To My Grandchildren, Their Spouses and Their Children
(And to all the Sister Missionaries and young adult ward members who have visited us in Verdun.)
At one time in my life, I wanted to be the type of grandfather who could provide you with opportunities for fun and adventure. I wanted to spend time with you, take you on trips, provide reunions where we could all gather and have good food and create memories together.
But there came a time in my life when I realized I could not be that type of grandfather. There were several reasons including my divorce and new marriage, there being so many of you, and not being able to afford those kinds of opportunities. But at some point in my life I also realized that perhaps while fun, these type of activities were not the greatest good I could do for you.
I know you may not be mindful of me, but I am mindful of each of you. I am curious about you, worry about you, but most of all I love you. And because I love you, I share God's gifts to me with you. He has promised me that someday you will recognize that the gifts of the Spirit given to me, were given to benefit you, and that you will rejoice in Him who is the giver of these gifts.
And so I asked myself what would be the greatest good that I could do for you? Many experiences led me to desire and discover this greatest good, but what could I do that would cause you to want to know of and understand why Christ is the greatest good, or why Jake in his homecoming talk said 'it is all about Christ?' I worried that you may reject the messenger, and therefore not receive the message. Resist the urge to opine on what you think the greatest good is, and continue to read and discover what He means by the greatest good.
I have found the greatest of all treasures, the treasures of heaven, and I want to share these treasures with you. But like any treasures they only become yours if you discover them. If you allow me I can help you do just that. I've done the searching and the digging, have found the treasures, and continue to enjoy them. But rather than trying to explain to you why they are the treasures of heaven, perhaps you can just continue reading.
But, you may ask, why would you even want to hear about the treasures of heaven and about Christ from me? You may think you already know all you need to know. But you don't! Not even close! I am now an old man with more treasures than you can imagine.
Knowing that in the Father and Christ are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, I am sharing just a few treasures and cautions in this letter. So read this as coming from someone who loves you and who knows treasures and how to find them. Hopefully you will discover a few treasures you can take with you and share. Pour mes petits-enfants français, I recommend that before you continue you read Is It A Good Seed.
Some of my treasures are prophecies of events leading up to the Lord’s second coming. Much is yet to happen before Christ comes again, yet being unprepared and unaware of the events leading up to His coming will catch you on the wrong side of His words when the irrevocable division spoken of by Nephi, Isaiah and Christ occurs.
Because I am older I can see tragedy coming from a considerable distance, but when you are young tragedy does not seem to pertain to you and certainly never catches up to you. But a tragedy it will be if you do not heed His words.
There may be some of you who believe that all you have to do is follow the prophet. Some may know that we must look to God and live, and not follow and put our trust in a man, no matter his ecclesiastical title. Some of you may be struggling with the organized Church. And there may be some of you who are wondering if you really believe in God. And others of you (my French grandchildren) who have not been taught at all because your parents and grandparents were not taught and did not know the truth.
This message is for all of you because no matter where you are in your journey, the remedy is the same.
One of my greatest treasures is knowing the Lord's definition of truth. Yes, He has told us what truth is:
The word of the Lord is truth, and
Whatsoever is truth is light
(light can be discerned), and
Whatsoever is light is spirit,
Even the spirit of Jesus Christ
(D&C 84:45).
Truth = Light = Spirit = Jesus Christ
So His words are Him! If you want to draw nearer to God, feast upon His words. If you do, I promise you that you will hear His voice in His words!
There you have it! A standard by which we can judge and compare everything! Can you appreciate how important this is? Can you appreciate that you do not have to believe anything that is not true, no matter who says it? Can you imagine that you should believe His words, no matter who says them? It is not me saying this. No one but God could say this.
You are not bound by creeds, talks from the pulpit, handbooks, lesson materials, or even what your parents taught you. Can you imagine that one word from the mouth of the Savior, from the bosom of eternity, strikes everything else as insignificant?
This is the reason He has caused His words to be recorded, and we should listen to those who speak and teach His words, no matter who says them, even if it is just your grandfather.
This said, there is only one focus and that is, to feast upon His words so that you will have His sword of truth and can cut through all the crap. And His words will tell you 'all things you must do.' I cannot emphasize enough how important this is as we are nearing the time when Christ will come again. There is so much to happen between now and then, and it is all spelled out for us in His words. You do not want to be caught unprepared.
Sadly I must confess that I taught my children what I had been taught. You see, the traditional teachings are not light and truth (D&C 93:39-40), and I failed to teach them light and truth as the Lord commanded me. Only His words are light and truth.
I did not teach them, as commanded (D&C 68:25), to understand the doctrine of faith, baptism and repentance, before they were eight years old. But I could not teach what I did not know and had not yet experienced. I taught what I had been taught: to be good, to be active in the church, do do their duty, or, in other words, to be religious.
It is preferable to be under grace and not under the law. Some of you may believe that repentance is a change of behavior. It is not! It is a change of direction. Repentance means to turn to Christ, put our faith in Him and rely alone upon His merits.
It is only because of His words that we enter into His way, and only because of His words that we continue in the way. Faith only comes by hearing the word of God. It then follows that because of our faith in Christ we have access to His grace.
It was only after I had feasted upon and obtained His words, and then heard His voice in His words as He revealed the truth of His words to me, experienced being redeemed and born again, that I could teach them to others, but with mixed results. I say mixed, because so few understand the language of God, but some desired to and have experienced His words and His Spirit. This was my motivation for writing a blog, so that perhaps I could remedy the traditional teachings with light and truth and share them with you and others.
I worry that you, like me, may have been taught only the traditional gospel, rather than the gospel of Jesus Christ. Some of you may be struggling with the organized church, with religion in general, perhaps going through a destruction of what you have been taught. There is a lot to struggle with.
Others of you may believe that all you have to do is "live the Gospel." Some may think that Conference talks are the word of God, but to assume so, without knowing the word of God could find you on the wrong side of God's words. And some of you may be questioning the Book of Mormon.
There is so much noise out there that it is impossible not to hear it, read about it or see it. Some of it is valid, but it is usually delivered without any remedy, and it is the remedy that I want to emphasize.
Some of you may have already left the church because you no longer believe some or all of its teachings. Remember that belief is irrelevant. It is not what we believe or do not believe that matters, but whether something is true or not true. That is always the question--the only question. Do not assume that just because you believe something, that it is true. On the other hand do not assume that just because you do not believe something, that it is not true!
Christ does, however, invite us to leave the fold and follow Him to living waters and green pastures. And by 'leaving the fold' I mean leaving behind religion and coming to Christ, looking to Him and relying totally upon His merits and not upon any of our own merits. It will be because of His righteousness that you will be redeemed, not your own.
But those who leave without the Shepherd to guide them, are more than foolhardy; they put themselves in peril.
Those who stay and 'practice' their religion are equally at risk, having failed to repent because they have not been taught what Christ teaches about repentance, thinking that by their good works they will have earned His salvation, or perhaps that Christ will make up the difference. Annie and I choose to stay involved because we love the people. It is where we can do the greatest good by bringing our brothers and sisters to Christ. We also can witness to God directly that we want to take upon us His name and always remember Him, when we partake of the sacrament.
There is only one remedy--His words, and believe me when I tell you, you will not always find His words coming from the pulpit, even the pulpit at the Conference Center. Talks should not be your source. You must first find His words as they are recorded in the Old and New Testament, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine & Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price. Only then will you be equipped to know the difference between the message and the messenger.
Always remember that the Book of Mormon is a work so staggering that it may risk challenging to call it the most remarkable achievement of the human mind--that is, if Joseph Smith was not telling the truth about its origin! Add the truthfulness of its origin, and you can see the hand of God and can hear His voice in His words in the book.
It was not until He began revealing to me the truthfulness of His words, that I came to know His words.
Truth without personal revelation is just information. Truth with personal revelation is to know the truth. I want you to know as I know, and the knowledge that I have is from God.
All His words come together in Christ, and Christ will always lead us to His Father. Christ only taught His father's words (John 12:46-50), and sent the Holy Ghost to bring all His words to our remembrance (John 14:46).
God's more or less principle as described by Alma in Alma 12:10-11 teaches that we are either receiving more of His words until we know the mysteries of God in full, or we harden our hearts against His words until we know nothing, and are bound by the chains of hell. It is either or.
His words can be and are transfigured. In fact, Moroni and Nephi and others prophesied that we, His latter-day people, would transfigure His words, that we would teach for doctrine the commandments of men mingled with scripture, and that many would be led astray because of this.
Christ himself prophesied that it will be so bad that we will reject His words and the fulness of His gospel, and that His gospel will be taken from us, and we will become as the salt of the earth that loses its savor (3 Nephi 16:10;15).
If you were to ask now what is this greatest good, I would direct you to the Lord’s answer. Joseph's ministry was to proclaim Christ's Gospel, and in doing so “will do the greatest good,” and will “promote the glory of him who is your Lord” (D&C 81:3-4 emphasis added). Don’t assume that you know ‘Christ's gospel’ because I can guarantee that you more than likely do not. If you are interested He has defined His Gospel in 3 Nephi 27:13-21.
This letter from a German soldier from Verdun written in May 1916 is an illustration of the greatest good.
My dear good old parents,
It's war here, war in the most horrible of all its forms, and in our distress we become aware of the closeness of God. At present, things are becoming extremely difficult. But in the depths of my soul, I feel serene rather than worried. "Let me go so that I can see Jesus." It must be beautiful to be able to look at God in His magnificence. I think about the afterlife a great deal, with joy. I do not fear judgement. I'm a poor creature, a miserable sinner, but how great is God's grace, how great the Saviour's love! This is why, without fear or distress, I am doing my duty for the Fatherland and for my love of the German people. Thank you, my dear parents, for leading me to the Saviour. It is the best thing that you have ever done!
With my tenderest love, May God keep you! (Johannes Hass. Died at Verdun on 1 June 1916)
His words have now become my words because He has given them to me. Those of you who are feasting upon His words will recognize them, but those of you who are not, will not recognize them because you have no frame of reference except the pulpit narrative or the opinions of others. Believe me, the scripture narrative is different than the pulpit narrative. Or better yet believe Him when He says:
“And I, Jesus Christ, your Lord and your God, have spoken it, These words are not of men nor of man, but of me; wherefore, you shall testify they are of me and not of man; for it is my voice which speaketh them unto you; for they are given by my Spirit unto you, and by my power you can read them one to another; and save it were by my power you could not have them. Wherefore, you can testify that you have heard my voice, and know my words” (D&C 18:33-36).
To “follow” Jesus (Matthew 10:38; 16:24; 19:21) thus looks far beyond being “saved” to becoming even as He is (3 Nephi 27:27).
And I can so testify!
So if you are inclined for whatever reason--curious, to prove me wrong, really want to know, really need to know, or any other reason--then search what I have written. Compare everything with His words. Look up the references and desire more of His words. As you receive His words, pray for the Spirit of Revelation and the Spirit of Prophecy, and know for yourselves. Then, as He promised, you will speak with the tongue of angels. Do not be part of the majority that will deny the gifts and power of God (Moroni 10), because only those who work through the gifts and power of God will do good.
I have linked a few posts here for easy reference, hoping that there may be a few that will interest you, and help you focus on His words and not mine. It is His voice that I want you to hear in His words.
I send this because I love you and because I want you to desire and choose His mercy, and avoid His justice.
There is an upside to ignorance, and a downside to knowledge. Knowledge makes life messier. It makes it a bit more difficult for a person who wishes to shrink the world to his or her worldview.
Love,
Your grandfather.
Why I Teach His Gospel of Repentance
Teaching Young Children to Understand the Doctrine of Repentance
Alma's Teachings on Mercy and Justice
Alma Believes the Words of Abinadi
That Which We Work For We Worship
To Clark’s Grandchildren:
ReplyDeleteHello! My name is Tim Merrill and I grew up in the 1980s with TMNT and NES; if you know what those things are, we’re kindred spirits.
I’ve known your grandfather for about 10 years; and while I probably don’t know him as well as you do, I know he always speaks the truth. It sort of shocked me at first, really; I remember listening to him speak in Sacrament Meeting as a High Councilor and thinking, “Can he say that?” I’ve described your grandfather this way: “I love the way Clark teaches because he doesn't sugarcoat things. If I am like Honey Nut Cheerios, Clark is a bowl of Kellogg's All-Bran; and the older I get, the more my spirit craves the fiber found in his pure testimony of Christ.”
I’ve come to treasure Clark’s words as a pearl of great price. In my faith journey I have spent a lot of time pondering and questioning things about the gospel and the Church. That is why I love it when your grandfather says, “You do not have to believe anything that is not true.”
In fact, last year I shared some of the fruits his friendship and ministry have produced in my life on my website, Owl of the Desert, in a 6-part blog series. I hope you’ll take a moment to read about our adventures together and how they changed my life:
Part 1: https://www.owlofthedesert.com/blog/in-the-mouth-of-two-or-three-witnesses-part-1
Part 2: https://www.owlofthedesert.com/blog/in-the-mouths-of-two-or-three-witnesses-part-2
Part 3: https://www.owlofthedesert.com/blog/in-the-mouths-of-two-or-three-witnesses-part-3
Part 4: https://www.owlofthedesert.com/blog/in-the-mouths-of-two-or-three-witnesses-part-4
Part 5: https://www.owlofthedesert.com/blog/in-the-mouths-of-two-or-three-witnesses-part-5
Part 6: https://www.owlofthedesert.com/blog/in-the-mouths-of-two-or-three-witnesses-part-6-conclusion
I am still learning; but I am glad to share this messy experience we call life with your grandfather, and now with you! May the Lord bless you, my new friends.
Tim