It’s Halloween today, and in the spirit of scariness and goblins and ghouls, we thought we would do a quick post to remind us something about the original ghoul:  the devil.

Halloween is a funny time because some people dress up as these scary characters, but underneath it all they are just people.  It’s like during Star Wars III (nerd alert: Star Wars/gospel comparison) when they finally removed the helmet of Darth Vader, and you realize that the big scary dude in black was just an old creepy looking, semi-pathetic guy.  Most people’s thoughts when seeing Vader without his helmet were probably, “Well, what’s to be afraid of? Even I could take that guy.”  The prophet Isaiah says something similar to what we will say when the day comes that we see Satan and who he is.  The Prophet Isaiah wrote:

“They that see thee [Satan] shall narrowly look upon thee, and shall consider thee, and shall say: Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms?” (Isaiah 14:16; 2 Nephi 24:16)

Joseph Smith observed “that Satan was generally blamed for the evils which we did, but if he was the cause of all our wickedness, men could not be condemned. The devil could not compel mankind to do evil; all was voluntary. . . . and such ideas as were entertained [on these subject of the devil making us do things] by many were absurd” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 187). On another occasion Joseph Smith taught that, “All beings who have bodies have power over those who have not. The devil has no power over us only as we permit him” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 181).

So, on this Halloween, don’t be afraid of the ghouls and goblins—and don’t be afraid of the devil.  According to Isaiah he is kind of pathetic.  As sons and daughters of God we have the strength to resist and overcome temptation and have power over the adversary—not vice versa.

We are all HUMAN

We all have TEMPTATIONS

We are all asked to LIVE divine laws

We testify that through the atonement of Jesus Christ, all of us can be strengthened and supported and helped to live the gospel of Jesus Christ and be obedient to the divine laws God is asking us to live, regardless of the different temptations we all struggle with.

Question: How do I respond to homosexuals that believe they were born that way?

This is a very good, very important, and very touchy question given our current social and political circumstances. Yet it is a question and an issue that as faithful Latter-day Saints we need to know how to answer.

There is a transcript of a great dialogue between Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Lance B. Wickman of the Seventy, and a representative from the Church Public Affairs department that address many of the underlying issues inherent in the question of nature vs. nurture regarding homosexuality. Hopefully some of their insights can help you as you respond to people who feel they were born with homosexual inclinations. The following are portions from that transcript. We would recommend you read the entire entry at:

http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/public-issues/same-gender-attraction

PUBLIC AFFAIRS: Let’s say my 17-year-old son comes to talk to me and, after a great deal of difficulty trying to get it out, tells me that he believes that he’s attracted to men — that he has no interest and never has had any interest in girls. He believes he’s probably gay. He says that he’s tried to suppress these feelings. He’s remained celibate, but he realizes that his feelings are going to be devastating to the family because we’ve always talked about his Church mission, about his temple marriage and all those kinds of things. He just feels he can’t live what he thinks is a lie any longer, and so he comes in this very upset and depressed manner. What do I tell him as a parent?

ELDER OAKS: …The distinction between feelings or inclinations on the one hand, and behavior on the other hand, is very clear. It’s no sin to have inclinations that if yielded to would produce behavior that would be a transgression. The sin is in yielding to temptation. Temptation is not unique. Even the Savior was tempted.… I think it’s important for you to understand that homosexuality, which you’ve spoken of, is not a noun that describes a condition. It’s an adjective that describes feelings or behavior.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS: If somebody has a very powerful heterosexual drive, there is the opportunity for marriage. If a young man thinks he’s gay, what we’re really saying to him is that there is simply no other way to go but to be celibate for the rest of his life if he doesn’t feel any attraction to women?

ELDER OAKS: That is exactly the same thing we say to the many members who don’t have the opportunity to marry. We expect celibacy of any person that is not married.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS: So you are saying that homosexual feelings are controllable?

ELDER OAKS: Yes, homosexual feelings are controllable. Perhaps there is an inclination or susceptibility to such feelings that is a reality for some and not a reality for others. But out of such susceptibilities come feelings, and feelings are controllable. If we cater to the feelings, they increase the power of the temptation. If we yield to the temptation, we have committed sinful behavior. That pattern is the same for a person that covets someone else’s property and has a strong temptation to steal. It’s the same for a person that develops a taste for alcohol. It’s the same for a person that is born with a ‘short fuse,’ as we would say of a susceptibility to anger. If they let that susceptibility remain uncontrolled, it becomes a feeling of anger, and a feeling of anger can yield to behavior that is sinful and illegal.

We’re not talking about a unique challenge here. We’re talking about a common condition of mortality. We don’t understand exactly the ‘why,’ or the extent to which there are inclinations or susceptibilities and so on. But what we do know is that feelings can be controlled and behavior can be controlled. The line of sin is between the feelings and the behavior. The line of prudence is between the susceptibility and the feelings. We need to lay hold on the feelings and try to control them to keep us from getting into a circumstance that leads to sinful behavior.

ELDER WICKMAN: One of the great sophistries of our age, I think, is that merely because one has an inclination to do something, that therefore acting in accordance with that inclination is inevitable. That’s contrary to our very nature as the Lord has revealed to us. We do have the power to control our behavior.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS: If we were to look back at someone who had a ‘short fuse,’ and we were to look at their parents who might have had a short fuse, some might identify a genetic influence in that.

ELDER OAKS: No, we do not accept the fact that conditions that prevent people from attaining their eternal destiny were born into them without any ability to control. That is contrary to the Plan of Salvation, and it is contrary to the justice and mercy of God. It’s contrary to the whole teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which expresses the truth that by or through the power and mercy of Jesus Christ we will have the strength to do all things. That includes resisting temptation. That includes dealing with things that we’re born with, including disfigurements, or mental or physical incapacities. None of these stand in the way of our attaining our eternal destiny. The same may be said of a susceptibility or inclination to one behavior or another which if yielded to would prevent us from achieving our eternal destiny.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS: You’re saying the Church doesn’t necessarily have a position on ‘nurture or nature’

ELDER OAKS: That’s where our doctrine comes into play. The Church does not have a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction. Those are scientific questions — whether nature or nurture — those are things the Church doesn’t have a position on.

ELDER WICKMAN: Whether it is nature or nurture really begs the important question, and a preoccupation with nature or nurture can, it seems to me, lead someone astray from the principles that Elder Oaks has been describing here. Why somebody has a same-gender attraction… who can say? But what matters is the fact that we know we can control how we behave, and it is behavior which is important.

Elders Oaks and Wickman outline many important principles in this discussion, but perhaps none as important as the fact that there is a distinction between feeling tempted and acting on temptation. Whether we are born a certain way is not really the issue, as all of us generally have aspects of our nature—large and small—that are inconsistent with the gospel. One great truth regarding this issue is that the atonement of Jesus Christ can provide the power to resist temptation, control our feelings, and help us keep our lives in harmony with the gospel plan (see 1 Corinthians 10:13). That principle is more important than the question of nature or nature. We testify of the truthfulness of the Lord’s ability to provide us power to do His will (see 1 Nephi 3:7).

]]> http://ldswhy.com/qa/how-do-i-respond-to-homosexuals-that-believe-they-were-born-that-way/feed/ 0 http://ldswhy.com/qa/why-should-i-avoid-little-sins/ http://ldswhy.com/qa/why-should-i-avoid-little-sins/#comments Fri, 10 Jul 2009 22:49:39 +0000 john http://ldswhy.com/qa/?p=720 Quick quiz — which of the below animals is most likely to kill you?

Although it might seem surprising, you are actually 300 times more likely to be killed by a deer (by crashing into it with your car) than you are by a shark (see Made to Stick, 149).

Sometimes we think that it’s “big” sins like doing drugs that are going to get us in trouble while “little sins” maybe aren’t such a big deal.

The prophet Nephi foretold of this trap when he said, “And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God. Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark” (2 Nephi 28:8-9).

When Amalickiah wanted to kill Lehonti, he didn’t do it quickly, all at once. Rather “he caused that one of his servants should administer poison by degrees to Lehonti, that he died” (Alma 47:18). Similarly Satan tempts us by degrees. He will tempt us to do “little” sins that don’t really seem to matter — over time poisoning us by degrees.

In reality there are no “little” sins. Fortunately, the Savior’s atonement will help us overcome the effects of sin–large or small. But let’s not fall into the trap of thinking that we can commit “just a little sin.”

That’s an easy choice (be kind—in case you weren’t sure).

Sometimes it is very easy to tell what the right decision is. But sometimes people say it is harder to tell the difference between what is right and what is wrong if it’s a “gray” area. But are there actually gray areas?

Which Drawing is Correct?

These drawings each represent a way of looking at life. The first drawing says that the choice we make are black or white, either right or wrong. The second drawing suggests that some things are right, some things are wrong, and in-between there is a “gray” zone. Which is right?

President George Albert Smith quoted his grandfather (who was an Apostle) as saying, “’There is a line of demarcation, well defined, between the Lord’s territory and the devil’s. If you will stay on the Lord’s side of the line you will be under his influence and will have no desire to do wrong; but if you cross to the devil’s side of the line one inch, you are in the tempter’s power, and if he is successful, you will not be able to think or even reason properly, because you will have lost the spirit of the Lord.”

So in fact, the first drawing is accurate – there is a well-defined line between right and wrong.

Mormon taught “Wherefore, take heed, my beloved brethren, that ye do not judge that which is evil to be of God, or that which is good and of God to be of the devil. For behold, my brethren, it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil; and the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night.  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. But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil; for after this manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him. And now, my brethren, seeing that ye know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully…” (Moroni 7:14-18).

Sometimes we might think there are gray areas if we are not searching in the light of Christ. But if we are honest with ourselves and open to inspiration from the guidance of the Spirit, we will receive the direction we need to know what is right and what is wrong.

Question: Why can’t we sleep in the same bed with a person of the opposite sex if we’re not doing anything sexual?

While that question might seem strange to some, or perhaps downright illogical, it provided a great opportunity to teach a principle about sin and temptation.  Maybe the principles taught in our answer can help you with a sin you are struggling with.  The following was our response to this question:

Great question. We have some questions in return:

Why can’t an alcoholic keep beer in his fridge?

Why can’t someone keep music on their IPOD that has swear words and offensive lyrics if they don’t plan on listening to them? I mean heck, they want to have clean thoughts!

Why can’t a young man who is struggling with pornography keep his high speed, unfiltered, unchecked internet access in his bedroom?

Why can’t a girl who wants to dress more modestly keep her low cut shirts and short skirts hung up in her closet?

Why can’t a married woman who is tempted to have an affair with a co-worker just go out to lunch with him or talk to him on the phone or visit him in his hotel room on a business trip?

We think you get the point. One of the principles of avoiding sin is to avoid the situation that tempts us to sin. Notice that when the adversary tempted our Savior, each time the Lord left the situation and went somewhere else (see the Joseph Smith Translation of Matthew 4:1-11). Notice how Potiphar’s wife tempted Joseph in Egypt when he was alone, when “there was none of the men of the house there within” (Genesis 39:10) and how Joseph “fled, and got him out” of there (vs. 12). Notice how the Lamanites buried their swords “deep in the earth” (Alma 24:17) after they made the covenant to not shed the blood of another Nephite.

Why do you think the Lamanites buried them DEEP? What do you think would have happened if the they had promised to not kill any more Nephites, but instead of burying their swords they simply hung them up on the wall? The next time a war broke out and a Nephite ran by their house, what do you think they would have done? What will the alcoholic do with the beer in the fridge? What will the girl with the immodest clothes do when it gets hot and her modest clothing is in the wash?

And what will you do if you sleep in the same bed with a member of the opposite sex that you are attracted to?

If you want to remain morally clean, then we say: Get thee hence, bury the sword, and flee and get yourself out!