DAY 36 of #100daysofJesus
Jesus can do his own work.
The prophet Nephi, in the Book of Mormon, prophesied of the gathering of Israel, including specific events that would take place during the restoration of the gospel. In this prophecy, Nephi describes how the Lord works very differently than man, and he quotes Jesus as saying:
"For I will show unto the children of men that I am able to do mine own work... For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles."
It's significant that Jesus doesn't work the way the world does.
How would world leaders plan and execute a mission-critical, worldwide initiative? They would certainly gather the most brilliant and accomplished minds, the PhD's and experts in their fields, and they would come up with a plan. Then the most accomplished and proven professionals would be called upon to execute the plan.
Jesus calls ordinary people, often with below-average skills, training, and experience, to carry out His most important work (the work of salvation).
In a previous post, I talked about Jesus calling poor fishermen to be His apostles instead of calling Jewish religious leaders who were learned and accomplished.
Consider how God called Enoch who was "but a lad", unpopular among the people and "slow of speech" to become one of the most successful prophets in human history.
Or Isaiah who claimed to be "a man of unclean lips" and yet was called to become a prophet and powerful seer.
Joseph Smith is another great example of this. He was an "obscure boy... of no consequence in the world" who was poorly educated and came from a poor family. Yet these traits made him humble, teachable, and malleable in the Lord's hands to be formed like clay into what he needed to be.
How does a poorly educated farm boy translate a book of scripture like the Book of Mormon if not by God's power?
God could have called upon the distinguished linguists of the day to find the gold plates and translate the book. But he was doing His own work in His own way.
How does the Lord approach missionary work today in His Church? The vast majority of missionaries sent forth are 18 and 19-year-old teenagers. Generally, they know very little and have extremely limited life experience (no offense to my missionary friends out there!). They literally have no ability to rely on their own strength and knowledge to move God's work forward. Jesus clearly does "His own work" through them.
Jesus declared to the prophet Joseph Smith, "Wherefore, I call upon the weak things of the world, those who are unlearned and despised, to thresh the nations by the power of my Spirit;"
This is also true in the Kingdom of God on earth today, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Instead of being led by "expert" theologians and accomplished leaders, our local congregations are led by ordinary men and women. The bishop might be a teacher, plumber, or farmer, yet because the Lord can do His own work, in His own way, His work moves forward.
Isaiah wrote, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."
If the Lord is able to do His own work, then why does He allow us to participate?
I believe this is another manifestation of his love and grace, probably a topic deserving of its own post.
As we labor with Jesus, we experience personal growth and transformation, we receive a joy and peace that comes from within, and we are able to progress towards our divine potential. We receive much more than we give.
Even though He could do it all without me, I'm grateful for the opportunities I've had in my life to serve the Lord and help with His work.
(References: 2 Nephi 27:20-23, Moses 6:31, Isaiah 6:5, D&C 35:13, JSH 1:22, Isaiah 55:8-9)
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