In 1 Samuel 11, we read about King Saul. After he had removed those with “familiar spirits” and “wizards” from the land and after the prophet Samuel died, the Philistines were coming to war with Israel. This caused Saul to be “severely distressed.”

We read that Saul was greatly afraid and inquired of the Lord.

And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord answered him not — neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets. Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that has a familiar spirit, that I may go to her and inquire of her.

Because Saul received nothing from the Lord regarding a very difficult “real life” issue, he turned to the arm of flesh. Instead of looking internally at what his own heart and mind lacked, Saul forced the hand of God to receive divine guidance through other means.

Saul then disguised himself so as to not scare away the divining woman and he petitioned her to bring to him the “words of Samuel.”

And the woman said unto Saul, I saw the words of Samuel ascending out of the earth; and she said, I saw Samuel also. And he said unto her, What form is he of? And she said, I saw an old man coming up, covered with a mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he stooped his face to the ground and bowed himself.

And these are the words of Samuel unto Saul: Why have you disquieted me to bring me up? And Saul answered, I am severely distressed, for the Philistines make war against me, and God has departed from me and answers me no more, neither by prophets nor by dreams. Therefore I have called you, that you may make known unto me what I shall do.

Then said Samuel, Why then do you ask of me, seeing the Lord is departed from you and is become your enemy? And the Lord has done to him as he spoke by me; for the Lord has rent the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, even to David, because you obeyed not the voice of the Lord, nor executed his fierce wrath upon Amalek. Therefore has the Lord done this thing unto you this day. Moreover, the Lord will also deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow shall you and your sons be with me. The Lord also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.

Saul was not obeying the voice (or words) of the Lord and therefore the Lord departed from him. Then Saul seeks the words of Samuel. Who else had a similar dialogue as Saul and Samuel did here?

After my strength had returned, I talked to my brothers, asking to know why they argued. They said: We can’t understand what our father has said about the olive tree’s natural branches and about the Gentiles. I said to them: Have you asked the Lord? They replied: We haven’t — the Lord doesn’t reveal any such thing to us. Then I asked them: Why don’t you keep the Lord’s commandments? Why are you determined to damn yourselves because of the hardness of your hearts? Don’t you remember what the Lord has said? — if you choose not to harden your hearts and ask Me in faith, believing you will receive, consistently keeping My commandments, these things will certainly be revealed to you.

Nephi’s brothers said they could not understand the words of their father (a prophet). When asked if they had petitioned the Lord, their answer was no because the Lord doesn’t reveal such things to them. Nephi took that answer and revealed the underlying reasons why, in a sense, the Lord had departed from his brothers.

The reason was the same for both Nephi’s brothers and Saul – they obeyed not the voice of the Lord, or in other words, they did not keep the Lord’s commandments.

The greatest part of the necessary opposition we find in our day consists of the cultural smog we breathe in and its hostility to faith. Christ taught in His opening words in this dispensation that we live among a people who have “a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.” (JSH 1: 19.) Why is there no power to their form of godliness? It does not generate the faith necessary to receive power. It does not generate this faith because the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are not believed, not obeyed, and not even understood among such people. You cannot shake together the philosophies of men mingled with scriptures and produce from that the power of godliness (The Second Comforter, Ch. 17).

A belief in something can generate faith, but that faith will be without power if it is not the correct kind of faith. If faith is based in believing the philosophies of men with some scriptures sprinkled in, it is a form of godliness without the power thereof.

When people advise you to ask gurus and false spirits that whisper and moan — shouldn’t people instead ask God? Why ask the dead for advice for the living? Shouldn’t people look for direction from God’s law and His warning testimony? And if anyone speaks contrary to this word, it’s because there’s no light in them. And they’ll wander lost, wretched, and hungry; and when they’re hungry, they’ll become angry, look up to heaven and curse their King and their God. And they’ll look at the earth and see trouble and darkness, gloom and fear, and won’t see the dawn (2 Nephi 9:10).

Discouraging others from seeking direction from God’s law and advising them to instead turn to other spiritual teachers demonstrates a lack of light. They wander, like Lehi, following “a man dressed in a white robe” until they find themselves lost “in a dark and dreary wasteland” – hungering for what, they know not, because they’ve rejected the word of God like Nephi’s brothers. Refusing to taste of the love of God that is only received by walking down the straight and narrow path while holding onto nothing else but the iron rod which is the word of God.

And what is God’s law that we should look to direction for? It is the Sermon on the Mount, which you can read in CoC 3 Nephi 5.

When I said old things have ended, I don’t mean that those prophecies yet to happen won’t occur. Because there are still covenants I’ve made with My people that aren’t yet fulfilled, but the Law given to Moses ends with Me. I Am the Law and the light. Look to Me and endure to the end, and you will live; indeed, I’ll give eternal life to all who endure to the end. I’ve given you the commandments. Therefore keep My commandments; they’re what the Law and the teachings of the prophets intended, because they truthfully pointed to Me.

Saul did not heed the Lord’s word. Laman and Lemuel did not keep God’s commandments consistently enough.

So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord, or against the word of the Lord, which he kept not; and also for asking for a familiar spirit, to inquire, and inquired not of the Lord. Therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse (1 Chronicles 6:17).

Who are those who have covenanted with the Lord to use the scriptures to govern themselves? Do we instead turn to authors, psychologists, therapists, and counselors to inquire regarding daily life issues instead of inquiring of the Lord?

In place of knowledge about God, we have wedded His scriptures to philosophy, and redefined Him into a creation of our own minds. Atheists claim man invented God. It is a legitimate criticism, at least of the theologically-defined deity of Historic Christianity. That nonpersonage, “wholly other,” “first cause,” is clearly the creation of man’s imagination (The Second Comforter, Ch. 17).

Because we lack an accurate understanding of who God really is, including His characteristics and attributes, we debate on worshipping “a God of this” and “a God of that,” all the while failing to realize that our beliefs are incorrectly based on men’s and women’s teachings and therefore that faith will amount to nothing.

We are walking along the same path as the Church established by Christ in the New Testament. As we go along, we should expect to encounter the same conflicts and temptations as the Church did when first established. Satan does not generally develop new programs. Instead, he repeats the old ones because they have proven so successful in the past. One of the great triumphs for Satan, and reasons for the apostasy of the Primitive Church, was the Church’s failure to follow the Holy Ghost as their guide. Instead, they determined it was safer to use the learning of men and the arm of flesh. Scholars and theology replaced Saints and the Holy Spirit. The great triumph of the philosophies of men over the Holy Spirit resulted in another replacement faith. Historic Christianity replaced Primitive Christianity, as the philosophies of men were thoroughly mingled with scripture to form a bulwark of theological reasoning to support this new faith (The Second Comforter, Ch. 14).

This “new faith” is not the “correct faith.” Satan will most likely not use new tactics with the Covenant Christians. We are demonstrating a failure to follow the Holy Ghost as our guide as we retreat to the comfort and safety of learning from men and relying on the arm of flesh.

The early saints were placed under condemnation because they took the Book of Mormon lightly. It was published in 1830 and in 1832, the saints were already placed under condemnation. If we were to be placed under the same condemnation today as Covenant Christians, it would be because we have taken the Covenant of Christ lightly. It will be two years in October since voting the Covenant of Christ into scripture. How many conferences, meetings, fellowships, and personal study have allocated time, study, and prayer with this book?

The Lord spoke to us in 2017:

The Book of Mormon was given as my covenant for this day and contains my gospel, which came forth to allow people to understand my work and then obtain my salvation. Yet many of you are like those who reject the Book of Mormon, because you say, but you do not do. As a people you honor with your lips, but your hearts are corrupt, filled with envy and malice, returning evil for good, sparing none — even those with pure hearts among you — from your unjustified accusations and unkind backbiting. You have not obtained the fullness of my salvation because you do not draw near to me (T&C 157:20).

Giving lip service to the Book of Mormon is not the same as having your heart delight in the word of God.

Not many days after his death, Laman, Lemuel, and Ishmael’s sons were angry with me because of the Lord’s warnings and correction that I was inspired to tell them based on His word. I taught them many things, as my father did before he died. Much of what was said is written on my other plates, since more historical details are written on them. But on these plates I only write the things within my soul and quotes of the scriptures from the brass plates. My soul delights in the scriptures, and I ponder upon them and write them for my children’s instruction and benefit. My soul rejoices in the things of the Lord, and I continually ponder in my heart what God has shown and told me.

The warnings and correction that Nephi gave his brothers was based on God’s word, nothing else. His personal musings and writing quotes from the brass plates were sufficient to him as instruction for his posterity that would benefit them.

When Joseph Smith was visited by the Father and Christ, he was told to join none of the churches because “all their creeds were an abomination in his sight, that those professors were all corrupt, that, 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. He again forbade me to join with any of them, and many other things did he say unto me which I cannot write at this time.”

Creed in the 1828 dictionary includes “any system of principles which are believed or professed.” These congregations taught the commandments of men as God’s doctrine, which only resulted in a form of godliness, but lacking the power thereof. It is only in keeping God’s commandments that you obtain the correct faith necessary for salvation.

Paul wrote about men in the last days who, amongst many other things, also have a form of godliness but they deny the power thereof. Here we see that phrase again. He warns:

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 (2 Timothy 1:8).

Silly is synonymous with foolish and if you are foolish, you lack wisdom. Now this wisdom is specific to the word of God. No matter how educated you are, if you do not follow God’s counsel, your wisdom is foolishness.

If they’re educated, they think they’re wise, and they don’t follow God’s counsel. They set it aside, thinking they know better themselves. As a result, their wisdom is foolishness, and doesn’t benefit them, and they will perish. But it’s good to be educated if they also follow God’s counsels (CoC 2 Nephi 6:9).

Continuing in 2 Timothy:

But continue in the things which you have learned and have been assured of, knowing of whom you have learned them and that from a child you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. And all scripture given by inspiration of God is profitable — for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

The scriptures are in the very least adequate enough to make a man of God perfect.

Those who are out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine, for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables.

In not being able to endure sound doctrine, they gather to themselves teachers who teach for doctrine the philosophies of men. Therefore, they are ever learning but never able to obtain knowledge and truth because they rejected the word of God.

In 2018, Denver warned us to not neglect the new edition of the scriptures. He also reiterated what the prophets in the Book of Mormon have continuously repeated.

There are two things that will bring you closer to God [more] than anything else. First, personal scripture study. Learn from them when you have time. Your private study will be more important than what others tell you about the scriptures. Second, personal prayer. Your private time spent in prayer will have the power to shape your life. If you study the scriptures when you are alone, and you pray in private, these two things, more than anything else, will draw you to God.

This very much indicates that private scripture study is not a sterile existence where no growth happens. What the Lord says over and over regarding His words is that they soften hearts and turn people from their wickedness. The scriptures are the only living and breathing power amongst all the other books in the world. The fact that God has commanded us and we have covenanted to use the scriptures as our daily guide proves that they are very much the tool we need to navigate life.