Four Titles - Heir of Eternal Life

"The fourth title we all share returns us to the first title in our list," says President Uchtdorf. "As [children] of our Heavenly Father, we are heirs to all that He has." Saying that we're heirs to all that the Father has is bold claim, but President Uchtdorf isn't the only one making that claim. Right after saying that, he quotes a scripture to back it up.

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

But here's what gets me. This isn't a Book of Mormon scripture. It isn't from the Doctrine and Covenants or the Pearl of Great Price, either. (Though, for all I know, it could be quoted in any of those places.) This scripture came from the Bible; specifically Romans Chapter 8, verses 16-17.

This is a New Testament scripture. EVERY Christian reads the New Testament. I wonder... If they don't think it means what we think it means, what do they think it means?

The idea of us being heirs of the kingdom can't be just a Mormon doctrine. If the Bible says the we're "joint-heirs with Christ," there must be other churches that believe that, too. And yet, we're considered different for our belief in Eternal Progression and our claim that, through the Savior's mercy and the power of His Atonement, and eons upon eons of spiritual progress, we can become like our Heavenly Father.

Every child has the potential to become like his parents. He can develop the same attributes, learn the same skills, and essentially become very much like his parents. Of course, he won't be exactly the same as they were. He'll have been born with different talents and different physical strengths and weaknesses and a different personality. He'll be his own person, just as we will be even if we achieve Eternal Life. We won't be exactly like Heavenly Father, but we will be like Him in many ways.

President Uchtdorf spoke about this earlier in this talk when he said that, as disciples of Christ, we are to become like him, but that doesn't mean we must all be the same. "This would contradict the genius of God, who created every man different from his brother, every son different from his father." Even as we become more like our Heavenly Father, we'll still be ourselves.

I'm sure there are some things about us that we would like to change, and with God's help, we can work on that. But there are also parts of us that are good, that are worth keeping, that represent our true selves, the people we were created to be. There's a spark of Godhood already inside each of us. Our purpose in life is to find it and help it grow.

It's impossible for us to imagine what awaits us if we remain faithful. The blessings that God has promised us are more glorious than we can comprehend. We literally can't wrap our heads around it. Maybe that's why so many people don't accept it. "It doesn't make sense to me, so it can't be true." I feel the same way. I can hardly believe that I could ever become like God, no matter how many eons He gave me to work on it. I don't think I have a personal testimony of Eternal Progression, in that I think that it may work for other people, but I highly doubt that it'll work for me. I think I have the potential to be like Heavenly Father, but I don't think I have the capacity to live up to that potential.

That doesn't work, does it? I'm pushing a boulder up a hill. I'm strong enough to move the boulder, and I can make some progresses up the hill, but then I get discouraged or want to take a break or something, and I let the boulder roll right back down to the base of the hill.

Now, some of you would tell me that Eternal Progression isn't like rolling a boulder up a hill. Any experience is a learning experience, a growing experience. Even when we "backslide," we can build on that experience and move forward. "There is no backsliding in Eternal Progression," some would say. "The worst thing you can do is stop moving."

I don't know if that's true. That is, I don't know if I have a testimony of the principle. I wrote about it, I'm pretty sure, when I wrote about the Ladder of St. Augustine. I wrote that we can build on our failures. And in Sariah's comment to the Reclaiming our Landfills post, she said, "Sometimes, garbage that has been properly buried changes and can turn into something that becomes a nourishing part of the soil." Even a lifetime of sins and mistakes can bring us closer to God if we learn from them. And with a little bit of Eternal Perspective, maybe some lessons will be easier to learn.

So, what are we to do for now? We're not perfect. We could try, but it'll take an eternity to make that much progress. I think I've said earlier, if not here then in Elder's Quorum, that our current goal toward eventual perfection is just to get the ball rolling, to get the process started, to point ourselves in the direction and, if we can muster up the courage and strength, take the first few steps. I think I can do that much. And if I can accomplish that much in only a matter of years, imagine how much I'll be able to do in that much time times a thousand, times a million, times and infinite amount.

I can do this. Theoretically. I just need to focus. I need to not worry about the past or the future, but to just take it one day at a time. One day. I can do that. I can try to be Christlike today.