Difference between revisions of "Question: Is it impossible to receive salvation because the conditions we must meet are too high for any man to obtain?"

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	===As an "aspirational" instruction===		===As an "aspirational" instruction===
		+	Moroni 10:32 and similar passages in the Bible can be read as aspirational, with a mark one aims to; not a statement of soteriology (theology of salvation). Jesus' words to love God with all one's heart, mind, and strength and other-like passages in the Bible are of the same character; God does not literally expect perfect obedience to the law (whether the Universal law or the Law of Moses [moral and/or ceremonial divisions]), but expects us to aspire to such in this life.
		+
		+	In the Bible, Christ says "follow me", "be ye therefore perfect", “sell all and give”, and "keep my
		+	commandments".  Like Moroni 10:32,these commands seem quite absolute, but they
		+	are just as easily understood to be aspirational in nature.
		+
		+	Evangelical Christian scholar Millard Erickson says
		+	something similar;
		+
		+	:"Certain difficulties attach to assuming [we can achieve freedom from sin], however.  One is that it seems contradictory to repeatedly exhort Christians to a victorious spotless life unless it is a real possibility.  But does this necessarily follow?  We may have a standard, an ideal, toward which we press, but which we do not expect to reach within a finite period of time.  It has been observed that no one has ever reached the North Star by sailing or flying toward it.  That does not change the fact that it is still the mark toward which we press, our measure of “northerliness.”  Similarly, although we may never be perfectly sanctified within this life, we shall be in eternity beyond and hence should presently aim to arrive as close to complete sanctification as we can." --- Christian Theology, 2nd Edition, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, p. 986
		+
		+	Moroni 10:32 in the Book of Mormon can be read similar to biblical admonishments. They reflect God’s standard/requirement. Consider that when God admonishes us, He really can’t make any allowance for sin (Alma 45:16, Doctrine and Covenants 1:31).  So He tells us to be perfect.  While it is theoretically possible for us to keep every commandment all of the time, in practice it is impossible. God has set a goal for us, and the goal is perfection. We aspire to reach it so that we can become what we are meant to become.
	=={{Conclusion label}}==		=={{Conclusion label}}==

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Revision as of 12:55, 20 July 2011

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==

Questions

== Critics interpret Moroni 10:32 to suggest that the conditions we must meet in order to receive salvation are too high for any man to obtain (perfect righteousness), and therefore salvation is impossible.

To see citations to the critical sources for these claims, [[../CriticalSources|click here]]

==

Detailed Analysis

== Moroni 10꞉32 reads:

32 Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.

There are at least two ways to view this passage from a faithful LDS perspective.

As a formal/creedal instruction for salvation

As an "aspirational" instruction

Moroni 10:32 and similar passages in the Bible can be read as aspirational, with a mark one aims to; not a statement of soteriology (theology of salvation). Jesus' words to love God with all one's heart, mind, and strength and other-like passages in the Bible are of the same character; God does not literally expect perfect obedience to the law (whether the Universal law or the Law of Moses [moral and/or ceremonial divisions]), but expects us to aspire to such in this life.

In the Bible, Christ says "follow me", "be ye therefore perfect", “sell all and give”, and "keep my commandments". Like Moroni 10:32,these commands seem quite absolute, but they are just as easily understood to be aspirational in nature.

Evangelical Christian scholar Millard Erickson says something similar;

"Certain difficulties attach to assuming [we can achieve freedom from sin], however. One is that it seems contradictory to repeatedly exhort Christians to a victorious spotless life unless it is a real possibility. But does this necessarily follow? We may have a standard, an ideal, toward which we press, but which we do not expect to reach within a finite period of time. It has been observed that no one has ever reached the North Star by sailing or flying toward it. That does not change the fact that it is still the mark toward which we press, our measure of “northerliness.” Similarly, although we may never be perfectly sanctified within this life, we shall be in eternity beyond and hence should presently aim to arrive as close to complete sanctification as we can." --- Christian Theology, 2nd Edition, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI, p. 986

Moroni 10:32 in the Book of Mormon can be read similar to biblical admonishments. They reflect God’s standard/requirement. Consider that when God admonishes us, He really can’t make any allowance for sin (Alma 45:16, Doctrine and Covenants 1:31). So He tells us to be perfect. While it is theoretically possible for us to keep every commandment all of the time, in practice it is impossible. God has set a goal for us, and the goal is perfection. We aspire to reach it so that we can become what we are meant to become.

==

Answer

==

== Notes ==

Further reading

FairMormon Answers articles

Grace

FairMormon web site

Grace FairMormon articles on-line

• John A. Tvedtnes, "Salvation by Grace Alone?" off-site

External links