Ignorance is not bliss

D&C 131:5-6 "5. The more sure word of prophecy means a man's knowing that he is sealed up unto eternal life, by revelation and the spirit of prophecy, through the power of the Holy Priesthood. 6. It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance."

The verse in bold is an often quoted scripture.  The Bible Dictionary teaches us under Parables that there is only one correct interpretation of a scripture (the meaning intended by the author) while there are several applications that depend upon circumstances.  I believe the verse in bold is often applied to correct principles but rarely is the true interpretation of the original meaning mentioned.  This is usually the case because people only quote verse 6 and don't realize that verse 5 gives us the real context for the meaning of verse 6.

The two most common applications of verse 6 are: knowledge is essential for salvation and we must be introduced to the gospel before we can be saved.  Obviously both of these are true.  The first application is deduced from the following logic: God is omniscient, we are to be Gods, so we must gain knowledge, "and if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come."  The second application comes from us knowing that every soul will have the opportunity to accept the gospel whether in this life or in the following.

Although these are good applications of this verse, verse 5 shows clearly that the knowledge that we need for salvation is really the more sure word of prophecy.  In other words, we must know that we are sealed up unto eternal life, by revelation and the spirit of prophecy, through the power of the Holy Priesthood.  To me this is saying that we all need to know where we stand before the Lord.  We have the right, via the Priesthood, to know where we stand.  Through personal revelation and the Holy Ghost we may know whether or not our actions, desires, thoughts, words, and beliefs are in line with God's.  This is synonymous with being ratified by the Holy Spirit of Promise (which D&C 76:53 says is essential for exaltation).  So it should not be a guessing game when we come to the end of our life whether or not we will be saved.  We can and need to know right now that we will be saved in the hereafter.  So the next time a born-again Christian asks us, "have you been saved?" we should be able to answer in the affirmative.  This is the ignorance we need to avoid.