In the Lectures on Faith, a document which was the basis for instruction in the School for the Elders in late 1834 and which appeared in the Doctrine and Covenants from 1835 until 1921, Joseph Smith stated that a man cannot exercise sufficient faith in God unto salvation without having a 'correct idea of his character, perfections and attributes (Lecture 3). This means that before we can move on to experiential faith meaning faith derived from our experience with God, such as faith derived from His power to save, or to forgive, or to lend comfort, we need to possess faith that He has the attributes that would lead us to such experiences. Where do we learn of Christ's attributes so that we may put trust and faith in them? The scriptures: "The scriptures, in a marvelous way, are the repository of the characteristics and attributes of God. It is as if the prophets were giving evidence that God was worthy of our trust, that we could indeed depend on him in the most difficult trials of our lives. In fact - and this is a wonderful point to consider - 'the God of heaven, understanding most perfectly the constitution of human nature, and the weakness of men, knew what was necessary to be revealed, and what ideas must be planted in their minds in order that they might be enabled to exercise faith in him unto eternal life' (LF 4:2)" (Jerry A. Wilson, The Great Plan of Happiness, Insights from the Lectures on Faith, p. 28). When I first learnt of Joseph's statement about knowing God I determined that I would read the Book of Mormon with that in mind. I looked for His characteristics in the way He dealt with the inhabitants of ancient America and in what the prophets said of Him. I still do so. Whenever I find something relating to His character, I pencil it in the margins. Now when I flick through my Book of Mormon I am amazed to see pencil markings on just about every page. This has made me conclude that we can 'see' the Saviour on every page of the Book of Mormon.
The most prominent characteristic of Jesus Christ that comes up over and over again for me in the scriptures is that of mercy. For the first time in my life when we studied The Old Testament the year before last, I learnt about the God of mercy as I witnessed through the power of the spirit His dealings with ancient Israel. Not many people would describe Jehovah as merciful, the world at large sees Him as a vengeful God of the Old Testament but to me the mercy is so much more evident. After all, who can forget Jehovah passing by Moses on Mount Sinai saying to him: "....the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in goodness and truth" (Exodus 34:6)? Or Jehovah leading Israel into promised land with an admonition "know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations" (Deut 7:9) Who could possibly say they possess mercy towards another being 'to a thousand generations', meaning infinitely? We can also discover the God of mercy on just about every page of The Book of Mormon. This book of scripture also teaches us of another prominent characteristic that I wish to discuss here and that is wisdom. I will cite two examples of this. The first is found through Nephi who upon Lord's command created two sets of golden plates, the purpose of which he did not know. But one thing he did know and that was that the Lord knows all things from the beginning (1 Nephi 9:5,6). What the Lord knew in this instance was that the larger plates which were essentially The Book of Lehi would become the 116 pages of the lost manuscript translated by Joseph Smith in 1828, over 2,000 years later. The smaller plates which Nephi was commanded to make without knowing why covered exactly the same period as the lost manuscript and basically summarised Lehi's prophecies. The story does not end there either. Mormon, under the inspiration of the spirit, included these smaller plates in his own abridgement of the plates we now know as the Book of Mormon. He must have wondered if he was repeating himself including these plates, having just abridged Lehi's account but Mormon being obedient did as he was prompted to do admitting he did not know all things but like Nephi, he knew that the Lord knew (Words of Mormon 1:7). One cannot but be convinced that Nephi and Mormon knew God and of His wisdom and were therefore able to exercise sufficient faith and trust in His commands so that we today could have the richness of Lehi's prophecies such as his dream of the tree of life.
The most prominent characteristic of Jesus Christ that comes up over and over again for me in the scriptures is that of mercy. For the first time in my life when we studied The Old Testament the year before last, I learnt about the God of mercy as I witnessed through the power of the spirit His dealings with ancient Israel. Not many people would describe Jehovah as merciful, the world at large sees Him as a vengeful God of the Old Testament but to me the mercy is so much more evident. After all, who can forget Jehovah passing by Moses on Mount Sinai saying to him: "....the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in goodness and truth" (Exodus 34:6)? Or Jehovah leading Israel into promised land with an admonition "know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations" (Deut 7:9) Who could possibly say they possess mercy towards another being 'to a thousand generations', meaning infinitely? We can also discover the God of mercy on just about every page of The Book of Mormon. This book of scripture also teaches us of another prominent characteristic that I wish to discuss here and that is wisdom. I will cite two examples of this. The first is found through Nephi who upon Lord's command created two sets of golden plates, the purpose of which he did not know. But one thing he did know and that was that the Lord knows all things from the beginning (1 Nephi 9:5,6). What the Lord knew in this instance was that the larger plates which were essentially The Book of Lehi would become the 116 pages of the lost manuscript translated by Joseph Smith in 1828, over 2,000 years later. The smaller plates which Nephi was commanded to make without knowing why covered exactly the same period as the lost manuscript and basically summarised Lehi's prophecies. The story does not end there either. Mormon, under the inspiration of the spirit, included these smaller plates in his own abridgement of the plates we now know as the Book of Mormon. He must have wondered if he was repeating himself including these plates, having just abridged Lehi's account but Mormon being obedient did as he was prompted to do admitting he did not know all things but like Nephi, he knew that the Lord knew (Words of Mormon 1:7). One cannot but be convinced that Nephi and Mormon knew God and of His wisdom and were therefore able to exercise sufficient faith and trust in His commands so that we today could have the richness of Lehi's prophecies such as his dream of the tree of life.
Another example of God's wisdom that is found in The Book of Mormon has to do with the Nephite's failure to record Samuel's prophecy that many saints would rise with Christ at the time of His resurrection. Why would the Saviour call them up on this particular prophecy? Why would this error have been significant enough for the Lord to correct it? Well, it has to do with the fact that The Book of Mormon, being "Another Testament of Jesus Christ", was specifically written for our day and in our day the accuracy of historical events recorded in the Bible is greatly under fire. One of these historical events recorded in the Bible that is greatly misunderstood and refuted is the resurrection. Jesus's rise from the grave is the subject of much modern scholarly debate. This debate was brought to the attention of one Latter-Day Saint whilst attending a well-known graduate theological school. He recounts: "In a class on Christ, entitled Christology, the professor was asked a question about the resurrection. He became very animated as he explained that this was the subject of his doctoral dissertation in Germany. He said that the answer to the student's question was complicated by the fact that there are various interpretations of the biblical account. He proceeded to draw a rectangle on the board representing the Bible and began to explain that this well-known scholar had his opinion based on these verses, while another theological had her opinion founded on some other passages. He then humorously noted that he differed from their interpretations due to still other verses. All the while he was banging away with his chalk at the rectangle representing the Bible. Then this professor, unacquainted with the Restoration, did an amazing thing. He said to the class, 'You know what we need? We need another book'! At this point he drew another rectangle next to the first, representing the 'other book' and said, 'If we had another book it would prove them (the other scholars) wrong and me right!' I sat stunned. Here was a learned man, a student of the Bible, who recognized the inadequacy of that single record to teach accurately about the resurrection. Soon after this event I was reading in 3 Nephi 23 and was amazed at the significance of the Saviour's correction to the Book of Mormon record. I understood more fully why the inclusion of Samuel's prophecy being fulfilled literally was so significant" (Philip Allred, BOM Lesson 41 "The Lord Esteems His Prophets", Meridian Magazine)
So often we, who are required to live by faith, fail to understand why the Lord deals with us in certain ways. For instance, we are told to '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 27:29) and yet when we do just that and pray, often our prayers go unanswered. We want what we want when we want it and we usually want it now. Consider this modern day story related by Elder Bateman of the Seventy who inadvertently proves this point by relating a story of a returned missionary he interviewed when he was a Stake President:
"One interview in particular left an indelible impression on me when a young man shared an experience that had changed his life. This elder had spent two years serving a mission in Mexico. Like many others, his gospel foundation had been somewhat shaky before he entered the missionary training center. But as the interview progress, I could tell that significant changes had occurred within him. After a few weeks in the field, this elder had become concerned that he was telling people that the Book of Mormon was true and that Joseph Smith was a prophet when he didn't know for himself. How could he assure others when he did not have his own assurance? In discussing the problem with him, his companion challenged him to follow the counsel he was giving investigators: read the Book of Mormon and pray with a sincere heart, with real intent, even if he could only desire to believe. a month went by and my friend's feelings did not change. he read parts of the Book of Mormon and prayed daily that he would know the truthfulness of the message, but nothing happened. Two or three more weeks passed. He was obedient in his scripture study, prayers, tracting, and teaching, but he still lacked conviction.
As this missionary and his companion were tracing during the third week, they made an appointment to teach a new family the next evening. When they arrived home that night, the elder, who, at his companions' request, had agreed to teach the Joseph Smith story to the new investigators, began reading the Book of Mormon again. He read and prayed and then read some more. he was determined to have an answer before teaching the family. Through most of the night he repeated the pattern of reading and praying. As morning came he was disappointed; no swelling motions, no particular enlightenment or feeling had been received. he dutifully followed his companion during the day but worried about the evening appointment. When the our came, they knocked on the door. The husband answered and ushered them into a small home. Sitting on the dirt floor were nine children, and the father joined the mother behind them. Soon it was time for the struggling elder to teach his part of the lesson. he began by describing rather methodically young Joseph's confusion regarding which church to join and his subsequent prayer on a beautiful spring day in 1820 in a secluded wooded area near his father's farm.
As the elder reached the point in the story where the Father introduced the Son, saying, 'This is My Beloved Son, Hear Him!' (JSH 1:17), a warm feeling began to envelop him, starting in the deep recesses of his soul. Within moments, it had filled his entire being, and he began to cry. He dropped his head in embarrassment. Why was he crying? What were these feelings? he had never felt them before. The feelings were sweet and penetrated his very being. As thoughts rushed through his mind, he realized the he knew that the Father and the Son had appeared to the boy Joseph, that the Book of Mormon was true, and that the gospel had been restored. Regaining control of his emotions, he looked up at the father and mother. Tears were streaming down their faces! They were feeling the same powerful influence of the Spirit that he was feeling. He looked at the children. They, too, had tears in their eyes. The Spirit had borne witness to them of the truthfulness of his words. he continued the story and finished with a humble witness that the Father and the Son had appeared to the boy Joseph.
As this elder concluded telling me his story, he said: 'President, I never had a problem teaching people after that. I knew the gospel was true, for I knew that the Father and the Son appeared to Joseph Smith. I knew why I was in the mission field'. As I listened the Holy Spirit bore witness of the extraordinary missionary that the young elder had become. I thought of how efficient Heavenly Father is. The father, the mother, the nine children, and the young missionary were all converted that evening. Twelve were converted that night, whereas only one would have been converted the night before" (Elder Merrill J. Bateman, Living a Christ-Centered Life, Ensign Jan 1999, p 7)
When Joseph went back to translating after the loss of 116 pages of the manuscript, the Lord told him not to translate the same pages again because of undergoing conspiracy which might disprove his ability to translate. The Lord explained it to him this way: "I will not suffer that they shall destroy my work; yea, I will show unto them that my wisdom is greater than the cunning of the devil" (D&C 10:43). This plan certainly didn't seem like it would be such proof at the time. It most likely seemed to the men of Joseph's day that he couldn't translate the same pages but we of our day, who know of Joseph's fate understand this plan perfectly, and can say with assurance that God knows all things from beginning to the end. Why is it necessary for us to know this about Him? So that we can more fully trust those things we cannot understand. Trusting is important because when we trust, we do not seek to re-invent the wheel. I am often amazed how much we seek to reject our parents' acquired knowledge and wisdom once we grow into adults. We want to make our own mistakes, learn on our own terms and basically we believe that our parents know nothing, mostly because they come from a different generation and time 'when things were different'. The Saviour however, is not like that. He is a God who knows all things from beginning of times to the end of times. Because of this knowledge He often protects us where we don't see it, denies those things that would be our undoing, puts us in places that would elevate us in faith and basically puts up with our blunders because He knows we are just now learning to walk and the running will come later. Because He can see further down the road, He tolerates our mistakes and sins of today knowing that one day we will be in a better place. All these lessons and more can be gleaned through the scriptures to better convince us that we can trust Him whose work and glory it is to 'bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man' (Moses 1:39). If we believe that this is His purpose, then we need to trust Him that He can get us there.
Jesus became a god before He even proved Himself in mortality. How come? Because His obedience to the Father was perfect and absolute. In other words, He did not seek to re-invent the wheel. Surely, He who became a God without the need of mortality is qualified enough to pave the path to godhood for us if we would but learn of Him and trust in his might and power. This trust is called faith and we can have it if we know about Him whose virtues and attributes we learn about in writings that testify of Him and His divinity: The Old Testament, The New Testament, Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price and most importantly, the Book of Mormon.So often we, who are required to live by faith, fail to understand why the Lord deals with us in certain ways. For instance, we are told to '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 27:29) and yet when we do just that and pray, often our prayers go unanswered. We want what we want when we want it and we usually want it now. Consider this modern day story related by Elder Bateman of the Seventy who inadvertently proves this point by relating a story of a returned missionary he interviewed when he was a Stake President:
"One interview in particular left an indelible impression on me when a young man shared an experience that had changed his life. This elder had spent two years serving a mission in Mexico. Like many others, his gospel foundation had been somewhat shaky before he entered the missionary training center. But as the interview progress, I could tell that significant changes had occurred within him. After a few weeks in the field, this elder had become concerned that he was telling people that the Book of Mormon was true and that Joseph Smith was a prophet when he didn't know for himself. How could he assure others when he did not have his own assurance? In discussing the problem with him, his companion challenged him to follow the counsel he was giving investigators: read the Book of Mormon and pray with a sincere heart, with real intent, even if he could only desire to believe. a month went by and my friend's feelings did not change. he read parts of the Book of Mormon and prayed daily that he would know the truthfulness of the message, but nothing happened. Two or three more weeks passed. He was obedient in his scripture study, prayers, tracting, and teaching, but he still lacked conviction.
As this missionary and his companion were tracing during the third week, they made an appointment to teach a new family the next evening. When they arrived home that night, the elder, who, at his companions' request, had agreed to teach the Joseph Smith story to the new investigators, began reading the Book of Mormon again. He read and prayed and then read some more. he was determined to have an answer before teaching the family. Through most of the night he repeated the pattern of reading and praying. As morning came he was disappointed; no swelling motions, no particular enlightenment or feeling had been received. he dutifully followed his companion during the day but worried about the evening appointment. When the our came, they knocked on the door. The husband answered and ushered them into a small home. Sitting on the dirt floor were nine children, and the father joined the mother behind them. Soon it was time for the struggling elder to teach his part of the lesson. he began by describing rather methodically young Joseph's confusion regarding which church to join and his subsequent prayer on a beautiful spring day in 1820 in a secluded wooded area near his father's farm.
As the elder reached the point in the story where the Father introduced the Son, saying, 'This is My Beloved Son, Hear Him!' (JSH 1:17), a warm feeling began to envelop him, starting in the deep recesses of his soul. Within moments, it had filled his entire being, and he began to cry. He dropped his head in embarrassment. Why was he crying? What were these feelings? he had never felt them before. The feelings were sweet and penetrated his very being. As thoughts rushed through his mind, he realized the he knew that the Father and the Son had appeared to the boy Joseph, that the Book of Mormon was true, and that the gospel had been restored. Regaining control of his emotions, he looked up at the father and mother. Tears were streaming down their faces! They were feeling the same powerful influence of the Spirit that he was feeling. He looked at the children. They, too, had tears in their eyes. The Spirit had borne witness to them of the truthfulness of his words. he continued the story and finished with a humble witness that the Father and the Son had appeared to the boy Joseph.
As this elder concluded telling me his story, he said: 'President, I never had a problem teaching people after that. I knew the gospel was true, for I knew that the Father and the Son appeared to Joseph Smith. I knew why I was in the mission field'. As I listened the Holy Spirit bore witness of the extraordinary missionary that the young elder had become. I thought of how efficient Heavenly Father is. The father, the mother, the nine children, and the young missionary were all converted that evening. Twelve were converted that night, whereas only one would have been converted the night before" (Elder Merrill J. Bateman, Living a Christ-Centered Life, Ensign Jan 1999, p 7)
When Joseph went back to translating after the loss of 116 pages of the manuscript, the Lord told him not to translate the same pages again because of undergoing conspiracy which might disprove his ability to translate. The Lord explained it to him this way: "I will not suffer that they shall destroy my work; yea, I will show unto them that my wisdom is greater than the cunning of the devil" (D&C 10:43). This plan certainly didn't seem like it would be such proof at the time. It most likely seemed to the men of Joseph's day that he couldn't translate the same pages but we of our day, who know of Joseph's fate understand this plan perfectly, and can say with assurance that God knows all things from beginning to the end. Why is it necessary for us to know this about Him? So that we can more fully trust those things we cannot understand. Trusting is important because when we trust, we do not seek to re-invent the wheel. I am often amazed how much we seek to reject our parents' acquired knowledge and wisdom once we grow into adults. We want to make our own mistakes, learn on our own terms and basically we believe that our parents know nothing, mostly because they come from a different generation and time 'when things were different'. The Saviour however, is not like that. He is a God who knows all things from beginning of times to the end of times. Because of this knowledge He often protects us where we don't see it, denies those things that would be our undoing, puts us in places that would elevate us in faith and basically puts up with our blunders because He knows we are just now learning to walk and the running will come later. Because He can see further down the road, He tolerates our mistakes and sins of today knowing that one day we will be in a better place. All these lessons and more can be gleaned through the scriptures to better convince us that we can trust Him whose work and glory it is to 'bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man' (Moses 1:39). If we believe that this is His purpose, then we need to trust Him that He can get us there.
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