The Ministering of Angels

Be Careful What You Wish For

One day an angel appeared to a university professor who was in the middle of a college class.  The professor had served his students selflessly for many years.

"To reward your good deeds," the angel said, "God will grant you a boon.  You may have your choice of eternal riches, eternal wisdom, or eternal beauty."

Without hesitation, the humble professor replied, "Eternal wisdom."

"Very well," said the angel, who disappeared through the ceiling in a pillar of light.

The students in the classroom, having witnessed this remarkable scene, were speechless.  A student on the front row, seeing the professor illuminated by a faint halo, found his courage and said, "Professor, please, share with us some eternal wisdom."

The professor sighed and said, "I should have chosen eternal riches."
   ___

I love this joke because it reminds me of one of my favorite scriptures:

   Seek not for riches
   but for wisdom,
   and behold,
   the mysteries of God
   shall be unfolded unto you,
   and then shall you be made rich.
   Behold, he that hath
   eternal life
   is rich.

(D&C 6:7)

If we reverse-engineer this verse, we find that eternal life is not just living forever (we do that anyway), but living with the secrets of God laid bare.

Wisdom is knowing God's times and seasons, His words and workings, even His hidden Way of Holiness.

   It shall be called
   The Way of Holiness:
   the unclean shall not
   pass over it;
   fools shall not err therein.

(Isaiah 35:8)

Interestingly, Isaiah says the only people who shall walk the Way are "wayfaring men" and women (Isaiah 35:8).

"Wayfaring" means "a person traveling on foot."

You see, we cannot travel the Way in a chariot, or upon celestial steeds.  We cannot be carried on the coattails of our leaders or parents.  We must each walk the Way on foot.  Specifically, we must walk with God.

Would you like to know God's mysteries?  They come with a steep price.  Everyone talks about a devil's bargain, but rarely do we count the cost of the Cross. 

But it is worth it, for he who is wise is rich.

Take Up Your Cross
a poem

Counting
wheat
     from
the backseat
 
chauffeured
to and fro
 
driven
toward Calvary
     (“Siri, give me directions  
                        ―
by the shortest route, please”)
    
     as though in a motor race
 
     passing by
windows rolled up
in a hurry
     to bury our dead
 
chasing a clergyman’s
          frock.
 
  : : PARK HERE : :
 
       and walk
       with Simon the Cyrene
the deathmark
      down
      the Dolorosa
 
on hand
​     and 
foot.

Faith is Mental

There are a million ways to mend a broken body.  But our spirits?  Our spirits have no bones, no blood.  How does one mend a broken heart?

The balm for a wounded soul is the word of God.  As healers, our craft is love.  Faith our medicine.

This is why I write on the topics I do (though there aren't many people who are interested in high spiritual philosophy).

Our churches attempt to serve up God without requiring too much mental effort.  As a consequence, we are left with superficial platitudes, boardroom priests, and parables of pickles (and don't forget slogans like, "Think celestial!").

I am drawn to those who are mindful and contemplative; I prefer a man who wrestles with angels over him that bows to them.

The sober faith we seek requires us to delve into the mysteries of God; this is a faith that is mental.

   When a man works by faith
   he works by mental exertion
   rather than physical force.

(Lectures on Faith 7:3)

Sure, most people want to know God.  But I have found that most of us aren't looking to have our world rocked.  No, we prefer a God who resembles our particular hopes and beliefs.

Few are prepared to encounter a God who does not fit their expectations.

Weeds vs. Wildflowers

​An uncultivated mind is easily swept into error (been there, done that).

To better comprehend God, our minds must "expand" (Alma 32:34).

But how do we increase in knowledge and, more importantly, in wisdom (Luke 2:52)?  How did Jesus?

Such things cannot be forced; God cannot force-feed us the truth.  He does not cram our heads to bursting.  No, He waits patiently until we hunger and thirst, until we ask.

But God's answers are constrained by our mental architecture; He speaks to the level of our comprehension.  If we wish for greater light and truth, our minds will have to be enlarged beyond their current shape.    

God waits until we approach Him with real intent, which is a hunger deep within our spiritual bellies that would feign call out for boiled shoe leather to sate its need.

There is no better tool in our spiritual belts for plying our minds than asking God (who giveth liberally).

But we must be wise, and prepared to be answered not only by God but by lesser gods who hear our calling, and respond.

I wish to discuss angels of all sorts.

Pray with me, "Lord, help us to understand the ministering of angels in a manner that increases our light and love, in order that we might not be deceived by spiritual beings beyond the veil ― no matter how well-intentioned they may be.  We thank You for spiritual guides, and wish only to be led to You.  Grant us wisdom of heart to sift the wheat from chaff.  Give us Manna to sustain our walk as we find our Way to You.  Amen."
​
Joseph Smith said:

"The things of God are of deep import; and time, and experience, and careful and ponderous and solemn thoughts can only find them out. Thy mind, O man! if thou wilt lead a soul unto salvation, must stretch as high as the utmost heavens, and search into and contemplate the darkest abyss, and the broad expanse of eternity—thou must commune with God."

(Letter from Joseph Smith and others to Edward Partridge and the Church, Mar. 20, 1839, Liberty Jail; History of the Church 3:295-296.)

Great and fathomless are the mysteries of God ― but the devil has mysteries of his own.

   Which is which?

Near Death Experiences

When it comes to spiritual matters, we usually end up finding what we seek.  There are many angels in the lower heavens who are all-too-eager to conform to our view of things.

The heavens are filled with Beings who cling to their earthly distortions and beliefs, who are not much more advanced than we are in their eternal progression.

This is why most of our spiritual experiences are subjective, shaped by our contact with those on the other side who share a familiar spirit.

Have you realized that most people who have Near Death Experiences ("NDE's") generally "see" in heaven what they were expecting to find?

Is it because, in the spirit realms, followers of Mohammad create an Islamic heaven; and Mormons create LDS-Jesus-heaven; and Jews are escorted into a suitably Jewish heaven?

​This explains, I think, why the lower heavens are filled with persons who remain bonded to lesser-beings, "some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch" (D&C 76:100). 

Spiritual experiences emerge from a mix-and-mingle of our spirits and those from the "other side" ― who are often ancestral soul groups that constitute themselves there like we do here.

Nowhere is "confirmation bias" more prevalent than in the realm of the spirit; and so we find in the lower heavens just about anything we go looking for.

We can always find spirit guides who sympathize with our spiritual orientation.

"If [a man] does not get knowledge, he will be brought into captivity by some evil power in the other word, as evil spirits will have more knowledge, and consequently more power, than many men who are on the earth."

(Joseph Smith, History of the Church, vol. 4, p. 588.)

These lesser deities are all-to-happy to guide us (and I think many of them are actually trying to be helpful).

Always remember the mark (and the mark is not to commune with angels, but with God).

Joseph Smith fell victim himself to this principle at times.  Whenever you hear about an angel "with a drawn sword," it is a red flag.  For the holders of the higher priesthoods are not marshal; they do not exercise force and compulsory means at the end of a flaming bayonet. 

"[The] power & authority . . . holding the key of the power of endless life.― angels desire to look into it, but they have set up too many stakes."

(Discourse, 27 August 1843, as reported by Willard Richards)

This is why I have said that we should be the sort of person who, when an angel appears, asks to speak to their supervisor.

A Different Perspective on Aaronic Priesthood

Like Lehi, who was led into darkness by "a man dressed in a white robe" (1 Nephi 8:5), we have of necessity the need to develop a sober mind to discern true messengers from those who just want to fool around.

On May 15, 1829, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery made contact with an angel who announced himself as John, the same that is called John the Baptist (and whose English was quite good), who said to them:

   I confer the Priesthood of Aaron,
   which holds the keys
   of the ministering of angels.

(D&C 13:1)

Right away this should give us pause; anything "Aaronic" must be held lightly, like a hot potato.

While we in LDS circles have created sophisticated priesthood theologies, and employ rhetoric that characterizes the Aaronic priesthood as "preparatory" (D&C 84:26) ― in my experience we rarely progress beyond the carnal commandments and outward ordinances thereof.

This is why I do not find it profitable to justify, defend, and rationalize the principles and practices of the Aaronic order.  It becomes a sideshow as people argue over whether cigarettes or cigars are better ― when both will give you lung cancer!

Remember, whatever station we're tuned in to, there is always a greater.  There even lies beyond the Celestial kingdom higher orders, so don't become attached (D&C 130:10).

Aaronic angelics fall short of the Melchizedek priesthood (resonance) we seek, which contains a higher spiritual vibration.

Aaronic angels bring judgment, stumbling blocks, condemnation, and "wrath" (see, D&C 84:27 and Jacob 4:14).

Joseph Smith taught:

"[The] Levitical which was never able to administer a Blessing but only to bind heavy burdens which neither they nor their fathers were able to bear."

(Discourse, 27 August 1843, as reported by Franklin D. Richards)

The lesser gods that fill the Aaronic orders of heaven (to use LDS lingo) may be well-intended, but nevertheless they can easily sidetrack us from our true destination: the Most High God.

Beware the fetters that Aaronic angels bring.  And the next time you're channeling a spiritual source that tells you to commit genocide against the Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites ― well, I suggest you seek a second opinion.

Principalities and Powers and Thrones can only take us so far, and only through much bloodshed.  We must go beyond such things, and transcend such entities, to find the One True God.

It is no small task, to develop the spiritual faculties to discern between God and the pantheons of lesser Beings who populate the heavens.

Angels Among Us

But please don't misunderstand: God can work through angels.  He can work through beings at every level.  Even a telestial entity can speak celestial truth when inspired by the Holy Ghost (2 Nephi 32:3).

So an angel's status or office is not important.  We merely have to tell whether they speak the words of endless life, even "the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things" (Moses 6:61).

Now, it is important to realize that 99% of our communications with angels are not face-to-face.  Angels speak to us primarily by piggybacking on our thoughts and emotions.

Most of us are in contact with spiritual entities on a daily basis without even realizing it.

The best tool I have found to discern truth is love.  But not "love" as the world teaches.  I am talking about the love of God, which is balanced with wisdom.

In love, we may test whether the spiritual communication is imbued with God's grace and intelligence.  Does it edify (D&C 50:23)?

Does it stir the mind in new directions?  Does it fill us with wonder and hope?  Does it make us feel like we could move mountains, God willing?

Or instead, does the message come laced with subtle shadow?  Does it make us feel boxed-in?  Does it cause us to worry over the way we've set the silverware for dinner as if the king will scold us for not having the fork in the right position?

​Does it prey upon our fears?  Does it offer flattery?

Over the years I have observed that spiritual teachers receive inspiration from both negative and positive sources.  Always.  It has to be this way, for whenever the heavens open to us, so does hell.  There has to be equal opportunity to influence the person so that agency is honored.

What I find fascinating is that, over time, a spiritual teacher's voice (especially after they gain followers) generally tends toward the negative more and more, from light to shadow.

The reason for this, I think, is that once a person has been contacted by a positive entity, then negative entities come in the same guise as the positive being, pretending to be one-and-the-same.

In other words, whenever God has spoken, devils follow that attempt to clone His voice, but with small variations (usually implanting a bit of fear, a dash of negativity, a hint of flattery).

And then the prophet will assume they're still in contact with God, unaware of the bait-and-switch that has occurred.

   And the office of their ministry
   is to call men unto repentance,
   and to fulfil and to do the work
   of the covenants of the Father,
   which he hath made
   unto the children of men,
   to prepare the way
   among the children of men,
   by declaring the word of Christ.

(Moroni 7:31)

The key is to follow the "word of Christ," let it come from whence it may.  Anything that is not light-filled is not of Christ (D&C 84:45).

Everyone seems ready to detect the devil and his angels, not realizing that the greater danger is to take a lesser (Aaronic archetype) god for our guide, receiving revelation from ancestral angels or sources who are not conveying the word of Christ, but something lesser.

I share these things so that when someone says things like, "God told me," or "God showed me" ― that we will not be gullible.  Take such things for what they are: grains of sand on an endless shore.

There is always more.  The heavens are more diverse than we can imagine.

As Shakespeare said, "There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

This is why, when people dogmatically claim to know what heaven is like, I laugh (especially if the Sunday School lesson is on eternal marriage).

You and I shall dance in an endless field of wildflowers whilst they pull petals from a single sunflower.

Be believing.  May the mysteries of God unfold in our minds and hearts, so we may be rich in wisdom.

There is no greater mystery than that of God's love.

Therefore, let us be rich in His love.