Chapter 25, verses 8-11: Things that should cause us sorrow: loss of our loved ones, people killing other people, the sinful and polluted state of others. Things that should cause us joy: deliverance from bondage, the immediate goodness of God and his power.
One of the purposes of this lesson is to inspire class members to continually apply the principles of repentance. As we do so, our hearts, and thereby our emotions, will be more aligned to God's heart and emotions. We will be more like him in sorrowing for the sin we see around us (instead of ignoring, being entertained by, or glorifying and promoting it like so much of the world does). Likewise, we will be more like him in feeling joy at the blessings received by others, especially the blessing of being delivered from every type of bondage.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Mosiah 18-24: pt 2
Chapter 20 verse 22: And now let us pacify the king, and we fulfil the oath which we have made unto him; for it is better that we should be in bondage than that we should lose our lives; therefore, let us put a stop to the shedding of so much blood.
Three good points here from Gideon:
1. Just because the Lamanites broke their oath doesn't mean it's ok for the Nephites to break theirs.
2. It was better for them to be in bondage than to lose their lives. I suppose it's better for us to live through a difficult situation than to stop living, mainly because we don't know when God will deliver us. We usually don't know how good our life is going to get, and it may be sooner than we think.
3. This one goes without saying.
Three good points here from Gideon:
1. Just because the Lamanites broke their oath doesn't mean it's ok for the Nephites to break theirs.
2. It was better for them to be in bondage than to lose their lives. I suppose it's better for us to live through a difficult situation than to stop living, mainly because we don't know when God will deliver us. We usually don't know how good our life is going to get, and it may be sooner than we think.
3. This one goes without saying.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Mosiah 18-24: pt 1
Chapter 18 verse 10: Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?
Sometimes it's helpful to me to apply this verse by putting blanks to be filled in, like this. Now I say unto you, if _____ be the desire of your hearts, what have you against _____, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?
If a strong family unit be the desire of my heart, what have I against family scripture study, that the Lord may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon us? If charity for my fellow man be the desire of my heart, what have I against serving others, that the Lord may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon me?
The lesson I learn from this is that there is always a way for the righteous desires of our heart to be fulfilled; we just have to be willing to do what is required. What do we have against it?
Sometimes it's helpful to me to apply this verse by putting blanks to be filled in, like this. Now I say unto you, if _____ be the desire of your hearts, what have you against _____, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?
If a strong family unit be the desire of my heart, what have I against family scripture study, that the Lord may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon us? If charity for my fellow man be the desire of my heart, what have I against serving others, that the Lord may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon me?
The lesson I learn from this is that there is always a way for the righteous desires of our heart to be fulfilled; we just have to be willing to do what is required. What do we have against it?
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Mosiah 12-17: pt 2
Chapter 13 verse 11. Somehow I've never read this verse and thought about the danger of studying iniquity. I've just always glossed over that part and only thought about King Noah and his priests teaching iniquity. Often people think there's no danger in studying things that are contrary to gospel truths. There are all sorts of ways to rationalize it, and all sorts of iniquity to study. We would do better to study righteousness.
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