The phrase made sure always catches my attention in scripture. The Lord promises that our exaltation can be made sure. Prophets, like Samuel the Lamanite, promise that spiritual and/or physical destruction can be made sure, too.
Isaiah 22:21-25 paints the image of the Messiah being fastened as a nail in the sure place.
21 And I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.
22 And the of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
23 And I will fasten him as a in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father’s house.
For me, being inextricably bound to Christ is one of the most comforting and motivating doctrines of our theology. He is a sure foundation. Through His grace, my salvation is made sure.
Destruction Made Sure
Samuel the Lamanite uses the imagery in the negative sense. The Nephites’ destruction is made sure.
And in the days of your poverty ye shall cry unto the Lord; and in vain shall ye cry, for your desolation is already come upon you, and your destruction is made sure; and then shall ye weep and howl in that day, saith the Lord of Hosts. (Helaman 13:32)
But behold, your of probation are past; ye have the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure; yea, for ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for in doing iniquity, which thing is to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head. (Helaman 13:38)
How did the Nephites sink that low? Samuel lists the characteristics and choices that led to their portending catastrophic destruction.
Helaman 13
- Rejected the prophet and the Lord’s glad tidings
- Hard hearts and stiff necks
- Lord’s word taken away
- Spirit of the Lord withdrawn
- Smitten with sword, famine, pestilence, utter destruction
- Spared at the time because of the righteous among them. When the righteous were cast out, destruction came
- Curse upon the land – treasures hidden in the earth were lost
- Hearts set upon riches
- Have not hearkened to the Lord
- Did not remember the Lord
- Hearts not drawn out to the Lord
- Pride: boasting, great swelling, envyings, strifes, malice, persecutions, muders, all manner of iniquities
- Cast out the prophets, mocked them, cast stones at them, slay them, did all manner of iniquity unto them, sought to destroy them, called them a false prophet, and a sinner, and of the devil
- Accepted as prophet anyone who said do whatsoever your heart desires, walk after the pride of your own hearts, walk after the pride of your eyes
- Lifted up the false prophet, gave him money, clothed him, did not find fault with him
- Led by foolish and blind guides
- Choose darkness rather than light
- Surrounded by demons, encircled by the angels of him who sought to destroy their souls
- Days of probation are past
- Procrastinated the day of their salvation until it was everlastingly too late
Again the verses about their destruction being made sure:
32 And in the days of your poverty ye shall cry unto the Lord; and in vain shall ye cry, for your desolation is already come upon you, and your destruction is made sure; and then shall ye weep and howl in that day, saith the Lord of Hosts.
38 But behold, your of probation are past; ye have the day of your salvation until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure; yea, for ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for in doing iniquity, which thing is to the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head.
Even with that bleak sentencing, the destruction can be reversed through repentance.
11 But if ye will repent and unto the Lord your God I will turn away mine anger, saith the Lord; yea, thus saith the Lord, blessed are they who will repent and turn unto me, but wo unto him that repenteth not.
Repentance is the key to reversing destruction made sure—until the destruction happens, like the city of Ammonihah, for example, when the Lord destroyed the city and its people in one day and it was forever after known as the land of Desolation or the Desolation of the Nehors.
Calling and Election Made Sure
At the opposite end of the spectrum, calling and election made sure refers to the promised receipt of exaltation through Jesus Christ.
Peter exhorted the saints in his day to receive that blessing
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never :
For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:10-11)
Peter gave a list of characteristics and choices of covenant makers who received this greatest of all gifts.
2 Peter 1
- Obtained precious faith through the righteousness of God and Jesus Christ
- Grace and peace multiplied through the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ
- Received all things pertaining to life and godliness through knowledge
- Received exceeding great and precious promised
- Partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust
- Diligence
- Faith
- Virtue
- Knowledge
- Temperance
- Patience
- Godliness
- Brotherly kindness
- Charity
- Not barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ
- If these things are lacking, a person is blind, cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten he was purged from his old sins
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never :
11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Joseph Smith taught
After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted. When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter.
Destruction made sure had an out: repentance. Calling and election made sure has an out, too. Someone can lose/forfeit their calling and election.
The against the Holy Ghost, which shall be in the world nor out of the world, is in that ye commit wherein ye shed innocent blood, and assent unto my death, after ye have received my new and everlasting covenant, saith the Lord God; and he that abideth not this law can in nowise enter into my glory, but shall be , saith the Lord. (Doctrine and Covenants 132:27)
We Choose
Because of agency, we truly can choose salvation or destruction. Both options require effort and have specific outcomes.
Samuel the Lamanite punctuated his point by reiterating personal choice.
30 And now remember, remember, my brethren, that whosoever perisheth, perisheth unto ; and whosoever doeth iniquity, doeth it unto himself; for behold, ye are ; ye are permitted to act for yourselves; for behold, God hath given unto you a and he hath made you free.
31 He hath given unto you that ye might good from evil, and he hath given unto you that ye might life or death; and ye can do good and be unto that which is good, or have that which is good restored unto you; or ye can do evil, and have that which is evil restored unto you.
I can choose life or death. And so can you.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In