The Book of Mormon - Another Testament of Jesus Christ

[Tuly]

How wonderful Steve, Was there something else beneath your comment?

[Steve]

Yes, sorry—I fixed it. My manager took a photo unbeknownst to me while I was looking through the book.

[Tuly]

Looking good Steve. We (dad, Edward and I) finished reading the Book of Mormon Friday, October 14th, for the whatever time around. This time I was touched again in Moroni 8 for the Lord's love for our little children. "how many little children have died without baptism!" - I look at the centuries of children that died in infancy and in awe for His consideration in this reality. I love The Book of Mormon and all of its truthfulness. How blessed we are to have it, may we never take it for granted.

10 Behold I say unto you that this thing shall ye teach—repentance and baptism unto those who are accountable and capable of committing sin; yea, teach parents that they must repent and be baptized, and humble themselves as their little children, and they shall all be saved with their little children.

11 And their little children need no repentance, neither baptism. Behold, baptism is unto repentance to the fulfilling the commandments unto the remission of sins.

12 But little children are alive in Christ, even from the foundation of the world; if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respecter to persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!

13 Wherefore, if little children could not be saved without baptism, these must have gone to an endless hell.

14 Behold I say unto you, that he that supposeth that little children need baptism is in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; for he hath neither faith, hope, nor charity; wherefore, should he be cut off while in the thought, he must go down to hell.
15 For awful is the wickedness to suppose that God saveth one child because of baptism, and the other must perish because he hath no baptism.

[Tuly]

I have been inspired by the many counsels given by Moroni in Mormon chapter 9. In particular -

Mormon 9:6 O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto the Lord; cry mightily unto the Father in the name of Jesus, that perhaps ye may be found spotless, pure, fair, and white, having been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, at that great and last day.

7 And again I speak unto you who deny the revelations of God, and say that they are done away, that there are no revelations, nor prophecies, nor gifts, nor healing, nor speaking with tongues, and the interpretation of tongues;

8 Behold I say unto you, he that denieth these things knoweth not the gospel of Christ; yea, he has not read the scriptures; if so, he does not understand them.

Is it possible to read the scriptures and not understand them?. Most definitely, yes. I guess one can say. "well, at least they are reading the Book of Mormon" - and I will give credit to all who try to understand the scriptures. However, I know now why praying before reading the scriptures can be very helpful and important in having the Holy ghost to help us understand the scriptures. I also feel that one way of understanding the scriptures is that we are more desirous to repent daily and sooner after a misdeed.

This next verse, is so powerful to me -

Mormon 9:21 Behold, I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ, doubting nothing, whatsoever he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him; and this promise is unto all, even unto the ends of the earth.

"doubting nothing" - I don't think I doubt nothing when I ask the Father. That would include acknowledging "Thy will be done" in the "doubt nothing". This is one I'm working on much more to eventually perfect - mighty faith required.

[Tuly]

I finished reading The Book of Mormon in Spanish this morning. I'm grateful to start The Book Of Mormon again tomorrow, since I always get sad when this wonderful book ends.
I'm grateful to have James, Ann and Mami read The Book of Mormon with me weekly.
I quote these verses from Ether - I love them and look forward with great hope to these prophecies being fulfilled.

Ether 13:4-13
4 Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake concerning a New Jerusalem upon this land.

5 And he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come—after it should be destroyed it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord; wherefore, it could not be a new Jerusalem for it had been in a time of old; but it should be built up again, and become a holy city of the Lord; and it should be built unto the house of Israel—

6 And that a New Jerusalem should be built up upon this land, unto the remnant of the seed of Joseph, for which things there has been a type.

7 For as Joseph brought his father down into the land of Egypt, even so he died there; wherefore, the Lord brought a remnant of the seed of Joseph out of the land of Jerusalem, that he might be merciful unto the seed of Joseph that they should perish not, even as he was merciful unto the father of Joseph that he should perish not.

8 Wherefore, the remnant of the house of Joseph shall be built upon this land; and it shall be a land of their inheritance; and they shall build up a holy city unto the Lord, like unto the Jerusalem of old; and they shall no more be confounded, until the end come when the earth shall pass away.

9 And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth; and they shall be like unto the old save the old have passed away, and all things have become new.

10 And then cometh the New Jerusalem; and blessed are they who dwell therein, for it is they whose garments are white through the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who are numbered among the remnant of the seed of Joseph, who were of the house of Israel.

11 And then also cometh the Jerusalem of old; and the inhabitants thereof, blessed are they, for they have been washed in the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who were scattered and gathered in from the four quarters of the earth, and from the north countries, and are partakers of the fulfilling of the covenant which God made with their father, Abraham.

12 And when these things come, bringeth to pass the scripture which saith, there are they who were first, who shall be last; and there are they who were last, who shall be first.

13 And I was about to write more, but I am forbidden; but great and marvelous were the prophecies of Ether; but they esteemed him as naught, and cast him out; and he hid himself in the cavity of a rock by day, and by night he went forth viewing the things which should come upon the people.

[Tuly]

I have been reading The Book of Mormon in Spanish and are so grateful for the focus it gives me in my daily decisions. I cannot tell you enough how important it is that we make time to read The Book of Mormon daily. This is from Teachings of Presidents of the Church - Gordon B. Hinckley - Chapter 16
(by the way does any one know what we are studying next year in RS/ Melchizedeck classes?)

https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-of ... n?lang=eng

“The evidence for [the Book of Mormon’s] truth and validity lies within the covers of the book itself. The test of its truth lies in reading it.”

Each time we encourage others to read the Book of Mormon, we do them a favor. If they read it prayerfully and with a sincere desire to know the truth, they will know by the power of the Holy Ghost that the book is true.

From that knowledge there will flow a conviction of the truth of many other things. For if the Book of Mormon is true, then God lives. Testimony upon testimony runs through its pages of the solemn fact that our Father is real, that he is personal, that he loves his children and seeks their happiness.

If the Book of Mormon is true, then Jesus is the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father in the flesh, born of Mary, “a virgin, most beautiful … above all other virgins” (see 1 Ne. 11:13–21), for the book so testifies in a description unexcelled in all literature.

If the Book of Mormon is true, then Jesus is verily our Redeemer, the Savior of the world. …

If the Book of Mormon is true, Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, for he was the instrument in the hands of God in bringing to light this testimony of the divinity of our Lord.

If this book is true, [the President of the Church] is a prophet, for he holds all of the keys, gifts, powers, and authority held by the Prophet Joseph, who brought forth this latter-day work.

If the Book of Mormon is true, the Church is true, for the same authority under which this sacred record came to light is present and manifest among us today. It is a restoration of the Church set up by the Savior in Palestine. It is a restoration of the Church set up by the Savior when he visited [the American] continent as set forth in this sacred record.

If the Book of Mormon is true, the Bible is true. The Bible is the Testament of the Old World; the Book of Mormon is the Testament of the New. One is the record of Judah; the other is the record of Joseph, and they have come together in the hand of the Lord in fulfillment of the prophecy of Ezekiel. (See Ezek. 37:19.) Together they declare the Kingship of the Redeemer of the world and the reality of his kingdom.

[Steve]

It's my understanding that 2018 has "Come Follow Me" in store for priesthood and relief society, focusing on conference talks and counseling with classes about local needs.

I agree that reading the Book of Mormon daily is critical. President Monson didn't speak for long this past conference, but he did tell members to study and ponder the Book of Mormon every day.

[Tuly]

This is a transcript from Elder Holland's Book of Mormon Chiasmus Conference - August 16th.
I love this understanding of why we have reason to hope in our belief of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Also his acknowledgement that the gospel has paradoxes.

http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/t ... rence-2017

Peter assumed that two-fold aspect of our conviction when he said, “Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you.”[3]
Reasons for the hope that is in us. Reasons for our belief. I am not a lawyer as virtually all the Welch family men are, but I don’t have to be one to understand in a court of law the power and primacy of evidence. In making our case for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, I believe God intends us to find and use the evidence He has given—reasons, if you will—which affirm the truthfulness of His work.
One of the seldom-told but truly striking stories of conversion in all of scripture is the success the later Nephi and Lehi had on their mission to the Lamanites outlined in the book of Helaman. After a dramatic sequence of earthquakes and voices from heaven, of angels appearing and prison walls crumbling, Mormon records that the people “were bidden to go forth and marvel not, neither should they doubt. And . . . they did go forth . . . declaring throughout . . . the [region] . . . all the things which they had heard and seen, inasmuch that the more part of the Lamanites were convinced of them, because of the greatness of the evidences which they had received.”[4]
In his classic definition of faith the Apostle Paul suggests, with one of those paradoxes that so frequently crop up in the gospel, that evidence is still evidence even if it is not immediately observable. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen,”[5] he wrote. For me a classic example of substance I hope for and evidence of things I have not seen is the 531 pages of the Book of Mormon that come from a sheaf of gold plates some people saw and handled and hefted but I haven’t seen or handled or hefted, and neither have you. Nevertheless, the reality of those plates, the substance of them if you will, and the evidence that comes to us from them in the form of the Book of Mormon is at the heart, at the very center, of the hope and testimony and conviction of this work that is unshakably within me forever.

[Tuly]

The Book of Mormon: Strengthening Our Faith in Jesus Christ - By Elder Neil L. Andersen. I appreciated this article and grateful for the questions for us to ponder as we read The Book of Mormon.

https://www.lds.org/ensign/2011/10/the- ... g=eng&_r=1

I would invite you to ponder these questions to help you liken the teachings of the Book of Mormon to your family:

What passages in the Book of Mormon teach us that children need to see integrity and righteousness in the faith of their parents?
What counsel have fathers in the Book of Mormon given their sons that we may want to share with our children?
What do we learn about our efforts with children who are not being obedient?
How do parents in the Book of Mormon share their deep beliefs with their children?
What do we learn about faith as it is transferred from one generation to another?

[Ian]

what would you like us to learn from this?

[Tuly]

Thank you Ian , I rather like these questions. I echo Elder Andersen's testimony, "the Book of Mormon is true and that in very fact it was delivered to the Prophet Joseph Smith by the angel Moroni, under the direction of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is for our day, for our children and grandchildren. As we open it daily with faith, I promise the Lord’s Spirit will be upon us and our families will be blessed forever."
I have taken each of those questions to heart and have each question in a separate sheet of paper so I can write the scriptures of the Book of Mormon that apply to each question, I love this exercise in my scripture study journey.

[Tuly]

I have been studying President Eyring's talk from the October 2017 General Conference - Fear Not to Do Good - I was inspired by his understanding of President Monson's counsel to read the Book of Mormon. I'm trying to do the same thing which is ; pray with real intent, ponder the scriptures more intently, and try harder to serve the Lord and others for Him. And I have discovered a more peaceful strength in dealing with the challenges that have come my way. In other words the promises are true!

With that testimony, I have read the Book of Mormon every day for more than 50 years. So perhaps I could have reasonably thought that President Monson’s words were for someone else. Yet, like many of you, I felt the prophet’s encouragement and his promise invite me to make a greater effort. Many of you have done what I did: prayed with increased intent, pondered scripture more intently, and tried harder to serve the Lord and others for Him.

The happy result for me, and for many of you, has been what the prophet promised. Those of us who took his inspired counsel to heart have heard the Spirit more distinctly. We have found a greater power to resist temptation and have felt greater faith in a resurrected Jesus Christ, in His gospel, and in His living Church.

In a season of increasing tumult in the world, those increases in testimony have driven out doubt and fear and have brought us feelings of peace. Heeding President Monson’s counsel has had two other wonderful effects on me: First, the Spirit he promised has produced a sense of optimism about what lies ahead, even as the commotion in the world seems to increase. And, second, the Lord has given me—and you—an even greater feeling of His love for those in distress. We have felt an increase in the desire to go to the rescue of others. That desire has been at the heart of President Monson’s ministry and teaching.

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/ ... d?lang=eng

[Tuly]

This talk by Elder Oaks blew me away, in that we do take the Book of Mormon for granted when we don't read and study it everyday. The complete talk is excellent and worth reading and studying.
"Another Testament of Jesus Christ" - https://www.lds.org/ensign/1994/03/anot ... g=eng&_r=1

I have carefully considered all of the reasons President Benson has given for studying the Book of Mormon, including many reasons it is uniquely important in our day. From this perspective and from my frequent opportunities to listen to him in our council meetings, I will present my clear impressions of why he has pleaded with us to repent of our neglect of the Book of Mormon.

One reason stands out above all the rest. Expressly and by implication, President Benson has affirmed that this subject is the most important of all. I believe that it was the neglect—the “treating lightly”—of this subject that brought the early Church under condemnation. I believe it is the neglect of this subject that has continued the condemnation in our own day. Though supremely important, this subject is so simple that it is easy for us to neglect it in favor of other things.

The subject I believe we have neglected is the Book of Mormon’s witness of the divinity and mission of Jesus Christ and our covenant relationship to him.

[Tuly]

Amaleki son of Abinadom has one of my favorite written testimonies in the Book of Mormom. I love the obedience to keep records in The Book of Omni. Was Amaleki married or single? I do not know. I assume these men with records where guided by the spirit or commanded by a prophet or both to whom they should pass these sacred records.

25 And it came to pass that I began to be old; and, having no seed, and knowing king Benjamin to be a just man before the Lord, wherefore, I shall deliver up these plates unto him, 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; for there is nothing which is good save it comes from the Lord: and that which is evil cometh from the devil.

26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.

[Tuly]

I love when apostles repeat important messages to us in General Conference. This talk by President Marion G. Romney was first given in General Conference April 1960 and then again April 1980 - The Book of Mormon

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/ ... n?lang=eng

And so, I counsel you, my beloved brothers and sisters and friends everywhere, to make reading the Book of Mormon a few minutes each day a lifelong practice. All of us need the uninterrupted association with the Spirit of the Lord. We need to take the Holy Spirit for our constant guide that we be not deceived. I am persuaded by my own experience and that of my loved ones, as well as by the statements of the Prophet Joseph Smith, that one can get and keep closer to the Lord by reading the Book of Mormon than by reading any other book. Don’t be content with what someone else tells you about what is in it. Drink deeply from the divine fountain itself.

I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase; mutual respect and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will counsel their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope, and charity—the pure love of Christ—will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness.