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."