THE LOVE

 

“According to John Taylor, the Melchizedek Priesthood conferred upon Abraham “would be the means of introducing him into the presence of God” and “some of the greatest and most sublime truths that ever were made known to man……

“Since John Taylor’s day, a number of ancient sources have emerged that describe in striking detail an occasion when Abraham was indeed introduced into the presence of God in heaven, who taught him and showed him his posterity as they would exist through the ages.” (E. Douglas Clark, “The Blessings of Abraham” 143)

This ascension to God’s throne is not recorded in Genesis and Abraham does not mention it in his book in the Pearl of Great Price, but I have often wondered if this was the occasion when he was shown the stars of heaven and the pre-mortal life of man he speaks of therein.

The account of this ascension is amazing and too long to expound here but this is the tenderness of Christ I gleaned from the account of this event in Abraham’s life: “Rising from his throne, the Lord “revealed Himself to Abraham, and took him in His bosom” and “kissed him on his head, and He called him, Abraham my beloved”! (Sefer Yetzira 6:7 in Kaplan; see also Ginzberg, “Legends of the Jews”, 5:210 n.13)

“Jewish tradition insists that Abraham was the epitome of the love of God, and that Abraham summoned mankind to believe in God out of his own great love for Him” and served Him out of love by showing loving-kindness” (hesed) to mankind and thus ‘doing the same work as God – a pattern that would be followed by Joseph Smith, who “because of his love for his fellowmen, never missed an opportunity to preach the gospel” (Joseph B. Wirthlin, “The Example of Joseph Smith” in “The Prophet and His Work”, 92) – (E. Douglas Clark, “The Blessings of Abraham”, 100)

“The divine attribute of love “was incarnate in Abraham. Not by control or compulsion would Abraham change the world or win the hearts of mankind, but rather by the principles of righteousness and love upon which the rights of the priesthood are always based (see D&C 121:41-42)”  (ibid, p 101)

This love, this “hesed”, is what made Abraham the greatest patriarch of all time. It is because of this love that he was chosen to bless the nations of the earth through his posterity.

The Hebrew word “hesed” is difficult to render in English. It is usually translated as ‘steadfast love’. It is a covenant word that refers to the faithfulness or loyal love that binds two people together in covenant.

This love is motivated by an inner loyalty which arises out of the relationship itself and not by legal obligation. Such covenant love has the quality of constancy, firmness and steadfastness. It is a love you have for another that you would never break because of deep loyalty you feel towards them.

This is the love that Abraham had for Jehovah and Jehovah in turn had for him. I am rather certain that this love began when Abraham stood in the midst of the noble and great ones and was chosen before he was born, when  ‘the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy’ (Job 38:7).

This is when the covenant of ‘hesed’ was born for all of us. We covenanted to come to earth, to be proven, to be used as instruments of God to spread the truth and the love of God to all mankind. This is ‘hesed’, the eternal and undying love of God who had covenanted with us that we will have eternal life.

 

How can I contain You

In the chambers of my overflowing heart?

Your greatness, Your mercy, Your love,

Are far too vast.

 

All that I am, I give to you:

My heart, my soul, my all,

I lay at your feet forever more.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Eternal Love for You by B. Laura Wilson)

ABRAHAM, GATHERER OF SOULS

 

 

The moment young Abraham faced death on the sacrificial table of the priest of Elkenah is the moment he learnt that it pays to worship the one true and living God. It is the moment he heard his voice saying: “Abraham, Abraham, I am Jehovah and I have come to deliver you….” (Abraham 1:16)

After his rescue, Abraham became a relentless missionary and a Zionist at heart. His study of the Book of Remembrance gave him a glimpse of Enoch and Melchizedek and the Zion communities they established and he longed to do the same (Abraham 1:31). As he was led by the Lord on his way to Canaan, he wasted no time in this endeavour. He comments in the Book of Abraham that he left Haran where they temporarily resided enroute with all their substance that they gathered ‘and the souls that they had won in Haran’ (Abraham 2:15).  

Abraham’s humane spirit and his piety attracted people to him so he could teach them in a large-scale missionary effort wherever he went. He extended hospitality to all and considered  his temporal blessings from God were opportunities to bless the lives of others.

According to the Qur’an, Abraham was an elegant speaker blessed with a gift of teaching and power to convey the truth unto others, and according to the Jewish tradition, “he called out in a mighty voice to all the world and he led them to righteousness” by speaking persuasively as their hearts were changed and they felt to declare the “the Lord, He is God in the heavens above the earth below, and you are Abraham, His prophet”. “Thus was Abraham fulfilling his baptismal covenant to stand as a witness of God “at all times and in all things, and in all places” (Mosiah 18:9). (E. Douglas Clark, “The Blessings of Abraham, Becoming a Zion People” 86)

“The Jewish tradition claims that Abraham’s converts came to be numbered into the thousands and tens of thousands. If this seems exaggerated, one need only remember the remarkably rapid growth of the Church restored by Joseph Smith, who, like his forefather Abraham, was also a missionary par excellence…..According to Hugh Nibley, “Abraham founded his Zion, and those who wished to follow became the followers of Abraham. By special rites and ordinances they were adopted into the family….

“Such were the fervent efforts to build the kingdom of God by the man who, as he himself said, had left Ur seeking “peace, happiness and rest” – not by looking forward to retirement, or by building his dream house away from humanity, but by living among them and serving them tirelessly. The “rest that Abraham sought was not a life of affluent ease. He was striving to “enter into the rest of the Lord”, obtainable only by serving Him with all of one’s heart, might, mind, and strength.” (E. Douglas Clark, “The Blessings of Abraham, p 87)

Abraham was exceptional even before the beginning of his mortal life. When he was shown the great spirits that resided in pre-existence, he was told that he was one of them and that he was ‘chosen before he was born’ (Abraham 3:23). When Jehovah came to rescue Abraham from imminent death, He came not just to prolong his life but to ensure Abraham would be able to embrace his divine destiny.

Abraham is known by more than one name, the most known being ‘the father of the faithful’ (D&C 138:41) and ‘the friend of God’ (James 2:23). I personally love ‘the gatherer of souls’ because he gathered them unto God wherever he went. This in my mind made him the prototype of Christ who gathered souls unto Him through His infinite sacrifice and who commanded Abraham: “walk before me,and be thou perfect” (Genesis 17:1). And walk he did…..following Him all the way to his exaltation (D&C 132:37)

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(ART: Follow Me by Liz Lemon Swindle)

FATHER ABRAHAM

 

I could write pages about Abraham. He is my favourite patriarch. And so he should be to everyone who receives the Gospel as by virtue of the Abrahamic covenant we are counted as his children (Abraham 2:10). He is the father of the faithful who obey the mandate to ‘do the works of Abraham’ (D&C 138:41; 132:32). In this respect it should be our quest to know him.

Right at the beginning of his record in the Pearl of Great Price, Abraham tells us who he is. A man is as good as his desires for desire is the catalyst of all good and bad works. These are the desires that Abraham had from the very beginning of his life:

To have the blessings of the priesthood; to possess great knowledge; to be a greater follower of righteousness; to be a father of many nations; to be a prince of peace; to receive instructions from on high; to keep the commandments of God. (Abraham 1:2)

The fact that he harboured these righteous desires in an apostate family that turned away from God through idolatry blows my mind. And here is one hint how these desires could have been born….Abraham was reading scriptures. Whilst still in the land of Ur he had somehow obtained the Book of Remembrance wherein wrote the earlier patriarchs and all inspired people called of God such as the people of Enoch (Moses 6:5; 46; Abraham 1:31). A good proof that we become what we invest ourselves in.

Another important factor in his quest for righteousness is the fact that he rubbed shoulders with the right crowd. Through modern revelation we learn that Abraham received his priesthood from Melchizedek. Most students of scripture assume that this ordination happened when Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek in Palestine (Genesis 14:19-20).

Abraham however clarifies this by saying that he became a High Priest in the land of Chaldeans, at the residence of his father (Abraham 1:1-2). Nowhere else in scripture do we find details of that ordination but considering the apostate condition of the land of Chaldeans, it is easy to assume that Abraham had contact with Melchizedek during his early manhood and that Melchizedek had strong influence upon Abraham. One clue is the fact that one of his desires was to become a ‘prince of peace’, as we know Melchizedek was known to be (Alma 13:18).

All of Abraham’s righteous desires were granted by God. These desires took him to a life of such righteousness that he has already been granted his exaltation (D&C 132:28-37). And this is where we want to be. Whereas I appreciate the generations of my family that went before me, I give thanks for one exemplary progenitor, the true father of my heart, Father Abraham.

 

When in heaven we meet

Knit together under the covenant

Of your name

Will you consider us your children

Will we in your heart forever remain?

 

Will you gather us in your arms

And kiss us each as

Your long-awaited son?

Will your heart then rest

When at last we are one?

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Artist Unknown)

MIGHTY MELCHIZEDEK

 

Following the disastrous Babel and confounding of tongues, God proceeded to preserve His ways among the people by establishing communities of righteous groups in various parts of the earth who held the Priesthood:

“One of the most important colonies raised up by the members of the Priesthood during the life time of Noah was in Palestine. Most of this territory was dominated by the seed of Ham. The land was even named after Ham’s oldest son, Canaan. But the seed of Seth had carved out a mountainous kingdom over toward the northern end of the Dead Sea called Salem. This is the territory which surrounds the modern city of Jerusalem (Jeru-salem) (Bible Dictionary under “Salem”). (W. Cleon Skousen, “The First 2,000 Years” p 253)

The kingdom of Salem was governed by the prophet-king called Melchizedek. This amazing, righteous ruler had an effective tool for counteracting wickedness and apostasy that was engulfing his land and this was it: “But Melchizedek, having exercised mighty faith, and having received the office of the high priesthood according to the holy order of God, did preach repentance unto his people. And behold, they did repent; and Melchizedek did establish peace in the land in his days; therefore he was called the prince of peace ….” (Alma 13:17)

Throughout history it has been proven by people who have embraced the gospel that peace is one of its by-products. Permanent peace to every soul only comes through repentance, righteousness and saving ordinances of the priesthood.

This is what fascinates me and it should fascinate every member of the Church. Perhaps the most familiar mention of Melchizedek is in connection with Abraham who paid tithes to him following his battle with the kings who took his nephew Lot (JST Genesis 14:36-39; Genesis 14:18-20). There is no more mention of him in the Old Testament. Melchizedek did not remain in existence for long. What we do know of him comes from latter-day revelation and the Book of Mormon.

By the time Abraham needed to find a wife for Isaac of proper lineage, there were none of the righteous people of Melchizedek left in the land of Canaan.  Therefore, he had to send a servant all the way to Mesopotamia to get a wife for Isaac.

And this is what happened to the people of Salem: “Melchizedek and his people had been allowed to enjoy the blessings of Enoch….and were translated and taken up into heaven. And his people wrought righteousness and obtained heaven, and sought for the city of Enoch which God had before taken….” (JST 14:32-34).  

My point is this. We now have two groups of saints who have given us the pattern of becoming a Zion people…..the followers of the mighty Enoch and the mighty Melchizedek. Both of them achieved the state of Zion amongst the greatest wickedness of their time. Our time is no different but there is hope for us too, given through repentance, righteousness, and purity of heart: all fruits of the gospel of peace of our Saviour Jesus Christ, our God and our King.

A river of peace floods my mortal being;

I struggle to contain such a merciful gift.

With grace You enlarge

the sparse capacity of my heart

And righteousness moves within me

as the waves of the sea.

I love You more dearly;

I serve you more freely;

I become what I alone could never be.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Christ and the Dove of Peace by Doc Christensen)

UNSPOTTED FROM THE WORLD

 

“The scripture says Noah lived 350 years after the Flood (Genesis 9:28). He lived to see Abraham’s day – Abraham being among the tenth generation of Noah’s descendants! During those ten generations extending over 350 years Noah saw many of his descendants re-establish the wicked abominations of the pre-flood period.” (W. Clen Skousen, “The First 2,000 Years” p 241)

It always seems to start with someone who seeks for power and in Noah’s day it was his great-grandson Nimrod. His message to the people he sought to control was not denial of God but rejection of God as he proclaimed: “Depart from the religion of Shem, and cleave to the institutes of Nimrod! (ibid)

It’s worth noting what these institutes were because some of them persist to this day:

1.      Placing man above God: Nimrod did this well by making a seat for himself in imitation of the seat of God in the tower of Babel…and as he sat upon it, all nations came and paid him divine homage. (Ginzberg, L., “The Legends of the Jews”, Vol. 1, p 1788)

2.      Elevating animals above humanity: “In many cases animal life was made more sacred than human life, and humans were sacrificed to animal gods. The curse of animal worship and the false philosophy associated with it survive to this day among large segments of humanity.” (“The First 2,000 Years” p 243) One such nation is India which considers cows sacred and links them to various gods, including Shiva (whose steed is Nandi, a bull) and Krishna, a cowherd.

3.      Astrology and Zodiac signs: The idea that human beings are somehow influenced in their daily actions by the sun, moon and stars destroys the concept of free agency and their horoscope predictions reflect divination and sorcery. Astrology crept into Israel’s idolatry and played a big part in replacing the worship of Jehovah in Jeremiah’s day (Jeremiah 10:2).

Heathen religions were popular because they were devoted to the stimulating and satisfying of human passion. They institutionalized immorality. Heathen’s religious practices, namely sexual perversions, mutilation of bodies and child sacrifices were so satanic in nature that they are too confronting to human sensibilities to be mentioned here in detail.

This is the most interesting part. Modern day historians attribute these degenerate religious practices to the ‘primitive minds’ of yesteryear and seek to excuse idolatry with its perversions to be an ‘upward reach of man’ and a means of expressing the ‘instinctive desire to worship’. (“The First 2,000 Years” p 246).

The truth is these heathen religions were promoted in contradiction of God’s truth which was already upon the earth. They were the means for man’s ‘instinctive desire to grasp for power’. We all know who is behind this power.

So much in our world is designed to addict us to ‘the natural man’ through the ways of the world which promote power, greed, self-gratification and self-promotion. The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us to keep ourselves unspotted from the world and to ‘come out from the wicked, to be separate and touch not their unclean things’  (Alma 5:57; 2 Cor 6:17; James 1:27; D&C 59:9).

It’s a gospel of love….for God, for our fellowman, for the eternal within us and for everything that is true, noble and good….

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: The Gospel of Light by B. Laura Wilson) 

THE MATTER OF THE STONES

 

When the city of Babel became a strong metropolis under the dictatorial government of Nimrod, the Lord pronounced judgment upon that city by confounding their language ‘that they may not understand one another’s speech’ and so that they may be scattered ‘upon all the face of the land, and unto every quarter of the earth” (JST Genesis 11:5)

Living in the city of Babel was a group of righteous people who had resisted the teachings of Nimrod. One of them was Mahonri-Moriancumr, better known as the Brother of Jared (see Book of Mormon Student Manual Rel. 121-122 (2009) p 362).

Jared had so much faith in his brother, who was highly favoured of the Lord (Ether 1:34) that he asked him to pray to God so that their language and that of their friends would not be confounded. Another request was for God to lead them to a possible ‘land which is choice above all the earth’ (Ether 1:38)

A choice land above all the earth indeed…..enter the Book of Mormon which records in detail the entire history of the Jaredite civilization in the western hemisphere. There is just one significant thing I want to point out about the authenticity of this account. It’s to do with the stones of light that the Brother of Jared procured for their journey in the barges they built.

A few years ago I sought to gain a broader view of the Jaredites. I went to Hugh Nibley’s book, “An Approach to the Book of Mormon” and came across something that left my mouth gaping:

“Nothing in the Book of Mormon has elicited louder whoops and howls of derision than the account in the second and third chapters of the book of Ether of the ships of the Jaredites…..According to J.C. Bennett, the illumination by shining stones, was the “climax” of all of Joseph Smith’s indiscretions, in which he “used his utmost endeavours to see how far he could impose on the gullibility of mankind. It would be useless to make further comments to prove the absurdities of this extraordinary book.

“In 1855 T. Taylder declared this story to be nothing less than “a libel on the wisdom of God”. “It seems impossible”, another investigator wrote, “for sensible men to credit such trash”.  “My soul is filled with disgust at this monstrous absurdity”, cried the Reverend C. Fenwick Ward as he perused the pages of Ether, “that I dare not trust myself to comment upon it”.

“Fawn M. Brodie claimed that “Joseph Smith wrote the book of Ether as a sort of afterthought to cover up the scientific blunders and inaccuracies of the rest of the Book of Mormon which were causing him disturbing doubts and misgivings”.  (Hugh Nibley, An Approach to the Book of Mormon, p 340,341)

Brother Nibley also quoted many ancient sources that have since come to light comparing the Brother of Jared’s stones to that of Noah who also had a stone for light in the ark and many other ancient practices with likewise stones. He pointed out that none of these ancient sources would have been available to Joseph Smith in his time or to the critics of his day.  And the critics of our day wouldn’t bother searching them.

To the people of Babel, the details of Noah’s ark and the Flood was a certainty that everyone believed in. The tower of Babel was built out of fear of another flood (“Josephus” Book 1, chapter 4).  So I ask, where else would the Brother of Jared gain the knowledge of the stones???? Chapter 3 of Ether does not say that he deliberated and agonized over the solution of light for the barges. It states he went immediately to the mount Shelem and ‘did molten out of a rock sixteen small stones…as clear and transparent as glass’ (Ether 3;1).

I am astounded that anyone could read the Book of Mormon and not be affected by the spirit of it….that such a small thing as sixteen stones could prevent belief of all that is in this amazing book. Once again, I am reminded of: “My sheep hear my voice” (John 10:27).  If you believe, you are that sheep…..you are His. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Brother of Jared by Emily Pugmire)

NOAH'S POSTERITY

 

We often say how easily we forget history which always repeats itself but it is not that we forget but that the Prince of this world remembers. He remembers his past successes and traps of destruction, how to manipulate the human mind and how to foster their sense of pride against God.

The adversary’s main goal is always human annihilation. He certainly knew how to preserve his murderous cult amongst men and return them to pre-flood conditions. It is easy to imagine that his goal was another deluge to wipe out humanity only this time there stood in the way one thing – God’s covenant with Noah and Enoch that never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth (Genesis 9:9a;11). Nevertheless, within two or three generations after the Flood, Noah was to see his descendants duplicating the abominations of the pre-flood period.

It all started with Noah’s son Ham who married a woman named Egyptus who was a descendant of Cain. Even though Ham ‘walked with God’ and possessed the priesthood like his father and brothers, he was never able to pass this privilege to any of his descendants because of the blood of Cain. Ham and Egyptus had a daughter who discovered Egypt and set up the dynasty of Pharaohs (Abraham 1:21-27). It’s a fascinating story.

Because the Lord knew that city life under the wrong kind of leadership could corrupt a whole nation in one generation, he encouraged Noah and his descendants to observe the patriarchal government through pastoral living. This is the very thing that the enemy opposed in order to return the population to wickedness through a man called Nimrod.

Nimrod was one of the sons of Ham and Egyptus who became the builder and founder of the city of Babel (Genesis 10:8-10). Nimrod was a mighty hunter in the land (JST Genesis 10:5) and not a mighty hunter before the Lord (Genesis 10:9). In fact, he was the prototype of the enemy that lured Cain into his murderous cult.

“He persuaded people not to ascribe their prosperity to God…but to believe that it was their own courage which procured that happiness. He also changed the government into tyranny, seeing no other way of turning man from the fear of God, but to bring them into a constant dependence on his power. He also said he would be revenged of God, if He should have a mind to drown the world again; for that he would build a tower too high for the waters to be able to reach! And that he would avenge himself on God for destroying their forefathers.” (Josephus, Book 1, Chapter 4). Does this not remind you of Cain when he declared:  “Who is the Lord, that I should know him?” (Moses 5:16)

And so Noah’s descendants built a tower of Babel in defiance to God. But something wonderful was born out of this unfortunate human error……the Jaredites and the return to the land of America. All hail to the Book of Mormon and Joseph and our ever-loving God who ensures that the adversary cannot win, not as long as there are humble, faithful sons and daughters of God who are willing to follow Him…..

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Noah's Ark by James Edwin McConnell)

THE LONG SUFFERING OF OUR GOD

 

There was a great patriarch who stood next in line to Adam in the Priesthood, to whom was given ‘the dominion’ and who was made the father of all living in this day. This man was Noah who was also another noble and great one by the name of ‘Gabriel’, ‘in the beginning’. (“Teachings of Joseph Smith”, p 157).

Noah was born in the year 2,944 B.C. which was four years after the City of Enoch was translated. His greatness is attested by the fact that he was ordained to the priesthood at the unprecedented age of ten (D&C 107:52).

By the time Noah was called by God, at the age of 480,  to preach the message of “repent or perish”, “the society of his dispensation was worse than anything before or since – worse than Babylon where they offered human sacrifices, worse than Greece where they subjected young children to degenerate orgies, worse than Sodom, worse than Gomorah. (W. Cleon Skousen, “The First Two Thousand Years”, p 200)

It was a day when the power of Satan was upon all the face of the earth. So successful was Satan that the scripture says the earth seemed veiled with a terrible chain of darkness and Lucifer ‘looked up and laughed, and his angels rejoiced’.  (Moses 7:24,26)

And so Noah preached for 120 years as a testimony of Jehovah’s mercy until the floods came  (Genesis 5:3; Moses 8:17). But the mercy didn’t end there. During the three days post resurrection, the Saviour went to the spirit world and there organised the preaching of the gospel to those who had lived in the days of Noah and perished in the flood. Peter called this ‘the long-suffering’ of God (1 Peter 3:18-20).

“…..though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18). This is the mercy and the long suffering of our God.

And here is the ultimate mercy of the deluge of the Flood which destroyed all the wicked upon the earth save one family:  The people of Noah’s day were so wicked that they ‘transmitted their unrighteous natures and desires to their children and brought them up to indulge in their own wicked practices’. Had they been allowed to live, the generations they were raising would eventually have had no ability to exercise their moral agency because they lived in evil continually and knew no good (see John Taylor, in “Journal of Discourses” 19:158-59). Therefore, The Flood became an act of mercy for generations of spirits yet to come to earth.

Mormon testified that the Saviour would not withhold the power of the Holy Ghost from the earth as long as there is ONE person who could be saved (Moroni 7:36). Abraham tested the Lord on this by trying to save Sodom’s population. He started asking Him if He would spare the Sodomites if there were fifty righteous souls there and the Lord kept re-assuring him that he would not destroy them even for ten’s sake but there were not even ten to be found (Genesis 18:23-33). Such was the case in Noah’s day.

His desire to save is there, the mercy ever extended, the long suffering infinitely present. We just need to want it.

Thy infinite mercy

Thy bountiful long suffering,

Trailing from the cross of Calvary,

Sealed with Your hour of agony.

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Our Father Who Art in Heaven by Greg Collins) 

 

MIGHTY PRAYER

 

I am certain that most of us know the importance of praying in faith to receive that which we ask for. The Saviour demonstrated this through the incident of the fig tree which withered at His word before the eyes of the disciples. After teaching them the power of faith he added: “And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.” (Matt 21:19-22)

There is something that makes prayers even more powerful and mighty than faith. It is not just faith but faith in Jesus Christ. Two examples of this come to mind.

During his interlude with God, Enoch pleaded with Him that He would have ‘mercy upon Noah and his seed’ (Moses 7:50) but he did so in the most powerful way that a prayerful plea should ever be uttered. He said: “I ask Thee, O Lord, in the name of thine Only Begotten, even Jesus Christ, that thou wilt….”(v50).

In other words, he did not use Jesus' name as an ending afterthought, like we are accustomed to do so at the end of our prayers. He began with the Saviour’s name as an acknowledgement of his faith in the source of power through which his petition can be answered.

As a result of his faith in the Saviour and the power of His name, God could not withhold from covenanting with Enoch that He would grant his petition (v51). So powerful did Enoch become in speaking ‘the word of the Lord’ that the earth trembled and the mountains fled (v13). Which word? Without a doubt, he commanded the mountains to flee in the name of Jesus Christ.

My second example is Alma and Amulek who delivered themselves from prison.  Consider the powerful expression of Alma’s faith in Jesus Christ by which a miracle of freedom was brought about: “O Lord, give us strength according to our faith which is in Christ, even unto deliverance….” And “the earth shook mightily, and the walls of the prison were rent in twain….and Alma and Amulek, came forth out of the prison, and they were not hurt; for the Lord had granted unto them power, according to their faith which was in Christ”  (Alma 14:26-28).

The mountains of our lives can crumble at the mention of His name and the prison doors of suffering can open. My testimony of this truth is based on experience. I have written of this before but I will mention it briefly here. During the greatest trial of my life, my heart was broken in pieces. My petition to God was not for help but for a healing and the prayer went like this: “Through my faith in Jesus Christ and the power of the His Atonement, I ask for a healing of my broken heart…..” I wanted to acknowledge that I knew that true healing can only come through the saving grace of Christ…. and the healing came.

The Saviour should never be an afterthought in our prayers, let alone in our lives. The very mention of His name should inspire in us confidence, faith, hope and reverence. If you want power in your life, you know where to find it. You are one of the privileged in the world who possess such knowledge.

 

I will look for Thee in faith

My Lord and my God;

When I am oppressed,

When I am unloved,

When I am wronged.

 

I will look for Thee

When I can walk no more;

And I will find Thee,

The Saviour of my soul,

Thou who waits for those who call

On Thy name

To renew their strength,

To save them from their fall.

 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Precious Little Ones by Danny Hahlbohm)

THE GREATNESS OF GOD:

 

 

When the heavens opened and Enoch was clothed upon with glory, he was admitted into God’s presence where he was shown ‘the world for the space of many generations’ (Moses 7:3,4)

After he beheld God’s immense power of creation, he beheld something he didn’t count on.  He saw God weeping over his disobedient children and in amazement he asked: “How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity?” (v 29) In that instant Enoch saw not only God but the Father (v 33).

If you know what it feels like to be a parent, multiply that by infinity and you will begin to understand who God the Father is: the depth of His love, the depth of His sorrow, the depth of His mercy, the depth of His forgiveness, the depth of His desires to elevate and exalt His children, the very depth of who He is. Enoch did not only understand this but felt it as the Father told him of all ‘the doings of the children of men and their wickedness’ (v 41). So deep was Enoch’s understanding and his empathy that ‘his heart swelled wide as eternity; and his bowels yearned; and all eternity shook’ (v 41).

If we could but get a glimpse of the Father’s heart we would trust, trust, trust……we would trust His very plan for each of us, explicitly. We would trust His Beloved Son and His power of redemption and we would follow Him to the ends of the earth. If we could just see Him as Enoch saw Him…..and we can.

There is a promise that the Saviour made which makes this possible: “If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” (John 14:23). If you think this cannot be a literal appearing, think again.

On 2 April, 1843, Joseph was given some clarification regarding certain scriptures and among them was the scripture from the Gospel of John which confirms that the Father and the Son may appear personally to men: “John 14:23 – The appearing of the Father and the Son, in that verse, is a personal appearance, and the idea that the Father and the Son dwell in a man’s heart is an old sectarian notion, and is false.” (D&C 130:3)

Jesus was born so that He could reveal to us the Father and Jesus atoned so that we could come back to the Father. The Father and the Son are one in greatness, power, glory and majesty (D&C 50:43; 93:3; 3 N 11:27; John 14:9-11). They are also one in their role of Father (Ether 4:7; Alma 11:38-9; Mosiah 15:4; 16:5). By knowing and loving one, we know and love the other.

Through The One who willingly laid down His life so that we might live, we can, like the prodigal, return into the loving arms of the Father of all creation. May we honour the greatness of Him who holds us in the palm of His hand through the life that we live that we might be the source of His joy forever.

 

I pleaded with you,

In the beginning,

To bring me home again to Thee.

I promised to heed every call,

To avoid every danger,

To abhor every sin.

 

I have laboured, Father,

to bring joy to Thee

and to be worthy

Of Your love for me.

 

When my time comes,

I will come home to Thee

and I will wait

 at heaven’s door knocking

Until I hear the angels sing. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: The Return of the Prodigal by Pompeo Batoni)

THE CITY OF ENOCH

 

“One of the most outstanding features of the society which Enoch established was the manner in which the Lord instructed him to combine the religious ideals of the people with certain divinely inspired economic principles. The successful practice of these principles resulted in a golden age of prosperity which continued throughout the earthly existence of this community – a total of three hundred and sixty-five years (Moses 7:68).” (W. Cleon Skousen, “The First Two Thousand Years”, p 173)

This golden age of the City of Enoch is the blueprint of New Jerusalem, the modern day Millenial Zion upon the American continent. Enoch’s city had another name: the City of Holiness, even Zion (Moses 7:19). There is only one reason why this city was called the City of Holiness and that’s because ‘the Lord came and dwelt with his people’ and ‘dwelt in the midst of Zion  (Moses 7:16;69). It was He who was the embodiment of holiness and not its people. Much like He will be in New Jerusalem.

When the Saviour comes and resides in New Jerusalem, “the need will disappear for the sun and the moon to give light to God’s covenant people. The Lord Himself will be an everlasting light…and all the city will be lighted up by the glory of His presence….” (Orson Pratt, in “Journal of Discourses”, 14:355-56; see also D&C 133:57-58)

Because the Saviour was there with the people of Enoch, they ‘were of one heart and one mind and dwelt in righteousness and there was no poor among them’ (v 18). This description tells us one thing: because the citizens of Zion were true followers of Christ, they were endowed with His pure love.

Without the pure love of Christ we can never become citizens of Celestial Kingdom. A Zion life-style prepares us for this eventuality. And here is something we need to know. This pure love is unique only to Christ. It is solely His kind of love. We do not possess it and neither are we capable of developing it. His pure love is an endowment on those who love Him and follow Him (Moroni 7:48). That’s the good news.

I am guessing that it took Enoch’s city 365 years of ‘walking with the Saviour’ to reach the state of holiness which ‘lifted them up, even into the bosom of the Father and of the Son of Man’ (Moses 7:24,69). Much like 1,000 Millenial years will prepare us for the same.

When the Saviour returns, those who are spared will be those who are only ‘more’ righteous than those who will not be spared, like the Nephites of old when he appeared to them after His resurrection (3 Nephi 9:13). There will be no perfect people on earth when He comes. Perfection only comes in and through Him. The Saviour will live with His saints upon this earth for a thousand years to perfect them through His grace and endow them with His pure love in preparation for the celestial realm.

When the Saviour returns, Enoch’s city will return with Him to live with Zion, the New Jerusalem (Moses 7:62). This is us. They will meet us there and “we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other” (Moses 7:63)….it will be a meeting of hearts knit together with the pure love of Christ. The Saviour is at the door….the Millennium imminent. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Divine Companion by Yongsung Kim)

THE POWER OF ENOCH

 

In my last post about Enoch, I expounded on the power he was endowed with to overcome the enemies who sought the destruction of the Church of God he established in his day. To recap:

"And so great was the faith of Enoch that he led the people of God, and their enemies came to battle against them, and he spake the word of the Lord, and the earth trembled, and the mountains fled, even according to his command, and the rivers of water were turned out of their course; and the roar of the lions was heard out of the wilderness; and all nations feared greatly, so powerful was the word of Enoch, and so great was the power of the language which God had given him". (Moses 7:13)

 

After I wrote that post, I was reminded of the early pioneers in our dispensation and the persecution and destruction they endured and then I also remembered Nephi’s vision of us in the last days wherein he saw the enemy that will ‘gather together multitudes upon the face of all the earth to fight against the Lamb of God and the saints of the church of the Lamb’ (1 Nephi 14:12-14)…… and I wondered what is yet awaiting us.

 

Now for the good news. There is something very interesting about the power the Lord gave to Enoch. It would seem this power was not only for him but was also to be had by his every  descendant.  The interesting thing being is that every mortal is a descendant of Enoch.  

 

Enoch was the Father of Methuselah who was not translated with his father’s city but who died the year of the flood (Moses 8:3-7). Methuselah was the father of Lamech, who was the father of Noah.  Everybody that has been born on this earth after Noah is Noah's descendant and therefore a descendant of Enoch.  The Lord made an oath with Enoch regarding his power which is found in Joseph Smith Translation:

 

"For God having sworn unto Enoch and unto his seed with an oath by himself, that every one being ordained after this order and calling should have power, by faith, to break mountains, to divide the seas, to dry up waters, to turn them out of their course; to put at defiance the armies of nations, to divide the earth, to break every band, to stand in the presence of God, to do all things according to his will, according to his command, subdue principalities and powers, and this by the will of the Son of God which was before the foundation of the world". (JST Appendix in Genesis 14:30, 31)

 

Have you ever read of a power so great? It’s a power which greatness must equal the greatness of the enemy of all righteousness we have to fight in the war we are all engaged in.  And what is this power? It is the power of the priesthood.

 

The scriptures are clear that the saints of God are endowed with this power in the temple (D&C 95:8; 109:22). This is where we make covenants which in turn endow us with the power of the saving ordinances of the priesthood. We cannot stand in the presence of God without the mantle of the priesthood upon us.

 

The oath sworn by God to Enoch and his seed is a promise made to us.  All mortals who embrace the power of the priesthood have been promised that by their faith they can do the very works of Enoch. These works lead us to only one place……Zion.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Restoration by Liz Lemon Swindle)

A YOUNG LAD CALLED ENOCH

 

Enoch is the greatest example of what God can make of us. He should be known more for his process of becoming than for the fact that he and his city were translated, as important as that is.

Enoch was only 25 years old when he was ordained by Adam to the Priesthood, long before his father and grandfather (D&C 107:48). He grew up in the land of Cainan among the people of righteousness and was taught ‘in all the ways of God’ by his father (Moses 6:41).

Not only was he relatively young compared to his predecessors who were well into 3 digits when called to the ministry, he had a serious problem. He pointed out to the Lord that he was very unqualified. He was young, he had a speech impediment and people hated him (Moses 6:31). It was also a perilous time, a time when Satan had great dominion among the people, when wars and bloodshed raged and ‘a man’s hand was against his own brother, in administering death, because of secret works, seeking for power’ (v 15).

 

But God needed something that Enoch had going for him to preach repentance to a failing society. He was righteous and He trusted God. The Lord acknowledged his lack of confidence and gave him some iron clad promises that would ensure his success, namely, that no man will afflict him, that He will give him utterance and will justify all his words and that He will make him so powerful that mountains will flee before him and the rivers will turn from their course (Moses 6:32-34). And then this: “Therefore walk with me” (v 34). Have courage, have no fear, have only trust in me.

 

Enoch did walk with God  (v 39) and because of it he became a brilliant young prophet whose words pierced the hearts of the crowds who came to hear him: “The mobs surrounded the hills and high places from which he spoke and the scripture says “all men were offended because of him” (Moses 6:37)….and his reputation spread like the east wind before him. The people anticipated his arrival in each new locality and messengers brought words that he drew near…(v 38)” (W. Cleon Skousen, “The First Two Thousand Years” p 160)

 

And because he walked with God “no man laid hands on him; for fear came on all them that heard him” and “the people trembled, and could not stand in his presence." (Moses 6:39,47).

Unfortunately, not only the converted feared but the proud and the wicked multitudes who had assembled to hear him became highly offended by his preaching and eventually came pouring over the hills and plains to slaughter the people of God. And this is when came the display of incredible power of God through a young prophet called Enoch:

 

"And so great was the faith of Enoch that he led the people of God, and their enemies came to battle against them, and he spake the word of the Lord, and the earth trembled, and the mountains fled, even according to his command, and the rivers of water were turned out of their course; and the roar of the lions was heard out of the wilderness; and all nations feared greatly, so powerful was the word of Enoch, and so great was the power of the language which God had given him". (Moses 7:13)

 

It was an incredible life of an incredible patriarch. He who allowed God to make something great of him to participate in God’s greatest work and His glory, that of ‘bringing to pass immortality and eternal life of man’ (Moses 1:39).

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: My Father's Work by Chris Brazelton)

 

THE ANCIENT OF DAYS

 

There is a place in Daviess county, Missouri, which is called Spring Hill. This place “was named by the mouth of the Lord, Adam-Ondi-Ahman”, literal translation being “Where Adam-having taken-God” (Ahman being the name of God in pure language) (“History of the Church”, 3:34-35). This is the place where one of the most tender events occurred on the American continent, the knowledge of which we owe to modern-day revelation through the modern-day prophet Joseph Smith.

This is where Adam, the Ancient of Days, bestowed his last blessing upon the patriarchs and his righteous posterity three years prior to his death (D&C 107:53-56). When the Saviour appeared to this congregation, Adam’s posterity “rose up and blessed Adam, and called him Michael, the prince, the archangel”. The Lord then administered comfort unto Adam and said unto him: I have set thee to be at the head; a multitude of nations shall come of thee, and thou art a prince over them forever.” (D&C 107:54-55).

After the Lord administered to him, Adam stood up even though he was ‘bowed down with age, and being full of the Holy Ghost, predicted whatsoever should befall his posterity unto the latest generation’ (v 56). When Joseph Smith visited Spring Hill in 1876 he was privileged to see Adam, the Ancient of Days, in a vision of this momentous meeting (“Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith” p 158).

Adam lived 930 years according to Genesis 5:5 and Moses 6:12 but died in the ‘same day’ he partook of the fruit as the promise of death was spoken by God when the earth was still subject to the Lord’s time which was after the time of Kolob (Abraham 5:13). Imagine living and enduring that long…..

There will come a time when Adam will return to Adam-Ondi-Ahman: “He will call his children together and hold a council with them to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man”…..The Son of Man will stand before him, and there will be given Him glory and dominion. Adam will deliver up his stewardship to Christ, who holds the keys of the universe, but will retain his standing as the head of the human family (“Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith” p 157).

This is the great Council of which neither the Church members nor the world will know about which will take place prior to the Saviour’s Second appearing as a ‘thief in the night’ (D&C 106:4) (Elder Joseph Fielding Smith, “Way to Perfection” pp 290-91; also D&C Student Manual p 288)

There is no greater summation of the Plan of Salvation that is as emotionally touching as this.  Adam, the head of the human family, having fulfilled his role so righteously as the father of all living, delivers his stewardship to the Saviour, the executor of the Plan of Salvation, at the winding up scenes of this earth. Promises kept, mission completed, humanity reared and saved.

Whereas Adam is the prince over us ‘forever’, the Saviour is the King. If not for Him, we would not be. And if not for continuous revelation we would not have glimpses of momentous occasions like this which bring to life the truth of our existence and which light the fire of our testimonies.

Every time I read the Doctrine and Covenants, my testimony of Joseph as the revelator and prophet increases. There is not one verse in that book of scripture that can convince me that Joseph had the intelligence and seership to produce such of himself.

The Saviour lives and guides His Church through living prophets. May our testimonies be such that we will bear witness of this when one day we kneel at Jesus’ feet.

 - CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Joseph Smith at Saviour's Feet by Liz Lemon Swindle)