I would like to share a few thoughts about the purpose of mortality and the role of Jesus Christ in our journey through mortality. Of course, this will not be a comprehensive coverage, just a few basic ideas strung together in a way that I hope may be helpful.
Our Purpose
Our existence predates mortality when we lived as spirit beings in the presence of God. We came from God’s presence and we belong in God’s presence. I cannot believe that we would have accepted the experience of mortality without a good understanding that in passing through the veil of forgetfulness, there would be a way back.
We understand that, through the fall of mankind, there is a need for a Savior. Paul expressed it in this simple phrase in 1 Corinthians 15:
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
It seems easier to understand how all participate in death through Adam then to understand the part about being made alive in Christ. Adam and Eve fell and became subject to death. Thus, all of their children, us, became subject to death. Somehow, through Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection we all will rise from death. We do not understand the mechanism now, but the day will come when we will see that it is true. We will see that because of Jesus’ resurrection, we will all resurrect.
There is a purpose to our journey in mortality. We find in Moses 6:
55 And the Lord spake unto Adam, saying: Inasmuch as thy children are conceived in sin, even so when they begin to grow up, sin conceiveth in their hearts, and they taste the bitter, that they may know to prize the good.
We came into mortality understanding that we would taste the bitterness of sin, pain, disappointment, and failure. We did not come here to sin. Rather, we came into mortality knowing that sin and heartache would be part of our experience. I think we were much like a missionary who has been called but not yet departed. The missionary knows in some intellectual sense that the mission will be hard. But, it is only in the experience that the learning takes place. We have chosen to experience the bitter in mortality as part of our learning to prize the good. We knew that, in some ways, parents, friends, church members or leaders, and others would fail us. We knew that we would fall prey to the lies of the adversary and fall into sin. And, we knew that a Savior would be provided so that we could recover from these experiences and learn from them.
Lehi taught these ideas to his family when he said in 2 Nephi 2:
25 Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.
From the Fall Comes Joy
The most remarkable thing about the fall is that, despite sin and sorrow, it is actually the source of joy in life. Adam and Eve explained this in Moses 5:
10 And in that day Adam blessed God and was filled, and began to prophesy concerning all the families of the earth, saying: Blessed be the name of God, for because of my transgression my eyes are opened, and in this life I shall have joy, and again in the flesh I shall see God.
11 And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying: Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient.
How do we have joy in this life? The answer is repentance. There are many possible definitions of repentance that have been discussed over the years. But, the scriptures give a definition that is very encouraging.
When giving the brass plates, and other records, to his son, Alma described the value of scriptures. He says to Helaman in Alma 37:
9 Yea, I say unto you, were it not for these things that these records do contain, which are on these plates, Ammon and his brethren could not have convinced so many thousands of the Lamanites of the incorrect tradition of their fathers; yea, these records and their words brought them unto repentance; that is, they brought them to the knowledge of the Lord their God, and to rejoice in Jesus Christ their Redeemer.
Notice the effect of the records, they convince people of the incorrect traditions of their fathers. Or, as Alma expressed in verse 8, the scriptures (which contain the words of Christ) convince us of the error of our ways. Alma says that when we see the error of our ways, or the incorrect traditions of our fathers, we are brought to repentance. Notice that verse nine says “repentance; that is ...” so that what comes next is a definition of repentance. And, the definition of repentance is to gain knowledge of the Lord our God and to rejoice in Jesus Christ our Redeemer. Thus, repentance is coming to a knowledge of God which causes us to rejoice in Jesus Christ as our Redeemer.
When we learn that something in our life is in error, or an incorrect tradition, we change. In that moment of recognition we have repented. The repentance is both a cause and a consequence of learning more about God. And, Jesus Christ is the source of redemption and strength to make the change we see is necessary. That brings joy.
I had a sacred experience in the temple that taught be something about the bitterness of sin and the joy of repentance. As the endowment session began, I found my mind filled with all of the weakness, sin, mistakes and failures of my life. It was discouraging and caused me to feel lost and hopeless. I could not quite understand why these things were flooding in to my mind. As I felt ready to give up any hope of being clean and worthy to return to God a thought occurred to me. I felt that I should be patient and watch what was being presented. I looked up and realized that we were to the point in the creation story where Adam and Eve had fallen and were being cast out of God’s presence. I realized that they were the prototype of what I was feeling. And, as the rest of the endowment was presented I realized that I was being taught the path back to God’s presence. I realized that it was in, and through, Jesus Christ that my sins could be forgiven and that I could return to God. By the end of the endowment session I was filled with hope and with the love of God. I knew my sins were forgiven.
In this experience I came to know for myself the truth of what is taught in Ether 12:
27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.
Learn Through the Spirit of Jesus Christ
So, how do we learn about Jesus Christ and find our way back to God? It starts with the Spirit of Christ that is given to every person ever born into mortality. We read in D&C 84:
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.
Notice that the Spirit of Jesus Christ is truth, light and the word of the Lord to us. It gives light to everyone but only enlightens those who hearken to the Spirit of Christ. As taught in Moroni 7, the Spirit, or Light, of Christ is the means of knowing good from evil. Everything that brings feelings of peace, joy, belief in Christ and love is from Jesus Christ and is of God. When we feel fear, loneliness, contention and a lack of belief, it is from the adversary. This sounds so simple, and yet it is the way the Lord has given us to find the truth and the messengers that God has promised to us so that we can find our way back to Him. The Spirit is all around us. All you have to do is listen.
Learn Through Messengers
The Spirit of Christ will help us to identify the true servants of the Lord who are sent to teach and guide us. True messengers teach us how to approach the Lord ourselves. They do not stand between us and God. Rather, they teach us how to approach God and receive our own revelation. Notice these key verses from the oath and covenant of the priesthood in D&C 84:
36 For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;
37 And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
The Spirit of Jesus Christ helps us to recognize the Lord’s servants and to follow their teachings. Through that we come to Jesus Christ and receive the Holy Ghost.
Sacrifice Leads to the Holy Ghost
When we come to an awareness of our fallen state we experience a broken heart. Our heart is broken by the recognition that our sins and weakness would forever keep us separated from God. We realize that we cannot merit salvation based on our own effort. No matter how hard we try to obey commandments, we come up short. With that broken heart our spirit become contrite and we come to Jesus Christ through baptism. The consequence of the decision to repent and be baptized is receiving the Holy Ghost. A great example of the Holy Ghost in action is in 3 Ne 9:
20 And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.
It gives me hope to know that these Lamanites had a remarkable experience and yet did not realize that they had been baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost. We, too, can be baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost and not realize it. We must actively seek to know about the work of the Holy Ghost in our lives.
Agency is Always Honored
God will not force knowledge upon us. He gave us our agency and He honors that agency. He waits for us to desire learning and revelation enough to ask and seek for it. As we read in Matt 7 (JST):
7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
17 What man among you, having a son, and he shall be standing out, and shall say, Father, open thy house that I may come in and sup with thee, will not say, Come in, my son; for mine is thine, and thine is mine?
The Lord commands us to ask, seek and knock. In order to help us understand, he gives us a comparison to a mortal father who would respond to his son’s plea for help. How much more, then, can we trust our Eternal Father to respond when we ask?
Examples of Asking
The scriptures give several examples of the type of questions we might bring to God. For example,
Lamoni’s father asked “... if there is a God ... wilt thou make thyself known to me?”
Alma cried out “O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me ...”
Benjamin’s people prayed “O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins and our hearts may be purified.”
And, in further instruction to us, we are told in D&C 18:18 to “Ask the Father in my name, in faith believing that you shall receive, and you shall have the Holy Ghost, which manifesteth all things which are expedient unto the children of men.”
Thus, we can pray to know that God is there. We can pray for the mercy and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. We can pray to know that our sins are forgiven. And, we can pray to receive the Holy Ghost and to know all things that the Lord would have us know.
Maybe one of the greatest things we can pray for is love. In Moroni 7: 48 we are told, “Wherefore, ... pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ ... “ As we come to know Christ we will, inevitably, be filled with His love.
A few years ago I came to the realization that I knew about Jesus Christ, but that I did not know Him. I could tell the Sunday School stories and describe His mission. But, I did not feel the love and appreciation that I knew I should. So, I began to pray to know Jesus Christ in a personal way. I searched the scriptures for stories that would help me to know Jesus Christ. And, the Holy Ghost began to testify to me of Christ through the stories and teachings in the scriptures.
One day I approached the temple with a prayer to better know Christ. There is a promise in D&C 110 that He will manifest Himself in mercy to His people in the temple. And, in a great tender mercy, I received a very clear and sure witness, through the Holy Ghost, during the presentation of one of the symbols that is surely linked to Jesus Christ, of His reality and His love for me. I was overwhelmed by the power of the spiritual witness in that experience in the temple.
The next day I went up into Rock Canyon to pray and ponder on what I had felt. And, while praying about the experience in the temple I was surrounded by a warmth and love that is more powerful than I had ever felt. I now know the reality of Jesus Christ, His power to forgive sin, His love for me, and His ability to teach me to love.
Love
The influence of Jesus Christ is love. As John said in 1 John 4:19, “We love him, because he first loved us.” And, because of His love for us, we learn how to love one another. Paul taught us about how to treat each other in Eph 4:32, “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” The surest evidence of the power of Jesus Christ is in the love that we can share with each other. After all, we are, by nature, not always the most loving people. When we are patient, forgiving, and loving with each other, we are experiencing the pure influence of Jesus Christ.
I really like this summary in 1 John 3:18-24, “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. ... Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.”
In mortality we learn that we are loved by God, even though we have not earned it. We should love others, even though they have not earned it.
