But We Have the Book! And Conference Talks - Of What Will They Testify?

This post is a one of a series of posts on the Book of Mormon and other standard works. Click here to read the first post.

 "And now I ask of you, my brethren, how will any of you feel, if ye shall stand before the bar of God, having your garments stained with blood and all manner of filthiness? Behold, what will these things testify against you?

Behold will they not testify that ye are _________s..." (Alma 5:22-23)?

Keep in mind as you read this, first, I will not say what I cannot show you, and second, my comments concerning talks at general conference are not meant to be critical, but to show you how they fare compared to the scriptures. Notwithstanding there have been many very good talks given at conference, what I cannot understand is why these talks are the learning curriculum in Relief Society and Priesthood meetings when we have and could be using the scriptures. And I don't mean how we are using the scriptures in Come Follow Me. But perhaps it validates Isaiah’s prophecy (see below) concerning the methods of learning used by the Lord's latter-day people. 

I have heard members say that conference talks are the same as scripture. I don't think this is the majority view, but it certainly seems to be gaining some traction. Those who believe so often quote D&C 1:38 which says "What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." 

They focus on or misinterpret the words "or by the voice of my servants" while ignoring the rest of the Lord's words in this verse. This verse is spoken by the Lord who clearly says that ¹He speaks His words, ²His words shall not pass away, and ³His words shall all be fulfilled. The emphasis is on His words. And He teaches us three important truths, ¹that anyone can teach His words; that ²anyone who does teach His words is His servant; and that ³anyone claiming to be His servant, who does not teach His words, is not His servant.

One way of distinguishing between His words and the words of men, is that His words mean what He says they mean, and the words of men carry no such distinction, but are as the waves of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. With God there is no such variableness. His words never change and have only the meaning He gives them. Men’s words, on the other hand usually mean what that person thinks they mean. One speaker can talk about repentance believing what he/she thinks repentance means, while another can speak of repentance thinking it means something different. 

The words may be used but there is no uniformity as to their meaning. Indeed as words tossed to and fro by the wind of those speaking them.

All the right words may be spoken, published and used as the teaching curriculum, but become perverted or as the scriptures say, transfigured, by the speaker, the reader, and those who teach them, thus ignoring the command to "To preach my gospel by the Spirit, even the Comforter which was sent forth to teach the truth" (D&C 50:14). This scripture also exemplifies how words and phrases are used by the Lord with exactness and make plain His words. 

And even in those instances where His words are taught from the pulpit, they are often taught in a vacuum without any reference to or attempt to connect them to the whole. Christ, when he expounded upon all the written records in 3 Nephi, was making clear that there is a complete picture when all the records come together as one. Conference talks are like pieces of a puzzle which are mixed with pieces from other puzzles. They cannot possibly be used to make an accurate picture, even though many of the pieces are praiseworthy, and can lead us to His words, where we can find and fit all the pieces together. 

You can’t isolate even one word, verse, or idea and let that become a point of focus without taking into account all its interconnections and word links to other parts of His written words. We can do this with the scriptures but not with talks from conference because they lack all the pieces to the puzzle. Only the scriptures contain all the pieces. But we must do the work to find and connect them to form the whole.

Let's briefly examine four words and/or phrases in D&C 50:14, ¹my gospel, ²Spirit/Comforter, ³teach and ⁴the truth. An inspirational talk might include these words and/or phrases, but we cannot assume that either the speaker or the hearer will have the necessary knowledge of His words to know if what they are saying or hearing is the word of God.

But we can make these assumptions in the scriptures because the Prophet writers all use His words consistently and with exactness. If Alma, for example uses the word truth, He knows that the word of the Lord is truth. Which is also true for those who diligently search His words. Conference speakers do not always know the difference and will use traditional phrases such as live the Gospel, a phrase that is not found in the scriptures. In fact when you come to know His Gospel, you realize that Christ was right when He said that by our traditions, we make the word of God of none effect. Specially He said:

"Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandments of God, ye hold to the tradition of men.... Full well ye reject the commandments of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such things do ye" (Mark 7:7-9; 13 emphasis added).

There are no traditions of men taught as truth in the scriptures, but there are many traditions of men taught as truth from the pulpit, including at General Conference. And the burden is on us to know the difference. 

Going back to D&C 50, the Lord makes it crystal clear. "Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?

And if it be by some other way it is not of God.

And again, he that receiveth the word of truth, doth he receive it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?

If it be some other way it is not of God" (D&C 50:17-20).

The key word here is truth, which He defines in several places in the scriptures as His word, most notably in D&C 84:45.

Is it possible that much of what is spoken from the pulpit and what is heard by the congregation, is not of God? Christ would say yes, not only possible, but probable. Why? 

"And now I, Nephi, cannot say more; the Spirit stoppeth mine utterance, and I am left to mourn because of the unbelief, and the wickedness, and the ignorance, and the stiffneckedness of men; (why?) for they will not search knowledge, nor understand great knowledge, when it is given unto them in plainness, even as plain as word can be" (2 Nephi 32:7 emphasis added).

Do not mistake office with knowledge. One by virtue of an office does not automatically become a teacher of His truth. Some have searched and obtained His words and do teach them with power and authority unto the convincing of men. But many do not, and if we just accept everything that is spoken at General Conference as truth, we fall into Nephi's category of being ignorant, not searching His words, and not understanding great knowledge (His words). 

This is why I object to the use of conference talks as lesson material for Priesthood and Relief Society classes. When we have so much of what He has revealed and caused to be written, and commanded us to search, why this emphasis on conference talks? They are not scripture and should not be held out as scripture. It reminds me of when Moses asked others to go with him to see God, but the majority refused. When they were given the opportunity to hear God directly, they turned away and told Moses "speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die" (Exodus 20:19).

Nephi had more to say about this. Nephi sees that "because of pride, and because of false teachers, and false doctrines"--which "pervert the right way of the Lord"--the endtime Gentiles (as in us the Ephraimite Gentiles) "have all gone astray save it be a few, who are the humble followers of Christ; nevertheless, they are led, that in many instances they do err because they are taught by the precepts of men" (2 Nephi 28:12, 14 emphasis added). 

What does it mean to "be led" if not that sometimes our leaders teach the precepts of men? This is exactly what Nephi means and why we should "look to God and live" meaning to rely upon every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (D&C 84:44), and to the extent that His servants speak the word of God we are obliged to listen and give heed to those words. His words "whether by my voice or by the voice of my servant" are the same (D&C 1:38).

The Lord refers to those who are not deceived as His very elect. And what distinguishes those who are not deceived? "And whoso treasureth up my word, shall not be deceived..." (JS Matthew 1:37 emphasis added). This implies that those who do not treasure up His word will be deceived. This includes those who rely primarily on conference talks, those who merely parrot conference talks, those who post quotes from conference talks on social media, and those who assign conference talks. 

Consider what the scriptures contain, and then compare just these few with what conference talks contain. You decide if they compare!

1. Literary patterns & literary techniques such as:  
• Parallelisms where one statement modifies or qualifies the first
• Forms of speech which by their very nature, conveys a message
• Metaphors that uncover underlying meanings
2. Governing structures such as apostasy, judgment, restoration and salvation 
3. Rhetorical links for example where Gentiles¹ is linked to nations, is linked to us, is linked to Ephraim. 
4. Consistent use of His words in every particular 
5. Scriptural links²
6. Allegories³
7. Parables⁴
8. Jesus' prophecies⁵
9. Reading between the lines such as Christ quoting Isaiah 52 and 54 and leaving us to read Isaiah 53
10. Zion ideologies⁶ 
11. Isaiah* and other Old Testament prophets who walked and talked with God and their endtime prophecies
12. Types⁷ or all that Isaiah said, shall be
13. The words of Christ in the New Testament 
14. The words of God in the Book of Mormon
15. The revelations to Joseph Smith in the Doctrine and Covenants 
16. The words of Adam, Enoch, Abraham and Moses in the Pearl of Great Price 
17. The Lord's definition of Good and Evil⁸ 
18. All the events associated with the Lord's Great and Marvelous Work (1 Nephi 14:7)
19. Context--the what, the why, the when, the how, and the who (the players)
20. The mysteries of God
21. His Gospel⁹ and His doctrine as defined by Him
22. Book of Mormon prophecies¹⁰
23. The fulness of His Gospel 
24. How and why we deny the gifts and power of God¹¹
25. Expounding of the scriptures "even from the beginning until the time that he should come in His glory--even all things..." (3 Nephi 26:3).

Speaking of prophecy, Isaiah, like Moroni, saw our day and dedicated Isaiah 28 to us, the Ephraimite Gentiles. Neither one praised us, but were alarmed by what they saw. But before commenting on what they said, let me focus on what the Lord said. These are His words: "and when they shall have received this (only a hundreth part of all that Jesus said--the Book of Mormon), which is expedient that they should have first, to try their faith, and if it shall so be that they shall believe these things (these words) then shall the greater things be made manifest unto them. And if it so be that they will not believe these things, then shall the greater things be withheld from them, unto their condemnation" (3 Nephi 26:9-10 emphasis added). Having the book is not the same as believing His words in the book!

Moroni said, 

"Why have ye transfigured the holy word of God, that ye might bring damnation upon your souls? Behold, look ye unto the revelations of God..." (Mormon 8:33 emphasis  added). 

Look unto the revelations of God!

Isaiah did not have the same view of us as we do, and he specifically focused on our methods of teaching and learning. Of all the things Isaiah could have said of us, why the emphasis on our rote method of learning; of our watering down the word of God and accepting the watered down version? 

7. "These too have indulged in wine and are giddy with strong drink: priests and prophets have gone astray through liquor. They are intoxicated with wine and stagger because of strong drink; they err as seers, they blunder in their decisions.

'These too' are the priests and prophets or Ephraim's religious leaders. These suffer from being intoxicated with the wine of self-deception. This intoxication causes them to lapse in their ministry. The idea of prophets and seers drunk with wine links rhetorically to another passage in Isaiah that condemns the watchmen of the Lord's people for not watching. They fail to warn the people of the Lord's impending judgment, being oblivious to it themselves (Isaiah 56-10-12). 

Where aberrations exist within a people’s leadership, whether political or religious, we should remember that such tend to be symptomatic of the general condition: our leadership reflects what we ourselves are, both at our best and at our worst. 

8. "For all tables are filled with vomit; no spot is without excrement. 

This imagery relates to the condemnation of religious leaders in verse 7 as well as to verse 9 which deals with revelation. It says that the people are being polluted. Like the food that is being set out for eating, the "tables," signify not literal tables, but, symbolically, the vehicle for conveying spiritual food. Rhetorically, the idea of tables denotes books or tablets containing the word of God. The contents of these tablets, however, are impure They abound with partially digested truths, regurgitated for the people to consume. Or they contain excrement, wholly polluted matter than profits nothing.

9. "Whom shall he give instruction? Whom shall he enlighten with revelation? Weanlings weaned from milk, those just taken from the breast?

Isaiah here introduces the idea of direct revelation, the purest form of the word of God, the spirit of revelation. This is the theme of Chapter 28, the Lord's answer to the people's self-deception. Isaiah questions their readiness to receive such pure instruction because they live on a diet of vomit and excrement. Even the best of them, Isaiah likens to babes newly weaned who are not yet capable of digesting solid food.

10. "For it is but line upon line, line upon line, precept upon precept, precept upon precept; a trifle here, a trifle there.

Isaiah uses repetition, assonance and alliteration in the Hebrew with which to parody satirically the rote method of learning God's word that the people of Ephraim use. This method allows men to dictate to others what portion of God's word they learn and at what pace they learn it. (See the Come, Follow Me curriculum in Gospel Library.)

The idea of precept upon precept appears in three other instances in scripture (2 Nephi 28:29-30; D&C 98:12; D&C 128:21). Each contrasts it with a higher form of revelation. Note the term more expresses the idea that those who receive the Lord's precepts will receive more that precepts. Those who do not, will receive less.

11. "Therefore, by incomprehensible speech and a strange tongue must he speak to these people, 

12. "To whom he said, This is rest; let the weary rest! This is a respite! But they would not listen.

The expression "these people" expresses a negative view of the Lord's people. The "incomprehensible speech" refers to the foreign tongue of the Assyrians. If the Lord's people Ephraim do not receive the personal revelations the Lord desires to give them, then He must speak to them by another alien means.

The "rest" refers to the divine instruction and revelation mentioned in verse 9. If the people of Ephraim will receive the word of the Lord, it will provide a rest or respite for them, not only from the wearisome method of learning via precept upon precept, but by their becoming confidants of the Lord. D&C narrows the idea of rest even further:

"Now this Moses plainly taught to the children of Israel in the wilderness, and sought diligently to sanctify his people that they might behold the face of God; 

But they hardened their hearts and could not endure his presence; therefore, the Lord in his wrath, for his anger was kindled against them, swore that they should not enter into his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the fullness of his glory" (D&C 84:23-24 emphasis added).

13. "So to them the word of Jehovah remained: Line upon line, line upon line, precept upon precept, precept upon precept; a trifle here, a trifle there, that, persisting, they might lapse into stumbling and break themselves, become ensnared and be taken captive.

The imagery depicts dramatically the effect of being content with anything less than divine personal revelation. Isaiah sets the idea of precept upon precept--the rote method of learning where we just repeat back what the teacher taught--over against receiving direct instruction from the Lord. The one leads to rest, the other to bondage.

14. "Therefore hear the word of Jehovah, you scoffers who preside over these people in Jerusalem.

Any question who Jehovah is talking about? Jerusalem is a code name, identifying a latter-day people of the Lord.

15. "You have supposed, by taking refuge in deception and hiding behind falsehoods, to have covenanted with Death, or reached an understanding with Sheol, that, should a flooding scourge sweep through the earth, it shall not reach you" (Isaiah 28:6-15 emphasis added).

The people and their leaders are dubiously aware of a day of Judgment coming upon the earth, but they deceive themselves, however, about its real nature, hiding behind pretenses, unwilling to admit that it implicates them. The covenant with Death/Sheol denotes that the people and their leaders presume they can survive by any means other than repentance. It means relying on human counsel and being a party to all that the Lord has ordained shall pass away.

Isaiah also says this of us:

"Go now, write on tablets concerning them; record it in a book for the end-time, as a testimony forever.

They are a rebellious people, sons who break faith, children unwilling to obey the law of Jehovah,

Who say to the seers, See not! and to those with visions, Predict not what is right for us: flatter us; foresee a farce!

Get out of the way; move aside, off the path! Cease confronting us with the Holy One of Israel" (Isaiah 30:8-11 emphasis added)!

Or to me: "cease confronting us with the scriptures!"

*And you can only get this from the scriptures! If this example of the difference between His words and conference talks do not declare to you the difference, then you have a lot of work to do!

Nephi in 2 Nephi 28 uses the phrase "cursed is he" in place of "wo be unto" which he used in verse 26 to describe what happens to those who put their trust in man. He is speaking to those of us who have entered into the Lord's covenant who will suffer a covenant curse because they put their trust in man. Nephi expounds upon verse 26 by adding the descriptive phrases "putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm as curses associated with hearkening unto the precepts of men. Nephi describes us as we are today. And "wo be unto him that rejecteth the word of God" (2 Nephi 27:14)!

By the way did you fill in the blank in the introductory scripture? 

This post is a prelude to the next: But We Have The Book! We Don't Need Any More Books!

But We Have the Book! But Do We Believe The Words?

This post is a one of a series of posts on the Book of Mormon and other standard works. Click here to read the first post.

"And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word" (1 Kings 18:21).

The Savior taught by asking self reflecting questions; difficult and pointed questions. Unlike the typical questions asked in most of our teaching and learning classes. I went through the scriptures several years ago and wrote down almost all the questions asked by the Savior* which are recorded in scripture. His questions were designed to cause the person(s) being asked to look at themselves and no one else. As I asked His questions of myself, He revealed my ignorance to me. 

I loved Tim Merrill's comment so much that I want to include it here: "The primary task of any good spiritual teaching is not to answer our questions, but to question our answers."

This post is a list of questions. Each question, with a few exceptions, can be answered with a yes or a no. But by answering one question with a yes and then answering a subsequent one with a no, you may expose a deception, as in deceiving yourself. They are intended as a measure for you, not as an indictment, even though your answers may expose you. So be honest with yourself and use this exercise as a means to know where you really are, and not where you think or believe you are with respect to His words. He did, afterall, tell us that we shall be judged by and found on one side or the other of His words.

Also pay close attention to the words in the question--they matter and will expose your ignorance if answered incorrectly. Questions will begin with ¹do you believe, ²do you know, ³did you know, ⁴have you, ⁵have you ever, ⁶are you, ⁷ were you, ⁸do you, or ⁹what? When you have answered all the questions ask yourself: "do I really have the desire to seek the truth?" 

Let's begin.

1. Do you feast upon the words of Christ? 
2. Have you ever feasted upon the words of Christ?
3. Do you know why we have been asked to feast upon the words of Christ?
4. Do you believe Christ when He says "except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish?"
5. Are you repenting?
6. Do you know all that Christ says about repentance?
7. Were you ever taught to understand the doctrine of baptism and repentance? 
8. Do you now understand the doctrine of baptism and repentance? 
9. Do you know how to teach a child to understand the doctrine of repentance before the age of accountability? 
10. Do you know what Christ means by His great and marvelous work? 
11. Can you name one event associated with His prophesied great and marvelous work? Two events? Five events? More?
12. Do you know what the Lord says truth is?
13. Do you know the fruits meet for repentance?
14. Can you know whether or not someone is under the bondage of sin?
15. If yes, how can you know?
16. Do you know what the Lord describes as the greatest good? The most worth?
17. Do you seek for riches or for wisdom?¹ 
18. Do you know that the following are antithetical? Good and Evil? Zion and Babylon? Judgment and Mercy?
19. Do you know why they are antithetical? 
20. Do you believe Christ when He says that "great are the words of Isaiah" and commands us to search them?
21. Do you search the words of Isaiah? 
22. Do you know what Christ meant when He said that all things Isaiah said have been and shall be?
23. Can you name one historical event that Isaiah says will be repeated as part of the endtime? 
24. Do you know what Christ means when He says My gospel? My doctrine? 
25. Do you believe Christ when He says that it is not given that one man should possess that which is above another, and therefore the whole world lieth in sin?
26. Do you believe all the words of Christ? Or do you pretend that you believe Him? 
27. For example, do you believe Him when He prophesied that His gospel would be taken from us and given to the House of Israel?
28. Can you speak with the tongue of angels? 
29. Did you know that only the Jews, 10 Tribes and Lehi’s descendants are of the House of Israel?
30. Did you know that you are identified with the Gentiles?
31. Do you believe that when a person’s reality or life’s view isn’t based entirely on God’s truth, then what isn’t based on God's truth must be grounded in things that aren’t true, even though they may be believed and substituted for God’s truth?
32. Do you know that apostasy is not a falling away from, but a perversion of the truth?
33. Do you understand what it means to transfigure the word of God?
34. Do you realize that we, the Lord's latter-day people, are the ones who will transfigure His words?
35. Were you taught that only those who are repenting are of His church, and that many active members of record of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not of His church because they are not repenting?
36. "Behold, will ye reject these words? Will ye reject the words of the prophets; and will ye reject all the words which have been spoken concerning Christ, after so many have spoken concerning him; and deny the good word of Christ, and the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, and quench the Holy Spirit, and make a mock of the great plan of redemption, which hath been laid for you?"
37. Do you imagine that without being tried in all things you will simply drift into a glorious millennial age of peace through the great goodness of our God because you dutifully attend church and show kindness to friendly neighbors?
38. Do you believe that the apostasy of God’s covenant people is an end-time event associated with the Lord's Great and Marvelous Work?
39. Do you believe that God stands ready to bless and deliver every soul who truly turns to Him?
40. What does He mean by "truly turn" to Him?
41. Are you a blind guide?
42. Are you wasting the days of your probation instead of preparing to meet God?
43. Do you know the difference between being under the law and being under grace?
44. Do you know how to obtain the pure love of Christ?
45. Do you know God’s definition of Good? Of Evil?
46. Do you believe there are only two choices, Good or Evil?
47. Is the word of God found in you?
48. Do you see with your eyes, hear with your ears and understand with your heart?
49. Do you know why and to whom Christ taught in parables?
50. Do you know why the Lord told Isaiah "Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed?"

I've asked only fifty or so questions, which are just a small fraction of the questions that could have been asked, but enough, hopefully, to cause you to question your beliefs as you compare what you believe with the truth. How wide is the gap between what you believe and what is truth?

Each of these questions states a revealed truth. Because they are mostly yes or no questions, you can quickly go through them. But now change the form of each question by asking why, how or what. For example instead of asking 'do you know God’s definition of Good and Evil' ask what is God's definition of Good and Evil? Or what is the Lord's Great and Marvelous Work? What does it mean to speak with the tongue of angels?

Let me ask a few more questions. ¹Do you desire to know the truth? And ²is knowing the truth part of your preparation in this life to meet God? Which leads to another question: ³are you wasting the days of your probation by not receiving and living His truth?

Reading about truth (see link below⁰) is a good place to start, and as you read it and the included links ask yourself ⁴can you "run about longer as a blind guide?" Or ⁵is your heart fat, your ears heavy, your eyes shut or can you see with your eyes, hear with your ears and understand with your heart? 

So many questions. But just a few more. ⁶How do you answer Ezekiel's question? In practice this is our answer: We claim the worship of the true God. But, we worship the true God alongside our 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. And our response 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).

Let's close by reciting a poignant and detailed question asked of us by the Lord.

"How oft have I called upon you...

¹by the mouth of my servants, 

and ²by the ministering of angels, 

and ³by mine own voice, 

and ⁴by the voice of thunderings, 

and ⁵by the voice of lightnings, 

and ⁶by the voice of tempests, 

and ⁷by the voice of earthquakes, 

and ⁸great hailstorms, 

and ⁹by the voice of famines 

and ¹⁰pestilences of every kind, 

and ¹¹by the great sound of a trump, 

and ¹²by the voice of judgment, 

and ¹³by the voice of mercy 

all the day long, 

and ¹⁴by the voice of glory and honor 

and ¹⁵the riches of eternal life, 

and ¹⁶would have saved you with an everlasting salvation,

¹⁷but ye would not!

Behold, the day has come, 

when the cup of the wrath 

of mine indignation is full.

Behold, verily I say unto you, 

that these are the words 

of the Lord your God.

Hearken ye to these words. 

Behold, I am Jesus Christ, 

the Savior of the world"

(D&C 43:25-27;34 emphasis added).

*Teach In The Savior's Way: Questions and Neither Do They Understand

⁰What is Truth?

Next: But We Have The Book! And Conference Talks - Of What Will They Testify?

Say Nothing But Repentance

This is a talk to be given in a Sacrament meeting in our ward in Metz, France. My assigned topic was The Testimony of the Apostles. It is good that we know that they know, but much better that we know for ourselves. This personal experience is an example to just how close God is to us through His words. See French translation. 

Several years ago when I was released as a Bishop in our ward in Sandy, Utah, in 1985, I was thinking what my church experience would be going forward, and turned in my scriptures to D&C 11. I was not looking for this particular section, but that is where I found myself when I opened my scriptures. I began reading, and as I did I was enveloped in His Spirit. I had never before nor after, experienced anything like this. I began reading, or more accurately listening to the words I was seeing. 

1. "A great and marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of men. 

2. Behold, I am God; give heed to my word, which is quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow; therefore give heed unto my word.

I had read these words before, but this time I was hearing His voice in His words as if He was reading them to me!

3. Behold, the field is white already to harvest; therefore, whoso desireth to reap let him thrust in his sickle with his might and reap while the day lasts, that he may treasure up for his soul everlasting salvation in the Kingdom of God.

4. Yea, whosoever will thrust in his sickle and reap, the same is called of God.

As I listened I was overcome with the desire to thrust in my sickle, and to be called of God, but I did not understand what He meant.

5. Therefore, if you will ask of me you shall receive; if you will knock it shall be opened unto you.

At this point it was even clearer that He was speaking to me, and as I was caught up in His spirit, I could hear His voice in these words:

6. Now, as you have asked, behold, I say unto you, keep my commandments, and seek to bring forth and establish the cause of Zion.

I was not mindful of asking, but perhaps my wondering what I was to do going forward, was the reason for being directed to these verses. He asked me to keep His commandments and seek to bring forth and establish the cause of Zion. It would take me years to fully comprehend and be prepared to be called by Him. I had thought that His commandments were the outward things that I had been doing, but I was wrong.

7. 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.

The light was now more discernable. My mind was enlightened by the truth, the light and His spirit as I saw and heard His words! I was excited, but also fearful to hear more. 

8. Verily, verily, I say unto you, even as you desire of me so it shall be done unto you; and, if you desire, you shall be the means of doing much good in this generation.

As I look back on this verse I have come to realize that the next words I heard were the link to what He meant by 'doing much good in this generation.'

9. Say nothing but repentance unto this generation. Keep my commandments, and assist to bring forth my work, according to my commandments, and you shall be blessed.

His specific call to say nothing but repentance meant that I needed to know what He meant by repentance, not what I thought it meant. I was impressed that it would mainly be to members of the church to whom I would say nothing but repentance, but it would be years before I would learn why. 

At the time of this revelation to me, I did not know all that the call entailed, but the experience was so powerful that I could not deny that I was to be called by God. I knew that He would tell me exactly what I was to do. 

The next words caused me to know that I was receiving this as a personal revelation!

10. Behold, thou has a gift, or thou shall have a gift if thou wilt desire of me in faith, with an honest heart, believing in the power of Jesus Christ, or in my power which speaketh unto thee; 

11. For behold, it is I that speak; behold, I am the light which shineth in darkness, and by my power I give these words unto thee. 

He was speaking to me! It was His voice I was hearing! It was very personal. And the instructions were getting more specific, but there were admonitions to ensure that I did not take this lightly.

12. And now, verily, verily, I say unto thee, put your trust in that Spirit which leadeth to do good--yea, to do justly, to walk humbly, to judge righteously; and this is my Spirit.

I knew it was His spirit that I was to trust, and I was experiencing His spirit at that moment! He then promised me the fruits of His Spirit, and at the same time admonished me to put my faith in Him.

13. Verily, verily, I say unto you, I will impart unto you of my Spirit, which shall enlighten your mind, which shall fill your soul with joy; 

14. And then shall ye know all things whatsoever you desire of me, which are pertaining unto things of righteousness, in faith believing in me that you shall receive.

It was then that He told me the tools I would need in order to do His works of righteousness, and how I was to use the tools.

15. Behold, I command you that you need not suppose that you are called to preach until you are called. 

16. Wait a little longer, until you shall have ¹my word, ²my rock, ³my church, and ⁴my gospel, that you ⁵may know of a surety my doctrine. 

17. And then, behold, according to your desires, yea, even according to your faith shall it be done unto you.

This was what I was supposed to do--search, treasure up and receive His words and know of a surety His word, His Church, His Gospel and His doctrine. He was to be my Rock. But then again for the third time He said.

18. Keep my commandments; hold your peace; appeal unto my Spirit;

19. Yea, cleave unto me with all your heart, that you may assist in bringing to light those things (words) of which have been spoken--yea, the translation of my work (the Book of Mormon); be patient until you shall accomplish it.

Obviously I was not being asked to assist in the translation since that had been completed, but to assist in teaching what I would learn of His words in the Book of Mormon. He again tells me that is my work.

20. Behold, this is your work, to keep my commandments, yea, with all your might, mind and strength.

This was the fourth time He told me to keep His commandments, but then He said, and this became my work.

21. Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed, then if you desire, you shall have my spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men.

But...?

22. But now hold your peace; study my word which hath gone forth among the children of men, and also study my word which shall come forth among the children of men, or that which is now translating, yea, until you have obtained all which I shall grant unto the children of men in this generation, and then shall all things be added thereto.

I did not comprehend all that He was telling me, but I knew that it would take me many years to obtain "all" that He had revealed to us, with the promise that more would be added. 

23. Behold thou art Hyrum, my son; seek the kingdom of God, and all things shall be added according to that which is just."

24. Build upon my rock, which is my gospel; 

25. Deny not the spirit of revelation, nor the spirit of prophecy, for wo unto him that denieth these things; 

26. Therefore, treasure up in your heart until the time which in my wisdom that you shall go forth.

I knew then that the same words that He had spoken to Hyrum, He was saying to me and... 

27. Behold, I speak unto all who have good desires, and have thrust in their sickle to reap.

As I recount this experience, it is colored now by the fact that I have done and continue to do what He asked of me. I have spent the latter part of my life obtaining His words, teaching them and doing what I was called to do in this revelation to me. And He has blessed me with the spirit of revelation and the spirit of prophecy. As I write this and see all that I have learned, His last few words of this Section are a sweet testimony of the promises He kept.

28. Behold I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I am the life and the light of the world. 

29. I am the same who came unto mine own and mine own received me not; 

30. But verily, verily, I say unto you, that as many as receive me, to them will I give power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in my name, Amen."

I want to say that as soon as I had this experience I went home and began immediately to more consciously seek to obtain His words, but I did not. In fact, it would be many years before I really caught the vision of what D&C 11 was all about for me personally.

I needed to recognize this revelatory experience as my Road to Damascus experience and hear God's voice telling me to "give heed to [His] word" and to experience my own lost and fallen state and my need to repent or to turn to Him. 

And I needed to quit searching for riches. Only then could I be prepared to teach others as I obtained His words. Without experiencing my own lost, fallen and sinful state, and my redemption through Him and His atonement, I would be as sounding brass and tinkling cymbals trying to say nothing but repentance to others without experiencing and receiving His gift of repentance.  

I would re-read D&C 11 many times after this experience, but without the same effect, and I wondered why. I learned later that it was because I had not yet kept His commandments, and had not yet quit searching for riches.

"Now this is the commandment: Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day" (3 Nephi 27:20). He had to teach me that to repent means to turn to him and rely wholly upon His merits and righteousness, not my own, and then validate that repentance by enduring in faith in Him to the end. 

I also learned that it was not necessary to repeat the same feelings every time I read D&C 11. He had spoken to me and I had heard His voice in His words. I could not deny it, and the more I did what He called me to do, the more fully did D&C 11 open up to me. He also reminded me that I need not ask again. "Behold, thou knowest that thou hast inquired of me and I did enlighten your mind; and now I tell thee these things that thou mayest know that thou has been enlightened by the Spirit of Truth.... Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God? Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not" (D&C 6:15;23;36).

I knew that this was a direct revelation to me, which is the purest form of the word of God! There is no doubt!

But the paradox was that I would have to search His words to know what it meant to repent and then 'keep His commandment' by repenting. I then realized why he told me multiple times to keep His commandments. He knew I needed to repent and turn to Him before I could do the work He was preparing me to do. He knew that I did not completely understand the doctrine of repentance. It was only after having taken a path that many said would take me off the strait and narrow way, that I began in earnest to follow the admonition I had received on that day when I was released as a Bishop. I needed to be repenting, and no longer be under the bondage of sin. I needed to be redeemed and under grace. 

Only then could I spend the rest of my life obtaining, giving heed and teaching His words and saying nothing but repentance unto this generation. However, by searching to find how I could avoid the justice of God and receive His mercy, I was doing the searching and treasuring up of His words.

As I have sought to obtain His word,  He has blessed me as He promised. He did give me more than one gift, and I received these gifts, and rejoice in them, and in Him who is the giver of these gifts. I continue to experience His light, His spirit and His voice in His words. I share His gifts to me with others. My mind has been enlightened and my soul has been filled with joy. I know of a surety His doctrine, His gospel, His rock. I know of a surety that His church is made up of only those who are repenting. I put my faith in Him and rely alone upon His merits. 

He is the sole source of light and knowledge in my life.

I know of the darkness within me and the darkness that is in the world, and yet I follow His light which shines in the darkness. 

I realized that He has hidden many things as a test for us to see if we are willing to search out His words like the treasures they are.

I now know that as part of the Lord's Great and Marvelous work, He will bring forth additional records, and that the bringing forth of these records will cause an irrevocable division among us, the Ephraimite Gentiles. Those who have feasted upon His words will gladly receive more, but those who have not, will not believe His additional words.

As Joseph Smith said a man is saved no faster than he gains knowledge, and that we must receive personal revelation. Keep in mind that when we search and hear His words we are being taught by Him. His words are truth, light, spirit, even the spirit of Jesus Christ, and we can hear His voice in His words (D&C 18:33-36). 

He is as close as His words, 'Hear ye Him!'

This is a condensed version of a previous post.

Whatsoever is Not of Faith is Sin

And finally, I cannot tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin; for there are divers ways and means, even so many that I cannot number them (Mosiah 4:29).

For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence (Alma 12:14).

This is one of the many ways and means by which we sin, but maybe not one we think of as sin.

Paul exclamation in Romans 14:23 seems at first glance unlike any statement he made concerning faith. It is true that he speaks of faith in Christ most often as the way to obtain the righteousness of God, as opposed to the works of the law, which if done without faith do not account for righteousness. 

But to go so far as to say that whatsoever is not of faith is sin, seems at first glance to be rather harsh. Certainly our good works should count for something even if done without faith! But there is an order where works are either used to ¹justify ourselves, ²benefit others, or ³where works follow after being changed from our "carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness" (Mosiah 27:23). The latter works are only done with faith, otherwise they would not be counted as works of righteousness, and according to Paul, if done without faith in Christ, would be sin.

See: The Cart Before the Horse

But will our human acts of kindness count for anything at the judgment? They will, but if we are still under the bondage of sin at the judgment, we will first pay for our own transgressions, but after paying for our sins, all our good works will be considered and we will receive a "reward according to our works" (D&C 138:59). 

See Repentance: Bondage of Sin After Death.

“It is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward. Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward. But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned” (Doctrine & Covenants 58:26–29).

There are several truths we can take from this scripture. Besides receiving no reward if we must be compelled in all things, the good cause spoken here refers to bringing to pass righteous works, which are works that follow and are the fruits of our repentance. Righteousness is consistently used in scripture to define the righteousness of God and Christ, not our own human goodness. The power comes from Him changing us, and for those who do anything with a doubtful heart, in other words without faith, they are damned. They do not ascend to higher degrees, are not recreated.

A careful reading of Romans makes it clear that it is faith in Christ and only faith in Christ that counts for righteousness. And if anything other than faith in Christ does not count for righteousness, then it must be that it counts for unrighteousness and is therefore sin. 

This is consistent with the Doctrine of the Two Ways: either the righteousness of God, which is obtained through faith in Jesus Christ, or any alternative to the righteousness of God, which includes works without faith, and which, according to Paul, is sin.

Paul makes it clear that man is justified only through the righteousness of God, which comes through faith in Christ. He says that "There is none righteous, no, not one... (and) ...there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Romans 3:10-12). It is faith in Christ that is counted for righteousness (Romans 4:2-5). He makes it clear that it was not because of Abraham's obedience to the law of Moses that was counted for righteousness, but because of Abraham's faith.

He tells us that the Gentiles "attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith" but that "Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness" because "they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law" (Romans 9:30-33).

It is not always easy to develop faith 

If it is true that whatsoever is not of faith is sin, then are the works we do without faith in Christ, sin? Can it be that doing our duty in our Church callings, if done without faith, is sin? Given the Lord's definition of Good and Evil, we are either doing one or the other, and He makes it quite clear that unless we work by the power and gifts of God, we do not do good (Moroni 10:25). And since there is only one other alternative, we must be doing what is not righteous, and therefore sinning.