Father: Does it mean what we think it means?

[Jeremy]

29 Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.

...the subject of the resurrection of the dead,—namely, the soul—the mind of man—the immortal spirit. Where did it come from? All learned men and doctors of divinity say that God created it in the beginning; but it is not so: the very idea lessens man in my estimation. I do not believe the doctrine; I know better.

I am dwelling on the immortality of the spirit of man. Is it logical to say that the intelligence of spirits is immortal, and yet that it has a beginning? The intelligence of spirits had no beginning, neither will it have an end. That is good logic. That which has a beginning may have an end. There never was a time when there were not spirits.

I take my ring from my finger and liken it unto the mind of man—the immortal part, because it had no beginning. Suppose you cut it in two; then it has a beginning and an end; but join it again, and it continues one eternal round. So with the spirit of man. As the Lord liveth, if it had a beginning, it will have an end. All the fools and learned and wise men from the beginning of creation, who say that the spirit of man had a beginning, prove that it must have an end; and if that doctrine is true, then the doctrine of annihilation would be true. But if I am right, I might with boldness proclaim from the house-tops that God never had the power to create the spirit of man at all. God himself could not create himself.

Intelligence is eternal and exists upon a self-existent principle. It is a spirit from age to age and there is no creation about it. All the minds and spirits that God ever sent into the world are susceptible of enlargement.

The first principles of man are self-existent with God. God himself, finding he was in the midst of spirits and glory, because he was more intelligent, saw proper to institute laws whereby the rest could have a privilege to advance like himself. The relationship we have with God places us in a situation to advance in knowledge. He has power to institute laws to instruct the weaker intelligences, that they may be exalted with himself, so that they might have one glory upon another, and all that knowledge, power, glory, and intelligence, which is requisite in order to save them in the world of spirits.

Why do we call Him "Father"?
Is He a "Father" in the same way that we might be a "father" or a "mother"?
Do we "create" our children?
To be a Grandfather one would be a father. To be a father one would be a son.
What is a "son"?
What is a "father"?

[FoxMammaWisdom]

Jeremy, this is truly awesome!

[Jeremy]

Jeremy, this is truly awesome!

Without the answers, not so much.

[Simon]

Mosiah 15

1 And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people.

2 And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son—

3 The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son—

4 And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth.

Christ became our Father by submitting the flesh ( The Son ) to the Spirit ( The will of the Father ) and by setting an example unto us, .. for likewise are we commanded to submit our flesh to the Spirit, making our Ghost holy, and by that comming into harmony with the Spirit of God, becoming one as the Father and the Son are one.

We know that God became God because he posessed the greatest knowledge and intelligence of all beings, thus are all other beings subject to him. In that sense, God became our Father. He did not create us spiritually, for Spirit cant be created, for our Spirits are eternal. But God organized this world, and our physical bodys, so that we can learn by the same process as the Father and the Son and to become like them..

[Jake]

Why do we call Him "Father"?

Before worlds came rolled into existence I saw my Father work
out his Kingdom with fear & trembling

And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters.

This is eternal lives—to know the only wise and true God, and Jesus Christ, whom he hath sent. I am he. Receive ye, therefore, my law.

I will leave it to the reader to make the connection between these verses.

[taliesin]

If you agree that Alma 13 is about priesthood in premortality, then this verse raises some questions and adds to this discussion:

4) Or in fine, in the first place they were on the same standing with their brethren; thus this holy calling being prepared from the foundation of the world for such as would not harden their hearts, being in and through the atonement of the Only Begotten Son, who was prepared—

Why was Christ called "The Only Begotten Son" in the premortal life? Was no one else begotten?

D&C 76 says:
23) For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—
24) That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.

How do you beget a child unto another being? Especially if both are male? Why didn't the Father just directly beget the inhabitants of the worlds himself?

[reese]

Why do the Lamanites believe that God is a Great Spirit?

4 And now, when the king heard these words, he said unto them: Now I know that it is the Great Spirit; and he has come down at this time to preserve your lives, that I might not slay you as I did your brethren. Now this is the Great Spirit of whom our fathers have spoken.

5 Now this was the tradition of Lamoni, which he had received from his father, that there was a Great Spirit. Notwithstanding they believed in a Great Spirit, they supposed that whatsoever they did was right; nevertheless, Lamoni began to fear exceedingly, with fear lest he had done wrong in slaying his servants;

25 And he answered, and said unto him: I do not know what that meaneth.

26 And then Ammon said: Believest thou that there is a Great Spirit?

27 And he said, Yea.

28 And Ammon said: This is God. And Ammon said unto him again: Believest thou that this Great Spirit, who is God, created all things which are in heaven and in the earth?

7 And Aaron answered him and said unto him: Believest thou that there is a God? And the king said: I know that the Amalekites say that there is a God, and I have granted unto them that they should build sanctuaries, that they may assemble themselves together to worship him. And if now thou sayest there is a God, behold I will believe.

8 And now when Aaron heard this, his heart began to rejoice, and he said: Behold, assuredly as thou livest, O king, there is a God.

9 And the king said: Is God that Great Spirit that brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem?

10 And Aaron said unto him: Yea, he is that Great Spirit, and he created all things both in heaven and in earth. Believest thou this?

11 And he said: Yea, I believe that the Great Spirit created all things, and I desire that ye should tell me concerning all these things, and I will believe thy words.

35 And a portion of that Spirit dwelleth in me, which giveth me knowledge, and also power according to my faith and desires which are in God.

[Jeremy]

When we start asking ourselves these questions we might get uncomfortable. We might feel stretched. The answers might not align with current accepted doctrines. That is okay. It is necessary to understand the nature of God and believe in that which is true...not necessarily that which is correlated.

Faith is the step between belief and knowledge. Knowledge will only come if what we believe is true.

[TZONE]

'he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father...' ether 4:12

The "Father" of your eternal life will be Christ. (D&C 35: 2.)

2 I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was crucified for the sins of the world, even as many as will believe on my name, that they may become the sons of God, even one in me as I am one in the Father, as the Father is one in me, that we may be one.

unless you are not worthy, and than where god and christ are you shall not come...

[Original_Intent]

So it sounds like maybe covenants are involved with being or becoming a son or daughter...fits.

[SpeedRacer]

Mosiah 15

1 And now Abinadi said unto them: I would that ye should understand that God himself shall come down among the children of men, and shall redeem his people.

2 And because he dwelleth in flesh he shall be called the Son of God, and having subjected the flesh to the will of the Father, being the Father and the Son—

3 The Father, because he was conceived by the power of God; and the Son, because of the flesh; thus becoming the Father and Son—

4 And they are one God, yea, the very Eternal Father of heaven and of earth.

Christ became our Father by submitting the flesh ( The Son ) to the Spirit ( The will of the Father ) and by setting an example unto us, .. for likewise are we commanded to submit our flesh to the Spirit, making our Ghost holy, and by that comming into harmony with the Spirit of God, becoming one as the Father and the Son are one.

We know that God became God because he posessed the greatest knowledge and intelligence of all beings, thus are all other beings subject to him. In that sense, God became our Father. He did not create us spiritually, for Spirit cant be created, for our Spirits are eternal. But God organized this world, and our physical bodys, so that we can learn by the same process as the Father and the Son and to become like them..

Superb. I am being taught about God, His nature, and the priesthood. It seems he is sending this information abroad so that we can begin to exercise faith in Him again. So interesting.

[Simon]

I just realized I forgot one verse that should be inlcuded

5 And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people.

I really love that scipture, for it defines so clearly why Christ is called the son, and the Father.

For us to learn how to subject the Flesh to the Spirit, we will also have to go through what Christ went through, which is to suffer temptations, to be mocked, and to be scourged, cast out, and diowned by our people. Christ set the example and he can show us the way how to become Sons, and Fathers ourselves. In that regard I love what Isiah said about Christ.

Mosiah 14:11

11 He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied; by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall abear their iniquities

Christ knows the way because he already walked that path himselfe. The only way we can walk that path ourselves is if we receive that knowledge from Christ, and in that sense we have to know Christ, which then will lead us to life eternal.

[buffalo_girl]

Try this one:

Luke 10
22 All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/10?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Go to each of the footnotes of verse 22. Follow (b) who to the Joseph Smith Translation of Luke 10:22 & to (c) reveal

[letsjet]

Eloheim is the Father of our spirits. In the Pre-mortal life Adam was our brother. When we were born into mortality he became the father of our physical bodies. Christ is currently our Brother, but when the resurrection takes place he becomes the Father of our resurrected bodies.
Christ is also the Father of heaven, earth, and countless galaxies.

[buffalo_girl]

Eloheim is the Father of our spirits. In the Pre-mortal life Adam was our brother. When we were born into mortality he became the father of our physical bodies. Christ is currently our Brother, but when the resurrection takes place he becomes the Father of our resurrected bodies.
Christ is also the Father of heaven, earth, and countless galaxies.

Mosiah 5
7 And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters.

Moroni 7
19 Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ.

I believe that my mortal commission is to be a Child of Christ.