Job's plight is an interesting counter example to the "gospel of prosperity" that sees health, wealth and success as a sign of God's favor. As Satan implies in chapter one, if for "fearing God and eschewing evil" (1:8) we are automatically rewarded with a hedge about us and our house, if all the work of our hands is invariably blest, and our riches automatically increase (1:10), then this life's purpose as a test is defeated. We will not reveal our true character or desires. In such a circumstance our obedience to God has all the moral weight of the salivation of Pavlov's dog. We have simply been conditioned, like any rat in a maze, to take the path that leads us to the cheese.
The book of Job is a reminder that in this life our righteous efforts and desires guarantee neither our family, nor our wealth, nor our health any permanent invulnerability. The righteous as well as the wicked are subject to job loss, sudden infant death syndrome and cancer. What we do have is an assurance, which we can only lay hold of by faith, that none of this is allowed to come to pass without our Heavenly Father's permission. He knows the afflictions he allows to occur and he knows why. In time or eternity, so will we.
In the meantime, Satan's words remind us that the blows that strike against us at our most vulnerable points offer us an opportunity to reveal the nature of our attachment to God and to righteousness. Are we just opportunistic servants who are loyal as long as we are rewarded? Or are we someone who loves the good and loves God whether that love seems to be rewarded or not? Satan's hope was that Job was one who could be turned away by adversity - one who under the weight of affliction would curse God to his face (1:11, 2:5).
Some of the hardest trials we can endure are those that afflict the body. After Job successfully endures family and economic losses, temptation strikes even more intimately -
4 And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.
5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Saturday, February 27, 2016
WISDOM 19 - 2 Nephi 21:2
Footnote "c" from 1 Kings 3:11 links the phrase "understanding to discern judgment" to Isaiah's prophecy of the Messiah (2 Nephi 21 and Isaiah 11).
2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;
3 And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears.
In mortality, even the wisdom of the Son of God has its foundation in his humility and reverence, his "fear of the Lord." In not seeking his own will, but the will of him who sent him (John 6:38), he is given access to wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and a sharpness of insight ("of quick understanding") that is safely grounded.
How much more important is it for us to be willing to set aside our own preconceptions, experience and prejudices - the sight of our eyes and the hearing of our ears - in order to be filled with the spirit of wisdom and understanding.
2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;
3 And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears.
In mortality, even the wisdom of the Son of God has its foundation in his humility and reverence, his "fear of the Lord." In not seeking his own will, but the will of him who sent him (John 6:38), he is given access to wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and a sharpness of insight ("of quick understanding") that is safely grounded.
How much more important is it for us to be willing to set aside our own preconceptions, experience and prejudices - the sight of our eyes and the hearing of our ears - in order to be filled with the spirit of wisdom and understanding.
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
TG - Mortality 3 / Deuteronomy 4:40
40 Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for ever.
The link to mortality here is the phrase "prolong thy days." The context is the Deuteronomic recapitulation of Israel's covenant relationship with God. I find I'm not all that interested in scriptural methods of prolonging the lifespan - and, in reality, the individual lifespan was never the point here anyway. Given the fuller context of the Deuteronomic concern with the nation as a whole, we are actually talking about the abiding of the nation upon the land (see verse 26).
What is interesting, however, is the phrase that "it may go well with thee." There is throughout the entire Old Testament a subtext of a promise of temporal blessings (by which I do not necessarily mean either wealth or honor or power) during the mortal lives of those who made and kept covenants with God. Solomon was promised that if he respected his covenant as a member of Israel he would "prosper" in all that he did (1 Kings 2:3). Psalms 1:1-3 promises the same to anyone who would so live - "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." Concrete examples of this were found in the lives of the Patriarchs - especially Joseph of Egypt, of whom it was said that "the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper."
Again, the key here is not so much "success" from a worldly perspective. Joseph's career included long periods of time as a slave and a prisoner. The key is found in two things. First, the presence of the Lord in your life - even as a slave and a prisoner "the Lord was with him." Second, even amongst trials and seeming setbacks and triumphs of enemies, the knowledge that there is an overarching pattern and meaning to your life. God is doing something here and it will all rebound to your own good and - even more significantly in the long term - to your being a blessing to others. As Joseph told his brothers at his final voicing of his forgiveness, "ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good." Interesting that when he tells them the good that the Lord meant he is not referring to his own status or wealth but to the opportunity given him to "save much people alive" (Genesis 50:20).
The key to a successful mortality is to so live that God is with you. This involves the creation and maintenance of a covenant relationship with him. To begin focusing in again on the chapter we began with, the important thing is to remember that covenant. The whole point of Deuteronomy is Moses's plea - "Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons" (Deuteronomy 4:9).
Important to note that we are not talking about some kind of legalistic perfection here. Backsliding and forgetting are perhaps inevitable for all of us. But when we come to ourselves again and remember, we will find that the Lord has not forgotten or forsaken us. We have but to seek him again with all our heart and soul, turn to him and be obedient to his voice (Deuteronomy 4:29-31) and the covenant is restored anew. It is the relationship that God is concerned with. It all begins and ends with relationship.
The link to mortality here is the phrase "prolong thy days." The context is the Deuteronomic recapitulation of Israel's covenant relationship with God. I find I'm not all that interested in scriptural methods of prolonging the lifespan - and, in reality, the individual lifespan was never the point here anyway. Given the fuller context of the Deuteronomic concern with the nation as a whole, we are actually talking about the abiding of the nation upon the land (see verse 26).
What is interesting, however, is the phrase that "it may go well with thee." There is throughout the entire Old Testament a subtext of a promise of temporal blessings (by which I do not necessarily mean either wealth or honor or power) during the mortal lives of those who made and kept covenants with God. Solomon was promised that if he respected his covenant as a member of Israel he would "prosper" in all that he did (1 Kings 2:3). Psalms 1:1-3 promises the same to anyone who would so live - "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." Concrete examples of this were found in the lives of the Patriarchs - especially Joseph of Egypt, of whom it was said that "the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper."
Again, the key here is not so much "success" from a worldly perspective. Joseph's career included long periods of time as a slave and a prisoner. The key is found in two things. First, the presence of the Lord in your life - even as a slave and a prisoner "the Lord was with him." Second, even amongst trials and seeming setbacks and triumphs of enemies, the knowledge that there is an overarching pattern and meaning to your life. God is doing something here and it will all rebound to your own good and - even more significantly in the long term - to your being a blessing to others. As Joseph told his brothers at his final voicing of his forgiveness, "ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good." Interesting that when he tells them the good that the Lord meant he is not referring to his own status or wealth but to the opportunity given him to "save much people alive" (Genesis 50:20).
The key to a successful mortality is to so live that God is with you. This involves the creation and maintenance of a covenant relationship with him. To begin focusing in again on the chapter we began with, the important thing is to remember that covenant. The whole point of Deuteronomy is Moses's plea - "Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons" (Deuteronomy 4:9).
Important to note that we are not talking about some kind of legalistic perfection here. Backsliding and forgetting are perhaps inevitable for all of us. But when we come to ourselves again and remember, we will find that the Lord has not forgotten or forsaken us. We have but to seek him again with all our heart and soul, turn to him and be obedient to his voice (Deuteronomy 4:29-31) and the covenant is restored anew. It is the relationship that God is concerned with. It all begins and ends with relationship.
WISDOM 18 - D&C 98:23
One other item on the Lord's list of Solomon's potential desires that might have decoyed him away from seeking wisdom gets a footnote in the LDS Scriptures - seeking "the life of thine enemies" (1 Kings 3:11). The footnote leads us to D&C 98, a difficult scripture for all of us, for we are called upon to "renounce war and proclaim peace" (v. 98:16). The renouncement is not the nonviolence of a Gandhi for whom war is always wrong. But, even so, the standard of restraint and patience and peacemaking is difficult to picture being implemented by any Modern leader of state, whether liberal or conservative.
Three times we are to patiently endure the assaults of an enemy who smites us. We are to "bear it patiently," "revile not," "neither seek revenge" (v. 23). Instead we are to "lift up a standard of peace" three times to the enemies who attack (v. 34). Then, if the enemy would not accept the offer of peace, we are in a position that God might command us to go against them in battle (v. 33, 36), after clearly warning the enemy that a fourth attack would indeed bring a God blessed reprisal (v. 28).
Accepting the Lord's standard carries with it some solemn promises. Our patience under the first attack will be "rewarded;" under the second, rewarded a hundredfold and under the third, doubled again four-fold (v. 23, 25, 26). In addition the Lord himself would deliver "thine enemy into thine hands" (v. 29). Further the Lord himself would avenge himself upon them for generations.
Even then, when the unrepentant enemy is delivered into our hands, the virtue of mercy would bring blessings upon ourselves and our children that would last for generations. And if our enemy or their children perform a genuine repentance we are to forgive them, and Lord's curse for their violence will be lifted from them.
I wonder how this pattern might be applied to dealings with our "enemies" in other situation than physical violence?
Three times we are to patiently endure the assaults of an enemy who smites us. We are to "bear it patiently," "revile not," "neither seek revenge" (v. 23). Instead we are to "lift up a standard of peace" three times to the enemies who attack (v. 34). Then, if the enemy would not accept the offer of peace, we are in a position that God might command us to go against them in battle (v. 33, 36), after clearly warning the enemy that a fourth attack would indeed bring a God blessed reprisal (v. 28).
Accepting the Lord's standard carries with it some solemn promises. Our patience under the first attack will be "rewarded;" under the second, rewarded a hundredfold and under the third, doubled again four-fold (v. 23, 25, 26). In addition the Lord himself would deliver "thine enemy into thine hands" (v. 29). Further the Lord himself would avenge himself upon them for generations.
Even then, when the unrepentant enemy is delivered into our hands, the virtue of mercy would bring blessings upon ourselves and our children that would last for generations. And if our enemy or their children perform a genuine repentance we are to forgive them, and Lord's curse for their violence will be lifted from them.
I wonder how this pattern might be applied to dealings with our "enemies" in other situation than physical violence?
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
TG - Mortality 2 / Leviticus 17: 11
Leviticus 17: 11
11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
The prohibition against eating blood (verses 12 - 14) seems to me to be grounded in a double sanctity. First, blood is a symbol of life itself, which is sacred, and whose sacredness - even in a world where we survive by eating the flesh (animal or vegetable) of other living things - must not be forgotten. Second, blood is inextricably bound up with the sacred concept of the atonement - the sacrifice of an embodied God to bring about the potential for a healing of the rift between God and man. "It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."
11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
The prohibition against eating blood (verses 12 - 14) seems to me to be grounded in a double sanctity. First, blood is a symbol of life itself, which is sacred, and whose sacredness - even in a world where we survive by eating the flesh (animal or vegetable) of other living things - must not be forgotten. Second, blood is inextricably bound up with the sacred concept of the atonement - the sacrifice of an embodied God to bring about the potential for a healing of the rift between God and man. "It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."
Monday, February 22, 2016
WISDOM 17 - Alma 39:14; D&C 6:6-7; 11:7
The rest of the references from footnote "a" of 1 Kings 3:11 are explicit in their advice "Seek not for riches."
Alma giving final instructions to his son, Corianton -
14 Seek not after riches nor the vain things of this world; for behold, you cannot carry them with you.
The Lord to Oliver Cowdery through Joseph Smith (and then in identical wording a month later to Hyrum Smith) -
7 Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.
Interesting that again the opposition here (as it was with Solomon) is between seeking Wealth or Wisdom. Seeking riches (and any of the other "vain things of this world") seems to have a curtailing power on our ability to focus on richer and more meaningful goals: wisdom, eternal life, the "means of doing much good in this generation" (D&C 6:8; 11:8). Again it is our desire that is our key here - "even as you desire of me so it shall be (done) unto you; and, if you desire, you shall be the means of doing much good in this generation."
Our pursuit of wisdom will force us to confront what it is we really want. By its very nature, the search for higher and better things forces us to weed out the lesser desires in our hearts.
Alma giving final instructions to his son, Corianton -
14 Seek not after riches nor the vain things of this world; for behold, you cannot carry them with you.
The Lord to Oliver Cowdery through Joseph Smith (and then in identical wording a month later to Hyrum Smith) -
7 Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.
Interesting that again the opposition here (as it was with Solomon) is between seeking Wealth or Wisdom. Seeking riches (and any of the other "vain things of this world") seems to have a curtailing power on our ability to focus on richer and more meaningful goals: wisdom, eternal life, the "means of doing much good in this generation" (D&C 6:8; 11:8). Again it is our desire that is our key here - "even as you desire of me so it shall be (done) unto you; and, if you desire, you shall be the means of doing much good in this generation."
Our pursuit of wisdom will force us to confront what it is we really want. By its very nature, the search for higher and better things forces us to weed out the lesser desires in our hearts.
Saturday, February 20, 2016
TG - Mortaility 1
The Topical Guide for Mortality begins by pointing us to the first chapters of Genesis. As we often do here, we are going to start by pulling back and looking at the wider context, the whole of the first three chapters of Genesis. We are looking broadly for the elements that distinguish our condition in this life. What does Genesis, the book of beginnings say about the nature of our existence here? What are the characteristics of our present estate?
First, it takes place on an earth that is beautiful and varied. It is full of an incredible abundance of life, and is so placed that its heavens are packed with objects that are intriguingly visible and orderly . It is a place that is "very good" (Genesis 1:31).
Second, we are embodied. That body is in the image of God. (Genesis 1:26). We are inescapably tied to sensory inputs, rhythms of day and night, to cycles of breath and food and reproduction. Our embodiment necessarily relates us closely to the earth that sustains us and from whose materials we are made. We are tied up in a net of relationships to both the living and non-living elements of our planet.
Third, our existence is gendered. We are male and female. (Genesis 1:27-8). The implication is that the divine "us" to whom God proposes our fashioning are also gendered. There is more than a hint that gender has transcendent meaning. With gender comes a related drive to reproduce.
Fourth, it is natural for us to make lasting inter-gender bonds, driven in part by our sexuality (Genesis 2:18, 24). This pairing is involved in the creation of the family as an economic and social unit (Genesis 3:16-20).
Fifth, we are mortal. Our bodies are vulnerably dependent on breath and food, and susceptible to a multitude of dangers, illnesses and age. In the end, Death is inevitable (Genesis 2:7; Genesis 3:17-19, 24).
Sixth, we are uniquely able to consciously understand and manipulate the environment in which we are placed, including the life that fills it. Whether we use that power wisely or poorly, we have dominion over our earth (Genesis 1:26, 28). Awareness, comprehension, curiosity and intelligence drive us to observe, to understand, to catalogue and to name (Genesis 2:19-20, 23) and to make use what we find around us. Even the heavens we could not reach were put to use for signs and seasons.
Seventh, we experience what we like to call "free will." That freedom which is dramatically implicit in Genesis's account of the Fall is made explicit in Moses 3:17 - "thou mayest choose for thyself."
Eighth, we exist in a moral universe. We have a "knowledge of good and evil" (Genesis 3:5). Despite our best efforts to annihilate morality, our eyes have been opened and we cannot ever again fully close them to the concepts of right and wrong. Choices have moral consequences we cannot escape.
Ninth, evil is a real and often personal presence around and within us. We are tempted, deceived and oppressed by it. There is a warfare between us and the serpent (Genesis 3:1-15).
Tenth, though we have an inborn sense of a spiritual, divine reality, there is a division between us and the divine. It is as if we have fallen from a primordial state of intimate contact with God - we find ourselves "cast out" and longing for a return to a condition where we might walk and talk again in the garden with God "in the cool of the day" (Genesis 3:1-8), but we do not necessarily feel comfortable when we do come in contact with Him. To use Genesis's metaphor we have a sense of nakedness and desire to hide.
Eleventh, there is a persistent hint of a redeeming power reaching out to us in this fallen, separated state. Though the text is by no means explicit here, Christians have traditionally interpreted the reference to the crushing of the serpent's head as a prophecy of Christ's coming and atonement.
It' no accident that Genesis fascinates even the unbelievers. In a brief but rich narrative, the author of Genesis lays out as powerfully as it has ever been done what the human experience feels like.
.
First, it takes place on an earth that is beautiful and varied. It is full of an incredible abundance of life, and is so placed that its heavens are packed with objects that are intriguingly visible and orderly . It is a place that is "very good" (Genesis 1:31).
Second, we are embodied. That body is in the image of God. (Genesis 1:26). We are inescapably tied to sensory inputs, rhythms of day and night, to cycles of breath and food and reproduction. Our embodiment necessarily relates us closely to the earth that sustains us and from whose materials we are made. We are tied up in a net of relationships to both the living and non-living elements of our planet.
Third, our existence is gendered. We are male and female. (Genesis 1:27-8). The implication is that the divine "us" to whom God proposes our fashioning are also gendered. There is more than a hint that gender has transcendent meaning. With gender comes a related drive to reproduce.
Fourth, it is natural for us to make lasting inter-gender bonds, driven in part by our sexuality (Genesis 2:18, 24). This pairing is involved in the creation of the family as an economic and social unit (Genesis 3:16-20).
Fifth, we are mortal. Our bodies are vulnerably dependent on breath and food, and susceptible to a multitude of dangers, illnesses and age. In the end, Death is inevitable (Genesis 2:7; Genesis 3:17-19, 24).
Sixth, we are uniquely able to consciously understand and manipulate the environment in which we are placed, including the life that fills it. Whether we use that power wisely or poorly, we have dominion over our earth (Genesis 1:26, 28). Awareness, comprehension, curiosity and intelligence drive us to observe, to understand, to catalogue and to name (Genesis 2:19-20, 23) and to make use what we find around us. Even the heavens we could not reach were put to use for signs and seasons.
Seventh, we experience what we like to call "free will." That freedom which is dramatically implicit in Genesis's account of the Fall is made explicit in Moses 3:17 - "thou mayest choose for thyself."
Eighth, we exist in a moral universe. We have a "knowledge of good and evil" (Genesis 3:5). Despite our best efforts to annihilate morality, our eyes have been opened and we cannot ever again fully close them to the concepts of right and wrong. Choices have moral consequences we cannot escape.
Ninth, evil is a real and often personal presence around and within us. We are tempted, deceived and oppressed by it. There is a warfare between us and the serpent (Genesis 3:1-15).
Tenth, though we have an inborn sense of a spiritual, divine reality, there is a division between us and the divine. It is as if we have fallen from a primordial state of intimate contact with God - we find ourselves "cast out" and longing for a return to a condition where we might walk and talk again in the garden with God "in the cool of the day" (Genesis 3:1-8), but we do not necessarily feel comfortable when we do come in contact with Him. To use Genesis's metaphor we have a sense of nakedness and desire to hide.
Eleventh, there is a persistent hint of a redeeming power reaching out to us in this fallen, separated state. Though the text is by no means explicit here, Christians have traditionally interpreted the reference to the crushing of the serpent's head as a prophecy of Christ's coming and atonement.
It' no accident that Genesis fascinates even the unbelievers. In a brief but rich narrative, the author of Genesis lays out as powerfully as it has ever been done what the human experience feels like.
.
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