Article of Faith #6

#6 "We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth."

That is exactly what every missionary goes out and preaches to the world.  That we have the exact same organization in this church as did Christ when he organized the true gospel while he was on the earth. 


I am going to break down each word to make it more understandable.


Organization:

Mosiah 18:17, 20

"And they were called the church of God,

or the church of Christ,

from that time forward.

And it came to pass that whosoever

was baptized by the power

and authority of God was added to his church.

Yea, even he commanded them

that they should preach nothing

save it were repentance and faith on the Lord,

who had redeemed his people."

Premitive Church:

3 Nephi 27:3-7

"And they said unto him: Lord, we will that thou wouldst tell us the name whereby we shall call this church; for there are disputations among the people concerning this matter.

 And the Lord said unto them: Verily, verily, I say unto you, why is it that the people should murmur and dispute because of this thing?

 Have they not read the scriptures, which say ye must take upon you the name of Christ, which is my name? For by this name shall ye be called at the last day;

 And whoso taketh upon him my name, and endureth to the end, the same shall be saved at the last day.

 Therefore, whatsoever ye shall do, ye shall do it in my name; therefore ye shall call the church in my name; and ye shall call upon the Father in my name that he will bless the church for my sake."

Apostles:

3 Nephi 12:1

"And it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words unto Nephi, and to those who had been called, (now the number of them who had been called, and received power and authority to baptize, was twelve) and behold, he stretched forth his hand unto the multitude, and cried unto them, saying: Blessed are ye if ye shall give heed unto the words of these twelve whom I have chosen from among you to minister unto you, and to be your servants; and unto them I have given power that they may baptize you with water; and after that ye are baptized with water, behold, I will baptize you with fire and with the Holy Ghost; therefore blessed are ye if ye shall believe in me and be baptized, after that ye have seen me and know that I am."

Prophets:

"The work of a Hebrew prophet was to act as God’s messenger and make known God’s will.  He taught men about God’s character, showing the full meaning of his dealings with Israel in the past. It was therefore part of the prophetic office to preserve and edit the records of the nation’s history.  It was also the prophet’s duty to denounce sin and foretell its punishment, and to redress, so far as he could, both public and private wrongs. He was to be, above all, a preacher of righteousness. When the people had fallen away from a true faith in Jehovah, the prophets had to try to restore that faith and remove false views about the character of God and the nature of the Divine requirement."
From the Bible Dictionary

Pastors:

This is the same things as a Bishop. 
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
have bishops to lead and guide the church locally.
 
Teachers:
Mosiah 23:17

" And it came to pass
 that none received authority
 to preach or to teach except
it were by him from God.
Therefore he consecrated
all their priests and all their teachers;
and none were consecrated
 except they were just men."

Evangelists:
"In popular usage throughout Christendom,
an evangelist is one who proclaims the gospel. 
However, in latter-day revelation
an evangelist is defined as a patriarch."
From the Bible dictionary

The missing piece!

I remember reading this story to the kids that I worked with back in Utah.  We usually discussed how different people are.  But I saw this on a friends facebook page and watched it with a whole new look on the story. 

Now, I don't know how many of you people who are converts to the church felt this way as you were trying to figure out which church was right for you.  We try to mold into other churches, sometimes to make us right for them, or them right for us.  But The church that allows you to grow to your full potential and excepts you for who God made you to be, is the church that will bring you the greatest joy, happiness, love, and sense of belonging. 

If you would like to learn more of how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints helps you to grow into who God wants you to be,

check out mormon.org and click to meet with the missionaries! 

This church has felt like home to all those that come in, so come "home". 

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalm 46:1

Each time we pray, our relationship with our Father in heaven should be Strengthened!

"As soon as we learn the true relationship in which we stand tward God (namely, God is our father, and we are his children), then at once prayer becomes natural and instinctive on our part.  Many of our so-called difficulties about prayer arise from forgetting this relationship."  Bible Dictionary-prayer

God is our father.  He WANTS to hear from us.  He loves us therefore, he wants to hear from us.  If we ever feel unworthy to pray, or don't feel like we "want" to pray, that is Satan trying to stop you from communicating with the one person that can help you the greatest in this life, God.

2 Nephi 32:8-9

...For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit

which teacheth a man to pray,
 ye would know that ye must pray;
for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray,
but teacheth him that he must not pray.

 9 But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always,

and not faint;...

"The object of prayer is not to change the will of God,

but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings

 that God is already willing to grant,

 but that are made conditional on our asking for them.

Blessings require some work or effort on our part

 before we can obtain them.

 Prayer is a form of work,

and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings." (Bible Dictionary-Prayer)



we need to communicate with him constantly if we are to overcome this life. 

Doctrine and Covenants 10:5

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.

We can pray for:

Strength

Knowledge

Christlike attributes that need strengthened

Comfort

Guidance

Other people and their needs

Gratitude

Change of desires (to be able to align our will with God's will)

etc

How has prayer helped you today?

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

I wanted to write a blog on how important my Father is to me and what impact he has on my life.  An example of a righteous father.

Sister Dalton stated:

“'The most important thing a father can do for his [daughter] is to love [her] mother.” By the way you love her mother, you will teach your daughter about tenderness, loyalty, respect, compassion, and devotion. She will learn from your example what to expect from young men and what qualities to seek in a future spouse. You can show your daughter by the way you love and honor your wife that she should never settle for less. Your example will teach your daughter to value womanhood. You are showing her that she is a daughter of our Heavenly Father, who loves her.”

It is by divine design that fathers are to preside over families, because you are the ones that hold the priesthood and can accomplish what is needed to be done. It is a responsibility that our Father in Heaven gave to each of you men to be able to accomplish such a noble cause.

Sister Dalton said

“Today’s popular culture tries to erode and demean your eternal role as a patriarch and father and minimize your most important responsibilities. These have been given to you “by divine design,” and as fathers you “are to preside over [your] families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for [your] families.”
Fathers, you are the guardians of your homes, your wives, and your children."

My father was always loving when he taught, but he encouraged in ways that I needed to improve and become better. He helped me want to go to college by encouraging and sitting down and talking with me. I know have a degree and he was a big support in me focusing and getting that taken care of. He helped me with learning about finances, even though I still have a lot to learn. He knew all of my friends. He IS my friend. I knew that I could talk to him about anything and everything. I had a unique childhood where I could go to work with my dad every day if I wanted to. He was a farmer and was self-employed. That doesn't sound very fun to most of you, but those were times that I was able to bond with my dad and have one-on-one time with him. I remember trips of just going out to the fields to change water and coming back. Something so simple, yet had such an impact on our relationship. I would have my mom drive me out when I was younger and I would milk cows with him, or ride in the tractor while he was cutting crops. I spent all of potato harvest with him and would always try to find an excuse to ride in the semi with him to deliver the potatoes. He probably didn't even think much about it, but I was definitely planning. Before I came on my mission, we took a road trip to Ohio. My sister moved there and so we drove their car out. That 4 days we spent together is forever in my memory. 4 solid days of one-on-one time was priceless in the eyes of his daughter. Even something as simple as his involvement he had with girls camp or band performances was large in my eyes.

"Brethren,

 fathers,

young men,

Be loyal to the royal within you.

Lead your family to the temple,

be guardians of virtue,
and magnify your priesthood.”

My father is my hero. Not because he did heroic things or won a lot of trophies, or had a million dollars. But because he loves God, he leads by example, he loves his family, and what more can a person desire of their fathers?

This is a sacred role, and one that should continue to be upheld and respected. A parent doesn't know what impact small acts of righteousness can have on their children, but I am hear to tell you they are great in the sight of your sons and daughters.

Thank you Dad for the amazing example you have been in my life!  YOU ARE MY HERO!

It's the 5th article of faith!

Alright everyone.  Are we ready for the amazing 5th Article of Faith?  Good!  Because here it is.

 5 We believe

that a man must be called of God,

 by prophecy,

and by the laying on of hands

 by those who are in authority,

 to preach the Gospel and

 administer in the ordinances thereof.

Alright, break down time!

"We believe that a man must be called of God"

Alma 13:3

And this is the manner after which they were ordained—being called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God, on account of their exceeding faith and good works..."

"by prophesy"

1 Nephi 22:2

And I, Nephi, said unto them: Behold they were ^amanifest unto the prophet by the voice of the ^bSpirit; for by the Spirit are all things made known unto the ^cprophets, which shall come upon the children of men according to the flesh.

"Laying on of hands by those who are in authority"

3 Nephi 18:36

And it came to pass that when Jesus had made an end of these sayings, he touched with his ^ahand the ^bdisciples whom he had chosen, one by one, even until he had touched them all, and spake unto them as he touched them.

"Preach the gospel"

Alma 49:30

...being baptized unto repentance, and sent forth to preach among the people.

"Administer in the ordinances thereof."

Alma 13:16

Now these ^aordinances were given after this ^bmanner, that thereby the people might look forward on the Son of God...

How important is this Article of Faith to our society and to your belief today?