Obedience

Obedience to God's word is a fundamental expectation for followers of Jesus Christ. Baptism is an ordinance whereby we declare our intention to obey the commandments of God. When we partake of the sacrament we renew our commitment to obey His commandments. We also understand that we covenanted to be obedient to the law of God while in the pre-mortal world.

While this short blog post will not even come close to covering all that could be said about obedience, I recently found something that helps me to understand what the law is that I have covenanted to obey and to see how that fits in to my journey back to God's presence.

Consider the following verses in D&C 88:

  11 And the light which shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings;
  12 Which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space—
  13 The light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things [emphasis added].

Notice that the light of Christ is described as the law of God. Thus, one of the most basic interpretations of my covenant to obey God is that I will follow the light of Christ. Consider this idea in connection with these verses from D&C 84:

  44 For you shall live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God.
  45 For the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
  46 And the Spirit giveth light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit.
  47 And every one that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit cometh unto God, even the Father.
  48 And the Father teacheth him of the covenant which he has renewed and confirmed upon you, which is confirmed upon you for your sakes, and not for your sakes only, but for the sake of the whole world.

We are told to live by (obey) every word that proceeds forth from God. And, that those words are the same as the light or Spirit of Jesus Christ. In essence, we are to obey the word of God, which is the light of Christ and which is the law of God. And, when we hearken to (obey) the light of Christ we are enlightened and come unto God the Father. The result of being brought to God the Father is that he teaches us of the covenant and confirms it upon us. This is echoed in D&C 88: 78 where the Lord explains that we are to "be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand [emphasis added];"

Every person ever born into this world is given the light or Spirit of Jesus Christ, which is the law of God. Every person who obeys the Spirit of Jesus Christ is enlightened and brought to the Father to be taught about the covenant, or law of the Gospel. What a blessing to have this assurance that every one of us is born with the gift of the first steps on the path back to God's presence so readily available.