In my usual fashion, I have procrastinated contributing to my blog until I've been asked to speak in church again. Well, that time just came again, so I have another talk to share with you here. I hope it is helpful to someone:
9.4.2022
Personal Application of True Principles
For establishing peace with Guilt-Free Gospel-Living
-Jennifer Norton-
Purpose of the topic
With the approaching general conference, my mind has turned to those to whom general conference feels difficult, or even painful. As such, my message this morning is meant not only for those active members who are attending this meeting today, but for those less-active members, former members, or non-members that are affected directly or indirectly by the gospel of Jesus Christ through us as a church and as individuals. I wish to identify why inspired messages can satiate a spiritual hunger for some while leaving others starving for answers. I have pondered much on the source of that pain felt by some that seems to contradict the inspiration and enrichment that hearing from church leaders offers to others.
How can the same messages affect individuals so differently, even to the point of division? How can we ensure that we each benefit more fully from the messages being taught, allowing those messages to unite us? These are the question I have set out to answer by my study, and I feel the answers lie in distinguishing the specific responsibilities of ecclesiastical leaders from those of individuals. My hope is that, with this knowledge, we will begin celebrating the value in our unique qualities and recognizing the vital and universal importance of our differences to applying true principles to our lives—in essence, by living and allowing others to live the gospel guilt-free. As we learn to utilize them, the resources of the church and the gospel of Jesus Christ are advantageously available to guide us toward this “at-peace” way of living despite our differences, where we are true to ourselves, to each other, and to truth itself. It is when we come to understand the divinely-appointed purpose of our individuality, and to nurture our individual responsibilities, that we really start to grasp that our differences, in their universality of purpose, are in fact what make us the same. I pray that the Spirit will attend each of us as we consider together how to live the guilt-free, gospel-centered life that our Heavenly Parents intend for each of us.
Responsibilities of Leaders and Learners
We have the privilege of constant access to the teachings of former and ancient prophets, seers, and revelators as well as additional semi-annual access to hearing the words of latter-day prophets, seers, and revelators. These resources are available to all, both inside and outside the church. In order to take ultimate advantage of these teachings, it is useful to identify the responsibilities of the teachers (prophets, seers, and revelators, such as our general and local leaders) and distinguish them from the personal responsibilities of us individual learners. As true witnesses of Christ, combined with providing us with saving ordinances, the primary responsibility of our leadership (including family leadership) is to teach us the fundamental doctrine and principles of the gospel. And, as agents with access to personal revelation, our primary responsibilities as individuals are to first learn the fundamental doctrine and principles so that we may then seek personal revelation of how to specifically apply those principles to our lives. We are immensely blessed with the resources to meet our responsibilities, with the ecclesiastical order of the church structured for leaders to teach the body of the church, and with the equally necessary resource of personal revelation, which is structured to individually mold us into the likeness of our Heavenly Parents. The opportunity we each have to receive personal revelation, tailored to our unique qualities, beautifully compliments the truth revealed by those within whose stewardship we reside. Personal and individualized revelation is an incredible gift. President Nelson explained:
Today’s technology . . . allows us to use wireless telephones to exchange information rapidly. . . . Even more amazing than modern technology is our opportunity to access information directly from heaven, without hardware, software, or monthly service fees. It is one of the most marvelous gifts the Lord has offered to mortals.1 (close quote)
Yet, somehow, in practical terms, some circumstances may lead us to fear or distrust this “marvelous gift,” especially if we perceive that our personal revelation seems to contradict another’s or seems at odds with the revealed truths as they are communicated to us by various appointed teachers.
Distinct Responsibilities: Teach correct principles, Govern selves
As I have pondered this subject, the 11th article of faith has repeatedly flooded my mind:
We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.2
This article is distinct from the other twelve in that, rather than explaining one of our foundational doctrinal beliefs, it claims (or demands) one of our fundamental inalienable rights and privileges: we CLAIM the privilege of worshiping according to our OWN conscience and offer that same privilege to EACH OTHER. It’s easy to apply the 11th article of faith universally, acknowledging the differences between peoples and cultures and religions. But, I wish to apply it individually. For, we are best served and best serve each other by understanding this passage on an individual level (me and you) rather than simply on a group level (we and they). We each claim this privilege for ourselves and also allow one another (both inside the church and out) to enjoy and benefit from that same privilege. Allowing each other the privilege of personal and individualized worship is the initial step toward healing the separation created by varying (and even contrasting) forms of gospel-living amongst individuals. As a privilege that we claim for ourselves, we are responsible for utilizing it. How we worship is ultimately determined by our personally and directly revealed application method, through our divinely appointed agency, of the foundational doctrine and principles as taught to us by prophets, seers, and revelators. As such, it is important to never infringe on the worship of other agents by judging their personal worship methods, neither in terms of cultural protocols within the church nor in terms of our own personal worship. In fact, agency is so important to our salvation that we are taught that “next to the bestowal of life itself, the right to direct your [own] life is one of God’s greatest gifts to you.”3
The role of individual agency in our gospel living was demonstrated when Joseph Smith was asked how he was able to govern so many people, and to preserve such perfect order. . . to which he famously replied that he “[teaches] them correct principles and they govern themselves.”4 Furthermore, this simple response vividly illustrates the distinct responsibilities of church leaders and individual members: for the former to teach correct principles and the latter to govern themselves. Elder David A Bednar explained that “preaching by the spirit and learning by faith are companion principles that we should strive to understand and apply concurrently and consistently.”5 (close quote) While leaders of the church and of the family are responsible for themselves, they are responsible to those within their stewardship to teach the doctrine and to present correct principles. My responsibility, your responsibility, is to both learn those correct principles that are being taught by leaders (both past and present) and to govern myself, to govern yourself. In other words, I am expected to worship according to the dictates of my own conscience. Our leaders teach us true principles and the Lord Himself teaches us, directly and individually, how to apply each principle in the unique way that will best contribute to our personal growth. That means, that my responsibility is to seek personal revelation from the Lord.
Identifying doctrines, principles, and applications
If our leaders are directed to teach the doctrine and principles of the gospel, and if we are expected to learn this doctrine and apply these principles, clearly we must understand what exactly doctrine and principles are, so that we can discern their application. On first glance, it seems obvious that doctrine and principles are distinct from each other. However, on further investigation, it can quickly become very difficult to differentiate between the two. It can also become difficult to separate true fundamental principles from recommended and helpful protocols offered as options for how to apply those principles. In his book, Increase in Learning, Elder Bednar explains that:
A gospel doctrine is "a truth of salvation revealed by a loving Heavenly Father. Gospel doctrines are eternal, do not change, and pertain to the progression and exaltation of Heavenly Father's sons and daughters."
A gospel principle is "a doctrinally-based guideline for the righteous exercise of moral agency." 6
Elder Bednar explains these unique qualities further, as referenced in an excellent Meridian Magazine article7 from which I will borrow heavily for a few minutes here to illustrate this concept:
He goes on to explain that Doctrines answer the question Why?, Principles help us understand What?, and applications tell us How?. Doctrines such as the nature of the Godhead, the plan of happiness, and the Atonement of Jesus Christ are foundational, fundamental, and comprehensive. Gospel principles[, on the other hand,] flow out of such gospel doctrines, as in, “Given this doctrine, what guidelines can help direct our actions?” According to Elder Bednar:
Principles provide direction. Correct principles always are based upon and arise from doctrines . . . and answer the question of “what?” Many principles can grow out of and be associated with a single doctrine . . . [And he follows that up with a clarifying statement:] A principle is not a behavior or a specific action. Rather, principles provide basic guidelines for behavior and action. (pp. 154–155)
Doctrines [such as the nature of the godhead, the atonement of Christ, and the Plan of Salvation] provide a foundation from which to draw important gospel principles. Such principles that Elder Bednar offers as examples include: having faith in Christ, repenting of sins, obeying God, and serving others. Note that these principles are general guidelines for behavior and do not identify specific actions. In other words, Principles respect our agency and our individual circumstance. [And, I would add, that it is therefore our responsibility, as agents, to apply correct principles to our unique circumstances.]
Elder Bednar goes on to define Applications:
Applications are the specific behaviors, action steps, practices, or procedures by which gospel doctrines and principles are enacted in our lives. . . . Applications appropriately can vary according to needs and circumstances. Applications answer the question of how?. [Just as many principles can flow from a single doctrine,] many applications can grow out of and be associated with a single principle. (p. 156) For example, our understanding of the Atonement of Christ (a doctrine) may lead us to desire to serve our neighbor (a principle). There are many ways we could apply that principle of service, such as helping out with the kids, mowing the lawn, or spending some quality time in conversation. Any of these might be good, but through [personal revelation], we can be led to know how to individually apply the principle of service to our unique circumstances in order to best serve the needs of those we desire to bless.
Distinguishing instruction of principles from that of specific applications
In terms of learning from our general authorities, it is important to remember that, while there are as many good ways to apply true principles as there are individual lives, prophets (both ancient and latter-day) frequently illustrate and even instruct us in specific ways of applying any given gospel principle through stories and descriptions and even specific direction. In our desire to be obedient, we sometimes overlook the differences in our personal responsibility versus the responsibility of those whose stewardship it is to teach us. While learning specific ways to apply gospel principles can be helpful and applicable to the majority, if we forget that it is our responsibility to seek direct personal guidance from the Lord on how to apply that instruction, the over-generalization of such specific recommendations can leave us feeling as though the option offered is the only appropriate application. As you search the scriptures as well as study the words of latter-day prophets and apostles, you will encounter various stories of how individuals applied fundamental principles of the gospel into their own lives. The variety of examples reflects the variety of the learners. As a unique being, not all illustrated applications may resonate with you, so utilize your personal access to revelation, activate your agency, and ask the Lord what application would be more useful to you personally.
It is easy to accept and trust in this process when the individual application of a principle differs from a recently suggested application, such as our prophet’s recommendation to get vaccinated as founded in the principle of caring for our bodies. But, it is harder to reconcile the personal applications of principles that differ from specific applications that have become imbedded in our culture; such as how an individual wears the garments, or lives the word of wisdom, or applies the law of chastity, or honors the Sabbath. Yet, the personal application of these important principles remains necessarily individualized. So, when listening to the prophet and apostles (past and present in the scriptures or in general conference), instead of focusing on the illustrated application, ask yourself, “what is the underlying principle he/she is trying to teach here?”. Then, once you have clearly and simply identified the principle, ask the Lord how you personally can best apply it, remembering to allow others to do the same.
Our unique and valuable differences in personal application of true principles
The beauty of learning from those called to teach is that for every idea that is presented that doesn’t resonate with your personal conscience, there is another idea offered that helps you think in a new way, to expand and develop your personal application of gospel principles. Not every idea presented will be helpful, nor can it be, to every individual learner. If you sincerely seek out personal revelation during these times of instruction, the Lord will open your mind to the specific ideas presented that will touch YOUR heart the most deeply and to the desire and ability to allow others to receive their own revelation. Remember, that while we claim the privilege of worshiping according to the dictates of our own conscience, we also allow ALL men that same privilege, including our church leaders. While leaders have the resources to teach true principles to the group body, only the Lord has the ability to teach the uniquely individualized application of those principles, because we each are unique in our learning and in our circumstance. Thus, personal revelation and a personal relationship with our Heavenly Parents is vitally necessary to our gospel-living and growth. Ultimately, the responsibility lies with each of us to apply each principle in our worship according to our own conscience.
How to obtain Personal Revelation
So, if personal revelation is fundamentally important to our worship, how do we obtain it? As a religious-seeker, Joseph Smith, sought his own personal revelation after the oft-quoted verse of scripture8 in James 1:5 promised that he could receive such:
5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
The verses preceding and following this passage, however, add increased insight:
2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways
If we read this passage with clear definitions of faith and perfection in mind, we gain further insights:
As we work to become “perfect” (or “complete”) as Christ is, we must have patience as we seek personal revelation from our Father in Heaven by establishing first a foundation of faith (our “working knowledge”) to build upon. Then, as our faith is tested, we must continue to have patience to see the result and gain the added revelation. Our faith, or current degree of knowledge, works in conjunction with further revelation that we receive. Our learning of gospel doctrine and principles is foundational to our seeking personal revelation in how to apply those principles. What benefit is it to us to ask a question that has no foundation in the knowledge we already have (in our faith)? What benefit is there to asking how to apply a gospel principle, if we have not yet established a working knowledge of that doctrine from which the principle has been derived? We must use our existing knowledge base to know how to apply it in our lives—to know what knowledge to seek—or we will have no basis for interpreting and applying the new information we acquire (or as the scripture puts it, we will be “like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed”).
Asking questions in this way—questions that are founded in the truth we have already established for ourselves—is asking “in faith”. If we do not “ask in faith, nothing wavering” (in other words, if we instead just lean to our own understanding), then verses 7&8 tell us that we shall not “receive any thing of the Lord” for “a double minded man is unstable in all his ways”. But, the process of developing our faith and seeking further knowledge takes time and effort, hence our need for patience as we seek personal revelation. As our patience is rewarded with increased knowledge, we will, in turn, have more patience as we study and apply new principles. In this way, we build upon and establish deeper degrees of faith, or knowledge of truth. And, when all is said and done, we will be perfect (“complete”), even as our Father in Heaven is perfect.9
How to live guilt-free
Because of the considerable effort involved in seeking personal revelation in applying true principles, shirking our responsibility to do so, or passing it onto our leaders, can be an all-to-easy trap to fall into. It is at these times, when we have neglected the responsibility of individualized worship and revelation that we stop living the gospel guilt-free and instead become blinded by judgmentality. Without trusting in our “marvelous gift” of personal revelation, we begin to find fault with ourselves and others: We assign guilt to ourselves when we don’t honor our responsibility. Or, we assign guilt to ourselves when our personal worship looks different from the majority. Or, we assign guilt to ourselves when our worship is derived from our own understanding rather than from the Lord through personal revelation. Or, we assign guilt to our neighbors when their worship is different from ours and we forget to allow them to worship according to their own revelation. Or, we assign guilt to our leaders when we forget to focus on the principle being taught and instead wrestle over the differences in our personally revealed applications and those suggested to us. Or, we assign guilt to the church as a whole when we forget our personal role in applying gospel principles. Satan wants to discourage our personal relationship with the Lord, and uses guilt to trouble us.
But, we can release ourselves from the detriments of living under the weight of unnecessary and unhelpful guilt. As we take on a deeper responsibility in applying true principles to our own lives, we allow patience to “have her perfect work” by trusting in our Heavenly Parents’ personalized instruction, and that hope fortifies our relationship with Them. Our understandings of true principles become further and further enlightened. Taking on this deeper personal responsibility of God-given individual worship frees us to live the gospel guilt-free, remembering that it is our individual differences that allow us each to live the gospel in the unique way that best helps us to draw closer to our Heavenly Parents. The differences in how we each live the gospel should be celebrated and utilized to their full and intended potential instead of used as justification for assigning some erroneous and useless form of guilt. Please, trust the Lord, trust yourself, trust others, trust that the plan works. Give yourself permission to utilize your agency and worship according to the dictates of your own conscience as prescribed by the Lord through your own personal revelation. And, offer that same permission to each other. Remember, your agency and responsibility, as well as those of others, are both divinely appointed and divinely directed, and as such are offered as a means to put off such unnecessary and unhelpful guilt that would divide rather than unite us in our differences. Never forget the sacrifice made to allow you the gift of personal revelation, of using your agency, to apply true principles along your journey to returning to your Heavenly Home. I testify that as we, both as teachers of true principles and appliers of those principles we learn, live up to our responsibilities, worship according to the dictates of our own conscience, and govern ourselves, we will be united in purpose, specifically through our collective differences as we each draw closer to our Heavenly Home. And, I do so, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
References:
“Ask, Seek Knock”, Elder Russel M Nelson, October 2009 General Conference Report
“Articles of Faith”, #11, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, lds.org
“Standards for Youth booklet”, Agency and accountability, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, lds.org
“The Principles of My Gospel”, Elder David A Bednar, April 2021 General Conference Report
“Seek Learning By Faith”, Elder David A Bednar, September 2007 Ensign
“Discovering the Word of Wisdom: Doctrines, Principles, and Applications”, Jane Birch, Meridian Msgazine, August 2016
James 1:2-8, Holy Bible, KJV
“Obtaining Personal Revelation by Building Upon our Foundation of Faith”, Jennifer Norton, discussitwithamormon.blogspot.com
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