This week’s lessons contain three explanations covering the Word of Wisdom, the duties of the First Presidency, and the importance of simple things.
What is a “principle with promise”?
The Word of Wisdom crosses over both realms of our experience, the mortal and the immortal. God tells us that at no time has He ever given a purely physical or carnal commandment. To God all commandments are spiritual. In other words, they are all designed to save our soul in the eternities and bring us back into His presence. Yes, the commandments given may have a physical component, (most do) but the purpose of the commandment is to cleanse us from sin and bring us back to live with God. The Word of Wisdom is just such a commandment.
When we look at section 89 it can be difficult to focus on the spiritual aspects, since our attention is riveted on the physical aspects of the wording of the commandment. Phrases such as “tobacco is not for the body …”, “wheat for man, and corn for the ox” are easily remembered, and just as easily fixated upon. We often become so busy remembering the catch phrases of the commandment that we forget that these statements are just a means to an end. What is that end?
There is a basic principle of learning we need to remember. If we are sick and miserable from a state of being unwell, our ability to commune with the Spirit is hampered, and to a degree, blocked. The Lord wants us to be healthy for the sake of our spiritual wellbeing. God desires us to have a free flow of communion with the Spirit, and that requires the physical roadblocks to be removed, as much as possible, that might prevent us from hearing and following the promptings the Spirit gives us. A side note to illustrate this is the direction Brigham Young gave to the missionaries going out to teach the Indian tribes in the territory of Utah. He counseled them to make sure those they wanted to teach had full bellies first, for they wouldn’t be able to properly listen to the message the missionaries brought if they were hungry. Their focus would be elsewhere. (That’s not a quote, but a retelling of the essence of his counsel.)
So what is the principle here? I think the principle being referred to is that open and clear communion with the Spirit requires a healthy body. True, there are those who can’t make themselves healthy no matter how hard they try. There are many things that can cripple us in this life, but the truth still remains that a healthy body makes communing with the Spirit so much easier. We may have physical limitations to deal with, but that can’t get in the way of our desire to be obedient. After all, we are judged on our desire and intent, not on just our performance and accomplishments. The Lord is mindful that there is often a great gap between what we can physically accomplish and what we would do if our life situation was different. It is all about the desires of our heart.
The promise that comes with this principle is that as we seek the wisdom needed to live a healthy lifestyle, according to God’s counsel in this revelation, He will bless us with “ and great of , even hidden treasures.” What are hidden treasures? They are the revelations that make plain to us the things we didn’t understand or know before. This is what the receipt of a testimony is, new knowledge we didn’t have before. When we study the gospel and gain insight on eternal truths, and understand them in new ways, that is a fulfillment of the promise attached to this principle of healthy living.
It is more difficult for some of us to live a truly healthy lifestyle than it is for others. Living a completely healthy lifestyle requires money that many of us don’t have. If I want to avoid synthetic and processed foods that are plainly bad for me, it requires that I am able to either raise my own food or be able to afford to buy healthy versions of what I want to eat. The Lord understands this problem and will bless us based on our desires and efforts to obey, even if our budget won’t allow us to obey as we might wish to be able to.
A note on the keys held by the First Presidency
Section 90 gives us a beautiful map of the hierarchy of spiritual communication. God chooses His prophet and does His communicating with him. The prophet is then responsible for telling the rest of the world what God wants them to know and do for their own happiness and wellbeing. This makes the prophet a very important person, for God only directs the affairs of mortality for all of His children through His appointed priesthood holder.
It is important for us to understand how the priesthood works, and it is explained in this section. The councilors in the Presidency share the keys equally with the prophet, even though all exercising of those keys (rights of administration) are done through the President’s approval. This section marked a change in the church in how the priesthood governed the church. Most of the basic revelations had already been given to set up the church and move it along its path. More revelations would follow, but from this time forward the Presidency was to begin to focus on the administration of the kingdom as it grew. In Doctrine and Covenants 90:12-16 the Lord outlines the responsibilities of the First Presidency of his church.
12 And now, verily I say unto you, I give unto you a commandment that you continue in the and presidency.
13 And when you have finished the of the prophets, you shall from thenceforth over the affairs of the church and the school;
14 And from time to time, as shall be manifested by the Comforter, receive to unfold the of the kingdom;
15 And set in order the churches, and and , and become acquainted with all good books, and with , tongues, and people.
16 And this shall be your business and mission in all your lives, to preside in council, and set in all the affairs of this church and kingdom.
When someone asks you what the First Presidency does with their time, this is their list, their marching orders from the Lord. They perform the ministry all Apostles perform to teach and testify of Christ, but they also have a responsibility to preside over the affairs of God’s earthly kingdom in all its spiritual and physical aspects. They are to seek and receive revelations, set in order all the affairs of the church around the world, continue to study and learn of men and languages, and of people. This is no small task. I think this justifies the requests made of the members of the church to pray for the Brethren that they can carry out the massive responsibilities given them by the Lord.
How the Lord works
There is a saying that “the devil is in the details.” This may or may not be true, but it certainly is true of the Lord. Creation isn’t something that happens as an end product, but God starts from the ground up and designs how the particles of what is being created will act, and then turns them loose to do what they were created to do. I wrote an article called Where Is the Greatness in Small Things? This article discusses this concept the manual addresses that God can make all things work together for our good.
Just as God can take individual particles of water, and have them meet freezing cold air to create a landscape of hoar frost, which is stunningly beautiful if you’ve ever seen it, so too can He use the small things of our life to weave great advantages for us when we are obedient to His commandments. We don’t have to know how He does it to see the results. We only must believe that He can do what He has promised us He will do for us when we obey Him and trust His word. Read the article I have linked above so you can get a better picture of what I mean.
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