The Stranglehold of Babylon

Is idolatry simply the worship of things? Or are idols symbols for value systems, as taught in scripture? Systems which have no value or power other than that which worshipers place in them are contrasted with the system God has established.

Idols then become symbols representing particular social, economic, political and religious views. When prophets criticized idols as simply being wood and stone, they also challenged the integrity and validity of the things that idols represent. Idols represent certain value systems and ways of life for their adherents. The temptation of Israel to follow these value systems was as pernicious for the ancient Israelites as it is for us today.

Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel lead all-out attacks on idols (Isaiah 41-44;45-47; Jeremiah 50-51; Daniel 3). Why? And what does it mean to us since these attacks are set against Babylon in the sixth century B.C.? Keeping in mind that Jewish prophets foretell the future by using events of the past, these attacks by Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel are also attacks against the idols of our day and the Lord's people today who worship these idols.

As we examine the ancient city of Babylon, her history is remarkable. Bel (also known as Marduk) and Nebo were this city's symbols. They represented the political, social, military, and economic system that produced successful empires. They were symbols of privilege, power and wealth. And they were also symbols of arrogance, pride and unbridled ambition.

Babylon, in Genesis 11, is the symbol of self-exaltation and revolt against God. Babylon's ambition was to be as great as God, to be independent of His rule. No idol is mentioned, as the city is her own symbol of idolatry. Babylon is also referred to as the "whore of the earth" and the reference of 'whoring after other Gods' is a reference to Israel and us choosing the ways and values of Babylon instead of the ways of our God.

According to Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel, there is no element in Babylon capable of redemption or reformation. Babylon will be destroyed and human efforts cannot prevent the collapse of a false system, no matter how great. The idols of Babylon are useless for anyone except a successful warrior, and then only when he wins. Such systems only have place for a winner. The attributes of arrogance and pride fit the pattern of humanity's major sins (cf. Isaiah 2:-12-22). 

The Isaiah chapters (Isaiah 41-47) devote a major section (Chapter 47) to a description of Babylon's fall as mistress or queen of the nations. Babylon's humiliation and shame lie in the exposure that her claims and self-esteem were without basis. She had thought of her status and privilege as eternal. She thought of herself as autonomous and invulnerable. "I am, and there is none beside me. I will never be a widow or suffer the loss of children" (Isaiah 47:8). 

She had no sense of accountability to God or mankind. She depended on sorcery and astrology, just as we depend on the economy, technology, human advancements and science. But she would come to recognize that these had no power at all to preserve or to save her (47:9-15). The treatment of Babylon and idolatry in Isaiah 41-47 is not primarily intended to give a historical presentation, but a prophetic one.

Israel anciently and we of the Lord's people today are tempted to commit ourselves to something of pure human fabrication rather than to what is of God. We fare "in this life according to the management of the creature; therefore every man prospers according to his genius, and every man conquers according to his strength" (Alma 30:17). These false tendencies of the mind that hinder clear thought are the essence of idolatry. And worse, the values represented by these idols either replace or exist side by side with the worship of the true God, and in many cases are thought to be the values of the true God.

What is it, then, of Babylon that has such a stranglehold on its people? Why are we tempted to commit ourselves to things of pure human fabrication rather than to what is of God? Even when the Jews had an opportunity to return to Jerusalem, most did not, but stayed in Babylon, even though they had been taken captive by this great world power. This was because it is so easy to assume the value of Babylon's systems, her way of doing things, because Babylon was so successful. They failed to realize that they had been taken captive by Babylon--again!

The failure to recognize this captivity is the key to our undoing. Because the Babylonian system of society, economics, politics and human values is of human fabrication, it will, in time, collapse. It has no lasting divine sanction. The ultimate sin is to assume that these man-made institutions are in themselves of divine quality, that they will last forever. Babylon is not God, nor do her ways partake of the qualities of God's law. Even praiseworthy human values become a substitute for God's goodness and righteousness. We even ascribe these human values to God. 

But like ancient Israel, we are called to be the servants of God, even when we live and work in Babylon. But we must reserve our worship, our ultimate commitment, to God--it is His goodness and righteousness versus everything else. This commitment must stand above all other systems, parties and values. But in order for us to recognize this, we must understand and know that we are, at least for now, captives of Babylon and her man made systems. Isaiah calls upon us who are now living in a secular environment, to differentiate clearly between our loyalties to human structures, authorities and economies, and our commitment to our God, our Savior and our Lord. 

Among the Lord's people, however, the worship of the true God is rarely done away. Rather, we often worship the true God alongside the false gods. We maintain a careful equilibrium in order to preserve an identity with the God of Israel. At the same time we follow our own gods as we please. This compromise enables us to satisfy both our carnal instincts and our spiritual aspirations. It causes the Lord's prophets to cry, "Choose you this day whom ye will serve" (Josh. 24:15) and "How long will ye halt between two opinions?" (1 Kings 18:21).

In fact in some instances the worship of the true God and false gods becomes fused. Then the concept of the true God gets distorted, while the false gods assume the authenticity and endorsement that belongs to the true God. It epitomizes the idea of "philosophies of men mingled with scripture." For the Lord's people this type of syncretism lies but one step away from severing spiritual roots. It forms the final stage of apostasy before the Lord brings on His judgment.

We must wait for our deliverance, but in the meantime recognize our captivity and pray for our deliverance. Our awareness of where we are must be clear. The reminder by many prophet-writers in the Book of Mormon to remember the captivity of Israel and Israel's deliverance is a reminder to us as well. It is also the purpose of the Temple, which tells us exactly where we are. Not only are we captive to our sins and must be delivered, but we are captives in Babylon and must be delivered. But first we must believe that we must be delivered, and then want to be delivered. But in order to be delivered from, we must desire to be delivered to. But to what?

The antithesis of Babylon is Zion. Whatever Babylon is, Zion is not. And whatever Zion is, Babylon is not. Isaiah describes both in great detail and also prophesies what will become of both. And since all that Isaiah said has been and shall be, his description of both, has historical as well as endtime prophetic significance. Isaiah identifies Babylon with all non-Zion entities (Isa. 13-23). These include the earth and the world, nations and alliances of nations, aggressive world powers, tyrants and oppressors, rulers and people of power, enemies and adversaries, and the wicked of the Lord's people.

If Zion consists of those of the Lord's people who repent, who return, and whom the Lord delivers, then Babylon consists of all who do not repent, who do not return, and whom He does not deliver. If Babylon stands for the world and the wicked whom the Lord destroys in his day of judgment, then Zion stands for what he does not destroy at that time. Isaiah describes the polarity between Zion and Babylon with many examples, all leading up to the Lord exalting Zion and destroying Babylon.

Throughout the scriptures, Zion is brought into the clearest focus by placing it against a dark background; and like Zion, that background world is given a code name: Babylon. Babylon, like Zion, is a real society—a type, place, and environment of human existence, described in the scriptures with great clarity and precision. (The word Babylon is not just a general term to indicate anything that is not Zion; it is the designation of a very particular and specific type of society.) Though Babylon is vividly described by the prophets, the best way to define her is as the exact opposite of Zion in all things. Babylon is just as pure in its way as is Zion; it is pure evil—for even good, when it becomes contaminated and perverted, becomes evil. The main thing is that Babylon and Zion cannot mix in any degree; a Zion that makes concessions is no longer Zion.

Isaiah prophesied, however, that many of the Lord's people would not be looking forward to Zion because they are so immersed in Babylon. Their preoccupation with the things of this world prevent them from discerning that Babylon will be destroyed. Having lost sight of Zion, and going about to establish their own righteousness, according to Isaiah, many of the Lord's people will be unprepared when the Lord sees fit to destroy Babylon. Isaiah observes an interdependence between Zion and Babylon--between the Lord's righteous people (those who repent) and the wicked (those who do not repent). Those of the Lord's people who do not repent will be the very people whom Lehi and Nephi saw in the large and spacious building. These prideful people compose the "multitudes of the earth" and the "house of Israel," who fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb (1 Nephi 11:34-35).

Without the prospects of Zion, however, many of the Lord's people will not be looking past Babylon, but only to a more comfortable life in Babylon. One of the reasons, I believe, that Christ commanded us to search the words of Isaiah was to prepare us for the days leading up to the destruction of Babylon. Isaiah emphasized the contrast between Babylon and Zion so that we would recognize our captivity and desire to be delivered from Babylon, so that Zion could be established. It seems, though, as if many of us have lost sight of Zion.

The Saints' early efforts to establish Zion did not yield the blessing that was promised. The Saints were unable to build up the Zion of which the prophecies speak. When their enemies came against them, God did not defend and prosper them as he did Enoch's people. They failed to establish the latter-day Zion because they were unschooled in the laws of Zion (D&C 105:2-10). We are not any closer today, but have removed ourselves even further from establishing Zion by immersing ourselves in Babylon and its systems. 

When Latter-day Saints recognize that they choose either Babylon or Zion, and cannot belong to both, perhaps there will be some awakening of a few of them who presently are not looking forward to being delivered from Babylon. Hugh Nibley, in his book Approaching Zion, articulates many problems we face today in becoming a Zion people. As he points out, instead of having become more Zion-like since the restoration of the gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith, we have acquired more of the characteristics of Babylon. Instead of having become God's peculiar people, a nation of kings and priests, we have become, as some modern prophets have told us, an idolatrous people, a people under condemnation, treating lightly the things we have received.

If this is true, where do we go from here?

First, we must recognize where we are. We live in Babylon and our employer is Satan, or it is his system that we work and labor in. Whatever excuses we give ourselves will not cut it. This has been true since the time of Adam, where Cain and many after him rejected God and chose to operate under Satan's system--which is Babylon.

Second, we must recognize that we are slaves in this system and cannot deliver ourselves from it. Like the children of Israel in Egypt, we are slaves in Babylon and must be delivered. At some point we will be asked to leave it and we must be prepared.

Third, we must recognize that there is something better and desire it--Zion or the Lord's law which will be established when the Lord gathers Israel, whether we choose to leave Babylon or not. 

Fourth, we must feast upon His words and believe them--not treat them lightly. Through His words we come to know that Zion will be established by those who believe His words, exercise faith in Him and repent or turn to him and away from all that we are and away from where we are. Through His words we learn that the Prophet Joseph Smith laid the foundation for the latter-day Zion, and that callings and offices in the restored Church of Jesus Christ exist expressly for the purpose of establishing Zion and her stakes (D&C 107:36-37, 59, 74). The Saint's labors in the Lord's vineyard build up the Church, which helps to bring forth Zion (D&C 39:13). We will come to recognize that the purpose of the revelations given in the Doctrine and Covenants is to lay the foundation for the building up of the latter-day Zion. We must labor for Zion and not for money (2 Nephi 26:31).

Fifth, we must recognize that Zion can be built up only by the law of the celestial kingdom (D&C 105:5), meaning we must desire to live the law of consecration so that there will be no poor among us and we can prepare for the Lord's second coming. He will not come until Zion is established. He has warned us that many among us will reject the fulness of His gospel, in which case it will be taken from us and given to the House of Israel who will hear His words, believe them and repent. Our only hope is repentance!

But are we enjoying Babylon so much that we don't even think of Zion? Are we like the Jews who were captured by the Babylonians and taken to Babylonia, only to want to remain even after they were free to go back to Jerusalem?

Ten Reasons Why

Ten Reasons Why Many Young LDS Adults Are Lost

One of my responsibilities as a high councilor was working with the Young Single Adults (YSAs), who were not attending or whose records were not in a YSA ward. Many of these YSAs were referred to as ‘the lost single adults,’ meaning they were not active church members. 

But I will use the term ‘lost’ in a different sense, as in ‘lost’ like the description Lehi used to describe those who “did lose their way, and wandered off and were lost” (1 Nephi 8:23). These, like many YSAs, commenced in a path which led to the tree of life, but because there arose a “mist of darkness; yea, an exceedingly great darkness,” they lost their way. 

This also may apply to many of the church who are not YSAs even though they may be ‘active’ church members, for regardless of activity they may still be ‘lost’ in this sense.

I use the term 'way' as Nephi does in 2 Nephi 31 as having entered in by the gate "which is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost" (2 Nephi 31:17). 

The 'way' as described by Nephi is the "strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life" (2 Nephi 31:18). Nephi explains that we get into this strait and narrow path "by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save" (2 Nephi 31:19). Once on the path we "must press forward feasting upon the words of Christ" (2 Nephi 31:20). 

Unfortunately many YSAs have lost their way, or more likely have never found their way. And even though they were baptized, they did not actually enter the gate to the strait and narrow path because they were not taught to “understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, when eight years old” (D&C 68:23). They may have been taught about these doctrines, but not taught to understand them by those who were given charge to teach them the gospel of Jesus Christ according to the word of God. 

Or if they were taught to ‘understand’ they did not continue to feast upon the words of Christ or did not hearken unto the voice of the Lord, but instead they have gone according to their own carnal wills and desires and persisted in their own carnal nature. As such they refuse to repent and therefore it is as though there was no redemption made. He extended His arms of mercy towards them, but they would not. (Mosiah 16:1;5 & 12). Fortunately for all of us as long as we are in this probationary state we can repent. It is always the failure to repent that is the basis upon which we are judged.

So they 'commenced' by being baptized but because they were not taught to 'understand' they were in darkness to begin with. The Lord defines darkness as anything which is not the light that comes from God. If we are not introduced to His light, or if we are introduced and then turn away from that light, or are not continually immersed in that light, we will become lost because of the darkness that does prevail in this world. 

God describes this light as His word, which He also defines as truth and Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ. (D&C 84:45). The only remedy to the darkness is the word of God, which is why we are admonished to 'feast' upon His words. We either live by this light, by every word that comes from the mouth of God, or we do not. There is darkness all around us and within us, and the only way to navigate the darkness is to see the light shining in the darkness and follow it.

I have always been interested in why, and in this case have listed ten (10) reasons why I believe young single adults, as well as many other older church members, who may have commenced in the path, eventually lose their way. This includes those who may have never found their way, and those who mistakenly believe they are in the way,   

Each reason for being 'lost' is accompanied by a short explanation of the truth (word of God) associated with each reason. I use the term 'understanding' the way the Lord used it when He explained to his disciples why He taught in parables, "because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand" (Matthew 13:13). He explains why they don't hear or understand, "for this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed" (Matthew 13:15), and they do not understand with their hearts (Mosiah 11:29). 

Being 'lost' is not the result of all these reasons. In fact it can be only one or perhaps another I did not think of, but since they are all connected, failure in one results in failure in the others. But they do all have the same thing in common--they are not understood, believed, experienced, and known, as in known by personal revelation, which is the Lord's answer to self-deception.

On another occasion the Lord cautioned us that "the whole world lieth in sin, and groaneth under darkness and under the bondage of sin" (D&C 84:49). This darkness, He explains, is the result of "not being acquainted with (His) voice" (D&C 84:52). The problem of not understanding is compounded by the fact that many of those charged with teaching YSAs did not themselves understand and therefore contributed to the lack of understanding among the lost YSAs. But with becoming an adult, these YSAs cannot afford to pass the responsibility to those charged with teaching them. Having been introduced to His words (the Parable of the Sower), it is up to them to search them and feast upon them and see and hear and understand. 

Note that each of the reasons listed is based on a lack of understanding the revealed word of God, either because of not being taught properly, having no desire, not searching, and not planting the word of God in their hearts because in their hearts they desire the things of the world, or knowing and rejecting the word of God. All of this is explained in the Parable of the Sower.

1. They do not understand the fall of Adam, nor have they experienced their own lost and fallen state. In other words they do not know where they are. In order for GPS or a map to be of any benefit, it (or you) must know where you are. There is a proper order for teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it begins with Adam. “Because that Adam fell, we are; and by his fall came death; and we are made partakers of misery and woe. Behold Satan hath come among the children of men, and tempteth them to worship him; and men have become carnal, sensual, and devilish, and are shut out from the presence of God” (Moses 6:48-49). 

This is the condition of all of us, and how we respond to this condition determines our eternal destiny. It makes no difference whether we believe this or do not believe it--the truth is that all of us are lost and fallen--all you have to do is see that we all die, we all partake of misery, we are all flawed human beings, and we are not in the presence of God. Like others before them many lost YSAs will simply dismiss this as being part of a religion, but their dismissal does not change the fact that it is true and that their lack of response is a response based on either not understanding or refusing to hear and understand.

2. They do not understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In other words they do not know how to read the map, and hence they wander off and are lost. Alma recognized that his son Corianton's behavior was the result of Corianton not understanding the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Alma's response to his son's behavior was to teach him the word of God, which, by the way, is the map! Many do not know that Christ defines His Gospel in 3 Nephi 27:13-21. While Moses 6:48-49 describes our condition on this earth, Jesus gives us His preferred response to our condition. Both put everyone who has lived and will live on this earth, in the play. We are the actors in the play, but many do not know the plot, the beginning or the end. But Christ tells us that He came to this earth (good news) because His Father sent him. He tells us 'why' His Father sent Him--to be lifted up on the cross so that all men and women would be lifted up by the Father to stand before Christ and His Father to be judged of their works. This tells us that all of us must stand in the presence of God "to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him" (2 Nephi 2:10). This is the good news but only if we repent. 

He tells us that we can avoid the judgment of God of our works if we repent, are baptized, are filled with the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end, and instead of the justice of God, we can be found 'guiltless' because of His goodness and righteousness. Otherwise we suffer the justice of God and are hewn down and cast into the fire. The YSAs that are lost may know nothing of the real Gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead they may see the church as just another religion and make life decisions based on what they 'think' is best for themselves rather than what God 'knows' is best for them, thereby subjecting themselves to the justice of God. 

3. They do not understand their need for an atonement. In other words, not only do they not know where they are, they do not know where they are going, and even if they have an idea, they do not know how to get there. Knowing something about the atonement and experiencing our personal need for the atonement are not the same. I would guess that most YSAs, like many of their parents and teachers, may not have experienced their own lost and fallen condition, and therefore do not see the need for their own redemption. Until we see and experience that we are sinners, that we are evil, that our goodness is flawed, that our works and deeds will never be enough, that our capacity to sin needs to be changed, we can deceive ourselves and be led 'carefully down to hell.' 

Redemption is a personal experience, not a doctrine to be read from the pulpit, and we are redeemed because of the righteousness of our Savior. It is OK to think that we are lost as long as we also experience our own need for Christ's redemption, in fact without the former, we will never desire the latter. For this reason I believe that many YSAs who have made different choices may not see a way out for themselves, and therefore become locked into a worldview that captures them and keeps them out of the way, on paths that lead them further away from the truth.

4. They do not believe that they have only two choices and that they are enticed by the one or the other. In other words they do not understand that God has engineered His plan so that we only have two choices--Good or the righteousness of God, or Evil, which is everything else. One direction is narrow and the other one is broad with many paths all leading one to be lost, wandering in strange roads. While we have many choices on how to live our lives, all these choices are but a reflection of whether we are choosing Good or Evil. Young people believe that when they become adults they are 'free' to make their own choices. While this may be true, what they fail to comprehend is that as adults their choices remain the same. They can either turn to Good or God or they can turn away from God and turn to evil. 

Belief in the doctrine of the two ways is lacking in those who have lost their way.  Having chosen to turn away from God they are now in the midst of darkness, and Satan who entices them away from God deceives them with images, illusions and false ideas to keep them out of the way. They are led away without even realizing it and are taken captive and led carefully down to hell.

5. They do not understand either the Justice or the Mercy of God. In other words they do not understand the consequences of their choices. What bothered Corianton was that he could not understand how a loving God could punish us. In Alma's explanation to Corianton he taught that the Justice of God comes about because of the fall of Adam. By Adam's fall comes death, misery and woe, and flawed humans being cut off from God's presence. Why? Because God said so and being God He could not go back on His word. Having put His Justice in place, there then came a need for Mercy. 

The Mercy of God became available to us through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Justice and Mercy are on opposite sides of the equation.  We choose one or the other.  It is not justice and mercy, but justice or mercy. Having put these conditions upon us, God sent messengers to teach us that we can avoid His justice and be found guiltless (mercy) by keeping His commandments to repent, be baptized, be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost and endure to the end (3 Nephi 27:20). Justice claims all that are hers, and Mercy claims all that are hers. Christ stands between us and mercy and none but the truly penitent shall receive mercy (Alma 42:24). "Thou hast turned away thy judgments because of thy Son" (Alma 33:13).  

All of us sin and will continue to sin, but if we repent (using only His definition of repentance--see Reason 7) we can be found spotless when we are brought to stand before God to be judged. But if we fail to repent, then it is for us the justice of God and we will be judged of our works, regardless of whether they are good or bad. "And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption" (Alma 34:16 emphasis added).

6. They believe that because consequences are not immediate, there are no consequences.  Many young people buy into the mantra to "eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us" (2 Nephi 28:7). Part of the reason for buying in is that there are usually no immediate consequences to their actions. But this will not always be so because each choice is laying the groundwork for the consequences. Satan's tools include pacifying and lulling into a sense of carnal security, flattering and telling us there is no hell, and leading us carefully down to hell. 

Because we only have two choices--good or evil--every day, every minute and every second we are revealing to God what we want by virtue of the choices we make, and He will use our choices as the basis of His judgment. It is called the Judgment because it is where all of us will stand be be judged. We will either be judged on our own merits, or on the merits of Christ.

7. They do not understand the doctrine of baptism or repentance. In other words they do not know the gate by which they enter into the strait and narrow way. Because so many YSAs have been taught about repentance by people who themselves do not understand the Lord's meaning of repentance, they may associate repentance as something negative, i.e., I am a bad person and need to repent. Yet repentance is one of the greatest of all the gifts of God, given to us as the means for us to take advantage of the mercy of God, and as the way out of our being shut off from the presence of God. To many YSAs the way back may seem too difficult and too demeaning, and yet having been baptized unto repentance, the Lord has told them to turn to Him, put their faith in Him, and rely wholly upon His merits.  

He has told us that we are saved because of His righteousness, not our own. All we need to do is repent which means to turn to him, recognize that our hearts are broken and pray for new ones so that He can begin to change our disposition to do evil and cure our tendency to turn away from Him. We then begin to see the fruits of our repentance. Our sins should trouble us, but with a trouble that will bring us down unto repentance. We should not endeavor to excuse ourselves in the least point because of our sins, by denying the justice of God, but we should let the justice of God and His mercy, and His long-suffering have full sway in our hearts; and let it bring us down to the dust in humility (Alma 42:30).

What better news than this:  "And I also thank my God, yea, my great God, that he hath granted unto us that we might repent of these things, and also that he hath forgiven us of those our many sins...which we have committed, and taken away the guilt from our hearts, through the merits of his Son" (Alma 24:10 emphasis added).

8. They do not come unto Christ because they do not believe Him or His words. Or in other words they do not understand or believe that Christ has spoken the words of his Father. While giving lip service to a belief in Christ, many lost YSAs do not really believe Him or His words. We begin with the premise that God has spoken, that 

His words have been recorded and that we can know for ourselves that they are His words. 

This admonition by Nephi applies to all of us: "all ye ends of the earth, hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ. And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good. And if they are not the words of Christ, judge ye--for Christ will show you, with power and great glory, that they are his words, at the last day; and you and I shall stand face to face before his bar; and ye shall know that I have been commanded of him to write these things" (2 Nephi 33:10-11).

Evidence of this is that once YSAs leave the church many abandon their worship of God and/or Christ altogether. A quote from Tamu Smith, one of the Sistas in Zion makes this observation about those who leave the Church: "What I've noticed from brothers and sisters of our faith who have left is they don't replace their Sunday worship with anything.... They become unbelievers." I would say that perhaps they were never believers in the first place.

9. They are deceived by the images of the world and the vain imaginations of their hearts. Christ has contrasted His words with what he describes as the 'mainspring of all corruption' which is the creeds of the fathers that have been strongly riveted upon the hearts of the children and have filled the world with confusion.  He describes this mainspring of corruption as growing stronger and stronger and that the whole earth groans under the weight of its iniquity (D&C 123:7). 

Satan does have power in this world, which is by design so that we are enticed by the one (Christ) or the other (Satan). There is no middle ground--no ground for people to deceive themselves into thinking that they are good, even though some of their deeds are not, and that at the judgment God will take care of those bad things we did because He loves us and will usher us into His presence. Satan is a master magician and with the use of images and illusion, will deceive us or, better yet, cause us to deceive ourselves.

10. They do not put their trust in God. I am always amazed at the influence of others in the lives of the lost YSAs, or more amazed that these young adults can be so trusting of their peers. Our Father in Heaven has asked us to put our trust in Him. He does this to protect us. He does not want us to put trust in humans, any humans. This is usually the cause of finding fault with church leaders and parents and finding excuses to transfer our trust to our friends. God knows that it is our tendency to rely on those around us more than we do on Him, and after He warns us not to, we may find ourselves disappointed and even worse, critical. 

This disappointment and criticism then leads to finding fault and blaming the church. This is just other evidence that these lost YSAs do not understand the Gospel and mistake the organization as the Gospel. In this they usually have company--those around them--who reinforce their mistaken ideas. How many quotes from others have been posted on social media sites as some great truth, while at the same time they ignore or discount what He has revealed. One word from Him strikes everything else into insignificance. And yet they are blinded by the craftiness of men and do not hear and do not see, and therefore do not understand.

Taken together these teachings are there to be either received or rejected, and our response to them determines whether we start our ascension to God or continue our descent further into Babylon, to be destroyed when Babylon and everything in it is destroyed.

There is only one remedy for helping this 'lost' generation to find their way, and that is for those closest to them to first do what they will ask of these lost YSAs--feast upon the words of Christ, for the words of Christ will tell you all things that ye must do. And once armed with these words, they like Alma must preach unto them the word of God with all diligence, and teach them the Gospel of Jesus Christ the way it should have been taught to them in the first place! We can't rely on the programs of the Church to do this. It can only be done one-on-one by those who become like Alma and are willing to labor without ceasing that they might bring souls unto repentance so that these lost YSAs do know of the things of which you speak, as you should know; and the knowledge which you should have is of God. Go get that knowledge and then begin your labor!

And for any YSAs who may read this, remember that you are at risk because most of you have been introduced to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His commandment to repent or turn to Him while turning away from the darkness within and around you. You cannot rely on your failure to understand to excuse you from the command to repent. You have actually been baptized and entered at least partially into the strait and narrow way. I urge you to turn to the light and begin to feast upon the words of Christ, for these words will tell you all things you must do.

I Am A Sinner

Important in the records of the dispensations is that when men depart from God's way and substitute their own ways in its place, they usually do not admit that this is what they are doing. Often they do not deliberately or even consciously substitute their ways for God's ways. On the contrary, they easily and largely convince themselves that their way is God's way. The apostasy described in the New Testament is not a desertion of the cause, but perversion of it, a process by which 'the righteous are removed, and none perceives it. 

Let me give you a personal example.

I would not have described myself as a Sinner when I was younger, or even in my middle age years. Only other people were sinners, those bad people who had committed acts and transgressions, none of which I had committed. I had been taught that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was about my righteousness, my goodness, my worthiness and my works. I saw myself as one of the good guys. I had always thought that Christ gave us His gospel and all we needed to do was live it. I was one of those who went about to establish my own righteousness. 

To have been called as a Bishop, I had to be righteous. I had to be one of the good guys. Right? I was, after all, one of the Saturday Warriors who had been sent to the earth in the last days. I was so good in the preexistence that I was born a Mormon, had married in the temple, had great kids, etc. I lived the word of wisdom, was morally clean, had a temple recommend, and I paid my tithing. I had to be good. Right? Until I wasn't!

I can't remember when I first began to realize that I had been living a perverted gospel, and that I had been deceiving myself into thinking that I was good. But the more I searched the scriptures and listened to God's voice through His words, the more I realized that I was worshiping a false image--an image of myself as a good guy in a world with the lot of bad guys. I was comparing myself to others and could always find others much worse than I was, or so I thought. I was a winner and knew that I could flash my report card and be accepted into heaven. Whatever weaknesses there may have been, He would beat me with a few stripes, but in the end I would be saved.

But something in me changed when I read Romans 10:1-4:

"For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth" (emphasis added).

That was me! I was going about to establish my own righteousness. I was ignorant of God's righteousness and I had not submitted myself to the righteousness of God. Certainly I had taken strength unto myself and was lifted up in the imagination and the thoughts of my heart. I had been preaching myself and not Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4-5).

I thought of all the ways I had done this. It was about me. I wanted others to see me as one of the good guys. I had a testimony! I had read the scriptures! I was an active church member! I was the elder brother, part of the ninety and nine who (thought) they needed no repentance. I was certainly not the prodigal son! I was not the lost sheep!

I was starting to see myself as one who worshiped God with my lips, but whose heart was far from Him. This came about as I really began to search the word of God, which is truth, light, and the spirit of Christ (D&C84:45), and holding myself up against that light, I soon experienced the darkness that is within me. I realized that I had been teaching the doctrines of men mingled with scriptures, and had myself accepted these teachings. I had made my ways God's ways.

I wanted to repent of this wickedness, but was not sure how to repent. I wanted to know how the Lord defined repentance. I was determined to submit myself to God's righteousness, and soon I began to see myself in comparison to Him. It is true that as I came unto Him He immediately began to show unto me my weaknesses (Ether 12:27). I read that repentance is the main message of the Book of Mormon, of all scripture, which also tells us that the essence of repentance is knowing exactly what we are--"O how great is the nothingness of...men" (Helaman 12:17 emphasis added). I learned that Godly sorrow--"sorrowing unto repentance, because of the goodness of God" (Mormon 2:13)--lead both Paul and Nephi to exclaim: "What a wretched man that I am!" (2 Nephi 4:17; Romans 7:24). For the first time in my life I felt my nothingness, my wickedness, my wretchedness, in comparison to His Goodness!

But like most people, I suppose, I did this privately because at first I was afraid to show to anyone else what I was discovering about myself. I was still hiding behind my false image. I was starting to see that my image was after the image of the world, and that I fared in this life according to my strengths and talents. I had certainly taken strength unto myself and cut myself off from my Savior, my roots (Jacob 5:48). I could, for the first time understand why self-righteousness was described as being corrupted. I saw myself and the evil in my own heart. He showed me the hearts of some who were meekly following and serving their Savior, and I wanted to be like them. I read a lot about the heart in the scriptures and found my own heart wanting. I could give lip service to loving God with all my heart, but I knew that within my own heart I really didn't. 

I learned that repentance includes the process of knowing myself, and in doing so, I discovered it was an unsettling exercise in self knowledge. Even though I was born innocent, there are so many flaws in my nature, so many weaknesses in my character, and so much evil in my heart, and for the very first time I realized that I was a Sinner. I wasn't ready yet to describe myself as a Chief Sinner, but I was getting close.

Soon everything I was reading and hearing in the scriptures was jumping out at me with the message: It is not about your righteousness, but about Christ's! It is, in fact, about your unworthiness (Alma 38:14). I was changing and was no longer comparing myself to others. I was beginning to experience my unworthiness before God.

Through God's word, I heard that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation, and not the power of me earning my salvation through good works. I heard that we attain unto the righteousness of Christ through faith in Christ (Romans 9:30-33). And as I experienced my nothingness and His goodness, I knew that I must put my faith in Him and not in myself, because no matter what I did, I would always fall way short of His goodness. I was beginning to understand the fall of Adam and its effect on all mankind, and then I began to experience my own lost and fallen state. It was then, and only then, that I realized the need for the Atonement in my own life. I was no longer the elder brother, or part of the ninety and nine that needed no repentance. I was the prodigal son! I was the lost sheep!

God's words taught me that repentance is not a single act or multiple acts of righteousness. It is the action of turning to God and His righteousness and turning away from Evil--turning our backs on all that which is opposed to the Righteousness of God, experiencing that only God is righteous and desiring to be a follower of His Righteousness. Man cannot be righteous, so the righteousness that I follow is God's. I realized that a hard heart is one that is set upon the things of the world and upon the imaginations of our hearts, and turns us away from God's righteousness. I realize that I am standing in the middle and am faced with absolute decisions.... I am either repenting or not repenting and that is, according to the scriptures, the whole difference between being in a state of His righteousness (1 Nephi 22:26 & 28; Mosiah 27:25) or being wicked and under the influence of Satan.

It was revealed to me that all of us are sons and daughters of God, but that we cannot and do not live wholly good lives because of the fall of Adam. We need to be saved from the evil in our own hearts, the lack of our own minds, and the weakness of our own strength. Jesus Christ was sent to this earth first as Jehovah, then as the mortal Jesus, and then as the resurrected Savior, to save us from ourselves, from our weaknesses, and from our sins.

When I realized that there are divers ways and means whereby we can sin, even so many that we cannot number them (Mosiah 4:29), and that even one sin, no matter how small, subjects me to all of the Justice of God (James 2:10), hope for me came only in my Savior. I didn't want the justice of God! I wanted and needed Mercy, and I learned that Mercy comes only to those who repent, and that I must recognize the darkness within me and turn to Him who is mighty to save (which is His definition of what it means to repent). I knew that it was hopeless to rely upon any of my merits, but must rely wholly and alone upon His merits! (2 Nephi 31:19; Moroni 6:4). There is no law that could save me. No amount of human goodness or improvement could save me. No amount of self discipline could save me. I knew that because of His mercy, it was possible that I could be found guiltless at the judgment bar! He would be merciful to me and save me from my sins! I knew that it was through His grace that I would be saved, after all I could do, and all I could do was repent (2 Nephi 25:23; Alma 24:11)!

All that I have done in my life is a testament to the fact of my being a Sinner. And I don't mind acknowledging now that I am a Chief Sinner. I don't mind telling you that I have sinned, and I will continue to sin, but that through faith in my Savior, I am no longer under the bondage of sin or in captivity because of my sins. I am now under His grace, and desire to receive more grace. I can be saved from all my sins, and even someday from my iniquities or the effects of my sins upon others, and that He will perfect me. 

I hate the fact, however, that I have sinned and that I do sin. I know that God cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance. Some of my sins have caused people to be hurt and wounded. My sins have disappointed many, and perhaps even caused some to lose faith. I know that without His mercy, I could not stand in the presence of God and would want to have the rocks fall on me to hide me from His presence. How grateful I am for His gift of Repentance, for His love and mercy! And I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me. That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died! How grateful I am for His amazing Grace!

I have experienced the darkness within me and in the world. I realize now that I cannot deny the darkness within or avoid the darkness in the world. I have seen it, acknowledged it, accepted it, experienced it, but have transcended it by seeking God's light shining in the darkness. And now my sole purpose is to serve God by bringing others to Him like Alma did, so they can taste as I have tasted.

It is my prayer that we all come to know that our hearts need to be changed and can be changed through faith in His name, and that there is no other name given whereby salvation cometh. I would that we not deceive ourselves into thinking that our ways are God's ways. Our hearts rule and whatever they want we will get. In these last days we cannot afford to think that by taking strength unto ourselves we will be saved. We cannot be saved by our efforts at living well. Our goodness is flawed goodness. Overcoming the effects of the fall cannot be by human efforts and sacrifice, by self discipline and moral living. It requires an infinite and eternal sacrifice.

I would that you would take upon you the name of Christ and retain His name always written in your hearts, and that you hear and know the voice by which you should be called, and also, the name by which He shall call you! For "how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart" (Mosiah 5:13)?

We need to eliminate from our thinking that it is about our efforts, our striving, our discipline, remembering that "...there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need (or think they need) no repentance" (Luke 15:7). 

Imagine that we have 

All been born again, 

And have become new creatures, Relying wholly and alone upon 

The merits of Christ:  

Then the works that we do 

Will be His works

Done by the power and gifts of God According to our faith in Him,

The fruits of our repentance.  

We will know that He is the vine

And that we are the branches, 

And that the branches cannot 

Bring forth fruit of themselves.  

We will recognize and

Receive His gifts and 

Rejoice in them, and in 

Him who is the giver of the gifts. 

We will love because 

We have been filled 

With His love, and 

Will desire that all 

Partake of His love.  

His love will be expressed

Through us and, we 

Will hold up His light 

Rather than our own.  

We will look to Him and live, 

And desire all to look and live, and Will do everything we can to serve Him by serving others, 

And bring them to Him.

He will take away our 

Disposition to do evil 

And cure our tendency 

To turn away from Him.  

We will switch from worshiping Ourselves and each other, 

To worshiping our God and King!

Zion or Babylon

Through the word of God we learn that there are several "either-or" propositions or choices that we have while in this probationary state, such as: Good or Evil; Light or Darkness; Happiness or Misery; and Justice or Mercy.

There is another of which we don't often associate with a choice of one or the other: Zion or Babylon, which appear in scripture as two mutually exclusive entities. Zion represents what Babylon is not, and vice versa. A person cannot belong to both, but must choose one or the other, just as we must choose good or evil, or justice or mercy. Isaiah, for example, describes Zion as both a people and a place--those of the Lord's people who repent and the place to which they return or to which the Lord delivers them. Babylon is the antithesis, namely those who do not repent, and the world--all that the Lord destroys in the day of judgment.

If Zion consists of those of the Lord's people who repent, who return, and whom the Lord delivers, then Babylon consists of all who do not repent, who do not return, and whom the Lord does not deliver. If Babylon stands for the world and the wicked whom the Lord destroys in the day of judgment, then Zion stands for what He does not destroy at that time.

Historically, Babylon was an idolatrous, materialistic world empire which is used in scripture to define latter-day Babylon, which is the idolatrous and materialistic world in which we live. Our choice, therefore, becomes this world (Babylon) or Zion (to which we must be delivered after we repent). We cannot have both as they are mutually exclusive.

We can't claim that we live in the world, but not of the world. We are all in Babylon. But where is the cry among the Lord's people to be delivered from Babylon? It will only come from those of the Lord's people who are repenting, and who desire and want Zion to be established, and who will labor, not for money, but for Zion (2 Nephi 26:31). We cannot ally ourselves with Babylon.

Zion are those of the Lord's people whom the Lord exalts, spiritually and temporally, following a time of probation. Babylon are those who exalt themselves now but who in the end suffer humiliation. They are those whom Lehi and Nephi saw in the large and spacious building, who pointed the finger of scorn at those who ate the fruit of the tree of life.

So how should we view our present situation of being in Babylon where Zion has not yet been established? Hugh Nibley, in his enlightening book Approaching Zion, articulates many problems we face today in becoming a Zion people. As he points out, instead of having become more Zion-like since the restoration of the Gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith, we seem to have acquired more of the characteristics of Babylon. Instead of having become God's peculiar people, a nation of kings and priests, queens and priestesses, we have become, as some of our modern prophets tell us, an idolatrous people, a people under condemnation, treating lightly the things (words) we have received. 

If this is the beginning point, where do we go from here?

First, we must recognize where we are. We live in Babylon and our employer is Satan, and it is his system that we work and labor in. This has been true (with a few exceptions where Zions was established) since the time of Adam, where Cain and many after him rejected God and chose to operate under Satan's system--which is Babylon, and which will be destroyed.

Second, we must recognize that we are slaves in this system and cannot deliver ourselves from it, even though we can pray for and desire it. Like the children of Israel in Egypt, we are slaves in Babylon and must be delivered.

Third, we must recognize that there is something better--Zion or the Lord's law which will be established, whether we choose to leave Babylon or not. But if we choose Zion over Babylon, we must prepare ourselves to leave Babylon.

Fourth, we must feast upon His words and believe them--not treat them lightly (D&C 84:49-58). Through His words we come to know that Zion will be established by those who believe His words, exercise faith in Him, repent and rely totally upon His merits to save them. Through His words we learn that the Prophet Joseph laid the foundation for the latter-day Zion, and that callings and offices in the restored Church of Jesus Christ exist expressly for the purpose of establishing Zion and her stakes (D&C 107:36-37, 59, 74). The Saints' labors in the Lord's vineyard build up the Church, which helps bring forth Zion (D&C 39:13). We will come to know that the purpose of the Doctrine & Covenants is to lay the foundation for the building up of the latter-day Zion. We must labor for Zion and not for money (2 Nephi 26:31).

Fifth, we must come to know that Zion cannot be built up unless it is built up by the law of the celestial kingdom (D&C 105:5), meaning we must desire to live the law of consecration so there will be no poor among us.

But are we enjoying Babylon so much that we don't even think of Zion? Are we like the Jews who were captured by the Babylonians and taken back to Babylonia, only to want to remain in Babylon even after they were free to go back to Jerusalem?

(I recommend reading Paradigms of Zion by Avraham Gileadi, for a very comprehensive scriptural analysis of Zion and Babylon, not only the historical Zion(s), but the prophesied Zion(s) of the latter-days).