Category: 3 Nephi

3 Nephi 27:28-31 & 3 Nephi 28:10-11 

28 And now I go unto the Father. And verily I say unto you, whatsoever things ye shall ask the Father in my name shall be given unto you.
29 Therefore, ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; for he that asketh, receiveth; and unto him that knocketh, it shall be opened.
30 And now, behold, my joy is great, even unto fulness, because of you, and also this generation; yea, and even the Father rejoiceth, and also all the holy angels, because of you and this generation; for none of them are lost.
31 Behold, I would that ye should understand; for I mean them who are now alive of this generation; and none of them are lost; and in them I have fulness of joy (3 Nephi 27:28-31).

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10 And for this cause ye shall have fulness of joy; and ye shall sit down in the kingdom of my Father; yea, your joy shall be full, even as the Father hath given me fulness of joy; and ye shall be even as I am, and I am even as the Father; and the Father and I are one;
11 And the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and the Father giveth the Holy Ghost unto the children of men, because of me (3 Nephi 28:10-11).

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18 And it came to pass that when Jesus had made an end of praying unto the Father, he arose; but so great was the joy of the multitude that they were overcome.
19 And it came to pass that Jesus spake unto them, and bade them arise.
20 And they arose from the earth, and he said unto them: Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, my joy is full.
21 And when he had said these words, he wept, and the multitude bare record of it, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them (3 Nephi 17:18-21).

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The term “fulness of joy” expresses several facets of the same condition. The condition is a truth/light/love/joy continuum, just as our existence is a progression, beginning in our premortal world and continuing in this life until we finding fulfillment in the presence of God.

In every stage the relationship expressed by the Hebrew word hesed (unfailing love based on a prior covenant) is an essential part of that joy. The continuum leads through fraternal love (Philadelphia, translated as “brotherly kindness”) and charity (in 2 Peter 1:7); to redemption (which in the Book of Mormon usually means to come into the presence of the Savior), to celestial glory which is being with both the Father and the Son, and also with all the other people we love.

From these scriptures it is reasonable to conclude that the “fulness of joy” is a product of eternal, loving relationship with the Savior. However, the scriptural uses of that and similar phrases teaches us that there is more to it than that. And the “more” has to do with qualifying to be a participant in such a relationship. The Savior explained that qualification (singular) while teaching his Apostles:

9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.
11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you (John 15:9-12).

That, of course, is the major theme that runs through all of the scriptures, just as every commandment is a subset of that great commandment. Both the love and the joy spoken of here are gifts of the Holy Ghost (Moroni 8:25-26, Acts 13:52), and, like any other gift, must be cultivated until perfected. James calls it the “royal law,” but warns that even a selective prejudice erodes our ability to love. He wrote:

8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:
9 But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors (James 2:8-9).

As God is no respecter of persons, so we have no right to be. There is no legitimate place in the human soul that can house prejudice or intolerance. They, like a cancer, grow to discolor and distort one’s sense of Self because they cripple our ability to see the worth of the people around us. They cause us to divide God’s children into the categories of “us” and “others.” Thereby, they inhibit our ability to love and diminish our capacity to experience joy.

While love and joy may be different at first, they grow in a near-parallel continuum until they meet and become only different expressions of the same thing.

40 For intelligence cleaveth unto intelligence; wisdom receiveth wisdom; truth embraceth truth; virtue loveth virtue; light cleaveth unto light; mercy hath compassion on mercy and claimeth her own; justice continueth its course and claimeth its own; judgment goeth before the face of him who sitteth upon the throne and governeth and executeth all things (D&C 88:40).

This principle is made graphic in the Savior’s intercessory prayer in John 17. The initial focus of the prayer is his desire to perpetuate the relationships he has with the Apostles, that thereby “they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.” (V. 13). The relationship is emphised by the words “my joy fulfilled in themselves.”Then he expands that prayer and concludes with:

20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them (John 17:20-26).

The Savior’s prayer among the Nephites echoes the same promise:

29 Father, I pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me out of the world, because of their faith, that they may be purified in me, that I may be in them as thou, Father, art in me, that we may be one, that I may be glorified in them. (3 Nephi 19:29).

As do these words to Moses:

39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man (Moses 1:39).

The ancient psalms also testify that for man, the “fulness of joy” is being where God is.

11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Psalms 16:11).

As love and joy are the final product of eternal salvation, so also are they the products of the intermediate steps that bring us to exaltation. The scriptures frequently speak of the fulness of joy in the same contexts as they speak of brotherly love and charity. Once again, a proper analysis of these principles would require a book length discussion, so the best I can do here is to suggest some scriptures that provide the keys. I have broken the subject of the “fulness of joy” into the following parts and quoted some relevant scriptures under each heading. They are:

1. Premortal love and joy
2. Remission of sins
3. Knowledge of Truth
4. Family and Friends
5. Redeem (to come into the presence of God)
6. Endure to the end
7. Resurrection
8. The destiny of celestial persons
9. Conclusion

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PREMORTAL LOVE AND JOY

5 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it (2 John 1:5-6).

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4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? (Job 38:1-7)

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1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)
3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full (1 John 1:1-7).

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REMISSION OF SINS

3 And it came to pass that after they had spoken these words the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience, because of the exceeding faith which they had in Jesus Christ who should come, according to the words which king Benjamin had spoken unto them (Mosiah 4:3).

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11 And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come, which was spoken by the mouth of the angel (Mosiah 4:11).

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20 And behold, even at this time, ye have been calling on his name, and begging for a remission of your sins. And has he suffered that ye have begged in vain? Nay; he has poured out his Spirit upon you, and has caused that your hearts should be filled with joy, and has caused that your mouths should be stopped that ye could not find utterance, so exceedingly great was your joy (Mosiah 4:20).

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13 Now this was a great cause for lamentations among the people, while others were abasing themselves, succoring those who stood in need of their succor, such as imparting their substance to the poor and the needy, feeding the hungry, and suffering all manner of afflictions, for Christ’s sake, who should come according to the spirit of prophecy;
14 Looking forward to that day, thus retaining a remission of their sins; being filled with great joy because of the resurrection of the dead, according to the will and power and deliverance of Jesus Christ from the bands of death (Alma 4:13-14).

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KNOWLEDGE of TRUTH

There are three components of joy. The first is love—relationships with the Gods, as well as with family and friends. The second is light—the pure light of Christ that fills the immensity of space and gives life to all things (D&C 88 & 93). The third is truth which is the source of both the light and the love. “It appears that love, light, and truth are equivalents—they come from God and are expressions of his glory…. Joy is the product of truth/light/love.” (Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition, p. 565; second edition, p. 802-3. The second edition is on this website.)

26 The Spirit of truth is of God. I am the Spirit of truth, and John bore record of me, saying: He received a fulness of truth, yea, even of all truth;
27 And no man receiveth a fulness unless he keepeth his commandments.
28 He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things (D&C 93:26-28).

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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.
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, or by this shall you know, all things whatsoever you desire of me, which are pertaining unto things of righteousness, in faith believing in me that you shall receive (D&C 11:12-14).

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61 If thou shalt ask, thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge, that thou mayest know the mysteries and peaceable things—that which bringeth joy, that which bringeth life eternal (D&C 42:61).

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FAMILY and FRIENDS

34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another (John 13:34-35).

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30 And even if they do unto you even as they have done unto me, blessed are ye, for you shall dwell with me in glory.
31 But if they reject not my words, which shall be established by the testimony which shall be given, blessed are they, and then shall ye have joy in the fruit of your labors.
32 Verily, verily, I say unto you, as I said unto my disciples, where two or three are gathered together in my name, as touching one thing, behold, there will I be in the midst of them—even so am I in the midst of you (D&C 6:30-32).

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REDEEM (to come into the presence of God)

See “A Meaning of ‘Redeem’— to ‘Come Unto Christ’,” in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition, p. 510-20; second edition, p. 725-39.

51 Behold, I will liken these kingdoms unto a man having a field, and he sent forth his servants into the field to dig in the field.
52 And he said unto the first: Go ye and labor in the field, and in the first hour I will come unto you, and ye shall behold the joy of my countenance.
53 And he said unto the second: Go ye also into the field, and in the second hour I will visit you with the joy of my countenance.
54 And also unto the third, saying: I will visit you;
55 And unto the fourth, and so on unto the twelfth.
56 And the lord of the field went unto the first in the first hour, and tarried with him all that hour, and he was made glad with the light of the countenance of his lord (D&C 88:51-56).

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10 And in that day Adam blessed God and was filled, and began to prophesy concerning all the families of the earth, saying: Blessed be the name of God, for because of my transgression my eyes are opened, and in this life I shall have joy, and again in the flesh I shall see God.
11 And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying: Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient.
12 And Adam and Eve blessed the name of God, and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters (Moses 5:10-12).

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67 And the Lord showed Enoch all things, even unto the end of the world; and he saw the day of the righteous, the hour of their redemption, and received a fulness of joy;
68 And all the days of Zion, in the days of Enoch, were three hundred and sixty-five years.
69 And Enoch and all his people walked with God, and he dwelt in the midst of Zion; and it came to pass that Zion was not, for God received it up into his own bosom; and from thence went forth the saying, ZION IS FLED (Moses 7:67-69).

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6 Now, this was what Ammon desired, for he knew that king Lamoni was under the power of God; he knew that the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness—yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and that the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul, yea, he knew that this had overcome his natural frame, and he was carried away in God—
7 Therefore, what the queen desired of him was his only desire. Therefore, he went in to see the king according as the queen had desired him; and he saw the king, and he knew that he was not dead (Alma 19:6-7).

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51 Behold, I will liken these kingdoms unto a man having a field, and he sent forth his servants into the field to dig in the field.
52 And he said unto the first: Go ye and labor in the field, and in the first hour I will come unto you, and ye shall behold the joy of my countenance.
53 And he said unto the second: Go ye also into the field, and in the second hour I will visit you with the joy of my countenance.
54 And also unto the third, saying: I will visit you;
55 And unto the fourth, and so on unto the twelfth.
56 And the lord of the field went unto the first in the first hour, and tarried with him all that hour, and he was made glad with the light of the countenance of his lord (D&C 88:51-56).

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ENDURE TO THE END

2 And now, my son, I trust that I shall have great joy in you, because of your steadiness and your faithfulness unto God; for as you have commenced in your youth to look to the Lord your God, even so I hope that you will continue in keeping his commandments; for blessed is he that endureth to the end (Alma 38:2).

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36 Wherefore, fear not even unto death; for in this world your joy is not full, but in me your joy is full.
37 Therefore, care not for the body, neither the life of the body; but care for the soul, and for the life of the soul.
38 And seek the face of the Lord always, that in patience ye may possess your souls, and ye shall have eternal life (D&C 101:36-38).

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RESURRECTION
The condition of the Celestial glory is truth/light/love/joy, and only those who are physically capable of enduring that glory will be able to be there. The Prophet Joseph explained:

1 The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell.
2 I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire;
3 Also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son (D&C 137:1-3).

Therefore, a necessary prerequisite to the fulness of joy is to have a body that can be in the presence of that throne that is like “circling flames of fire.” If our resurrected bodies are not made of that same pure light, then in the presence of God we would sizzle.

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26 Wherefore, it [the earth] shall be sanctified; yea, notwithstanding it shall die, it shall be quickened again, and shall abide the power by which it is quickened, and the righteous shall inherit it.
27 For notwithstanding they die, they also shall rise again, a spiritual body.
28 They who are of a celestial spirit shall receive the same body which was a natural body; even ye shall receive your bodies, and your glory shall be that glory by which your bodies are quickened.
29 Ye who are quickened by a portion of the celestial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness (D&C 88:26-29).

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33 For man is spirit. The elements are eternal, and spirit and element, inseparably connected, receive a fulness of joy;
34 And when separated, man cannot receive a fulness of joy (D&C 93:33-34).

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14 All these had departed the mortal life, firm in the hope of a glorious resurrection, through the grace of God the Father and his Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
15 I beheld that they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand.
16 They were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God into the spirit world, to declare their redemption from the bands of death.
17 Their sleeping dust was to be restored unto its perfect frame, bone to his bone, and the sinews and the flesh upon them, the spirit and the body to be united never again to be divided, that they might receive a fulness of joy.
18 While this vast multitude waited and conversed, rejoicing in the hour of their deliverance from the chains of death, the Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful;
19 And there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance (D&C 138:14-19).

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DESTINY OF CELESTIAL PERSONS

1 When the Savior shall appear we shall see him as he is. We shall see that he is a man like ourselves.
2 And that same sociality which exists among us here will exist among us there, only it will be coupled with eternal glory, which glory we do not now enjoy (D&C 130:1-2).

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6 The angels do not reside on a planet like this earth;
7 But they reside in the presence of God, on a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before the Lord.
8 The place where God resides is a great Urim and Thummim.
9 This earth, in its sanctified and immortal state, will be made like unto crystal and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon, whereby all things pertaining to an inferior kingdom, or all kingdoms of a lower order, will be manifest to those who dwell on it; and this earth will be Christ’s.
10 Then the white stone mentioned in Revelation 2:17, will become a Urim and Thummim to each individual who receives one, whereby things pertaining to a higher order of kingdoms will be made known;
11 And a white stone is given to each of those who come into the celestial kingdom, whereon is a new name written, which no man knoweth save he that receiveth it. The new name is the key word (D&C 130:6-11).

If the white stone mentioned here teaches persons in the Celestial world about “a higher order of kingdoms” then it must follow that such kingdoms are not only within the understanding but also within the reach of persons with celestial bodies. That presupposes that if one has a resurrected body that is capable of withstanding unlimited glory, then the eternities promise an amazing adventure !

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CONCLUSION

If there is a conclusion that sums up the relationship of love and joy, then Lehi’s words to his sons are probably as comprehensive as we will find:

24 But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things.
25 Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.
26 And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given (2 Nephi 2:24-26).

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14 Awake! and arise from the dust, and hear the words of a trembling parent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave, from whence no traveler can return; a few more days and I go the way of all the earth.
15 But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love (2 Nephi 1:14-15).

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3 Nephi 27:13-22  

These verses seem to explain five different principles, but they must be discussed as a single unit.

I have placed them in sections numbered 1 through 5 to make it easier to see their relationships.

(1) 13 Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.

(2) 14 And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—
15 And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works.
16 And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in my name shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge the world.
17 And he that endureth not unto the end, the same is he that is also hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence they can no more return, because of the justice of the Father.

(3) 18 And this is the word which he hath given unto the children of men. And for this cause he fulfilleth the words which he hath given, and he lieth not, but fulfilleth all his words.
19 And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end.

(4) 20 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.

(5) 21 Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel; and ye know the things that ye must do in my church; for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do; for that which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do;
22 Therefore, if ye do these things blessed are ye, for ye shall be lifted up at the last day.

We have just read what is probably the most succinct and comprehensive definitions of the gospel in the scriptures. The consummate gospel is simply this: “I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.” However, there are many subsets, and each one describe or define a facet of the whole. In the next verses the Savior explains those subsets and teaches us that they are absolutely necessary to our salvation.

If we discussed just verse 13 even superficially, it would require a book length examination of what we know about the Savior’s premortal history from before the beginning, intelligence, Council in Heaven, war in heaven, creation, spirit world, as well as the powers and implications of his infinite and eternal Atonement.

I think I am  supposed to be writing a commentary on what the Savior said, but I cannot be so presumptuous as to even suggest I could undertake such a task. It is like trying to polish a silver goblet that already shines to perfection. Anything I might do would only scratch it. Yet, the Savior’s statement insists we try to approach an understanding of what he is saying. After some consideration I have decided to approach it this way: Rather than muddle the explanation with my commentary, I wish to just quote scriptures in an order that will that will tell the story. I offer them as a celebration rather than as a commentary.

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(1) 13 Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me (3 Nephi 27:13).

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26 The Spirit of truth is of God. I am the Spirit of truth, and John bore record of me, saying: He received a fulness of truth, yea, even of all truth (D&C 93:26)

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1 In the beginning was the gospel preached through the Son. And the gospel was the word, and the word was with the Son, and the Son was with God, and the Son was of God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made which was made.
4 In him was the gospel, and the gospel was the life, and the life was the light of men (JST John 1:1-4)

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12 By the power of the Spirit our eyes were opened and our understandings were enlightened, so as to see and understand the things of God——
13 Even those things which were from the beginning before the world was, which were ordained of the Father, through his Only Begotten Son, who was in the bosom of the Father, even from the beginning (D&C 76:2-13).

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8 Wherefore, I will that all men shall repent, for all are under sin, except those which I have reserved unto myself, holy men that ye know not of.
9 Wherefore, I say unto you that I have sent unto you mine everlasting covenant, even that which was from the beginning (D&C 49:8-9).

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47 And behold, Enoch saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man, even in the flesh; and his soul rejoiced, saying: The Righteous is lifted up, and the Lamb is slain from the foundation of the world; and through faith I am in the bosom of the Father, and behold, Zion is with me (Moses 7:47).

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21 And now, verily I say unto you, I was in the beginning with the Father, and am the Firstborn (D&C 93:76:21).

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9 And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand and spake unto the people, saying:
10 Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.
11 And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning (3 Nephi 11:9-11).

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24 And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;
25 And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
26 And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever (Abraham 3:24-26).

1 And then the Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down at the beginning, and they, that is the Gods, organized and formed the heavens and the earth (Abraham 4:1).

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16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16).

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(2) 14 And my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me, that as I have been lifted up by men even so should men be lifted up by the Father, to stand before me, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—
15 And for this cause have I been lifted up; therefore, according to the power of the Father I will draw all men unto me, that they may be judged according to their works.
16 And it shall come to pass, that whoso repenteth and is baptized in my name shall be filled; and if he endureth to the end, behold, him will I hold guiltless before my Father at that day when I shall stand to judge the world.
17 And he that endureth not unto the end, the same is he that is also hewn down and cast into the fire, from whence they can no more return, because of the justice of the Father (3 Nephi 27:14-17).

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3 Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him——
4 Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified (D&C 45:3-4).

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15 Therefore I command you to repent—repent, lest I smite you by the rod of my mouth, and by my wrath, and by my anger, and your sufferings be sore—how sore you know not, how exquisite you know not, yea, how hard to bear you know not.
16 For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;
17 But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I;
18 Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink—
19 Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men (D&C 19:15-19).

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13 And when he had said these words, behold, the Lord showed himself unto him, and said: Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you.
14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters (Ether 3:13-14).

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19 And there he preached to them [the dead in the spirit world] the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance (D&C 138:19).

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And now after all of the proofs made of him,
By witnesses truly, by whom he was known,
This is mine, last of all, that he lives; yea, he lives!
And sits at the right hand of God on his throne.

And I heard a great voice bearing record from heav’n,
He’s the Saviour and only begotten of God;
By him, of him, and through him, the worlds were all made,
Even all that careen in the heavens so broad.

Whose inhabitants, too, from the first to the last,
Are sav’d by the very same Saviour of ours;
And, of course, are begotten God’s daughters and sons
By the very same truths and the very same powers.

[“The Vision” by the Prophet Joseph Smith. Times and Seasons, February 1, 1843. Compare D&C 76:22-41.]

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(3) 18 And this is the word which he hath given unto the children of men. And for this cause he fulfilleth the words which he hath given, and he lieth not, but fulfilleth all his words.

19 And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end.

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1 Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am (D&C 93:1).

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37 And I say unto you again that he cannot save them in their sins; for I cannot deny his word, and he hath said that no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of heaven; therefore, how can ye be saved, except ye inherit the kingdom of heaven? Therefore, ye cannot be saved in your sins (Alma 11:37).

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33 Wherefore, if they should die in their wickedness they must be cast off also, as to the things which are spiritual, which are pertaining to righteousness; wherefore, they must be brought to stand before God, to be judged of their works; and if their works have been filthiness they must needs be filthy; and if they be filthy it must needs be that they cannot dwell in the kingdom of God; if so, the kingdom of God must be filthy also.
34 But behold, I say unto you, the kingdom of God is not filthy, and there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God; wherefore there must needs be a place of filthiness prepared for that which is filthy.
35 And there is a place prepared, yea, even that awful hell of which I have spoken, and the devil is the preparator of it; wherefore the final state of the souls of men is to dwell in the kingdom of God, or to be cast out because of that justice of which I have spoken.
36 Wherefore, the wicked are rejected from the righteous, and also from that tree of life, whose fruit is most precious and most desirable above all other fruits; yea, and it is the greatest of all the gifts of God. And thus I spake unto my brethren. Amen (1 Nephi 15:33-36).

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27 For notwithstanding they [“the righteous”] die, they also shall rise again, a spiritual body.
28 They who are of a celestial spirit shall receive the same body which was a natural body; even ye shall receive your bodies, and your glory shall be that glory by which your bodies are quickened.
29 Ye who are quickened by a portion of the celestial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness.
30 And they who are quickened by a portion of the terrestrial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness.
31 And also they who are quickened by a portion of the telestial glory shall then receive of the same, even a fulness.
32 And they who remain shall also be quickened; nevertheless, they shall return again to their own place, to enjoy that which they are willing to receive, because they were not willing to enjoy that which they might have received (D&C 88:26-32).

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(4) 20 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).

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40 And this is the gospel, the glad tidings, which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us—
41 That he came into the world, even Jesus, to be crucified for the world, and to bear the sins of the world, and to sanctify the world, and to cleanse it from all unrighteousness;
42 That through him all might be saved whom the Father had put into his power and made by him
43 Who glorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands, except those sons of perdition who deny the Son after the Father has revealed him (D&C 76:40-43).

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2 And again, more blessed are they who shall believe in your words because that ye shall testify that ye have seen me, and that ye know that I am. Yea, blessed are they who shall believe in your words, and come down into the depths of humility and be baptized, for they shall be visited with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and shall receive a remission of their sins (3 Nephi 12:2).

6 And blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost (3 Nephi 12:6).

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50 But God hath made known unto our fathers that all men must repent.
51 And he called upon our father Adam by his own voice, saying: I am God; I made the world, and men before they were in the flesh.
52 And he also said unto him: If thou wilt turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth, which is Jesus Christ, the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men, ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, asking all things in his name, and whatsoever ye shall ask, it shall be given you.
53 And our father Adam spake unto the Lord, and said: Why is it that men must repent and be baptized in water? And the Lord said unto Adam: Behold I have forgiven thee thy transgression in the Garden of Eden.
54 Hence came the saying abroad among the people, that the Son of God hath atoned for original guilt, wherein the sins of the parents cannot be answered upon the heads of the children, for they are whole from the foundation of the world.
55 And the Lord spake unto Adam, saying: Inasmuch as thy children are conceived in sin, even so when they begin to grow up, sin conceiveth in their hearts, and they taste the bitter, that they may know to prize the good.
56 And it is given unto them to know good from evil; wherefore they are agents unto themselves, and I have given unto you another law and commandment.
57 Wherefore teach it unto your children, that all men, everywhere, must repent, or they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God, for no unclean thing can dwell there, or dwell in his presence; for, in the language of Adam, Man of Holiness is his name, and the name of his Only Begotten is the Son of Man, even Jesus Christ, a righteous Judge, who shall come in the meridian of time.
58 Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your children, saying:
59 That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory;
60 For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified;
61 Therefore it is given to abide in you; the record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment.
62 And now, behold, I say unto you: This is the plan of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine Only Begotten, who shall come in the meridian of time.
63 And behold, all things have their likeness, and all things are created and made to bear record of me, both things which are temporal, and things which are spiritual; things which are in the heavens above, and things which are on the earth, and things which are in the earth, and things which are under the earth, both above and beneath: all things bear record of me (Moses 6:50-63).

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18 Therefore, it [the earth] must needs be sanctified from all unrighteousness, that it may be prepared for the celestial glory;
19 For after it [the earth] hath filled the measure of its creation, it shall be crowned with glory, even with the presence of God the Father;
20 That bodies who are of the celestial kingdom may possess it forever and ever; for, for this intent was it made and created, and for this intent are they sanctified.
21 And they who are not sanctified through the law which I have given unto you, even the law of Christ, must inherit another kingdom, even that of a terrestrial kingdom, or that of a telestial kingdom.
22 For he who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory.
23 And he who cannot abide the law of a terrestrial kingdom cannot abide a terrestrial glory.
24 And he who cannot abide the law of a telestial kingdom cannot abide a telestial glory; therefore he is not meet for a kingdom of glory. Therefore he must abide a kingdom which is not a kingdom of glory.
25 And again, verily I say unto you, the earth abideth the law of a celestial kingdom, for it filleth the measure of its creation, and transgresseth not the law—
26 Wherefore, it shall be sanctified; yea, notwithstanding it shall die, it shall be quickened again, and shall abide the power by which it is quickened, and the righteous shall inherit it (D&C 88:18-26).

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What we have read so far looks simple but is both profound and very complete:

(1) this is the gospel: that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.

(2) my Father sent me that I might be lifted up upon the cross; and after that I had been lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me

(3) this is the word: no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom

(4) this is the commandment: Repent, be baptized, be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless

Now we are given a new definition of the gospel: “for that which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do. … Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.”
As the first definition of the gospel is about the Savior’s mission: “I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me,” so the second definition is about our mission, it must also read: “I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me.”

(5) 21 Verily, verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel; and ye know the things that ye must do in my church; for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do; for that which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do;
22 Therefore, if ye do these things blessed are ye, for ye shall be lifted up at the last day (3 Nephi 27:21-22).

27 And know ye that ye shall be judges of this people, according to the judgment which I shall give unto you, which shall be just. Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.
28 And now I go unto the Father. And verily I say unto you, whatsoever things ye shall ask the Father in my name shall be given unto you.
29 Therefore, ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; for he that asketh, receiveth; and unto him that knocketh, it shall be opened (3 Nephi 27:27-29).

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Even though these words were spoken directly to the Twelve, they still apply (at least to some degree) to all of us. If that is so, then the next question is: What other scriptures that describe premortal covenants might apply to each of us? There are many. The following is just a sampling.

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57 And for this cause, that men might be made partakers of the glories which were to be revealed, the Lord sent forth the fulness of his gospel, his everlasting covenant, reasoning in plainness and simplicity (D&C 133:57).

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28 I am the Lord thy God, and will give unto thee the law of my Holy Priesthood, as was ordained by me and my Father before the world was (D&C 132:28).

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7 This high priesthood being after the order of his Son, which order was from the foundation of the world; or in other words, being without beginning of days or end of years, being prepared from eternity to all eternity, according to his foreknowledge of all things——
8 Now they were ordained after this manner——being called with a holy calling, and ordained with a holy ordinance, and taking upon them the high priesthood of the holy order, which calling, and ordinance, and high priesthood, is without beginning or end——
9 Thus they become high priests forever, after the order of the Son, the Only Begotten of the Father, who is without beginning of days or end of years, who is full of grace, equity, and truth. And thus it is. Amen (Alma 13:7-9).

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9 Will I accept of an offering, saith the Lord, that is not made in my name?
10 Or will I receive at your hands that which I have not appointed?
11 And will I appoint unto you, saith the Lord, except it be by law, even as I and my Father ordained unto you, before the world was? (D&C 132:9-11)

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7 Whereof I [Paul] was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:
12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him (Ephesians 3:7-12).

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10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full (Alma 12:10).

26 The Spirit of truth is of God. I am the Spirit of truth, and John bore record of me, saying: He received a fulness of truth, yea, even of all truth;
27 And no man receiveth a fulness unless he keepeth his commandments.
28 He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things (D&C 93:26-28).

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1 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:
2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
6 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.
7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
8 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.
9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
13 And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me.
26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them (John 17:1-26).

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28 Father, I thank thee that thou hast purified those whom I have chosen, because of their faith, and I pray for them, and also for them who shall believe on their words, that they may be purified in me, through faith on their words, even as they are purified in me.
29 Father, I pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me out of the world, because of their faith, that they may be purified in me, that I may be in them as thou, Father, art in me, that we may be one, that I may be glorified in them.
30 And when Jesus had spoken these words he came again unto his disciples; and behold they did pray steadfastly, without ceasing, unto him; and he did smile upon them again; and behold they were white, even as Jesus (3 Nephi 19:28-30).

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34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another (John 13:34-35).

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5 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it (2 John 1:5-6).

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1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall (2 Peter 1:1-10).

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50 And again we bear record——for we saw and heard, and this is the testimony of the gospel of Christ concerning them who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just——
51 They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given——
52 That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power;
53 And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true.
54 They are they who are the church of the Firstborn.
55 They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things——
56 They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory;
57 And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son.
58 Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God——
59 Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
60 And they shall overcome all things.
61 Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet.
62 These shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever.
63 These are they whom he shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign on the earth over his people.
64 These are they who shall have part in the first resurrection.
65 These are they who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just.
66 These are they who are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly place, the holiest of all.
67 These are they who have come to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of Enoch, and of the Firstborn.
68 These are they whose names are written in heaven, where God and Christ are the judge of all.
69 These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood.
70 These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all, whose glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical (D&C 76:50-70).

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36 Thus was it made known that our Redeemer spent his time during his sojourn in the world of spirits, instructing and preparing the faithful spirits of the prophets who had testified of him in the flesh;
37 That they might carry the message of redemption unto all the dead, unto whom he could not go personally, because of their rebellion and transgression, that they through the ministration of his servants might also hear his words.
38 Among the great and mighty ones who were assembled in this vast congregation of the righteous were Father Adam, the Ancient of Days and father of all,
39 And our glorious Mother Eve, with many of her faithful daughters who had lived through the ages and worshiped the true and living God.
[He lists several more by name and then adds]
55 I observed that they were also among the noble and great ones who were chosen in the beginning to be rulers in the Church of God.
56 Even before they were born, they, with many others, received their first lessons in the world of spirits and were prepared to come forth in the due time of the Lord to labor in his vineyard for the salvation of the souls of men.
57 I beheld that the faithful elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel of repentance and redemption, through the sacrifice of the Only Begotten Son of God, among those who are in darkness and under the bondage of sin in the great world of the spirits of the dead. (D&C 138:36-39, 55-57).

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3 Nephi 27:5-6
5…ye must take upon you the name of Christ, which is my name? For by this name shall ye be called at the last day.
6 And whoso taketh upon him my name, and endureth to the end, the same shall be saved at the last day.

The context is the Savior’s explaining that the name of his church must be “the Church of Christ.” He asks:

8 And how be it my church save it be called in my name? For if a church be called in Moses’ name then it be Moses’ church; or if it be called in the name of a man then it be the church of a man; but if it be called in my name then it is my church, if it so be that they are built upon my gospel.

I think we sometimes read this passage with a shrug of the shoulders and a “Well, we aren’t called Lutherans or Baptists or some other name, so we are alright!” If that is our response, then we have missed the point entirely. The Savior is not just talking about a church’s corporate name, he is talking about a covenant name that is necessary to salvation. There is always a new name with each new covenant. So much so, that the words “name” and “covenant” can often be interchangeable in the scriptures without changing the meaning.

A new name is a new covenantal identity. In our verses, it denotes one’s relationship with the Savior. King Benjamin, Alma, and the Savior all affirm the necessity of this covenant relationship.

King Benjamin taught:

7 And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters (Mosiah 5:7).

Alma told his father:

24 … I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.
25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;
26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God (Mosiah 27:24-26).

And, when the Savior showed himself to the Brother of Jared he said:

14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters (Ether 3:14).

In Psalm 2, which was sung at the time of the king’s anointing during his coronation ceremony, he is given the new covenant name of “son,” and he quotes Jehovah as saying “this day have I begotten thee.” Thus the anointing of the king serves two purposes, one is the legal covenant of adoption, the other is giving him a new name as a part of his enthronement ceremony. He is now a “son” and therefore a legitimate heir of Jehovah.

The relevant principle to us is that we are promised that if we are righteous we will inherit “all things.” The systems of heaven are perfectly just and therefore must be perfectly consistent — “legal” in every respect. (D&C 132:7-14) Nothing is “acceptable” except it is done by a covenant that is ratified by an appropriate ordinance.

If we are to inherit “all things” we must be legally qualified to inherit — that is, we must be adopted sons and daughters of Christ just as the scriptures teach. That adoption can only be made acceptable by covenant and ordinance.

All valid new covenants must also include a new name. We must take upon ourselves the name of Christ, just as, in our society, an adopted child takes the name of his adoptive parents. That new name is a new identity. A simple example of new identities that come with covenant names is when a man becomes a “bishop.” He now has a new name/title and a new identity. But that new name and identity is only valid at church. He is still “Richard” among his friends and his associates at work. Similarly, all sacred new names are only valid in relation to the covenant they represent. Some covenants are formal, some informal, but they are all necessary. “President” is the name/title of a Relief Society president, just as “Sister” and “Elder” are name/titles of missionaries.

In those examples, accepting the call is the covenant, but that is meaningless without the appropriate ordination or setting apart blessing. In the New Testament, James said that very succinctly, “faith without works is dead.” In that passage “faith” is pistis, the Greek word for covenant or contract. “works” is a reference to the ordinances. That is, the covenants without the ordinances are dead.” Alma used James’s words the same way when he explained that the plan of redemption was “made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works (Alma 12:30).”

Therefore the name, “Church of Jesus Christ,” is more than just a corporate identity. It is an acknowledgment that its members are adopted children and heirs of the Savior. In our case, that covenant of adoption is renewed each Sunday when we take the Sacrament. But there is more, as the Prophet Joseph testified:

23 For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—
24 That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.

(The importance of new covenant names is discussed at length in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition, 495-517; second edition, 358-72.)

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3 Nephi 26:17-21
17 And it came to pass that the disciples whom Jesus had chosen began from that time forth to baptize and to teach as many as did come unto them; and as many as were baptized in the name of Jesus were filled with the Holy Ghost.
18 And many of them saw and heard unspeakable things, which are not lawful to be written.
19 And they taught, and did minister one to another; and they had all things common among them, every man dealing justly, one with another.
20 And it came to pass that they did do all things even as Jesus had commanded them.
21 And they who were baptized in the name of Jesus were called the church of Christ.

In these short verses, Mormon has laid out the conditions that are the foundation of a Zion society, and summarizes its necessary components.

1. “The disciples whom Jesus had chosen began from that time forth to baptize and to teach as many as did come unto them.” Moroni tells us the qualifications of those who were baptized:

2 Neither did they receive any unto baptism save they came forth with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, and witnessed unto the church that they truly repented of all their sins.
3 And none were received unto baptism save they took upon them the name of Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end (Moroni 6:2-3).

2. Their government was a theocracy. That is what the Savior established on the first day he came to the Nephites, and there is no reference to any other form of government until their apostasy. Then those who called themselves Lamanites had a king (Mormon 2:9), but there is no mention of any political leader among Nephites. Mormon was their religious leader, and he calls himself “a commander and a leader of this people” (Mormon 3:11), but that seems to be a military designation rather a political one.

3. “They who were baptized in the name of Jesus were called the church of Christ.” We know very little about how that church operated or how it was organized, but Moroni suggests it worked very much like our own:

5 And the church did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls.
6 And they did meet together oft to partake of bread and wine, in remembrance of the Lord Jesus (Moroni 6:5-6).

4. “As many as were baptized in the name of Jesus were filled with the Holy Ghost.” The phrase “filled with the Holy Ghost” has a powerful meaning in the Book of Mormon. In my discussion of the Beatitudes in 3 Nephi 12, I pointed out the steps between being “visited by the Holy Ghost” in verse 2 and being “filled” in verse 6. Two of those steps are making and keeping temple covenants.

5. A Zion people follow the Brethren — “the disciples whom Jesus had chosen began from that time forth to baptize and to teach as many as did come unto them.”

6. They also received individual revelation: “many of them saw and heard unspeakable things, which are not lawful to be written.”

Not only did they see and hear wonder things through personal revelation, but their scriptures taught them things we do not know. Moroni reports that their scriptures included the full account of the revelations to the brother of Jared.

1 And the Lord commanded the brother of Jared to go down out of the mount from the presence of the Lord, and write the things which he had seen; and they were forbidden to come unto the children of men until after that he should be lifted up upon the cross; and for this cause did king Mosiah keep them, that they should not come unto the world until after Christ should show himself unto his people.
2 And after Christ truly had showed himself unto his people he commanded that they should be made manifest.
3 And now, after that, they have all dwindled in unbelief; and there is none save it be the Lamanites, and they have rejected the gospel of Christ; therefore I am commanded that I should hide them up again in the earth (Ether 4:1-3).

7. They were concerned about each other: “they taught, and did minister one to another.” That was, no doubt, expressed by personal friendships, but also by care that was organized by the Church. Moroni reports:

4 And after they had been received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and cleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost, they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually watchful unto prayer, relying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and the finisher of their faith (Moroni 6:4).

8. They lived the Law of Consecration: “they had all things common among them.”

9. They did all this of their own accord and seem to have been under no external or legal restraint, with “every man dealing justly, one with another.”

10. “And it came to pass that they did do all things even as Jesus had commanded them.”

This Nephite system survived intact for four generations. However, similar attempts by other believers did not last at all. An important question is, “Why did this one work while the others failed?”

After the Savior’s resurrection, the New Testament church appears to have been like the one described in 3 Nephi. Luke reports:

42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved (Acts 2:42-47).

31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.
32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.
34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold,
35 And laid them down at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need (Acts 4:32-35).

However, in the very next chapter, he also tells us that there were those who tried to cheat the system.

1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things [Then his wife also lied and also died.] (Acts 5:1-11).

This incident of cheating was probably not the only one. There are other examples of discontent among the members of the church. It is likely that the failure of the New Testament Zion society was caused from avarice and bickering within as well as pressure from outside the church.

The same thing happened in Missouri when the LDS Church attempted to create a Zion society there. Greed on the part of some of the people, including some of the Witnesses to the Book of Mormon, destroyed the system from within.

The same thing eventually caused the Nephite system to collapse. We are told at the beginning of 4 Nephi:

3 And they had all things common among them; therefore there were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the heavenly gift (4 Nephi 1:3).

And then:

24 And now, in this two hundred and first year there began to be among them those who were lifted up in pride, such as the wearing of costly apparel, and all manner of fine pearls, and of the fine things of the world.
25 And from that time forth they did have their goods and their substance no more common among them.
26 And they began to be divided into classes; and they began to build up churches unto themselves to get gain, and began to deny the true church of Christ (4 Nephi 1:24-26).

It appears that the Law of Consecration — or rather the violation of it — is the Achilles heel of a Zion society. In the New Testament and in Missouri, a Zion community was attempted among people who were not Zion individuals. Some took advantage of the generosity of others. Covetousness blossomed and the system died from internal rot.

“And thus we see” that a Zion society only survives when each individual is himself a “Zion.” Then the culture can prosper as an association of such individuals.

Today, there is an untold number of persons in the Church who each live the Law of Consecration as individuals. But they do it quietly and privately. They give according to their ability and according to the needs of those who receive. All of the members of the Church are not that way, but many are, and others are becoming that kind of persons. So there is, within the world wide Church, a Zion community made up of people who may or may not be recognized as all that different from anyone else, but whose honesty and constancy sustain the Kingdom of God.

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1 Nephi 9:5-6  

5 Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not.
6 But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words. And thus it is. Amen.

The instructions to create the small plates came 30 years after Lehi and his family left Jerusalem. Nephi apparently spent the next ten years writing and polishing the book that we call First Nephi.{1} If, as we suggested above,{2} Nephi was about 14 when he left Jerusalem, he would have been about 44 when he received the instructions to begin, and about 54 when he finished engraving the finished work into the sheets of gold.

His age is relevant, because First Nephi is clearly the work of a mature mind—one who knew first hand the beauties and dangers of this world, and the goodness and power of God.

Fifteen years later, when Nephi was almost 70, he gave the plates to his brother Jacob, with the instructions that he was to add only “a few of the things which I considered to be most precious” (Jacob 1:1-4). Jacob’s descendants kept them until they came into the possession of Amaleki, who gave them to King Benjamin (Omni 1:24-25). They remained in the royal archives until Mormon searched and found them there. Mormon did not abridge them, but bound them with the gold plates that Moroni would entrust to Joseph Smith (Words of Mormon:1:6-7).

It is an important part of the story that Nephi did not know why he had been instructed to write them, and Mormon did not know why he was including them in his own bound record, but both testified that it was for a wise purpose that was known to God.

About 2,300 years after the Lord instructed Nephi to write them, he explained his reasoning to the Prophet Joseph. Martin Harris had lost 116 manuscript pages Joseph had translated. Thereafter, the Lord explained to the Prophet why he was not to re-translate the lost portion (D&C 10:38-45).

In that explanation, the phrase, “until you come to that which you have translated, which you have retained” tells us that of the parts Joseph had already translated. He had unknowingly given Martin only the pages that could be replaced by the small plates.

Mormon’s decision to include the original small plates of Nephi presents an interesting problem when we analyze the prophet Joseph’s translating skills. Mormon tells us that he is writing in “reformed Egyptian,”which may be an amalgamation of Egyptian (quite possibly the script) and Hebrew (possibly the underlying language, perhaps in the way that Yiddish is an amalgamation of Hebrew script and a Middle Germanic dialect or Persian or Urdu is an amalgamation of Arabic script and an Indoeuropean dialect. A written language retains its integrity over the years better than one that is not written. (For example, the Mulekites, who did not have a written language, were no longer speaking a Hebrew that was intelligible to the Nephites.) But during a period of the thousand years even written languages change a great deal. Computerized wordprint study of the Book of Mormon shows that different authors had distinctive writing styles.{3}

The retention of those different styles in the Book of Mormon is evidence that Joseph Smith did not compose the book, but it is also evidence that Mormon did not rewrite the earlier sermons and records in his own reformed Egyptian. Implicitly, what he did was include the sermons and letters just as King Benjamin, Alma, and Helaman and others had written them, and the words of the Savior just as Nephi III had recorded them. That is, on Mormon’s plates, Alma’s sermons were written in Alma’s dialect, and the Savior’s words were written in the dialect of the Nephites in the meridian of time. To get a notion of what that means, we might compare it with English. If we assume Mormon’s reformed Egyptian was in about the same stage of development as twenty-first century English, then, in this analogy, it was as though Alma had written in Elizabethan English, and King Benjamin might have spoken in the archaic language of Chaucer.

For Joseph to have translated such diverse dialects into the English of the King James Bible so that his translation not only retained the profound surface-text meanings, but it also retained the sacred subtextual code words that are also found in the Bible, and the same encoded temple language spoken by the prophets on both continents. When Joseph found the small plates, he was confronted with an altogether different linguistic problem. That is, the small plates were written in Egyptian, so it would not be a stretch to say that Joseph was working with variants of three separate languages —classical Egyptian, 6th century B.C. Hebrew, and Reformed Egyptian, including the whole spectrum of evolutionary changes that eventually developed into the latter.

Given those challenges, and knowing how perfectly Joseph performed his task, it seems that Joseph’s appraisal of his work and of the Book of Mormon might be a bit of an understatement. “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man could get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”{4}

Even before he received the plates, Joseph probably had some knowledge of the Nephite language.
His mother reports that during the evening conversations with his family, Joseph told them about the culture of the people whose history was in the book that still lay buried in the box on the hill. She wrote:

He would describe the ancient inhabitants of this continent, their dress, mode of traveling, and the animals upon which they rode; their cities, their buildings, with every particular; their mode of warfare; and also their religious worship. This he would do with as much ease, seemingly, as if he had spent his whole life among them.”{5}

For Joseph to have known the ancient Americans that well, his tutorials with Moroni and perhaps others must have been as vivid as movements through time.

One might enquire, “Who, besides Joseph Smith, was responsible for translating the Book of Mormon into the English language?” The quick and easy answer is, “Moroni, he taught him how to use the Urim and Thummim”; but a full answer might also include Nephi, Alma, another Nephi, Mormon, Moroni, and others of the ancient prophets who were the original authors of the Book of Mormon.{6}

One can hardly read the Book of Mormon without noticing the Lord’s promises to the prophets that their messages would be passed on to people in the last days.{7} It is not surprising, then, that those same prophets who wrote those messages should be present with Joseph while he was translating their own writings. If the original authors did help in the translation of their own parts of the book, that would guarantee that the English version of the Book of Mormon says just exactly what the authors wanted it to say.

If it were that important that the words in the Book of Mormon say precisely what they were intended to say, then it is just as important that when one reads the book, one reads to learn—with real accuracy—what it says.

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FOOTNOTES

{1} See Nephi’s explanation in 2 Nephi 5:28-34.

{2} See above: 1 Nephi 1:4, reign of Zedekiah.

{3} “Who Wrote the Book of Mormon? an Analysis of Wordprints by Wayne A. Larsen, Alvin C. Rencher, and Tim Layton,” BYU Studies, vol. 20 (1979-1980), Number 2 – Winter 1980.

{4} Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 4:461.

{5} Lucy Mack Smith, History of Joseph Smith by His Mother (Salt Lake City, Bookcraft,1954), 83.

{6} For a discussion of Nephi and other’s possible personal involvement in the English translation see Baker, Joseph and Moroni, 91-98.

{7} For examples see: 2 Nephi 33:3-4; 3 Nephi 5:18; Mormon 8:12, 9:30-31; Enos 1:15-16; Ether 12:25-29. See also, 2 Nephi 3:19-21, 26:16, chapter 27; Mormon 5:12-13; Mosiah 1:7; D&C 17:6, D&C 10:46-53.

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3 Nephi 26:13-16

13 Therefore, I would that ye should behold that the Lord truly did teach the people, for the space of three days; and after that he did show himself unto them oft, and did break bread oft, and bless it, and give it unto them.
14 And it came to pass that he did teach and minister unto the children of the multitude of whom hath been spoken, and he did loose their tongues, and they did speak unto their fathers great and marvelous things, even greater than he had revealed unto the people; and he loosed their tongues that they could utter.
15 And it came to pass that after he had ascended into heaven—the second time that he showed himself unto them, and had gone unto the Father, after having healed all their sick, and their lame, and opened the eyes of their blind and unstopped the ears of the deaf, and even had done all manner of cures among them, and raised a man from the dead, and had shown forth his power unto them, and had ascended unto the Father—
16 Behold, it came to pass on the morrow that the multitude gathered themselves together, and they both saw and heard these children; yea, even babes did open their mouths and utter marvelous things; and the things which they did utter were forbidden that there should not any man write them.

The scriptures are replete with the idea that there are things we must know, but which they (the scriptures) will not tell us. Even though they assure us that those things are hidden, they also clearly teach that we are responsible to know those hidden things. Consequently, much of certain parts of the scriptures are written in double-speech. Their surface text is wonderful and true, their subtext is written in code and is about those hidden things. {1}

There is a wonderful story about J. Golden Kimball that may or may not be true— if it isn’t true it certainly should be. While he was speaking to a sleepy stake conference in southern Utah, he suddenly said, “Brothers and Sisters, The Lord has said he is going to give us the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon. How many of you will read it?” Everyone in the congregation raised their hand, some out of habit, and others with enthusiasm. When the hands went down, he chided, “Then why the hell don’t you read the part you now have, so he can give us the rest?”

As usual, Elder J. Golden’s words were simple and profound. The truths of the gospel are to be taught in an intelligible sequence. (That is why the missionary lessons work so well.) If we try to jump ahead to learn the “mysteries” (using that word the way the world uses it) we will only be confused. Consequently, the Book of Mormon teaches us individually only what we each permit it to teach. {2}

The authors of the gospels in the New Testament were keenly aware that the most important things could not be written. But repeatedly say that we must know them. It is ironic that we sometimes credit Jesus with being a great teacher because he taught in parables that everyone could understand. But he told his Apostles that the reason he taught in parables was so the people would NOT understand. He explains that in several places, for example:

8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
9 And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable.
11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:
12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them (Mark 4:8-12). {3}

“Mystery” is the operative word in those verses. In the New Testament it is translated from the Greek word mysterion. There, it refers to the secrets disclosed during one’s initiation into sacred religious rites, {4} and usually refers to the early Christian temple rites. However in some places, like Ephesians 1, it is a reference to premortal temple rites. In the Book of Mormon it may mean either, or sometimes more probably means both, as in 1 Nephi and Alma 12.

In the course of First and Second Nephi it becomes clear that Nephi is very conversant with the ancient Israelite temple rites and that he has had a sode experience that gave him a full understanding of his own premortal world. In First Nephi, which he wrote when he was about 45 or 50, he introduces himself by saying that he has a “great knowledge of the … mysteries of God.” (1 Nephi 1:1)

Alma says that “the chains of hell” means one’s not knowing those mysteries:

9 And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him.
10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.
11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell (Alma 12:9-11).

Paul understood this. His letter to the Ephesians is an excellent encoded example. He desired that those who had a right to know might understand, and described those people as “the fellowship of the mystery.” He wrote that it was his mission to bring people into that fellowship.

7 Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God (Ephesians 3:7-10). {5}

The reason these things are not explicitly written in the scriptures is that are hidden from the world. They are hidden now; they have always been hidden, even from the foundation of the world; and they will always be hidden.

The reason they are hidden is because they can only be revealed to those who are “authorized to believe.” That is an intriguing phrase. It comes from a statement published in a Melchizedek Priesthood manual and is attributed to the Prophet Joseph:

George A. Smith, while serving in the First Presidency, re- ported: “Joseph Smith taught that every man and woman should seek the Lord for wisdom, that they might get knowledge from Him who is the fountain of knowledge; and the promises of the gospel, as revealed, were such as to authorize us to believe, that by taking this course we should gain the object of our pursuit.” {6}

In Doctrine and Covenants 124 the Lord explained the nature of these mysteries and how and why they are revealed:

38 For, for this cause I commanded Moses that he should build a tabernacle, that they should bear it with them in the wilderness, and to build a house in the land of promise, that those ordinances might be revealed which had been hid from before the world was.
39 Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings, and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices by the sons of Levi, and for your oracles in your most holy places wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelations and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name.
40 And verily I say unto you, let this house be built unto my name, that I may reveal mine ordinances therein unto my people;
41 For I deign to reveal unto my church things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times.
42 And I will show unto my servant Joseph all things pertaining to this house, and the priesthood thereof, and the place whereon it shall be built (D&C 124:38-42).

I am now told that much of the LDS endowment can be found on the internet. If one finds it there, he still cannot “know,” so it doesn’t matter. One can virtually memorize the words but unless their meaning is taught by the Holy Ghost, their truths remain hidden from the world in the same way they have always been hidden, and they always will hidden, except from those who are “authorized to believe.” For that reason, even though the words of the ancient and modern temple rites may be discoverable (as they are in the Psalms), knowing the words does not constitute knowing the mysteries.

Like the New Testament writers, the authors of the Book of Mormon also understood that the most beautiful principles of the gospel are the things that cannot be taught. An evidence of that is that the prophets really did want their readers to know. Nephi and Mormon each say that they wish to tell us more, but they can not. In the last chapter of 1 Nephi, he uses the phrase “shall dwell safely in the Holy One of Israel,” but he cannot explain what that means. He writs:

28 But, behold, all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people shall dwell safely in the Holy One of Israel if it so be that they will repent.
29 And now I, Nephi, make an end; for I durst not speak further as yet concerning these things (1 Nephi 22:28-31).

Again, at the conclusion of 2 Nephi, in the context of an encoded message, he begins to explain what he wishes us to understand, but can only go so far then writes:

7 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; 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). {7}

Mormon also wanted to spell it all out for us, but then quotes the Lord as saying that was not permitted:

11 Behold, I was about to write them, all which were engraven upon the plates of Nephi, but the Lord forbade it, saying: I will try the faith of my people.
12 Therefore I, Mormon, do write the things which have been commanded me of the Lord. And now I, Mormon, make an end of my sayings, and proceed to write the things which have been commanded me (3 Nephi 26:11-13).

Even though there are strict restraints on what we can teach, there is also the command that we must teach those whom the Spirit instructs us to teach. (The Savior explained that in 3 Nephi 14:1-12.)

Ammon and his brethren are a splendid example of those who were permitted to tell—but only permitted to tell a specific group of people. Ammon understood both his responsibility and he rejoiced in his opportunity. He said to his brothers:

21 And now behold, my brethren, what natural man is there that knoweth these things? I say unto you, there is none that knoweth these things, save it be the penitent.
22 Yea, he that repenteth and exerciseth faith, and bringeth forth good works, and prayeth continually without ceasing—unto such it is given to know the mysteries of God; yea, unto such it shall be given to reveal things which never have been revealed; yea, and it shall be given unto such to bring thousands of souls to repentance, even as it has been given unto us to bring these our brethren to repentance (Alma 26:21-22).

How much of the mysteries one can know in this life? I suppose it depends on three things: His need to know; his worthiness to know; and his opportunity to know. Some of the greatest men who have lived in this world lived in a time and place where this information was simply not available. Nevertheless, in the end, we are assured that everyone who is worthy to know will know. For example, these two statements from the Doctrine and Covenants:

26 The Spirit of truth is of God. I am the Spirit of truth, and John bore record of me, saying: He received a fulness of truth, yea, even of all truth;
27 And no man receiveth a fulness unless he keepeth his commandments.
28 He that keepeth his commandments receiveth truth and light, until he is glorified in truth and knoweth all things (D&C 93:26-28).

5 For thus saith the Lord—I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end.
6 Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory.
7 And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come, will I make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom.
8 Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come will I show them, even the things of many generations.
9 And their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to heaven; and before them the wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the understanding of the prudent shall come to naught (D&C 76:5-9).

That promise was reiterated again by the Prophet Joseph Smith. About the same time the Prophet was introducing the endowment to the Saints in Nauvoo he wrote and published a poem that follows the same pattern as D&C 76. (You can find the entire poem on this website under “Favorite Quotes.”) A portion of that poem reads:

A Vision
by The Prophet Joseph Smith

For thus saith the Lord, in the spirit of truth,
I am merciful, gracious, and good unto those
That fear me, and live for the life that’s to come:
My delight is to honour the Saints with repose,

That serve me in righteousness true to the end;
Eternal’s their glory and great their reward.
I’’ll surely reveal all my myst’ries to them —
The great hidden myst’ries in my kingdom stor’d;

From the council in Kolob, to time on the earth,
And for ages to come unto them I will show
My pleasure and will, what the kingdom will do
Eternity’s wonders they truly shall know {8}.

——————————

FOOTNOTES

{1} In our book Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, Stephen and I have tried to point out the code words in the Psalms, but have carefully avoided saying what ought not to be said. I personally did a word search on the word “temple” to make sure that was so. Every sentence that uses “temple” says Israelite temple,” Solomon’s Temple,” Nephite temple,” or some other phrase to referent “ancient temples.” So no sentence can be taken out of context and be seen to be discussing LDS temples or their teachings.

{2} I had my own wake-up call when I was a student at BYU. I was taking a class from Truman G. Madsen. One day I went to his office and brazenly told him I had studied and understood the “mysteries” and I asked him to teach me the things he wouldn’t teach in class. He responded, “Explain the Atonement to me.” I gave a half-cocked Sunday School answer and then he said. “After you understand the Atonement, then come back and talk to me.”

{3} Other examples are Matthew 11:13-17, 13:7-17; Mark 7:15-18; Luke 8:7-11; and Revelation chapters 2and 3. John wrote those chapters of Revelation as a colophon to teach the initiated that he was a prophet, just as Nephi did in 1 Nephi chapter 1. If one reads the code in the first half of each of John’s letters he will teach the mysteries. If one reads uses that code to read the second half, he teaches what it means.

{4} Strong 3466: “the idea of silence imposed by initiation into religious rites.” Raymond E. Brown, The Semitic Background of the Term “Mystery” in the New Testament (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1968), 2-6).

{5} Other places where we are told the mysteries have been hidden “from the foundation of the world” are Ether 4:15; D&C 76:5-8, 128:18.

{6} Joseph Smith [Melchizedek Priesthood manual], (Salt Lake City, Utah, published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2007), 266.

{7} For Nephi, “great knowledge” is code. He uses it here the same way he does in 1 Nephi 1:1.

{8} In February 1843, at the request of W.W. Phelps, the Prophet re-wrote the vision which is like the 76th section of the Doctrine and Covenants in poetry form. It was published in the Times and Seasons, February 1, 1843, and republished in the Millennial Star, August, 1843.

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3 Nephi 26:6-12

6 And now there cannot be written in this book even a hundredth part of the things which Jesus did truly teach unto the people;
7 But behold the plates of Nephi do contain the more part of the things which he taught the people.
8 And these things have I written, which are a lesser part of the things which he taught the people; and I have written them to the intent that they may be brought again unto this people, from the Gentiles, according to the words which Jesus hath spoken.
9 And when they shall have received this, which is expedient that they should have first, to try their faith, and if it shall so be that they shall believe these things then shall the greater things be made manifest unto them.
10 And if it so be that they will not believe these things, then shall the greater things be withheld from them, unto their condemnation.
11 Behold, I was about to write them, all which were engraven upon the plates of Nephi, but the Lord forbade it, saying: I will try the faith of my people.
12 Therefore I, Mormon, do write the things which have been commanded me of the Lord. And now I, Mormon, make an end of my sayings, and proceed to write the things which have been commanded me.
——————

My experience, both personal and through watching other people, is that a testimony is like a three legged stool. That is, there are three kinds of testimonies and each is necessary in order to keep the other two upright and stable. (1) There is a spiritual testimony that is taught by the Holy Ghost, (2) an academic testimony that comes from a careful study non-doctrinal subjects presented by the scriptures, (3) and an academic testimony that comes from a careful study of the doctrines taught in the scriptures.

The Book of Mormon provides examples of all three.

(1) A spiritual testimony is rather simple but very real: the Holy Ghost testifies that the book contains pure truth. That I know, and there are millions of other people who know it as well.

There is an interesting statement in Moroni’s introduction, published on the title page of the Book of Mormon. The concluding sentence reads:

And now, if there are faults they are the mistakes of men; wherefore, condemn not the things of God, that ye may be found spotless at the judgment-seat of Christ.

He does not say whether the men in question are the authors or the readers. However, the way I read that statement is:

And now, if there are faults they are the mistakes of men [that is, the failure of the readers to understand the intent of the authors]; wherefore, condemn not the things of God, that ye may be found spotless at the judgment-seat of Christ.

A simple example is the “absurd” statement in the Book of Mormon that the Nephites built with cement. Joseph Smith’s critics said that was impossible because, as everyone knew, cement was invented by the Romans. That argument seemed to work well until archaeologists found cement buildings in central America. Then that “mistake” by the author of the Book of Mormon was not a mistake any more. It is my belief that when we find a mistake in the Book of Mormon we should look to ourselves, not to the authors of the book as the source of the problem.

(2) A study of the non-doctrinal content of the scriptures. The thousand year history in the Book of Mormon is a very complex weaving of geography, historical sequences, and language differences. A careful study of these elements in the book shows that the Book of Mormon is internally consistent throughout. And the more closely those details are examined, the more convincing is that evidence is.

The language of the Book of Mormon is an excellent example. Stephen Ricks and some of his colleagues are doing a study of proper names in the Book of Mormon. This is important because our “original” text of the book is in English and the only access we have to the real original languages is in the names. Stephen and his friends can trace the roots of the Nephite personal and geographic names back to their Hebrew—or sometimes Egyptian or other Near Eastern language—origins. This shows that the Nephite language had both Hebrew and Egyptian elements, just as the book says it does. However, after Mosiah I goes to Zarahemla (but not before that) there is a new kind of name introduced that does not have recognizable ancient Near Eastern roots, but they do have similarities with each other. These are probably Jaredite names. (Stephen and I are working on a commentary of First Nephi and he will include an analysis of some of the names in that commentary.)

(3) Doctrinal consistencies are even more remarkable. For example, the Book of Mormon seems to quote the Sermon on the Mount, but it makes many not-so-subtle changes that turns the Savior’s sermon into a temple text. That temple text is consistent with other temple texts in the Book of Mormon. The frequency and accuracy of temple texts in the book would have been an amazing accomplishment if Joseph had written it because when Joseph translated the Book of Mormon there was no scholar in the world who knew that there was any kind of ancient Israelite temple drama other than the system of sacrifices described in the Old Testament.

There are so many of these internally consistent intricacies that are so perfect that I, for one, must conclude that the Book of Mormon is an ancient text that was translated by a master scholar who had access to many then unknown texts from the ancient Israelite world—or else translated by an 18 year old boy who had a great deal of supernatural help. Since the first is demonstrably impossible, that leaves the only option to be that the Book of Mormon was translated by Joseph Smith “by the gift and power of God.”

The point is that not only the spiritual, but also both kinds academic testimonies are necessary and valid. However, neither is complete without the other two because each, on its own, invites potential problems.

(1) A spiritual testimony without academic support can easily be counterfeited by enthusiasm or emotion. Then, when the emotion cools or the enthusiasm fades, the “testimony” cannot be sustained.

(2) Similarly, an in-depth academic study of the historicity and geographical setting of the scriptures can be great fun but without the moderating influence of the Holy Ghost it can lead the scholar, or the scholar wannabe, to all sorts of strange and conflicting conclusions.

(3) An academic testimony based on an in-depth study of the doctrines taught in the scriptures gives a very important kind of stability. However, it also brings potential difficulties. Without the Holy Ghost, an academic study of the “doctrines” can lead one into some really weird places.

I believe that all three kinds of testimony are mutually important and that the stabilizing power that keeps all three alive and real within us is for one to know what he really knows, and to also know what he does not know.

All right, that last bit sounds confusing so let me try again:

It is vital for Latter-day Saints to be able to identify with clarity the things one actually knows to be true. However, it is no less vital that one be able to identify with equal clarity the things that one does not know to be true. That is because one’s belief that unsubstantiated “doctrines” are true can undermine one’s belief in true doctrine. And quite frankly, sometimes it takes a more careful study of the scriptures to identify the reasons why some of the “Sunday School answers” are not true than it takes to identify the ones that are true.

In that same category is the ability to recognize the difference between gospel doctrine and church policy. Sometimes church policy is so well established that it is accepted as doctrine. Then when the policy is changed some get upset because they see it as a change in doctrine. A prime example was whether all worthy men should have the priesthood. Another more recent example is whether chaste “out” gay boys can belong to in LDS-sponsored scout troops.

Church policy changes to fit the times. It is significant that Mormon tells us almost nothing about the Nephite church organization or its policies. Before 3 Nephi we are told Alma organized a church with priests and teachers. In 3 Nephi we learn that the Savior organized a church with twelve disciples. That’s it! Mormon does not impose upon us and our culture the church organization and policies that worked in his time and for his culture.

The “church” never exists in a cultural vacuum and the “true church” must be true in its own time and place. For example, in LDS Church history, the organization, practices, and policies were different in Nauvoo, early Utah, and in the present. But it is always “true” within its situation.

An amazing example is the Seventy. The organization that Joseph established by revelation included quorums of Seventy, but the Church did not know what to do with them until it grew so large that it needed “area general authorities” who could work under the direction of the Apostles. In other words, the organization of the Church described in the revelation to the Prophet Joseph could not be fully realized until it became a “world wide church.” However, the church was true back in the years when there was no First Quorum of Seventy, but only stake seventies quorums. It is still true today when there is a First Quorum of Seventy but no stake seventies quorums.

My testimony is this: Jesus is the Christ, the gospel is truth, the priesthood is real, and the Church is as correct as its cultural environment will allow. Because that is so, I follow the prophet.

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3 Nephi 26:4-5

4 And even unto the great and last day, when all people, and all kindreds, and all nations and tongues shall stand before God, to be judged of their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil—
5 If they be good, to the resurrection of everlasting life; and if they be evil, to the resurrection of damnation; being on a parallel, the one on the one hand and the other on the other hand, according to the mercy, and the justice, and the holiness which is in Christ, who was before the world began.

Philosophers often argue about the origin of good and evil. My view about that may be a bit simplistic, but I think it works. It is based on my understanding of these verses.

29 Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.
30 All truth is independent in that sphere in which God has placed it, to act for itself, as all intelligence also; otherwise there is no existence.
31 Behold, here is the agency of man, and here is the condemnation of man; because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light (D&C 93:29-31).

The point is this: agency is an integral part of what we are, “otherwise there is no existence.”

To understand the origins of good and evil we have to take our minds back to our own origins, and seek to understand our progression through linear time from intelligences, to spirit children of our Heavenly Father, to time on this earth, to the post-earth-life spirit world, to our resurrection, to our final judgement, then to become the celestial persons we all hope to become.

In each moment of our lives, we are perpetually confronted with the most primal and important decision of our existence. That decision is the answer to the great question: “What is in my best interest?”

I believe that throughout our premortal world, way back to when we were intelligences at the very beginning of our cognizance, that same great question had to be asked and answered, just as frequently as it is now.

I believe that neither good nor evil were ever imposed upon us, but both are the consequence of our own sense of Self — how we define our Self in terms of our most fundamental needs; and how we define other people’s relationship to that Self as we seek to satisfy those needs. The needs I am talking about are not the basic physical needs we have in this world, but rather the more fundamental needs that persist throughout our existence. They are all about our sense of Self, our relationships with other people and with our God.

In our defining those relationships, there have always been two basic options, but they are spread along a very long continuum. At one end is pure good, at the other pure evil, with many gradations of good and evil in between.

In the beginnings of our beginning there were the Savior and the Noble and Great Ones whose consistent response to that great question was that it was in their best interest to bless others, and to accept blessings from them, that all might be glorified. That kind of self gratification is love, and was the beginning and is the continuation of good.

On the other extreme was Satan and his minions who believed that it was in their best interest to use and control others to satisfy their own selfish desires. That kind of self gratification was the beginning and is the continuation of evil.

On a continuum between those two extremes were, and still are, the great masses of individuals. Most people make some decisions based on one kind of values, and other decisions based on the other kind of values. We see it in this world where most people vacillate between good and evil. But even here there are some people who adhere much more closely to good, while others seek to achieve self glory through evil means.

Each time we ask and answer that great question we also pronounce a judgement upon ourselves. That judgment evokes a blessing or a punishment. I am convinced God does not now, has never, and never will punish any of his children. Alma explained the process to his son:

22 But there is a law given, and a punishment affixed, and a repentance granted; which repentance, mercy claimeth; otherwise, justice claimeth the creature and executeth the law, and the law inflictet h the punishment; if not so, the works of justice would be destroyed, and God would cease to be God.
23 But God ceaseth not to be God, and mercy claimeth the penitent, and mercy cometh because of the atonement; and the atonement bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead; and the resurrection of the dead bringeth back men into the presence of God; and thus they are restored into his presence, to be judged according to their works, according to the law and justice.
24 For behold, justice exerciseth all his demands, and also mercy claimeth all which is her own; and thus, none but the truly penitent are saved.
25 What, do ye suppose that mercy can rob justice? I say unto you, Nay; not one whit. If so, God would cease to be God.
26 And thus God bringeth about his great and eternal purposes, which were prepared from the foundation of the world. And thus cometh about the salvation and the redemption of men, and also their destruction and misery (Alma 42:22-26).

Because we move through linear time from intelligences to the final judgment, we are bound by that time to living only in the moment. Each moment is unique. We cannot hurry into a future event, nor can we go back to revisit a past occurrence. We can remember and sometimes seek to replicate a past experiences that brought us pleasure, but each repetition is a new and separate event. For example if you eat a new kind of candy bar and really like it. You can never eat it again. You can get a similar bar and enjoy that one as much as the first, but the first will forever be a past pleasure. It can be remembered, and sometimes replicated, but not re-visited and re-experienced.

That is equally true of things we regret. We can never not-have-done them, but we can refuse to replicate them again. That refusal is repentance. The Savior’s Atonement cannot remove the event from our past, but he can remove its hurt and even its memory from our present. We can be washed clean from our sins so the sins will leave no stain upon our souls.

The Savior’s mercy accomplishes that cleansing. Through his Atonement he absorbs the full consequence of our sin and lets us feel only a taste of the hurt. That taste is sufficient to cause us to understand its pain and seek to not experience its likeness again. Therefore, we seek to not replicate the sin. Fortunately, sometimes we can vicariously experience a bit of the consequences of a sin by watching other people. Then we can altogether avoid doing the sin ourselves.

Or, if we opt to not repent, mercy still withholds the full power of justice. If we choose to do so, we can use that taste to titillate our Self and to seek to duplicate the thrill or sense of power we had when we did the sin. In either case, the decision to repent or not is entirely our own. The Savior’s mercy only guarantees that the option is ours.

Thus, because of mercy, we move through linear time, learn through experience, choose what we wish to replicate and keep as part of our being, or what we wish to discard so that it is no longer a part of our Self.

The plan of salvation guaranteed that as we move through linear time — from intelligences, spirit persons, earth life, spirit world, resurrection, and the final judgment — we will be confronted with enough challenges to enable us to make enough choices so that we can perfectly define the attitudes and actions that gives us happiness. Therefore, when we stand before the Savior on judgement day we will have become precisely who and what we have chosen to become.

Throughout this whole odyssey the powers of justice have been kept in abeyance. We have tasted its jurisdiction, but its full consequences have been absorbed by the Savior’s mercy. If we lived in a world where justice had its full sway, the consequences of our sins would have long since destroyed us, or the consequences of our righteousness would have bribed us to avoid sin. In either case we would have lost our agency and our Self would have become a Nothing. But because of the Savior’s Atonement the full powers of justice are held at bay until the resurrection when we are judged by our works and receive a body that is perfectly compatible with the person we have caused our Self to be.

This introduces us to the critical question: By what works will we be judged? The answer is: those actions and attitudes by which we answered the great question, which is largely about our perceptions of our Self in relationship to the value of other people. The quality of our spirit will determine the quality of our resurrected body. The Lord explained that very simply:

28 They who are [now – present tense] of a celestial spirit shall [future] receive the same body which was [past tense from the future, so back to the present] a natural body; even ye shall receive [future] your bodies, and your glory shall be [future] that glory by which your bodies are [present] quickened.
29 Ye who are [now – in the present] quickened by a portion of the celestial glory shall then [future] receive of the same, even a fulness (D&C 88:28-29).

To define “celestial spirit” we may go to the Doctrine and Covenants and elsewhere, where the high point to which we reach is to live the Law of Consecration, which means blessing the lives of others by our kindness and “good works.”

However, in the Book of Mormon the high point to which we reach is to be a person of charity. Charity and the Law of Consecration are two sides of the same coin. Living the Law of Consecration is what we do when charity is what we are.

Whether we have or have not charity defines the quality of our spirits and will ultimately define the quality of our resurrected body. Therefore, at the judgement that precedes our resurrection we are, as the Savior said, judged by our works. Mormon further explains:

47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.
48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen (Moroni 7:47-48).

The time of our resurrection will not be the first time we are judged by our works, neither will it be our last. After the resurrection we will stand before the Savior, clothed in our resurrected bodies, to be judged according to our works. Mormon explains that sequence very succinctly when he writes:

6 And he bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead, whereby man must be raised to stand before his judgment-seat (Mormon 7:5-7).

Mormon also explained it with more detail:

13 And because of the redemption of man, which came by Jesus Christ, they are brought back into the presence of the Lord; yea, this is wherein all men are redeemed, because the death of Christ bringeth to pass the resurrection, which bringeth to pass a redemption from an endless sleep, from which sleep all men shall be awakened by the power of God when the trump shall sound; and they shall come forth, both small and great, and all shall stand before his bar, being redeemed and loosed from this eternal band of death, which death is a temporal death.
14 And then cometh the judgment of the Holy One upon them; and then cometh the time that he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is righteous shall be righteous still; he that is happy shall be happy still; and he that is unhappy shall be unhappy still (Mormon 9:13-14).

In Alma’s conversation quoted above, he taught that same principle to his son, and shows us the relationship between mercy, justice, resurrection, and the final judgment:

23 But God ceaseth not to be God, and mercy claimeth the penitent, and mercy cometh because of the atonement; and the atonement bringeth to pass the resurrection of the dead; and the resurrection of the dead bringeth back men into the presence of God; and thus they are restored into his presence, to be judged according to their works, according to the law and justice (Alma 42:22-26).

The Savior’s mercy gives us the option of defining our Self and guarantees that each of us would receive a resurrected body compatible with that Self.

Now we have a different question: If we have already been judged by our works to receive a resurrected body, by what works are we judged after the resurrection at the final judgment? The scriptures answer that question as well.

In that final judgment when we stand before the Savior, he will judge us by our “works.” But since we were judged by our works before, this judgement is either a kind of redundancy or else the word “works” refers to something different. The latter is true, and we can the new referent by reading Alma in the Book of Mormon and James in the New Testament.

In a review of the Nephite temple rites, Alma says we are taught by our faith (pistis = covenants), repentance, and “holy works” (Alma 12:28-34). In that context I understand “holy works” to refer to the covenants we make and to the ordinances that validate them.

James teaches us the same concept in his famous statement that “faith without works is dead. The Greek word translated “faith” is pistis.

Pistis was a legal commercial term that might better be translated as “covenant” or “contract.” Contracts require a validation, usually a signature, to make them legal. Covenants in the ancient temples required ordinances as that validation. The ordinances must be performed with exactness and with proper authority just as a signature on a contract must represent someone who has the right to make the contract binding. What James wrote was that without the binding ordinances the ancient priesthood and temple covenants had no value.

The Prophet Joseph wrote the same thing, but he explained the gravity of the concept more fully.

7 And verily I say unto you, that the conditions of this law are these: All covenants, contracts, bonds, obligations, oaths, vows, performances, connections, associations, or expectations, that are not made and entered into and sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, of him who is anointed, both as well for time and for all eternity, and that too most holy, by revelation and commandment through the medium of mine anointed, whom I have appointed on the earth to hold this power (and I have appointed unto my servant Joseph to hold this power in the last days, and there is never but one on the earth at a time on whom this power and the keys of this priesthood are conferred), are of no efficacy, virtue, or force in and after the resurrection from the dead; for all contracts that are not made unto this end have an end when men are dead (D&C 132:7).

Ordinances are the works without which the covenants have no validity. God’s house is a house of order and there can be nothing capricious about his administration of the final judgment. We will stand before the Savior in the resurrected body that already defines the quality of our spirit. There, we will receive a final judgment based on our “holy works.” That judgment must be established by hard, unchallengeable fact. The final judgment will rest upon whether we have accepted and kept our eternal covenants, and whether those covenants have been validated by the appropriate ordinances. Since that question must be answered by fact and rather than by a subjective decision, that final judgment will be absolutely just and true.

So, as Alma taught, through the power of the Savior’s Atonement mercy enables us to become what we choose to become, but it is justice that dictates our final destiny. Thus God is perfectly merciful and perfectly just.

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