Sabbathought: We are in enemy-occupied territory

And it is getting more and more occupied by the enemy! . . . Have you noticed?

I first saw that trenchant phrase, "enemy-occupied territory," around thirty years ago in some writings by Elder Neal A. Maxwell. It should not surprise you or me that he got it from C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. Here's the full paragraph, introduced by the one before to give us context:

"One of the things that surprised me when I first read the New Testament seriously was that it talked so much about a Dark Power in the universe---a mighty evil spirit who was held to be the power behind death and disease, and sin. The difference is that Christianity thinks this Dark Power [Satan] was [originally] created by God, and was good when he was created, and went wrong. Christianity agrees with Dualism that this universe is at war . . . a civil war, a rebellion, and that we are living in a part of the universe occupied by the rebel.

"Enemy-occupied territory, that is what this world is. Christianity [the gospel] is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage. When you go to church you are really listening-in to the secret wireless [radio broadcast] from our friends: that is why the enemy is so anxious to prevent us from going" (1952 rev. ed, pp. 51--2).

What an interesting way to think of personal revelation, and of the appearance of angels with keys and powers as part of the Restoration of the true gospel of Jesus Christ, and of the dreams and visions associated with this work and so prevalent among us!

And then this from Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Twelve nearly twenty years ago in October 1991 general conference:

"No one of us can survive in the world today, much less in what it soon will become, without personal inspiration. The spirit of reverence can and should be evident in every organization in the Church and in the lives of every member [so that personal revelation may come to each one of us]".

At church, of course, but more so in the privacy of our homes as we pray and study scripture, and in the sacred confines of the holy temple, we can get in tune with those "friends" Jack Lewis spoke of, chief among whom for us would be the Holy Ghost. This will be a reality if we are hungering and thirsting after righteousness. It is not unconditional, and it will not be automatic. But the revelation of survival and safety will be ours if we go seeking in deep humility.

I know this is so.

Steve

Sabbathought: "All men are subject to vanity, and must be allowed . . . ."

One of our most erudite scholars, Hugh W. Nibley (who passed away a few years ago), found a statement from the Prophet Joseph that helps to summarize our mortal condition here below:

"All men are subject to vanity, and must be allowed a generous margin of error to be themselves."

I can't find the original source for this but it rings true, it makes sense in the context of scripture and other statements about our reduced and vulnerable fallen condition. For instance:

For a wise and glorious purpose / Thou hast placed me here on earth
And withheld the recollection / Of my former friends and birth;
Yet ofttimes a secret something / Whispered, "You're a stranger here,"
And I felt that I had wandered / From a more exalted sphere
(Eliza R. Snow, "O My Father," Hymns, 292).

The doctrines of the Fall and of Premortal Life belong together, of course. What state did I fall from, if not from a celestial place with "my former friends and birth" before this mortal life? And thus, as echoed by Jacob in the Book of Mormon, " . . . our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream, we being a lonesome and a solemn people, wanderers, cast out from Jerusalem, born in tribulation, in a wilderness, and hated by our brethren," and, as "strangers and pilgrims on the earth," indeed, "strangers in a strange land."

We are not used to a fallen condition of humiliation and suffering and serious sacrifice, "a vale of tears" such as this life. C.S. Lewis observed, "If we are uncomfortable in this fallen world it is because we were made for another." But it is necessary to pass through this state in order to reach our final destiny, and cherish and appreciate it.

"We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to end up where we began, and know the place for the first time" (T.S. Eliot).

In the meantime it is well to recognize that all of us are subject to vanity and need a generous margin of error to be ourselves. What a comforting and plausible insight as we work out our salvation with fear and trembling! I sense good doctrine at work here, and I hope you do too.

God bless us all.

Steve

Sabbathought: How do you spell JOY?

True JOY is surely spelled like this:

J esus comes first
O thers next
Y ourself third.

This is a plausible summary of the first and great commandment, and the second, which is like unto it. But it is easy to get things mixed up or out of order.

Some twenty-five years ago I conducted an informal survey among the fifteen different religion classes I taught that year. I asked each class, What is the first and great commandment?

The first and fastest answer to that basic question in twelve of the fifteen classes was, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

As if that was not bad enough, many of the teenage seminary students displayed how well they had been taught their self-esteem lessons in Young Men's and Young Women's classes, firesides, previous seminary classes, and at home by adding, "And you can't really love your neighbor until you first learn to love yourself."

Thus the first and great commandment was perfectly subverted into, Thou shalt learn to love thyself so that thou can truly love thy neighbor.

Love for God was lost in the process because His "unconditional love" for us is all that really counts on that score. (More on this false idea later.)

I am not making this up, and I do not exaggerate.

Perhaps it may be clear to you why I am so concerned to try to "concentrate all [my] influence to make popular that which is sound and good and unpopular that which is unsound," in the clear words of Joseph Smith.

Now you know why it is important to know and teach good doctrine, so that the roots will have a fighting chance to produce the fruits of eternal life.

Elder Gene R. Cook taught, "When your priorities are out of order, you lose power," meaning the power of God in your life.

Most of those students in those classes twenty-five years ago---some of them adults in Adult Religion and Know Your Religion classes---had it wrong, had it upside down. They cheerfully and recklessly spelled JOY as YOJ, or OJY. The truth was no longer visible. It had got lost in a fog of "the precepts of men", adopted by these "humble followers of Christ" (see 2 Nephi 28:14).

Can you see why it is vital for them (and all of us) to "come to the knowledge of their Redeemer and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him and be saved"?

There are many other examples.

In 1986 when this "survey" was conducted I felt sure that in another quarter century the doctrinal landscape would be vastly improved among us. I'm not sure that it is. We have a lot of work to do.

Remember, the word "elder" means, "defender of the faith." It still needs defending. We are in a battle for the souls of men and women, and we must be "valiant in the testimony of Jesus" (see D&C 76:79), even the true and living Christ, in order to prevail.

Our chief weapons in the battle are "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (see Ephesians 6:17), "the blood of the Lamb, and . . . the word of [our] testimony" (Revelation 12:11).

We cannot invent our own Christ in our own image. And we must not invent our own gospel. We must be true to the restored gospel, and that will require us to do our homework.

Best wishes for a lovely Sabbath.

Steve