This is an excerpt from an address delivered at the Sunday evening session of the MIA Jubilee Conference held on 7 June 1925.
"May I add my mite to the mass of evidence upon this all-important theme? Fifty years ago, or something less, I was a young missionary in the state of Pennsylvania. I had been praying for a testimony of the truth but beyond that had not displayed much zeal in missionary labor. My companion, a veteran in the cause, chided me for my lack of diligence in this direction. “You ought to be studying the books of the Church,” said he; “you were sent out to preach the gospel, not to write for the newspapers”—for that was what I was doing at the time.
"I knew he was right, but I still kept on, fascinated by the discovery that I could wield a pen and preferring that to any other occupation except the [theater], my early ambition, which I had laid upon the altar when, as a youth of 21, I accepted a call to the mission field.
"One night I dreamed—if dream it may be called—that I was in the Garden of Gethsemane, a witness of the Savior’s agony. I saw Him as plainly as I see this congregation. I stood behind a tree in the foreground, where I could see without being seen. Jesus, with Peter, James, and John, came through a little wicket gate at my right. Leaving the three Apostles there, after telling them to kneel and pray, He passed over to the other side, where He also knelt and prayed. It was the same prayer with which we are all familiar: “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt” ([see] Matthew 26:36–44 [Matt. 26:36–44]; Mark 14:32–41; Luke 22:42).
"As He prayed the tears streamed down His face, which was toward me. I was so moved at the sight that I wept also, out of pure sympathy with His great sorrow. My whole heart went out to Him. I loved Him with all my soul and longed to be with Him as I longed for nothing else.
"Presently He arose and walked to where the Apostles were kneeling—fast asleep! He shook them gently, awoke them, and in a tone of tender reproach, untinctured by the least suggestion of anger or scolding, asked them if they could not watch with Him one hour. There He was, with the weight of the world’s sin upon His shoulders, with the pangs of every man, woman, and child shooting through His sensitive soul—and they could not watch with Him one poor hour!
"Returning to His place, He prayed again and then went back and found them again sleeping. Again He awoke them, admonished them, and returned and prayed as before. Three times this happened, until I was perfectly familiar with His appearance—face, form, and movements. He was of noble stature and of majestic mien—not at all the weak, effeminate being that some painters have portrayed—a very God among men, yet as meek and lowly as a little child.
"All at once the circumstance seemed to change, the scene remaining just the same. Instead of before, it was after the Crucifixion, and the Savior, with those three Apostles, now stood together in a group at my left. They were about to depart and ascend into heaven. I could endure it no longer. I ran out from behind the tree, fell at His feet, clasped Him around the knees, and begged Him to take me with Him.
"I shall never forget the kind and gentle manner in which He stooped and raised me up and embraced me. It was so vivid, so real, that I felt the very warmth of His bosom against which I rested. Then He said: “No, my son; these have finished their work, and they may go with me, but you must stay and finish yours.” Still I clung to Him. Gazing up into His face—for He was taller than I—I besought Him most earnestly: “Well, promise me that I will come to You at the last.” He smiled sweetly and tenderly and replied: “That will depend entirely upon yourself.” I awoke with a sob in my throat, and it was morning.
“That’s from God,” said my companion (Elder A. M. Musser), when I had related it to him. “I don’t need to be told that,” was my reply. I saw the moral clearly. I had never thought that I would be an Apostle or hold any other office in the Church; and it did not occur to me even then. Yet I knew that those sleeping Apostles meant me. I was asleep at my post—as any man is, or any woman, who, having been divinely appointed to do one thing, does another.
"But from that hour all was changed—I was a different man. I did not give up writing, for President Brigham Young [1801–77], having noticed some of my contributions in the home papers, wrote advising me to cultivate what he called my “gift for writing” so that I might use it in future years “for the establishment of truth and righteousness upon the earth.” This was his last word of counsel to me. He died the same year, while I was still in the mission field, though laboring then in the state of Ohio. I continued to write, but it was for the Church and kingdom of God. I held that first and foremost; all else was secondary.
"Then came the divine illumination, which is greater than all dreams, visions, and other manifestations combined. By the light of God’s candle—the gift of the Holy Ghost—I saw what till then I had never seen, I learned what till then I had never known, I loved the Lord as I had never loved Him before. My soul was satisfied, my joy was full, for I had a testimony of the truth, and it has remained with me to this day.
"I know that my Redeemer liveth. Not even Job knew it better. I have evidence that I cannot doubt; and this is why I am found among those who tonight unfurl the slogan for which we stand, possessing and proclaiming an individual testimony of the divinity of Jesus Christ."
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
The Pre-existence
I’m thinking that there was probably a lot more to the pre-existence than the basics we usually teach concerning it. I’m not sure we appreciate how important the pre-existence was in the plan, and its place in our progression and this earth life.
We all know the basics about the pre-existence - we were spirit children there; a plan for our progression was presented; we were taught the reasons for the plan and what would be involved. And we know basically how people reacted to the plan: Most accepted it but some rejected it, went to battle and were cast out. The general perception is that a third rejected the plan and the rest of us accepted it more or less unequivocally.
What is not generally understood, though, is that this is quite a simplified version of what actually happened. The reality is that among those who were not cast out there were many varying degrees of acceptance of the plan. There were many, for example, who accepted the plan but weren’t convinced it would work. Others accepted the plan but were afraid that they would fail in it; still others simply went along with the crowd and accepted it because their associates did.
Some of our brothers and sisters didn’t care for the plan at all, but weren’t excited about Lucifer’s plan either, so they really didn’t actively take sides.
And then, of course, there were some who loved Lucifer’s plan and hated the Father’s plan, who actively advocated for Lucifer’s plan. But when it came to a pitched battle they, at the last minute, decided not to risk outer darkness and stayed out of the battle. These were a few who really should have gone with Lucifer but didn’t, and so technically kept their first estate and thus qualified to have a second estate.
I’m convinced that some of these who should have gone with Lucifer have become the dictators and despots of the world.
All of this is but a precursor to what I really want to talk about. I want to talk about you. You as a Latter-day Saint, and the 14 million just like you, and all who have had the Gospel before you, and those who will have it in the future, including those whom our missionaries are seeking in the world - You are special.
You are special in that you did much more in the pre-existence than simply accept the Gospel. You accepted it wholeheartedly. You loved the plan. You loved the central figure in the plan, Jehovah. You loved the presenter of the plan, our Father.
You loved it so much that you became an active advocate for it. You reached out to those who weren’t sure. You taught, you encouraged, you brought people to it - in short, you were Missionaries for the plan, and allies of the Lord, and did everything in your power to make the plan successful. You were valiant in the plan, and accomplished much good and helped the Father in all the ways you could.
Now I come to what I really want to talk about. This doctrine is not generally understood, and I am going to declare it to you because it is so important to understand.
Because of your valiance, you qualified in the pre-existence for some wonderful blessings that most Spirits didn’t qualify for. In fact, you qualified for the greatest gift that God could give you - Eternal Life. Your valiancy was so great that the Lord promised you, before you even came here, that you would inherit exaltation. Abraham saw you, that you were noble and great, and that you and your eternal companion would become rulers in the eternities. And thus you were declared by God Himself to be sealed up unto eternal life before you ever even entered mortality. Now, it's important to note that this sealing was conditioned upon your faithfulness in mortality, but it was a true sealing and qualified you to receive certain blessings in mortality, which we will discuss in a moment.
So you were, unlike most of your fellows, given the greatest blessings the Lord has to offer, having proved yourselves so completely in the pre-existence. Now, in our LDS parlance, this is known as having been ‘called’. Let me state it again, in our parlance: everyone in this Church, or who has had the Gospel at any time in the history of the world, was ‘called’ before they came to this earth, having qualified for it under very special circumstances in the pre-existence.
I remind you that many did not qualify for these blessings. You did.
Now, there was another great and marvelous gift given to you. You were to be placed in a situation where you could either find the Gospel, or you would be born right into it, thereby ensuring that the knowledge of how to be exalted would be available to you. And you would have access to the Priesthood, which contains the keys of making exaltation possible. In short, you were given the great blessing of having achieving exaltation made as easy as it could possibly be made. You were sealed up unto eternal life, conditionally, before you came here, and you would have or would be able to find all the tools necessary to make it a final reality.
Now, what all this means is that you received the marvelous blessing of entering the great marathon of life at the 23 or 24 mile mark, with only 2 or 3 miles left to finish the race. Many miles ahead of most others who enter mortality. All of this was made possible for you because of what you accomplished in the pre-existence. Don't ever forget who you were - you were choice and noble and great in the eyes of the Lord, even if you think otherwise about yourself. The mere fact that you are a Latter-day Saint, or have the opportunity to become one, is evidence. That great blessing had to be earned, and you certainly did. Now, you Called, take your great blessing and move forward toward the greatest of all blessings, that of Election.
We all know the basics about the pre-existence - we were spirit children there; a plan for our progression was presented; we were taught the reasons for the plan and what would be involved. And we know basically how people reacted to the plan: Most accepted it but some rejected it, went to battle and were cast out. The general perception is that a third rejected the plan and the rest of us accepted it more or less unequivocally.
What is not generally understood, though, is that this is quite a simplified version of what actually happened. The reality is that among those who were not cast out there were many varying degrees of acceptance of the plan. There were many, for example, who accepted the plan but weren’t convinced it would work. Others accepted the plan but were afraid that they would fail in it; still others simply went along with the crowd and accepted it because their associates did.
Some of our brothers and sisters didn’t care for the plan at all, but weren’t excited about Lucifer’s plan either, so they really didn’t actively take sides.
And then, of course, there were some who loved Lucifer’s plan and hated the Father’s plan, who actively advocated for Lucifer’s plan. But when it came to a pitched battle they, at the last minute, decided not to risk outer darkness and stayed out of the battle. These were a few who really should have gone with Lucifer but didn’t, and so technically kept their first estate and thus qualified to have a second estate.
I’m convinced that some of these who should have gone with Lucifer have become the dictators and despots of the world.
All of this is but a precursor to what I really want to talk about. I want to talk about you. You as a Latter-day Saint, and the 14 million just like you, and all who have had the Gospel before you, and those who will have it in the future, including those whom our missionaries are seeking in the world - You are special.
You are special in that you did much more in the pre-existence than simply accept the Gospel. You accepted it wholeheartedly. You loved the plan. You loved the central figure in the plan, Jehovah. You loved the presenter of the plan, our Father.
You loved it so much that you became an active advocate for it. You reached out to those who weren’t sure. You taught, you encouraged, you brought people to it - in short, you were Missionaries for the plan, and allies of the Lord, and did everything in your power to make the plan successful. You were valiant in the plan, and accomplished much good and helped the Father in all the ways you could.
Now I come to what I really want to talk about. This doctrine is not generally understood, and I am going to declare it to you because it is so important to understand.
Because of your valiance, you qualified in the pre-existence for some wonderful blessings that most Spirits didn’t qualify for. In fact, you qualified for the greatest gift that God could give you - Eternal Life. Your valiancy was so great that the Lord promised you, before you even came here, that you would inherit exaltation. Abraham saw you, that you were noble and great, and that you and your eternal companion would become rulers in the eternities. And thus you were declared by God Himself to be sealed up unto eternal life before you ever even entered mortality. Now, it's important to note that this sealing was conditioned upon your faithfulness in mortality, but it was a true sealing and qualified you to receive certain blessings in mortality, which we will discuss in a moment.
So you were, unlike most of your fellows, given the greatest blessings the Lord has to offer, having proved yourselves so completely in the pre-existence. Now, in our LDS parlance, this is known as having been ‘called’. Let me state it again, in our parlance: everyone in this Church, or who has had the Gospel at any time in the history of the world, was ‘called’ before they came to this earth, having qualified for it under very special circumstances in the pre-existence.
I remind you that many did not qualify for these blessings. You did.
Now, there was another great and marvelous gift given to you. You were to be placed in a situation where you could either find the Gospel, or you would be born right into it, thereby ensuring that the knowledge of how to be exalted would be available to you. And you would have access to the Priesthood, which contains the keys of making exaltation possible. In short, you were given the great blessing of having achieving exaltation made as easy as it could possibly be made. You were sealed up unto eternal life, conditionally, before you came here, and you would have or would be able to find all the tools necessary to make it a final reality.
Now, what all this means is that you received the marvelous blessing of entering the great marathon of life at the 23 or 24 mile mark, with only 2 or 3 miles left to finish the race. Many miles ahead of most others who enter mortality. All of this was made possible for you because of what you accomplished in the pre-existence. Don't ever forget who you were - you were choice and noble and great in the eyes of the Lord, even if you think otherwise about yourself. The mere fact that you are a Latter-day Saint, or have the opportunity to become one, is evidence. That great blessing had to be earned, and you certainly did. Now, you Called, take your great blessing and move forward toward the greatest of all blessings, that of Election.
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