Agency

Dear Readers,

I had a lesson in institute (a religion class) about "agency" and one of the articles we had to read for homework made me think.

Elder Robert D. Hales said in his October 2010 General Conference that sometimes we forget that most non LDS people only associate the word "agency" with a group, company, or firm. Which is very strange with how we use the word as our free will, or ability to choose and make decisions for ourselves. (Agency: Essential to the Plan of Life).

An "agency" is "an organization, company, or bureau that provides some service for another:" (Dictionary.com).

This makes an interesting bridge. First of all, we have our personal agency, our freedom to choose for ourselves. To provide services for ourselves and others. The only reason we have this agency is because we chose God's plan in our premortal lives.

In this state of life, we were spirit children of our Father in Heaven, who has a body. In order to become more like Him, we had to experience life, not only gaining a physical body, but learning how to use it. Yet, the ultimate test is that of faith. With God's plan, we were to fall and then learn the difference between good and evil, with the final result to determine for ourselves if we would choose God, choose righteousness and goodness, or choose the evils and enticing sins of this world.

However, Lucifer, a son of the morning, had another plan. He wanted to come down in Jehovah's place, becoming our savior and mediator. Despite what could have been a noble gesture, his plan came with some amendments, including making us all be good. We would not have choices, we could not fully think and act for ourselves.

I realize this could be a hard concept to grasp, but it could be as harsh as full mind control, like what Apocalypse tried to do with Professor Xavier's powers in X-men Apocalypse.

Or, more realistically and how I would imagine, it would be more like lesser animals. We would be bound by instincts. Obeying the laws of God only because chemicals in our bodies compel us to.

In either case, that was a turning point in Lucifer's plan, though he is recounted by Isaiah (14:12-14) mourning for him for the most crucial part, that the light bringer Lucifer himself would receive God's glory and replace Him as our god.

Even though there may be times in our lives that we wish someone else was in control, that we did not have to think and act for ourselves, then deal with the consequences, I believe it was that last drastic clause of Lucifer's plan that cinch our choices in choosing Jehovah over him. Yet, that idea of everyone being saved, and not having the burden of living life and not having to make hard choices, like between good and evil, drew away one-third of our Father's children away, choosing relatively for the last time to follow a being literally into the depths of hell in exchange for not having agency of their own. (Revelations 12:4)

Again, in my opinion, their wills became part of Satan's will, and thus all they seek as angels of the devil, demons in the darkness, is the misery of the rest of us (Moroni 7:17). We, of the human race, who have received physical bodies, are of the two-thirds that chose God, chose Jehovah who came down as Jesus Christ and paid for our sins. Because of Him and God's plan we have our freedom to choose, our agency.

Lastly, I would like to note how our agency plays in the grand scheme of things. We have our own agency, which means we are an agency. We can work services for ourselves and be agents for our own purposes, or we can be agents of evil, using our agency to ruin the lives of others, and our own in the process. Yet, by this same token, we can use our agency, the agency that God and Christ have given us to choose to do good, acting as agents and representatives of the Father. Thus we see why it was spoken that charity, the pure love of Christ towards another creature, is true religion (James 1:27, 1 Corinthians 13: 1-8) (religion being how we are tied back to God April 2014 General Conference "Let Your Faith Show" Elder Russel M. Nelson), because that is passing the test. That is using our agency to choose God. That is being Christlike and serving the Father, for inasmuch as we do it unto one of the least of our brothers and sisters, we do it unto God (Matthew 25:40).

These thoughts I leave with you in the name of Jesus Christ. amen

Love,
Jacobugoth