Christ Knows what we go through

Doctrine and Covenants 19:16-19 is today's scripture mastery.  In it, Christ tells us about what he suffered for us while completing the atonement:

 16 For behold, I, God, have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would repent;

 17 But if they would not repent they must suffer even as I;

 18 Which suffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not drink the bitter cup, and shrink—

 19 Nevertheless, glory be to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of men.

These verses show a few things. 

First, it shows the great Love that Christ has for each of us.  He does not want us to have to suffer as He did.  He has provided a way for us to not have to suffer so severely--if we repent and follow Him.  There is a warning though for those that choose to not repent--they are warned that they must suffer the same as Christ did.  And it wasn't pleasant. . .

Second, it teaches us that Christ does understand what we are going through in life.  He knows firsthand, because he has suffered it all.  All the pains and temptations that we face each day, he has suffered them for us, and knows how to succor us and help us to overcome.  That is why He has told us that we can cast our burdens on Him, and He will make them light.  Let us trust Him, repent, and follow Him.  Let us not suffer needlessly!

Why missionary work is so important

The scripture mastery for today explains a bit why missionary work in our church is so important.  These verses are found in Doctrine and Covenants 18:10, 15-16:

10 Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;

 15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!

 16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!

 The key is found in verse 10--Everybody is important to God.  He wants each of us to have all the blessings and happiness that He has to offer.  That is why those of us who have the gospel are asked to share it with others. 

Having served a mission for the church, and having had the wonderful opportunity to share the gospel with those around me, I know about the joy that is referred to in verses 15 and 16.  Sharing the gospel brings an enormous amount of joy and happiness.  Not only to the person sharing the gospel, but also to the person receiving it!

So. . .Want to be happy?  Share the gospel, and you will be.

Endure to the End

Today's scripture mastery is Doctrine and Covenants 14:7

 7 And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God.

That is a simple statement, and promise from the Lord--however, it is not as simple to accomplish.  We must "endure to the end"--meaning that we can't give up.  After we gain faith in Christ, and are baptized, and begin keeping the commandments--that is a good start.  But it doesn't save us.  We must continue to do those things that brought us to that point.

Nephi explains this much better than I can.  In 2 Nephi 31:17-21, he says this:

17 Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter. For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.

 18 And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life; yea, ye have entered in by the gate; ye have done according to the commandments of the Father and the Son; and ye have received the Holy Ghost, which witnesses of the Father and the Son, unto the fulfilling of the promise which he hath made, that if ye entered in by the way ye should receive.

 19 And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.

 20 Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

 21 And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the way; and there is none other way nor name given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is one God, without end. Amen.

Let us continue to pattern our lives after Christ.  Let us follow His commandments all the days of our life.  Because if we don't do that--if we give up, we will not gain eternal life. . .Don't give up!

Pray always

Today's scripture mastery is another short one, but it has some important council for everybody.  Doctrine and Covenants 10:5 says:

 5 Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work.

Sounds simple.  Pray.  But not just pray--pray always.

The nice thing about prayer is that it is your own personal line of communication with your Father in Heaven who loves you.  He has given us prayer so that we can share with him our needs and desires, our hopes, and our dreams.  We can come to him in prayer when we have a question that we are struggling with in life--He will provide answers.  He will provide comfort and council and help.

We can come to him in prayer when we are full of gratitude for our many blessings in life.  We can thank him for our families, our friends, our many opportunities in life--or for this beautiful world which we live in, and all that is in it.  Anything that we are grateful for we can express that to Him in prayer.

Prayer can be done anyplace and anytime (yes, even in the workplace, or at school.)  It doesn't have to be done out-loud, nor does it have to be kneeling, or even with your eyes closed.  It can be done silently, in your heart, where only you and the Lord can hear.  In fact, there are places where it may not be appropriate to pray outwardly (such as the workplace or at school that I mentioned above), but you can ALWAYS pray in your heart.

There is a story found in the Book of Mormon about a group of people who believed in Christ, but lived at a time/place where those who had power over them threatened to kill them if they were even found praying.  They did not stop praying in their hearts, but God still heard their cries (Mosiah 24:11-13)

 11 And Amulon commanded them that they should stop their cries; and he put guards over them to watch them, that whosoever should be found calling upon God should be put to death.

 12 And Alma and his people did not raise their voices to the Lord their God, but did pour out their hearts to him; and he did know the thoughts of their hearts.

 13 And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage.

Again, we can pray at any time, and in any place, for any reason.  I like the verses quoted by Alma, from the prophet Zenos on prayer (Alma 33:3-11)

3 Do ye remember to have read what Zenos, the prophet of old, has said concerning prayer or worship?

 4 For he said: Thou art merciful, O God, for thou hast heard my prayer, even when I was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those who were mine enemies, and thou didst turn them to me.

 5 Yea, O God, and thou wast merciful unto me when I did cry unto thee in my field; when I did cry unto thee in my prayer, and thou didst hear me.

 6 And again, O God, when I did turn to my house thou didst hear me in my prayer.

 7 And when I did turn unto my closet, O Lord, and prayed unto thee, thou didst hear me.

 8 Yea, thou art merciful unto thy children when they cry unto thee, to be heard of thee and not of men, and thou wilt hear them.

 9 Yea, O God, thou hast been merciful unto me, and heard my cries in the midst of thy congregations.

 10 Yea, and thou hast also heard me when I have been cast out and have been despised by mine enemies; yea, thou didst hear my cries, and wast angry with mine enemies, and thou didst visit them in thine anger with speedy destruction.

 11 And thou didst hear me because of mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is because of thy Son that thou hast been thus merciful unto me, therefore I will cry unto thee in all mine afflictions, for in thee is my joy; for thou hast turned thy judgments away from me, because of thy Son.

Talk to the Lord in prayer--really talk to Him.  He does not require a special memorized prayer to communicate with him.  Talk with Him as if He were right in front of you, and were your best friend--because that is exactly what He is!  He loves you, and wants the best for you.  He appreciates hearing from you.  He wants to give you additional blessings and help in your life.  There are some blessings that he gives out only when we ask Him for them--don't be afraid to ask.  In fact, if you look through the scriptures for the phrase "ask and ye shall receive", you will find many scriptures that state that truth.

How the Lord answers us

Doctrine and Covenants 8:2-3 is today's scripture mastery.  In it, we learn how the Lord often gives us our answers, and reveals new things to us:

 2 Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.

 3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground.

It is possible to receive grand revelations, such as Moses' burning bush experience, or when the brother of Jared saw the finger of the Lord.  Or even when Joseph Smith saw God the Father and His Son, and talked with them.

However, in most cases the revelations of God are much less dramatic.  They come as these two verses say: "in your mind and your heart, by the Holy Ghost"

That goes hand in hand with receiving answers from God for things that we would like to know.  I have previously commented on Moroni 10:3-5, which tells us how to seek after an answer from the Lord.  Well, today's scripture mastery shows how that answer comes.  Doctrine and Covenants 9:8-9 is another verse that tells us how the answer most often comes from the Lord:

 8 But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

 9 But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me.

Simple, isn't it?  To get our own revelation/answer from God, we must simply follow the following pattern:

1. study it out on our own, and make our own decision
2. Go to God in prayer, asking if the decision you have made is correct
3. Firmly believe, with faith in Christ, that you will receive an answer
4. Listen with your heart and your mind

When you do that, you will receive an answer to your prayers.  You can then know, by the power of the Holy Ghost if what you have prayed about is true or not.

Search These Commandments

Well--we have now finished the 25 scripture mastery verses for each of the Old Testament, the New Testament, and the Book of Mormon.  Now we just have the 25 scripture mastery verses in the Doctrine and Covenants.

The first one is found in Doctrine and Covenants 1:37-38.  It is given as a statement of fact by the Lord.  It says:

 37 Search these commandments, for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled.

 38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.

The section of scripture that these verses comes from is known as the preface.  It was given by God to Joseph Smith to be the preface of the Doctrine and Covenants.  The Doctrine and Covenants is unique among scripture, as all other scripture that we have was written anciently.  But the Doctrine and Covenants was written in our day.  Most of the promises and revelations found in it came from Joseph Smith in the 1800s--but there are a few sections that have been added to it since I was born.

There are some unique revelations found in the Doctrine and Covenants that we have, that take other Christian faiths by surprise.  One example of that is Section 89, which is known as the "Word of Wisdom"  This revelation teaches us that we should eat certain things (in moderation), and that we should avoid eating certain things (such as alcohol and tobacco).  This revelation was given long before the health benefits of eating and drinking good healthy foods was known by the scientific world, and also before the known risks of alcohol/tobacco were known.  Later prophets have added council that we should avoid all illicit drugs in addition to alcohol and tobacco.  The For the Strength of Youth is the set of standards that the youth of the church are encouraged to follow.  In the section titled "Physical and Emotional Health" this quote is found:

Do not drink coffee or tea. Never use tobacco products or any form of alcohol; they are addictive and harmful to your body and spirit. Being under the influence of alcohol weakens your judgment and self-control. Drinking can also lead to alcoholism, which destroys individuals and families.

Avoid any drink, drug, chemical, or dangerous practice that is used to produce a “high” or other artificial effect that may harm your body or mind. Some of these include marijuana, hard drugs, prescription or over-the-counter medications that are abused, and household chemicals. Use of these substances can lead to addiction and can destroy your mind and your body.

The part of today's scripture mastery that is most often focused on is the last part.  The part where it says that whether the Lord speaks something with his own mouth, or speaks through one of his servants, it is the same.  The prophets and apostles who live on the earth today speak the words of God.  They are prophets, seers, and revelators--just as were on the earth in the time of the Bible.  The council that they give, and the revelations that they reveal to us are very important.  If they say something in the name of the Lord, we had better listen! 

Now, we are often accused of "blindly following" without thinking for ourselves--that is not true though.  When we hear the words of the prophets and apostles, we each choose for ourselves whether to listen and obey, or whether we will not.  We each can know for ourselves if what they are teaching/prophesying is true or not (see my post on how to know for yourself)

It is amazing that God continues to guide us and help us in these days.  He has not left us alone.  He continues to take a personal interest in each of our lives.  Even if you don't realize it, God is there, and has been helping you (and desires to help you even more).  Trust Him!  Listen to his prophets and apostles who live and teach today.  Study the scriptures, and take in to your life the eternal truths that will guide you to peace and happiness and safety.  Keep the commandments and be happy!

How to know for yourself

Today's scripture mastery is probably one of the most well known (or at least most quoted) of the scripture mastery that we have.  If you have ever talked with one of our missionaries, chances are that they have either quoted/summarized/or asked you to read these verses.  They are found at the end of the Book of Mormon (Moroni 10:4-5)

 4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

That is a very powerful promise that Moroni has made to the world. . .And it is a valid promise.  I have tested it, and have found it to be true.  So have millions of others.  This promise can be applied by anybody in the world who has a sincere desire to know if something is from God or not.  The prerequisites to the knowledge from God are 1)Faith in Christ, 2)A sincere desire to know, and 3) Asking God in prayer if what you have learned is true. 

If you have a determination to act on the promptings you will get from the Holy Ghost, you WILL receive an answer.

The cool thing about this promise is that is is a "universal" promise--it can be applied to anything that you would like to know from God.  The missionaries ask that you apply it in your life to know for yourself if the Book of Mormon is true, and the Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.  But it can be used to know ANY truth from God for yourself.

In life, we often hear and are taught many contradicting things.  There are many opinions out there on what is, and what is not from God.  This is a sure fire way to know the truth.

Try it--If you have a question that you would like God to answer in your life.  If you have something that you would like to know for yourself, you don't have to remain in darkness.  You can know for yourself if something is true (or not)