The Path of Christian Discipleship

I was having a gospel conversation with a colleague  at work and we got talking about grace and repentance.  My colleague is a devoute Christian that has dedicated a major part of his life to international medicine. I greatly admire his pure Christian devotion.  Unselfish service to others is a halmark of true Christian discipleship according to James 1:27 "to visit the fatherless and the widow."  On this we agree.  

However, the focus of our conversation shifted focus to the second part of James' summation of pure religion, "to keep ourselves unspotted from the world".  As we got talking about international medicine, we started talking about the problems and solutions to poverty. The world has always taught that education is the great solution.  If we can just educate everyone, then poverty will go away. 

Robert Welch of the John Birch Society also made education his focus to combat the progressive/liberal/socialist movement sweeping the US and the World.  However, Mr. Welch couldn't have been more wrong.  See, a major focus of the progressive/liberal movement in the US has been steadily and slowly demoralizing the US, Europe, and the World (Fabian Strategy = cook a frog). 

Sexual immorality and chemical abuse creates poverty through illigitamacy, divorce, broken homes, and drug dependance.  The poor in socialist nations then turn to the government for welfare assistance which will print the checks but never address the virtue issues at the root cause of poverty.  Thus government welfare creates a dependent voting block that cannot easily be be educated (Mitt Romney's 47%). This demoralized and dependent voting block are then used to slowly vote away our freedoms and rights.  Instead of punishing the harm doer only, the progresive government chooses to punish all of society by instituting greater controls and limiting freedoms in the name of prevention. 

An addicted, demoralized person cannot think straight because they think more selfishly then selflessly. Consequently, you cannot easily educate a demoralized person on self-governing principles at the heart of constitutional government.  A demonalized person will ofttimes require a strong government to restrain their behavior. Therefore, a person must first become moral before they can be correctly educated.

A demoralized person can look at the same data and draw their own conclusions. Those conclusions such as "my cannabis abuse doesn't hurt anyone but me", or "cannabis is not addictive", or "legalizing cannabis will save the government money," or "abusing myself with recreational cannabis makes me healthier, happier, more intelligent, and creative", usually revolves around whatever excuses their own immoral or selfish behavior.  Accordingly only a return to virtue can end poverty and rescue the US Constitution which is the foundation for all Constitutional government on Earth.  

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2782906/The-terrible-truth-cannabis-British-expert-s-devastating-20-year-study-finally-demolishes-claims-smoking-pot-harmless.html

This is why welfare according to James 1:27 is to be the business of the Church and not government.  Yes we should believe in a separation of Church and State.  The State needs to get out of the welfare business of religion. Only the Church can effectively remedy poverty because it is the only institution that can effectly address virtue and morality.  The jurisdiction of the State covers harm upon another person. Only the Church can discipline and rehabilitate by denying sacraments and disfellowship for harming yourself before your actions begin harming others.

My colleague seemed to think that the LDS Church doctrine was not gace-focused enough. I brought up Paul's teaching in 1 Cor 5:11 that "brothers" in the faith judged unrepentant of fornication, idolatry, covetousness, railing, drunkenness, and extortion should not be permitted to partake of the Lord's Supper unworthily and even be excommunicated from the Church.   

In response my friend, a Presbiterian, confessed he was sort-of a Calvinist and that it was his opinion that you can never overcome the flesh and never be perfect in this life so the doctrine of the Church should be focused on the grace of Christ that makes whatever we are-- good enough in Christ.  Christians should lift up their heads and rejoice in knowing they are saved and have arrived to an assurance of salvation through Christ.  Then only afterward, through that assurance of salvation in Christ, will they walk a godly walk in Christ.

Now, let me get to the point of all this. LDS do not deny the weakness of the flesh, nor do we believe we will arrive at perfection in this life. However, what we do believe is this: as James said, the purpose of religion is to help us keep ourselves unspotted from the world.  If religion is not helping me overcome the flesh, repent, resist the constant temptation, master the body, and sin less; than what good is it. Being assured of salvation is great, but sin still has terribly painful consequences.  That is why it is important to believe that the atonement of Christ is not just about grace to forgive sin but also grace and power to be better, to overcome sin, repent and forsake sin; "being thoroughly furnished unto all good works". 

That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (New Testament, 2 Timothy 3:17)

LDS doctrine doesn't deny grace but focuses on what grace applied can do.  Accordingly, LDS doctrine is repentance focused. LDS doctrine continually says that we can all, through the grace and power of Christ, continually "try a little harder to do a little better."  LDS know we can never be perfect in this life, but we also know we should never feel like we have arrived.  And not just about paying tithes and offerings, but in all aspects of our Christian discipleship. The LDS sermon is always encouraging us that through Christ we can serve others more, we can be more patient, forgiving, and humble.  LDS doctrine says that we ought to pray and fast and work more to do better.  And that is exactly why I go to Church, not to seductely hear (what my flesh wants to hear) that I have arrived.  Instead LDS doctrine tells me (what my spirit wants to hear and what my body needs to hear) to continually continue to improve and progress.

From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (New Testament, Matthew, Matthew 4:17)

This attitude of never being finished, but continually stiving and enduring in Christ to be better is the true Christian path of discipleship that LDS aspire to.  There is not any point on the path that guarantees salvation more than any other point.  If you are on the path of Christian discipleship and continually striving and enduring and making progress through Christ to the end of your life; then as Elder McConkie has taught, if you are anywhere on the path when you die, "since there is no such thing as falling off the path in the next life, for all intents and purposes, your calling and election is made sure".  Thus we are all commanded to get on and stay on the path of true Christian discipleship and finish our course by enduring to the end.

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: (New Testament, 2 Timothy 4:7)

What are the benifits of LDS doctrine focus on repentance?:

1. Encourages and inspires me to be better in and through Christ in all aspects of my life.

2. Creates a community of safety, trust and unity where members are living up to a standard of conduct 1 Cor 5:11 and stiving to improve in other ways.

3. Encourages and inspires virtuous and moral living that remedies poverty.  "Christ takes the slum out of the person and the person takes themselves out of the slum."

4. Provides an assurance or hope of salvation in Christ through our faith demonstrated by our continual attitude, words and actions of striving and enduring to be more Christ-like.

If your church is not talking about, speaking out against, receiving confession for, and providing discipline for abortion, sexual sin and any form of recreational substance abuse according to 1 Cor 5:11-13, you are giving your gold to and dancing around the golden calf.  The unrepentant are commanded not to partake of the Lord's Supper unworthily.  

This is a merciful way to prevent the wayword, whom we love, from developing a false sense of security.  We all sin but those who continue in serious sin according to 1 Cor 5:11 should not be allowed to go through the motions of religious observance and partake of the sacraments.  In most cases we examine our own hearts.  In serious cases, the Bishop as a Judge in Israel serves to judge ritual purity as the High Priest did in the Old Teatament.

Radio talk show host Michael Savage is warning in his latest book that the demoralization and increased socialization of the US is dividing us and leading us to another civil war.  His solution is to vote republican this November and then constrain our republican representatives to close the borders, end the wars, and stop the welfare.  We should be careful to understand that shutting off welfare to the Barbarian Foederati is exactly what caused them to revolt, assassinate Caasar Romulus Augustus and divided the Roman Empire.

Instead, to save America and Constitutional government, the Churches in America need to repent and begin to do their job to care for the poor and needy (beginning with their own) and to teach virtue and morality. Then the poor and disabled will no longer be dependent on government. We have been demoralized as a nation and our only hope as a nation is to return to Jesus Christ who is the God of this nation by a return to virtue and pure religion.