The last couple of weeks, I’ve been asking myself the question “What to do?”

And so, as I told you before, you have so many witnesses that I warn you not to delay your repentance until the end of your life. Because we’ve been provided our lifetime to let us prepare for eternity. If we squander that time, we pass into the dark night where no further work can be done. You can’t say when that awful moment of crisis arrives that: I’ll repent, I’ll return to God. No, you can’t say this. Because that same spirit that you listen to and obey while living in the flesh will, after your death, have the same power to influence you to listen to that spirit in the next life. Indeed, if you’ve delayed the day of your repentance until death, you’ve fallen under the power of the accuser’s spirit, and he secures you as his own (CoC Alma 16:37).

What are some of the spirits that we listen to and obey that require repentance?

Your hearts never focus on the Lord; instead, you’re full of great pride leading to bragging and awful arrogance, to jealousy, conflicts, malice, persecutions, murders, and all kinds of iniquities (Helaman 5:6).

Bragging is to speak of one’s own achievements or qualities in a proud and arrogant way to elicit admiration from another.

Arrogance is an attitude of superiority and self-importance that is often expressed through overbearing behavior, disdain for others, and a belief that one is better, smarter, or more important than other people. It can lead to rudeness and a lack of consideration for others.

Jealousy is a complex emotion involving fear, insecurity, and resentment, typically arising when an individual feels a valued relationship or possession is threatened by a rival or another person.

Conflict is a state of disagreement, struggle, or opposition between opposing forces, ideas, interests, or individuals. It occurs when goals, needs, or viewpoints are incompatible, leading to friction, battle, or controversy.

Malice is the desire to cause distress in another.

Persecutions is the mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group.

2 Timothy 1:8

This know also: that in the last days, perilous times shall come; for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, without self-control, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof. From such turn away, for of this sort are they who creep into houses and lead captive silly women loaded with sins, led away with diverse lusts, ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no further, for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.

The Lord used the same phrasing from Timothy when speaking to Joseph Smith:

They draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.

Covetous means excessively eager to obtain and posses; very desirous.

Blasphemy is to speak impiously or irreverently of God and sacred things. It is “to treat lightly, not with contempt, but not seriously.” It’s blasphemous to attribute to God what God did not authorize. You hear blasphemy from the religious leaders who, speaking and pretending to act in the name of God, have no authority or permission from Him to do as they claim. Blasphemy is light-mindedness.

Now there were 2,000 young men who made this covenant and took up weapons to defend their country. And, although they had never been a disadvantage to the Nephites up to that point, they now became a great support. They took their weapons, and they asked Helaman to lead them. They were all young men, very courageous, strong, and active as well. But this wasn’t the best thing about them, because they were trustworthy in anything asked of them, and they were truthful and serious-minded and focused, since they had been taught to keep God’s commandments and live righteously (Alma 24:21).

Blasphemy is light-mindedness which is the opposite of serious-mindedness. So the 2,000 young men were taking the sacred things of God seriously. They were focused on the things of God – and that was described as the best thing about them.

Headstrong describes someone who is stubbornly determined to have their own way.

Haughty is an adjective that means feeling or showing arrogant superiority and disdain for those considered unworthy or beneath oneself. It describes someone who is excessively proud, snobbish, and has a contemptuous attitude toward others.

Five of the virtuous virgins who were expecting the wedding party to arrive, were nevertheless excluded. They were virgins like the others. But the others were allowed to enter and they were not. They did not lack virginity. They did not lack notice. They were not surprised by an unexpected wedding party arriving. But they lacked “oil,” which is a symbol of the Holy Ghost. They failed to acquire the necessary spirit with which to avoid conflict, envy, strife, tumult and contention. To grow into the kind of people God will want to welcome into His dwelling, requires practice, experience and effort. People have not done it. Devout religious people are not prepared to live in peace, with all things in common, with no poor among them. God is trying to create a civilization that does not yet exist (Civilization Talk, Pg. 23-24).

Returning to the scripture in Alma that says “we pass into the dark night where no further work can be done” we find a similar situation for the five foolish virgins, who when the bridegroom came at night, they were not prepared. They had no oil – they lacked the spirit (as Alma puts it) in which to avoid conflict, envy, strife, tumult and contention. There it is again, conflict/contention avoidance. What the virgins should have been gathering, instead of bickering, arguing, and engaging with the spirit of conflict, was the oil/ Holy Ghost which would have prepared them for the bridegroom’s coming. It is only by the Holy Ghost that we can discern the spirits and gather God’s light.

Don’t accumulate treasures on earth, where moths damage, rust corrodes, and thieves break in and steal, but instead accumulate treasures in Heaven [aka. Truth], where there are no damaging moths, corrosive rust, and thieves don’t break in and steal; because what you treasure reveals what’s in your heart.

The light enters the body through your eyes; if, therefore, your eyes look to God, your whole body is full of His light. But if your eye looks for evil, your whole body is then full of darkness. Therefore if the light within you looks for the darkness, how overwhelming that darkness becomes.

No one can serve two masters, for they’ll either hate the one and love the other, or at least they’ll follow the one and ignore the other. You can’t serve God and covet [meaning to yearn to possess or have] (CoC 3 Nephi 5:36-38).

The generic term “the light” is used at the beginning of the paragraph. Then it says that if your eyes look to God (notice it doesn’t say “look to light”) then your body will be full of not “the light,” but “His light.” And if your eye looks for evil then your body will fill with darkness. After that it says, “If the light within you looks for darkness…” meaning: There is God’s light and then there is light that leads to darkness.

And this is the key point: All light enters us, but we must discern if it is God’s or not.

Why does the Lord speak of treasure – treasure that cannot be damaged, corroded or stolen? And then to say that what you treasure reveals what’s in your heart? I believe that treasuring truth is what allows you to discern the light.

You can only know the truth by having it revealed to you from heaven itself. In order to take people captive, all that is required is for people to be content with their ignorance. The greatest threat to salvation does not come from teaching false doctrine but instead comes from ignoring doctrine altogether. Substituting platitudes and truisms for careful, ponderous and solemn investigation of the deep things of God is sufficient to keep people in the chains of captivity. It isn’t necessary for the devil to convince you of lies, only for him to make you content in your ignorance or fearful of the search for truth (Glossary – Truth).

All of the negative terms listed above in the first two scriptures are a distraction, a temptation to keep us from ignoring doctrine altogether. And all Satan (the spirit of conflict, the accuser) has to do is keep you distracted from rising up out of your ignorance – distractions such as conflict and blasphemy.

If blasphemy is light-mindedness towards God and His sacred things, to attribute to Him what is not of Him, or to brush aside His word and say it is inadequate, then is it not enough for Satan to tempt us to neglect the scriptures?

If he can do that one thing – persuade us that the Word of God isn’t enough, lacks clarity, won’t teach us wholesome skills – then he has already won.

Woe to them that call evil good and good evil, that call darkness the light and call light the darkness, that call bitter the sweet and call sweet the bitter (CoC 2 Nephi 8:15).

Those who call evil good are not doing it on purpose. They truly see the evil as good. They see the darkness and see light. They taste the bitter as sweet. But woe to those who do so.

Recall part of the covenant: “Do you have faith in these things and receive the scriptures approved by the Lord as a standard to govern you in your daily walk in life, to accept the obligations established by the Covenant of Christ as a covenant, and to use the scriptures to correct yourselves and to guide your words, thoughts, and deeds?”

We are again brought back to studying the word of God. That is the only sure way in which we can discern the light and obtain truth.

Light comes from all religions, philosophies, books, podcasts, teachings, ideas, etc. But not all light is from God and some light will lead you into darkness.

Recall Lehi following the man dressed in a white robe who led him into a dark and dreary waste.

A servant or messenger of God whose presence or appearance is characterized not only by his or her light, but by the content and intelligence of the message, as well as the absence of darkness. To avoid deception, we must have light. Light comes to all by keeping God’s commandments (see T&C 93:9). The defect Moses perceived in Lucifer when Lucifer came tempting him (as stated in Genesis 1:3) was not merely his appearance. Satan was (and is) an angel. T&C 69:6 describes him as an angel of God who was in authority in the presence of God and was cast down. Such a being does not look vile. Visually, he may appear to have light and glory. Because he is a liar, he uses his appearance as a pretense to be an angel of light. Moses was able to discern between Satan and an actual messenger from God, but that had nothing to do with the appearance of Satan. It was because of the content of the message. Moses distinguished between his message and the Lord’s. The Lord’s was a message of glory, which is intelligence, or in other words, light and truth. Satan’s message takes one into a dark and dreary waste (Glossary – Angel of Light).

Again we are told that it’s not only by his or her light that you can distinguish a messenger of God, but in addition to that light, there has to be an absence of darkness. So within light, there can still be darkness. That is how good ideas can deceive – because not all good ideas align with the scriptures.

Moses did not pay attention to Satan’s light, because beyond the light, all he saw was blackness – in that Satan spoke no intelligence (God’s intelligence), light (God’s light), or truth.

And now it came to pass that when Moses had said these words, behold, Satan came tempting him, saying, Moses, son of man, worship me. But Moses lifted up his eyes and looked upon Satan, and said, Who are you? For behold, I am a son of God in the similitude of his Only Begotten, and where is your glory that I should worship you? For behold, I could not look upon God except his glory should come upon me and I were transfigured before him, but I can look upon you in the natural man. Surely, blessed be the name of my God, for his spirit has not altogether withdrawn from me. I say, where is your glory? For it is blackness unto me, and I can judge between you and God. For God said unto me, Worship God, for him only shall you serve. Depart from here Satan, deceive me not. For God said unto me, You are after the similitude of my Only Begotten. And he also gave me commandment when he called unto me out of the burning bush, saying, Call upon God in the name of my Only Begotten and worship me. And again Moses said, I will not cease to call upon God; I have other things to inquire of him. For his glory has been upon me and it is glory unto me, wherefore I can judge between him and you. Depart from here, Satan (Genesis 1:4).

An interesting note is that Moses distinguished God’s glory as transfiguring. But Moses was able to look upon Satan in the natural man. The natural man is an enemy to God and you literally have to put off the natural man to stand in God’s presence. God gave Moses the commandment to call upon Him and worship Him. Moses said he would not cease to do so because he had other things to inquire of Him.

So the question right now is “What to do?”

If I want to overcome and avoid the evil spirits that so eagerly wait to destroy our souls, then I must do as Moses did – Call upon God and worship Him. 

Mankind fails to practice true worship…Worship should result in men becoming more like God. It should bring enlightenment or greater light and truth into the minds of those who worship…No one should allow anything to distract them from their own praising and blessing of God…Salvation depends on knowing, confessing, and worshiping Christ. “Worship Christ by imitating Him. Worship Him by doing His works. Worship Him by making a living sacrifice. Set aside the junk that occupies you, and go do something that is holy for someone else…Relieve the suffering of others…Seek to be like Him whom you worship.”

How are we to be like Him?

I descended below it all, and know the sorrows of you all, and have borne the grief of it all, and I say to you, Forgive one another. Be tender with one another, pursue judgment, bless the oppressed, care for the orphan, and uplift the widow in her need, for I have redeemed you from being orphaned and taken you that you are no longer a widowed people. Rejoice in me, and rejoice with your brethren and sisters who are mine also. Be one. You pray each time you partake of the sacrament to always have my spirit to be with you. And what is my spirit? It is to love one another as I have loved you. Do my works and you will know my doctrine, for you will uncover hidden mysteries by obedience to these things that can be uncovered in no other way. This is the way I will restore knowledge to my people. If you return good for evil, you will cleanse yourself and know the joy of your Master. You call me Lord, and do well to regard me so, but to know your Lord is to love one another. Flee from the cares and longings that belong to Babylon, obtain a new heart, for you have all been wounded. In me you will find peace, and through me will come Zion, a place of peace and safety. (T&C 157:50-51).

I will visit my house, which the remnant of my people shall build, and I will dwell therein, to be among you, and no one will need to say, Know ye the Lord, for you all shall know me, from the least to the greatest (T&C 158:15).

But to know your Lord is to love one another and in Zion no one will need say “know ye the Lord, for you all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.” To know the Lord means we must love each other, every one of us, from the least to the greatest.

I’m more convinced that obtaining a new heart and being one has much to do with learning to love and value each other in the covenant. If I do not love you, how can I serve you?

Moroni 7:2

…I would like to speak to you who belong to the congregation, who are the peaceable followers of Christ, and who have obtained a sufficient hope to enter the Lord’s rest, from now until you rest with Him in heaven. Now, my people, I judge these things of you because of your peaceable walk with mankind. For I remember God’s word that says: You’ll know them by how they live. Because if their actions are good, then they’re good. God has said: A person who’s evil can’t do good. Because if they offer a gift or pray to God, unless they do it with real intent, it’s of no benefit to them — it isn’t credited to them for righteousness [sounds very similar to what it means to covet]. If a person who’s evil gives a gift, they do it grudgingly; so it’s credited to them the same as if they had retained the gift. Therefore they’re considered evil before God. And it’s similarly counted as evil if a person prays without real intent of heart. It’s of no benefit to them since God doesn’t accept such a person. So a person who’s evil can’t do good, and they can’t give a good gift either. Indeed, a bitter spring can’t produce good water and a good spring can’t produce bitter water. Therefore a person who’s the accuser’s servant can’t follow Christ; and if they follow Christ, they can’t be a servant of the accuser. So everything good comes from God and everything evil comes from the accuser. Because the accuser is an enemy of God and constantly fights against Him and constantly invites and entices to commit sin and to do what’s evil. But godly things constantly invite and persuade to do good.