Truth is the Pearl of Great Price

What is truth? Jesus taught that the truth will “set us free.” The doctrine of Christ can show us how to effectively come unto Christ and receive Him. The symbolism found in Lehi’s dream illustrates the variety of desires found in those participating in this earth life. For those who value the truth and coming unto Christ, the instructions from Him prove invaluable and worth the price.

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Truth is not easily discovered. Edison, the great inventor, made at least 3 thousand attempts before discovering how to make an incandescent light bulb. By its very nature, Truth is not revealed with casual effort, it requires a strong desire and persistence to discover. 

Simple truths can save life. During the Middle Ages the Black Death killed millions. If people back then only knew that boiling water would kill the germs that caused the plague, millions could have been saved. But, did anyone at that time believe that if they diligently asked the Lord how to overcome the plague, He might have given them this simple answer?

What is Truth?

We see a variation on this theme with the casual question by Pilate, the Roman Governor, to Jesus, “What is Truth?”  Sadly, it appears from the record that he did not want to stick around for the answer.  We too, may feel comfortable that we have all the truth we need already, and that we need no more truth. 

Truth is revealed based on our desire to receive, and each level of truth requires more and more effort. There are many levels of truth we can pursue, but the most basic, universal truth for those who came to this Earth to Ascend, we should seek the answer to “Why am I here on Earth, and what does God want me to learn and do while I am here?” 

We are going to spend this evening exploring this question.  

If we are fortunate and have learned about the Book of Mormon and are willing to read and study what it has to say, then we will be going in the right direction in answering this important question.  The reason is simple, the Book of Mormon contains the fullness of the Gospel, or in other words it contains the Doctrine of Christ, in its simplicity and that doctrine teaches us what God wants us to accomplish while we are here on Earth.

What is the Doctrine of Christ?

From the very beginning of the Book of Mormon we are taught this critical doctrine. In the early chapters of 1st Nephi we are told that Lehi has a dream known as the vision of the Tree of Life. In this marvelous dream, the Doctrine of Christ is taught symbolically.

We learn later in the book that Nephi, his son was “desirous also that he might see, and hear, and know” concerning the dream and he gives us a more expanded description of parts of the dream and a commentary. Let’s look at the dream. You can find it in 1 Nephi 8, Let me summarize it.

Lehi’s Dream is Symbolic of Doctrine of Christ

The dream begins with Lehi finding himself in a dark and dreary wilderness. In the wilderness Lehi sees a man dressed in a white robe who asks Lehi to follow him. At first, we may think that this man is a messenger from God who might lead him out of the wilderness, but after spending many hours in darkness Lehi realizes that his condition has deteriorated and he is now in a dark and dreary waste. This is like going from a forest (wilderness) into a desert (waste).  

Lehi was most likely a traveling merchant we can come to this conclusion when learn that he was able to immediately pack up all of the essentials including camels, tents, and so forth and leave Jerusalem at a moment’s notice. 

Lehi Finds Himself in a Desert Waste

Based on this understanding, being lost in a desert waste would be for him, as a traveling merchant, the greatest dread. This is true because being lost in a desert waste you don’t have any markers that will show you the way back in the right direction. Imagine being in the middle of Little Sahara down by Delta without the mountains to give you a point of reference. You lose your orientation as everything looks the same, and then you have the potential of going in the wrong direction and eventually dying of thirst or starvation. It appears from the text that the man dressed in white is no longer around to guide him which leaves him completely alone.  

However, we know from the very first chapter in the Book of Mormon Lehi knows that the Lord will answer his prayers, so he begins calling upon the Lord to help him find his way out of this waste.  

This aspect of the dream has great significance for each of us, in this world we are all exposed to many kinds of people who will try to “show us the way”, and even if they appear on the surface to be true messengers (by being dressed in white), the only sure way to find our way out of the wastes of this life is to learn how to receive and rely on personal revelation from God.  

Spacious Field & Tree of Life

So, after calling upon the Lord, Lehi sees a large and spacious field which contains a beautiful tree, and he eats some of the fruit on the tree, and it is the sweetest of all the fruit he has ever tasted. In this part of the dream we learn that coming to the tree is vitally important. Nephi will later teach us that to reach the tree and eat the fruit represents coming into the presence of the Lord and receiving Eternal Life.

After Lehi eats the fruit, his first inclination is that he wants others to receive the same joy, and he calls for Sariah his wife, and Sam and Nephi his sons come and enjoy the fruit.

This is also critical to the understanding of our own individual journey.  For once we have discovered the truth, the Lord wants us to help others find it too.  

Lehi then sees many other people searching for the tree, and a great and spacious building where people are making fun of those who partake of the fruit of the tree.  

4 Types of People Approaching the Tree of Life

Lehi is shown an iron rod that leads to the tree and a strait and narrow path alongside the iron rod. From this we learn of 4 different types of people approaching the tree:

1. The first group cling to the rod of iron and make it to the tree, but are ashamed after they partake of the fruit.  I think in this case cling means to occasionally hold on, but in any case, they are not ready to endure after reaching the tree.  The most important thing we learn from this group is that just eating the fruit is not enough, it’s not the end of the journey.
2. The next group Lehi sees are those who let go of the rod of iron and get lost in the mist of darkness and stubble onto strange paths; these people are those who are distracted by the world and the pursuit of “things” or are taken off the path by “other messengers” and never partake of the fruit.
3. Then he sees those who go directly to the great and spacious building, which represents the proud and wicked who openly oppose those who are enjoying the love of God by mocking them, telling them they are fools, etc.
4. And finally, the last group are those who hold fast to the iron rod (never letting go), and then humbly fall down at the foot of the tree before eating the fruit.  These are they who are enduring to the end, but also not giving heed to those in the great and spacious building, or the things of the world, or relying on others to reach the tree. But I think the most important thing we learn from them that by “falling down” at the tree we see the characteristic of humility, a characteristic that was required to follow the strait and narrow path in order to get to the tree.

Lehi’s Dream Symbolizes Our Lives

This dream is the symbolic representation of our journey here on Earth to come unto the Lord, which means to come into His presence, also known as the Second Comforter.  

Nephi gives us his final testimony in chapters 31-32, and summarizes the Doctrine of Christ, which is represented in the dream. In one verse Nephi gives us all of the elements of the Doctrine of Christ:

If we carefully review this verse, it contains a concise statement of the Doctrine of Christ:

1. Follow the Savior with real intent.
2. Repent of our sins.
3. Be baptized in water and take upon us the Name of Christ.
4. Receive a Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost.

Receiving the Baptism of Fire & Holy Ghost

Let’s look at each one of these steps in our progression towards receiving the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost, which is the gate we must enter to be on the path that leads to the tree.

Before we can follow the Savior, we must first have a belief and hope that He is real and He can in fact lift us up and help us return to the Father. Alma taught the Zoramites this first step when he taught: 

Alma teaches us that the journey begins with desire. A desire to believe the things we are taught about God are true. We must take this desire and act upon it. We must do the work as Alma says and plant the seed, and nurture it, etc.  How do we nurture the belief that Jesus is our Savior? 

The symbolic language of Alma is beautiful, but we need to put these words into a “how to” language to understand them better. In this first step, Alma teaches us that we need to take the time to learn about Jesus, by studying His words and teachings. But we can’t end there. We must go further and come to know Him, not just know about Him.  

Following the Savior with Real Intent

We “know Him” when we develop a relationship with Him, and we do that with regular and sincere prayer. Not just words said aloud or in our hearts repeated over and over, but with a real desire to have two-way communication with Him.  

For example, when we pray, we need to listen. We ask questions, then we listen. He places impressions in our mind, and we act upon them. Then we listen some more. Then we ask more questions, and listen and act again.  This is what is meant by following Him with real intent. If we do not act upon these promptings, feelings, etc. that He gives us, then we are not following Him with real intent, but just going through the motions without a real desire to have a true relationship with Him.

Listening to the Voice of the Spirit

I’m using the term listen, but that is not exactly what is happening here. In the beginning of this relationship with the Savior, when we “listen”, we are not necessarily receiving from Him an audible voice, but instead, we are receiving impressions, thoughts, ideas, and feelings that come to us from the Lord. Eventually, when we have a stronger relationship with Him, we may hear words from Him, but this is not how it typically begins.

This “listening” also has a counterpart. The adversary also has the ability to give us thoughts. So, the process is complicated by the fact that we need to learn how to distinguish between the two voices.

Judging Between the Two Voices

Mormon gives us wonderful advice as to how to discern between them:

As we listen to the various voices coming into our mind we need to judge; does this “voice” speak truth, does it persuade to follow Christ, does it speak peace to my soul?  The adversary can’t fake true peace.  The Light of Christ will help us distinguish between these two voices, but just to be sure, we should always ask the question; “Lord, is this from you?”  Over time we will become more comfortable with the “voice” of the Lord, and will have greater confidence in knowing which promptings are in fact from Him.

As part of this journey we are asked by the Lord in 3 Nephi 9:19-20, to make a sacrifice, not a sacrifice of an animal, but a sacrifice of a broken heart and a contrite spirit. This sacrifice, of humbling ourselves before the Lord is necessary in order for us to receive the revelation that comes to us as represented by the iron rod. Only if we are willing to humble ourselves and say to the Lord, “thy will be done” will we consistently receive further direction from Him which will keep us on the path, and eventually lead us to the tree. Remember, the last group that made it to the tree demonstrated this humility by falling down at the tree.

Repenting of Our Sins

The process of developing a relationship with Jesus as previously described is also the process of repenting. It is a wonderful gift that is given to us to allow us to become like Him. And, as long as we continue to follow this process we are progressing, and when we stop repenting, our progress also stops. It’s like trying to strengthen any muscle, it requires exercise to grow stronger.

As we talk “with” the Lord, He tells us things we should do, if we listen and obey, we are “repenting.” We are repenting because He will give us knowledge about how to correct things in ourselves and how to improve. In school, the teacher gives out homework assignments, and if we do our homework we learn, if we don’t do our homework, we often fail to learn the lesson that was intended. In the same way, if we fail to act upon those promptings given by Him, we too will fail in our progress.  

The Savior gave us a perfect example of this process:

Obeying The Father’s Will

In other words, Father prompted Jesus to do everything He did, and Jesus obeyed.  

An example of this behavior would be the first public miracle by Jesus; before performing the miracle, no doubt Jesus asked the Father, can I do this? Is it your will that I turn this water into wine?  

And throughout His entire ministry, Jesus spoke with the Father, seeking advise and counsel and direction, and then acted on those promptings and understanding. When the Father says, heal the leper, raise the dead child, Jesus knew He had not only the Father’s permission, but His power to do so as well. 

There are recorded in the new testament over 25 instances of the Lord praying or seeking solitude before He ministered or blessed others.

And this is the best part, Jesus is inviting us to do the same with Him.  He will gladly direct us in all things, if we will let Him. All we have to do is ask, and then do what we are told. This is what is meant by being “perfect in Christ” (Moroni 10:32). We are perfect in that we are completely obedient to His promptings and impressions.  

And when we make a mistake, if we have nurtured a broken heart, then we quickly repent, and then we are “perfect” again. This is the most critical element in the Doctrine of Christ, seeking for and acting upon personal revelation.  And this is also how we can share in His power.  If He tells us to heal someone, we know that that person will be healed, because He told us to do so.

Story About Bryan, a Premature Baby

I’d like to take a moment to show how this principle applies by sharing the story of our son Bryan’s baby blessing: 

Baptism By Water

Baptism is the outward ordinance that formalizes the covenant we make with the Lord, and by doing so we take upon us His Name.  Jesus gave the perfect example of Baptism by being baptized himself.  It should be noted that Jesus went to the only person in Israel at that time that had the fullness of authority to baptize him into the higher order, or the Church of Christ, i.e., John the Baptist.

This higher order is important, because without it, the ability for a person to receive the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost is not available.  This may sound strange to most of us who for our entire lifetime have assumed that as long as someone with the “priesthood” baptized us, all was well.  But let’s take a closer look at this idea of higher authority.

Verse 17 reminds us that Nephi had “great authority”, so he must have held a level of priesthood (Aaronic) to act on behalf of the Lord.

Authority to Baptize Given by Jesus

However, as soon as Jesus appears to the people in Bountiful, in AD 34-35, the first thing He does is give authority to Nephi to baptize:

Giving authority at this time would seem to be redundant if Nephi already had the authority, yet here is a mystery. If all that was necessary to baptize was the Aaronic priesthood which Nephi appeared to have possessed back in AD 30, why would the Lord give it to him again? Because we are talking about a different level of baptism, i.e., a baptism into the Church of Christ (Terrestrial).

This principle is new to most who have believed all of their lives that there was only one baptism and that it could be given by someone holding the Aaronic priesthood that was restored by John the Baptist. However, with that same understanding that most of us have, why don’t we hear of people receiving a Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost quoted previously?  

It’s because the priesthood to perform that level of baptism has been gone for some time, just as it had been lost at the time of 3^rd Nephi.

Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost

When you were baptized did you have this wonderful experience?  Most of us would say no, especially if we were baptized at 8 years old.  In fact, most would ask, what does the above verse really mean? To completely understand, we need to look at experiences written in the scriptures to know exactly what this “event”, The Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost, really means.

In Helaman chapter 5, we read of the experience of Nephi and Lehi. They are put in prison by the Lamanites and are about to be put to death when they experience a baptism of fire:

Now we may think that this was just a miracle given to the people to show that Nephi and Lehi were sent from God. But the Savior clarifies our understanding by saying it was a Baptism of Fire: 

I doubt that the Lamanites didn’t know something wonderful happened to them, but most likely, they didn’t know that it was called the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost.  

Nephi & Disciples Give The Holy Ghost

But with the knowledge of this great event, Nephi and the other 12 disciples on the American Continent were looking forward to a time when this same gift would be given to them: 

Please note, and this is critical to our understanding, all of these men had previously been baptized years before, but now they desire to have their Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost. They understand the significance of what they are desiring, as they have earnestly prayed for it. I cannot overemphasis this, the Baptism of Fire and of the Holy Ghost is critical to reaching the tree.  

Have We Received Baptism of Fire & The Holy Ghost?

We may have felt the influence of the Holy Ghost in our life, but now imagine that influence is 100x of what it has been in the past, that is what a Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost is all about. It is not what you’ve been taught in the past. This is what is meant by the injunction, receive the Holy Ghost.

Another clue to why the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost is so special can be found in the events of the day of Pentecost. Here we see that the Holy Ghost was given to the Apostles in Jerusalem and great spiritual manifestations where given on that day.

Notice also that the Savior pleads with the Father to give this gift to His disciples. This is not some perfunctory ordinance. It comes only and through the Savior. This is why it is so special. This is part of the real doctrine of Christ.

At this point, I would ask us to seriously consider whether or not we have experienced this Gift? Have we been surrounded by light and has our entire body been changed by the Lord? If we have not, then I admonish each of us to seek for this blessing. Then we too may be redeemed, I strongly encourage us to take this journey until we receive our Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost.

Some of us may say in our hearts, this is only for prophets and apostles, the Lord isn’t going to give me this great gift. But I would remind us all, that God is no respecter of persons. The way to Him is the same for all of us, and all we have to do is shed our unbelief that we too can come unto Him like the Nephites.

The Baptism of Fire & Holy Ghost is Only the Beginning

Nephi tells us that he is teaching us these things “that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter”. 

Notice that Nephi repeats in these verses the imagery of the strait and narrow path given in the dream. But this is only the gate, we must continually repent, and listen to His voice and act on the commandments He gives to us through the Spirit. And if we do, then we will eventually have the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost that cleans us from the stains of this world and redeems us from the fall.

Speaking With The Tongue of Angels

And after we have gotten on the strait and narrow path, and have had a baptism of fire, then Nephi promises us that we can speak with the tongue of angels (i.e., become true messengers of God): 

This is what is meant by holding fast to the iron rod. It is simply receiving and acting on revelation given to us by the Holy Ghost. When we do, the Holy Ghost can guide us in every aspect of what we do and say. It is acting in Faith, listening to and obeying the Holy Ghost that we progress along the strait and narrow path. As we do, we are redeemed from the sins of this world. It is this cleansing that represents our progress along the rod of iron, moving us closer and closer to the tree which represents our coming into the presence of the Lord.

The Doctrine of Christ is not complicated. In fact, once we learn how to rely on the voice of the Lord, our lives become much simpler. That doesn’t mean our lives won’t be difficult, but when we rely on the Lord, He carries our burdens for us, and they become light.

Where is This Strait & Narrow Path Leading Us?  

Nephi is not speaking of coming into the Lord’s presence sometime in the future after we pass through the veil. He is speaking to those of his time and to all who learn the Doctrine of Christ, including us in our day. The Savior wants us to come unto the tree now while we are in this probation, which means to literally come into His presence in the flesh or during our mortality.  

He is inviting all of us that after we have been cleansed through continual repentance and by a Baptism of Fire, and have received and are feasting (acting) on the words of Christ given to us by the Holy Ghost, and then continue on that path, He will be there to meet us at the Tree. The “new doctrine” spoken in the above verse is the perfect knowledge of Him when we come into His presence and will include all the things we ask of Him while in His presence.  

Now Is The Time to Prepare to Meet God

This experience of coming into the presence of the Lord, is to happen in this life, not sometime in the future after we have died, this means now, while we are in the flesh. Yes, let’s reread the verse I just quoted, He did say in the flesh or in our mortal bodies. This is why we hear so frequently that “now is the time to prepare to meet God”, and not procrastinate the day of repentance until it is everlastingly too late.

There is a philosophy taught by many that if we don’t get it right in this life there is always time in the spirit world that we can make up for that failure. This is a doctrine of the adversary. The dark ones would love for us to procrastinate our relationship with the Lord while in this life and to eat, drink and be merry.

Following the Doctrine of Christ is a personal journey. It asks each of us to have faith and pursue a course that will cleanse us from the sins of this world. There is a false idea in the world that all we have to do to be “saved” is to believe in Christ. In part that is true, because of the Atonement. But it is false if we want to achieve what we really came to this Earth to accomplish, i.e., ascension and eternal progress.  

We may mistakenly believe that this progression can occur after we have passed through the veil, but Alma will disabuse us of this false idea by telling us that now is the time, and we will not be able to say when we come to that awful crisis, that we will repent, and will turn to God 

Alma is teaching us that the “day of repentance” is our mortal life.  Our entire life.  Not just a period of time before we can be baptized.

The critical truth is that we are here to be tested, and that test can only occur behind a veil. If we do not follow the Doctrine of Christ, then when we die, we will go to the spirit world where no progress can occur. And we will have wasted this mortal experience.

Jesus Gave Us a Perfect Example

Nephi begins his discourse on the doctrine of Christ by talking about John the Baptist who would baptize the Savior. Here are his words as he describes the Saviors journey to the tree, which is an example of the journey we all must take: 

And as a reminder, let’s look again at John 5:30 where the Savior gives us a perfect example of how He relied on personal revelation in all that He did. 

In Conclusion

I’d like to quote just a few of the last words of Nephi:

I began this presentation by stating: “Truth is not easily discovered.” Specifically, the most important truth we need to know is what we are here on this Earth to learn? That truth is found in the Doctrine of Christ.  

And the Doctrine of Christ is really 4 simple steps.

1. Following the Savior with real intent.
2. Continuously Repenting of our sins, which includes seeking for and acting upon personal revelation.
3. Being baptized in water and taking upon us the Name of Christ.
4. Receiving a Baptism of Fire and the Holy Ghost.

As mentioned by Lehi, once we are on the strait and narrow path, we need to look around and search for others we can lead to the Tree.