The Great Plan of Salvation

Dear Family,

Happy Father’s Day to all of the great men and fathers in our family!  As your Father and soon to be Grandfather, I would like to send along a special message that is dear to my heart.  It centers around the Plan of Salvation.  I know that we are all in different places in our spiritual journeys, and my hope is to offer love and support in helping you progress in yours.  The best way I know how to do that is to teach you what I know and to share my testimony with you. I know that the Plan of Salvation is of God.  I know that our choices in this mortal experience determine our eternal destiny.  I know that Satan is working hard on each of you in different ways to make you question these teachings.  I know that Christ’s Atonement is available to all of us to help us make changes and leave our sins in the past.  I know that God loves you and that He is rooting for you.  I have attached many teachings on the Plan of Salvation.  Please read them and know that I am here to help you find the way.   

My biggest hope and prayer is that we have "No Empty Chairs" when we reconnect as families on the other side. I love you. 

With Love,

DaD

PLAN OF SALVATION

In the premortal existence, Heavenly Father prepared a plan to enable us to become like Him and receive a fulness of joy. The scriptures refer to this plan as “the plan of salvation” (Alma 24:14; Moses 6:62), “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).

The plan of salvation is the fullness of the gospel. It includes the Creation, the Fall, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and all the laws, ordinances, and doctrines of the gospel. Moral agency, the ability to choose and act for ourselves, is also essential in Heavenly Father’s plan. Because of this plan, we can be perfected through the Atonement, receive a fullness of joy, and live forever in the presence of God. Our family relationships can last throughout the eternities.

You are a participant in Heavenly Father’s plan, and your eternal experience can be divided into three main parts: premortal life, mortal life, and life after death. As you come to understand the plan, you find answers to questions asked by so many: Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where do we go after this life?

Premortal Life

Before you were born on the earth, you lived in the presence of your Heavenly Father as one of His spirit children. Those who followed Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ were permitted to come to the earth to experience mortality and progress toward eternal life.

Throughout your premortal life, you developed your identity and increased your spiritual capabilities. Blessed with the gift of agency, you made important decisions, such as the decision to follow Heavenly Father’s plan. These decisions affected your life then and now. You grew in intelligence and learned to love the truth, and you prepared to come to the earth, where you could continue to progress.

Mortal Life

You are now experiencing mortal life. Your spirit is united with your body, giving you opportunities to grow and develop in ways that were not possible in your premortal life. This part of your existence is a time of learning in which you can prove yourself, choose to come unto Christ, and prepare to be worthy of eternal life. It is also a time when you can help others find the truth and gain a testimony of the plan of salvation.

Life after Death

When you die, your spirit will enter the spirit world and await the resurrection. At the time of the resurrection, your spirit and body will reunite, and you will be judged and received into a kingdom of glory. The glory you inherit will depend on the depth of your conversion and your obedience to the Lord’s commandments It will depend on the manner in which you have “received the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:51; see also 76:74, 79, 101).

Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, all people will be resurrected (see Alma 11:42–45). After we are resurrected, we will stand before the Lord to be judged (see Revelation 20:12; 3 Nephi 27:14). Each of us will be assigned to an eternal dwelling place in a specific kingdom of glory. The Lord taught this principle when He said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions” (John 14:2).

There are three kingdoms of glory: the celestial kingdom, the terrestrial kingdom, and the telestial kingdom. The glory you inherit will depend on the depth of your conversion, expressed by your obedience to the Lord’s commandments. It will depend on the manner in which you have “received the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:51; see also 76:74, 79, 101).

Celestial Kingdom

The celestial kingdom is the highest of the three kingdoms of glory. Those in this kingdom will dwell forever in the presence of God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. This should be your goal: to inherit celestial glory and to help others receive that great blessing as well. Such a goal is not achieved in one attempt; it is the result of a lifetime of righteousness and constancy of purpose.

The celestial kingdom is the place prepared for those who have “received the testimony of Jesus” and been “made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood” (D&C 76:51, 69). To inherit this gift, we must receive the ordinances of salvation, keep the commandments, and repent of our sins. For a detailed explanation of those who will inherit celestial glory, see Doctrine and Covenants 76:50–70, 92–96.

Terrestrial Kingdom

Those who inherit terrestrial glory will “receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fullness of the Father. Wherefore, they are bodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun” (D&C 76:77–78). Generally speaking, individuals in the terrestrial kingdom will be honorable people “who were blinded by the craftiness of men” (76:75). This group will include members of the Church who were “not valiant in the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:79). It will also include those who rejected the opportunity to receive the gospel in mortality but who later received it in the postmortal spirit world (see D&C 76:73–74). To learn more about those who will inherit terrestrial glory, see Doctrine and Covenants 76:71–80, 91, 97.

Telestial Kingdom

Telestial glory will be reserved for individuals who “received not the gospel of Christ, neither the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:82). These individuals will receive their glory after being redeemed from spirit prison, which is sometimes called hell (see D&C 76:84, 106). A detailed explanation of those who will inherit telestial glory is found in Doctrine and Covenants 76:81–90, 98–106, 109–112.

Blessings through Knowledge of the Plan

A testimony of the plan of salvation can give you hope and purpose as you wrestle with the challenges of life. You can find reassurance in the knowledge that you are a child of God and that you lived in His presence before you were born on the earth. You can find meaning in your present life, knowing that your actions during mortality influence your eternal destiny. With this knowledge, you can base important decisions on eternal truths rather than on the changing circumstances of life. You can continually improve your relationship with family members, rejoicing in the promise that your family can be eternal. You can find joy in your testimony of the Atonement and the Lord’s commandments, ordinances, covenants, and doctrines, knowing that “he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come” (D&C 59:23).

Christ's Atonement

Dear Family

This week has been filled with things that make us need to rely on the arm of the Savior and needing his teachings his love and his forgiveness as well as being able to forgive. The Saviors life and Love for us is real and meaningful and powerful. 

Today’s message outlines the importance of studying the life of Christ.  Even our smallest efforts to ponder on Christ, his teachings, and his greatest gift to us: the Atonement, can have great benefits.  I pray that we continue striving to have Christ in our lives, even the center of our lives.  When we make him a priority, other things tend to fall into place.  I know this is true!

Every attempt to reflect upon the Atonement, to study it, to embrace it, to express appreciation for it, however small or feeble it may be, will kindle the fires of faith and work its miracle towards a more Christlike life. It is an inescapable consequence of so doing. We become like those things we habitually love and admire. And thus, as we study Christ’s life and live his teachings, we become more like him.

—TAD R. CALLISTER

Growing in Light

Dear Family,

Today’s message is about the importance of learning.  We are here on Earth precisely for this purpose, to learn and to grow.  Our knowledge is one of the only things we take with us into the next life, making it all the more valuable.  I hope that we can put the time and effort needed to add to our knowledge.  It is a worthy work to focus on.

With Love,

DaD

Growing in Light

That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day

—Doctrine and Covenants 50:24

What a remarkable plan—a light that grows “brighter and brighter until the perfect day.” It speaks of growth, of development, of the march that leads toward godhood. What a profound challenge! We must go on growing. We must continually learn. It is a divinely given mandate that we go on adding to our knowledge.

Stand a Little Taller by Gordon B Hinckley

 

Message from Him

Dear Family

  The past week has been such a blessing to me. With the exciting news that Caleb and Christina will be married our family is expanding with one of Gods most beloved daughters. Congratulations to Caleb and Christina! 

This week’s message is about the unique guidance that Heavenly Father can give to each us.  When we are seeking spiritual support and comfort, tiny miracles can happen to give us the personal revelation we desire and more importantly need.  I know that God is aware of each of us.  He cares for you and loves you.

Love you all,

DaD

A Message Directed to Him 

I remember well the conversion of one family that had been seeking truth. The missionaries called and presented the teachings of the gospel. They studied. They loved what they learned. They were approaching the decision to be baptized.

One Sunday morning the family, by previous appointment, were preparing to attend the “Mormon” Sunday School. Mother and the children readied themselves but were disappointed when Dad concluded not to attend. They even argued somewhat about the decision. Then Mother and the children went to Sunday School, and Dad angrily stayed at home.

He first attempted to forget the misunderstanding by reading the newspaper, but to no avail. Then he went to his daughter’s room and turned on the radio that occupied her nightstand, hoping to hear the news. He didn’t hear the news. Rather, he heard the Tabernacle Choir. The message of Music and the Spoken Word that day, it seemed, was directed personally to him: “Let not the sun go down upon your wrath” (Ephesians 4:26). This good brother realized the futility of his anger. He was now overpowered by a feeling of gratitude for the message he had just received. When his wife and family returned home, they found him pleasant and happy. His children asked how this change came about. He told them how he had turned to the radio, hoping to get the news, only to be humbled by the message of the Choir in word and song. His daughter said, “Which radio did you use, Dad?”

He answered, “The one on your nightstand.”

She replied, “That radio is broken. It hasn’t played for weeks.”

He led them to the room to prove that this radio did indeed function. Hadn’t he just heard the Choir and a message that had inspired and humbled him? He turned the proper dial. But that radio didn’t play. Yet when an honest seeker after truth needed the help of God, that radio did play. The message which led to conversion was received. Needless to say, the family became stalwart members of the Church.

Consider the Blessings by Thomas S. Monson

Life Transformed

Dear Family

I am so grateful each week for the wonderful interaction we have together as a family. We are so blessed to love each other as we do. I am so thankful to each of you for being so great at everything you do. This week’s message is about the  grace Christ offers us.  His gift of the Atonement fulfills the law of justice and allows us to access God’s mercy.  What an incredible blessing!  I know that Christ died for you.  If you were the only person on this Earth, Christ would still have completed the Atonement in order to offer you forgiveness.  You are a child of God.  I love you and I pray for you.

I Love you all so much!

DaD

LIFE TRANSFORMED

All Christ’s gifts of life—life after death, life after sin, and life amid trials—are given deeper meaning in His promise of life “more abundantly” (John 10:10). Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can be resurrected, forgiven, and consoled, but we can also be transformed.

I once met a Chinese woman who, along with her husband and son, had immigrated to Melbourne, Australia. They had sold all they had in China and were living very humbly in their new home. They struggled to learn English and to find new friends. Also they had begun to show interest in Christianity. When I met this strong and intelligent young mother, I was impressed. Through a translator, I asked her why she was willing to sacrifice so much. Without a pause, she answered, “Because I want to give my son the opportunity for a better life.” I couldn’t help but imagine that Christ’s answer to the same question would be similar: “I sacrificed because I want to give you the opportunity for a better life.”

We cannot resurrect ourselves. We cannot wipe away our own sins and skepticism. We cannot reach into our own broken hearts and heal them. All these are gifts of grace. We cannot transform ourselves. Christ’s grace—His divine help, His enabling power—is absolutely necessary. Those who say “I can do it myself” have not yet learned how truly powerless they are. Those who say “God helps those who help themselves” have yet to learn that God helps us to help ourselves. Those who only “say grace” at the dinner table have yet to learn that grace is not something we offer God; it is something we receive from Him. Those who feel they have fallen from grace have yet to learn that grace is actually what catches them and lifts them up.

_____________________________

I once received the following email from a friend named Jon: “As a young man I had a very difficult time coming to terms with my inevitable and continual state of imperfection, regardless of my good intentions and no matter how hard I worked at doing everything I was asked to do and being everything I was expected to be. . . . I often felt completely inadequate and insufficient.”

People would tell Jon, “Just try your hardest. Do your best, and then let God do all the rest.” It is a clever little rhyme, but for someone with Jon’s perfectionist tendencies, even trying his hardest and doing his best seemed like overwhelming expectations. His email continued:

“Such well-intentioned advice was almost crippling to me. I knew I could always try just a little harder and do a little more. I felt that Christ’s suffering and grace, even the companionship of the Holy Spirit, could only apply to me after I first rid myself of all ungodliness.”

We can find ourselves feeling like Jon—unworthy of God’s help—because we all fail in one way or another to meet His standards. We are weak and sinful, and we waver in our commitments. As we see how far we have to go, we feel like giving up. Thankfully, when we see only responsibilities, grace allows us to also see possibilities. Perhaps we have wrongly seen grace as the light at the end of the tunnel instead of the light that can surround us now and move us through the tunnel. Mike McKinley explained, “You will never be righteous enough to please God. But thankfully, Christ’s perfect righteousness becomes ours when we come to him in faith” (Am I Really a Christian? 27).

We receive God’s gift of grace by turning to Him in faith. We may doubt our own abilities, but we can’t doubt His. It is through His grace that we can repent of our wrongdoings and strive to keep His commandments. Christ said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). It is through His grace that we recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives and are able to endure to the end. John Piper has written, “[We] are being changed, even if slowly, from one degree of humility and love to the next” (Finally Alive, 21). Similarly, Mike McKinley asked, “How can we know who the real believers are? How can we distinguish them from those with superficial professions of faith? Real believers endure until the end. Their attachment to Christ perseveres and never goes away” (Am I Really a Christian? 79).

How do we maintain faith, repent, and keep commandments, recognize the Spirit, and endure—especially in a world where many who label themselves as Christians have given up trying? The power comes from Christ Himself. We do not act in an effort to be worthy of grace. We act because we are enabled by grace. The same Christ who gives commands to obey is also the One who empowers us to obey. “Just as believers’ salvation is not their own doing, neither is their perseverance. The amazing grace which saves wretches is the same amazing grace that brings them home” (Mike McKinley, Am I Really a Christian? 87).

Choosing to live as a daily disciple—a 7-day Christian—leads to significant personal development as we experience the Savior’s transforming power. The grace that saves us is also the grace that changes us.

My daughter Whitney once pointed out to me that the parable of the talents—which I had always thought of as applying only to abilities or money—may also apply to the gift of Christ’s grace.

“For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one” (Matthew 25:14–15).

The servants who received five and two used the gifts they were given and showed growth. The servant who received one was afraid and didn’t use the gift. When the Lord returned, he was pleased with the first two servants for expanding or enhancing what they had been given. He was not too concerned about how much their talents had grown or whose had grown the most, only that what he had given had been utilized (see vv. 16–23). When the servant who received one talent reported that his talent remained unchanged, the Lord called him “wicked and slothful” (v. 26). The servant had been given a gift but had neglected it (see 1 Timothy 4:14).

Now let us consider that perhaps the Lord was more concerned with improving servants than with multiplying talents. Let’s say the talents represent the Lord’s gift of grace. From this view, maybe wicked and slothful were not harsh words spoken in anger but realistic descriptions of attributes the third servant should have and could have changed. He had been given all he needed, but he had done nothing with it. Had he depended on God’s grace, surely he could have become “good and faithful” like the others (v. 23).

In the parable, the Lord told the first two servants, “I will make thee ruler[s] over many things” (vv. 21, 23). Because the words were spoken after the reckoning, we assume their crowning as rulers happened after the servants had entered into the joy of their Lord. However, looking at it another way, perhaps the Lord had been making the faithful servants rulers all along. Maybe the reason the slothful servant was not allowed to enter was not because he was being punished but because he was unprepared. The term ruler may not have been a prize or title the servants were given as much as a description of who, through God’s grace, they had become.

In the parable we read, “For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance” (v. 29). As the Lord said on a different occasion, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

The 7 day Christian by Brad Wilcox