Come, Follow Me with FAIR – Doctrine and Covenants 137–138 – Part 1 – Autumn Dickson

The Spirit World is Already Here by Autumn Dickson We have the opportunity to read two revelations this week. Despite the different times in which they were given, the two revelations were placed together in the Doctrine and Covenants, and they hold more power in that manner. The first recorded vision was received by Joseph Smith, and the second recorded vision was given to Joseph F. Smith. I want to share a couple of verses from the section given to Joseph F. Smith regarding the spirit world. Doctrine and Covenants 138:22-24 22 Where these (the wicked, unrepentant, rebellious) were, darkness reigned, but among the righteous there was peace; 23 And the saints rejoiced in their redemption, and bowed the knee and acknowledged the Son of God as their Redeemer and Deliverer from death and the chains of hell. 24 Their countenances shone, and the radiance from the presence of the Lord rested upon them, and they sang praises unto his holy name. These verses talk about the spirit world on the other side of the veil. It gives us a glimpse into what life holds depending on how you chose to live your life and how those choices affected who you became. Taking the time to imagine what it will be like is powerful, especially when you’ve lost someone you love. But rather than read it from the perspective of the spirit world, I want you to read it again as if it’s speaking about where we dwell now. Despite its insight into the spirit world, it can also be a very accurate description of the mortal life we’re living in. In the fallen mortality where we dwell, there are people who want nothing to do with the Savior and His gospel. There are many who want the exact opposite of what He stands for and believe the Savior to be oppressive. In those specific places and hearts, darkness reigns. God doesn’t necessarily send darkness or make their world terrible; it’s what they’ve invited into their lives. Important tangent here. This gets slightly tricky because I don’t believe all non-Christians are dark people. Rather, I believe that at any given moment, we are inviting or shunning darkness. There are a lot of people who accept so much of Christ’s gospel even if they do not yet accept Him personally. They have invited portions of light into their lives by living their lives in a Christlike manner. So not immediately accepting Christ doesn’t mean you live in utter darkness and allow it to reign over you. I do believe they’re missing out on light, but that doesn’t mean I assume they are voluntarily inviting darkness to rule their lives. Let’s keep going on with reading the description of the spirit world and mortality.. So there are people who don’t want Christ and voluntarily shun Him. They want the darkness. They like it. They don’t see any reason to change. In other places, sometimes very nearby, there are Saints who are living in the same space but find themselves rejoicing in their redemption. They love the Savior and trust Him. They acknowledge Him and worship Him. Then, of course, there is a whole spectrum between these groups of people. Even on that spectrum, we’re finding ourselves moving back and forth depending on what we’re inviting and focusing on. Despite the fact that we can find people all along that spectrum, I want to bring your attention to one other grouping: there are Saints who are trying to live the gospel but still have not found the reason to rejoice. They don’t always feel hope or peace. They don’t feel the radiance of the Lord shining down on them. We believe in Christ and the gospel, but have we found salvation? We read this in Alma. Alma 34:31 Yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you. Immediately. Not just in the spirit world. Immediately. If you truly find Christ, the plan of redemption is brought immediately. Today can be the day of your salvation if you repent and don’t harden your heart. Immediately, you can find yourself in the same state as those dwelling in spirit paradise. You can rejoice in the Redeemer who freed you from hell and any aspects of it that you may still be clinging to. The radiance of the presence of the Lord can shine upon you. If you do not yet feel these aspects of salvation, I have a small warning for you. Dying and going to the other side does not immediately bring about those feelings. Dying has very little to do with it. Experiencing spiritual paradise stems from your relationship with Christ. Dying happens somewhere along the way for good reason, but experiencing salvation doesn’t necessarily wait for death. It’s just waiting for you. When was the last time you let yourself rejoice in Christ? When was the last time you chose to trust Him so deeply that it swallowed up your pain and carried it for a...