The Holy Spirit
Filed under: Basic Beliefs of Mormons, Recognizing Truth
The Holy Spirit is the third member of the Godhead, which consists of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit. This third member is often the least understood by many Christians, and yet His role is critical to our lives on earth.
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose members are sometimes called Mormons, believe these three are not one being. They are completely unified in every way except physically. This is demonstrated through two verses in the New Testament of the Holy Bible.
John 10:30 says, “I and my Father are one.” In the centuries following the death of Jesus Christ and the apostles, councils convened and decided scriptures like this one signified a unity of physical being. Not all Christians agreed, but this view, put to a vote, prevailed. However, such an interpretation ignores the explanation given by the Savior a few chapters later.
In the Great Intercessory Prayer given by the Savior, He said,
And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are (John 17:11)
From this we can see the oneness is that of spiritual unity, not physical oneness, since we do not include all of Jesus’ followers in our trinity. Jesus taught in this prayer that He and His Father were one in the same way all Christians are to be one.
Mormon beliefs teach that God and Jesus Christ have perfected and glorified bodies, but the Holy Spirit is a Spirit only. He has several assignments designed to help us in our life’s journey. In fact, without His help, we would have little chance of returning to our Heavenly Father.
In the Book of Mormon, we learn the Holy Spirit testifies of Jesus Christ and God.
“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” (2 Nephi 31:18)
The Holy Spirit, then, makes it possible for us to know for certain that God lives and Jesus Christ is our Savior. Without this witness, we would have to guess, and few would accept that reality. The Bible promises us in James 1:5 that if we lack wisdom, we can ask God and He will tell us what we need to know. This knowledge comes through the Holy Ghost. We will receive an answer through warm and comforting feelings in our heart (because Satan cannot bring a feeling of peace) and in this way, we can know God and Jesus are real. We can also use the testimony of the Holy Ghost to know what doctrines are true and which church is God’s church. To receive this witness, we must pray and ask for an answer, committing ourselves to act on the answer. We must not ask unless we’re willing to accept and live by the answer.
Some people warn others not to pray, saying you can’t tell who is answering you. However, Mormons believe that since God promised He would answer us, we can trust Him to find a way to make sure we recognize the source of all truth. This is the role of the Holy Ghost—to give us answers we can recognize as coming from God when we pray. The more we pray, the better we will become at recognizing what the Holy Ghost feels like.
Mormons convey the gift of the Holy Ghost after baptism. Mormons can be baptized at age eight, which they consider the age of accountability, when a child is old enough to know right from wrong if he’s been taught, and to pray to know what is true. They are expected to pray for a testimony prior to their baptisms. After they are baptized, they are confirmed members of the Church and receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Prior to this, they have the Spirit of Christ and can receive periodic promptings from the Holy Ghost to help them recognize truth. However, after they are given the Gift of the Holy Ghost by someone with the proper priesthood authority, they can have the Holy Spirit with them all the time, as long as they are living worthy of His presence.
A Mormon teenager who enters a friends’ home to discover the parents aren’t home and the teenagers who are present are making plans to drink can receive a warning from the Holy Spirit to leave the home. If she chooses to ignore the warning and stay, she may find herself on her own, since the Holy Spirit can’t be where wickedness is, and choosing to ignore the promptings of the Holy Spirit tells Him He is not welcome. However, the teen who obeys will protect herself from very difficult situations. A driver who has a sudden spiritual impression to pull off the road may discover she has avoided an accident that happens moments later to the cars just behind her. This does not mean we can avoid all trials or dangers. However, it helps us to avoid those that are not necessary for our personal growth and plan or to avoid many—but not all—hardships.
Another role of the Holy Spirit is to serve as a comforter.
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever (John 14:16).
Life is sometimes very difficult. No life is without sadness or trial because we came here in part to learn and to be tested. However, Jesus promised not to leave us comfortless and so he sent the Holy Spirit. Even when we feel all alone in our trials, He can be there, if invited, to help us through it and to provide comforting companionship and reassurance.
The Holy Spirit also helps us receive spiritual gifts and to be sanctified as we repent. As we can see, although He may get talked about less than the other two members of the Godhead, He plays a powerful role in the success of our mortal lives.
Mormon Conversion
Filed under: Basic Beliefs of Mormons, Becoming More Christlike, Blessings, Discipleship: Following in the Savior's Footsteps, Finding Happiness, Finding Truth, Fruits of gospel living, Gospel Principles, Practices & Precepts, Making Decisions, Obedience, Recognizing Truth
Although anyone can attend most Mormon services and activities without being a member, conversion is required to experience everything the Church has to offer. Mormonism is actually a nickname for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the principles of Mormon conversion are based on the teachings of Jesus Christ, whose mission is as central to Mormonism as His name is to the true name of the Church.
A book called True to the Faith: A Gospel Reference, which offers introductions to many Mormon principles, explains that conversion is not an event in Mormonism. It is a process. Simply announcing that we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior does not complete the process. Gaining a testimony that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not complete the process. Nor does baptism or confirmation as a member of the Church. Conversion, for a Mormon, is a life-long process, and even an eternal one. It may be why Pew Foundation studies often show Mormon teens and adults score higher than many other religions in various aspects of religiosity. An understanding that conversion requires constant effort and strengthening will naturally lead one to work harder at keeping the commandments, studying, praying, and improving faith. Read more
The Book of Mormon Musical and Blind Faith
Filed under: Basic Beliefs of Mormons, Finding Truth, Gospel Principles, Practices & Precepts, Jesus Christ, Making Decisions, Recognizing Truth
Many of the reviews of the Broadway’s The Book of Mormon Musical claim it is only an attack on blind faith. The suggestion is, then, that the missionaries in the musical were operating on blind faith and that perhaps the converts were as well.
The musical features two young Mormon missionaries, one who wishes he’d been sent somewhere more fun and the other who knows nothing about his religion and so spends his time preaching Star Wars and Lord of the Rings. This is, of course, hardly a realistic portrayal of the typical Mormon missionary. Missionaries generally love being sent out of the country and the more unusual the place, the better. In addition, they are extremely well-educated in their faith.
Blind faith suggests basing faith on nothing at all. This is not what the truly converted Mormon does. First, by the time a missionary leaves for his mission at age nineteen, he knows far more than the average American teenager knows about his or her own faith. A recent Pew Forum study showed that Mormon teens were among the very few who could intelligently discuss their beliefs and were more likely to live it. Even a cursory review of Mormon teen life would have shown the composers that if they want ignorant missionaries, the Mormons aren’t the place to look for them.
Mormon children begin their religious educations in the home as infants. Their families hold daily scripture study and family prayer. In addition, they have a weekly Family Home Evening, which includes a lesson a gospel principle. In most homes, family members take turns teaching, in addition to rotating the other responsibilities in the home. In this way, young children learn how to teach their beliefs—which is one reason they can intelligently discuss them—and to lead meetings, conduct music, and plan activities. They learn the leadership skills necessary to become good missionaries.
When they are just eighteen months old, they begin to attend the nursery class. Although it is for toddlers and there is ample time to play, they also have lessons and spiritual singing times. They attend the regular worship service with their parents and attend their class during the two classes held afterwards. At age three, they start to attend regular classes and are also invited to prepare and give brief sermons, called talks, in the children’s program. Again, this helps them learn and discuss their beliefs. From ages eight to twelve, they attend a children’s group two to four times a month.
Teenagers get a far more extensive program of education. They give at least one sermon a year, lasting about five minutes, to the entire congregation and sometimes teach classes to their peers as well. Besides attending Sunday School and a class for young men or young women on gospel living, they also have a weekly activity where they put what they’ve learned into practice. They have regular service projects, youth conferences, and religious camps.
Beginning in high school, teens attend a class that is both spiritual and academic in nature on the scriptures. In this class they learn the scriptures in great depth, since it is held almost every school day, usually very early in the morning. The four year program devotes two years to the Bible, one to the Book of Mormon, and one to church history and modern revelations. They are required to read each of these books of scripture as part of this program, the weeknight program, and Sunday School. Since the classes are not all on the same book at the same time, they usually have several books to read at once.
While they are in college, they attend a similar program that is even more rigorous, both spiritually and academically. Most missionaries will have had several years of this program, known as Institute of Religion, behind them before they begin their missions.
As you can see, between home, church, and personal study, a Mormon missionary leaves for his mission with a great deal of education in his faith. Of course, there is more to faith than just knowledge, but knowledge is important. Mormons do not believe in blind faith. Children and converts are expected to learn the beliefs of their faith prior to baptism, which cannot happen earlier than age eight. While they may have only a rudimentary knowledge at this time, they are expected to continue to study and learn.
Next comes testimony. A testimony of God, of Jesus Christ, and of the Savior’s church is a requirement for baptism. Even children are taught to pray for a testimony. They beginning saying simple prayers with a parent’s help as soon as they can talk, but as they get older, they learn how to make prayer a personal conversation with God and to ask for and to receive answers. It is a lack of understanding of faith that makes The Book of Mormon Musical an extremely inaccurate portrayal of Christianity in general. Most Christians do not operate on blind faith.
A Mormon bases his faith on knowledge gained in a personal way. We all know we believe most strongly in things we have personally proven and this is the way with religion. There are some who say we need a physical proof in order to justify believing, but of course, proof is not faith and God teaches that faith what we were sent here to earth to learn. And yet, while we may not have put our hands on specific objects or seen God in person, we can still know what is true.
A Christian does not believe in the Bible because he saw the original papyrus on which it was written or because he personally watched the author at work. He might find scientific proof of the Bible’s authenticity interesting, but it isn’t the basis of his faith. If there were not lions found in the places and times the Bible says there were lions, a Christian knows it is not that they weren’t there, but that we haven’t found the proof yet. Science makes new discoveries every day and today, many things scientists once said weren’t true have been proven true. Christians are patient people in their faith.
Mormons, who also use the Bible, exercise this same faith in the Book of Mormon as well. They don’t need to see the plates on which the Book of Mormon was written any more than they need to see the papyrus on which the Bible was written. They enjoy seeing that archaeologists have, in modern times, discovered ancient records recorded on metal plates, even though they said, in Joseph Smith’s time they never were. However, that isn’t why they believe. They believed before scientists made that discovery.
Everyone knows things that they have never proven scientifically. We live by and believe in many scientific facts without bothering to recreate the experiments for ourselves. We believe in love even though we don’t head for a laboratory to find out if we really are in love. We believe in democracy without a scientific proof that it is the best form of government. We choose our parenting methods based on instincts and preference. We live our lives using faith in things we cannot or choose not to scientifically prove.
And yet, Mormons believe they can prove the existence of God and the truthfulness of their religion. They can’t prove it to anyone else because faith must be individually proven. This proof comes from the Holy Ghost. A person must first have a desire to believe and a basic understanding of what he is about to pray for. Then he takes it to God, because while man is imperfect and might mislead, God never will lead us astray. A testimony based only on material proof can be destroyed when science makes a new discovery that contradicts the old beliefs. The testimony of man can become shaky when we see that person’s imperfection or hear something we didn’t want to believe. When the testimony comes from God, however, there is no question that it is true.
Dallin H. Oaks, a Mormon apostle of Jesus Christ, offered this explanation of why faith is not blind faith:
“In closing, I refer to the relationship between obedience and knowledge. Members who have a testimony and who act upon it under the direction of their Church leaders are sometimes accused of blind obedience.
Of course, we have leaders, and of course, we are subject to their decisions and directions in the operation of the Church and in the performance of needed priesthood ordinances. But when it comes to learning and knowing the truth of the gospel—our personal testimonies—we each have a direct relationship with God, our Eternal Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ, through the powerful witness of the Holy Ghost. This is what our critics fail to understand. It puzzles them that we can be united in following our leaders and yet independent in knowing for ourselves.
Perhaps the puzzle some feel can be explained by the reality that each of us has two different channels to God. We have a channel of governance through our prophet and other leaders. This channel, which has to do with doctrine, ordinances, and commandments, results in obedience. We also have a channel of personal testimony, which is direct to God. This has to do with His existence, our relationship to Him, and the truth of His restored gospel. This channel results in knowledge. These two channels are mutually reinforcing: knowledge encourages obedience (see Deuteronomy 5:27; Moses 5:11), and obedience enhances knowledge (see John 7:17; D&C 93:1).
We all act upon or give obedience to knowledge. Whether in science or religion, our obedience is not blind when we act upon knowledge suited to the subject of our action. A scientist receives and acts upon a trusted certification of the content or conditions of a particular experiment. In matters of religion, a believer’s source of knowledge is spiritual, but the principle is the same. In the case of Latter-day Saints, when the Holy Ghost gives our souls a witness of the truth of the restored gospel and the calling of a modern prophet, our choice to follow those teachings is not blind obedience.” (See Dallin H. Oaks, “Testimony”, Ensign, April 2008 General Conference.)
Mormon Hymn: Who’s On the Lord’s Side?
Filed under: Basic Beliefs of Mormons, Basic LDS Beliefs, Counsel from Church Leaders, Discipleship: Following in the Savior's Footsteps, Frequently Asked Questions, Gospel Principles, Practices & Precepts, LDS Practices, LDS Q&A, Making Decisions, Prophets, Recognizing Truth, Written for Our Day
In 1852, when Hannah Last Cornaby was baptized, she and her husband had to enter the church building through a volley of stones being thrown at them by a screaming mob. She did not turn back. She bravely pushed through the mob, coping with the rocks and insults and allowed her husband to baptize her. Perhaps this event motivated her to later write the LDS hymn, “Who’s On the Lord’s Side?”
Who’s on the Lord’s side? Who?
Who’s on the Lord’s side? Who?
(“Who’s on the Lord’s Side?” Hymns, no. 260)
Hannah didn’t just choose the Lord’s side when it was easy or popular. She chose it when her very life was in danger. She left her home in England for it and endured many hardships with good humor for it. Hannah chose the Lord’s side.
Today, there are many forces trying to get us to choose the other side. Secular forces try to convince us it is old-fashioned to be on the Lord’s side. Political parties urge loyalty to them over the gospel. Media mocks the Lord’s side on a regular basis. This is reminiscent of a story in the Book of Mormon about a prophet named Lehi. Read more
How to Gain Faith
Filed under: Basic Beliefs of Mormons, Book of Mormon Stories, Finding Truth, God in the Book of Mormon, Inside the Book of Mormon, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ in the Book of Mormon, Joy in our relationship with the Savior, People in the Book of Mormon, Recognizing Truth, Teachings, Written for Our Day
In the previous post, we learned that a missionary named Alma, whose story is found in the Book of Mormon, had gone to preach to an apostate group called the Zoramites. He found the wealthy among them engaged in an arrogant, self-centered form of religion, in which they showed up to the synagogue once a week and each, in turn, climbed onto a tower to recite an identical prayer that simply bragged about how chosen and wonderful they were. They came in their expensive clothing and fine jewelry. Once they returned home, they gave no further thought to God until they returned.
Prayer is an important part of developing faith.
In addition, they kept the poor out of the church. Wealth was, in their minds, proof of their specialness, proof that they had been chosen and all others were doomed. Alma, encountering these poor, realized they had been humbled through their trials and longed to be allowed to worship. He decided not to bother with the arrogant wealthy people and instead to preach to the poor.
In this sermon, he gave one of the greatest sermons on faith ever written. The people were upset about being kept out of the temple because they believed this meant they were unable to worship God. Alma assured them you don’t have to be in a church building to worship. Worship was not a once a week event, but a way of life. Read more
The Spiritual Gift of Faith in Jesus Christ
Filed under: Basic Beliefs of Mormons, Basic LDS Beliefs, Bible, Discipleship: Following in the Savior's Footsteps, Finding Happiness, Finding Truth, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ, Recognizing Truth, Teachings of Christ
Have you ever seen a mustard seed? It is extremely tiny, but Jesus taught us that if we have even faith the size of a mustard seed we can do miracles.
When Jesus was asked why He had been able to cast out devils from a child when His disciples had not, He answered, “If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you (Matthew 17:20, King James Translation of the Bible.) Read more
What is Wisdom?
Filed under: Finding Truth, Recognizing Truth, Uncategorized
One day, while reading the Book of Mormon, I was startled by a description of the prophet Ammon that I had not previously noticed, in Alma, chapter 18, verse 22:
Now Ammon being wise, yet harmless, he said unto Lamoni: Wilt thou hearken unto my words, if I tell thee by what power I do these things? And this is the thing that I desire of thee.
Wise, but harmless. This unexpected combination of words has stayed with me since that time and I’ve often thought about what they mean. It could mean the historian recording the event had a sense of humor, but it’s likely there is more to the phrase than might initially be obvious. How can you be wise, but harmless? The key lies in understanding the source of wisdom. When we are truly wise, and our wisdom comes from the proper source, we are harmless to others. When we mistake the source of wisdom, we can do great eternal damage to ourselves and to those we teach. Read more
How Do Mormons Know the Prophet is Telling the Truth?
Mormons teach that God’s prophets today, like those we read of in the Bible, are authorized to speak on God’s behalf for the entire church. Often, people who are not LDS find this concept amazing or even alarming. They wonder how we know if they’re telling us the truth. We are often asked silly questions like, “If your prophet told you to only wear blue, would you?”
Brigham Young had an answer for this question. He’s said to have told people his greatest fear was that people in the church would start to take what he said as the will of God and not take the time to go to God personally to receive confirmation of it.
Although Mormons are taught to honor their prophets and to follow them, it’s not a blind following. Only God can be completely trusted to always tell you the truth, and only God knows the truth of all things. Mormons are taught even before they join the church to pray and ask God if the current prophet really is God’s prophet. Then, afterwards, at any time, th
Thomas S. Monson, current
ey can return to God and ask about specific teachings the prophet has given.
Spencer W. Kimball, a past prophet, spoke on the subject of blind faith. “When men obey commands of a creator, it is not blind obedience….God’s every command is righteous, every directive purposeful, and all for the good of the governed. …
Is it blind obedience when one regards the sign “High Voltage-Keep Away” or is it the obedience of faith in the judgment of experts who know the hazard?
Is it blind obedience when the air traveler fastens his seat belt as that sign flashes or is it confidence in the experience and wisdom of those who know more of hazards and dangers?
Is it blind obedience when the little child gleefully jumps from the table into the strong arms of its smiling father, or is this implicit trust in a loving parent who feels sure of his catch and who loves the child better than life itself? …
Is it then blind obedience when we, with our limited vision, elementary knowledge, selfish desires, ulterior motives, and carnal urges, accept and follow the guidance and obey the commands of our loving Father who … created a world for us, loves us, and has planned a constructive program for us, wholly without ulterior motive, whose greatest joy and glory is to “bring to pass the immortality and eternal life” of all his children? [See Moses 1:39.]
It is not blind obedience, even without total understanding, to follow a Father who has proved himself. (”Chapter 13: Obedience Born of Faith in God,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Spencer W. Kimball, (2006),135-44
In the case of the hot stove, it’s likely a child touched a hot stove against the advice of a parent at some time in his childhood. Having done so, he learned first that stoves can be hot, and secondly, that parents can be trusted. Over time, as his parents continued to be right about physical danger, it’s likely he stopped feeling the need to touch every stove or try out every dangerous thing. Whereas, as a toddler, he might have heard a parent say the stove was hot, but he had to find out for himself. As an eight-year-old, if his parents told him it was too dangerous to go outside in the current weather conditions, he might obey without first testing, having learned his parents were usually right.
In the same way, Mormons learn to trust their prophets, and they learn to trust God. A new member is likely to pray about every individual doctrine, but a later member, having learned that when he does so, God always says yes, the prophet is right, no longer needs to do this. He can spend his limited life doing more important things. He saves his confirmation prayers for those situations which leave him uncertain, or which require greater sacrifice to carry out.
Being able to turn to God is one way God protects his children from unscrupulous leadership. They need never take anyone’s word for any part of the gospel, but can always go directly to the source. The prophet delivers God’s message and guides the church, but each member is individually responsible for confirming the truthfulness of what they’re being told.
Someone just learning about the church through Mormon missionaries will be taught how to pray almost immediately. Then, after each lesson, he will be asked to pray about it privately to know for himself it’s true, rather than taking the word of the missionaries. This is a critical step in the member’s progression, because someone who does this is far less likely to fall away from the church in the future. His testimony will be based on a firm foundation-God.
Truth is Absolute
Filed under: Recognizing Truth, Truth Restored
When Joseph Smith was a teenager, he longed to know which church he should join. He found himself confused because each church he looked into had contradictory doctrine. How could they all be right, as some claimed? Rightly so, he sensed that truth was absolute and unchanging.
If God is the source of truth, and God is not a God of confusion, then there can’t be conflicting truths. If baptism is required to enter the kingdom of God, then it’s always required. If children infants shouldn’t be baptized, then they must never be baptized. Saying that baptism both is and is not required can both be true leads to confusion about important issues, and God doesn’t create confusion.
There are those who expect churches to be fashionable and “tolerant.” They feel churches should take no real stand on any issue, even those that affect salvation. There are churches which have done that, have kept up with the times and not worried too much about what the Bible actually says. However, this is not what God has taught us about truth.
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8: 32
John demonstrates the importance of knowing what is true. In order for us to know what’s true, there must be truth to know. Certain things must be so, whether we like them to be or not. We, as mortal beings, do not get to choose truth. Only God can do this. Our job isn’t to intellectualize truth or judge it, but to know it, live it, share it, and love it. The truth can then make us free.
So, when people accuse your church of being out of touch with the “real” world or the modern world, say it’s out of style or old-fashioned, measure your doctrine against God’s. If you find it’s in tune, then take their criticism as praise. It takes moral courage to stay with truth, and not wander off to the demands of fashion and those who are intolerant of God’s truths.
The Book of Mormon records a vision of the prophet Nephi. In this vision, there was a tree. Lehi understood that the tree had a wonderful fruit, which could bring joy to anyone who partook of it. The tree represented God’s love. Lehi naturally wanted his family to join him at the tree and eat the fruit. His wife and two youngest sons did, but his two oldest were rebellious and refused to come. Lehi watched others set out on the road that led to the tree. One group got sidetracked along the way. The next group found the iron rod that ran alongside the road after a while and held onto it so they wouldn’t get lost, even though a heavy mist had arisen. They stayed on the path, got to the tree, ate the fruit…and then made an eternally fatal error.
This group started looking around to check out how the rest of the world was viewing their wonderful accomplishment. To their surprise, the world wasn’t largely cheering them on. Instead, the people who had not entered the road or who hadn’t stayed on it mocked them, told them they were foolish, and called them names. The people who had successfully navigated the path couldn’t seem to tune out the mocking. They wanted to be loved and accepted, and so, humiliated by the mocking, they rushed off the path to join those who were elegantly dressed and very popular, but who were without truth.
There were other groups, but only one group was successful. Those people chose to take the path. They persevered until they reached the iron rod, which represented God’s word, and then held tight, allowing the rod to guide them to the tree. When they partook of the fruit, they enjoyed the blessings that came from it without taking an opinion poll to see what others thought of them. They didn’t care what others thought. They knew what was right and good, and they were content to have that, regardless of the jeers and persecutions of those less wise.
Today, those who choose to stay on the path and partake of God’s truths are jeered at and mocked. It takes real courage to stay firm and tune out the mockers. However, truth is truth. While it might seem temporarily more provident to follow those who have abandoned God, in the eternal scheme of things, those who honor God will have the best outcomes.
Those who truly know and love God do not expect him to alter truth for their convenience. They understand that truth is unchanging, and that it’s worth the hardships.
The Foundation of Correct Decisions
Since truth is the only meaningful foundation upon which we can make wise decisions, how then can one establish what is really true? Increasingly more people are finding that making wise decisions is becoming more and more difficult because of the ultra-interconnected world in which we live. Constantly forced into our consciousness is an incessant barrage of counsel, advice, and promotions. It is done by a bewildering array of media, Internet, and other means. On a given subject we can receive multiple strongly delivered, carefully crafted messages with solutions. But often two of the solutions can be diametrically opposed. No wonder some are confused and are not sure how to make the right decisions. (Richard G. Scott, “Truth: The Foundation of Correct Decisions,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 90–92)
What is truth? Truth is the state of being the case or, the body of real things, events, and facts. In this case, let’s talk about truth in relation to God and religion.
One: God lives. Jesus Christ, as I have mentioned over and over, is Jehovah of the Old Testament and the Messiah of the New. He was born into this world in humble circumstances. He did suffer for our sins, sorrows and illnesses in the Garden of Gethsemane. He not only suffered, He died. He was crucified and He was resurrected. There were not two or three witnesses of the resurrected Christ, but dozens. Thus, He forever broke the bands of death for Heavenly Father’s children, for you and me.
Two: Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father are two distinct and separate personages of glorified flesh and bone. Along with the Holy Ghost, they comprise the Godhead: God the Father, God the Son and God the Testator.
Three: Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father did appear to Joseph Smith, Jr. early in the spring of 1820. At which time the fullness and truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ was restored on the earth.
Four: We are children of God with a divine spark inside each of us that can be fanned into a great flame. We have only to reach for that divine potential, live the commandments of God and seek after His Son, Jesus Christ.
Five: The Holy Bible, as far as it is translated correctly, holds the word of God with the Book of Mormon standing as a second witness of Jesus Christ and a backup to the Holy Bible. Within its pages you will find the plain and precious truths of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
These are just five basic truths by which worlds revolve around. At the foundation of everything is plain and simple truth. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, in its entirety, is logical and based on plain and simple truth.
Elder Richard G. Scott, a living apostle, said,
The best way of finding truth is simply to go to the origin of all truth and ask or respond to inspiration. For success, two ingredients are essential: first, unwavering faith in the source of all truth; second, a willingness to keep God’s commandments to keep open spiritual communication with Him. (Richard G. Scott, “Truth: The Foundation of Correct Decisions,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 90–92)
In all things and in all matters, God will answer you. And, He will most definitely answer you in your search for truth. I invite you to read the Book of Mormon and come to an understanding of Jesus Christ and His Gospel.
With truth comes peace. With peace comes hope. With hope comes the understanding that there is so much more to life than the small piece we see. The foundation of all correct decisions is truth. That is what you must find.