Moroni 6 - A Higher Standard
1 And now I speak concerning baptism. Behold, elders, priests, and teachers were baptized; and they were not baptized save they brought forth fruit meet that they were worthy of it.
2 Neither did they receive any unto baptism save they came forth with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, and witnessed unto the church that they truly repented of all their sins.
3 And none were received unto baptism save they took upon them the name of Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end.
4 And after they had been received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and cleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost, they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually watchful unto prayer, relying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and the finisher of their faith.
I have contemplated these verses for 40 years. It seems like our Church doesn't require adherence to the same set of criteria when a person is baptized. Maybe some do have broken heart and contrite spirits. For me, this process delineated in Moroni 6 is happening to me over the course of many years.
Being cleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost sounds like the baptism of fire. If it is, I haven't knowingly received this. I have received a witness from God that my sins have been remitted. I can look back on this experience and know how it felt for a sincere investigator to be baptized. I believe God had witnessed to me that I am on the path and I believe I have begun to partake of the fruit of the tree of life. But, I believe there to be much, much more than this initial cleansing. In fact, I have felt God's love and acceptance of my sacrifice many times while partaking of the sacrament. I believe the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost is the culmination of a process that I have begun.
My guess is that our Church is running on a lower standard than the Book of Mormon Church. Why? Because the adults can't teach something that hasn't happened to them. Why? Because we seem to enter into a lower order when we are baptized. There are allusions in the Book of Mormon of communities of believers understanding full well that they were entering a community that was united and equal both temporally and spiritually. The community they were entering into had all things in common. Their hearts were knit together.
There seems to be three ordinances in the Church surrounding baptism. First we are baptized and feel God's love in our hearts. We are then commanded to receive the Holy Ghost. Later, as we progress individually, we are baptized with fire and the Holy Ghost. I believe this to be merciful and right for our time. The Book of Mormon shows us the ideal, what our Church should be striving for. I believe the world is so wicked that the initial standard has to be lower. Until we members live more by faith and desire to be united both temporally and spiritually, we won't be taught, nor understand the more pure approach to baptism and membership. Anyone reading Moroni 6 that is free of blinders and blocks should be able to see that we don't follow some of the idealistic teachings set forth by Moroni in this chapter.
I desire and hope for the day where I can, through repenting and partaking of the ordinance of the sacrament, bring forth fruit meet of being worthy of the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost. I am grateful that God has granted me (and all of us) the needed time to deny myself all ungodliness. I am grateful that I can rely wholly upon the merits, mercy and grace of Jesus Christ, the author and finisher of my faith as I progress from grace to grace.
