"I Give Unto Men WEAKNESS"

In our meetings in the Church, there is a scripture that is often quoted to illustrate that God gives men their weaknesses in the flesh, and therefore our weaknesses are to be expected and in some ways, it seems, even explained away. After all, the reasoning goes, God gave them to us.

I am hoping to help others understand that is not at all what the scripture says. The Lord is offering comfort to Moroni as he compiles the gold plates of the history of his people, and Moroni is worried people will make fun of it because of his weakness in writing:

"If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble." (Ether 12:27).

Please take note: The word is "weakness" and NOT "weaknesses". There is a fundamental difference. As a young man attempting the read The Book of Mormon, I was not far into my studies before discovering I was not alone in my spiritual wrestles with God. I found a soul mate in Nephi, one of my early prophet heroes:

"Notwithstanding the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities. I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me. And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted. My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep. He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh. He hath confounded mine enemies, unto the causing of them to quake before me. Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the nighttime. And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have I sent up on high; and angels came down and ministered unto me. And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains. And mine eyes have beheld great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that I should not write them.
"O then, if I have seen so great things, if the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions? And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh? Yea, why should I give way to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul? Why am I angry because of mine enemy?" (2 Nephi 4:17-27), emphasis mine.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Nephi asked himself what President Uchtdorf asked all men of the priesthood to ask themselves at the last General Conference - "Lord, is it I?" Why do we continue to sin, even when we know better? And how is it our definitions of what constitutes sin become so convoluted as we rationalize away the conditions of our mortal probation? I remember one very bright and intelligent young man who explained his rationalization about pornography this way: "Bishop, I only really have one sin and I'm determined to wear that one out for the rest of my life because everything else is in pretty good shape except for that. Relatively speaking, I'd say I'm doing pretty well." I always wondered what his wife might say if she knew his reasoning. I don't really know what happened to him after that, but I pray he came to view his rationalization more clearly as he matured with a little more wisdom.

To refer once again to Moroni, the Lord declared: "If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble." (Ether 12:27), emphasis mine.

The word "weakness" is not plural and so cannot refer to the multitude of sins we all struggle with. Being singular, it most likely would refer to our mortal condition, which indeed, was given to us by our Lord, for He alone is the "light and the life of the world." We sometimes see our mortal flesh referred to in scripture as "the natural man" (see 1 Corinthians 2:14; Mosiah 3:19; Alma 26:21; D&C 67:12) or our "carnal nature" (see D&C 67:12; Mosiah 16:5; Alma 42:10).

By our very mortal, physical natures - our "natural man" - we all have an inherent tendency to commit sin. That tendency, not the multitudes of named weaknesses, as some would have us believe, according to what the Lord told Moroni, was intentionally "given" to us by God. How was it given? Through our inherited genetic traits, conditions under which we are raised, the torments and taunts of Satan's minions, physical and difficult mortal circumstances we are forced to live through, and others. And why are we so weak in the flesh? The scriptural answer seems to be to help keep us humble, penitent, and provide a way for our spirits to overcome as we grow in faith in the Lord's perfection and His power to redeem us from our fallen condition. Without a weak and sin-inclined physical body to provide the means for the opposition needed to sanctify us, the plan of salvation would be thwarted. In the overcoming, in the yielding to the Spirit, in the stretching of our faith, we are made better men and women than we ever could be otherwise. So we see, our mortal weakness is a blessing.

I loved what President Uchtdorf said about it:

"The words of the Apostle James apply to us today:
"God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. . . Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." (James 4:6,10).
"Brethren, we must put aside our pride, see beyond our vanity, and in humility ask, 'Lord, is it I?'
"And if the Lord's answer happens to be 'Yes, my son, there are things you must improve, things I can help you to overcome,' I pray that we will accept this answer, humbly acknowledge our sins and shortcomings, and then change our ways by becoming better husbands, better fathers, better sons. May we from this time forward seek with all our might to walk steadfastly in the Savior's blessed way - for seeing ourselves clearly is the beginning of wisdom."
"As we do so, our bountiful God will lead us by the hand; we will 'be made strong, and blessed from on high.'" (D&C 1:28). ("Lord, Is It I?", President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Ensign, November 2014, 56-58).

I can bear a solemn and true testimony that when we ask God to show us our weakness and how we may overcome whatever tendencies to sin that impede our path, He will generously answer that humble prayer. There will be no holding back. You will be shown how to improve. When your prayers include how you may bless others through your influence, He also answers quickly and with precision. As you take action on the promptings, you will receive more and more. The cumulative effect can be inspiring and faith-building.

When we recognize tendencies to stray, to do evil, and to otherwise violate the basic operations of our conscience, we are not automatically and therefore evil in all things. Instead, evil only occurs when we submit to the tendencies and the temptations. (Mosiah 3:19). Remember, God has given us our mortal bodies through which these carnal or natural tendencies are presented to us so we may be blessed by "the enticings of the Holy Spirit," and thus become humble, penitent, and filled with faith in Christ. As we wander around in mortality, we may seek to overcome our own "natural man," and that includes being shown and coming to a full understanding of our personal weakness. By understanding that weakness, we will be better armed to completely overcome the temptations of the mortal flesh.

Remember, the grace of Christ is what delivers us as we repent and come unto Him. His perfect love for us is only possible because He paid the full price (no discounts) for our sins. It's what the qualifier, the big word IF means - "If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness." He will! He does! He liberates! He redeems! One of the most blessed scriptures I know provides eternal hope for all in these words:

"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. Behold, I will show unto the Gentiles their weakness and I will show unto them that faith, hope and charity bringeth unto me — the fountain of all righteousness" (Ether 12:27-28), emphasis mine.

C. S. Lewis

I loved what C. S. Lewis said about the ongoing nature of our quest for becoming more godlike while we toil here below in mortality:

"When a man turns to Christ and seems to be getting on pretty well (in the sense that some of his bad habits are now corrected), he often feels that it would now be natural if things went fairly smoothly. When troubles come along - illnesses, money troubles, new kinds of temptation - he is disappointed. These things, he feels, might have been necessary to rouse him and make him repent in his bad old days; but why now? Because God is forcing him on up, to a higher level: putting him into situations where he will have to be very much braver, or more patient, or more loving, than he ever dreamed of before. It seems to us all unnecessary: but that is because we have not yet not the slightest notion of the tremendous thing He means to make of us." (Mere Christianity, 174).

There is no end in our quest to be delivered from the struggles of our mortal condition, as Nephi reminds us by exclaiming:

"Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul. Do not anger again because of mine enemies. Do not slacken my strength because of mine afflictions. Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation. O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul? Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies? Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin? May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite! O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road! O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way — but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy.
"O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm. Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen." (2 Nephi 4:28-35).

I pray we may reach a little higher, try a little harder, be a little more understanding and patient with others, in short, to be a little more kind and solicitous of the needs of those around us. As we reach upward and outside ourselves, we discover our tendencies to sin because of our mortal weakness become less distracting.

Change Doctrine

I awoke this morning with my first conscious thought - embracing change in our lives is what brings improvement.



Let me illustrate. In my daily work I am tasked with introducing Packsize to businesses all across the country who have expressed not only an interest in our value proposition, but are committed to change. We deploy On Demand Packaging, an end-to-end supply chain improvement for corrugated paper. Our founder and CEO, Hanko Kiessner, is fond of asking the rhetorical question, "We can put a man on the moon, but we can't make the right-sized box?" His life's work is devoted to answering that question.

Businesses we target exist and continue to thrive in this country despite all the negativity and regulatory hurdles that swirl around them from the political class, because they are constantly evolving to a higher level of efficiency. They manage budgets. They seek profits. They employ people. They reject wasteful practices. They look for ways to innovate. They are rarely content with the status quo. They embrace disruptive technology like ours.

I train my team to look for the decision makers in organizations who are committed to these principles. Rarely do we have success by engaging low-level managers. When I talk to a purchasing manager who tells me, "We already have established relationships with corrugate suppliers," I know I am speaking to the wrong person. Those people exist for one reason only - to make the status quo work. They defend what they are doing. Change for some managers threatens their existence. No, I tell my team, those aren't the people we are interested in engaging for our conversation about change. We want strategic thinkers who are risk-takers; senior-level executives who are willing to extend themselves into the future lives of their companies. We want the people who are judged by their organizations on their willingness and courage to embrace change. We want the executives that understand change is painful but necessary for their future survival as a company.

Just yesterday, we engaged the strategic thinkers at Panasonic, US Auto Parts, Knoll Furniture, Bosch Rexroth, and Berry Plastics. These are each innovative and dynamic companies with an eye on the future. Our competitors might read this and look with envy on how we managed to engage these stellar companies. Am I worried? No. They cannot begin to compete with what we do and how we do it. We are agents of change, and initially we often impose painful realities on our clients. We get a commitment that they are open to exploring change. But invariably they thank us later. Our video testimonials are testament to that fact.

Our area managers, deployed now around the world, are not traditional salespeople. Instead, they are team captains who are adept at engaging the client with our engineers to develop customized solutions with an eye to improvement. The business case must be made to the satisfaction of each side. We invest a lot of up front consulting to discover the needs of our clients. We are confident in our ability to deliver that change with an accompanying significant cost reduction. We obliterate the status quo. And we are very profitable.

This pulsating Democrat political meme that corporations are somehow to be denigrated and criticized for making profits is wrong-headed and misguided. Profits in the hands of wise entrepreneurs are routinely re-invested and often plowed right back into the operations of their companies so they can continue to grow, thrive and prosper. THAT's where jobs come from. Anyone whose address is Washington D.C. cannot assert they create jobs. I've worked in the private sector my whole life. I can tell you who the job creators are. They are the innovators and the decision makers, the risk-takers, who routinely figure out ways to employ people and meet their payrolls and pay taxes.

They are people like Mitt Romney. They are NOT people like Barack Obama. We all know what makes America tick. In 2008, anxious for change, we made a mistake, but it was only an aberration and we can adjust and correct it this year.



Governments are NOT the solution to ANYTHING. They exist to serve us as the people, and for no other reason. We have allowed our federal government to consume and waste far too many of our resources. We  must now assert CHANGE on the political class on November 6th. We must take remedial action to improve as a country. It will be painful to some (those who don't embrace this year's change agent, Mitt Romney), but it must be done if we are to have any hope of changing the trajectory of America's future.

On a personal level in a gospel paradigm, think about what change means to you. It often comes under the label "repentance." I am not impressed with people who steadfastly reject repentance because they think it is just too painful. They defer, they procrastinate, and they resist change. They "manage" the status quo. I will never forget one young man I interviewed, when he said to me, "Bishop, I just don't want to repent fully because I love my sins too much." It startled me when he said it, but as I reflected later on his words, even after all these years, I realized he was speaking a marvelous truth. Change is often painful. Repentance is often hard at first. Stepping over the hurdles that would impair our desire to change, however, often brings improvement and innovation.

Many people tell me they feel "trapped" by their circumstances. Those people embrace a "victim mentality," suggesting that everything that is going on their lives is beyond their control. I remember so many disgruntled employees I worked with years ago at Zions First National Bank (back in the day), who hated everything they did on a daily basis, but refused to quit and find something better. I resolved I would never be one of them. They are in agony, most of them. They lament that things are the way they are, and they seem helpless to change and improve. They cite factors beyond their control as evidence of their inability to effect real and lasting change in their lives. Happiness seems to elude them. They find little joy in their daily existence.

These are fanciful falsehoods. Their author is the enemy to all righteousness.

In the gospel of Jesus Christ we encounter many seeming paradoxes that are worth considering. They may even be called "divine paradoxes." Let me give some examples and see if this is not true in your life.

"Come unto me, all ye that are labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28).

"Take my yoke upon you. . . and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-29).

"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." (Matthew 16:25).

To be brief, let me just say it - the quest for happiness in this life does NOT consist of lifting up our heads and glorying in our own strengths, skills and successes. Rather, happiness in this life consists in finding Him. That usually involves repentance. We will only repent if we believe He can heal us, and that requires faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Redeemer. He becomes the true change agent in our lives. We cannot bring about that needed change on our own. It takes someone who can help us manage through the needed changes for improvement. It takes perfection to make one perfect.

We often cite the 32nd chapter of Alma as the definitive explanation for what constitutes "faith." But upon more careful examination you will discover something much deeper. Alma was not making a general statement about faith in his teachings to the people, rather he was suggesting something very specific and singular about faith as the only unseen power that can change one's soul. That's more than saying, "I have faith the sun will rise in the morning skies to the east."

Alma teaches about having enough faith to begin "an experiment" on THE WORD. That experiment is about finding the truth about the divinity of Christ. Only a Divine Redeemer can effect an infinite and eternal change in us. And only Jesus Christ could offer an infinite and eternal sacrifice because He was Himself "infinite and eternal" by His very nature as the sinless Only Begotten Son of the Father.

In the next chapter, Alma, sensing they did not understand his meaning, offers this commentary on his words by citing his listeners back to the words of an ancient prophet, Zenos:

Do ye remember to have read what Zenos, the prophet of old, has said concerning prayer or worship?
For he said: Thou art merciful, O God, for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those who were mine enemies, and thou didst turn them to me.
Yea, O God, and thou wast merciful unto me when I did cry unto thee in my field; when I did cry unto thee in my prayer, and thou didst hear me.
And again, O God, when I did turn to my house thou didst hear me in my prayer.
And when I did turn unto my closet, O Lord, and prayed unto thee, thou didst hear me.
Yea, thou art merciful unto thy children when they cry unto thee, to be heard of thee and not of men, and thou wilt hear them.
Yea, O God, thou hast been merciful unto me, and heard my cries in the midst of thy congregations.
Yea, and thou hast also heard me when I have been cast out and have been despised by mine enemies; yea, thou didst hear my cries, and wast angry with mine enemies, and thou didst visit them in thine anger with speedy destruction.
And thou didst hear me because of mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is because of thy Son that thou hast been thus merciful unto me, therefore I will cry unto thee in all mine afflictions, for in thee is my joy; for thou hast turned thy judgments away from me, because of thy Son. (Alma 33:3-11).

And thus we find once again the power of The Book of Mormon. It is a book replete with references to people and their deliverance from sins and afflictions of all sorts based upon the merciful intervention of God in their lives. We always may find solace and comfort in THE WORD. When we exercise even a particle of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repent of our sins, and embrace His perfection, we are healed and we are on the way to perfection ourselves as we change from our fallen state. We see His mercy at work in our lives. In our anguish He succors us. He assures us change is possible and desirable so we may have the long-term improvements we seek. And it is more than disruptive new technology. . .

. . . It is the stuff of which eternal life is made.

The Fulness of the Gospel

The Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the gospel.

Gospel is a word one hears tossed loosely about in our modern world, but its meaning is defined in numerous ways. One fact remains -- the word is linked with scriptures and churches.  The Hebrew definition is simple.  It is usually translated as "glad tidings of great joy." The Greek translation is "good news." So what is the "good news" all about?  It's the redeeming blood of our Savior Jesus Christ as the integral centerpiece of a "plan" given to us by Heavenly Father.  The plan involves creation, birth, the fall, the atonement, redemption from the fall and our eventual return to Him.  Principles and ordinances of the gospel are involved.  We are invited again and again to enlist our full participation and involvement in the plan.

Many of these principles and ordinances are called "saving principles and ordinances."

Many have asked me over the years to define "the fulness of the gospel."  I always defer to the Prophet Joseph Smith in answering this question because of the knowledge he received in restoring those saving principles and ordinances.  What I think it means is never very useful. 

I have heard some sagacious high priests opine on this topic and conclude The Book of Mormon does not contain all the doctrines of the Restoration like temple marriage, the three degress of glory and baptism for the dead.  Therefore, they claim, the fulness of the gospel cannot be found therein.  They point to the Doctrine and Covenants as a more complete record teaching the fulness of the gospel.

If words mean anything, Moroni revealed to Joseph Smith "there was a book [The Book of Mormon] deposited, written upon gold plates. . . that [contained] the fulness of the everlasting Gospel. . . as delivered by the Savior to the ancient inhabitants" of this continent (Joseph Smith History 1:34). In the Doctrine and Covenants the Lord says several times The Book of Mormon does contain the fulness of the gospel (D&C 20:9; D&C 27:5; D&C 35:12, 17; D&C 42:12).

First reference to the fulness of the gospel in The Book of Mormon occurs when our resurrected Lord  commands the Nephites to record his words.  The purpose, He explained, was so His words could be brought forth among the Gentiles in the latter days so "the fulness of these things shall be made known among them." (3 Nephi 16:4, 7).

We are warned in the record the latter-day Gentiles would sin against the gospel and reject the fulness of the gospel.  He mentions specifically what those sins would be and describes them as "all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations" and clarifies the rejection of the fulness of the gospel will cause Him to bring the fulness of the gospel from among them (3 Nephi 16:8-10).

I've often pondered what that would look like.  Would it mean our missionaries would be withdrawn from certain places in the last days because the people reject them?  Are there gentile nations who would so fully reject the Word, causing us to withdraw?  Even as I write this I note there are many European missons currently being combined and consolidated, as the Church redeploys finite missionary resources into more fertile fields of labor.

References from Moroni, the Doctrine and Covenants and The Book of Mormon itself all show The Book of Mormon contains the fulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. By letting the scriptures define our terms, the fulness of the gospel and the gospel are used interchangeably in The Book of Mormon.

The term gospel is defined by the Savior in 3 Nephi 27:9-22 as His coming to the earth to do the Father's will. As He was lifted up on the cross by men, so will all people eventually be lifted up and judged by the standards the Savior laid down for them as He taught them in person.

There are four specific conditions set forth for those who would obtain salvation from the effects of the fall of Adam and Eve:  (1) They have washed their garments in His blood through faith in His atoning sacrifice; (2) they have repented of all their sins; (3) they have been baptized in His name, which implies by the proper authority and method He outlined for them; and (4) they have been sanctified by receiving the Holy Ghost.

Those who meet the conditions He set forth and subsequently endure in their faith in His redemption to the end of their mortal lives will be "lifted up" at the last day.

This definition of the gospel or the fulness of the gospel is totally consistent with three of the Lord's definitions of the gospel we find in the Doctrine and Covenants (D&C 33:11-12; D&C 39:5-6; and D&C 76:40-43).

While the high priests who continue to debate the point are somewhat accurate in that there are some principles of the gospel and doctrines which are not included in The Book of Mormon, all that is necessary -- the fulness of the gospel -- to lead a person to salvation in the celestial kingdom is included.  In the Doctrine and Covenants we have additional revelations coming later through the Prophet Joseph Smith about entrance into the highest degree of the celestial kingdom. These doctrines of exaltation include eternal marriage, salvation for our dead ancestors, and three heavens or degrees in the celestial glory (D&C 131:1-4).

Though they cannot be found in The Book of Mormon, some of these doctrines are implied.  (See 4 Nephi 1:11; also 3 Nephi 25:5-6; Ether 12:32).

I have written before about the difference between power and authority in the priesthood, so a lengthy explanation is not needed here.  But when the blessings of the Melchizedek Priesthood and the Holy Ghost are bestowed upon men (and women as outlined in previous posts), they may obtain through their faithfulness the power to receive all things the Father gives to His children. The doctrines of exaltation are bestowed through these powers. The Book of Mormon teaches the necessity of man's receiving both the priesthood and the Holy Ghost, noting all mankind may be exalted through these powers. (Alma 13:10-12).

In the great debates among the high priests (and they are many), the problem is too much repetition of only casual and occasional readings of the scriptures tending to mislead. If we did nothing more than embrace the fourth Article of Faith we would find a perfect recitation of the first principles and ordinances of the gospel as taught in The Book of Mormon. All the steps of the fulness of the gospel are mentioned there and are ongoing, demanding a lifetime of dedication and effort to complete.

When are we done with faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, burying our old man of sin and walking in a newness of life in obedience to the promptings of the Holy Ghost? 

The initial embrace of the first principles and ordinances of the gospel only places us on the path leading to eternal life. Perpetual feasting at the banquet table of the doctrines contained in The Book of Mormon empowers us to the fulness of the gospel.  We continue our journey of unknown length and complexity in the path of mortality until we are granted eternal life.

The Savior's own definition of the gospel, as He gave it to the Nephites, amplifies the path to eternal life. He testified He came into the world to do the will of the Father -- He "be lifted up upon the cross." (3 Nephi 27:13-14). His being lifted up on the cross at Golgotha was the culminating event of His ministry following His agony in Gethsemane. John corroborates this conclusion by recording that Jesus, after being lifted up, knew all things were now accomplished. (John 19:28).

We are faced with this unavoidable reality as fallen mortals:  The Savior told the Nephites "no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; . . . nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith."  We can only hope to enter his kingdom if we are clean, and we can only be clean through our faith in His perfection.  His garments were stained by His own blood as He voluntarily took upon Himself the stain of our sins, leaving our garments white and pure. This washing was done through "the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end." (3 Nephi 27:19).

Even before the atonement had been made, knowing that it would be made (see Mosiah 16:6), all mankind are commanded to repent. (3 Nephi 27:19-20). This principle is expanded in The Book of Mormon. Amulek taught Zeezrom, "the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins." (Helaman 5:10). Repentance from all sins is clearly an ongoing process.  That's why a one-time confession of the need for Christ is simply insufficient.

I have observed over a lifetime this unavoidable and sometimes uncomfortable truth -- the more I learn about the gospel the more my knowledge expands of the things for which I need to repent.  That ongoing process is what brings us closer to sanctification in the blood of the Lamb.  Nephi expressed it beautifully, and from the time I first read his words as a teenager until now there is always instant recognition of myself.  He spoke of "the sins which do so easily beset me." The sins which agonize his soul are he slackens his strength because of his afflictions and is angry because of his enemies.  (2 Nephi 4:15-29). That's a highly developed sensitivity to the things of the Spirit that would never afflict one who is ambivalent or careless in his privileges with the Spirit. 

That's why it's a process and we partake of the emblems of his death in the sacrament once a week in order to retain a remission of our sins.  (Mosiah 4:26).

When we obey the initial commandment to repent, we learn the commandment also includes coming unto Christ and being "baptized in [his] name." (3 Nephi 27:20). The Savior gave the Nephites explicit instructions regarding baptism. He had also given them authority to baptize, taught them immersion was the proper method of baptism, and gave them the exact wording to be used in the baptismal prayer. (3 Nephi 11:21-27).

In his definition of the gospel, the Savior specifies the purpose of baptism:  It is to receive the Holy Ghost. The gospel plan is that the person on whom the Holy Ghost is conferred "may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost" and thus stand spotless before Christ at the last day. (3 Nephi 27:20).

We must be born again through a baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost. (3 Nephi 9:20). Baptism places us on the path to eternal life.  After than, we must then press forward as led by the Spirit. (2 Nephi 31:17-20; Moroni 8:25-26). Through obedience to the principles and the saving ordinances of the gospel administered by the priesthood, we are sanctified. To become sanctified is to become "pure and spotless before God."

This means being pure in thoughts and actions, not being able to "look upon sin save it were with abhorrence." (Alma 13:11-12). However, there is a difference between looking on sin with abhorrence and looking on the sinner.

Recently, in our Professional Placement Program networking meeting on a Monday morning, a transsexual appeared at the door for the first time.  Participants in the room observing her entrance were at first startled, then amazed at the warmth and solicitude with which she was greeted by the professional staff, all of whom are volunteers.  She was invited to participate and receive all the workshops and tools with which we equip job seekers.  Many participants commented later how kindly she was received and encouraged.  She explained her bishop had invited her to attend the meeting.  May God bless the patient and loving bishops in this Church!  Later that week in our staff meeting we all commented on our abhorrence about her obvious choices, but not one had anything but the desire to help this child of our Heavenly Father as a person in her pragmatic need to find employment.

When the meeting was coming to a conclusion, I observed a man on the front row and approached him to say the benediction at the close of the meeting.  He demurred at first.  "I can't."  Pressing gently, I asked why.  "I've been excommunicated," he explained, "I shouldn't even be here."  Then I had a chance to invite him nevertheless to offer the prayer.  "We don't keep a scorecard here."  In our networking meetings sponsored in the dedicated building of the LDS Business College, we invite everyone to participate, regardless of religion, race, ethnic origin, or membership status.  That includes excommunicated Mormons.  With obvious emotion he thanked me for the invitation and offered a sincere and heartfelt expression in a public prayer.  I do not know how long it had been since he had prayed publicly in a dedicated Church building, but it was obvious he was grateful for the opportunity and accepted the invitation. 

All our Father's children, regardless of their current situation in mortality have access to the Spirit of the Holy Ghost, the Comforter.  The evidence this is true is as fresh as the last networking meeting.

In the words of Joseph Smith, "God does not look on sin with allowance, but when men have sinned, there must be allowance made for them." (TPJS, 240-41).

The fulness of the gospel, as the Lord Jesus Christ defined it to the Nephites, means a lifelong process of seeking eternal life.  It involves choices and accountability, but it also allows for abundant mercy and love.  There is obviously far too much "breakage" along the way, and ample provision has been made by our Savior to reclaim ALL of Heavenly Father's children.

After defining what the gospel is, the Savior taught the Nephites to continue doing the works in his church which they had seen him do. (3 Nephi 27:21). He commanded them to write the things he had taught, which would judge the world. (3 Nephi 27:23-26). His teachings are the path for living in happiness. His teachings include enduring to the end of our mortal lives. (2 Nephi 9:24; 2 Nephi 31:15-16, 20; Alma 32:13, 15; 3 Nephi 15:9).

It has been said enduring is a fifth step in the gospel plan, but it is really part of the fourth step of becoming pure and spotless before God.

These examples of following the Savior and His Apostles in their teachings were recorded in the Bible, but since the Bible has lost many plain and precious parts (see 1 Nephi 13:23-29; also TPJS, 327 and the eighth Article of Faith), the Lord has provided The Book of Mormon, the most correct book, to outline more clearly the plan given by our eternal Heavenly Father to return to His presence.

Although the world rejects The Book of Mormon as scripture, a prayerful examination of its contents will prove to the sincere seeker of truth it absolutely qualifies as holy scripture.  There can be no other explanation for its origin.