Category: 2026 Essay

29 January 2020

Most Christians are grateful to have a Savior who will save them. But most of them understand that the Savior saves them from something, from death and from hell. And that saving comes in the next life. The perspective of those who are perceiving members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is distinctly different. While also being grateful for the opportunity to be saved from death, hell and the devil, such LDS persons are even more grateful for being saved to something, being saved out of weakness unto the opportunity to minister to others. To minister is to bless others, especially through the knowledge and power that Christ shares with his faithful disciples. This ministering I also known as righteousness. But even within the ranks of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints there is confusion as to what righteousness is.

This confusion arises out of a failure to distinguish actions which are preparation for blessing others and actually blessing others. The following is an attempt to make this distinction and difference clear.

The parable of the Good Samaritan clearly shows the difference. A man is beaten and robbed on the way to Jericho, left helpless by the side of the road. A priest comes by, sees him, and passes by on the far side of the road. Then a Levite came by, took a good look, and moved to pass by on the far side. But a Samaritan followed and also saw the wounded man. The Samaritan felt for the man, and attended to his wounds, put him on his animal and conveyed him to the nearest inn, where he saw that the man was cared for not only for that day, but until he was better. The priest and the Levite doubtless had done many things to prepare for doing righteous acts, but failed to do so in this crisis. The Samaritan had also prepared but actually delivered righteousness when the opportunity came.

Let us now count good things we may do to do the works of righteousness:

1. Pray for help.
2. Fast.
3. Partake of the Sacrament.
4. Hear sermons and testimonies.
5. Be baptized and confirmed.
6. Receive the holy priesthood.
7. Receive the temple endowment.
8. Be sealed in marriage in the temple.
9. Pour over the scriptures.
10. Meditate on the ways of the Lord. All very good things to do.

Let us now count things we may do to actually perform the works of righteousness:

1. Serve a mission.
2. Bless others in the power of the Melchizedek Priesthood.
3. Comfort those who need such.
4. Stay up all night to help a sick friend.
5. Pray for others, especially one’s enemies.
6. Teach others to love the Lord and to serve Him by serving others.
7. Give food to the hungry, clothing to the naked.
8. Bear one’s testimony effectively.
9. Pay an honest tithing and a generous fast offering.
10. Faithfully serve in callings in the Church, especially in the temple.

Each of these works of righteousness is seriously devalued if we do any of them for reward or recompense. While neither of these lists is exhaustive, each clearly demonstrates the idea of the difference between preparing ourselves to be fit vehicles for administering the blessings of Christ to others and actually administering those blessings in the way that Christ Himself would do. May we each glory in both preparing to and in doing righteousness, for this is our heritage. And while we appreciate being saved from, let us fulfill our glorious opportunity to be saved to do the works of righteousness.

11 May 2019
amended 18 May 2019

The core of living the Gospel of Jesus Christ is to act always in faith in Jesus Christ. Faith in Jesus Christ is to trust Jesus Christ in all things and willingly and gladly obey the instructions that He gives us as attested by the Holy Ghost. Trust is essential, the same trust we give as we cross the bridge spanning a deep canyon. Obedience is not enough, for the devils also obey Christ, but not willingly. It must be done gladly for a grudgingly given gift is not given for the right reason. And one does not pick and choose among the instructions given, pleasing only oneself, for that is opportunism, not faith.

The core act of living by faith in Jesus Christ is repentance. Repentance is changing our actions from whatever we have been doing to act in faith in Jesus Christ. Repentance is complete when one acts only in faith in Christ. It involves changing motives and actions until faith in Christ only becomes our deeply ingrained habit of action. It is not done in a day, but may be done rapidly if one tries with all of one’s heart, might, mind, and strength. The goal of repentance is to become a new creature, transformed into the same character and actions as Christ Himself. Our character is our habits. We form habits each time we choose a thought, a feeling, an action. As we choose the same way repeatedly, the choice becomes a habit. Most of our daily actions are performed out of habit. Our habits are our character, who and what we have chosen to be.

Two factors are of special importance in relation to repentance. The first is sanctification. The word “sanctification” means to make whole, or holy. It is a gift from God to those who sincerely repent and it happens when we have the gift of the Holy Ghost as our companion after baptism and confirmation. It is in essence the forgiveness for past sins we have committed. A sin can be forgiven only if there is a firm determination never to commit that sin again accompanied by recompense for the damage caused by that sin in the past. If an individual makes recompense for having damaged another person or thing, they must restore at least one for one: eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But if the person making restitution for a sin really wants to do it a celestial way, they will restore four-fold. We human beings cannot make restitution for some sins, but it is important that we do so where we can, and the sooner the better. Full restitution for sins is possible only through the mercy of Jesus Christ, He making restitution for us where we cannot.

Our Savior can and will and does make recompense to each individual for every sin committed against them whether we repent or not. That restitution counts for our sins only if we are faithful covenant servants of Christ. Thus sanctification is real and complete only in Christ and only for His faithful servants. Those who will not put their trust in Christ and thus be forgiven of their sins must personally pay the debt of justice which thy have incurred in each of the sinful acts of their mortal lives. They do this by going to hell, the place of suffering for sin, and there personally receive the same amount of suffering that they have caused others to suffer by their sins. Thus going to hell and suffering for the sins one has committed is a blessing and a privilege, for then one can become clean and inherit glory from God. But those who do it this way will never be trusted like those who have repented in Christ.

The second factor of special importance to repentance is justification. The word means “to make just.” There are two kinds of justification: human and divine. Human justification is doing wrong and then finding a good reason for having done that wrong. It is pretending to be just. Divine justification is replacing the character flaws that cause us to sin. It comes as we repeatedly act in faith in Christ to gain the habits and character of Christ. Living the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the indispensable key to both sanctification and divine justification. Knowing the Gospel lays out the path one must follow to gain each of them, and the temples of Jesus Christ give the specific knowledge and power to obtain divine justification.

Sanctification normally comes at the time of baptism by water and the spirit. It leaves whenever we sin after baptism and can be regained only by partaking worthily of the sacrament. Being in a state of sanctification and having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost are the same thing. And that companionship, sanctification, is necessary for any of the process of justification to take place. Complete justification normally consumes a lifetime of strict and conscientious endeavor to come into the measure of the stature of the fulness of the character of Jesus Christ. But only those humans who use their probation time to acquire full justification can ever be fully trusted. These are they who are just men made perfect, the only heirs of exaltation through Christ.

Some members of this Church think that justification is something Christ will bless a person with if they give keeping their covenants a good try but can’t really keep all of His commandments. I think that idea is whistling in the dark, hoping for something that is impossible. That makes God a liar, saying someone is just when they are not. The point of justification is to become perfect, completely like Christ so that we can be trusted always to do the right thing with no one looking over our shoulder to mop up for any mistakes we make. Only such a person can be exalted. Real justification is to make righteousness our unshakable character through step by step repentance, changing ourselves from a natural man into the likeness of Christ Himself. We cannot do this by ourselves, no matter how hard we might try. But the power and grace of God assisting us make it possible if we will love and obey God with all of our heart, might, mind and strength. We are saved to exaltation by grace, but only after we have done all we can do.

Every person in every kingdom of glory is there because they do keep some of the law of God. Some keep a lesser law, and the good they produce is like starlight. Some keep a greater law, and good they produce is like moonlight. Some keep most of God’s law, and the good they produce is like sunlight. Those who keep all of God’s law produce a good and light that is brighter than the noonday sun, for they are exalted, and their course is one eternal round of creating and blessing. Sanctification is all or nothing, but justification is a matter of degree.

The capstone question is, does one have to keep all of God’s law in mortality to receive exaltation? The answer is no. But what one does have to do is to give everything they have to God. This is to learn to love Him with all of our heart, might, mind and strength. One does not have to become exactly like Christ in mortality to be exalted, except in one regard: To give ourselves completely to God in that we always do His will and not our own.

Thus every human has an equal opportunity to be exalted. What each must do is to obey God, live His law, until one can finally deliver all of one’s will to God. Those of lower gifts or quickness of mind are thus on the same footing as those having great gifts and great intelligence. They may not be equal in earthly attainments, but they can be equal in giving all they have to God. Giving all they have to keep God’s law makes them just persons. Then in eternity God can add upon them until they are perfect, complete in all the abilities, powers, and dispositions of a god. Thus we have just men made perfect. And only just men made perfect can be trusted with exaltation.

A lecture was given by Dr. Melvin Morse, 28 October 2018 at the IANDS meeting in Salt Lake City. He is a pediatrician in Washington State who is studying near-death experiences in young children (10 and under). He is attempting to get the scientific world to recognize the validity (the reality) of what these children experience when they die and then come back and bring reports back of their experiences while dead. At issue is the question: What is real? What follows here are my answers to that question.

The scientific definition of reality is usually something like: Something is real if it is observable by more than one person, testified to by more than one person, can be reproduced at will by some procedure, and can be quantified (measured in some way). The purpose of these strictures originally was to separate false traditions and claims from things that really are so and do work. The germ theory of disease is a good example. Many people once thought that disease was a spiritual matter, caused by evil spirits. Since evil spirits are not observable nor measurable, that explanation was rejected in favor of the germ theory which postulates that disease is caused by microbes which are observable and measurable: the identifiable germs are present and observable in every instance of a given disease. So the germ theory is scientifically acceptable, and the evil spirit theory is rejected as unsubstantiated folklore. (The germ theory does falter a bit because sometimes the germs are present and the individual carrying them does not get sick.)

The problem that then arises, however, is that there are many things we want to think of as real that are not observable by more than one person and do not have a perceivable (materialistic) cause. The love of one person for another is such a matter. So shall we say that a specific love-bond is not real because it is personal and limited to one subject and perhaps to one object? Those who feel love for another person are often convinced it is very real, even more real than the material things on which scientists focus their attention.

To understand and clarify this question of reality we must explore human knowing.

We understand the following things about human knowing:

1.   To know something is to be assured by evidence that our ideas are correct. Sensory experience is one of those evidences.

2.   There are about 25 human senses which report evidence about the universe to our human minds.

3.   But we do not see in our eyes, hear in our ears, touch with our skin. Our human organs of eyes, ears and skin all report their sensations to the cerebral cortex in the back of the human brain.

4.   The cerebral cortex assembles all of the sensory evidence that comes to it from the 25 human senses and sorts and groups those sensations into an image of what might have caused those sensations. The brain thus forms a hypothesis as to what might have caused the sensations reported by the body. The brain then usually tests the hypothesis by asking questions such as:

• a.   Can I predict what sensations I will have next?
• b.   If I move my hand or foot to the object I think I perceive, can I predict what will happen?
• c.   Do repeated observations give me the same hypothesis as to what I am experiencing?

5.   The short version of this account of human knowing is that our consciousness of the universe we live in is all invented by us, an attempt of a sometimes rational mind to imagine the universe in which it finds itself.

Conclusion: This I have given is a very short account of an important, complex matter. But it must suffice for present purposes. Moving from that description, I now state the following conclusions about human knowing and “reality.”

1.   We do not really know anything about the universe (that which exists beyond our selves) we live in for sure. The fact that we are sure about some things about the universe is a measure of the strength of our belief in something. If I am really sure about something “out there,” that is simply to say that I really believe it. I believe that this mortal state was carefully designed by a loving Heavenly Father so that we would have to live our lives according to our beliefs, not knowledge. His purpose is to give us an opportunity to find out who we, ourselves, really are, by allowing us to construct a universe in our minds as to how we think the universe really is.

2.   The best we can do in imagining the universe is to be able to do something again and again. So you and I believe strongly that we understand the universe in relation to what we can accomplish. Rene Descartes, the French philosopher, took this tack by saying: “I think, therefore I exist.” The thing we are most sure about is our own existence, because we can think and plan and do things. Even here we sometimes are not successful, not being able to do something we have done before many times. What this teaches us is to be humble. We are not great “knowers.” But we are good believers, even convincing ourselves that we are so right that we can tell others what to believe. Some people believe what others tell them, but the more thoughtful people are, the less they tend to believe what others say.

3.   The purpose of human life, I believe, is for each of us to construct a universe in our minds, then to live in the universe to see if we can become happy persons. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ because it is the plan of happiness, and those who live it fully are the happiest people I know. Those who reject it or who play around the edges of it, never fully embracing it, are less happy in my observation (my belief) than those who fully embrace and live it.

4.   One marvelous blessing the Christ brings to our lives is understanding. He gives us a set of beliefs that make sense as to who we are, where we came from, what we can and cannot do, and where we may likely find ourselves in the future. The Gospel message makes full “sense” to me. All of my life I have sought to make “sense” of this world and all that goes on in it. The Gospel, the scriptures, the revelations of the prophets of God fill in the blanks so beautifully that I am able to live my life in a very satisfying way. Obviously, what is true and real for me, that which I believe and live by, is not true and real for many others around me, including many in my own family. But, thankfully, what I believe and live by is true and real for some others also, including many in my own family.

5.   The bottom line is that each of us is constructing and living in a universe of our own choosing. I think God designed our existence to be this way so that we would be able to choose our own future out of a myriad of possibilities. I believe God will give us to live for the rest of eternity in just that universe we choose and want, and thus each of us will be as happy as he or she can possibly be. That happiness will be God’s gift to each of us, His children.

6.   Meanwhile, we get to live, act and believe according to our own choosing. I believe that there is a universe out there that is real. We interact with it all of the time. But we do not “know” it. We simulate what we think it is and act accordingly. Some of us are very successful in accomplishing what we desire to accomplish, I think because those who are successful have better beliefs and better discipline to do what they think should be done than those who are not so successful. But all of us are successful in building and living in a universe that suits our desires, and we each call that universe of our desires “reality.”

7.   No person can know what is “real” to another person unless it is revealed to them by God. The Holy Ghost is specifically sent to us to bear testimony of what is true and what is not true. The only way that you and I can know that Jesus is the Christ or that Joseph Smith is the head prophet of this dispensation is to have those truths revealed to us by the Holy Ghost. The only way we can know that the gospel taught in the Book of Mormon is the true doctrine of Christ is to have it revealed to us by the Holy Ghost. The only way I can know if someone who is telling me of their experiences is telling the truth is if the Holy Ghost reveals that to me. That is why the gift of the Holy Ghost is the Pearl of Great Price. Anyone who understands what that gift is and does and who has good sense would be willing to give all else he possessed to obtain that most precious gift.

So, are the experiences people have of near-death experiences real or not? They are very real to the persons who have them. But of course such experiences could also be “pretended,” conjured up by a vivid imagination, and possibly some are.

The answer is that one person cannot be the final judge of the experiences of any other person. Each of us is the master of what we ourselves believe and do, and none of us is or can be the master of what any other person believes and does.

Isn’t it comforting to believe that an omniscient, divine being, a loving Heavenly Father, will be our judge at the end of our mortal lives? He will see things as they really are, and because He is pure, will judge those things and reward each of us as the best we can be judged and rewarded. No partial, twisted view of us will be the basis of how we will be judged.

That is why I try with all my heart, might, mind and strength to serve that God whom I worship. I just wish I could fully deliver in that attempt.

October 2017

In 2 Nephi 2:25 we read the following: “Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.” Then we read in D&C 101:36 “Wherefore, fear not even unto death; for in this world your joy is not full, but in me your joy is full.” What is this joy for which mankind was created, and why can worldly persons never know it?

Continuing the topic of joy, we read in Alma 29:13–14 where Alma says: “Yea, and that same God did establish his church among them; yea, and that same God hath called me by a holy calling, to preach the word unto this people, and hath given me much success, in the which my joy is full. But I do not joy in my own success alone, but my joy is more full because of the success of my brethren, who have been up to the land of Nephi.” I interpret this passage to say that Alma received great joy in fulfilling his priesthood calling as he ministered the blessings of Christ to his people. And his joy was made even greater in understanding the success of the sons of Mosiah in blessing the Lamanites in Christ.

Another question we might ask is: What is the glory of God? God answers that himself by saying in Moses 1:39 “For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.” And we read in John 17:1–10 the following about glory: “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.” I interpret this passage to say that Christ glorified the Father by gratefully doing the Father’s will on earth to bless mankind, and asks the Father to now glorify him, which is to be grateful that Christ has fulfilled the Father’s will in blessing mankind.

We read in D&C 29:11 “For I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand.” I interpret this passage to say that power and glory are different things, but the Savior will enjoy an abundance of glory when he comes again, which glory he did not enjoy in his mortal sojourn.

Again, we read in 1 Nephi 14 “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.” I interpret this passage to say that men can also have glory as they minister to others in Christ.

Conclusions: Joy is the feeling enjoyed by a true servant of Christ who successfully ministers the blessings of Christ to others. Worldly persons cannot know joy because of the hallmark of worldliness is selfishness. Joy comes only in obedience to Christ as sacrifice of self to bless others. Happiness is contentment and gratitude for one’s blessings. Glory is the gratitude which blessed beings give to those who bless them in Christ. And those who know true joy give the greatest glory to God. True joy is to be one with Christ while serving Him and our neighbor with all of our heart, might, mind and strength.

Glory to God in the Highest for sending Jesus Christ to bless us.

Sept. 16, 2017

“Neither have angels ceased to minister unto the children of men. For behold, they are subject unto him, to minister according to the word of his command, showing themselves unto them of strong faith and a firm mind in every form of godliness.” (Moroni 7:29–30) Please read the following list from the bottom up because all below is foundational to attaining a pure love of Christ.)

• Pure Charity: Ministering in the pure love from Christ.
• Full Hope: In a glorious future of serving others.
• Full Faith: Unto overcoming every temptation.
• The covenants of temple sealing of husband and wife.
• Consecration: Using all control to further righteousness and Zion.
• Chastity: Using the divine gift only to serve God.
• Live The Law: Love God with all heart, might, mind and strength.
• Obedience and Sacrifice: (obedience without sacrifice is mere convenience).
• Receiving the Melchizedek Priesthood.
• Receiving the companionship of the Holy Ghost by laying on of hands.
• Making the promises of the covenant of baptism by immersion.
• Repenting of all our transgressions of the law of God.
• Faith, trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ.
• Thou shalt not covet anything that is thy neighbor’s.
• Thou shalt not bear false witness.
• Thou shalt not steal.
• Thou shalt not commit adultery.
• Thou shalt not kill.
• Thou shalt honor thy father and thy mother.
• Thou shalt keep the sabbath day holy.
• Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord Thy God in vain.
• Thou shalt not worship any graven image.
• Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.

These steps are the strait and narrow path. But they are all preparation for charity. One can go through the motions, but unless the heart and mind are changed and purified through this process, going through the motions is but vanity. The prepared can then fill the forms, the works, of godliness:

To create: To build farms, factories, businesses, inventions, art, records, etc., all to bless mankind.

To beget: To engender children in temple sealing and to nurture them in the pure love of Christ.

To entice: To teach the ways of righteousness and to encourage all to enjoy living those ways.

To organize: To establish Zion, so that a people have one mind, one heart, are righteous, and no poor.

To bless: To scan the environment each day to uplift and bless everyone and everything around one.

23 May 2017

“The glory of God is intelligence, or in other words, light and truth.” (D&C 93:36) Truth is knowledge of things as they really are, were, and will be. But even greater than truth is light. Light is wisdom, knowing what to do in the midst of truth to be wise, to be righteous in all things. To be fully or wholly righteous is to bless everything and everybody one has influence over, which is the way of godliness. To bless someone or something is to increase their freedom and happiness. God acts only to bless His children in righteousness, thus He is wholly righteous, holy. And he wants His children to be holy also. God said to ancient Israel: “For I am the Lord your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy.” (Leviticus 11:44) Again Jehovah said to Israel: “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.” (Exodus 19:5–6) Israel failed to keep God’s covenant at that time, and has mostly failed to do so since then. Every time the children of God are wholly faithful and keep the New and Everlasting Covenant, they are able to and do establish Zion.

How can we of Israel sanctify ourselves, become a holy people? Knowing what to do is easy. Doing it is what is difficult. What we need to do is simply to obey God in all things. When we are obedient to all His commandments we will be wholly given to Christ, holy. The New and Everlasting Covenant maps out the strait and narrow path we may follow to become holy, sanctified. We follow that path by simple steps: Repentance in Jesus Christ, faith in Jesus Christ, Hope in Jesus Christ, and charity in Jesus Christ.

Repentance in Christ is turning from the ways of the world and focusing wholly on the path Christ has shown us.

Faith in Christ is striving every minute to discern and do the will of Christ, wholly giving up ourselves to His tasks and will.

Hope in Christ is desiring and working wholly for the goals and blessings Christ has laid out for us.

Charity in Christ is seeking in mighty prayer to attain unto this the greatest of all gifts, the pure love from Christ to be able to bless all others with a pure intent, motive and gift.

When we have finally laid a sure foundation for the pure love of Christ through repenting, faith, and hope, we will then gain that charity and cut a swath of godliness wherever we pass.

The ordinances of the New and Everlasting Covenant are helps to attain the power of godliness that God gives us so that we really can repent and have faith, hope and charity in Christ.

If and when we press on till we gain the prize, we will then have power in the priesthood of God to do everything God asks us to do. Then we also can control the waves of the sea, turn rivers out of their course, move mountains, and establish Zion.

Then we shall have health in the navel of our children, that they also may have the opportunity to grow up unto the fulness of the stature of Christ through the New and Everlasting Covenant.

Then we shall have marrow in our bones to produce the life blood that sustains us in all our acts of faith in the New and Everlasting Covenant, and spirit matter to sustain our bodies in the resurrection.

Then we shall have strength in our loins unto the begetting of all the children the Lord will bless us with in the New and Everlasting Covenant, and will not deny their coming.

Then we shall have strength in our muscles and sinews to perform all the acts of faith in Christ that He would have us do in His New and Everlasting Covenant.

Then we shall have power in the Holy Priesthood to establish Zion on this earth and to prepare to administer light and truth to our own kingdoms on earths we are privileged to create and people with our own children to all eternity.

Then the New and Everlasting Covenant will not have been wasted upon us.

In the holy name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

1 February 2017

One of the very important commandments God gave Adam and Eve when they were placed in the Garden of Eden was to “be happy.” They were not told to do it if it were convenient, or if it pressed itself upon them. They were told to “Do it.” Since God gives no commandment unto the children of men without also giving them the opportunity and ability to keep that commandment, this is something Adam and Eve must do. And I believe they did it. How did they do it? By using the agency they did have at that point in their lives. They did not yet have the greater mortal agency which would come only after they disobeyed and fell from the grace they then enjoyed, but they had enough to be happy. I believe they obeyed and were happy in the Garden.

There are at least three lessons we can all learn from this, the commandment to “be happy.”

First lesson: It is important for Adam and all of his children to be happy. Why by happy? Because God commands it and every human being can do it and reap the rewards for such obedience. How can one be happy? By insisting on being happy as a matter of choice and will power. We humans have the ability to be happy if we want to. So we should want to and do it. A positive, cheerful attitude becomes every one of the children of men. That positive, cheerful attitude is the basis for feeling happy. It involves a gratitude for all of one’s blessings, an optimism about the prospects for the future, and an admiration for the goodness of God in providing for His children both temporally and spiritually. It is important to note that for any human being, if they were to add up their blessings on one hand, and their trials and sufferings on the other hand, every human would have more blessings than problems. So it is not only possible but reasonable for each human to be happy. Anyone who wants to keep the commandments of God can do so within the limits each is provided. In the worst of physical trials, it is possible to be happy and thank God for His goodness. Those who exercise their agency to do so are rewarded with the sweet peace of the Spirit of God, no matter what their physical problems or circumstances. We live in a time when depression is rampant. The temptation to be depressed is always with us. But the Gospel message is, we don’t have to give in just because we are tempted. We can fight that temptation and be happy.

Second lesson: We live in an age when people are taught they are victims, passive recipients in a fickle world. That is Satan’s message. The Savior’s message is that we are agents, and can do good things. The world says we “fall in love,” a passive reaction to our circumstances. The Savior says we can love anyone and everyone, and should, because it is in our power to do so. The world says someone “made us angry.” The Savior says anger is a choice, and we should not choose it. The world says we are robots controlled by our environment. Some people say they just can’t have faith in Jesus Christ. But the truth is, anyone who wants to can put their trust in Jesus Christ. The Savior tells us that we are agents because His spirit enlightens every person who comes into this world. So we get to believe Satan through our culture, or believe Christ through our conscience. To choose culture over Christ is to give in to Satan and captivity. To choose Christ over culture is to be free, and to be able to grow to become like our Master.

Third lesson: Let us draw our inspiration from the temple, from the scriptures, and from the Holy Spirit (which is the Pearl of Great Price). The world is much with us, giving us lies and half-truths which deceive and derail us if we give in to the world. Much of what we hear in the news, in schools, in textbooks, and sometimes even in church meetings is the garbage generated by Satan. Satan will let us believe anything our heart desires as long as it is not the truth from Jesus Christ. We live in a day when Satan is raging, because he knows he has but a short time. The way of Christ will prevail, but only if you and I make it prevail by force of our own will power. Every other dispensation of the Gospel has failed because eventually the covenant servants of Christ gave in to Satan.

Let us hold fast to the Iron Rod, which is the word of God, and which is vouchsafed to us only through the witness of the Holy Spirit, is my hope and prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

20 January 2017

There are two worlds important to every human being: The seen world and the unseen world. The seen world is everything we sense here and now. The unseen world is the larger “box” of beliefs about the universe by which we understand and interpret the seen world. The unseen world includes all the past, the future, anything not now sensed about the present, the very large and very small aspects of the universe, plus all ideas about what causes what to happen in both the seen and unseen worlds.

Metaphysics is the study of the unseen world. Metaphysics is the most fundamental of all disciplines, because whatever conclusions one comes to about the answers to the questions of this field determine the possibilities for all work in other fields. Historically, metaphysical thinking has grappled with such questions as: Is the universe matter or ideas only, or is it both, and what are they? What are time and space, and how do they relate to existence, whatever it is? What causes things to be as they are, and to change as they do? Is there a divine realm or is all natural? What are human beings, and how did they come to be? What are the causes of change in the universe, and can they be controlled?

The most interesting thing about all of these questions is that the answers to any of these questions cannot be verified by any human objective means. (Objective here meaning that a conclusion is agreeable and acceptable to all normal human beings.) Thus human beings are divided along ideological lines, depending upon their metaphysical conclusions. Since no metaphysical conclusions can be “proved,” all metaphysical conclusions are matters of faith, an individual trusting in something he or she cannot prove or guarantee. And everyone has and uses a metaphysics. This is the main reason why there is no such thing as “objectivity.”

Thus the most fundamental thing to know about any person is their metaphysical beliefs. Those beliefs are the mental and emotional “box” in which all of our thinking, decisions and actions take place.

Because metaphysics is so fundamental and controls all a given person thinks and does, there is a struggle in society to influence metaphysical thinking. Governments, churches, schools and societies all attempt to affect the metaphysical thinking of their constituents. Affect that is not liked by someone is called by them “propaganda,” and their own ideas are called “truth.” It is interesting to note that in our modern society (2017), news has largely ceased to be the reporting of facts and is now largely propaganda. And that is why the control of propaganda machines (newspapers, magazines, television broadcasts, radio, social media, books and textbooks, schools and clubs) is so much coveted and sought after because it enables political control. And political control (which is influencing the thinking, choosing and acting of other human beings) is the dearest thing to most human hearts.

Some of the most important metaphysical questions and answers are the following:

First: Is there a God over us or not? If there is, what kind of being is it, and how does that affect us as individuals? We know that God is a perfected once-human being who loves us with a pure love and is trying to share with us all that He is and has. Knowing that is true makes a great difference to us. The world believes that all is natural, there is no god, and we exist as chance creations of a blind universe.

Second: How long has man existed, and what is the future of mankind? The world says man evolved from an ape and will probably destroy his own species eventually. We know that Adam was the first man and lived about 6,000 years ago, that all human beings are his descendants, and that the world (meaning those who deny and/or defy God) will be burned in the next few years, which will usher in a thousand year reign of peace by Jesus Christ Himself.

Third: How did man come to be? We know that Adam was created by the God Jesus Christ. I believe that Adam was born to celestial parents with no blood in his veins. One of my former bishops believes God took an ape-like creature with blood in its veins and put a conscience and consciousness into it, and that creature became Adam. This metaphysical problem is very important. Each of us needs to have a satisfying answer which is true. But you and I cannot now prove what is correct and true to anyone but ourselves.

Fourth: Does man live after death? The world discounts the many appearances of deceased and resurrected beings to living humans, believing that we cease to exist because humans are only a physical body, and that evidences of life after death are but evidences of a frenzied mind. We know that as intelligences we have always existed, were clothed with a spirit body by our Father in Heaven, were clothed with a physical tabernacle by our Savior, and are literally of the race of the gods.

Satan sows lies everywhere, but especially about metaphysical things.

We Latter-day Saints have the temple to anchor us in the truth of metaphysical matters. If only we will receive what the Lord is trying to give us. Metaphysics, that is to say, our faith, matters.