Mormon’s Farewell Message to the Remnant of Israel
READ Mormon 7:1
Who
is the “remnant of this people”?
The descendants of Lehi.
Perhaps more specifically, the
descendants of “this people” or those who called themselves Nephites who had
dissented over to the Lamanites or Robbers.
READ Mormon 7:2
Why
must the Remnant know that they are of the House of Israel?
They have opportunities, really
promises or covenants from God, set aside for them if they realized it.
But they must “awake and arise” to
take advantage of the promises.
They must know who they are.
READ Mormon 7:3, 5, 8, 10
How
does Moroni develop the doctrine of repentance over these four verses?
3 – Come unto repentance (come to
a place in your life where you are repentant, not just a single moment in time
when you repent) or you cannot be saved.
5 – Come to the knowledge of your
fathers (knowledge of who they were but more importantly, come to the same
knowledge that had been revealed to them), and repent of your sins and
iniquities (you will want to repent if you discover for yourselves the
knowledge they knew), and believe in Christ (that He lives and is who He says
He is and can do what He says He can do – save you from death. This is the knowledge your fathers had).
8 – Repent and be baptized
(repentance leads directly to a covenant with Christ and that covenant is how
you lay hold upon the Fullness of the Gospel of Christ, the doctrine of which
is laid out plainly to you in the Book of Mormon and to a lesser degree, in the
Bible).
10 – Understand the blessings you
are entitled to through covenants made to your ancestors – gospel covenant
opportunities to become Sons and Daughters of God or part of the “House of
Israel” or House of God or Family of God; and be baptized by water (the outward
ordinance) and by fire (the actual sanctification or cleansing and changing of
your spirit to be like God’s or one with Him or related to Him, i.e. His child,
as Christ did when the Father said to Him at the time of His baptism “Thou art
my Son, this day have I begotten thee” – Psalms 2:7) so that you can be decreed
clean by Him to the Father and enter into His Rest today, and forever on the
day of judgement (see D&C 88:75; Alma 34:36; Alma 7:25).
READ Mormon 7:7
What
does it mean to be found guiltless before Christ?
Guiltless means being found
innocent of all charges; you “didn’t do it”.
But it doesn’t say “sinless”.
Christ decrees us guiltless or
innocent, which enables us to dwell with God (see D&C 88:75) and then
sanctifies or changes us so that we can abide the glory; but at some point we
must “learn how to be God’s ourselves” and do it the same way all the Gods have
done it before, by going from a small degree (or glory) to a great one until
we, ourselves, attain to the resurrection of the dead (see TPJS 391-393) – but
that is for a future time.
READ Mormon 7:9
What
is the relationship between the Book of Mormon and the Bible?
The Book of Mormon is another
witness of the reality of Christ and His atonement.
The Bible, especially the New
Testament, is the account of Christ’s ministry, atonement, death and
resurrection – of which the Book of Mormon is a second witness (see 3 Nephi 11).
The Book of Mormon then teaches
the doctrine of Christ that the Bible introduces, in plainness.
If you believe in Christ because
your knowledge of Him is from personal experience (not Biblical or Sectarian
scholarship), you will recognize His “voice” in the Book of Mormon and will
know that it is true.
Moroni’s Postscript to the Book of
Mormon
READ Mormon 8:1-5
What
is Moroni doing?
Concluding his father’s record and
hiding it up.
Mourning his father.
He is depressed about his own
situation.
Saying goodbye.
READ Mormon 8:7
What
does it mean that the destruction of the Nephites was great and marvelous?
If you had known the Nephite
society 20 years before the end, you would have never thought they could
be destroyed, as prosperous a nation as they were.
If you had known the Nephite
society 350 years before the end or even 175 years before the end, you would be
absolutely shocked at the fall from grace into depraved darkness.
READ Mormon 8:10-11
What
does the fact that the Three Nephites ministered to Mormon and Moroni teach us?
They continue to have a ministry.
They will make themselves known
unto the elect, even if there are only two righteous souls in a nation.
They visit but do not stay.
Moroni is alone for some reason –
the trial of mortality continues for him, but he is not left alone entirely;
the Lord will send ministers to comfort, aid and instruct.
READ Mormon 8:12, 17
Are
there imperfections in the book and if so, how did this happen?
There may be, as per Moroni’s
comments.
They are the results of men’s
fallibility.
Mormon, Nephi or Jacob wrote the
text, either first person or summarizing a great deal of information from
others, having seen the Remnant and us in vision and knowing they were writing
to us in the latter days.
It is possible that they might not
have been as clear as they would have liked; writing on metal plates in the
equivalent of shorthand would have been difficult to do and meant that some
meaning would be lost; some people are better speakers than writers anyway; and
then all of it had to be translated by a farm boy with a third grade education
and edited by others who didn’t have a lot more education than that (and less
inspiration).
However, as Joseph Smith said, it
is the “most perfect book” on the earth; so while it is not a book without
imperfections, it is the most perfect book we have and is most likely to lead
you back into the presence of God during mortality than any other book.
READ Mormon 8:14-16
How
did Joseph Smith “bring to light” the Book of Mormon?
Only through the direct power of
God; Joseph was “blessed” or his capabilities were improved through God’s
power, to enable him to do this work, which would have been way beyond his
normal mortal abilities otherwise.
Despite his lack of education, he accurately
translated a Hebrew book written in Egyptian shorthand, but more stunning than
that is the content of the gospel that is contained in the book.
The book itself will “shine forth,”
implying that it contains light and comes forth in a time of darkness where light
can really be seen to shine or come forth, where before things were dark.
Moroni Calls the Latter-day
Gentiles to Repentance
READ Mormon 8:18-20
What
is Moroni’s warning to the latter-day reader of the Book of Mormon?
If you judge the book rashly
(hastily, without due deliberation), you will be judged rashly yourself because
you’ve damned yourself through your careless indifference.
Your investigative works regarding
the truth contained in the book (i.e. your seeking out of the Lord) were cursory;
you never tried, so will merit the wages of one who couldn’t be bothered.
But in addition, if you then
leverage that cursory analysis with the negative conclusion you came to and
start to attack others who do believe the Book of Mormon, or otherwise try to
hinder the work of the Lord by opposing it on the back of your poor
investigation, you’ll be “smitten”, because that will be just.
READ Mormon 8:21-25
Moroni
has seen the latter days, in which the Book of Mormon will come forth; who is
he talking about who will try to stop the Lord from honoring His covenant with
the Remnant of Jacob?
The
Gospel will go to the Remnant of Jacob only after the Gentiles have rejected
the Fullness of the Gospel (see 3 Nephi 16:10-12).
So the
people who will breathe out wrath and strife against the work of the Lord with
Israel are those latter-day Gentiles who say that “we (the Gentiles) will never
be led astray; we will never reject the Fullness of the Gospel and apostatize,
in fact, we couldn’t if we wanted to!” – which is in direct conflict with the
Lord’s own prophesy (see 3 Nephi 16:10).
Moroni
is talking to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
It is
an interesting irony that the ancestors of the Remnant, who had acquired the
promises of a covenant extended to their ancestors via the Book of Mormon,
prayed for Joseph Smith (v25) despite the fact that the Church he founded would
end up trying to co-opt the House of Israel and make the Remnant’s role in the
building of Zion into a subservient position to their own! It is also possible that “him” who will bring
this to “light” to those who Moroni cares about (the Remnant), means additional
people than Joseph Smith – it could also include those few Ephraimites who will
take the Book of Mormon to the Remnant in power.
READ Mormon 8:26-32
What
“day” is Moroni speaking about here – the day of the coming forth of the Book
of Mormon from out of the earth (1830) or the day of the coming forth of the
Book of Mormon to awaken the Remnant (post Twentieth Century)?
It could apply to both and likely
does.
What
is Moroni seeing when he describes the “day” in which the Book of Mormon will
“come forth”?
Miracles existed but they are done
away or seemingly no longer needed, or at a minimum are not widespread because
of the way modern science and technology has progressed and the economy of
heaven (i.e. if man can do it for himself, God will not intercede); and if they
do happen, they are too sacred to share (because you will be thought of as lunatic
fringe or a child believing in fairy tales).
Secret groups, in many cases
within churches, attack and kill the Saints of God; the reason that churches
are implied is because they are targeting the Saints, who as a rule are not
important people, so a political, economic or criminal secret combination would
not be bothered with them; but they are still a real threat to churches because
they are seeking for and obtaining real spiritual experiences with God, and
they have a tendency to ask innocent but awkward questions of church leaders,
who don’t experience these things.
People will deny the power of God;
either God doesn’t exist or He has strict bounds within which He can operate,
i.e. through churches and their leadership.
Churches will become defiled or
profane; in other words, they will seek for riches and not Zion or the Kingdom
of God; and they will be lifted up in pride thinking that they are better than
anyone else and have access to truths and spiritual blessings that no one else
can get unless they join and become subservient to them.
Church leaders will envy their
church members, desiring to be wealthy and successful in the eyes of the world
as their members may be – wishing that they could compare their Church to a
Fortune 100 corporation and building it up to be like one.
There will be news reports of
natural disasters and wars in foreign lands and in different or various places
where they have not been known to happen.
The earth will be greatly polluted.
Sin will be widespread; in other
words, it will be culturally accepted; there will be murder, robbing,
dishonesty, immorality, and religious abominations or falsehoods being
practiced and preached as truth.
A philosophy of a permissive God,
more likely a “God of Love” who will save all His children in their sins, is
widely believed in.
Churches are built up as money
making enterprises.
Since
few churches would make this transaction explicit, how might a church couch
Moroni’s observation that they offer forgiveness of sins for money?
You are in good standing with God
(implied is that you are forgiven) if you are a member in good standing in the
Church; to be in good standing you must tithe and donate to the Church.
This relationship is strengthened
when the Church requires some kind of confession of sins to a Bishop or Priest.
Catholic selling of indulgences
(but this stopped in the 1500s, hundreds of years before Joseph Smith, so it’s
likely not what Moroni is referring to here).
READ Mormon 8:33
What
“holy word of God” has been transfigured, why and how?
Any ordinance or doctrine that is
not practiced as Christ revealed it directly in His revelations has been
“transfigured” or changed.
It is changed so that wicked
people can build up churches to get gain by controlling people through that
changed doctrine.
It can be “transfigured” through
intentional reinterpretation “supported” by scholarly or priesthood authority
or even focus groups and public opinion, or actual text can be altered (the
Bible, the D&C per the Joseph Smith Papers) or dropped (the Lectures on
Faith), or new revelations can be claimed which contradict the word of God but
are passed off as “current church policy” because it is insinuated that the
Lord made the changes (albeit that He is an unchangeable being), although no
direct revelation is ever recorded and published.
READ Mormon 8:34-41
Moroni
has seen us in vision in great detail; how does he describe us?
We are prideful – almost all of us.
We wear very fine apparel (and not
just to church).
We demonstrate envy, strife,
malice, persecutions among ourselves.
We display all manner of
iniquities.
ALL our churches are polluted
because of the pride of their members, including those who claim to be THE
“Holy Church of God” – this is a particularly damning statement for those
Churches who make this claim, and not all do.
We love money more than we love
the poor.
We build beautiful churches and
temples instead of helping the poor.
We are hypocrites, meaning we
proclaim to love God and be His chosen people while we willfully sin, change
the doctrine and ordinances, and grind the faces of the poor.
We are ashamed to take upon
ourselves the name of Christ, meaning we are ashamed to proclaim that we are
Christ’s Sons and Daughters because He has sealed us to Him, while we stood
before Him in the flesh. Instead, we say
such things are “too sacred to share…” or are “a familiar tactic of the
adversary”.
We care very much about being
popular in the eyes of the world and flattering our own members so that they
feel good about themselves and our leadership; public relations and marketing
are huge investments and dictate church policy and doctrine, as do church
member focus groups.
We do not “adorn” ourselves with
light, which is life (see John 1:4; John 8:12; Mosiah 16:9; Alma 28:14; 3 Nephi
9:18; D&C 88:13); we do not keep the commandments, so we are not filled
with living light but instead we adorn ourselves with expensive “dead” clothes,
rather than giving that money to the poor.
We have built up secret
abominations (or we have secretly changed the saving ordinances or lost the
priesthood but still claim it) which enable us to get gain (more members) because
the way the ordinances have been changed and marketed are more popular with
more of the world.
We allow people to die when we
could do something about it; we could fund the Bountiful Children’s/Liahona
Foundation or help our own poor instead of buying $2-billion-dollar luxury
shopping malls; or even redistribute tithing over the whole world instead of
keeping it local, while we have well over $100 billion in stock alone.
Which
“Holy Church of God” that has been polluted by leaders seeking gain at the
expense of the poor is being referred to here?
There
are really only two churches in the latter days who claim to be the “Holy
Church of God”: the Catholic Church and the LDS church.
Sadly,
the answer is both of them – but only one of those two were ever actually
accepted by God (at one time, at least – albeit it was back in 1831, see
D&C 1:30).
How
is Christ’s name taken upon someone?
You
receive His name through personal interaction with Him – Christ alone gives you
His name.
When He
formally accepts you as His child and part of His family and household.
What
does it mean that the “Holy Church of God” is ashamed to take upon itself the
name of Christ?
Shame =
a painful sensation excited by a consciousness of guilt or impropriety or
having done something which injures reputation, or of the exposure of that
which nature or modesty prompts us to conceal (see Webster’s 1828 Dictionary).
The
Church as an organization, the leaders who set policy, and the members who
abide by those policies are ashamed to take upon itself/themselves the name of
Christ, meaning we are ashamed to proclaim to the world that we are Christ’s
Sons and Daughters because He has sealed us to Himself, while we stood before
Him in the flesh. Instead, some say such
things are “too sacred to share…”; this is because the world will persecute
those who make such a claim (see John 12:42-43).
We deny
that taking upon ourselves the Name of Christ through entering into His
presence in this life is a mandatory component of the gospel (see D&C
132:21-25); in fact, an Apostle (Dallin Oaks) has said that “suggestions that
this must happen in mortality is a familiar tactic of the adversary” (Boise
Rescue talk recording at 1 hour 30 seconds) or that it is spiritually
threatening to have an “inordinate interest in the Second Comforter” (FAIR
Conference talk reprinted by the Church News on 8/19/15 and LDS Meridian
Magazine); to admit the fact that most LDS members including (almost all?)
apostles and prophets since Joseph Smith have never been in Christ’s presence
and taken upon themselves His name by being pronounced clean and then sealed to
Him, and therefore are not redeemed or saved, would result in extreme shame
within the Church as we claim we are God’s chosen people and are led by
prophets who interact with Christ every Thursday in the SLC Temple. That fact that this is not true cannot be
admitted to the Church membership, so language is used to infer that it is true
– but it is couched in ways that has plausible deniability when being faced
with the world’s press organizations.
It is a
knife’s edge that the Church walks – not admitting to the world the “crazy”
requirement of actually knowing God in the flesh while inferring to the
membership that of course these things happen with regularity but are “too
sacred to share”; no wonder the Lord condemns us for “abominations” and
professing to know Him when we do not (see D&C 112:23-26).
Sadly,
the “Fullness of the Gospel” includes enduring to the End, who is Christ (see
Revelation 1:8; D&C 19:10); in other words, living the doctrine of Christ
or abiding in the covenant we entered into through baptism until Christ
manifests Himself to us in the flesh and teaches us what we must do next (see 2
Nephi 32:1-7; D&C 132:21-25); but we, the Gentile Church, have rejected
that doctrine – and by so doing have rejected the Fullness of the Gospel (see 3
Nephi 16:10).
Why
was the “Holy Church of God” polluted and turned into a money-making machine,
and the leaders and members became ashamed to take upon themselves the name of
Christ?
Because of the praise of the world.
To become popular so that the
Church could gain many more converts than it would have for their donations and
the pride that comes with controlling the lives of more people.
What
is Moroni’s message to us – those claiming to be the “holy Church of God”?
We have
apostatized from the truth we were entrusted with at the time we received the
Book of Mormon; we have taken it lightly, we have now denied it, we are ashamed
of it and will not preach it (see 3 Nephi 16:10; D&C 84:49-62).
And as
a result, the sword of vengeance hangs over us (see D&C 112:25-26; 3 Nephi
20:15-16).
Moroni’s Warning to “Christian
Unbelievers”
READ Mormon 9:1-2
What
is the “day of your visitation” and why isn’t it stated as the “day of His
visitation”?
He’s not just returning to the
earth; he’s returning to visit each of us…ready or not.
We will all have the personal
opportunity to know that He lives and is the Christ, as He said – and at that
day, every knee will bow and tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ; but this
will either be to our salvation or damnation.
Since there will be a day of
personal visitation by Christ to each of us, it would be better to prepare to
abide in His presence and admonish Him to come to you now as the “Lamb” and not
wait, unprepared, for Him to visit you as the “Lion,” at the time of His return
in glory.
You should “come unto Him” before
He “comes unto you” – you should seek to visit Him before He comes to visit all
of us.
READ Mormon 9:3-5
What
will we see clearly in the afterlife?
Our nothingness in the context of the
requirements of Eternal Law.
God’s perfection in the context of
our strengths and weaknesses.
All that we could have done but
did not do while in mortality; we are our own accusers and tormentors in that
day.
There simply is no comparison
between these mere children, these insubstantial and powerless creatures,
and the holiness, power, majesty and glory of the one True Man,
clothed in light. You come back from the presence of glory with only one
conclusion: “Surely man is nothing, which I had never before supposed” (see
Moses 1:10).
What
is it like to enter the presence of God?
Awful, fearful and dreadful – the
intensity of the light which emanates from His person is above the sun at
noonday.
You realize the horror of your own
darkness and sins (see Genesis 15:7-18; Alma 12:14) and cry out with the
realization that you are unclean and not ready for His presence (see Isaiah
6:5; Alma 36:12-15).
All of your careful pretensions
dissolve when you stand naked, revealed, hollow, unprepared and unworthy in His
presence.
You see yourself as God sees you –
seriously lacking in comparison…
Even the “so called righteous” see
the reality of their nothingness and feel “undone” in God’s presence (see Moses
1:10-11; Isaiah 6:1-5).
But despite it all, the amount of
love He feels for you (which is tangible), is indescribable.
Will
the majority of people who lived on the earth prefer heaven or hell?
The great majority will prefer
hell.
They will not be prepared to
endure the glory of heaven and will be racked with guilt for their sins.
What
happens when the unprepared are finally able to flee from God’s presence?
That is the irony; they are in a
hell of their own making because of the disappointment they feel in their own
choices and performance, having been given an opportunity to follow the Lord
and become like Him, which they did not take; it is exquisite torment, like a
lake burning with fire and brimstone (see TPJS 401:1).
We expect relief from fleeing
God’s presence and while the explicit pain of God’s glory on our darkened minds
may stop, relief from our own inner torment only comes from God making us
clean, in the ultimate ironic twist.
Is
God punishing the wicked in these verses?
No.
He is just being.
The punishment that happens is the
natural result of an imperfect, unprepared soul entering the presence of a just
and holy being full of glory.
What
will we learn about God and about ourselves when we stand in His presence?
That He is a perfect man (see
Moses 7:35).
That we are imperfect men and
women.
That we are both the same species,
possessing the same potential, but are so far below His performance or light,
glory and intelligence (see 1 John 3:2 and D&C 130:1).
That God put a plan in place to
enable us to become like Him because He does not covet His own advancement nor
resent ours (see TPJS 396:2-398:1).
Light and truth are offered to us
all but our participation in His plan is purely voluntary (see Alma 42:27;
D&C 93:30-32).
Most will fail to take advantage
of what is freely offered and will see that we could have been more like Him if
we had chosen to love Him more, listened to His voice and obeyed His
commandments while on earth in our probation; and to the degree we didn’t, we
forfeited what we might have become – this realization will make us miserable.
READ Mormon 9:6
How,
then, does a person abide or stand in His presence?
Through obedience to the gospel
while in mortality, which is the only way to access the merits, mercy, and
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ (see 2 Nephi 2:8).
Turning unto the Lord and crying
mightily to the Father for mercy, which results in cleansing through the blood
of Christ (see Isaiah 6:6-7; John 13:5-13; Daniel 10:5-10).
“Worthy to stand” really means
being a humble penitent person despite their past sins, not a religious “high
performer” (see Luke 18:10-14).
Christ must bestow upon a man the
power to stand in God’s presence – it begins with being forgiven and then
extends from there with sufficient light to be able to abide the glory of God.
What
is Moroni’s plea to us?
He is re-extending Christ’s
invitation to us to “come and see” Christ’s cleansing power for ourselves – to
see if He can turn the scarlet sinner white like snow or not, as Moroni himself
has experienced, because it must be experienced to know it – because, in that
last day, the salvation accepted by one person will not help the next person
who rejected it (see John 1:39, 46; Isaiah 1:18) – each person must come and
see Christ individually.
But we must choose to repent;
“perhaps” we will…
But if not, rejecting the
invitation to humble ourselves now will lead to the deaths (see D&C 132:25).
READ Mormon 9:7-10
Who
are these “unbelievers” Moroni is addressing?
They are not atheists or
non-Christians.
They profess knowledge of the
gospel of Christ, and they may have even read the scriptures.
They are Christians who do not
really believe.
They are Christians who have
imagined to themselves what Christ is like (and they’ve got it wrong because
the natural man can’t comprehend the true and living God) because they’ve never
known Him personally.
They are Christians who do not
need or want any more revelation because they already have a “great basic
reservoir of revelation” (GB Hinckley, 1997 interview with David Ransom).
They are Christians who say that
“revelation no longer comes by vision” but through inspiration in a “remarkable
and wonderful way” with “no voice of any kind, but just a perception in the
mind” (GB Hinckley, Washington Times, Dec 3, 1996; SF Chronicle April 13, 1997)
and usually through consensus from a committee of leaders with authority in a
Church.
What
does no “shadow of changing” mean and what does this imply God is like?
A shadow of change is just a bare
essence of change.
God does not change in the least –
in fact, God is God because He is precisely who He is and because He acts just
the way He acts – or He would cease to be God (see LoF 7:9, 15-16).
So
what does this imply about the changes in doctrine and practice that we have
seen in the Holy Church of God over time (from the present back to ancient
Israel)?
It is possible that while God does
not change His doctrine, He adapts what is required with a certain people at a
certain time due to their level of wickedness; but He does not lower the
standard of salvation (to be precisely like He is) or change the doctrine
required to meet that standard (the path to become like He is), instead He
gives them less than the Fullness to prove them and help them to gain more
truth by being faithful to a lesser amount of light, and thereby gaining access
to a greater and greater amount until they finally merit and are able to
handle, the Fullness (see Alma 12:9-11; D&C 84:23-27; TPJS 390-393).
It is
clear evidence of apostasy; we have transgressed the laws, changed the
ordinance, and broken the everlasting covenant and are under condemnation for
so doing (see Isaiah 24:5; D&C 84:19-27, 49-59).
It is
clear evidence that the leaders making the changes were/are not receiving
revelation but are “imagining” things up (like the modern day “commandment” for
membership in good standing which is the Word of Wisdom, even though it was not
given “by way of commandment” until Heber J. Grant, who feared spiritual
experiences and did not receive revelation, wanted to use the standard as a way
to measure righteousness) or were/are lost at sea in the waves of changing
public opinion to which they feel they must adapt or lose membership (like the
1990’s changing of the temple endowment) or perhaps even pointedly changing
things for their own benefit (like BY’s polygamy). This also happened in Ancient Israel in the
North Kingdom when Jeroboam was given a revelation about his kingship but then
worried that because the temple was in Jerusalem (in the South Kingdom), that
he would lose power to his enemy state – so he set apart his own priests and
apostatized from the truth; again the pharisees in the time of Christ with
their fences around the law; this is not just a modern phenomenon.
How
can the Lord say that He could continue to reveal additional truth and still be
an unchangeable God?
He is not changing doctrine but
adding it until we are able to receive the Fullness.
Our lowly spiritual capabilities,
devoid of all but a little light, mean that we cannot comprehend all that God
can comprehend, so He gives us more and more light and knowledge (albeit in
little chunks), over time, as we ask for it and can live it.
Until the ultimate fullness is
given, which requires you to be a god yourself to comprehend it, truth and
light is dynamic – it is like the moon each night or the sun over the course of
the year – it is either growing or “waxing” in light or it is diminishing or
“waning” in light (see Alma 12:9-11).
READ Mormon 9:11-14
What
“miracles” is Moroni ascribing to God?
The miracle of creating the
heavens and the earth.
The miracle of creating all life.
The miracle of creating mankind.
The miracle of our redemption by
Christ.
The miracle of the resurrection.
The miracle of priesthood power on
the earth.
How
is all mankind redeemed?
By coming back into Christ’s
presence (see Ether 3:13).
What
are the steps of the plan of salvation that Moroni teaches?
God created the heavens, earth and
all living things in them.
God created mankind.
Adam fell and his posterity
inherited the effects of the fall; their natures are “evil” and they are
separated from God.
Because Adam had fallen, God sent
Jesus Christ to redeem mankind.
Christ lived a perfect life,
suffered for all sin, died unjustly and won the victory over death and hell
when He attained to the resurrection.
Christ redeems men by bringing
them back into His presence.
Christ resurrects all mankind
through His power.
Christ judges mankind and invokes
the Law of Restoration, enabled by His atonement.
READ Mormon 9:15-18
What
is a miracle?
The works of God that man does not
comprehend because they are not filled with enough intelligence or light to do
so (see Mosiah 4:9; D&C 88:49; D&C 93:27-28).
These works are not contrary to
eternal law, which is truth (things as they truly were, are and will be) but
aligned perfectly with them (D&C 93:24).
How
does God perform His miracles or works?
By His word.
Through articulating His will or
intention and observing until it is done.
READ Mormon 9:19-21
If
God is an unchangeable being, can miracles cease?
No, by definition.
If He is unchangeable and He used
to perform miracles or works which are incomprehensible to man, then He must
still perform or be capable of performing or wish to perform, such acts.
If
God is an unchangeable being, why have miracles ceased?
He does not cease to do miracles
or His works (which as we’ve defined, are miracles to our level of
understanding), He only ceases to do them among the children of men (the
natural men, as opposed to the children of God).
It is mankind’s dwindling in
unbelief and departing from the right way, such that they know not the God in
whom they should trust (i.e. is a living God who does mighty works or
miracles), that causes God to cease to perform miracles or do His works among
them.
It will only heap damnation upon a
person if God does His works in plain sight but mankind denies them as acts of
God or fails to align their own behavior to His will as a result – they are
sinning against additional light.
Among
what men and women does God continue to perform miracles?
Among those who believe in Christ,
doubting nothing.
These few doubt nothing because
they’ve been sealed up to eternal life and know their standing before God.
And have been given the promise
that whatever they ask for, which is aligned with the Lord’s will, will be done.
What is Moroni's
logical argument to those who deny miracles, spiritual gifts and revelation?
Scriptures say that God is the same and unchangeable, i.e. perfect
(Mormon 9:9) - if He and Christ used to do miracles, how can they stop doing
them now and still be unchangeable? (9:17-19).
If you have imagined yourself a god who changes, then you have
imagined a God without power - in other words, a God who is not a god! (Mormon 9:10,19).
God created Adam; Adam fell; Christ redeemed mankind from the
Fall; mankind is brought back into God's presence and ultimately will be resurrected;
a judgement is given - but have all these things happened? No - no resurrection or judgement yet so God
still needs His power.
Who can comprehend the marvelous works of God? If you're not a God yourself, you can't
comprehend God, so using your intellect to make judgements regarding what God
can or cannot do is foolish in the extreme (Mormon 9:16).
READ Mormon 9:22-25
What
is the relationship between belief and proof?
Belief and the corollary actions
which show out that belief in the physical world (like baptism or service to
others, etc), must precede proof.
Belief is a choice, which means it
is not obvious as there may be “proofs” and “enticements” that lay on both
sides of belief.
Confirmation of truth or “proofs”
are given to those who chose to believe 100% in the Lord despite having less
(and in some cases much less) than 100% proof at the time of their choice.
Gifts of the Spirit (divinely
given talents) are given as proofs to those who believe and act.
READ Mormon 9:26-29
Do
the “despisers” of the works (miracles) of Christ wonder now?
No, they are very sure in their
convictions that there is no God; they base it on “science” (the thinking and
authority of experts) and their own research/observation and wisdom.
They stand boldly against the
works of the Lord and His sayings; they deny that He exists or that He has the
power to do what He’s said He will do.
What
will change?
He will continue to reveal Himself
to them and the world, starting in small and simple ways but growing until at
the end, the whole world will see Him coming in His glory as the Lion of Israel
to destroy the wicked.
At that day, the despisers will
finally have to admit their folly but it will be too late; they will not understand
what is going on; they will “wonder and perish”.
What
does it mean to “be believing and come unto the Lord with all your heart and
work out your own salvation with fear and trembling before Him”?
Believe that redemption and
salvation consist of literally coming unto the Lord and offering Him your
heart, will and whole soul.
Believe that it is commanded that
you receive redemption in mortality because it is at the heart of the fullness
of the gospel; that coming unto Christ is a personal visit with Him in the
flesh where we come to know Him with a surety, not a conceptual one where He
comes to “dwell in our hearts” or we’ve “accepted Him” or “come close to Him”
in some non-literal way (see D&C 130:3).
Believe that entering into His
presence in mortality is the end result of your faith – when faith turns to
knowledge; without this experience, your faith was “stillborn” or never
accomplished the desired result it was intended to produce in you; no delicious
“fruit” was ripened but it “withered” on the vine because it was cut off from
the life-giving root.
Entering into His presence, even
when He comes to us as the “Lamb”, fills the sinner (as we all are) with “fear
and trembling” until He tells us to “fear not” because He decrees us clean, a
declaration we can believe in because He cannot lie, regardless of how little
we have merited such a blessing (D&C 88:75).
Understanding what is required to
become “precisely as He is or we cannot be saved” will fill everyone with “fear
and trembling” (see LoF 7:9, 15-16; 3 Nephi 12:48; TPJS 390-393; D&C
19:15-19); it is a real test of faith because it seems so completely impossible
to us.
What
is the urgency behind Moroni’s plea to “be wise in the days of your probation”?
This mortal life is your probation
– it is your chance to improve your lot through obedience to God’s commandments
and so gain more light and a better resurrection.
The cost of creating this
probation, and the time it took to do so, is so beyond our comprehension in our
present state, that we take it completely for granted but when we see things as
they truly are – if we have not been wise during our probationary opportunity –
our disappointment in our own poor performance and guilt in the squandered gift
will be as a lake of fire and brimstone.
What
is implied in the phrase “strip yourself of all uncleanness,” as if it is some
article of clothing?
Uncleanness is not who we are but
something we have “put on”.
If this is true, it is also
something that we can choose to remove.
But to “strip oneself” implies a
level of embarrassment as one is then “naked” without the clothing they had
been wearing; implied is that the “uncleanness” was giving us some perceived
benefit in the eyes of those who would otherwise shame us or persecute us (see
1 Nephi 8:24-28) and that removing it will make us “naked”.
Being naked again allows the Lord
to now clothe you in His light and glory, so that you can stand in the presence
of the Father and not be ashamed (see Alma 5:21-22, 27; D&C 88:75).
Can
the Lord prevent us from falling prey to temptation?
Laboring in the Spirit, one can
call upon God with unshaken firmness for protection from Satan, to the degree
that one will serve God and not yield to temptation.
“Lusts” in this case refers to
arrogant self-righteousness, not immorality.
What
does it mean to be baptized or partake of the sacrament unworthily, as no one is
perfect?
It is true that no one is worthy
like Christ – no one is perfect in keeping all of His commandments, but the
Lord has promised us that He will not give us a commandment that we cannot
keep, so we can keep all of the commandments we know about, if our eyes are
single to Him and we love Him sufficiently (see 1 Nephi 3:7; John 14:15).
Being worthy to participate in
ordinances means that one has offered their whole soul to the Lord in
completely humility, they desire to be clean and are willing to do whatever
they can do to be saved, and then do their very best from moment to moment to
love the Lord and keep His commandments (see D&C 46:9).
READ Mormon 9:35
Why
do the Book of Mormon writers have to write the book to “rid themselves” of the
“blood” of those who have dwindled in unbelief?
They knew God and the fact that
all these things written in the Book of Mormon are true; there was no
speculation with their knowledge.
Those who know these things for
themselves are tasked with testifying to the truth of them to others who do not
yet know (see 3 Nephi 11:15).
Testifying to others provides them
(those now testified to) with the thought that God really does exist and it is
possible for anyone to find Him and be saved (see LoF 2:34, 54-56).
If those who know never testify,
many would never even conceive of the possibility of knowing God or the fact
that He is no respecter of persons and wants us to come unto Him, or how to go
about doing such a thing, effectively damning those who would have otherwise
been saved if they had known; this is abhorrent to God.
Testifying to the fact that one
knows that God lives through direct contact and has saved the individual is part
of what it means to be valiant in The testimony of Jesus – because the vast
majority of the people in the world will hate you for that testimony and there
will be consequences to you.
