Man Is Nothing
From advertisers to the adversary, we are bombarded with all sorts of earthly glories meant to entice us and sway us, convince us and even occasionally lead us astray. How do we hold fast to that which we know to be good when all around us sparkles and shines in seductive and alluring ways? The answer is in Moses, chapter 1.
To the faithful of the world, there is but one glory that matters, and that is the celestial glory of Heavenly Father. We know that our mortal minds and bodies alone are incapable of perceiving, or really even conceiving of the glory of God. He says to Moses in verse 5, “Wherefore, no man can behold all my works, except he behold all my glory; and no man can behold all my glory, and afterwards remain in the flesh on the earth.”
Even with a special gift of His glory to aid in perception, after having seen with those celestial eyes, “(10)…it was for the space of many hours before Moses did again receive his natural strength like unto man; and he said unto himself: Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” (emphasis mine) We, and the things of our ken, are nothing in comparison to the magnitude and magnificence of the works of Heavenly Father.
Shortly after Moses’s moment of perspective “(12)Satan came tempting him, saying: Moses, son of man, worship me.”
Moses meets him with the perfect question “(13)…where is thy glory, that I should worship thee?” Moses now knows the difference between the earthly seemings & semblances of glory and importance which the adversary is capable of producing and the true glory of God: “(14)For behold, I could not look upon God, except his glory should come upon me, and I were transfigured before him. But I can look upon thee in the natural man. Is it not so, surely?” (emphasis mine)
That is the key. If it is a glory, a glamour, an enticement that we can see in our mortal selves, then we can know that it is a lesser glory, and even when it pulls on us so hard, to draw us away from the iron rod, we can say, as Moses did, “(16) Get thee hence, Satan; deceive me not…(18)I will not cease to call upon God…I can judge between him and thee. Depart hence… (20)Depart from me, Satan, for this one God only will I worship, which is the God of glory.”
Satan does not like to be denied, and it is rarely easy to turn him away. “(21) And now Satan began to tremble, and the earth shook; and Moses received strength, and called upon God, saying: In the name of the Only Begotten, depart hence, Satan. (22) And it came to pass that Satan cried with a loud voice, with weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth.” That weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth–sometimes it feels like it’s just plain easier to endure the adversary’s will than to go through the ensuing difficulties. We have to remember, though, what peace lies in its wake–”(22)and he departed hence, even from the presence of Moses, that he beheld him not.”
When the world and its values call out in siren song, we, as Latter-day Saints with our eyes on eternity and exaltation can see thorugh them. So much that seems so significant, so important in this life is just that–”in this life.” As Moses said above, “(10)man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed.” It is important to keep worldly things in worldly perspective and to remember that any glory that they may proffer is, by simple virtue of our being able to see it with our mortal eyes and minds, less than God’s glory that awaits each of us, when we choose to seek His will and live His ways.
May 17th, 2006 16:21
This was awesome! Thank you for sharing these insights and reminders!
May 17th, 2006 17:34
I really like that way of putting things in perspective. If I in my mortal state can behold something then it is distictly less than what God is willing to give me if I prove worthy. Well said!
May 17th, 2006 18:06
It seems a pity that so much of our lives are spent in the midst of the worldly. And even when one escapes temporarily, you find yourself returning. I think that is why this type of perspective is so valuable. We need it all the time.
May 17th, 2006 18:08
Naiah, I really like the way you have emphasized the immense difference between God’s glory,which we can only perceive when spiritually in tune, and the worldly glories which are often so attractive to our mortal eyes.
For me, this post ties in beautifully with Michelle’s Magic Eye Moments. Those moments can often be intimations of the glory of God and of our potential as we attempt to put off the natural man, and live worthy of our celestial birthright. As Michelle put it, “They give us a glimpse here and a glimmer there of an eternal dimension,” and thus of a glory that far surpasses the counterfeits which the Adversary so temptingly offers. IMO, tricky part is maintaining our focus, when attractive mortal distractions are continually bombarding us!
May 18th, 2006 06:52
I always find it facinating that Satan doesn’t think it a waste of time to tempt those who are closest to God. He works hard to get the faithful ones. They must count for double.
May 19th, 2006 00:23
It’s an interesting chapter for me looking back on my life, since man being nothing in the context of the universe was something I’d thought for quite some time. Moses voices his conclusion after the time he’s spent with the Lord.
Satan was learning too. With the lessons he took away from that encounter–he taught me well enough that I could come to the same concluding statement “man is nothing”
But unlike Moses, my early conclusion also meant that “god is nothing”.
May 19th, 2006 06:31
This is probably why Satan uses pride as a weapon. After all when we think we are better or greater than others, we begin to think we are greater than God.