5 Keys to Understanding Mormon Revelation

In light of recent possible excommunications of activists within the Mormon faith I wanted to shed a broader perspective and historical context around the dynamics which surround these aspects of Mormonism. I know this is a very emotionally sensitive topic. So please don't take my writing this as an attempt to belittle or ignore any pain or confusion people might be feeling (esp. those individuals and families directly affected by excommunication). First off I do want to empathize even just a bit. I have relatives who have dealt with disfellowship in their life. It's a deeply, deeply, personal thing and I will not pretend to know what is ultimately between individuals, their local priesthood leadership, and the Lord. I also want to state that I am not an authority in the church. So I won't be speaking specifically towards either individual's case but instead towards broader principles.

What pains me is to see people hinge their testimony of God or the restoration of the gospel on these current matters. Mormons are called to stay in the household of faith because we have faith in God, in the restoration, the word of God manifest in scripture, and modern revelation. While current policies around social issues may give us pause, they do not determine the veracity and power of those things. We need to evaluate each on their own terms.

My personal opinion here is that recent disciplinary actions from the LDS church has more to do with addressing the methods used to promote change rather than just the opinions themselves. I don't interpret this as some change in policy about the topics themselves but instead a strong re-iteration and emphasis on the pattern of revelation the LDS faith has. Overall, I'm saddened by any loss of faith. But I also see the reasoning for these types of actions by church officials and wish to provide what insights I personally have.

I want to offer 5 keys to understanding Mormon revelation to consider in navigating the Mormon faith in the context of recent events.

1. Revelation is a process

I like this quote from President Lorenzo Snow (back in 1900):

Lorenzo Snow

Seventy years ago this Church was organized with six members. We commenced, so to speak, as an infant. We had our prejudices to combat. Our ignorance troubled us in regard to what the Lord intended to do and what He wanted us to do. We advanced to boyhood, and still we undoubtedly made some mistakes, which generally arise from a lack of experience. We understand very well, when we reflect back upon our own lives, that we did many foolish things when we were boys. Yet as we advanced, the experience of the past materially assisted us to avoid such mistakes as we had made in our boyhood.

It has been so with the Church. Our errors have generally arisen from a lack of comprehending what the Lord required of us to do. But now we are pretty well along to manhood. When we examine ourselves, however, we discover that we are still not doing exactly as we ought to do, notwithstanding all our experience. We discern that there are things which we fail to do that the Lord expects us to perform, some of which He requires us to do in our boyhood. While we congratulate ourselves in this direction, we certainly ought to feel that we have not yet arrived at perfection. There are many things for us to do yet.

Source: President Lorenzo Snow 6 April, 1900, CR

In Mormonism, revelation and church authority are not infallible. There's a saying I heard once that in Catholicism the Pope is infallible but nobody believes it and in Mormonism the prophet is fallible but nobody believes it.

Revelation in Mormonism is not a way for God to give immovable edicts. It is a process through which God inspires prophets called to lead His church. It moves from principle to principle, truth to truth, "until the perfect day" (D&C 50:24).

2. The pattern of revelation

Five months after the organization of the church that Lorenzo Snow was referring to, a crisis arose in the church. Hiram Page had claimed to have received revelations regarding how to build up Zion which several other church members had accepted as revelation from God (including Oliver Cowdery - the "Second Elder" of the church).

Prior to a conference, Joseph Smith received this revelation which laid out the pattern of revelation the Lord wished to have in this dispensation (echoing patterns from other dispensations):

1 Behold, I say unto thee, Oliver, that it shall be given unto thee that thou shalt be heard by the church in all things whatsoever thou shalt teach them by the Comforter, concerning the revelations and commandments which I have given.
2 But, behold, verily, verily, I say unto thee, no one shall be appointed to receive commandments and revelations in this church excepting my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., for he receiveth them even as Moses.
3 And thou shalt be obedient unto the things which I shall give unto him, even as Aaron, to declare faithfully the commandments and the revelations, with power and authority unto the church.
4 And if thou art led at any time by the Comforter to speak or teach, or at all times by the way of commandment unto the church, thou mayest do it.
5 But thou shalt not write by way of commandment, but by wisdom;
6 And thou shalt not command him who is at thy head, and at the head of the church;
7 For I have given him the keys of the mysteries, and the revelations which are sealed, until I shall appoint unto them another in his stead.

D&C 28:1-7

Now, we can take this form of authoritarianism too far. But what the Lord clearly is calling for here is order in how His word is revealed and accepted institutionally in the church. It's a spectrum where we have authority squelching diversity and free expression on one end and on the other disorder and the conflict of interpretation against which Mormonism itself arose. Both are extremes which don't have a place in Mormonism. I think what we're seeing in light of these disciplinary actions is a navigation along that spectrum; and we need to understand the larger picture here.

My personal opinion is that what's at issue here isn't women ordination, gay rights/fellowship, or whether doubters are welcome. What's at issue is the Lord's established pattern of revelation and authority. Nearly 40 years ago, excommunication with regards to race and the priesthood occurred as close as several months before that policy change in 1978. Clearly those weren't about the issue itself which was already in the process of changing; they were about those who would steady the ark -- those who insist on a mode outside this established pattern. That's the issue being addressed here in my opinion. Not whether certain policies are "true" or whether the church is "with the times". I personally feel there can be a future for a greater & more full role for women, greater fellowship for gays, and more understanding for doubters. But I want any required institutional policy change or additional doctrine related to this to come from the Lord, not from those who mistake activism for the priesthood of God.

And when the direction that has come is, "No." or "Not now." We need to trust in modern revelation and not steady the ark.

3. We are entitled to personal revelation, but under "strict command"

To balance this out, we need to understand that in Mormonism we are promised the ability to receive personal revelation with regards to the mysteries of God (even beyond the words revealed by prophets). This is a huge part of my faith & testimony in the restored gospel. I won't be part of a faith that does not allow one to form their own opinions by faith and study. But that does not mean we have a free-for-all bazaar of confusion and contention. The Lord has called for a "house of order" (D&C 132:8). Remember, an environment of confusion and contention is exactly against which the restoration emerged.

This is explained in Alma 12:9-11 when the prophet Alma was contending with Zeezrom:

9 And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him.
10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him 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.
11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell.

God wants us to learn the mysteries of the kingdom and form our own opinions, but God is not an anarchist. He, an eternal Being who has seen countless worlds come and go, sees the need for order. So we should go learn all we can "by study and also by faith". But when we feel the need to command or impel others because of something we feel strongly about beyond the revealed word, then we are breaking the "strict command" by which we received that knowledge in the first place and step into the realm of unrighteous dominion and apostasy.

A key here in navigating this dynamic in the household of faith is that if someone comes to you insisting church members hold an opinion that can't firmly be grounded in the words revealed by prophets who have the "keys of the mysteries" for the church then you can know either 1) they are breaking that "strict command" from Alma 12:9 and/or 2) they are seeking to "command him who is at [the] head" -- independent of the veracity of their statement. It's a balance. Freedom on one hand, responsibility on the other.

The language in one of letters sent to the NY Times from the activists which they received from the LDS church seems to align with this doctrinal/policy approach:

The letter said, “you are not required to change your thinking or the questions you may have in your own mind,” but that she must keep her questions private and resolve them by talking to her bishop.

This is a exhortation to adhere to this pattern of revelation. The chastisement isn't for having an opinion. It's for promoting that opinion outside the Lord's pattern of revelation.

4. We need to have empathy towards the Lord's anointed

If find it very telling of God's desires for us that he places us in this situation where we each have our own passions/opinions/insights/knowledge/testimony but must come together in unity in order to grow. Surely he didn't do so that we would fight it out and resolve matters through protest, activism, or PR campaigns. Instead He requires faith, hope, forgiveness/repentance, and charity. Only through those can a true diversity of opinion, doctrine, and faith be maintained with (rather than against) living prophets.

Mormonism promotes a diversity of opinions balanced with unity in faith.

I think much of this can be expressed in the dynamics of kites. Interestingly, kites work because of
opposing forces: lift and an anchor line. The wings, streamers, dowels, and wind provide the lift. But without the line to the ground that anchors it, the kite will quickly spiral down to the ground.

In the pattern of revelation above, Mormonism provides both sets of tools (lift and anchoring). We just have to understand and use both in the right balance. We get our lift through personal revelation and study, but that lift must be balanced and cannot overrun the anchoring to the ground found in prophetic revelation. The two dynamics work together to produce the desired effect and joy of the kite's flying.

Placing myself in the shoes of living prophets for a moment I realize that they have a sacred responsibility to provide these lines and anchors and are held accountable to God for how they fulfill that responsibility. Different individuals will have different lift and security to the lines based on their own personal relationship with God, what winds they fly in, and how they've built their own kite. But when individuals come along and insist that the lift they attained must be given to all they risk many of the other kites.

Given that the living prophets are the ones in charge of the lines, if they do not feel inspired through revelation to change the lines, one option for someone seeking that other kites lift the way they are is to have the other kites fly in their stronger winds. But when that is done it places more strain on the line which the kites are secured to. This will happen from time to time and can be healthy. We all have our faith and testimonies tried and our lines can be strengthened by it. But what are those in charge of the lines and the safety of the kites to do when the winds begin to threaten the security of the lines to other kites? At a certain point, a decision to preserve the security of the lines must be made over other dynamics or individuals.

So when I see church institutional policies which give me pause or that might be labeled "behind the times", I choose to put myself in the shoes of God's prophets and it seems clear that they are worried about loosing the footing and anchor that's needed for members to soar in the unity of faith. It's up to us (as individuals) to soar -- that's our right, but we cannot endanger the lines and anchors of others in doing so. An understanding and application of this balance is part of the essence of practicing Mormonism.

Tying the metaphor back to the recent events, these disciplinary actions towards activists, I think, are about how those in the priesthood have a responsibility for the safety of all kites (not just a select few) and see individuals & trends which are trying to force lift on others which are straining and even severing the lines which anchor people to the gospel of Christ. Their responsibility is to ensure those lines and anchors (they are accountable to that). So at a certain point they are called to halt things that threaten the lines or anchors of others.

5. Guiding Principles

For me, daily personal practice of Mormonism boils down to these things:

1. Covenants: These are the "commands" which we have received that anchor me to Christ. I stand by my covenants as my iron rod. These are my stronghold that I will not let go of and which I keep free of the "fluff" others would seek to attach to it. With covenants comes great strength.
2. Learning: We, as Latter-day Saints, should be voracious learners. Especially in the miraculous age we live in where nearly all of mankind's information is literally at our fingertips. This will include individual 'mysteries' being revealed about God (through study/faith) and as well as the world around us through the miracles of science (through study/reason). We should discuss these, weigh them, refine them, and expound on them. But we cannot forget God's Kingdom and think that knowledge alone supplants the authority of God.
3. Patience: I have to step back and realize that God has a plan for how/why He reveals mysteries to the church as a whole vs. how I feel He might reveal things to me. And to be patient both with the prophet when I feel differently about something but to also be patient with myself retaining humility in my opinions and beliefs always open to more information and God's revealed word.

There's a warning from the Book of Mormon that also touches on this dynamic. It contains an exhortation to gain personal knowledge and wisdom but also couples it with a warning to not let that draw one away from God and His counsels:

28 O that cunning plan of the evil one! O the vainness, and the frailties, and the foolishness of men! When they are learned they think they are wise, and they hearken not unto the counsel of God, for they set it aside, supposing they know of themselves, wherefore, their wisdom is foolishness and it profiteth them not. And they shall perish.
29 But to be learned is good if they hearken unto the counsels of God.
2 Nephi 9:28-29

Degrees of Glory

In section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord uses a metaphor to compare the differences in glory between his kingdom.

D&C 76: Vision of degrees of glory

70 These are they whose bodies are celestial, whose glory is that of the sun, even the glory of God, the highest of all, whose glory the sun of the firmament is written of as being typical.

 71 And again, we saw the terrestrial world, and behold and lo, these are they who are of the terrestrial, whose glory differs from that of the church of the Firstborn who have received the fulness of the Father, even as that of the moon differs from the sun in the firmament.

 81 And again, we saw the glory of the telestial, which glory is that of the lesser, even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of the moon in the firmament.

D&C 76:70-71, 81

The Celestial kingdom's “glory is that of the sun” (v70), the Terrestrial kingdom's “glory differs... even as that of the moon differs from the sun” (v71), and the Telestial kingdom's glory is “even as the glory of the stars differs from that of the glory of the moon” (v81).

What is generally interpreted by this mapping of the Lord's kingdoms to objects we observe in the sky is that 1) The power and glory of the Celestial kingdom is infinite and 2) God's other kingdoms will have a wide range of types of people in them and that the idea of one universal heaven and one universal hell is a false dichotomy. There is a third very powerful lesson that can be learned with a little help from astronomy.

Normon Pogson

In the 19th century, during the 1830s, it was discovered that the eye detects light intensity logarithmically rather than linearly. This combined with the need to have a universal way to measure and compare the intensity of light from objects observed in the sky lead the astronomer Norman Pogson to propose, as a starting point for a light intensity scale, that a star that has a magnitude equal to 1 is 100 times brighter than a star of magnitude 6. This lead to the standard that a difference in 1 magnitude translates to 2.512 times in brightness or intensity.

Since then, astronomers have charted the brightness of objects they observe in the sky. An interesting fact emerges when one looks at these charts and calculates the difference in brightness between the sun, moon, and stars.


On this scale, the sun has a magnitude value of -26.74. The moon has a magnitude value of -12.74. Therefore the difference in brightness between the sun and the moon is 2.51214, which is a factor of 398,359. Put another way, the sun is 398,359 times brighter than the moon.

Following this method of calculation, the following results can be determined for different kinds of objects in the sky:

Object	Magnitude	Scale
Full moon	-12.74	Sun is 394,359 times brighter
Sirius (brightest star)	-1.46	Sun is ~12.95 billion times brighter
Faintest observable by human	8	Sun is ~78.82 trillion times brighter
Faintest observable (natural light)	36	Sun is ~12.51 septillion times brighter (1.25 x 1025)

Abraham was promised, “I will multiply thee, and thy seed... and if thou canst count the number of sands, so shall be the number of thy seeds” (Abr. 3:14). In Doctrine and Covenants 76 verse 109 it says, “we saw the glory of the inhabitants of the telestial world, that they were as innumerable as the stars in the firmament of heaven, or as the sand upon the seashore.”

Globular cluster Messier 56

It is interesting to note that rough calculations of things such as the number of grains of sand on earth or the number of stars in the universe are estimated in the 10¹⁸ to 10²² range, close to this same septillion scale. The same scale involved in those metaphors is the same scale involved in the metaphor of the sun, moon, and stars. These numbers are so large that they begin to blur the line between the quantifiable and the infinite.

But what does all this mean? While numbers and estimates are interesting and informative, we should avoid getting too caught up in the exactness of them since our mortal view of the universe will always be imperfect. The Lord prefaces this by rhetorically asking, "Unto what shall I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand?", so this metaphor is only to relate something beyond our understanding into something that we have some understanding about. The overarching lesson to be learned from this is that our Heavenly Father's plan is literally large enough for each and every one of His unique children. His plan is infinitely diverse to fit his infinitely diverse creations. What we can learn is that when someone says, “Your Heavenly Father has a plan for you.” they're not just saying something trite or platitudinous. The scale, scope, diversity, and glory of Heavenly Father's kingdoms are literally large enough for all.

The Power to Overcome

A Crippling Negativity

With much of the turmoil recently in the world, it's not uncommon to engage in conversations with individuals who seem to be full of despair. Crimes, rebellions, corruption, poverty, starvation, accidents, disasters, economic collapse, etc. are constantly paraded in front of the public's eye. But allowing ourselves to become entranced by this cacospectomania builds up a false reality that feeds off of itself. It ignores the many wonderful miracles which surround us every day but to which we have grown accustomed to and assumed their place in our lives. By recognizing the good that surrounds us, both physically and spiritually, we can see past the endless negativity and take control of our own future.

The Global Good News

Dr. Marc Siegel, in his book False Alarm: The truth About the Epidemic of Fear, points out how the modern fear mongering culture simply doesn't represent reality:

Statistically, the industrialized world has never been safer. Many of us are living longer and more uneventfully. Nevertheless, we live in worst-case fear scenarios. Over the past century we Americans have dramatically reduced our risk in virtually every area of life, resulting in life spans 60 percent longer in 2000 than in 1900. Antibiotics have reduced the likelihood of dying from infections... Public health measures dictate standards for drinkable water and breathable air. Our garbage is removed quickly. We live in temperature-controlled, disease controlled lives. An yet, we worry more than ever before. The natural dangers are no longer there. but the response mechanisms are still in place, and now they are turned on much of the time. We implode, turning our adaptive fear mechanism in to a maladaptive panicked response.

Bono, in a recent TED talk, highlights several statistics the are mind-blowingly positive (to use a technical term):

• More than 8 million people are on life-saving antiretroviral drugs, compared with only 200,000 a decade ago.
• In several African countries, malaria deaths have been cut by 75%.
• Child mortality rate for those under 5 is down by 2.65 million deaths a year since 2000.
• The percentage of people living in extreme poverty (< $1.25 a day adjusted for inflation) has declined from 43% in 1990 to 33% in 2000--then to 21% in 2010. The human race has halved poverty in one generation. 
• 10 countries in Africa have, in the last decade, had 100% debt cancellation, a 3 times increase in aid, a ten-fold increase in foreign domestic investment, a 4-times increase in domestic resources, cut child mortality by a third, doubled education completion rates, and also halved extreme poverty.

Matt Ridley, author of the book The Rational Optimist, helps put things in perspective:

... the vast majority of people are much better fed, much better sheltered, much better entertained, much better protected against disease and much more likely to live to old age than their ancestors have ever been. The availability of almost everything a person could want has been going rapidly upward for two hundred years and erratically upward for ten thousand years before that: years of life span, mouthfuls of clean water, lungfuls of clean air, hours of privacy, means of traveling faster than you can run, ways of communicating farther than you can shout. Even allowing for the hundreds of millions who still live in abject poverty, disease and want, this generation of human beings has access to more calories, watts, lumen-hours, square-feet, gigabytes, megahertz, light-years, nanometers, bushels per acre, miles per gallon, food miles, and, of course, dollars than any that went before.

What all of this data points towards is a story of unprecedented human progress despite the very real challenges we have faced and still face today. There certainly have been and will continue to be setbacks and bumps in the road. But the human story is a story of hope. And it is through the compassionate use of the gifts and talents God has blessed mankind that we will be able to overcome the physical challenges we face in this world.

The Spiritual Good News

This story of a miraculous triumph over trials, is echoed in the scriptures in the place that, ironically enough, comes from the very book that people often quote when citing despair or fear. A quick read through the Book of Revelation and we read of poverty, blasphemy, suffering, imprisonment, death, martyrdom, fornication, idols, false prophets, murders, lightnings, earthquakes, hail storms, fire, deforestation, environmental disasters, volcanoes, oceanic and water pollution, darkness, locusts, people seeking death, sorcery, thefts, droughts, plagues, wars, fire from heaven, pride, excessiveness, collapses of civilizations, economic collapse, disease, islands washed away, mountains overturned, crops destroyed, fear, and anger.

Certainly, we can read these prophesies, observe the tragedies and destruction currently occurring, and fall immediately into despair and fear. However, much like the debilitating negativity described above, this perspective misses the main message of the book. Told through several wonderful gems of hope placed throughout by the phrase "he that overcometh", the narrative of the Book of Revelation culminates in a detailed description of a celestial city. The phrase “he that overcometh” is repeatedly used prior to wonderful promised blessings describing those who manage to retain hope, despite also experiencing and witnessing the same calamities as those who lose hope.

An interesting prelude to these gems in the book of Revelation is a statement made by Christ in the gospel of John. As his betrayal and sacrifice drew near, the Savior, aware of the events that would transpire, ministered to His disciples by teaching them of the Holy Spirit that would attend them in His absence and assuring them that He (Christ) has overcome the world:

13. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

32. Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.
33. These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

John 16:13,32–33 (emphasis added)

As The One who has overcome all the pains and evils in this world, Christ’s statements to John in the book of Revelation on the blessings that will come to those who overcome carry eternal authority. Christ’s promises to “those that overcome” in the Book of Revelation, therefore, aren’t mere platitudes but authoritative promises from Someone who has experienced and understands them first-hand.

"To Him Who Overcometh"

In the Book of Revelation, the following promises are given to those “who overcometh”:

7. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

11. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

17. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

26. And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
27. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.
28. And I will give him the morning star.

Rev. 2: 7, 11, 17, 26–28 (emphasis added)

5. He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

12. Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

21. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

Rev. 3: 5, 12, 21 (emphasis added)

7. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

Rev. 21: 7 (emphasis added)

There is a richness to the blessings made to those that overcome. These blessings are deeply interconnected to blessings made throughout the scriptures regarding eternal life:

• eat of the tree of life (1 Ne. 8; Alma 32:41–43; )
• not be hurt of the second death (1 Tim. 5:6; Alma 12:16, 32)
• eat of the hidden manna (Matt. 13:10–16; John 6:47–58)
• [He] will give [them] a white stone, and in the stone a new name written (D&C 130:10–11)
• power over the nations
• [He] will give [them] the morning star
• clothed in white raiment (Rev. 7:9–10)
• [He] will not blot out [their] name out of the book of life (D&C 128:6–7)
• [He] will confess [their] name before my Father, and before his angels (Matt. 25:31–46; D&C 45:3–5)
• [He] will make [them] a pillar in the temple of my God
• [He] will write upon him the name of [His] God (Heb. 10:16; 2 Cor. 3:3; 2 Ne. 8:7)
• sit with me in my throne (D&C 132:48–50)
• inherit all things (D&C 84:35–39; D&C 78:17–22)
• shall be [His] [sons] (Mosiah 5:1–9)

However, the question remains, “How can we overcome?”

The Power to Overcome

The Doctrine and Covenants speaks about those who overcome:

34. He that receiveth of God, let him account it of God; and let him rejoice that he is accounted of God worthy to receive.
35. And by giving heed and doing these things which ye have received, and which ye shall hereafter receive—and the kingdom is given you of the Father, and power to overcome all things which are not ordained of him

D&C 50:34–35 (emphasis added)

50. And again we bear record—for we saw and heard, and this is the testimony of the gospel of Christ concerning them who shall come forth in the resurrection of the just—
51. They are they who received the testimony of Jesus, and believed on his name and were baptized after the manner of his burial, being buried in the water in his name, and this according to the commandment which he has given—
52. That by keeping the commandments they might be washed and cleansed from all their sins, and receive the Holy Spirit by the laying on of the hands of him who is ordained and sealed unto this power;
53. And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true.
54. They are they who are the church of the Firstborn.
55. They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things—
56. They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory;
57. And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son.
58. Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God—
59. Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
60. And they shall overcome all things.

D&C 76:50–60 (emphasis added; notice also the same kinds of promises being made here)

From these scriptures we learn that the power to overcome comes from:

• Receiving the Word of God
• Receiving a testimony of Jesus
• Obeying His commandments and ordinances
• Receiving and living by the Holy Ghost

The Book of Revelation itself also gives some indication of how people can overcome these evils. In Revelation 12:7–9, it talks about the great war in heaven prior to God’s children here on earth. As Satan is cast out of heaven, John is told how this was done:

10. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
11. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

Rev. 12:10–11 (emphasis added)

We know how to overcome Satan and the misery and evil he seeks to inflict on this earth because we have done it once before. Through the power of the atonement and our faith and testimony in it, we are able to overcome all things.

This personal ability to overcome trials and evils in our lives through the atonement is powerfully described by Jeffery R. Holland in his conference address titled “None Were With Him”:




By looking at the Book of Revelation through the lens of how to overcome trials and the wonderful promises for those who do overcome, it is transformed from an obligatory “doom and gloom” reference guide to a book full of rich promises and a guide on how to overcome trials in life. This ability, to see through the bad to find the good, is an ability that will anchor our souls to Christ and allow us to see the many spiritual and physical miracles, and people, we are surrounded with every day. And by doing this, we will have the power to overcome.