The Doctrine of Christ in the Beatitudes

I haven't done one of these in a while so I will do a short update on what has gone in the last month. I have been released as a full-time missionary and have returned to school at BYU. I still plan on continuing to write in this blog, though it may not be as often as I would like, I will continue to do my best to keep up on it.

I will briefly step aside from my Lord of the Rings analyses to discuss a topic that I feel is far more important at this time. A little background first. I was blessed to have a mission president who's first priority was his missionaries and their personal preparation in order to teach most effectively. One of his favorite methods of doing this was to talk about the Doctrine of Christ in every meeting. How missionary work is connected to the Doctrine of Christ was discussed in a previous post. However, the Doctrine of Christ is central to all we do, and my mission president knew that. During one zone conference in January of 2012, he challenged us to mark in the Book of Mormon all the different parts of the Doctrine of Christ over the next 6 months. It was truly an amazing experience and it grew my testimony. Fastforward about 7 months to the present day. I am currently taking a New Testament class at BYU, which has been extremely interesting. My professor addressed the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes in a way that I had never thought of before. It involved the Doctrine of Christ and how Christ is always teaching about it. We have to keep in mind, however, that this case, the Doctrine of Christ is mostly focused on what happens when we join the Church. I will discuss this in this post.

Surprising, I don't begin the Sermon on Mount analysis in the account of Matthew. I first turn to the account given in the Book of Mormon, which really starts off the Doctrine of Christ. 3 Nephi 12, known as the Sermon at the Temple, gives a different beginning, yet it starts off the process.

"And again, more blessed are they who shall believe in your words because that ye shall testify that ye have seen me, and that ye know that I am. Yea, blessed are they who shall believe in your words, and come down into the depths of humility and be baptized, for they shall be visited with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and shall receive a remission of their sins."

Christ starts out the Sermon at the Temple with faith in hearing the His word. When we are humble, we repent on our sins. He then tells us that we are blessed when we are baptized and receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost. We see the first 4 parts of the Doctrine of Christ just in this one verse. However, the rest of the Beatitudes are very enlightening as to what we need to do after we complete these first parts of the Doctrine of Christ.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit..." An interesting thing about the poor in spirit is that they have continuing faith. The poor in spirit are the ones who aren't caught up in the world because they are focused on Christ. He strengthens the poor and makes them strong.

"Blessed are they that mourn..." This one is an interesting one because it depends on what your definition of "mourn" is. In this context, it represents godly sorrow. When we commit sin, part of repentance is that we feel sorry for the things we have done. It is this mourning for our wrongdoings that drives us to repent.

"Blessed are the meek..." I think probably the best definition of "meek" is "teachable". We see that those who are repentant are those who are teachable. When we are teachable, we are open to the Spirit and we can be guided to what we need to do to be fully forgiven for our sins.

"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness..." For those who are repentant, a key is to seek after the righteous things of the world. We have to remove ourselves from the evil influences of the world and replace those things with the good. In order to do that, we have to actively seek after those things that will bring us closer to God.

"Blessed are the merciful..." I have been told that one of the ways to gain charity is to repent. When we repent, we feel the love of the Savior and in turn, share that love with others. We become as the Savior would, merciful and charitable to all of God's children.

"Blessed are the pure in heart..." In this context, the definition of pure in heart is "changed". When we allow the Atonement to purify our hearts, we are forever changed from our baser state to a higher plain of holiness. The scripture further teaches that the pure in heart will see God. This is because God cannot look on sin with any degree of allowance. Since we all sin, we all have to be changed to be pure in heart.

"Blessed are the peacemakers..." Having met many people in my life, I have come to recognize that people either are ready for confrontation or ready to make peace. It is the humble that are the peacemakers. The humble are the ones willing to submit to the Lord's will and try maintain that peace in their lives. Peace-making is also an individual thing. We help ourselves feel peace when we repent and feel the Spirit. We are peacemakers when we strive to maintain that.

"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake..." Quite simply, this is enduring to the end. When we endure persecution, we are following the Savior's footsteps. If we endure the persecution, the scripture promises that we shall inherit the kingdom of heaven.

The Beatitudes truly exemplify how we should repent and how the Savior taught His Doctrine. My BYU professor called this the "Process to Perfection". In the long run, each one is a step on a ladder. We can't reach the next one without having gone through the previous ones. This process can take a lifetime, if not more to accomplish. However, if we follow the Savior's teachings, it will be possible.

The Lord of the Rings: A Gospel Connection Part 1

One of my favorite customs as a missionary was to sit down after a hard day's work and talk about movies with all the missionaries in the apartment. But it's not what you think! The best part about our conversations is that we were able to make connections to the gospel. Obviously, some movies were easier to make that connection than most. Hands down, my favorite movies to make this connection have been The Lord of the Rings trilogy. They are clearly some of the most incredible films ever made and have such brilliant connections to the gospel. I will try my best in this post to summarize what we talked about as missionaries. Since there are multiple connections to certain characters, I will take each aspect of the films and discuss them separately. Also, since there are so many aspects to the gospel in the films, I will do it in separate intervals.

The Ring
The One Ring is very clearly sin. We see all throughout the history of the movies that it corrupts everyone who comes in contact with it. We see that everyone desires it so much that they are willing to kill to get it. It also becomes extremely tempting to put on when the Black Riders are around, similar to when you are in a sinful environment, it becomes very tempting to sin. The Ring can also only be destroyed in fires of Mount Doom, similar to the fact that the only way that we can be rid of sin is to forsake and destroy it. As is seen the third film of the series, it is not very easy, but the burden leaves once it is done.

Sauron

Sauron is a very clear representation of Satan. He is a man who craved power and gave men rings of power and eventually corrupting them, just as Satan does to the hearts of men today. The connection between Sauron and the ring is interesting. Sauron's whole existence hinges on the power of the ring. If it is destroyed, so is he. Similarly, Satan only has as much power as we give him. However, when we allow sin to take over us, he has almost limitless power over us unless we repent. It is also interesting to note that Sauron covered the land in darkness, similar to what the scriptures say that Satan will do.

Frodo Baggins

Frodo is certainly one of  more interesting characters in the story because he fits so many people in the scriptures. First of all, he is one of several characters who could be considered a similarity to Christ. Like Christ, Frodo was the only one to be able to resist the ring long enough to destroy it. Christ was the only who was able to take upon Himself the sins of the world. Jesus and Frodo mention several times throughout their stories that the burden they carry is extremely heavy. Frodo's destroying of the ring ultimately helps the armies of Man overcome Sauron, similar to Christ's victory giving us the strength to overcome sin. Frodo can also be be a representative of mankind in general. It shows that even the best people are corruptible by sin, but anyone can be purged of sin through repentance. It also shows that the longer we hang onto sin, the worse it gets, similar to the fact that Frodo's burden gets heavier the longer he carries the ring.

Samwise Gamgee

To me, Sam is a pretty accurate representation of Peter. Both are fiercely loyal to the men they followed, to the point of impetuousness at times. Peter also wanted to go where Christ went, but was unable to. Similarly, Sam wanted to help Frodo carry his burden, but was not the one called to do so. It is interesting to note that both Peter and Sam defend their masters with their swords, even though it was unnecessary to do so. Sam could also be seen as the angel that appears to Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. Sam always provided the necessary strength to Frodo to help him carry on. He even literally carried Frodo when he lost strength near the end, similar to the angel lending strength to Christ in the Garden during the worst of His sufferings.

Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took

Merry and Pippin are clearly representative of two of the disciples of Christ, though it is hard to pinpoint exactly who. I would like to think of them as James and John since an allegory of Peter has been addressed and it seems fitting to include them, since they are also precious Apostles to Christ. It's also interesting to the note the spontaneous manner that these two joined the journey, similar to how Christ asked the Apostles to follow Him and they followed without question. In addition, these two had their own victories, similar to the Apostles having their many separate journeys after the death and resurrection of Christ.

Prophecies of Christmas

This Christmas season has come and gone. Sweet memories of family gatherings and giving remain. But we need keep the spirit of Christmas with us throughout the year. Why? Because the spirit of Christmas is the spirit of Christ. We can see the effect that Christmas has on our society in general. Everyone seems to be a lot kinder to everyone else. But why do we celebrate Christmas in the first place? That question can be answered through the prophecies of Christ's birth.

Isaiah, around 700 years before the birth of Christ, offered probably the most famous prophecies of Christ's birth in all of scripture.

Isaiah 7:14, quoted in 2 Nephi 17:14 reads: "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

Isaiah 9:6, quoted in 2 Nephi 19:6 says: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

Both of these prophecies give us some very specific things about the birth of Christ. Isaiah 7 makes it very clear that Jesus would be born of a virgin. We know that Mary, His mother, fit this category. In addition, all of the titles that are given in both of these verses are eventually applied to Christ.

And what of His birthplace? Micah 5:2 gives us a very specific location: "But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."

 And what of His lineage? Christ was obviously of divine parentage, due to Him being the Son of the Father, but He obviously had to have an earthly lineage since His mother was a mortal woman. David, the great prophet-king, received several promises that out of his lineage shall come the Messiah.

"And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.

"He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever."

2 Samuel 7:12-13

"The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne."

Psalms 132:11

"Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this."

Isaiah 9:7

"And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:"

Isaiah 11:1

"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth."

Jeremiah 23:5

 There are several others, but these are the ones that stand out to me. In the lineages shown in the books of Matthew and Luke, Christ is clearly of Davidic descent. But what of Book of Mormon prophecies? There are numerous ones as well, but these are the ones that really capture the essence of the Christmas spirit.

"And it came to pass that I saw the heavens open; and an angel came down and stood before me; and he said unto me: Nephi, what beholdest thou?

And I said unto him: A virgin, most beautiful and fair above all other virgins.

 And he said unto me: Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh."

1 Nephi 11:18

"And behold, he shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God."

Alma 7:10

Samuel the Lamanite in Helaman 14 really shows that the people in America knew about Christ and that they looked forward to signs of His birth.

And what of the actual events of His birth? Obviously the prophecies were fulfilled, but there are several other significant things about the actual events that really shed a greater light on Christ's mission. The first of these are the shepherds. To me, it is very significant that the Shepherd of Men was visited by the poor shepherds of the world, men who were humble and faithful enough to heed the call that the angels gave them. The other is that of the wise men. Clearly, they were not Jews, but the fact that they sought out the King shows that there are other nations than the Jews who were looking forward to the birth of Messiah.

Let us always remember the birth of Christ and what He stood for in the cause of righteousness.

Newtown, Connecticut: Why Bad Things Happen

On December 14, 2012, the world suffered a terrible tragedy. This was the day that a gunman entered Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, USA, and massacred 28 people, including 20 children. It is not my intent to in this post to recreate what happened or to discuss the recent political war that has begun to rage in consequence of this event, but to explore the doctrine behind the aftermath of the events.

First of all, it may seem like there can be little good found in a situation such as this. 28 families lost loved ones on that day. Obviously, there are many bad things that have come in consequence of this tragedy, but there are many good things too, not the least of which is a renewed uniting of America at this Christmas season. But, since it is not my intent to go there, let's first explore what this means for these people doctrinal-wise. Unfortunately, this situation is not new to world. Let's turn to an event in the Book of Mormon about 82 years before the coming of Christ.

The situation is this: Alma the Younger, a prophet of God in ancient America, has come to a wicked city called Ammonihah. Joined by a resident of the city by the name of Amulek, the two men stand against the city's wise men and lawyers and testify powerfully of the Savior. The wicked people of the city take the two missionaries into custody and banish the husbands and fathers of the believers from the city. After several days of brutal interrogation, Alma and Amulek are taken to a place in the city where the wicked men proceed to throw the families of the believers into a vast fire along with their scriptures. It is not known if Amulek's family was a victim of this treachery, but even if they weren't, these were his kinsfolk being destroyed in the flames.

He cries out in agony, "How can we witness this awful scene? Therefore let us stretch forth our hands, and exercise the power of God which is in us, and save them from the flames."

Alma, just as pained as Amulek, gives probably one of the greatest phrases of why bad things happen to good people. "The Spirit constraineth me that I must not stretch forth mine hand; for behold the Lord receiveth them up unto himself, in glory; and he doth suffer that they may do this thing, or that the people may do this thing unto them, according to the hardness of their hearts, that the judgments which he shall exercise upon them in his wrath may be just; and the blood of the innocent shall stand as a witness against them, yea, and cry mightily against them at the last day."

The full account of this event can be found in Alma 14. About 20 years later, a military commander named Moroni also spoke of this in an epistle to the chief judge. "For the Lord suffereth the righteous to be slain that his justice and judgment may come upon the wicked; therefore ye need not suppose that the righteous are lost because they are slain; but behold, they do enter into the rest of the Lord their God." This is found in Alma 60.

 Alma and Moroni speak of two specific things in their comforting words. One is that the righteous are received to the Lord despite their deaths. The other is that the wicked will be judged for their actions.

I wish to address the latter point first. It is not our job to decide Adam Lanza's fate. That is left up to the Lord. But he will be judged for the things he has done. This applies to all people who have ever wronged us. Even if wrongs are not made right in this life, we can be rest assured that through the Atonement of Christ, all that is unfair about life will be made up in the eternities.

Moving on to the first point, prophets all throughout history, especially in the Book of Mormon, have talked about tragedies happening to the best of people. Every single event records that although the people mourned the loss, they knew that the Lord had taken them into His arms. This is especially true in the case of this terrible event. All 20 children killed in this event were under the age of 8, which, as we know, is the age of accountability. Doctrine and Covenants 137:10 offers the following:

And I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of accountability are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.

 Why is this? Moroni 8 is very enlightening on this topic. I will pick out several verses that illustrate the most important parts.

 8 Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.

 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.

 19 Little children cannot repent; wherefore, it is awful wickedness to deny the pure mercies of God unto them, for they are all alive in him because of his mercy.

 22 For behold that all little children are alive in Christ, and also all they that are without the law. For the power of redemption cometh on all them that have no law; wherefore, he that is not condemned, or he that is under no condemnation, cannot repent; and unto such baptism availeth nothing—

As a disciple of Jesus Christ, I declare that Charlotte Bacon, Daniel Barden, Olivia Engel, Josephine Gay, Dylan Hockley, Madeleine Hsu, Catherine Hubbard, Chase Kowalski, Jesse Lewis, Ana Marquez-Greene, James Mattioli, Grace McDonnell, Emilie Parker, Jack Pinto, Noah Pozner, Caroline Previdi, Jessica Rekos, Avielle Richman, Benjamin Wheeler and Allison Wyatt
 are, according to the scriptural promises, heirs of the celestial kingdom of our God.

Let's not forget the adults that died in this event too: Rachel, D'Avino, Dawn Hochsprung, Anne Marie Murphy, Lauren Rousseau, Mary Sherlach, Victoria Soto and Nancy Lanza. Once again, I will not recreate the event, but I have heard some incredible stories of heroism that these people displayed in trying to save the lives of these children. I am sure that without their actions, there would be many more families with empty rooms. The Savior declared in John 15:13: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

Let us not forget what the Savior has done for us this Christmas season!

Feminism in the Church

In light of the recent occurrences involving the recent feminist movement within the Church, I felt it necessary to address a few things about this. I have not heard too many details behind the recent movement among some women in the Church to try enforce gender quality within the Church, but from what I understand from conversations I've had, one way that some women are symbolizing this movement is by wearing pants to church.

To tell you the truth, wearing pants to church is truly not the issue here. If you're wearing pants to church just because you feel like wearing pants, that is one's own personal choice. However, when it becomes a symbol of political movement, that is where the problem occurs. The Church is not an appropriate place to enforce a political view. My father, a bishop of a single's ward at BYU, had a very enlightening insight, quoting a little from the For Strength of Youth pamphlet:

"Show respect for the Lord and yourself by dressing appropriately for Church meetings and activities. This is especially important when attending sacrament services. Young men should dress with dignity when officiating in the ordinance of the sacrament."

"If you are not sure what is appropriate to wear, study the words of the prophets, pray for guidance, and ask your parents or leaders for help. Your dress and appearance now will help you prepare for the time when you will go to the temple to make sacred covenants with God. Ask yourself, “Would I feel comfortable with my appearance if I were in the Lord’s presence?” This is found in the [For the Strength of Youth] Pamphlet." Sacrament meeting is not a platform for political or social agendas. They may occur but your actions while meaningful to you would show disrespect to the Lord and others who are worshiping. Never would anyone be asked to leave a meeting unless they are causing a disruption. Where is that still small voice that we seek going to be when we are walking all over it at one of our most sacred times? I am not sure that there is wisdom or selflessness in this approach. What will these actions bring to the alter of partaking of the Lords emblems in remembrance of his sacrifice[?] Where is the selfless act of accepting that sacrifice[?] I cannot support any action that would be disruptive to others that are not involved no matter how much hate there is toward anyone. This is the Lord's Church not our political or social vehicle. Everyone has difficulties with some aspect of the gospel and this requires personal reflection and prayer and fasting not a public forum for support. No matter what the reasoning this cannot be the way to send a message."

 Please, don't misunderstand anything that I or my father are saying here. We have no issue with feminists or anyone's political view. However, the Church is not an appropriate base to spread those views. Contrary to popular belief, the Church is, in fact, not unequal in its views of men and women. In fact, the greatest advocate of women in history was Jesus Christ Himself. It is simply the roles that men and women play in the Church that are different. Women are the mothers in the home, which, in the words of several prophets, is the greatest role on earth. There is something about a mother's connection to her children that any father simply cannot emulate. A mother's influence in the first few years of life are some of the greatest influences in a child's life. At the same time, a mother is not the priesthood holder in the family, which is the role of the father. He is the one who blesses his family through the Lord's power and authority.

Even within the Church, men and women have equal right to revelation. Holding the priesthood is not a prerequisite to receiving revelation. A Relief Society president has as much right to revelation for her respective stewardship as a bishop does for his. Anyone who is worthy of the Gift of the Holy Ghost has the right to revelation.

In the end, how we dress is an outward reflection of our attitude in sacrament meeting. If one feels that they are comfortable wearing pants to church, that is fine. However, when they come with the attitude that they are wearing pants to show their political stand, it is a reflection of the wrong attitude. I repeat it, church is not appropriate to reflect political stances. There is a time and place for all things and church is not one of them in this case.

I would also be so bold to say that this is a time for personal reflection of testimony. Remember, no one left the Church because they made one massive mistake out of the blue. It comes from small things. The wife of Thomas B. March, the first President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, left the Church over a milk dispute! How petty is that! Disagreement with leaders is the first sign of personal apostasy. The doctrine is clear. The Church will never again be removed from the earth. Only we can remove ourselves from it. Brigham Young was very bold with the early apostates when he mentioned the following in his writings: "I rose up, and in a plain and forcible manner told them that Joseph was a Prophet, and I knew it, and that they might rail and slander him as much as they pleased, they could not destroy the appointment of the Prophet of God, they could only destroy their own authority, cut the thread that bound them to the Prophet and to God and sink themselves to hell."

I hope I don't offend anyone with these sentiments. It is not my intention to do so. Part of the mission of a prophet is to warn people of sin. Though I myself am not a prophet, I have been called of one to represent Jesus Christ. And so, my role is the same is His in spreading the message of the gospel and warning of the consequences of sin. Though the current issue in and of itself is not sin, if not checked, it can certainly lead to personal apostasy. The big question is this: "Is the Book of Mormon true and are Joseph Smith and his successors prophets?" If the answer to this is "Yes!" - and it is - then we should follow the direction of our leaders and the revealed truths we are privileged to have. One last question: "Would I be allowed to enter the temple in pants and would I feel right enforcing a political agenda in the House of the Lord?"

I will post some more links for more information. I love you all and hope you understand where I am coming from.

This is a list of frequently asked questions on women in the Church.

This is a video of Elder Jeffrey R. Holland describing the joys of motherhood and the great role women have in the Church.

The Prophet Joseph Smith

I have had several questions in recent months about who Joseph Smith is and how does he fit into the whole scheme of things. I have heard people ask me everything everything from if he was really a prophet to if he was really the lying, adulterous polygamist who came up with the wonderful scam of the Book of Mormon. I hope to address these concerns in this post.

Joseph of Egypt, as quoted in the Book of Mormon in 2 Nephi 3:7-11, 15, said the following:

 7 Yea, Joseph truly said: Thus saith the Lord unto me: A choice seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and he shall be esteemed highly among the fruit of thy loins. And unto him will I give commandment that he shall do a work for the fruit of thy loins, his brethren, which shall be of great worth unto them, even to the bringing of them to the knowledge of the covenants which I have made with thy fathers.

 8 And I will give unto him a commandment that he shall do none other work, save the work which I shall command him. And I will make him great in mine eyes; for he shall do my work.

 9 And he shall be great like unto Moses, whom I have said I would raise up unto you, to deliver my people, O house of Israel.

 10 And Moses will I raise up, to deliver thy people out of the land of Egypt.

 11 But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and unto him will I give power to bring forth my word unto the seed of thy loins—and not to the bringing forth my word only, saith the Lord, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them.

 15 And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the name of his father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing, which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto salvation.

Along with that, it is interesting to note that Joseph Sr. named his third son, not his first, after himself. With that resounding prophecy, we begin.

His history is very complex and lengthy, and since my purpose is to establish his role, I will not attempt to address it here. I will post this video for those interested in his history. It is one hour long. His history is a startling illustration of the scripture in Numbers 12:6 - "And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream."

Joseph Smith's role was that of prophet, seer and revelator. But, what was the role of a prophet exactly? Amos 3:7 gives us a good starting block: "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets." This, in a very brief sentence, establishes exactly what a prophet does. He reveals the secrets that God desires to give to His children on earth. Prophets also have a specific role in the Church of Jesus Christ. He is the only person on the earth authorized to exercise all the keys of the priesthood. He is the leader of the Church on the earth, receiving direct revelation from the Lord Himself. Examples of prophets throughout the ages include Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Isaiah. Even the Lord Jesus Christ Himself acted as a prophet among some of the other things He did during His ministry.

Throughout history, God has spoken to the prophets of old. When the people followed his guidance, they were blessed. However, we see all throughout scriptural history - the Book of Mormon and modern Church history included - that whenever the people reject the prophets, they fall into a state of chaos and confusion. As explained in the movie, Joseph Smith was around during a time of this apostasy. A Restoration, not a reformation, of the Church was required. Which is where Joseph came into play. He was the one chosen of God to restore the Church of Jesus Christ on the earth once more, along with the fulness of doctrine and the priesthood authority to administer the ordinances thereof, which, at the time, had been lost from the earth at the death of the Apostles.

The priesthood was restored through the prophets of old who held the particular offices. John the Baptist restored the Aaronic Priesthood, which holds the authority to administer baptism among other things. Peter, James and John, three of the original Apostles, restored the Melchizedek Priesthood, which includes the authority to give the Gift of the Holy Ghost. The Restoration of the priesthood was absolutely essential. Without it, it would not be possible to perform the ordinances necessary to produce salvation. The Lord Himself illustrates this point in modern-day scripture. Doctrine and Covenants section 22 says:

 1 Behold, I say unto you that all old covenants have I caused to be done away in this thing; and this is a new and an everlasting covenant, even that which was from the beginning.

 2 Wherefore, although a man should be baptized an hundred times it availeth him nothing, for you cannot enter in at the strait gate by the law of Moses, neither by your dead works.

 3 For it is because of your dead works that I have caused this last covenant and this church to be built up unto me, even as in days of old.

 4 Wherefore, enter ye in at the gate, as I have commanded, and seek not to counsel your God. Amen.

 Along with this restoration of priesthood, other keys of the priesthood had to be restored. This occurred on April 3, 1836.

After the dedication of a temple in Kirtland, Ohio, the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith and one of his associates, Oliver Cowdery, who helped to translate the Book of Mormon and was present at the restoration of the priesthood. The Lord accepted the temple the Church had built and told the Prophet that the people would be blessed. How that was possible is made manifest through three men who appeared to them after the Savior. All three were prophets of old, restoring keys of their respective generations to bless the modern-day Church of Jesus Christ.

First  to appear was the prophet Moses, the same who lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. He committed them the keys to the Gathering of Israel, which the Restoration had begun. Not long afterwards, missionaries spread to all corners of the earth, including Canada and England.

Next to appear was Elias, a prophet otherwise unknown in scriptural history. He committed the keys of the dispensation of Abraham to the Prophet, thus continuing the promise made to the Patriarch that through his seed, all the world will be blessed.

Last to appear was Elijah, the prophet of the kings. He committed Joseph probably the most important blessing of the Restoration: the power to seal families together for time and all eternity, thus fulfilling the promise made in Malachi 4:5-6.

A full account of what transpired on this blessed day in the temple in Kirtland can be found in Doctrine and Covenants section 110.

 Among other things, the Prophet received revelation to guide and direct the Church as was required in the modern day and time. Again, a full account of these revelations can be found in the Doctrine and Covenants.

The words of John Taylor after the martyrdom of the Prophet offer probably the most compelling summary of his role. Doctrine and Covenants 135:3 offers the following statement:

Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more, save Jesus only, for the salvation of men in this world, than any other man that ever lived in it. In the short space of twenty years, he has brought forth the Book of Mormon, which he translated by the gift and power of God, and has been the means of publishing it on two continents; has sent the fulness of the everlasting gospel, which it contained, to the four quarters of the earth; has brought forth the revelations and commandments which compose this book of Doctrine and Covenants, and many other wise documents and instructions for the benefit of the children of men; gathered many thousands of the Latter-day Saints, founded a great city, and left a fame and name that cannot be slain. He lived great, and he died great in the eyes of God and his people; and like most of the Lord’s anointed in ancient times, has sealed his mission and his works with his own blood; and so has his brother Hyrum. In life they were not divided, and in death they were not separated!

 This is a bold statement, but it is true! The Prophet Joseph Smith was truly called of God! There can be no doubt! His work testifies of it! I know it is true because the Spirit has manifest it to me! There can be no surer witness than one from God!

The Book of Mormon. What is it?

Most people I've talked to have heard of the Book of Mormon, but few know what it is or how it's relevant to our religion. I hope to address several of these points in this post.

Probably one of the most common responses I've heard from people as I've introduced the Book of Mormon is the scripture found in Revelation 22:8-9, which says the following:

 18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:

 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

I will not attempt in this post to fully address this response, but if anyone is interested in the doctrine behind it, the following video is very enlightening ------------------------------------->

So, first of all, what is the Book of Mormon? The introduction the book offers a pretty good explanation.

"The Book of Mormon is a volume of holy scripture comparable to the Bible. It is a record of God’s dealings with the ancient inhabitants of the Americas and contains the fulness of the everlasting gospel."

As the introduction states, the Book of Mormon is viewed as scripture to Latter-Day Saints in the same way that the Bible does to the rest of Christianity. However, the Book of Mormon takes place in a different part of the world. The Bible was written by prophets living in the Holy Land, while the Book of Mormon was written by prophets in America.

  I've had many people ask me, "Why do you need the Book of Mormon? Isn't the Bible sufficient if it contains the fulness of the gospel?" While that may be true of the Bible, how many Christian denominations have their own idea of what the gospel is? As Elder Jeffrey R. Holland explained in the above video, the Book of Mormon does not diminish the Bible in any way. In fact, it builds it up and solidifies the doctrine. One analogy of used a lot for this is that of a picture frame. If you only put one nail in one corner of the frame, you can turn it in any direction you want. But if you put a second nail into the frame, it will stay solid. In fact, the Book of Mormon itself talks about this. 2 Nephi 3:12, a quotation from Joseph of Egypt, says the following: 

"Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord."

The fruit of Judah, as we know, are the Jews and the fruit of Joseph, as we understand it, are the Book of Mormon people, who are predominantly descendants of Manasseh (see Alma 10:3). Ezekiel in the Old Testament saw this in vision as well. He records in Ezekiel 37:15-17:

 "15 ¶The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying,

 16 Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions:

 17 And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand."

In addition, the Book of Mormon is the convincing witness that the Restoration of the Gospel through the Prophet Joseph Smith did indeed happen. Joseph Smith is quoted in the introduction as saying: "I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book."

The Book of Mormon was delivered to Joseph Smith by an angel named Moroni, who was the last man to write in the book in around 421 AD. Joseph was commanded to translate the book into English. And this is where the miracle occurred. Joseph Smith had the equivalency of a 4th-grade education. He couldn't write a letter himself if his life depended on it. And yet we have a 531-page work of extreme complexity and sophistication, containing Hebrew phrases, practices and poetry forms that he could not have known. It is a witness of his prophetic ministry.

The introduction closes with the following two paragraphs:

"We invite all men everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost.
 Those who gain this divine witness from the Holy Spirit will also come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is his revelator and prophet in these last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the second coming of the Messiah."

This is how we know it is true. We ask God in the name of Christ if the Book of Mormon is true and He will tell us it is true through the Spirit. It is something that I have personally done and I have received a witness of its truthfulness.

The following website is a great resource for those wanting to know more: http://mormon.org/book-of-mormon

The following talk, also by Elder Holland, is a powerful witness of the Book of Mormon:

The following talk by Elder Tad R. Callister also shows in a little bit more detail of why the Book of Mormon is relevant to us:

I know the Book of Mormon is true! Read it! It will change your life!