Stray Ordinances

Doctrine & Covenants 1: 12-17

12 Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh; 

The Lord is nigh, we better prepare. Prepare for what exactly? Why will preparation  be necessary for that which is to come, even The Lord? 

13 And the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth. 

Why is the anger of The Lord kindled? Is His "anger" related to Him being "nigh" and us not beholding Him? Why would a loving God's anger be kindled just because He is nigh and we refuse to enter into His Presence? Why would I need to enter His Presence? (See Ether 3:13). I'm not feeling comfortable with this "angry" God. I am getting a dark feeling from these words given us in D&C. 

14 And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; 

The Arm of The Lord SHALL be revealed. His anger is kindled because of this predicament. He SHALL reveal His Arm, and the only way for mankind to survive that revealing of His Arm is to have already beheld Him, in the flesh, while He was simply "nigh".  But we would not!

14 (continued:) and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people; 

More clarity: we must hear His Voice. Either directly from Him to us, or from His servants, and then to give heed to those Voices. Heed meaning we actually act, and do what God and His servants tell us to do. 

Who are the "prophets"? Who are the "servants"? Who are the "Apostles"? Is anyone with a title of Prophet, Apostle or servant automatically who I must give heed to? Are there going to be false prophets or false apostles? If so, how do I know the difference between a true prophet and a false one? 

One test the scriptures give is,

  "By their fruits ye shall know them," Mathew 7:15-16. 

So if thats the test, then the question is,  what are "fruits? Fruits could be identified as "good people" or "good behavior". We can look about us and see if people are behaving in a "good fruit" kind of way. But as we all know, we can be deceived by appearances. We all have experienced the seemingly wonderful person who appeared to have good fruit then commit heinous acts. So there must be another way to understand "fruit".  I mean Joel Osteen doesn't have poop all over him does he?   (Bad Monty Python humor aside). He looks like a guy I could get behind. So we need to know what the fruit is, by which we must judge the matter correctly.  

If the fruit is more than mere appearances, does this passage in D&C itself identify the "fruit" we should use to determine the matter correctly? The next verse gives us a hint of what bad fruit looks like:

15 For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant; 

Does this identify the fruit? If ordinances being changed is "fruit", can we determine if changes to ordinances are a fact or not? It's interesting that we are given a charge to follow God and or His servants, prophets and apostles, and the next verse speaks of changed ordinances! It's almost as if God could see us, the LDS church and how badly we have changed and mangled the ordinances. 

If we do not use changing the ordinances as the "fruit," would false use of titles, signs, phrases and mirror images of the real thing still possibly deceive even the very elect without a proper and correct understanding of fruit? In other words, if we judge fruit as only behavior we may find ourselves part of a vain, false body of "chosen" people who are being deceived and led astray. 

If we use the measuring stick embedded in Christ's words to Joseph as our guide, we can easily and clearly see if the "prophets" and "apostles" and servants we are giving heed to are the real thing. 

Here is a list of three things the LDS church has changed since Joseph died. 

1. Baptism. Up until the early 1900's we performed baptisms for healing and repentance in the Temples. We no longer are allowed by those holding the keys to the temple to do this. We also no longer follow the doctrine of Christ which establishes how to determine whether to baptize someone or not. If we deny baptism based on tithe paying or swearing fealty to men have we changed the ordinance?

2. Sacrament. Up until Heber J. Grant (and coincidentally during a time of prohibition on alcohol  by our government, which brings up questions on who is in fact making these decisions, the "prophet" or the government?) we used wine for the sacrament. We also took it two times on Sundays, where now we only take it once. We reject Christ's own doctrine and His very words given us in the truest book on earth as outlined in both 2 Nephi 31-32, and 3 Nephi. 

3. Temple ordinances. In 1990 the leadership removed portions of the endowment and changed the ordinance drastically. They did not claim revelation on the matter, rather they explained that they had the keys to make the changes, so they did so. In 1994 more changes were made. 

I give no judgement on these changes, other than to point them out. I sustain the 15 men, and I am a member of the LDS church in good standing. I am not challenging their right to make all these changes. I am simply pointing out that changes to our core ordinances have in fact occurred. Therefore, IF, the fruit to measure a true prophet or apostle is based on whether ordinances have been changed (which is how to judge it according to Christ in this passage), then the everlasting covenant has been broken. 

The next verse also gives some clues to the fruit of true vs. false prophets:

16 They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall. 

So if "they seek not The Lord" is bad fruit, what does "seek not The Lord" mean? Does it have anything to do with not "establishing His Righteousness"? And "every man walking in his own way"?

1. Seek not The Lord to establish His Righteousness. 

Go back to verse 12. Prepare ye for God is nigh. Receive Him now in this life, or when He comes, and He is coming, and if you do not, then His anger is kindled because ye have ever abused His laws. The Lord wants to establish His Righteousness in you. If you comprehend that, then you know some of what God is trying to bring about in your person, so that you can abide the day of His coming when He comes again with Vengeance and Fury to burn the wicked. Seek The Lord with the intention of letting God establish HIS Righteousness in you, rather than you trying to cram God into your tiny New Testament image of God. 

2. Every man Walketh in his own way, after the image of his own God, whose image is in the likeness of the world. 

Does "Walketh in his own way" mean not following another man? Or does it mean to not follow Christ?  Can I be following other men and still be walking in my own way after the image of a God, my God, whose image is in the likeness of the world? Is our view of who God is more mainstream Christian now than it was in Joseph's day? Have we changed the basic knowledge and understanding of who God is to fit into and be more like other Christians? Have we distanced ourselves from Joseph's teachings which God vouched for, such as scripture we have removed from our canon, the Lectures on Faith? What is our treatment of the King Follet Sermon? Have we changed basic principles of Gods nature to be popular and more accepted by other Christians? Are we breaking into pieces Babylon or is Babylon breaking us into pieces by our renouncing of our core doctrines? 

President Hinckley denounced the King Follet Sermon as an antiquated "couplet" that "is hardly taught anymore". A committee removed the Lectures on Faith on the 1920's from our scriptures. The Lectures on Faith is described in the Joseph Smith Papers by Joseph Smith, as the "doctrine" of the Doctrine and Covenants. It was voted in as scripture in 1835 by every priesthood body and the general membership. The committee said, "it was not meant as scripture" and took it out. We are left with The book of Covenants, although we pretend we still have the Doctrine and Covenants. We keep the name you see, and that helps us in our apostate status before God to not notice how very far off from the faith Joseph gave us we really are. 

Continuing with D&C:

17 Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;  (D&C 1)

What exactly is the "calamity" which should come upon us? What is the topic of this entire passage? That's right! It is to behold the face of God! The calamity is us, mankind, the LDS church included, not entering the Presence of God and being redeemed from the fall. And that redemption does not come from participating in a temple re-enactment or play. It comes in the only way it ever came or comes. That is, as Mohonri is taught in Ether 3, by Christ Himself. 

13 "behold, the Lord showed himself unto him, and said: Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you. 

14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters. (Book of Mormon, Ether, Ether 3)

Jesus Christ was prepared from the foundation of the world to bring us each back into his Presence and redeem us from the fall. This is the way. It is the only way. The temple points to this, but is not it. To believe on His name and become His sons and daughters requires us to do as Mohonri, Adam, and his sons,  Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph of Egypt, Lehi, Nephi, Jacob, Joseph, Enos, King Benjamin, Abinadi, Alma and Alma, Ammon, Aaron & buds, Captain Moroni, brothers Nephi and Lehi, Nephi at Christ's coming, Mormon, Moroni, Ether (and a whole bunch of dudes in Ethers book), and Joseph Smith have all done. That is, enter into His Presence and be redeemed from the fall. This life is the time to prepare to meet God! If you wait to experience this until after death it is everlastingly too late ( at least in this round) and you will desire the rocks to fall upon you and hide you from Gods Presence. 

Prepare ye, prepare ye! For The Lord is nigh, even at the doors! Will ye not open up to Him? Come ye out from the world and the vain and foolish worship of your fathers! Let Him kindle a fire in you, now, on the earth, while ye are yet in the flesh, so that He will not kindle a flame upon you at His coming which will burn you up, root and branch! For the Arm of The Lord is revealed, and those who will not hear My Voice in the words of My servant will not abide the day. For the least of them is now among you, and ye know it not, and if ye will hearken unto My Voice,  you will hearken unto his words. For his words are My words Thus saith The Lord God Almighty! Prepare ye the Kingdom, that I may come and dwell inside those who will have Me to be their God! Hear ye the Counsel of The Lord! Flee, Flee from the great harlot who sitteth  upon the waters that My people may not drink of the waters of Life freely! The day of Salvation is here. I AM Come.