When I was young, I thought (like all children) that rules limited my freedom. I was told when and what to eat, when to sleep, what to wear, and how to behave. I was powerless in the world of the tall people and sometimes I rebelled the only way I could — by crying, yelling, or throwing a tantrum.
As a teenager, I wasn’t terribly rebellious. While others my age had beer drinking parties and tried cigarettes, I tended to stay home and read. Still, I listened to rock music and read Tom Hayden ( The Port Huron Statement – 1962) and Abbie Hoffman (Steal This Book – 1971) along with my Science Fiction. I still chaffed occasionally about curfews, and bedtimes, and times I was not allowed to take the car.
When I grew up, becoming a teacher, and especially becoming a father, put me on the other side of the rule-making for the young. I have probably resorted to the dictatorial, “because I said so” on occasion, but generally I believed, and tried to explain to those in my charge, that my rules were sincerely in their best interest.
Obedience to God
When it comes to obeying commandments from God, we can choose to view the situation out of fear. God is bigger and stronger than we are and if we don’t do what He says, he will punish us. This is the obedience of a child. We may obey, but internally we may feel resentful and even bullied.
The other way to view God’s commandments is to see them as instructions to help maximize our happiness. Though we may not always see the connection, surely our Father God has our best interest in mind when He gives us instructions.
Some parental commandments are based on their superior knowledge of physics and biology (“hold on to the railing,” “wash your hands before eating”). Many parental rules are concerned about a child’s physical safety (“look both ways before crossing the street,” “stay away from drugs and alcohol”). Parents also teach us how get along in society (“be courteous,” “listen before speaking”).
God’s commandments are similar. In the Old Testament, God warned the Israelites to not eat pork many centuries before science understood trichinosis. The 1833 “Word of Wisdom” revelation warned against the internal use of tobacco decades before science documented the link to lung cancer. God’s laws also teach us how to get along in society (“love thy neighbor as thyself,” “thou shalt not steal“).
Laws set us free
It is important to understand that, rather than restrict us, laws set us free. I know I can travel through the intersection safely because the other cars will stop at their red light. I can drink from the public water fountain safely because the city has purified the water. The food I buy from the store, or eat in the restaurant, has been inspected and meets government standards of safety.
These laws, rules, and regulations were created by our society, through our government, for the common good. Sure, the car makers and the food manufacturers could make more money if they didn’t have to follow government regulations, but that idea is literally Satanic. Sacrificing lives for profit is the Mahan Principle.
And Cain gloried in that which he had done, saying: I am free; surely the flocks of my brother falleth into my hands.
Moses 5:33
Cain believed that Abel’s flocks would be his if he killed his brother. Of course, Cain was NOT free. The consequence of murdering Abel was not to inherit Abel’s wealth. Rather, he found himself cursed.
This is not an extreme comparison. In both the auto industry and the food industry having lax standards and avoiding government regulation can indeed result in death for the consumer. The pursuit of profit is often the enemy of life and health.
Obedience to law sets us free. Disobedience to law leads to bondage and death.
Laws are the key to receiving blessings
There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—
Doctrine and Covenants 130:20-21
And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.
Every good or positive thing that happens to us is the result of obedience to law. Because of real world factors like chaos, agency, and community, we cannot simply pick a particular blessing we want, figure out which laws lead to that blessing, obey those laws, and collect the blessing.
Still, the general rule is that the more obedient we are the more blessed we will be. Sometimes, if we don’t happen to receive the precise blessing we sought for, it will be because God has a higher blessing in mind for us.
Obeying Earthly laws
We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.
Articles of Faith 1:12
The connection between obedience to law and receiving blessings is just as true in our social and political lives as it is in our religious lives. People perennially complain about taxes, but they are vitally dependent on the blessings (in this case, government services) that taxes bring.
The corporate sector continually opposes any and all forms of government regulation and oversight. They cloak their demands in the guise of “freedom.” But the concept of freedom means nothing without an object. We must always ask, “Freedom to do what?” All too often, the hidden motive is that business people want to be “free” to lie, cheat, and steal in their pursuit of maximizing profits.
And the regulations of the government were destroyed, because of the secret combination of the friends and kindreds of those who murdered the prophets.
3 Nephi 7:6
Lying and cheating will not make you free. Even if you become wealthy, your money will not make you happy. You will be in bondage to your own corruption. Stealing does not lead to freedom. It will make you both hated and hunted.
True freedom is the clear conscience that comes from moral behavior, integrity, and obedience to the laws of both God and man.
Sources
Hugh Nibley, “Gifts,” Approaching Zion, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Volume 9, p. 93-94.
Hugh Nibley, “How Firm a Foundation! What Makes It So,” Approaching Zion, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, Volume 9, p. 165-166.
Well put.
But we now have extremely punitive laws in Texas against abortion. This will be catastrophic for many women. This is law, but it is is catastrophe. What should the LDS view be? Frankly I don’t care. We are a one party Republican Church which does not care about the rights of ordinary people. Period.