Part 1 – The First Estate/Transition
Chapter 2
1 Nephi 1 – Premortality
Abraham 3:22 Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was; and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones;
Nephite Timeline
We start out the Book of Mormon in the ancient city of Jerusalem. The holy city, the one place on earth at the time, that we know of, that had the Temple of the Lord, the House of God where His presence could be expected. We learn that Nephi has been “born of goodly parents”, a little historical background, then within the first 6 verses we have an account of a man that has risen to the upper levels of the path; Lehi’s vision of God, a theophany that would set the tone for the rest of the book. Nephi records “there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much… And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a vision, even that he saw the heavens open, and he thought he saw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God.” (1 Ne 1:6,8). The stage is set, we are led to exclaim as Lehi “Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy power, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth; and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish!” (1 Ne 1:14)
Lehi also sees what will become of Jerusalem if the people do not repent and endeavors to preach repentance to them but is ultimately rejected. The fact that Jerusalem had fallen into apostasy is irrelevant for the purposes of the symbology of the allegory, remember we’re talking big picture here, not minutiae. Jerusalem housed the Temple at the time, the one place that could be called the House of the Lord. If God were to be found any place on the earth at that moment, arguably it would be in Jerusalem. In this symbology one can clearly see a link between the Holy City and our Premortal home above.
Individual Timeline
Premortality
Our lives started in the premortal courts of heaven above, as spirit children of our loving Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother. Indeed we may say, as does Nephi in opening his record, we too had “been (spiritually) born of goodly parents!” (1 Ne 1:1) As “the offspring of God” (Acts 17:29) we have those same divine genes, the potential to follow the same path as our Father. For as boldly taught by Joseph Smith “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens! … It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the Character of God, and to know that we may converse with him as one man converses with another, and that he was once a man like us; yea, that God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth, the same as Jesus Christ himself did.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1938, pp. 345–46.). God himself declares “Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High” (Psalm 82:6). It is awe inspiring to think that our Father in Heaven went through the same beginning stages we have already traversed and currently are passing through, even more humbling to think that this path can lead to where He currently is.
Unfortunately, this may be a short chapter! Fact is we don’t know much, and remember even less about our premortal world, despite the millennia we spent there! What has been revealed is that we are literal children of a loving Father and Mother who reside in the heavens above. It would seem that as an immortal, perfected, eternal couple they have gained the ability to take spiritual matter and organize it into spirit children. By what process we are organized it does not say, but we are assured it takes a couple to do so. This matter has been labeled “intelligence” as Abraham saw in vision “the intelligences that were organized before the world was” (Abraham 3:22).
Just what this Intelligence is and from whence it springs we are not told directly, but a cursory study of the word leads us to D&C 93 where we learn in vs 29 “Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.” If we read on in vs 36 the profound insight is given “The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.” Diving deeper we are brought to Section 84 “For the word of the Lord is truth, and whatsoever is truth is light,” there’s that “light and truth” phrase, “and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit (or light) of Jesus Christ.” This “light of Christ” which is “in all and through all things”, “proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space” (D&C 84:45, 6, 12).
In summation the “light of Christ” or “glory of God” proceeds from His presence, it is literally in and through everything, it can be equated to the “spirit” or “light and truth”, or in other words “Intelligence”. This divine spiritual ether, we are told by Joseph Smith is matter, “All spirit is matter, but it is more fine or pure, and can only be discerned by purer eyes” (D&C 131:7). One could then hypothesize that from this spiritual matter, or intelligence, that we were created as God’s children, our spirits are literally a little piece of His glory, organized into a spirit son or daughter after His likeness. It has been said we are “gods in embryo”, part of His “eternal increase”, and so it is! As His divine offspring we were reared in the courts of glory above, He loves us unconditionally, our worth, value, and potential are unlimited, for “As man now is, God once was; as God now is, man may be”. (Lorenzo Snow, “Unchangeable Love of God” (Sept. 18, 1898))
The Plan of Salvation
As spirit offspring of God we were presented a plan, “the way” if you will, to become like and return to God, in a grand council of heaven. Christ championed the Father’s plan, offering himself as a sacrificial lamb for the pains and sins of God’s children, as a result of their agency. Bringing agency to the forefront, and equally opposite plan of subjugation was presented by Lucifer, that nullified and destroyed agency. We were presented with a choice, a choice that dictated whether we were able to move on from the first estate to the second.
This is beautifully detailed by Abraham who saw in vision: “there stood one among them that was like unto God, and he said unto those who were with him: We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials, and we will make an earth whereon these may dwell; And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them; And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever.
And the Lord said: Whom shall I send? And one answered like unto the Son of Man: Here am I, send me. And another answered and said: Here am I, send me. And the Lord said: I will send the first. And the second was angry, and kept not his first estate; and, at that day, many followed after him.” (Abraham 3:24-28)
This business of “keeping estates” is what the covenantal path of God is all about. If you are reading this, congratulations! You were among the more noble and faithful of God’s children that kept their first estate by choosing Christ’s plan! You entered into the covenant of Obedience to Christ and His plan, being willing to sacrifice your heavenly home on a temporary basis and voluntarily enter into spiritual death. You had faith that He would come to earth and save us from our spiritual freefall, giving us the chance to overcome the spiritual death being born into a fallen world would necessitate as we left the presence of our Father as well as the physical death that inevitably comes to us all in mortality. The concern for all of us now is in keeping our second and current estate.
The Veil
Trouble is, that despite every one of us experiencing these events, and learning all that we did before this life, we can’t remember one iota of it! To preserve our agency, and fulfill the plan of the Creator to “prove [us] herewith, to see if [we] will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command [us]” (Abraham 3:25) a veil has been placed over our minds, allowing us to make choices, between good and evil, without the past memory of our heavenly home and lessons there to guide us. So how are we to make the right decisions? The key is in the “light of Christ”, the word of God or iron rod as we have described in the tree of life vision. That little voice in us all that dictates between good and evil, what the world calls conscience. More on this in the following chapter.
Still there are traces, whispers, and blessings that we have brought with us from our premortal sphere. As eloquently stated by Marion G. Romney in an address given to CES faculty July 1960: “I believe that, notwithstanding the fact the spirits of men, as an incident to mortality, are deprived of memory and cast out of the presence of God, there still persists in the spirit of every human soul a residuum from his pre-existent spiritual life which instinctively responds to the voice of the Spirit until and unless it is inhibited by the free agency of the individual.” Many converts describe hearing these whisperings as they hear the truths of the gospel for the first time in this life, echoing lessons learned in a past life. Therefore, we are not so much learning the Gospel anew, but remembering what we once knew, peeling back the layers of the veil one by one until, ideally, the veil remains no more.
Foreordination
It would appear that the degree of dedication and faithfulness in that world was as varied as it is in this world. More so, that the faithful works of that world translate to certain blessings in this one. Priesthood ordination, as an example, seems to fall under this category as described by Alma; “this is the manner after which they (the priests) were ordained—being called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God, on account of their exceeding faith and good works; in the first place being left to choose good or evil; therefore they having chosen good, and exercising exceedingly great faith, are called with a holy calling, yea, with that holy calling which was prepared with, and according to, a preparatory redemption for such. And thus they have been called to this holy calling on account of their faith, while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their hearts and blindness of their minds, while, if it had not been for this they might have had as great privilege as their brethren. Or in fine, in the first place they were on the same standing with their brethren; thus this holy calling being prepared from the foundation of the world for such as would not harden their hearts” (Alma 13:3-5). Certain gifts, abilities, circumstances, and foreordinations can all be tied back to this principle.
We often hear the cynical remark “I cannot believe in a loving God that allows so much inequality and suffering in this life”, but if one takes premortality into consideration, the disparities and injustices of this world can more easily be understood. We have no issues believing that the kingdom, blessings, powers, priesthoods, and thrones we inherit in the next life are directly correlated with the degree of righteousness, faith, and obedience we have exemplified in this life. “This life”, as explained by Alma, “became a probationary state; a time to prepare to meet God; a time to prepare for that endless state which has been spoken of by us” (Alma 12:24). If we believe that this life determines what blessed state we inherit in the next, would it not be reasonable to declare that the circumstances we are born into this life, in general, are directly correlated with the righteous decisions we made in our prior life?
Certainly this does not cover all circumstances, nor can being born into a blessed state lead us in pharisaical fashion to declare like the Jews “Abraham is our Father”! (John 8:39) for “unto whom much is given much is required” (D&C 82:3). Yet, as we were taught by Alma we were all “on the same standing with [our] bretheren” when we started as God’s spirit children, but some “on account of their exceeding faith and good works” received greater blessings to be inherited in this life “while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their hearts and blindness of their minds, while, if it had not been for this they might have had as great privilege as their brethren.” (Alma 13:5,3-4)
This principle was taught most dramatically from the lore of our heavenly heritage during the great counsel in heaven where the plan of the Father as championed by Christ stood in stark contrast to the diabolical plan of slavery as presented by Lucifer. At that day of sifting it is stated a third followed Satan and kept not their first estate on account of the “hardness of their hearts and blindness of their minds”. Of note, it states “a third” not “one third” or 33%. It would seem that in the spectrum of God’s children three classes arose, a third did not make the first cut, these were the tares and among the “liar(s) from the beginning” (D&C 93:25). Yet two thirds did accept Christ and the plan of Salvation. The only other distinction between the remaining two thirds may be found in the phrase “the noble and great ones” as observed by Abraham as he beheld the “intelligences that were organized before the world was” (Abraham 3:22), and our own latter day prophet Joseph F. Smith that noted that these “were chosen in the beginning to be rulers in the Church of God.” (D&C 138:55). God’s plan as he looks for those that will become “[His] rulers” (Abraham 3:23), of necessity, requires sifting; sifting the wheat from the tares, the sheep from the goats, the wise from the foolish virgins.
We have kept our first estate, have made it through the first cut if you will; whether we left that first estate with blessings and an increase that have translated into favorable circumstances in this life is now more or less irrelevant. There will be many so blessed, that will squander the inheritance of their premortal good deeds given in this life, as did the prodigal son. Likewise there will be many that squandered their inheritance of time in the premortal world, were born into this life in unfavorable circumstances, who will, like the prodigal, “come to themselves”, “arise”, and “come to their Father”, and receive their rings and robes. We reap what we sow, we get what we want; let us build where we are, on the gifts, blessings, and foundation we inherited from premortality, wherever that may be. Whether we inherited ten talents, five, or one, let us increase them and become “good and faithful servant(s).” (Matthew 25:21).
Our pre-earth life was primarily a time of calling, this life is a time of choosing, or an election; “There has been a day of calling, but the time has come for a day of choosing; and let those be chosen that are worthy” (D&C 105:35). Further stated “there are many who have been ordained among you, whom I have called but few of them are chosen” (D&C 95:5). According to the merciful plan of our great Creator, those not called in the first estate can be called here, and those not chosen here can be chosen in the next life. It is the purpose of this book to describe the process of choosing, being elected, and becoming the elect of God for those that have been so called.
Global Timeline
I find it particularly fascinating that the Lord’s covenantal path is not only laid out for His children but also for the planetary bodies they live on. Either as a way to teach us or out of necessity, the Lord seems to take particular care to drive His most important points home in a multitude of ways, in the mouth of “two or three witnesses” if you will.
Well known is the teaching of the Earth following this path. It first fell with Adam from God’s presence (leaving premortality to mortality), was baptized (flood) and will eventually receive the baptism by fire or gift of the Holy Ghost (Second Coming), leading to a millennial/Terrestrial state under the direction of the voice of Christ (our own becoming the “pure in heart” or Zion). The earth will then have a great and last battle (our trial of faith), will die and be resurrected (our own death and resurrection, alternatively our transfiguration as we come into Christ’s presence), and live in God’s presence in a Celestial state for eternity (entering into our exaltation, either in this life or the next).
As I have studied this doctrine I have found that the timeline for the Church and the events of the latter days also seem to mirror the events of the Book of Mormon, as does our individual covenantal path. History, as it were, repeats itself. It may be difficult to keep all these teachings separate, one may want to go through and study them all in linear fashion instead of collectively as presented, so bear with me as I relate the allegory to the restoration as well.
The “Jerusalem” of the last days begins in Europe, where in the enlightenment of the Reformation, the stark contrast between good and evil, truth and falsehood, is becoming clearer and clearer. As Lehi of old, the Protestant leaders recognize how far the professed establishment of God has strayed from the original gospel and are led by the Spirit to call repentance to a fallen people. Lehi’s modern-day counterparts found in Wycliffe, Luther, Calvin, Cromwell and many others were persecuted for trying to bring the world back to the roots of the gospel of Christ, their lives were sought after, and like Lehi, ultimately their movement and teachings would have to leave their mother nations and search out a better land, a promised one.
The stage is set. The righteous few are being persecuted in their mother lands by the very people that should have been the Lord’s sheep and shepherds. Those that are professing to be true followers of the Lord are the greatest hindrances to the spread of His truth. Those that claim to be His wheat are more akin to the thorns that are attempting to choke out the truth as it is taught by His designated servants. The stoning of the prophets of old pales in comparison to the bloodlust of the zealots of the Reformation where millions were tortured and killed on both sides, in the most barbaric and brutal manner; all in the professed name of Christ. Ultimately the heat of persecution would become so intense that righteous bands of followers would sacrifice everything, leave the home of their nativity, and seek out the promised land where they could worship their God according to the dictates of their own hearts. It just so happens that the promised land they sought out was the very same that their ancient counterpart Lehi sought, the Land of the Free, the American continent.
Personal Timeline
Time to get personal! No I don’t have any miraculous experiences of seeing pre-earth life, remembering my life’s mission, and the war in heaven. But there are those whisperings of a heavenly home that have come back to me over the years. Probably none greater than as a 20 year old, serving the Lord in Croatia. We had met two wonderful members of the Hare Krishna faith that from the first meeting had just an outstanding spirit about them. I don’t think in all my years sharing the gospel with various people I have come across individuals that were so in tune with the spirit and so open to it’s teachings, which astounded me at the time because their religion was so different than ours. But years of meditation, prayer, and clean living prepared a very fertile soil for the seed of the word to be planted in. “Of a truth I perceive(d) that God is no respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34), and “whosoever will come may come and partake of the waters of life freely”. (Alma 42:27)
As we got to the discussion about the plan of salvation the spirit was particularly palpable. As we discussed the plan that night, in a cramped little apartment in the distant eastern town of Osijek, the spirit bore witness to us all of the truth of God’s plan of happiness. Particularly during the discussion of premortality we experienced an almost Pentecostal outpouring of the spirit; practically startled we looked around the room and for a split second the veil became very thin. We knew at that time that we knew each other in the pre-earth life, we had been friends, and had anticipated this day when the gospel would bring us together to catch a glimpse of our heavenly home and our associations there. From that day on we called each other “predsmrtnički prijatelji” which means “premortal friends”, still do.
The Way 