The Holy Ghost

The Comforter may abide with us forever, The Spirit of truth. I can know him and he can dwelleth in me and shall be with me. Heavenly Father sent the Holy Ghost as the Comforter in Jesus Christ’s name to teach all things and bring all things, which I have learned of Jesus Christ, to my remembrance. The Holy Ghost will testify of and bear witness of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ needed to go away for the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, to come. He comes to “reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment. The Holy Ghost will guide me to the truth. I love this description of the Holy Ghost taken from the New Testament Institute Manual: “The Holy Ghost is a Personage of Spirit, in the likeness of God the Father, in other words a likeness of the Father and the Son. His mission is to instruct and enlighten the minds of those who, through their faithfulness have obeyed the commandments of the Father and the Son. He bears witness of the truth, quickens the minds of those who have made covenant and reveals to them the mysteries of the kingdom of God. He is a special messenger from the Father and the Son and carries out their will. …” (Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, 5:134.)

There have been some very special moments in my life that I have felt the prompting of the Holy Ghost. He’s been a comforter and has blessed me with a feeling of peace when I felt overwhelmed. He has helped me in making decisions that would affect my family long term and also just to be ready for something that would take place that day. As a parent, I know that the Holy Ghost has let me know of times of danger for my children. Both my husband and I have received promptings to check on something, and after doing so have found out information that was necessary to help our children draw closer to our Heavenly Father. I will be forever grateful for the gift of the Holy Ghost and hope that I can always live righteously and have that member of the Godhead as my constant companion.

Take Heed, and Watch, and prepare to meet the Lord

The Second Coming of the Savior will be miraculous and is closer than we think. As followers of Jesus Christ, we must take heed and watch for the signs of the coming of the Lord and do all we can to be prepared to meet the Lord. We must be weary of false prophets and, as Mark 13:5 states, “Take heed lest any man deceive you.” There are many who are trying to lead the followers of Christ away from those truths that are important. Satan and his followers are trying to deceive and lead astray any who will follow them. We must hold tight to the iron rod and have faith and trust in our Heavenly Father’s plan. Mark 13:9 states that we must “Take heed to yourselves.” We must stand up for what we know to be right and true, as we prepare for the Second Coming of the Savior. The Holy Ghost will lead and guide us to know the truths that must be proclaimed and we can listen to that prompting and share our testimonies with those around us. It is very important that we watch for the signs of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, as we prepare ourselves. We don’t know when Jesus Christ will come again, only Heavenly Father knows, which is why we must be constantly preparing ourselves. Continuously repenting and bettering ourselves, improving our weaknesses, so that we will be prepared to meet the Savior when he comes again. Mark 13:36 states, “Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.” If we are following the commandments of God, we will not be found “sleeping.”

Doctrine and Covenants 87:8 is one of my favorites – “Wherefore, stand ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come; for behold, it cometh quickly, saith the Lord. Amen.” I love the literal meaning of standing in “holy places,” such as the temple and by making your home a holy place. But I also love the reminder that we can be sharing our testimonies in the most random places, and if we have the Holy Ghost with us, that can be a holy place. The opposite of a holy place would be a place without the Holy Ghost, and we must be cautious to stay away from places where the Holy Ghost will not go and situations where the Holy Ghost may not be present. Doctrine and Covenants 33:17 – “Wherefore, be faithful, praying always, having your lamps trimmed and burning, and oil with you, that you may be ready at the coming of the Bridegroom.” The Bridegroom being Jesus Christ. Just as the 5 virgins had extra oil to keep their lamps lit while waiting for the Bridegroom, we must make sure that we have strengthened our testimonies and built a foundation of righteousness in our lives so that we can be prepared to meet Christ when He comes again. Doctrine and Covenants 45:56 & 57 confirm that by saying 56 – “And at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins.” 57 – “For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived – verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day.” We receive the truth by having the Holy Ghost as our guide and our companion in our search for truth and knowledge. The Holy Ghost will be at our side as we live the principles of the Gospel and as we rely on the Holy Ghost to show us the path to eternal life and to happiness and joy.

The Last Days of Jesus’ Mortal Mission

Parables and Accounts that teach Eternal Truths

Luke 16: 1-12: The parable of the unjust steward. Elder James E. Talmage explained that the lesson we can learn from this parable is to, “Be diligent; for the day in which you can use your earthly riches will soon pass. Take a lesson from even the dishonest and the evil; if they are so prudent as to provide for the only future they think of, how much more should you, who believe in an eternal future, provide therefor! If you have learned wisdom and prudence in the use of ‘unrighteous mammon,’ how can you be trusted with the more enduring riches?” (Jesus the Christ, 464). Our time on this earth is short and we need to realize that and use this time to prepare for eternal life. If we are working hard to keep the commandments of God and securing our eternal future, we will be blessed. Obtaining riches is not always bad, we can use our money to do good in this world. Luke 16:19-31: The parable of the rich man and Lazarus. We are taught to put God first in our lives. If we have His will as our priority, we will be blessed and find joy in this life. Luke 16:13 reads, “No servant can serve two masters. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Our love and desire to make money cannot come before our love and desire to serve God. Luke 17:11-19: The ten lepers. Only one of the ten lepers came back to thank Jesus for healing them. We must always remember to be grateful for our blessings and thank our Heavenly Father for all He has given us.

Luke 18:1-8: The parable of the unjust judge. Luke 18:1 teaches us the main lesson of this parable, “men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught: “When lonely, cold, hard times come, we have to endure, we have to continue, we have to persist. That was the Savior’s message in the parable of the importuning widow. … Keep knocking on that door. Keep pleading. In the meantime, know that God hears your cries and knows your distress. He is your Father, and you are His child” (“Lessons from Liberty Jail,” Ensign, Sept. 2009, 30). Luke 18:9-14. The parable of the Pharisee and the publican. In this parable, the Savior warns us of hypocrisy. We must be a humble people, just as the Savior was humble, and love all of God’s children. The Savior stated the moral of the parable in terms of pride and humility: “For every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted” (Luke 18:14; see also D&C 52:15). (New Testament Student Manual)

Become as little children

Matthew 18:3 reads, “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

To return to live with our Heavenly Father again, we must be as little children. We need to be humble and meek, as little children are. We must “be of good cheer” (D&C 78:18) We must allow ourselves to be led by the Spirit through this life, for “ye cannot bear all things.” (D&C 78”:18) He will lead and guide us through our trials, if we will turn to Him and remember Him. In a talk by Elder D. Todd Christofferson, titled, “That They May Be One in Us,” he states that “As we endeavor day by day and week by week to follow the path of Christ, our spirit asserts its preeminence, the battle within subsides, and temptations cease to trouble.” Our temptations will be few, as we strive to follow the path of Jesus Christ. In Mosiah 3:19, we read that we can be as little children as we strive to be, “submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”

Matthew 14:22–33. Walking on the Sea

Jesus Christ, in Matthew 14:22, commands “his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side...” So the disciples do, while Jesus “went up into a mountain apart to pray.” (Matthew 14:23) When Jesus decided to join his disciples, he walks on the water towards the ship. When the disciples see Jesus walking on the sea, “... they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.” (Matthew 14:26) Jesus then called to the disciples and told them, “Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.” (Matthew 14:27) Peter answered Jesus and asked if he could also walk on the water. Jesus’ response to Peter was, “Come.” (Matthew 14:29) I think this showed the great faith and trust Peter must have had in Jesus Christ. He knew that Jesus could allow him to be able to walk on the water. Peter did step out of the ship and did walk on the water, but when he became fearful of the boisterous wind, he lost his faith and began to sink. When Peter did start to sink, he called out to Jesus to save him, saying, “Lord, save me.” (Matthew 14:30) In the next verse, verse 31, we read that Jesus “immediately... stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” Doctrine and Covenants 88:67 reads, “And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you; and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things.” As Peter was focused on the Savior, he was able to walk on water. His eyes were single to Jesus’ glory and his body was filled with light because his faith was strong and his faith in Jesus Christ allowed him to experience that miracle. As I show my faith in Jesus Christ by following His commandments, miracles can occur in my life. There are storms in my life that can cause me to fear, but if I remain faithful to the teachings of Jesus Christ and if I try every day to be more like Him, I can weather those storms and my faith can remain strong. If I call on my Savior for help, I know that He will reach forth His hand to rescue me from whatever it is that is bringing me down.

Parables

I think a parable can help a person truly understand a gospel principle. Jesus Christ gave many parables during his ministry and as we study those, we can find many meanings and insights into how to live our lives. I love how the Bible Dictionary teaches that a parable is meant to veil the meaning. Two people can hear the same story. While one learns a valuable lesson, the other takes it as just a story. Those who internalize the parable and look for its meaning have an opportunity to learn and to grow in the gospel. The person who hears more than just a story is often looking for those lessons through those parables and looking for opportunities to expand their understanding of the gospel. My children have enjoyed parables and looked for the meaning behind them. The lesson from a parable can only be distinguished by the person who spoke the parable. I guess you could take any parable and twist its meaning to mean something else. My son had an interview with the Bishop a few nights ago and the Bishop shared a parable with my son. This parable meant something to my son and I think he will always remember it. Parables, at times, can touch us in a more personable way that simply learning a lesson in Sunday School. In the 13th chapter of Matthew, Jesus Christ shares three parables of the gathering. The Parable of the tares, found in Matthew 13:24-30, explains a man who sowed good seeds in his feel. Then, while he slept, his enemy came in the night and “sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.” When the servants discovered the tares, they asked the householder if they should remove the tares. The householder told them no, because he was afraid the wheat roots would come up with the tare roots. So they let them grow together. At the time of the harvest, they burned the tares and gathered the wheat. The New Testament Institute Manual explains that “The righteous and wicked grew together in New Testament times, eventually leading to the Great Apostasy. In the latter days, they will grow together until the end of the world, when the wicked will be destroyed and the righteous will be gathered in the kingdom of God.” I believe this parable explains the remarkable growth of the Church, considering that it is fairly new compared to most world religions and started small in the American frontier. The wheat and the tares grew together, in the same field. We, as members of The Church have been counseled to be be in the world, not of the world. That is why we don’t all live together in one place, we are dispersed throughout the world so that we can share the gospel with others and help others along the way. Then, when the Savior comes again, those who have lived a Christlike life will be gathered together. The Parable of the mustard seed, found in Matthew 13:31-33, & 52, describes the kingdom of heaven to a grain of mustard seed. Matthew 13:21 describes the mustard seed as, “... indeed is the least of all seeds; but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” This parable explains the remarkable growth of the Church, considering that it is fairly new compared to most world religions and started small in the American frontier. The church has been restored, in the latter days, and is growing forth throughout the world. “The latter-day Church will spread throughout the earth, aided by the leaven of testimonies of the Three Witnesses and the latter-day scriptures” (New Testament Student Manual). This parable also explains why the Church sends out so many missionaries. The Parable of the treasure and the pearl of great price, found in Matthew 13:44-46, tells of a man who found a treasure hid in a field, he sells all that he has and buys the field. It also tells of another man who find a pearl of great price. He goes and sells all that he has so that he can buy it. This parable helps understand why are some members of the Church willing to sacrifice so much worldly wealth and recognition in order to maintain membership in the Church? The Parable of the gospel net, found in Matthew 13:47-50, tells of a net that collects all kinds of things from the sea. After the net was full, the good was gathered into vessels and the bad was cast away. This parable describes the future growth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The church is sending out more and more missionaries and they are reaching so many places in the world. It’s just like a net is being casted. These missionaries are teaching the gospel to as many people as they can and reaching out to as many people they can. The missionaries in our area have Facebook accounts and chat to people all over the world via Facebook. Some choose to accept the gospel and join the church. They are gathered into the figurative net of the gospel. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints sacrifice a lot to be members of the church, but the sacrifices hardly feel like sacrifices because of the blessings that come from those sacrifices. We give 10 percent of our increases to the church, we also give generous fast offerings to our wards that is used to help those in our ward who need help. The world would say we sacrifice drinking, sex before marriage, smoking, various activities on Sunday, and all kinds of activities that the world loves that we are commanded to abstain from. I sacrifice my time to magnify my calling and to be a visiting teacher.