February 2-8

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Moses 7 is powerful. There is so much. I have so many thoughts, but let’s keep it to a few. One of those thoughts came to me while reading this verse.

Moses 7:43 Wherefore Enoch saw that Noah built an ark; and that the Lord smiled upon it, and held it in his own hand; but upon the residue of the wicked the floods came and swallowed them up. 

Noah and his family were surrounded by wickedness and danger. They built an ark, and the Lord protected them. The rest of the people were wiped out by the flood.

I want to draw your attention to two details. Noah built an ark, and the Lord held it in His hand. There is a type in this. Let’s talk about one of my favorite subjects: grace and works. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is frequently attacked for not being Christian because we believe that we will be judged by our works and desires and not just by whether we believe in the right Jesus. Other Christians believe that it’s just about accepting the Savior, not following Him. They believe that you don’t have to do anything. Some believe that if you try to do anything, you’re only taking away from His glory (or so I’ve been told by some of my friends; I recognize that there are nuanced beliefs within the Christian faith in general). I know others believe that it’s all about belief and works simply follow belief, but the works are just not necessary.

It is extremely important to note that Latter-day Saints believe 100% in grace. We believe that works are necessary, but works don’t save us. Christ saves us. Works are necessary, but they perform a different function, not saving

As I read the bible, over and over and over and over and over I get the message that the Lord does require works even if it’s not ultimately the works that do the saving. There are places in the bible that more directly teach this concept, namely in the letters of Paul, but there is also story after story after story that teaches this principle. Noah and the ark is just one of these stories. Noah and the ark can teach us about how Christ does the saving, and it teaches us about why the Lord requires works and will judge us by our works.

What do we learn from Noah’s story? How does Noah’s story teach us about grace and works? Let’s talk about it.

First of all, let’s look at it before Noah even builds the ark. The Lord saved Noah and his family because they were righteous. There is a type in this. Noah and his family weren’t perfect, but they were righteous. And even though they loved God, it didn’t save them. It just meant that God saved them. Would God have saved them if they hadn’t built the ark? My personal opinion is no. Why would He command Noah to build an ark if He didn’t actually care whether Noah built it?

Let’s look more specifically at Noah and the ark and not everyone who died in the flood. Our verse teaches us that the Lord held Noah’s ark in His hand. That’s the grace right there. The Lord protected Noah. The Lord saved Noah. The verse could have said, “Noah obeyed God and built the ark, and it saved him.” But that’s not what it said because that’s not what Latter-day Saints believe. In fact, it doesn’t even specifically say that God looked upon Noah, smiled at him, and saved him. It very specifically says that God looked at “it,” as in, the ark. God looked at the works of Noah. The works didn’t save Noah, but God looked at the works, judged them as good and smiled at them, and saved Noah.

If God is the one who saved Noah, then why did He have him build an ark? Why perform works? 

That’s the million dollar question for Latter-day Saints. We believe that we are saved by grace, 100%. So why build an ark? Why do we believe in doing our best and performing works if the ark doesn’t do the saving?

It’s because God has to judge. He has to judge who will destroy heaven and who will be able to appreciate heaven and preserve it. He could have saved all the wicked by smiling at them and holding them in his hand, but the wicked would have destroyed heaven. They would have made it as miserable as they were making the earth with their violence and idolatry. They wouldn’t have been able to enjoy heaven because of their choices, because of their works. Beyond that, they would have ruined heaven.

Our works don’t save us, but God judges us by our works and saves us accordingly. That’s what Noah’s story is teaching us. The works don’t save us; they just allow us to appreciate heaven and preserve it. They determine whether God steps in with the atonement of Jesus Christ, saves us, and brings us back into our heavenly home.

So do Latter-day Saints believe that we are saved by works? No. We believe we are judged by them, but we believe that Christ does the saving with His atonement.

I think parents of addicts understand this more than most. If you have a child who is extremely addicted to dangerous drugs, you don’t keep bringing them back into your home just because they love you. They would destroy your home and any heavenly feelings that reside there. Even if you have the power to keep taking care of everything despite their addiction, I would hope that you wouldn’t bring them back in to destroy everything (unless God says differently, listen to Him for specifics). If you do choose to bring them back in, then it’s not home anymore. It’s not heaven so no one really got saved anyway.

So you make a judgment call. You pray your guts out for the child. You love the child, but you separate the child because of their works. You judge their works and preserve the home. If they repent and truly change, then they get to come back home. Not because of their works. Quitting drugs doesn’t pay for the house; it just makes it so that you trust them enough to bring them home.

I think it’s important to also note that not everyone’s ark looks the same. That’s one of the beautiful things about the atonement of Jesus Christ. It removed the absolute justice that kept us from heaven. It enabled Christ to be the judge and save who He decides to save. Some of us will build an ark. Some of us will look at the barren desert before us and be lucky to build a canoe, but you know what? The Lord judges perfectly. He looks at your entire situation and what you have, and He judges perfectly.

I testify that the Lord saves us with His grace. I testify that your ark is not enough to save you. I testify that even though your ark can’t save you, it builds you and God judges you by your circumstances and your ark and determines whether you’re going to contribute to our heavenly home. I testify that the relationship of works and grace is taught all throughout the bible.