Beyond the Mark.

Satan would like to have us believe that the Lord’s ways are complex.  That exalted understanding or lofty abilities are required in order to follow after Him.  He seeks to disorganize our vision so that as we look at the pathway which leads to home, it appears as though it is a difficult and unachievable summit.  He designs this corrupted perception that insecurities may take hold of our hearts, and fear of being insufficient may encourage us to flee.  However, the truth of it all is that the Savior’s ways and His gospel are plain.  His words are not weaved with obscure messages that only a chosen few can correctly interpret.  They are released with a simple order, outlined without intricacies, and have exclusions to none.  The Lord and His prophets speak plainly that we may know how to satisfy our expectations, and that we may fulfill the very measure of our creation.

It is true that parables and poetic expressions are utilized throughout the scriptures, and quite frequently are given by the Savior Himself, but they are not presented to produce perplexity.  Commonly these forms of expression are employed to veil the depth of the message to those who are spiritually unprepared.  Contemplation and sincere reflection will be essential, but as we align ourselves with the Spirit, and supply an environment, both internally and externally, where He can exist, we find that what we originally perceived to be mystifying becomes clearly manifest and easily understood. 

Additionally, our tender Heavenly Father and beloved Savior, Jesus Christ do not display exclusivity.  They do not only seek after those with an expanded intellectual capacity or an extended scripture mastery.  They do not search after only the supreme, nor secretly desire an elect collection of individuals who have a heightened comprehension to the ways of the gospel, or who have the ability to majestically interpret or expound.  Our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are astoundingly inclusive, and truly desire each child to share in receiving all that the Father hath.  Satan and his ways are the ones which are always exclusionary.  He craves to leave others behind, and intensely labors to have us feel ostracized.  Indeed, he is the original exclusionist. 

When we begin to truly understand and gain testimony of the ways of the Lord, we may find ourselves amazed at their simplicity.  We may be astonished that so much is given from our Father and Savior, and comparatively, little is required.  We may doubt that such mercy could be delivered upon a sinner such as ourselves, or that holding firmly to the straight and narrow path is complied of uncomplicated and intelligible steps.  We may be entirely startled when Satan’s deceptive confusion relating to the complexity of the Divine, begins to melt away, as we recognize the truth of the Lord’s plainness.  Truly, our hearts will swell with the fiercest version of love when we discover the clarity that exists within the gospel, recognizing that it is His most honest demonstration of how dearly He wants us back home. 

Evidence of His Plainness

A perfect example of such simpleness exists in the story of Moses and the serpent of brass.  During a moment of unfaithfulness among the children of Israel, as they moved towards the promised land, the Lord sent fiery serpents as a consequence of their murmuring and disbelief.  As those they and their loved ones began to perish and wither from the venomous attacks of these snakes, the Israelites quickly recognized the errors of their ways and turned to their leader, Moses, to plead with the Lord for deliverance.  The Lord’s response is a evidence of the plainness of His works, yet the cruciality of existing with a heart full of faith.  The Lord directed Moses to create a brass serpent, then to perch it upon a tall pole.  He declared that if the affected would look upon the brass serpent they would be healed.  The Lord’s cure was not twisted with a hidden agenda or entangled with concealed requirements.  His curative ways were not burdensome nor complex.  The merciful Lord simply requested that His wounded children look upon the serpent made of brass, with a believing heart, to be restored, to be saved.

We know the resolution of this story.  Some believed and followed the instruction given by Moses, which was delivered by the power of the Lord, yet many, because of the simplicity of its ways, turned away.  They did not allow their eyes to glance upon the serpent.  They did not accept the simple request, nor did they follow the divinely manifest pathway which led to rehabilitation.  Their faith lacked the ability to believe in the clear and straightforward ways of the Lord and the result of such defiance was severe.  Their bodies, as well as those they so cherished, were delivered to the dust of the earth. 

We may look upon this story and ponder, How could they deny such a miracle?  Why would they not partake of such forgiveness for their sin of grumbling against the Lord, and not have joy in such mercy?  However, we can liken this story so clearly to a specific opportunity of compassion which is offered to us today.  One that if accepted brings about remission of sin, healing, strength, and hope.  The gift I speak of is that of the Atonement. 

Our Extended Mercy

The Atonement has been, and will forever be, a major focus of study and wonder for me.  My mortal mind and limited comprehension cannot fathom the majesty of this blessing.  To understand that the only One who never sinned, who never made error, who never spoke guile, who never surrendered to temptation, who never sought His own will but instead desired the Father’s, whose heart never welcomed malice, jealousy, lust, or evil, was the One who willingly and voluntarily suffered an agony so extreme it cannot even be described as pain, for its torment far exceeded anything that encompasses pain’s definition.  He existed and endured through every sadness, heartache, torture, distress, misery, despair, and was more than just familiar with the deepest throbbing of the body, mind, soul, and heart.  Our perfected brother, flawless in every way, accepted and sought after, such an experience that we may be freed from the sins which mark us.  His love for us was so boundless and so overwhelming, that He chose to suffer such a fate that we may be cleansed, that we may be free. 

As we think upon this incredible blessing, we may consider on the price.  In a temporal setting where payment matches the reward, we may prepare ourselves for a powerfully heavy fee, one that is filled with unfathomable requirements.  We may fear that in order to be worthy of the blessing of being cleansed from the immorality and wickedness in which we have entertained, that we, too, must pay the price, which most certainly would be filled to the utmost brim with complexities and unbearable necessities.  After all, it is only just.  However, reflect on the magnificence and the unbelievable simplicity of gaining this reward.  We will not be required to atone for these errors and sins which have clouded our divinity.  We will not be asked to carry the burdens because the Lord has already accepted and carried them for us.  We will not be requested to endure anything that will parallel with His torment.  No.  All that He asks is that we accept Him as our Savior, that we follow His commandments, and that we have faith in His words, timetables, and ways.  It is clear.  It is plain.  It is crowded with simplicity. 

These are only two outstanding examples, there are a multitude which live and breathe within the pages of our scriptures.  Find them.  Gain testimony of them.  And most of all, liken them.

Looking Beyond the Mark

So, if we understand that our Father works in simple ways, and that the gospel of Christ is plain, why then does it appear convoluted to the eyes of the world?  The answer lies with Satan, it always exists with the master of deceit.  It becomes complicated when we allow Satan to rearrange our perspective.  When he becomes our ruler, which is anytime we are not following after the Savior, he emerges into our lives with redefinitions and alterations of every kind.  He perverts the simpleness by enhancing the natural man, enticing with practices of slothfulness and temporal leisure.  Here we allow his darkening confusion to cloud our personal revelations, and we find that what we once knew to be straightforward and clear, has become disturbed and seems to appear skewed.  He is the author of chaos, so when we see through the spectacles which he has constructed for us, everything seems disorganized, and righteousness gives the impression of being an unobtainable and undesirable attainment.  It is interesting that perhaps, at times, we find ease in jumbled perspectives created by the devil, instead of the order which is created by the plainness of the true Master.

Would I be terribly off target to suggest that perhaps we ourselves become apprentices of Satan, seeking, whether we are conscious of it or not, to obscure and add complexity to gospel truths?  Probably our first response would be, Never!  Why would we do such a thing?  However, have we ever found that we, much like the ancient Israelites, have not accepted the simple, basic truths of the gospel?  Perhaps, we feel that more is required, and quickly disregard clarity which has been divinely delivered.  Maybe we seek after compounded and intricate understandings, or necessitate glorious revelations and manifestations, or possibly, we desire heightened comprehension to stand as a symbol of worthiness to the world.  Have we ever found ourselves here?  I know I have.  When we recognize where we are surviving, we must immediately understand that in these moments we have sided with the lines of evil and are encouraging the corruption of something which is celestially simple.  Eternally perfect.

Perhaps, our ancient prophet Jacob, who assisted in compiling only the most precious portions of truth in the Book of Mormon for us today, feared that we may become blinded by such things.  As an example of what such behaviors can lead to he shared this example of the early Jews:

But behold, the Jews were a stiffnecked people; and they despised the words of plainness, and killed the prophets, and sought for things that they could not understand.  Wherefore, because of their blindness, which blindness came by looking beyond the mark, they must needs fall; for God hath taken away his plainness from them, and delivered unto them many things which they cannot understand, because they desired it.  And because they desired it God hath done it, that they may stumble.  Jacob 4:14

Many of the Jews, including a shocking number of the Jewish leaders whom declared to be masters of the scriptures and their meanings, became imperceptive and insensitive to the simple, basic principles of truth because they sought after something more.  Their fascination with complexities and intricacies bounded them with Satan.  The terrifying outcome of such a corrupted desire: they could not recognize Christ for who He was when He arrived.  Instead of being their Messiah, their Redeemer, He became their stumbling block. 

I adore this explanation of this scripture given by Dean L. Larsen:

[The Jews] in ancient times got themselves into great difficulty because they placed themselves in serious jeopardy in spiritual things because they were unwilling to accept simple, basic principles of truth.  They entertained and intrigued themselves with things they could not understand.  They were apparently afflicted with a pseudosophistication and a snobbishness that gave them a false sense of superiority over those who came among them with the Lord’s words of plainness.  They went beyond the mark of wisdom and prudence, and obviously failed to stay within the circle of fundamental gospel truths, which provide a basis for faith.  They must have reveled in speculative and theoretical matters that obscured for them the fundamental spiritual truths.  As they became infatuated by these things that they could not understand, their comprehension of and faith in the redeeming role of a true Messiah was lost, and the purpose of life became confused.

Do We Receive, Realize, and Accept?

Contemplating these things, we must assess ourselves, identifying if we have become captive to Satan’s snares.  Has he pulled us away from Christ, seeking that we look beyond Him, the mark of all goodness, of all greatness, of all glory?  These are thoughts that came to my mind as I reflected:

Do I receive the Savior and the Father, and without reluctance, accept Their methods?  Do I recognize the importance of following every command, no matter how simplistic, having faith that it is what will be my saving grace?

Do I realize and embrace the plainness of the gospel, or do I seek after doctrine that is built upon enigmatic philosophies and abstract teachings in order to prove its accuracy? 

Do I receive and abide by Christ’s pure and clear ways, or am I searching for a religion that praises exclusivity based on elevated and selective behaviors? 

Am I conscious of the significance of  my callings, and work to magnify them every whit, or do I find myself constantly craving an assignment which, in my eyes, holds a heightened role in the Lord’s work?

Do I seek for answers to my prayers that produce miraculous circumstances, yearning for experiences that coincide with astounding events recorded in scripture, while disregarding the personally customized marvels that come to me with a quieter, but no less significant, delivery? 

Am I looking past Jesus Christ, my Savior, and focusing on a self-constructed God or self-assembled religion, which lacks the One which has been given to stand as my bedrock?  Am I loosing faith in the redeeming role of my Messiah?

The gospel of Christ is plain.  The gospel of Christ is pure.  The gospel of Christ is uncomplicated.  The gospel of Christ is perfect.  It does not need to be modified, revised, adjusted.  It does not need to be adapted to better meet the standards of the world, nor does it change to honor what the world deems is right or wrong.  Following after the Father and the Savior is not as difficult as Satan would have us believe.  They love us.  They adore us.  They cherish us.  They want us home.  They are merciful and devoted in being a constant part of our missions here on this earth.  Their ways will bring us joy beyond expression, release from sorrows, anxieties and fears.  Their ways will bring temporal blessings, and will keep in store for us, celestial blessings which will attend us in the eternities.  These blessings are so divine and glorious that our hearts simply cannot grasp them at this given moment of time.  Truly, they are beyond anything a telestial world has seen, heard, or witnessed.    

Exertion Does Not Denote Complexity

I cannot end this testimony without recognizing that although full of divine simplicity, following after the Lord will require labor.  This is a wonderful thing, and should never be viewed as burdensome.  For through our endeavors, and the endurance of trials we are better aligned with our Heavenly Father and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Sustaining through this mortal experience is essential in becoming as They are, which is our ultimate objective.  When we study and learn what is required to be a disciple of Christ, Satan will immediately throw red flags as though to scream, I told you-COMPLICATED!  Don’t believe him, he simply despises his inability to navigate the mortal journey to receive the divine blessings of exaltation. 

We cannot, and should not, correlate the necessity of exertion with complexity.  Although Christ’s words and ways are simple, it does not mean that we will not need to place forward effort in order to gain a full and complete understanding.  For persistent energies will be essential.  In a world which seems to entertain lackadaisical habits, we may mistakenly label anything that necessitates labor as complicated.  We would be wise to recall that this is a temporal definition, created by the master of diversion, not a celestial one explained by our very Creator.  Requiring work in order to fully comprehend or comply to the workings of the Lord, does not elucidate that His ways are convoluted, tangled, or burdensome to follow. 

The Majesty of Simplicity

Lastly, and most importantly, explaining the Father and Savior’s words, ways, and commandments as simple, does not suggest that they lack power, or to imply that they are not profound.  For there is nothing that can be released from another tongue that matches the intensity and exquisite nature of Their words.  There is nothing that can equal the strength of Their hand, nor the grandeur that attends to miracles which leave the very tips of Their fingers.  They carry a divinity and a celestial competence that is unsurpassed in this earthly domain, and They reign upon high in the heavens.  And this is where the majesty of it all is recognized, Christ’s words, and His ways, do not need to be adorned with the highest form of eloquence, nor must they entail esoteric phrases to hold magnificence.  They are sublime, beyond measure, in their simplicity.  Truly, through small and simple words do great things come to be known.  Through small and simple acts do great things come to pass.  They are entirely glorious, thoroughly wondrous within Their simplicity. 

Realize the simplicity of the gospel.  Receive the plainness of Christ.  Accept the simpleness of His ways.  Allow Him to be your steadfast foundation.  The very one which holds you firm and immovable.  Don’t ever cause Him to become the stone which you stumble upon.  And never, ever look past Him.  For He is the mark.  He always has been.  He forever will be.  Look to Him.