A Framework for Personal Revelation: Dale G. Renlund - Oct 14, 2022 

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What is a Framework?

A framework is a structure or organizational pattern used to facilitate order, and behavior, as well as consistency and strength in a society.
Just as frameworks and societal norms and myths are used to provide structure in society so also do these frameworks provide structure in the laws of reality, and the kingdom of God.

Brother Renlund then provides us a framework that he uses in his life that correlates and matches with the framework of revelation.

"Well-trained airplane pilots fly within the capacity of their aircraft and follow directions from air traffic controllers regarding runway use and flight path. Simply stated, pilots operate within a framework. No matter how brilliant or talented they are, only by flying within this framework can pilots safely unleash the enormous potential of an airplane to accomplish its miraculous objectives.

In a similar way, we receive personal revelation within a framework. After baptism, we are given a majestic yet practical gift, the gift of the Holy Ghost. As we strive to stay on the covenant path, it is “the Holy Ghost … [that] will show [us] all things [that we] should do.” When we are unsure or uneasy, we can ask God for help. The Savior’s promise could not be clearer: “Ask, and it shall be given you; … for every one that asketh receiveth.” With the help of the Holy Ghost, we can transform our divine nature into our eternal destiny."

This is the framework of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Acts 2:37-40, Article of Faith 4

It is the pattern and practice by which a specific event occurs - that event is the receipt of the Holy Ghost - and the corresponding power, influence and effects that are brought into a persons life through that influence.
Remember what the Holy Ghost is - he is a member of the Godhead - and when one has him in his life he is partially redeemed and has entered into the presence of God - what an amazing GIFT.

When we follow this practice, this framework, and this pattern the results/consequences will naturally flow from it, without compulsory means, they will just happen.

Frameworks can be instituted by many different things...
What other frameworks do we have in our life.


Who instituted these frameworks? Are they changeable? If so How?

Frameworks instituted by God - the plan of salvation, the path of redemption, physics

Frameworks instituted by Families - family traditions, practices, patterns
Frameworks instituted by Nations - economics, litigation, laws, punishments
Frameworks instituted by Societies - Gender Identity, Gender Roles, Racism

You will note that some of these frameworks cross groups, and some do not.
You will note that frameworks that are created by a group, can be changed by that group without issue. But if another group tries to change the framework of another group there is always problems.

#1 - The Scriptures - are the basis of doctrine
"The scriptures form the first element of this framework for personal revelation. Feasting on the words of Christ, as found in the scriptures, stimulates personal revelation. Elder Robert D. Hales said: “When we want to speak to God, we pray. And when we want Him to speak to us, we search the scriptures.”

The scriptures also teach us how to receive personal revelation. And we ask for what is right and good and not for what is contrary to God’s will. We do not “ask amiss,” with improper motives to promote our own agenda or to fulfill our own pleasure. Above all, we are to ask Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ, believing that we will receive."

#2 - The law of stewardship - we only receive revelation in our own realm of influence
"A second element of the framework is that we receive personal revelation only within our purview and not within the prerogative of others. In other words, we take off and land in our appointed runway. The importance of well-defined runways was learned early in the history of the Restoration. Hiram Page, one of the Eight Witnesses to the Book of Mormon, claimed to be receiving revelations for the entire Church. Several members were deceived and wrongly influenced.

In response, the Lord revealed that “no one shall be appointed to receive commandments and revelations in this church excepting my servant Joseph Smith … until I shall appoint … another in his stead.” Doctrine, commandments, and revelations for the Church are the prerogative of the living prophet, who receives them from the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the prophet’s runway."

Church Revelation - Prophet
Family Revelation - Parents Mother/Father equally
Individual revelation - Individual

#3 - Personal revelation will be in harmony with the commandments of God and covenants we have made
"A third element of the framework is that personal revelation will be in harmony with the commandments of God and the covenants we have made with Him. Consider a prayer that goes something like this: “Heavenly Father, Church services are boring. May I worship Thee on the Sabbath in the mountains or on the beach? May I be excused from going to church and partaking of the sacrament but still have the promised blessings of keeping the Sabbath day holy?” In response to such a prayer, we can anticipate God’s response: “My child, I have already revealed my will regarding the Sabbath day.”

When we ask for revelation about something for which God has already given clear direction, we open ourselves up to misinterpreting our feelings and hearing what we want to hear. A man once told me about his struggles to stabilize his family’s financial situation. He had the idea to embezzle funds as a solution, prayed about it, and felt he had received affirmative revelation to do so. I knew he had been deceived because he sought revelation contrary to a commandment of God. The Prophet Joseph Smith warned, “Nothing is a greater injury to the children of men than to be under the influence of a false spirit, when they think they have the Spirit of God.”

Revelation Generally speaking does not break commandments, or previously restored information.
Story about bringing forth new scripture

Do we know of any exceptions to this rule? Nephi, Abraham, Law of Kinsman Redeemer, Law of Retribution in Law of Moses, etc. All of these supposed "Exceptions" actually have valid explainations and reasons for them. We need to be VERY careful if we think we are in an exception case - and in general DO NOT GO THERE.

#4 - What God has already revealed to you - he does not need to do so again.

"The fourth element of the framework is to recognize what God has already revealed to you personally, while being open to further revelation from Him. If God has answered a question and the circumstances have not changed, why would we expect the answer to be different? Joseph Smith stumbled into this problematic scenario in 1828. The first portion of the Book of Mormon had been translated, when Martin Harris, a benefactor and early scribe, asked Joseph for permission to take the translated pages and show them to his wife. Unsure of what to do, Joseph prayed for guidance. The Lord told him not to let Martin take the pages."

The loss of the 116 pages - etc.

If there is time:
My framework of revelation...
PPPRRRR
Prepare, Ponder, Pray, Record, React, Repent, Repeat

Prepare:
Prepare for revelation - expect it, put yourself in a state by which it can be received. Remember preparation proceeds power.
Thus instead of relying on the arm of the flesh - and our weak logic/reason - we are taught to rely upon the arm of the spirit, and the receipt of revelation by which means we can understand the proper intent, and interpretation of scripture. Thus we do not deny the power of God to reveal his word unto us... we just don't.

Moroni 10:5-8
5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.
6 And whatsoever thing is good is just and true; wherefore, nothing that is good denieth the Christ, but acknowledgeth that he is.
7 And ye may know that he is, by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore I would exhort you that ye deny not the power of God; for he worketh by power, according to the faith of the children of men, the same today and tomorrow, and forever.
8 And again, I exhort you, my brethren, that ye deny not the gifts of God, for they are many; and they come from the same God. And there are different ways that these gifts are administered; but it is the same God who worketh all in all; and they are given by pondering the manifestations of the Spirit of God unto men, to profit them.

I However also consider reason/logic to be a useful tool and helpful to my understanding during the ponder phase so I do the following. Matching the above pattern in reliance upon revelation, but having a more strongly logical pattern when pondering before praying...

Ponder: Study/Ponder it out in your mind
Ponder - God does not give to us what we can by our own capability come to an understanding of. Think about your question, research it, come to your own initial conclusion. Then ask if it be right.

#1. Confirm the historical context of the speaker/audience.
What question is being asked... or answered.
Who is the speaker - audience - and their background.

#2. Confirm the context of the doctrine or principle
Ponder upon the meaning of the scripture in context.
Don't just read the verse read the whole chapter.
Don't just read the whole chapter but rather the whole section wherein the verse is contained. (confirm the context.)
Is this concept taught elsewhere in the scriptures if so - compare...
#3. Is there a method of speech/rhetoric involved or Hebraic Parallelism in play?
#4. If it is Paul's words - is he using Platonic, Neo-platonic, Stoic, or other philosophic terms and meanings in his words?
#5 Look for proper language meaning - via concordance or other comparison (validate translation...)
#6 Look for any modern day interpretations by men in authority to speak in the name of God. Compare my understanding to what they have to say on the matter.

Pray: Come to a conclusion in one's mind - then ask: Pray
Pray - Ask God - exercise your faith in him, believe that he is, that he is a rewarded of those who diligently seek him. Actually Do it

#1. Pray with an understanding/conviction that an answer will come
#2. Do not be dogmatic - or deterministic - I can be wrong.
#3. Pray with the intent that I will change my mind if the answer is I'm wrong.
#4. Be patient when expecting the answer - write the question down and wait - it could be well... a while... and answered in unexpected ways
#5. When the answer comes recognize it and react.

Record: Document your answer so you remember what it was - you don't need to ask again!
Record - Write down the answer, record your thoughts, feelings and impressions so that you can "Remember" that you received an answer. So that you can iterate - and ponder your impressions of the moment.

Remember patriarchal blessings and other documents of revelation to you

React: Do it
React - Act upon the result, Do what you were told, actually respond in a manner according to your answer. (No one likes to be ignored - neither does God!)

Repent: When the spirit of the Lord is Grieved
Amen to the priesthood the authority, and the revelations of that man...  D&C 121:36-39
Revelation comes through the Holy Ghost - 

Repeat... the process
This is an iterative process - repeat this pattern. Improve your capability to receive answers to prayers. Do this during the good times - not just the bad times!! Grow into the gift of revelation. Become a Prophet! An individual who has a testimony of Jesus Christ and through revelation knows that it is the "Truth"

Alma 5:45-47
45 And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety?
46 Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me.
47 And moreover, I say unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God.

Appendix:
What is a SIGN?
A few thoughts concerning Revelation - what is a "Sign", why we must believe first, and why we believe that our spiritual evidence is external, and not the delusions of our own minds.

Science begins with the null hypothesis, which assumes that the claim under investigation is not true until demonstrated otherwise. The statistical standards of evidence needed to reject the null hypothesis are substantial. Ideally, in a controlled experiment, we would like to be 95 to 99 percent confident that the results were not caused by chance before we offer our provisional assent that the effect may be real. Failure to reject the null hypothesis does not make the claim false, and, conversely, rejecting the null hypothesis is not a warranty on truth.

How does the Scientific Method work together to determine truth? Does it?
Some have said that the scientific method is the best tool ever devised to discriminate between true and false patterns, to distinguish between reality and fantasy, and to detect baloney.

D&C 93:24
24 And truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come;
You will notice that this method does not actually come up with "Truth" it comes up with a possibility of truth that seems to match the current test/experiment. There is never any guarantee that what the current understanding of a given principle is actually "the truth". It is even a basic tenet of science that any and all conclusions are valid only until/if they are shown/proven to be false at some later time.
Alma 32:21- Now as I said concerning faith - it is not to have a perfect knowledge It is a hope for things which are not seen - which are true.
22 God desires in the first place you should believe
23 He imparts his word by angels unto men, women, and children - confound the leaned

Notice the difference here - instead of disbelieving first and having it proven via empirical evidence he wants us to believe first because of the testimony of angels and testimony of others, and then gain additional witnesses and evidence.
This is different than in Science ... in science "the claim is assumed to be not true unless sufficient evidence is found".

Why does God want us to believe first?

I think its a matter of agency - he wants us to choose to believe and then he will confirm that belief and not condemn us. If he were to prove that it was true, and we refuse to believe/obey it we would be under a greater condemnation.

D&C 93:30-32
30 All truth is independent in that sphere in which God has placed it, to act for itself, as all intelligence also; otherwise there is no existence.
31 Behold, here is the agency of man, and here is the condemnation of man; because that which was from the beginning is plainly manifest unto them, and they receive not the light.
32 And every man whose spirit receiveth not the light is under condemnation.
Once again it is a requirement for this experiment to Believe first - before evidence is given.
Ether 12:6 You will receive no witness until after the trial of your faith!
Abr 3:25-26 We will prove them herewith to see if they will do all things God shall command them

Remember that by definition science does not find "Truth".
The scientific method provides a possible explanation of data/empirical evidence based upon an interpretation of that evidence. By definition it is understood that there may come a time and in fact it is likely that what we currently believe to be "true" is in fact false based upon additional data, and additional experimental information.
Truth however is not subjective - it is external to the observer and is how things are, were and are to come - never to be wrong. Not determinable by science - or the scientific method.
By the way even though it isn't truth it doesn't mean it isn't useful. After all - predictive models are very helpful even if they are in some cases wrong. In the cases they aren't it's quite nice.

Religious Faith:
Religious faith comes through a trial of faith - then evidence is presented to the individual to strengthen their faith. This is not empirical evidence that can be used to prove to another that what has occurred is true. If it were it would destroy their opportunity to live by faith - learn by faith, and eventually partake of eternal life through the trial of their faith.

The difference between a sign and evidence of faith is the time in which the evidence is given. A sign is given before the individual has exercised faith and passed through his trial of faith - thus leading to his/her condemnation.
Evidence of faith through the spirit occurs after the person has exercised faith used great patience, and diligence waiting for the truth to become manifest to their eyes. Then this evidence strengthens their faith in this thing so that their faith becomes dormant and they "Know" it is true.

Why do we not believe that spiritual evidence is just a form of Expectancy Bias?
Why we believe that our evidence that we receive comes from external source and not a basis of expectancy bias?
This is because of experience.

The Spirit of Revelation is in connection with these blessings. A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon; (i.e.,) those things that were presented unto your minds by the Spirit of God, will come to pass; and thus by learning the Spirit of God and understanding it, you may grow into the principle of revelation, until you become perfect in Christ Jesus. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p.151)

As an individual becomes more experienced receiving revelation he an develop to the gift of revelation - whereby information/knowledge is placed in the mind that was unknown before hand. - Thus proof of an external source.
You will note that this is non empirical - it cannot be shared with another. Because doing so would destroy and condemn others having been given knowledge and denying it and refusing to obey. (That was the pre-existence test - this test is different. We are to live by "Faith", and gain knowledge after a trial of that faith.)

This life is the time for men to prepare to meet God. It is the time for men to "Prove" themselves. This means to show to themselves that they are who they thought they were. God already knows.