An Invitation from the Father and the Son: First and Second Comforter

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We learn from the Savior about love, and the relationships that can be ours with the Father and the Son, if we really love them. From John 14:21-26 according to the Amplified Bible here.

21 The person who has My commands and keeps them is the one who [really] loves Me; and whoever [really] loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I [too] will love him and will show (reveal, manifest) Myself to him. [I will let Myself be clearly seen by him and make Myself real to him.]

22 Judas, not Iscariot, asked Him, Lord, how is it that You will reveal Yourself [make Yourself real] to us and not to the world?

23 Jesus answered, If a person [really] loves Me, he will keep My word [obey My teaching]; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home (abode, special dwelling place) with him.

24 Anyone who does not [really] love Me does not observe and obey My teaching. And the teaching which you hear and heed is not Mine, but [comes] from the Father Who sent Me.

25 I have told you these things while I am still with you.

26 But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you.

27 Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]

Go here to see the King James Bible John 14.

 

The Prophet of Joseph Smith taught:

The other Comforter spoken of is a subject of great interest, and perhaps understood by few of this generation. After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted.

When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses…

Now what is this other Comforter? It is no more nor less than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself; and this is the sum and substance of the whole matter; that when any man obtains this last Comforter, he will have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend him, or appear unto him from time to time, and even He will manifest the Father unto him, and they will take up their abode with him, and the visions of the heavens will be opened unto him, and the Lord will teach him face to face, and he may have a perfect knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God; and this is the state and place the ancient Saints arrived at when they had such glorious visions—Isaiah, Ezekiel, John upon the Isle of Patmos, St. Paul in the three heavens, and all the Saints who held communion with the general assembly and Church of the Firstborn. Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pp. 150-51

Additional scriptures to study: D&C 93:1; 130:3; D&C 101:37-38; D&C 67:10-13; JST Ex. 33:11, 20

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Reflections on Receiving Answers to Prayer

Posted on by Jared

Recently I reviewed my journal and relived some spiritual experiences. I noted a couple of things that I thought might be interesting to the readers of this blog. Let me know your thoughts and experience on this subject.

Some spiritual experiences are accompanied by a feeling of joy, sometimes the presence of joy is complete, meaning, there isn’t room to experience more joy, while other spiritual experiences are not accompanied by joy. They are both spiritual experiences, but are different.

I think the message is the difference. Those spiritual experiences designed to give a message of love, assurance, and most of all comfort, leave us filled with the spirit (of joy). Other spiritual experiences have little or no feelings of joy associated with them, but do convey knowledge.

At two critical points in my life I received direction from the Lord in answer to prayer. I had no feeling of the spirit in either of these sacred experiences, but I knew, nothing doubting, the Lord had communicated with me. In both instances the course of my life was changed. 

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So Long President Hinckley

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Update: I just learned about Glenn Beck, and his radio program. Follow this link for a thoughtful tribute to President Hinckley. Read his bio (here), interesting man.

A few of my favorite quotes spoken by President Hinckley:

“…Stay close to the Church. Stay close all of your lives. It really does not matter where you serve, what office you fill. There is no small or unimportant duty in this Church and in the kingdom of God. One does not have to be a General Authority, a stake president, a member of the high council, a bishop, or a leader in the auxiliary organizations to serve in an acceptable way before the Lord. What matters is the spirit in which we serve and the manner in which we apply our talents and our resources.” BYU Devotional Address Nov 30, 1999

“This is the great day of decision for each of us. For many it is the time of beginning something that will go on for as long as you live. I plead with you: don’t be a scrub! Rise to the high ground of spiritual, mental, and physical excellence. You can do it. You may not be a genius. You may be lacking in some skills. But so many of us can do better than we are now doing….We are people with a present and with a future. Don’t muff your opportunities. Be excellent” President Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, Sept. 1999, 4-5.

“No member of this Church must ever forget the terrible price paid by our Redeemer, who gave His life that all men might live-the agony of Gethsemane, the bitter mockery of His trial, the vicious crown of thorns tearing at His flesh, the blood cry of the mob before Pilate, the lonely burden of His heavy walk along the way to Calvary, the terrifying pain as great nails pierced His hands and feet. . . We cannot forget that. We must never forget it, for here our Savior, our Redeemer, the Son of God, gave Himself, a vicarious sacrifice for each of us.” Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Symbol of Our Faith,” Ensign, April 2005, 4

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Teachings of the Prophets: Harold B. Lee on Meditation

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The following is from taken from LDS.org under the title, Take Time to be Holy.

President Harold B. Lee talks about the importance of meditation. I am particularly interested in the story related about Bishop John Wells son who was killed in an accident.

How does meditation bring us closer to the Lord?

President [David O.] McKay said, “We don’t take sufficient time to meditate.” I get up early in the morning … , five o’clock, when my mind and spirit are clear and rested. Then I meditate. You can come closer to the Lord than you imagine when you learn to meditate. Let your spirits be taught by the Spirit.

The Twelve will not soon forget President David O. McKay’s admonition in our council meeting one morning when he impressed the vital importance of taking time to meditate in order to keep spiritually attuned. … “It’s a great thing to be responsive to the whisperings of the Spirit and we know that when these whisperings come it is a gift and our privilege to have them. They come when we are relaxed and not under pressure of appointments.”

The President then took occasion to relate an experience in the life of Bishop John Wells, formerly a member of the Presiding Bishopric. A son of Bishop Wells was killed in Emigration Canyon on a railroad track. … His boy was run over by a freight train. Sister Wells was inconsolable. She mourned during the three days prior to the funeral, received no comfort at the funeral, and was in a rather serious state of mind. One day soon after the funeral services, while she was lying on her bed relaxed, still mourning, she claims that her son appeared to her and said, “Mother, do not mourn. Do not cry. I am all right.” He told her that she did not understand how the accident happened. He explained that he had given a signal to the engineer to move on and then made the usual effort to catch the railings on the freight train, but as he attempted to do so his foot caught in a root and he failed to catch the hand rail and his body fell under the train. It was clearly an accident. He said that as soon as he realized that he was in another environment he tried to see his father but he could not reach him. His father was so busy with the duties in the office that he could not respond to his call; therefore, he had come to his mother and he said to her, “You tell Father that all is well with me. I want you to not mourn anymore.”

Then President McKay said that the point he had in mind was that when we are relaxed in a private room we are more susceptible to those things, that so far as he was concerned his best thoughts come after he gets up in the morning and is relaxed and thinking about the duties of the day, that impressions come as clearly as if he were to hear a voice and those impressions are right. If we are worried about something and upset in our feelings the inspiration does not come. If we so live that our minds are free from worry and our conscience clear and our feelings are right toward one another, the operation of the spirit of the Lord upon our spirit is as real as when we pick up the telephone; but when they come, note this, we must be brave enough to take the suggested action. …

Let that be something to remember—you do likewise. Take time to meditate. Many times you will be wrestling with problems, the solution of which can be spiritually discerned.

Don’t get so busy that you don’t have time to meditate. Take the time. The most important testimony does not come by sight, but by the inner witness. Christ may be nearer than we have knowledge. “I am in your midst, but you do not see me. The Holy Ghost bears the sure witness. Mine eyes are upon you. The day cometh when ye shall know that I am.” [See D&C 38:7–8.]

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Gene R. Cook’s Prayer Challenge

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Years ago at a Stake meeting, I heard Gene R Cook talk about a book he was going to publish. It was to be on the subject of receiving answers to our prayers. For the next two hours he spoke on prayer. To introduce his subject he did the most interesting thing I have ever heard in a church meeting. He issued a challenge to all those in attendance to take out a pen and paper and write down something they wanted from the Lord. There were about 250 people at the meeting and he asked us to do this several times until everyone participated.

Instead of hearing what he did next from my recollection, I have taken the following from pages 12-13 of the book he later published: Receiving Answers to our Prayers. 

“To me, knowledge is not nearly as important as knowledge combined with the willingness to apply it. When we learn, then, we must decide to repent, to exercise faith, and to do whatever else is required to make what we’ve learned operational in our lives. 

Here’s what I’d like you to do. Get a piece of paper and write on it something very personal that you want from the Lord—something you want very much. Don’t just pick something easy. The harder it is, the better, so you can have a real experience with faith. Maybe you’re concerned about your spouse. Maybe one of your children has rejected what you’ve taught him, and you’re worried. Maybe you’re struggling with a health problem. Maybe you’re in the midst of great financial troubles. Maybe you just want more faith, more testimony, more strength to be able to repent and change, more ability to overcome a personal weakness. Write your desire on a piece of paper, and work on it as you proceed through this book.

Don’t think you’re not good enough to receive the Lord’s help. As I travel around the world, I meet too many members of the Church who think they can never qualify to receive answers to prayer. They say, “Sure, if I were a General Authority or the stake president or the bishop I could get answers, but I’m too . . . [fill in the blank].”

I bear witness that that’s not true at all. The Lord loves all of us, and he is anxious to respond to every one of us, to help us with the righteous desires of our hearts…

I promise you in the name of the Lord that if you really desire what you’ve written down, if your desire is righteous, and if you’re asking according to the will of the Lord, he will grant you that desire—if you will learn and obey the principles and the laws that govern what you want. I have no doubt whatsoever about that. I bear testimony that it’s true because the Lord has said so.”

I took him up on this challenge and over the next few months I prayed and even fasted to receive an answer for something I desired. The answer came in a most remarkable way.

I’m thankful to Gene R. Cook for writing the book and issuing his challenge.

Please answer a 6 Question Survey to let me know what you think.

11 Nov 07

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Altars of Sacrifice

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Who among the readers of this blog is not moved by Brother Christensen’s testimony? Here is a man at a cross roads of his life. He is on his own for the first time. It is a make or break situation. Everything is on the line. He comes up with a plan for reading the Book of Mormon:

1. Read for an hour every night.

2. Begin with prayer asking God to know if the Book of Mormon is His truth.

3. Read a page, ponder and pray about it-read another page, and ponder and pray about it.

The plan he used is so simple, but the outcome is profound as he places everything on the altar and waited on the Lord.

After several weeks of following his plan the revelation comes! It changes his life!

The promise made in Moroni 10:4-5 is available to all. God has told us he is no respecter of persons. Anyone who reads the Book of Mormon and offers a prayer as described (in verses 4 and 5) will receive a witness from the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost testifies to the small and great men and women of the world.

I’m grateful to Brother Christensen for giving permission to share his testimony on this blog. There will be other testimonies shared from time to time, from men and women, small and great, but the source of their testimony will be the same—the Holy Ghost.

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Testimony: Clayton M. Christensen

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Clayton M. Christensen is a returned LDS missionary and is currently a Professor at Harvard Business School. This is a portion of an essay he wrote, Why I Belong, and Why I Believe.

I was born into a wonderful Mormon family, and as I grew up I found few reasons to disbelieve the teachings of the church. My parents had deep faith in its precepts, and their example and encouragement were powerful -I believed in my parents, and I knew that they believed the gospel of Jesus Christ. It was not until I was 24, however, that I came to know these things for myself.

I had been given a Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford University in England. After I had lived there for a few weeks, far away from the supportive environment in which I had been raised, it became clear that adhering to Mormonism in that environment was going to be very inconvenient. In fact, doing the sorts of things I described in the first part of this essay within the Mormon congregation in Oxford would preclude my participation in many of the things that had made Oxford such a rich experience for prior recipients of my scholarship. I decided, as a result, that the time had come for me to learn for certain and for myself whether Mormonism was true.

I had read the Book of Mormon before – seven times, to be exact. But in each of those instances I had read it by assignment – from my parents or a teacher – and my objective in reading it was to finish the book. This time, however, my objective was to find out if it was a true book or a fabrication.

Accordingly, I reserved the time from 11:00 until midnight, every night, to read the Book of Mormon next to the fireplace in my chilly room at the Queen’s College. I began each of those sessions by kneeling in verbal prayer. I told God, every night, that I was reading this to know if it was His truth. I told Him that I needed an answer to this question – because if it was not true I did not want to waste my time with this church and would search for something else. But if it was true, then I promised that I would devote my life to following its teachings, and to helping others do the same.

I then would sit in the chair and read a page in the Book of Mormon. I would stop at the bottom of the page and think about it. I would ask myself what the material on that page meant for the way I needed to conduct my life. I would then get on my knees and pray aloud again, asking the Lord to tell me if the book was true. I would then get back in the chair, turn the page, and repeat the process, for the remainder of the hour. I did this every evening.

After I had done this for several weeks, one evening in October, 1975, as I sat in the chair and opened the book following my prayer, I felt a marvelous spirit come into the room and envelop my body. I had never before felt such an intense feeling of peace and love. I started to cry, and did not want to stop. I knew then, from a source of understanding more powerful than anything I had ever felt in my life, that the book I was holding in my hands was true. It was hard to see through the tears. But as I opened it and began again to read, I saw in the words of the book a clarity and magnitude of God’s plan for us that I had never conceived before. The spirit stayed with me for that entire hour. And each night thereafter, as I prayed and then sat in that chair with the Book of Mormon, that same spirit returned. It changed my heart and my life forever.

It was as if I had been looking out as far as I could see toward the horizon, and had been quite satisfied that I could see everything that there was to see. When I undertook to read the Book of Mormon in that manner, however, I discovered that so much more beauty and truth about who we are and what God has in store for us, lies beyond that old horizon. I did not know what I did not know.

I love to go back to Oxford. As the beautiful, historic home of the world’s oldest university, the town is filled with students and tourists. To me, however, it is a sacred place. It is there that I learned that the fundamental message of the Book of Mormon is in fact true – that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. It is there that I learned that God is indeed my Father in Heaven. I am His son. He loves me, and even knows my name. And I learned that Joseph Smith, the man who translated the Book of Mormon and organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was a prophet of God in the same sense that Peter and Moses were prophets. I love to return to Oxford to remember the beautiful, powerful spirit that came to my heart and conveyed these messages to me. 

 

During my adult life I have been blessed to witness or participate in many miracles – events that the scriptures term “gifts of the Spirit.” I have healed the sick by the power of the God. I have spoken with the gift of tongues. I have been blessed to see visions of eternity; and events in my future that have been important for me to foresee, have been revealed to me. These truly have been gifts, and have been great blessings in my life. But when I assess the collective impact that they have had on my faith, my heart, and my motivation to follow Jesus Christ, they pale in significance and power to those evenings I spent with the Book of Mormon in Oxford.

Go here to visit Clayton’s website

Posted in Member Testimony, Testimony of the Book of Mormon | 1 Comment

Quiz #4 Answers and Discussion

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Q 1. What is the priesthood?

Answer: The eternal power and authority of our Heavenly Father.

Q 2. What are the keys of the priesthood?

Answer: All the above. (See Priesthood Key, New Era, May 2012)

Q 3. Only those who hold a priesthood office can officiate in a priesthood ordinance.

Answer: False (Female temple workers officiate in priesthood ordinances under keys of the temple president. See Elder Oaks, Conference Report April 2014)

Q 4. All keys of the priesthood were conferred upon Joseph Smith in the Kirtland Temple.

Answer: False (See Elder Oaks , Conference Report April 2014) (For example, we don’t have priesthood keys for creation and resurrection)

Q 5. Women in the church have priesthood authority.

Answer: True (“Whoever functions in an office or calling received from one who holds priesthood keys exercises priesthood authority in performing her or his assigned duties.”)

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Quiz #3 Answers and Discussion

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Q1. While in mortality the Savior experienced health problems.

Answer: False

There is no record of the Savior being sick. But that doesn’t mean he never experienced sickness. Alma teaches that through the atonement “he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people (Alma 7:11).”

Q2. When did Jesus become perfected?

-In the pre-existence.
-While in mortality.
-On the cross.
-When he was resurrected.

Answer: When he was resurrected.

“Just prior to his crucifixion, he said that on “the third day I shall be perfected.” (Luke 13:32) Think of that! The sinless, errorless Lord—already perfect by our mortal standards—proclaimed his own state of perfection yet to be in the future. His eternal perfection would follow his resurrection and receipt of “all power … in heaven and in earth.””  Elder Russell Nelson, General Conference, Oct 1995

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Quiz #2 Answer and Discussion

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I believe the best answer is false.

The statement, “The atonement of Christ pays for the sins of all mankind” conveys the idea that Christ redeems all men without condition. That’s the plan the adversary sought in the preexistence. That is why I believe the best answer is false.

The following scripture makes it clear that Christ suffered for all, but only those who repent receive the full blessings of the atonement.

For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent. D&C 19:16-17

In the next verse we learn that the wicked (those who don’t repent) remain as though there was no atonement, except that they will be resurrected.

Therefore the wicked remain as though there had been no redemption made, except it be the loosing of the bands of death.  Alma 11:41

When I wrote the question for the quiz, I was thinking of a phrase that is heard often, “Christ died for the sins of all mankind.” That true, however, if we are not careful to add more detail it can be misleading, especially for youth and those who are new to gospel teachings. They can be left with the impression that God saves all men without conditions (That’s the plan the adversary promoted).

So the next time you hear someone say that Christ died for the sins of all mankind, I hope you will add, that true but only “on conditions of repentance”.

And there he preached to them the everlasting gospel, the doctrine of the resurrection and the redemption of mankind from the fall, and from individual sins on conditions of repentance. D&C 138:19

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