Or in other words, how to properly participate in the work of the Lord.
I feel to speak to the topic of participating with the Lord to do His own work.
The thought impresses me that in order to participate with the Lord in His Work, we have to know who he is. What is his work? How can we avoid sin without knowing the will of the Lord.
A Brief History of the Lord’s Work
First address the history of the Lord doing his own work. From the creation, to Elisha and his servant, to the life and ministry of the Savior in the Flesh (no one taketh my life from me, but I lay it down of myself), to the restoration of the Church, and even recently in the prophetic preparation for a period of Church at Home. As we consider what is still yet to come, there can be no doubt that the Lord will yet still accomplish all he has declared by the mouth of his prophets. The Lord is able to do his own work.
I am able to do mine own work.
2 Nephi 27:20
See also “Thy Kingdom Come”
One of the most well-known and frequently cited passages of scripture is found in Moses 1:39. This verse clearly and concisely describes the work of the Eternal Father: “For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (emphasis added).
A companion scripture found in the Doctrine and Covenants describes with equal clarity and conciseness our primary work as the sons and daughters of the Eternal Father. Interestingly, this verse does not seem to be as well known and is not quoted with great frequency. “Behold, this is your work, to keep my commandments, yea, with all your might, mind and strength” (D&C 11:20; emphasis added).
Tender Mercies of the Lord
Secondly, address the need for us to understand our part in this work.
And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments.
D&C 59:21
This also has to do with agency of man, not overstepping our bounds, and putting our energies into the work that is most productive for us to accomplish our salvation. Perhaps the temptation to go beyond the scope of our boundaries and influence is owing to the reality that while salvation is an individual matter, exaltation is a family matter. Consequently, we worry about our family member’s reluctance to respond to the Lord’s invitations for them.
Joseph Smith understood this principle well when he responded to a journalist’s inquiry about how he compelled his people to follow him, “I teach them correct principles and let them govern themselves.”
Does such a stance relieve us of the burden of work? No it does not. But burdens lifted this doctrine does do. What burdens? The burden of self-pity, or the burden of needless worrying about the choices and consequences of others.
For some, that eternal joy may seem a faint or even a fading hope. Parents, children, brothers, and sisters may have made choices that seem to disqualify them from eternal life. You may even wonder whether you have yet been qualified through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
A prophet of God once offered me counsel that gives me peace. I was worried that the choices of others might make it impossible for our family to be together forever. He said, “You are worrying about the wrong problem. You just live worthy of the celestial kingdom, and the family arrangements will be more wonderful than you can imagine.”
To all of those whose personal experience or whose marriage and children—or absence thereof—cast a shadow over their hopes, I offer my witness: Heavenly Father knows and loves you as His spirit child. While you were with Him and His Beloved Son before this life, They placed in your heart the hope you have of eternal life. With the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ working and with the Holy Spirit guiding, you can feel now and will feel in the world to come the family love your Father and His Beloved Son want so much for you to receive.
President Henry B. Eyering, The Hope of Eternal Family Love