“And this is life eternal, that they might know…”
Despite my conviction that God is real, my goal is to increase my knowledge. I do this by learning to love obedience.
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” John 17:3
I’ve written elsewhere about the challenge of truly knowing something. I recognize that much of it is philosophical on my part but I am often conflicted with the idea of claiming true, full knowledge. I can say the sun is shining but how do I really know?
Despite my overwhelming conviction that God is real and Jesus is my Savior, my goal is to increase my knowledge of Them. To truly know Them, to one day rejoice as an eye-witness to Their glory.
Joseph Smith was a true witness and never denied that reality despite doubters and murderous critics.
His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters…
How do we come to know God? One way is to test his word. “Prove me now herewith” He said through Malachi (3:10). God also spoke to Joseph Smith saying
… every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am” Doctrine and Covenants 93:1
Christ also said,
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, except ye abide my law ye cannot attain to this glory. For strait is the gate, and narrow the way that leadeth unto the exaltation and continuation of the lives, and few there be that find it, because ye receive me not in the world neither do ye know me. But if ye receive me in the world, then shall ye know me, and shall receive your exaltation; that where I am ye shall be also.” D&C 132:21–23
He then repeats the principle, to make sure we get it:
“This is eternal lives — to know the only wise and true God, and Jesus Christ, whom he hath sent. I am he. Receive ye, therefore, my law. Broad is the gate, and wide the way that leadeth to the deaths; and many there are that go in thereat, because they receive me not, neither do they abide in my law.” D&C 132:24–25
We receive Christ and come to know Him by receiving and abiding in His law. To receive implies to hold out ones hands and then to hold onto what is placed there. To receive God’s law is more than just obeying, it’s accepting, living, and sustaining. It’s loving God and our neighbor.
To abide in God’s law suggests making your spiritual home within the bounds of law. Not to set up residence outside of the law and refer to it from time to time, but to be centered on Christ and His law. Receiving Christ and His law holds some useful similarities with the invitation to “build your foundation… upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God” (Helaman 5:12).
As we abide in God’s law we come to know him. We grow into the principle of revelation and our understanding increases. We come to know that law is a manifestation of God’s love, not a contradiction of it. We want to share the joy of Christ- His love and His law. We learn to hold in both hands: justice and mercy, love and law, service and self-reliance, etc. We learn the difference between evaluating behaviors and condemning people.
This desired harmony between love and law has been addressed by then Elder Oaks in 2009, now President Oaks in 2018, and President Russel M. Nelson in 2019. I suspect properly holding the two sided coin of love and law is the defining challenge of our time.
Receiving Christ and His law we rejoice in the truth that God gives us a wide space to practice agency. We also understand that love requires limits to expression and activity. It is not love that motivates the dissolution of all restraint.
Too often we focus on the perceived restriction of the law rather than on the freedom and peace it affords. God offers us immense flexibility and then invites us, by our own choice, to receive his law. By abiding in His law -His truth- we begin to open doors and windows of knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and power. Only by first obeying the law can we achieve real wisdom and exercise proper mercy.
As we turn to Him and find peace in Christ, in His law and gospel, a glorious paradox unfolds: We realize just how fallen we are, how feeble, AND how eternally cherished we are. We begin to know how immensely loved and valued we are by The Father Architect of the universe. We ascend one step closer to beholding His face and knowing Him again.
