Principles of the Atonement: Why Child Baptism Is an Abomination
READ Moroni 8:8, 22-24
Who
did the Lord come into this world to call to repentance?
Sinners.
All of us…who are “sick”.
Are
little children subject to the Fall or “curse” of Adam?
Yes.
Everyone who is born into this
mortal sphere, is subject to the effects of the fall from the moment of their
conception – both physical (mortal body) and spiritual (separation from God,
fallen nature) deaths.
If
Christ is the prototype of the saved being as stated in Lectures on Faith 7:9,
what must we all be like to be saved?
Salvation consists of being
precisely what Christ is (a just and holy being) and nothing else because He
must be perfectly aligned with the Eternal Laws which govern salvation (see LoF
7:9; 3 Nephi 12:48; D&C 88:20-22; D&C 105:4-5; D&C 130:18-21) to be
saved.
If Christ was different from what
He is or if it was possible for Him to change in the least degree from what He
is, He would fail of salvation and lose everything.
And if Christ can only be saved by
being precisely like He is, as per eternal law, we must also become precisely
as He is to be saved or, by definition, we cannot be saved. We must be perfect, even as He is now (see
D&C 93:13-14) perfect (see 3 Nephi 12:48; 3 Nephi 27:27).
Why
are little children “whole” if they are still subject to the effects of the
fall?
They are decreed whole by Christ;
which He has the right to do, by virtue of His Atonement.
Christ sets the terms by which we
can gain His forgiveness and sanctification.
They are not accountable for sin
because they lack the ability to discern or really understand the difference
between good from evil.
So,
what does this imply about “sin”?
There is a difference between
committing sin, which requires a capability based on accountability to do so,
and being not completely aligned or compliant with eternal law, or in other
words, in not being precisely like Christ or not being perfect.
Sin is to knowingly discern the
difference between God’s will (good) and what is not His will (evil), and
choose the latter; it is to betray yourself, or what you know is right through
the Holy Spirit or light of Christ.
Ultimately, we must be perfect as
Christ and the Father are or we cannot be saved, but through their mercy and
Christ’s merits, we have been given time to become like Christ - to receive
grace for grace on the way to receiving a fulness ourselves and becoming
precisely like Him (see D&C 93:12-14).
READ Moroni 8:9-20
Why
is it “solemn mockery before God” to baptize little children?
God is no respecter of persons but
is completely fair.
Because little children are not
accountable for their actions, they are not capable of committing sin.
Enabled by His atonement, Christ
has decreed that those who are not accountable will be saved.
The requirement of baptism for
little children supposes that God cannot save who He wants, regardless of the
atonement that Christ suffered – He is bound to the performances of mankind,
which He cannot have faith in.
It also implies that either He is
calloused and uncaring with regards to the millions of children who died before
the age of accountability and would be going to hell without baptism or He
would have to significantly suspend our agency to ensure that no one died
before that age.
But God is not dependent upon the
works of mankind; His mercy through Christ’s atonement, makes a way through
which justice can be served while those who sinned unknowingly (without accountability)
can also be saved.
What
is the relationship between capability to commit sin and accountability for
one’s actions?
They are directly connected.
If you are not accountable for your
actions, you cannot commit sin.
Although you can act in ways that
are not precisely (or even closely) aligned with how Christ acted.
If you are accountable for one’s
actions (implied is that you have access to the Holy Spirit or light of Christ
and can also discern the difference between good and evil), then any time you
betray the guidance you are given through that medium (i.e. betray your higher
self or what you know from God to be right), you sin.
What
do we learn about God’s character and attributes from this discourse?
He is not partial or a respecter of
persons (see LoF 3:17).
He unchangeable from all eternity
to all eternity (see LoF 3:15).
He is filled with a fullness of
perfect, everlasting love (see LoF 3:18) and that love is embodied in the
sacrifice Christ suffered in His condescension and atonement.
He extends mercy and grace, which
is His right because of the atonement (see LoF 3:14).
What
implications can we draw from these attributes?
Everyone has an equal privilege and
responsibility to exercise faith in Him and seek Him out; He does not play
favorites, including through bloodlines or Church callings; He rewards those
who keep His commandments (see LoF 3:23).
Without the attribute of
unchangeableness, no one could truly have faith in God because there would
always be a doubt that He could switch the rules around and what was formerly
approved by God is now unapproved, making it extremely difficult to understand
what tenants really govern salvation (i.e. polygamy as essential to exaltation
under Brigham Young vs. polygamy as excommunicable and damning sin under Joseph
F. Smith and all who came after him; see LoF 3:21).
His perfect love for us paired with
His omniscience means that we can trust Him explicitly to do what is right by
us; He has our best interest at heart; this means that He will and did
sacrifice Himself for us (see LoF 3:24; John 15:13).
If it were not for His mercy, we
could not have faith in Him when the fullness of our sins and the impossibility
of our salvation became truly clear to us, as doubt would overpower our faith,
despite the love we feel from Him (see LoF 3:20).
What
does it mean that little children are alive in Christ from the foundation of
the world?
All things are before the Father’s
face - as a God of truth, He can see things as they were, are and will be.
As God is merciful, loving,
unchangeable and impartial, He has provided a way for salvation for those who
die before they are accountable AND for those who are accountable and abide by
the terms of the salvific covenant He has laid out through His doctrine: faith,
repentance, baptism in water, baptism by fire, enduring unto the End (Christ
Himself) – see 2 Nephi 31-32.
The implication is that Christ’s
atonement is timeless within this eternity; in the meridian of time, He atoned
for all things stretching back to the “foundation of the world” and through to
the end of time.
What
is the relationship between perfect love and fear?
Not only are they mutually
exclusive, meaning that to the degree one is present, the other is not or
cannot be…
But perfect love acts upon fear,
while fear exits in the absence of perfect love; love drives out fear but fear
cannot drive out love (see 1 John 4:16-19); fear is allowed to fester in the
vacuum that exists when love is gone – it is related to doubt and anger (see
Moroni 9:5).
Doubt and fear are banished by the
love we feel from a perfect being, but it is also banished by the perfect love
we feel for God and mankind.
Why
is a person who believes in the need for child baptism without faith, hope or
charity?
He has no faith that God can do
what He says He can do; He does not know the true attributes of God, and this
prevents His ability to exercise true faith in a living God (see LoF 3:2-5).
Without faith in the living God, a
person will never receive a hope or promise of their salvation from Christ.
And without a promise of salvation
and the mighty change of heart (baptism of fire), they will not be offered the
gift of charity, which is a spiritual gift given to true followers of Christ
who have been changed spiritually.
READ Moroni 8:25-26
What
is the relationship between baptism and repentance?
“Planting” repentance in one’s
heart “yields” or results in, as a natural process, baptism (of water and
fire).
It results in the baptism of water
as the person seeks a way to demonstrate to God that they are willing to
sacrifice their whole soul to God and turn to Him – and the rite of baptism is
symbolic of our wish to do this.
It results in the baptism of fire
since God will accept the sacrifice of the whole soul (demonstrated through
repentance or turning one’s heart to God) made in covenant to Him through water
baptism by baptizing that person with fire or the Holy Ghost.
What
is the relationship between fulfilling the commandments and remission of sins?
We fulfill the commandments when we
exercise faith unto repentance, are baptized and offer our whole soul, a broken
heart and contrite spirit or in other words, meekness and lowliness of heart;
these are the requirements for entering in by the Gate (see 2 Nephi 31:9-13,
17-21).
When we fulfill these commandments
with real intent, we will know our covenant has been accepted when we receive a
remission of sins through the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost.
We then go on to abide in the
covenant we have entered into by following that the new heart we’ve been given
(desiring to “do good”) by following all of the commandments we’ve been given,
and then repenting as quickly as possible when we betray ourselves and fail to
do so.
How
does love endure with us during this mortal life?
Through prayer.
We must continually connect with
God to be filled with His love; we must be one through receiving His Mind or
the Holy Spirit and quickened or filled with His glory and light.
Love and light are dynamic, like
the seasons of the sun or the light of the moon, they are either waxing or
waning in this world – it is the same within us.
Knowing All Things
READ Moroni 10:1-2
Why
does Moroni address these verses (Moroni 10:3-23) to the Lamanites and not to
the Gentiles?
Because Moroni has seen that in the
last days, they are the ones who will not take the Book of Mormon lightly but
will embrace the book, follow its teachings and follow the example of those
whose testimonies are contain in it, and receive the promised blessings of the
Fullness of the Gospel for themselves.
Only a few of us (Gentiles) will,
although the offer is there for all (see Ether 12:23, 26, 36-38).
READ Moroni 10:3
Why
is God’s mercy to mankind from Adam to the present, as articulated in the Book
of Mormon, the topic on which Moroni wishes his readers to ponder?
Fully realizing our nothingness as
unprofitable servants and God’s mercy and grace (both completely undeserved)
towards us from the fall of Adam down to His daily support of and interventions
in your life, and the price Christ paid through the Atonement to be able to
offer that mercy, is required if we are to understand our need for Christ and
be motivated to come to unto Him with a broken heart and contrite spirit or the
sacrifice of our whole souls, which is required of us if we are to enter in by
the Gate and experience the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost.
This is the experience (baptism of
fire or birth of the Spirit) that the Book of Mormon was designed to teach us
about (in power and clarity) and motivate us to seek after and experience for
ourselves.
After receiving this gift and
entering in by the Gate, we will have the Holy Spirit with us constantly – be
transformed by it (the Mind of God or record of Heaven) and can know the truth
of all things.
But our nothingness and absolute
need (called “being born again to see” or receiving the gift of godly sorrow)
is first required if we are to reach out to Christ with our whole souls (see
Alma 36:12-18; Omni 1:26); if we don’t receive this “gift” of insight regarding
our fundamental need for Christ, we will not offer the required sacrifice of
our whole souls – it will be seen by us as too great a sacrifice.
And the Book of Mormon teaches the
principles of the fall of man and our nothingness and God’s mercy more clearly
than any other book.
READ Moroni 10:4-5
Why
does God require that we pray about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon,
rather than providing more compelling proof?
He wants people to believe and
follow the doctrine of Christ laid out in the Book because they have begun to
have a relationship directly with Him, through the Holy Spirit.
He wants people to receive a direct
witness, through spiritual means – to experience hearing from Him – connecting
with Him themselves so that THEY can know Him – not rely on the testimonies of
those in the Book
The Spirit, bearing testimony to
the truth, is the basis for all conversion to Christ.
The process disconnects the individual
from the way in which things are usually learned (from mortal experts or
authority figures) and connects them with a new form of learning (directly from
Him via the Holy Spirit or mind of God).
If He just provided traditional
earthly proof, the great majority would “believe” the Book but would not go on
to know God by following its principles – which is the whole point of the Book
in the first place: to connect us each directly to God in a redemptive covenant
relationship.
Why
does knowing the truth of the Book of Mormon require a sincere heart, real
intent and faith in Christ?
You must desire to know before God
will tell you the truth; because as soon as you are told the truth, you must
act and the actions required will change your life as you submit to God’s will
instead of your own; these are not things to enter into lightly.
God will not violate your agency;
you must ask (exercise faith) before He will give you an answer.
When you act in faith on the small,
initial feelings you gain when you inquire of the Lord regarding the
truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, they will grow stronger until they
transcend feelings alone and become the whispering of God’s voice into your
mind.
Ultimately, the mighty change of
heart through the baptism of fire is the proof to you; the Book taught you
truths which you followed and are now a fundamentally different person than you
were before – something no amount of self-help books, will power, or therapy
could have done.
Does
the Holy Ghost really have the capacity to reveal all truth?
Yes.
The Holy Spirit knows all things
and if we associate ourselves with it so that it is within us, we can
comprehend and know all things or mysteries of Godliness, too (see Moses 6:61;
Alma 26:22; 1 Nephi 10:19; D&C 76:7).
The Holy Ghost is only constrained
by us, but we are a constraint! (see Alma 12:9-11; Jacob 4:8; Moses 1:5; Alma
40:3).
Everyone has access to all truth;
the Prophet Joseph Smith taught: “it is your privilege to purify yourselves and
come up to the same glory, and see for yourselves, and know for yourselves.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be
opened unto you.” (D&C 8:10-11; TPJS 19:1; Joel 2:28; Alma 32:22-23).
There is nothing off limits. It is
possible to ask for something you may not yet be prepared for, but by asking,
things are set in motion and those on the other side of the veil begin to help
prepare us. When we are prepared, we receive the answer. The answer is set into
motion as a consequence of the laws of God, one of which requires us to ask.
Blessings are predicated on laws. But it may take years of development and
preparation for us to receive the answer because we are not yet ready. God’s
answer will almost always be “yes.” However, if you are not ready for the response,
then He will work through a period of renovation and repair required before the
answer can be given. How long the tutoring lasts depends on each individual.
How
do we get the Holy Ghost and the truth it reveals?
We receive light and truth by obedience
to the Gospel.
Obedience to the commandments
(aligning ourselves with eternal law or God’s frequency) connects us to God
through the Spirit.
We are sanctified or quickened
through receiving His Spirit and we are changed, or our capacity to receive more
light, truth, Spirit, or intelligence is increased, until we receive a fullness
or become one with Him or “single” to His glory (see D&C 93:12-14; TPJS
390-393; D&C 88:67-68).
The falsehoods we prize in this
toxic environment keep us from receiving answers from God. As soon as you turn
away from world and turn to the truth, God begins to repair your soul. He will
only enter a temple that is holy… which temple we are. Your body is His temple.
The Lord whom you seek shall come suddenly to His temple. But it must not be
defiled, therefore repent and be clean.
What
are the differences between how God offers wisdom and truth vs. how the world
seeks to gain it and dispense it?
Power comes from connection to God
via the Holy Spirit (see D&C 132:7; D&C 121:37).
Power from the Holy Ghost is
available to all (see Alma 32:23; 2 Nephi 26:33), as they align their lives
with God’s “frequency” or light via keeping His commandments (aligning their
mind and actions with eternal law) and as they ask for further light and
knowledge or blessings.
But revelation is “messy” (from
man’s perspective) as the Lord will share what He will, when He will and to
whom He will, and the whole of it is rarely shared with a single person, as to
do so, they could no longer remain in the flesh (see Moses 1:5); so by
definition, everyone on earth has holes in their knowledge and understanding
which may present themselves as paradoxes or be incomprehensible and seem
irrational without the missing light and knowledge, and require faith in God to
believe.
However, the world does not trust
the Holy Ghost but puts its trust in scholarship, priestly authority, and
councils of men.
In addition, sophistication and credential
are required of earthly learning to make it acceptable to and respected by the
world.
And worldly learning must be
gestalt – it must hold together on rational grounds as an appealing and
holistic theological or scientific construct and cannot be held to ransom by
the whims of revelation and the “supernatural” (see JSH 1:19).
But there is nothing noteworthy in
skepticism; all people have it to one degree or another and must wage a battle
to overcome it, as it is a default position for everyone on earth.
Those who have the faith to part
the veil despite their many weaknesses and receive the ministry of angels and
behold the Lord are brave in the face of unbelief, disbelief, cynicism and
their own unworthiness.
Those who do not have the faith to
part the veil depend upon science, scholarship and priestly authority and while
they are “ever learning”, they never come to a knowledge of the truth (see 2
Timothy 3:7).
READ Moroni 10:6-7
Is
there a difference between “knowing that Christ is, by the power of the Holy
Ghost” and “knowing that Christ is, with a surety?”
Knowing that Christ is by the power
of the Holy Ghost requires that one “deny not His power” or gifts.
It requires that one understand
God’s character and attributes – that He is the same yesterday, today and
forever, so that they can exercise the requisite faith needed.
Knowing that Christ is with a
surety requires that one feel the wounds in His side, hands and feet (see 3
Nephi 11:14-15).
Knowing that Christ is by the power
of the Holy Ghost is preparatory to knowing that Christ is with a surety; but
that’s where it leads if pursued – “the enquiry frequently terminated, indeed,
always terminated when rightly pursued, in the most glorious discoveries and
eternal certainty” (LoF 2:56); there are no more glorious discoveries than to
know that Christ is the God of Israel and was slain for the sins of the world
with a surety (3 Nephi 11:8-17), and no revelation of your standing before God
will be given you with more eternal certainty than that given by Himself when
He stand before you, a living being with wounds which prove to all mortals and
now to you, that He is who He says He is and did what He said He did – and can
decree you saved.
The Power and Gifts of God
READ Moroni 10:8
Why
would the Lamanites in the latter days deny the gifts of God to the degree that
Moroni must warn them against it?
The Lamanites seem to be an
inherently more spiritual people, with very different cultural values
(community vs individual) and beliefs (spiritual vs scientific) than “Anglos”
or Gentiles (this is from my experience with the Navajo and Zuni and the
research I have done on the Lakota); for example, it is interesting that the
prevalence of Navajo witch stories (or “skinwalker”; yee naaldlooshii in Navajo)
near the borders of the reservation are much higher than in the deep or
interior reservation areas, as the characteristics of the witch matches what it
takes to be successful in American culture – they are cautionary tales to the
tribe members to beware of the selfish, individualistic traits that Gentiles
value.
So the warning would need to be
given because the latter day Lamanite Remnant have been influenced heavily by
us, the Gentiles (including both the general western culture and specifically,
the latter-day Gentile Church), to discount or deny the gifts and power of God;
Without our faith destroying
influences, they are much less likely to deny the gifts and power of God than Gentiles
are, as they are more inherently believing and attuned to spiritual frequencies
than we are (both light and dark) – or at least that has been my overriding
experience; I don’t know if the “blood of Israel” and their genetics (physical
or spiritual) plays a part in this or it is just a cultural phenomenon, but
it’s been demonstrable to a statistically significant degree, albeit
anecdotally.
What
does it mean that “there are different ways that these gifts are administered”
but it is the “same God who worketh all in all”?
As each individual who receives a
gift is unique, the way their gifts are manifested through the Holy Spirit,
which has quickened that person to be able to use their gifts, will be
different from individual to individual because the Spirit is working through
the unique person; in addition the light and knowledge they have each
personally accumulated (and in the way it was accumulated, which shapes them)
is different from person to person – and differs over time within the same
person.
It is not like a magic spell from
Harry Potter which each student must learn to perform perfectly according to
the law that governs such magic; spiritual gifts work at the level of the
individual’s spirit and how it interacts with the divine (in the form of the
Holy Spirit which fills the immensity of space and gives light and life to all
things) to transform the individual’s spirit, making it holy or a holy spirit
or a “holy ghost” within them; but as none are yet “precisely like Christ”
because they have not yet attained to the fullness, the manifestations of that
holy spirit (these spiritual gifts) will be different from person to person.
What
is God’s purpose in giving us spiritual gifts?
For mankind to profit from them.
To enable us to bless each other’s
lives (see D&C 46:12).
READ Moroni 10:9-16
What
is the difference between the “word of wisdom” and the “word of knowledge”?
Wisdom = the right use or exercise
of knowledge to the choicest of laudable ends, usually gained through
experience; discerning or judging what is most just, proper, useful and best
(see Webster’s 1828 Dictionary).
Knowledge = a clear and certain
perception of that which exists, or of truth and fact; illumination of the
mind; acquaintance with or cognizance of a fact, skill or person; gained
through observation and experience (see Webster’s 1828 Dictionary).
Wisdom is associated with the
female divine while knowledge is associated with the male divine (see Proverbs
8:1-11; 1 Samuel 23:23).
What
might be “different ways” the spiritual gifts listed might be “administered”?
Teach the word of wisdom: teach wisdom
in ways that only the wise can discern (1 Corinthians 2:4-7); receive wisdom
from God (James 1:5); teach line upon line (2 Nephi 28:30); as a remedial
vehicle when someone’s faith has failed them such that they can’t go to God
directly for wisdom (D&C 88:118).
Teach the word of knowledge:
through experience (Moses 4:11, 28; Isaiah 53:11; Alma 32:33-34); carefully
(Proverbs 12:23; Alma 12:9); through the Spirit (Alma 18:35); through study
(D&C 9:8).
Exceedingly great faith: by
sacrifice (LoF 6:7; Hebrews 11:4, 17); through one’s actions (James 2:14-20); a
principle of power (LoF 1:13-17; Moses 7:13; Ether 12;12); through trial (Ether
12:6); unto repentance (Alma 34:17); to be saved (3 Nephi 27:19).
Gifts of healing: through the
verbal word or command (Acts 3:6); physical acts (2 Kings 5:14; John 9:14);
touching (Matthew 14:36); bestowing virtue or the transfer of spiritual power
or light or energy from the healer to the one being healed (Luke 6:19; Luke
8:43-48).
Work mighty miracles: to show forth
God’s power (Exodus 3:20); to bless (Mark 1:34); to curse (1 Kings 18:18-40).
Prophesy concerning all things:
through dreams (Genesis 37:6-9); through instruments (Genesis 44:2-5; Abraham
3:1-4); through visions (1 Nephi 1:5-6); through visitations (JSH 1:30-43);
through ascending the fiery portal to heaven (Revelation 4:1-11).
Beholding of ministering angels and
spirits: as if they were men (Genesis 18:2; Hebrews 13:2); to protect (1 Nephi
3:28-30); to call to repentance (Mosiah 27:11-17); to minister (Matthew 4:11);
to teach (2 Nephi 11-12).
All kinds of tongues including
interpretation of languages and tongues: to preach the gospel in the language
of those who are listening (Acts 2:4-8); as a sign to disbelievers (1
Corinthians 14:22); to speak to God in His language (1 Corinthians 14:2); to
interpret for the edification of all (1 Corinthians 14:5-13).
READ Moroni 10:17-18
What
does “they come unto every man severally, according as he will” mean?
Each person receives spiritual
gifts, as they come with the light or Spirit of Christ which supports all life
and is given to every person (see D&C 84:46).
They don’t all come to an
individual (no one person has all the spiritual gifts) but “several” of them
come to each person (see D&C 46:11).
While spiritual gifts “come of” or come
“because of” Christ, they come to every person according “as he will” or “to
the degree he or she wants them and seeks after them with their will or
desire”; if this meant, “according to the will of God” it would have said
“according to His will” (see also D&C 46:8; 1 Corinthians 12:31; D&C
11:10).
Implied is that the spiritual gifts
we are given are the ones we seek after in faith and are our deepest desire
(which helps to constrain the number of gifts given to each person – they get
what they really want but can’t “wish for more wishes”).
READ Moroni 10:19, 24-25
Why
might the power of God and spiritual gifts be done away?
Because of unbelief – or believing
in things that are wrong.
It is interesting that he doesn’t
call out wickedness; it is because wickedness is by definition anything that is
unaligned with God’s will and Eternal Law.
Believing things that are wrong or
not believing the truth will lead you right to sin because you will not know
enough to avoid sin, much less to be saved or to manufacture the faith required
to part the veil receive a hope from Christ (TPJS 400:2; TPJS 245:2-246:1; TPJS
388:3).
However, the fact that we all have
the light of Christ given to us means that just because one was taught
“unbelief” or things that are wrong by their parents or church or society
doesn’t mean that they are unaccountable or absolved – they have still betrayed
themselves in turning away from the Spirit which whispered quietly to them that
something was wrong with what they were being taught.
The bottom line is that if people
refuse to listen to the Spirit and believe things that are wrong, they will act
in ways aligned with their beliefs and as a result, they will not come unto
Christ and the power of God and spiritual gifts which accompany a connection
with God will no longer be manifested among them.
What
kinds of unbelief might lead people to lose the gifts and power of God?
Belief that God has changed and
given His power or the “keys” of His power unto men (see 2 Nephi 28:5).
Belief that outward performances
controlled by men with earthly authority can substitute for an association with
heaven (all the way from the mighty change at the receipt of the baptism of
fire to receiving the Second Comforter and being sanctified and purified as
Christ is pure).
Belief that one is chosen when one
has only been called; that there is no additional revelation needed, that we
are already Zion or could easily build it as soon as we are commanded to do so
by our leaders, and as long as we “stay in the Good Ship Zion” until we are
“safely dead”, that the “odds are that we’ll be exalted” because they “can’t be
led astray”.
What
is Moroni’s definition of “good”?
His definition of “good” is being
filled with and displaying or working by the power and gifts of God.
READ Moroni 10:27-29, 34
Whose
words are Moroni speaking?
God’s words; not just God’s
concepts or Moroni’s ideas about God’s concepts – these are quotes from God via
the Holy Spirit or direct visitation.
Let there be no doubt about it;
because at the judgement bar of God, it will be confirmed to you by Moroni and
likely by God Himself.
How
will the Judgement Bar of God be “pleasing”?
If you have already been told the positive
outcome of the Judgement Bar by He to whom judgement is given – Christ, then it
will be pleasing. In other words, if you
have received a hope or promise of salvation (see LoF 6:2-6) and lived valiant
to the testimony Christ gave to you.
Perfect in Christ
READ Moroni 10:20-23
Why
must there also be hope if there is faith?
Because true faith leads
inextricably to receiving a hope or promise of salvation from Christ! It’s not that it might lead there if
you’re lucky or have a high calling or the Lord feels the need to give you a
“cherry on top” spiritual experience – faith in Christ leads to receiving a
hope or promise from Christ in the flesh (see LoF 2:54-56; 2 Nephi 32:1-7;
D&C 132:21-26), as Moroni is telling us here.
Why
can’t you be saved in the Kingdom of God without faith, hope and charity?
To be saved in the kingdom of God
requires that you are precisely like Christ, the prototype of the saved being
(see LoF 7:9); becoming like Him is to be filled with charity (see Moroni 7:48).
One cannot obtain a fullness of
charity unless one becomes a Son of God (see Moroni 7:48); this relationship is
sealed upon you by Christ when He gives you a promise or hope of salvation.
And one cannot receive the Second
Comforter or this hope of salvation unless you sacrifice all things in faith
unto Him in covenant which you abide by, so that your standing before Him is
pleasing to Him (see LoF 6:2-7).
If
you have not received a hope or promise of your salvation from Christ during
your mortal life, why are you in despair?
You will not be able to manufacture
the faith required to be saved, as you will have sufficient doubt in your mind
as to your standing (see LoF 6:8-12).
You will fear entering, unprepared and
without knowing you are forgiven, into the presence of God and will rather wish
you were extinct than face Him (see Alma 36:12-17; Mormon 9:2-5); you will
despair.
Why
have you not received a hope?
Iniquity.
Lack of faith caused by unbelief or
believing things that are not true and/or not believing things that are true.
The sad thing is that all of us
have iniquity within us – we’ve all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God
– but unbelief or believing things that are not true have will divert us (if we
don’t overcome them through humbling seeking after the guidance of the Spirit
regarding what is true and then repenting) from truly repenting of that
iniquity and seeking after receiving a hope or promise from Christ in the
flesh, and if we don’t actively seek after Christ, we won’t come unto Him – it
won’t happen based on luck and He won’t violate our agency by appearing to us
unbidden or unlooked for.
What
things are expedient unto Christ?
Expedient = being urged because it
is profitable and quick (see Webster’s 1828 Dictionary).
That we receive a hope of our
salvation from Christ.
How
can we do what is expedient for us to do, at Christ’s command, and part the
veil to receive a hope or promise from Him of our salvation?
We must exercise faith in Christ
unto salvation (see Ether 3:13); faith that He can save even fallen and lost
souls such as us, faith that leads to action, as if it was a 100% certainty.
The action is: come unto Him and
rend the veil in faith, offering our whole souls to Him and believing that He
will save us because He loves us and has attained to the atonement and
resurrection – even though when the veil is parted and we see Him, His glory
will overpower us and we will want to recoil in fear.
What
good news is implied by this?
That Christ wants us to part the
veil and receive this hope.
That we can do it if we exercise
faith in Christ, who is the same yesterday, today and forever.
That many in the Book of Mormon and
other scriptures have done this and entered into the Rest of the Lord or
fullness of His glory; and if they have and His Way is unchangeable, then we
can to – and we must if His work and glory is to be accomplished.
This is the fullness of the
gospel which has never changed and He has offered it to us from the beginning,
free of charge – all are free to come, who will come.
READ Moroni 10:30-33
What
does it mean to come unto Christ and by so doing lay hold on every good gift?
Moroni is exhorting or begging us
all to exercise the faith in Christ required to part the veil and know Him for
ourselves, that He may bless us with the choice blessings of exaltation that He
has prepared for us!
Every good gift comes through the
one gift which is our immortality and eternal life.
What
is the evil gift or unclean thing?
Any other gift than Christ’s gift
of exaltation.
Like the Aesop’s Fable of the Dog
and his reflection – having obtained a prize (meat), he sees his reflection in
the water as he crosses a bridge and wants the meat that the “other dog” he
sees is holding so he opens his mouth to seize the other piece of meat and
loses his own prize in the river – we can only “lay hold” to one kind of gift,
either they are good or they are evil and unclean; if we try to grab the
unclean we will lose the good gift and end up with less than we could have
received; this is particularly sad when the good gift was given to us in grace (it
is undeserved by us) but we did not care enough about it to prize it and keep
it safe.
Why
does Moroni raise the alarm to the House of Israel to “awake and arise”?
They are still asleep – they cannot
see – they are dreaming and think they are awake! They are laying down in the dirt unconscious,
unaware of the blessings that are theirs to claim if they will just awake and
get up and “put them on”.
Why
does Moroni use the metaphor of the clothing and tents?
Both speak to covering what needs
to be covered to protect something valuable within.
Beautiful clothing or garments are
“glorious” but also provide life sustaining protection from the elements.
Tents protect those within from the
elements but need to be big enough to accommodate all those who would seek
refuge within them.
Clothing is for a single person;
tents cover a family who live together – they provide a “house” (in this case,
a house of God); but the body is also a covering or “clothing” which provides a
“house” for a spirit – which can also be a temple or “house of God” which He
has promised to come to.
The Wedding Feast requires a
“garment” for each individual to wear, given by the Host, to enable them to be
dressed appropriately as a member of the family (adopted through covenant) to
enter the “House”, for the celebration (see Matthew 22:2-14).
What
is the connection between coming unto Christ and being perfected in Him, and
putting on the beautiful garments?
The Lord prepared the beautiful
garments to cover your nakedness from the skins of beasts that sacrificed
themselves at His hand.
But rams are not always found in
thickets, and the “skins” of the beasts used to create the wedding garment for
you is the light Christ gained by sacrificing Himself for you in
Gethsemane! For you are clothed in His
light to cover your sins in the presence of God or in other words, you are
“perfect in Christ”.
You must come unto Him in the flesh
to be clothed with light so that you can enter the presence of the Father and be
sealed up to eternal life (see 2 Nephi 32:6; D&C 88:75; Mosiah 5:15).
Why
does Moroni say “be perfected in Him” rather than “perfect yourself in Him”?
Christ does the perfecting.
It is His garment – he “wove” the
fabric and sewed the cloth when He wrought the atonement.
He is the one who clothes us in it.
We need only come unto Him in faith
and to receive the gift.
What
does it mean to be “perfect in Christ”?
Perfect means to wear the Wedding
Garment of light, provided to us by the Lord through His sacrifice.
He has declared us clean, through
His merits, not our own (see D&C 88:75).
It enables us to abide the glory of
God – to be “perfect” from God’s perspective because we are one with the Lord,
whose glory we have borrowed or been clothed in, until the day that we might
follow Him in all things and attain to the resurrection ourselves.
What
does it mean to be “perfected in Christ”?
Perfected means that through our
experience and His succor, He will see us perfected or become precisely as He
is (see Alma 7:11-13; D&C 122:7-9; LoF 7:9, 15-16; TPJS 390-393).
Joseph implies that this will not
all happen in this life and that there is a world/life or worlds/lives to come
(see D&C 130:18-21; TPJS 391-393; D&C 132:24-25).
What
is the end result of sanctification?
That we become holy, without spot
(see Alma 13:11-12).
That we become precisely like
Christ (see 3 Nephi 12:48; LoF 7:9, 15-16).
Christ
is our example in all things, how did He become perfect?
He continued from grace to grace
and from exaltation to exaltation until He received a fullness (see D&C
93:12-14; TPJS 391:2).
He did what His Father did – He
atoned for the sins of “His children” during a mortal probation and attained to
the resurrection Himself (see TPJS 390-391).
What
must we do to be perfected in Christ?
Deny ourselves ALL ungodliness.
Love God with ALL our might, mind
and strength.
In NOWISE deny the power of God.
Repent and work righteousness (see
Alma 13:7-10).
Sacrifice all things and learn from
suffering – becoming sanctified in the process (see Hebrews 2:10; LoF 6:7; 1
Peter 5:10; Alma 4:13; 2 Timothy 3:12; Helaman 3:34-35).
Overcome our weakness by coming
unto Christ in humility (see Ether 12:27; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10).
Keep His commandments and continue
from grace to grace that we may also be received into His presence to be called
a Son or Daughter of God, that we might be one or perfected or like Him and
able to abide the Eternal Law that He abides by (see D&C 93:12-14, 20;
Ether 3:20; Ether 4:6-7; John 17:21; 3 Nephi 19:23, 29; John 17:23; D&C
88:22, 34; LoF 7:9, 15-16; TPJS 390-393).
In conclusion, the grace of God,
through the atonement of Christ, provides us a covenant from the Father through
which we will BECOME holy, without spot or precisely as He and Christ are, not
that we ARE holy and without spot now.
We have a covenant that we must exercise faith in. He promises us that He will make us precisely
as Christ is, but the only Way is for us to do precisely what Christ did. Christ is now our Father and we must
eventually progress from eternity to eternity until we, ourselves, are able to
lay down our bodies and take them up again, or in other words, attain to the
resurrection of the dead and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings, so that
we tread in the tracks of our new Father, Jehovah, and inherit what He did
before, and Jehovah and Ahman are thus glorified and exalted in the exaltation
of others of their children – meaning us (see TPJS 390-393).
