As I was recently studying a favorite Scripture Mastery scripture I was recently brought to the awareness of my own lack of understanding or comprehension of this entire verse. It is one that I know is oft repeated throughout much of the Church, but one that I feel that perhaps lacks the full recognizance necessary to properly promote the doctrines contained with in. If you open your sticks to 2 Nephi, Chapter 2, verse 27 you read:
Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.
Now, I bring your attention not to the heart of the verse that we most frequently focus on, but to the first two phrases of the verse which state that "men are free according to the flesh" and "all things are given them which are expedient unto men." How many of us have focused on the importance of these two phrases before, much less the footnotes attached to a couple of the words in these phrases? I'm guessing...probably very few of us.
When we cross-reference the footnote from the word "free" we are directed to Helaman 14:29-30:
29. And this to the intent that whosoever will believe might be saved and that whosoever will not believe, a righteous judgment might come upon them; and also if they are condemned they bring upon themselves their own condemnation.
30. And now remember, remember my brethren, that whosoever perisheth, perisheth unto himself; and whosoever doeth iniquity, doeth it unto himself; for behold, ye are free; ye are permitted to act for yourselfs; for behold, God hath given unto you a knowledge and he hath made you free.
Completely clear right? Okay...so maybe not exactly. When it suggests in this verse that we are free according to the flesh, maybe we can lengthen this and suggest that we are free according to the knowledge that we are given and according to the agency that we exercise amongst ourselves. This scripture also tells us that in essence - we have no one else to blame but ourselves for what we do. Yes, there are punishments affixed from God for what we do, but they are just that - affixed. This is to say that he doesn't mette out punishment subjectively or upon whom he wishes. Rather, he simply assigns that punishment to the crime and allows the great intercession of the Atonement to take place and apply mercy accordingly.
Now, what kind of a teacher would I be if I went through all of the footnotes provided and explained the interpretation for each and every one of them? I'll give you a hint - not a good one. Suffice it to say though, I will provide my summarization following:
When our Father tells us that something is expedient unto men - he is suggesting that it is good, sufficient, and for their well-being. Thus, for all things to be given to us - it suggests that he has given us the resources necessary for us to act for ourselves according to the sphere in which we reside. These resources include talents, leaders, scriptures, the Spirit, prophets, and a plethora of other beneficial aspects of life that are designed to allow us the most agency possible.
I believe that too often we become the figuratively lazy teenagers that make a half-hearted attempted at overcoming our problems and trials and then call for help in some way. While there is nothing wrong with asking for a little assistance here and there, we do have to recognize that we are literally agents unto ourselves and that we need to act accordingly, rather than react or be acted upon. When we place our burdens upon the Lord so often that we feel to be compelled in all things, we not only surrender that agency to ourselves, but we make light of and negate the talents and dominions which the Lord has bestowed upon us.
What exactly does it mean to be an agent? It means that we are held accountable to ourselves for all things that we do according to our knowledge. Thus you might say that the punishment fits the crime and the blessings are according to our faith and works. We can't expect to escape punishment for our shortfalls if we have had reason to act accordingly and chose not to. Thus, this fulfills the mandate that men are free according to the flesh.
Now, this is all well and good to be agents unto ourselves, but there is a twist. Should we use the agency given us in a self-destructive manner which allows the presence of Satan to become a dominant force in our lives, we lose our ability to be agents unto ourselves - either because the flesh has given itself slave to a more powerful and controlling force, or because we simply cannot obtain the guidance of the Spirit because it has been wronged. As such, our failure to do things the way that the Lord has provided leaves us on our own and as many scriptures suggest "left unto ourselves."
As we turn our lives more fully to the Savior we will find that our knowledge will continually increase and that we will have more dominion over ourselves and our choices. Let us all find ways that we can reapply ourselves to the Lord's plan and find the agency within ourselves that has been promised to us and guaranteed through the atoning blood of our Savior Jesus Christ.
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