THE LESSONS

 

I wrote yesterday about the practical knowledge of mortality that is essential for us in our rise to godhood. We acquire this knowledge through lessons we are given that provide an opportunity for acquisition of godly attributes and skills.

Every single quality I desired in life and asked for was not freely given. What was given was a practical lesson in difficulties I had to go through to acquire the skill I wanted. Indeed, just knowledge of it could not develop a godly character. It’s a matter of doing. I have wondered which of my lessons I didn’t need and the answer is I needed all of them. I have likewise asked myself what lessons I missed that had to be repeated because I was at the time unyielding.

I think of the Saviour and wonder which ones He could have skipped. Even He had to wade through the probationary state of mortality step by step receiving “grace for grace until He received a fulness”…..and he received all power, both in heaven and on earth, and the glory of the Father was with him….” (D&C 93:12,13,17).

Now relate this to us. Verses 19 and 20 of Section 93 state that we too can receive of the fulness if we follow the example of the Saviour…but we too shall receive it “grace for grace”, one step at the time, one lesson after another. Would we have that example of fulness if the Saviour didn’t embrace ALL of His mortal experience? His subjection to receiving ‘grace for grace’ was for the benefit of the human race. He showed the way to perfection.

“He is the way, the truth, and the light, and no one can come back into the presence of our Father in heaven except through him. Christ is God the Son and possesses every virtue in its perfection. Therefore, the only measure of true greatness is how close a man can become like Jesus. (President Ezra Taft Benson, in CR, Oct 1972, p 53 or Ensign Jan 1973, p 57)

I often reflect on Him ‘who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross’ (Hebrews 12:2) and know that I can hope for the same joy if I follow Him to the end of my mortality……grace for grace…..

The lessons of my life flowed like a river

Winding through days, months and years;

I rescued a few but missed so many

From the currents as I saw them passing;

They drowned in a daze of my ignorance,

Unwanted and ignored but yet abiding.

I fish them now from the pool of my memory

And give them life everlasting.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Jesus the Symbol of Hope by Ivan Guaderrama)

THE WISDOM OF OUR GOD

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.

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.

SEEKING THE KINGDOM

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto the, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matthew 7:21-23)

When Jesus atoned for the sins of the world, he had an amazing insight into each person who will ever grace this earth; into their problems, capabilities, mental and emotional states and into their very heart. Because of this He knows what makes us tick, what makes us do what we do, He knows our desires, our thoughts and our motives. It is correct to say that He knows us better than we know ourselves because even we sometimes don't know things that are hidden in our subconscious that drive us to certain behaviours. When Joseph Smith was translating the Bible he made the most significant correction to the above verse of scripture which now reads "you never knew me" instead of "I never knew you". This gives us a much clearer understanding of our relationship to the Saviour of the world. Because of the Atonement, He knows us and He will always know us but we on the other hand can very easily misunderstand what it means to know Him and to eventually enter His kingdom. Clearly from the above scripture, only doing as Christ did will not get us there.

By telling us what will not get us into the kingdom of heaven, He also told us what will: instead of laying up for ourselves treasures on this earth, He admonished us to lay up treasures in heaven (Matt 6:19-21). What are these treasures we can lay up in heaven whilst we are here in mortality? If it is not what we do, then it must be what we are: "Treasures in heaven are the character, perfections, and attributes which men acquire by obedience to law. Thus, those who gain such attributes of godliness as knowledge, faith, justice, judgment, mercy and truth, will find these same attributes restored to them again in immortality (Alma 41:13-15)" (McConkie, DNTC, 1:239-40, The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles, Student Manual, p. 58). Jesus confirmed this truth by giving us a further admonition to be 'perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect' (Matt 5:48). It has been our destiny from the beginning of time to become exalted to godhood, in other words, to become perfect and complete even as our Father is. Without this perfection we cannot enter His kingdom. In the words of Joseph Smith: "God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens and men have got to learn how to be Gods.....the same as all Gods have done before...." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp 345-46).  No man, however, can achieve this lofty ideal on his own merits. 

Because it is not in our power to attain perfection on our own, God in his mercy has provided a way for us to do so. During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus invited his disciples to enter in at the 'strait gate' and thereby follow the course to eternal life (Matt 7:13,14). The gate is 'strait' because it is narrow and restricted but the path is both 'strait' and 'straight'. Where 'straitness' has reference to width, 'straightness' has reference to direction, this direction being invariable and always the same for 'there are no crooked paths or tangents leading to the kingdom of God' (McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p. 769). It is at this gate that perfection has to have its beginning. It is here that it must begin and it is now, whilst in mortality. The supreme standard of the Lord's expectation for us to become perfect as our Father is, is rather daunting considering the reality of our imperfections and our mortal weaknesses. However, as the Saviour used our Father in Heaven who is perfect, complete and finished in his glorified state, as the example of perfection, He has by this suggested a broader perspective of this commandment. Joseph Smith taught that we will work out our salvation and exaltation beyond the grave. This gives us a clear indication that perfection in this life is not attainable. Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught: "We have to become perfect to be saved in the celestial kingdom. But nobody becomes perfect in this life. Only the Lord Jesus attained that state, and He had an advantage that none of us has. He was the Son of God, and He came into this life with a spiritual capacity and a talent and an inheritance that exceeded beyond all comprehension what any of the rest of us was born with.....We enter in at a gate, and the name of the gate is repentance and baptism. We thereby get on a path, and the name of the path is the straight and narrow path. And then if we endure to the end, meaning if we keep the commandments of God after baptism, we go up that straight and narrow path, and at its end is a reward that is named eternal life. All of this is available because of the atoning sacrifice of Christ" (Bruce R. McConkie as quoted in Bruce Satterfield, The Sermon On the Mount: A More Excellent Way, Meridian Magazine).

   

Indeed, because of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ and by virtue of our faith in Him, we can travel this road that leads to the Kingdom of God. The enabling power that makes this possible is called 'grace'. Once the strait gate is entered and sacred covenants made between God and man, we are then endowed with the saving grace which enables us to reach perfection as the Saviour and our Father did. President Harold B. Lee taught: "The 'saving grace' of the Lord's atoning power is extended to those who would receive the saving ordinances of the gospel". "Through the ordinance of baptism, we receive the divine grace of forgiveness that qualifies us to receive spiritual rebirth through the gift of the Holy Ghost. Now spiritually reborn, we must then grow up to godhood. This will require further enabling power through divine grace or mercy. This grace comes through the higher ordinances of the temple. Each ordinance and covenant made in the temple helps us to receive more grace that enables us to become like God ( (Bruce Satterfield, The Sermon On the Mount: A More Excellent Way, Meridian Magazine).

The steps to perfection come with the enabling power of Christ so none of us can claim that we cannot possibly achieve the lofty ideal of godhood and perfection. The way has been prepared and put in place for those of us who choose to follow the Redeemer of the world. When we make that choice we build our tabernacle of clay on 'the rock' of his teachings. Jesus said that anyone who hears his teachings and does not abide by them is like a foolish man who builds his house on the sand (Matt 7:26,27). He has no hope of surviving the spiritual battle of this life, let alone attaining perfection. And why would we want perfection? Because 'eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which god hath prepared for them that love him' (1 Cor 2:9). One day we will receive this reward because of our faithfulness and His undeniable grace. We will enter into His rest and His kingdom and then and there we will finally come to understand that 'Adam fell that men might be and men are that they might have joy' (2 Nephi 2:25). We will joy in our perfections and in our exalted glory, having overcome the world and having gained eternal life with our posterity and all the riches of eternity. It is our promise, it is our right, it is our sacred destiny.

THE LOVE OF GOD

Bethlehem, the town of Jesus' birth is also called The House of Bread. Bethlehem provided the surrounding region including Jerusalem with their entire supply of bread. It is by no accident that Jesus was born there because that is the origin of his mortal lineage and it is not surprising that later he would proclaim himself to be the bread of life.  I love symbolism and there is a lot of it surrounding Jesus' birth and life.

When Nephi, being the dutiful son that he was, inquired of God the meaning of the tree of life that his father had seen in a dream, an angel appeared to him to tutor him.  When the angel asked Nephi if he knew what the tree represented,  Nephi answered that it is the love of God, most desirable above all (2 Nephi 11:22,23).  Immediately following his answer he was shown a vision of the Savior during his mortal ministry.  It becomes very clear through Nephi's vision that the love of God is manifest to his children through the gift of his only begotten son.

Living on this side of the veil and experiencing the harshness of mortal life it is easy at times to feel unloved by God because he allows misfortune to befall us or we don't get in life what we want.  We wonder how He could possibly love us when we are in the depths of despair and need so much that we don't have.  All the while we are wondering where the love of God is for us, He is hoping against all hope that we would open our eyes and see that He could not give us greater proof of His love than He has already done so through His son.  Why would Jesus be the ultimate expression of God's love for us?  Because through him God is offering us the greatest gift he could possibly give us, the gift of eternal life.  This life is but a moment, a few years of school so to speak but eternity is forever.  For this reason God's greatest desire is not that we have everything in this life but in the next.

It has puzzled me that a lot of us, even members of the Church, don't quite grasp this principle.  In my reflection on this I am beginning to think that this is so because a lot of us don't quite understand who we really are.  Maybe I should rephrase that.  We don't quite FEEL who we really are.  If we truly felt and understood our divine origin and knew ourselves as first and foremost the offspring of God with a divine destiny we would wade through this life's gutters much easier.

When Moses had his experience with God sometime after the burning bush and before the Exodus, Jesus who appeared to him and spoke to him on behalf of the Father through 'divine investiture of authority' called him 'Moses, my son' on a number of occasions. God showed Moses all his creations and where man fitted in that plan. Moses who was brought up in Pharoah's court to believe that Pharoahs due to their birthright are gods, was astonished and said, 'Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed' (Moses 1:10).  As soon as he had said that,  the adversary appeared and immediately addressed him as 'Moses, son of man' to divert his attention from his spiritual and true identity and almost as an affirmation that man truly is nothing. God reappeared, however, and gave Moses the same vision all over again but this time he finished it with the greatest statement that was ever made:  "For behold, this is my work and my glory - to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39).  What the Lord tried to say to Moses was that he was wrong, that 'man is the underlying and overriding purpose of all His work, that man's success constitutes his glory, that man is everything'. (Ted Gibbons, OT Lesson 1)

I became aware of three struggling young men over this Christmas period which has led me to think about this deeply and how the adversary seeks to cloud our true identity through the lense of this earth life.  The first young man is a son of a friend of mine who is inactive in the Church and struggling with a homosexual lifestyle.  He is angry that God has given him this to struggle with.  He feels he cannot be happy in or out of this lifestyle.  I suggested a few things but she answered that he is not yet ready to tackle 'overcoming' the problem, that he first needs to accept who he is.  I wasn't sure if she was suggesting that being a homosexual is who he truly is and that he needed to accept it but I replied with conviction that this is not who he is but what he is while he is immersed in this lifestyle.  Who he truly is is a son of God and he will not discover this spiritual origin looking for it in the world.  Instead of being heavily immersed in the Church to find himself and make sense of his burden, he is alienating himself further and fostering more and more resentment towards God.

The second young man is a returned missionary from my daughter's mission field.  He has not only gone inactive but has had his name removed from the records of the Church and proclaimed himself to be an athiest.  When my daughter asked him why he doesn't even believe in God let alone the Church, he replied 'I have no reason to believe in Him'.  I shuddered to hear this.  It is like an invitation for the universe to give him a reason to believe, a very painful reason.  I fear for that young man because I believe he will be brought down to his knees one day.  He was given to know the Savior and the truth that so many people are desperate to find and he has discarded it as a thing of naught.  The greatest love, the greatest gift the Maker of the Universe could possibly give us, the chance for eternal life with eternal happiness and glory.  I am hoping this young man will come to his senses one day.

The third young man is a close friend of my daughter's who was visiting his family for the holidays and struggling so badly beneath the crippling burden of negativity his father was hurling at him during his stay at home.  When he contacted my daughter he could barely breathe he was under so much stress and anxiety brought on by his father's verbal abuse.  He has been subjected to this kind of treatment all his life.  Now that he is an adult he is struggling to make something of himself because his sense of self worth is so damaged. His mind tells him what his father says about him is not right but his heart is working overtime trying to believe it.  My heart aches for this young man  because he has a father who loves him beyond his understanding who would never hurl such poisonous words at him that would damage his soul.  This father has given him something so great at his own cost so this young man would understand that he is worth so much that such a high price would be paid for his eternal welfare.

How do we get to know who we truly are so we can withstand this world that works so hard to tear us apart? The same way that Jesus found out who he was.  There is no possible way that Jesus would have become the savior of all mankind if he didn't find out who he truly was and what he had covenanted to do before this earth life even began. Luke tells us that 'Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and man' (Luke 2:52)  He also waxed strong in spirit and thereby was given precept upon precept until he had it all (Luke 2:40).  By the time he was 12  he was preaching in the temple. I am certain that the more the Savior studied the scriptures and the more he communed with his Father the quicker he learnt who he was. No doubt he had angelic visitations that assisted and ensured his spiritual growth.  I do not for one moment believe that the tools we have been given are any less than the Savior had at his disposal.  We have the scriptures, we have the open channel of prayer, we have the right to call upon angels to assist us and we have most importantly the gift of the Holy Ghost.  All these tools when used consistently ensure that we come to know God and our relationship to Him like Jesus did.

Because Jesus is the embodiment of the Father's love for us, the more we acknowledge Him as our Saviour and strive to live his teachings, the greater becomes our capacity to feel God's love for us.  The more we feel God's love, the greater our relationship with Him and the greater our conviction of our spiritual origin.  Once we have that conviction intact, it is so much easier to put this earthly life in perspective.  It also becomes easier to handle and understand our burdens and trials.  The alternative to not putting in this effort is to go throughout life filled with resentment, bitterness and suffering.  God cannot remove our trials from us and make this earthly life an easy ride, else what would be the point of being here?  What He can do is what He has done, provided the best possible way for us to be connected to Him and to feel His love.  This is what we should be reminded of every Christmas when our attention is being directed towards the Saviour's birth.

King Solomon went to great lengths to bring in 'living water' into Solomon's temple to wash away copious amounts of blood from animal sacrifices.  Blood signifies sin and living water symbolises Christ.  He is the living water, not just any water but water that gives and sustains life, life eternal.  The Saviour knew so well who he was when he was here.  In scriptures He proclaims himself to be The Great I Am.  Can you believe that's who he is when you read what he says about himself:

I am the bread of life (John 6:35)
I am the good shepherd (John 10:14)
I am the resurrection and the life (John 11:25)
I am the light of the world (John 8:12)
I am the way, the truth, the life (John 14:6)
I am the true vine (John 15:1)
I am the first and I am the last (Isaiah 44:6)
I am the Great I Am.

And who are we?  If He is the Great I Am and we are the offspring of God who come to God through His Son, then we are great too. He makes us so.  Make a list of all the things that you are but at the top of that list put I am a son/daughter of God and then see what other things come to mind following that statement.  I guarantee there will be more positive attributes than negative ones.  It's all a matter of perception and consistent focus.  Be that son or daughter of God you were born to be for this is who you are first and foremost.  All else is of little importance.  Live so that you are worthy to feel that love which is constant and which will feed your soul, which will bring you life eternal.