In last April’s conference, Elder M. Russell Ballard gave a talk called “Learning the Lessons of the Past”. He told the story of when he was in business as a car dealership, he went and visited with the Ford Motor Company about a “spectacularly successful product”. After the sales pitch, Elder Ballard’s father, who was also in the business, cautioned him about selling that particular model at his dealership. Elder Ballard was wooed by the sales pitch and became the first – and the last – Edsel dealer in Salt Lake City. The Edsel was a flop and it was an expensive lesson for Elder Ballard. He says “Now, there’s a powerful lesson for all of you in this experience. When you are willing to listen and learn, some of life’s most meaningful teachings come from those who have gone before you. They have walked where you are walking and have experienced many of the things you are experiencing. If you listen and respond to their counsel, they can help guide you toward choices that will be for your benefit and blessing and steer you away from decisions that can destroy you.”
I was reading recently in the Old Testament about a similar situation. There's no doubt as to the wisdom possessed by King Solomon. He was the King who had two women come to him claiming to be the rightful mother to a certain baby. In order solve the problem, King Solomon ordered the baby to be cut in half and one half given to each of the women. The real mother, however, would rather have the baby saved alive and given to the fake mother, than to see it killed. The fake mother agreed to half it. Obviously King Solomon knew who the rightful mother was and gave her the child. The scriptures are full of praise for Solomon and his wisdom. However, King Solomon did not pass his wisdom to his son Rehoboam. Soon after King Solomon passed away, a group of people led by a man named Shechem, came to him claiming they had been grievously yoked by Solomon, and they wanted to know if Rehoboam, the new king, was going to ease their burdens. Rehoboam told them to give him some time to think about it and went and spoke to his “old men” who told him “If thou be kind to this people, and please them, and speak good words to them, they will be thy servants for ever.” (2 Chronicles 10:7 & 1 Kings 12:7) Then the scriptures say “But he forsook the counsel which the old men gave him, and took counsel with the young men that were brought up with him, that stood before him”. What did the young men tell him to say? Well, you can read for yourself, but in layman’s terms he told them “if you think my dad was hard on you, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
Because of Rehoboam’s callous response, the children of Israel who followed Shechem split off from the rest of Israel (Judah & Benjamin) and formed their own kingdom. As the scriptures further state, these two kingdoms constantly fought one another and were both eventually taken captive by other kingdoms, thus leading to the scattering of Israel.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Steadying the Ark
In 2 Samuel 6, the story is told of the Israelites taking back the ark that had been captured by the Philistines. During the journey, they apparently encountered some rough terrain and Uzza (who was one of the men helping to carrying the ark), noticed the oxen were shaking the ark and decided to steady it so it wouldn’t fall. Upon doing this, God smote him “for his error” and he died. David is then scared to move the ark any further and it stays with a man named Obed-edom.
In LDS circles, the phrase “steadying the ark” is used a lot as an analogy that we should just let the work of God move forward and not question what is being said or done by the leadership (at any level). There is the belief, I guess, that Uzza didn’t really need to steady the ark because God would have taken care of it on His own. Today, when someone questions a church idea or program, people accuse them of “steadying the ark”, and tell them they should just let the church move forward, because, well, look what happened to Uzza. While I think there may be some truth in trusting in the leadership to know how manage their stewardship, I think the application of “steadying the ark” in this instance is wrong.
If we look a little deeper into this story we find out the real reason why Uzza was killed, and it wasn’t because he was trying to protect the ark. The story of Uzza is retold in 1 Chronicles 13:9-10, but this time further explanation is given. In 1 Chronicles 15, David has prepared a place to house the ark, and decides to bring the ark from Obed-edom’s house, but this time he says “None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever.” (1 Chronicles 15:2) He later tells them “Ye are the chief of the fathers of the Levites: sanctify yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it. For because ye did it not at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the due order.” (1 Chronicles 15:12-13)
Uzza was smitten, not because he tried to steady something that apparently didn’t need steadying, but because he was not a Levite, a member of the tribe of Israel who were called and appointed to officiate in matters of the temple and priesthood. So, I think the morale of the story isn’t necessarily to not question anything that doesn’t need questioning, but rather there is order to the priesthood and when something is done outside that order, there are consequences. Now, I don’t necessarily think that type of thing would happen today. Can you imagine if a deacon tried to bless the sacrament for the congregation, and was smitten because he wasn’t a priest?
In LDS circles, the phrase “steadying the ark” is used a lot as an analogy that we should just let the work of God move forward and not question what is being said or done by the leadership (at any level). There is the belief, I guess, that Uzza didn’t really need to steady the ark because God would have taken care of it on His own. Today, when someone questions a church idea or program, people accuse them of “steadying the ark”, and tell them they should just let the church move forward, because, well, look what happened to Uzza. While I think there may be some truth in trusting in the leadership to know how manage their stewardship, I think the application of “steadying the ark” in this instance is wrong.
If we look a little deeper into this story we find out the real reason why Uzza was killed, and it wasn’t because he was trying to protect the ark. The story of Uzza is retold in 1 Chronicles 13:9-10, but this time further explanation is given. In 1 Chronicles 15, David has prepared a place to house the ark, and decides to bring the ark from Obed-edom’s house, but this time he says “None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever.” (1 Chronicles 15:2) He later tells them “Ye are the chief of the fathers of the Levites: sanctify yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it. For because ye did it not at the first, the Lord our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the due order.” (1 Chronicles 15:12-13)
Uzza was smitten, not because he tried to steady something that apparently didn’t need steadying, but because he was not a Levite, a member of the tribe of Israel who were called and appointed to officiate in matters of the temple and priesthood. So, I think the morale of the story isn’t necessarily to not question anything that doesn’t need questioning, but rather there is order to the priesthood and when something is done outside that order, there are consequences. Now, I don’t necessarily think that type of thing would happen today. Can you imagine if a deacon tried to bless the sacrament for the congregation, and was smitten because he wasn’t a priest?
Monday, March 8, 2010
Dual Nature of Man
In October of 1969, just before his death, President David O. McKay gave his final talk as President of the Church. It was titled "In the Church, Man Does Not Live for Himself Alone". His emphasis was on the duality of man:
“We have heard during the sessions of this conference that man is a dual being: He is physical, and has his appetites, passions, desires, just as any animal has. But he is also a spiritual being; and he knows that to subdue the animal instincts is to achieve advancement in his spiritual realm; that a man who is subjected to his physical appetites and passions only, who denies any reality of a spirit, is truly of the animal world; and that man is a spiritual being, and his real life is the spirit that inhabits his body.”
He then tells the following story about President John Quincy Adams:
“President John Quincy Adams gave a good illustration of this when he was accosted on the streets of Boston one day and was asked, "How is John Quincy Adams today?"
He answered, as he tottered along with hips cane, "John Quincy Adams is well, thank you, quite well. But the house in which he lives is tottering on its foundations, the windows are shaking, the roof is leaking, the doors are not hanging straight; and I think John Quincy Adams will have to move out of it soon. But John Quincy Adams himself, sir, is quite well, I thank you, quite well!" He sensed that the real John Quincy Adams was an immortal being, a son of a Father in heaven.
That is one great truth to which testimony has been borne in this conference—that man is spirit, the son of his Father, and has within him that which will cause him to yearn and to aspire to become dignified as a son of God should be dignified. The dignity of man, not the degradation of man, has been emphasized throughout this conference.”
I love this teaching; that man, while subject to passions and appetites, is not meant to just give in to them. The world may teach and believe that we have no control over any physical urges that come to us and we should just embrace them, regardless of the consequences. I believe we are here in this life to tame our physical body, to bring it into subjection to our spirit, which is the “real” us. That’s one of the reasons we fast, so we can show that while our body may be subject to hunger, our spirit is stronger and when we fast for something, the spirit will give us strength to overcome the body hunger pains. There is spiritual strength in this.
“We have heard during the sessions of this conference that man is a dual being: He is physical, and has his appetites, passions, desires, just as any animal has. But he is also a spiritual being; and he knows that to subdue the animal instincts is to achieve advancement in his spiritual realm; that a man who is subjected to his physical appetites and passions only, who denies any reality of a spirit, is truly of the animal world; and that man is a spiritual being, and his real life is the spirit that inhabits his body.”
He then tells the following story about President John Quincy Adams:
“President John Quincy Adams gave a good illustration of this when he was accosted on the streets of Boston one day and was asked, "How is John Quincy Adams today?"
He answered, as he tottered along with hips cane, "John Quincy Adams is well, thank you, quite well. But the house in which he lives is tottering on its foundations, the windows are shaking, the roof is leaking, the doors are not hanging straight; and I think John Quincy Adams will have to move out of it soon. But John Quincy Adams himself, sir, is quite well, I thank you, quite well!" He sensed that the real John Quincy Adams was an immortal being, a son of a Father in heaven.
That is one great truth to which testimony has been borne in this conference—that man is spirit, the son of his Father, and has within him that which will cause him to yearn and to aspire to become dignified as a son of God should be dignified. The dignity of man, not the degradation of man, has been emphasized throughout this conference.”
I love this teaching; that man, while subject to passions and appetites, is not meant to just give in to them. The world may teach and believe that we have no control over any physical urges that come to us and we should just embrace them, regardless of the consequences. I believe we are here in this life to tame our physical body, to bring it into subjection to our spirit, which is the “real” us. That’s one of the reasons we fast, so we can show that while our body may be subject to hunger, our spirit is stronger and when we fast for something, the spirit will give us strength to overcome the body hunger pains. There is spiritual strength in this.
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