Better Together

I've been contemplating some admittedly frightening ideas. My initial reaction to the thoughts is "how arrogant" but, then, the thoughts really originated with the Lord. So they can't be arrogant, can they?

The thought is basically this: can we be better than the prophets who went before us? What about the fathers?

Oof. It's as uncomfortable to write down as it is to think.

Could Nephi have been gentler with Laman and Lemuel?

Was there a better way for Jacob to interact with Sherem?

Could Peter and Paul have done better in their interactions?

The answer to this last example is obvious: yes. The Lord Himself not only suggested they could have, He told us we must do better than they. (T&C 157:3)

So were they disobedient to the Lord? Yes and no... I think. The Lord stated that "I love them, and they both love me". He also said that "If you love me you will keep my commandments". The Lord also said, "Jesus said unto him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

So they were obedient, and they loved the Lord, yet, they could have done better by loving and respecting one another. We're told we have to do better. (Ibid.)

Man, the concept really opens us from there. What other things are we dogmatic about because the prophets did something a certain way?

Oof, there's the uncomfortable feeling again. Merky waters. I'll keep asking questions though...

If they could have done something better, and we could also, how would we know which things they did poorly?

There was an unbroken line of fathers from Adam all the way down to Joseph of Egypt. Yet, only Enoch and Melchizedek brought Zion. Was it because they did "better" than the others? 

It's hard for this to not sound like a judgment. It isn't intended to be a judgment, just lessons to learn from and improve upon.

Another interesting example to consider might be Joseph and Hyrum Smith. They were clearly Sons of God sent to minister among us. Yet the structure they established turned into a corruptible hierarchical organization, even before they died. This isn't to fault them. They were obedient to God, accepted of God, and delivered such light to the world so as to change the course of history for the better. Nevertheless, we have to do better. So we ditched D&C 20 and made our own governing principles.

What of Abraham and Sarah? They are known as the father and mother of the righteous. Nevertheless, several people have wondered if Abraham fathering children with Sara's concubines was errant, since the Lord caused Sara's womb to open in her late age, and the promised son was given. So can we be better? Do we need to learn life-long patience? 

Moses is another very interesting example to consider. Exodus 2:67 reveals that Moses placed limits on what he was willing to do, and the Lord worked with and around those limits. We read:

"And Moses answered and said, But behold, they will not believe me nor listen unto my voice, for they will say, The Lord has not appeared unto you. And the Lord said unto him, What is that in your hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. And the Lord said unto Moses, Put forth your hand and take it by the tail (and he put forth his hand and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand), that they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers — the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob — has appeared unto you. And the Lord said furthermore unto him, Put now your hand into your bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow. And he said, Put your hand into your bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again, and plucked it out of his bosom, and behold, it was turned again as his other flesh. And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe you, neither listen to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign. And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither listen unto your voice, that you shall take of the water of the river and pour it upon the dry land, and the water which you take out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.

And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before now nor since you have spoken unto your servant, but I am slow of speech and of a slow tongue. And the Lord said unto him, Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? Have not I the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say. And he said, O my Lord, send, I ask you, by the hand of him whom you will send. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite your brother? I know that he can speak well. And also behold, he comes forth to meet you; and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. And you shall speak unto him and put words in his mouth, and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. And he shall be your spokesman unto the people, and he shall be, even he shall be to you in stead of a mouth, and you shall be to him in stead of God. And you shall take this rod in your hand, with which you shall do signs."

While it may have been "better" for Moses to fully trust the Lord and obey, he was still accepted of the Lord and brought to pass much righteousness. 

Enoch found himself in a similar situation, but trusted in the Lord and brought Zion. (Gen. 4:2)

Perhaps one hallmark of a righteous person is leaving an honest record of the missteps they made so that their children can learn and do better. It's certainly a mark of humility.

Well, there are many examples to explore, and I'm left to conclude that not only can we be "better" than those who went before, but both they and God expect us to be if we're serious about Zion.

But hey, we're not supposed to compare ourselves to each other. It breeds envy, judgment, insecurity, and competition. Or does it? After all, the Lord pointed out that, "These two facts do exist — that there are two spirits, one being more intelligent than the other; there shall be another more intelligent than they. I am the Lord, your God; I am more intelligent than they all."

Maybe comparing ourselves to those who went before us could be viewed through the lens of gratitude for their examples, mistakes, and honesty. Without their courage in coming down here to engage, learn, and leave a record of what works and what doesn't, we wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell.

One thought that keeps coming to mind as I contemplate these ideas is this:

"They without us could not be made perfect, and we without them could not be made perfect." (T&C 151:14) Perfect means complete, but perhaps we can not be complete without learning from one another.

Mmm, it's always better when we're together.