Article of Faith #7

#7  "We Believe in the gift of tongues, prophesy,

revelation,

visions,

healings,

interpretation of tongues

and so forth."

This Article of Faith is a lot to do with the miracles that are all around us.  But we believe in these miracles!

"...exhorting all men to come unto God,

the Holy One of Israel,

and believe in prophesying,

and in revelations,

and in the ministering of angels,

and in the gift of speaking with tongues,

and in the gift of interpreting languages,

and in all things which are good;"

Omni 1:25

We can also aquire the gift of revelation for our children and for ourselves.

"But this is not all;

they had given themselves to much prayer,

and fasting;

therefore they had the spirit of prophecy,

and the spirit of revelation,

and when they taught,

they taught with power and authority of God."

Alma 17:3

An example of a healing from the Book of Mormon:

And Alma said: If thou believest in the redemption of Christ thou canst be healed.

And he said: Yea, I believe according to thy words.

And then Alma cried unto the Lord, saying: O Lord our God, have mercy on this man, and heal him according to his faith which is in Christ.

And when Alma had said these words, Zeezrom leaped upon his feet, and began to walk; and this was done to the great astonishment of all the people; and the knowledge of this went forth throughout all the land of Sidom.

(Alma 15:8-11)

And the gift that is well known for missionaries of the church as well as to anyone that is trying to understand and interpret the spirit.

 "And again, to another, the interpretation of languages and of divers kinds of tongues."

(Moroni 10:16)



If we have the Bible, why do we need the Book of Mormon?

I have heard this question a lot of times!  Why would we need more if God has already given us this much?  Well, first off, this life is ALL about progression.  God wants us to continue to learn, grow, develop, and become more than we are today.  So, He teaches little by little.

Isaiah 28:10
"For precept must be upon precept, line upon line, Here a little, and there a little." 

So God wanted us to learn step by step.  He feels that we have learned what we have needed to learn from the Bible and is ready to give more.

Another struggle is that people have changed those important things in the Bible and now the Bible is not complete.  The Bible has even predicted this. 

Isaiah 24:5
"The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant."

Well, God is a God of order and great knowledge and understanding.  So he knew that this would happen and so he had people in the Ancient America's keeping record so that He could bring it forth when it was time to bring the fulness of the gospel back.

Christ said,
"Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments."
"And also those to whom these commandments were given, might have power to lay the foundation of this church, and to bring it forth out of obscurity and out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well pleased..."  (D&C 1:17, 30)

God has prepared the way for the gospel to come back to the earth and to have those sacred things restored to the earth.  The time for this to happen is now.  The time is called the "fulness of time."

Ephesians 1:10
"That in the dispensation of the
fulness of times
he might gather together
 in one all things in Christ,
 both which are in heaven,
 and which are on earth; even in him." 

We live in the fulness of time, and God has brought the gospel of Jesus Christ through the man who was called as a prophet of God, Joseph Smith.  The Book of Mormon clarifies and refines the doctrine of God and what we have to do in order to return to God.

I know that this is true.  The Book of Mormon does not take away anything from the Bible, it only clarifies and helps us understand who Jesus Christ is, what we need to do, who we need to become, and how we gain peace and happiness in this life.

Baptism

Why do members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints put such an emphasis on being baptized?  What's the big deal!?

Well, Christ told us in John 3:5

"Jesus answered,

 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, 

Except a man be born 

of water and of the Spirit, 

he cannot enter into the 

kingdom of God." 

So we HAVE to be baptized to enter in the kingdom of God!  Everyone should want that.  To be able to live with God again, what a blessing!  But Christ himself said that we have to be baptized by someone holding the priesthood authority of God to be able to live with God again.  We desire EVERYONE to receive this blessing.  THAT is why we want EVERYONE to be baptized so that they can live with God again. 

And once we are baptized we are cleansed from all sin.  We will be held

"guiltless before my 

Father at the day 

when I shall stand 

to judge the world." 3 Nephi 27:16  

Because  

"no unclean thing can 

enter into his kingdom." 3 Nephi 27:19 

we need that cleansing power that comes from being baptized and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost to be found 'clean' to enter into God's kingdom!

Two people desired to show God that they were willing to obey His commandments and to follow the example of Jesus Christ and were baptized this weekend.  They both said how clean they felt and how happy they are!  There is only one way in this life to feel this way, and it is through baptism!  

Stephanie Dobbins                Justin Marquardt

I KNOW

So, I don't have a great analogy today with anything that I have seen, but I was sitting in this chair and was trying to decide what I wanted to blog about.  The only thing that kept coming into my mind was to testify.  Write out your testimony.   So here you go.

I know that God exists. I know that He loves each and everyone one of us.  I know that He is my Father.  I know that He is happy when we obey, and sad when we disobey.  I know that He wanted us to come to this earth, and that He wants ALL of us to return to His presence through baptism and keeping the commandments.

I know that His Son Jesus Christ lives.  I know He loves us.  I know that He performed the atonement for me because He loves me.  I know that the Atonement is there to allow us to be forgiven, to be cleansed, to right any wrongs that happen to us in this life, and to allow us each to return to live with our Father in Heaven.

I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God.  That he had the faith it took to go in to that grove of trees and kneel down and ask God himself which church was true.  And that God the Father came down and His Son, Jesus Christ, and told Joseph Smith that none of the sects were true and that he, Joseph Smith, was to be a prophet.  A prophet that is called by God himself to lead and direct His children back to Him.  To bring back those ordinances and covenants we need to do to enter God's presence.  Joseph Smith did translate the plates that contained the Book of Mormon through the power of God.  

I know that the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints has been restored to the earth and that it is the same church that Jesus Christ established when he was on the earth.  I know this because I have asked God, my Eternal Father, and He has told me it's true in my heart and in my mind.




I know this clip is a little long, but it is SO amazing!  These are the testimonies of Apostles of Christ.  Apostles are to represent Christ and testify of Christ.  In the Bible dictionary it states:
"The calling of an apostle is to be a special witness of the name of Jesus Christ in all the world, particularly of his divinity and of his bodily resurrection from the dead."

So, grab a cup of hot chocolate, or a little bag of popcorn, or some of that Christmas candy you got and take the time to be uplifted as you listen to apostles of the Lord testify of Jesus the Christ.