The following are some interesting excerpts from:
Lowell L. Bennion, The Religion of the Latter-day Saints (rev ed.; Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1940)
God and His Relationship to “Law”
3. The Creator governs by law. The Lord is neither capricious nor arbitrary in his creative work with nature and men. We believe him to be law abiding, working in and through his knowledge and understanding of the nature of things, and of the principles and laws pertaining to matter, energy, and life. This is clearly indicated in modern revelations.
All kingdoms have a law given; And there are many kingdoms; for there is no space in the which there is no kingdom; and there is no kingdom in which there is no space, either a greater or a lesser kingdom. And unto every kingdom is given a law; and unto every law there are certain bounds also and conditions. All beings who abide not in those conditions are not justified. For intelligence cleaveth unto intelligence; wisdom receiveth wisdom; truth embraceth truth; virtue loveth virtue; light cleaveth unto light; mercy hath compassion on mercy and claimeth her own; justice continueth its course and claimeth its own; judgment goeth before the face of him who sitteth upon the throne and governeth and executeth all things. He comprehendeth all things, and all things are before him, and all things are round about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, forever and ever. And again, verily I say unto you, he hath given a law unto all things, by which they move in their times and their seasons; And their courses are fixed, even the courses of the heavens and the earth, which comprehend the earth and all the planets. And they give light to each other in their times and in their seasons, in their minutes, in their hours, in their days, in their weeks, in their months, in their years-- all these are one year with God, but not with man.--Doc. & Cov. 88:36-44
4. The creative work of Deity transcends human concepts. We can say that the creations of God are unending, purposeful, and orderly, but we cannot go much and perspective is in no position to define the great beyond such statements. Man with his limited knowledge Creator’s ways. We should guard against restricting his work to human notions of time, space, and matter. God does not work after the way of man, but man’s way may suggest to us the manner in which God works. Our Latter-day Saint scriptures even the Book of Isaiah and the Book of Job, have some choice passages on the difference between the Lord’s perspective and field of action and ours.
And they give light to each other in their times and in their seasons, in their minutes, in their hours, in their days, in their weeks, in their months, in their years—all these are one year with God, but not with man—Doc. & Cov. 88:44. (Italics ours)
And now I would inquire what becometh of the souls of men from this time of death to the time appointed for the resurrection? Now whether there is more than one time appointed for men to rise it mattereth not, for all do not die at once, and this mattereth not; all is as one day with God, and time only is measured unto men.—Alm1a 40:7, 8. (Italics ours)
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your way my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.—Isaiah 55:8, 9 (Note Job 38-42). (pp. 39-40)
Man’s Free-will is Relative, not Absolute
When we say that man is free, we do not mean that his freedom is absolute and wholly the product of his own self. What man is and what man does cannot be explained entirely in terms of the individual himself. Man’s freedom of choice is limited by a number of factors: (1) It is limited by the kind of a universe in which he lives. Man is subject to its laws and he is bound by the conditions of earth-life. (2) Man is limited in his exercise of free agency by his own ignorance of lie’s choice. Ignorance restricts freedom; knowledge may increase our freedom. Think, for example, of man’s freedom to communicate with others which has come through the discoveries of science. (3) Man is limited by his habit of sinning, by his failure or inability to conform his behavior to his knowledge of the right. If an individual knows in his heart that he should not steal, and yet does not resist the temptation to steal, his knowledge becomes a hindrance, rather than a source of freedom. (4) Man’s freedom is limited by the existence of other free agents like himself. Their ignorance, sins, and even rights and privileges may place limitations on his own freedom. Think of the restriction of freedom on the people of the earth since 1939 because of the actions of people who precipitated World War II. (pp. 49-50 [at the time of publication—1940—WWII was on-going]).
Eternal Life is both a “yet” as well as a “not yet”
Eternal life can be gained in a measure now. Many Christians, and among them some Latter-day Saints, think of their salvation as simply a gift of Deity to them to be delivered on judgment day. They think of it as a reward for behaviour in mortality much as the pay check is a reward to an employee for his work in a shop during the week. Salvation or eternal life has a far richer and more immediate meaning to us than that of external reward. Earth-life is a part of eternity just as much as life beyond the grave is. The principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ are just as applicable here as there. Our search for an eternal, God-like life can and ought to begin here on earth today. It is to be gained little by little, step by step. It comes to us gradually as we some to understand and to live in accordance with the divine principles of the gospel by which the Lord, himself, lives. Naturally, the fullest blessings of eternal life cannot be realized here and now. They must wait the hereafter and opportunities in the Celestial Kingdom. Indeed, our realization of a life like unto that of our Heavenly Father will be an unending adventure. Now is the time, however, to begin or to continue our self-realization towards such a goal. And unless we do attune our lives in mortality to the will of God, we shall not have eternal life hereafter—at least, not until we learn to live a God-like life there. Alma places a fine emphasis on our ability to gain life now:
Yea, I would that ye could come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you—Alma 34:31. (Read also Alma 34:26-43). (p. 55)
The inequality of man and the purported injustice of God and the universal brotherhood of mankind
Inequality of inheritance and opportunity among the children of men leads many people to question the Creator’s impartiality and justice, and, therefore, his very existence . . . Suffice it to say here that differences among men are not due to His partiality and favortism. He is doing all in his power for all men. Men too are responsible for themselves and for one another. This is man’s world as well as God’s. The Lord’s influence among men is always for good towards building a brotherhood of man. Anything which tends to destroy the brotherhood of man is not inspired of God. Jesus, in his parable of the Good Samaritan, broke through racial bigotry and prejudice to teach the brotherhood of man in a spiritual plane. He, himself, held every life sacred, bringing what inspiration and blessings he could to the sinner, the sick, the little child, the penitent thief, the Gentile’s daughter, and the prosperous Joseph. To him, all men were children of God and brothers. His great disciples, Peter and Paul, caught the same vision. Book of Mormon prophets were also moved by the same spirit.
Behold, the Lord esteemeth all flesh in one; he that is righteous is favoured of God . . ..—I. Nephi 17:35
Think of your brethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with substance, that they may be rich like unto you.
And now, my brethren, I have spoken unto you concerning pride; and those of you which have afflicted your neighbour, and persecuted him because ye were proud in your hearts, of the things which God hath given you, what say ye of it?
Do ye not suppose that such things are abominable unto him who created all flesh? And the one bring is as precious in his sight as the other . . .—Jacob 2:17, 20, 21.
And the people were desirous that Alma should be their king, for he was beloved by his people. But he said unto them: Behold, it is not expedient that we should have a king; for thus saith the Lord: Ye shall not esteem one flesh above another, for one man shall not think himself above another; therefore I say unto you it is not expedient that ye should have a king.—Mosiah 23:6, 7. (pp. 59-60)
Two Extreme Theories about the nature of Revelation that is to be avoided
There are two extreme attitudes taken towards revelation by many people. The one is the old Protestant-inspired concept proclaiming scripture to be a dictation from God irrespective of time, place or human understanding. Man is nothing more than a passive recording machine. Revelation is entirely the ward of God, given to man in a complete, perfect, and final form.
The other extreme position taken by many students of the sciences dealing with human culture, holds that revelation, so-called, like any other phase of man’s history, is wholly explicable in terms of human experience. God is eliminated from the picture entirely. They find good reason to support the view that the human element is present in revelation, for they find the form and content therefore closely related to other aspects of man’s cultural life. In a word, they discover that the religious life of any group is an integral part of the whole cultured pattern of that group.
Latter-day Saints hold both of these extreme positions to be incorrect. Revelation, as we know it, is not wholly explicable in terms of Deity or of man considered alone. God plays his role and man his. The scriptures teach a very reasonable point of view about the nature of revelation, a point of view which avoids the extreme positions mentioned above.
Behold, I am God and have spoken it; these commandments are of me and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding. And inasmuch as they erred it might be made known; And inasmuch as they sought wisdom they might be instructed; And inasmuch as they sinned they might be chastened, that they might be made strong. And blessed from on high, and receive knowledge from time to time.—Doc. & Cov. 1:24-28
For my soul delighteth in plainness; for after his manner doth the Lord God work among the children of men. For the Lord God giveth light unto the understanding; for he speaketh unto men according to their language, unto their understanding.—II Nephi 31:3.
. . . Our Father in Heaven is a wise leader who speaks to men in the light of their language and experience, helping them to rise to higher levels of understanding and living. In so doing he conforms to the principles of man’s eternal life—his freedom and his need and desire for growth. Our Father cannot pour knowledge and wisdom into our heads. Man’s life is not enriched from without alone, but rather, in great part, from self-initiated activity under the stimulation of external stimuli. So we conceive God as one who guides, suggests, corrects, and confirms man in his quest for truth. This process of giving man direction and help is conditioned by man’s weaknesses, his language and circumstances as the above quotations attest. Of course, revelation is related to man’s life and finds expression in his language and imagery
This does not depreciate its value, for God has ever sought to teach men fundamental truths of eternal validity, applicable in the lives of all men. Moreover, the language of revelation is inspired. If one doubt this, let him read the Sermon on the Mount and the Parables of Jesus, the writings of Amos, Hosea, Micah, Jeremiah, and Isaiah. I Corinthians 13, Moroni 4:3, Doctrine and Covenants 121:34-46 as examples of divine truths beautifully expressed. (pp. 77-78)
One sense “Faith” is greater than “Knowledge”
In another sense, faith is more than knowledge. It reaches out, like a new hypothesis, beyond the borders of knowledge. It begins, we may say, where knowledge leaves off. It is an active principle with which we lift ourselves and push ourselves beyond that which knowledge of fact alone would warrant. Sir Wilford Grenfell, the great Labrador doctor and Christian gentleman, defines it thus: Faith is reason grown courageous. (p. 121)
The Remission of Sins through Water Baptism is a Work of God, not a Work of Man
1. The Lord promises us remission of sins. Remission means forgiveness or pardon. Those persons who are persuaded through Christ to “exercise faith unto repentance” continually have the divine promise that their sins will be remitted. God will not remember them. True, we shall have suffered the natural consequences of wrong-doing, yet this suffering will belong to the past and we shall be welcomed into a fellowship with the Father and Son as children of God.
Baptism itself does not wash away our sins. It is rather a beautiful, earthly symbol of a divine action. (pp. 127-28, emphasis added)
The Church’s Obligations to Stand up for Morality, even in the Political Sphere
[T]he Church has the moral obligation to be a critic of political and social goals and practices. It can fight for social and political justice—for those policies which lead to freedom, peace, and human brotherhood. The Church has a right to condemn corruptness in the body politic and selfishness and unfair play in men’s economic relations. It can and ought to teach men to live above the plane of legal morality—of getting by within or around the requirements of the law. The Church ought to serve as a leaven in human society which would permeate the whole and lift it to a higher plane of social and moral life. It is in a strategic position to do so. (p. 149)
Protestantism is a False Gospel (cf. Gal 1:8)
. . . Protestantism represents a deviation from the Christian norm. Protestantism did not begin with any idea of reconstructing Christian doctrine. In the main, it retained the fundamental Catholic view of Deity and man. In fact, the Protestants went to greater extremes than the Catholics in their deviation from the Apostolic norm in several repeats.
Protestant leaders accepted the Catholic concept of Deity as stated in the creeds of the Mother Church. They also took over the concept of “fallen” humanity and the utter depravity of man.
Man is utterly corrupted and depraved and humility along becomes him in the presence of God, who is all that he is not. To know God is to be struck with horror and amazement, for then and only then does one realize one’s own character.—Calvin, Institutes, Bk. II, Chap. iii.
With whatever kind of tribulation, we may be afflicted, we should always keep this end in view, to habituate ourselves for a contempt of the present life that we may thereby be excited to mediation on that which is to come.—Institutes, Book III, chapter IX, 1.
There is no medium between these two extremes, either the earth must become evil in our estimation, or it must retain our immoderate love. Wherefore if we have any concern about eternity, we must use our most diligent efforts to extricate ourselves from these fetters.—Ibid., II.
Our study of the different reformers has made it clear enough that all lived in a medieval world . . . They all believed in depravity and helplessness of man, and in his need of a miraculous redemption.—McGiffert, Protestant Thought Before Kant, p. 98.
In the Protestant world of thought, the Bible became the foundation of doctrine and church practice. The great leaders of the Reformation were God-fearing men who strove for the conception of right. They sought the inspiration of God and doubtless, in many instances, received it. However, in the establishment of their doctrines and creed, they eliminated the ideas of continuous revelation in the Biblical meaning of the term.
The Bible became the supreme authority. God had spoken once or all in ages long past. He had said this final world to men. Religion became geared to the past, to a partial record of divine revelation given to an ancient people and culture. With the Bible as supreme authority, and every man quite free (in theory) to interpret it, schism and dissension set in to divide Christendom into hundreds of factions.
The sacramental way of salvation of Catholicism was replaced with an even greater emphasis on grace. Man was to be saved through faith in the graciousness of God. Salvation is the work of God. Man in his depravity and sin is utterly helpless in his own salvation. The most extreme and logical interpretation of grace was made by Alvin through his doctrine of predestination. This, we believe, is inconsistent with the Christian concept of God and with Christ’s confidence in and requirements of men.
Protestants make no logical claim to divine authority. Their idea of the “universal priesthood of all believers” nullifies the biblical concept of priesthood as divine authority received by ordination.
The Protestant movement had its origin n the righteous desire to reform. Therein lies its strength and also its limitation. It brought freedom and, at least temporarily, new vigor into the religious life of the Christian world. It failed to restore the gospel and Church of Christ in their true pristine character. It accomplished, in a measure, what it set out to do but this was not enough. (pp. 255-53)
A Prophet is more of a Forth-Teller than a Foreteller
A prophet called of God, is not so much a foreteller as he is a forth-teller. We associate the word “prophet” with prophecy and prophesying. As a result, we may have come to think of a prophet as one who predicts the future; the true prophet being one who predicts it correctly, the false being one who errs in his prediction. Such an interpretation is a very limited one that fails to do justice to, or probe into, the real character and mission, or even the name, of a prophet.
President Anthony W. Ivins left us a well-balanced and true view of the prophet mission in a conference sermon from which the following paragraph is taken:
A careful study of the etymology of the word and the lives, works, and character of the prophets of old makes clear the act that a prophet was, and is, one called to act as God’s messenger. He is to teach men the character of god and define and make known to the people His will. He is to denounce sin and declare the punishment of the transgression. He is to be above all else a preacher of righteousness, and when the people depart from the path which he has marked out or them to follow, is to call them back to the true faith. He is an interpreter of the Scripture, and declares its meaning and application. When future events are to be declared he predicts them, but his direct and most important calling is to be a forthteller, or director of present policy rather than a foreteller of that which is to come.—Conference Report, October 1925, p. 20. (Italics ours)
A careful reading of Amos, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Jesus, Paul, Book of Mormon writings, and the Doctrine and Covenants will reveal to one that the bulk of their writing and teaching deals not with predictions of specific events to come, but with declarations of God’s will among men, of man’s obligation to fellowmen, and of the respective consequences which will follow in the lives of individuals and of nations who live or fail to live in harmony with the great moral principles of the Universe, with God’s law. Because of their emphasis on right living and their great literary talent, Edward Arnold called the literary prophets of the Old Testament “poets of righteousness.” A professor of English (with deep appreciation), speaks of the prophet as a volcanic force, imploring, threatening, in the world but not of the world; sees eternally and is possessed by eternal verities, authoritative, humanitarian. Despised and rejected, he goes on like a force of nature that cannot be silenced, a note of painful passion, a heart of love, an uncompromising sense of righteousness. A person of mountain-top elevation living in a world of petty injustices which cause rottenness in the body of the people and make it a pretty unto the nations. As with the eyes of God he sees every wrong and what the sum total means.
A study of the lives and books of any of the prophets will reveal that their primary function was to speak for God—to teach, instruct, guide, admonish, and lead. If there is any doubt on this point, let the reader compare the relative importance of the teaching and leadership of Moses, Amos, Jesus, Paul, Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and Heber J. Grant with their predictions about the future. (pp. 256-57)
