One terrible aspect of divine justice is that it doesn't take full effect until hereafter. People only receive there eternal rewards (and eternal punishments) after they die, leaving them with a lifetime of a life they don't deserve. The righteous suffer afflictions in mortality, despite being righteous, and the wicked enjoy blessings in mortality, despite being wicked. This undercuts the incentive we have to be righteous, since we know that we won't be rewarded for our good deeds until after our deaths. This also frustrates some of the guidance God could give us, since blessings aren't necessarily a sign of His approval, and afflictions aren't necessarily a sign of His disapproval. We could live a blessed or cursed life and still have no idea if we're living the way God wants us to live.
I sometimes wish that God's judgement was more tangible, more immediate, and easier to interpret. As it stands, God has few ways to communicate with us, and one of His strongest ways, through just feedback, seems to be sending mixed messages. I'm glad to know that, ultimately, everything will be made right through the power of the Atonement. I just kinda wish a more accurate reflection of God's justice in this life as well.
8 comments:
Wow, I have so many thoughts about this one.
If we had the kind of immediate response you’re asking for, what would be the point of leaving heaven to come to earth at all?
It would be like teaching someone to ride a bike, but never letting go.
We need to learn to do things on our own. We need to work to learn how to invite, recognize, & follow the Spirit.
We can do this regardless of any blessings we do or don’t receive—before or after we make choices or take action.
Seeing the results of good works can help us along the way, but the real guidance we should seek from God is the influence of his Spirit, which God has promised we can always have with us.
This post sounds like you think you have better ideas about implementing guidance & judgement than God.
“believe that he has all wisdom, … believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.”
—Mosiah 4:9
There’s nothing wrong with having questions about how God does things. We just need to be careful about our attitude and approach. Pride stops at complaining and opposition. Humility seeks unity & truth.
(see “Beware of Pride” by President Benson)
We don’t need to worry about people living “a lifetime of a life they don't deserve” because we all have more blessings than we deserve.
King Benjamin taught: “in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him.
And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever”
—Mosiah 2:23–24
Even if that wasn’t the case, consider this: While blessings are a nice incentive, shouldn’t we desire to do what is right, just because it’s the right thing to do?
Think about Christ—what incentive did he have for becoming our Savior? He was already a great person & deserving of all the blessings of God. Christ's only motivation was pure love. He loves God & he loves us. He choose to suffer to help others because he loves us and serving others is the right thing to do.
Learning delayed gratification is a healthy thing to do & helps people succeed. If that is true in this life, wouldn’t it continue to be true in the next?
If you want to know if you’re living the way God wants us to live, just ask.
(see James 1:5–6)
We can also look for things to work on & emulate in Christlike attributes, the teachings of the scriptures, conference talks, church lessons, good examples we see around us, and discussions we have with others.
There’s always more to learn and more to practice in becoming like Christ & our Heavenly Father. All we need to do is pick one thing to work on today. That’s how God wants us to live.
“May we go with determination to try a little harder to be a little better.”
—President Hinckley “We Have a Work to Do”
Wow, you do have a lot of thoughts to share on this topic! Have you considered creating a blog of your own, where you might be able to share your thoughts more effectively?
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