~ Reflections ~

Vision of All
~ PART VIII ~
CONSIDERING THE LOGISTICS

presented by Don R. Hender

G O D   &   S E E S   &   A L L

MY THOUGHTS ARE NOT YOUR THOUGHTS,
NIETHER ARE MY WAYS YOUR WAYS;
THUS SAITH THE LORD
AS THE HEAVENS ARE HIGHER THAN THE EARTH,
SO IS WHAT I AM, MY WAYS, MY THOUGHTS, MY UNDERSTANDING AND VISIONS.
     THE GODS know all, see all, understand all things past, present, and future, which is to them as 'one eternal round' or the 'eternal now.' Those are the words of scripture and God's 'visionary viewing apparatise' is referred to as 'the' or 'a' "sea of glass [Revelation 4:6, 15:2, D&C 77:1, 130:6-9)." In a very meager comparision, man has achieved a lowly comparable example as our 4K high difinition viewing screens at sporting events may be seen as our 'sea of glass' on which it is capable of seeing things past, present and very meagerly projected into future events. Of course such as is God's visionary capability must be, man's lowly achievement must be but deemed as playing with 'tinker toys.'

Some spoof at such a Godly concept and capability, but then the run to laud the theories of science. At some point of extremely advanced science knowledge, which man is not realy quite there 'yet,' both science and truth, even God's truth will totally blend together. In the 20th century, Albert Einsteins highly develop mind does however paint a similar comparison to The Book of Mormon's and other revealed scripture of the earlier, 100 years earlier, 19th century as tranlation and recieve by revelation by the Prophet Joseph Smith of the concepts of seeing or being made aware of past, present and furture time as one 'eternal now.' What Joseph Smith had received by 'scriptural revelation and inspired translation,' Einstein had conceptualized in quite similar contextray!

Albert Einstein and the Fabric of Time

It may be surpising to most 'laymen' and even to some scientists, that Albert Einstein concluded that the past, present, and future all exist simultaneously [as one eternal round, 1 Nephi 10:19, Alma 7:20, Alma 37:12, D&C 3:1-2, D&C 35:1]. In 1952, in his book "Relativity," in discussing Minkowski's Space World interpretation of the theory of relativity, Einstein writes:

"Since there exists in this four dimensional structure [space-time] no longer any sections which represent "now" [the limited 'now'] objectively, the concepts of happening and becoming are indeed not completely suspended, but yet complicated. It appears therefore more natural to think of physical reality as a four dimensional existence, instead of, as hitherto, the evolution of a three dimensional existence."

That fourth dimension is time or 'Space-time.' Einstein's belief in an undivided solid reality joint in 'eternal time' was clear to him, he completely rejected the separation we experience as the intangible limited moment of the single defined 'tick of the period' of 'now.' He believed there is no true division between past and future [only an 'eternal' now], there is rather a single existence. A descriptive testimony to this faith came when his lifelong friend Besso died. Einstein wrote a letter to Besso's family, stating that although Besso had preceded him in death, it was of no consequence, "...for us physicists believe the separation between past, present, and future is only an illusion, although a convincing one."

And in God's extended use of what is merely contemplated by Einstein, God uses as he sees before him the whole of 'spacetime,' past, present and future, before him as 'one eternal round.' Of course God's use of what Einstein had began to consider and mentally understand, it is God's advance situtaion to totally actually use and take advantage of it!

It Joseph Smith's teaching he stated:

“The great Jehovah contemplated the whole of the events connected with the earth, pertaining to the plan of salvation, before it rolled into existence, or ever ‘the morning stars sang together’ for joy; the past, the present, and the future were and are, with Him, one eternal ‘now;’ He knew of the fall of Adam, the iniquities of the antediluvians, of the depth of iniquity that would be connected with the human family, their weakness and strength, their power and glory, apostasies, their crimes, their righteousness and iniquity; He comprehended the fall of man, and his redemption; He knew the plan of salvation and pointed it out; He was acquainted with the situation of all nations and with their destiny; He ordered all things according to the council of His own will; He knows the situation of both the living and the dead, and has made ample provision for their redemption, according to their several circumstances, and the laws of the kingdom of God, whether in this world, or in the world to come”

~ Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 220; History of the Church, 4:597.

{Also see Neal A. Maxwell's 'musings' upon this matter below.}

'Prophets' May See 'Parts' of 'All Things' out from the 'Vision of All'

Musings of Apostle Neal A. Maxwell on the Eternal Now

"The Lord Himself said that He `knoweth all things, for all things are present' before Him. (D&C 38:2.) We read, too, that `all things are present with me, for I know them all.' (Moses 1:6.) Therefore, God's omniscience is not solely a function of prolonged and discerning familiarity with us-but of the stunning reality that the past and present and future are part of an `eternal now' with God! (Joseph Smith, History of the Church 4:597.)" (Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience, pp. 7,8.)

"Since-unlike for us enclosed by the veil-things are, for God, one "eternal now," it is to be remembered that for God to foresee is not to cause or even to desire a particular occurrence-but it is to take that occurrence into account beforehand, so that divine reckoning folds it into the unfolding purposes of God." (Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience, p. 12.)

"Several cautionary notes are necessary-even urgent. We may be surprised at the turn of events, but God in His omniscience never is. He sees the beginning from the end because all things are, in a way which we do not understand, present before Him simultaneously in an `eternal now.' Further, the arithmetic of anguish is something we mortals cannot comprehend. We cannot do the sums because we do not have all the numbers. We are locked in the dimension of time and are contained within the tight perspectives of this second estate." (Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience, pp. 37.)

"But modern revelations make it abundantly clear that God is not `in time' in the manner that we mortals are. This is precisely what some able and perceptive commentators have surmised as they have wrestled sincerely with this dilemma, though without `plain and precious' modern scriptures. For example, the philosopher Boethius described in the fifth century how `God is outside of time and does not foresee the future; rather, he sees it in an "eternal now" that is equally present to all parts of time. God did not know yesterday what I will do tomorrow; he sees timelessly in eternity "what I am doing" in the future just as he sees what I am doing now. We must be careful not to conclude that since past, present, and future are equally present to God, they are equally present to each other. Both space and time are real, not just illusions, but God created them both and is not bound by either.' Besides, we mortals make our decisions within our framework of understanding, not God's. The modern revelations give needed clarification and confirmation concerning God's omniscience through these significant insights when laid alongside those from the Bible: `His understanding is infinite.' (Psalm 147:5.) `God . . . knoweth all things.' (1 John 3:20.) `And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation.' (Acts 17:26.) `O how great the holiness of our God! For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything save he knows it.' (2 Nephi 9:20.) 5`The Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words. And thus it is. Amen.' (1 Nephi 9:6.) `In the presence of God . . . all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before the Lord.' (D&C 130:7. See also 88:41.) `All things are present before mine eyes.' (D&C 38:2.) `All things are present with me, for I know them all.' (Moses 1:6.) These verses confirm what has been referred to as `the eternal now'-within which God exists, so that He sees rather than foresees." (Neal A. Maxwell, Plain and Precious Things, p. 57.)

"Our own intellectual shortfalls and perplexities do not alter the fact of God’s astonishing foreknowledge, which takes into account our choices for which we are responsible. Amid the mortal and fragmentary communiques and the breaking news of the day concerning various human conflicts, God lives in an eternal now where the past, present, and future are constantly before Him (see D&C 130:7)." (Neal A. Maxwell, "Care for the Life of the Soul", Ensign, May 2003, p. 70.)

rev. 5 August 2016