Just in case anyone didn't hear about it, yesterday's BYU football game was an abysmal disaster of Biblical proportions. But gratefully the world did not end. Now on to something happier to write about.
Today in Sunday School, we talked about Paul's Epistle to the Romans. Romans is a critical book for all of our Evangelical brothers and sisters, but it is sadly a book that Latter-day Saints at times forget about. It is filled with beautiful doctrines that are vital to the faith of every true Saint, and it is a beautiful testimony of the absolute importance of the atonement in each of our lives. As we studied it, I realized that I need to go back and reread this beautiful testimony.
Two verses in particular stood out to me today. The instructor had us read Paul's famous declaration "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek" (Rom 1:16). But then she also had us read the following verse: "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith" (Rom 1:17). The Prophet's translation renders this verse, "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed through faith on his name; as it is written, The just shall live by faith" (JST Rom 1:17). This is a case where I love both renderings of the verse. The Prophet's rendering clarifies the meaning of Paul's words and explains that we come to understand God's character and goodness through faith on the name of Jesus Christ. That small change is invaluable to our scriptural canon.
But it is the standard King James text that impressed me today, and particularly the phrase, "from faith to faith." We come to know God's goodness and love and mercy "from faith to faith." I may be misinterpreting the apostle's words, but as I contemplated those words, I began to think about the experiences we go through in our lives. So many of those experiences require the utmost of our faith, almost to the point of exhausting that faith. But in spite of the difficulty, we believe and exercise our faith to the utmost of our abilities, and find that it is sufficient for the trials we must faith. And then we come to the next trial that again requires a significant outlay of faith. And we again wonder how we can possibly make it through, only to find that the faith we thought we had exhausted in the previous trial had returned and had been enlarged, allowing us to endure this new challenge. And so on and so on.
To give a couple of concrete examples, let's look at Abraham and Joseph Smith. Abraham grew up in a challenged home; his father attempted to offer him to a false god; he left home after home after home; while being promised seed as the sands of the seashore, he and Sarah endured decades of childlessness; and when he finally had a son, God asked him to offer that son in righteousness. This litany of trials included several that would have been enough alone to destroy lesser men. And yet Abraham endured.
Joseph Smith underwent a similar trajectory of trials. He was born into crippling poverty as a child; he underwent an excruciating surgery at age five; his family was nearly torn apart by disagreements over faith; he lost numerous children to death; he was persecuted, imprisoned, and ultimately killed for his beliefs; and on and on and on. And yet, Abraham-like, these trials that would have destroyed lesser men, did not destroy him or his faith in God.
What we learn from these examples is that for the righteous and striving, trials do not destroy faith, they facilitate it. Abraham and Joseph Smith and a host of other worthy men and women have grown from faith to faith. Each trial has only strengthened their understanding of the Savior and their love of His gospel. And so, rather than the aggregate weight of their trials weighing them down, their trials actually buoyed up their faith and strengthened and enlarged it, preparing them for the next trial to come.
May we all grow from faith to faith.
Brett
Reading your post again today reminded me of one of the talks I heard as I listened to the recent Women's Conference. Of course I've forgotten who the speaker was -- I was kind of emotional at the time -- but she spoke of the importance and even blessing of trials in our lives.
ReplyDeleteWhat really caught me in her address was the notion that while our trials often seem large and insurmountable from our limited mortal view, they are in truth the very things that are perfecting us and preparing us to become more like like our Savior and to be able to return again to live with Him and our Father in Heaven some day.
We cannot overcome a big trial all at once but, as you noted so poignantly here, by learning and growing in understanding and strength from faith to faith, we can endure all things.
How grateful I am for this tender mercy.
Love it Steph! Thanks for the important reminder!
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