“But it’s natural!”
they would counter. “Why would God
create such a plant and let it grow on the earth but tell us not to use it?!”
Actually, that’s the first thing He did.
As you may recall, following the creation of Adam, he
Lord God “commanded the man, saying: Of every tree of the garden thou mayest
freely eat. But of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it” (Moses 3:16-17, Genesis
2:17).
I’m not going to go into the potential medicinal
properties of marijuana (certain chemicals within the plant can be isolated and
used to treat ailments without causing a high); I simply use this as a
reference to the Word of Wisdom and moreover to the commandments of God.
While marijuana is a natural life form that God
Himself created and allowed to grow on the same planet that we inhabit, He was
commanded us not to partake of it. There
is symbolism in this commandment. As we
are taught by King Benjamin, “the natural man in an enemy to God, and has been
from the fall of Adam, ad will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticing
of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint
through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive,
meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the
Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father”
(Mosiah 3:19).
There are many in this world today who argue that
same-sex attraction is natural, even biological, and should therefore be
embraced. Whether or not there is a “gay-gene”
(which I highly doubt), not every urge, appetite, and desire should be acted
upon. If we learn anything from King
Benjamin’s admonition, it is that we must deny ourselves whenever our natural
inclinations come into conflict with the commandments of God.
It is extremely
difficult to avoid temptation and acting thereon, but it must be done in order
to secure salvation. Same-sex attraction
is one of the most heart-wrenching temptations, in my humble opinion, because it
distorts the pursuit of love. While we
may not understand the purpose for which our Heavenly Father has bestowed this
characteristic to some of His children, we must become as children, “submissive,
meek, humble, patient, full of love, [and] willing to submit to all things
which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon [us].”
I know that as we deny the natural man in order to
keep in good standing with Christ, we will be exalted to holy men (and women)
fit to enter His presence. Nothing is as
sweet or fulfilling as His trust.
