One of the most ennobling and liberating teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ, restored in these latter days, is the knowledge that each of us lived before we were born. We lived in the presence of God as individuals who thought, learned, moved, spoke, and otherwise interacted with each other. We all lived as literal children of our Heavenly Father, members of the same eternal family. We did not yet have the physical bodies that we possess here in mortality, but we did have spirit bodies that are very much like physical bodies. These spirit bodies are currently united with our physical bodies and are an important part of what makes us “alive.” When our mortal bodies die, the spirit leaves the physical body and lives on, while our existence as thinking individuals continues.
This means many wonderful and beautiful things, among which is that the brotherhood of man is more than metaphorical. We actually are brothers and sisters in a very literal sense. It means that creation was not accidental but rather designed and carried out for our benefit. Even further, it means that our mortal life on this creation has a purpose related to our continued growing and becoming more than we have been.
On first encounter, the knowledge of our existence before this mortal life can seem incredible. It is generally rejected by many churches, even though it is plainly taught in the Bible, in both Old and New Testaments. The Lord said to the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee” (Jeremiah 1:5). Paul wrote to the Ephesians that the Lord “hath chosen us in him”, meaning in Christ, “before the foundation of the world” (Ephesians 1:4).
This teaching is echoed by modern prophets. In 1918, the prophet Joseph F. Smith recorded that the children of God, “Even before they were born . . . received their first lessons in the world of spirits and were prepared to come forth in the own due time of the Lord” (Doctrine and Covenants 138:56).
This important truth upon reflection resonates with our hearts. There is an immortal spirit in man, which leaves the body at death and continues on. Where did that spirit come from? Did it suddenly come into being at our birth or somewhere between birth and conception? If so, how so? Were our mortal parents, who were the creators of our mortal bodies, somehow also the creators of our immortal spirits? There is no reason to believe that they have any such power. That which our mortal parents gave us is born of frailty and imperfection and has its end in the grave. If the spirit lives on beyond the grave—and scripture and personal revelation testify that it does—then its source must be from Him who is eternal. The eternal must find its source in the eternal.
Paul taught the Hebrews that God is the Father of our spirits just as in our flesh we are the offspring of our mortal parents (Hebrews 12:9). So if our spirits came from God, is it hard to believe that we spent some time with Him before we were sent to earth? It is pleasing to think that we did, and it serves to raise the nature of man and validate how different we are in nature from all other creatures under the sun. The love of God for us becomes less abstract and takes on the intensity of a family relationship, beginning from even before the beginning of the world.
2 comments:
This knowledge of our eternal family relationship with God further validates why He wants us to create families here on earth. Those relationships are sacred, and mirror God's relationship with us. Having a family helps us better understand and be more like Him. Thank you for this post, Dad.
I love this, Dad. That's why when speaking with others about the gospel, often times they will tell you that they somehow remember it, or have heard it before. I also love that gender existed in the pre-earth life. There was never a time when we weren't male and female. It helps me recognize my roles and natural disposition as a woman, because I was always this way.
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