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DOCTRINES OF SALVATION
Volume I
SERMONS & WRITINGS OF JOSEPH
FIELDING SMITH
Compiled by Bruce R. McConkie
(c) 1954-56 Bookcraft
PREFACE
Joseph Fielding Smith is the leading gospel scholar and the greatest doctrinal teacher of this generation. Few men in this dispensation have approached him in gospel knowledge or surpassed him in spiritual insight, His is the faith and the knowledge of his father, President Joseph F. Smith, and his grandfather, the Patriarch Hyrum Smith.
It was inevitable, therefore, that his sermons and writings should form the basis of a substantial contribution to the literature of the Church. This first-of-three volumes should find ready acceptance among gospel students everywhere.
Source of the material is the published sermons and articles of President Smith as found in the various periodicals of the Church; also, the thousands upon thousands of personal letters he has written to give answers to questions raised by searchers who could not find the
desired information in any published work,
It follows that a host of answers will be found herein to gospel questions frequently asked, but seldom answered with the authoritative finality of the oracles of God. When President Smith speaks, it is not as the scribes.
The student will do well to read the scriptural references listed in the footnotes, and to approach his study in a spirit of faith and prayerful search for ultimate truth.
To many I express deep appreciation for help and encouragement: Chiefly, to President Joseph Fielding Smith, himself, for his scriptural insight, his plain teachings, and his power of expression; to Elder Oscar W. McConkie, my father, for much counsel and for many helpful suggestions; to Elder Milton R, Hunter of the First Council of the Seventy, for like assistance; to Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr., for setting the type and making many valued suggestions; to Velma Harvey and Shirley Stone Storrs, for typing the mountain of manuscripts from which the gems here published were selected; and to Harold Lundstrom, for a painstaking and careful reading of the proof.
-- Bruce R, McConkie Salt Lake City, Utah November 10, 1954.
CHAPTER 1
CHARACTER, ATTRIBUTES, AND PERFECTIONS OF GOD
THE GODHEAD
THE SUPREME COUNCIL. "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost."1. 1
We accept these three personages as the supreme governing council in the heavens. The Father and the Son have tabernacles of flesh and bones, and the Holy Ghost is a personage of Spirit. 1. 2 We worship the Father in the name of the Son, who is the Mediator between God and man, and his is the only name given whereby man can be saved.1. 3 We accept Jesus as the Only Begotten Son of the Father in the flesh, although we are all his offspring in the spirit, and therefore his children.1. 4
FATHERHOOD OF GOD. We are taught in the scriptures that God is literally, and not in a figurative sense, our very Eternal Father. The words of our Redeemer spoken to Mary near the tomb from which he had risen and gained the victory over death, are most sublime and filled with glorious meaning: "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go
know them in the fulness. However, until we do enter into their presence and receive this great blessing, we will not fully know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.3. 13
ANY RIGHTEOUS MAN CAN SEE GOD. The Lord has established all things in order and has given us a perfect system. We cannot improve upon it. If we would carry out that which the Lord has revealed, as he has revealed it, then all things would be perfect; for the organization is a perfect organization: the theory of it, the plan of it, is without flaw. If we followed all the orders that have been given to us in the priesthood and otherwise; if we would put into practice the great doctrines which have been revealed in the revelations contained in the holy scriptures, it would only be a matter of a very short time until this great people would be in the same condition, absolutely, as were the people in the city of Enoch. We would be able to walk with God, we would be able to behold his face, because then faith would abound in the hearts of the people to the extent that it would be impossible for the Lord to withhold himself, and he would reveal himself unto us as he has done in times past.4. 14
GOSPEL AND PRIESTHOOD NEEDED TO SEE GOD. We cannot tie the hands of the Lord. The Father and the Son appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith before the Church was organized and the priesthood restored to the earth. Under those conditions the Lord could appear to one who sought for light as he did in the case of Joseph Smith.
Now that the Church is organized, and the power of the priesthood is here, no one can see the face of God, even the Father, without the blessings of the gospel and the authority of the priesthood. 4. 15
WALKING WITH GOD. The statement that men anciently "walked with God" we accept, of course, as a figure of speech. It means that they were in perfect harmony and at the same time receiving constant guidance and revelation from the Lord. It does not mean that they were privileged to walk along the streets, for instance, as Jesus walked with the two disciples after his resurrection.4. 16
FEAR THE LORD. The Lord is merciful and kind and does not require of those who serve him that they be afraid and tremble before him. There is no delight in his heart in the "fear" of the wicked because of their sins. Most scriptural passages which tell us to "fear the Lord" have no reference to fright.
The word "fear" has more than the one meaning which we so universally use. The scriptural meaning is "to have reverential awe." In Young's Concordance of the Bible, under the word "fear" we find several meanings, such as "terror," from the Hebrew word "emah"; "dread" from the Hebrew "pachdah"; reverence" from the Hebrew "yare." So we see that the word "fear" as used in the English language, had different shades of meaning in the Hebrew, and that language used different words to connote those shades of meaning.
LOVE THE LORD. When the Lord requires that we "fear" him and keep his commandments, he means that we should pay to him that homage and reverence which we owe to our Eternal Father and his Son Jesus Christ. To fear the Lord is to love him. That is the sense in which the word is used. The Lord is not asking us to be afraid of him, but to draw near unto him, and the greatest of all the commandments is, that we love him.5. 17
HOW GOD PROGRESSES
GOD HAS ALL POWER AND WISDOM. My grandfather, Hyrum Smith, at the conference of the Church, April, 1844, in the course of his remarks said: "I want to put down all false influences. If I thought I should be saved and any in the congregation be lost, I should not be happy. For this purpose Jesus effected a resurrection. Our Savior is competent to save all from death and hell [i.e. by repentance], I can prove it out of the revelations. I would not serve a God that had not all wisdom and all power."
Do we believe that God has all "wisdom"? If so, in that, he is absolute. If there is something he does not know, then he is not absolute in "wisdom," and to think such a thing is absurd, Does he have all "power"? If so then there is nothing in which he lacks. If he is lacking in "wisdom" and in "power" then he is not supreme and there must be something greater than he is, and this is absurd.
JOSEPH SMITH TEACHES OMNIPOTENCE OF GOD, In the Lectures on Faith, which appeared in the earlier editions of the Doctrine and Covenants, we find the following which was prepared by the Prophet Joseph Smith:
"There are two personages [i.e. of flesh and bones] who constitute the great, matchless, governing, and supreme, power over all things, by whom all things were created and made, that are created and made, whether visible or invisible, whether in heaven, on earth, or in the earth, under the earth, or throughout the immensity of space. They are the Father and the Son -- the Father being a personage of spirit,6. 18 glory, and power, possessing all perfection and fulness, the Son, who was in the bosom of the Father, a personage of tabernacle, made or fashioned like unto man, or being in the form and likeness of man, or rather man was formed after his likeness and in his image; he is also the express image and likeness of the personage of the Father, possessing all the fulness of the Father, or the same fulness with the Father."6. 19
"God is the only supreme governor and independent being in whom all fulness and perfection dwell; who is omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient; without beginning of days or end of life; and that in him every good gift and every good principle dwell." 6. 20
"Without the knowledge of all things God would not be able to save any portion of his creatures; for it is by reason of the knowledge which he has of all things, from the beginning
no excuse for the simplicity of my faith.
Who dares say that the quality of "virtue" is limited with our Father and his Son? Is their truthfulness only "relative"? Could they be more truthful? More honorable? More virtuous or loving? How foolish such questions are, and how much more foolish would be the answer if we said: "Yes, the Lord is limited in his truthfulness, honor, virtue." Well, if he is absolute in these qualities, is he on the road of retrogression in them? According to the argument this must be so if the absolute is reached. Then why should we say that his knowledge is limited and that hidden law and truths abound which he has not discovered. Who made those laws and where do they come from?
SCRIPTURES PROVE OMNIPOTENCE OF GOD, I believe, literally, what is written in these scriptures:
"O how great the holiness of our God! For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything save he knows it."9. 24
"Thus saith the Lord your God, even Jesus Christ, the Great I AM, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the same which looked upon the wide expanse of eternity, and all the seraphic hosts of heaven, before the world was made;
"The same which knoweth all things, for all things are present before mine eyes." 9. 25
"And now, verily I say unto you, I was in the beginning with the Father, and am the Firstborn;...
"The Spirit of truth is of God. I am the Spirit of truth, and John bore record of me, saying: He received a fulness of truth, yea, even of all truth."9. 26
"Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, there never were men that had so great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God; for he has all power, all wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a merciful Being, even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name."9. 27
"Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely,...
"Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite," 9. 28
"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, for ever and ever."
The next verse (42) is very significant in revealing to us something regarding the laws:
"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."10. 29
GOD PROGRESSES BECAUSE OF KNOWLEDGE. It is not because the Lord is ignorant of law and truth that he is able to progress, but because of his knowledge and wisdom. The Lord is constantly using his knowledge in his work. And his great work is in bringing to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. By the creation of worlds and peopling them, by building and extending, he progresses, but not because the fulness of truth is not understood by him. 10. 30
WILL GOD DESTROY HIMSELF? I cannot comprehend God in his perfection having to spend time discovering laws and truth he does not know. Such a thought to me is destructive, not progressive, Should there be truth which God has not discovered, when may he discover it, and, like a chemist who mixes certain elements and blows himself up, when will the Almighty find some hidden truth or law which will shatter all? Is there not a danger that some other personage may discover some greater truth than our Father knows? If such could be the case, what would become of God?
HOW GOD IS EVERLASTING
GOD IS AN EXALTED MAN. Some people are troubled over the statements of the Prophet Joseph Smith as found in the King Follett sermon delivered in Nauvoo in 1844. The matter that seems such a mystery is the statement that our Father in heaven at one time passed through a life and death and is an exalted man. This is one of the mysteries, and to some it appears to contradict other statements in the scriptures. Naturally there are many things that we will not comprehend while in this mortal life and we will not be able to fathom all of the difficulties that lie before us. Our understanding is limited and we judge according to the things we know and with which we are familiar. The things of eternity we will not understand until we reach the goal of eternal life, when all things will be made clear.
We read in the scriptures that God is "infinite and eternal, from everlasting to everlasting the same unchangeable God";"11. 31 that he is "the same yesterday, today, and forever"; 11. 32 that he "is unchangeable from all eternity to all eternity."11. 33 How does this conform to the Prophet's teaching: "God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man,... that he was once a man like us; yea, that God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth, the same as Jesus Christ himself did"? 11. 34
CHRIST BORN; YET FROM EVERLASTING. Now I suppose that we all understand the fact that Jesus Christ was Jehovah, who led Israel in the days of Abraham and Moses, and in fact from the days of Adam, Also that Jehovah, or Jesus Christ, as a personage of Spirit
company he keeps. People who swear and profane belong to the same class as do those who think, or leave the impression that they think, that to have a cigarette, cigar, or pipe in their mouth, lends dignity and manliness -- do we have to say also womanliness? -- to their character. Filthiness in any form is degrading and soul-destroying and should be avoided as a deadly poison by every member of the Church,
BLASPHEMY IN COMMON CONVERSATION. Good stories have been frequently ruined simply because the authors have not understood the propriety of the use of sacred names. When blasphemous expressions are placed in the mouths of otherwise respectable characters, instead of enhancing the story they detract from its value and interest. How strange it is that some people, and good people at that, think that to use some expression involving the name of the Lord, adds interest, wit, or power to their stories! How often this is seen in the moving pictures, even in shows that otherwise are commendable.
But all such expressions in the theatre, and the use of tobacco and liquor, are detrimental to the morals and spirituality of those who witness them, and especially is it true in the case of the youth of tender years whose character is in the formative stage. It is a shame that such expressions are found so frequently, even in the so-called higher class publications which come into the homes of Latter-day Saints.
Above all other peoples on the earth, the Latter-day Saints should hold in the utmost sacredness and reverence all things that are holy, The people of the world have not been trained as we have been in such matters, notwithstanding there are many honest, devout, and refined people in the world. But we have the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the revelations of the Lord, and he has solemnly taught us in our own day our duty in relation to all such things.
SOME HYMNS PROFANE DEITY, Even in some of the sacred hymns that are universally used, the frequent and familiar use of the name of the Lord enters, and spoils their use so far as we are concerned. A few hymns of this nature, with noble, uplifting thoughts, have found their way into the musical exercises of the Latter-day Saints.
PROPER USE OF LORD'S NAME. There are times, of course, when the use of the name of Deity is perfectly proper. The Lord has given us such examples in the blessings on the sacrament and the ordinance of baptism. The same is true in the conferring of the priesthood, for, as we have been taught, all things are to be done in the name of the Son; all our prayers should be addressed to the Father and brought to a close in the name of the Son,
IMPROPER USE OF LORD'S NAME IN PRAYERS. Even in this, however, we frequently hear improper expressions that jar on the sensitiveness of refined ears, Running the risk of criticism, I would like to call attention to a few expressions which it would be better not to use. At times we hear a very earnest, fervent prayer given in the spirit of pure humility and innocence, closed with this expression: "for Christ's sake. Amen," I never hear this
expression that it does not bring to my mind the similar use by blasphemers on the streets. Of course, in the prayer, such a thing as an improper expression was not intended and never entered the mind of the one who prayed.
PRAYER IS FOR OUT SAKE. Then again, we do not pray or conduct exercises for his sake, but for our own. Our Redeemer has done everything that is essential for our salvation, and he has taught us that if we serve him with all our soul, and all our days, yet we are unprofitable servants and have done only that which it was our duty to do. Paul says we were bought with a price, and we are not our own.15. 42 Our Redeemer has a perfect right to command us, and all that we do is for our own sakes. He can do without us, but we cannot do without him, We are told that we are unprofitable servants, 15. 43 and so we are, if we think of trying to pay our Savior back for what he has done for us, for that we never can do; and we cannot by any number of acts, or a full life of faithful service, place our Savior in our debt.
PRAY IN NAME OF CHRIST. How much better it is in our worship, and in our praying when we come to a conclusion, to end what we are doing, with a simple, humble statement, as we have been commanded to do, that it is done "in the name" of Jesus Christ, our Lord!
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CHRIST OUR ELDER BROTHER. Another expression finding its place among us, especially on the part of speakers and writers on gospel themes, is to refer to our Lord as the Christ. Of course there is, and can be, no other. We have been given the information, however, that his name is Jesus Christ, and that he is the Only Begotten of the Father in the flesh, but the Firstborn in the spirit. He is our Elder Brother and was honored by the Father with the fulness of authority and power as a member of the grand Presidency, of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. He was commissioned, before the world was framed, to come to this earth and here offer himself a sacrifice, through the shedding of his blood for the sins of mankind, on condition of their true repentance, and for the transgression of our first parents which brought our fallen, mortal state.
WHEN TO USE TITLE: "THE CHRIST." The name Christ is a title comparable to the title Messiah and meaning The Anointed One, and has reference to the office of our Savior. If the remarks of a speaker have reference to the nature and calling of our Lord in the office which he holds, then the definite article preceding the name is in perfect order, However, when we are speaking of the Redeemer in some other sense than by reference to his official title, it is well for us not to use the article, but the whole name of our Lord, or, even better still, in order to avoid the too frequent repetition, we can say our Redeemer or Savior or the Lord.
The great lesson for us to learn, in all our preaching, writing, and conversations, is to use the titles of Deity sparingly, not with familiarity, or with lack of reverence. 16. 45
DID THE FATHER EAT WITH ABRAHAM?
not teach them that he was the Son of the Holy Ghost, but the Son of the Father. Truly, all things are done by the power of the Holy Ghost. It was through this power that Jesus was brought into this world, but not as the Son of the Holy Ghost, but the Son of God. Jesus is greater than the Holy Spirit, which is subject unto him,18. 4 but his Father is greater than he!18. 5 He has said it. Christ was begotten of God. He was not born without the aid of Man, and that Man was God!
CHRIST NOT REINCARNATED. Christ was born a babe at Bethlehem. That is where he got his body. and the only physical body, or body of flesh and bones, that he ever had or ever will have. The doctrine of reincarnation is, says the Prophet Joseph, the doctrine of the devil!
- 6 Of course the devil will teach people any doctrine that will contradict the truth. The great works accomplished by our Redeemer before he was born, including the creation of worlds at the command of his Father, were accomplished by him in his spirit existence.18. 7
FALSE "REORGANITE" DOCTRINE ABOUT BIRTH OF CHRIST. "Reorganites" claim that Brigham Young went astray and apostatized because he declared that Jesus Christ was not begotten of the Holy Ghost. "Reorganites claim that he was begotten of the Holy Ghost, and they make the statement that the scriptures so teach. But they do err not understanding the scriptures. They tell us the Book of Mormon states that Jesus was begotten of the Holy Ghost. I challenge the statement. The Book of Mormon teaches no such thing! Neither does the Bible. It is true there is one passage that states so, but we must consider it in the light of other passages with which it is in conflict.
CHRIST CONCEIVED BY POWER OF HOLY GHOST. The Book Of Mormon says: "And behold. he shall be born of Mary. at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God." 19. 8
With this Luke agrees: "Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee. and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."19. 9
In Matthew it reads "of the Holy Ghost,"19. 10 which evidently means "power of the Holy Ghost," to agree with the Book of Mormon and with Luke.
CHRIST NOT SON OF THE HOLY GHOST. If "Reorganites" are correct, then Jesus is not the Only Begotten Son of the Father, but the Son of the Holy Ghost. This will not do for it conflicts with the scriptures. The Prophet taught that the Father. Son, and Holy Ghost were three separate personages, and that Jesus was the Only Begotten of the Father. In the Book of Genesis (Inspired Version), Jesus is spoken of throughout as the Only Begotten of the Father not less than 12 times, and in the Book of Mormon at least five times, and a great number of times in the Doctrine and Covenants; and in these scriptures he is spoken of as the
Son of God innumerable times.
Now, if he is the Only Begotten of the Father in flesh, he must be the Son of the Father and not the Son of the Holy Ghost. Yet, to be consistent, "Reorganites" must claim that Jesus is the Son of the Holy Ghost and not the Son of God the Father. Their alternative -- if it can be called such -- must be, then, the stand of Mr. William H. Kelley, "president" of their "apostles," who gave a written statement in answer to the question put to him by the writer, September 10, 1903: "You say that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was begotten of the Holy Ghost. Is he the Son of the Holy Ghost?"
Mr. Kelley signed his answer as follows: "I do not know. Wm. H. Kelley."
Just think of this for a moment. Here is a man professing to be the chief of the special witnesses for Christ, declaring that he does not know whether Jesus is the Son of God the Father or the Son of the Holy Ghost. And the Savior declared it so plainly that he was the Son of the Father, his Only Begotten, and was so acknowledged by the Father throughout the scriptures. "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." 20. 11
ADVENT AND MISSION OF CHRIST FORETOLD
SHILOH PROPHECY. When Jacob blessed his son Judah, he declared that the scepter should not depart from Judah until Shiloh come.20. 12 Who is Shiloh? He is Christ. And Judah had the scepter in Israel or Judah, until the days of Christ.
Joseph who was sold into Egypt foretold the delivery of Israel from that land by Moses. In that prophecy he says that Christ is Shilo. He said: "The Lord God will raise up... unto thee, whom my father Jacob hath named Israel, a prophet; (not the Messiah who is called Shilo;) and this prophet shall deliver my people out of Egypt in the days of thy bondage."
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The Shiloh prophecy has reference to the authority which should in course of time be conferred upon the descendants, or tribe of Judah, when Israel became established in the land of their inheritance. This authority was to be that of kingly rule or exercise of authority in making and enforcing the law.
FULFILLMENT OF SHILOH PROPHECY. This prophecy was fulfilled, for after Judah came to power in Israel, when David was exalted to the throne, that tribe held authority until the time of the coming of Christ. Even after the division of the kingdom into the two kingdoms, Judah and Israel, still kings of Judah sat on the throne until the time of the captivity 600 years before Christ.
Judah continued even during the captivity and after the return to Palestine 70 years later to
story, a synopsis of the life of our Redeemer, revealed to Isaiah 700 years before the Lord was born. If you have the proper discernment you will discover this. I am going to make some comments on it as I read it.
HE OUTWARDLY APPEARED AS OTHER MEN. "Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him."
What is the meaning of that? Did not Christ grow up as a tender plant? There was nothing about him to cause people to single him out. In appearance he was like men; and so it is expressed here by the prophet that he had no form or comeliness, that is, he was not so distinctive, so different from others that people would recognize him as the Son of God. He appeared as a mortal man.
CHRIST A MAN OF SORROWS. "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted."
Was not Christ a man of sorrows? Was he not rejected of men? Was he not acquainted with grief? Did not the people (figuratively) hide their faces from him? Did not the people esteem him not? Surely he knew our griefs and carried our sorrows, but he was thought to be stricken of God and forsaken by him. Did not the people say that? How true all these things are!
HIS SUFFERING FORETOLD. "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."
Now this is poetic language of course. Why should it not be? But can't you get the true picture? Was he not wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities? Was he not chastised for us, and if we will believe on him, are we not healed with his stripes?
"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all."
Does not the gospel teach us that he carried the burden of our sins and that we as sheep have strayed away?
"He was oppressed, and be was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth."
Is this not true of Christ? Can you not read it in the gospels?
"He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken."
It was for our transgressions that he died. And who are mentioned as his generation? Those who accept him and keep his commandments.
"And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth."
Was he not buried among the wicked, and was not the sepulchre in which he was placed one belonging to the rich? Surely there was no deceit in his mouth for he was perfect.
HE SHALL SEE HIS SEED. "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand."
The Father "so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." 25. 21
"He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death; and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."25. 22
THE SEED OF CHRIST. Is this not just as clear as sunshine, at least to those who have the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord? In the 15th chapter of Mosiah, Abinadi comments on this chapter in Isaiah and makes it plain. He declares that the seed of Christ are those who believe in him.25. 23 Christ was numbered with the transgressors and he bare the sins of many, but he made intercession for the transgressors, and through their repentance gives unto them eternal life.
In relation to his seed, I wish to quote the words of King Benjamin in the 5th chapter of Mosiah: "And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters."26. 24
These and all who have made such covenants are the "seed" of Christ. 26. 25
for himself; at other times for the Father, and in the Father's name, as though he were the Father, and yet it is Jesus Christ, our Redeemer who gives the message. So, we see, in Doctrine and Covenants 29:1, that he introduces himself as "Jesus Christ, your Redeemer," but in the closing part of the revelation he speaks for the Father, and in the Father's name as though he were the Father, 28. 33 and yet it is still Jesus who is speaking, for the Father has put his name on him for that purpose.
FIRST VISION AND REVELATION. We have a wonderful illustration of how revelation comes through Christ presented to us in the Vision given to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The Father and the Son appeared unto him, but it was not the Father who answered his question! The Father introduced Joseph to his Son, and it was the Son who answered the important question and gave the instruction.28. 34
Had Joseph Smith come home from the grove and declared that the Father and the Son appeared to him and that the Father spoke to him and answered his question while the Son stood silently by, then we could have accepted the story as a fraud. Joseph Smith was too young and inexperienced to know this at the time, but he made no mistake, and his story was in perfect harmony with divine truth, with the divine law that Christ is the Mediator between God and man.
CHRIST THE FATHER AND THE SON
FATHER BECAUSE OF THE ATONEMENT. Our scriptures teach that Jesus Christ is both the Father and the Son.28. 35 The simple truth is that he is the Son of God by birth, both in the spirit and in the flesh. He is the Father because of the work that he has performed.
The difference between our Savior and the rest of us is that we have had fathers who were mortal and therefore subject to death. Our Savior did not have a mortal Father and therefore death was subject to him. He had power to lay down his life and to take it again, but we do not have power to lay down our lives and to take them again.29. 36 It is through the atonement of Jesus Christ that we receive eternal life, through the resurrection of the dead and obedience to the principles of the gospel.
The Savior becomes our Father, in the sense in which this term is used in the scriptures, because he offers us life, eternal life, through the atonement which he made for us. In the wonderful instruction given by King Benjamin we find this: "And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day He hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters." 29. 37
So, we become the children, sons and daughters of Jesus Christ, through our covenants of obedience to him. Because of his divine authority and sacrifice on the cross, we become
spiritually begotten sons and daughters, and he is our Father.
FATHER BY DIVINE INVESTITURE OF AUTHORITY. Christ is also our Father because his Father has given him of his fulness; that is, he has received a fulness of the glory of the Father. This is taught in Doctrine and Covenants 93:1-5, 16-17, and also by Abinadi in the 15th chapter of Mosiah. Abinadi's statement that he is "the Father, because he was conceived by the power of God," harmonizes with the Lord's own words in section 93 that he is the Father because he has received of the fulness of the Father. Christ says he is the Son because, "I was in the world and made flesh my tabernacle, and dwelt among the sons of men." Abinadi expresses this truth by saying he is "the Son because of the flesh."
The Father has honored Christ by placing his name upon him, so that he can minister in and through that name as though he were the Father; and thus, so far as power and authority are concerned, his words and acts become and are those of the Father.
FATHER AS CREATOR. Our Lord is also called the Father in the sense that he is the Father or Creator of the heavens and the earth and all things. 30. 38
CHRIST ONLY HATH POWER OF IMMORTALITY
"SOUL-SLEEPERS" DENY IMMORTALITY. Perhaps the most important passage that the "soul-sleepers," as they are called, rely upon in their contention that the body is the soul of man (divested of life, save for a "short, average tenure of three score years and ten"), is Paul's reference to our Savior as "the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto."30. 39 Basing their claims upon this passage, they argue that this is conclusive proof that man in no sense has the gift of immortality, and shall cease to exist when mortal death overtakes him.
SAINTS RESURRECTED WITH CHRIST. It is strange they will hold so tenaciously to this expression, interpreting it to mean that the Savior is the only one who has received the resurrection from the dead, and therefore the only one "who hath immortality," and overlook the fact recorded by Matthew that "the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many." 30. 40 If these had also partaken of the resurrection, as we are assured by an eye witness, had they not also received the blessing of immortality and eternal life as well as the Son of God? It is recorded in the Book of Mormon that after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the faithful dead on this continent also arose in the resurrection.30. 41
CHRIST HAD POWER OVER DEATH. This being true, what then did Paul mean by saying to Timothy, according to the King James Bible, that the Son of God "only hath immortality"? Simply this: That of all who have dwelt upon this earth, the Son of God stands out alone as the only one who possessed life in himself and power over death inherently. Christ was
