The Plan Of Salvation

In the premortal existence, Heavenly Father prepared a plan to enable us to become like Him and receive a fullness of joy. Through this plan we can have eternal joy and salvation. This blog can help us understand what this plan is, how it is made possible, and what we can gain from it.

Alma 24: 14 And the great God has had mercy on us, and made these things known unto us that we might not perish; yea, and he has made these things known unto us beforehand, because he loveth our ^asouls as well as he loveth our children; therefore, in his mercy he doth visit us by his angels, that the ^bplan of salvation might be made known unto us as well as unto future generations.

Spirit World

Before we lived on this earth we lived with God and Jesus Christ in the premortal existence . In the premortal existence we lived as spirit children of our Heavenly Father but we were not like our Heavenly Father. In the book of Moses (Modern Scripture) God explains how he created everything and everyone spiritually before he created them physically. Moses 3:5 says, "And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew. For I the Lord God, created all things, of which I have spoken, spiritulally before they were naturally upon the face of the earth. For I, the Lord God, had not caused it to rain upon the face of the earth. And I, the Lord God, had created all the children of men; and not yet a man to till the ground; for in heaven created I them; and there was not yet flesh upon the earth, neithere in the water, neither in the air;" We were not like our Heavenly Father because we could not experience joy and happiness like him without the blessing of living in mortality with a physical body. God created a perfect plan that he has provided for us so we can fulfill his purpose. All of understood and accepted God's perfect plan before we came to this Earth and for this very reason we all are on the earth today. God's plan is called a merciful plan, the plan of happiness, the plan of redemption, and the plan of salvation. This plan is centered around the savior Jesus Christ who suffered and died for us so we could one day return to the presence of God and Jesus Christ. Once we were put here on earth we were given agency to choose to return back to the presence of God or go another way and not return to God's presence once again.

Creation

The Creation is an integral part of Heavenly Father's plan of salvation. From 2 Nephi 2 14 we know that “...there is a God and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the Earth and all things in them are both things to act and things to be acted upon” Wherefore we know that because of the Creation we are given the chance to receive a physical body and come to Earth to exercise our agency. 3 Nephi 9:15 say "Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are." because of this we know that Jesus created the Universe and though other modern revelation, we know that Jesus Christ, did so under the direction of Heavenly Father. We also know that during the Creation, the Lord organized elements that had already existed. He did not simply create the world out of nothing, as some people believe. After creating the world, we were created in God's own image. We know this from the bible as well as the Book of Mormon, in scriptures such as Ether 3:15 which says "And never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast. Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image? Yea, even all men were created in the beginning after mine own image."

Agency

Since the beginning of time God has given us agency; our first choice was to choose whether we wanted to come down to the Earth and gain a body or to live with Satan and never receive a body. God created opposition in all things so we can learn and grow and be able to choose which path we want to follow. In the Book of Mormon in the book of 2 Nephi 2:15-16 it says, "And to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man, after he had created our first parents, and the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and in fine, all things which are created, it must needs be that there was an opposition; even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life; the one being sweet and the other bitter.
Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other." Since the beginning of time God has given us the choice to choose good from evil, right from wrong, and to follow him or follow satan. God has promised us that if we choose to follow him we will be blessed as we do his will. In John 14:15 God says, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." If we really have a love for God we will use our agency to follow him because if we don't have a love for him we are choosing to follow the Devil and going against God and his plan. To emphasize just a little bit more another Book of Mormon scripture explains the blessings we can receive if we use our agency to keep God's commandments. Mosiah 2:22 says, "And behold, all that requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he nevr doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you." Following God can make us happier people as we strive to do his will which is keeping his commandments if we choose not to do so we have used our agency to follow Satan. We all are lucky to have a God that lets us choose how we want to live our lives and gives good reasons and promises why it is that we should follow him.

The Fall

Many people today think of the Fall as a terrible thing, and Adam and Eve as not so good people. There certainly is a good argument for holding this view, but there is an alternate; one that brings new understanding and purpose to life.
When Adam and Eve were first created in the Garden of Eden, they were in a state of innocence. They were much like children. They did not have to work to sustain themselves. They knew very little about the world they lived in, and they did not know the difference between good and evil. Additionally, they could not have children. (2 Nephi 2:22-23)
God gave them several commandments. One was to not partake of the forbidden fruit. God also gave them free will, so that they could choose for themselves what they would do.
Adam and Eve both eventually ate the forbidden fruit, and thus became imperfect. They had to leave the Garden. Because of this choice that they made, there were some very negative consequences that became part of the world that we now live in. First was physical death. Adam and Eve were now mortal, and would experience all the pains, sorrows, and humility that life can bring. Second, and more important, was spiritual death. As physical death is a separation of body and spirit, spiritual death is a separation of man from God. This meant that Adam and Eve could no longer live in God’s presence, for no unclean thing can dwell with God. (1 Nephi 10:21)
There are some positive effects of the Fall. Adam and Eve could now have children. This made possible the entire human race. They also were now able to learn and progress; they could use their new found knowledge to choose between good and evil and they could experience the consequences of their choices.
Most of all, Adam and Eve, and the rest of the human race, could have joy. Adam fell that men might be, men are that they may have joy. (2 Nephi 2:25) This is the underlying purpose to everything that we do in life. Even though life is difficult sometimes, it is always possible to be happy.

Atonement

Atonement-The atonement is the key to the plan of salvation. With the atoning power of Christ we are free from sin and able to rejoin or Father in Heaven once again. The atonement is Christ’s suffering in the garden of Gethsemane, his crucifixion and suffering again on the cross, and his resurrection three day after his death. Each one of these acts plays an important role in our Fathers plan for us. Christ has suffered for our sins so that we can have the chance to repent and be cleansed. It is the only way, and he was the only one who could have performed it. Without the atonement, Gods plan for us would not be complete. We require a Savior and God has provided one for us. It is our responsibility to accept the sacrifice made on our behalf and to repent.

Alma 7:11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

Mosiah 4:6 I say unto you, if ye have come to a knowledge of the goodness of God, and his matchless power, and his wisdom, and his patience, and his long-suffering towards the children of men; and also, the atonement which has been prepared from the foundation of the world, that thereby salvation might come to him that should put his trust in the Lord, and should be diligent in keeping his commandments, and continue in the faith even unto the end of life, I mean the life of the mortal body-

Alma 34:8 And now, behold, I will testify unto you of myself that these things are true. Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

Prophets

In the scriptures we read the words and hear the stories of the prophets of old. These prophets were men of God, called upon to do the work of the Lord. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are blessed to have a living prophet today. The prophet is an inspired man, called to this position by the Lord. He is the mouth piece of the Lord and the only one on earth who receives inspiration for the church.
Today, the man who holds this position, as the Prophet and leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is Thomas S. Monson. As members of this church, we sustain him to this calling.
To assist the Prophet in his calling, the Lord also calls apostles. These men hold the same position as Peter, James, and John did in the time of Christ.
In the Bible we read, " Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7). Another scripture found in 1 Nephi 22:2 of the Book of Mormons states, "And I, Nephi, said unto them: Behold they were manifest unto the prophet by the voice of the Spirit; for by the Spirit are all things made known unto the prophets, which shall come upon the children of men according to the flesh. In order for the Lords work to be done, he needs a prophet on the earth. This prophet today is Thomas S. Monson

Death

Physical Death- Each and every one of us will suffer physical death. When our time on the earth has passed our life will end and our body and spirit will separate. The body will go the ways of the earth, being either buried or cremated or whatever you choose to have done to it. This is where the atonement comes in. When Christ was resurrected he let loose the bands of physical death. Thus all of us will like him, be resurrected when the time has come.

2Nephi 9:11 And because of the way of deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this death, of which I have spoken, which is the temporal, shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave.

Spiritual Death- The other death that each of us will face is spiritual death, or the separation from our Father in Heaven. We suffer this death because of our sins. Every sin that we commit regardless of how small takes us away from our Father in heaven. Then there becomes this growing gap that must be bridged. The atonement of Christ is that bridge. Christ has suffered for our sins and paid the price so that we can be forgiven and remain in Gods presence, if we repent.

Alma 12:16 And now behold, I say unto you then cometh a death, even a second death, which is a spiritual death; then is a time that whosever dieth in his sins, as to a temporal death, shall also die a spiritual death; yea, he shall die as to things pertaining unto righteousness.

Alma 13:30 And may the Lord grant unto you repentance, that ye may not bring down his wrath upon you, that ye may not be bound down by the chains of hell, that ye may not suffer the second death.

Spirit World

Imagine standing on a hill in front of a large valley, and seeing every member of the human race that has lived since Jesus Christ. No stadium or building ever built would contain such a large crowd. Imagine if the call went out for just the Christians to raise their hands. Only a very small fraction of the people would raise their hands. Any individual sect would be only a small fraction of those Christians.
God is said to be perfectly merciful, and yet perfectly just at the same time. If God accepts into his presence only those that lived as Christians, he would be leaving out most of the human family. Most would have lived and died never having heard the name of Jesus. If God selected only one group of Christians, he is leaving out most of those that believed in Christ. How can he be called merciful and loving if most of his children never fulfill the purpose of their creation?
If God is just, he cannot accept everybody into his kingdom. In order for justice to be satisfied, there must be some kind of trial; if there is a trial some of his children will fail to meet the requirements. (Alma 42:13)
How can both of these seemingly opposing interests be satisfied at the same time?
The answer is that God must provide all of his children an opportunity to accept and live His truth at some point. For those who did not get the chance in life, the opportunity will come during what is known as the spirit world.
The spirit world is where the dearly departed go to await the resurrection. For many, it is a place of rest, and a place of peace. For those who lived their lives in ignorance of the Gospel, it is a place of learning. In this way, everybody gets the chance to accept Christ, no matter where in the world they were born, or to what parents. (Alma 40:11-12)
This portion of God’s plan ends with the resurrection.

Resurrection

When we die we experience a physical death which is the separation of the spirit from the body. There is a way to be saved from this physical death and have our bodies and spirits become one again. This happens through the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ and is called the Resurrection, the reuniting of the body and spirit. ( 1 Corinthians 15:22)
Jesus Christ was the first to be resurrected. Three day after being crucified, he rose from the tomb in which he was buried. After three days of his spirit being separated from his body, they were reunited. Because Jesus Christ suffered and died for us and over came death, every person who has ever lived on earth will be resurrected. After being resurrected, the spirit and body will never be separated again, it is a immortal reunion. After we are resurrected, we will be brought into the Lords presence to be judged according to our acts and works.

Enos 1: 27 And I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest. And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of my Father. Amen.

Alma 40; 23 The soul shall be restore to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame.

Judgement Day

Judgment day is an important part of the Plan of Salvation. It is when, after we are all resurrected, we will be judged for our actions and how we used our agency in mortal life. Its during this period we will be placed in one of the Three Kingdoms; Celestial, Telestrial and Terrestrial. As 1 Nephi 15:32-33 "...the day should come that they must be judged of their works, yea, even the works which were done by the temporal body in the days of their probation. Wherefore if they should die in their wickedness they must be cast off also, as to things which are spiritual, which are pertaining to righteousness; wherefore, they must be brought to stand before God, to be judged of their works; and if their works have been filthiness they must needs be filthy; and if they be filthy it must needs be that they cannot dwell in the kingdom of God; if so, the kingdom of God must be filthy also." as well as Alma 41:3-4 says "And it is requisite with the justice of God that men should be judged according to their works; and if their works were good in this life, and the desires of their hearts were good, that they should also, at the last day, be restored unto that which is good. And if their works are evil they shall be restored unto them for evil..." From both these scriptures we can understand that we will be judged for our actions and our use of agency.