Like a Little Child

The week leading up to Christmas is my favorite week of the year.

​I told my children that, for me, the spirit of Christmas is summed up in the word "stillness."

Which is why, probably, that my three favorite Christmas songs are:

   1.  Silent Night
   2.  What Child is This
​   3.  Away in a Manger

I recall as a young boy sitting alone in the living room under the soft glow of the Christmas tree lights and feeling, connecting, to something sacred in that stillness.

We have a tradition every Christmas Eve, to turn off all of the lights in the house and to light our three-wicked Christmas Candle.  In its flickering light we sing Silent Night.

Christmas makes little children of us all.

My Christmas Gift to You

​To all of you fellow Owls in the Desert, I wanted to share a Christmas poem I wrote.  It's not much of a gift.  (Next year I'll get you prepaid Visa cards.)

​But it is my way to say, I love you.  Thank you for coming on this journey with me.

This poem may not appear at first to be a Christmas poem, but it does mention a New Star.  

Covered Wagon

\ ˈhich \  verb : the act or fact of catching hold

   I do not know where the trail ends
   riding the rear of the wagon train
   I cannot see past canvas moons
   coughing clumps of trotted dust  
   I cannot breathe among the brays
   behind horse and master
   following where others lead.
​
   I turn and hitch my hope
   away from wheel ruts
​   I uncover my wagon bed
   far from lagging mule tongues
   I seek a different path
   among the clouds
   following new stars
   not knowing
             where

       the trail ends.

Fighting the Same Old Fight as Paul . . . 2000 Years Later

How is it possible that in 2021 we're still wrestling over the most basic, foundational gospel truths Paul fought for over 2000 years ago?

Paul's writings teach that Christ did not come to add something to the law.    

Instead, Paul taught that Christ came to fulfil the law.  In Christ the law had an end.

See the difference between these two approaches?

   1.  (Law + Christ)

   2.  (Christ - Law)

Are we No. 1 or No. 2 Christians?

Are we:

   (1) Adding Christ to the heaps of traditions and cultural craziness we carry, treating Christ like the cherry-on-top of our growing list of carnal commandments; or

   (2) Are we taking Christ and subtracting everything else?

I want to suggest that "coming unto Christ" does not mean adding Christ to our religious and spiritual baggage; no, coming unto Christ means we set aside all of our religious and spiritual baggage and just embrace Him. 

   Him alone.

Paul was that kind of Christian.  He was a No. 2 kinda Christian, wasn't he?  He spent his career fighting the Judaizers who wanted to hold on to their precious laws and traditions.

Ask yourself:

If we choose to keep our modern-day versions of the "Law of Moses" as Christians, are we really Christians?

​Think about that for a minute.

What message are we sending to others (and to Christ who freed us from the Law) if we continue to follow the lesser laws of carnal commandments?

We're free!  We are no longer bound by a lesser, legalistic, broken law.

   Shout Hooray!

Who Are We Yoked To?

Some members of the Church seem to think we can have our cake and eat it too: that we can be Christians while yoked to carnal commandments AND Christ.  

But Christ's yoke is easy because it cannot be shared. 

Jesus told us we cannot have two masters.  His yoke is light because there is nothing else competing or pulling us away from Him.

On the other hand, I rarely hear the gospel preached in Church.  Instead, I hear people sharing the traditions of their fathers.

Why are we passing along to our children what we were told 50 years ago, telling them to be like us?  We should be telling them to be like Christ! 

Who cares what we were taught about face cards, caffeine, modesty, lipstick, Sabbath observance, tithing, word of wisdom, rated R movies . . . as if any of that had anything to do with the gospel!

We are guilty of smothering Christ's marvelous gift with the dung of carnal commandments in an effort to build a hedge around the law (that no longer exists) in order to "control" our children. 

I guess we're so worried our children will become sinners that we turn them into sinners in our efforts to spare them from sin, teaching them to be Pharisees instead of Christians.

Heaven forbid they should wear two pairs of earrings (I can just imagine what Ephraim's mother who was Egyptian would say to that).

It's like we're telling Christ, "Stay here.  I'll be right back," and then we turn our backs to Him while we busy ourselves keeping all these carnal commandments.  

   When. He. Is. Standing. Right. Here.

See the problem?  We are turning away from Christ when we make religion a me-focused, works-based, self-righteous soteriology ― which is what the Pharisees were famous for.

(Is this what it means for a dog to return to its vomit?)

   Are we crazy?  Paul sure thought so.

If the Dead Could Speak

​Moses himself must be turning over in his grave (or whatever translated beings do) watching us make a mockery of Christ's sacrifice by being Latter-day Judaizers. 

Who were the Judaizers, you ask?  I've copied this from Wikipedia:

In the New Testament, the Judaizers were a group of Jewish Christians who insisted that their co-religionists should follow the Mosaic Law and that Gentile converts to Christianity must first be circumcised. 

Paul warned the early Galatian church that gentile Christians who submit to circumcision will be alienated from Christ: "Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace" (Galatians 5:2–4).

Who We Gonna Follow?

In Deuteronomy, Moses says:

   The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee
   a Prophet from the midst of thee,
   of thy brethren, like unto me [Moses];
   unto him [the Prophet, who is Jesus] 
   ye shall hearken.

(Deut. 18:15)

Here's The. Prophet. Moses. Himself. telling us to stop following him (Moses) and to start following Him (Jesus).

Where did our "follow the prophet" culture come from, when Moses is saying, "Follow Jesus, you idiots."

   So why don't we?

Speaking of Circumcision . . .

There's a fascinating passage in the Doctrine and Covenants about circumcision in Section 74, regarding the controversy involving the Judaizers and Peter and James and Paul.

I think it will be eye-opening for us to read it together:

"And it came to pass that there arose a great contention among the people concerning the law of circumcision . . .

[These are the Lord's people.  Christians.  Who are fighting over a religious practice.  Remember what causes contention?  Contention is caused by people trying to control each other.  In this case, there was sharp disagreement over whether followers of Christ should be circumcised as was required under the Law.]

"for the unbelieving husband was desirous that his children should be circumcised and become subject to the law of Moses . . .

[Careful here.  The "unbelieving husband" is referring to the so-called Christians who still wanted to follow the Law of Moses.  The Lord is saying, "It is a sign of unbelief to want to be bound by the Law because it means you don't have faith in Me."  Because their trust was not in Christ alone, but in their obedience to the law.]

"which law was fulfilled.

[Here Christ is reminding everyone that He fulfilled the Law so we are no longer bound by it, and, by inference, that we make a mockery of God's sacrifice when we return to the Law like a dog to its vomit.]

"And it came to pass that the children, being brought up in subjection to the law of Moses, gave heed to the traditions of their fathers and believed not the gospel of Christ, wherein they became unholy.

[Where's my trumpet so I can shout this truth from the rooftops?  The generations of Latter-day Saints have been rendered "unholy," like the early Christians, because we give "heed to the traditions of our fathers," which is toxic to the pure gospel of Christ.] 

"Wherefore, for this cause the apostle [Paul] wrote unto the church, giving unto them a commandment, not of the Lord, but of himself, that a believer should not be united to an unbeliever; except the law of Moses should be done away among them."

[Okay, this is a bit bizarre.  It appears that Paul viewed a person as an "unbeliever" if they mixed the gospel with the traditions of their fathers.]

(D&C 74:3-5)

"Tim, I do not live the Law of Moses"

You're probably thinking, "What does this have to do with Latter-day Saints?  We don't live the Law of Moses.  We're not Jews.  What are all these 'carnal commandments' you are talking about?"

Okay.  Ask yourselves:

   1.  Do we follow a prophet, our very own modern-day Moses?  

   2.  Are we told to pay tithes and offerings like the Jews were?

   3.  Do we build temples like the Jews did?

   4.  Are we instructed to wear special clothing just as the Jews had their own dress code?

   5.  Is the Word of Wisdom similar to the dietary restrictions imposed on the Jews (no coffee instead of no pork)?

   6.  Do we have Levitical (Aaronic) priests?

What's the Main Point?

The list goes on.  But the main point is this:

Are we are mixing the gospel with a whole lot of stuff that is not part of the gospel?

(For a people told not gamble, why are we so cavalier about gambling with the gospel?)

Desperately Needed

Back to basics.

In this new Series, we'll be looking at the Doctrine of Christ and contrasting it with the ways we have covered it up with all the barnacles that have clustered on the bottom of the Good Ship Zion, impeding our spiritual progress and weighing us down in the bloated-mess-of-a-bureaucracy we have created.

The title of this Series comes from D&C 10, where the Lord says:

   If they will come, they may,
   and partake of the waters of life
   freely.

   Behold, this is my doctrine―
   whosoever repenteth
   and cometh unto me,
   the same is my church.

   Whosoever declareth more or less
   than this, the same is not of me,
   but is against me;
   therefore he is not of my church.

(D&C 10:66-68)

I think this Series is really needed today because the Church continues to cultivate traditions that are "more or less than this," to our collective spiritual impoverishment.​

Let's Return to Primary

In Primary, the children sing the song "Our Primary Colors."

   Our Primary colors
   are one, two, three―
   Red, yellow, and blue.
   Each one has a message
   for you and me.
   Each is a symbol true.

But what happens when you take a primary color and mix it something else?

   It changes.

If we combine blue and yellow, we get green.  Red and blue make purple.  

​   1.  Primary Colors

      a.  Red
      b.  Yellow
      c.  Blue

   2.  Secondary Colors

      a.  Green
      b.  Orange
      c.  Purple

Okay, so far so good.  But what happens if we keep throwing different paint colors on the wall? 

   Well, we get Tertiary Colors.

   3.  Tertiary Colors

      a.  Chartreuse
      b.  Teal
      c.  Violet
      d.  Magenta
      e.  Vermillion
      f.  Amber

Creative Coloring

Get the idea?  Okay, now let's create a company to sell colors. 

Do you think our customers will be happy with just 3, or 6, or 12 colors?  Of course not!

We need 50 shades of grey to make our business competitive.

Enter Sherwin Williams.  Here are some of my favorite color names:

   Potentially Purple (for philosophers, I guess)

   Dragons blood (as if they actually knew)

   Song of Summer (this year's shade of Song of Solomon?)

   Lauren's Surprise (who's Lauren?)

   Spirit Whisper (now we're getting somewhere)

. . . and my favorite . . .

   Divine Pleasure (now, let's not get sacrilegious, Brother Brigham) 

So what does all this have with the Doctrine of Christ?

   I am glad you asked!​​

Pop Quiz Time

What are the "primary colors" of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

How about:

   1.  Primary Gospel

      a.  Faith in Christ
      b.  Hope in Christ
      c.  Charity, or "the Pure Love of Christ"

That was easy.  So let's make this one a little harder.  What are the "secondary colors" of the gospel?

   2.  Secondary Gospel

      a. _______________
      b. _______________
      c.  _______________

Was that harder?  How about the "tertiary colors" of the gospel?

   3.  Tertiary Gospel

      a. ______________
      b. ______________
      c. ______________

Now, let's have some fun.  What are the Sherwin Williams colors of the gospel?

    4.  Sherwin Williams Gospel Colors

      a.  Adam-God Doctrine
      b.  Polygamy
      c.  Ensign Peak Advisors
      d.  Tithing
      e.  Word of Wisdom
      f.  Ministering / Home Teaching
      g.  Denial of Priesthood to Blacks
      h.  Lying for the Lord
      i.  BYU-sanctioned conversion shock therapy for gay students
      j.  Regulations of energy healings, vasectomies, candles in churches, use of audio-visual materials in sacrament meeting, etc.

​You see?  We take the purity of the gospel and then we mix it with all of our worldliness, with the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches, with our insurance liability concerns, our tax deductions, our false traditions, our cultural prejudices . . . and then what are we left with?

According to the Lord: not his gospel.  

What is the "Pure" Gospel?

Something is "pure," by definition, when it is “free from anything of a different, inferior, or contaminating kind.” 

   Water is pure when it is free from bugs and germs and dirt, etc.

   Our hearts are pure when they are stripped of things like “jealousies and fears” (D&C 67:10).

   The gospel is pure when it is "established upon my rock," the Lord said (D&C 10:69).

The Lord, like a master chemist, knows what will strengthen our faith in Him and what will destroy it. 

For example, if you mix iron and oxygen, you create rust; but if you combine iron with carbon, you form steel. 

In the same way, the gospel “rusts” when we mix it with "the law" or legalistic practices (which makes us trust in the law, rather than in Christ, for our salvation).

So what is the "pure" gospel? 

According to the scriptures, it is the law of love, or what James calls the "royal law." 

   For all the law is fulfilled
   in one word, even in this:
   Thou shalt love
   thy neighbour as thyself.

(Galatians 5:14)

The gospel of Christ is not about us.  It is not about you or me. 

   We are such narcissists!  

The gospel of Christ is about . . . spoiler alert . . . Christ! 

This is how the Lord Himself defines the gospel:

   This is the gospel
   which I have given unto you--
   that I came into the world
   to do the will of my Father,
   because my Father sent me.

   And my Father sent me
   that I might be lifted up upon the cross;
   and after that I had been lifted up
   upon the cross, that I might draw all men
   unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men
   even so should men be lifted up by the Father.

(3 Nephi 27:13-14)

And what was the crowning work of our Savior?  It was the beautiful outpouring of celestial charity in which He died for our sins and rose again so we may also.

And we want to mix His perfect atonement, his pure gospel, his Doctrine . . . with minutiae like whether Sunday School teachers should give candy to their students at church, or whether the chapel doors should be open or closed during the sacrament, or whether open-toed sandals are modest for young women?

"And Miles to Go Before I Sleep"

​When I was around 10 years old, my elementary school had a contest.  I remember I had to memorize a poem and recite it before judges. 

So I chose Robert Frost's poem, "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening."

   (No, I didn't win.)

The poem ends with some of the most hauntingly beautiful words ever written:

   The woods are lovely, dark and deep,   
   But I have promises to keep,   
   And miles to go before I sleep,   
   And miles to go before I sleep.

(I can quote this here because it was published in 1923 and the copyright expired in 2019.  So it's in the public domain now!)

I've always had a soft spot for Frost, who coined one of my favorite sayings: 

"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on."

(Robert Frost, 1954 September 5, The Cincinnati Enquirer, "Robert Frost’s Secret by Ray Josephs.")

"It Goes On"

One could say, regarding the work of the Lord, "It goes on."  (And so, apparently does this blog Series!)

I can picture the Lord telling his angels who are waiting to reap the field, "Wait.  I have promises to keep." 

So let's investigate some of those wonderful promises. . . . 

Promise No. 1:

​Let's start with one of the most important promises involving the last-days: the Lord bringing his gospel to the Lamanites.

You recall how Joseph Smith and Martin Harris managed to lose 116 pages of the Book of Mormon translation?

Well, one of the reasons this was a big deal was because the Book of Mormon was intended to bring the fulness of the gospel to the Lamanites. 

​Despite Joseph's and Martin's mishap, the Lord said, "My work shall go forth" (D&C 3:16).

   And for this very purpose
   are these plates preserved,
   which contain these records--
   that the promises of the Lord
   might be fulfilled, which he made
   to his people;

   And that the Lamanites might come
   to the knowledge of their fathers,
   and that they might know the promises
   of the Lord, and that they may believe
   the gospel and rely upon the merits
   of Jesus Christ.

(D&C 3:19-20)

Yes, the Book of Mormon was written for the Gentiles in the latter-days.  Sure.

But even more important, the Book of Mormon was written for the Lamanites in the latter-days.

Why Did the Lord Make Promises to the Lamanites?

​Joseph Smith had a really rough summer after losing the 116 pages.  He thought he had lost his chance.  So imagine his relief when the Lord told him he could continue translating the Book of Mormon!

And why did the Lord think getting the Book of Mormon into print was so important?

Because he had promises to keep:

​   Yea, and this was their faith--
   [talking about the Nephite prophets]
   that my gospel, which I gave unto them
   that they might preach in their days,
   might come unto their brethren
   the Lamanites, and also all
   that had become Lamanites
   because of their dissensions.

(D&C 10:48)

Seeing a theme yet?

Why Are the Lamanites So Important?

​Why are the Lamanites so integral to the Lord's work in the last days?

Why is a major part of the Restoration about getting the Lamanites to the gospel?

Consider these four facts:

​   1.  Title Page.  When Moroni wrote the Title Page, he said that the Book of Mormon was:

   Written to the Lamanites, 
   who are a remnant
   of the house of Israel.

(Title Page)

Sure, the Book of Mormon is also written "to Jew and Gentile."  But the Lamanites were the primary audience, it seems.

   2.  Mormon's Final Farewell.  Have you ever wondered why Mormon reserved his final words for the Lamanites?  That's right: Mormon's final contribution to the Book of Mormon (the last thing he recorded) was a message to . . . the Lamanites.

   Huh.  

And now, behold, I would speak somewhat unto the remnant of this people who are spared. . . .

Know ye that ye must come to the knowledge of your fathers, and repent of all your sins and iniquities, and believe in Jesus Christ, that he is the Son of God. . . .

Therefore repent, and be baptized in the name of Jesus, and lay hold upon the gospel of Christ, which shall be set before you, not only in this record but also in the record which shall come unto the Gentiles from the Jews, which record shall come from the Gentiles unto you. . . .

And ye will also know that ye are a remnant of the seed of Jacob; therefore ye are numbered among the people of the first covenant.

(Mormon 7:1, 5, 8, 10)

   3.  The First Mission.  Why was the First Mission in this Dispensation to . . . you guessed it . . . the Lamanites?  

In September 1830, the Lord formally called his elders on a mission to convert the Lamanites. 

   I say unto you that you shall go
   unto the Lamanites and preach my gospel
   unto them . . . .

   Behold, I say unto you that [Zion]
   shall be on the borders by the Lamanites.

(Hmmm.  Now isn't that interesting?)

(D&C 28:8-9)​

   4.  Building the Church Among the Lamanites.  What was Oliver Cowdery's gift (besides the working with the rod)?

   I have given unto him (Oliver) 
   power to build up my church
   among the Lamanites.

(D&C 30:6)

Well, breaking news.  We have NOT succeeded in building up the Church among the Lamanites, have we?

So what're we gonna do?

   And miles to go before I sleep,
   And miles to go before I sleep.

​I Call to the Stand . . . 

Your honor, I next call an expert witness to the stand, Nephi.

Me:  Please state your name for the record.

Nephi:  Nephi.

Me:  Are you First, Second, or Third Nephi?

Nephi:  I am Nephi, son of Lehi and Sariah.  Plain "Nephi" will do.

Me:  Very good.  Are you familiar with the writings of the prophet Isaiah?

Nephi:  Quite.  

Me:  You are being modest.  Aren't you, in fact, one of the preeminent commentators and experts on Isaiah's writings?

Nephi:  If you say so.

Me:  And therefore, you understand Isaiah's somewhat . . . umm . . . difficult-to-understand passages?

Nephi:  Actually, Isaiah is quite plain to anyone who has the Spirit of Prophecy.

Me:  *Cough*  Okay.  Can you explain to the Court what is the meaning of "nursing fathers?"

​Nephi:  With pleasure.  I have written extensively about the Gentiles, as well as the House of Israel.  

Me:  And are the nursing fathers and mothers, in fact, Gentiles?

Nephi:  Yes.

Me:  And what will these Gentiles do?

Nephi:  They are restorers. 

Me:  What do you mean?

Nephi:  The Gentiles are restorers in two important ways.  First, the Gentiles restore the knowledge of the covenants of the Lord to the House of Israel.  Second, the Gentiles restore Israel to the lands of their inheritance (2 Nephi 10:7).

Me:  And do the Gentiles have any role in the latter-days as it pertains to restoring your posterity, that is to say, the Lamanites, to the truth?

Nephi:  Yes, because the Lord's covenants that he made with the House of Israel also apply to the descendants of Lehi, or me.  "Meaning us in the days to come" (1 Nephi 22:6).

Me:  I see.  And what do the Gentiles need to do in order to be helpful?

Nephi:  In the words of my brother Jacob, "Blessed are the Gentiles, they of whom the prophet [Isaiah] has written; for behold, if it so be that they shall repent and fight not against Zion . . . they shall be saved (2 Nephi 6:12).

Me:  I'd like to pause on that last statement.  How do the Gentiles "fight" against Zion?

Nephi:  The Lord commands us to (1) be equal; (2) have charity, and (3) to not practice priestcraft (see, 2 Nephi 26:28-30).  So if the Gentiles build up churches that result in inequality, pride, and denying the Spirit of revelation among God's children, then they are fighting against Zion.

Me:  I see.  *Turning to the judge*  Your honor, may I approach the witness?  Thank you.

*I approach the witness*

Me:  Nephi, I am showing you what has been marked as Exhibit "A."  Are you familiar with this?  

Nephi:  Yes.  

Me:  What is it?

Nephi:  The small plates of Nephi.

Me:  And this is your handwriting etched on the plates?

Nephi:  Yes.

Me:  And did you prophecy ― and I quote ― "Because of pride, and because of false teachers, and false doctrine, their churches have become corrupted, and their churches are lifted up; because of pride they are puffed up" (2 Nephi 28:12)?

Nephi:  Yes, I wrote that.

Me:  And do those words, sir, apply to all churches, including the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

Nephi:   As I've said before, "Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm, or shall hearken unto the precepts of men, save their precepts shall be given by the power of the Holy Ghost.  Wo be unto the Gentiles, saith the Lord God of Hosts! ―

Me:  Excuse me.  Sorry to interrupt.  I thought you testified earlier that the Gentiles are blessed.  

Nephi:  Only the ones who don't fight against Zion.

Me:  *Nodding*  Continue.

Nephi:  "For notwithstanding I shall lengthen out mine arm unto them from day to day, they will deny me; nevertheless, I will be merciful unto them, saith the Lord God, if they will repent and come unto me; for mine arm is lengthened out all the day long, saith the Lord God of Hosts" (2 Nephi 28:31).

Me:  Now, I've saved the my most important question for last.  Here it is:  Is it possible to come unto Christ through a mediator or regent or prophet, such as a pope or president?  Isn't it true that following our spiritual leaders is the same as following Jesus?

Nephi:  *Looking bewildered*  Are you daft, man?  

Me:  Quite.  But please answer the question.

Nephi:  Can you repeat the question? 

Me:  Okay, but first let me show you what's been marked as Exhibit "B."  This is the actual excommunication letter delivered to a member of the Church in the Cardston Alberta Stake, dated January 21, 2021.  In it, the Stake President writes, "We know that President Russell M. Nelson is a true prophet and continues to guide the Church through revelation from the Savior Himself.  We know that the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles will never lead the church astray.  If we follow their counsel, we are following the Lord."  Close quote.  Is this statement correct, in your view?  

Nephi:  *Sigh*  No, we cannot serve two masters.  I will say it again: "If ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do.  Behold, this is the doctrine of Christ!" (2 Nephi 32:5-6).

Me:  I see.  So is it your testimony, then, that we are to follow the Holy Ghost, as opposed to putting our trust in men?"

Nephi:  That's what I've said, yes.

Me:  Thank you.

Question on the Brain

I don't know what your first thoughts are when you wake up, but as I sat up on the edge of my bed this morning, yawning and wishing for another hour of sleep, a thought formed in my mind:

"If the Gentiles are to 'assist' the remnant in building Zion, then are the two groups really 'equal?'"

During my shower time I pondered this question. 

I began from the premise that, yes, the two groups will be still be equal in the Vineyard, somehow, since they'll be "one in heart," and since the Lord has revealed the Celestial Law requires equality (see, D&C 78:5-7).

Anyway, this led to me thinking about a related subject: Nursing Fathers.

"Latch On!"

​If you've nursed babies, or have been around someone who has, then you probably know what it means for a baby to "latch on."

I'm talking about the way an infant has to learn how to "latch on" to its mother, or to its bottle filled with formula, in order to receive milk.

I remember sometimes as my wife nursed, our children would latch on and not let go!  (They must have gotten their hearty appetites from their father.)  

And so my wife learned how to gently "unlatch" them.

These images are important in Isaiah.

   But Zion said, The Lord 
   hath forsaken me, 
   and my Lord hath forgotten me.

(Isaiah 49:14)

In response, the Lord asks:

   Can a woman forget
   her sucking child?

(Isaiah 49:15)

How Did This Miracle Happen?

​If you're as astounded as I am, as this grandmother is, you're probably wondering, "How in the world did this miracle happen?"

   Thus saith the Lord God,
   Behold, I will lift up mine hand
   to the Gentiles,
   and set up my standard
   to the people:
   and they [the Gentiles] shall bring
   thy sons in their arms,
   and thy daughters shall be carried
   upon their shoulders.

(Isaiah 49:22)

Notice the Gentiles are not blood relatives, but become adopted into the woman's family when they bring her children home to her.

It's the Gentiles (of all people!) who are responsible for this miraculous restoration of the woman's family.

   At last.

   And kings shall be
   thy nursing fathers,
   and their queens
   thy nursing mothers.

(Isaiah 49:23)

Whatever else these words may mean, I wonder if the "kings" and "queens" in this passage are spiritual ones, even the Gentiles who have repented and who are welcomed into the Covenant of Jacob.

​​Understanding the Trajectory of the Restoration

Okay, who's ready to see the work of the Restoration in an entirely new light?!

​Question 1:

Why does the Lord call the Book of Mormon the "new covenant" in D&C 84:57?

   And they [the children of Zion]
   shall remain under this condemnation
   until they repent and remember
   the new covenant,
   even the Book of Mormon.

Answer Part 1:

The context for D&C 84 is given in verse 2 and it is something quite extraordinary.

Look carefully at what the Lord is trying to teach us:

   Yea, the word of the Lord concerning
   his church, established in the last days
   (1) for the restoration of his people,
   as he has spoken by the mouth
   of his prophets, and
   (2) for the gathering of his saints
   to stand upon Mount Zion,
   which shall be the city of New Jerusalem.

(D&C 84:2)

What do we learn from this?  Well, it appears the Lord established a church (did not restore a church, but established a church) thru Joseph Smith in order to restore his people (his people, or the House of Israel, are restored, not the church).

That clear?

   1.  The Lord established a Church among the Gentiles (his "saints")

   2.  The Church's job is to seek out and "restore" the Lord's people, as spoken by the mouth of his prophets" (we're talking about the remnant of Jacob).

Two separate things.

   3.  So why does the Church need to bring the gospel to the remnant of Jacob?  Because they're the ones in charge of building Zion.

   4.  The Gentile "saints" who are gathered will then be able to stand with "his people" on Mount Zion in the New Jerusalem, who they assisted, and without whom the Gentiles could never have done it.  

There's a symbiosis here.  In other words, in one simple verse, the Lord talks about two separate peoples and their entwined destines.  

   Pretty cool, huh?

Answer Part 2:

Someone might say:

But Tim, doesn't the Lord say that "the city New Jerusalem shall be built by the gathering of the saints, beginning at this place, even the place of the temple, which temple shall be reared in this generation" (D&C 84:4)?

My response is simply, "Yes.  Yes, that's exactly what He said."

But . . . did it happen?  Nope.  Not under any interpretation I can think of.

Wait a minute.  The Lord's word can't fail, right?  So what is going on here?  

Well, as the Lord explained:

   [If you] do not do the things that I say,
   I will not perform the oath
   which I make unto you,
   neither fulfil the promises
   which ye expect at my hands,
   saith the Lord.

   For instead of blessings,
   ye, by your own works,
   bring cursings, wrath, indignation,
   and judgments upon your own heads,
   by your follies, and by all
   your abominations,
   which you practice before me,
   saith the Lord.

(D&C 124:44-48)

Anybody know of any "abominations" out there?

Let's ask Jacob:

   Ye are beginning to labor in sin,
   which sin appeareth
   very abominable unto me,
   yea, and abominable unto God.

(Jacob 2:5)

Hmmm.  Whatever is Jacob referring to?

   1.  The Abominable Sin of Inequality.

Yup, that's right.  Among the Nephites some had become rich and felt like they were "better than" those who were less fortunate, and had become prideful.  

   O that he would rid you from this
   iniquity and abomination . . . 

   Think of your brethren like unto yourselves, 
   and be familiar with all and free
   with your substance, that they
   may be rich like unto you.

(Jacob 2:16-17)

   2.  The Abominable Sin of Polygamy.

Yup, that's right.  Among the Nephites some of them had begun to practice polygamy.  

   For behold, thus saith the Lord:
   This people begin to wax in iniquity;
   they understand not the scriptures,
   for they seek to excuse themselves
   in committing whoredoms,
   because of the things
   which were written concerning David,
   and Solomon his son.

   Behold, David and Solomon
   truly had many wives and concubines,
   which thing was abominable
   before me, saith the Lord.

(Jacob 2:23-24)

   3.  The Abominable Sin of Racism.

Yup, that's right.  Jacob warned the Nephites:

   The Lamanites your brethren,
   whom ye hate because of their. . . skins,
   are more righteous than you. . . 

   Wherefore, a commandment I give
   unto you, which is the word of God,
   that ye revile no more against them
   because of the darkness of their skins . . .

   Do ye not suppose that such things are 
   abominable unto him who created all flesh?
   And the one being is as precious in his sight
   as the other.

(Jacob 3:5, 9; Jacob 2:21)

​How Would You Rate the Church on these 3 Abominable Sins?

   1.  Inequality.  Fail.

   2.  Polygamy.  Fail.

   3.  Racism.  Fail.

That's right.  It's like we took the worst sins from the Nephites and said to ourselves:

"You know what, let's build a religion around these 3 abominations and make them the centerpieces.  Let's create an authoritarian hierarchy in which our top leaders die as millionaires; let's practice polygamy as a religious sacrament; let's deny Blacks the priesthood even though it's against the gospel of Christ."

Well . . . what did the Lord say would happen if the Church practiced abominations?

(I don't have to tell you.  We've witnessed it first hand.)

Answer Part 3

Okay, now let's get to the good part.  

Why is the Book of Mormon essential to the restoration of the remnant of Jacob?  

In what way is the Book of Mormon "THE new covenant" (D&C 84:57)?

Well, this should be easy.  What's a covenant?  A promise?  

The Book of Mormon Covenant (Promise)

So what did God promise in the Book of Mormon?

Shall we ask Jacob's son, Enos?

   And I had faith, and I did cry
   unto God that he would preserve
   the records; and he covenanted with me
   that he would bring them forth
   unto the Lamanites in his own due time.

   And I, Enos, knew it would be
   according to the covenant
   which he had made; wherefore
   my soul did rest.

   And the Lord said unto me:
   Thy fathers have also required of me
   this thing; and it shall be done
   unto them according to their faith;
   for their faith was like unto thine.

(Enos 1:16-18)

What?  Does this make any sense at all? 

Here Enos has got the Lord on the other end of the line and he asks for . . . some records to be preserved?

("Yeah, Solomon, you'll never believe it. Uh huh.  No, not an understanding heart.  Nope, not that either.  That's right.  Record preservation!")

   Why? 

Why did Enos care?  What was the faith of the Book of Mormon prophets all about?

   [We] did seek diligently 
   to restore the Lamanites
   unto the true faith in God.

(Enos 1:20)

Mic drop.  *Boom.*

Does that sound familiar?  "Restore" who, again?

   Not a church.  Not you or me.  

The Lamanites, who are the remnant of Jacob.

This is what the Lord covenanted to do. 

The Book of Mormon is the record which God covenanted to bring forth in the latter-days in order to bring his gospel to His people, the Lamanites.

"One Cumorah, Two Cumorah . . . Three Cumorah Pie"

We started this Series in July!  Can you believe it? 

So let's recap what we've covered thus far:

   1.  In the previous Series, "The Church Began to Be Broken Up," we saw how the the scriptures foretold the Church would fracture and be broken up (which we've seen in church history and are witnessing even at the present time) just as it did among the Nephites, when "the church had begun to dwindle; and they began to disbelieve in the spirit of prophecy and in the spirit of revelation; and the judgments of God did stare them in the face" (Helaman 4:23).

   2.  With the decline of the Church, this Series posed the question, Where will members of the Church go when they can no longer rely on the institution?  Who will lead us?  Who will tell us what to do?

   3.  The Lord has new wine and he cannot use old bottles (you know, like, maybe, an authoritarian church organization?).  His new wine will be poured into the body of Zion.

   4.  In order to make room for Zion, the Lord must clear the hierarchy off the board in order for His church (the people, not the organization) to learn how to "govern themselves" ― which will NEVER happen so long as we remain dependent upon leadership.

   5.  The sifting has begun, but not in the way we expected.  What if . . . what if the sifting was never about the tares leaving the Church, but the wheat (!). 

   Huh?

Is it possible the wheat are first "cast out" of the church by their leaders and/or gathered out by the angels?

Does this mean the tares are those who remain?

   Let the wheat and the tares
   grow together until the harvest
   is fully ripe; then ye shall
   first gather out the wheat
   from among the tares,
   and after the gathering of the wheat,
   behold and lo, the tares are bound
   in bundles, and the field remaineth
   to be burned.

(D&C 86:7)

Is this saying the tares are those who stay behind, who "choke the wheat and drive the church into the wilderness" (D&C 86:3) from their castles of carnal security?

   6.  What qualifies us to be citizens of Zion?  What blessing do we receive when we are "pure in heart?"  Zion is comprised of those who are able to endure the presence of the Lord without burning up like a box of Cornflakes doused in kerosene.

   And Enoch
   and all his people
   walked with God,
   and he dwelt
   in the midst of Zion.

(Moses 7:69)

See, in Zion there is no spiritual "elite." 

   Why?

Because no one has "special access" to God more than anyone else.

No one needs "keys" when all of us can walk personally with Jesus down to the neighborhood Starbucks and share a coffee.

Thus our priestcraft will burn away like dross in the celestial city, where there is no need for leaders among a community of kings who are equal, and queens who are equal, who all worship the One who is King of Kings. 

   7.  The coming calamity, according to Joseph Smith, shall result in the ​"sweep[ing of] the wicked of this generation from off the face of the land, to open and prepare the way for the return of the lost tribes of Israel from the north country." ("Letter to Noah C. Saxton, 4 January 1833," p. 17-18, The Joseph Smith Papers).  This shall occur on the land of America when its peoples are "fully ripe."

   8.  In order to weather the coming storm, we'll need a loving community where we care for each other's needs in a time of scarcity and insecurity.  This will coalesce into Zion, which will be a place of "refuge."  Zion IS the "ark."

   9.  In a time when "men's hearts shall fail them," we'll need authentic, abiding faith in Christ (more than in our leaders).  Like the wise virgins, the oil in our lamps is the Spirit.  The Holy Ghost shall guide us (see D&C 45:57).  Our most important survival skills are the gifts of the Spirit.

   10.  The three pillars of Zion are:

      a.  A Holy House
      b.  A Holy City
      c.  A Holy Name

   11.  Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are identified with the Gentiles.  On the other hand, Latter-day Lamanites (who have not yet been identified) are destined to be the ones who build the New Jerusalem, not the Church (see 3 Nephi 21:22-24).

   12.  Gentiles who repent can be "numbered among the remnant of Jacob" and "assist" in the Lord's great work.

Time for a Second Wind

Exhausted yet?  We're just getting started!

Remember in Ether 12, when Moroni is talking to the Lord and is told that weak things become strong? 

Well, isn't it interesting that in the Very. Next. Verse. the Lord says:

   I will show unto the Gentiles
   their weakness
 
[What is our corporate, Gentile weakness?  Is it our pride, arrogance, unrighteous dominion, and idolatry?]
 
   and I will show unto them
   that faith, hope and charity

[Does the Lord mention priesthood authority, keys, the temple or following the prophet here?  Nope.]

   bringeth unto me--
   the fountain of all righteousness.

[Gentiles don't come to know Christ through other men.  Remember: "Blessed are the Gentiles, because of their belief in me, in and of the Holy Ghost" (3 Nephi 16:6)?]

To be technical:

   1.  Yes, faith comes by hearing the word of God taught by others.

   2.  Yes, baptism is performed at the hands of mortals.

   3.  But once we're in the Gate, we ultimately come to know Christ in two ways:
   
     a.  The Spirit (revelation, prophecy, visions, etc.); and

     b.  Loving one another (finding Christ in each other).  

As an example, Joseph Smith did not see God by listening to preachers; Joseph went to God in prayer and spoke to Him directly.

   4.  Exercising authority is not a sign of love.  Nurturing the spiritual gifts in each other is.

Beating a Dead Horse?

Am I beating a dead horse, repeating myself?  

   Sorry.  

It reminds me of a moment in Paul's life when, after having spent years trying to reason with the Jews and to share God's grace with them, he decided he was done preaching to them. 

Paul had no more words left for the Jews. 

So he packed his bag and went preaching to the Gentiles instead.  

   Arrivederci!

   And Paul shook his raiment,
   and said unto them, Your blood
   be upon your own heads; I am
   clean: from henceforth I will go
   unto the Gentiles.

(Acts 18:6)

Well, no such luck here.  I have lots more things I hope to share and will keep writing until I run out of words. 

In fact, I wonder if we should all be writing as fast as we can before the Lord pulls the plug and the lights go out:

Mormon:

   I did endeavor to preach
   unto this people, but
   my mouth was shut,
   and I was forbidden
   that I should preach
   unto them.

(Mormon 1:16)

Yikes!  Imagine a people who are so hard-hearted it becomes futile to reason with them.

So the first thing to go is the preaching of the word of God by those who have been sent, replaced with a sickly sentimentality that drips from most religions built of gingerbread and icing, where we consume the church instead of Christ.

But the really scary thing is when the prayers stop:

Jeremiah:

   Thus saith the Lord
   unto this people,
   Thus have they loved
   to wander, they have
   not refrained their feet,
   therefore the Lord doth
   not accept them . . . 

   Then said the Lord unto me,
   Pray not for this people
   for their good.

   When they fast, I will not hear
   their cry; and when they offer
   burnt offering and an oblation,
   I will not accept them:
   but I will consume them
   by the sword, and by the famine,
   and by the pestilence.

(Jeremiah 14:10-12)

Right now we appear to have about as much chance of surviving the coming calamity as Burger King has of making a better chicken sandwich than Chick-fil-A.

   Is there hope?

Yes!  Stay tuned . . . .