Introduction
Many imagine the Celestial Kingdom as an exclusive club, with God acting as a gatekeeper who decides if we’ve done enough good or avoided enough bad to be let in. This perspective can make God’s plan seem arbitrary or unfair, raising questions about whether He truly loves all His children equally.
But the Gospel teaches us something profoundly different. Eternal life isn’t about God arbitrarily choosing who “gets in” and who doesn’t. It’s the natural result of who we are and who we’ve chosen to become. By exercising our agency to live in harmony with celestial laws, we prepare ourselves to live the kind of life God lives. Here we’ll explore the idea that attaining Celestial Glory isn’t a reward or a destination but the natural culmination of what we can become through our choices.
It’s About Who We Are, Not What We’ve Done
At the heart of God’s plan is the principle of becoming. Elder Dallin H. Oaks taught: “…the Final Judgment is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts—what we have done. It is based on the final effect of our acts and thoughts—what we have become.” This means that judgment is less about tallying deeds and more about assessing the kind of person we’ve grown into.
This principle is echoed in Doctrine and Covenants 88:22: “For he who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory.” Simply put, eternal glory is not something granted arbitrarily—it’s a natural result of aligning one’s life with celestial principles.
The commandments, then, are not just rules to follow. They are a roadmap for transformation, an outline of the kind of being God is. By striving to live the commandments, we develop the character of celestial beings, preparing ourselves to inherit celestial glory.
Natural Law
Alma 42:13 teaches that even God is subject to eternal laws, and if He were to violate them, He would cease to be God. God’s omniscience, omnipotence, and perfection are not arbitrary powers but the natural result of His perfect adherence to eternal principles.
Consider this: a person who runs every day naturally becomes a better runner than someone who doesn’t. Similarly, a person who practices a foreign language regularly will speak it more fluently than someone who never tries. We don’t call it unfair when a musician who has practiced thousands of hours can play beautifully, while we struggle to play a simple tune. It’s easy to see that what we do profoundly shapes who we are.
The same is true of God. Who and what God is—His omniscience, omnipotence, and perfection—are the natural result of the natural laws He lives by and the being He has become. Through the Gospel, we are invited to learn and live those laws as well, enabling us to grow into celestial beings like Him.
Judgement Day
When judgment day comes, it’s not about God acting as a gatekeeper, deciding who does or doesn’t “get in” to the Celestial Kingdom. Instead, it’s the natural outcome of who we have chosen to become. Those who live celestial laws naturally align themselves with celestial glory; those who don’t simply cannot abide it.
God is not withholding blessings or opportunities. He consistently offers His guidance, grace, and help to all His children. But the choice to accept His invitation and become celestial beings rests entirely with us. Just as effort and practice shape a musician or athlete, so too do our choices shape our eternal destiny.
In the end, celestial glory is not a prize given to God’s favorites, but the natural result of living the kind of life that aligns with eternal laws.
It’s hard for me to articulate exactly what I think and feel about this topic. Check out my post The Musician for another attempt in the form of an analogy.
Additional Reading
Kingdoms of Glory, Dallin H. Oaks, 2023