His Grace Is Sufficient. . .For What?

Written by Mark Cares

His Grace is Sufficient is the title of a speech that many LDS members or missionaries point
Christians to. They do so to try and demonstrate that Mormonism does teach salvation by grace. If
you talk with Mormons at any length, theres a good chance that they will give you a copy of it or a
link to it. Here is a link to the original speech. http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=1966

This speech was given by Brad Wilcox, a professor at BYU. Although it is fascinating for a number of
different reasons, I will only focus on one question the one posed in the title of this post: His grace
is sufficient for what?

Wilcox answers that in three different ways: it is sufficient to cover us, to transform us, and to help
us. All that sounds good. But its not good enough! He reflects classic Mormonism when he further
states: We will all be resurrected. We will all go back to Gods presence. What is left to be
determined by our obedience is what kind of body we plan on being resurrected with and how
comfortable we plan to be in Gods presence and how long we plan to stay there.

The first thing to note is that he says all will be resurrected and will go back into Gods presence.
This is often how Mormonism defines salvation. (Click on word to take you to definition in Dictionary
of Mormonism). Interestingly, the version of his article printed in the official LDS magazine, the
Ensign, spells out more clearly the purpose for our returning to Gods presence: We will all go back
to Gods presence to be judged. (my emphasis)

This, my friends, is the first key to understanding what Wilcox is saying and what Mormonism
teaches. When he talks about Jesus filling the gap this is what he is talking about. The result of
Jesus filling the gap is NOT that we will live with God for all eternity. It is only that we can return to
his presence TO BE JUDGED. In other words, what Jesus did is get us to the courtroom but the
verdict that God pronounces over us will be determined by our obedience. We will all go back to
Gods presence. What is left to be determined by our obedience is what kind of body we plan on
being resurrected with and how comfortable we plan to be in Gods presence and how long we plan
to stay there.

Lying behind all this is Mormonisms teaching that heaven consists of three kingdoms of glory.
Seeing that is the second key to understanding Wilcox article. His illustration about learning how
to play the piano, along with his emphasis on grace transforming and helping us, is classic
Mormonism. According to LDS teaching, living with Heavenly Father for all eternity depends not on
what Christ had done but on what people do! What is left to be determined by our obedience is
what kind of body we plan on being resurrected with and how comfortable we plan to be in Gods
presence and how long we plan to stay there. This is Wilcoxs consistent message.

In a different place, he states: heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be
heavenly. This illustrates the last point I want to make about his article. Although before I talked
about God pronouncing a verdict, that is not how Wilcox pictures it. Throughout the article, it is not
so much about what God decrees but more about what a person chooses. Its all about how
comfortable we are, what kind of body we want, how long we plan on staying in Gods presence. In
so many different ways, Mormonism turns the focus away from God and places it on humans. It even
does that in regard to heaven.

According to Wilcox, Gods grace is sufficient to get us to the courtroom. But it is not sufficient to
enable us to live with God for all eternity. In striking contrast, the Bible teaches that eternal life in
Gods presence is his gift to us (Romans 6:23). Our being comfortable in Gods presence was
accomplished not by our obedience, but by Jesus obedience for us. Because Jesus has already kept
all the commandments for me, Gods grace is sufficient not only to get me to the courtroom but to
have God render the verdict of not guilty over me (Romans 3:22-25). Because of Jesus, and ONLY
because of Jesus, I will spend eternity in Gods presence.

Because of the different definitions Mormonism assigns these words, it can be confusing talking
about salvation, grace, and heaven. But one thing that isnt confusing is discussing living eternally
with Heavenly Father. Two questions that can quickly and clearly illustrate the differences between
Mormonism and Christianity are:

What do you have to do to live eternally with Heavenly Father?

Do you think that I, a Christian, if I dont change my beliefs, will live with Heavenly Father for all
eternity?

Ask those questions and then boldly and joyfully testify to the assurance you have that you will live
forever with God because Gods grace in Jesus Christ is sufficient to accomplish that!