Clean from the blood of this generation

[laronius]

The necessity of becoming clean from the blood of one's generation is a firmly established doctrine in our church but not one that seems to be commonly spoken of or elaborated upon. It is referenced multiple times in the Book of Mormon as well as the D&C. I will site one instance for reference:

D&C 88:74 And I give unto you, who are the first laborers in this last kingdom, a commandment that you assemble yourselves together, and organize yourselves, and prepare yourselves, and sanctify yourselves; yea, purify your hearts, and cleanse your hands and your feet before me, that I may make you clean; 75 That I may testify unto your Father, and your God, and my God, that you are clean from the blood of this wicked generation... 85 Verily, I say unto you, let those who are not the first elders continue in the vineyard until the mouth of the Lord shall call them, for their time is not yet come; their garments are not clean from the blood of this generation.

So is this requirement just for those who hold the priesthood and then fulfilled upon faithful completion of a mission or does it extend to one's whole life and perhaps to women as well? And how does one know one's standing in this regard?

[Just_A_Guy]

9 hours ago, laronius said:

The necessity of becoming clean from the blood of one's generation is a firmly established doctrine in our church but not one that seems to be commonly spoken of or elaborated upon. It is referenced multiple times in the Book of Mormon as well as the D&C. I will site one instance for reference:

D&C 88:74 And I give unto you, who are the first laborers in this last kingdom, a commandment that you assemble yourselves together, and organize yourselves, and prepare yourselves, and sanctify yourselves; yea, purify your hearts, and cleanse your hands and your feet before me, that I may make you clean; 75 That I may testify unto your Father, and your God, and my God, that you are clean from the blood of this wicked generation... 85 Verily, I say unto you, let those who are not the first elders continue in the vineyard until the mouth of the Lord shall call them, for their time is not yet come; their garments are not clean from the blood of this generation.

So is this requirement just for those who hold the priesthood and then fulfilled upon faithful completion of a mission or does it extend to one's whole life and perhaps to women as well? And how does one know one's standing in this regard?

The fact that this is reiterated in the initiatory ordinance for men, but not for women, suggests to me that being cleansed from the blood and sins of one’s generation is an obligation tied to priesthood service.  I don’t think it’s something we can check off as being “done” once we come back from our missions.  We can, through our faithfulness, eventually become clean of the blood and sins of our generation without serving a mission as a young man; just as we can be saved/exalted after having committed all manner of sin.  But it requires a change of attitude.  

[laronius]

14 hours ago, Just_A_Guy said:

The fact that this is reiterated in the initiatory ordinance for men, but not for women, suggests to me that being cleansed from the blood and sins of one’s generation is an obligation tied to priesthood service.  I don’t think it’s something we can check off as being “done” once we come back from our missions.  We can, through our faithfulness, eventually become clean of the blood and sins of our generation without serving a mission as a young man; just as we can be saved/exalted after having committed all manner of sin.  But it requires a change of attitude.  

And this kind of speaks to my point. We associate this principle with the priesthood because it's not mentioned to the women, therefore it must be a priesthood thing. And I agree with that, but it seems like there would be some more directness in saying "when you receive the priesthood you are taking upon yourself an obligation, not just to fulfill your callings, give blessings, etc, but an obligation towards humanity in general to bear the sins of all the people in your day unless you rid yourselves of those sins by doing such and such." It's never taught that way and yet that seems to be the implication. 

[NeuroTypical]

On 5/4/2022 at 9:16 AM, laronius said:

assemble yourselves together, and organize yourselves, and prepare yourselves, and sanctify yourselves; yea, purify your hearts, and cleanse your hands and your feet before me, that I may make you clean

Sounds like plain old basics like repentance, church attendance, meaningful participation in the sacrament, and regular old trying hard to be a good disciple of Christ, pretty much covers everything here.  Temple recommend + walking as a disciple = got this scripture covered.  

(That, and of course a cache of weapons and food in your bug-out retreat, to handle the "prepare yourselves" part.)

Edited May 5, 2022 by NeuroTypical

[laronius]

15 hours ago, NeuroTypical said:

Sounds like plain old basics like repentance, church attendance, meaningful participation in the sacrament, and regular old trying hard to be a good disciple of Christ, pretty much covers everything here.  Temple recommend + walking as a disciple = got this scripture covered.  

(That, and of course a cache of weapons and food in your bug-out retreat, to handle the "prepare yourselves" part.)

Personally worthiness is absolutely an element of the principle. But it extends beyond that. As Jacob explained it:

19 And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day.

There is a responsibility to others that must be met in order to be free of their blood and sins. And as mentioned earlier, we apparently take it upon ourselves when we receive the priesthood.

[NeuroTypical]

2 hours ago, laronius said:

18 hours ago, NeuroTypical said:

Sounds like plain old basics like repentance, church attendance, meaningful participation in the sacrament, and regular old trying hard to be a good disciple of Christ, pretty much covers everything here.  Temple recommend + walking as a disciple = got this scripture covered.  

(That, and of course a cache of weapons and food in your bug-out retreat, to handle the "prepare yourselves" part.)

Personally worthiness is absolutely an element of the principle. But it extends beyond that. As Jacob explained it:

So, just to clarify, I'm not saying "personal worthiness is all that's required".  I'm saying plain old basics like repentance, church attendance, meaningful participation in the sacrament, and regular old trying hard to be a good disciple of Christ, pretty much covers everything here.  Temple recommend + walking as a disciple = got this scripture covered.

[Underlining to highlight the stuff requiring action and effort beyond just not sinning.]