The Test that is Coming is Here
The Vision of Elder
Heber C. Kimball (1868)
An army of elders will be sent to the four quarters of the earth
to search out the righteous and warn the wicked of what is coming. All kinds of
religions will be started and miracles performed that will deceive the very
elect if such a thing were possible. Our sons and daughters must live pure
lives so as to be prepared for what is coming.
“After a while the Gentiles will gather to this place by the
thousands, and Salt Lake will be classed among the wicked cities
of the world. A spirit of speculation and extravagance will take possession of the
Saints, and the result will be financial bondage.
“Persecution comes next, and all true Latter-day Saints will be
tested to the limit. Many will apostatize, and others will stand still, not
knowing what to do. Darkness will cover the earth and gross darkness the minds
of the people.
“The judgments of God will be poured out upon the wicked to the
extent that our elders from far and near will be called home. Or in other
words, the gospel will be taken from the Gentiles and later on will be carried
to the Jews.
“The western boundaries of the State of Missouri will be swept
so clean of its inhabitants that, as President Young tells us, when we return
to that place, `There will not be left so much as a yellow dog to wag his
tail.’
“Before that day comes, however, the Saints will be put to a
test that will try the integrity of the best of them. The pressure will become
so great that the more righteous among them will cry unto the Lord day and
night until deliverance comes. Then the Prophet Joseph and others will make
their appearance and those who have remained faithful will be selected to
return to Jackson County, Missouri, and take part in the upbuilding of that
beautiful city, the New Jerusalem.
May 1868
Heber
C. Kimball, Deseret News, May 23,
1931,
https://ia800705.us.archive.org/21/items/conferencereport1930sa/conferencereport1930sa.pdf
In my opinion a great beginning part of the test revolves around the LGBT agenda and the Church's stance towards same-sex marriage. This issue is at the forefront of the attack on the freedom of religion. Too many people think the Church is intolerant, biased, bigoted, etc. in it's view of same-sex marriage and the LGBT supporters pushing their agenda.
When the Proclamation on the Family (https://www.lds.org/topics/family-proclamation?lang=eng) was announced in September 1995 few members of the Church saw it as anything other than stating the obvious.
Fast forward 21 years and many members of the Church support same-sex marriage. Many do so because they don't want to be perceived by thw world as being bigoted, biased, prejudiced, anti-gay rights, or any other term constructed to imply intolerance and nonacceptance.
In October 2015 General Conference, President Nelson warns members of the Church "Attacks against the Church, its doctrine, and our way of life are going to increase" (https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/10/a-plea-to-my-sisters?lang=eng). Less than a month later someone leaked a revised policy of the Church towards children of gay parents.
Without waiting for official statements to help people understand the position of the Church, the policy rocked the faith of many. Even after some very good explanations, and even prayerful understanding being available for those who truly seek for it, many have just relied on their own understanding and see the Church as being
But the attacks haven't stopped.
For those who haven't heard, in September the U.S. Civil Rights Commission issued a report with this central finding, regarding civil liberties vs. religious freedoms:
"Religious exemptions to the protections of civil rights based upon classifications such as race, color, national origin, sex, disability status, sexual orientation, and gender identity, when they are permissible, significantly infringe upon these civil rights."
(https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/09/09/commission-says-religious-liberty-should-not-top-civil-rights/)
"At the heart of the 'Peaceful Coexistence' report is a USCCR assertion that granting religious exemptions to nondiscrimination laws 'significantly infringe' on the civil rights of those claiming civil rights protections on the basis of 'race, color, national origin, sex, disability status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.'" (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/sep/8/religious-freedom-religious-liberty-just-code-word/)
The chairman of the commission, Martin R. Castro, stated:
"The phrases ‘religious liberty’ and ‘religious freedom’ will stand for nothing except hypocrisy so long as they remain code words for discrimination, intolerance, racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia, Christian supremacy or any form of intolerance."
Another part of the report states, "civil rights protections ensuring nondiscrimination, as embodied in the Constitution, laws, and policies, are of preeminent importance in American jurisprudence.”
A Washington Post articles responses to this report statement with the following, "If we accept this assertion, it means that conflicts between religious freedom and nondiscrimination principles are resolved by denying accommodation for religious conscience — except perhaps in very rare and narrow circumstances." https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2016/09/16/the-deeply-troubling-federal-report-highlighting-religious-freedom/
We've known that freedom of religion has been under attack for a long time, but I don't recall such a blatant attack from the government.
The attacks won't stop, and we will see them increase. As Heber C. Kimball stated:
"Persecution comes next, and all true Latter-day Saints will be tested to the limit. Many will apostatize, and others will stand still, not knowing what to do. Darkness will cover the earth and gross darkness the minds of the people....the Saints will be put to a test that will try the integrity of the best of them. The pressure will become so great that the more righteous among them will cry unto the Lord day and night until deliverance comes."
It is my opinion that the government will begin to put pressure on all churches to perform same-sex marriages. The consequences of not doing so may be that the organization could lose it's non-profit status, which will result in taxes and having the financial records becoming open to the government. Few churches will want to lose their nonprofit status. Those churches that refuse to perform same-sex marriages will opt to not perform actual, legal marriages. They will only perform spiritual ceremonies for members who desire them.
In this scenario, marriages will be performed civilly first and then LDS couples can be sealed in the temple. This already happens in many countries around the world. But it will be a great change (and test) for those who aren't expecting it, or who think the Church is somehow changing the doctrine.
Another area will be with regards to gay leaders in Scouting units. In 2015, the Boy Scouts of America established a policy that allows for gay leaders. But charted organizations can choose to not allow gay leaders, and the BSA will support those organizations, even in legal suits. Who knows how many lawsuits are being fielded in this area, but I'm guessing there are several.
As it becomes increasingly more expensive to defend it's charted units, and with the government attacking freedom of religion, the BSA will likely change course and decide to no longer support organizations legally if those chartered organizations continue to oppose gay leaders. The vast majority of the chartered organizations opposing gay leaders are religious based.
While the main leadership in the BSA paints a picture of tolerance and acceptance as the reasons behind their policy change in 2015 (to allowing gay leaders), the real reason, in my opinion, is due to money and social support. These will be motivating factors for this future change.
When the BSA will no longer support a chartered organizations decision to not allow gay leaders, the Churlch will discontinue it's relationship with the BSA and chartering of scout units. Units that are chartered at the time of the announcement will be allowed to continue until their charter expires.
Maybe the BSA leadership will think the Church (which is a huge supporter and has a high percentage of the scout units) will back down and begin to allow gay leaders, but they will be disappointed.
Many members will be tested by the Church's decision to withdraw from its more than 100-year association with the BSA. These members will see this decision as further evidence of the Church being intolerant and unaccepting. There will likely be many scout units organized and chartered through businesses and organizations run by members, who will look to attract the youth from the de-chartered Church units. Of course many of these units will have gay leaders.
It is also my opinion that these are only the beginning. These tests will initial the great sifting and separation of the wheat from the tares.
I think there are at least two other parts of the test.
One part consists of following the prophet. While this is applicable in the other parts, I feel that it is highly likely that a time will come when a call to gather will come from the First Presidency through the appropriate priesthood channels. It will not be a public announcement, meaning it won't be posted on the Church's website. But it won't be an an exclusive meeting. Most likely it will be at a meeting all adult members will be invited to. Maybe a regular sacrament meeting, but it could be a separate special meeting the members are invited to attend.
When the members are invited to gather, most likely conditions will be such that most will question the call. Maybe Utah will be recovering from a severe drought, maybe economic conditions will look like they are improving, or there could be other events that have transpired and generally conditions are looking more hopeful. The test will be if the Saints are following the Spirit and will heed to prophet's call to gather BEFORE things get really bad soon (probably within 3-6 months) after the call.
The other part of the test comprises all the trials and tribulations associated with the last days leading up to the Great Day of the Lord. How well will we endure? How true to our faith will we be?
------
News release of report
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-us-commission-on-civil-rights-releases-report-peaceful-coexistence-reconciling-nondiscrimination-principles-with-civil-liberties-300324252.html
Link to the actual report:
http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/Peaceful-Coexistence-09-07-16.PDF
Some other articles:
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/09/us-commission-civil-rights-religious-liberty-report/499874/
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865662223/In-our-opinion-Fairness-for-all-must-guide-protection-of-religious-liberty-nondiscrimination.html?pg=all
Comments
Post a Comment