There are 2 things that I fear in myself, and subsequently in those I care about, almost above anything else and this is the principle reason I started this blog:
1. To reject as false something that is true
2. To accept as true something that is false
Avoiding these two things at all costs is one of the guiding forces in my life.
It’s OK to not know what it is that you have inherited as a system of belief. Many throughout the world grow up with religious traditions. There comes a time or there should come a time at some point when it becomes necessary to know if and how much of these traditions are true. This is the only way that one will ever be moved to search for more. If you think that what you have inherited as a tradition is all that there is, then you have elected to limit what the Lord is willing to give you. If you don’t see the need for more light and truth in your life, you will not feel the need to seek for it and subsequently will not receive more either. This is how we stop our own progression or just as a dam stops water for flowing where it otherwise could. Mankind many times damns themselves by being content with what they have inherited and not seeking more. This is also how a religion can harm and not help you; by facilitating a belief that they have the answers for you and not encouraging you to seek the truth for yourself. This is true for any system of belief including the 30,000+ different Christian sects (Mormonism included), Islam, Buddhism, Shintoism, and the countless other religions and non religions such as secular atheism etc. Truth stands independent of anyone’s beliefs or opinions.
And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light
– John 3:19, KJV
For what doth it profit a man if a gift is bestowed upon him, and he receive not the gift? Behold, he rejoices not in that which is given unto him, neither rejoices in him who is the giver of the gift.
– D&C 88:33
Rejecting falsehood is tricky. We come to this earth as a blank slate and immediately it is filled with the “traditions of our fathers” so to speak. How are we to know which ones are true and good from which ones are good and false? (The ones that are bad and false are easy to discard.)
It is my personal belief that a sure way to get truth and have it be confirmed to you that it is true and good and of God is to be willing to lay down ones preconceived notions about what is true upon the “altar of truth” and to be willing to accept the fact that some of those ideas and closely held assumptions and beliefs may not be true. Faith in a God who is intimately involved in the affairs of man should stay at the core, as should a desire to believe in His Son Jesus Christ; even if these are only a desires and not well rooted, that’s OK. The Book of Mormon account of a Lamanite emperor, the father of Lamoni, is an poignant example of one who humbled himself and desired to believe a true message sent from God:
And it came to pass that when Aaron had said these words [teaching the doctrine of Christ] , the king did bow down before the Lord, upon his knees; yea, even he did prostrate himself upon the earth, and cried mightily, saying: O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and ifthere is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day. And now when the king had said these words, he was struck as if he were dead.
– Alma 22:17-18, Book of Mormon
Because of this desire to believe in something that was actually true, the Powers of Heaven were activated and this led to this old king being converted to Jesus Christ and his gospel. Eventually this action led to the conversion of countless tens of thousands.
The prophet Moroni gave a wonderful example of how we can search and know if something before us as candidate truth really is of God. In this example he was referring to those who would come across the Book of Mormon, however this pattern works for evaluating many other potential teachings from God:
Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.
And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.
– Moroni 10:3-5, Book of Mormon
By using this pattern of seeking, pondering and praying we end up losing the impurities, the philosophies of men that aren’t true, the traditions that are false. What is left is that which is most precious, the pearl of great price that the Savior spoke of in the parable. It is the only thing worth keeping. For the proud and hard hearted this is an impossible task for they neither really want to know what is true, neither are they willing to change their ways or to repent however if one is humble, meek, and lowly in heart, there is no limit on what you may be able to receive and the amount of truth you can obtain. This is one of the first things the Savior taught when he visited the Nephite people in America and it echoes the teachings which were taught in Palestine:
Yea, blessed are the poor in spirit who come unto me, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
And blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
And blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.
– 3 Nephi 12:3-6 selected, Book of Mormon
Lamentably in our culture we idolize those people who would never be willing to undertake such an endeavor. We look to the experts in various fields and are content with what they have to say to us. This may work for secular matters but with that which pertains to our salvation and of God and the treasures of eternity, YOU should become the expert, but in the Lords way. As one who seeks, as one who serves, as one who sacrifices, as one who loves perfectly, as one who forgives, as one who is patiently waiting for more. Those who embark on such a course can and will receive a promise from the Lord directly:
Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am; And that I am the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
– D&C 93:1-2
There is one who showed us the way and in whom we can must assuredly trust. He came to his own and his own received him not yet those who received him he gave them the power to become the sons of God. He is the way, the truth and the life. At the great and last day when we will be brought to stand before Him we will know that His ways are just and true and there will be a torment of guilt as exquisite as a lake of fire and brimstone in our souls should we come to realize that we wasted the days of this life until it was everlastingly too late. May we seek for the Lord and find him today. May we change our direction to face Him and enter into the strait and narrow path that leads to everlasting life, today. If we seek him, we will find Him and we will be filled unto overflowing.