Without Faith we can do Nothing

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 8, another revelation given for the benefit of Oliver Cowdery. As I was reading it, I could not help but think about how much the Lord is concerned with us and with our happiness. I know that is kind of a weird thing to think about while reading this section, but that is what came to mind because the Lord is responding to Oliver's request.

Oliver, while serving as scribe for the translation of the Book of Mormon desired to be able to translate the record also. I can perfectly understand his desires. How many of us have had a close friend get a really neat gift and had to watch them use it right in front of us? It can be hard for sure!

However, the Lord gives good counsel here, like we should be surprised by that! But I actually meant he gives good counsel to all of us. He teaches us to recognize the Spirit of Revelation. It has always surprised me how the Lord works in such subtle ways. Surprising because even on the most important aspects, namely the questions dealing with who we are to marry, should I take this job, etc, He still uses our spirits to communicate to us. For some of us, this is no big deal. For others of us that maybe have not spent a lot of time with things of the spirit and learning to recognize the Spirit in our lives, it can be quite challenging.

Even sometimes for those of us who think we are learned in the ways of the Spirit, it can be rough. I remember back in 2006 I was living in an apartment with 2 very good friends and our lease was about to expire and we wanted to live somewhere not quite as expensive. The apartment was going to raise our rent if we stayed there, so there was no incentive to stay. At the time, I was not planning leaving the city I lived in so I was contemplating buying a house. No matter how long I prayed about it, how often I went to the temple about it I just did not feel strongly one way or the other. So finally I asked my father for a blessing and was told it was my choice and the Lord was ok with it one way or the other. Have you ever noticed that the natural man in us causes us to feel certain ways? Like when the Lord is actively involved in your life you might feel that you wish He would let you make certain choices? But when He lets you make certain choices you wish He would just tell you what to do? Yeah, me too!

The other verse that I liked from this chapter is verse 10, where the Lord tells Oliver that without faith we can do nothing. The first time I read this I thought it was really a strange thing to say, because I thought there were lots of things you could do without faith. However, if you think about it, there isn't. Faith is a hope for things which are unseen which are true. The primary song tells us that we can faith in as simple a thing as the sun rising in the morning. So with that in mind, it takes faith to flip a light switch, to turn a car's key in the ignition, to turn the handle on the door to open it, and every other thing we do. Put in that context, the Lord is right, we cannot do anything without faith. It all requires the belief that what we are going to do will have the desired outcome. I invite you to ponder on that thought for a little while.

I have mentioned before that Doctrine and Covenants is a really neat book of scripture but it can be tedious at times because of how specific it can be to the person the revelation was given to. However, with most of them you can liken the scriptures to yourself and make it worthwhile. I think most of us do that already but I invite you to continue to do it and see what the Lord can teach you from this wonderful book of scripture. I know I look forward to learning many new things on this read through. Until tomorrow.

John the Beloved

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 7, which is a revelation that was given in response to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery asking about John the Beloved and whether or not he had died and speedily came to the Savior in His kingdom like the other Apostles or not. According to the notes on this chapter, this was actually a translation of a lost parchment that John the Beloved wrote himself.

I remember as a missionary I found such joy in the work that I envied John the Beloved and the 3 Nephites who tarried. That was in the first part of my mission. In the latter part of my mission however, I was so tired physically, mentally and spiritually that I was very ready to be done and to go home. But it’s just such a joy and a pleasure to teach people about the gospel that I could easily imagine why Alma and others like him would just give up their entire lives to preach the gospel. It is a very pleasurable experience.

However at the same time, I can’t help but feel very sad for john and the 3 Nephites. We have covered this before, but when you are filled with the Spirit, as they most undoubtedly are at all times, to come face to face with sin can be physically painful. And I can only imagine how hard it must be for them to live in such a world when they are so righteous. I know they can find joy in their work and that the Spirit is the ultimate companion, but it still must have been a sad and lonely life in regards to human companionship.

Here’s a fun food for thought, Peter, James and John restored the Melchizedek Priesthood to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery just a few months after this revelation was given. Peter and James would have appeared as resurrected beings, for surely they were. Have you ever thought though what the experience with John must have been like? Surely he didn’t just appear. He probably just came walking out of the woods and looked just like an ordinary man. Can you imagine what that must have felt like? Do you suppose he stuck around and talked to them for a little bit or perhaps he just took off immediately after giving them the Priesthood. I for sure do not know, but I think it is fun and neat to think about such things.

It is sections like this that make the Doctrine and Covenants so valuable. The Biblical passage that this is talking about is so vague that Joseph and Oliver had to pray about it and find out from the Lord which way it actually happened. The Doctrine and Covenants, since it is comprised of revelations from the Lord, is very good at clarifying certain points of doctrine as well as expounding on things of the spirit. Yes, there are some revelations that I just have to wonder why they were included, but generally speaking, those are the exception and not the rule. For the most part, all the revelations included in this book of scripture are easy to see why they were included and no one will contest that they are for the benefit of man. As we study them and ponder them, we will come that much closer to God and understanding the things of the Spirit. Until tomorrow.

Oliver Cowdery

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 6, our introduction to Oliver Cowdery. We have in this section a lot of famous scriptures and even a scripture mastery. I have often wondered at times why certain sections of the Doctrine and Covenants were included in the publication since they only contain certain instructions that were applicable only to those men and women of the time period or even just the person to whom the revelation was given. This is not one of those sections.

This section is extremely applicable to everyone and it is very good for all. These is even a verse that I felt was almost more suited to a husband and wife than it was for Joseph and Oliver, although now that I think about it, I suppose it is applicable to any true friendship, be it friends or spouses. It was in verse 19 where it says, "Admonish him in his faults, and also receive admonition of him".

A true friend will do just this and will admonish a friend out of compassion for his/her well being. I remember once I lived in California with some friends and one day we were out to eat at a restaurant and my friend, who was a faithful Latter-day Saint got tea for his choice of drink. I jovially rebuked him for drinking tea as it was against the Word of Wisdom and was shocked when he reacted quite abusively. He replied that my soda I was drinking was equally destructive and that he hated people with holier than thou attitudes. He had completely misread my motives and I was so shocked as this was the first time he had reacted in such a way to me that I didn't know what to say so I just dropped the subject but I was very hurt by it all and I'm ashamed to say it was a long time before I ever again admonished a friend, specifically in the moment.

My friend felt that I was in fact trying to be self-righteous when in fact I was actually more concerned about him and his well being. I do not think my story is unique and many of you could share a very similar story, especially those of you who are married. When you are married you are quite concerned with your spouses well being and will frequently bring up things that you feel are inappropriate or at times down right destructive behavior and it is not always met with the love and affection you hope for.

But that is why the scripture in question tells Oliver to be patient. It is not an easy thing to hear you are doing something wrong or inappropriate and the natural man wants to lash out and complain at the unfair treatment. But that will not help us to grow at all. In order to grow and progress we have to be patient and humble and want was is best for our spouse, then and only then can we progress.

A final thought on this section, on the scripture mastery. Verses 22 - 24 is a great example of how the Lord reveals truth to us. When things are true, He will speak peace to us concerning the matter. You will feel calm and collected about the entire thing and even if you have doubts, they are not very serious doubts and are easily overcome. When something is wrong though, you are plagued with self-doubt and don't know if you are on the right path. You will second guess yourself again and again. You will not be able to rest and will not be able to stay calm about your decision and will become agitated. We've all been there, I do not need to expound on these things.

I had an institute teacher once who told us that in regards to these 3 verses, Oliver Cowdery stated that he had not told anyone at all about that experience so when Joseph Smith was able to repeat it back to him it was further proof of Joseph's call as a prophet. I am not sure where he read or heard that, but I suspect it to be true. He was the type of teach not to just repeat things without having some backing to it so I thought I would share. It's just another fun fact of the scriptures. Until tomorrow.

A Request for Martin Harris

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 5. In this section, Martin Harris had asked Joseph Smith to ask the Lord about his standing in the Lord's sight. Despite it being a revelation for Martin Harris, the first part of the section is actually directed at Joseph Smith.

A good chunk of this section is in regards to the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon and how Joseph Smith is not to show the golden plates to anyone except to those 3 witnesses that the Lord has authorized him to show them to. It must have been really hard for Joseph Smith, to not even be able to show them to his wife, Emma. I know I would have a really hard time not even showing something the Lord had given me to my wife, although, now that I think about it, I suppose in a roundabout way, I do and it's not that hard after all. I do think my situation is different than Joseph Smith's was though. This was all very, very new for Joseph Smith and for everyone involved and to not even be able to see tangible proof that Joseph Smith wasn't crazy? Very rough indeed.

I do think it's neat that in this section the Lord gives Joseph a promise of things to come and promises him certain gifts to come later down the road if he remains faithful to the end. God even hints at restoring the Priesthood through Joseph in this section. It's almost like a Patriarchal Blessing for Joseph Smith.

But the majority of this section is in fact about Martin Harris and how he needs to humble himself and repent of his sins. Now, if you will notice the dates of this section and section 3, this is not quite a year after the 116 pages were lost as a result of Martin Harris not abiding by the Lord's commandments to him when they were entrusted to his care. You would think that after such a blunder, Martin Harris would have sought forgiveness from God and humbled himself to get back into God's good graces, but according to this section, that does not appear to be the case. The Lord specifically states that Martin Harris exalts himself and does not humble himself sufficiently before the Lord.

That is really hard for me to understand why Martin Harris would not repent of his sins and humble himself before God. But perhaps Martin thought he had? We do know that man's ways and God's ways are not the same and so perhaps Martin thought he had in fact repented sufficiently. Who knows?

We do know from what the Lord says though that Martin Harris desired to be one of the 3 Witnesses and the Lord here says that if he humbles himself and asks for forgiveness, then he can be granted his heart's desire and will be shown the Golden Plates and can stand as a witness. We know that Martin did in fact eventually humble himself and beg for forgiveness and he was in fact privileged to be one of the few in this day and age that got to see the Gold Plates for himself.

I know that in hindsight we tend to be pretty harsh on all 3 of the Witnesses, Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer and Martin Harris, since all 3 of them fell away at some point in their lives with Oliver Cowdery and Martin Harris eventually returning to the church and repenting of their sins. But we must give credit where credit is due and acknowledge that none of the 3, whether in the church or out, ever denied seeing the Gold Plates or the true origin of the Book of Mormon. Through their unceasing testimony, we can have yet another witness of the truth of these things. It is not enough for most, but it is indeed enough for us. Until tomorrow.

Qualified for the Work

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 4. This is the scripture from my mission, we would recite it each and ever district meeting and zone conference. I have always been intrigued by verse 5 of this section. Verse 5 reads, "And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work." My mission was here in the United States but I spoke Mandarin Chinese, so there were only 10 of us missionaries at the time and I got to know them very, very well. There was one missionary from New York, that every time we would recite this scripture, he would put real emphasis on the line "eye single to the glory of God", it was his favorite phrase. I still remember it, 12 years later.

But I think it is interesting that those qualities are what qualify you for the work. You need to have them before you can do the work. And they make sense if you think about them. Faith is the first quality that we need. This makes sense just like we talked about last week when we read Moroni 6. We have to have faith in Jesus Christ and in the fact that we are doing His will, especially when it comes to Missionary work. Just yesterday actually I was talking to my younger brother and he brought up a story I had told him from my mission. When I first became a senior companion about my year mark or so, I was given a pretty green missionary. He had only been in the field 3 months and I was his third companion. One day we were tracting with little results and I asked him if he knew why we tracted. He replied that it was to find new people to teach the Gospel to. I told him he was wrong. We tract to show to Heavenly Father our desire to do the work, our faith that He will help us and bless us because of our obedience and diligence. I firmly believed that then, and I still do. Tracting is a terrible way to find people to teach, but in most missions, it is a rule to tract so much each week and so you do it to be obedient and you do it to show Heavenly Father that you are willing to do whatever it takes to find people to teach. I would have to review my journals and photo albums, but I am pretty sure that I only had 1 or two people that I helped get baptized from tracting.

Hope, hope is kind of like the forgotten sister. We talk a lot about faith and charity, but we really don't talk about hope very often. Hope of course is the precursor to faith. Most of us cannot just to having faith right off the bat, we first have to hope that the gospel is true. In the case of missionaries, we have a hope that we will be effective and a useful tool in the hands of Christ. I think hope gets overshadowed so much because it is so very similar to faith that they kind of just get lumped in together. But the reason it is a requirement for missionary work is if you think about it, if you don't hope for the things of Christ, why are you doing the work? Why do you serve a mission if not because of a hope that you can be an instrument in His hands to help bring some few souls to salvation?

Charity and love. I have always found it funny that so many scriptures and people separate out these 2 qualities. I have always been taught that charity is ultimate love, so it always amuses me when I see charity and love like this. But it makes total sense that we need charity if we are going to be doing the work of God. The work of God is to save souls and be concerned with their eternal welfare and we need charity to be able to do this. Charity is the state of having love for all people regardless of their situation and doing what is best for them regardless of what is in it for you. As any missionary will tell you, this is absolutely essential to be effective. You have to forget yourself and go to work .

An eye single to the Glory of God. The ability to forget what you want and what you think is best and let your will be swallowed up in the will of the Father. It is incredibly hard to do, as anyone who has prematurely lost a loved one can attest. But as a missionary you have to be able to forget about what you want and follow the Spirit and its promptings no matter what you personally feel about it. That is what it means to have an eye single to His glory. You forget your own needs and what you want and just do what Heavenly Father tells you to do. Like Godly Sorrow, you are more concerned with what Heavenly Father wants than with what you want.

Is it any wonder why these qualities are necessary to be a missionary? Honestly all members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints should strive to have these qualities but they are absolutely essential to be a missionary. That is why it says if you have those qualities you are qualified for the work. It doesn't say you will be successful, that you will baptize thousands. It says that if you have these qualities, you are qualified for the work. You need those qualities just to begin the work. Success comes much later, through perseverance and hard work. But it is one of the most worthwhile things you can ever do! Until tomorrow.

Fear God, not Man

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 3 which is a revelation given to Joseph Smith after Joseph became aware of the fact that Martin Harris had lost the 116 pages they had translated which contain the book of Lehi. Critics of Joseph Smith can say whatever they want about the man, but the fact remains, he was a very humble man when it came to his own image. How many of us would include a revelation for publication where we were getting absolutely slammed by the Lord? It would certainly be embarrassing.

But perhaps that is part of the point. God tells Joseph Smith that he should have feared God and not man. I remember a year ago or so, my wife and I got into a discussion on what we thought it meant to fear God. I don't remember much about the discussion other than we differed in our opinions on the matter. My definition actually comes from this section as well as Mosiah 26 where is says Alma fears to do that which is wrong in the sight of God. I have always felt that the phrase "fear God" meant that we were afraid of displeasing Him, of doing that which is wrong in His sight.

So perhaps God had Joseph include this revelation to help him learn to worry more about what God thinks, rather than about what man thinks of him. It is a hard lesson to learn but a very important one that needs to be learned by all who desire eternal life. It also goes hand in hand with godly sorrow. When we have godly sorrow, we are more concerned with what God thinks of us as opposed to what anyone else thinks.

Unfortunately this is one of those areas where it is really hard to overcome on our own and we need the help of the Spirit to change us in this regard. But like all the other areas we need the help of the Lord to overcome, He is more than willing to help us learn to overcome and do what is right. There are somethings we can do to help facilitate our change though. Immersing ourselves in the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon, for one thing is a great way to overcome the natural man and have the desire to please God. More time reading the scriptures will lead to more time in prayer which will result in more desire to please Him.

Those of you reading this who are a member of the LDS church know that in our church meetings we like to refer to certain things as "the primary answers". The primary answers usually include things like scripture reading, prayer, family home evening, and other basic things that our children our taught on a weekly basis in primary. But the reason so many questions have the primary answers as their actual answer is because we have to perfect the basics before we can move onto the more complex. If we haven't mastered reading our scriptures, it is highly unlikely we are going to master temple attendance. If we are not praying regularly, it is very unlikely that we will have regular church attendance. I could go on and on but you see my point I think. We have to have the basics as our building blocks before we can build any higher.

The closer we get to Him by doing the things we have been asked to do, the more we will fear displeasing Him. And the more we fear displeasing Him, the more we will be doing what is right and not have cause to displease Him. Just as the song says, "do what is right, let the consequence follow", because when we do what is right, we can be confident that the consequence is the one God wants to have happen, because it will be for our benefit. Until tomorrow.

The Promises Made to the Fathers

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants 2, which is only 3 verses long. It is a extract from the words Moroni spoke to Joseph Smith when Moroni came to visit him 3 times in one night on September 21, 1823. Moroni is quoting Malachi chapter 4 here but he quotes it a little different.

The standard version of this scripture, the one found in the Bible states that Elijah will turn the hearts of the children to the fathers and the hearts of the fathers to the children, lest the Lord smite the earth with a curse. When the Savior quotes it to the Nephites upon His visit to them in 3 Nephi, he quotes it the exact same way. But Moroni changes it ever so slightly. Moroni tells Joseph Smith that "[Elijah] will plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers and the hearts of the children will turn to their fathers. If it were not so, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at His coming."

That is a very interesting change of wording to me but it is also very clear to me. It helps to clarify what Malachi and later the Savior meant when they said this. We know today from our modern day prophets that they are referring to genealogy and sealing the parents to their children etc. And as we have previously discussed, genealogy is one of the hottest internet hobbies around now a days. But Moroni's phrasing gives us another aspect to Elijah's coming. Moroni said that with Elijah's coming he would plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers.

That to me indicates an increase in religion and an increase of spirituality. Now, we know that Elijah returned to the Kirtland Temple in 1836, so let me ask you, has there been an increase since that time of spirituality and a turning to religion? I think the answer you get might depend entirely upon who you ask. Some would say no way, this world is more irreverent than ever. However, if you ask any missionary or returned missionary, they will tell you about the dozens of people they came into contact with who just one day literally woke up feeling the need to change their life and find a church and to start attending it. Nothing changed in their lives, they just literally one day felt the desire to get to know God better.

Now, most return missionaries could also tell you about the hundreds of people they met that had crisis' in their lives and how it turned them to religion also. Some of those even stick with it once they are there. But the point is, most definitely yes, there has been an increase of religious fervor since Elijah's coming. I think the exact phrasing of this scripture also refers to the scriptures. If we are to take it literally, how can we know what the promises that were made to the fathers were if we do not have access to the scriptures to tell us? Much like the Nephites needed the brass plates to know what commandments they needed to keep while in the wilderness, the people could not understand the promises made to their fathers without a record of it.

It is food for thought and we have certainly seen this prophecy fulfilled in our day no matter how you slice it. We most definitely have seen what is commonly referred to as the spirit of Elijah in this day and age and will continue to see it until the second coming of our Savior. And we could all use a little more genealogy and religion in this world, it would do it some good I think. Until tomorrow.

My Word Shall not Pass Away

Today I started reading the Doctrine and Covenants and of course, I started with reading D&C 1. It's interesting to me, thanks to seminary there are a lot of chapters in the 4 standard works that I could tell you what the basis of that chapter is just by hearing which chapter it is. Mostly it has to do with the scripture masteries in the case of the Doctrine and Covenants. D&C section 1 is one such case.

Before I re-read it today I could have told you that it was the preface to the original publication of the Book of Commandments that was published around 1831. I could have told you that it contains the verse were the Lord states He is pleased with the church, collectively and not individually, and that the Lord declares that the church is the only true and living church upon the face of the earth. And finally I could have told you that it contains the phrase whether by mine own voice or the voice of my servants, it is the same, one of the scripture masteries.

There was quite a bit we could have chosen from here to talk about today. However, I think the part that stood out to me today was the part about the Lord's prophecies and His word will not pass away but must all be fulfilled. We live in a day and age where it seems to me that people not only doubt the word of God, but they almost seem to be defying God to prove that He is in fact there. I don't see how anyone can doubt a God exists with all the miracles that happen each and every day.

To get the most out of the Doctrine and Covenants I think we have to understand the context that the sections are given in. For example, this section was given in 1831 and persecution, both from without, and also from within the church was starting to get intense. And so the Lord is here re-assuring His saints that He is God and that what they are doing is the right thing. It is also a reassurance that the Lord's word will not pass away and will in fact be fulfilled as they have been spoken.

Now, in some cases this is extremely comforting, I don't mind having the Lord's prophecies about the good things come to pass. But I also see an alarming trend in where the world is heading and by consequence I see where the prophecies of the Lord that aren't so pleasant must soon come to pass. In a way, a very sad way, this is necessary and needed to bring people back to Christ. People have a tendency to forget about the spiritual matters during the day to day drudgery of life. I too have at times in my life tossed spiritual matters aside and not given them the attention that they needed in my life. I have since repented and tried my best to make sure that I am not putting off the things of the Lord for more secular reasons. It can be hard at times that is for sure.

But it is also a comfort to know that God is in charge and that He will not abandon us. It is a comfort to know we can rely upon the Lord and trust Him to take care of us and to give us the experiences that are necessary for our growth and eternal progression. And no matter how bad things get, He will not abandon us, and even though there are some really scary prophecies out there of what is to come, as we do what is right, you can know that whatever happens to you will be for your benefit and you will not be taken before your time if you remain righteous and true. And that is also a comfort, at least it is to me. Until tomorrow.

The Testimony of Moroni

Today I read Moroni 10, the last chapter in the Book of Mormon. There is a lot here in this chapter that we could talk about. Perhaps the most famous part of the chapter is what is referred to as Moroni's Promise. In verses 3 - 5 Moroni states that if you read these things with real intent that you should pray, and if you do it with a desire to know if these things are true, then the Lord will make it known unto you that they are in fact true.

I've often wondered just how many people have read the Book of Mormon without real intent to know if it is true? I'm sure there are lots who have read the Book of Mormon for the purpose of debunking it or proving that it was false. But it is just so hard to believe that they could read the entire Book of Mormon without feeling the Spirit even once. But we see what we want to see I suppose.

Nevertheless, as any person who knows the Book of Mormon to be true can attest, Moroni's Promise is real. The Lord does answer that particular prayer very, very quickly and with a firmness that has surprised some. But the Lord takes our salvation very seriously. He does not dilly dally around with it. It is only us that don't seem to take it seriously.

The rest of this chapter is a reiteration of what Moroni has already told us time and time again. He restates that our God is a God of miracles and that if there are those among us that have faith we can do miracles too in His name. But if miracles have ceased, it will be because of the unbelief of man. But Moroni states that if even one faithful person believes then there will still be miracles. That is a comfort to me. I see miracles each and every day. But I think what people quantify as a miracle is different these days. They are looking to see mana fall from the sky to feed them. They don't see the everyday miracles around them.

And finally the chapter, and Book, closes with Moroni's testimony. I have always found it neat that he is so confident in what he is telling us that he promises to testify against us at the judgment seat of God! That's faith my friends! As we read the Book of Mormon, yes it teaches us the history of the Nephites and his people, but it's true purpose is to convert people to Jesus Christ and to help them know that He is and what He has done for us. It really is that simple to read the Book of Mormon, live by it's precepts, and have everlasting life. Just as the Savior says, do this and you shall live!

I hope you have enjoyed our reading of the Book of Mormon together as much as I have. Starting tomorrow I will be blogging about the Doctrine and Covenants! Until tomorrow.

My Least Favorite Chapter

Today I read Moroni 9, my least favorite chapter in the entire Book of Mormon. I do not like this chapter because this is another epistle of Mormon to his son Moroni and in this chapter Mormon shares the state of his people and what seems to me to vent to Moroni. But it pains my heart to read about such depravity. I can't help but wonder why it was included in the Book of Mormon.

Obviously it was included for a reason, but I have never been able to tell what that reason is because I do not want to ponder on this chapter any more than I absolutely have to. Now, of course there is always the idea of course that this is an example of what not to be like and signs to watch out for when a civilization is nearing a fullness of iniquity. I mean, compared to the Nephites and Lamanites during this time period, we in this day an age are the epitome of righteousness and charity.

This will be my shortest entry ever because I really cannot think of anything to talk about from this chapter and I do not like dwelling on such horrors. Until tomorrow when we can talk of more pleasant things.

Baptism of Little Children

Today I read Moroni 8, an epistle that Mormon wrote to his son Moroni about baptism and its purpose. Once again I am struck by the memory of the people in the Book of Mormon. Moroni received this epistle at least 20 - 40 years prior to recording this for us. And he seems to have remembered it word for word. Even if he actually had the epistle still with him, that an interesting thing to tote around for so long.

However he remembered so perfectly the word of Mormon, we are the beneficiary of it here in Moroni 8. Here we see, that like the ancient church, the Nephites too were misunderstanding the ordinance of baptism and needed correction. I believe it arises from the commandment that all must be baptized or they cannot inherit the kingdom of God.

However, they have forgotten that little children are innocent before God and need no baptism. I'm not sure if Jesus ever taught that to the Apostles in His time, it's certainly never recorded that I can see. And yet the ancient Apostles knew that it was not only not needed, but a mockery of the sacred ordinance of baptism. Perhaps it was some of the teachings during the 40 days he spent with His Apostles before His ascension into heaven.

And yet they knew that they should not baptize little children, it was known already and had been forgotten so Mormon had to remind them of it is the purpose of this epistle. It is much like Paul's letter to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 15:29 where he asks why are the dead baptized if the dead rise not at all? It was understood what baptism for the dead was already so there was no need to explain it. So it is with infants, little children and baptism.

Thank goodness for Mormon and for Moroni for recording this clarification otherwise we would not have it, although I think the Lord would have revealed it to Joseph Smith eventually in the Doctrine and Covenants. But here Mormon teaches us that children are alive in Christ and cannot commit any sin until the age of accountability. We learn from modern day revelation that the age of accountability is age 8. I remember as a teenager/young adult I once asked my parents how it is children cannot commit sin until age 8 when a child can do any number of wrong things, including murder in some extremely rare cases. The answer I was given is that prior to age 8 it is not counted a sin for those children, rather it is on the heads of those who have responsibility for the child.

But baptism, as we discussed two days ago, is the next step after true repentance. Mormon calls it the first fruits of repentance, because if we truly repent of our sins, we will desire to be baptized by proper authority. This is why it is an abomination and a mockery to baptize little children, if they cannot sin, then they have no need of repentance and therefore they have no need to be baptized. Mormon teaches us that little Children are alive in Christ, and we know from modern day revelation that all little children that die before the age of accountability are taken home to Christ and are saved by His grace.

To baptize little children, is a sin before God. Baptism is only for those who are capable of sin and should only be administered to those who are truly repentant. That is why there is an interview for baptism to determine the person's worthiness. I remember once on my mission that we had a man we were helping to prepare for baptism and he was needing to quit smoking. He was REALLY struggling with it and it came time to do his interview and the Elder who did the interviewing came up to me and my companion and shared his concerns. He said that while he had passed him on to be baptized, the brother had not. By his demeanor he still felt really guilty and unworthy of baptism. He didn't feel he had truly repented. That is humility. We kept working with him and he did get baptized and was able to quit smoking eventually.

Like with most of our topics, I could go on for a very long time, but what I have said will suffice. Thank goodness for Mormon and Moroni and the scriptures they sacrificed so much for us to receive. We benefit from their knowledge and what they have recorded for us each and every day! Until tomorrow.

The Light of Christ

Today I read Moroni 7, a spiritual feast! There is so much we could talk about in this chapter. There’s faith, hope, charity and of course, the Light of Christ. How appropriate it is on the day where we celebrate His birth to read about the Light of Christ. I really do feel I could talk for hours on this chapter alone there is just SO much to talk about here.

However I do in fact wish to focus on the Light of Christ. Mormon tells us that it is given to all men to know good from evil. He calls it the Spirit of Christ and it is truly known by several names including as I have called it, the Light of Christ. In one cartoon it was even known as Jiminy Cricket! But whatever name we give it, we are all born with an innate sense of what is right, and what is wrong. The only people who were ever placed on this earth without it, were Adam and Eve, and by partaking of the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, they too learned what was right and what was wrong.

In the Doctrine and Covenants we learn that truth is light. D&C 84:45 - “For the word of the Lord is truth and whatsoever is truth is light, and whatsoever is light is Spirit, even the Spirit of Jesus Christ.” So, really if you think about it, the Light of Christ, is the ability to discern what is truth and what is falsehood. That is why those who are close to the Spirit can have what is commonly called a discerning spirit. I know that it is often a joke how easy it is to dupe some Latter-day Saints and how trusting we are and it is true that all humans have weaknesses and some do not heed the warnings of the Spirit or are not living worthy enough to have the companionship of the Spirit to guide them at all.

But those that are living a good and righteous life and have not deadened their Spirits by riotous living know that the Spirit of God can lead us to do that which is right and to feel uncomfortable in the presence of sin. For those of you who have seen the movie or read the book, “the Fellowship of the Ring” you may remember when the hobbits meet Aragorn for the first time Sam asks Frodo how they know he isn’t a servant of their enemy and Frodo tells Sam that a servant of the evil one would look more fair, but feel more foul. How right he is too! Have you ever met someone that from the moment you saw them they almost made your skin crawl you felt so uncomfortable? I sure have. I never found out why because I did not stick around long enough to associate with that individual. But likewise there are those people that from the moment you see them you are drawn to them like a moth to a flame. And I'm not just talking about a pretty lady or handsome man! :) There are those people that just seem to radiate light and goodness. If you have the good fortune to meet such a one, you will have a perfect example to emulate.

Now, just like we can drive away the Spirit from being our constant companion, we can also drive away the Light of Christ from ourselves and we can lose our ability to discern between what is right, and what is wrong. Anyone reading this who has engaged in too much sin for too long knows that. After awhile you stop feeling guilty about it. This is dangerous because Satan will try and trap you by whispering lies in your ear and telling you that because you don’t feel guilty about it, it must not be bad. But it is in fact a lie and the reason you do not feel guilty anymore is because you have deadened the Light of Christ in you to tell you that it is wrong.

It takes surprisingly little effort to lose the potency of the Light of Christ and it goes really fast. But fortunately, like the Prodigal Son, it can be brought back. Through sincere repentance and a LOT of effort, one can rebuild the Light of Christ in themselves. I hope none of you all put yourselves in that position that you need to find out first-hand what I am referring to. I hope that all of you treasure what a gift you have in your ability to discern between good and evil, between truth and lies. Until tomorrow and Merry Christmas!

The First 4 Principles and Ordinances of the Gospel

Today I read Moroni 6, in this chapter Moroni tells us about how the Church was during his day and after Christ came. We have already talked about the importance of church meetings so today I thought we could talk about the first 4 principles and ordinances of the Gospel: Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, Repentance, Baptism by Immersion for the remission of sins, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

Moroni covers all 4 of these topics in this chapter, just not very extensively. The first principle of the restored Gospel is Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The reason this is the first principle is because if you do not have it, you will not do any of the others. Think about it, if you did not believe Jesus was out there and did not believe that there was something else after this life, then why do we care about going to church? We have to believe that Jesus is the Christ and that we are doing all of this for a reason otherwise it is all for naught, at least in our own minds.

Repentance is the second principle. It is next because, one faith without some kind of works is dead. We have to do something to demonstrate our faith in Jesus Christ and he asks us to come follow Him. Well, can we follow Him if we do not do what he asks? No, we cannot. We cannot be a follower of Him if we do not follow His teachings and do what He taught. Also, we have to repent of our sins because no unclean thing can enter into the Kingdom of God, nor, as we have discussed many times, would we desire to enter into His Kingdom unclean. We have to be clean in order come into His presence.

The first ordinance in the Gospel is Baptism by Immersion for the remission of sins. After we repent of our sins we are ready for the next step, to be baptized. We know from the Gospel of John that we must be baptized in order to enter into the Kingdom of God. Baptism is a commandment of God and even Jesus Christ was baptized in order to comply with that commandment during his mortal ministry. We are all commanded to be baptized in order to enter the kingdom. We baptize by immersion because that is how Jesus Christ himself was baptized and because that is the model He left for us to follow.

The second ordinance of the Gospel is the laying on of hand for the Gift of the Holy Ghost. This is perhaps the most important of the first 4 principles and ordinances and if it does not happen the others are done in vain. The reason I say this, is because it is this that cleanses us from our sins. The Holy Ghost's job is varied and many. However, His role immediately after baptism is to justify and sanctify us. He justifies us by making us worthy to stand in His presence. But it is the sanctification that we are concerned with at this point. To Sanctify something is to set it aside as holy essentially and in this instance it is my belief that it is the Holy Ghost, or the Baptism of Fire as He is sometimes referred to, the cleanses us from our sins at the time of our baptism, and not the baptism itself. I may be incorrect, but I do think that I am. Fire has long been used as a metaphor to talk about cleansing and purification. It is so here as well.

If we do not have these first 4 principles and ordinances in the Gospel then all our efforts are for naught. We need to continually have Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, we need to repent of our sins each and every day. We need to renew our baptismal covenants each week by partaking of the sacrament worthily. And finally we need to invite the Holy Ghost into our lives to change our very natures and to sanctify us on a daily basis by living a pure and righteous life and, as Elder Bednar stated in his October 2010 conference talk, seeking daily after the companionship of the Holy Ghost.

As we strive to live these principles we are living the true and everlasting Gospel. All the rest is added on top of these, this is why they are the first, they are the foundation of all that follows. Master these and you will have nothing to worry about in the life to come! Until tomorrow.

The Sacrament

Today I read Moroni 4 and 5. Like yesterday, these 2 chapters are so similar that I decided to combine them in my reading. I'm glad Moroni included the sacramental prayers in the Book of Mormon, they are not contained in 3 Nephi where the Savior institutes the Sacrament, so until the Lord gave Joseph Smith Doctrine and Covenants section 20 it was the only place we had the Sacramental prayer.

It does remind me though of a Priesthood lesson we had 3 weeks ago on the Sacrament. The instructor asked us at the beginning of the lesson to be thinking about what it means to remember the Savior. Obviously we are not going to forget that the Savior performed the Atonement for us, so what does it mean that we eat in remembrance of Him? The teacher actually used the analogy of the wedding ring, what is it for? It's obviously not to remind us that we are married, no one who is married is going to suddenly forget that they are married.

About half way through the lesson he stopped and asked if anyone had come up with any ideas on what the scriptures meant by remembrance? I had been batting around an idea that had come to me and would not leave me so I shared it with the class. I shared that I had served my mission in Arcadia, California(Eastern Los Angles) among the Chinese people. In Chinese culture they really revere their ancestors and even have holidays specifically to clean up their tombs and grave-sites. Well, one of things they frequently do for their ancestors is to burn paper money, and place offerings of fruit outside their door. They do this so that the ancestor in question will have a great afterlife and to honor the life they led.

And to me that's what the word remembrance is. We are not reminding ourselves that the Savior suffered and died for us as if we would forget, but rather we are honoring His sacrifice for us and what He did. We do it in remembrance of all He suffered for us, to honor Him. I think also, when it was given by Him personally, it really was to remind His apostles and disciples of the times He was with them. But for those of us who have not met Him physically in this life, it is more about taking a moment to give thanks and honor His sacrifice for us.

I've often wondered if the reason so many people in olden days drank wine, or juice or whatever, was the lack of sanitary drinking water? Nevertheless, we know that with the Sacrament any edible item and any drinkable item can be used for the Sacrament, it does not have to be bread and wine or water as it were. Military men and women quite frequently use crackers instead of bread when they do not have access to bread.

If you have not read the Sacramental prayers in a long time, I urge you to go back and read them. Remind yourself of the promises contained in them and just as importantly, what YOU promise to do in return. If you have been a member of the church for a few years you will recognize that it is the same promises we made when we were baptized. And we are promised the same thing we were when we were confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, that the Spirit may always be with us.

I have heard in several talks that partaking of the Sacrament and renewing our covenants with God is the most important thing we do at church, and truly they are correct. The other parts of our meetings are also very important, but partaking of the Sacrament each and every week is so important. I again urge you to re-read the sacramental prayers, but don't just read through them like the priests at church usually do, going so fast they stumble and mumble over half the words. Really take your time and read them, ponder them and see if you learn anything new. Remember, these are such sacred prayers that they are some of the very, very few prayers in the church that have to be word for word perfect. Study them and pray about them, see if you learn anything new. I promise that the effort will be worth it. Until tomorrow.

Use of the Priesthood Authority

Today I read Moroni 2 and 3. I often wonder why Moroni chose to include certain things in his writings. For example chapter 2 is a repeat of what we have already read in 3 Nephi when the Savior actually gave them the power to give the gift of the Holy Ghost as we have already talked about.

Chapter 3 is new information and it is interesting enough to see how they ordained men to the Priesthood and it is a comfort to know that things have not changed in how things are done in the church of God. One thing I often wonder though is if a teacher and a priest had the same function in ancient times as they do in modern day. I would assume so, but did they ordain their men as young as we do now? It's fun to think about.

I have often wondered though what the purpose of a physical laying on of hands is. I sometimes think it is nothing more than a focus point for the person who is acting as voice for the ordinance to focus on. We have, that I can think of, only one recorded instance where someone was baptized and given the gift of the Holy Ghost without the laying on of hands or even baptized with physical hands, that of course is Adam, the first man. We read in the book of Moses that he was caught up in the Spirit and baptized. I can only assume that he was given the Priesthood in the same fashion since there was no one one else with a physical body to give him the Priesthood by the laying on of hands.

We know that God is a God of order and that His church is a church or order too. The majority of the revelations Joseph Smith received in the early days of the church were to organize the church and ensure that it was running appropriately. Some naysayers may incorrectly state that God was changing His mind and updating what He wanted, however, it was actually the people of the church who weren't ready for certain things. Also, God has always followed the pattern of line upon line when revealing doctrine and spiritual things. I cannot think of any recorded instance where he just gave it all in one solid lump.

So there is comfort in knowing that matters of the church have always been the same even in ancient days. At least there is comfort if like me you do not like change. I can't really at this moment think of another reason why Moroni would have included this information. Obviously the Lord thought it was important for us to have, but other than to give us the knowledge that here on the American continent in ancient days they too gave the gift of the Holy Ghost and had the office of Teachers and Priests, I am not sure.

For me personally it is enough that is is knowledge about the church in ancient times, which is a comfort and another testament that God does not change. And perhaps it really is just that simple. Until tomorrow.

True Charity

Today I read Moroni 1, it is a very short chapter but I could not help but be moved by the perfect charity of Moroni. At this point in his life he has been alone for close to 40 years and for every single day of those years he has been hunted by the Lamanites. Now, I seriously doubt that there was a band of the Lamanites following him every step of the way, but you can feel his genuine surprise that he is still alive.

I always feel so sad for Moroni being alone for so long. I am sure that he had angels minister to him, I'm sure he met with the 3 Nephites and other heavenly messengers of some sort kept him bolstered up but I cannot even imagine being alone for 40 years! I can't even imagine being alone for 40 days.

And yet, despite it all, he states that the purpose of these last few chapters is to try and write something of great benefit to the Lamanites. I'm not so sure I would be as charitable as he is here. Of course, after 40 years I'm sure anyone's temper, anger and frustration would have had time to cool off and then die down completely. After all, back in the book of Mormon, the first time we hear from Moroni it's already been 15 years since the final battle.

Still, for some people, 15 years is not enough time to overcome feelings of hatred. I have never personally known anyone who could not overcome feelings of hatred for someone or a people, but there are dozens of literary examples over the years and most media is based on at least a spark of truth at one point. At least I would assume so. I have also personally never met a politician but the media portrays them so one way that I can only assume there is a reason behind the stereotype.

Now, Moroni does mention that what he is about to write is the will of the Lord which I find very interesting. I am not trying to tarnish the character of Moroni, far from it, we know that we was resurrected with a glorified body and will one day be exalted. But he was human too and I cannot but wonder at how in the world he did it, how did he survive those 40 plus years? I know of course it was with the help of the Lord and that he was comforted by the Lord.

But also, is it not possible that Moroni's talk about weaknesses to strength's in Ether 12 might not have included his own struggle for charity to the Lamanites? Perhaps, but then again perhaps not. Moroni might be one of those rare individuals that has always been a good upright man and never struggled with feelings of hatred or other uncharitable feelings. We are just not told. However he got there, there is one thing we can say for absolute certain, when he wrote this part of the writings, he had perfect charity for the Lamanites. There is not an ounce of irony or upset attitude at this point in Moroni's writings.

Whatever transpired before this, we know for a fact that we can emulate Moroni. He was a man who did all that the Lord asked of him without complaint and with perfect exactness. I do personally believe that he was a man much after the manner of his namesake, Captain Moroni from the book of Alma, one of Mormon's heroes. And we owe Moroni a debt of gratitude, because if he had not wandered the Americas for 40 plus years, we would not have the Book of Mormon today. He is another example of obeying the commandments of the Lord and listening to the promptings of the Spirit. Because you never know what the Spirit is going to lead you to do. Until tomorrow.

The End of the Jaredites

Today I read Ether 15, the last chapter in the book of Ether and the end of the Jaredite people and nation. I remember once having a conversation about the Book of Mormon and how graphically violent it is with my best friend at the time and his dad. I was about 15 and all 3 of us cited this chapter as an example of how if the Book of Mormon were ever made into a movie it would be at best rated R if not NC-17.

This chapter is sad for many reasons, but I can't help but feel sad that Coriantumr saw what was happening and tried to stop it but was unable to do so because of the hatred and anger of the people. It seems to me that even if he had been willing to sacrifice his own life to save the rest of the people, the people would not have been spared and would have continued the fight anyway.

This is what happens to a people when the Spirit of the Lord stops striving with them. You would think that in the 4 years they were gathering people to their cause, at least some of them would have tried to escape into the wilderness and save their family, but from the way it is written and what we know of history, it appears that none of them did that. They just all came like lambs to the slaughter. It is hard to imagine a people so totally consumed with hatred that they would just come and join an army and fight and bring their women and children and make them fight too. Of course we don't have all the details, some of them may have honestly believed it was the only way to protect them. I still think if it had been me though I would have taken our chances with being out in the woods.

As I have stated before to me the Jaredites are the ultimate example of what not to do. I don't see a point to their record otherwise. Yes, Mahonri, Jared and their families and friends tell a great story, but almost from the moment those 2 men die it is a horrible example of human depravity. As we have said before, the best way to combat such things is to live a good and righteous life and let your life shine forth. Be an example of good around you and do what the Lord asks of you. Focus on living the Gospel and loving the Gospel. Do this and your life will not only have meaning, but it will be the happiest life you can have in this life. And of course you will be blessed for it too. Until tomorrow.

Total loss of Civilization

Today I read Ether 14 which is a very depressing chapter. Ether 14 starts the war among the Jaredites that never ends and culminates in their destruction. I remember as a teenager my Dad once giving a Family Home Evening lesson that consisted of a scripture chain of how you could tell when a civilization was ripe for destruction, as the scriptures always say. I have marked in the set of scriptures that I used to use in seminary and later my mission.

Every time I get to this part of the Book of Mormon I think of those scriptures, for obvious reasons. Today when I read this chapter I was appalled at the sheer blood lust and total disregard for human life that the Jaredites had at this point. As I read the account of Shiz pursuing Coriantumr and how he would just slaughter any and all cities that he came across, for no reason that we are given, I couldn't help think to myself that this is indeed what it means to lose civilization.

Such an idea is totally foreign to me. How can someone just enjoy killing so much that they would randomly kill every woman and children in a city, just because they were there? As a teenager I had never noticed those verses and what was going on at the time of destruction of the Jaredites and I had felt sorry for the loss of life and the fact that they were destroyed.

Now that I am older and can read what was actually going on, I feel only that the Lord was justified in his wiping such evil off the face of the earth. I know we live in a very violent time and that people's emotions are dampened, but how could those men just kill innocent women and children like that? Just yesterday during my lunch break, 3 ladies came in and changed the channel to some show where they were talking about a woman whose husband had tried to kill her and the only reason he failed was someone who heard the commotion called the police. I was not watching it, I was reading a book, but just listening to it all made me sick to my stomach. Apparently they showed really graphic photos because one of the women protested at one point, but these 3 women were watching it quite calmly while eating lunch! I couldn't believe it. And it wasn't even fiction, it was real, it had happened several years ago and they could not only watch it quite calmly, but even eat lunch during it all.

It was quite sad to see. I could not believe that we, as a society, have become so desensitized to violence and have come to value human life and happiness so completely that we can not be disturbed by it when we come face to face with it. It makes me really worried about us as a race and as a civilization. Because we are no different than the Nephites and the Jaredites, once we become fully ripe, we too can and will be swept off the face of this land. It's just sad to me that the technology that makes it so much easier to share the gospel, to keep in touch with old friends and do all these wonderful things, is the same technology that is slowly but surely eating away at us and making us more prone to these types of atrocities.

I do not wish to dwell on such horrible topics so I will not. But the fact of the matter is, as horrible as it is, there are lessons to learn in the downfall of the Jaredites. Pray that we learn them, so they are not repeated. Until tomorrow.

The Prophecies of Ether

Today I read Ether 13, the first half of the chapter is really neat, the prophecies of Ether and a New Jerusalem and all the other things that Ether prophesied about to his people. The 2nd half of this chapter is about the war that was started during his days that caused the entire destruction of the people.

It is really, really sad to read about the destruction of these people and I once again am just in awe that people and their loyalty can be so complete and blinding. I have read books and histories of the many various kingdoms in the history of the human race and I know many, many kings have had their soldiers do many horrible and despicable things over the many years and I'm sure that some of those soldiers even enjoyed doing those things, but surely there must have been soldiers who would balk at such orders and hesitate to perform them?

Or perhaps not. Perhaps I am actually the vast minority and it is only me whose spirit weeps at such destruction and atrocities. I would like to think not, but power seems to attract a certain type of individual and that type does not seem like the kind you would bring home to mother as the saying goes. Nevertheless, in the case of the Jaredites, it would appear that all of them were past feeling as we will read over the next 2 days.

As for the prophecies of Ether, have you ever noticed that certain groups of people get to hear really neat things? For example, the Jaredites by this point had become totally corrupt and ripe for destruction. We know this because from this point on it was continual bloodshed and warfare and they were completely annihilated in the space of about a decade. And yet according to Moroni there were not many prophecies that were greater! Why in the world is it that a people who were beyond saving would get to hear such wonderful prophecies? Why would they be wasted on an unrepentant people who would not take them to heart and actually change their lives because of them?

Well there's the obvious reason that Ether wrote them all down and some day we will have them, or at least Mahonri's vision which I am sure contain all the things Ether prophesied about. But that does not change the fact that Ether was commanded to preach them to his people. In my opinion the last three books in the Book of Mormon, Mormon, Ether and Moroni are the most sad because of all the destruction and I think those 3 men, Mormon, Ether and Moroni, are the saddest in the entire Book of Mormon. Just like Mormon, and Moroni, Ether had to witness the entire destruction of his people. I would hope that these 3 men had heavenly comforts and angels to minister to them. They must have been incredibly strong because my heart and spirit ache just from reading these accounts, I could not even imagine witnessing them first hand!

So why was Ether commanded to preach such marvelous things to his people? I honestly think, despite what Moroni says, it is because there were a few that believed him. Just as in the days of Noah, the people as a whole rejected all his words. However, in Noah's day there were 1 here, a family there, a couple here, a child there, who believed his words and were caught up to the fled city of Enoch. I believe that this is also the case with the Jaredites, that while the people completely rejected all his words, there were some few that believed him. Perhaps not, and perhaps if there were those who did believe they were immediately executed just like the saints in Ammonihah, we are not told, but I like to think that there were some few who believed Ether.

Well, I guess I should say repented because Moroni said that Ether's faith was such that they could not disbelieve his words so they believed, it would just seem they did not care. That is a funny thing to think about, but how many of us do that every single day? Those of us who read this and are LDS believe all the words our prophets say, yet how many of us make the changes we are asked to make? How many of us actually do the things we are asked to do? How many of you are working towards getting out of debt? Towards a food storage? Towards a family? It's a sobering thought! I must admit this just came to me as I sit here writing this, but I really do think this is what Moroni is talking about. We all believe the words of our prophets, but do we honestly heed them like we should? I wonder. I know I personally could do better.

When I first finished this chapter, I was sorely tempted to just read chapters 14 and 15 and just lump them all together since they are all talking about the destruction of the Jaredites, and now I see that even the repetition of destruction in the Book of Mormon serves a purpose and can be expounded upon by the Spirit of the Lord. I look forward to what the Spirit will teach me tomorrow. Until then!

Faith and Weaknesses

Today I read Ether 12, a very famous chapter as any who took seminary well knows. This chapter is mostly about having faith and about why we have weaknesses in this life. We are also reaching the end of the civilization of the Jaredites. Ether has been born and is a prophet of the Lord and begins to prophesy, and as we have seen in the past the people are upset because they cannot disbelieve Ether's words because of his faith.

The majority of this chapter is taken up by Moroni talking about faith and explaining about it and how all the prophets have had faith and used it to perform their mighty miracles. I have always been fascinated to learn that apparently the brother of Jared moved an entire mountain at some point in his life! Kinda makes me wish we didn't just have an abrigement of the record.

Faith is things which are hoped for, which are not seen, wherefore dispute not because you see not, for you receive no witness until after the trial of your faith. Those are the words of Moroni from verse 6 of this chapter. There are so many things we have to take on faith in this life. I once read, or rather had read to me, a paper called the Efficacy of Prayer by C.S. Lewis I believe it was who wrote it. And he talked about where or not prayer was really effective and if things worked out because we prayed about them or for other reasons. I am always reminded of this paper when I think of faith because one of his examples in there was getting married and does the woman you propose to say yes because you prayed about it, or would she have said yes even if you hadn't prayed?

Every man who has ever asked a woman to marry him knows about faith. You have the faith that she will say yes, but like Moroni says, you don't get the witness of that faith, her saying yes, until after the trial of that faith, that ridiculously long few seconds before she answers you! Most people would not think of proposing to your wife as faith, but it is. Now Alma actually adds the important verbiage to the definition of faith that helps us really define what faith is, he says that faith is to hope for things which are not seen which are true. We typically reserve the word faith for spiritual things but faith is a hope in anything which is true that is not seen, like your intended's love for you and desire to marry you.

One of the reasons we think of faith as only for spiritual things though is because we cannot perform anything unto the Lord without faith. We cannot pray without faith, we cannot give a blessing without it, we can't get baptized without it, we cannot approach God without it. That's why Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is the first principle of the Gospel. But even non-spiritual things require faith. Anything you have heard about that you believe but have never personally experienced requires you to take it on faith. If you have never before had a baby, then in reality you are taking it on faith that sex is required to have a baby. But once you have that first baby your faith becomes knowledge. And so it is with all things we have faith in.

The other half of this chapter is about weaknesses, which we have already talked about in the past. I did a quick review of all my posts and it seems that we have talked about weaknesses quite a bit already. It seems to be a repeating theme in the Book of Mormon. I believe that is because we are all given weaknesses to overcome in this life. Some are easier than others to overcome, some we never overcome in this life. The scriptures allude to the fact that we are each given a weakness in this life that we cannot overcome without God's help. And that is done on purpose so that we will turn to Him and humble ourselves so that we will turn to Him so that we can overcome those weaknesses with His help.

Some people would never turn to God without those weaknesses. They would try and do everything on their own and they would try and do everything they can without His help, which is contrary to the will of God. We must humble ourselves and turn to God so that with His help we can be prepared to enter the kingdom of heaven. Poor Moroni was so worried that all who read the Book of Mormon would make fun of him because of his weakness and I don't think a single person who reads the Book of Mormon knows or sees what weakness Moroni is talking about. I know he is comparing himself to Mahonri's writing and apparently his writing was very powerful, but without anything else to compare it to, I think Moroni's writing is also quite powerful.

But Moroni clearly thought of his writing as a weakness of his. Whether or not it was, we are all given weaknesses and we are all meant to turn to the Lord. As we do we will become better men and women and better able to serve the Lord and our fellow man. Come to Him who is mighty to save, who stands with open arms ready to receive you the scriptures say. Come unto Him and find rest from your cares and sorrows. He can heal you, and what's more, He WILL! Until tomorrow.