Mosiah 3:25 - It's Not Mine to Judge

I love the words of King Benjamin!  I read Mosiah 3 this morning.  I’ve read this numerous times in the past and written references to other scriptures that reinforce the things of which he spoke.  I think one of my favorite passages is “Have you received His image in your countenance?”  This comes from Alma 5:14.  Actually, my reference took me to Alma 5:16-21 where it talks of how a person is when they have partaken of the gift of the Atonement.  Then I read back to verse 14. 

Repeatedly, I am thinking of my return to activity in the Gospel.  When I look back, it was such a natural progression for me.  I never looked back.  I enjoyed the effects that living the gospel was having on me.  I felt the Spirit guiding me and teaching me and I was overcome more than a few times with awe and gratitude at what was happening in my life.  Why was this so natural for me?  Why was I so blessed?  I watch some of my children struggle and know that I was probably not the “norm” in this regard.  They have issues with the Lord and the Church.  I never did.  Their thinking is this:  If the Church is true, why are there bad people (aka men) who are allowed to hold the Priesthood and make bad calls? 

I wish I had a good answer to that question.  My reading this morning took me to D&C 121: 37 where it clearly states the condition of those men who use their Priesthood unrighteously.  It doesn’t necessarily cover a bishop who doesn’t see that a member of his flock is doing so though.  When a supposedly righteous priesthood holder is abusing a wife, why wouldn’t the spirit alert the bishop?  The absolute only explanation is that perhaps that Bishop wasn’t listening to the Spirit, as he should.  We are all human and make mistakes, even though we are trying to become Christlike.  This I know for sure, a Priesthood holder who abuses or uses unrighteous dominion has lost his power as a Priesthood holder.  D&C 121:37 makes this quite clear.  It would be a natural conclusion to me that this person has also lost the Spirit in his life as well.  So their countenance changes.  I've seen that.  That being said, how in the heck does he continue to pull the wool over a Bishop’s eyes?  Why doesn’t a Bishop see the façade?  It is mysterious, but not an uncommon scenario.

So this brings me back to the words of King Benjamin and the comfort they bring.  Those with evil intent will be “. . . consigned to an awful view of their own guilt and abominations, which doth cause them to shrink from the presence of the Lord into a state of misery and endless torment, from whence they can no more return; therefore they have drunk damnation to their own souls.”  If not today, then some day the Judge over all of us (Jesus Christ) will make these judgments.  It is not for us to do so.  This is the beauty of the Gospel!  We don’t have to judge.  We don’t know a person’s heart, nor do we know their heartache.  Something causes poor behavior whether it was incorrect teachings, abuse as a child, mental illness . . . oh the list goes on.  But it is not ours to worry about.  We can put our efforts to better use.  This is for the Savior to carry, and we gladly let him do so.