Divine light delivers us from the enemy – Joseph Smith—History 1:16–17
Joseph Smith—History 1:16–17
16 …I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.17 It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!
There are so many powerful lessons that we can learn from Joseph’s first vision, where he saw God the Father and Jesus Christ and spoke with them face to face. Joseph Smith’s vision is paramount to us, and is the foundation of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. It restores the truth that was lost about the character of God the Father and Jesus Christ and that they are literally and in every aspect separate and distinct beings and that we can converse with them like one man conversed with another. This should be our object and aim to behold Christ face to face. Joseph Smith in the Lectures of Faith said this:
“Let us here observe, that after any portion of the human family are made acquainted with the important fact that there is a God, who has created and does uphold all things, the extent of their knowledge respecting his character and glory will depend upon their diligence and faithfulness in seeking after him, until, like Enoch, the brother of Jared, and Moses, they shall obtain faith in God, and power with him to behold him face to face.”
This fills my soul with unspeakable joy to know that we can and must seek after Christ until we obtain this great gift to see and converse with Him face to face.
These great prophets and those who have received this gift, did not arrive at this favor with God in an instant or by accident. It is a journey and a process of transformation, for we must be born of God.
On our personal journey of seeking Christ’s face, the enemy of our souls will fight with all his might to prohibit us from obtaining this great gift. Just like Joseph Smith, we, too, need deliverance from our enemy. This need for deliverance is what jumped out to me as I was studying the Come, Follow Me chapters for this week. Joseph gives us the key to this needed deliverance in the verse quoted above. Speaking of the light of God that descended gradually upon him, he said, “It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound.” Deliverance from darkness and evil comes through divine light.
Dieter F. Uchtdorf explains light and darkness so well, in his talk titled, “Bearers of Heavenly Light “
Whatever causes our spiritual ailments, they all have one thing in common: the absence of divine light.
Darkness reduces our ability to see clearly. It dims our vision of that which was at one time plain and clear. When we are in darkness, we are more likely to make poor choices because we cannot see dangers in our path. When we are in darkness, we are more likely to lose hope because we cannot see the peace and joy that await us if we just keep pressing forward.
Light, on the other hand, allows us to see things as they really are. It allows us to discern between truth and error, between the vital and the trivial. When we are in the light, we can make righteous choices based on true principles. When we are in the light, we have “a perfect brightness of hope” because we can see our mortal trials from an eternal perspective.Whatever causes our spiritual ailments, they all have one thing in common: the absence of divine light.
How do we invite more divine light into our lives? This is the question we should constantly ask ourselves. No matter where we are on our spiritual journey to behold the face of Christ, one thing remains constant, we need more and more divine light, until our Sacred Grove erupts with light and Jesus Christ steps through the veil.
Craig
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