Questions: Members of the Restored Church say
we must overcome sin. What is sin? What
does being in a sinful state mean?
“O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a
way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell, which I
call the death of the body, and also the
death of the spirit.” 2 Nephi 9:10 The Book of Mormon
“And now, ye see by this that our first parents were cut off both temporally and spiritually from the
presence of the Lord; and thus we see they became subjects to follow after
their own will.” Alma 42:7 The Book of Mormon
Members of the Restored Church believe that
sin is spiritual death.
Adam and Eve had
fallen and become lost to God. They had broken His law and could not on their
own return to Him. They also no longer had the ability to become like their
Father, having lost their inheritance. Having fallen from heights they once had
inhabited as children of God, they needed help, a Savior, to return to their
Father and to their inheritance.
When they disobeyed
and became separated, this separation from God resulted in what is called
spiritual death. They became mortal and
able to die in two ways, physically one day in the future, but their spiritual
death happened instantly. Spiritual death means spirits can no longer gain
eternal life, becoming glorious like Heavenly Father.
“For to be
carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”
Romans 8:6
“But she that liveth in pleasure is dead
while she liveth.” 1 Timothy 5:6
“For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived
me, and by it slew me.” Romans 7:11
Sin harms your
spirit. When you become godly and follow God and Christ and keep their law, you
can grow into a figurative tree: a tree that produces fruit that holds more
seed: a tree of life. The law of God is life to the spirit of man. If you sin
you become chaff, an empty husk of a former seed: spiritually dead.
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the in the
counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the
seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law
doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the
rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also
shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth
away.” Psalms 1:1-4
Disobedience to God
is death.
“[W]ho were dead
in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the
course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all
had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the
desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath,
even as others.” Ephesians 2:1-3
Spiritual death is a terrible state. The fall
was the moment when the world required a Savior. This was the reason Jehovah was chosen before
the foundations of the world to save the children of God from physical death
and spiritual death. He would bring them back to Heavenly Father, and life, and
righteousness. He was chosen to recover the lost children of God. By following
Jesus and His commandments we can know God.
“And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the
Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins:
and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if
we keep his commandments. He that
saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth
is not in him.” 1 John 2:1-4
“The people also shall be all righteous. …” Isaiah 60:21
God knew that man
would fall from Him. To say that your
Father didn’t know that Adam and Eve, and you the first moment you sinned,
would fall from Him would be to deny Him His omniscience, His all-knowing
nature. The fall was brought about by
the agency of man and the Father knew it would happen. He knew that at some
point, the first parents of humanity would choose to fall and in so doing be
able to learn about good and evil. There was a reason for it, so you could
understand good by knowing evil, so you could have the opportunity to be like
Him. Not to become holy because He forces you to be holy, but because you
choose it.
“And the LORD God said, Behold the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil. …”
Genesis 3:22
“As obedient
children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your
ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner
of conversation; Because it is written, Be
ye holy; for I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:14-16
From Adam and Eve
sprang children, too numerous to count, some good, some bad. Over the generations of humanity there have
been farmers, craftsmen, scientists, warriors, rulers, slaves, innovators,
teachers, tyrants, murderers, doctors, priests, thieves, fathers, and
mothers. All of these had their agency,
sometimes stumbling through life, sometimes walking sure. Many went about
seeking truth, many often getting lost in lies. From them the world had beauty
and growth, and filthiness and destruction.
It took a very
great many of these, both the good and the bad, to make the physical you in
this day. That is the truth that exists
for all humans who now live. No person now has a completely honorable ancestry,
and no person has a completely horrible one.
You can sorrow for those who choose wickedness as their path and rejoice
for those who sought righteousness.
And now it is your
turn on Earth. What have your choices been? Those past choices, both good and
bad are important, but are not as important as the choices you are yet to make.
“[C]hoose you
this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served
that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose
land ye dwell: but as for me and my
house, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15
"And
the people said unto Joshua, The LORD our
God will we serve, and his voice we will obey.” Joshua 24:24
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