A Gospel of Wings

Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, in his article, “The Abundant Life,” in the May 2006 Ensign said the following:

The gospel of Jesus Christ is not a religion of mourning and gloom. It is not a gospel of chains but a gospel of wings [italics added}.

Wings are iconic in the scriptures. They are used to describe both the lift that the gospel gives to true believers, and to describe the shelter and comfort that the Lord offers for the pain and suffering that is part of mortality. They are metaphors for renewal of strength and ability to rise to new heights in the gospel. They have served as symbols of the spirit of the lord, the Holy Ghost, and our own soaring spirits as we live the gospel and discover again and again the eternal beauty of the gospel plan. The Savior said with great sadness in Matthew 23:37:

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, … how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

In Psalms 17:8, King David prays: …hide me under the shadow of thy wings.

Many initially accept the call to be gathered under the Lord’s wings, and then later, for whatever reason, remove themselves from the wonderful peace that the Lord offers as part of his plan. Both new converts and lifetime members often struggle with this gathering process.

In the early days of the Church, there were several prominent members who were so afflicted. Lyman Wight was promised in Section 124 of the Doctrine and Covenants that The Lord would bear him up to honor and glory on eagles’ wings if he would continue to do the will of the Lord. He was an ordained Apostle who lost his testimony of the Prophet, led 150+ others astray, and was excommunicated in 1848. The scripture reads:

And again, I say unto you that it is my will that my servant Lyman Wight [substitute your name] should continue in preaching for Zion, in the spirit of meekness, confessing me before the world; and I will bear him up as on eagles' wings; and he shall beget glory and honor to himself and unto my name.

Simonds Ryder was a Campbellite minister (as was Sidney Rigdon) who converted to the Church based on what he interpreted as a “sign” that the Church was true. When the Prophet spelled his last name with an “i” instead of a “y” in a letter to him with a call to preach the gospel, he apostatized. He declared that: “a Holy Ghost which could not prompt the spelling of his name correctly was no Holy Ghost.” He took up the Campbellite faith again and even led a mob against the Prophet that tarred and feathered Joseph.

There are other examples of men in the early Church who would not stay under the wings of the Lord and so refused the healing and comforting power that the Savior offers.

In 3 Nephi 25:2, the Lord makes clear the healing power of his wings, a power that is available to every one of us as we seek the Lord in righteousness:

But unto you that fear my name, shall the Son of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings;

The Lord’s wings represent the pure love of Christ. His love extends to us in ways we cannot fathom with our simple mortal minds. He seeks for us eternal independence, the ability to grow eternally and fulfill our capabilities everlastingly. In fact, the purpose of being “gathered” under the wings of the Lord is to provide shelter and love until we can develop our own “wings.” In the 40th chapter of Isaiah, verses 29-31, that great prophet tells us:

He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Even in mortality, we have power within ourselves to develop our wings in many areas. Lowell L. Bennion, in his book, The Best of Lowell L. Bennion: Selected Writings 1928-1988,says:

It lies within our power to create, to give, to plant, to build, to learn, to think, to find new meaning. All these things should lend wings to mind and heart.
Even sorrow and tragedy can become the means of rich living. Jesus suffered with the poor, the sick, the sinner, but he also rejoiced with them and brought them hope, health, and forgiveness. One can learn to rejoice in sorrow. Nearly every cloud has a silver lining for the eye of faith.

There are times when we despair of the promised healing and loving power of the Savior’s wings. We suffer, we anguish. We wonder if the Lord has forsaken us. We cannot find the peace the Savior offers when He says:

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (John 14:27)

In the compendium, Every Good Thing: Talks from the 1997 BYU Women’s Conference, edited by Dawn Anderson, Dlora Dalton, and Susette Green, Janet Lee spoke on the topic “Pieces of Peace.” She said:

Because we are mortal, at times we will be unable to find the peace that is our gift, but our Savior's love can lift us soaring to new heights...[though]The boughs beneath us break sometimes, we will not fall. We have wings of truth, wings of faith, wings of glory—gifts of peace from our Savior, Master, and King.

In 2 Nephi 25:13, we are told of the relationship between the atonement, the resurrection, and ourselves:

Behold, they will crucify him; and after he is laid in a sepulchre for the space of three days he shall rise from the dead, with healing in his wings; and all those who shall believe on his name shall be saved in the kingdom of God.

The Lord does love us. He knows us. He is our comfort and shelter, even in the most trying times of our lives. He is there. Gather yourself under His wings. Feel his peace. Rejoice in the Gospel – let it bring you wings.