Zion will not be brought forth without the Lord guiding the
work. It will not be realized
without His stamp of approval. It
is impossible that man can bring forth a community of people who are of one
heart and one mind with no poor among them, let alone an actual city, without
the aid of heaven.
That being said, there is something we can do here and now,
if not only on an experimental basis.
Therefore, maybe the words that follow are informative more than
anything else, because without the Lord’s hand involved we probably will not be
able to implement any of the ideas I set forth, as they require a serious
commitment, the like of which is not found anywhere on the earth (at least that
I am aware of).
With grief and based on my personal observations, I do not believe the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints is interested in bringing forth Zion. Neither is any other Christian
sect. The rest of the world is not
even aware of such a concept. The
scriptures show that Zion is going to be a grass-roots effort. It will come forth from the ground up,
not the top down, so a while ago I started praying for further light and
knowledge regarding Zion. I
desired with all my heart to be part of Zion, but based on what I saw in the
Church, Zion was not going to be a result of the Church’s efforts. I prayed for guidance. The Lord started showing me books to
read, and through those books I met many like-minded individuals who also wanted
to be part of Zion.
As a result of my prayers, I associate with many people
whose greatest desire is to bring forth and be part of Zion. These people for the most part are
serious students of the scriptures, Church history and Israelite history. A few of them have seen the Lord face
to face. Many others regularly
converse with angels or have dreams, visions and other spiritual
manifestations.
For years, I always thought I was alone in my deep-felt
desires for and commitment to studying these sorts of things, but ever since I
have met and began mingling with these friends, I no longer feel as isolated in
my quest to see God and bring forth Zion.
For the first time in my life, I feel like I am not the only one who
reads the scriptures with a real desire to gain further light and knowledge,
who reads the scriptures and studies history looking for truth and cold hard
facts, not to validate something the Church proposes, but the real truth. We meet together oft to partake of the
sacrament, praise God, sing, worship, pray and study together, pay and
distribute tithing according to people’s needs, etc. Indeed it could be said that these gatherings are planting the
seeds for Zion.
In contrast, the Church does not do this. The Church has worship
services where we can pray and sing, but the Church doesn’t ever talk about
Zion. The Church collects
tithing, but those funds don’t go to the poor. I do not see that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints offers what I am being offered right now. The Church is filled with members who
buy everything the leaders say and do.
They give the leaders full discretion how to use their tithes, despite
the fact that investing in City Creek Mall, full-featured films that extoll
themselves and expensive electronic billboards in Times Square New York are all
evidence that the leaders are not using the money to bring forth Zion. Once per month members of the Church meet
and bear testimony to the fact that their leaders can’t lead them astray and
that the Church is true. It is
like one big Rameumptom meeting. I
just can’t do it anymore. It seems the
Church is getting farther away from Zion, not closer.
If the Church’s purpose is NOT to bring forth Zion, then
what is it? The Church claims its purpose is expressed in the three-fold
mission of the Church, which is to (1) proclaim the gospel, (2) redeem the dead
and (3) perfect the saints. If
that is the purpose of the Church, then there are three huge problems: (1) The
gospel the Church Proclaims
administers to the people changed ordinances, ordinances that the Lord decreed
should never be altered. (2) Redeeming
the dead is based on the false doctrine that “the fathers” we should seal
ourselves to are our ancestors, not the real “fathers,” Adam, Noah, Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob, et al. (3) Perfecting the
saints is based on the idea that the leaders won’t, indeed can’t, lead us
astray while it is obvious they do lead us astray.
It seems I am more interested in bringing forth Zion than
the Church is. My friends are more
interested in seeking God’s face and establishing Zion than the Church is as
well. Our Church’s leaders do not
seem to care about the subject of Zion, and the common lay members seem to
follow suit. There is a general
ignorance that permeates the Church from the top to the bottom toward the
subject of Zion, which is surprising to me because in the early days of the
Church, Zion was one of the central topics of discussion. That subject is practically
non-existent today.
Moses 7:18 reads: “And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and
dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them.”
That succinctly describes exactly what Zion is. Zion is a gathering of like-minded
people who know the Lord and take care of each other. Eventually the
gathering of like-minded people will build an actual city called Zion.
If the inhabitants of Zion are going to dwell in righteousness then it goes without saying that sin is a hindrance to
Zion, but sin is a broad word meaning many different things to different people, so for the sake of
this blog post I will classify sins into four main categories. The categories are:
1.
Sin – Sin
is not the easiest thing to define because people come from many different
levels of light and backgrounds, and “unto whom much
is given much is
required” (D&C 82:3), so what is sinful to one person might not be
considered a sin to another.
However, generally speaking, sin is thinking, saying or doing anything
that is contrary to what you believe is God’s will. Therefore, a belief in God or a Higher Power makes it easier
to define the word sin, because
without a belief in a Higher Power, then there would be no sin to that
individual, for there would be no knowledge to him of God’s will. There would only be misbehavior
according to how society defines it, but misbehavior is not the same thing as
sin. Misbehavior is the same as
transgression. You can transgress
certain man-made laws, but that is not necessarily a sin, per se. Transgressing is comparable to running
a stoplight, whereas sin is committing murder, lying, adultery, stealing,
etc. We innately know when we
sin. However, just because a
belief in God is beneficial to define sin, that does not mean if we discard our
belief in God, we absolve ourselves of sin. It means that if we believe in God, we are held to a higher
standard of conduct. That being
said, we all have light within us, a basic knowledge from birth of right from
wrong or good from evil, and it is as easy to discern between the two as
discerning between day and night.
When we go against that light or knowledge and choose evil over good,
then that is sin. Therefore, even
someone who does not believe in God is capable of committing sin. King Benjamin said this about sin: “And
finally, I cannot tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin; for there
are divers ways and means, even so many that I cannot number them. But
this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts,
and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and
continue in the faith of what ye have heard concerning the coming of our Lord,
even unto the end of your lives, ye must perish” (Mosiah 4:29).
2.
Iniquity
- Iniquity has to do with unfairness,
injustice, partiality, or inequality in any form. It is favoritism, prejudice, racism, exclusivity or
discrimination. It is arrogance,
cockiness, self-righteousness or pride in ourselves. It takes credit.
It is vain. It is competitive,
greedy, selfish and ambitious.
Iniquity holds a grudge and withholds forgiveness. It is any thought, word or behavior that is designed to makes
someone higher, greater or better than someone else. When a person creates or perpetuates inequality between him
and others, making himself above or better than others, then iniquity exists. Once I read a bumper-sticker type
message that expressed iniquity perfectly. It read, “We were all humans until race disconnected us,
religion separated us, politics divided us, and wealth classified us.” More often than not, iniquity relates
to people who are in positions of authority over others like a powerful figure,
such as a king, or a regular position, like a father. As a matter of fact, the scriptures contain references to
the iniquity of kings, priests or fathers more than any other type of
person. Hierarchies in
organizations, institutions, churches, governments, etc. are iniquity. Caste systems, whether lawfully
enforced or willingly embraced, are iniquity. Priestcrafts are a very serious type of iniquity. Priestcrafts are when men set
themselves up as a light and/or make money because of it. It is iniquity “when we… exercise
control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any
degree of unrighteousness” (D&C 121:37). When we exercise iniquity in any form, the Spirit is grieved
and the powers of heaven, the angels, withdraw themselves.
3.
Abominations – the word abomination is used to describe a sin that is approved or
sanctioned in the name of religion. Abominations are sinful behaviors
performed under the guise of sanctity, supported by the scriptures. They
are religious justifications of wrongdoing. A minor example would be
believing falsehoods or in embracing foolish and vain traditions as if they
were God’s will, such as believing the Word of Wisdom is a commandment. A more serious abomination is believing
that it is acceptable to place a man (Thomas S. Monson), men (the First
Presidency or the quorum of the Twelve) or an institution (the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints) between you and the Lord. Another serious example is when the
Church withheld the priesthood from men of African descent. That was
racism, but the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints condoned the idea
in the name of religion. Racism is not only iniquitous; it is an
abomination before the Lord.
Another abomination, one closer to our day, is when the Church spent
billions of dollars of the Lord’s money to build a high-end shopping mall that
promotes worldliness, consumerism, materialism, credit card debt, etc., and
then because of the clout the Church leaders have with its members, the leaders
are able to convince their subordinates that it was done for a higher godly purpose,
such as attract tourists to Salt Lake City to bring people to Zion. City Creek Mall in Salt Lake City is an
abomination. It is literally the
Babylon of today’s world.
4.
Secret
Combinations – Secret combinations
are the modern equivalent to conspiracies. It is too bad that people who believe
there are conspiracies are considered whack-jobs. I believe everyone knows there are conspiracies all around
us in everything, but the topic is not discussed openly because it is taboo. People get labeled as a “Conspiracy
Theorist” if they entertain thoughts of these things. To bring up the subject of conspiracies makes one vulnerable
to being considered paranoid or delusional. However, if we believe in the Book of Mormon then we must
accept the idea of the existence of conspiracies. The Book of Mormon is a record of two civilizations from the
past that fell because of conspiracies and Moroni prophesied about our modern-day conspiracies. In addition to the conspiracies spoken
of in the Book of Mormon, God revealed the Word of Wisdom to us nowadays because "of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of
conspiring men in the last days” (D&C 89:4). In light of this verse why we trust our food manufacturers
and pharmaceutical companies is beyond my comprehension. Why we think the conspiracies described in the Word of Wisdom
only point a finger at the alcohol and tobacco industries also defies my
ability to think straight. Conspiracies
exist in every major facet of government, religion, politics, economics,
warfare, and commerce. Our
military industrial complex and the wars in which we are engaged are based on
lies. The Federal Reserve, our
fiat money and our banking system are based on lies. Our criminal justice system and the prison industrial
complex are based on lies.
Big-pharma, genetic science, and other health-related industries are
based on lies. Our educational
system is based on lies. Our
agriculture and food science, food manufacturing and supply are all based on
lies. Our medical science and
technology are based on lies. Our
energy and transportation sectors are based on lies. Our lives are practically controlled by behemoth and corrupt
corporations driven only by filthy lucre.
There are not very many things left today that are untainted by secret
combinations. Because of the
conspiracies Moroni saw that would exist in our day, he describes our situation
as “Awful!” (Ether 8:22-25), and tells us we need to “Wake up!”
If we were to broadly rank the acts of
offending God or behaving contrary to His will, it would be thus: (1) sin,
(2) iniquity, (3) abominations, and (4) secret combinations. Each level of sin is progressively
worse than the previous one. Sin
begets iniquity, iniquity begets abominations, and abominations beget secret
combinations. I recognize there is
overlap in these categories. For
example, murder is a heinous sin that far exceeds in severity the abomination
of believing some false doctrines, but generally these categories are sound.
Let us analyze these four categories relative to Zion. To make it easy in the analysis we will
only determine if any of these categories will exist in Zion – Yes or No.
- Sin – Yes. Penitent sinners will exist in Zion. They will not be perfect. They will still commit sins. Grievous sins like murder, adultery or the like will not exist in Zion, but the people will still do things that grieve the Spirit (Matthew 22:10), but they will know how to retain a remission of their sins.
- Iniquity – No. There will be no iniquity in Zion.
- Abominations – No. Absolutely not. There will be no traces of abominations in Zion.
- Secret Combinations – No. Absolutely not. There will be no traces of conspiracies in Zion.
We read the well-known verse where it says, “And the Lord called his people Zion, because they were of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them” (Moses 7:18). In my opinion, righteousness as it is used in this verse is not the absence of sin. It is the absence of iniquity. The builders and inhabitants of Zion are considered “righteous” and are “of one heart and one mind” because they have no iniquity.
The problem of iniquity is a bigger issue than we
realize. Generally people think
iniquity is synonymous with sin, and they’d be correct, because iniquity is sinful. However, iniquity is more grievous
because it pits man against each other.
It creates enmity between men. There is absolutely no way for Zion to exist if iniquity
exists within the hearts of its people.
We live in an iniquitous world. Our temple ceremony teaches that we are currently living in
a telestial world. In my view this
is literal, not symbolic, so we should take note that the ‘The Vision” in
D&C 76 teaches us that our glory is “as innumerable as the stars in the
firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore” (verse 109), and that
“as one star differs from another star in glory, even so differs one from
another in glory in the telestial world” (verse 98). Using the infinite variety of shades, colors and brightness of
the stars to describe us and our lives on this earth is a perfect way to
represent the population of this world.
There is enmity between all of us, even among church members and good
people. We are all at variance
with each other, yet we live on the same globe, so we are one, thus “the glory
of the telestial is one, even as the glory of the stars is one” (verse 98). Our world is a telestial
world because we are all unequal due to iniquity. The iniquity of the world makes the differences between the
stars an apt metaphor of this world.
Compare that with the description of the terrestrial world,
where the glory is compared to that of the moon (D&C 76:71; 1 Corinthians 15:41).
There is only one moon, not many like the number of stars. The glory of the moon is the glory of
the Son of God. Its glory waxes
and wanes, but not through innumerable phases, but through a finite cycle of
phases. The phases do not testify
of various degrees of glory for mankind; rather they testify that the Lord went
from grace to grace, exaltation to exaltation, until he obtained the fullness,
and that we are required to do the same thing, worlds without number, until we,
like Him also attain unto the resurrection of the dead. The occupants of the terrestrial
kingdom, of which the glory of the moon is symbolic, are all unified. They are of one heart and one mind,
which is very different than iniquity, which is symbolized by the stars. Terrestrial beings retain a remission
of their sins and have risen above iniquity, and they have become one with
Christ, thus are compared with the glory of the moon. There is no iniquity in the terrestrial kingdom. Likewise there is no iniquity in Zion,
because Zion is patterned after the terrestrial kingdom.
Anciently, iniquity was a serious enough offense that when a
member of the church of Christ was found guilty of it and they did not repent,
then their name was “blotted out” from among the list of names of the people of
Christ. (Moroni 6:7) “And those that would not confess their
sins and repent of their iniquity, the same were
not numbered among the people of the church, and their names were blotted out.”
(Mosiah 26:36). People were not
kicked out of the true Church of Christ because of sin, but because of
iniquity. Repentance and
confession for sins were required for entrance into the Church, but being
guilty of iniquity was cause to have your name blotted out from the Church.
(Mosiah 26:35). The
Book of Mormon shows in plain simplicity the religion Christ wants mankind to
follow, and that religion is the Church of Christ described my Moroni, and the
Church of the Firstborn and the Church of Enoch described in the Vision, which
will descend with Him in the clouds on the last day. It is the pure in heart, who know Christ, for they will see
Him as He is and they will be like Him.
That is Zion.
The true Church of Christ where iniquity is non-existent has
risen and fallen in the past. The reason
the Nephites’ Golden Era after Christ appeared to them ended after nearly two
hundred years of peace was because of iniquity. Little by little inequality began entering into their
society. Alma prophesied that it
would happen too. He said the
Nephites would lose their Zion-like society because of iniquity (Alma
45:10-14). I’ve condensed the
material of the Nephites’ Golden Age to keep only the relevant information:
-
4 Nephi1:3 - And they had all things common among them; therefore there were not
rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the
heavenly gift.
-
4 Nephi 1:13 - And it came to pass that there was no
contention among all the people, in all the land
-
4 Nephi 1:15-18 - And it came to pass that there was no
contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the
hearts of the people… There could not be a happier people among all the people
who had been created by the hand of God… They were in one, the children of
Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God.
And how blessed were they! For the Lord did bless them in all their
doings; yea, even they were blessed and prospered until an hundred and ten
years had passed away; and the first generation from Christ had passed away.
-
4 Nephi1:20 - There was still peace in the land, save it were a small part of the
people who had revolted from the church and taken upon them the name of
Lamanites; therefore there began to be Lamanites again in the land. (194
years after Christ appeared to them – This is the first evidence of iniquity.)
-
4 Nephi 1:24-28 - And now, in this two hundred and first year there began
to be among them those who were lifted up in pride, such as the wearing of
costly apparel, and all manner of fine pearls, and of the fine things of the
world. And from that time forth
they did have their goods and their substance no more common among them. And they began to be divided into
classes; and they began to build up churches unto themselves to get gain... And it came to pass that when two
hundred and ten years had passed away there were many churches in the land;
yea, there were many churches which professed to know the Christ, and yet they
did deny the more parts of his gospel...
And this church did multiply exceedingly because of iniquity, and because of the power of Satan who did get hold upon
their hearts. (Pride, costly apparel, fine things of the
world, things not being common among them anymore, being divided into classes,
supporting churches to get gain, etc. – all of these things are iniquity.)
-
4 Nephi 1:29-35 - And again, there was another church which denied the
Christ; and they did persecute the true church of Christ, because of their
humility and their belief in Christ; and they did despise them because of the
many miracles which were wrought among them. Therefore they did exercise power and authority over the
disciples of Jesus who did tarry with them, and they did cast them into prison;
but by the power of the word of God, which was in them, the prisons were rent
in twain, and they went forth doing mighty miracles among them. Nevertheless, and notwithstanding all
these miracles, the people did harden their hearts, and did seek to kill them,
even as the Jews at Jerusalem sought to kill Jesus, according to his word. And they did cast them into furnaces of
fire, and they came forth receiving no harm. And they also cast them into dens of wild beasts, and they
did play with the wild beasts even as a child with a lamb; and they did come
forth from among them, receiving no harm.
Nevertheless, the people did harden their hearts, for they were led by
many priests and false prophets to build up many churches, and to do all manner
of iniquity. And they did smite upon
the people of Jesus; but the people of Jesus did not smite again. And thus they
did dwindle in unbelief and wickedness, from year to year, even until two
hundred and thirty years had passed away.
And now it came to pass in this year, yea, in the two hundred and thirty
and first year, there was a great division among the people. (At this point in Nephite history, iniquity
had taken full sway, and they were ripening for destruction. Power and authority were exercised over,
or, in other words, iniquity was exercised over the three Nephites and the
humble followers of Christ.)
A little bit of iniquity creeping in is all it took to plant
the seed of destruction of a whole civilization. It does the same thing on a smaller scale within families
too. Read about when Lehi’s and
Ishmael’s families were on the ship to America:
“And it came to pass that we were
about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the
space of four days, my brethren began to see that the judgments of God were
upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their
iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon
my wrists, and behold they had swollen exceedingly; and also mine ankles were
much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof” (1 Nephi 18:15).
These are just two of many examples in the scriptures that
show iniquity exists everywhere from small families to bigger
civilizations. It characterizes all
of us, all of mankind. But it
doesn’t have to. It’s one thing
that has got to go before we can usher in a new way of doing things, a new
world of peace, Zion.
We all live in this fallen telestial world, and as long as we
do, we will be under the bondage of sin.
However, we can’t just waltz into Zion in a sinful state of being. We still need to repent. That is why we have a savior, to
cleanse us from sin. We gain
forgiveness through repenting with faith on the Lord Jesus. We are commanded to repent. Repentance of our sins is mandatory,
especially if we want to be part of Zion.
But even though sinners will exist in Zion, it will only be
penitent sinners, sinners who are broken and contrite, who desire nothing more
than to be clean from sin. With
faith in Jesus Christ and sincerity we can confess, repent of and forsake our
sins, and obtain forgiveness from God, but chances are we will still continue
to sin. We can be considered cleansed
from our sins through repentance.
However, the next day, tomorrow, or whenever it happens, we will sin
again.
Therefore, we need a way to retain a remission of our
sins. We will not overcome sin in
this life, but we can overcome iniquity thereby retaining a remission of our
sins, and as a bonus by overcoming iniquity we completely avoid abominations
and secret combinations. Zion will
not be a place of sinless people, but it will be a place where sin is in
remission and it will be a place devoid of iniquity, abominations and secret
combinations.
We should not be in the practice of repenting every single
day. That implies we sin every day. The Prophet said, “Repentance is a
thing that cannot be trifled with every day. Daily transgression and daily
repentance is not that which is pleasing in the sight of God” (DHC 3:379). That being said, we should still repent
if we have sinned, but perhaps more importantly we should be retaining a
remission of our sins every day. Remission
of sins is defined as the long-term efficacy of obtaining forgiveness from the
Lord, where we can “walk guiltless before God” and remain clean before
Him. This is obtained by
“imparting of [our] substance to the poor, every man according to that which he
hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and
administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to
their wants” (Mosiah 4:26). Remission
of sins is obtained by obeying the golden rule, which is to treat others the
way we want to be treated. That is
the same as keeping iniquity away.
Retaining a remission of sins from day to day and consciously
eliminating iniquity in this manner is part of bringing forth Zion. King Benjamin in the previous verse was
talking about people being able to retain a remission of their sins by living
free of iniquity. This was the beginning of a Zion-like
community among the people of King Benjamin. It never matured into Zion, but it tried but the next
generous blew it.
In the parable of the marriage of the King’s son we read
that “both good and bad” (Matthew 22:10) people were ultimately in
attendance. This implies even
sinners were there. As the story
goes it tells about a guest who is not wearing “the wedding garment” so he is
kicked out of the feast (Matthew 22:11-13). This wedding garment is placed upon “both good and bad” people
in order to cover their sins so they can be part of the wedding feast, or be
part of the “kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 22:2), or Zion. This wedding garment is the same as the
coat of skins that were placed upon Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. It is also the same as the garment of
the holy priesthood which members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints wear daily underneath their clothing. This garment symbolizes the covering of our sins through our
faith in Christ. When God looks
upon us, if we are covered in a wedding garment, a coat of skins or the garment
of the priesthood, then He sees the image of Christ and extends unto us a
remission of sin.
Joseph Smith said, “charity covereth a multitude of sins”
(DHC 4:445). The wedding garment,
the coat of skins and our garments symbolize charity. It is also described as a cloak of charity. This cloak of charity is the same thing
as that which is required of us to retain a remission of our sins. Constant daily repentance seems to be a
fruitless practice. It focuses on
individual sins and frustrates the sinner more than it alleviates him. A more effective way to overcome sin is
by turning to God, asking for forgiveness and thereafter retaining a remission
of sins by putting on the wedding garment. The wedding garment is put on ourselves by treating others
in the same way we want to be treated.
It is by eliminating iniquity from among us. Then we can become Zion-like. Becoming Zion-like has less to do with being sin-free or
sinless, and more to do with retaining a remission of sins.
Living free from iniquity is the same as retaining a
remission of sins. It is the same
as having a cloak of charity upon our shoulders. It is imparting of our substance to the poor, every man
according to that which he has, such as feeding the hungry, visiting the sick
and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according
to their wants. Doing those things
is the very act of eliminating iniquity.
It is exactly one of the main things that we need to do in order to
bring forth Zion.
Eliminating iniquity from our midst is imperative if we are
going to become a Zion-like people.
We must repent of our iniquities if we are going to be Zion. Doing those things set forth by King
Benjamin is what it means to be of one heart and one mind and to be righteous. The inequality, the injustice, the
unfairness, the vanity, the greed, the selfishness, holding onto grudges,
keeping others in our debt, etc. are put away when we begin to live in such a
way as to take care of every one both temporally and spiritually.
The sin of iniquity has existed since the dawn of time. Over time iniquitous individuals
combine and without even being aware of it, they establish norms, standards and
laws protecting their iniquity.
This probably happened without a formal plan, but if there was a formal
plan to organize iniquity, then that is considered a secret combination, which
we’re really not discussing in this blog post.
We are all fallen and desire to compete against others and protect
ourselves. It is according to
human nature to be iniquitous. The
problem is that human nature is not in accordance with God, and has been in
opposition with God from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever
(Mosiah 3:19). In order to overcome
our fallen nature we need to
“yield to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and put off the natural man
and become a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and become as a
child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to
all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth
submit to his father” (Mosiah 3:19).
Therefore, because we don’t put off the natural man and seek to become
Godlike, we always end up in societies distinguished by sin and iniquity that
eventually become filled with abominations and secret combinations.
Iniquity sets the standard for the world. Practically everything we live by is
iniquitous. The paradigm under
which we all live could go by the name Iniquity. It is secret in that no one recognizes or identifies it as
iniquitous, yet it exists in plain sight everywhere. Sure, we have made positive strides in some iniquitous
things such as racism or women’s rights, so we can claim progress over these things,
but these problems wouldn’t even exist if it weren’t for iniquity. The reason racism is not completely
eradicated is because some people revel in iniquity and they get gain from
it. The same could be said of
women’s rights.
Iniquity even permeates our Church. Here are some basic more obvious examples: Confession of sins to bishops and stake
presidents is iniquitous. There is
not one single verse of scripture that requires members of Christ’s church to
confess sins to a bishop or stake president. When a bishop tells a sincerely contrite and penitent person to
discontinue partaking of the sacrament that is iniquity on the leader's part. It has been my experience that when I have
asked the Lord for forgiveness, he gives it to me immediately on the spot. The fact that there is a hierarchy of leaders, both on the
local level and on the general authority level, is evidence of iniquity. The fact that the Relief Society has to
report to the men is iniquitous.
Tithing settlements are iniquitous. Several of our temple recommend interview questions are
iniquitous. Home teaching
statistics are iniquitous.
Salaries for Mission Presidents, Seventies, the Twelve and the First
Presidency are iniquitous, let alone they manifest priestcraft. The correlated curriculum for Sunday
School classes is iniquitous. The
standardized dress code (white shirts and ties) for young men who administer
the sacrament is iniquitous. The self-righteousness in Fast and Testimony meetings where people publicly declare they know the Church is the only true and living Church on the face of the whole earth, or they express how thankful they are that they have the fulness of the gospel and the priesthood is iniquitous. I
could go on and on. The iniquity
in the Church is thick, but no one sees it or says anything about it, because
to do so would be to “speak evil of the Lord’s anointed.” After all, all of the things I
described above came from the “prophets, seers and revelators” of the Church.
We need to rise above our current system of living. We live in a world that is literally
filled with sin, iniquity, abominations and secret combinations. We are ripe for destruction. It is of utmost importance and urgency for
us to start a new way of living.
Just like as in times of old, we live in a society where iniquity is
protected by laws. Think of when
King Noah and his priests “Were supported in their laziness, and in their
idolatry, and in their whoredoms, by the taxes which king Noah had put upon his
people; thus did the people labor exceedingly to support iniquity”
(Mosiah 11:6). The same can be
said of our Congress. The laws of
this country are increasingly oppressive, yet the legislators are not obligated
to abide by many of them. They can
vote themselves raises, while the cost of living increases and the remainder of
the people suffer.
Iniquity is practiced by groups of people embracing iniquity
without them even knowing it. Such
was the case when the people of King Noah were later put into bondage to the
Lamanites and they were desirous to repent but had not figured how to yet:
“And now the Lord was slow to hear
their cry because of their iniquities; nevertheless the Lord did hear their cries, and
began to soften the hearts of the Lamanites that they began to ease their
burdens; yet the Lord did not see fit to deliver them out of bondage” (Mosiah 21:15).
This verse seems to imply that even though the people were
repentant, they still embraced a paradigm of inequality among themselves,
undermining the Lord’s ability to forgive them. I believe they were still placing an overemphasis on King
Limhi’s position and that of others in his court. The efficaciousness of their repentance hinged to a certain
degree on the recognition and abandonment of their collective iniquity (Mosiah 21:17-18).
One of the main things real prophets do, besides testify of
Jesus Christ, is they prophesy against iniquity. The way I see it, the number one reason
prophets are persecuted, kicked out or killed is because they prophesy against
iniquity, abominations and secret combinations, not necessarily because they prophesy of Christ. Speaking against those things more often than not threatens
the people’s position, rank, status, comfort, income, livelihood, etc. It reveals the inconspicuous inequalities and
injustices that exist among mankind that are accepted by the masses as “just
the way things are." Secondary to testifying and teaching of Christ, it seems
true prophets tell the people to repent of iniquity. By doing that they jeopardize their
standing in their society.
They are mocked, ridiculed, stoned, persecuted, excommunicated, etc. not
necessarily because they testify against sin or of Jesus Christ, but because
they are denouncing the normal accepted ways of society. When someone comes along and tells you that the foundation
of society is based on iniquity and that you need to repent or
destruction will follow, then most people are inclined to get rid of that
person. Iniquity is the greatest
stumbling Block to Zion.
On a different note with
regard to the current fellowships of Zion now forming and meeting regularly, before Zion will be brought
forth, we “must wait for strength to develop in the first
fellowships.” The current
fellowships can develop strength by first being baptized and then eliminating
iniquity from among us. This
“challenge is an order of magnitude greater than fellowshipping, and will
require much of us” (Things Now Underway).
The fellowships must put on
strength as the Lord through Isaiah commanded: Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion (Isaiah 52:1). “Putting on strength” is to
“put on the authority of the priesthood” (D&C 113:7-8). The priesthood is inextricably linked
with the absence of iniquity. If
iniquity exists then priesthood is nullified:
“The rights of the priesthood are inseparably connected with the powers of heaven, and… the powers of heaven cannot be controlled nor handled only upon the principles of righteousness. That they may be conferred upon us, it is true; but when we undertake to cover our sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain ambition, or to exercise control or dominion or compulsion upon the souls of the children of men, in any degree of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the Lord is grieved; and when it is withdrawn, Amen to the priesthood or the authority of that man” (D&C 121:36-37).Iniquity is the reason the priesthood is withdrawn from mankind. It is not necessarily sin that causes the powers of heaven to withdraw themselves. Rather it is iniquity. To “put on strength” or to “put on the priesthood” requires us to forsake iniquity. Undertaking to cover our sins, gratifying our pride, our vain ambitions, or exercising control, dominion, or compulsion are expressions of iniquity. “Putting on strength” means we treat others with equality, fairness, respect, and love. These are the opposites of iniquity. In our dealings with others we should use persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, love-unfeigned, kindness and pure knowledge.
The command “Awake, Awake, put on thy strength, O Zion”
(Isaiah 52:1) is telling us to awaken to our awful situation and denounce the
world by rising above the iniquity that characterizes it, thereby “putting on
the authority of the priesthood” of God.
Iniquity undermines the priesthood. It renders the priesthood ineffective.
To “put on thy strength, O Zion” pertains to both genders,
not just men. When we put on the
authority of the priesthood, we gain a fellowship with the powers of heaven and
the Power of Heaven. That sort of
fellowship is not contingent upon receiving a certificate from a man indicating
you have been ordained. That sort
of priesthood is given by God’s voice directly to the recipient.
“Put on thy strength, O Zion; Put on thy beautiful
garments, O Jerusalem” (Isaiah 52:1) is the same as a command to put on the
wedding garment, to put on the coat of skins, to wear the garment of the holy
priesthood. This command from
Isaiah pertains to us right now.
We have been commanded to arise and do this. It is the task staring us in the face.
Let us each resolve to treat others the way we want to
be treated. Let us be generous in
all of our substance. “For if
ye are not equal in earthly things ye cannot be equal in obtaining heavenly
things” (D&C 78:6). This is extremely important if we desire to progress toward
Zion. For, “it is not given
that one man should possess that which is above another, wherefore the world
lieth in sin” (D&C 49:20). Let
us rise above our sins by placing the cloak of charity upon ourselves and others,
and move one step closer to Zion.
Bret, I don't disagree with much of this post. But a couple of points:
ReplyDeleteFirst, you seem unaware that for several years now the Church has changed its mission to a "four-fold" one. The fourth mission of the Church is "caring for the poor and needy." You should probably look into that before you judge too harshly.
Secondly, you say, "Another serious example (of iniquity) is when the Church withheld the priesthood from men of African descent." I only question this because there were very few times in the history of this earth when the priesthood was extended to all worthy men. In Old Testament times, for example, it was restricted to certain lineages. Do you think this was due to iniquity as well? (It seems to have been directed by God and his prophets).
Hi Cheryl,
ReplyDeleteYes, I am aware of the fourth mission of the Church. From my understanding Pres. Thomas S. Monson started it. I just think the Church does such an atrocious job of taking care of the poor that it isn't even worth mentioning. I guess it is no different than the other missions. They fail miserably at them as well, so your point is well taken.
With regard to your question of iniquity in the priesthood the answer is yes. Numbers 18:1 reads, "And the Lord said unto Aaron, Thou and thy sons and thy father’s house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the iniquity of your priesthood." I believe the priesthood was restricted as a consequence of the sin and iniquity of the people, not because it was God's will. There is only one priesthood, but because we are sinful and iniquitous, there are divisions of it evidenced throughout history, including today.
I am reminded of the saying attributed to C.S. Lewis: Loosely, "As soon as I get humble, I get proud of my humility" making a truly humble lack of iniquity a real challenge. I wonder if it might be impossible to be one of the "few true humble followers of Christ" , if by so believing you think you are in any way better or more "enlightened" than all those other "unenlightened" masses.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I'm finding my current study of the Book of Alma in the Book of Mormon to be most enlightening in the way Alma describes iniquity, or in modern vocabulary inequality, as the foundational cause of the troubles and warfare that he describes in his book.
He starts out in Alma 1 describing the true equality between believers and the priests and teachers, and then goes into the problems of persecution, murder, and war; caused by first, inequality in the church among church leaders with Nehor, then adding to that inequality of wealth with the Zoramites, then going on to all out total war from political inequality from the strongman, or "kingman", philosophy of Amilickiah. I also noted how Amalickiah used treachery, conspiracy, and war propaganda to trick a then peaceful and very anti-war people, the unconverted Lamanites ( who were described as against going to war, due to the costs to themselves in blood and treasure of supporting war) into finally supporting his wars. His use of towers to spread war propaganda reminded me of TV transmitting towers, satellites, and cable used today for the same purpose.
While I might not say things exactly the same way or with the same emphasis you do, I think you have some very valuable insight here, and I cannot argue with or refute your overall message and tone.
Now, if I can avoid having too much pride and iniquity for what I have posted here, maybe I can still be preparing somewhat for Zion.
Bret,
ReplyDeleteThis is solid. Iniquity has been on my mind lately as well. It's kind of like a car... when you get a new one, you see it everywhere. When I first learned what iniquity truly was, I saw it everywhere. It's all over the scriptures and in real life. Definitely a subject worth studying. Joseph admonished us in the TPJS to study the prophets and scriptures and learn how it compares to our day.
Thanks for your elaboration on the subject. Very helpful.
Thank you, Brother. It is pleasing to me to read your words because of their plainness but mostly because I see the similarities in what you say and what I heard before and now believe. To demonstrate how similar, I will tell you that I wrote the paragraph below when I had the thought prompted to me which was while reading “1,2,3 & 4 of sin, iniquity, abominations & secret combinations” and this happened well before I realized you had chosen the same scriptures for your inspired thought. Coincidence? I think not.
ReplyDelete- - - I’m reminded of what happened in 4th Nephi when reading your post. I’ll share a bit. After Christ came to the Americas he helped establish a Zion among the Nephites. They truly lived with no poor among them and all things being common among them. In doing this they were made free and they were partakers of the heavenly gift. In the 201st year there were those among the group who began separating themselves, setting themselves up through wearing fine apparel, jewelry and nice things of the world. They saw themselves better than others and were lifted up by pride. Those who wanted these riches had to build churches different than the Church of Christ because if it were truly Christ’s church there would be no rich and no poor. So, these people who wanted to have their riches and have church as well, built their churches in order to get gain. Gain, not meaning the church made them money but, gain, meaning they could have more than their neighbor completely denying the more parts of the gospel which is having all things common and no poor among them. Isn’t this the age old problem with man, to try and have what you want and what God wants? I know it is one of my hardest struggles, hashing through my wants to try and do what God wants. I always remind myself, “You cannot serve God and Mammon”. - - -
Another interesting question on iniquity and having a better understanding, really, isn’t it interesting how when opening up to understand further, Jesus Christ, you not only understand more good but you understand more evil as well?
Your posts are truly inspired, I see the influence of the Holy Ghost in them. I also see other influences in your posts that have different origins of which I try and disregard once I’ve recognized them. I’m not interested in other influences or mortal type weaknesses, I’m only interested in the influence of Jesus Christ. I’m seeking him. I believe so long as I am seeking him I will see him or his influence in scriptures and other people. I believe if we all could seek God in this way we would overlook each others mortal weaknesses help each other search for eternal truth. After all, we are only man and he is God and he, only he, knows the way.
I came across this tonight (it reminded me of your post):
ReplyDeleteIn 1838, while in Far West, shortly after the Saints defiled the temple and fled Kirtland the Prophet Joseph Smith interpreted Isaiah 52: 1-2 thusly; “He had reference to those whom God should call in the last days, who should hold the power of priesthood to bring again Zion and the redemption of Israel; and to put on her strength is to put on the authority of the priesthood which she, Zion, has a right to by lineage; also to return to that power which she had lost“.
Very interesting perspective!
ReplyDelete"The scriptures show that Zion is going to be a grass-roots effort. It will come forth from the ground up, not the top down"
I believe this is true, personally, but to which specific scriptures were you referring?
"Zion was not going to be a result of the Church’s efforts.... the Church doesn’t ever talk about Zion."
Actually, they do talk about Zion. But you have to seek to find.
See:
- https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2002/10/come-to-zion-come-to-zion
- https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2006/04/zion-in-the-midst-of-babylon
- https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2008/10/come-to-zion, and especially,
- https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1989/04/beware-of-pride
And, amazingly, I actually have a stake president that has "Building Zion" as our stake mission. This last Stake Conference demonstrated to me that he is making real progress. Unfortunately, some of the older High Priests in our stake are fighting him tooth and nail. Enjoying Babylon's delicacies a little too much, methinks.
"It seems the Church is getting farther away from Zion, not closer. "
Can I suggest it's more like, "It seems the Church MEMBERS are getting farther away from Zion, not closer."
"Our Church’s leaders do not seem to care about the subject of Zion, and the common lay members seem to follow suit."
Considering the talks mentioned above, it might actually be the other way around. It appears to me that the common lay members are so enamored by Babylon's delicacies that they have no interest in building Zion. Babylon is just too much fun!
I'm a enthusiastic Ziontist (one who studies how to build Zion), and I struggle to disconnect from Babylon myself.
After the US Government conquered the Church in the late 1880s, their 40-year long effort to build a literal Zion was squashed. An acquaintance of mine claims he had seen the "treaty" between the US government and the Church. Now THAT would be interesting reading, because my guess is that the Church agreed to remain merely a religion, not a complete [Zion-leaning] society with governmental and economic organizations as well as religious. (so much for American "freedom" - more like 'freedom to conform to Babylon's values'). So, criticizing the Church for not building Zion while they are under the thumb of the Gentile lawmakers, merchants and bankers might be a tad unfair. In situations where one can't possibly know the whole story, reserving judgment might be prudent.
"sin is thinking, saying or doing anything that is contrary to what you believe is God’s will"
YES! Love your discussion of Sin.
100% agree with #4.
Your comparison of the 3 Degrees with Zion was enlightening.
"Zion will not be a place of sinless people, but it will be a place where sin is in remission and it will be a place devoid of iniquity, abominations and secret combinations." Absolutely! [You might enjoy my blog post about how a pride-based society develops crime, government corruption, and secret combo's, and is eventually destroyed.]
"Becoming Zion-like has less to do with being sin-free or sinless, and more to do with retaining a remission of sins." Interesting idea!
Last thought: by connecting the concepts of building Zion and dissatisfaction with the LDS Church leaders and members, you discourage active LDS members like me from joining you in the general effort to build Zion. Do the two concepts HAVE to be connected for everyone involved? Or, can we allow active LDS members to explore building Zion along side those Restorationists who claim alternative authority? While each person in the Restoration Movement practices their version of Mormonism, can we all allow each other to practice it without criticism but with compassion? If we all insist we alone are right, then there's little hope that we can become "one". And, if we're not one....