Come Follow Me with Sam: D&C 3-5

 Hey everyone before jumping into D&C 3-5, I'd like to point out a fantastic assistant in understanding the Doctrine and Covenants. On every D&C lesson, you can view Doctrine and Covenants historical resources to help you understand the context of the revelation. Check it out for this lesson.

This week we cover Martin Harris's unfortunate experience losing the 116 pages, a revelaetion to Josephs father, JS SR., and a fascinating groundwork for the future.

Section 3

This is the revelation given after Martin Harris lost the 116 pages. Possibly the worst day ever for both of them. God reveals a larger picture about how the Works of God are accomplished.

Paths are straight and his course is one eternal round

God obviously deals in hyperbolic or Riemann geometry where we are still stuck in Euclidian ;) (joking, not joking).

Martin Harris is a good lesson to all of us. He was living quite comfortably on a sizeable estate. While relatively more wealthy  than most people reading this blog, materially, we have much more than him. We are constantly caught up in social media and social situations that put focus on material/temporal measures of status.

As a respectable citizen Martin Harris, I believe, wanted to prove to all the other gentry that he wasn't crazy. There's a problem with this. His focus was not on building Zion (which will be a repeated reminder to many people in future sections), his focus was on how he looked. It's no wonder God told him no twice. In vs 7, God tells him something he may have known all along.

7 For, behold, you should not have feared man more than God. Although men set at naught the counsels of God, and despise his words

We want to build any community we are in, so there is no problem in being engaged and respected. Except when there is. It is too easy for us to lose focus on where we are going. If anyone has answers to resolving this conundrum, feel free to add below.

Section 4

Section 4 is the famous missionary scripture, a call to the work and the qualifiers for doing so. As children of God reserved for the last days of the world, we all have this work and calling to do, and especially those who are members of the church.

We too, stand to be Judged.

2 Therefore, O ye that embark in the ^aservice of God, see that ye ^bserve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand ^cblameless before God at the last day.

Many scriptures past and present talk about separating wheat from tares and judging the wicked from the righteous. It is easy to forget that we are always in that precarious state of judgement where all our actions are to be accounted for at sometime.

In other words, when we preach repentance through the Lord Jesus Christ, we too, are being judged at the same time. We may have made more covenants and even have more promises, but in terms of the work, the laborer is to be judged as worth as the wheat. It is important to keep in mind, a good reminder that in this as in all other things, we are brothers and sisters.

The labor is what makes the laborer worthy, not the size of the harvest

In vs 3, God says if you have desires to serve God you are called to the work. 'And he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he periseth not.' We are not here to judge the world of ourselves. We are here to judge the world, and be judged by God, from the diligence of our actions.

The qualities of the laborer

If you are still on board (and I highly recommend it), here is what you need to work on to be qualifed for the work. Remember, you are already called to the work if you only have the desire. Now it is time to qualify you for such. Notice the 3 Christian virtues are front and center and first. you can read about these more from Moroni in the Moroni 7 Blog Post.

Faith: Faith is what we hold on to. Holding on here means when we find a word of truth or a message from heaven, we honor it to its fullest, whether it is following it as a commandment, acting on it, or changing so that we can be better part of it. If we do not hold on to the light and knowledge we are given, where is our ability to share it?

Hope: Hope is where we are going. Hope is the belief that you yourself can be better through the way Christ has set. It is the inspiration that you will not be in your current position forever, and that there are things much better ahead for you, yourself, your soul.

Charity: Charity is the most mysterious of these three. It is the pure love of Christ and is similar to the priesthood in its ability to tie all the elements together. Moroni doesn't say a lot of what it is or how to get it, but he gives a lot of signs to know you have it. He then asks us to pray with all the energy of heart, that we might have this charity.

Personally, I have found that when you really serve, and I mean REALLY serve, your fellow brothers and sisters under God, you can obtain this. Most people have felt a warm feeling when they help someone. There is so much more beyond that.

Love: Love is grouped with charity, so it may have been added to help JS SR. to understand charity better. I think this meant to Joseph Smith SR to think of those people he loves, and then work to share that same bond with those he serves.

Eye Single to the Glory of God: In contrast to the Martin Harris example, this is knowing where you are pointed and aiming single-mindedly for it. If you are facing the right direction, you'll be in a much better position to help others face that direction.

What you need once you are qualified

Faith: Alma spoke about having faith until you know that something is true. Once we know certain principles, faith in them doesn't go away but it changes. It turns into what we hold on to as we seek greater light and knowledge. Faith is not a journey with an end on this earth. 

First we can have faith that there is something bigger than ourselves. Then we can have faith that it is there for our good, as we learn more about it. Then we can have faith that inspired men and women, in times past, were able to connect with it. We can seek from grace to grace to know that we have an actual God for our Heavenly Father, and that people all over the world have been seeking Him in his essence through their cultures. We can learn of Joseph Smith, of his interactions with this same being, and of scripture and mission from Him.

Once we are qualified, the journey doesn't end. We still need to become like Him. We need to understand Him. We need to walk the path He has shown. There is much more to learn than just the Fact of His existence and his bare commandments. We now learn what it means to become like Him. We have faith that we can learn to be like His prophets, then like his angels, then like God Himself. This is his commandment and the fulfillment of faith.

Virtue: Today we think of virtue mostly in the sense of female chastity or of general moral purity. arrording to etymonline, this meaning was only attested sincethe 1590's, whereas virtue itself goes back to 1200 in the english language, and the roots go at least to the Romans before Christ. Virtue is better understood as a kind of power or excellence, or power from your essence. If Faith holds the sword, virtue retains the scepter. it is by the virtue of the priesthood that all things are held in order.

Knowledge: Knowledge is another concept that has had a tough run. Unfortunately, the academics have dictated a virtual monopoly on our concept of what it means to learn. In the Garden, Satan didn't tell Adam and Eve that they would have knowledge by studying the fruit from a textbook, he told them once they partook of the fruit they would have knowledge from their awakening. As most of you know, Satan is a pretty bloody, horrible dude, so he could have been lying, and he certainly was at least partially deceitful at that moment, but who can deny the great and terrible things Adam and Eve learned by firsthand knowledge as a result of those things, by experience, and not only by studying, although they certainly had good tutors.

A good question to ask when seeking knowledge is not 'what do I now know?' but 'what does this now mean?' A knowledge of God means we can become like him. a knowledge of our purpose on earth means we can do what we came here to to do. A knowledge of the gospel means that we know what it means, why it was given to us, and how we can live it.

This isn't to say that book learning isn't important. For me, personally, I probably have chased books more than pure knowledge myself. It would also benefit us as a church and as a world to read more from the best books. But a pure knowledge is more valuable and if that does not come, then our book learning is of little worth.

Temperance: Temperance is another word that has received the historical shaft. Today, it basically  means don't be angry, but it is better to say 'hold your strength'. Temperance comes from a blacksmithing reference where the metal is 'tempered' to have specific qualities of hardness or flexibility. If a sword has no hardness it won't cut. If on the other hand, it is hard all the way through, it will shatter on any impact. To be tempered is to have the right balance of hardness and flexibility so that you can bend where you need to bend and stand fast where you need to stand fast.

Patience: Patience is not passive. In D&C 121, it says that our forefathers awaited this time with 'anxious expectation'. Patience is realizing that there is a price to pay for a reward, and a price was paid for us. This is important because it helps us realize that today, we are not everything we could be, and this is a time of testing and refinement. So we look forward to the day when we can put off our weakness and in the meantime, we look forward with gratitude and faith in closing the gap.

Brotherly kindness: In George Washington's remarkable vision of the future of America, he sees the end of the civil war when an angel tells everyone to put down their arms because 'ye are brothers'. Brotherhood is a hard feeling to describe, but is one of the tightest bonds we can have on earth.

Godliness: Jesus said 'Ye are therefore commanded to be perfect as I, or your Father in Heaven, is perfect.' Godliness is the attribution which helps you to become like God.

Charity: Assuming you have already prayed with all the energy of your heart, and been baptized and have The Spirit, another thing you can now do is pray to see with eyes of compassion. Pray to see someone the way the Savior sees them. Pray to do everything you can to help the people around you

Humility: Most people who are trying to be humble are pretending to act like they think a humble person would act in hopes that it rubs off a bit. Its honestly better than nothing, and I definitely believe there are points for trying, but the blessings of humility only come if you have true humility. True humility is best obtained by true knowledge. When you understand both your significance and your insignificance in the plan of God, and the cosmos, there is no more natural state than that of sincere humility.

One of the keys I have found for cultivating humility is gratitude for all things. It is better to start there than thinking about how pathetic you are.

Diligence: The laborers are worthy of the higher, and God knows the seasons. Diligence requires all these other attributes to help us thrust in the sickle all the day long and rest with a clean conscience when the night comes.

'Ask and you shall receive', and 'knock and it shall be opened' is to my knowledge the most repeated phrase in the scriptures. Here it is taught as a promise. For all those who feel like they asked and knocked and didn't get the response they wanted, consider cultivating each of these qualities in their order. I believe these are the traits upon which that blessing is predicated.

Section 5

Section 5 was given at the request of Martin Harris. It hints at many things that are to come and also of dangers and destinies of the current situation. I am going to highlight few of these.

J&H make a note from JSH V 1, p339: It is a great thing to inquire at the hands of God, or to come into His presence; and we feel fearful to approach Him on subjects athat are of little or no consequence... especially about things the knowledge of which men ought to obtain in all sincerity, before God, for themselves.

Moon Sun and Banners

the beginning of the rising up and the coming forth of my ^bchurch out of the wilderness—clear as the ^cmoon, and fair as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners.

The sun/moon/banners phrase popus up in 3 other places. The last two are d&C 105:31 and D&C 109:73 and talk of zion and the church coming forth. There are some very interesting instructions before and after as to how to accomplish this. 

Surprisingly, the first instance of this is in the Song of Songs (Song of Solomon) 6:10 'Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?'. We don't consider the Song of Solomon to be divinely inspired, so I doubt God is quoting Solomon. More likely, Solomon is quoting God in his version, from a previous text or revelation that we don't have today. We can use this to better understand the other references in the Doctrine and Covenants, in the way his most cherished object is this person. In a similar way, we can cherish Zion and the power of Zion.

How to open the heavens

Behold, I say unto him, he exalts himself and does not ^ahumble himself sufficiently before me; but if he will ^bbow down before me, and humble himself in mighty ^cprayer and faith, in the ^dsincerity of his heart, then will I grant unto him a ^eview of the things which he desires to see.

What does it take to see a vision? as mentioned above, this thing should not be lightly approached. The scripture mentions - humble, bow down, might prayer, faith, sincerity of heart. In my opinion, I see the 3 biggest steps being: 1. unspotted from the world (be ye clean) 2. desire with righteous purpose, 3. a certain intensity of connection with the heavens that is hard to describe but which seems to be present with mystics.

The dangers we face

And there are many that lie in wait to ^adestroy thee from off the face of the earth; and for this cause, that thy days may be ^bprolonged, I have given unto thee these commandments. 

We live in a time of both relative and absolute prosperity, with a safer world than perhaps any other time. I'm sure that Joseph Smith couldn't have imagined the level of malevolence leveled his way. His destiny was to be hunted in Missouri and Illinois and to seal his testimony with his death. We aren't as big of a fish to fry as Joseph, but we all decide every day where we stand and receive or give up commensurate protection.

Jordan Peterson has discussed the issue of the unseen malevolence in society, and in ourselves. He read some pretty awful accounts of how ordinary men became coldblooded killers. Coincidentally, he also stands out as defending societal institutions for their unrecognized ability of holding back various forms of chaos that were experienced in the past. I believe he talks about this in his book, Beyond order: 12 more Rules for Life, that he released this year.