Usurping Our Own Virtue

I have had several topics on my mind throughout the day today, but there was one that has seemingly stuck out in my mind constantly. The interesting thing is that the way I had been mulling over the topic was completely different than what occurred to me on the way home tonight from Stadium Singing. As I walked home following an hour of leading music, my mind was impressed to rehearse one of my most favorite sections of scripture in the Standard Works. As I rehearsed the verses in my mind, I was inspired to consider them a different way, which is what I will share here.

Those that know me fairly well know that by and large, my 2nd most favorite section of scripture is that which is found in the 121st Section of the Doctrine and Covenants - from verses 34 to 46. I will quote these verses for the sake of having contextual reference to the topic which I plan to discuss:

Behold, there are many called, but few are chosen. And why are they not chosen?
Because their hearts are set so much upon the things of this world and aspire to the honors of men that they do not learn this one lesson --
That the rights of the Priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and that the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness.
That they may be conferred upon us it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambitions, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold the heavens withdraw themselves, the Spirit of the Lord is grieved: and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man.
Behold, ere he is aware, he is left unto himself, to kick against the pricks , to persecute the saints, and to fight against God.
We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
Hence many are called, but few are chosen.
No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only be persuation, by long-suffering, by gentlenss and meekness, and by love unfeigned.
By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy and without guile --
Reproving betimes with sharpness when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth an increase of love toward him whom thou hast repoved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy;
The he may know that they faithfulness is stronger than the cords of death
Let they bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence og God; and the doctrine of the priesthood shall distill upon thy soul as the dews from heaven
The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth; and thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever.

So we've got all that right? We've heard it before, nothing new. I now submit a whole new perspective to view this scripture from with the use of one word: chastity.

I had not previously been impressed to consider it from this perspective previously until walking home tonight, but as I was inspired to consider this perspective it instantly became not only clear, but it enhanced my understanding of many things.

As we consider this block of scripture again, we can now consider the following points:

1. There are many called, but few are chosen - because we give up our "chosen" status by violating the law of chastity and disrespecting our own virtue and those that we are with. When we set our hearts upon the things of this world and to the honors of men, we find that as we violate the law of chastity we are doing just that. The world would teach us that it is okay to give into our carnal desires and submit to our natural will - and at times the world seems to "reward" this sort of an attitude, which is not only wrong, but it is dangerous.


2. Though the scriptures specifically suggest that the rights of the Priesthood are connected with the powers of heaven, and its accompanying explanation on how that Priesthood is governed, we ought to consider this reference to the Priesthood as referencing to one of the fruits of the Priesthood - the Holy Ghost. When we enter this into the discussion, we find that we not only offend the Spirit by gratifying our pride, our vain ambitions with each other, and unrighteously rob ourselves and another virtue, we also lose within ourselves the governing measure of the light of Christ given to us. At that point, we have NO authority to call upon the Holy Ghost to guide us.


3. We are then warned that once we are aware that we have caused a withdrawal of the Spirit from our lives, we are left to fight against the further desires that the adversary has to impose upon us, to persecute the saints - specifically those that call us to repentance or Church leaders that speak hardness to the hearts of those doing what they know to be wrong and to fight against the light of Christ within us and against the commandments which he has delivered to us.


4. We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get into a relationship and feel that they have complete control over it without the assistance and obedience to the law of Chastity, that they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion over themselves and their dating companion. I believe that this is self-explanatory here!


5. We are then given a long list of conditions that dictate our ability to govern the priesthood - which in this case we are considering that governance as the authority to call upon the Holy Ghost at will. We can only call upon the Holy Ghost when we are long-suffering, gentle, meek, and have genuine love in our hearts for ourselves and for those that we are in that relationship with - NOT that "feigned love" mentioned in the scripture there which can be defined in one word as "lust."


6. Those that notice that those around them are in violation of the law of Chastity are given specific prescription for how to deal with this situation - we are to "reprove betimes with sharpness when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved, lest he esteem thee to be his enemy;" - or in other words - we are censure those that we see in violation of the Law with EXACTNESS and CLARITY when we are moved upon by the Spirit to do so, and to do so in a loving way as to not cause offense, or become the bearer of hypocrisy mentioned in the prior scripture."


7. The most significant parallel we must consider in this scripture is in the 45th verse where we are commanded to "let virtue garnish [our] thoughts unceasingly." I submit to you: how can we allow virtue to garnish our thoughts unceasingly if we willingly put ourselves in a position where we have to monitor our own obedience to specific laws to the point where we question how close to "the line" we are or if we are splitting hairs to justify our actions? My explanation to this is that we CANNOT! If we have willingly placed ourselves into a position where our actions may appear evil to some, or make others uncomfortable, or we must constantly consider our own actions in relation to a watered-down obedience to certain laws, then it is wholly impossible to allow virtue to garnish our thoughts constantly. As such we lose the promise of the final verse of that chapter - in that we cannot have the Holy Ghost to be our constant companion or as a compulsory means of dominion over the Priesthood in righteousness. At that point, there IS an end to our flow of the spirit and it does not go on forever and ever.

How grateful I am for the inspiration of this scripture in a whole new light! This has helped me to understand the situation that I am currently facing within my life. No, I am not personally entrapped by a violation of the law of Chastity, but I do have those close to me that are perilously close to violating this and choose to rationalize their own salvation to the ground. As I've worried about this in my mind, my heart has been comforted knowing that the Lord will direct me through the Spirit to know how to address this situation. My testimony is strengthened because of this and my faith in the Lord has increased!

Anxiously Engaged in Glory

For today's post I was led to consider the words of the 58th Section of the Doctrine And Covenants. (As a side note, I should mention that I spell out the full name - and say it - of the work because I have been taught from a very young age that we do not abbreviate the Book of Mormon as the B.O.M or the Old Testament and New Testament as the O.T. and N.T. - and likewise we should not do the same for the Doctrine and Covenants). As I considered the words in this section, I have been brought to a greater understanding of the things that I need to do in my life in order to reach my fullest potential.

One of my favorite scriptures to quote is an old Scripture Mastery scripture - in verses 26-28 where we read the following:

For behold it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.

Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;

For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.

(Emphasis added)

Though I've quoted this many times, I don't think I've come to a very clear understanding of this scripture until I read it in context with the entire section tonight and really researched it a little.

The Princeton dictionary defines the word "anxious" as "dying (eagerly desirous)." While this may seem like a definition that we shrug our shoulders and follow up with a "yeah, and?", we must realize the context that this particular word was used in.

If we go back several verses, we read in the 2nd through the 7th verse, the following text:

For verily I say unto you, blessed is he that keepeth my commandments, whether in life or in death; and he that is faithful in tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven.

Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation.

For after much tribulation come the lessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.

Remember this, which I tell you before that you may lay it to heart, and receive that which is to follow.

Behold, verily I say unto you, for this cause I have sent you - that you might be obedient, and that your hearts might be prepared to bear testimony of the things which are to come;

And also that you might be honored in laying the foudnation, and in bearing record of the land upon which the Zion of God shall stand;

(Emphasis added)

This is yet another testament to us that we will be blessed for our faithfulness in tribulation, but notice the connection between this block of verse and the section of verse that I opened up with. If this evidence is not easily synthesized, allow me to cite an account from the lives of one of our Prophet's, Joseph F. Smith's, mother's that perhaps better illustrates my new understanding of this section:

“I recollect most vividly a circumstance that occurred in the days of my childhood. My mother was a widow, with a large family to provide for. One spring when we opened our potato pits, she had her boys get a load of the best potatoes and she took them to the tithing office; potatoes were scarce that season. I was a little boy at the time, and drove the team. When we drove up to the steps of the tithing office, ready to unload the potatoes, one of the clerks came out and said to my mother, ‘Widow Smith, it’s a shame that you should have to pay tithing.’ … He chided my mother for paying her tithing, called her anything but wise or prudent; and said there were others who were strong and able to work that were supported from the tithing office. My mother turned upon him and said: ‘… You ought to be ashamed of yourself. Would you deny me a blessing? If I did not pay my tithing, I should expect the Lord to withhold his blessings from me. I pay my tithing, not only because it is a law of God, but because I expect a blessing by doing it. By keeping this and other laws, I expect to prosper, and to be able to provide for my family.’ … She prospered because she obeyed the laws of God. She had abundance to sustain her family. We never lacked as much as many others did. … That widow was entitled to the privileges of the house of God. No ordinance of the gospel could be denied her, for she was obedient to the laws of God” (Gospel Doctrine, 5th ed. [1939], 228–29).

The principle that I have obtained from this section of scripture is that we should be expectant of the blessings which the Lord has cause to bless us with through our tribulations. We need not fear tribulation as a means of hard work and no reward, but rather, we must embrace it with the expectation that we will be blessed accordingly by the Lord - be it in this life or the next! This is literally the commandment given to us in that scripture mastery verse, which we better understand by reading the beginning of the section - that we should be eagerly desirous as we are engaged in a good cause - or in other words - expect the Lord to bless us for our good deeds.

Why is it that in times of tribulation that we often find ourselves wondering if the Atonement is sufficient enough to cover those trials? Why is it that at the first sign of trouble we expect the Lord to simply bail us out of the trial without regard to anything else but escape from that trial? I submit that this is an adversarial trick of the Fallen Son - that he has it in our minds to take our eyes off of the eternal blessings we gain from our trails. We must strive to further recognize and expect the Lord's hand to bless us when our specific tribulations have passed before our eyes. This is a claim that we are able to make upon eternal law based on our righteousness and obedience to the commandments, and more importantly, our exercise of agency in choosing not only to follow the boundaries that the Lord has prescribed, but also in choosing to claim those rewards that we have for us.

May we all strive to further recognize those blessings which the Lord has in store for us and be mindful of the claim that we have upon those is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

The Lord's Will Made Manifest Through Faithfulness

As I went about my morning today, I was frequently prompted to open up to the 63rd Section of the Doctrine and Covenants and read its contents. Brothers and Sisters, let me tell you, divine inspiration works! As many of you are aware, I've been struggling with a lot of personal things as of late and have just felt overwhelmed with many things in my life. As I read this and listened to some Church music in the background, I was brought to an overwhelming sense of peace and gratitude in knowing that my Father understands my needs and through the tender mercies of His Son's Atonement, that I can be touched in a way that let's me know that He is there.

Of the many verses that stuck out to me during my study today was the 22nd verse of this section which reads:

And now verily I say unto you, that as I said that I would make known my will unto you, behold I will make it known unto you, not by the way of commandment, for there are many who observe not to keep my commandments.

Now this isn't anything new to any of us, or is it? For me, this was particularly touching. How often do each one of us simply "strive to follow" the commandments and then expect that the Lord's will will be manifest to us in clear explanation? More specifically, do we just go through the motions of doing the things that we are supposed to do thinking that by doing so we will do just enough to illustrate our personal salvation and pathway to eternity? I submit to you that yeah, a lot of us probably do - including myself.

In the very next verse we are told:

But unto him that keepeth my commandments I will give the mysteries of my kingdom, and the same shall be in him a well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life.

As of late, I personally have struggled with just knowing what the Lord wants me to do and knowing how my eternal salvation was to play out in the eyes of the Lord. As I now examine myself, I realize that maybe I haven't been as diligent as I ought to have been in praying, reading the scriptures, and actually seeking to have the guidance of the Spirit in my life. Rather, I have simply come to expect that I would be blessed accordingly and that some of my deficiencies are the result of my natural spirit within and are forgivable.

The Lord clearly illustrates in verses prior and following the aforementioned verses that faith must be the mechanism for those signs to be delivered to us. Verse 9 clearly states that "faith cometh not by signs, but signs follow those that believe." Perhaps the most condemning verses are in verses 11 and 12:

Yea, signs come by faith, unto might works, for without faith, no man pleaseth God; and with whom God is angry he is not well pleased; wherefore unto such he showeth no signs, only in wrath unto their condemnation.

Wherefore, I, the Lord, am not pleased with those among you who have sought after signs and wonders for faith, and not for the good of men unto my glory.

As I came across these verses, the strains of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir filled my ears where I was reminded of the following verse:

Why should we mourn or think our lot is hard?
Tis not so, all is right!
Why should we think to earn a great reward,
If we now shun the fight?
Gird up your loins, fresh courage take
Our God will never us forsake,
And soon we'll have this tale to tell!
All is Well! All is Well!

(Hymns #30 - Come Come Ye Saints - Verse 2)

As I contemplated these words in the back of my mind, I was brought to the 20th verse of this scripture again where we are told:

Nevertheless, he that endureth in faith and doeth my will, the same shall overcome, and shall recieve an inheritance upon the earth when the day of transfiguration shall come.

This is a great promise to each and every one of us that struggle with trials in our lives. Not only will we overcome, but we stand to receive an incomprehensible inheritance from the Father following this life. This is, however, conditional upon our exercise of faith and the work described in the 37th verse of this section:

And that every man should take righteousness in his hands and faithfulness upon his loins, and lift a warning voice unto the inhabitants of the earth; and declare both by word and by flight that desolation shall come upon the wicked.

Note the two operative actions in the very beginning of this verse - to take righteousness and faithfulness upon us. We cannot simply stand by and expect that our living of the commandments is sufficient for salvation, nor can we expect that a tiny modicum of faith is going to protect us in the battle against the world, more specifically the adversary. As follow up to this, we are told in the 47th verse:

He that is faithful and endureth shall overcome the world

As a fitting closure to this section we read in the 66th verse:

These things remain to overcome through patience, that such may receive a more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, otherwise, a greater condemnation. Amen

How grateful we should be to have the agency placed in us by the Father to exercise faith and grow in our adversities. Those of us that stand idly by and expect the Lord to remove all tribulation in our lives not only bring upon ourselves condemnation, but we deny ourselves eternal blessings while at the same time place our own agency in jeopardy. We must choose on our own to overcome those trials placed before us, we cannot simply stand by and expect that they will pass us by or that we can complacently plow through them. As we are reminded in the Bible - "faith without works is dead, being alone."

If we wish to have the companionship if the Spirit in our lives, the knowledge of the will of the Father, and the joy of family and friends in our lives we must exhibit faith towards the understanding of the will of God, and then choose for ourselves to overcome those things which he in turn chooses to place into our lives for our benefit.