The Doctrine of Christ, Part 5: Endure to the End

Once we have received the ordinances of Baptism and Confirmation, our spiritual journey is hardly over. In fact, the scriptures call baptism the gate to the strait and narrow path, and that the majority of the journey lies ahead. (see 2 Nephi 31: 19-20) None of these things in the Doctrine of Christ were meant as one time events. Faith is not something that we have once and it is over. We have to continually strenghten our faith in order to stay on the path. Since we all sin, repentance is needed, not only once but constantly throughout our lives. We renew the coventants we make at baptism each week by partaking of the Sacrament, in order to qualify us to have the Spirit. In a way, enduring to the end is nothing more than a rinse, repeat cycle. The Doctrine of Christ is the way we progress, and we need to continuously walk that path to keep progressing. In fact, it is the halt of progress that the scriptures mean when they talk of damnation. So then what exactly do we mean when we talk of endurance? Often the scripures bring to mind the idea of suffering for the Gospel's sake. Passages like Matthew 10: 22 and Romans 8: 17 certainly bring this image to mind. Thankfully, much of the physical persecution that has faced the saints of every age is a thing of the past. Yet today, we are still faced with many trials as a result of the wickedness of the world. As such, more often the way we endure is to stay true to our covenants in spite of the adversity the world can throw at us. We may not be asked to suffer being driven from our homes and tarred and feathered along the way, but we are asked to stay true to the standards of the Church we promised to obey regardless of how easy the alternative may seem. When we endure the trials of our faith that are placed in our lives, we show our commitment to the Gospel and our loyalty to Christ. We are promised incredible blessings if we can just do this. Just as a runner who has to complete the entire race before he can have his rest, we are asked to give our best in this life so that we can qualify for these blessings in the life to come.