Know the Lord

There is a wonderful and profound prophecy in the book of Jeremiah. It is in the 31st chapter and is as follows:

  31 ¶ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

  32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:

  33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

  34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Recall the earlier history of Israel and their interaction with God. After Moses brought Israel out of Egypt, the invitation was made to Israel to enter the presence of the Lord and to know Him at Sinai. They were to prepare themselves to meet the Lord in the mountain. But when the Lord came down to meet them, the people pulled back, as described in Exodus 20:

  18 ¶ And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.

  19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

They declined the opportunity to personally know their God and, instead, sent Moses to speak to God and deliver God’s word. Having rejected the opportunity to come into the presence of God, and after making the golden calf, Israel lost the higher priesthood and ordinances necessary to enter God’s presence. They were left to follow a law of outward observances and to be reliant on prophets, as intermediaries, to teach them of God. Still, Moses longed for a day when Israel would receive knowledge of the Lord when he said in Numbers 11: 29, “ … would God that all the Lord’s people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them!”

Jeremiah’s prophecy indicates that the day will come when Israel will accept the Lord’s covenant and come to know the Lord. In fact, each and every person alive will know the Lord. All will know the Lord and will know their sins have been forgiven. Imagine living among such people!  Each and every person you come in contact with would already know the Lord and have the promise of eternal life, as indicated by John 17: 3. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

At a very practical level a society like this would enjoy very different interactions. There would be no need for a prophet or apostle to say, “Know the Lord” because each member of the society, from the least to the greatest, would already know the Lord. Imagine what the church might be like if everyone already knew the Lord. A Bishop would still hold the keys of certain ordinances. He would still call people to serve in the ward organization. But, he would not need to worry about building the faith of people. Rather, he could just count upon each member of his ward being willing to serve wherever needed. Similarly, a relief society president would count on not just the visiting teachers, but on all of the other sisters to see to the needs of ward members out of a pure motivation of charity. Nobody would need the recognition of a calling or visible service. All members of this society would find their satisfaction in their personal knowledge of the Lord and His acceptance of their service.

There would still be the two lines of communication discussed by Elder Oaks (“Two Lines of Communication,” General Conference, October 2010). There would still be a church line of authority to see to the running of the church, the provision of ordinances, and the official communication of revelation from heaven. And, in addition, there would be regular personal communication from heaven. Neither line would contradict nor supersede the other. Both would make the other more effective. We would have an entire society, and church, filled with the kind of people described by President Dieter Uchtdorf in the analogy he made to his favorite pen (“Pride and the Priesthood,” General Conference, October 2010).

I once owned a pen that I loved to use during my career as an airline captain. By simply turning the shaft, I could choose one of four colors. The pen did not complain when I wanted to use red ink instead of blue. It did not say to me, “I would rather not write after 10:00 p.m., in heavy fog, or at high altitudes.” The pen did not say, “Use me only for important documents, not for the daily mundane tasks.” With greatest reliability it performed every task I needed, no matter how important or insignificant. It was always ready to serve.

In a similar way we are tools in the hands of God. When our heart is in the right place, we do not complain that our assigned task is unworthy of our abilities. We gladly serve wherever we are asked. When we do this, the Lord can use us in ways beyond our understanding to accomplish His work.

I have illustrated what this organization might be like in the picture below. This society would be made up of individuals. Some of these individuals would be in callings in the church. The church could still include the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the Quorums of Seventy, Stake Presidents and all Stake auxiliary leaders, Bishops and all ward leaders, etc. Each of these would be a source of revelation for their area of responsibility. Each will serve well because of their own knowledge of the Lord and their joy being found in His service.

In addition to the church, there would be the rest of the men and women in the society. Each of these would personally know the Lord and, thus, have their own personal line of communication with God. When asked, they would serve willingly and ably in any position, great or small, in the church. When not in a calling they would serve one another in ways that would lift burdens, bring joy, create unity, etc. Each and every individual in this society would find their joy and their sense of acceptance to God through the personal line. And, when asked, would serve in the church as needed.

It is important to remember that no amount of revelation will cause us to graduate from, or move beyond, the Church of Jesus Christ. This is the place where we have the Book of Mormon, Doctrine & Covenants, Pearl of Great Price and the Bible. In addition, we have the temple and the ordinances through which the power of godliness is manifest. As we come to know the Lord, that knowledge should be manifest in how we lift and serve others. We should not become impatient with others who are in the church and still trying to find their way. The more we know of Jesus Christ, the better we should be able to teach of Him and live as an example of a believer.