My favorite person from The Book of Mormon

Love this picture of Jesus

I think my favorite person from The Book of Mormon would have to be Jesus Christ. I mean he did come and visit the people in the Americas. So that is an obvious no brainer... But for the sake of going in depth into the Book of Mormon, I'll talk about someone else.



So after that being said I would have to say that my favorite person (like so many other people) is Captain Moroni. Captain Moroni was a boss. He was appointed the leader of the Nephite army when he was just 25. Think about that. Being responsible for the lives of an entire army when you are 25 years old. When I turn 25, I'm gonna be in school worried about what classes I need to pass to get a degree to start work.



Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty



So with this trust that was put on Captain Moroni also came great power. I mean think about it, he was the Commander of an entire army of men, who would lay down their lives with him. I think the greatest part about Moroni is that he was given this power and yet it didn't get to him. You know the saying "Power corrupts, and absolute power absolutely corrupts", well that was not the case for Moroni.

Joseph Smith's Vision

When Moroni was out with his army, they had been fighting the Lamenites for a long while and he needed supplies from the cities. But they were not getting the help they desperately needed. And in an epistle to Pahoran he says this "Behold, I am Moroni, your chief captain. I seek not for power, but to pull it down. I seek not for honor of the world, but for the glory of my God, and the freedom and welfare of my country"(Alma 60:36). He is, in my opinion, the 2nd best example of what a man should be like. Even Moroni, while he was putting the plates together and reflecting on what Moroni was like said "Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto ^aMoroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the ^bdevil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men."(Alma 48:17). What bigger or better complement could a person give another than that? Especially coming from Mormon, the Prophet in charge of collecting and putting the plates together.

The Book of Mormon is full of great men. It is rich with the history, stories, and accounts of those who inhabited the Americas 600 BC to about 400 AD. This record was translated by the gift and power of God through the Prophet Joseph Smith. If you have read this and want to learn more and talk to me directly, click my facebook link and shoot me a message!

God is great! Come and investigate the claims that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints makes.

Grace, Faith, Works

There are many misconceptions about Mormons. One that I run into on a regular basis is that "Mormons believe that you work for your salvation". This is what I want to try and focus on for right now....
So, because those of the LDS faith choose to show their faith by their actions, they are looked down upon by the rest of the Christian world as denying the power that Christ has. Well lets discuss this more. We believe that the Bible is the word of God. We believe all the promises therein. And just like the rest of the Christian world we believe that, "by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God"(Ephesians 2:8) We do not deny that it is solely by grace that we are saved. Grace is defined as an enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and exaltation. Because Jesus Christ is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2), it is only in and through Him that we can receive eternal life and exaltation.

The Reason

And now, because of this, I want to live my life in a way that is pleasing in the sight of God. I want to go out and serve. I want to help others, both believers and non-believers. Why? Why would I want to do that? Because I love God. I love my Savior. This love that I have for them, how do i show it? I show it in how I live my life. Not like the hypocrites who profess to know Jesus, and as the scripture says They ^aprofess that they ^bknow God; but in ^cworks they ^ddeny him, being abominable, and ^edisobedient, and unto every good work ^freprobate(Titus 1:15) But I will show my faith by the way I live my life. And this is not just me and my opinion, this is how your everyday "Mormons" live (or at least try). A perfect example of this is shared by James in the 2nd chapter he says "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that ^afaith without ^bworks is dead?

Was not Abraham our father ^ajustified by works, when he had ^boffered Isaac his son upon the altar?

 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by ^aworks was faith made ^bperfect?" 

I know that it is because Christ is so forgiving that I can receive eternal life and exaltation. That I will show my love for Him by the way I treat others. And I will fail, I will fall short, but because he is full of grace and truth (John 1:14), I can and will be forgiven through my sincere repentance. And I could continue to blab on, but I will stop here. I know the Savior lives and loves. And because of that I am doing the things I'm doing.

Two witnesses

I'm grateful for the scriptures. I'm thankful for the validity they provide of the Savior. That he literally raised from the tomb and unlocked the gate of death that held us captive. What a great gift! What an awesome knowledge that we have of that.
Today I want to focus my thoughts on witnesses. In the scriptures Christ says (speaking to his Apostles), "in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established."(Matthew 18:16) This verse is related to the Apostles when they are dealing with members of the early church, that if they didn't believe that they had done wrong, to bring a second or third witness. Anyways, my point is that every word should be established in the mouths of two or more witnesses. In a court case, if there is only one witness against the defendant, there really is no chance of being held guilty. And Christ knows the importance of having multiple witnesses.
The Book of Mormon is a second witness to the divinity of Jesus Christ. It upholds the Bible and tells of His divine mission as the Savior of the World. Some people may say that we have the Bible, we don't need any more. Or that we should not add to the Bible (see previous post). But in 2 Nephi 29:8 it says "Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word? Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another? Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another. And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also." God's word is truth. And it is the same. And it is forever, so if you want to try and discredit the Book of Mormon because it speaks the words of Christ, go ahead and try. Thats what I do as a missionary, is invite people to read the Book of Mormon and test it like Paul says in his epistle to the Thessalonians (5:21) "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good". Test it out and see if it is truth.
I know the Book of Mormon is true. I know that Joseph Smith translated it by the power of God. And I know that anyone who is willing to do the work to know if it is true, can have the same type of experience that I had in learning the truthfulness of this glad message.

Gollum.... and the Godhead

Alright, well its another day, so I guess I'll post another blog. So last night I was talking with Elder Akina and I had some thoughts come to me. We were talking about the TG Godhead, and how others understand the Godhead.
Because in the scriptures Jesus says that He and Heavenly Father are "one", people take that very literally and say, OK they are the same. Well the concept of the "Trinity" is not one found in the New Testament, but rather it is a man formed view of God. Harper’s Bible Dictionary records that “the formal doctrine of the Trinity as it was defined by the great church councils of the fourth and fifth centuries is not to be found in the [New Testament].” (Paul F. Achtemeier, ed. (1985), 1099)
Anyways, I was thinking about all the different situations that are recorded in the New Testament when Jesus is speaking to  Heavenly Father and how weird it would be to think that He was actually talking to Himself... I mean, when He was hanging on the cross he asked Heavenly Father for the forgiveness of those who were crucifying Him. And then later when he is still there, He cries out "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"(Matthew 27:46)
It just doesn't make sense to me (Heavenly Father and Jesus being the same person). And then I thought about Gollum in the Lord of the Rings talking to himself.. I know that drawing that parallel is boarder line blasphemous, but that is how I see it. God our Heavenly Father is one with Jesus Christ in every sense of the word, other than the same physical body. As Elder Jeffery R Holland stated in his October 2007 General Conference talk, "We declare it is self-evident from the scriptures that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are separate persons, three divine beings."
Some of the evidences I gave earlier show this point, also during Christ's prayer for His Apostles after the last supper. As recorded in St John chapter 17 (http://lds.org/scriptures/nt/john/17?lang=eng) "18 As thou hast ^asent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.

 19And for their sakes I ^asanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.

 20Neither ^apray I for these alone, but for them also which shall ^bbelieve on me through their word;

 21That they all may be ^aone; as thou, ^bFather, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be ^cone in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

 22And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be ^aone, even as we are ^bone:"

If you'll read the whole chapter, it will give you a clearer understanding of the whole verses I just shared. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are two distinct individuals who have their own separate bodies. Another testament to this point is Joseph Smith's first vision in the Sacred Grove where he saw God the Father and Jesus Christ.  I know the scriptures are true and that they are further proof that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord's kingdom established once again onto the earth preparatory to the second coming of the Messiah!

Once again, if what I said doesn't make complete sense to you and you think I'm wrong, read this and it will explain it much better than I can http://lds.org/general-conference/2007/10/the-only-true-god-and-jesus-christ-whom-he-hath-sent?lang=eng&query=holland+whom+thou+hast+sent

Christ and the Restoration

"He is not here: for he is risen" (Matt 28:6)

Jesus Christ was resurrected that first Easter morning and has shown Himself to both His disciples in Jerusalem and in the Americas. He later returned to America, this time with His Father to Palmyra New York and they showed themselves to the Prophet Joseph Smith.

         I had an interesting conversation with a woman on her doorstep the other day. She told me that she did not believe that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, and that there is no need for a Prophet today. That a Prophet will not give you salvation. And I agree with the last sentence. That a Prophet can not give me salvation. Because salvation only comes in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. However, Jesus has taught us that we must do certain things to inherit the Kingdom of God. That we must be baptized (John 3:5) Also, He taught that the saving ordinance of baptism must be performed by one who holds the authority (priesthood) to do so. And because the priesthood was taken from the earth shortly after the Saviors death and resurrection, there was a need to restore those keys and priesthood. Thus, God would need to call another Prophet to restore what once was lost for us to receive the ordinance of baptism.

The Priesthood is on the earth today. It has been restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith and will not be taken again. The sky is blue and the church is true.