1 – "And it shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks—”
-- To “hearken” is more than just listening to someone. It is carefully hearing what is said, with the intent of heeding their words.
-- “manifest” - to make clear or evident to the eye or the understanding; show plainly.
-- “stumbling block” - an obstacle or hindrance to progress, belief, or understanding.
-- God’s plan for His children is one of eternal progression. Without the fullness of the gospel, with its saving ordinances, man is limited in realizing the divine purpose for which he was created. Their ignorance of truth and absence of priesthood authority were great stumbling blocks for them. This was the state of the Gentiles (and all mankind) prior to the restoration of the gospel in the latter days. When the Gentiles were ready (God knows the hearts of men) as a people to receive the restored gospel, Jesus Christ manifested himself unto them. His manifestation came in three ways: 1) in word; 2) in power; 3) in deed. In word: Jesus Christ personally appeared to Joseph Smith, declaring His word unto him. Also, the word of God, in purity, is manifested unto the Gentiles through the Book of Mormon. In power: The power of God is evident every time a person does anything beyond their own ability. The translation of the Book of Mormon came about through the gift and power of God. Every time any “gift of the Spirit” is present, it is made possible through the power of God. Of particular mention is receiving a testimony. It is the witness of the Holy Ghost, truly a manifestation of the power of God, that brings about conversion. Also, the restoration of the priesthood allows man to perform ordinances of the gospel. What greater power could be manifest than making the way of salvation possible through the ordinances of God. In deed: There are times in the latter-days in which God has personally performed certain deeds on behalf of the saints. For example, God directed a strong thunderstorm to protect Zion’s camp from a violent mob during its march to Missouri. All of these things were done for the purpose of removing the stumbling blocks of the Gentiles, and thus make way the path to eternal progression.
-- The application of this verse is also relevant on a personal basis. We all have certain weaknesses that limit us in our progression. When we turn to God with a determination to hearken unto Him, He manifests Himself unto us in word, in power, and in deed. There are many ways that this can happen: through His words in the scriptures, through the voice of the Holy Ghost, through various gifts of the Spirit, through priesthood blessings, etc. While there are many things that we can do to overcome these weaknesses that we have, it is ultimately God that changes our nature and assists us in making weak things become strong. Just like the farmer who labors in his field: he prepares the earth, sows the seed, and applies fertilizer, but it is God that provides the rain and the miracle of germination and growth. We must labor in our own spiritual fields and rely on the Lord of the harvest to provide the increase. As we do, we will one-by-one overcome each of our stumbling blocks and go on unto exaltation.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Friday, April 17, 2009
1 Nephi 13:42
"42 And the time cometh that he shall manifest himself unto all nations, both unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles; and after he has manifested himself unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles, then he shall manifest himself unto the Gentiles and also unto the Jews, and the last shall be first, and the first shall be last."
-- At the meridian of time, Jesus manifested himself unto the world. He did this first unto the Jews during His mortal ministry, His atoning sacrifice, and for several weeks following His resurrection. The Jewish Christians traveled all across the known world and preached the gospel, bringing in converts from among the nations. Christ then traveled to other parts of the world to reveal Himself and declare His gospel message. The Nephites are one group of people that we know He visited, for we have their record of it. He also visited other groups of people on the earth. He declared unto the Nephites, “And verily, verily, I say unto you that I have other sheep, which are not of this land, neither of the land of Jerusalem, neither in any parts of that land round about whither I have been to minister. For they of whom I speak are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them. But I have received a commandment of the Father that I shall go unto them, and that they shall hear my voice, and shall be numbered among my sheep, that there may be one fold and one shepherd; therefore I go to show myself unto them.” (3 Ne 16: 1-3). The order of His manifestation was clearly first to the Jews, then to everyone else, who are lumped together as Gentiles. Now, in the fullness of times, Christ has manifested Himself unto the inhabitants of the earth in the opposite order. He first opened the dispensation by appearing to Joseph Smith, Jr., and restoring His gospel through his prophetic call. From that time forward, the gospel has been carried throughout the earth by Gentile (not Jews, though they are of the house of Israel) Christian missionaries. While some Jews have joined the restored church, the majority have not. They continue waiting for the Messiah to come; not knowing that Jesus was the Messiah and has already come. Nevertheless, following the great battle to take place at the end of the world, Christ shall appear unto the Jews in person, save them from destruction, show them the prints of the nails in His hands, feet, and side and shall declare Himself as their Savior. From this final manifestation, the Jews will know and accept Jesus of Nazareth, the same that came in the meridian of time, as their Lord and Savior, the long awaited Messiah. (D&C 45:47-53, Zech 14:1-9).
-- At the meridian of time, Jesus manifested himself unto the world. He did this first unto the Jews during His mortal ministry, His atoning sacrifice, and for several weeks following His resurrection. The Jewish Christians traveled all across the known world and preached the gospel, bringing in converts from among the nations. Christ then traveled to other parts of the world to reveal Himself and declare His gospel message. The Nephites are one group of people that we know He visited, for we have their record of it. He also visited other groups of people on the earth. He declared unto the Nephites, “And verily, verily, I say unto you that I have other sheep, which are not of this land, neither of the land of Jerusalem, neither in any parts of that land round about whither I have been to minister. For they of whom I speak are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them. But I have received a commandment of the Father that I shall go unto them, and that they shall hear my voice, and shall be numbered among my sheep, that there may be one fold and one shepherd; therefore I go to show myself unto them.” (3 Ne 16: 1-3). The order of His manifestation was clearly first to the Jews, then to everyone else, who are lumped together as Gentiles. Now, in the fullness of times, Christ has manifested Himself unto the inhabitants of the earth in the opposite order. He first opened the dispensation by appearing to Joseph Smith, Jr., and restoring His gospel through his prophetic call. From that time forward, the gospel has been carried throughout the earth by Gentile (not Jews, though they are of the house of Israel) Christian missionaries. While some Jews have joined the restored church, the majority have not. They continue waiting for the Messiah to come; not knowing that Jesus was the Messiah and has already come. Nevertheless, following the great battle to take place at the end of the world, Christ shall appear unto the Jews in person, save them from destruction, show them the prints of the nails in His hands, feet, and side and shall declare Himself as their Savior. From this final manifestation, the Jews will know and accept Jesus of Nazareth, the same that came in the meridian of time, as their Lord and Savior, the long awaited Messiah. (D&C 45:47-53, Zech 14:1-9).
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
1 Nephi 13: 40-41
"40 And the angel spake unto me, saying: These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, and shall make known the plain and precious things which have been taken away from them; and shall make known to all kindreds, tongues, and people, that the Lamb of God is the Son of the Eternal Father, and the Savior of the world; and that all men must come unto him, or they cannot be saved.
-- Latter-day scriptures help to fulfill three roles: 1) serve as additional witnesses that the Bible is true; 2) fill in the gospel holes which were created by the removal of plain and precious things from the Bible; and 3) declare unto all people of the world that Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, truly is their Savior and only source of salvation.
"41 And they must come according to the words which shall be established by the mouth of the Lamb; and the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; wherefore they both shall be established in one; for there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth."
-- Salvation is obtained not merely by coming unto Christ, but by coming unto Him according to the manner that He has prescribed. He is the Master Healer and has given a prescription to heal us from sin and pain and loneliness and fear and every other aspect of life that is not of God. We must follow the prescription to have hope of obtaining the promised salvation. Jesus declared, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” (Matt 7:21). The details of this prescription are found in His words, which are found in the Book of Mormon and the Bible.
-- “…they both shall be established in one…”: the Book of Mormon and the Bible stand side by side as companion volumes of scripture. Their words are combined in establishing God’s truth in clarity for the whole earth. They set forth the reality of “One Lord, one faith, one baptism.” (Eph 4:5) Just as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate beings, unified in one single purpose, so too are The Book of Mormon and the Bible separate books, unified in one doctrine – the doctrine of Christ.
-- In this one verse, Jesus is referenced as both a lamb and a shepherd. He has walked in our shoes as a sheep. Thus, He knows perfectly well the trials that we face. Now, he tends to our needs as a loving shepherd who knows each one of His sheep by name.
-- Latter-day scriptures help to fulfill three roles: 1) serve as additional witnesses that the Bible is true; 2) fill in the gospel holes which were created by the removal of plain and precious things from the Bible; and 3) declare unto all people of the world that Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, truly is their Savior and only source of salvation.
"41 And they must come according to the words which shall be established by the mouth of the Lamb; and the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; wherefore they both shall be established in one; for there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth."
-- Salvation is obtained not merely by coming unto Christ, but by coming unto Him according to the manner that He has prescribed. He is the Master Healer and has given a prescription to heal us from sin and pain and loneliness and fear and every other aspect of life that is not of God. We must follow the prescription to have hope of obtaining the promised salvation. Jesus declared, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” (Matt 7:21). The details of this prescription are found in His words, which are found in the Book of Mormon and the Bible.
-- “…they both shall be established in one…”: the Book of Mormon and the Bible stand side by side as companion volumes of scripture. Their words are combined in establishing God’s truth in clarity for the whole earth. They set forth the reality of “One Lord, one faith, one baptism.” (Eph 4:5) Just as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate beings, unified in one single purpose, so too are The Book of Mormon and the Bible separate books, unified in one doctrine – the doctrine of Christ.
-- In this one verse, Jesus is referenced as both a lamb and a shepherd. He has walked in our shoes as a sheep. Thus, He knows perfectly well the trials that we face. Now, he tends to our needs as a loving shepherd who knows each one of His sheep by name.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
1 Nephi 13: 39
"And after it had come forth unto them I beheld other books, which came forth by the power of the Lamb, from the Gentiles unto them, unto the convincing of the Gentiles and the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the Jews who were scattered upon all the face of the earth, that the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true."
-- The Book of Mormon and the Bible have already been mentioned as books to go from the Gentiles unto the remnant of Lehi’s children. Now, here is mention of other books to come forth by the power of God. These include the Doctrine and Covenants, the Pearl of Great Price, and other scriptures not yet revealed.
-- A reminder that all scriptures point to the same thing: declaring the truth of the testimony of the prophets and apostles, which is that Jesus Christ is the one and only way to salvation.
-- It is possible that some of these other books to come forth include non-canonical scriptures. It indicates that the books to come forth are to do so by the power of God. This qualifier greatly limits the pool of candidates. However, those things that a person speaks (or writes) when moved upon by the Holy Ghost become scriptures (D&C 68:4). Some examples of non-canonized scriptures: the inspired translation of the Bible done by Joseph Smith; the general conference talks given by latter-day prophets and apostles; and other less widely pronounced declarations by the general priesthood leaders. All of these sources come forth by the power of God and have as a purpose the convincing of Gentile and Lamanite and Jew that Jesus is the Christ.
-- Several verses of this chapter have detailed the corruption of the Bible. Now, this verse is telling us that all of the latter-day books of scripture are to convince us that the records of the prophets and the apostles of the Lamb are true. Is this a contradiction of itself? NO! The record of the prophets and apostles of the Lamb are true insofar as they have been preserved. Those parts of the Bible that have been altered no longer represent the words of the prophets and apostles. Rather, they represent the work of the great and abominable church, the church of the devil. The Joseph Smith translation of the Bible helps us get a more accurate understanding of the original records of the ancient prophets and apostles as they penned them.
-- The Book of Mormon and the Bible have already been mentioned as books to go from the Gentiles unto the remnant of Lehi’s children. Now, here is mention of other books to come forth by the power of God. These include the Doctrine and Covenants, the Pearl of Great Price, and other scriptures not yet revealed.
-- A reminder that all scriptures point to the same thing: declaring the truth of the testimony of the prophets and apostles, which is that Jesus Christ is the one and only way to salvation.
-- It is possible that some of these other books to come forth include non-canonical scriptures. It indicates that the books to come forth are to do so by the power of God. This qualifier greatly limits the pool of candidates. However, those things that a person speaks (or writes) when moved upon by the Holy Ghost become scriptures (D&C 68:4). Some examples of non-canonized scriptures: the inspired translation of the Bible done by Joseph Smith; the general conference talks given by latter-day prophets and apostles; and other less widely pronounced declarations by the general priesthood leaders. All of these sources come forth by the power of God and have as a purpose the convincing of Gentile and Lamanite and Jew that Jesus is the Christ.
-- Several verses of this chapter have detailed the corruption of the Bible. Now, this verse is telling us that all of the latter-day books of scripture are to convince us that the records of the prophets and the apostles of the Lamb are true. Is this a contradiction of itself? NO! The record of the prophets and apostles of the Lamb are true insofar as they have been preserved. Those parts of the Bible that have been altered no longer represent the words of the prophets and apostles. Rather, they represent the work of the great and abominable church, the church of the devil. The Joseph Smith translation of the Bible helps us get a more accurate understanding of the original records of the ancient prophets and apostles as they penned them.
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