Today I want to
discuss a principle that I found in my assigned New Testament reading for this
week. The scripture says, “And he said unto them, Take heed what you hear: with
what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall
more be given. For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not,
from him shall be taken even that which he hath” (Mark 4:24-25).
The principle that I took from
that scripture is, “I must be obedient to the gospel knowledge I have received
in order to be prepared to receive more.” This means that when I gain some
little nugget of knowledge, I must activate it in my life if I desire to learn
more. An example could be prayer. When I learn that Heavenly Father wants us to
communicate with Him often – several times each day, I must visit with Him
through prayer. As I am obedient to the commandment to “pray always” (2 Nephi
32:8-9), I will receive more knowledge. The new knowledge may be a stronger
testimony of the power of prayer in my life or something else about prayer, or
it could be a completely new subject.
This principle is stated in a
different and clearer way in the Book of
Mormon – Another Testament of Jesus Christ. In 2 Nephi 28:30 it says, “For
behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon
line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are
those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they
shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them
that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which
they have.”
In an address titled “Line upon Line, Precept upon Precept” given at a devotional at Brigham Young University – Idaho on September 11,
2001, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles quotes
2
Nephi 28:30 and then explains what it
means.
The theme for my message is contained in
the phrase “line upon line, precept upon precept.” If you and I would learn to
discern the difference between our own emotions and the promptings of the Holy
Ghost, then we must come to recognize the Lord’s pattern and process for giving
us spiritual knowledge.
And the phrase “line
upon line, precept upon precept” describes a central feature of the Lord’s
pattern.
I believe many of us unknowingly accept a
faulty assumption about the Lord’s pattern. And this faulty assumption then
produces erroneous expectations about how we receive spiritual knowledge. And
that faulty assumption and our misinformed expectations ultimately hinder our
ability to recognize and respond to the promptings of the Holy Ghost. Let me
suggest that many of us typically assume we will receive an answer or a prompting
to our earnest prayers and pleadings. And we also frequently expect that such
an answer or a prompting will come immediately and all at once. Thus, we tend to believe the Lord will give us A BIG ANSWER QUICKLY AND ALL AT ONE TIME. However,
the pattern repeatedly described in the scriptures suggests we receive “line
upon line, precept upon precept,” or in other words, many small answers over a period of time. Recognizing and
understanding this pattern is an important key to obtaining inspiration and
help from the Holy Ghost.
Now, we all acknowledge that receiving a
big answer quickly and all at once is possible and, in fact, does occur in some
exceptional circumstances. Perhaps we give overmuch emphasis to the miraculous
experiences of Joseph in the Sacred Grove, of Paul on the road to Damascus, and
of Alma the Younger. If our personal experiences fall short of these well-known
and spiritually dramatic examples, then perhaps we believe something is wrong
with or lacking in us. I am suggesting that the particular spiritual process
evidenced in these three examples with Joseph, Paul, and Alma is more rare than
it is routine, more the exception than the rule.
In the above quote Elder Bednar
explains that even Apostles and Prophets receive knowledge in small doses or “line
upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little.” Heavenly
Father and Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Ghost, give us the
information that we are prepared to receive and as we are ready.
Elder Richard G. Scott, another
Apostle, gives counsel on “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” in his General
Conference address in October 1993.
As you seek
spiritual knowledge, search for principles. Carefully separate them from the
detail used to explain them. Principles are concentrated truth, packaged for
application to a wide variety of circumstances. A true principle makes
decisions clear even under the most confusing and compelling circumstances. It
is worth great effort to organize the truth we gather to simple statements of
principle. I have tried to do that with gaining spiritual knowledge. The result
is now shared in hope that it will be a beginning place for our study. That
statement of principle is: To acquire
spiritual knowledge and to obey it with wisdom, one must: In humility, seek
divine light; exercise faith in Jesus Christ; hearken to His counsel, [and]
keep His commandments.
As spiritual knowledge unfolds, it must be
understood, valued, obeyed, remembered, and expanded.
Both Elder Bednar and Elder
Scott liken receiving spiritual knowledge to light. Elder Bednar explains that
inspiration may come a little at a time, much like the rising of the sun, or it
may come suddenly, much like the turning on a light in a dark room. Elder Scott
says that light overpowers darkness unless the darkness is too intense. He
gives the example of “a bulb plunged into a bucket of black ink.” He then
explains that “Spiritual light overcomes the darkness of ignorance and
disbelief. When transgression severely clouds a life, the focused spiritual
truths of repentance cut the blackness as a laser penetrates the darkest ink.”
These two Apostles of the Lord
Jesus Christ explain clearly how my discovered principle works. I take hold of
a little bit of knowledge, just as I notice the sun rising. As I hold tight to
what I have already learned, more inspiration will come to bring greater light
to my spiritual world, just as the rising sun brings light to our physical
world. We are also counseled to write down the principles that we learn in
order that we do not forget them. I write principles in my scriptures, but
others put them in a study journal or write them electronically. We just need
to keep a record of what we are learning. We to remember the knowledge we
receive and put it into practice in our lives in order to receive more
knowledge.
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