God's Prophet Today

I have some really great news for you guys. We have a modern prophet today! He is called of God to declare His word to us.

No, no, no, wait. Didn't God stop calling prophets after Jesus Christ came? Aren't the days with prophets over? No. Why would they be over? Why would God call prophets for thousands of years and then all of a sudden stop calling them? If God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then doesn't that mean His ways don't change? God has always given His children prophets to lead and guide them and tell them God's word. 

Each of God's prophets is unique and came from different circumstances. In the Bible, no two prophets were the same. Adam was the first man on earth, Noah was 600 years old when he was called to build an ark, Abraham was commanded to sacrifice his son as a test, Moses was raised with Egyptian royalty and was called to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, Samuel was chosen as a boy to be a prophet, Jonah was swallowed by a whale, and Daniel was thrown into a Lion's den. I will go ahead and let you all know right now that although each prophet is called of God, none of them are perfect. Only Jesus was perfect. Don't act so shocked. 

There have been many periods of time when there was no prophet on the Earth because of the people's unbelief but God loves us and always calls another prophet when the people are ready. You can find this pattern all throughout the Bible. The last time that this happened was when Jesus was born. The people rejected Him and His apostles and killed them. After this, the Earth didn't have any prophets for many years because of wickedness and because people simply weren't ready to have a prophet again. When the world was ready to once again have a prophet, one was called and Jesus Christ's church and authority was restored to the Earth after being lost and altered for so many centuries. This prophet was Joseph Smith. 

After Joseph Smith died, God continued to call prophets through revelation. The next prophet was Brigham Young. Then we had John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow, Joseph F. Smith, Heber J. Grant, George Albert Smith, David O. McKay, Joseph Fielding Smith, Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, Howard W. Hunter, Gordon B. Hinckley, and now Thomas S. Monson.

Today instead of wearing robes and crying repentance in cities, the prophet wears a suit and carries a brief case and speaks to the world about following Jesus Christ. Even though they live thousands of years apart, they were all called of God to bless His children and to do a specific work here on the earth. 

The way that a new prophet is called is inspired of God. These men were chosen before they were born to be one of God's prophets. "And God saw these souls that they were good, and he stood in the midst of them, and he said: These I will make my rulers; for he stood among those that were spirits, and he saw that they were good; and he said unto me: Abraham, thou art one of them; thou wast chosen before thou wast born"(Abraham 3:23).

President Monson was born in 1927 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He graduated from the University of Utah in 1948 with a degree in business management and later received his MBA degree from Brigham Young University. He also served in the United States Navy near the close of World War II. He married his wife, Frances Beverly Johnson, in 1948 and they have three children. He also has had a distinguished career in publishing and printing. He is a past president of Printing Industry of Utah and a former member of the board of directors of Printing Industries of America. 


President Monson also has served faithfully in the Church his whole life. He served as president of the Church's Canadian Mission from 1959 to 1962. He also served as a Bishop of a ward in Salt Lake City. He was called to be an Apostle in 1963 and was later called to be a counselor to three prophets. In 2008, after President Gordon B. Hinckley's death, he became the next prophet of the Church. 

Each prophet is a humble man who has done his best to serve God. Every calling in the Church is voluntary and that includes the calling of the prophet. President Thomas S. Monson is not paid for his service and neither are the apostles, bishops, missionaries, or Sunday School teachers. A prophet is not voted for by the people. When a prophet dies, the president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles becomes the next prophet. If Thomas S. Monson were to die today, President Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles would become the next prophet. 

Although the process of "becoming" a prophet may seem simple, it is divinely inspired of God. No one will become a prophet unless he is called of God. Everyone who is called to be an Apostle of Prophet serves for the rest of his life. They are faithful, God-fearing men who do their best to serve God and His people. We are promised that if we follow the prophet, we will never go astray. Following the prophet is always right, even when it isn't generally accepted. Anyone who has picked up a Bible can attest that following the prophet has never been a popular decision. However, it has always been the correct decision that has led to peace and salvation. 

I love President Thomas S. Monson. He is a true disciple of Jesus Christ and he has spent his whole life trying to serve him in the best way possible. I know that heeding the words of God's current and past prophets will bless us and help us to know God's will. 

Go here to read President Monson's recent sermons from last month. 

"Wherefore, we search the prophets, and we have many revelations and the spirit of prophecy; and having all these witnesses we obtain a hope, and our faith becometh unshaken, insomuch that we truly can command in the name of Jesus and the very trees obey us, or the mountains, or the waves of the sea"(Jacob 4:6).


Amen.

Why Do Mormons Build Temples?

Currently there are 143 operating temples in the world. By the time the Church completes all the ones that are currently under construction there will be about 170. There are temples on every continent and in many countries. They dot the earth. 85% of Church members live within 200 miles of a temple. So why are Latter-Day Saints obsessed with building temples? Why do we need so many? And what do we do in them?

The Lord has always commanded His children to build temples. In the Book of Exodus, God commanded Moses to build the tabernacle. King Solomon was also instructed to build a temple. In the Book of Mormon the people worshiped in temples as well. Very soon after The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was restored, Joseph Smith was commanded to build a temple. Temples have always been part of the true gospel of Jesus Christ. "And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name"(1 Kings 5:5).

The temples bless our families. Through ordinances performed in the temples, families can be united for eternity. In civil marriage ceremonies they say, "til death do you part" but in the temple we believe that marriage and family relationships will continue after the grave. We build a lot of temples so that members all over the world will have the opportunity to go to the temple to have their families "sealed" together.

In the temple we also make covenants with God. Covenants are two way promises. We agree to obey God and keep the commandments and He in return promises us blessings. When we are sealed to our families, we make a covenant with our spouse and God. These covenants help us to come closer to God and they bless us immensely. 

"Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God"(D&C 88:119). 

Temples not only bless our immediate family but they also bless our ancestors. In the temple, we believe in performing ordinances for our deceased ancestors. We do family history and look up the names of our ancestors who weren't baptized and we take their names to the temple and we are baptized, confirmed, and sealed in behalf of them. God loves all of His children and He wants all of us to return to live with Him. We know from the scriptures that "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God"(John 3:5). However, a lot of people have died without hearing about the gospel. God doesn't just send them straight to hell for never being told about Him. He gives everyone the opportunity to accept or reject Him, either while we are living or after we die. 

  Only worthy members of the LDS Church are allowed to enter the temples. Quite a few people get upset about that and believe that we are being judgmental or unfair. Well let's think about this for a moment. Have you ever been to the White House in Washington, D.C.? I have. It's beautiful. Can you just walk inside? No. Why not? Because it's the President of the United States and his family's home and important things happen in there so it has top security. Well how do you get inside? You have to fill out a form with your name, birth date, social security number, etc. and then it takes a few months for you to be able to enter on a guided tour on a time set by those in charge of it. I haven't really heard much complaint about it because everyone understand that if you try to go prancing inside without permission then you'll get tackled or shot and then sent to jail (unless you're a toddler).

A temple is a house of the Lord. It is His house so He sets the standard. Anyone can enter the temple if they are a member of the church over a certain age and are obeying the commandments. To enter the temple we need a temple recommend. To get one we have an interview with the leader of our congregation called the bishop or one of his two councilors. He asks us some questions set by the leaders of our Church in Salt Lake City to determine our worthiness. These questions relate to if we believe in God and Jesus Christ, if we keep the ten commandments, and if we live the law of tithing, keep the God-given health code called the Word of Wisdom, and obey the law of chastity. As long as we are found worthy and are able to answer these questions, we are given a nice little piece of paper that we bring to the temple to gain admittance. To be able to do baptisms and confirmations for the dead you need to be at least 12 years old and new members can go and do that as soon as they are baptized and receive a recommend. To go and make higher covenants with God such as being sealed to your family or spouse, you need to have been a member for at least a year, keeping the commandments as explained, and usually need to be at least 18 years old. Members will go to the temple to make covenants before serving a mission, before getting married, or when they feel they are ready.

Although the temple is closed to those who don't have temple recommends when it's in operation, there is a time when you can enter a Mormon temple without being a Mormon. After a temple's construction is completed, it is opened to the public for tours for about 2-4 weeks before its dedication. The dedication is when the prophet or one of his twelve apostles come bless the temple and dedicate it to God. After the dedication only members can enter but before that anyone can. 

There are many temples that will be completed soon that you can tour. The Phoenix, Arizona temple will be open October 10th - November 1st this year for tours. It will then be dedicated on November 16th. So if any of you are by Phoenix, head on over! The other temples currently under construction are in Cordoba, Argentina; Payson, Utah; Trujillo, Peru; Rome, Italy; Indianapolis, Indiana; Provo City Center, Utah; Tijuana, Mexico; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Hartford, Connecticut; Sapporo, Japan; Paris, France; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Meridian, Idaho. 

I love the temple. I love how much it has blessed me and my family. Whenever I go there I feel such comfort and peace. I know that temples are truly the houses of the Lord and that His spirit dwells there. Because of the temple, my family can be together forever, I can receive greater blessings from God, and I can go there to receive guidance and answers to prayers. Temples are an expression of God's love for us. 

"One of the blessings of the temple is the perspective that it provides. When we go to the house of the Lord, we leave all of our cares and problems at the door. And when we come back out, they're still there. We have to pick them back up and they haven't changed, but what has changed is us." -Elder D. Todd Christofferson

San Diego, California

Washington, D.C.

 

Aba, Nigeria

 

Seoul, Korea

 

Papeete, Tahiti

 

Adelaide, Australia

 

Campinas, Brazil

 

Buenos Aires, Argentina  

  

Cebu City, Philippines 

 

Fort Lauderdale, Florida  

 

Guadalajara, Mexico

 

Laie, Hawaii

 

Kyiv, Ukraine 

 

Tegucigalpa, Honduras 


"Each temple stands as a beacon to the world, an expression of our testimony that God, our Eternal Father, lives, and... that life beyond the grave is as real and as certain as is our life here on earth." -President Thomas S. Monson

Amen.   

What is The Book of Mormon?

What is The Book of Mormon? Why are Mormon missionaries always trying to get you to read it? What is it about? Why do we need it if we have the Bible? I'm glad you asked.

The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ.  Just like we have the Old Testament and the New Testament, this is another or a "third" testament.  And also like the Bible, it was written by ancient prophets. We read both The Book of Mormon and the Bible. We don't consider one to be better than the other, they are both the word of God. 

The book of Ezekiel prophecies about The Book of Mormon: "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: And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand"(Ezekiel 37:16-17).

The stick of Judah is the Bible. The tribe of Judah is the Jews and the Bible is the record of the Jews. The stick of Ephraim is The Book of Mormon. The people in The Book of Mormon were of the tribe of Ephraim.

The Book of Mormon takes place 600 B.C. during the time of Jeremiah the prophet and the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah.  It starts with the record of a family living in Jerusalem.  The father, Lehi, had a vision and was called as a prophet to preach repentance to the people.  He told them that if they didn't repent then Jerusalem would be destroyed.  The people didn't listen. They also wanted to kill him. So God in His mercy told Lehi and his family to leave Jerusalem.  They did so and traveled in the wilderness for 8 years and then eventually sailed across the ocean to the American continents. 

One of Lehi's sons, Nephi, was righteous and believed in his father's visions and received many more visions from God because of his faith.  He later became a prophet and wrote the first two books in The Book of Mormon. His descendants called themselves the Nephites.  Lehi had two other sons, Laman and Lemuel, who did not believe he was a prophet and were bitter about leaving Jerusalem.  They rebelled when they arrived in the Americas. Their descendants were thereafter called the Lamanites.

The rest of The Book of Mormon is a record written by prophets who passed the records on to the next prophets.  It covers 1000 years of history of this people.  The crowning event in The Book of Mormon is when Jesus Christ appeared to the people after His death and resurrection. Moroni was the very last prophet to write in The Book of Mormon before the Great Apostasy. His father was a man named Mormon. Mormon abridged and compiled the records written by the prophets and gave the gold plates they were written on to his son.  Moroni buried the record in a hill after writing his final testimony in it shortly before he died.  Moroni appeared as an angel 1400 years later in 1823 to the Prophet Joseph Smith to show him where the record was buried.  The record is named The Book of Mormon after Moroni's father, Mormon, since he was the one who abridged and assembled the record written by all of the prophets. 

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints are nicknamed the Mormons because we have The Book of Mormon.

This ancient scripture was so important that God waited until the restoration of Jesus Christ's gospel to bring it forth so that it wouldn't be altered or tainted by men and so that it can stand as proof that Joseph Smith is a prophet and that Jesus Christ's Church is once again on the earth. 

I am so grateful for The Book of Mormon!  Together with the Bible, it testifies of Jesus Christ. Why wouldn't we want further revelation from God?  If your favorite author wrote a second book, you wouldn't get mad and say that you won't read it because they can only write one. It's the same with the scriptures! Why would you try to limit God and say that He can't speak to multiple people and have multiple scriptures? God is our loving Heavenly Father.  We are all His children.  He loves the Jews and the Gentiles.  He loves every race, nationality, gender, and age regardless of a person's standing in the world, financial situation, or level of education.  He revealed Himself to the prophets in the ancient Americas just like He did to the prophets in the Bible. He has probably revealed Himself to so many other people that we have no record of. He is the God of the whole world.  I know that The Book of Mormon is the word of God as is the Bible. 

If you read and pray about the book, you can know for yourself that it's true.  Moroni, in his final testimony in the book before he died, wrote:

"And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost.  And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things"(Moroni 10:4-5).

I know that whoever reads this book and prays about it with real intent and faith (faith meaning hope, not a perfect knowledge) in Christ will receive an answer through the power of the Holy Ghost. And how does the Holy Ghost speak to us? The Bible tells us: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance.."(Galatians 5:22-23).  If you feel any of those things as you read and pray about it, then that's the Holy Ghost telling you that it's true.

Amen.

(You can go here to read The Book of Mormon online or click here to request a free copy.) 

Joseph Smith's First Vision

Jesus Christ restored His church back to the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The Bible suggests that God has always called the humble and meek to be His prophets rather than the wise and powerful. Indeed Jesus Christ Himself was as humble and meek as you can get.  

Joseph Smith was born on December 23, 1805 in Sharon, Vermont, in very humble circumstances.  He was the fifth of eleven children.  Because of their financial circumstances, Joseph only received a formal education for 3 years before being unable to continue.  His family was very religious.  His parents taught their children to read from the Bible and to pray.

In 1820, he was living with his family in Palmyra, New York, working on the family farm.  During this time, the Second Great Awakening was sweeping the United States.  Many denominations were preaching and trying to bring religion to these people.  Nearly all the churches in upstate New York conducted revivals which were evangelistic gatherings in the form of camp meetings held on the edge of groves of trees or in small clearings in the forest.

At a young age, Joseph became "seriously impressed with regard to the all important concerns for the welfare of [his] immortal soul." The many different religions confused Joseph and he wasn't sure which one to join. Joseph said, "I attended their several meetings as often as occasion would permit... It was impossible for a person young as I was and so unacquainted with men and things, to come to any certain conclusion who was right and who was wrong." They were all Christian and all preached from the Bible, but each of their interpretations were different. "The teachers of religion of the different sects understood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible.". Joseph's mother, a sister, and two brothers joined the Presbyterian faith although that system of belief didn't satisfy Joseph.

One day, Joseph was reading in the Bible and he came across James 1:5 which reads: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."  Joseph said that "never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine.  It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart.  I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get more wisdom than I then had, I would never know."

Joseph decided to do as James directs.  He prepared to ask God. 

One day in the spring of 1820, Joseph went into a grove of trees near his home.  He knelt down to pray aloud, which he had never done before.  As he began to pray, an incredible thing happened.  In his own words, he said, "I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.  When the light rested upon me I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air.  One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other - This is my Beloved Son. Hear Him!"  God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to him.  "No sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself... than I asked the Personages who stood above me in the light, which of all the sects was right...and which I should join.  I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong."

Why did Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appear to this humble, 14 year old farm boy living in New York?  Because it was time for the gospel of Jesus Christ to be restored.  This period of darkness, the Great Apostasy, was ending, and it was time for the glorious light of the restored gospel to penetrate the earth. 

After this heavenly manifestation, Joseph Smith ran home and told his family.  He told others about this experience, expecting them to be overjoyed, but instead he was treated coldly and harshly: 

"I soon found, however, that my telling the story had excited a great deal of prejudice against me among professors of religion, and was the cause of great persecution which continued to increase; and though I was an obscure boy, only between fourteen and fifteen years of age, and my circumstances in life such as to make a boy of no consequence in the world, yet men of high standing would take notice sufficient to excite the public mind against me, and create a bitter persecution...

"It caused me serious reflection then, and often has since, how very strange it was that an obscure boy, of a little over fourteen years of age, and one, too, who was doomed to the necessity of obtaining a scanty maintenance by his daily labor, should be thought a character of sufficient importance to attract the attention of the great ones of the most popular sects of the day, and in a manner to create in them a spirit of the most bitter persecution and reviling.  But strange or not, so it was, and it was often the cause of great sorrow to myself."

Although he was severely persecuted and mocked, Joseph never wavered in his testimony.  He knew what he had seen and nothing anyone said or did could make him deny that.  Like prophets of old, he was called upon by God to do a great and marvelous work.  And, like prophets of old, he was rejected and persecuted, yet he stayed true to God until the very end of his life.  I am very grateful for the Prophet Joseph Smith.  

"For I had seen a vision; I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could not deny it."

Amen.

Click here to read Joseph Smith's account of the First Vision.
Click here to watch a video of the First vision.

God Prepared the World to Receive His Gospel Again

For centuries, Christ's original church and Priesthood authority were not on the earth.  Many good people tried to set up churches according to the Bible's teachings, but none of them had Christ's authority and therefore weren't Christ's church.  This falling away from Christ's church wasn't a surprise.  It had been prophesied about.  When Peter the Apostle was preaching to the Thessalonians, they were concerned about when Christ would come again.  Peter answered them by saying in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition."  So essentially Jesus will not come again until there's a falling away first.  That falling away was the Great Apostasy which lasted from the time the apostles died to the time that Jesus Christ restored His full and complete gospel back to the earth in 1830 through another prophet, Joseph Smith.

God has always called prophets.  The very first man to live on the earth, Adam, was a prophet. There is a pattern of people following and rejecting the prophets in the Bible.  God has continually shown His love for us by calling prophets to lead and guide us.  During the Great Apostasy, there was no prophet on the earth since the people had rejected Jesus and His apostles and then weren't ready to have another prophet yet.

God needed to restore His church back to the earth, but the question is when?  I like to compare it to an emergency airplane landing.  Say you were flying in an airplane over a forest and something goes wrong and you have to make an emergency landing.  You wouldn't land straight into the trees or you would kill yourself and your terrified passengers.  You would start to slowly descend but not land until there was a clearing of some sort.  You would want to land as early as you safely can. It was the same way with restoring the gospel.  God needed to restore it but he waited and restored it as early as He safely could.  

The American continents were first discovered by the European world in 1492 when Columbus sailed the ocean blue.  Columbus testified that he was indeed inspired of God.  He said, "Our Lord unlocked my mind, sent me upon the sea, and gave me fire for the deed.  Those who heard of my enterprise called it foolish, mocked me, and laughed.  But who can doubt but that the Holy Ghost inspired me?" (Jacob Wasserman, Columbus, Don Quixote of the Seas, pp. 19-20)

In 1620, the first pilgrims crossed the sea to the Americas on the Mayflower in order to practice their religion freely.  Many groups followed them to set up their own colonies.  Over 150 years later, the United States of America gained independence from Great Britain and in 1788, the United States Constitution was ratified, guaranteeing religious freedom.  17 years later, in 1805, Joseph Smith was born in Sharon, Vermont.  Almost 14 years after that, in 1820, he experienced what we refer to as the "first vision." In 1829 The Book of Mormon was published and in 1830, Jesus Christ restored His church with all of the proper Priesthood authority as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Less than 50 years after the United States was established on grounds of religious freedom and human rights, Jesus Christ's church was restored.  He restored it as early as He safely could.  Now, 184 years later, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has 15 million members and is still growing rapidly.  

Joseph Smith himself said, "No unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every climb, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done."

I know that Jesus Christ's true and only church has been restored back to the earth.  There are 85,000 missionaries like myself all over the world in many different countries telling people the good news that Christ's gospel is on the earth and it's for everyone. The world was in an apostasy for a time after Christ and the Apostles died just like it had been multiple times in biblical times, but just as He always has, God called another prophet to restore God's truth back to the earth.  God lives and loves us and He manifests it to us every day.  I'm so grateful for this church and for my Savior, Jesus Christ. Next post will be about how Christ restored His church through Joseph Smith.

Acts 3:19-21 "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."

Amen.

Jesus Christ's Church and the Great Apostasy

Hello!  Today we are going to talk about Jesus Christ!  He is the Son of God and was the only perfect Man to walk the earth.  He was miraculously conceived and born of the virgin, Mary.  His birth was a humble one, taking place in a stable and only having a manger for a bed.  His whole life He lived in humble circumstances.  He loved and served without ceasing until the very end of His mortal life.  He performed incredible miracles, was an amazing teacher and friend, and was our perfect example.  He sacrificed Himself and died for our sins so that we may one day live again and return to live with our Father in Heaven.  He came into the world to do the will of His Father and never faltered.  He is my Savior and Redeemer and my Everything.  I could write hundreds of posts just about His life and teachings.  But for this post, I am going to focus on one aspect: His church. The one He set up while He was on the earth with His 12 apostles. 

Jesus called 12 men to be His apostles.  He laid His hands on their heads and gave them the Priesthood.  The Priesthood is the authority and power that God gives to man to act in the name of Jesus Christ in all things for the salvation of mankind.  Things that require the Priesthood include baptism, blessing and administering the sacrament, giving blessings of healing, and conferring the Priesthood upon others.  God has always given His Priesthood to worthy men ever since the world began. Exodus 40:15 reads: "And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations."

The New Testament gives account of Jesus giving His apostles "keys of the kingdom" and "power."  This is the Priesthood.  "And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease"(Matthew 10:1).

In all ordinances (like baptism) it is important to have the proper authority from Jesus Christ. If you were driving down a residential neighborhood going 60 mph and a police officer turned on his lights, you would pull over.  And assuming you're a good, decent person who doesn't like going to jail, when he gives you a ticket for speeding, you'd accept it and pay it.  Now imagine you were driving down the same residential neighborhood going 60 mph and an ice cream truck tried to pull you over. What would you do?  I'd probably pull over because maybe he wants to give me free ice cream. But if the ice cream truck man proceeded to get out of his van and give you a ticket for speeding, you would tell him to get lost.  The ice cream truck driver doesn't have the authority to pull you over and give you a speeding ticket but the police officer does. "And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron"(Hebrews 5:4).

This was Christ's church. Jesus said to Peter: "...upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it"(Matthew 16:18).  Christ's original church had the Priesthood authority.  When He sent His apostles out to teach and minister and perform miracles, He gave them this Priesthood authority as well. If a church doesn't have Christ's authority, then the baptisms and ordinances performed there can't be recognized by God as valid because it wasn't done with His "stamp of approval," so to speak. "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven"(Matthew 16:19).

Just as people have rejected prophets in the past, the people eventually rejected Jesus Christ and killed Him. After Christ died, He sent His apostles out to still preach the gospel and baptize using His Priesthood authority.  His apostles did just that and were faithful and did all that Christ asked. Unfortunately, the people rejected the apostles too.  Many people tried to change the doctrine to what they liked better and stopped giving heed to Christ's disciples on the earth. And as part of this sad pattern throughout history, the apostles were all killed as well, and the earth was once again left without a prophet on the earth to lead and guide them.  

With the apostles' death went the Priesthood authority.  The world fell into what we call the "Great Apostasy." During this time there was no prophet and no one holding the Priesthood authority of God.  Doctrines were altered, the Bible was eventually assembled but was not available to the general public, and there was no religious freedom.  Many reformers such as Martin Luther, John Wycliffe, and John Calvin recognized that something was wrong and tried to bring it back to Christ's original teachings, but they were all killed and rejected as a result.  

This Great Apostasy lasted over a thousand years and during what we know as the "Dark Ages."  The earth wasn't ready for Christ's church to be restored during that time.  God's revelations had ceased as a result of the apostasy but He still loved His children and was preparing a way for when the true church of Jesus Christ with the correct doctrine and Priesthood authority of God could be restored to the earth, never to be taken away again.

Prophets of old have prophesied of a great apostasy.  In Amos 8:11-12 in the Old Testament it says: "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."  

I know that Christ has restored His church to the earth.  He loves us and wants us to have all the blessings of His gospel as long as we are willing to accept it.  The falling away from the true church and the restoration of it has also been prophesied about throughout the scriptures. This was always part of the plan.  God knows what He's doing and always provides a way.  

"Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder:"(Isaiah 29:14).

Amen.

Prophets

What is a prophet?  Other than a man that people always seem hate and try to kill in the Bible. They have rough lives. A prophet is a man that speaks for God. A prophet receives revelation from God to warn us, help us, and teach us. No one can be a prophet unless they've been called of God and given God's authority to act in His name, which we call the Priesthood.  Hebrews 5:4 reads, "And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron." God has always had prophets. They are all over the scriptures and testify of Jesus Christ. "As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began"(Luke 1:70).

We can each receive revelation from God for ourselves or our families or people that we are trying to help, but only a prophet can receive revelation for the whole church and the world.  Also, God will never tell us to do anything that is contrary to His commandments unless He tells it to His prophets.  So I can't go around telling people that God said it's OK to steal as long as the value is under $5 or that I have received the revelation that the whole world doesn't have to keep the Sabbath day holy anymore.  No one has that authority except for God's current prophet on the earth.

God's current, modern-day prophet is Thomas S. Monson.

He has been called of God and given the Priesthood authority to lead and guide the Church but he is also the prophet for the whole world, not just Mormons.  He is the president and leader of the Church as well as the prophet.  I love and respect him just like I love and respect the prophets of old.  I will talk more about modern prophets and why/how we have them in a future post.  Stay tuned!

Having prophets is a demonstration of God's love for us. Since the beginning of the world, God has sent His prophets to testify of Jesus Christ and to prophecy to us and tell us what God would have them say. "For behold, did not Moses prophesy unto them concerning the coming of the Messiah, and that God should redeem his people? Yea, and even all the prophets who have prophesied ever since the world began - have they not spoken more or less concerning these things?"(Mosiah13:33)

Unfortunately, not everyone listens to the prophets. There is a constant cycle in the Bible where God will call a prophet, the people listen, but then after a time they start to reject the prophets and not listen to their counsel. The Bible is full of this cycle. A verse in 2 Chronicles 36:16 reads: "But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy." God is always willing to help us and guide us, but if we don't listen to His messengers then he will take them away. A period where there are no prophets because the people have rejected them is called an apostasy. During an apostasy, none of God's authorized servants are on the earth and the people aren't living the principles of the gospel. But mercifully, God always calls another prophet when the people are once again ready to receive one. "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets"(Amos 3:7).

God wants us to know His will. He wants us to follow Him and to keep His commandments. He doesn't want us to be in the dark. He has given us so many things: prophets, leaders, scriptures, prayer, church, and family to help us stay on His path. We are all His servants and are here to do His will so that we can one day return to live with Him and our families forever. I am so grateful that God has given us prophets. God's word has not ceased. He still speaks to us today through His prophets and modern revelation. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He loves us today just as much as He loved the people in Biblical times. He is an unchanging God and will continue to speak to us as long as we listen to His prophets and don't cast them aside.

"What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same"(Doctrine and Covenants 1:38)

Amen.