Becoming One : Zion is Accomplished One Person at a Time
- scottrode
- Mar 20
- 20 min read
Whenever we search for a description of Zion, a reference about Enoch and his people is often referred to.
“And from that time forth there were wars and bloodsheds among them, but the Lord came and dwelled with his people and they dwelled in righteousness. The fear of the Lord was upon all nations, so great was the glory of the Lord which was upon his people. And the Lord blessed the land, and they were blessed upon the mountains and upon the high places, and did flourish. And the Lord called his people Zion because they were of one heart, and of one mind, and dwelled in righteousness, and there was no poor among them. And Enoch continued his preaching in righteousness unto the people of God. And it came to pass in his days that he built a city that was called the city of holiness, even Zion” (RE Genesis 4:14, emphasis added).
The description of Zion being people who were “of one heart, and of one mind, and dwelled in righteousness, and there was no poor among them” is commonly referred to. It is a city where the Lord dwelt with His people and His glory was upon them. They achieved a process explained in the Teachings and Commandments:
“Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter [Enoch, Melchizedek], in the spirit of truth, does he preach it by the spirit of truth or some other way? And if by some other way, it is not of God. And again, he that receives the word of truth, does he receive it by the spirit of truth or some other way? If it be some other way, it is not of God. Therefore, why is it that you cannot understand and know that he that receives the word by the spirit of truth, receives it as it is preached by the spirit of truth? Wherefore, he that preaches and he that receives, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together. And that which does not edify is not of God, and is darkness. That which is of God is light, and he that receives light and continues in God receives more light, and that light grows brighter and brighter until the perfect day [when the Lord dwells among them and they are bathed in His glory]” (RE T&C 36:4, emphasis added).
While this is an accurate description of Zion, there is a perception this condition is achieved through conscious decision between like minded individuals who conclude to live in this manner. People purchase plots of ground with the intent of creating a collective where they attain unity and singleness of mind by learning to work together. Some have even achieve some success growing crops for the benefit of their communities or congregations. Nevertheless, the effort falls short of Enoch’s and Melchizedek’s accomplishments.
The Father’s Words
The unity or “oneness” between the Father and Son came to the Son because the Father taught Him. The Son, in turn, taught His disciples whom the Father had given Him and the disciples became one with them. When the Son completed His mortal sojourn, His servants instructed believers what the Son shared with them from the Father.
“I have explained your [the Father’s] title to the men you gave to me from out of the fallen creation. They were yours at the beginning [pre-mortality], and you have given them to me as my offspring [adoption]. And they are devoted, prepared and always waiting to respond to your words. Now they understand and accept that every thing I have done and taught comes from you. For I have said to them the things you told to me. They are devoted to the truth and know I am your sent Messiah. I pray for them, and what I ask is for them and not the world, for they are yours. And all who are devoted to me are yours, and you share with me, and I am their light. I am soon to depart from this creation, but these followers will remain here as I return again to be with you. Holy Father, please watch over these like a sentinel. Protect and guard them using your power, so that they may be united as one, as we are united as one. While I accompanied them in the world, I shared light with them in your name. Every one you gave to me I have kept, and none of them will be lost to us, other than the son of perdition. Those who are kept and those who are lost are divided according to your covenant made from the beginning [pre-mortality]. . . I pray not only for these followers, but also for all believers who learn our [Father and Son]words from them. I ask that all followers and believers may be united as one, as you, Father, are in me, and I am in you, that they also may be united as one in us. By them becoming one, the world will have reason to believe that you sent me. And the light which you gave to me I have given to them. This allows them to become united as one, even as we are one: my light in them, and your light in me. The light will lead them to be made perfect in one. That light I have given to them is evidence to the world that you have sent me. I have loved them, as you have loved me. Father, I ask that those whom you have given to me may also ascend to live where I am ascending, for this journey was established before the foundation of creation [pre-mortality]. O righteous Father, this fallen world does not know you, but I have declared that you have sent me to minister here. I have declared your message here and will finish the course. May the love you have for me be shown through the example of my love for them, and they may be saved through my sacrifice” (RE T&C 171 Testimony of Saint John 10:31& 33, emphasis added).
Like Abraham’s vision of pre-mortality, there are four categories present in this passage. The Father, the Son [“One who was like unto God”], the “followers” [who covenanted with the Father prior to birth, A.K.A as the “noble and great,” and God’s][1], and the “believers” [“these” in pre-mortality who had not as yet become “noble and great”].[2]
The Father shared His knowledge and identity with the Son. Everything the Son did and taught was after the pattern revealed to Him by the Father. The Son condescended to earth and was given those “Believers” by the Father. The “Believers” covenanted with the Father in pre-mortality to become adopted sons of the Savior. He shared with them the pattern revealed to the Son by the Father throughout His mortal experience and then commissioned them to teach “followers” the Father’s pattern as it was taught and exemplified to them by the Son of God. The Father’s pattern revealed to the Son, then to “believers” and “followers.”
It is important to distinguish the difference between knowing the nature of the process and realizing that knowing what happened is not the same as receiving actual knowledge passed from Father to Son. We believe the sharing from Father to Son occurred. We know fragments of the Father’s teachings through the example of the Son, but wait upon the Lord to reveal the fullness of the sacred content shared between them.
The account in the Testimony of Saint John serves a two-fold purpose. Initially it provides greater depth into the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament account. Second, it lends credibility to the Lord’s servant whom the Lord used to reveal the Testimony of Saint John to latter-day Gentiles. Both Jew and Gentile receive the benefit of the Savior’s teachings in His contemporary time as well as the last days preceding His Second Coming.
The Testimony of Saint John supports a teaching ratified by Joseph Smith as well. The Lectures on Faith were canonized during Joseph Smith’s life by the body of the church only to be de-canonized unilaterally by a committee of apostles in the early 1920’s. In lecture fifth of the lectures we find the same doctrine from the Testimony of Saint John reinforced by the prophet of the Restoration.
Lectures On Faith, Lecture Fifth
Originally the Lectures on Faith were included in the Doctrine and Covenants to provide an exposition of doctrine in the book. Lecture fifth expounds on the same teaching in the Testimony of Saint John. It provides greater depth on the nature of the Godhead [Father and Son] but concludes with how we obtain the “mind of the Father” and become one with Them.
“There are two personages who constitute the great matchless, governing, and supreme power over all things — by whom all things were created and made, that are created and made, whether visible or invisible, whether in Heaven, on earth, or in the earth, under the earth, or throughout the immensity of space — they are the Father and the Son: the Father being a personage of spirit, glory, and power: possessing all perfection and fullness; the Son, who was in the bosom of the Father, a personage of tabernacle, made or fashioned like unto man, or being in the form and likeness of man, or rather, man was formed after his likeness and in his image — he is also the express image and likeness of the personage of the Father, possessing all the fullness of the Father, or the same fullness with the Father, being begotten of him, and was ordained from before the foundation of the world to be a propitiation for the sins of all those who should believe on his name, and is called the Son because of the flesh — and descended in suffering below that which man can suffer, or in other words, suffered greater sufferings and was exposed to more powerful contradictions than any man can be. But notwithstanding all this, he kept the law of God and remained without sin, showing thereby that it is in the power of man to keep the law and remain also without sin. And also, that by him a righteous judgment might come upon all flesh, and that all who walk not in the law of God may justly be condemned by the law and have no excuse for their sins. And he being the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, and having overcome, received a fullness of the glory of the Father — possessing the same mind with the Father, which mind is the holy spirit that bears record of the Father and the Son, and these three are one, or in other words, these three constitute the great matchless, governing, and supreme power over all things, by whom all things were created and made that were created and made. And these three constitute the Godhead and are one: the Father and the Son possessing the same mind, the same wisdom, glory, power, and fullness, filling all in all — the Son being filled with the fullness of the mind, glory, and power, or in other words, the spirit, glory, and power of the Father — possessing all knowledge and glory, and the same kingdom: sitting at the right hand of power, in the express image and likeness of the Father — a mediator for man — being filled with the fullness of the mind of the Father . . .,
This portion from the fifth lecture is more than a description of the Father and Son. The Father is more advanced than the Son in a more refined composition, but the Son is in the image of the Father in a tabernacle of clay. The Son aspires to become like the Father and we seek to be adopted in the family of Christ and ascend to conform to His image and likeness.
To become “one” with them, we must follow the pattern of the Son which originates with the Father. We become “one” with them when we obtain the “mind of the Father” or:
“. . . possessing the same mind with the Father, which mind is the holy spirit that bears record of the Father and the Son, and these three are one, or in other words, these three constitute the great matchless, governing, and supreme power over all things, by whom all things were created and made that were created and made” (Ibid)
The holy spirit bearing witness of the Father and Son is a personage insomuch that anyone who sanctifies the spirit within them through the Atonement of Christ receives the “mind of the Father” and unites with the Father and Son to become “the great matchless, governing, and supreme power over all things, by whom all things were created and made that were created and made.” These are overarching powers they exercise unitedly and collectively. This is the inheritance Paul wrote of to the saints in Rome.
“Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh, to live after the flesh, for if you live after the flesh, you shall die unto sin. But if you through the spirit do put to death the deeds of the body, you shall live unto Christ. For as many as are led by the spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father [to Christ, our adopted Father]. The spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.[3] For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be named with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation waits for the manifestation of the sons of God, for the creation was made subject to tribulation, not willingly, but by reason of him who has subjected it, in hope because the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and travails in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, that is, the redemption of our body” (RE Romans 1:34, emphasis added).
Those who are led by the spirit of God [mind of the Father] become the sons of God [Christ] and joint-heirs with the Son in the Father’s kingdom. They become one with the Father and Son and under the umbrella of the title “spirit of God” become part of the universal governing body with the Father and Son. That is the overarching power of the Godhead, but receiving the “mind of the Father” includes inheriting His attributes as well.
In lecture fifth a description of those attributes is provided.
“And these three constitute the Godhead and are one: the Father and the Son possessing the same mind, the same wisdom, glory, power, and fullness, filling all in all[4] — the Son being filled with the fullness of the mind, glory, and power, or in other words, the spirit, glory, and power of the Father — possessing all knowledge[5] and glory, and the same kingdom: sitting at the right hand of power, in the express image and likeness of the Father — a mediator for man — being filled with the fullness of the mind of the Father . . .,”
Jesus received this Heavenly endowment from His Father at His baptism.
“And I, John, saw that he received not of the fullness at the first, but received grace for grace. And he received not of the fullness at first, but continued from grace to grace until he received a fullness, and thus he was called, the Son of God, because he received not of the fullness at the first.
And I, John, bear record and lo, the Heavens were opened, and the holy ghost descended upon him in the form of a dove and set upon him. And there came a voice out of Heaven saying, This is my Beloved Son.
And I, John, bear record that he [Jesus] received a fullness of the glory of the Father. And he received all power, both in Heaven and on earth, and the glory of the Father was with him, for he dwelt in him” (RE T&C 93:4-6, emphasis added).
This follows the pattern laid out in the lecture fifth where the Son progressed grace for grace, then grace to grace until the Father declared the Savior’s divine sonship and bestowed upon Him all the power in both Heaven and earth. This pattern was not simply an exercise for Jesus to follow but a pattern for His servants and those who accept their teachings. This is evident in both T&C 93 and lecture fifth.
“And it shall come to pass that if you are faithful, you shall receive the fullness of the record of John. I give unto you these sayings that you may understand and know how to worship, and know what you worship, that you may come unto the Father in my name, and in due time receive of his fullness, for if you keep my commandments, you shall receive of his fullness and be glorified in me as I am glorified in the Father. Therefore, I say unto you, you shall receive grace for grace” (RE T&C 93:7, emphasis added).
The invitation is extended to all who willingly submit to the Lord’s commands and “in due time” the Father bestows His fullness on the faithful and obedient. Lecture fifth contains similar instructions:
“ . . . or in other words, the spirit of the Father, which spirit is shed forth upon all who believe on his name and keep his commandments. And all those who keep his commandments shall grow up from grace to grace and become heirs of the Heavenly kingdom and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, possessing the same mind, being transformed into the same image or likeness, even the express image of him who fills all in all: being filled with the fullness of his glory, and become one in him, even as the Father, Son, and holy spirit are one.
From the foregoing account of the Godhead which is given in his revelations, the saints have a sure foundation laid for the exercise of faith unto life and salvation through the atonement and mediation of Jesus Christ, by whose blood they have a forgiveness of sins and also a sure reward laid up for them in Heaven, even that of partaking of the fullness of the Father and the Son through the spirit. As the Son partakes of the fullness of the Father through the spirit, so the saints are, by the same spirit, to be partakers of the same fullness, to enjoy the same glory, for as the Father and the Son are one, so in like manner the saints are to be one in them: through the love of the Father, the mediation of Jesus Christ, and the gift of the holy spirit they are to be heirs of God and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ” (RE T&C 110, Lectures of Faith, Lecture 5:1-3, emphasis added).
Contemplating the daunting task of progressing from grace to grace until we attain to the fullness of the Father feels overwhelming. Left to our own means it is impossible. Nevertheless, there is no gap so wide the love of the Father and sacrifice and mediation of the Son cannot bridge, instantly if our hearts are right.
“Now when king Benjamin had finished speaking the words that had been delivered to him by the angel of the Lord, he looked around at the crowd. Because the fear of the Lord overcame them, they had fallen to the ground. They looked at themselves in their carnal state, feeling no better than dust on the ground. In unison [spirit of God brought “oneness”], they cried out: Have mercy on us and purify our hearts with Christ’s atoning blood, that we might receive a remission of our sins. They believed in Jesus, the Son of God who created all things, heaven, and earth, and who would come down to mankind.
After they had said these words, the Spirit of the Lord embraced them and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins. And according to what king Benjamin had taught them, and because of the great faith they had in Jesus Christ, they gained peace of conscience. And king Benjamin resumed teaching them, saying: My friends, my brothers and sisters, my relatives, and my people, please listen for I have more to say. If you’ve come to realize, upon hearing about God’s goodness, that you’re nothing, worthless, and fallen, then I say, if you also understand God’s unmatched power, wisdom, patience, and long-suffering for mankind [not just in this mortal cycle but “endless lives”] and comprehend that the atonement was planned at the outset of creation to provide salvation for anyone who puts their trust in the Lord, keeps His commandments diligently, and continues in faith until the end of their life, the life of the mortal body, 7then you’re the one who receives salvation through the atonement. Salvation was prepared for mankind when creation was first planned. It’s available to all individuals who have lived since the Fall of Adam, those who are currently living, and those who will live in the future until the end of the world. There’s no other means of obtaining salvation besides what I’ve taught you” (CofC Mosiah 2:1-2, emphasis added).
The unified response of the congregation demonstrates how the spirit of God influences people into a collective singular response. Benjamin’s people felt both remorse and peace of conscience after repentance. Previously the Savior spoke of pouring knowledge into His disciples through the spirit. Benjamin’s sermon had a similar effect on his congregation.
“After king Benjamin had said all these things to his people, he sent out a message, asking his people if they believed what he taught them. And they all cried out with one voice, saying: Yes, we believe everything you’ve taught us. And we know these things are true because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has caused a big change in our hearts. We’re not inclined to do evil anymore, but rather want to continually do good. We, through God’s infinite goodness and the manifestations of His Spirit, can clearly envision what’s to come [knowledge poured into them]. And if necessary, we could even prophesy about all of it. And it’s our faith in the things our king has taught us that’s given us this valuable knowledge, which makes us rejoice! We’re willing to enter into a covenant with God, promising to obey His commandments and do His will for the rest of our lives. We don’t want to cause ourselves the never-ending torment described by the angel, nor do we want to incur God’s anger.
Now these are the words king Benjamin hoped to hear from them. Therefore he told them: You’ve said the words I wanted to hear, and the covenant you’ve made is a righteous covenant. Now because of the covenant you’ve made, you’ll be called the sons and daughters of Jesus Christ. Today, He has spiritually begotten you. You’ve said your hearts have changed through faith in His name. As a result, you’re born of Him and have become His sons and daughters. You’re now free under His wings, and there’s no other Savior under whose wings you can be sheltered. There’s no other name given through which salvation comes. Therefore all of you who have made the covenant with God to be obedient for the remainder of your lives, take upon yourselves the name of Christ. Those who do this will be found at the right hand of God and will answer to the name of Christ” (CofC Mosiah 3:1-2, emphasis added).
The unity and “oneness” spoken of in the scriptures is more than a group of people reaching consensus on a matter. It is a unity in the faith that only comes when people acquire the “mind of the Father” and receive His Spirit within them. It comes at a time when the Lord gathers Israel in the last days and writes His laws in their inward parts so, like the people of Benjamin they intuitively do as the Father and Son.
“ . . . Behold, the days come, says the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah — not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt (which my covenant they broke, although I was a husband unto them, says the Lord), but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel: after those days, says the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts, and will be their God and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord — for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more” (RE Jeremiah 12:9, emphasis added).
As the covenant opportunity for the Gentiles passes to Israel, the Lord will pour knowledge into the hearts and minds of the faithful and they receive the mind of the Father and Son. Together they become “one” and become heirs of all the Father has.
Until we all have the spirit of God in our hearts and minds the unity foretold in scripture evades us as we wander in dark mists.
[1] “And then the Lord said, Let us go down. And they went down at the beginning and they organized and formed (that is, the Gods) the heavens and the earth. And the earth, after it was formed, was empty and desolate because they had not formed anything but the earth. And darkness reigned upon the face of the deep, and the spirit of the Gods was brooding upon the faces of the water” (RE T&C 145, Abraham 7:1, emphasis added).
[2] “Now the Lord had shown unto me, Abraham, the intelligences that were organized before the world was, and among all these there were many of the noble and great ones [“Believers”]. And God [the Father] saw these souls, that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them and he said, These I will make my rulers. For he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good. And he said unto me, Abraham, you are one of them; you were chosen before you were born.
And there stood one among them that was like unto God [the Son], and he said unto those who were with him, We will go down, for there is space there, and we will take of these materials and we will make an earth whereon these [“followers”] may dwell. And we [“One like unto God” and “Believers”] will prove them herewith to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them. And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon, and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever” (RE T&C 145, Abraham 6:1-2, emphasis added).
[3] “ . . . In the name of Father Ahman I tell you, when you were progressing, you dressed yourself, and went where you chose to go; but as you approach the end of the path, you will have to let others stretch out your hands and likewise nail you, even if you plead to have the bitter cup removed. This He said to foretell the sacrificial death that is required for endless glory. And then He added, You must follow after me” (RE T&C 171, Testimony of Saint John 12:18, emphasis added).
[4] “Therefore, as I said concerning the sons of Moses, for the sons of Moses and also the sons of Aaron shall offer an acceptable offering and sacrifice in the house of the Lord, which house shall be built unto the Lord in this generation upon the consecrated spot as I have appointed. And the sons of Moses and of Aaron shall be filled with the glory of the Lord upon Mount Zion, in the Lord’s house, whose sons are ye, and also many whom I have called and sent forth to build up my church. For whoever is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the spirit unto the renewing of their bodies, that they become the sons of Moses and of Aaron, and the seed of Abraham, and the church, and kingdom, and the elect of God.
And also, all they who receive this Priesthood receive me, says the Lord, for he that receives my servants receives me, and he that receives me receives my Father, and he that receives my Father receives my Father’s kingdom; therefore, all that my Father has shall be given unto him. And this is according to the oath and the covenant which belongs to the Priesthood. Therefore, all those who receive the Priesthood receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved [sealed]. But whoever breaks this covenant after he has received it, and altogether turns therefrom, shall not have forgiveness in this world, nor in the world to come, and all those who come not unto this Priesthood which you have received, which I now confirm upon you who are present this day, namely the twenty-third day of September, A.D. 1832, eleven high priests, save one, by my own voice out of the Heavens. And even I have given the Heavenly host and my angels charge concerning you” (RE T&C 82:16-17, emphasis added).
[5] “There are many things I still have to teach you, but you are not able to understand it all as yet. When I am the Spirit of Truth, I can then reveal to you the record of Heaven and knowledge will be poured into you. The spirit is the means to communicate my words, and my words will lead you on the upward path. The knowledge poured in to you will come from me. I will depart, but only briefly because when I ascend back to the Head of the Household of Heaven, I will also be by your side to guide you by my voice from Heaven” (RE T&C 171, Testimony of Saint John 10:25, emphasis added).
Scott Roderick
3/18/2025
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