In 1974, the famous physicist Richard Feynman, passionately argued for "scientific integrity," and that science should always be about the discovery of truth, regardless of the consequences. 

"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool...

"...So I have just one wish for you--the good luck to be somewhere where you are free to maintain the kind of integrity I have described, and where you do not feel forced by a need to maintain your position in the organization, or financial support, or so on, to lose your integrity. May you have that freedom." — Physicist Richard Feynman, Nobel Laureate, Caltech commencement address, 1974

The Lord gave Joseph these parallels as: "your position in the organization" equals "the honors of men," and "financial support" equals "the things of this world." If the forest represents integrity, each tree is a decision made, with consequences. Feynman presents a fine and noble view of the forest, while today, it's slash-and-burn clear-cutting for all you can get. Integrity has been buried under the rubble of "honors" and "things."

The Spirit attending Feynman's remarks is uplifting and good, even light and truth. What passes for science today is based on the "honors" and "things" Feynman warned against, and with a great deal of blatant propaganda replacing honest results. There is a spirit of darkness about it.

Today, so-called "experts," in a variety of scientific fields, have succumbed to the evil and seductive siren-song of "things" and "honors" to increase their professional stature and pocketbooks. The lies they tell and the damage they do are inconsequential to them and their "seared consciences."

"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron..." (RE 1 Tim 1:10; LDS 1 Tim 4:1-2)

"Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Wo unto the wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight!" (RE 2Ne 8:15-16; LDS 2Ne 15:20-21)

Dr. Joseph Mercola pretty well sums up the problem in the field of crony medical science but his remark is applicable throughout the sciences.

"Truly, what we’re watching is the active destruction of basic medical science in a surreal dystopian nightmare." (Dr. Joseph Mercola, Vaccine Makers Destroy Covid Vaccine Safety Studies, https://www.lewrockwell.com/2021/04/joseph-mercola/vaccine-makers-destroy-covid-vaccine-safety-studies/)

The lesson is clear. Authority ought to be relentlessly questioned and challenged and never taken at face value. This is especially true where there has been an accumulation of "things" and "honors." When this lesson is ignored, we allow ourselves to be fooled by the darkness that has overtaken many, so-called experts. It appears that the "lofty" are the easiest to fool. (See RE Jacob.3:22; LDS Jacob 5:48)

While the fault is theirs for the trying, it is also ours for our blindness and froward ignorance of the "gross darkness" increasingly covering the earth. We, simply, ignore evil and often ridicule the idea of its existence and influence. If our ingrained traditions are questioned, a spirit of darkness hides dangerous lighthouses, and we sail onward, happily, to destruction.

Spirit Sources

There is a fundamental difference between The Spirit of God, and any other affecting spirit. That fundamental difference, of course, lies in the source of the spirit.

"Behold, there are save two churches only: the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the Devil." (RE 1Ne 3:27; LDS 1 Ne 14:10)

Therefore, there are only two sources of spirit. The true Spirit emanates light and truth from God, others are counterfeit. This is an important concept because there are many exquisite counterfeits which mislead and deflect from truth. The modern science of persuasion can cloud the senses with convincing arguments. We need an accurate measuring tool, like a ruler measuring an object. Our individual spirits have the ability to measure light and truth, accurately. How is this done?

Our Lord was explicit in His explanation to the Nephites at Bountiful. This is where we begin:

"And this is my doctrine, and it is the doctrine which the Father hath given unto me; and I bear record of the Father, and the Father beareth record of me, and the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me.

"And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God. And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned.”

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and I bear record of it from the Father; and whoso believeth in me believeth in the Father also; and unto him will the Father bear record of me, for he will visit him with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

"And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one." (LDS 3Ne 11:32-36; RE 3Ne 5:9)

Does this sound like our Lord is defensive about explaining Himself? I have written in a post titled, "Evidence," about His willingness to present all we need to be convinced of His truthfulness. Some twenty-five hundred believers, at Bountiful, were presented with the Lord’s evidence of what He had just accomplished. And they didn't even have to ask. Only evil becomes defensive by a challenge. Our Lord does not upbraid, but simply shows us the answer, and if we are not clouded by the darkness of our false traditions and have become childlike in our thirst for truth, we will clearly see the truth and light He offers.

On Being One

To gain a personal relationship with God, we understand the requirements of belief in Christ, repentance, and baptism. But why the emphasis on being one? That question provides substance for deep ponder and humble prayer for understanding. Many scriptures reference this doctrine, including our Lord’s intercessory prayer, (from which we will quote later), as He and His disciples entered Gethsemane. However, none are as succinct as this:

"I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine." (RE T&C 22:7; LDS D&C 38:27)

But how, exactly, are we to be one with each other and with God? We look for that answer in the one, overarching, theme of all creation. Moses wanted to know, as do we.

"For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." (RE Gen 1:7; LDS Moses 1:39)

Immortality for mankind is beyond our ability to accomplish but our Savior has completed that task. If we are one with God, then we are one in the persuasion of man to salvation and eternal life. We have a direct hand in that task by yoking ourselves with those who suffer. We relieve their burden, as we teach truth. This is the core principle of becoming one with God, and one another. No contention. No envy. No strife. No condemnation. Only loving service, unfeigned, among equals. 

King Benjamin, one of the great examples of true and righteous rulership, made very clear the fact that as we serve others, we serve God. (RE Mos 1:8; LDS Mos 2:17) And, as we serve God, we become one with the "...supreme power over all things..."

"And he being the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, and having overcome, received a fullness of the glory of the Father — possessing the same mind with the Father, which mind is the holy spirit that bears record of the Father and the Son, and these three are one, or in other words, these three constitute the great matchless, governing, and supreme power over all things, by whom all things were created and made that were created and made. And these three constitute the Godhead and are one..." (LoF 5:2)

And, then, to clarify the nature of the "holy spirit" the Lord gave this to Moses:

"Therefore it is given to abide in you; the record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment." (RE Gen 4:9; LDS Moses 6:59-61)

Some say this smacks of a Protestant-influenced doctrine where 3 equals 1 while simultaneously 1 equals 3. Oh, the wonder of the mystery! No mystery. These are two personages, the Father and the Son, along with a Spirit somewhere far beyond string theory as a creation-wide communications and power grid, a universally accessible eternal database of all truth, and much more. 

These two personages and spirit are three distinct and separate entities. The trick is, to be a separate being, and still get along with all the other separate beings. We seem to have trouble with that. Learning to treat others with Justice is what we're here to accomplish. We know well how to beg for mercy when we lazily fall short. Entrance to Zion requires our dealing justly with one another and when the rare occasion arises, mercy is freely given. This is Godly behavior. To be one with God, our conduct, and the desires of our heart, must be as close to His as possible; always moving in His direction. 

These separate entities of the Godhead are one in their ability to think and communicate in ways outside the bounds of mortality and our comprehension. Fortunately, our Lord provided a clue at Bountiful:

"And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things." (LDS 3Ne 11:37; RE 3Ne 5:9)

Childish or Child-Like?

What? Why would I ever want to become childish? 

You wouldn't. But there is a universe of difference between being childish and child-like. A child is a voracious knowledge sponge. We get upset when they keep asking "why," all the time. Instead of getting upset, why don't we just tell them? Isn't that exactly what God does? The disciple James made that clear and Joseph's response began the Restoration in the last days of this mortal world. (See RE NC Ep. Jacob 1:2; LDS James 1:5)

A child is meek, meaning willing, and even excited to be taught. A knowledge sponge, indeed! However, the Lord can't teach us if we are froward. Is your relationship with Christ more important than your mortal perception of being right? 

Have some false traditions become so intertwined with your culture, that they have become permanent impediments to spiritual growth and discernment? Is your paradigm, therefore, so hardened and your course so set, that legitimate lighthouses are ignored? A simple child just wants the truth, no matter what the social, or organizational, cost. Our Savior can work nicely with that. 

This is our beginning point. This is the state in which we arrived in mortality.  We began our mortal experience as humble beings, dependent on those more knowledgeable. We were meek, and ready to learn. Our life depended on it.

Gradually, we lost our paradisiacal glory and state of innocence as we became accountable. All face this great, and necessary, mortal challenge. Our task compels us to return to childlike innocence in the presence of the Lord. Not childish, foolish, and vain, but able to easily engage with our Lord without guile and with a soft and willing heart.

Having passed our early years, then, we have forgotten all. We either live by our faith in Christ, or we ride the train to destruction. It is telling, that we have relegated Joseph Smith's Lectures on Faith to the dustbin of history. Arguably, the most important doctrine of the Restoration is contained in that, largely, rejected work. How can we learn what the Lord has to teach, if we discard the textbook He provides through His prophet? Or have we demoted Joseph Smith?

Is it any wonder that so many have lost the tools of faith and spiritual discernment? How do we then know which spirits are from God? What can we use as a measuring tool?

Returning to our previously cited scripture, we find a piece of the answer:

"...whoso believeth in me believeth in the Father also; and unto him will the Father bear record of me, for he will visit him with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

"And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one."

Three separate and distinct entities, but one mind, which our Lord extends to all who will come. His prayer as they entered Gethsemane, makes that clear. Referring to His gathered Disciples:

"Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;

"That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

"And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one..." (RE John 9:21; LDS John 17:20-22)

The Holy Spirit is a Gift of the Fall

Our mortality is a product of the fall of Adam and Eve from the Garden. The results of their fall provides an environment of challenges where progression and growth are possible. To begin at the beginning we have to begin there. Far from being fodder only for adult Sunday School lessons, our Lord commanded that we teach our children about the fall by transgression and death. Children, often, can handle and absorb truth better than adults. Why are our children’s lessons dumbed down to the point of uselessness?

"Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your children, saying:

"That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin..." (RE Gen 4:9; LDS Moses 6:58-59)

We have been born here by water, blood, and spirit and must be born again by water and Spirit and cleansed by the Savior’s blood so that we might:

"...enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory;

"For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified;

"Therefore it is given to abide in you; the record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment." (RE Gen 4:9; LDS Moses 6:59-61)

There is our measuring stick: "...that which knoweth all things..."

We have well established the Spirit of God, or Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost, as supreme to all other spirits or entities which may present themselves but are not of God. This gives us a valuable advantage if we are true and faithful to our Lord.

Perhaps the most difficult counterfeit is an emotional manipulation we mistake for genuine revelation. This has become common during my lifetime, and is especially true as the earth is increasingly covered by darkness. ("I felt the spirit" is a frequently heard description.) If your emotions well up, and even tears come as a result of an experience, but you have not received an increase of specific light and truth, (aka knowledge), then you may have faced a counterfeit revelation.

I watch certain movies or listen to particular pieces of music precisely because my emotions will be moved. I know that. I count on it. I enjoy feeling good, pure emotions generated by beauty. But they are simply a physical response to emotional input, nothing more. Satan understands and frequently uses this tool—especially in church meetings where many will testify to having “felt” the same “spirit.” 

God is not frivolous with us. He does not monkey with our emotions for the fun of it. Satan does that. But we have been programmed to accept emotions, alone, as legitimate evidence of revelation from God.

In addition to the counterfeits, there are legitimate revelations from God that we misinterpret because the knowledge in the revelation goes against the traditions we emotionally hold dear, but that are false. 

As I have written in my series called "The Question," God may present a choice in the form of a question. The answer will depend on your willingness to receive truth without regard for consequences, or past traditions taught by institutions. 

The question in my series has come to me and others I personally know. It is a simple question, however fraught with emotion. The question asks, "Why do you allow the sins and weaknesses of men to determine your eternal salvation?"

If you have a deep, emotional reliance on an institution, your answer will maintain that reliance. If, however, your reliance is on God alone, you might be willing to face institutional flaws that keep you from a closer relationship with God, and being one with them. This is especially true when the flaws are exposed by those outside the institutional hierarchy. Such are labeled apostates.

Time To Make A Choice

In March of 2017, in a post titled, “Time To Make A Choice” I asked the following:

In the economy of God, might He have specifically chosen, and prepared, a young man for the job of restoration precisely because the young man was an unlikely messenger? Was removing all worldly influences from the decision part of God’s qualifying plan? How many other “unlikely messengers” have we ignored, or even ridiculed because they did not meet our mortal institutional requirements? How many times have we ignored the influence of the Spirit because we value more the things of this world and the honors or men?

Through Jeremiah we learn, specifically, what the Lord had to say about institution hierarchies and their tendencies to go astray. This has happened to the House of Judah and the House of Israel which two families cover the history of the old world and the new.

For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the Lord. They have belied the Lord, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine: And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them. (RE Jer. 3:5; LDS Jer. 5:11-13)

Established institutions tend toward reliance on the “things of this world” and the “honors of men” as the Lord warned. As they move further from the Lord’s influence, they gain confidence in their own abilities and reject the Lord’s warnings.

An Ominous Alarm

“...behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith.” (RE Jer. 8:19 ; LDS Jer. 23:30-31)

How are we taught by the self-professed prophets of our day? They endlessly quote from one another’s talks and writings and then declare them to be the very words of the Lord. Jeremiah and all the genuine prophets called by the Lord made their callings known in detail and in writing. Where are the similar original declarations by our modern “prophets?” There are none since Joseph Smith. 

Is our allegiance to God or to an institution? If to God, then we should not have difficulty with honest analysis of the institution. If to an institution, and that institution has strayed into the quicksands of “things” and “honors,” and declares that a personal relationship with Christ is a tool of the Devil, our emotional attachments will lead us away from God and the discernment of what He has to tell us.

The only defense offered by institutions is to label everyone else as false. They are never willing to shine the light of honest analysis on themselves. Jeremiah would not be surprised. He heard it all before. 

Even though all true prophets declared the circumstances of their personal prophetic callings by God, we are told by the institution that such declarations are not to be written today.

"While some early apostles and other members of the church have had the sublime spiritual experience of seeing the Savior and some have made a public record of this, in the circumstances of today we are counseled not to speak of our most sacred spiritual experiences." (Dallin H. Oaks, Boise Idaho, June 21, 2015) 

And who, exactly, gave that counsel? At least, Bro. Oaks, tell us that you’ve had an audience with Christ, as all true prophets have, to justify our attention to your words. Oh, you won’t even do that? I see. That doesn’t say much for your authority since God has always counseled His prophets to declare their communion with Him.

"...I have commanded you to organize yourselves, even to print my words, the fulness of my scriptures, the revelations which I have given unto you, and which I shall, hereafter, from time to time give unto you..." (RE T&C 105:13; LDS D&C 104:58)

Our Savior, in administering this earth, calls prophets to deliver a message. But He has never said His visits would only be to those prophets. 

Christ made this point abundantly clear:

“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” John 14:23

Joseph Smith taught:

The other Comforter spoken of is a subject of great interest, and perhaps understood by few of this generation. After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue5 to humble himself before God,6 hungering and thirsting after righteousness,7 and living by every word of God,8 and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted.9 When the Lord has thoroughly proved him,10 and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure,11 then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter,12 which the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses.13

Note the 16, 17, 18, 21, 23 verses:

“16. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever;

“17. Even the Spirit of Truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

“18. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. * *

“21. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

“23. If a man love me, he will keep my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”14

Now what is this other Comforter? It is no more nor less than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself; and this is the sum and substance of the whole matter;15 that when any man obtains this last Comforter, he will have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend him, or appear unto him16 from time to time,17 and even He will manifest the Father unto him,18 and they will take up their abode with him,19 and the visions of the heavens will be opened20 unto him, and the Lord will teach him face to face,21 and he may have a perfect knowledge of the mysteries22 of the Kingdom of God..." (TPJS, Pg. 150-151)

Footnotes:
Pg. 150
5. John 8:31; D&C 93:1.
6. 2 Chr. 34:27; Mosiah 4:10;
Alma 13:13; D&C 20:37.
7. Matt. 5:6.
8. Matt. 4:4.
9. D&C 112:3.
10. Deut. 13:3; D&C 98:14;
D&C 124:55; Abr. 3:25.
11. 2 Pet. 1:10.
12. D&C 88:3-5.
13. John 14:12-27.
14. John 14:16-18,21,23.

Pg. 151
15. Eccl. 12:13; D&C 128:11;
JS-H 1:50.
16. Rev. 3:20.
17. Jacob 7:5.
18. Matt. 11:27.
19. Matt. 11:27; John 14:23;
D&C 130:1-3.
20. Ezek. 1:1; D&C 76:14,89;
D&C 110:11,13; Moses
6:42.
21. Gen. 32:30; Ex. 33:11;
Ether 12:39; Moses 7:4.
22. Jacob 4:12; Ether 3:20;
D&C 84:19.

Resonating in the frequencies of Heaven by the desires of our hearts, both individually and collectively, and by our behavior, the possibility of a visit from our Savior, however humbling that may be, becomes a very real possibility. This, according to the words from His own mouth. And, the idea is securely reinforced by the Prophet Joseph who had the experience more than once.

Resonating, or being in tune with the Spirit of God, is the beginning of being one with God. Spirit connects with the mind of God and spiritual sight extends outside the mortal matrix. What, to others, looks like chaos, you see as theater in which the wicked fight among the wicked. You begin to see purpose. You do not fear. Your faith is secure that your next step in the dark will be guided. And you find someone’s burden to ease.

And listen. Always listen. Always be ready. "Pray always, that ye may not faint, until I come. Behold, and lo, I will come quickly, and receive you unto myself. Amen." (RE T&C 86:30; LDS D&C 88:126)

Study, Ask, Burn

Keep in mind that emotion may absolutely be a part of revelation but it is not the delivery vehicle nor the substance. As the Lord told Oliver Cowdrey:

"...you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right." (RE JSH 13:26; LDS D&C 9:8)

Study, do the work. Ask. He’ll answer with light and truth, knowledge, if it’s right. Then, and only then, you’ll feel immense gratitude for having the Lord talk to you, and your emotions will overflow. Quite certainly, emotion plays a part in revelation. But the emotions come as a result of the revelation. They are not the revelation. 

From Joseph:

"A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas..." (TPJS, Pg 151)

"The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth. Light and truth forsake that evil one." (RE T&C 93:11; LDS D&C 93:36-37)

Then our Lord makes things more personal reminding us of the intimate gift He gives to all:

"But he that believeth these things which I have spoken, him will I visit with the manifestations of my Spirit, and he shall know and bear record. For because of my Spirit he shall know that these things are true; for it persuadeth men to do good." (RE Ether 1:18; LDS Ether 4:11)

"For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God." (RE Moro 7:3; LDS Moro 7:16)

Our responsibility is to believe Christ. He responds with additional gifts of the discernment of truth.

I love the song I sang as a child: Lead me, guide me, walk beside me. Help me find the way. He waits on the other side of the door. He invites us to open it so He can Lead, guide, and walk beside us. Light, truth, and justice will enter, along with protection from evil. 

More than ever in history, we need to see clearly and through the gross darkness that ever more increasingly covers the earth. No contention. No strife. Recognize His voice. Be one.

Christ is not a faraway God. He is close. He knows us intimately. We only have the illusion of privacy. He knows our every thought, and still, generously provides the very air we breathe. He is a most patient being. And He is close. Be one. Be His.