D&C 64:12-20

64:12-20 - From the fault finding of others towards JS, the Lord recognizes that he isn’t perfect and commands all to forgive each other, which I guess implies, in this context, to forgive JS his faults, but “him that repenteth not on his sins, and confesseth them not, ye shall bring before the church.” I think that the idea of “repenteth not” here can seem like it’s talking about those who have been the aggressor, or the person who caused the other person to need to repent, but I think that what the Lord is saying is that he who does not forgive should be brought before the church. It seems that there’s going to be a lot of this in the future, lots of people who find fault personally with Joseph Smith and leave the church because of it, and that includes our time now as well. I’ve had many friends leave the church because of something they read on the internet about him, and it’s heart breaking to be sure. The Lord rebukes Ezra Booth and Isaac Morley because “they sought evil in their hearts, and I, the Lord, withheld my Spirit.” We know the background with Ezra Booth, but apparently the issue with Isaac Morley came because he was commanded of the Lord to sell his farm in Kirtland and “consecrate the money from the sale to the Church as part of the law of consecration.” He did not do this and was at odds with God but “nevertheless I have forgiven my servant Isaac Morley” because he repented and did sell his farm. DJR gives some interesting insight commenting that “he seems to have been sorely tempted to keep the farm and the personal wealth it provided for him and his family. At first, he refused to sell but quickly rethought the issue and determined to be obedient and sell, strengthening his testimony by obedience during a moment of temptation. With the spiritual momentum gained by this act of obedience, he gained strength to endure faithfully for the rest of his life.” I think that this is an excellent example that the Lord knows each and every one of us individually, and knows what lessons we need to learn to grow spiritually. He knew that the command to sell the farm for Isaac Morley would be difficult and therefore, if obeyed, he would be spiritually strengthened and it looks like that’s exactly what happened. Just like perhaps with someone else, the trial would be to keep his farm and not go to Zion like he wanted to. Interestingly, even though Isaac Morley was commanded to sell his farm, the Lord requires that “I will not that my servant Frederick G. Williams should sell his farm, for I, the Lord, will retain a strong hold in the land of Kirtland, for the space of five years, in the which I will not overthrow the wicked, that thereby I may save some.” DJR again offers excellent insight, saying, “If we use our imagination, we might hear some members gossiping and complaining because Isaac Morley was told by the Prophet to sell his farm, whereas Frederick G. Williams (an extra close friend of the Prophet and physician to Joseph and Emma and their family) was told to keep his farm. Such chatter is folly! From what you know, you can readily see that such criticism is foolish and shows lack of faith in the Lord’s prophet. But how many situations do we run into where we do not have the understanding and insights that we have here? For example, one bishop may handle a seemingly similar situation completely differently than another bishop. This is just a reminder to have faith in the inspiration of the Lord to His leaders, and to avoid gossip and criticism.” I think that it’s timely for this to come up at this time, especially with what I shared yesterday about my deep mistrust and men in leadership positions. I had a friend, my best friend, send me a link to an article that described how she was feeling. Reading the story that this woman shared about why she left the church was like reading my own story, only 17 years ago. I’ve been where this woman is, and it’s painful, and it’s real. My own story is one of running away from leadership until I knew in my heart that I was strong enough to never leave again if I faced a similar situation, and I pray that I am, but also pray that I don’t have to find out. My heart aches for the many women who have been dismissed, ignored, mistreated, and even abused by those who they were to trust in leadership positions. I guess that question is, if the Lord knows us each individually, knows what we need to experience in order to grow closer to him, why does he allows us to be mistreated in this manner? I know that me personally, I am who I am, and am able to stand where I do because I know who Jesus Christ is, even if it’s just in a rudimentary manner. I know who he is and I know who I am to him, and that’s what roots my testimony now, that’s the lens through which I filter everything. But how did that come? It came as a gift, but only after I demonstrated my own desire to know him. I didn’t do anything great or any grand gesture or anything like that, but I upped my efforts and when the time was right, he revealed that knowledge to me, and it changed who I was. So the Lord allows his daughters to feel violated and vulnerable because we live in a fallen world, but his solution is complete healing by growing closer to him. He cries when he cry, he feels alone when we do, he feel vulnerable and scared and devastated just the same way that we do. I’m going to have to think about this for a while.