The Land of Inheritance:
READ 2 Nephi 1:5-7, 10, 20
Who did the Lord covenant the land of America to as their promised land of inheritance forever?
· The Remnant of Lehi
· All those who should be led out of other countries BY THE HAND OF THE LORD
What are the conditions inherent with living freely in America?
· It is a land of liberty to all those Christ has brought here…
· IF they serve the God of this land; they will never be brought down into captivity and they will prosper in the land
· But if they reject the Messiah, the land will be cursed for their sakes and they will be cut off from God’s presence
Awake and Arise
READ 2 Nephi 1:13-15, 21-23
What must we awake from?
· A “deep sleep” or unconsciousness as to the grave nature of our current situation
· We are pacified, lulled to sleep and safe (we think) in the knowledge of our carnal security (see 2 Nephi 28:21)
· The “slumber” of hell and the second spiritual death (see Jacob 3:11)
· Being bound in darkness (see Alma 5:6-7)
What must we awake to?
· An understanding of our awful situation – our need for Christ
· We must “come to ourselves” like the Prodigal Son, having hit rock bottom (see Luke 15:17)
· Awaking from a deep sleep is always an unwanted and unpleasant thing. It is more so when one wakes to a reality they would rather forget
What does it mean to arise?
· To ascend or move to a higher place; to emerge from below or to leave a place or state of rest; to begin or spring up (from Webster’s 1828 Dictionary)
· To connect with the heavenly source that will cure what is wrong with you, as we are not “self-curing”
· To be redeemed – which means to behold Christ’s glory and be encircled about in His arms and love, forever (see Ether 3:13-14)
· It is to do the difficult things – to be a “man or woman of holiness” with your eye, heart and mind single to God’s glory – filled with the Holy Spirit, which is the mind of God – and in so doing, to reject the pleasant but damning distractions and temptations that Satan and mortality itself places in your way
Redemption Through Christ
READ 2 Nephi 2:2
What does consecrate mean?
· “To make or declare something sacred” (from Webster’s 1828 Dictionary)
What does it mean for afflictions to be made sacred and how does this benefit us?
· The refiners fire is the process through which gold is refined and made precious
· It is the same with afflictions and humans – sacrifice is the requirement of salvation and the road to exaltation
READ 2 Nephi 2:3-4
Why is Jacob redeemed?
· Because of the righteousness of Christ
· Not through Jacob’s own obedience (see also TPJS 71:1-2)
How does Lehi KNOW that Jacob is redeemed?
· Jacob has beheld Christ – entered into His presence, been filled with His glory, and seen visions of His ministry, atonement, death, and resurrection (see also 2 Nephi 11:3) – this is redemption from spiritual death (which is separation from God)
· Lehi says “is” redeemed, not “will be” redeemed because Jacob has already had the promise of redemption given to Him by Christ Himself - His calling and election has been made sure by Christ
How can this happen to someone in their youth?
· It can happen whenever Christ wants it to happen (see D&C 88:68)
· Joseph Smith stated that a person must be tried and it is possible that the wilderness of the Arabian Peninsula and the issues with his older brothers could have provided those opportunities to sacrifice all earthly things and be tried at all hazards – his “afflictions” were made sacred or consecrated to his gain, which means they enabled his redemption (see LoF 6:7; TPJS 171:2)
· Others who saw God and were redeemed in their youth include: Joseph Smith, Nephi, Mormon, Samuel, Mary the mother of Christ
What is the relationship between Jacob being ministered to by Christ in the flesh and the “way of salvation”?
· Being redeemed or saved requires entering into Christ’s presence (see Ether 3:13)
· The “way of salvation” IS to enter back into Christ’s presence in the flesh – one must exercise faith sufficient to rend the veil and receive The Testimony of Jesus in the flesh or you are not redeemed, by definition (see D&C 76:74 and Ether 3:13)
What does it mean that Jacob beheld Christ in the same way as those who witnessed His mortal ministry because the Spirit is the same yesterday, today and forever?
· Because the “way of salvation” has and will ALWAYS require Christ to minister to the individual in the flesh
· This is the Fullness of the Gospel of Christ: to covenant with Him in faith, abide in that covenant through trial, and eventually be redeemed from spiritual death by entering again into God’s presence and being sealed up to eternal life!
· This language is very similar to what Moroni recorded about how Mahonri the Brother of Jared saw Christ, although Christ was yet to be born into mortality (see Ether 3:17-18) – we will discuss this again in the blog when we get to Ether
How is salvation free?
· It is a gift freely offered to us by Christ – no strings attached; it is freely available to all, if they will listen to the Holy Spirit (or Light of Christ or Spirit of Christ) and the angels that are attempting to guide them
· It is a gift we cannot earn but we must accept freely (i.e. without strings attached to our acceptance)
· Through His atonement, Christ saves all mankind from the effects of the Fall of Man without any work on our part
· We do not have to suffer the just consequences of our sinful lives unless we do not accept the gift (see D&C 19:17-18)
· When the magnitude of the gift is realized – both its cost to Christ and the desperate need of the gift on the part of the receiver - the heart of the receiver breaks and they offer their whole souls back to Christ in gratitude for His free gift to them in a chiasm of love and gift giving – with each gift costing all the gift giver has to give
The Law and the Mediator
READ 2 Nephi 2:5-10
How are men instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil?
· The Spirit of Christ is given to every man to know good from evil (see Moroni 7:18)
What Law is given unto men?
· Not the Law of Moses – that was a lesser law of carnal commandments given to the Children of Israel after they had lost the High Priesthood; it was fulfilled in Christ during His mortal ministry; and the Nephites lived it but also practiced the fullness of the gospel
· The Law referenced here is the Spiritual or Eternal Law of the Universe – the Laws God keeps or conforms to so that He continues to be God (see Alma 42:22-28; Mormon 9:19); the behaviors and attributes that all saved beings must precisely demonstrate to be exalted (see LoF 7:9)
What does it mean to be justified?
· To be pronounced or decreed innocent
· It has a court-room connotation
· Implied is that the pronouncement of innocence is “just” or fair
How are men cut off from that which is good by the Law – both the temporal and spiritual law?
· Only one is “good” and that is God (see Matthew 19:17); so to be “cut off from that which is good” is another way of saying “cut off from the presence of God”
· Sin is contrary to the nature of God (see Alma 41:11)
· God is a god of life, light, glory, spirit, truth, intelligence and love – He has a fullness of these attributes
· To be saved is to be precisely as God is and nothing else (see LoF 7:9)
· If God were to sin or not be precisely as He is, He would cease to be God (see LoF 7:15-16)
· Temporally, we are cut off from God through physical death, which we deserve as a result of our sins because physical death is the “wage” or just and deserved outcome of sin (see Romans 6:23) – we will not live the eternal law
· Spiritually, we are cut off or separated from God (which is spiritual death) because we cannot abide His presence in our sins; and again deserve spiritual death as the “wage” for our sins (see Alma 5:42 and Mormon 9:3-5)
· Being cut off from “that which is good” also means to be cut off from the possibility of us being “good” like God is or in other words, us becoming a god ourselves (see Moses 1:39; Matthew 5:48 vs. 3 Nephi 12:48 – Christ becomes perfect or “good” only after attaining to the resurrection Himself)
Why was Christ able to enact the Atonement and what does this imply?
· Wherefore (because) He is full of grace and truth, He is able to redeem us through the Atonement (see also John 1:14 and Moses 1:6)
· Although He was not yet “perfect” as His Father was perfect (see Matthew 5:48 vs 3 Nephi 12:48)
· Grace and truth = the power/glory/light/intelligence/Spirit of God; Christ had gained enough grace and truth to be able to save us (see D&C 93:11-14)
· Implication is that we are not full of grace and truth to the degree Christ is – which means we are cut off, cannot redeem ourselves or others, and require a Savior who is full of grace and truth to sacrifice on our behalf
· But if we are to become precisely like Him and be saved, we must follow Him in obtaining grace for grace until we become filled with grace and truth and are also called to be Sons of God
Why does the Law require the sacrifice of one who is full of grace and truth?
· An infinite and eternal sacrifice must be made – in others words, a Son of God or one who has attained to a fullness of grace and truth (see Alma 34:14)
· Only one who is infinite and eternal has the capability of making this sacrifice; and the sacrifice itself requires one who is full of grace and truth – such that submitting to death (the wages of sin) is unfair to that Son of God – it violates the Law for such a one to suffer the sacrifice, but that is what is needed for the one to be able to save the others (who have not violated the Law – in other words, the others deserve the wages of sin (deaths) they are getting
Why are the ends of the Law answered only for those who have a broken heart and contrite spirit?
· Because Christ decreed that these were the terms
Can those who are obedient to the commandments and participate in the ordinances be saved even if they do not have a broken heart?
· No
· We can never be obedient enough in this life to comply with the Law anyway
· While the ordinances are authorized invitations to experience the “real thing”, they are not the real thing – it is not enough to participate in a ritual – we must experience the “real thing” which is only gained by offering the required sacrifice
Why does Lehi connect resurrection to redemption?
· A Savior must attain to the resurrection themselves (be unjustly put to death for the sins of the people – which implies living a perfect, sinless life) in order to unlock the “gates of death and hell” and save all those depending upon them
Can “flesh” dwell in the presence of God without being utterly wasted?
· Yes
· But only through Christ’s mediation or intercession
· One must be “clothed” with a “wedding garment” or glory (see Matthew 22:1-14; Moses 1:1-15)
· Either that or the “flesh” we’re talking about is not like the flesh we currently abide in; like Christ after His resurrection, His “flesh” has properties (like entering a locked room without opening the door) that ours don’t have
What does it mean to rely only on the merits of Christ and the mercy of Christ and the grace of Christ – why are all three needed?
· These three are not synonyms for the same thing
· Merits of Christ = His ability to do what is required (live a sinless life and accomplish the atonement, crucifixion and resurrection)
· Mercy of Christ = His willingness to not require us to get what we deserve (i.e. eternal damnation and death as a just “wage” for our sins)
· Grace of Christ = His ability to bless us with light, Spirit, intelligence – sanctifying us, even though we do not deserve such blessings
· All three are needed to deliver a “recipe of salvation”
What does “first fruits unto God” mean and why is it Christ?
· First fruit = the first fruit or grain to ripen
· Christ was the first man to receive a fullness of light/power/truth/spirit on Earth and He received it BECAUSE He sacrificed Himself for us so that He could intercede on our behalf – remember He was not “perfect” like God until after He had attained unto the resurrection (see 3 Nephi 12:48), which required successfully suffering the atonement and playing His mediating role to save us
· Christ is the first fruit because (“inasmuch as”) He intercedes for all the children of men – otherwise He would have been the only fruit
What can you say about the blessings and punishment associated with the Law?
· They are equal – they are in “opposition” in that they are absolutely opposite (exaltation vs damnation) and balanced (in their magnitude)
Who gave us the Law and what does that mean?
· The Holy One or God gave us the Law
· “Giving us the Law” could mean authoring or inventing the Law
· Or it could mean presenting, communicating or explaining the Law
· If God stopped abiding by the Law, would He cease to be God? The latter answer seems to make the most sense in this context – the Law is something God abides by perfectly
Opposition and Agency
READ 2 Nephi 2:11-16
What is opposition?
· Difference or contrariety or contrast
· An opposing power
Why must there be an opposition in all things?
· To provide options for choices
· To enable agency
· To differentiate between two things – otherwise there would be just the one thing (i.e. if there was no darkness, there would only be light but we wouldn’t think of it as we do now as different from darkness, it would just “be”)
Is all opposition evil?
· No, some things are “in contrast to” or “different”
· But opposition to God is by definition evil as He is the embodiment of good, truth and light
What would happen without opposition and agency?
· There would be no creation – not just on earth but anywhere
· A soul or spirit is not living unless it can act and not be acted upon
· Everything would be “as dead” – alive (as we are co-existent with God and cannot be “made” – or unmade?) but not functioning as a sentient entity (see TPJS 396:2-4)
Why would there have been no purpose in the creation of a world without opposition?
· It would not provide a test – which, by nature, enables progress to be made and understanding to be gained through experience outside the presence of God
· So there would have been no ability to progress God’s work and glory, which is the immortality and eternal life of man (Moses 1:39)
Why would there have been no purpose in the creation of an entity that could not act?
· He/she would not be a living soul (see D&C 93:30)
· They could not progress and become like God
· They are, in effect, dead or not able to fill the measure of their creation (see Moses 1:39)
Why would there be no sin without Law?
· Sin is breaking or not following the Law
· Sin is defined by the Law – whatever the Law is not or whatever is in opposition to the Law is sin
If there would be no sin if there was no Law, then why can’t we just get rid of the Law?
· God decrees or communicates the Law to us, but He did not invent it
· The Law is in play, with its associated consequences, whether we know about it or choose to believe in it or abide by it or not
· God is God because He accepted the Law and abides by it or lives it perfectly
· The Law is not arbitrary; sin is not sin just because God arbitrarily decreed some things sinful because He doesn’t like them; they are “sinful” because they break or are contrary to, eternal law
· So we can’t just wish away sin; this is a main reason why the sacrifice of the atonement had to be made; eternal law has consequences for abiding by it and for breaking it – it is completely just; so if we break it, a punishment must be meted out and suffered – there must be balanced consequences; Christ volunteered to suffer our punishment, as if we had never deserved it, if we will come unto Him (see Alma 34:8-16; Alma 42:13-23; D&C 88:22, 36-40)
Why would there be no righteousness without sin?
· Righteousness is following the Law
· Righteousness is the opposite of sin
Why would there be no happiness without righteousness?
· Righteousness or being perfectly aligned with the Law gives inherent happiness
· The nature of God is happiness (see Alma 41:11)
Why would there be no God if there was not righteousness, happiness, punishment and misery?
· God has glory because He is a just and holy being, and if He was lacking in one attribute or perfection which He has, He could never enjoy the glory that He has, for it requires Him to be precisely what He is in order to enjoy it (see LoF 7:15)
· To be precisely like God is righteousness and glory
· To be anything else is misery (or at least not a fullness of happiness)
· The punishment is doled out by ourselves to ourselves when we realize what we might have had if we had accepted the invitation and gift (see Mormon 9:3-5 and TPJS 401:1)
Are we things to act or be acted upon?
· We have agency, so we act
· Bodies and emotions act upon us, as do others during the use of their agency
· But all truth is independent in that sphere in which God has placed it, to act for itself, as all intelligence also; otherwise there is no existence (D&C 93:30) – so our spirits and intelligence is to act, not be acted upon – we are “self-elect”
What does the fact that there is a God mean for the “if, then” statements in verse 13?
· Since there is a God, there is a Law, sin, righteousness, happiness, punishment, and misery
Since the fact that the existence of God is the lynchpin of Lehi’s logical argument, how does he know that God really exists?
· He has seen Him
· At least 3 times in vision and dream
Was the Forbidden Fruit evil?
· No
· It was forbidden to be eaten without the effect of death entering the world
· It was forbidden to be eaten at that time – during the day of “rest” or the Sabbath day or the seventh day of creation…
· But perhaps would not have been forbidden after the Sabbath had been observed? Satan was “giving the fruit to them” like what he had seen happen on “other worlds” but he was surprised and angered by God’s punishment, suggesting that the fruit was usually given to man to introduce death in the correct “season” – like on the “first day of the week”. Eating it out of season when forbidden to do so was a transgression, causing Adam and Eve to be cast out of the Terrestrial Eden to the Telestial lone and dreary world – perhaps the other worlds that Satan has seen had been Terrestrial earth experiences - an altogether more civilized mortal probation! Remember that when Lucifer is asked what he’s doing in the Garden, he says he’s been doing that which has been done in other worlds – giving the fruit of knowledge to those living on the earth, but when he is condemned for doing that “same thing”, he gets very angry! Although Lucifer didn’t comprehend the mind of God, he surely understood that when the fruit was given to people on other worlds, they’d not been cursed for it, implying that they’d been given the fruit by God in “season”. Lucifer is cursed because HE gave it to them, pretending to be God or His true messenger, and had done so “out of season” on the Sabbath to get them to Fall into a telestial sphere instead of the Terrestrial one they might have lived in otherwise. Or perhaps they were to descend to a Telestial sphere for testing but with God’s timing and command – not Satan’s?
· It was bitter but not evil
· It was “opposition” fruit to the fruit of the tree of life – “in contrast to or completely different from”; it was fruit that introduced death into the world
· Knowledge of good and evil brings spiritual maturity through experience and it introduces the very real possibility of sin or knowledge of evil through doing evil
· But it never says it was evil fruit
How did God “give unto man that he should act for himself”?
· With Heavenly Mother, they jointly conceived of the individual, using eternal matter or light/intelligence – ensuring that neither one can fully control what the new spirit child will do as it is not the sole creation of one God; when the intelligence accepts the right of self-determination and makes a choice freely, it begins to exist as an independent entity – the opportunity to exercise agency and act for himself
· To have a choice to make, there must be options to choose from – options in opposition to each other with equally enticing possibilities
· On earth, the opposition began with the two Trees in the Garden of Eden; it was taken to the next level by Satan who enticed Eve to partake of the fruit when it was forbidden to do so and fall from their Terrestrial state to a Telestial one, introducing a whole new level of opposition
The Fall of Man and the Telestial Earthly Probation
READ 2 Nephi 2:17-18
What does it mean that Satan was an “angel of God”?
· He had ascended “high up” because of his past obedience and faith, gaining light
· As a result of this, he was in authority in heaven (see D&C 76:25-27)
What are the implications of Satan’s fall?
· If one such as him can fall, any of us can
· It may be possible to fall either on an Earth or in heaven
What did Satan seek that was “evil before God”?
· He went contrary to the Law – which is to sin
· To curtail the agency of man – either by force/compulsion or by eliminating one or more of the elements that enable agency (opposition, laws, knowledge of good and evil, the power to choose)
· To force compliance in the bringing to pass of the immortality and eternal life of man (see D&C 121:37-38)
· Ultimately, he wanted to dethrone God and take His power, glory and place (see 2 Nephi 24:13, Moses 4:1-4, Abraham 3:28)
What is a defining attribute of a god?
· Knowing good from evil
How does one know good from evil?
· By seeing both “opposites” side by side
· By being tempted or enticed by both
· By experiencing both – either by doing them as we do, or through a proxy sacrifice like Christ
READ Moses 4:28
What is the devil’s lie?
· That mankind will not die when they partake of the forbidden fruit
· The account in Moses is God speaking – He acknowledges that partaking of the fruit has enabled the man to know good and evil, like the Gods
· Satan’s plan seems to be that as soon as the forbidden fruit has been eaten, to then quickly get Adam to partake of the fruit of the Tree of Life, so that he won’t die - causing God to be the liar and then ceasing to be God!
What is Satan’s objective on Earth?
· To inflict as much pain and misery on as many people as he can
· To get people to share his misery – which he earned through his disobedience to Eternal Law
· To damn as many mortals as will heed him – which will cause both them and God to be pained (see Moses 1:39)
· But ultimately, he is still trying to defeat God and take His place, as his plan in the Garden of Eden shows (by trying to make God a liar by manipulating Adam’s agency through his lies – which would cause Him to cease to be God. Consider that God has made Himself vulnerable to Satan’s attacks by honoring our agency!); he seems to be “down” but is not “out” by his own reckoning, at least.
READ 2 Nephi 2:19-23
Why were Adam and Eve driven out of the Garden?
· So that they would not partake of the fruit of the Tree of Life and live forever in their sins – causing God to be a liar
· To till the now Telestial Earth for food instead of helping themselves in the Terrestrial Garden of Eden
· Because they could no longer abide the glory of a Terrestrial kingdom
· Because they no longer warranted the rewards of a Terrestrial kingdom
Did Adam and Eve fulfill the measure of their creation in the Telestial kingdom?
· Yes – they brought forth the family of man
· Yes - they were born of the Spirit (see Moses 5:4-11)
· Yes – ultimately they were sealed up to eternal life (see D&C 107:53-55)
Did Adam in fact die when he partook of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil?
· Yes, but his days were “prolonged” so that he could repent
· But he still died within one “day” as measured by God (1000 years), as God warned him (see Genesis 2:17, Moses 3:17, Abraham 5:13, Abraham 3:4), so God had not lied to Him.
What is the purpose of mortality?
· A probationary period to test us – will we seek out God, repent of our wickedness or disobedience, align ourselves with Him through keeping His commandments, and regain His presence again in the flesh?
How was mankind all lost through the transgression of Adam?
· All are separated from God and cannot regain His presence in their current condition…
· All are fallen and are lost (see 1 Nephi 10:6)
· The natural man is an enemy to God (see Mosiah 3:19)
· The effects of the transgression and fall of Adam are transmitted to each child through conception and the mortal body they receive at birth – including both an eventual mortal death and a propensity for, and susceptibility to sin; however, the Lord forgave Adam for his transgression (see Moses 6:53-57)
What does a knowledge of good and evil enable?
· Choice – mankind lose their “innocence” by seeing the two opposing choices – good and evil – side by side and having to choose – their eyes are opened and they “see”
· The possibility of choosing incorrectly and sinning – consequences are real on earth, not just conceptual
· The ability to progress through perfect obedience in the face of choice (and enticement by evil) and affliction OR through repentance and covenant with a God who comes to save and atone
· The ability to have children and to be as the Gods (and to learn some of the lessons required to be a God)
What is the connection between having children and knowing joy, misery, and doing good – and being “as the Gods”?
· Creating life enables one to experience a level of love that one could not otherwise experience
· That love then makes one vulnerable to experiencing a level of pain and hurt on the one hand, or joy on the other, that could not be experienced, or even conceived of, otherwise
· It enables, and actually requires, a level of sacrifice that cannot be otherwise experienced – this is “good” – it is the saving work of God, to be a “savior on Mount Zion”
Does death require a transgression against God to have taken place so that man must fall?
· Death did not exist in the world before the fall – “they would have remained forever and had no end”
· But those living in the Terrestrial world during the 1000-year Millennium will still die as to their mortal body (see D&C 101:26-31; D&C 43:31-32); so perhaps not?
What would have happened if Adam and Eve had never partaken of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge?
· All things which were created must have remained the same state in which they were after they were created
· They would have remained forever and had no end
Would this have fulfilled the purposes of a mortal probation for man?
· No
· Mankind needed to transition from the Garden state
· Mankind needed an opportunity to experience mortality and die
· This is something that has been done “on other worlds” via partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
Did they have to transgress to partake of the fruit of the Tree?
· No
· As mankind needed to transition from the Garden, God would have given them the fruit of the tree “in season” – after the day of rest or Sabbath was observed and the time to “go to work” had begun again
· Satan was pretending to be God – the “serpent” – in similitude of the “serpent” that Moses raised up on the rod for the children of Israel to look to and be healed; he was pretending to be Christ when he convinced Eve and Adam to partake of the fruit
Would they have fallen if they had partaken of the fruit of the Tree in season, at the command of God?
· They would have become mortal but not fallen and telestial
· They would have become like those who will live during the Millennium – where millions will live in such a world (see D&C 76:24)
· The resulting fall of mankind differentiates this world from others (see Moses 7:36); only on a world like this would mankind kill their God (see 2 Nephi 10:3); however, the fact that Christ saw His Father also perform an atoning sacrifice implies that this is not the first time that a dark Telestial world has been in existence
Should we curse Adam and Eve for landing us in this predicament?
· No
· In fact, we greeted the opportunity to come here with shouts of joy (Job 38:4-7)
· Because of the required opposition in all things (2 Nephi 2:11), we must first descend if we are to ascend (see Moses 1:18-20; JSH 1:15-17); to see and know the Father and the Son and their Kingdom (see D&C 76:20-21, 50-58) we must also see and know the angel cast out for rebellion and outer darkness (D&C 76:25-26, 44-48)
· To comprehend all things, we must experience all things – light and darkness (see TPSJ 156:3)
· There is opportunity to grow in light more quickly here as the trial is more sore; but there is also risk as we are in jeopardy every hour (see D&C 130:18-21; 1 Corinthians 15:30)
Agency and the Two Ways
READ 2 Nephi 2:24-29
What “things” does God “know”?
· All things are before His face (see D&C 38:2; Moses 1:6; 2 Nephi 9:20)
· He is a God of truth; and truth is knowledge of “things” as they really were, are and will be (see D&C 93:24)
· If “things” are all his creations – both things to act and be acted upon (see v14), then He knows us all completely and intimately (see 2 Nephi 27:27; Alma 18:32;
· To “know” is to have experienced good and evil and to have chosen between them (see v18)
What is the connection between Adam’s fall to a Telestial Kingdom and God’s objective for man, that they might have joy?
· Man can only “be” like God (become an “I am”) as a result of the test and trials experienced in a Telestial probation – the level of faith needed to become like God can only be obtained in a world where the ultimate sacrifices are able to be asked of man (losing everything - up to and including death) – the risk of complete failure must be real and the level of sacrifice must be extreme (and for Christ, eternal); this is enabled by the effects of the fall on mankind – this level of sin, cruelty and evil is only found on a Telestial sphere.
· It seems that this also applies to Christ’s role and opportunity here; He would not have been able to have atoned and attained to the resurrection – becoming perfect like the Father in the process – without a fallen Telestial kingdom to live in and redeem
· And a fullness of joy is only found in becoming precisely as God is – for us and for Christ
Why, 600 years before Christ’s mortal ministry, does Lehi say “they are redeemed” instead of they “will be redeemed”?
· Christ’s atonement and redemption is from “before the foundation of the world” and takes place in the “fullness of time” or in other words, it does not take place within our concept of time on this earth
· Christ’s atonement is active throughout all time – extending back to Adam and forward to the last person to live in this universe during this eternity
Why does Lehi equate being free through the redemption of Christ, knowing good from evil, and being able to act for yourself?
· These are all gifts given to us by Christ through His creation and atoning sacrifice
· Being free to act for yourself requires having options or opposites to choose between – good and evil
· We learn the difference between good and evil through exercising our freedom to act for ourselves – it is all about the experience – and it must be had outside the presence of God, but that requires a redemption to be able to reenter His presence when the experience is over (and hopefully glory/light/intelligence/Spirit/truth have been gained through the wise application of our agency)
In verse 27 Lehi continues his original topic about the Messiah from verse 10; why did he just spend the last 16 verses talking about opposition, agency, and the fall of man?
· These topics set up the critical need for Christ’s atoning mission
· He has now established that choosing Christ is completely up to us
What does it mean that mankind has “all things…given them which are expedient” when so many people don’t have enough food to eat on a daily basis?
· The “things” He’s referring to are spiritual because what is “expedient” is spiritual; our temporal needs enable the spiritual experiences of mortality because they are the vehicle for or enabler of them. Because temporal needs are so immediate, they also provide a great test of our faith in the spiritual aspects of life, too
· We all have our freedom to choose, regardless of the particularities of their own mortal situation – which is what mortal life (“flesh”) is all about
· This gives us some real insight into what God defines as “expedient” – when we acknowledge His thoughts are higher than our thoughts (see Isaiah 55:8-9) we don’t begin to realize the extent to which this is true and the implications on how we define “virtuous” acts versus how God might define “righteous” acts; we might perceive Him as coldly cruel if we realized how willing He is to “prune” us through extremely difficult experiences which are “expedient” to our becoming precisely as He is; after all, asking Christ to suffer the atonement was “cruel” beyond our conception of the word, and yet the heavens leap for joy at His suffering (see Moses 7:47); and we are also asked to work out our own salvations before God with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12; Alma 34:37; D&C 19:18; TPJS 390-393)
Is Lehi asking a trick question? Would you rather have liberty and eternal life or captivity and death?
· The question is truly that simple!
· The problem is that there is opposition in all things – captivity and death are disguised to be enticing while liberty and eternal life requires the ultimate sacrifice in exchange for choosing it (your whole soul)
What is a mediator?
· One that interposes between parties at variance for the purpose of reconciling them (Webster’s 1828 Dictionary)
Who are the parties that are now at variance and why?
· Mankind and God
· No unclean thing can dwell with God (1 Nephi 10:21); God can’t allow any sin (D&C 1:31)
· But all have sinned (Romans 3:23); all have gone astray (Mosiah 14:6)
· The implication of the word “reconciling” is that in the past we were not at variance but were one
Why is the devil miserable?
· He cannot have joy because he did not keep his first estate (he rebelled against God and was cast out) and has been damned or stopped in his progression (see v25)
How can we choose liberty and eternal life?
· LOOK to the Mediator, Christ
· HEARKEN unto His great commandments
· BE FAITHFUL unto His words
What does the “flesh” desire?
· To not look, hearken and be faithful
· To not sacrifice one’s whole soul on the altar of the Lord but to follow the desires of the flesh
· The natural man is an enemy to God because s/he will not yield to the enticing of the Holy Spirit (see Mosiah 3:19)
· The flesh doesn’t “choose” death as a first choice, but death is the consequence of the desires that the flesh has – which desires are contrary to the commandments of God, or in other words, the eternal laws of light: loving others unconditionally, sacrificing for them, interceding for them, submitting to the will of God in all things, offering one’s whole soul, etc.
In summary, eternal law or the Law of Heaven requires us to be precisely as God and Christ are to be saved (see LoF 7:9). We have our agency and this fallen world gives us true opposition from which to choose light or darkness. The fall of man means that we are born spiritually dead (separated from God) with a probationary state before us, after which we will also die physically. We cannot prevent either of these deaths or resolve them on our own. In addition, we all use our agency to break those eternal laws on a regular basis, which is sin. Justice requires that we be banished to outer darkness. But God sent Christ as a Mediator to save us through His merits (living perfectly true to those Eternal Laws), mercy (not giving us the punishment we deserve) and grace (giving us the blessing of being perfect in Christ through the atonement, which we don’t deserve), as He (God) cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance. And all we must do is choose to follow Christ through covenant and sacrifice our broken hearts and contrite spirits – salvation is freely offered to us but it cost our Savior all He could suffer to redeem us.
