No Coincidences

Tag: Selfish

Beth’s Talk on Mosiah 3:19 (January)

This is a talk, exactly as written, by Beth, that she gave in church in January. She rehearsed the talk verbally to me multiple times before I heard it in church. Of course, through hearing it I knew it was a great talk, but it wasn’t until proofreading and preparing to post this that I was struck by how phenomenal a talk this really was. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as much as I did. And now, Beth –

Mosiah 3:19 Talk
January 9, 2022
Good morning brothers and sisters.
I wanted to start by introducing my family as we are one of the families that were blended into this ward with the recent changes in the stake. My name is Elisabeth Quackenbush. My husband is Brayden Quackenbush. We met in the Scottsdale Young Single Adult Ward in 2017 and have been married for over 2 years. We have a one year old daughter named Ivy. You’ll see her running around Sunday School for another 5 months but she is very excited to start nursery after that.

The topic I was given to speak on this morning is the scripture Mosiah 3:19. When I was informed this was my assignment I wasn’t really surprised. This scripture comes into my mind a lot and is brought up in conversations about life all the time when I’m chatting with my husband. I think it sticks in my mind because it stands in such contrast to a lot of the attitudes of the world these days.

For those of you that memorized scripture mastery back in the day you may remember this scripture, but as a reminder, this scripture is King Benjamin speaking to his people in the Book of Mormon. It reads,

“For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”

When we break down this verse, we can derive meaning in a variety of ways. The first that I noted is that the natural man is inherently selfish. The second is the importance of change to the Eternal Plan of Happiness.

Boyd K Packer stated in his 1990 talk, “Put Off the Natural Man, and Come Off
Conqueror”:
“Unchecked selfishness [of the natural man] stubbornly blocks the way for developing all of the divine qualities: love, mercy, patience, long-suffering, kindness, graciousness, goodness, and gentleness. Any tender sprouts from these virtues are sheared off by sharp selfishness. Contrariwise, I cannot think of a single gospel covenant the keeping of which does not shear off selfishness from us.”

Through the influence of the Holy Ghost, and the atonement of Jesus Christ, we can and should change from the narrow focus of the natural man and become, “submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, and willing to submit to the will of God.”

This idea of our ability and strength to change stands in stark contrast to the pervasive attitude of our society. This attitude states that we are born a certain way. We can’t change, and even shouldn’t want to change. If we do change, we are inauthentic. On the surface, this has a false sense of empowerment, I think. However, this idea that change is bad and that we must only be one way for the rest of our life is truly limiting, almost an eternal purgatory of mediocrity. Compare this to the freedom and growth permitted to us through Jesus Christ’s suffering, that we may improve and become like our Heavenly Father and Savior, Jesus Christ.

My husband and I have had the opportunity to have many deep, religious
conversations with friends of a variety of backgrounds. We often come across
criticism of our faith’s belief that we can take steps, including repentance, baptism, and participating in temple ordinances, to change and become like God. We are accused of valuing works and forgetting the grace provided through Jesus Christ. On the contrary… His grace is the key element that permits us TO become new beings.

In 2 Corinthians 5:17 we read, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new
creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

Brad Wilcox does a beautiful job in his BYU talk, “His Grace is Sufficient” at outlining how the Atonement of Jesus Christ, through His death and resurrection, provides us the need to change… (forgive me for this lengthy quote but as many of you know, this talk is incredible…)

“[Yes, we are saved by Grace but] Have you been changed by grace? [We] are so excited about being saved that we are not thinking enough about what comes next. We are so happy the debt is paid that we may not have considered why the debt existed in the first place. Latter-day Saints know not only what Jesus has saved us from but also what He has saved us for.

“A life impacted by grace eventually begins to look like Christ’s life. While many Christians view Christ’s suffering as only a huge favor He did for us,
Latter-day Saints also recognize it as a huge investment He made in us.

“As Moroni puts it, grace isn’t just about being saved. It is also about becoming like the Savior. The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can live after we die but that we can live more abundantly. The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can be cleansed and consoled but that we can be transformed.“

Again, just think for a minute… how does that compare to what we are being taught by the world? I can’t change, I shouldn’t change…

HOW DO WE PUT OFF THE NATURAL MAN AND BECOME LIKE CHRIST?

We can actively seek this positive change…

In her 1998 BYU Speech, Wendy Watson, now well known as Wendy Nelson, lists some ways. One is reflection. She notes how Alma directs this type of reflection:

“Just how does Alma invite these change-inducing reflections? One way is through his use of questions. In Alma 5 alone, more than 40 questions are offered—questions like:
‘Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts? . . .
. . . If ye have experienced a change of heart, and if ye have felt to sing the song of redeeming love, I would ask, can ye feel so now?‘ [Alma 5:14, 26]. Through the process of persistent questioning, Alma invites us to reflect over and over again: on our status with the Lord, on our spiritual growth and development, on things that need to change or have changed—and before we know it our desire for more change increases.”

Another idea is to listen to the uplifting voices of authority in your life remembering, “As helpful as human voices of authority are, none can or should replace the ultimate voice of authority—the Word himself: the Savior Jesus Christ. What are you doing to hear his voice in your life? What are you doing to establish his voice as the voice of authority for you?”

Other ways we can develop this change to become more like Him… Consistently and earnestly repent, seek out holy places, take steps of faith, pray to Him daily.”

Sometimes change finds us…whether it be through loss, grief, depression, or trials in life, change is often thrust upon us in this mortal life. Again, the world finds few answers as to why there is such suffering and grief in the world. His eternal plan of growth and development is sometimes the only answer that makes sense. If we are to become like Christ, our innocent brother that felt all the sufferings of the world, how can we expect to be truly changed without some suffering of our own?

Peter in speaking of [trials], said: “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.”

When we endure this life, put off the natural man, and develop into more Christ-like beings, we set ourselves up to feel an even greater degree of joy in this life and in eternity.

This topic makes me think of a time when I came back to church after living a life that was not in line with what I knew to be right. I made many positive changes when I started coming back and attending the Scottsdale Young Single Adult ward. I starting observing the sabbath day, stopped a lifestyle of college partying, broke off a serious relationship, and made several other difficult but important decisions.

However, with all this positive change and shunning of the enticings of the natural man, I still felt like I wasn’t receiving the blessings I thought I would. I wallowed in self pity over my own suffering for a while because of this and even wondered if all of my change was for nothing.

However, I eventually decided I would stop focusing on what I needed and instead turned outward. I made it my mission to seek anyone in my ward that seemed lonely as I was. I sought opportunities to serve those that were also going through a variety of trials. And a miracle happened! The less I focused on my pain, my loneliness, my loss, and focused on loving those around me as Christ did, I really came to find true joy.

I couldn’t believe how sincerely I loved everyone around me. I didn’t feel lonely. I developed new, Christ-like attributes. And ultimately, I shunned the ultimate trait of the natural man – selfishness. What a blessing that lesson was for my life.

I know how hard it can be to put off the feelings we have as humans in a difficult mortal journey. It is something we will actively have to work for as long as we live. However, I know that when we let ourselves change and take on the characteristics of Christ we will prepare ourselves to find real joy in eternity. We will truly have cause to rejoice in his second coming.

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

April 21, 2022
Pornography
This topic, unfortunately, becomes more and more prevalent, and more and more of an issue for us today. It’s come up so many times, I’ve heard it so many times, and it’s such an issue that I felt I should share some thoughts on this uncomfortable subject.

I believe I was 12 when my parents had “the talk” with me. It still stands out as undoubtedly one of the most uncomfortable moments of my life. I wonder if most people remember that talk.

It’s a joke between Beth and I that I won’t have any part of the talk when it comes time for my kids to have it. Of course, I’ll have to be there… I think. Back turned. Pretending like it’s not happening. Preferably at a couch watching TV while it happens behind me in the kitchen, just like my dad did it.

I don’t like talking about any of that stuff. This expands to a lot of areas. I used to joke constantly with Beth that I wouldn’t be in the delivery room. Of course, I was there. I wasn’t as uncomfortable as I anticipated. Maybe I’m getting older or something, or potentially the life-altering magnitude of the moment got to me, who knows.

This is why I’m shocked, myself, that I’m writing down these thoughts. Maybe I’ll even share them. I’m writing them because I think I have a perspective to share that could maybe help others. I think I’m writing it because I believe it might be good to talk about these things more, as much as I hate it. There’s some power in putting uncomfortable topics out in the open.

Pornography is a plague that is killing young boys, adolescents, teenagers, and adults. It is destroying boys and men alike. Lust is an extraordinarily powerful tool for Satan to use. I am emphasizing males. I don’t do this to imply females have zero trouble with this topic. They do. I focus on males because I think it’s obvious that it’s a bigger issue for males than females.

Beth and I have had some candid discussions about the differences between men and women. Beth has been a firm believer in the idea that men must control their minds and it’s not a woman’s responsibility to control a man’s mind by dressing modestly, etc. I think I’ve opened Beth’s mind a bit to how different boys/men are to girls/women. On that note, I think Beth has learned how difficult it is to be a boy. Especially a teenage boy, nowadays. The hormones of a teenage boy are a force to be reckoned with.

Now, this is in no way a post about how guys don’t need to control their thoughts or what’s in their pants. The exact opposite, actually. I should start by saying this: every man is capable of controlling themselves. I have friends who have gone from struggling mightily with pornography to going a year without viewing anything. It is possible. Not only is it possible, it’s liberating, it’s empowering. You can learn that no part of your body controls you. Your mind and soul control you. Once you realize this truth, unlimited power, your mind, is at your disposal.

There is never an excuse to let your mind wander and start to misuse women, even in our thoughts. Christ spoke of this often (Matthew 5:28).

However, I want to note and emphasize how difficult it is for our young men growing up today. How difficult it is to be a teenage boy. Again, I don’t write this to excuse the behavior. I write this, in part, for every woman that judges a man without having any comprehension of what it’s like to be a man. The difficulty of being a man is multiplied ten-fold for teenage boys.

There needs to be some patience and understanding from women about men. There are so many things we (men) have no clue about women. The same can be said for women understanding men. The simple fact is many women have no idea what it’s like to be a man.

Temptation is everywhere. Any billboard, movie, tv show, commercial, picture, image on the internet, person on the street, app on a phone, song lyric, the list goes on, can trigger immoral thoughts. Often mundane and only slightly sexual things in nature can lead to instant feelings of temptation and immoral thinking. We as men are programmed with this gift and curse. Gift because it can lead to a love, respect, admiration, desire, etc. for women. Curse for the other obvious reasons. As Boyd K. Packer said to all young men, “Your body is the instrument of your mind and the foundation of your character. It has within it powers which, if properly used, will contribute greatly to your exaltation. If you use this gift worthily, it will serve you throughout all eternity.”

The challenge for teenage boys is feeling ashamed of these things. Once too much shame sets in, young boys will naturally resort to privately giving into temptations, and then feel dirty and wrong when they do it. It is wrong. But the dirty part is tricky, because it’s a part of us. It’s something that needs work to control. The most important thing is to always come back to Heavenly Father and always try to be better. The worst thing that can happen is a young boy turning inward and feeling overwhelming guilt, shame, and embarrassment about these urges. You can turn away from God, but He doesn’t want that.

I have heard of eternal companionships ending over “pornography addiction.” This makes me so sad. I’m sad for the woman, who has given up on a man who has the potential to change. For every woman judging their husband too harshly, give our boys, and yes, even our men, a chance. It is hard being a boy. It is so hard being a boy today. Pornography is everywhere, it is accessible, it is easy. This doesn’t mean you don’t need to be loved by your husband or that him watching pornography is ok. But your relationship can be made so much stronger if you embrace this challenge, support, and uplift him through it. Instead of judging, think how hard this might be for the man. Think how ashamed he might feel. Then show compassion and help him.

Women: help men, stop judging them and deciding you’re unsafe, or they are evil, or they are wrong for this difficult challenge they must face. “In sickness and in health.” Does this not apply to someone going through a personal struggle? “For time and all eternity.”

I mentioned an example of someone that struggled, as in, pornography multiple times a day, every day. His situation was handled in three easy steps:
1. He talked to his wife. He told her he had a problem and needed help.
2. He talked to church leaders.
3. He talked to a couple friends and got support to help him through it.
Additional thoughts for these three points.

ONE is not possible if his wife is going to be irrational, uncaring, or judgmental. This friend was supported by a loving wife who understood that he was a phenomenal person who had a challenge he had to deal with. She was proud of him for having the courage to come to her. She was involved in the rest of the plan (steps two and three).

TWO took courage. Kudos to anyone strong enough, and self-aware enough, to talk to their church leaders, openly confess, and start themselves on a path of improvement.

Finally, THREE did not involve overbearing, controlling, constant checking in. A couple friends held him accountable. They didn’t judge him. They didn’t harass him. They didn’t stalk him. They trusted that the struggling friend would come to them when he needed support.

A year later, the struggling friend has slowly moved towards complete abstinence from pornography. This wouldn’t have been possible without a loving, supportive group around him.

For those struggling with this issue, I should add an important, recent note from this friend. When talking about my own, unrelated to pornography, bad habit, this friend told me: “Don’t give an inch when it comes to abstinence. Not saying you and *activity are the same as me and porn, but to stay clean I have to shut all forms of lewdness out, not just specifically porn and rationalize bikini pics as not porn since there is no nudity.”

I have a female friend who once told me her husband had an intense pornography addiction. It was debilitating and affected his everyday life. It was so bad he didn’t keep a cell phone. At all. To remove the opportunity, he got rid of his cell phone. Some might say “this is weak, just control it.” I say, sometimes admitting we are weak is the greatest strength. I admire this “sacrifice” for ultimate well-being.

Do you need someone’s computer password sometimes? Do you need to monitor them, watch over them, keep them more accountable? Maybe….

Even as I type that word, “maybe,” I think I totally disagree. What’s the point of abstaining if it’s through forced, agency removed, babysitting behavior? I’ve provided all the “men have it hard” points so now it’s time for the tough love. If you need to monitor every move your husband makes because he has a “pornography addiction” then he’s never going to grow and learn to control himself. If you need all his passwords, accounts, and computers checked each day, then he isn’t learning self-control, he’s learning to be controlled.

God has given us our agency and sometimes you need to buck up and be accountable for your behavior. No babysitters. No hand holding. Maybe that stuff can help in the beginning but ultimately, if a man can’t be accountable to himself, then you can’t watch him every day.

“A young man (every man) should learn to rule his body. Like his temper, he should keep it always under complete control.”
Boyd K. Packer

Being surrounded by a supportive group is vastly different from being surrounded by prison guards.

Using the example of the friend who has gone a year without pornography, the first step was him realizing “I have a problem.” That is always the most difficult thing. The world will have you think pornography is a part of life and it’s just “boys being boys.” The natural man is an enemy to God (Mosiah 3:19), the world would have you stay being the natural man. I was always caught telling myself I’m doing ok because I only give in once a week or once a month. It took a while for me to realize I could be so much better than that. Many reading this will scoff at this religious idea of self-control and abstinence. They’ll say it’s natural, and we were built this way, built to give in to our urges. I’ve had conversations with many close friends who ridicule the very notion of self-control when it comes to pornography. As I’ve mentioned, yes, these urges are natural, but to become like God we must learn to control our very natures.

When I was away from the church giving into my temptations was a more often occurrence, though I always felt the guilt. That is a problem facing much of the world – the removal of guilt. I never felt good after giving in. It was the complete opposite feeling to reading a good book, reading scripture, conversing in prayer, that I now experience today.

As I returned to church this habit lingered, pestered me, persisted. There have been many examples in my return to church of me slowly weeding out old activities. One example is playing basketball on Sunday. I rationalized it was good to play basketball Sunday mornings because it kept me from doing what I used to do on Saturday nights. Similar thinking came with pornography.

As I immersed myself in scripture, prayer, church activity, these temptations lessened, though they never did, and I don’t know if they ever will, completely leave. I’ve always found that the busier I am with good, wholesome activities, the easier it is to avoid.

Early on I would set goals. I would make a “promise” to myself to go a week, then two weeks, then a month. I wasn’t always perfect. But early on it made me realize the real issue this was. If I slipped up, not only was I making a mistake, but I also broke a promise to myself and to Heavenly Father. That taught me early on to continue to fight to improve.

One of my favorite books, Visions of Glory, talks about pornography in an interesting way. It pointed out that the “act” was an inherently selfish act. It took out intimacy and effort. It gave instant, personal gratification. Visions of Glory portrayed a graphic image of the demons that thrive on us in our weakest moments. It painted a picture of evil, deprived spirits feasting on our lusts when we give in to them. It’s an image I’ve used to fight these temptations.

Another tool I’ve used that is kind of silly, but I really think works is, when I get those thoughts or ideas, if possible, I will say out loud, “Not today, Satan. You can send your minions home. You’re not winning today.” It’s strange to say, but I think there is real power in this. There’s something about telling Satan you won’t let him win. Obviously, the real power comes with prayer.

As I said, this struggle may never completely go away. It’s ok to talk about it. I think we should be more willing to admit that we have faults, sometimes we slip up, and then to pick ourselves back up.

Finally, I’d like to discuss my thoughts on repenting through these mistakes. I’m hopeful writing my thoughts out will help me understand how I feel about this, as it’s something I truly struggle with – the guilt of slipping up and making a mistake. It’s difficult to desperately want to be “perfect” and to constantly fall short. We all experience this. It is in no way exclusive to lust or pornography. This is about sin in general.

I’ve found that it’s critical for me not to kick myself too hard while I’m down, after I make a mistake. This inevitably makes it harder to repent. Sometimes I don’t even want to kneel and ask forgiveness because I feel so hypocritical. How can I repent for something I’ve done 100 times? Does God even respect me at that point? The answer is, whether or not God respects me, He loves me. That’s so much more comforting.

Telling us not to repent, that we’re hypocrites, and we’re unworthy of forgiveness is a tool of Satan we must avoid. God always wants us to repent. I will say this again with emphasis: GOD ALWAYS WANTS US TO REPENT. There is no time, ever, that God wants us to feel such guilt that we can’t come to him. Hypocrite or not. We can’t be fooled in those greatest moments of weakness to think that God does not want us to come to him meekly, humbly, and ask for forgiveness. Christ’s Atonement covers all. I know He wishes us always to use the gift He freely gave to us. Especially when it’s hard, humbling, and humiliating.

That said, we must take our sins seriously. It can’t be a cavalier, “well I did it again.” Get on your knees, say sorry, do it again tomorrow. That’s not how it works. Look in your heart and find the sorrow for what you’ve done. I’ve found it helpful to break down into great detail why what I did was wrong. Who am I hurting? That’s often myself. Who could I hurt? Who am I objectifying and how are my actions showing a disrespect to God’s extremely sacred gifts? Sin is not a joke, and we must never treat it as such.

To the lovely, strong, beautiful women of the world – please, be patient with us. It’s harder to be a man than you will ever know, just as it’s harder (in different ways) to be a woman than we’ll ever know.

I’d like to thank Beth for her help in preparing this post. Never has something I’ve written required so much editing, and she was critical in that. I’m grateful for a wife that understands these things and whom I can talk candidly to about these topics. Beth and I have had many of these conversations. I’ve never felt judged by my wife. In fact, discussions with her help me to go easier on myself and feel her support. That is empowering and has helped me to be a better man. I couldn’t be that, a better man, without her support.
January 13, 2022
Organized Religion
What do you think the point of organized religion is?

I had an obvious realization recently, only recently. The point of organized religion is to bring you closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. If organized religion doesn’t bring you closer to God, then why do it? I think it’s why we see so many people disenfranchised with organized religion. In their hearts and souls, they know and hope what organized religion will bring – closeness with God. When it doesn’t do that (and in fact sometimes does the opposite) they move away from it.

The second point of organized religion: to bring us peace.

This second part isn’t as simple as “I belong to a church so I am happy and peaceful.” We know that Christianity is not always comfortable. This peace is bigger than worldly comfort. This peace is the knowledge that you are right with God. This peace is more eternal than this life.

Why don’t organized religions do these two things? Some do, and I’m not discounting those who come closer to God and find peace in any faith. My point stands, that a lot of people have moved away from organized religion. Why? Why don’t most organized churches bring us closer to God or bring us peace? They don’t have the proper authority from heaven to do so.

God, through revelation has told us exactly what we need to do to come closer to Him and to have peace:
1. Faith in Jesus Christ
  - Start by simply believing in Jesus Christ. Believe He was born, believe He lived, believe He is the son of God, believe He died for you and your sins.
2. Repentance
  - Once you believe, be better. Don’t take for granted the suffering Christ went through for you. Pray to God and ask forgiveness for the mistakes you have made and continue to make.
3. Baptism
  - Religion has corrupted this simple principle. All God asks is you make a symbolic gesture to show that you have faith in Him, faith in Jesus Christ, and will remember them. Then use that show of faith to change and be better. God has asked us to be baptized. Follow His commandments and be baptized.
4. Gift of the Holy Ghost
  - The world is ever distracting and evil. God has given us someone to provide strength. The Holy Ghost is one with God and Jesus Christ and can be with us always.
  - I have the perfect example to help illustrate the important role the Holy Ghost plays. I received a text from a friend one afternoon while I was working telling me his dad had passed away. My friend didn’t want me to find out over social media, so he texted me. When I read it I initially thought selfishly. I was at work. There wasn’t anything I could do. I wanted to kneel and pray and cry. But as I was sitting there something happened. As clear as if a person whispered in my ear, I heard and felt a message. Clear as day I knew important things. This was my friend. He was hurting. Clear as day, “go to your friend.” I’m not affectionate, it’s hard for me, ask my wife. Beth knows that better than anyone. It’s not in my nature to want to go comfort and cry with a friend. That seems hard and vulnerable. But in that very important moment I know the Holy Ghost came to me and directed me. I know it was important for me, and I believe it was important for my friend. The Holy Ghost did that. I know that because I’ve worked so hard to be able to hear when the Holy Ghost speaks to me. I have so many examples of that. I could go on for days about the important moments that the Holy Ghost guided me.
After the Holy Ghost, the final step: endure to the end. Take the sacrament each week to renew your covenants from baptism. Repent every day. Remember Jesus Christ every day. That’s it. That brings you closer to God. I know because it has for me.

People don’t change overnight. I know to many it seemed like I changed overnight. I didn’t. It was years of slowly changing habits, changing thoughts. Many saw first-hand who I used to be but didn’t see the slow, gradual change to who I am now. I always told myself I was “good.” What good was me telling myself I was good if my actions and my selfishness said otherwise? Four years ago, if I received the text I mentioned above I would have said “I’m sorry” and “let me know if you need anything.” Today, I’m different. I’m different because of Jesus Christ.

What’s important? I know why I’m here. I know where I come from. I know where I’m going. This brings peace.
April 1, 2021
Satan’s Story

Who is Satan?

I believe a careful reading of different scriptural records gives us a picture of Satan’s progression and tells us how he ultimately ended up cast down. There will be a lot of scriptural references here (duh). If you follow the story something becomes pretty clear about Satan. There’s a major revelation I learned about Satan that I never understood, and I don’t think many church members know.

Before I start I want to mention, my interest in studying Satan is the opposite of my interest in studying Christ, but helps with the same purpose. I think it’s good to study Satan to see how he fell and to avoid the behavior he exhibited that led him there. Through his story you see examples of pride, unrighteous ambition, anger, envy, jealousy, bitterness, selfishness, along with many other negative attributes. All of Satan’s attributes are the direct opposite to the traits of Jesus Christ. Ultimately Satan became a being of darkness. He rejected all light. Many around us reject light and I think as we understand Satan and understand his motivations (to tempt, enslave, and control us) we are better suited to withstand him. With that, we begin.

Satan’s story starts in the Book of Moses chapter 4:1-2:

1 And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying—Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor.

2 But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me—Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.

Here we see what I believe is well known to Latter-day Saints. Heavenly Father asked, “who will I send?”

Satan came forth and responded, “Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; wherefore give me thine honor.”

Christ said, “Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.”

We know what happens here, though it isn’t said in these two verses. Christ is chosen by the Father.

Now we’re going to jump to a new book of scripture to continue Satan’s story. Abraham 3:24-28 reads:

24 And there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell;

25 And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;

26 And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.

27 And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first.

28 And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him.

In verse 24 – “one among them that was like unto God” – clearly refers to Jesus Christ. He is speaking to “those who were with him.” He goes on to talk about the first and second estates of man, of us. Verse 27 is where it gets important.

Verse 27 – The Lord (Jesus Christ) said, “Whom shall I send?” Note that Christ is following the same pattern He learned from His Father. “And one answered like unto the Son of Man.” This is Adam, the first man, or Michael as he was known in the premortal existence. Adam said, “Here am I, send me.”

Still in verse 27 – “And another answered and said: Here am I, send me.” – This will prove to be Satan.

“And the Lord said: I will send the first.”

Now the critical verse 28:

“And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him.”

So, it is clearly put forth here. I always thought Satan rebelled at Christ being chosen by the Father, and maybe he did in his heart. If you read Moses chapter 4 straight through that is how it seems. But when you read this story sequentially, we see what actually happened. Christ was chosen by the Father. Christ is essentially now leading the “project” under the direction of Heavenly Father. He is standing with others helping in the work. He follows the Father’s pattern and asks who will be the first man. Here Christ chooses Adam over Satan.

This adds a dimension to my understanding of Satan. A couple things of note. First, we know from the beginning Satan wanted the glory and wanted all of God’s children to return to heaven (see Moses 4:1). When he is passed over, he doesn’t openly rebel yet. When Christ is choosing who will be the first man, it’s possible Satan still saw a way to foil God’s plan and have all the honor given to him. He would go down as the first man and he would refuse to fall. If Satan went as the first man and refused to fall, man could never choose and therefore could never sin. If man couldn’t sin, there would be no need for a redeemer, there would be no choice, repentance, or progression. Satan would bring everyone back to heaven and in so doing destroy their agency. I think this was his plan.

Christ wisely chooses Adam to be the father of all and lead the human race into mortality.

It’s at this point we see Satan has had enough. He’s been passed over once by the Father. Now the one who took what he believed to be his rightful spot is choosing to pass him over as well.

Verse 28: “And the second (Satan) was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him. – Emphasis added.

Here we see Satan’s rebellion. Here we see he leads “many” away. Before we continue with Satan’s story, I feel it’s important to remind you: Congratulations! If you’re reading this, you kept your first estate and are in the process of keeping your second estate. Keep it up and you’re promised to “have glory added upon (your) head for ever and ever” (Abraham 3:26).

Back to Satan.

Our story picks back up in Revelations chapter 12. I’ll be using the Joseph Smith Translation as it makes everything so much clearer.

The first part of Revelations 12:4 reads:

“And there appeared another sign in heaven; and behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth.”

The great red dragon is obviously Satan, and here we see he drew away one third of the children of God after him. He and his followers were cast down to earth.

Revelations 12:6

“And there was war in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought against Michael;“

Michael (Adam) and his angels fought against Satan and his angels.

Verse 7 tells us that Michael and his angels (who might be us!?) prevailed.

Revelations 12:8

“Neither was there place found in heaven for the great dragon, who was cast out; that old serpent called the devil, and also called Satan, which deceiveth the whole world; he was cast out into the earth; and his angels were cast out with him.”

Here we see the official result. There was no more place found in heaven for Satan, his followers, and their rebellion against Christ, which meant rebellion against God. Satan’s plan was foiled. He was not chosen to be the redeemer of man and he was not chosen to be the first man where he could foil God’s Plan of Salvation. He was cast down, in bitterness.

In conclusion, it doesn’t appear Satan rebelled at the outset. He was conniving and always looking for another way to enslave us, God’s children. I mentioned it earlier but every person on this earth already chose Christ. We were not fooled by Satan. We are here.

How did Satan get one third to follow him? I think if we carefully consider this question we can come up with some likely possibilities. There were many in the premortal existence that maybe didn’t properly prepare for this life, our second estate. When the time came to be tested, those who didn’t prepare would be fearful. We knew that some would fail to reach the Celestial Kingdom, and those among the host of heaven who had not used their agency to prepare well for mortal life were likely cognizant of that fact. From there it would be easy for Satan to convince some that they would fail, and they should therefore follow him.

Secondly, I believe Satan’s focus in the premortal life would have been to doubt Jesus Christ and his ability to redeem us. I believe Satan would have told many that Christ would fail, and then what? They would all fail and never be able to return home. I believe Satan likely attacked Christ. This would also be an attack on the ability to repent. Satan would have told those who didn’t use their agency well premortally that they wouldn’t use their agency well in life, that they wouldn’t repent, and change, and improve, and would ultimately fail. It’s the same tactic Satan uses today.

I invite everyone to hold firmly in your heart, remember, you chose Christ already. You were valiant already. You were brave already. You may have already fought Satan in heaven with Michael. You won. You are still fighting Satan today and you can still win. Remember that he is the father of lies, and Christ is our salvation. Look to Christ, keep your faith in him, keep repenting, keep changing, keep looking to Christ and we will all return to Him again.

I know that Satan is never giving up, just like he never gave up in the premortal life. Just like in the premortal life we will prevail. We have Christ on our side. With Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father on our team, we cannot lose.

August 27, 2020