Understanding the Scriptures

2 Peter 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophesy of the scriptures is of any private interpretation. 

John 5:39 Search the scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

Articles of Faith 8 We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly.

Moroni 10:5        And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

John 14:26 But the “Comforter”, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things

Prov. 4:7 With all thy getting, get understanding

1 Ne19:23 ……..for I did liken al scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning

Scriptures frequently address many topics in the same verse or chapter, consequently it is not easy to extract the intended meaning, furthermore, they often are given in the context of the contemporary culture. The result of all this is that if we attempt to understand scripture purely with our limited human philosophy as a tool, we most likely will not come to understand the Lord’s intent.

If our lives are in harmony with the Lord’s will, He will frequently send us messages, often when we study the scriptures. Thoughts will come to our mind related to the scripture we are reading with insights quite different from common explanations.

 For example, on an occasion, while studying the sermon on the mount, it occurred to me that the pain of loss for loved ones, and I had lost several relatives, dear friends, and two wonderful wives, did not compare to the anguish of the realization that on some occasions I had offended my Heavenly Father. Mat 5:4 became one of my favorite scriptures helping me to understand elements of the Atonement. 

The messages transmitted to us by the Holy Ghost are given to us according to our understanding and our needs. The Lord knows us, knows our level of understanding, consequently He speaks to us individually, according to that understanding. Though His truths are eternal and unchanging, which part of that truth He emphasizes when speaking to Uwe might be quite different from the message He gives to Jeri.

How then do we recognize that a particular interpretation of a scripture represents pure truth? 

The message of that scripture comes to us through the Holy Ghost. How do we recognize that? 

1. We have that same feeling in our heart which we felt when the warmth and peace of our testimony first filled out heart. In other words, it is in harmony with previous spiritual experiences.
2. The message is in harmony with the teachings and official publications of the restored Church, this includes the Scriptures.
3. The interpretation is in harmony with the statements of the Prophets, General Authorities, and General Conference addresses.
4. The message is uplifting and brings us closer to Christ

Seeking to understand the nature of God

Seeking to understand the nature of God,

His relationship to us

His Plan to prepare us to join Him,

And our opportunities and responsibilities 

To respond to that plan of happiness.

For behold, this is My Work and My Glory – to bring to pass the Immortality and Eternal Life of Man.

Moses 1:39

And this is Life Eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent.

John 17:3

Adam fell that Men might be; and Men are that they might have Joy. 

2 Ne 2:25

Comment: Capitalization of words other than references to God and Jesus Christ, is deliberate and not intended to improve the scriptures. I merely want to draw attention to those words in the context of these ponderings.

I think it is wonderful that the restoration has brought such an increased depth of understanding to our knowledge of our Heavenly Father. I was going to say “significant” instead of wonderful, but that seemed too weak.

Clearly, that understanding was not only available to Adam, Abraham, Isaiah, and all the Old Testament prophets, but was a reality to them.

They knew Him and conversed with Him. Christ reminded his contemporaries, but except those few who faithfully began to build His kingdom, they rejected Him and the reality of His Father. 

But even those few, eventually, because of unrighteousness and the worship of human knowledge, lost that understanding during the great apostacy. Church leaders saw a great need to reconcile the teachings of Christ with the human wisdom represented by infallible Greek philosophy, and the resulting creeds show no resemblance to the personal testimony Christ bore of His Father.

Like prophets of old, Joseph Smith communicated with God. He saw both the Father and the Son and conversed with them. When challenged by persecution he bore a powerful testimony: “I had seen a vision, I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it.”

The restoration brought renewed understanding of a number of fundamental concepts. 

1. “Elohim” God the Father, and  “Jehovah “ God the Son are two distinct personages.
2. They have physical, resurrected, and glorified bodies.
3. None of the churches of that time represented the church established by Christ in the meridian of times.
4. Communication between God and man did not cease with the death of the early apostles, it is essential for the saving role of the Church and was reestablished by God.
5. The canon of scripture is not closed
6. The Priesthood, divine authority to perform saving ordinances, was restored
7. The structure of the Church of Jesus Christ was restored, with the foundation of Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ the chief cornerstone.
8. Sealing powers were restored to form eternal families.
9. Authority was restored to perform vicarious saving ordinances for deceased individuals and families.
10. Temples are built for live and vicarious eternal ordinance performance.
11. The nature of man as a spirit child of Heavenly parents, embodied in a physical body was again taught. 
12. The nature oof God, as a Heavenly parent, whose most pronounced characteristic is love for his offspring was restored.
13. The plan of Salvation, which includes life as spirits in the presence of Heavenly Parents, earth life as a preparation for return to Heavenly parents, redemption by Jesus Christ on conditions of repentance and obedience to eternal principles, and ordinances, was again revealed.
14. The precious gift of free agency, including acceptance of consequences, and the effectiveness of repentance through the infinite sacrifice of Jesus Christ was clarified by revelation.
15. The variety of eternal destination possibilities based on earthly performance and acceptance of eternal principles, including divine ordinances, were again taught/

Back to the first of the scriptures which motivated these musings.

It states that the most significant, if not the sole concern of our Heavenly Father is our happiness. Clearly, there are many things which motivate our actions, among them acquisition of wealth, desire of worldly recognition, exercise of power, gaining knowledge, search for pleasure, giving service, and many more. Many of these are not in harmony with the will of our Heavenly Father. 

Only the confluence of three elements will result in the depth of happiness our Heavenly Father would have us experience

1. The will of our Heavenly Father
2. Our own deepest innermost desires
3. Our actions resulting from our desires

When those three become one, then and only then will we be truly happy.

Anything less will require repentance prior to experiencing true happiness and joy.

The gospel furthermore teaches us that only a resurrected body housing our spirit is capable of a fulness of joy, and that will only happen in the presence of our Heavenly Parents.

Returning to our Heavenly Father permanently means gaining Eternal Life. This, in turn, requires progress on earth, made possible by the gifts of agency, and repentance which becomes effective through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

At this point a comment about the will of our Heavenly Father seems in order.

In view of the scripture: “This is my work and my glory – to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” it should be obvious that divine commandments are not arbitrary whims imposed as obstacles or fetters. Our loving Father, with His infinite experience, knows what it takes to progress to His level. Consequently, He gives us guidelines. These are not just wise hints, but He knows and shows us the way. The proverb “many ways lead to Rome” is relevant if you want to go to Rome, but we should prefer Eternal Life as a goal. Often limiting personal freedom is presented as an objection to rigid commandments. The reality is that behavioral restrictions become a limiting influence only for actions at the boundary of acceptable behavior. The dog at the feet of his master is not even aware of the leash around his neck. The bumper sticker “They are not the ten suggestions” may represent an amusing comment, however if we truly love the Lord, and accept His commandments as benevolent, we will want to follow His slightest suggestions.

Indeed, the commandments are designed to help us become more like our savior. The closer we come to that goal, the less we need the “restrictions” of the commandments. We would keep them even if we did not have them, we would live Christ-like because of who we are, but until we have carved the commandments into the flesh of our heart, we still need them in the picture on the wall as a reminder, and a driving force to improve.