“While the bridegroom
tarried, they all slumbered and slept” Matthew 25:5. Who
wants to be sleeping when He comes? Who will miss the wedding? What is the
difference between the wise and foolish ones? What does it look like to be
sleeping? What does it look like to be awake?
One of the most successful
means the adversary uses to keep us in a state of slumber is to prevent us from
seeing the obvious. Satan wants our eyes to be blind and shut. He wants our
ears to be closed and deaf. The adversary damns another soul each time he
manages to obscure truth in plain sight and prevent one from awakening to the
awful situation in which we find ourselves.
“The devil laugheth, and his angels rejoice, because of the slain
of the fair sons and daughters of my people; and it is because of their
iniquity and abominations that they are fallen!” 3 Nephi 9:2.
He glories in trickery and deception. He proclaims, “All is well in Zion; yea,
Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth
their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down
to hell” 2
Nephi 28:21.
The evil spirit seeks to
cover the truth and hide the fact that “All is NOT well in Zion.” If he
succeeds and we believe his lies, his deadly noose tightens and the chains of
hell are wrapped around us. If he can keep us entertained or lulled in the deep
sleep until the night cometh, he can forestall us from recognizing our awful
situation. He then seals us his and the chains of hell hold us captive.
“For behold, if ye have
procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have
become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal
you his; therefore, the Spirit of the Lord hath
withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over
you; and this is the final state of the wicked” Alma 34:35.
Prophets, through all
generations of time sent from the presence of God, expose Satan’s deception and
deceit. They declare the word of God with confidence and power. True messengers
of Christ proclaim the call of repentance to the children of men. Repent!
Change your course! Turn around and face God! Follow Christ, not me! He’s the
only One who can save you! Helaman 5:9
Repentance is critical in
the journey to salvation. Without it, we will be damned. That’s probably
the main reason repentance is the central message of the scriptures and the
word of God delivered through prophets.
When a clear and direct
message of truth and repentance is declared to a wicked and idolatrous people,
it usually pushes many painful buttons, offends pride, and often threatens the
false traditions of the fathers. “The guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for
it cutteth them to the very center.” 1 Nephi 16:2
“The words of truth are hard against all uncleanness; but the
righteous fear them not, for they love the truth and are not shaken” 2 Nephi 9:40.
Truth that contradicts traditions of men can turn life upside down, inside out,
and backwards. To some, truth can be quite irritating, infuriating, and
frightening.
Hugh Nibley observed and
pointed out that there is nothing quite as annoying as being awakened out of a
deep sleep (Last Call: An Apocalyptic Warning from the Book of Mormon, p. 23).
I suppose very few really appreciate being disturbed in slumber and being
called to repentance. Hardly anyone enjoys hearing about the awful situation
one is in and the road to hell one is actively following.
It’s not fun to discover
bona-fide religious leaders acting as wolves in sheep’s clothing Matthew 7:15.
It can be very disturbing to realize my misconceptions and errors. It may be
unsettling to become aware that I have practiced idolatry for my entire life,
trusted in men more than God, and entertained the false belief that I am saved
by simply belonging to a church bearing the name of Christ. 3 Nephi 27:8
It can be distressing to
become conscious and understand that when I follow other men and trust in them
for salvation, I merit no more than a telestial reward and glory D&C76:98-100. It
can be horrifying to be alerted to and made aware of eternal facts, truths, and
realities. It can be seriously shocking and sickening to my soul to find out I
have “received not the gospel,
neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the everlasting
covenant” D&C
76:101, when all along I assumed I had. It’s dreadful to realize I have
only sacrificed my life for foolish and worthless returns. It’s alarming to
discover I was climbing the wrong ladder that leads to nowhere.
How devastating it would be
to comprehend that I cannot be gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto
the church of the Firstborn, and received into the cloud. D&C
76:102. How terrible to be compared to liars, sorcerers, adulterers,
whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie. D&C
76:103
What an awful situation to
suffer the wrath of God on earth, suffer the vengeance of eternal fire, and be
cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of
times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall
have perfected his work. D&C
76:104-106
Being unconscious sometimes
seems to be less stressful, less demanding, and much easier, at least for now, than
facing the truth, accepting God’s words at face value, and making the necessary
adjustments and corrections needed to repent and return unto God. When it
comes right down to it, deep sleep and slumber can be very pleasant until we
awaken and realize the awful situation we face here.
Jacob declared, “O my
brethren, hearken unto my words; arouse the faculties of your souls; shake
yourselves that ye may awake from the slumber of
death; and loose yourselves from the pains of hell that ye may not become
angels to the devil, to be cast into that lake of fire and brimstone which is
the second death” Jacob 3:11.
Mormon describes the
reaction of individuals who come into the presence of God without having been
redeemed from the fall. Any person who comes into God’s presence in their
fallen state of filthiness and nakedness would rather be in hell than to dwell
with a holy and just God. Mormon 9:4-5
Speaking to his son, Alma
the younger said, “Therefore, O my son, whosoever will come may come and partake of the waters of life freely; and whosoever will not come the same is
not compelled to come; but in the last day it
shall be restored unto him according to his deeds” Alma 42:27.
To obtain the waters of
life, all you have to do is come. No one is compelled to come, just those who
want to. It’s an open offer to all and it’s free with no strings attached. No
one is forced, manipulated, or controlled. All can think, believe, and do what
they want. It is absolutely voluntary and everyone has the choice to accept it
or reject it.
However, there is personal
responsibility. We will be held accountable for our individual choices. If the
offer of God is discarded or ignored, we will receive the connected and
undeniable consequences. The offer is available to all, we can choose to be
awake and claim it or to sleep and lose it, but we each stand accountable for
our deeds.
“O that ye would awake;
awake from a deep sleep,
yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off
the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the
children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of
misery and woe” 2 Nephi 1:13.
“And it came to pass that
when Jesus had ended these sayings he said unto his disciples: Enter ye in at
the strait gate; for strait is the gate, and narrow is the way that leads to
life, and few there be that find it; but wide is the gate, and broad the way
which leads to death, and many there be that travel therein, until the night cometh, wherein no
man can work” 3 Nephi 27:33.
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