"What is the doctrine of Christ?" asked the Sunday school teacher. I blurted out my standard response, "Faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost." Two other people in the class took issue with what they considered an oversimplification. The first one insisted that you could "do all those things" and not get to heaven. He said love was missing from the list. Another person in the class objected that the gospel included a lot of things, not just the first principles and ordinances.
Really?
What is "the gospel?" It has become a catch-all phrase in the Church. Anything related to scriptures, Church history, is generically referred to as "the gospel." This is not the way Jesus characterized it.
I turned to the girl I was sitting next to, and asked to borrow her scriptures. I looked up 3Ne. 11 quietly, not wanting to push the issue. I did not read it to the class; Jesus first tells the people not to argue about the scriptures, as they have previously. Jesus then lays down the law, and teaches the people what His doctrine actually is:
"Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, I will declare unto you my doctrine. And this is my doctrine, and it is the doctrine which the Father hath given unto me; and I bear record of the Father, and the Father beareth record of me, and the Holy Ghost beareth record of the Father and me; and I bear record that the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me. And whoso believeth in me, and is baptized, the same shall be saved; and they are they who shall inherit the kingdom of God. And whoso believeth not in me, and is not baptized, shall be damned. Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and I bear record of it from the Father; and whoso believeth in me believeth in the Father also; and unto him will the Father bear record of me, for he will visit him with fire and with the Holy Ghost. And thus will the Father bear record of me, and the Holy Ghost will bear record unto him of the Father and me; for the Father, and I, and the Holy Ghost are one. And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and become as a little child, and be baptized in my name, or ye can in nowise receive these things. And again I say unto you, ye must repent, and be baptized in my name, and become as a little child, or ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God. Verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is my doctrine, and whoso buildeth upon this buildeth upon my rock, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them. And whoso shall declare more or less than this, and establish it for my doctrine, the same cometh of evil, and is not built upon my rock; but he buildeth upon a sandy foundation, and the gates of hell stand open to receive such when the floods come and the winds beat upon them" (verses 31-40).
There it is, in all its simplicity. Believe in Christ, repent, be baptized, be visited with fire and with the Holy Ghost. This is the way God has ordained for us to find access to the Atonement of Christ. This is also what has been lost through the apostasy, and obscured throughout the ages as dispensations have come to an end. Does the simple formula outlined by the Savior above exclude love and other things found in the scriptures?
I think that many things are subcategories found under headings of faith in Christ, repentance, baptism, and the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Faith in Christ leads to hope and charity; love is not missing. What about other principles? Ammon explains what we need to do in order to learn the deeper things: "Yea, he that repenteth and exerciseth faith, and bringeth forth good works, and prayeth continually without ceasing—unto such it is given to know the mysteries of God; yea, unto such it shall be given to reveal
things which never have been revealed..." (Alma 26:22). Excel at repentance and faith, and you will learn the other things because you are ready for them. To learn deep things and mysteries without having a firm foundation is like building the top of the pyramid without the base. There is nothing for the pinnacle to rest on.
Jacob 4:14: "But behold, the Jews were a stiffnecked people; and they
despised the words of plainness, and killed the prophets,
and sought for things that they could not understand. Wherefore,
because of their blindness, which blindness came by looking
beyond the mark, they must needs fall; for God hath taken away
his plainness from them, and delivered unto them many things
which they cannot understand, because they desired it.
And because they desired it God hath done it, that they may stumble."
I hope that as we explore the fulness of the restored gospel, we do not neglect the basics. I also hope that we do not fool ourselves into thinking that we have successfully mastered them. Who has perfect faith in Christ? Who no longer needs to repent? Who keeps their baptismal covenants perfectly? Has anyone ever received the Holy Ghost fully? These are life-long pursuits, not items on a checklist. Jesus said, "...the Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent and believe in me." This instruction is comprehensively inclusive across space and time, touching everyone.
I remember a recent Elders' quorum meeting. The teacher asked us to pause near the end of the lesson, and meditate for a few moments about what each member of the quorum needed to eliminate or improve in our personal lives. During those few seconds of silence, I felt the Spirit more profoundly than I have in a long time. It was a divine stamp of approval on what transpired. Contemplating repentance was what we were supposed to be doing.
