Choices

Of course, all will be revealed at Judgment Day.

A common topic that comes up in most LDS meetings is agency and it is apparently one of the breaking points that eventually led to the rebellion of Lucifer.

Most of us have heard that Satan, who was Lucifer, offered to be the savior by forcing everyone onto the right path. However, is that an accurate statement? Is this another popular Mormon cultural myths being perpetuated for generations?

The scripture referencing the debate about agency can be found in Moses 4:1-4. As far as I understand, agency consists of the following elements:

1. Opposition (2 Nephi 2:15)
2. Personal choices (Abraham 3:25)
3. Consequences (Alma 42)

For those of you who are too lazy to look up the scriptures, here's the rundown:

Opposition in all things is necessary part of this mortality. Life is simply full of choices. Many times, we can't have them all. The Plan of Salvation, in part, is to have us make correct choices out of many possible options. Along with opposition comes with the liberty to choose. The Book of Abraham indicates that each person is required to make good choices out of his or her volition rather than divine coercion. The Book of Alma has a long sermon about justice and mercy in terms of consequences of our actions.

Let's compare this to Moses 4:1-4.

1 And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying—Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor.

 2 But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me—Father, thywill be done, and the glory be thine forever.

 3 Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down;

 4 And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice.

The keyword here is redeem. The popular answer in LDS Sunday School is Satan got shut down because of his pride in the idea that he could make people do good against their will. I disagree.

The fact that Lucifer offered to redeem mankind suggests that he also believed that people would make mistakes, and therefore, become imperfect. The Apostle Matthew outlined the Lord's mission in his record, stating that He will save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). This is further expounded in Book of Helaman when Amulek taught the common misconception that the Savior would save people regardless of their state of being (Helaman 5:10). The real difference between Christ and Satan, in my opinion, is that Jesus will save us FROM our sins whereas Satan will attempt the impossible and save us IN our sins.

Verse 3 of Moses 4 states how Satan sought to destroy agency. If we read it in another perspective, I believe it is saying that the Devil seeks to break agency after his proposal was rejected. Agency is one of the core elements in this mortal trial. To deny anyone of it is to halt that person's progression and even freedom for eternity. By redeeming mankind in their sins, that would violate the balance between justice and mercy, or remove consequences for our actions. If what I listed above holds true, then it is the first step to take away the gift of agency.

In order to break agency, it appears that the formula is the exact opposite:

1. False sense of security (2 Nephi 28:7-9 and 1 Cor. 15:32)
2. Bondage/captivity (2 Nephi 2:27 and Galatians 5:1)
3. No more options (2 Nephi 2:29)

To summarize, it would appear that the ever-popular Sunday School answer is not entirely inaccurate, but rather, oversimplified. Satan didn't necessarily plan on forcing people to do good, but serving his own interests. My cynical synopsis is that getting the lead role in the Plan of Salvation was an attempt to become the sole sovereign of all God's children. Perhaps if Lucifer were to be successful, we would have become unprogressive for all eternity. The worst case scenario being everyone subjugated to his will due to the fact we were saved in our sins. Or perhaps the pattern I observed to break agency is simply a spiteful move to hinder as many souls as possible so they cannot return to their Heavenly Father?

Either way, I hope you all enjoyed this little tidbit of thought.

And He Did No Miracles

Modern rendition of the baptism of Jesus

It is not often I get to go to the temple. The reasons have always been a mixture of time on hand and laziness. However, I did have a chance to go to the Provo Temple two weeks ago and performed vicarious ordinances.

The journey was not without any personal enlightenment. I came across a passage in the New Testament that helped gain a better understanding about the Lord's servants and what we can do in our lives that's applicable even today.

It is said by the Apostle Luke that there's no greater prophet than John the Baptist except for the Savior (Luke 7:28). He is, after all, the man who prepared the way for Christ's ministry. John was not only a prophet, but also the cousin of Jesus. The genealogy of that family can be found in detail in Matthew.

I don't claim to be a scripture guru, so feel free to correct me if I get the context of the biblical passages wrong. I am merely sharing my experiences.

Of course, that is not the passage I read in the temple. The verse I came across was John 10:41-42. "And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man (referring to Christ) were true. And many believed on him there." Note the phrase "John did no miracle". That caught my eyes as soon as I opened up the Bible at a random spot.

(For those of you who don't know, I usually go for the random shot in the dark when I pick a spot to  read the scriptures in the temple.)

For many, the days of Christ-like healings and earth-shattering phenomenons have passed. The distant past is where all the well-known prophets dwelled. I know I have had my own definition of what prophets are supposed to be like, and I admit, I used to think they should be able to perform mighty miracles because of their faith.

Depending on your definition of a prophet, it may affect your expectations. Even the LDS Bible Dictionary recognizes the fact that the designation of a prophet includes a person with testimony of the Lord (Rev. 19:10). In that sense, John was probably not a seer, but he was nevertheless a preacher of righteousness.

What did John do? He taught people about the coming of the Savior. We don't have all the details of his ministry besides baptism unto repentance to his humble exit and eventual execution at the hands of the Jewish puppet government.

Bottom line is, great things can be accomplished without grandiose deeds. If we feel otherwise, we are misguided. In popular culture, this idea is reflected by Gandalf in the Hobbit movies. Little things that we do together tend to have more effect than one tremendous deed once in a blue moon. Refer back to the Nephites after Christ's visit. They lived in harmony and prosperity because everyone did the right thing.

As for the miracles, that's another story. Mark and Moroni has some interesting commentaries about the lack of miracles in our days (Mark 6 & Mormon 9).