"I Glory in Truth"

​It should come as no surprise to any of you that the governing core value at the top of my list is . . . 

   Truth.

I'll take the good, the bad, the ugly ― I'll take truth in all its manifestations.  

It's like Nephi said:

​   I glory in plainness;
   I glory in truth;
   I glory in my Jesus,
   for he hath redeemed
   my soul from hell.

(2 Nephi 33:6)

This is why I was shocked when Elder Boyd K. Packer criticized historians for "idolizing the truth."  (I have a bachelor's degree in history.)

What About Love?

But wait. 

Maybe truth isn't the best choice for my governing core value.  After all, isn't love the greatest of all? 

Why not choose love to preside over our hierarchy of values?

Well, charity certainly loves truth!  In fact, the apostle Paul said that charity "rejoiceth in the truth" (1 Cor. 13:6).

Think of it this way: if we love someone, or something, or anything, more than we love the truth, then what does that say about our integrity?

Where does our loyalty lie?  

Once we start making concessions and compromising the truth in order to protect a person or the Church, then we don't love the truth, we use the truth (like a utilitarian).

So, as for me and my house:

   I have chosen the way of truth:
   thy judgments, Lord, have I laid
   before me.

(Psalms 119:30)

The Word of God is Truth

​​Love thrives in an environment of truth.  It withers in an environment of gaslighting.

As Jesus taught:

   And ye shall know the truth,
   and the truth shall make you free.

(John 8:32)

On the other hand, when we seek to control others, and curate the information they have access to, and enforce political correctness in our speech (i.e. not using the word "Mormon"), then we show a lack of respect for the truth, because manipulating others and the truth corrupts our love and darkens our minds.

   For the word of the Lord is truth,
   and whatsoever is truth is light,
   and whatsoever is light is Spirit,
   even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

(D&C 84:45)

But What is "Truth?"

Here's the problem: how do we know what is "truth?"  

Remember what happened when Moses confronted Pharaoh ("Let my people go!") and turned Aaron's staff into a serpent? 

Well, Pharaoh's prophets duplicated the miracle and turned their rods into snakes, too. 

How do we discern between truth and imitated-truth when they look alike?

Today, how do we discern between true messengers from our Father and those who pretend to be? 

Jesus said, "By their fruits ye shall know them." 

​I suggest we want to look closely at whether a person bears the fruit of truth.

Fruit of Truth

Jesus is the Word of God.  He is also the Fruit of Truth.

   The Spirit of truth
   is of God.
   I am
   the Spirit of truth.

(D&C 93:26)

​The way to judge whether something is of Him (or, of the "truth") is given by our buddy Mormon:

   And now, my brethren, seeing that ye know
   [this is not speculative, it is something concrete]
   the light by which ye may judge,
   which light is the light of Christ,
   [see, we do not measure truth by what others say: it is the light within us from Christ that guides us]
   see that ye do not judge wrongfully;
   for with that same judgment which ye judge
   ye shall also be judged.

   Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren,
   that ye should search diligently
   in the light of Christ
   [this is where truth dwells; not in the philosophies of men or platitudes delivered from the pulpit]
   that ye may know good from evil;
   and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing,
   and condemn it not,
   [let's not condemn others for following the light of Christ over the traditions of men]
   ye certainly will be a child of Christ.

(Moroni 7:18-19)

Notice what makes us "a child of Christ?" 

The thing that qualifies us as His children is whether we follow the "light of Christ" he has given us.

"Milk Before Meat?"

The way we use the idea of "milk before meat" in the Church is a farce.  Forget about it.

   Why? 

Because it is a way of keeping us jejune.

   Jejune.  Adj. "Naïve, simplistic, and superficial."

Listen: they promise "meat" but there is no meat coming. 

   It is all milk, and will always be.

On the other hand, Jesus promised:

   Howbeit when he,
   the Spirit of truth,
   is come,
   he will guide you
   into all truth.

(John 16:13)

That's right: Jesus is willing to give us the whole enchilada.  All the meat. 

He holds nothing back, only according to the heed and diligence we give Him, our light growing brighter and brighter (yes, the same light we've been discussing, the light of truth) until the perfect day.

​THIS IS HOW WE WORSHIP GOD. 

Let me repeat: the way we worship God is by growing brighter in His light.

   The true worshippers
   shall worship the Father
   in spirit and in truth.

(John 4:23)

Going to cathedrals and chapels on Sunday is NOT worshipping.  Obeying the light of Christ is.

Does the Church Have a Problem with Truth?
​
I think one of the reasons we have not been very successful in building Zion is because the Church has a complicated relationship with the truth.

​Whereas, a Zion people has no reason to shy away from the truth:

   Thus saith the Lord;
   I am returned unto Zion,
   and will dwell in the midst
   of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem
   shall be called a city of truth.

(Zech. 8:3)

While the New Jerusalem is "a city of truth," can the same be said about Salt Lake City?

I think we are more deserving of the words of Jeremiah, who said:

   They bend their tongues
   like their bow for lies:
   but they are not valiant for the truth
   upon the earth; for they proceed
   from evil to evil, and they know not me,
   saith the Lord.

(Jeremiah 9:3)

Here Jeremiah excoriates the people of God for talking out of both sides of their mouths.

Instead of straight talk, we get the forked tongue of public relations and damage control, of plausible deniability and false impressions.

Aren't you tired of all the deceit?  Malachi was.  

Malachi told the religious leaders in his day:

   And now, O ye priests,
   this commandment is for you.

   The law of truth was in his mouth,
   and iniquity was not found in his lips:
   he walked with me in peace and equity,
   and did turn many away from iniquity.

   For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge,
   and they should seek the law at his mouth:
   for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.

   But ye are departed out of the way;
   ye have caused many to stumble at the law;
   ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi,
   saith the Lord of hosts.

(Malachi 2:1, 7-8)

Malachi is accusing the religious leaders of departing from the way of truth.  They have broken God's law of honesty.

Why would they do that?  Well, Isaiah explains it for us.  Even though he was in the Southern Kingdom, it looks like everyone is dealing with the same problem:

   None calleth for justice,
   nor any pleadeth for truth:
   they trust in vanity,
   and speak lies;
   they conceive mischief,
   and bring forth iniquity.

(Isaiah 59:4)

If you're wondering why religion gets such a bad rap and why members are quitting Churches by droves, look no further.  

   We crave greater integrity from our leaders and cannot find it.

I Will Die For . . . .

​Yes, we're all gonna die.  So we might as well make it count.

What is your governing core value?

Let's see what our moral compass is, shall we?  Which direction does the needle point?

We each maintain an internal ranking of principles and values.  

Values are not co-equal.  Sometimes they clash and we have to choose between them.  How do we decide? 

How do we decide between mercy or justice?  Between truth or loyalty?  Between love or honor?  

Which virtue sits atop our hierarchy of values?

Church History

A good example of how this clash of values plays out in real time is the way in which we believe Church history should be portrayed. 

Remember the debate over Church history between Elder Boyd K. Packer (an apostle) and D. Michael Quinn (a BYU history professor)?

Quinn believed telling the truth about Church History supported mature faith and was more honest than hiding the facts; on the other hand Elder Packer believed some truths aren't very useful. 

"Some things that are true are not very useful."

In 1981 Elder Packer gave his seminal talk, "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater than the Intellect." 

Let's see if we can discern Elder Packer's governing core values from what he says in the talk.

His statement, "Some things that are true are not very useful," shows a very utilitarian mindset.  

If you're unfamiliar with that concept, the doctrine of utilitarianism (i.e., "the end justifies the means") is simple: "An action is right insofar as it promotes happiness, and that the greatest happiness of the greatest number should be the guiding principle of conduct."

Using Church history as his example, Elder Packer told the CES teachers, "Your objective should be that [your students] will see the hand of the Lord in every hour and every moment of the Church from its beginning till now."

Elder Packer's top priority seems to be the promotion of faith in the Church (and its leaders) ― even over the truth per se. 

In fact, Elder Packer's statement shows he believed truth to be something intrinsically value-less, meaning that truth could be wielded for good (to build faith) but could as easily serve to destroy faith, which would be bad.

In this way, truth becomes inherently untrustworthy and must be vetted for its effect before any value-judgment as to a particular truth can be made.

This is all very utilitarian.  I mean, haven't we all heard of "lying for the Lord?"  Our Church has practically made it one of our articles of faith.

Using the malleability of truth as though it were taffy, we can shape our history into anything we want, as a carpenter shapes a piece of raw wood into a tool of his choice.  

   In this case, a tool for indoctrination.

Too strong of a word?  Let's see.

Spiritual Utilitarians

I want to suggest something:

   Satan was a spiritual utilitarian.

In the War in Heaven, Satan was willing to sacrifice the agency of man in order for "none to be lost."

In other words, Satan believed the greatest good (our collective, universal salvation) would justify doing something very wicked (removing our agency).

I can't fault Satan for his desire that we all be saved, but I certainly take issue with his methods.

Even today we see those in authority who are willing to trample over our agency to achieve what they suppose to be a "greater good."

But when we value loyalty to an institution above the truth, and when we approach truth as a utilitarian tool, are we following in Satan's footsteps?

If being "in line" with leadership is a greater virtue than the truth itself, then whether leadership is right or wrong doesn't matter because truth is no longer independent of their authority; at that point, what is right is merely a reflection of what those in charge say is right.

​And thus we see the great error in Satan's plan: utilitarianism always succumbs to the growing quicksand of arbitrariness and relativity that it creates.

An Interesting Anecdote

D. Michael Quinn was interviewed for his history professorship at BYU by Elder Packer.  Brother Quinn recalled:

"When Elder Packer interviewed me as a prospective member of Brigham Young University's faculty in 1976, he explained: 'I have a hard time with historians because they idolize the truth. The truth is not uplifting; it destroys. I could tell most of the secretaries in the church office building that they are ugly and fat. That would be the truth, but it would hurt and destroy them. Historians should tell only that part of the truth that is inspiring and uplifting.'"

These views are found in ​Elder Packer writings and in the way he governed the Church. 

Elder Packer said, "If you viewed Rembrandt only in black and white, you would miss most of his inspiration."

The reason this analogy strikes me as odd is because this is what Elder Packer proposes we do with Church history: that we make it black and white by ignoring the mistakes, imperfections, and missteps in our past and in the lives of our leaders (which in my opinion denies God the glory of working through such poor vessels).

Soon after Elder Packer gave his talk, Brother Quinn gave a rebuttal to the honor students at BYU in his remarks, "On Being a Mormon Historian."

"Sacred History (which is contained in the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price) is an absolute refutation of the kind of history Elder Packer seems to be advocating. . . .

"Sacred History presents God's leaders as understandable human beings with whom the reader can identify because of their weaknesses at the same time he reveres the prophetic mantle.  Sacred History enriches the lives of the readers by encouraging them to identify and empathize with fallible, human prophets, rather than discouraging them by presenting the prophets as otherworldly personages for whom the reader can feel only awe and adoration.
​
"The History advocated by Elder Packer . . . is intended to protect the Saints, but actually disillusions them and makes them vulnerable. . . . The tragic reality is that there have been occasions when Church leaders, teachers, and writers have not told the truth they knew about difficulties of the Mormon past, but have offered to the Saints instead a mixture of platitudes, half-truths, omissions, and plausible denials.  Elder Packer and others would justify this because 'we are at war with the adversary.'"

So I ask, again:

   What is your governing core value?

What Should Serve As Our Compass?

Have I misplaced my Liahona? I know I placed it next to my keys and reading glasses.  Where did it go?

Well, I wish I had a Liahona.  How about you? 

Wouldn't it be nice to wake up and stumble out of our tent door, and find lying there some cool alien tech?

Curious, isn't it?  

Well, do we actually need a physical object to guide us?

Or is the Holy Ghost considered a factory upgrade?

​How Do Compasses Work?

A compass is useless if we do not know where we're going, or the correct direction to be traveling.

Let me repeat that.  A compass is useless if we do not know where we're going.

In other words, compasses can only point us in the direction we've already chosen.  Sorry to say, but a compass cannot decide our destination for us.

I just want to be completely clear about this point.

   Don't blame the compass if we're lost.

​How Do I Make My Compass Work?  

​A compass is just a magnet.

You see, you place a little magnet on a needle point.  Then you position the needle on a free rotating pivot. 

(Before we got sophisticated, they used to put the needle in a bowl of water since there was little friction on the surface of the water, allowing the magnet to rotate freely.)

So what causes the needle move?

   Electromagnetism.  

Or, the earth's magnetic field that is generated by flowing liquid metal in the outer core of our planet.

Or, according to Mormon:

   The ball or director,
   which led our fathers
   through the wilderness,
   which was prepared
   by the hand of the Lord
   that thereby they might be led,
   every one according 
   to the heed and diligence
   which they gave unto him.

(Mosiah 1:16)

The compass needle's magnet responds to external electromagnetic forces, detecting what is invisible to our naked eyes.

Likewise, we are surrounded by spiritual forces that are not discernable with our natural eyes.

So in reality a compass is something that allows us to navigate using invisible forces that we are blind to behold.

   Talk about faith!

The Word of God is a Magnet

I want to try a word-link. 

Besides the Liahona, what else are we supposed to give "heed and diligence" to in order to feel our way out of these mists of darkness?

   . . . great prosperity in the church
   because of their . . . [wait for it] 
   heed and diligence
   which they gave unto 
   the word of God.

(Alma 49:30)

So we won't find the word "magnet" in the scriptures.   

What other word could we use?  Something that has the power of attraction?  The power to draw things towards it?

One possibility, I think, is charity. 

Christ’s love is the lodestone that draws us back to the Father like the gravitational pull of a star. 

Jesus explained:

   And for this cause
   have I been lifted up;
   therefore, according to
   the power of the Father
   I will draw all men unto me.

(3 Nephi 27:15)

The Savior's pure love is a magnet.

It is the power by which he "draws" us to him.

The verb "to draw" means "to cause to move in a particular direction by or as if by a pulling force; to bring, take, or pull out; to bring toward oneself or itself, as by inherent force or influence; attract.” 

Gravity keeps us planted on the ground: charity keeps us rooted in Christ.

Why Did Jesus Always Point to the Father?

Jesus really loved his Father, didn't he?  Is that why he always pointed us to Heavenly Father, to True North?

In one of my favorite verse of the New Testament, Jesus says:

​   And he that sent me
   is with me:
   the Father
   hath not left me
   alone;
   for I do always
   those things
   that please him.

(John 8:29)

There's the key.

Sometimes pleasing God means we make others happy; other times pleasing God means we make others very mad.  

   Just as Jesus showed us.

A Broken Compass: Religion and the Traditions of the Fathers

The point I want to make is this: We must never seek to please others.  

That sounds kind of selfish, doesn't it?  Well, we aren't here to please ourselves, either. 

Unfortunately, the whole business of religion is about pleasing others and ourselves, isn't it?  

We please our priest, or pastor, or bishop, or spouse, or parents, or ourselves, when we follow their traditions or rules, their teachings and commandments, their religious observances and ways of doing things.  It makes us feel good to be so . . . good!

But what happens when God calls us apart? 

What happens when God calls you to leave the 99 and go after the one?

What happens when God calls you to abandon the things that you were taught by your parents were right, as He did when he called Abraham to forsake the the foolishness of his idolatrous father, Terah?

I suspect that made Terah quite upset.  After all, Abraham was more concerned with pleasing God than being a dutiful son!

Days May Be Long in the Land

I hope our compass needles do not point to our parents, or spouses, or children, or religious leaders.  While we love them dearly, they are not the life and light of our galaxy.

I do not wish to hitch my star to a dying red giant or white dwarf; I wish to sail through eternity sealed to the Bright and Morning Star.

Let us pin our lives and point our needle to God alone, with an eye single to His glory.

"But Tim," someone says.  "Aren't we supposed to honor our father and our mother?"
​
Oh yes.  And the best way to honor them is to please God.

   He that loveth father or mother
   more than me is not worthy of me:
   and he that loveth son or daughter
   more than me is not worthy of me.

(Matthew 10:37)

Where's the Punchline?

A famous politician died and stood before St. Peter at the Pearly Gates.  

"Do you wish to go to heaven or hell?" asked St. Peter.

The politician thought for a moment and St. Peter said, "You know, before you choose, why don't you spend a day in hell and then you can try a day in heaven to see which you prefer."

"Okay," said the man, and he awoke in hell to the most amazing smells of fresh brewed coffee, grass, and baking bread. 

A nicely-dressed man greeted him and said, "I'm Satan.  Welcome to my home.  We only have 24 hours, so no time to lose, my friend!"  The devil handed the man a martini.

The accommodations were magnificent.  The food was ambrosia in his mouth.  Everybody was friendly.  He was in paradise.

The man played golf on a first-class course.  He was reunited with his wife who had the body of a 20-year-old.  She kissed him and he felt passion surging through his body as they dined on lobster and king crab.

Wherever they went, people smiled and cheered him on.  He had never had so much fun in all his life.

At the conclusion of his day in hell, he found himself back with St. Peter.

"Are you ready now for your day in heaven?" St. Peter asked.

"Oh, that's not necessary," said the politician.  "I think I'll be quite happy in hell, thank you very much."

"Very well," said St. Peter, and sent him away.

The man awoke in hell again. 

​This time he heard screams and smelled the most foul stench.  The walls dripped blood and his wife appeared like a zombie.  Maggots crawled on the floor.

"What happened?!" cried the man, distraught.  

Satan appeared. "Oh, yesterday we were campaigning," he shrugged.  "But today you voted."

"Who You Gonna Call?"

I hope the last post made something abundantly clear from our study of Isaiah 19:

The government will be powerless to stop the coming calamity.  

Despite all of their power, might, and money; despite their industrial-military complexes; despite all their advanced technologies and tanks and Blackhawk helicopters and Area 51's . . . .

   they fail.

So let's not pin our hopes on political saviors rescuing us from the end-time events. 

(I mean, it would be ironic if we trusted in the arm of flesh when flies start eating that arm of flesh, right? See D&C 29:18).

Isaiah explained:

   And there shall be nothing
   the Egyptians can do about it,
   neither head nor tail,
   palm top or reed.

(Isaiah 19:15, Gileadi translation)

Now, we can expect the government and military to try all kinds of things to put out the fires.  But all their machinations will be ineffectual.

   The ministers of Zoan are utter fools;
   (sounds about right, no?)
   the wisest of Pharaoh's advisers
   give absurd counsel.

   Where are your wise men indeed?
   Let them please tell you,
   if they can discern it,
   what Jehovah of Hosts
   has in mind for Egypt!

(Isaiah 19:11-12)

On a personal note, I kept waiting during the COVID pandemic (remember that one? that transformed our society?) for a Captain Moroni to appear on the scene and raise a modern Title of Liberty.

   It didn't happen.

Unless you count this . . .

. . . So should we be waiting for One Mighty and Strong to come and save the day?

Will a modern-day Lachoneus come and spare us from the Gadianton Robbers?

One Mighty and Strong

Let's talk for a minute about the One Mighty and Strong.

You're either quite familiar with the One M&S, or you haven't heard of it at all.

We find a description of this being in D&C 85, which excerpts a letter Joseph Smith wrote in 1832 to W.W. Phelps. 

In it, Joseph records:

Yea, thus saith the still small voice, which whispereth through and pierceth all things, and often times it maketh my bones to quake while it maketh manifest, saying:

And it shall come to pass that I, the Lord God, will send one mighty and strong, holding the scepter of power in his hand, clothed with light for a covering, whose mouth shall utter words, eternal words; while his bowels shall be a fountain of truth, to set in order the house of God, and to arrange by lot the inheritances of the saints whose names are found, and the names of their fathers, and of their children, enrolled in the book of the law of God.

​(D&C 85:6-7)

From this passage, we learn that the One M&S will:

   1.  Be sent by the Lord God;
  
   2.  Hold a scepter of power;

   3.  Be clothed with light;

   4.  Have bowels filled with truth;

   5.  Set in order the house of God (because, you know, it's gotten so messy: empty pizza boxes strewn on the couch and half-drunk bottles of warm beer besides the TV and Doritos littering the carpet after some heavy partying); and

   6.  Arrange the inheritances of the saints.

Hmmm.  Who could this be?

A Little History on D&C 85

In 1831 church leaders began to move to Jackson County, Missouri to lay the economic and spiritual foundations for the Holy City of the New Jerusalem (see D&C 58:7).

First among those called was Edward Partridge, the first bishop of the Church.

In answer to his call, Partridge left his business in Painseville, Ohio (where missionaries had found him just a few months earlier) and moved to Missouri to devote himself entirely to building the Kingdom of God (see D&C 41).

Specifically, the Lord commissioned Partridge to receive the consecrated properties of the gathering saints and to assign inheritances to them sufficient for their needs, and then to use the surplus to buy more property and “administer to those who have not” (D&C 42:29-34). 

Among the other early converts called to Missouri to build Zion was William W. Phelps.  Phelps was a New Jersey native who converted in June 1831.

Prior to his conversion, Phelps had edited a newspaper in Canindaigua, New York.  As with Partridge, the Lord called Phelps to redirect his abilities to holier ends, “as a printer unto the church” (D&C 57:11).

Both men, along with others, were commanded to “be planted in the land of Zion, as speedily as can be, with their families, to do those things even as I have spoken.  And now concerning the gathering—Let the bishop and the agent make preparations for those families which have been commanded to come to this land, as soon as possible, and plant them in their inheritance” (D&C 57:14-15). 

Like Partridge, Phelps heeded the call and relocated to Independence, Missouri, along with other Latter-day Saints who began to zealously gather to Independence in anticipation of the impending Millennium.

Zealously, but not always sincerely, for some came with little or no intention of keeping the law of consecration.  For example, future apostle William McLellin forsook a mission call to get to Independence early to buy two lots on Main Street (you really gotta buy when the market's low, right?).

McLellin circumvented Bishop Partridge in order to personally profit from real estate appreciation.  

So on 27 November 1832, Joseph Smith wrote from Ohio to W.W. Phelps (who was in Independence), to answer the question that troubled Phelps and, presumably, other leaders in Zion:

"What shall become of those who are essaying to come up unto Zion, in order to keep the commandments of God, and yet receive not their inheritance by consecrations, by order of deed from the Bishop, the man that God has appointed in a legal way, agreeably to the law given to organize and regulate the Church."

(Joseph Smith Papers,  JS Letterbook 1, pp. 1–4; handwriting of JS and Frederick G. Williams; https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/letter-to-william-w-phelps-27-november-1832/1#source-note)

Isaiah Mentions One Mighty and Strong, Too?

It's interesting that we encounter this One M&S in Isaiah, too:

   My Lord has in store
   one mighty and strong:
   as a ravaging hailstorm
   sweeping down
   or like an inundating deluge
   of mighty waters,
   he will hurl them [the Ephraimites]
   to the ground by his hand.

(Isaiah 28:2)

Anyway, it appears this "hand" of the Lord is a person who is going to come as a Davidic Servant to deliver the repentant remnant of Israel from their enemies, described as a "hailstorm" and "flood."

That'll be exciting, won't it!

So You Wanna See the Future?

If only Doc Brown and Marty McFly had taken their Delorean into the Millennium! 

"Great Scott, Marty!  Can you believe the size of those pearls?!"

   And the twelve gates were twelve pearls;
   every several gate was of one pearl:
   and the street of the city was pure gold,
   as it were transparent glass.

   And I saw no temple therein:
   for the Lord God Almighty
   and the Lamb are the temple of it.

(Revelation 21:21-22)

Wouldn't it be great if Doc and Marty had brought back useful information about how the end times shake out?

Well, since no one has invented a flux capacitor yet, we'll just have to rely on the revealed word of God.

Egypt and the United States

I want to look at Isaiah 19 in particular (which is not in the Book of Mormon).  

Why Isaiah 19?  Because it deals with prophecies concerning the United States, which is where I live.  And so I am very interested in Isaiah 19.

A key to the text is to remember that Egypt is a type for the United  States in the last days.

In our study of the following verses, I am going to take a literal interpretation (but you may also take a spiritual interpretation since Isaiah often speaks on multiple levels).

Time of Desolation

Watch now as Isaiah describes the environmental conditions that shall befall the United States:

   The rivers shall turn foul,
   and Egypt's waterways recede 
   and dry up.  
   Reeds and rushes shall whither;
   vegetation adjoining canals
   and estuaries and all things sown
   along irrigation channels,
   shall shrivel and blow away
   and be no more.

(Isaiah 19:6-7)

It appears that water will be short supply, making growing food nearly impossible. 

This leads to famine.  Our foodstuffs shall "shrivel and blow away and be no more."

   Fishermen will deplore their lot
   and anglers in canals bemoan themselves;
   those who cast nets on water
   will be in misery.
   Manufacturers of combed linen
   and weavers of fine fabrics
   will be dismayed.
   The textile workers will know despair,
   and all who work for wages
   suffer distress.

(Isaiah 19:8-10)

Okay, here we get a bird's eye view of what's going on with American manufacturing and productivity.  

Look at the descriptions that Isaiah emphasizes over and over to get his point across about the emotional condition of the people:

   - deplore
   - bemoan
   - misery
   - dismayed
   - despair
   - distress

Not a rosy picture.  This reminds me of something Moroni taught about "despair."

   And if ye have no hope
   ye must needs be in despair;
   and despair cometh
   because of iniquity.

(Moroni 10:22)

Among the wicked, it appears there is no hope.  Why?  Because they are reaping the fruits of the iniquity that we have sown.

You'd think this would produce humility and cause the people to repent, right?

Well, if the Nephites are any indication, that is not what happens.  The peoples' misery does not lead to repentance but to death.

   Their sorrowing was not unto repentance,
   because of the goodness of God;
   but it was rather the sorrowing of the damned,
   because the Lord would not always suffer
   them to take happiness in sin.

   And they did not come unto Jesus
   with broken hearts and contrite spirits,
   but they did curse God, and wish to die.
   Nevertheless they would struggle
   with the sword for their lives.

   And it came to pass that my sorrow
   did return unto me again,
   and I saw that the day of grace was passed
   with them, both temporally and spiritually;
   for I saw thousands of them hewn down
   in open rebellion against their God,
   and heaped up as dung
   upon the face of the land.

(Mormon 2:13-15)

These are sobering words, but I hope you'll continue reading, because it really does get better!

When the Wicked Rule, the People Mourn

Now Isaiah turns his attention to the governmental leaders of the United States:

   The ministers of Zoan have been foolish,
   the officials of Noph deluded;
   the heads of state have led Egypt astray.

(Isaiah 19:13)

Well, this needs a little explanation.  "Zoan" was made a capitol city by Esarhaddon when Egypt was divided; it became a great city ruled over by Rameses II.

"Noph" is translated elsewhere "Memphis," which was the greatest city in upper Egypt.  Memphis, by the way, means "the port of goods."

So we see that the leaders have been deceived, or led astray.  All of their scheming and plans come to naught.

   Jehovah has permeated them
   with a spirit of confusion;
   they have misled Egypt in all that it does;
   causing it to stagger like a drunkard
   into his vomit.

(Isaiah 19:14)

This is a vivid image: the United States "staggers" around like a drunkard, who invariably collapses onto the ground. 

In this case, he face plants into a pool of his own vomit.

A drunkard is unconscious but is not dead, although he appears to be.

​   . . . in the next post, we will finish Isaiah 19 and the wonderful promises that the Lord makes to His people in it.  

Choose Your Own Adventure: Apostle Edition

In this Series, "Give Heed to This Compass," we're discussing ways to increase our discernment to "hear" the word of Christ better, clearer, and more often.

One of the challenges we face is distinguishing the words of Christ amid the spaghetti soup of words we hear from various religious authorities.

When is a prophet speaking as a prophet, and when is he just shootin' the bull as a man (or woman)?

   Part One.  Gold and Silver Have I None. 

Soon after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, two of his intrepid apostles, Peter and John, were at the temple when suddenly a pan handler interrupted their prayers (how rude!) and begged them for money.  

The beggar, by the way, was crippled.  

Now, if this encounter had taken place today at the Conference Center during General Conference, and a beggar approached one of the apostles as they exited the building, what would happen?

Choose One of the Following:

   1.  The beggar would be escorted away by security; 

   2. The apostle would reach into his wallet and place a $20 bill in the man's hand;

   3. The apostle would ask the man's name in order to contact his bishop and get him some assistance;

   4. The apostle would lay his hands upon the man's head and bless him to know how much God loves him.

Well, which option did you choose?  Did you notice that I didn't even offer as a choice the thing that Peter actually did? 

   Why? 

   Then Peter said:
   Silver and gold have I none
   [Oh, come on! What kind of apostles are these, anyway?  Poor and destitute?  This story isn't very realistic, is it. Where is Peter's limitless company-issued black credit card?]
   but such as I have
   give I thee:
   In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth
   [Notice who gets credit.  When we tell others to follow the prophet, are we giving the prophet more credit than Christ?]
   rise up and walk.

(Acts 3:6)

Peter grasped the man by the right hand and lifted him up. 

The crippled man jumped for joy ― walking and leaping and praising . . . Peter? 

   No. 

The man praised God (Acts 3:8).

This Stuff Writes Itself

Earlier this week I read from the Church Newsroom an account of President Nelson's recent visit to the Saints in California.

(https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/president-nelson-three-invitations-to-latter-day-saints-california)

The Church Newsroom reported that Elder Brent H. Nielson of the Presidency of the Seventy spoke at the conference "of the importance of following the counsel of prophets."  

Then, lo-and-behold, Sister Wendy Nelson arose and ― according to the Church Newsroom ― "spoke of the importance of prophets."

What is going on here?  Help me!  Weren't we supposed to:

   talk of Christ
   rejoice in Christ
   preach of Christ
   prophesy of Christ

What happened?

When did my relationship with Christ need a personal trainer?  When did middle-management step between me and my King?  Why do we need mortal mediators when we already have a heavenly Mediator? 

This doctrinal shift away from God and our personal connection to Him toward self-emasculation and leader-worship seems to have really gained steam after Elder Ezra Taft's Benson's talk "The Fourteen Fundamentals of Following the Prophet" (remember that one? the talk that gave President Spencer W. Kimball ― the actual prophet at the time ― quite the fit?  In the greatest irony of all time, Elder Benson did not follow the prophet when he was asked to retire that line of thinking). 

You see, religion teaches us that pleasing our leaders is to please God.

   Nice sleight of hand, no?  

Churches teach that in order to please God, we must do as we're told (as if God's pleasure depended on how many pairs of earrings we have).

"But Tim!" someone says, "Following the prophet is the same thing as following God because they speak for God."

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, and I'll keep saying it until I am served with a restraining order signed by a judge: It doesn't matter who's speaking; it only matters whose words are being spoken.  Are they the words of Christ?

   If yes, then we heed and hearken to the message, no matter whose lips are moving.

   If no, then we may disregard the message, no matter whose lips are moving.

I wish I could go back in my time machine and rewrite this verse which has led to all kinds of foolishness:

   What I the Lord have spoken,
   [who's speaking?]
   I have spoken
   [whose words are they?]
   and I excuse not myself. . .
   my word shall not pass away,
   but shall all be fulfilled,
   [whose words are unfailing, true and unchanging?]
   whether by mine own voice
   [who's speaking?]
   or by the voice of my servants,
   [whose words are the servants speaking?]
   it is the same.

(D&C 1:38)

In other words, God's "servants" are not known by the office they hold; they are known by the words they speak.  

The message, not the man, proves the messenger.

   Part Two.  We Cannot But Speak the Things Which We have Seen.

After the miraculous healing of the lame man, Peter and John made the Jewish rulers really mad.  

You'd think these spiritual dignitaries would be happy for the poor lame guy who got healed, right? 

   Nope. 

The leaders were "grieved" with Peter and John for inviting people to follow Jesus Christ (as opposed to "follow Moses," or whatever). (See Acts 4:2.)

So what did the Jewish rulers, elders, and high priests do?  They held a sort of "membership council" (is that what we're calling church courts now?) for Peter and John.

The leaders tried Peter and John for apostasy (to use modern vernacular).

Notice carefully what the leaders cared about:

   By what power
   or by what name,
   [Ah, this is what is truly important: are we showing allegiance to the proper authority, and giving them the credit?  That's the issue, isn't it?  Are we respecting the order of things that they control?]
   have ye done this?

(Acts 4:7)

Let me point out the absurdity of this question:

The leaders didn't seem to care that the man was, in fact, healed by a great miracle; they only seemed to care whether the thing was done by the proper authority and name (i.e., theirs).

Second Witness

This reminds me of Abinadi's trial before King Noah.

We discover in the end that it is not about what we say, but how our words reflect on the powers-that-be (just ask John the Baptist) that counts.

King Noah said to Abinadi:

   Abinadi, we have found an accusation
   against thee, and thou art worthy of death.

   For thou hast said that God himself
   should come down
   among the children of men;
   and now, for this cause
   thou shalt be put to death
   [wait for it . . . ]   
   unless thou wilt recall all the words
   which thou hast spoken evil
   concerning me.

(Mosiah 17:7-8)

Wait, what now?  

Sure, Abinadi could have played nice.  He could have agreed to take down his blog, or his podcast, or recant the truth he had preached in the name of God. 

   Or not.

   I say unto you, I will not recall the words
   which I have spoken unto you concerning
   this people, for they are true.

(Mosiah 17:9)
​
That wasn't very smart, was it?  I mean, it cost Abinadi his life. 

(If only Abinadi had listened to the sage advice that "it’s wrong to criticize leaders of the Church, even if the criticism is true," he might have lived.)

Take Two

Peter and John, too, could have played nice.  They could have bowed the head and kissed the ring of Annas the high priest.

  Did they?

   Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost,
   said unto them,
   Ye rulers of this people
   [these guys were large and in charge and had already killed Peter's boss]
   and elders of Israel,
   [he's talking to the religious elite of his day]

   Be it known unto you all . . . 
   that in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
   whom ye crucified . . . 
   [ouch, now things just got personal]
   even by Him doth this man stand here
   before you whole.

   Neither is there salvation in any other:
   for there is none other name
   [see, are we spending far too much time obsessing over middle initials when the only name that matters is Christ's?]
   under heaven given among men, 
   whereby we must be saved.

(Acts 4:8, 10, 12)

How did the ruling class respond?  As we would expect them to react who are inured to priestcraft and unrighteous dominion:

   Let us straitly threaten them,
   that they speak henceforth to no man
   in this name.

   And they [the leaders] called them,
   and commanded them [Peter and John]
   not to speak at all nor teach
   in the name of Jesus.

(Acts 4:17-18)

Peter's and John's response became an instant classic.  Lots of bumper stickers could be seen on camels' backsides quoting them afterwards:

   Whether it be right in the sight of God
   to hearken unto you more than unto God,
   judge ye.

   For we cannot but speak
   the things which we have seen
   and heard.

(Acts 4:19-20)

Well, I guess you can't silence those who know Christ, can you?

Do we know him?  Are we witnessing of Christ . . .

   . . . or of someone else?

Play Nice?

What happened in 4 Nephi when the people's hearts became hardened?
   
   And this church did . . . 
   persecute the true church of Christ
   because of their humility
   and their belief in Christ.

(4 Nephi 1:28-29)

That's awful!  Why would members of the Church persecute other members of the Church for their belief "in Christ?"

That doesn't make any sense, does it? 

Let me add a line to the text to make my point:

   And this church did . . . 
   persecute the true church of Christ
   because of their humility
   and their belief in Christ
   for they did not manifest sufficient belief
   in their leaders.

(4 Nephi 1:28-29, Tim Edition)

What Did Jesus Say?

In this context, consider what Jesus said about those who, like Peter and John and Abinadi, were persecuted ― not by "bad people" but by their own religious community for following Christ:

   Blessed are they which are persecuted
   [by their faith community]
   for righteousness’ sake:
   [who are cast out of their synagogues and churches for declaring Christ's word]
   for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(Matthew 5:10)

If obedience to our leaders is the sign of our faith, then why do we even need Christ?

It's Easy, Now What?

In the last post, we saw that the Word of Christ is "easy."

Now we're going to look at how the Word of Christ is "pleasing."  

To Please

We all know the magic words.  "Pass the peas, please."  

   1.  Please, verb: "to make someone feel happy or give someone pleasure."

All our life we are conditioned to please. 

   -  What are we pleasing? 

   -  Who are we pleasing? 

   -  Why are we pleasing at all?!

Most importantly, what does it mean to "receive the pleasing word of God" (Jacob 3:2)?  What makes the word of God "pleasing," anyway?

Let's look at Jacob's words in context:

   O all ye that are pure in heart,
   lift up your heads
   and receive the pleasing word of God,
   and feast upon his love;
   for ye may, if your minds are firm,
   forever.

(Jacob 3:2)

We can see how the word of God inhabits our entire beings:

   - hearts
   - heads
   - minds

The Problem of Pleasure

We can break things down into three broad categories:

   1.  Pleasing ourselves (hedonism)

   2.  Pleasing others (humanism)

   3.  Pleasing God (Christ-is-him)

Pleasing Ourselves

Let's begin with the idea of pleasing ourselves ― not in a selfish way, but in the positive sense of achieving self-actualization.

I must confess the first time I watched Disney's High School Musical, I was stunned.  

The message of the movie (for those of you who haven't seen it) is that you can be whoever you want to be.  You-Do-You.  Let your freak flag fly.  Do what feels good.  Be yourself.  Ignore all them haters.  

   Get the idea?

At first blush, those seem like nice ideas! After all, we're all searching for our "authentic selves."  

The movie, I think, was aiming for self-empowerment.

But the doctrine of "to thine own self be true" is not exactly what Jesus taught, was it?  

Jesus said:

   He that findeth his life
   shall lose it:

   and he that loseth his life
   for my sake
   shall find it.

(Matt. 10:39)

Many of us ― both inside and outside of religion ― are trying to "find" ourselves.
​
And there's nothing wrong with that, is there?  I mean, what’s the problem with "finding" ourselves?

Well, the problem is what we find:

​. . . we find out who we are: "natural" men and women.

What is the Natural Man, and Why is He an Enemy?

​Being "natural" in this sense does not mean non-GMO, organic and grass-fed. 

It means (this is scary, so brace yourself) that we "live without God in the world" (Mosiah 27:31).

Alma told his son Corianton:

   All men that are in a state of nature,
   or I would say, in a carnal state,
   are in the gall of bitterness
   and in the bonds of iniquity;

[Notice Alma is not saying these individuals are bad people (many of them are surely good people by our standards), but that they are in "the bonds of iniquity" ― they are trapped (i.e., they cannot progress or change their nature) which leaves them in the gall of bitterness.]

   they are without God in the world,
   and they have gone contrary
   to the nature of God.

(Alma 41:11)

No amount of self-fulfillment and self-empowerment can change our natural selves.

I mean, without God, that high school jock who wants to sing in the school musical remains a natural man regardless of all the effort that he spends on the basketball court and on the stage.   

That's the rub.  After all the blood, sweat, tears, work and sacrifice and effort . . . we’ve come full circle and are still . . . natural men and women.

Is this what Jacob meant when he said, but for Christ, our "captive spirits" remain in "hell" (2 Nephi 9:12)?  Are we in fact in hell? 

Well, what is hell but being "without God?" 

Without God, how can we change our eternal nature?

In the end, no matter how much kayaking, traveling, eat-pray-love-ing, self-discovery, mountain biking, and touch-our-inner-selfing we do . . . we will never "find" ourselves until we lose ourselves.

   Why?

Because we were never supposed to find ourselves:

   We were supposed to find God.

. . . in our next post we'll discuss pleasing others.

A New Beginning

This new Series has been a long time coming. 

I don't think I could have written it until now, after all the spiritual and mental calisthenics we've all been through during the past couple of years.

Let's begin by asking a question:  Have you reclaimed yourself?

   What do I mean? 

Self-Reclamation

There are three definitions of "reclamation" that we can apply to ourselves:

  1.  Reclamation, noun: "the cultivation of waste land."

I don't know about you, but the landscape of my spirit resembles a landfill more than an English garden.  There are more crumpled chip bags than carnations in my flowerbed.

How is God supposed to take my stinky-heap-of-a-mess-dump (i.e., my carnal, sensual and devilish nature) and terraform my spirit into a promised land?

In terms of land management, reclamation means "the process of reconverting disturbed land to its former state or to other productive uses."

   - What sort of reclamation is needed so that our spiritual deserts may blossom as a rose?

   - How can we spiritually irrigate our fields so they bring forth fruit meet for repentance?

   - How can we reconnect to our divine selves?

   2.  Reclamation, noun: "the process of claiming something back."

We are lost because of what we've lost.

Try honestly to answer these questions:

   - What have we lost that needs to be reclaimed?

   - What has been stolen from us that needs to be restored?

   - What have we given away that needs to be returned? 

   3.  Reclamation, noun: "the process of reasserting a right."

People like to quote Boyd K. Packer's statement that we "live far beneath our privileges."  But why do we?  Why do we sell ourselves short?

   - What caused us to stop asserting our rights, or self-authority, in the first place?

   - Who have we given power to, or authority over us, that needs to be returned?

   - What needs to change in order for us to fully enjoy our divine rights again?

Keep in mind these synonyms for "reclamation" as we go on:

   Recovery
   Recapture
   Retrieval 
   Repossession

Compass

​The title of this Series comes from Alma 37, where Alma is talking to his son Helaman about the Liahona. 

What does the Liahona represent?  Let's see what Alma says:

   It is as easy to give heed
   to the word of Christ,
   which will point to you
   a straight course
   to eternal bliss,
   as it was for our fathers
   to give heed to this compass,
   which would point unto them
   a straight course
   to the promised land.

(Alma 37:44)

   Liahona = Word of Christ

   Word of Christ = Compass

This compass (the word of Christ) guides us "to the promised land."

The million dollar question, then, is what is the word of Christ?​

What is the Word of Christ . . . and Where is It?

I often hear people say we should "follow Christ" or we should "heed His words." 

But what does that actually mean?  On a practical level, how do we "follow Christ?"

In order to solve this, we need to figure out what the word of Christ is (and what it is not).

   This is gonna be fun!

   1.  The Word of Christ is "easy."

Yes, you read that right.  Easy. 

Really?  Isn't it supposed to be hard?
  
   Nope.

   O my son,
   do not let us be slothful
   because of the easiness
   of the way.

(Alma 37:46)

My friend recently wrote in a blog something I found to be of great worth:

"Fiction and the Word of God"

   "Oliver Cowdrey said 'the children of the wicked one may have power to seduce the foolish and untaught, till naught but fiction feeds the many, and the fruit of falsehood carries in its current, the giddy to the grave'  (Oliver Cowdrey, Footnote to Joseph Smith History, Pearl of Great Price).

   "Do we respond to our condition as a result of the fall using fiction or the word of God?  One places a burden on us, the other places the burden on our Savior.  One is a heavy burden the other is light.

   "The truth is we cannot live our way to eternal life.  We can only die our way there.

   "The Lord does not set up 1000 rules and admit to heaven only those who live all of them.  Its narrowness lies not in the fact that it is small or hard to find, but rather lies in the fact that it is so hard to accept.  The idea of losing our life is repugnant to us. 

   "I think we find it easier to sell spiritual and moral achievement; salvation for the successfully well-behaved and pie in the sky for all the winners who think they can walk into the final judgment and flash their passing report cards.

   "Self justification requires performance.  The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of repentance, not a gospel of performance."

(Excerpts from "Fiction and the Word of God," blog post March 1, 2022, posted on Given by the Finger of God, accessed HERE)

How is Christ's Word "Easy?"

The idea that Christ's word is "easy" seems contrary to our lived experiences, right?  Aren't we all trudging through this valley of the shadow of death?

Jesus said:

   For my yoke is easy,
   and my burden is light.

(Matt. 11:30)

Here we find again (!) that strange, out-of-place word: easy.  

   1.  Easy, adjective: achieved without great effort.

   Huh?

   2.  Easy, adjective: presenting few difficulties.

   Double huh??

   3.  Easy, adjective: free from worries or problems.

   Now I know this is some sort of joke.

Because we all know that religion is demanding, stressful, and difficult.  We all know we've got to struggle and claw our way along the straight and narrow and "endure to the end," right? 

Well, pleasing God is easy. 

   It's pleasing ourselves, and others, that is hard.