PLAN OF SALVATION
During 2013, the youth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are studying twelve core doctrines of the church. We decided to share our experiences with each doctrinal principle with our teenaged grandchildren. The following is based on what we wrote for them. We share it with you out of love and respect for our family and friends. Maybe this will help you understand part of our spiritual journey as disciples of Christ. Please read it with the love with which it was written and is shared.
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Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after this life? The plan of salvation answers these questions for us.
“The plan of salvation” (Alma 24: 14, Moses 6: 62) is also called the “great plan of happiness,” (Alma 42:8), “the plan of redemption” (Jacob 6:8, Alma 12:30) and the “plan of mercy” (Alma 42:15). Salvation, happiness, redemption and mercy – those words express what Heavenly Father wanted for us as he set forth a plan to “enable us to become like Him and receive a fullness of joy.” [1]
Like most plans for a big venture, the plan of salvation contains many parts – Creation, Fall, Atonement of Jesus Christ, laws and ordinances and doctrines of the gospel, as well as agency – the ability to choose and act for ourselves.
Premortal life - We came to this earth from Heavenly Father’s presence. We had life before we came to earth. Jeremiah 1:5 We learned and we grew spiritually. We learned about agency and used that agency to choose to come to earth.
In our preLDS days, we didn’t know much about premortal life. It wasn’t in the doctrines of the churches we belonged to. People didn’t really talk about it. But, as we’ve said before about the church and the restored gospel, this makes so much sense. And it’s supported by scriptures in the Bible as well as latter-day scriptures.
Earth life – We come to earth to learn and grow and to become like Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. When we learn about Heavenly Father and his plan, we have the choice, agency, to follow him. Jesus Christ came to earth to show us how to live and to be our example and teacher – and to implement his father’s plan. We also have the Holy Spirit to help us, prayer, scriptures, and parents and friends. While here on earth we learn right from wrong and then show our obedience through the lives we live.
We are not alone in our time on earth. There are many who will accompany us and help us as we make our way back to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. To us, there’s great comfort in this knowledge. We’ve been given earthly and heavenly help. It’s up to us to reach out and accept that assistance.
Life after death – Death is the transition from this life on earth to life on the other side of the veil. Before we joined the church, we heard some talk of life after death. But most churches don’t tell us much about life after death or how that all fits into the whole scheme of things.
Many people think their lives will continue after they die. They talk of seeing loved ones and being a family. Yet men and women enter into marriages that are “death til we part.” Why wouldn’t they want their marriages and families to continue on the other side of the veil – together, not apart? We are thankful for the knowledge and power of priesthood ordinances that bind a husband and wife to each other for eternity as well as their children. Families can be forever – if they choose so – there’s agency again. We are thankful we have chosen to have our marriage be an eternal one – performed in a temple by someone who had the same keys as Jesus gave Peter (Matthew 16: 19).
Agency – it’s up to us – premortal life, earth life and life after death
It begins with agency in premortal life. We had to choose to come to earth. It continues while we are here on earth. There are so many choices here. So many ways to use our agency. We choose how we will live while here on earth and whether or not we will follow Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father’s plan.
After Death – Will we continue with the plan after we die? Will our family relationships be eternal or be broken by death? It’s all up to us – agency.
The plan is in place. We’ve been told about it. We’ve been given an abundance of guides and assistance. Everything is here for us to be successful in our journey back to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
Does this mean that everything will be great and we will be happy and carefree while we’re here on earth? Is it easy to follow the plan? Yes and no. “Yes” in that the plan is there and most of the time we know the right thing to do, either because it’s pretty obvious (choose the right, what would Jesus do) or we get our answer through prayer.
“No” in that our course isn’t a smooth, level path. There are almost always going to be obstacles on our road, potholes, steep hills, and other challenges that make it hard. People in our lives might make bad choices that have a negative effect on our lives. We may create some of our own obstacles from choices we make. Will we make mistakes and sometimes choose to go with the world instead of God? We will. That’s where the mercy part of the plan of salvation comes in – and the atonement.
But the truth is – the path is there. The plan is in place. The path is marked, most of the time the markers are somewhat easy to see. We will always know where the path is if we pray, listen to the Spirit, study our scriptures, and do our very best as we follow Christ’s example. It really does help to ask, “What would Jesus do?” and then do it.
One of the purposes of life is to learn how to deal with challenges, how to rely on Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ to help us deal with difficult times.
Does God manipulate us? Are we like a puppet on strings and God is pulling the strings? No. We have agency. It’s one of the great gifts our Heavenly Father has given us.
Making Sense
You have heard, and will continue to hear, us say that a doctrine “makes sense.” That’s one thing that attracted us to the church and its doctrine early on. “Making sense” is a place to begin exploration of beliefs but it’s very important to confirm what makes sense through prayer and communication with Heavenly Father. We need his confirmation before we know something to be true – to be his doctrine. We can’t rely solely on “what makes sense” because someone could come along with an explanation that seems to make sense but is different from God’s plan and the bigger picture that God sees. That’s the danger of going on intellect, making sense, alone. Each of us has to find out for ourselves, we cannot rely for very long on what someone else tells us.
A three act play can be used to explain the scope of our eternal lives and the plan of salvation. When we come to earth, we’re in Act II and it can be confusing because we forget much of what happened in Act I, our premortal lives. Act II is always the most complex part of a play. Act III, life after death, is where the complexities and challenges of Act II get worked out and explained.
If we learn about and follow God’s plan, and accept the atonement of Jesus Christ, we can have hope, peace, and purpose in this life. We will receive direction, peace, and comfort during difficult times. We can return to live with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in the next life.
March 31, 2013
[1] “True to the Faith,” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2004, page 115
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