Whether
by Mine Own Voice or by the Voice of My Servants:
Where
on this earth do we find the largest collection of men who claim to
be the Servants of the Lord and the Prophets of God? Where on this
earth do we find the longest unbroken line of Apostles in human
history? Where on this earth do we find the Priesthood of God
restored to the earth once again by the resurrected Peter, James, and
John? Where do we find a church that claimed to be Christ's Own
Church on this earth, from the very moment that the church was first
established? Where do we find a church that claims that Jesus Christ
is at the head of the Church, is at the helm of the Good Ship Zion,
and is guiding the Church and Zion on their course to their promised
destination?
For
the answers, I suggest that people take a look at the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. Also take a look at the LDS Scriptures.
“What
I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and
though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass
away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the
voice of my servants, it is the same. (Doctrine and Covenants 1:
38).”
If
we believe that Jesus Christ truly rose from the dead and believe
that He has the power and the ability to call new Prophets and
Apostles, then we have our answer. Christ Jehovah is about His
business and doing it again, in modern times. Christ is once again
about the business of establishing Zion on this earth. The power of
the LDS Church system comes in the fact that there are 15 men or
Brethren in the LDS Church that are sustained by common consent as
Prophets, Seers, and Revelators. There are other groups of 70 who
are also sustained as Witnesses of Christ. The LDS Church claims to
be the Kingdom of God here on this earth right now. What if it is
truly so?
In
the pre-mortal realms, a third of the hosts of Heaven refused to
sustain the Brethren (Father, Son, and Holy Ghost). The fallen
angels became Satan and the devils. They were kicked out of Heaven
for failing to sustain, support, listen to, obey, and follow the
Brethren who were in charge at the time. They didn't want to have
anything to do with Heavenly Father's plan and commandments, and they
got their wish. They didn't want Jesus Christ as their Savior, and
they got their wish. They didn't want to have to follow the
promptings of the Holy Ghost, so they got their wish. They didn't
want to follow the Brethren or the commandments of God, and they got
their wish. God wasn't going to force them to stay if they didn't
want to stay.
I
have made the suggestion that history will repeat itself. I suggest
that during the history of the Latter-day Saints (or the Kingdom of
God on earth), a full third of the Latter-day Saints will be lost to
a refusal to sustain the Brethren and a refusal to follow the
Brethren. They will become disaffected with the Brethren (LDS
General Authorities), or they will be excommunicated from the LDS
Church for refusing to sustain the Brethren. Either way, the result
will be the same. One third is a lot of Latter-day Saints who will
lose their way; and, I believe that their apostasy will be traced to
their refusal to sustain the Brethren and their refusal to keep the
commandments of the Lord that we have received from the Brethren.
Unfortunately,
I think my prediction will end up being quite accurate in the end. I
know of what I speak, because I was one of those who had lost his
way, and the Brethren had to come and find me and bring me back.
Certainly, all is not well in Zion. A third of us are going to be
lost, and for most of us, our loss will be traced back to a refusal
to sustain and follow the Brethren. We will simply think that we
know better and that humbly following the Brethren does not apply to
us. After all, we know in our hearts that we are better than them,
more righteous than them, more entitled than them, more inspired than
them, and more intelligent than them. It's a matter of pride after
all. What we don't seem to realize is that whenever we spit on the
Brethren, we are also spitting on Christ. But, that won't matter to
those of us who are lost.
Another
revelation that has guided me regarding this subject is found in the
Joseph Smith translation of Matthew 25:
1
And then, at that day, before the Son of man comes, the kingdom of
heaven shall be likened unto ten virgins, who took their lamps, and
went forth to meet the bridegroom.
2
And five of them were wise, and five of them were foolish.
3
They that were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them;
but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
(JST
Matt 25: 1-3).
Notice
carefully that it was revealed to Joseph Smith that the Parable of
the Ten Virgins was directed by Christ to the Latter-day Saints and
our time. Take note of the changes that Joseph was inspired to make
in verse one. “That day” is our day.
The
Latter-day Saints are the virgins who are invited to the wedding
feast (the Celestial Kingdom and Exaltation) in that day before the
Second Coming of Christ. Through baptism by real Priesthood
Authority from God, the Latter-day Saints are issued an invitation to
the wedding feast. Nobody else is issued the invitation. Christ is
the bridegroom. It's all about Christ after all. So, what happens?
What is the prophecy or the prediction? Fully half of the Latter-day
Saints will fail to fill their lamps with oil, and thus they will be
out following others or doing their own thing when the Bridegroom
comes. Some will be of Paul, some will be of Moses, some will be of
Joseph Smith, some will be of Rigdon, some will be of Snuffer, but
they will not be of Christ and will not be Christ's.
When
the oil-less saints arrive at the wedding feast or the Celestial
Kingdom, the doors will be locked, and Christ will say to them, “I
do not know you”, or said another way, “You do not know me.”
They won't be let in.
What
is the oil that we need to have in our lamps if we want to go to the
wedding feast or the Celestial Kingdom? The standard answer is, “The
Holy Ghost or a testimony of Christ.” True enough; but, people
often use God and the Holy Ghost as reasons for doing some of the
most horrific things and perpetrating some of the worst betrayals and
crimes. To find out what the oil really is, especially where the
Latter-day Saints are concerned, I have to go back to D&C 1: 38
where Christ the Lord said, “Whether by mine own voice or by the
voice of my servants the prophets, it is the same.” In our time,
the oil is all of those teachings, commandments, counsel,
instruction, inspiration, and guidance that we receive from the Lord
through His Anointed Ones, the Brethren or the LDS General
Authorities. The oil is LDS Conference talks. That's the kind of
oil that we are going to need in our lamps at the last day before the
Second Coming, if we want to make it to the wedding feast or
Celestial Kingdom.
Of
course, many will now complain and say that that excludes the oil
found in the Bible and the Book of Mormon. Yes, and no. The LDS
General Authorities quote the Bible and the Book of Mormon a lot
during the LDS Conference talks. But technically, the oil that was
given to the prophets in the Bible and Book of Mormon can't help us
here and now, because they used their oil or personal testimony to
get to their own wedding feast with the Bridegroom. We need fresh
new oil here and now, if we want to make it to the wedding feast; we
can't rely on their old oil that is burned and gone. You need oil in
your lamp. In the end, ancient oil in their lamps won't do you any
good. You need your own. We need the teachings of Living Prophets
here and now. We need redemption here and now. We need salvation
here and now. We need our own testimony and our own witness and our
own conversion and our own willingness to follow the Brethren
(Prophets) here and now, if we desire to attend the Wedding Feast.
As
some people know, I have taken exception to many of Denver Snuffer's
most recent messages and books. Why? After all, Denver is saying
what I am saying here, a third to a half of the Latter-day Saints
aren't going to make it. Yes, I agree with Denver, all is NOT well
in Zion. A lot of us are not going to make it. However, I diverge
from Denver in one very important aspect. According to the parable
of the Ten Virgins, half of the Latter-day Saints are going to make
it to the Wedding Feast and the Celestial Kingdom. Half of the
Latter-day Saints during the history of the Latter-day Saints are
going to follow the Brethren into Heaven and the Celestial Kingdom
and Zion. Those are great odds, especially considering the fallen
Telestial world in which we currently find ourselves.
There
is a disconnect there where Denver Snuffer is concerned. Something
is not quite right there. I have had a hard time putting my finger
on it. I recognize disconnect, because I lived and personified
disconnect for years on end. One day I realized that during Denver's
encounter with Christ, his explanation of the event, didn't fully fit
with many of the other experiences of Latter-day Saints who have seen
Christ and talked with Christ. Denver described Christ as a lonely,
sad, rejected, pitiful, and dejected creature in need of our worship,
friendship, respect, and love. Denver gave the impression that the
Resurrected Lord is a sad loner and a loser, possibly depressed by
the fact that we are all going to reject Him and He is going to lose
us all. The loneliness and sadness of the man is what came through
to me. That's the feeling or impression that comes out of Denver's
messages, to me at least. Denver repeatedly seems to imply that we
are losing and by extension that Christ is also losing. Denver seems
to believe that the Book of Mormon tells us that we are destined to
fail and that the Nauvoo period of LDS history proves that Latter-day
Saints have already failed.
Recently,
Denver has also taken to calling the LDS General Authorities failures
and losers, destined to fail to bring Zion to fruition, thus
necessitating a new restoration of the Gospel. With Denver, the only
thing I now have to look forward to is the time when he receives the
revelation telling him that he is supposed to be the new prophet of
God and supposed to form a new council of the twelve and start a new
church. Denver says it's not going to happen, but I wonder what he
will do after the revelation comes. I suppose he will have no choice
but to eagerly follow and obey. Of course, the other possibility is
that Denver could repent, choose to change course, and choose to come
back into the LDS Church; but, in his recent blog messages, he says
that's not going to happen either. Frankly, I would have a hard time
sustaining Denver Snuffer as prophet if God were to call him to be
prophet (especially given Denver's current mind-set), because Denver
Snuffer believes that we have failed and seems to believe that we are
going to continue to fail. It's not a winning mind-set.
Now
for the contrast, I have noticed that other Latter-day Saints who
claim to have seen the Resurrected Lord Jesus Christ describe Him as
glorious and powerful and as the personification of confidence and
love, because He has already redeemed us, has already brought forth
Zion, and has already won the victory. Christ can see the end from
the beginning, and He knows that He has already won. They describe
Jesus as being full of love, radiating love, and not as some kind of
pitiful creature in need of our love and acceptance and afraid of our
rejection. So, in the revelations and theophanies of the Latter-day
Saints, who is the one who is sad, rejected, lonely, and deeply in
need of our worship and love? If Christ isn't that way, then who is?
Sorry,
but I want to meet the LDS Savior that radiates love rather than
meeting Denver Snuffer's savior who seems to be starved for
acceptance, respect, and love. I want to meet the winner, not the
loser.
In
Denver Snuffer's recent writings, Denver portrays the LDS General
Authorities since Joseph Smith as losers and failures; and by
extension, portrays Jesus Christ as a loser and a failure as well.
In contrast, the Parable of the Ten Virgins tells us that it is not
that way at all. Fully half of the Latter-day Saints are going to
the Highest Heaven or the Celestial Kingdom, and they will follow the
Lord's Servants to get there. Remember, somebody led those five wise
virgins to the Wedding Feast, and those people would be the Servants
of God or the Prophets of God, and by extension The Son of God or the
Bridegroom. On the other hand, it was laziness and rebellion against
Christ and the Brethren that knocked the foolish virgins out of the
running. The foolish virgins (Latter-day Saints) were off doing
other things when Christ and His Servants came to lead them to the
Wedding Feast.
Christ
tells us that He and His Chosen Servants are one and the same. Even
if the 50/50 ratio holds true, and half the Brethren end up going to
hell (which I don't believe will be the case), that means that the
other half of the LDS Brethren are going to lead us to the Celestial
Kingdom and the Wedding Feast. They aren't all bad, as Denver tends
to suggest. Denver seems to dwell on the negative. I like to dwell
on the positive. I wasn't always that way, but I have changed.
I
like to think about the possibility of Christ saving and redeeming
poor, weak, imperfect, worthless sinners and failures such as myself.
I like to think and believe that Christ is fully capable of saving
and exalting even the worst Brother among the Brethren, as long as
that man is willing to keep trying to come unto Christ and His
Kingdom. I like to believe that Christ can take a rebellious tare
like me, rip all the tares out of my heart, and plant new fresh wheat
seed in their stead. Yes, it has been very painful, but it's the
only way a tare like me is ever going to get to where he is now
trying to go. It will only be possible if Christ chooses to
intervene on my behalf. I certainly won't do it on my own merits.
If I ever become great, it will be because Christ made me great.
Think
about it. If any of the Brethren are great or any of the Prophets
are great, it's because Christ made them great. They wouldn't be
great without Him. Without Christ, Joseph Smith would have been
nothing more than a well digger, treasure hunter, and a farm boy.
Joseph certainly wouldn't have had the skills or knowledge necessary
to start a religion. Without Christ, Enoch and Moses would have
stuttered their way through rather unremarkable lives. Moses would
have had to fall back on his day job as a prince of Egypt. With
Christ backing them, suddenly all things become possible, even the
establishment of Zion, the redemption of the Brethren, the
deliverance of Israel, and the exaltation of half the Latter-day
Saints. Only those who rebel against the Brethren, and by extension
rebel against Christ, will take themselves out of the procession to
the Wedding Feast.
Christ
is not a loser, He is a winner; and, He picks winners. It is
estimated that there might be ten times as many of God's children
living during the Millennium than there has been during the preceding
portion of human history. The Millennium has been described as a
place and a time where people, all people, will grow up without sin
unto salvation. All the people who live during the Millennium are
going to the Celestial Kingdom, with the exception of the Sons of
Perdition who are born at the end of the Millennium. Imagine a world
with no sickness, a world where everyone lives to a ripe old age, a
world where every prayer is answered, a world where every resource is
directed towards food production rather than war and defense. It
sounds like a Paradise, doesn't it?
If
15 billion humans lived on this earth from Adam until the Millennium,
and 150 billion live on the earth during the Millennium, what does
that give you? That gives you 90% who live during the Millennium and
are going to the Celestial Kingdom. Add our 1%, and that makes Jesus
Christ a winner in a big way! Jesus is not going to be lonely or
sad; and, Jesus is not going to be the only one walking the halls of
the Celestial Kingdom, as Denver Snuffer and others seem to imply.
Jesus is not going to be a lonely failure. Jesus and the Brethren
are going to be winners in the end; and, they are going to do it
together.
During
the pre-mortal life and our First Estate, we put our faith and trust
in Jesus Christ; and, He will come through for us in the end, in a
very big way. Jesus will bring Zion, and He will succeed in every
way; and, He will succeed in bringing a majority of the Brethren (LDS
General Authorities) and half of the Latter-day Saints along with Him
as well. Christ won't let our failures and imperfections get in His
way. Jesus is in control and at the helm, and He knows it. He has
already paid for our sins and has already redeemed us. He has
already established Zion, even though parts of Zion might currently
be a little sick, rebellious, and weak.
Personally,
I believe that it will happen quickly when it happens. It will be
like the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet
Union. It will seem to take place practically overnight. Like in
the Book of Mormon before Christ's birth, we'll all be standing
around thinking that Christ has failed and that Zion will never be
established, and then the sign will be given, the road will open up,
and we will stand all-amazed at how quickly Christ put it together
when He finally decides that it is time to put it together.
Practically over night, Christ will go from being a loser in our eyes
to being a winner in a huge way. If Christ truly rose from the dead
and lives and guides us here and now, and if any of the scriptures or
the teachings of the Brethren are true, that's the way it will be.
Some
of us need to relax and simply trust that it will be so. It took
Enoch 365 years to establish Zion and make it ready for translation
into Heaven. Enoch lived longer than what we tend to live nowadays.
What was Joseph Smith's secret name in the D&C? Joseph went by
the name Enoch. What do you get if you add 365 to 1830? You get
2195. Think about it for awhile and relax. There's time.
And,
even if Christ comes tomorrow, how will it go down? When Jesus comes
in glory and power, all of the wicked who are unable to have the Holy
Ghost in their hearts or oil in their lamps will be consumed by the
brightness of His glory, and only the righteous will be left. Christ
will burn the tares, and only the wheat will remain. The wheat will
be like Moses' burning bush. They will burn with the Holy Ghost or
the baptism of fire, but not be consumed. In contrast, the wicked
will not be able to have the Holy Ghost within them to protect them,
so they will all cease to exist. Then Christ will take the righteous
and establish Zion among them, whether they are fully ready for it or
not.
Either
way, Christ wins.
Christ
could bring Zion today, if He chose to do so. If Christ currently
postpones His Second Coming, He is doing it out of mercy to the
tares, giving the tares a chance to repent and become some of the
wheat in Zion.
Christ
will be victorious in the end and will end up saving most of us who
leave our Heavenly home and come here to get a physical body like He
did. Yes, Jesus will have to get the worst of us processed and
out-of-the-way first; but, it will take off like wild fire once the
tares are gone and Christ is in full control of the situation during
the Millennium.
It's
a hopeful message, unlike many of the messages that I have been
getting from others recently. One of the keys to achieving this
wonderful blessing is to be willing to humbly follow the Brethren and
go where they are trying to go, because Christ said, “Whether by
mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.”
Trust that it is so, and you will go where they go. For some of us,
it will also require repentance or a change of heart. We are not
used to humbly following anyone, let alone following the Brethren and
God.
For
most Christians, repentance is a four-letter word. For atheists,
repentance is plain stupidity and foolishness. I know, because I
have spent time in each boat, and I hated the word repentance.
Everyone wanted me to change, and I couldn't change; and, at times I
didn't want to change. “Just shut up and leave me alone. You
repent! I don't want to repent.” I had my pride after all. Other
times, I wanted to change or repent, but I couldn't figure out how to
do so.
Repentance
only works if it is willfully and deliberately chosen.
For
myself at first, I had to call it “course correction”, or “a
career change”, or “self-improvement”. I had to find some way
to make it sound cool and reasonable. I didn't want anyone thinking
I was a Brethrenite or some kind of religious fanatic nutcase; so, I
had to think of it as something else other than repentance.
Eventually,
though, after I had wandered down the road into darkness for years on
end, it dawned on me that the path I was on wasn't taking me where I
truly wanted to go. At that point, the only option I had was to turn
around and go the other way. If you don't like where the path is
taking you, then turn around and go the other way. For some of us,
that's the only way to get where we really want to go. I had to turn
around and start trying to walk back into the light. The teachings,
guidance, and help of the Brethren, both local and general, has been
very useful towards that goal, since I am now trying to go where some
of the Brethren are trying to go.
It's
nice to have help and to have examples and guidance to follow. I
have been very grateful to the Brethren for that guidance and help;
but, I had to be willing to change and I had to be willing to meet
them half-way. It didn't come easy to me at first. I had to learn
that evil speaking of the Lord's Anointed leads to separation from
the Lord's Anointed. I then had to learn that if I want to go where
Christ and His Chosen Servants (the Brethren) are trying to go, I am
going to have to turn around and take a different path other than the
one I was on. There was no other way. Jesus said, “Come follow me
and my Chosen Servants the Prophets”, and He meant it.
I
hope these words will be helpful to someone. I want to help people
to avoid the trap and the deep dark pit that I fell into. When I
look back and see all of the lost blessings and lost opportunities,
it saddens me. But, the past is past, and there is nothing I can do
about it now. Therefore, if I can help one person to avoid or skip
the years of darkness and misery that I went through, I will have
accomplished my goal.
--
--
It's interesting how it doesn't count unless it took place sometime after Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. I think it's meant to be that way for a reason. That's the way I was for decades.
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