Light and Darkness

In Institute, we've been talking about Moses 1. Above is Michelangelo's sculpted version of Moses. Yes he has horns. Maybe he was Mormon. ;)

First, we learned that oftentimes, messages from God are given to us through His Son or angels. In this case, Christ speaks to Moses in God's stead. It was glorious; Moses saw "the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created; of the same he greatly marveled and wondered" (Moses 1:8). Then, the vision closes and Moses realizes that he saw God (Christ) with "not my natural, but my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not have beheld" (Moses 1:11). Basically, you can't see God (Christ) unless you have received the gift of spiritual eyes. So what are spiritual eyes?

I think they are kind of like sunglasses. Only the kind that you use to look at the sun so you don't burn your eyes out. The glory of God is too much for our naked eyes to behold, so we are blessed with spiritual sunglasses, if there is a message that the Father or Son needs to give us personally.

Then, Satan comes, and tells Moses to worship him. Moses looks at Satan and realizes that he is not God, and therefore cannot (should not) be worshiped. Moses asks, "where is thy glory, that I should worship thee? For behold, I could not look upon God, except his glory [sunglasses] should come upon me...But I can look upon thee in the natural man [aka, without the sunglasses]" (Moses 1:13-14). We learn that even when Satan imitates God the Father or Jesus Christ, he does not have Their glory. What is glory? Perhaps the next verse can help us. "Blessed be the name of my God, for his Spirit hath not altogether withdrawn from me," Moses says. "...where is thy glory, for it is darkness unto me? And I can judge between thee and God" (Moses 1:15). What is glory? Maybe it is light.

We can tell the good from the evil by the light which the good has. Feeling light is a glorious experience. I feel it with my family, Andrew, in the Temple, and at Primary. Places of faith where we show love and exercise faith are places of light, and therefore glory, and therefore God.

Thank you Moses, for reminding us of the Light of God and of Christ, and the darkness of Satan.

People, places, and things that are against our Heavenly Father are also darkness and Satan. Alma, in teaching Zeezrom, said that "It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God" which is given "according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him" (Alma 12:9). We gain light and understanding as we are obedient to the covenants we have made with God. For these people who are obedient, "is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full" (Alma 12:10). Wow! As we continue to progress and accept light, we come to understand that light, and God our Father, more fully. It becomes easier for you to receive the sunglasses. However, for "they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion..until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil" (Alma 12:11). So, even if you had light, if you harden your heart, that light and knowledge will be taken away.

I just wanted to share some of my thoughts with you and I hope that it helps you strive for light more often! And isn't the Hagia Sophia awesome? It was constructed as a church to be filled with light, which the Byzantines equated with God.