"Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you concerning the Apocrypha—There are many things contained therein that are true, and it is mostly translated correctly;
There are many things contained therein that are not true, which are interpolations by the hands of men."
Doctrine and Covenants 91:1-2
This is an interesting selection in the context of the "other books" and "last records" (1 Nephi 13:39-40) that will be revealed at some point in the future. God explains a few verses later "whoso is enlightened by the Spirit shall obtain benefit therefrom; /And whoso receiveth not by the Spirit, cannot be benefited" (verses 5-6). He doesn't ask us not to read or to avoid it... just, like most everything else, it is a mixed bag, and we should make sure we include God in the doing of anything that we do.
So why scripture and why are new records promised if we can gain from almost anything we read? I think the point is that there are some things that God wants preserved without the "interpolations" (additions/alterations/corruptions) of men, so that even at our weakest, when we are not in tune enough with the spirit to know which part is truth, we have a pathway to God because there are some things that are purely good. We can look at them and learn from them, and strive to follow them, which helps us tune into the spirit and then understand more. Without that pure source, it would be easy to be lost, not just in the scriptures but in the world, not knowing which of the messages around us are true, or if they are all false in different ways.
A Relief Society teacher back in one of my student wards at BYU used the analogy of a giant yellow highlighter for the spirit, and I still think it works. The Holy Ghost is what points out to us the things that matter among all the background noise, showing us in the spiritual version of fluorescent yellow the true and good things to focus on. And when we can't feel that spirit in our lives and we are lost, that is a sign that we need to go back to the source, to God, and pray so that we can again find that guidance to move forward along God's path.
Today, let's make sure that we understand the varied nature of the world around us and gain the guidance and inspiration of the spirit in knowing what is true and what is the interpolation of others, not only in scripture study but in anything that is confusing us. As Moroni promised us, "by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things" (Moroni 10:5).
There are many things contained therein that are not true, which are interpolations by the hands of men."
Doctrine and Covenants 91:1-2
This is an interesting selection in the context of the "other books" and "last records" (1 Nephi 13:39-40) that will be revealed at some point in the future. God explains a few verses later "whoso is enlightened by the Spirit shall obtain benefit therefrom; /And whoso receiveth not by the Spirit, cannot be benefited" (verses 5-6). He doesn't ask us not to read or to avoid it... just, like most everything else, it is a mixed bag, and we should make sure we include God in the doing of anything that we do.
So why scripture and why are new records promised if we can gain from almost anything we read? I think the point is that there are some things that God wants preserved without the "interpolations" (additions/alterations/corruptions) of men, so that even at our weakest, when we are not in tune enough with the spirit to know which part is truth, we have a pathway to God because there are some things that are purely good. We can look at them and learn from them, and strive to follow them, which helps us tune into the spirit and then understand more. Without that pure source, it would be easy to be lost, not just in the scriptures but in the world, not knowing which of the messages around us are true, or if they are all false in different ways.
A Relief Society teacher back in one of my student wards at BYU used the analogy of a giant yellow highlighter for the spirit, and I still think it works. The Holy Ghost is what points out to us the things that matter among all the background noise, showing us in the spiritual version of fluorescent yellow the true and good things to focus on. And when we can't feel that spirit in our lives and we are lost, that is a sign that we need to go back to the source, to God, and pray so that we can again find that guidance to move forward along God's path.
Today, let's make sure that we understand the varied nature of the world around us and gain the guidance and inspiration of the spirit in knowing what is true and what is the interpolation of others, not only in scripture study but in anything that is confusing us. As Moroni promised us, "by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things" (Moroni 10:5).
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