Master, Master, We Perish

I will go down with this ship:

now it came to pass
on a certain day
that he went into a ship with his disciples
and he said unto them

let us go over
unto the other side of the lake

and they launched forth
but
as they sailed
he fell asleep
and there came down a storm of wind on the lake
and they were filled with water
and were in jeopardy
and they came to him
and awoke him
saying

master
master
we perish

then he arose
and rebuked the wind
and the raging of the water
and they ceased
and there was a calm
and he said unto them

where is your faith?

and they
being afraid
wondered
saying one to another

what manner of man is this!
for he commands even the winds and water
and they obey him

Taking this story as a metaphor for one’s life, it goes like this:

• Jesus has a mission for you
  [let us go over unto the other side of the lake].
• You are obedient to him
  [and they launched forth].
• His mission leads you into harm and peril
  [but as they sailed … there came down a storm of wind on the lake and they were filled with water and were in jeopardy].
• He is not all that concerned about that
  [but as they sailed he fell asleep].
• You will have to either rouse him — or fix it yourself
  [and they came to him and awoke him — where is your faith?].

Wait, what?  God will lead you into peril and jeopardy and then leave you there so He can take a nap?  Yes.  And if you don’t have the faith to either fix it yourself or to cry out to Him, then He will keep on napping — while the situation drowns you.  Having let the Lord of the Universe into the “ship” of your life and being obedient to His directions will grant you zero security that your travels will be safe.

And it wasn’t just the 12 disciples:

Lehi’s vision of the tree of life did not begin with “a large and spacious field” in which he “beheld a tree, whose fruit was desirable to make one happy.”  No, it starts ominously with:  a dark and dreary wilderness,

and it came to pass
that I saw a man
and he was dressed in a white robe
and he came and stood before me
and it came to pass
that he spake unto me
and commanded me to follow him
and it came to pass
that as I followed him
I beheld myself
that I was in a dark and dreary waste
and after I had traveled for the space of many hours in darkness
I began to pray unto the lord
that he would have mercy on me
according to the multitude of his tender mercies
and it came to pass
after I had prayed unto the lord
I beheld a large and spacious field
and it came to pass
that I beheld a tree
whose fruit was desirable
to make one happy

You see, we begin our story in a miserable place, a dark and dreary wilderness.  Then, all is well, a man in white appears and commands us to follow him, presumably to deliver out of this situation.  And instead, we are led into an even worse situation, a dark and dreary waste.  Thanks a lot Man-in-White.  Then he just leaves us there — to wander in the depths of despair and depression.

And there’s where the story would’ve ended had it not been for Lehi’s impulse to begin to pray unto God for mercy and deliverance from the darkness.  It’s only then that we can find ourselves in the large and spacious field with the fruit of happiness and family togetherness.

God isn’t troubled by your bothers, unless you can be bothered enough to trouble Him:

and he spake a parable unto them
to this end
that people ought always to pray
and not faint
saying

there was in a city
a ruler
who didn’t fear god
nor care about people
and there was in that city
a widow
who came unto him
saying

give me justice
and stop my oppressor

and he would not
for a while
but afterwards
he said within himself

though I do not care about god
nor respect any person
because this widow troubles me
I will exact justice for her
lest by her continual coming
she tire me out

and the lord said

ponder what the unjust ruler said
and shall not god avenge his own elect
who cry day and night unto him
when he has patience with them?
I tell you that he will grant justice for them speedily

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Equality

Scriptures using the word “equality”:

for I mean not that other people be eased
while you are burdened
but by an equality
that now
at this time
your abundance may be a supply for their want
that their abundance also may be a supply for your want
that there may be equality

2 Corinthians 8:13-14

and

and when the priests left their labor
to impart the word of god unto the people
the people also left their labors to hear the word of god
and when the priest had imparted unto them the word of god
they all returned again diligently unto their labors
and the priest
not esteeming himself above his hearers
for the preacher was no better than the hearer
neither was the teacher any better than the learner
and thus they were all equal
and they did all labor
every man according to his strength

Alma 1:26

and

that you may be equal in the bonds of heavenly things
yea
and earthly things also
for the obtaining of heavenly things
for if you are not equal in earthly things
then you cannot be equal in obtaining heavenly things
for if you will that I give unto you a place in the celestial world
you must prepare yourselves
by doing the things which I have commanded you
and required of you

D&C 78:5-7

Questions:

Does God care about equality?

• If so, in what way do they care about it?

Does God care about fairness?

• If so, in what way?

How are the answers affected by the definitions of:

• equity = The quality of being equal, even-handed dealing, what is fair and right.
• justice = The maintenance of what is correct or proper, the giving of deserved consequences.
• righteousness = The state of being just or true, conforming to the accepted standards of law

for the kingdom of god is not food and drink
but righteousness
and peace
and joy in the holy spirit

Romans 14:17

but seek first the kingdom of god
and his righteousness
and all these things shall be added unto you

Matthew 6:33

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