As culture and even the Church move from an Exaltation focus to a grace-only focus, we remake God and Jesus into our own image. Into our own culture. But the opposite is true in the scriptures.
As we study Doctrine and Covenants this year, we can see in Section 1 that Jesus does not introduce Himself as a Teddy Bear Jesus. Instead, he is the Redeemer of the world, tethered Himself to truth and justice. That is, He is full of "Grace and Truth."
doctrine in covenants because as we're
studying that this year I just want to
show very clearly because usually now we
omit these things because we want to
show a very nice kind loving comforting
teddy bear Jesus uh I want to show some
of these things and it doesn't mean that
I'm trying to bring down Hellfire and
Damnation and and show you know some
hard judgmental that that's not the
point right the the point is that if we
only talk about nice
Jesus and nice God right then then we're
not getting the full picture of who he
is and then we do say things like oh why
are you bringing up these judgmental
issues
here um uh about God in the gospel
because you only want the nice things
you only want the
Comfort right and and so by opening up
with Doctrine covenants in section one
we see very clearly here that this is
not the case and and we get a very
different message from God from Jesus
here on what he wants us to know about
the last days and about the book of
Commandments or the doctrine Covenant
section one is the
introduction to uh the doctrine of
Covenant now this episode is brought to
you by scripture notes we're going to be
using scripture notes thoroughly here in
uh going through Doctrine and Covenant
section one on this and I love this
application I've used this for writing
my book I use this for my scripture
study and everything about it is better
than what you find with other
applications for example if I'm going to
go to the search function I can find so
many more things and get so many more
results than I do probably from your
favorite application when you are using
other applications you are limiting
yourself to what you're actually getting
in your search results another great
function of scripture notes is Daniel
which is the AI component to the
application I can put in here and you
can see as I'm doing this I'm going to
several different columns that I can
have going at the same time but I can
ask Daniel something very simple I might
say something like hey give me examples
of the warning voice of God in the
doctrine and Covenant and this is what I
get right the Doctrine and Covenants
contains several instances where the
Lord warns individuals or groups as part
of his guidance and Revelations here are
a few examples and then I can run
through all of this imagine using that
imagine how that changes your study
warnings to the early Saints there's
Doctrine covenants 1 1-4 we're going to
go through some of that and a summary of
several different references throughout
about the Doctrine and Covenants that
are pertinent to what I'm talking about
here today but if you haven't tried out
scripture notes you need to try it out
go to scripture notes.com scripture
notes.com to see what I'm talking about
all right now going into section one
then again the introduction here to the
Doctrine and Covenants I learned some
things about what the real message of
the doctrine covenants is going to be
and it is not teddy bear Jesus let me
say something else here about Teddy Bear
Jesus all right
is a couple of points that I think are
very important number one our culture
right now broadly is trying to get rid
of
judgment and when you get rid of
judgment judgment is tied directly to
our works and to our character and so
all of the doctrine of exaltation is
being
removed as we move toward a teddy bear
Jesus the idea of you becoming and
improving your character is removed
right there there are two sides of the
coin to grace and works or Grace and
judgment right judgment is tied directly
to works and if I go through and I try
to reduce judgment I don't want to hear
anything about being judged I don't want
to hear about God judging then what I do
is I actually reduce his grace and his
Mercy the entire atoning sacrifice is
there for
judgment it allows us to repent which is
nothing more than changing our
character improving ourselves
becoming and if I reduce the value of
the Judgment I reduce the value of the
atonement I reduce the value of Grace
there is a reason why there was an
atoning sacrifice it's because of
judgment you can't lift one up and drop
the other one down it doesn't work like
that you can't lift up grace and mercy
and love and and reduce judgment it
doesn't work it's
corruption and it's exactly what Nephi
talks about in an apostasy what happens
in an
apostasy so anyway back to section one
here all right so let's go through some
of this I've just highlighted some of
this here in scripture
notes I want you to listen to the tone
of the voice it's not mean it is warning
judgment is warning here right for
verily the V this is verse two for
verily the voice of the Lord is unto all
men and there is none to escape I want
to be very clear right a loving God
wants to be very clear to you and is
going to warn
you and there is no eye that shall not
see neither ear that shall not hear
neither heart heart that shall not be
penetrated okay no heart all our hearts
are going to be penetrated to one degree
or another and the Rebellion shall be
pierced with much
sorrow and their iniquity shall be
spoken upon the housetops and their
secret acts shall be
revealed okay this is a voice that is
that we need to hear you want truth you
want an
anchor teddy bear Jesus does not provide
that
keep going here and the voice of
warning shall be unto all people by the
mouths of my disciples whom I have
chosen in these last
days okay wherefore fear and tremble you
should fear and tremble right about
thinking about not preparing
yourself thinking about your exaltation
your
salvation oh ye people for what I the
Lord have decreed in them shall be
fulfilled unto the day when the Lord
shall come to his recompense unto every
man according to his
work right that's judgment that's how do
you use your agency this is very
different from an Evangelical type of a
a gospel which is not one of works at
all we believe in Works what do what do
we mean by works we're really talking
about repentance and relationship with
God even the ordinances in the temple
are not it's not the ordinance path
right it's the Covenant path it has to
do with how are we building our
relationship with God and and and I use
this example with uh Teddy bird Jesus
it's like we are moving more and more
into a culture even within the Church of
what am I getting out of it right what
what are you giving to me the me
generation that you can even bring this
up with the love of God it is how does
God love me I want God to love me I want
to feel his love okay that's important
but in a vacuum it's not enough I need
to know that at first I need to have
that anchor that is a
truth but that's not all there is the
the restoration teaches us that we are a
a The Plan of Salvation is about
participation it's about who we're
becoming we are not observers in the
plan we are participants in the plan
even going back to the premortal world
in the council in heaven we are a part
of that in the war in heaven so our
works matter our repentance matters our
Character Matters who we are becoming
matters every man according to his work
and measure to every man according to
the measure which he has measured to his
fellow
man so I would say that these you
basically you've got the first two uh
Commandments here right love God God
with all your heart might mind and
strength and love your neighbor those
things matter ver verse 13 and the anger
of the Lord remember this is the intro
to the doctrine of covenants he's
setting the stage for the revelations of
the last
days and the anger of the Lord is
kindled and his sword is bathed in
heaven and it shall fall upon the
inhabitants of the
Earth right that is a sword of truth we
get another phrase often times we get in
uh The Book of Mormon and in the New
Testament which is and he is full of
grace and
truth those are the two sides of the
coin you can't just be full of grace and
just a little bit of Truth a little bit
of judgment a little bit of order right
that doesn't work that's what we're
moving toward he is full of grace and he
is full of Truth both and the arm of the
Lord shall be revealed and the day
cometh that they who will not hear the
voice of the Lord neither the voice of
his servants neither give heed to the
words of the prophets and apostles
shall be cut off from among the people
all right yeah
consequences consequences for they have
strayed from my in ordinances and have
broken M Everlasting Covenant this is
this is the whole reason for the
restoration and then we get this and
this is very interesting about Teddy be
Jesus here in verse 16 they seek not the
Lord to establish his righteousness but
every man walketh in his own way and
after the image of his own God
that is Teddy Bear
Jesus a Jesus that does not care what
you do a Jesus that loves you no matter
what and doesn't have expectations of
you we hear that more and more about how
bad expectations
are right whose image is in the likeness
of the world right we that's the
philosophies of men especially in the
west right now where we
live Jesus becomes molded into what the
philosophies of men want him to be this
is what has happened in every
apostasy this is what happened in the
deuteronomic reforms in the Old
Testament that culminated in the
destruction of Jerusalem and the Exile
of the
leites they got rid of the Son of God
completely as part of as part of what
God is right they got rid of the son of
God
whose image is in the likeness of the
world and whose substance is that of an
idol which waxeth old and Shall Perish
in Babylon even Babylon the great which
shall fall wherefore verse 17 I the Lord
knowing the Calamity which should come
upon the inhabitants of the
Earth this is a clear understanding I
think gives us an understanding of the
of the nature of God right it it is God
cannot
change God can't say well I love you so
much that I'm not going to impose these
consequences on
you see that doesn't
work because if you say that then then
you're saying God isn't
just is God
just now he so loved the world that he
gave his only begotten son that those
who believe in him shall not perish
right it it is those that are going to
rely on the atoning sacrifice to change
their
character to change who they
are that is where the love comes from
that is how he loves us that is what
he's able to do that is the plan but we
have to change our
character and of course that atoning
sacrifice based on our sins that only
counts for those that are repenting of
those sins those that are changing
that's the love of God the love of God
which is founded on
truth and consequence here in verse 27
and in as much as they sinned they might
be chastened that they might repent so
the chastening even right the harsh
things of God are still out of
love that they might repent that they
might change their character that they
might become
it's not fire and Damnation and Hell
Fire and
Damnation as as we've seen in a lot of
Christianity about judgment and about
repentance that's not what it means
finishing up here toward the end of the
chapter verse 31 for I the Lord cannot
look upon sin with the least degree of
allowance again he can't do it no
unclean thing can enter the kingdom of
God period and he can't change that law
or he ceases to be God we want that
anchor we want that truth we want to
know those things we don't want to sweep
them under the
rug and and create a teddy bear Jesus
that is all about my comfort and the
bathing of God's love in with for us
that we receive and not talk about well
how are you loving God how are you
following the great two
Commandments how do you show your love
for God how do you show your love for
your fellow man it's two sides of the
coin the relationship that we have with
with God is a covenant relationship and
it's similar to marriage as he says
right Jesus is the bridegroom and in the
church or members of the church are the
bride it's a
relationship and i' I've been married
for 36 years I mean if all I'm looking
for is how much do you love me
honey right how much do you love me
what kind of a relationship is that and
that is the difference with the
restoration we understand or should
understand that on our end we have a
part to
play and if we're going to build a
relationship through covenants and
actions and
becoming so that we can really know God
not just intellectually but through a
relationship then we have to reciprocate
it's not what have you done for me
lately
God that doesn't
work it's a
relationship two sides of the
coin all right for I the Lord cannot
look upon sin with the least degree of
allowance nevertheless he that
repents right the atoning sacrifice is
there for us and does the Commandments
of the Lord shall be forgiven there's a
way
and he that repents not from him shall
be taken even the light which he has
received it's not about affirmation it's
not about okay everything's fine here's
a couple Stripes I'm going to give you
and a couple slaps on the wrist and
everything is fine and all is well in
Zion somebody else teaches that
philosophy that
process for my spirit shall not always
strive with man sayith the Lord Lord of
hosts for I am no respector of persons
in verse 35 and will that all men shall
know that the day speedily cometh the
hour is not yet but is now at hand when
peace shall be taken from the
earth right it's because of the hearts
of men right and the devil shall have
power over his own
dominion verse 38 to finalize this what
I the Lord have spoken I have spoken and
I excuse not myself
in other words you might hear this as
being harsh it's it's not that it's
harsh primarily it it's that it's
true and the love of God is about giving
us a pathway through that
truth not changing the truth and the
order and the laws of God so so that we
feel better about ourselves
and though the heavens and the Earth
shall pass away my word shall not pass
away but shall be F all fulfilled
whether by my own voice or by my voice
the voice of the Ser my servants it is
the same it's something we've heard a
lot about so just something quick on
this on Doctrine covenants as we look at
studying this book for the rest of the
Year this is not this is it's not teddy
bear
Jesus I I think this is a very dangerous
thing for that I'm seeing more and more
online and within the culture of the
church in Sunday school and in in in
many of the different classes that we go
to yes we need to know that God loves us
but if that's all we focus
on we have lost everything about the
restoration and the adversary
wins we have an amazing gospel an
amazing knowledge should have an
understanding and knowledge of of the
restoration and and the doctrine of
exalt
and the plain and precious things which
have been given back to us in the last
days the adversary wants to take those
plain and precious things and bury them
and have you bury them teddy bear Jesus
wants you to bury
them so as we think about God and who he
is let's try not to look at what the
fads are and the place that we're at in
the world in our culture and with the
philosophies of men let's not be like
the children of Israel who took God as
essentially and brought him down from
sin and and molten a golden calf in
their own image so to speak because they
didn't want to go with Moses up on the
hill on on the mountain they didn't want
to ascend they didn't want to
become I think it's important for us to
understand what the philosophies are out
there understand the contrast between
those philosophies and the Gospel of
Jesus Christ and to be aware of this
otherwise we are like the frog in the
warm water that just continues to get
hotter and hotter and we are unaware of
what is
happening thanks for listening
