Good and Evil is Clearly Defined

We, as citizens of the United States, have been given a world full of knowledge and truth, goodness and opportunity, progress and wealth. For the most part, we have all been “instructed sufficiently that [we] know good from evil” (2 Nephi 2:5).

Hillary Clinton quoted John Wesley’s words,

“Do all the good you can,

By all the means you can,

In all the ways you can,

In all the places you can,

At all the times you can,

To all the people you can,

As long as you ever can.”

That sounds like wonderful advice for all of us. But, then she went on to say,

“That’s a tall order. And of course, one of the interpretive problems with it is, who defines good” (Keynote Address)?

How anyone can know that those are her words and still want to vote for her is beyond me. A leader should have a grasp on reality and what is good and what is evil. Yet she has demonstrated that she does not know the difference between truth and lies, reality and fiction, life and death, good and evil.

I for one do not want Hillary Clinton to define anything more in this Country. What a cop-out. It’s easy to not take responsibility for one’s actions when one can’t acknowledge truth from error. So she has shirked the responsibilities for her lies by saying, “I misspoke.” She has avoided her responsibility for the lives lost in Benghazi by saying that some solitary person who made a video enraged those who believe in the Prophet Mohammed. As if that would be a reason for our government to stand down while our Country’s heroes are sacrificed as an appeasement to our enemies. And she has shredded the evidence of her indiscretions leaving our Country’s security accessible to enemies throughout the world.

Our Founding Fathers knew the difference between good and evil. And even with their faults, they worked to make the world a better place to live in and gave us a promising future. They studied the civilizations of the past and the best literature available to construct a good and righteous governing body. (With all the good that has been given to us by them, it becomes meaningless to toss around the faults of the dead; we need to open our eyes to the immorality of the living.)

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other" (John Jay).

“I am persuaded that no civil government of a republican form can exist and be durable in which the principles of [Christianity] have not a controlling influence” (Noah Webster).

“Far from being rivals or enemies, religion and law are twin sisters, friends, and mutual assistants. Indeed, these two sciences run into each other” (James Wilson).

“Religion and morality are the essential pillars of civil society” (George Washington).

“Whereas true religion and good morals are the only solid foundations of public liberty and happiness . . . it is hereby earnestly recommended to the several States to take the most effectual measures for the encouragement thereof” (Continental Congress, 1778).

Source for Quotes


Since we can all see that our Country was founded and upheld on and by religious principles, I will also look to define “good” from the scriptures. In doing so, I am only choosing a few verses. We can all search them for ourselves; and if we want to know what “good” means, I suggest that we do.

“For I say unto you that whatsoever is good cometh from God, and whatsoever is evil cometh from the devil” (Alma 5:40).

“O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever” (Psalm 136:1).

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17).

Lastly, I turn to some of Mormon's last words to his people. It seems that our civilization, like his, needs a refresher course in discerning between good and evil.

Moroni 7:12-19:


12 Wherefore, all things which are good cometh of God; and that which is evil cometh of the devil; for the devil is an enemy unto God, and fighteth against him continually, and inviteth and enticeth to sin, and to do that which is evil continually.

13 But behold, that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually; wherefore, every thing which inviteth and enticeth to do good, and to love God, and to serve him, is inspired of God.

14 Wherefore, take heed, my beloved brethren, that ye do not judge that which is evil to be of God, or that which is good and of God to be of the devil.

15 For behold, my brethren, it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil; and the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night.

16 For behold, the Spirit of Christ is given to every man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God.

17 But whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil; for after this manner doth the devil work, for he persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels; neither do they who subject themselves unto him.

18 And now, my brethren, seeing that ye know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge ye shall also be judged.

19 Wherefore, I beseech of you, brethren, that ye should search diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a child of Christ.

Since we are all entitled to discern between good and evil, we should look to find good in the way our Father and His prophets have shown us. If we say that there is a different standard for good, we have judged wrongfully, and in so doing, we are denying ourselves the light of truth.

I am not writing this to be combative, or as an endorsement for any other candidate, or for any specific religion. Indeed, I believe that all men are born with the light of Christ (See John 1:19).  

I am writing this, because Hillary Clinton is clearly not a leader or a person of vision. She does not even have a grasp between right and wrong. To sit back and say nothing, in a Country of free speech and government by and for the people, would be an endorsement for her; and that is something that I will not do.

All in all, it is up to We the People to live the definition of good. We need to be a virtuous and a moral people, and in so doing, we will elevate our Country once again and choose better leadership, with the desire to be more responsible in our own citizenship and in our individual everyday lives.

“Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he” (Proverbs 29:18).

Jesus went about doing good (See Acts 10:38). Let's do the same. 

Times of War and Blood Redemption

Those who would throw away our freedoms, do not understand freedom and the price that's been paid. Loss of freedom is not easy to regain; and redemption often requires the shedding of much blood.

Our Founding Fathers were willing to help this Country gain her Independence. Being united was essential to their success. Like Benjamin Franklin said, "We must, indeed, all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately." And with trust in Israel’s God and with trust in the rightness of their cause, they brought about our freedom. But, there had to be bloodshed.

Then, in the Civil War, brother fought against brother. We couldn’t allow the Southern States to remain separate, or our country would not survive. As time went on, Abraham Lincoln knew that it was most certainly time for slavery to be completely abolished. For this country to survive, we all must be brothers and sisters, not slaves and slave owners; not industrialists and farmers, not workers and non-workers. The cost in blood was great; but the country was again redeemed.

Then the World Wars came. And we continued to see that freedom for all versus power of the few is really an issue of good versus evil. The Great War, or the War to End All Wars, failed. There was so much hate still alive, so much greed, and so much desire to prove superiority, that the Second World War was even bigger. The cost in human suffering and bloodshed was enormous. But our own Country was strengthened as we banded together to preserve our freedom and protect the freedom of others.

Then the Cold War ran hot. And with the ever present threat of devastation, we witnessed another kind of warfare, intellect posed against intellect in a race to see who was bigger and badder.

And all the other wars. Petroleum. Greed. Real Estate. Greed. Political machines. Greed. Power. Dishonesty. And those who are willing to fight and die for freedom are called blood-thirsty. Why? They are the ones that love their brothers and sisters the world around. They are the ones who understand our Country’s history and her divine destiny and love it. The blood-thirsty ones are the ones who are seeking to make the Country weak by enslaving us economically and morally. Lovers of freedom love the truth; while lovers of power love the lies that weaken the masses and feed their greed.

Where is the strength that we need? It can only be found in turning to our Country’s God, the Lord Jesus Christ. When we follow Him, He will lead us! He will lead us through every crises and every battle. He will sustain us in our weaknesses, and He will make us become strong in Him. But then must be a return to morality and honesty. When we are whoring in our personal lives, we are warring against Him and against each other in our public lives and in our Country. And we must be united in righteousness and in following the commandments. We will never be able to see eye-to-eye without every person being committed to personal integrity. And that wholeness can only be found in Christ.

Blood redemption. Jesus Christ is our Redeemer, and He has paid the price for redemption for every human soul: those who have passed on, those who live now, and those yet to be born. Yes, His sacrifice was in response to a war, the war waged in heaven. Lucifer was fighting for our souls then; and he continues to fight for our souls now. But Jesus has won the victory through His atoning sacrifice for us. We all have the gift of redemption if we so desire it. Through repentance, we can rely on His sacrifice instead of paying the debt ourselves. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” (John 15:13-14). So to win this war, Jesus laid down His life, hoping that some of us would choose to be His friends. He also commissioned “That ye love one another, as I have loved you” (John 15:12).

So in these winding up scenes, let us make certain that we are doing what we can to bring about the Lord’s purposes. The battle really is to those who are swift to be righteous. We can help to build up Zion, and we can work to tear down evil and hate through a righteous outpouring of love. “Brethren [and sisters], shall we not go on in so great a cause? Go forward and not backward. Courage, brethren [and sisters]; and on, on to the victory! Let your hearts rejoice, and be exceedingly glad. Let the earth break forth into singing. Let the dead speak forth anthems of eternal praise to the King Immanuel, who hath ordained, before the world was, that which would enable us to redeem them out of their prison; for the prisoners shall go free” (Doctrine and Covenants 128:22). Winning the battle ultimately depends upon us being washed clean through Jesus Christ, whose blood was spilt for all humanity. Winning the battle depends upon us living the gospel and keeping our covenants, and hastening the work by spreading the gospel among the living and the dead. We are in the winding up scenes. Let’s be on the Lord’s side. His blood is sufficient for our salvation individually, and His help is needed for the salvation of this Country.