "warned of God in a dream."  The effect of obeying his guidance is twofold.  First (as with the other dreams in Matthew's infancy narrative), the Messiah and his family are safeguarded.  The dream is after all a "warning."  Second, the Savior arrives in the place he was meant to grow up in, Nazareth of Galilee - a fact that Matthew believes fulfills a centuries old prophecy.

TG Mortality 25 - 2 Nephi 2 (IX)

President Uchtdorf illustrates the “two ways” of approaching obedience with a couple of concrete examples.  The first is hypothetical:

“….those who see attendance at Church meetings as a personal way to increase their love of God, find peace, uplift others, seek the Spirit, and renew their commitment to follow Jesus Christ will find a far richer experience than those who simply put in their time sitting in a pew. Sisters, it is very important that we attend our Sunday meetings, but I’m fairly certain our Heavenly Father is even more concerned about our faith and repentance than about attendance statistics.”

The second one is an actual account of two sisters doing their visiting teaching:

 

“A single mother of two small children recently came down with chicken pox. Of course, it wasn’t long before her children got sick as well. The task of caring for herself and her little ones alone was almost too much for the young mother. And, as a result, the normally spotless house became cluttered and messy. Dirty dishes piled up in the sink, and laundry piled up everywhere else.”

“While she was struggling with crying children—and wanting to cry herself—a knock came at the door. It was her visiting teachers. They could see the young mother’s distress. They could see her house, her kitchen. They could hear the cries of the children.”

“Now, if these sisters had been concerned only with completing their assigned monthly visits, they might have handed the mother a plate of cookies, mentioned that they had missed her at Relief Society last week, and said something like, “Let us know if there is anything we can do!” Then they would have cheerfully been on their way, thankful that they had 100 percent for another month.”

“Fortunately, these sisters were true disciples of Christ. They noticed their sister’s needs and put their many talents and their experience to work. They cleared up the chaos, brought light and clarity into the home, and called a friend to bring over some much-needed groceries. When they at last finished their work and said their good-byes, they left that young mother in tears—tears of gratitude and love.”

“From that moment on, the young mother’s opinion of visiting teaching changed. “I know,” she said, “that I am not just a check mark on someone else’s to-do list.””

“Yes, visiting teachers need to be faithful in making their monthly visits, all without missing the most important why behind this commandment: to love God and fellowmen.”

“When we treat God’s commandments and our part in building His kingdom like something to check off on a to-do list, we miss the heart of discipleship. We miss the growth that comes from joyfully living the commandments of our Father in Heaven.”

In both of these examples President Uchtdorf presents what we might characterize as
“two ways” of approaching obedience.  The first way is dry, impersonal and legalistic, focused on outward observances—“put in their time sitting in pews;” “attendance statistics;” “only concerned with completing their assigned monthly visits;” “100 percent for another month;” “something to check off on a to-do list.”  When Lehi speaks of “the law” which cannot save us, might he be referring to this very attitude?

In contrast, the words President Uchtdorf uses to describe the second way are saturated with the language of the atonement, the first four principles of the gospel by which we come unto Christ—“Our Heavenly father is even more concerned about our faith and repentence;” “commitment to follow Jesus Christ;” “true disciples of Jesus Christ;” and “seek the spirit.”  His words are also words of relationships, both with each other, as we reach out in love and compassion, and with God, as we strive to keep alive that connection to the vine that the atonement has created—“ to increase their love of God, find peace, uplift others, seek the Spirit, and renew their commitment to follow Jesus Christ.”

TG Dreams 19 - Matthew 2:13-14 and 19-20

Joseph, who seem to have a gift of dreams, again has two type 1 dreams.  In both of them the angel of the Lord appears in his own person, and in his own voice speaks clearly and unequivocally the message that the young Messiah's guardian needs to receive. 

I find it striking that Joseph is  in all three instances so far reported as obeying as soon as "he arose."  He simply woke up and obeyed.

TG Mortality 25 - 2 Nephi 2 (VIII)

So I got a little theoretical last email.  Let’s get back to experience.  Lehi’s contrast between “the law” and “the atonement” is not one we commonly highlight in 21^st century Mormonism.  We tend to read Lehi’s (and Paul’s) negative references to the law simply as commentary on the Law of Moses.  I’m not certain they can be so easily dismissed.

 

However, it is true that one of the ways Mormonism can be distinguished from the Protestant denominations that surround us is our emphasis on keeping commandments.  The Mormon conception of life is inextricably bound up with the concepts of obedience, commandments, law and discipline.  We frequently quote D&C 130:20-21 to each other.  President Uchtdorf begins the core of his talk at the last Women’s Conference with some phrases from D&C 132—

 

““Except ye abide my law ye cannot attain to this glory.

“For strait is the gate, and narrow the way that leadeth unto the exaltation. …“

… Receive ye, therefore, my law.”

 

          Given these facts, is there any way in which Lehi’s distinction between the law and the atonement makes itself felt in our spiritual life today?  Does a normal faithful Mormon experience anything that Lehi’s words about the law (in verse 5 and verse 10) might illuminate?  Let’s begin by taking a closer look at President Uchtdorf’s talk.

 

          It is true that to attain Celestial Glory we must learn to “abide” God’s law.  But President Uchtdorf makes a careful distinction between two very different approaches to keeping commandments — two different ways of seeing them, if you will.

 

          The first approach is characterized by an attitude of alienation from God:

“…we imagine that God has all of His blessings locked in a huge cloud up in heaven, refusing to give them to us unless we comply with some strict, paternalistic requirements He has set up.”

            Obedience is not easy or pleasant in such a condition:

“….for some of us, obedience to God’s commandments doesn’t always feel very joyful. Let’s face it: there may be some that seem harder or less appealing—commandments that we approach with the enthusiasm of a child sitting before a plate of healthy but hated vegetables. We grit our teeth and force ourselves to comply so that we can move on to more desirable activities.”

          Our attitude towards the law is very impersonal.  They are “good ideas,” “life hacks,” “motivational quotes.”  We may even find ourselves questioning–“Do we really need to obey all of God’s commandments?”

            Obedience in such a condition of alienation often feels like just going through the motions, “we treat God’s commandments and our part in building His kingdom like something to check off on a to-do list.”

            The second approach to obedience is described as “living the gospel joyfully, with all our heart, might, mind and soul.”  In this second condition we “embrace” and “cherish” the commandments, because our attitude towards God is not one of alienation.  We see that he is “constantly raining blessings upon us.”  And that it is only “our fear, doubt, and sin that, like an umbrella, block these blessings from reaching us.  His commandments are the loving instructions and the divine help for us to close the umbrella so we can receive the shower of heavenly blessings.”

So how do we move from the first condition to the second? 

“The Creator of the seas, sands, and endless stars is reaching out to you this very day! He is offering the grand recipe for happiness, peace, and eternal life!”

“To qualify for these glorious blessings, you must humble yourself, exercise faith, take upon you the name of Christ, seek Him in word and deed, and resolutely ‘stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places.’”

By choosing to trust God, to “truly believe,” to “believe in your hearts” in God’s wisdom and love, by choosing to “walk the path of discipleship” you move from the realm of abstract keeping of laws and principles into a personal relationship with the Son of God based upon the atonement.  And this relationship, this personal discipleship changes everything—

“Walking in the path of discipleship does not need to be a bitter experience. It “is sweet above all that is sweet.” It is not a burden that weighs us down. Discipleship lifts our spirits and lightens our hearts. It inspires us with faith, hope, and charity. It fills our spirits with light in times of darkness, and serenity during times of sorrow.”

“It gives us divine power and lasting joy.”

TG Dreams 18 - Matthew 2:12

We do not know the contents of the dream here, nor to whom it came.  We do know that the Wise Men followed its guidance, sparing themselves some trouble and helping to protect the child Jesus.  I wonder if (once again) the dream came to Joseph.

TG Mortality 25 - 2 Nephi 2 (VII)

Isn't it interesting that just before he begins his thought experiment about the necessity of opposition, Lehi describes the opposition that ACTUALLY exists for us.  It is indeed his first use of the word opposition-

"Wherefore the ends of the law which the Holy One hath given, unto the inflicting of the punishment which is affixed, which punishment that is affixed is in opposition to that of the happiness which is affixed, to answer the ends of the atonement" (v. 10).

Happiness is not presented here as the result of ever more intensive efforts to perfect ourselves by keeping the law.  The law can only deliver punishment and misery and perishing from good, those are its "ends."  Lehi takes great pains to make sure that his son understands that happiness and goodness only answer the "ends of the atonement."

And how do we get the ends of the atonement?  How is choosing "the good part" (v.30) different than just trying with all of our own might to answer the ends of the law?  Lehi actually gives a complete and detailed answer, but we may find it hard to recognize at first, because when we talk about the elements of his answer we tend to focus on externals, while Lehi is much more concerned with their content.  Lehi tells us that we take advantage of the atonement through Faith, Repentance, Baptism and the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

No.  Really.  It's all there.

Those who are saved are those who believe in the Holy Messiah (v. 9).  We choose eternal life by looking to the great Mediator (v. 28).  In other places the Book of Mormon urges us to put our faith in Christ, to trust Him and to rely upon Him, but believing and looking to Him are clear enough to indicate what needs to be done. 

Lehi also tells us that in the days of our probation the Lord has sent out a commandment to all of the children of men that they must repent (v. 21), for they (and we) are lost.  That repentance is not an attempt to modify a few behaviors and set better goals for self improvement.  Those activities could never answer the ends of the law (v. 5-7).  Repentance is a whole hearted turning towards Christ with a "broken heart and a contrite spirit" (v. 7).  In several places the Book of Mormon speaks of it as repenting of all of our sins.  We aren't so much preoccupied with one specific thing that needs to be fixed, we have (like the people of King Benjamin) viewed ourselves in our own carnal state and are conscious of our separation from God.  We offer up the sacrifice of a broken heart and contrite spirit to Christ in the hope that he will have mercy and apply his atoning blood  that the appalling separation might be ended (3 Nephi 9:20, Mosiah 4:2).

We might have especial trouble seeing baptism because we are so preoccupied with the physical ordinance.  Lehi, like all other Book of Mormon writers, is much more concerned with the content of the covenants that we make.  Those who make this covenant promise to hearken to Christ's commandments and to be faithful to His words (v. 28).  They commit to spend their days in the service of their God (v. 3).  Notice that this is not a promise to deliver some of kind of perfection we could never follow through on.  What it IS is a decision to surrender to God.  We are no longer proudly holding the reigns in the driver's seat of our life.  We have relinquished the "will of the flesh" with its inevitable proneness to Satanic manipulation (v. 29).  We are going to order our lives now according to the will of the Holy Spirit (v. 28) who brings us the words of our new Master, Jesus Christ (2 Nephi 32:3).  In King Benjamin's words we are going to "yield" to the spirit's enticings.  That is going to involve us learning to become as a child, submissive, meek and humble, willing to submit to the Lords will.  Elder Maxwell would have called this decision embarking upon the path of discipleship.  President Benson would have called it being "captained by Christ" or "putting God first."  A decision he warned us that if we made it seriously would cause everything else in our lives to either drop out or take its proper place.

And the result?  Our decision to come unto Christ, to look, hearken to and obey the Great Mediator brings the Baptism of Fire and of the Holy Ghost.  Lehi describes it as finding liberty and eternal life according to the will of the Holy Spirit (v. 27-8).  he also describes it as being redeemed, justified and saved (v. 3, 5, 9).  He reminds us that those who receive the Holy Ghost  KNOW the greatness and the glory of God (v. 2, 4).  That is because their sins have been forgiven and their hearts changed (see Mosiah 4:11).  The "words of Christ" the Holy Ghost brings enables them to enjoy the same intimacy with the Savior as those who walked as his disciples down the dusty roads of Palestine, because the "spirit is the same, yesterday, today and forever" (v. 4).

Lehi does not imply that this is done in a single event.  It fills all of the "days of our probation."  The decision involves a lifetime of letting the will of the Holy Spirit work in us to enable us to grow stronger in our ability and desire to hearken and be faithful to our Master.  It is only at the end that one could speak confidently of having "chosen the good part" (v. 30).  Though Jacob has come to Christ and beheld His glory in his youth, he is still in need of being exhorted to "look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit."  It is a theme sounded frequently by Book of Mormon prophets.  Alma makes it clear that it is NOT enough to have once experienced a change of heart and felt to sing the song of redeeming love.   We must ask ourselves if we can feel so now?  As Nephi said, we must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, enduring to the end  with unshaken faith in Him, relying wholy upon the merits of Him who is mighty to save.

TG Dreams 18 - Matthew 1:20-21

Joseph's dream is classic Type I.  The Lord appears in person, speaks in his own voice, and delivers a clear and comprehensible message.  And what a message - The identity of the Messiah in Mary's womb, the announcement of the coming of the atonement, and the direction that Joseph should not fear to take Mary to wife.

TG Mortality 25 - 2 Nephi 2 (VI)

Now we come to what is perhaps the oddest twist of all. The law is real; The law is indispensable; but the law is not the point; Not really.

 

"And the law is given unto men. And by the law no flesh is justified; or by the law men are cut off. Yea, by the temporal law they were cut off; and also, by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good, and become miserable forever" (v. 5).

 

For all the trouble we have taken to set up the law with its rewards and consequences, the choice placed before us is not really whether or not we will keep the law. We can't. Nobody (except for a God) could. We can try, but we will fall short. We are "flesh" (v. 5). We have a fallen nature, a "will of the flesh" (v. 29) in which there are evil tendencies that "giveth the devil power to captivate." Despite the best efforts of the best of us, we are, all of us, "lost" (v. 21), "cut off" (v. 5) or separated from God. Left to the law alone, we would "perish from that which is good, and become miserable for ever" (v. 5). Even being given the elements of will (the ability to act), the law, and opposition is not sufficient to give us true freedom. One more thing was necessary if God was going to create not just a temporary arena for choice, but a freedom with the potential to END with us having joy and doing good.

 

"And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because they are redeemed from the fall, they have become free forever...." (v. 26).

 

Our choice is not so much whether we will live the law, but how we will handle our failure. The law can't save, whether it be the Law of Moses (a "temporal" law of outward observances) or even a higher "spiritual" law (v. 5). If keeping the temporal law was impossible, the spiritual law is even further out of reach of our unaided choice.

 

"Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth. Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered" (v. 6-7).

 

It bears repeating. Our choice is not so much whether we will live the law, but how we will handle our failure. The tension of our freedom becomes not JUST between good and evil, but ALSO between self and God, between stubborn independence and willful submission. The only way we can lay hold of the good we can see and desire is by means of a Mediator, whose "merits, mercy and grace" (v. 8) enable him to "make intercession" (v. 9) and bring about our redemption (v. 6, 26).

 

And that redemption is NOT laid hold upon by trying to be as good as we can. The laws that govern it are a little different. We access it when we "believe" (v. 9) in the Messiah, by "looking" (v. 28) to him (keep in mind the book of Mormon uses the terms "rely upon" and "trust in" interchangeably with "believing in" Christ). We access it when we repent (v. 21), coming before God with a "broken heart and a contrite spirit" (v. 7). All of a sudden it isn't about our relationship to an inanimate, unresponsive standard of right and wrong. Instead it is about our relationship to a person--a perfect person who embodies the law ("holiness and truth" v. 10), but because he is alive and loving, i.e. a person, also embodies the possibility of mercy and grace. We don't choose liberty and eternal life by choosing to obey the law. Instead we have to choose a very specific kind of relationship with the "great Mediator of all men."

 

The difference is shown in the pronouns. It's not just THE law we striving to obey any more, but HIS commandments we are hearkening too, HIS words we are faithful to. It's Him we look to, Him we believe in, Him to whom we offer a broken heart and a contrite spirit. The effort isn't any less, perhaps, but it's in the context of a relationship now, a relationship with someone who is full of mercy and grace and that makes all the difference. Lehi isn't just encouraging his sons to be good. He is encouraging them to come unto Christ.

 

Again, I want to avoid theorizing overly much about HOW all of this works. I'm much more interested in this particular series of meditations with the experiential than the theoretical. So I'm going to close this letter with an experience I've always found suggestive. It's from an article by Mormon Poet Colin B. Douglas in an article of his from the April 1989 Ensign with the marvelous title of "What I’ve Learned About Grace Since Coming Down from the Sycamore Tree."

 

            "About ten years ago, I realized that I needed to learn something. My spiritual life wasn’t very satisfying; I wasn’t very happy; and I didn’t know why."

"I knew a great deal about the “laws of happiness,” and I was trying - earnestly -to apply them. After all, wasn’t that the way to happiness and, ultimately, exaltation? Obey the law, get the blessing. Simple, straightforward justice."

"Of course, I knew that I hadn’t obeyed the law perfectly. But I had somehow got the understanding that if I set goals for myself, continually strove for perfection, and maintained a positive attitude, I could finally purify myself. I had mistakenly believed what I had heard somewhere - that what the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve. After I had achieved this self-perfection, the atonement of Christ would then compensate for all my past shortcomings - or so I thought."

"But I began to feel that this “obey the law, get the blessing” approach was rather crass; that it was almost on the level of “put in the coin, get the purchase”; that there must be more to a spiritual life than that. Furthermore, I began to realize that this method was demanding more coins than I had in my spiritual pockets. I could usually (though not always) find the attend-your-meetings coin and the Word of Wisdom and tithing coins. But I was frequently unable to find all the denominations of love-thy-neighbor-as-thyself coins. I became anxious and discouraged about never having enough coins."

 

 "I also realized there was something cold about my spiritual life. I knew Latter-day Saints, some of them fellow ward members, in whom love and peace seemed to flow like a spring of water. I heard others speak of the Lord as if he were an intimate, cherished friend. But I was not one of them. What was I missing?"

"I came to find out. I am sorry to say that I did not at first find it in the scriptures, because, as I came to understand, I was not reading the scriptures - particularly the Book of Mormon - as they had been written, but was imposing on them certain incorrect preconceptions. (Of course, after I had learned what to look for, I found it there in abundance.)"

"One of my first and most important clues came from a non-Latter-day Saint, C. S. Lewis: “If I am a field that contains nothing but grass seed, I cannot produce wheat. Cutting the grass may keep it short: but I shall still produce grass and no wheat. If I want to produce wheat, the change must go deeper than the surface. I must be ploughed up and resown.” (Mere Christianity, New York: Macmillan, 1971, p. 168.) I saw that I needed plowing and re-sowing, and it was quite clear to me who was the Ploughman and the Sower."

TG Dreams 17 - Zechariah 10:2

Again an Old Testament Prophet inveighs against false revelation.  Here some of the very techniques used to seek an answer are improper.  Methods of divination here include the use of idolatrous images (תְּרָפִים teraphim), and fortune tellers (קֹּוסְמִים kosmim).  The Kosmim are never presented in a positive light in the bible.  Here they have visions and dreams, but they "have seen a lie" and "told false dreams."  The use of teraphim to cast a fortune has only "spoken vanity" (אָוֶן aven, nothingness, falsehood - a word often used as a synonym for idols themselves).

As in the other Old Testament prophetic passages decrying false dreams, the underlying cause is a desire to receive a pre-determined outcome.  They seek to comfort, not to understand truth.  They have an axe to grind, not a desire to truly know what God wants to say.  The implication is that these are professionals, divining for cash, and they KNOW what their customers want to hear.  That comfort is הֶבֶל hevel, a vanity, something as insubstantial and fleeting as a puff of air.

In our own search for divine answers, we have to be wary of the answer we want to receive.

TG Mortality 25 - 2 Nephi 2 (V)

Lehi’s digression, In addition to its other purposes, tells us a little more about the moral universe we find ourselves in.  That moral world is intelligible by only by means of contrasts or opposites.  For man to be free he must be “as God, knowing good and evil” (v. 18).  A very large part of God’s “eternal purposes in the end of man” is the intent that we have joy and do good (v. 23).  This would simply be impossible if we were to “know no misery” and to “know no sin.”  To bring about the purposes of God in relation to human freedom “it must needs be that there was an opposition” (v.15).

Lehi points out that God built such an opposition into mortality from the very beginning.  He did so both by providing a “forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life” (v. 15) and by allowing a devil to have access to us (v. 17) – a being whose intent and influence is diametrically opposed to the divine purposes for human existence.  Where God wants us to do good, the adversary seeks “that which is evil before God” (v. 17).  Where God’s purpose is that we “might have joy” (v. 25), Satan “had become miserable forever” and “sought also the misery of all mankind” (v. 17).

As Lehi succinctly puts it:  “Wherefore the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself.  Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other” (v. 16). 

Our freedom to choose was no election ballot from a totalitarian state where there is only one option offered and an opportunity to just say “yea” or “nay.”  For God’s type of freedom to exist there had to be viable options (at least for the short term) and persuasive advocates for those options.  God structured mortality such that “men are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil” (v. 5).  Such instruction includes tasting the bitter and the sweet, experiencing both the joy and the blessings of obedience as well as the misery and punishments of sin.  Of course we experience neither in their fullness, for both the full happiness of the saints and the full “punishment of the law” are reserved until the “great and last day” that we might in be more “free to act, and not be acted upon” (v. 26).  In this way, our existence becomes a “state of probation” (v. 21) where the conditions allow us the necessary range of choice to “prove” ourselves (the root meaning of probation).

In such a universe Freedom and Consciousness are very concrete realities.  So are Good and Evil and their consequences.  We experience Good and Evil in relation to a standard that Lehi calls the law—“And men are instructed sufficiently that they may know good from evil.  And the law is given unto men.”

In keeping with my stated determination to stay away from building Rube Goldberg machines, I’m not going to speculate about the nature of the moral law we find within ourselves.  I’m just going to look at from the perspective of mortality.  How do we experience the law?

I am going to use the example of Vaclav Havel, imprisoned in communist Czechoslovakia, asking himself if his principled stand for freedom had any meaning.  I quote Havel here because his description of his relationship with an “ultimate” or “higher horizon” against which all of his actions are measured and judged uses vocabulary that echoes Lehi’s—

“What in fact is man responsible to?  What does he relate to?  What is the final horizon of his actions, the absolute vanishing point of everything he does, the undeceivable ‘memory of being,’ the conscience of the world and the final ‘court of appeal”?  What is the decisive standard of measurement, the background or the field of each of his existential experiences?  And likewise, what is the most important witness or the secret sharer in his daily conversations with himself, the thing that—regardless of what situation he is thrown into—he incessantly inquires after, depends upon and toward which his actions are directed, the thing that in its omniscience and its incorruptibility, both haunts him and saves him, the only thing he can trust in and strive for?”

“Ever since childhood, I have felt that I would not be myself—a human being—if I did not live in a permanent and manifold tension with this “horizon” of mine, the source of meaning and hope—and ever since my youth, I’ve never been certain whether this is an ‘experience of God’ or not.  Whatever it is, I’m certainly not a proper Christian and Catholic….

“Something…that is typical of my god: he is a master of waiting, in doing so he frequently unnerves me.  It is as though he set up various possibilities around me and then waited silently to see what I would do.  If I fail, he punishes me, and of course he uses me as the agent of that punishment (pangs of conscience, for example); if I don’t fail, he rewards me (through my own relief and joy)—and frequently, he leaves me in uncertainty.  (By the way, when my conscience bothers me, why does it bother me?  And when I rejoice, why do I rejoice?  Is it not again because of him?)”