The Plan of Salvation = The Great Plan of Happiness

My favorite depiction of the Plan of Salvation

"The three pillars of eternity, the three events, preeminent and transcendent above all others, are the creation, the fall, and the atonement. These three are the foundations upon which all things rest. Without any one of them all things would lose their purpose and meaning, and the plans and designs of Deity would come to naught.

"If there had been no creation, we would not be, neither the earth, nor any form of life upon its face. All things, all the primal elements, would be without form and void. God would have no spirit children; there would be no mortal probation; and none of us would be on the way to immortality and eternal life.

"If there had been no fall of man, there would not be a mortal probation. Mortal man would not be, nor would there be animals or fowls or fishes or life of any sort upon the earth. And, we repeat, none of us would be on the way to immortality and eternal life.

"If there had been no atonement of Christ, all things would be lost. The purposes of creation would vanish away. Lucifer would triumph over men and become the captain of their souls. And, we say it again, none of us would be on the way to immortality and eternal life.

"And so I now say: Come and let us reason together; let us reason as did righteous men of old that we may come to understanding.

"Come and hear us declare sound doctrine; let us declare it plainly and in power as do the angels of God in heaven.

"Come and let us testify of those things which God has made known to us; let us testify as do those whose souls are afire with the Spirit and who know by revelation of the truth and verity of their spoken word."

(See Bruce R. McConkie: The Three Pillars of  Eternity)

Two Ears to the Lord

In one of my most favorite chapters in 2 Nephi, Jacob writes this wise, cautionary statement:

To be learned is good IF they hearken to the counsels of God.

Three principles from this short statement stand out to me.

First, to be learned is good. Learning is part of our spiritual DNA. Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother are very pleased when we learn new things. They find joy when we increase and add upon the knowledge of things we already have learned.

Second, when we hearken to the Lord’s counsel, we won’t go astray. Knowledge and wisdom will be coupled with light and truth. “Light and truth forsake the evil one” (D&C 93:37).

Third, the word “ear” is smack dab in the middle of both the words “learned” and “hearken.” Maybe a coincidence that we were created with two ears, not one?

Learning and hearkening simultaneously takes practice. It takes faith. It takes action because listening with two ears doesn’t always come easily. Ask any of my children. One ear--out the other. One ear is not attuned to the counsels of God, is not hearkening. It's more like listening to and singing with your favorite song while trying to concentrate on a difficult math problem. Or teaching a child how to read while she is trying to figure out how to tie her shoes.

Learning and hearkening to the counsels of God requires the Spirit because "the Spirit speaketh the truth and lieth not. Wherefore, it speaketh of things as they really care, and of things as they really will be" (Jacob 4:13).

For because when those two ears (learning and hearkening) are attuned to God, then "things are manifested unto us plainly, for the salvation of our souls" (Jacob 4:13).

Learning and hearkening to God = manifestations for the salvation of our souls.

But remember, Satan is a liar. Has been from the very beginning and He will try to take what is true and pit it again those things that are truth. He is especially effective when we are learning, but not hearkening.

Because what is true and what is truth are two different things.

A sister in Sunday School shared the difference of what is true and and is truth in this way:

These things are true: Having children ruin your body (and your hormones); Raising children is expensive; Children take up a lot of time and energy and money; You have to make some major sacrifices to have children; Cute, innocent babies grow up to be--teenagers!

These things are truths: Children are a sacred gift from a loving Father in Heaven; Children are part of God's eternal plan; Little children are alive in Christ; The only way a child can come to earth is by way of a man and a woman.

The things that are true can be taken by Satan, the father of all lies, and twisted. Twisted in a way that makes us think . . . well, you know what it makes us think. Because "whatsoever is more or less than this is the spirit of that wicked one who was a liar from the beginning" (D&C 93:25).

Things that are truth keep us in the right way.  For "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Light." And we can only know this as we hearken to His counsels.