Have Something To Offer

Lehi's dream becomes more profound each day as the world points its finger of scorn at those who believe in Jesus Christ. But as the world grows darker, the light of Christ in our countenance shines brighter and brighter. It will draw those who are looking for truth to us, because the Gospel of Jesus Christ has something to offer...

Transcript

Welcome to the Verbal Motivation podcast. Where we talk about the things that motivate our lives, our religion and our relationships. My name is Nathan Vail. If you would like to comment on this or other episodes, please leave me a voicemail at 530-876-4153 or send me an email to verbalmotivation@gmail.com. 

This is episode number 16 called, Have Something To Offer

As many of you may remember years ago, getting into the old Tabernacle Building to watch General Conference live was very much like getting into Best Buy on black Friday. Everyone lined up around the wall at temple square at 4 in the morning and you never knew if you were going to be one of the lucky ones that got to sit in one of the coveted hard wood seats. A painful experience to be sure.

I tried it a couple of times in my youth. It was an experience in itself really. Because even back then, protesting outside General Conference was an art form. On one such occasion, I was sitting against the wall early in the morning trying not to get my church clothes dirty and a protester came along just after first light offering anti-Mormon literature. I must have been tired or bored or maybe this is just how I am, but I stood up and with sincerity I said, “I believe you, what should I do?” He stood there with a stunned look on his face, not knowing exactly what to say. Finally he handed me the pamphlets he had in his hand and almost as if it were a question said, “I guess help me hand these out.” 

That’s all he had. Hate, and a handful of homemade brochures.

His religion had nothing to offer. 

Constructive engagement is a principle that emphasizes the promotion of positive solutions, ideas, and actions rather than simply opposing or criticizing others. It involves actively contributing to meaningful change, progress, or improvement.

In my opinion, the first test of the truth of anything is whether it stands for something positive or if it just tears down others. 

If someone stopped me on the street and said, “I believe you, what should I do?” We would have to stop for a lunch break before I was done explaining the beauty of the Gospel. 

But that is because The Church of Jesus Christ has something to offer. An understanding of the purpose for which we have come to this earth, the reason why we are here and where we are going when we die. And above all, how families can and will be together forever.

 I had an employee years ago that was getting married in a small mountain town not far from where I live. She and I had many conversations about religion and she told me in the run up to her wedding that she believed that she would be married for eternity. Which I found interesting, because I was in the pew when her pastor clearly and unequivocally said, “until death do you part.”

This is evidence, I think, that the light of Christ is in all of us. So much so that sometimes people believe in things, despite their religion rather than as a result of it. (D and C 123:12)

One thing I know for sure, is that God loves all his children equally and so completely that “not one hair of our heads will be lost.” 

If that is true, then what of people who are born in nations where Christianity is not just unknown, it is illegal. What of people who, for social reasons, are kept from considering the Gospel of Jesus Christ. How can a loving God offer salvation randomly to his children depending on where or when they were born?

The answer cannot be that everyone is saved just because we exist here, because in such a scenario the commandments would be nothing more than suggestions and our journey to this planet would be reduced to some kind of pointless cosmic entertainment. Which cannot be true.

If one person is commanded to “be born of water and of the Spirit, [or] he cannot enter into the kingdom of God,” then all mankind are so commanded.

As evidence of that truth, even Jesus himself entered the waters of baptism. 

If that is all true, then a way must have been prepared from the foundation of this world so that all who visit this earth can voluntarily participate in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And so it was. 

One of the greatest offerings of the Church of Jesus Christ is temple work. Temple work is the bridge that connects the freedom of choice we must have in this life, the commandments that we must obey and the ability for every person to decide for themselves whether or not to follow Jesus Christ.

We know that between Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection,“...he went and preached unto the spirits in prison” (1 Peter 3:19) so that all who lived may hear and accept His Gospel. 

Yet, what would be the point in hearing and accepting the Gospel in the spirit world, if there was no opportunity to take advantage of the commandments, such as baptism?

The work that goes on in the temple is the great equalizer and enables every soul the chance to accept The Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

As far as I know, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only church to even claim to offer the opportunity of hearing and accepting the Gospel to every person past, present and future. No matter where or when we live. 

Elder D. Todd Christofferson speaking about temples recently taught, “...it makes individual salvation and family exaltation universally available to the children of God wherever and whenever they may have lived on the earth. No other theology or philosophy or authority can match such an all-inclusive opportunity. This sealing power is a perfect manifestation of the justice, mercy, and love of God.” (The Sealing Power By Elder D. Todd Christofferson)

I have had many dear friends that are Catholic. I have a particular respect for the Catholic Church because, besides being good people, they often stand with us in defense of important social values, as few other religions have. 

But as a point of doctrine, our friends in the Catholic Church baptize infants. I asked one of my Catholic friends many years ago what happens to a child if they die without being baptized. She assured me without reservation that such a child cannot be saved. Perhaps that is just one member's opinion, but just as a point of discussion, how can a random circumstance that a child has no control over be the determining factor in their salvation? 

Occam's Razor is a philosophical and scientific principle attributed to the 14th-century English philosopher and Franciscan friar William of Ockham.

The principle states that among competing hypotheses or explanations, the simplest one is usually the correct one. In other words, when faced with multiple explanations for a phenomenon, the one that requires the fewest assumptions or postulations is typically the most preferable.

Similarly, the simplest explanation is this. We are all children of God. He loves us equally. We must have the freedom to choose his Gospel and so he prepared a way for each of us to hear and accept the Gospel of His son Jesus Christ. That explanation requires no postulating or assumptions. It's as simple as it is profound.

I think it’s fair to say that true religion will always go against the flow. Just as an anchor serves no purpose while stored on the ship, a religion serves no purpose if it is, “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine.” (Ephesians 4:14)

President Thomas S. Monsoon taught, “Where once the standards of the Church and the standards of society were mostly compatible, now there is a wide chasm between us, and it’s growing ever wider.” (Priesthood Power by President Thomas S. Monson)

Lehi’s dream becomes more profound by the day as more and more of the fingers of scorn are pointed at us from the great and spacious building. 

As illustrated therein, there are very real social, emotional and circumstantial factors at play in this life. It’s necessary and ultimately “all these things shall give [us] experience, and shall be for [our] good.” (Doctrine and Covenants 122:7)

The prophet Job was a righteous man and we often talk about how Satan was allowed to test him by taking away his family and his fortune. But what I hadn’t considered until recently is that his children were people too and somehow their lives were cut short as a test for their father? That doesn’t seem fair. Indeed there are many circumstances in this life that would qualify under the, that’s not fair category. So what of their chances for progression and salvation in this life?

Consider this as an explanation. A few years I was scheduled to speak in a small congregation out in the orchards. Before I started the Bishop stood and announced that a couple in the congregation had lost their adult son the night before in a traffic accident. I couldn’t believe it when the Bishop announced that the couple was there and would like to speak. In a moment of profound silence, the couple stood before the congregation and with tears slowly rolling down their faces, they softly bore testimony that families are forever and that they know they would be with their precious son again. The spirit was like a fire in the room as they stood there and it lingered in the room after they left. As we all sat pondering what had just happened, I realized that the topic I had prepared suddenly didn’t match the moment. I walked to the pulpit very slowly, every eye fixed on me, all of us wondering what I could possibly say or talk about in such a moment.

As I stood there, my mind racing for something to say, I was suddenly overcome with the thought, “There are no scars in heaven.”

How beautiful the Gospel that offers a much wider view of this life and the outcome of its narrow circumstances. 

Elder Neal A. Anderson taught, “Whether in this life or the next, all will be made right.”

I believe what that means is, there will be no such thing as post traumatic earth disorder. We will all be together again through the sealing power that is exercised in the temple. In other words, God’s plan works. 

Elder D. Todd Christofferson also taught, “What our Heavenly Father offers us is Himself and His Son, a close and enduring relationship with Them through the grace and mediation of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.” (Our Relationship With God, by Elder D. Todd Christofferson)

I believe as the world grows darker the tree of life gets brighter and brighter. As it does, many will see the light of the gospel, recognize it and embrace it.

Not long ago I was attending an interfaith Christmas choir celebration. I was sitting next to a minister that I had befriended during my time serving on the public affairs committee. He was a jovial person and loved teasing me. As our choir was exiting the stage he leaned over and said with a chuckle, “you know all you Mormons look alike.” I found that comment interesting because there were many different nationalities in our choir. They looked nothing alike physically. Yet, there was something about them, a light perhaps that everyone could see.

Matthew 7 offers this explanation for that phenomenon, saying, “Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit…”

The first and maybe even the greatest sign that what you have is true, is that you want to share it with others because it makes you happy and you wnat to share that joy with others. If what you have makes you want to prove others wrong or intimidate them with your “truth,” then you're really just engaged in the justification of something you probably can feel is wrong.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ has something to offer. It is not easy and it requires us to change. But the result is the light of Christ will shine in us.

What a joy it is to know that this life is not random. We have come from somewhere, there is a higher purpose in our existence here. Salvation is offered equally to every soul who has ever lived and our Father in Heaven has prepared kingdoms of glory for each of us in the next life. And because of all of that, we can and will live together with our families forever. 

That is what the Gospel of Jesus Christ has to offer…

My name is Nathan Vail and this is the Verbal Motivation Podcast