Weak Things Become Strong

One summer day when I was 17, I had a little bit of a meltdown at a church softball game; and as it happened, my father was there to see it. When I went to bed that night I found a note on my pillow suggesting that I read Ether 12:27: “And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”

Joseph Smith said of James 1:5 that “Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine.” I will not try to compete with Joseph on this but my experience was similar to his. I had plenty of weaknesses, but the question now was how to humble myself and have faith. To find the answer I started reading The Book of Mormon.

At times I felt that it was a struggle to exercise faith, but there were also days when the Lord answered my prayers with needed help and with needed answers to some difficult questions. Through the examples of great men such as Nephi, Alma, Captain Moroni and others, I learned how to exercise faith and humble myself. There were certain things that I stopped caring so much about, and an amazing thing happened: Some of those good things I worried about because they were not happening, started to happen. I had faith in Jesus Christ, I knew that my Heavenly Father loved me, I loved both of them, and this brought happiness.

Still, there were some lessons that I needed to go on a mission to learn. I was blessed with several good examples in the mission field.  One of my first zone leaders was a pretty amazing missionary, and at the end of my first two months in California he was called to be an assistant to the mission president. Subsequent to that, his former companion, who was still one of my zone leaders, told me about that elder’s amazing transformation. When he first arrived in San Jose, this elder was extremely shy and quiet -- he said all of five words in his first two months, but he set a goal and did a lot of soul searching. As noted, he eventually became an A.P.

One of my first few companions was also very shy when he first arrived in the mission field. He was so shy that he didn't even speak at his farewell. He had a twin brother and the meeting was for both of them, but my future companion did not show up to the meeting until the last five or ten minutes, and he sat in the back of the chapel. The bishop saw him and asked if he would like to come up and bear his testimony, but this elder just waved him off. He was probably trying to act cool, but in reality he was scared to death. 

This missionary couldn’t even order himself a hamburger at a fast food restaurant he was so shy.  But then someone explained to this elder that it was all just intimidation, and he realized that he was allowing the girl behind the counter to intimidate him, as he was other people. By the time I met him, some two years later, it was obvious that he was not intimidated by anything or anyone.

Those who go on missions have an amazing opportunity, they can humble themselves, have faith, and through the grace of their Savior, they can have their weaknesses become strengths. What is really amazing is how much they can learn in just two short years. I learned more in my two years than in all the years before or since, though I am still learning.

Yet another of my zone leaders argued that we should not measure success by leadership positions we held or even by how hard we worked, much less by the number of baptisms we had. Rather, we should measure success on a mission by the strength of our relationship with the Savior. Consider that “when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God” and “how knoweth a man a master whom he hath not served.” Missionaries have a wonderful opportunity to come to know their Savior as they serve him.

Those who did not have the opportunity to serve a mission, as well as those who did serve and have returned home, still have this amazing opportunity. Whoever we are and at whatever stage in life we are at, we will still have opportunities to serve the Lord, to humble ourselves, have faith and have our weaknesses become strengths.

No matter how much adversity we have experienced, or how much one has learned, we are still human and will continue to fall short of perfection because of our weaknesses and inadequacies. The good news is that the Atonement is there for us, even if our failings are not great sins. There will always be the the opportunity to humble ourselves and have faith in Christ and to be lifted by His grace.

Everyone has down times occasionally, and everyone experiences feelings of inadequacy – though we may have experienced a mighty change of heart, we may not always feel like singing the song of redeeming love. This is in no small part due to the conditions we face here in mortality and the ideals or teachings we aspire to live by. Elder Bruce C. Hafen of the Seventy has written that there is a gap between reality and the life we strive to live in keeping the commandments and following the Savior's example. We are commanded to “be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect” and yet we keep falling short.

Some people respond by discarding the ideal. They say it is too hard so why even try; we will be much happier if we accept reality and do not try to live an impossible ideal. Others ignore reality and say that they have already reached the ideal, even as they continue to fall short just like the rest of us. Falling short does not mean that we are willfully rebelling against God, it only means that we are human. The Atonement is not just for sinners – though as Paul said, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” -- it is also for those striving for perfection; for those who have gone from bad to good and are trying to go from good to better.

We strive, we stretch, we reach, and still we fall short; yet by humbling ourselves and having faith in Christ we can be lifted by His grace. We stretch and struggle, but as we humble ourselves and have faith our weakness becomes strong unto us through the grace of Christ.

I sought to humble myself and have faith while on my mission, and sought my own transformation. What I found, regarding my quiet personality, is that shyness is easy to overcome but that didn't mean I was going to become a great conversationalist. I can still be very quiet, but when talking about a subject I know a lot about, like military history, or when bearing testimony, I can find the words, and even more, I can speak with power. I am not telling you this to brag, for – at least when I am discussing the gospel and bearing testimony -- it is the spirit that is giving me the words.

I experienced what seemed like a significant amount of adversity in my first six month. Then, one night I found myself on my knees pleading for witness from the spirit.  After some difficulty, as I think my faith and sincerity were being tested, I got the witness I sought.  It was as if a match had been lit in the dark of night, and the despair and doubt fled, and the light that flowed into me increased until it nigh consumed me.  And I knew, really knew, in a way I had not before.

And a few weeks later it all came together, the faith, the confidence, the humility, and the testimony.  We made a call back on a couple that we had tracted into, and as we entered their living room I saw a stack of books next to the husband's chair.  I knew right then that we were in trouble.  For the next hour he fired one challenge after another at us, and we answered as best we could, but then, guided by the spirit, I kind of took over.  I told the story of receiving that witness from the spirit and bore the most powerful testimony I could, and I withstood the challenges they both threw back at me.  The wife got so angry at one point that she almost threw her copy of the Book of Mormon at me!

After we left, my companion turned to me and said, “You are amazing.”  But it wasn't me, it was the spirit. He had strengthened me as I bore witness of the truth of the restored gospel.  He had made weak things become strong! I can testify to the truthfulness of Ether 12:27, but not just from my own experience, but because of the transformations I have seen in others.

Though he made me strong, yet I remained weak.  Were it not so, I could not have stayed humble.  When filled with the spirit, I could bear a mighty testimony, yet I continued to entertain so many doubts about myself.  I still had occasions when I felt inadequate.  I still made mistakes.

As noted, we are all human and therefore we all have weaknesses. We need not think that we are better than others for there is plenty of evidence to the contrary.

Some of the worst things that happen to us are the things we do to ourselves; the doubts we entertain, the grudges that we carry, the habits we pick up and the sins we commit. Nephi saw the Son of God, yet he felt to say once “O wretched man that I am” because of the sins and temptations which so easily beset him. We may sometimes feel as Nephi did; if so we should say as he did “Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul. . . . 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.”

And I would add, “Let me not forget, O Savior, thou didst bleed and die for me, When thy heart was stilled and broken, On the cross at Calvary.”

“He died in holy innocence, A broken law to recompense.” But he lives! "He lives who once was dead," “He lives, all glory to his name! He lives, my savior still the same. O sweet the joy this sentence gives, I know that my Redeemer lives.”

We should always strive to be humble, meek and submissive.  Only then can we have the spirit to guide us, only then can we teach with the spirit.  We should never try to rely on our own understanding, or on our own knowledge of the scriptures or of gospel principles.  We should always strive to have the spirit, and to rely on God.  When we do that amazing things can happen.

God lives, Jesus is the Christ, the Holy Messiah, this is His church, Joseph Smith was a prophet and the Book of Mormon is true, and there is no sorrow which God cannot heal.


Hymns: While of the Emblems We Partake, In Humility, Our Savior, I Know that My Redeemer Lives.

The At-One-Ment of Jesus Christ

For us the blood of Christ was shed;
For us on Calvary's cross he bled,
And thus dispelled the awful gloom
That else were this creation's doom

The law was broken; Jesus died
That justice might be satisfied,
That man might not remain a slave
Of death, of hell, or of the grave.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has written that “The central fact, the crucial foundation, the chief doctrine, and the greatest expression of divine love in the eternal plan of salvation . . . is the atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. Much goes before it and much comes after, but without that pivotal act, that moment of triumph whereby we are made free from the spiritual bondage of sin and the physical chains of the grave . . . there would be no meaning to the plan of life, and certainly no happiness in it or after it.”

The atonement, or at-one-ment, “is the act of unifying or bringing together what has been separated or estranged," continued Elder Holland. "The atonement of Christ was indispensable because of the separating transgression, or fall of Adam, which brought death into the world. In the words of Moroni, 'By Adam came the fall of man. And because of the fall of man came Jesus Christ. . . .; and because of Jesus Christ came the redemption of man. And because of the redemption of man, . . . they are brought back into the presence of the Lord.'”  

The Atonement includes gifts that are both conditional and unconditional. The unconditional gifts include the Savior's ransom for Adam's original transgression and the resurrection from the dead.

The conditional gifts require such effort as repentance and faith as they are predicated upon the moral agency and personal discipline of the individual before they can be fully effective. “There are principles of the gospel that [we] must follow and ordinances of the gospel that [we] must obtain" wrote Elder Holland. "Mormon stresses this commitment to fundamental requirements: 'The first fruits of repentance is baptism; and baptism cometh by faith unto the fulfilling the commandments; and the fulfilling the commandments bringeth remission of sins; and the remission of sins bringeth meekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of meekness and lowliness of heart, cometh the visitation of the Holy Ghost, which Comforter filleth with hope and perfect love, which love endureth by diligence unto prayer until the end shall come, when all the saints shall dwell with God.'” 

“Virtually all Christian churches teach some kind of doctrine regarding the atonement of Christ and the expiation of our sins that comes through it," Elder Holland continued. "But the Book of Mormon teaches that and much more. It teaches that Christ also provides relief of a more temporal sort, taking upon himself our mortal sicknesses and infirmities, our earthly trials and tribulations, our personal heartaches and loneliness and sorrows – all done in addition to taking upon himself the burden of our sins.

“Christ walked the path every mortal is called to walk so that he would know how to succor and strengthen us in our most difficult times. He knows the deepest and most personal burdens we carry. He knows the most public and poignant pains we bear. He descended below all such grief in order that he might lift us above it. There is no anguish or sorrow or sadness in life that he has not suffered in our behalf and borne away upon his own valiant and compassionate shoulders.

“That aspect of the Atonement brings an additional kind of rebirth, something of immediate renewal, help, and hope that allows us to rise above sorrows and sickness, misfortunes and mistakes of every kind. With his mighty arm around us and lifting us, we face life more joyfully even as we face death more triumphantly.”

Come, ye disconsolate, where'er ye languish;
Come to the mercy-seat, fervently kneel;
Here bring your wounded hearts, here tell your anguish,
Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.

Joy of the comfortless, light of the straying,
Hope of the penitent, fadeless and pure;
Here speaks the Comforter, tenderly saying—
Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot cure.
 
Here see the Bread of Life; see waters flowing
Forth from the throne of God, pure from above;
Come to the feast of love; come, ever knowing
Earth has no sorrow but heaven can remove.

Saved By Grace, After All We Can Do

We sing about it and we read about it, but we don't often talk about it.

Prepare our minds that we may see
The beauties of thy grace. 

Forgiveness is a gift from thee
We seek with pure intent.

Elder Jeffery R. Holland has written that “Even though there are some conditional aspects of the Antonment that require our adherence to gospel principles for the full realization of eternal blessings, the Book of Mormon makes clear that neither the conditional nor unconditional blessings of the Atonement would be available to mankind except through the grace and goodness of Christ."

"Obviously the unconditional blessings of the Atonement are unearned," Elder Holland continued, "but the conditional ones also are not fully merited. By living faithfully and keeping the commandments of God, we can receive a fuller measure of blessings from Christ, but even these greater blessings are freely given of him and are not technically 'earned' by us. In short, good works are necessary for salvation, but they are not sufficient. And God is not obliged to make up the insufficiency. As Jacob taught, 'Remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved.'”

Aaron taught King Lamoni's father that fallen man “could not merit anything of himself.”

Lehi declared that “There is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah.”

Nephi taught that through baptism we enter the straight and narrow path that leads to eternal life, but that works are not enough to earn our way to salvation. “Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.”

Abinidi taught that “Salvation doth not come by the law alone; and were it not for the atonement, which God himself shall make for the sins and iniquities of his people . . . they must unavoidably perish, notwithstanding the law. . . .”

Jacob counseled us to "Cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves -- to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life.  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved. Wherefore, may God raise you from death by the power of the resurrection, and also from everlasting death by the power of the atonement, that ye may be received into the eternal kingdom of God, that ye may praise him through grace divine."

Moroni would finish the Book of Mormon by giving us a reassurance of the grace of God while noting, however, that it is a grace that requires our honest effort to claim and enjoy:

“If ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; . . . then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ.”
 
Nephi, of course, gave "the most succinct and satisfying resolution ever recorded in the history of the faith vs works controversy," wrote Elder Holland. Nephi said plainly, "We know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." 

God, our Father, hear us pray;
Send thy grace this holy day.

Grant us, Father, grace divine;
May thy smile upon us shine. 


Sources: Holland, J. R. (2006). Christ and the New Covenant:  The Messianic Message of the Book of Mormon.  Salt Lake City: Deseret Book.

Hymns: While of the Emblems We Partake & Come, Ye Disconsolate, O Lord of Hosts, As Now We Take the Sacrament and God, Our Father, Hear Us Pray.

The Book of Mormon: Fruit of Joseph Smith and the Keystone of Our Religion

In the Sermon on the Mount, the Savior warned us against false prophets and then said that we would know them by their fruits.  "Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs or thistles," he asked.  "Even so every good tree bringeth for good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit."

The Savior continued, "A good tree cannot bring for evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire.  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them."  (Matthew 7: 16-20)

We believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.  How shall we know that he is a prophet?  By his fruits.  The most important fruit of Joseph Smith is the Book of Mormon.  In the Book of Mormon, the prophet Mormon expounded on the principle that "by their works ye shall know them" using the contrast of good and bitter fountains.  "For behold, a bitter fountain cannot bring forth good water; neither can a good fountain bring forth bitter water; wherefore, a man being a servant of the devil cannot follow Christ; and if he follow Christ he cannot be a servant of the devil."

Mormon continued, "Wherefore, all things which are good cometh of God; and that which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God, and fighteth against him continually, and inviteth and enticeth to sin, and to do that which is evil continually.  But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to good continually; wherefore, every thing which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God."  (Moroni 7: 11-13)

The first thing to consider is whether the Book of Mormon invites and entices its readers to do good, to love God, and to serve him?

Early in the book, we read that the "right way" is to believe in Christ.  Nephi, the first man to keep the record that would become the Book of Mormon, wrote, "I say unto you that the right way is to believe in Christ, and deny him not; and Christ is the Holy One of Israel' wherefore ye must bow down before him, and worship him with all your might, mind, and strength, and your whole soul; and if ye do this ye shall in nowise be cast out." (2 Nephi 25:29)

Nephi would later write, "And now, my beloved brethren . . . hearken unto these words and believe in Christ; and if ye believe not in these words believe in Christ.  And if ye shall believe in Christ ye will believe in these words, for they are the words of Christ, and he hath given them unto me; and they teach all men that they should do good." (2 Nephi 33:10)

The second thing to consider is the promise given by Moroni, the last record keeper of the Book of Mormon.  Moroni promised that if we ask God in the name of Jesus Christ, with a sincere heart, real intent, having faith in Christ, if "these things", the Book of Mormon, are not true, that God will manifest the truth of it unto us by the power of the Holy Ghost.  "And by the power of the Holy Ghost," he said, "ye may know the truth of all things."

The prophet Joseph Smith was called by God to translate the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God.  God commanded Nephi and Mormon and Moroni to keep a record and to write the words of God.  It is God, then, who gave us the Book of Mormon; Joseph Smith was his instrument in bringing forth the book in our day.  Because Joseph was God's instrument, the Book of Mormon is considered to be a fruit of his labor.  If the Book of Mormon persuades men to do good and to believe in Christ, and if it is the word of God, then Joseph Smith is a prophet of God.

President Gordon B. Hinckley said, "If the Book of Mormon is true, the Church is true, for the same authority under which this sacred record came to light is present and manifest among us today.  It is a restoration of the Church set up by the Savior in Palestine.  It is a restoration of the Church set up by the Savior when he visited this continent as set forth in this sacred record."

President Hinckley went on to say that, "If the Book of Mormon is true, the Bible is true.  The Bible is the Testament of the Old World.  The Book of Mormon is the Testament of the New.  The one is the record of Judah, the other is the record of Joseph, and they have come together in hand of of the Lord in fulfillment of the prophecy of Ezekiel.  Together they declare the Kingship of the Redeemer of the word, and the reality of his kingdom."

President Ezra Taft Benson called the Book of Mormon the "keystone of our religion," the "keystone of testimony," and said "Just as the arch crumbles if the keystone is removed, so does all the Church stand or fall with the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon."  President Benson also counseled us to use the Book of Mormon in handling objections to the church:

"All objections, whether they be on abortion, plural marriage, seventh-day worship, etc., basically hinge on whether Joseph Smith and his successors were and are prophets of God receiving divine revelation.  Here, then, is a procedure to handle most objections through the use of the Book of Mormon.

"First, understand the objection.

"Second, give the answer from revelation.

"Third, show how the correctness of the answer really depends on whether or not we have modern revelation through modern prophets.

"Fourth, explain that whether or not we have modern prophets and revelation really depends on whether the Book of Mormon is true.

"Therefore, the only problem the objector has to resolve for himself is whether the Book of Mormon is true.  For if the Book of Mormon is true, then Jesus is the Christ, Joseph Smith was his prophet, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true, and it is being led to day by a prophet receiving revelation.  Our main task is to declare the gospel and do it effectively.  We are not obliged to answer every objection.  Every man eventually is backed up to the wall of faith, and there he must make his stand."

Finally, Elder Richard G. Scott gave this counsel:  "Try reading the Book of Mormon because you want to, not because you have to.  Discover for yourself that it is true.  As you read each page, ask 'Could any man have written this book, or did it come as Joseph Smith testified?'  Apply the teachings you learn.  They will fortify you against the evil of Satan.

"Follow Moroni's counsel.  Sincerely ask God the Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, with real intent, if the teachings of the Book of Mormon are true.  Ask with a desire to receive a confirmation that the book is true.  You will then know that Jesus Christ lives, that Joseph Smith was and is a prophet, and that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord's Church.  You will confirm that the Savior guides His Church through a living prophet.  These truths will become a foundation for your productive life."

There are three additional questions we might ask ourselves, based on the seed analogy in Alma 32:

1. Do I feel that my soul has been enlarged?
2. Has my understanding been enlightened?
3. Have these things been delicious to me?

If we can answer yes to each of these questions, then the Book of Mormon, like the seed in Alma's analogy, is good. Our knowledge may yet be imperfect, but can know that continued study is worthwhile, and this may lead us, if it has not already, to ask God in prayer if the Book of Mormon is the word of God.

Sources:

Benson, E. T. (1988). A Witness and a Warning: A Modern-Day Prophet Testifies of the Book of Mormon. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book.

Hinckley, G. B. (1959). Conference Report, October 1959.

Scott, R. G. (2003). Conference Report, October 2003.