How Deep is Our Commitment to the Gospel?

In the Book of Mormon we read about a dream which was had by the prophet Lehi, in which he partook of the fruit of the tree which represented the love of God.  In his dream, Lehi saw "numberless concourses of people" following the path to the tree only to wander off and lose their way when a mist of darkness arose.  A second group of people was more fortunate as there was a rod of iron next to the path, which the people did cling to as they pressed forward through the darkness.  These people were able to reach the tree and partake of the fruit, but then things went wrong for them; "they did cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed."  Why did they do this?

In his dream, Lehi saw a "great and spacious building" in which there were people who "were in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come . . . and were partaking of the fruit."  The people of the second group then "fell away into forbidden paths and were lost."  They had partaken of the fruit, "which was most desirable of all other fruit", yet they were unable, or unwilling, to "endure to the end."

Lehi then saw a third group which not only reached the tree successfully, but which also did not fall away after partaking of the fruit.  These people had pressed "forward, continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree."  Elder Kevin S. Hamilton of the Seventy said in the October 2013 General Conference of the LDS Church that "The rod of iron represented for this group of people the only safety and security that they could find, and they held fast continually; they refused to let go, even for something as simple as a Sunday afternoon ride in the country."

Elder Hamilton then quoted Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve in regard to this third group: "The key phrase in this verse is 'continually holding fast' to the rod of iron. . . .  Perhaps this third group of people consistently read and studied and searched the words of Christ. . . .  This is the group you and I should strive to join."

In the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we can find stories similar to the experiences of the second and third groups in Lehi's dream.  Some such stories occurred during the Kirtland period of the church where the saints experienced difficulties in building up the Kingdom of God and then enjoyed the Pentecostal experience at the dedication of the Kirtland temple, only to have some then wander off in forbidden paths.  Others went through the same experiences, but remained faithful through the trials that followed in Missouri and Illinois.

I have written before about my great great great grandfather Frederick G. Williams, who joined the church in Kirtland, Ohio, and traveled with Oliver Cowdery, Peter Whitmer Jr., Parley P. Pratt and Ziba Peterson on their mission to the native Americans living in the Indian territories (http://thewholemissionary.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-mission-to-lamanites-and-conversion.html).  Williams was later called to be the second counselor in the First Presidency, he donated land to the church for the construction of buildings to further the work of kingdom, and he saw an angel at the dedication of the Kirtland temple -- the angel was also identified as the Savior.  But there were also trials; there were disagreements regarding his role as a justice of the peace, an argument with the prophet Joseph Smith regarding business affairs of the Kirtland Safety Society, and his daughter married a man who would be less than faithful to the church.

Despite the trials, it could be said that President Williams had success, prominence and spritual fulfillment in Kirtland.  When he left Kirtland, he would lose almost everything.  At a conference in Missouri, members refused to sustain him as second counselor in the First Presidency and he lost this position.  An invalid son, whose healing had been promised if he and his wife remained faithful, passed away.  His son-in-law became involved with other members turning against the church and collaborating with its enemies. Finally, Williams would be excommunicated from the church as the saints departed for Illinois.

A descendant of Frederick G Williams would speculate that he suffered guilt by association as he tried to mediate with his son-in-law and others who were turning against the church, trying to persuade them to return to the fold.  Additionally, Williams was absent when the saints were making the trek to Illinois, and many who were absent at that time were excommunicated.  Williams may, however, have been absent because of his work in settling an estate belonging to a member of the church, for which he spent three days in court in Far West in March 1839.  The business of settling the estate allowed Williams to visit Joseph Smith who was then in Liberty Jail.  In later years, Brigham Young appeared to admit a mistake had been made when he would teasingly ask Frederick's wife Rebecca if she had forgiven him yet.

It is certainly possible that Williams had committed an offense worthy of being excommunicated, but no documentation can be found regarding what that offense might have been.  Even so, when Joseph Smith arrived in Illinois, he counseled Frederick G. Williams to submit himself before the church and ask for forgiveness.  Williams did so in April 1840, and was received back into the fellowship of the church.  There may have been some hard feelings, however, as Dr. Williams chose to set up his practice in the town of Quincy, rather than in Nauvoo.  Still, Williams remained faithful until his death in October 1842, at the age of fifty-four.

Frederick's wife, Rebecca, and his son, Ezra, would cross the plains to settle in the valley of the Great Salt Lake.  Ezra Williams would establish the first hospital west of the Mississipi in 1852, when the Williamses converted their spacious two-story, seven room adobe home, which stood at 44 East North Temple in Salt Lake City.

Despite everything he had lost, despite the difficulties he had experienced, Frederick G. Williams remained faithful to the end.  Whatever disagreements he may have had, even emotional scars, what mattered to him was that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God and that the Book of Mormon was the word of God.  His commitment to the gospel was deep enough that he died full in the faith.

Will we be able to say the same thing?  We live in a world, it seems, where personal attacks are okay, but standing up for your beliefs is not.  In the church, "he said/she said" disagreements or other actions by imperfect people drive others from the church because they are offended.  Others, despite such wounds, choose to remain faithful, to continue holding fast to the rod of iron.  What will we do?  How deep is our commitment?


Sources:

Williams, F. G. (2012). The Life of Dr. Frederick G. Williams: Counselor to the Prophet Joseph Smith. Provo, Utah: BYU Studies.

Hamilton, K. S. (2013). "Continually Holding Fast. Ensign, vol. 43 (11).
http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/continually-holding-fast