"Those who have used human reasoning to supersede divine influence in their lives have diminished themselves and cheapened civilization in the process." Elder Dallin H. Oaks
The desire to share why Christians can't be silent was one reason I established this blog. I feel the secret to happiness and strong families lies in a never ending pursuit of truth and then seeking to apply those truths in everyday living.
Son Richard and Family
Daughter Shanelle and Family
Son Brett and Family
I am a Christian. I want to represent my Savior well and follow his example. As I have prayed to know how to better do that, I feel the Lord has blessed me with some adversity and trials. These trials have taught me what I don’t think I could have seen clearly without them. I am a Christian and a sinner. I don’t think I have met anyone who needs the atonement more than I do. The cumulative effect of my self-will, pride and missteps are sufficient to prevent me from achieving eternal life, unless I consistently employ the repentance process and seek to improve every day from this hour forward by adding to my knowledge of gospel principles and laying my doings at Christ’s feet. I need to not only follow the Savior by being kind and loving, but I need to emulate the way in which he got his errand. The Savior’s errand was to do and promote the work of the Father.
Where do I start? One way is to seek to know truth, to really seek to understand God’s character and attributes and my true relationship to him, as well as the purposes of life. It is, with the help of heaven, an attempt to see myself as I really am. When I see myself as more than I am or less than I am, I am terribly handicapped in doing good for others. I have sought to know these things through the instrument of prayer and study. I have read the Bible and the Book of Mormon and I believe these books to be the word of God. When I have tried to implement the teachings and principles contained in the scriptures, I have felt a sense of spiritual progress and a growing knowledge that these principles are true. I believe that God is both omniscient and omnipotent. I have sought to find a church which has the authority to baptize and bestow the potential of the perpetual companionship of the Holy Ghost.
God has knowledge of all things past, present and future and based on that omniscience, he has foreordained individuals to accomplish things in this life that are particular to them. Neal Maxwell, an LDS theologian and apostle now deceased, authored the following: “It does no violence to our frail human logic to observe that there cannot be a grand plan of salvation for all mankind, unless there is also a plan for each individual.” (A More Determined Discipleship, February Ensign, 1979)
I believe we had a pre-mortal existence and that there was a war fought in heaven that included the spirits of all those who would be assigned to this earth. We were given volition to choose Satan’s plan or God’s plan. The war was fought over agency. Though God is omniscient, his omniscience did not and has not violated the agency of man in the least degree. I believe that this earth life is a test, actually part two of a two part test. The first test was to choose either the Father’s plan or Satan’s plan. Those who chose the Father’s plan now get to enjoy mortality. Now, we get to live by faith, having forgotten all we learned there, but when truth is presented to us, we have the capacity to remember it, if we are honest truth seekers. We are currently being tested to see if we will keep the commandments of God and prepare for eternity. At the conclusion of this life we will be judged by him who is completely fair and receive a designation and ultimate condition of existence based on how we performed. Faith in true things can only be awakened and obtained by hearing true concepts, by hearing the testimony of those who have faith. That is why the ancients were commanded to write. It is why those who profess knowledge of God are commanded to share. It is the economy of heaven. Just as evil is hastened by the collective efforts of those who are evil, such as in gang activity, good is promoted by gathering and sharing with others of faith. We will be judged greatly as Christ declared, in relation to how we interfaced with others, how we treated them, how we judged them, and how we ministered to them. Many will come to that judgment believing they served well, only to be told they never knew Him, nor applied His doctrine.
I believe we had a pre-mortal existence and that there was a war fought in heaven that included the spirits of all those who would be assigned to this earth. We were given volition to choose Satan’s plan or God’s plan. The war was fought over agency. Though God is omniscient, his omniscience did not and has not violated the agency of man in the least degree. I believe that this earth life is a test, actually part two of a two part test. The first test was to choose either the Father’s plan or Satan’s plan. Those who chose the Father’s plan now get to enjoy mortality. Now, we get to live by faith, having forgotten all we learned there, but when truth is presented to us, we have the capacity to remember it, if we are honest truth seekers. We are currently being tested to see if we will keep the commandments of God and prepare for eternity. At the conclusion of this life we will be judged by him who is completely fair and receive a designation and ultimate condition of existence based on how we performed. Faith in true things can only be awakened and obtained by hearing true concepts, by hearing the testimony of those who have faith. That is why the ancients were commanded to write. It is why those who profess knowledge of God are commanded to share. It is the economy of heaven. Just as evil is hastened by the collective efforts of those who are evil, such as in gang activity, good is promoted by gathering and sharing with others of faith. We will be judged greatly as Christ declared, in relation to how we interfaced with others, how we treated them, how we judged them, and how we ministered to them. Many will come to that judgment believing they served well, only to be told they never knew Him, nor applied His doctrine.
Because I am a Christian and I believe the Bible to be the word of God, I have come to define certain behaviors as sins. They are those things which offend God and make us unclean. There are certain behaviors that please God and when those behaviors, beliefs and attitudes are not present, they constitute sins of omission. Anyone who has, through revelatory experience, determined that there is a God and that Jesus Christ is our Divine Redeemer, has been commanded to promote such. For example, if you had knowledge of a calamity that was about to threaten your neighborhood, you would be remiss for not acting on that knowledge or sharing that knowledge with your neighbor. Thus if someone believes in the Bible and believes that sexual impurity, in any of its forms, would impact one’s condition in the world to come as well as happiness, peace and safety in this life, and that person doesn’t promote that belief, God would hold him accountable. Sharing these things is based on a basic premise, as promoted by Paul in the New Testament, that God is a “rewarder” of those who keep his commandments, (Hebrews 11:6). In other words, good things will follow living a life of righteousness. Paul was also astute in the following observation recorded in Hebrews 1:9: “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.” The goal here is not, as many suppose, to make everyone feel comfortable with their current condition of righteousness and avoid making any waves. My take on the definition of righteous is very simple. It is anyone who is involved in a consistent process of repentance. The opposite is also true, someone who is not consistently involved in the repentance process is unrighteous.
Some maintain that it isn’t Christian to define certain behaviors as sinful. They argue, “It makes people feel uncomfortable and wasn’t he the Prince of Peace?” Christ didn’t mince words and he wasn’t afraid to offend others when it came to doctrine or need for change. He did ask others not to throw stones, figuratively or literally, for none are without sin. This didn’t mean they weren’t to promote what was good and identify what was sin according to His doctrine. For a Christian to say there is no sin is to deny there is a God, to deny their faith and be counted as in infidel. Both Ezekiel 3 and Ezekiel 33 both describe a variety of scenarios concerning those who are willing to raise a warning voice and those who are not. Christ and Moses were two who were described as having attributes of meekness, (Numbers, 12:3). Yet, these two were extremely bold and willing to offend. Inherent in biblical definitions of meekness, one must include obedience to God and faithfulness to his words. Prophets were frequently stoned for preaching. Almost all of the original apostles were murdered for promoting their beliefs. Can we hope to enjoy the same glory as the ancients who were willing to give their very lives if we are unwilling to promote the things that they did.
Isaiah taught that there would be those who would call good evil and evil, good, (Isaiah 5:20). I believe the “way of truth” is to seek knowledge through the vehicle of personal revelation. Paul explained that the things of the spirit can only be spiritually discerned and to all others, it will sound as foolish traditions. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned, (1 Corinthians 2:14)”. As Americans, we have come a long way in overcoming prejudice, but does that include and presuppose that we should promote evil as acceptable, inconsequential behavior?
I believe that Satan’s greatest tactics involve adding to or taking away from truth. The adversary is incredibly subtle. The Prophet Daniel speaks of the abomination of desolation and that abomination which maketh desolate where it ought not to be as signaling the proximity of the last days and great calamity, (See Daniel, chapters 11 and 12). Could that possibly be a description of a formerly god-fearing nation that kills its unborn when it is inconvenient to bear and makes it illegal to promote moral values?
The word of God, as recorded in Leviticus 26, rehearses the consequences of a godless nation. It is not a pretty prophecy. I believe we live in a promised land and God makes clear that those who forget Him cannot continue to live in a promised land in peace and safety. Paul spoke of that which is essential to the role of a woman, who “shall be saved in child bearing, (1 Timothy 2:15).” and God, according to Genesis, commanded Adam and Eve to “multiply and replenish the earth,” (Genesis 1:28). If the bearing and rearing of children is perhaps the most important work or achievement of human beings, as established in the beginning by our first parents, then homosexuality and abortion would not be activities leading toward that end. It is understandable that the more crucial the principle, the greater Satan’s campaign against it.
The word of God, as recorded in Leviticus 26, rehearses the consequences of a godless nation. It is not a pretty prophecy. I believe we live in a promised land and God makes clear that those who forget Him cannot continue to live in a promised land in peace and safety. Paul spoke of that which is essential to the role of a woman, who “shall be saved in child bearing, (1 Timothy 2:15).” and God, according to Genesis, commanded Adam and Eve to “multiply and replenish the earth,” (Genesis 1:28). If the bearing and rearing of children is perhaps the most important work or achievement of human beings, as established in the beginning by our first parents, then homosexuality and abortion would not be activities leading toward that end. It is understandable that the more crucial the principle, the greater Satan’s campaign against it.
Horrific things have been done to those believed to be homosexuals. Horrific things have been done to individuals because of their beliefs and practices. Horrific things have been done to individuals because of their gender. But for an individual to say that a practice is not in keeping with the word of God and that word of God is contained in what they consider a holy book is not an act of bigotry or prejudice. It is simply a declaration of their faith. Efforts to force all members of society to speak, act, and promote as though there is nothing inherently wrong with any form of sexual impurity is in itself an act of bigotry. It is also bigotry to force others to behave morally. It is also a sin to reinforce negative patterns of behavior. Webster defines a bigot as “one who is intolerant of others.”
Several things are certain: Either there is a God or there isn’t. Either the scriptures contained in the Bible are true or they are not, even given errors in translation. If they are true, then God has established a way for individuals to come to the knowledge of their truthfulness. Matthew 11:28-30 invites, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly of heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” I simply encourage you to seek Him. I am currently reading the Bible again from cover to cover. The important thing is not where we have been, but where we are going. Isaiah’s words bring great comfort for the repentant sinner, (Isaiah 1:18). Those who do not think the Bible establishes clear guidelines about morality have not read the scriptures or simply choose not to believe them. You simply cannot read the words of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Paul and a host of others and not conclude they didn’t see our day with exactness.
With all of my heart, I feel the words of Christ are worthy of careful and prayerful consideration and that there is no better time than the present to do so. As in the beginning, we are again in a war for the salvation of souls. We cannot force others to be righteous, but we can put on the whole armour of God.
