Ministering With the Power and Authority of God

Last Sunday evening (ward member) gave the prayer in our YSA ward prayer.  As usual we had made a list of those whom we were specifically praying for.  He then prayed the kind of prayer that President Nelson was referring to in his Priesthood talk in April conference.  He told Heavenly Father that many in the room held the priesthood.  He commanded by the power of the priesthood held in that room that those we were praying for would be blessed according to Heavenly Father’s will. He expanded those blessings to all of us in the room and to those in our ward and to our associates and loved ones.   It was a powerful prayer and you could sense that those blessings were called down and that a difference had been made.   As I re-read Pres. Nelson talk, Ministering With the Power and Authority of God I thought how we unintendingly leave untouched the blessings that could be all around us through a conscious use of prayer and priesthood power and through our temple covenants.  Our busy lives and the many, many distractions in our world keep us just a breath away from the fullest blessing of the gospel. 

And Thus We See......

13 And thus we see how great the inequality of man is because of sin and transgression, and the power of the devil, which comes by the cunning plans which he hath devised to ensnare the hearts of men.

14 And thus we see the great call of diligence of men to labor in the vineyards of the Lord; and thus we see the great reason of sorrow, and also of rejoicing—sorrow because of death and destruction among men, and joy because of the light of Christ unto life.    (Alma 28:13-14)

Yes, our hearts are so easily ensnared!  And yes, this leads to sin and transgression as we are diverted into selfish pursuits, material pursuits, wicked pursuits.  And yes, this causes great inequality among men.   

I think of the sorrows and ills of society and the current political climate and I can say with Alma that these things would be resolved if all lived the gospel of Jesus Christ and kept God's commandments.  It is so easy to say "I'll do it my way!" forgetting that often "my way" stems from the natural man, the blindness of mortal life and is self centered.  As a society we are beginning to reap the whirlwind.  But, as individuals we can resolve to set aside the distractions of modern life and focus on the light of Christ unto life and lift those around us. 

The Robe of Righteousness

The-Righteous-Robe-Katerberg

10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath ^aclothed me with the ^bgarments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.  (Isaiah 61:10)

33 O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy ^arighteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine ^benemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way—but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy.   (2 Nephi 4:33

I recently read of a man who had a near death experience.  In his understanding, he was taken up into heaven.  He described following a heavenly being who was wearing a beautiful sparkling robe made of some kind of heavenly material.  As that person walked the robe spoke of that person's righteous deeds and this man was able to know and understand all of the righteous acts of this individual throughout eternity. 

What a beautiful description of the robes of righteousness described in the scriptures.   It is an interesting thought that our daily decisions and deeds are weaving our heavenly garment what ever that may be. 

The ultimate "robe of righteousness" is that covering given to us by the Lord.  The Savior's own righteousness has brought about the atonement for all mankind.  If we allow it, we can be covered by that robe and that covering will bring us back into the presence of God. 

2 Nephi 9:14

14 Wherefore, we shall have a ^aperfect ^bknowledge of all our ^cguilt, and our ^duncleanness, and our ^enakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their ^frighteousness, being ^gclothed with ^hpurity, yea, even with the ⁱrobe of righteousness.

Doctrine and Covenants 29:12

12 And again, verily, verily, I say unto you, and it hath gone forth in a firm decree, by the will of the Father, that mine ^aapostles, the Twelve which were with me in my ministry at Jerusalem, shall stand at my right hand at the day of my coming in a pillar of ^bfire, being clothed with robes of righteousness, with crowns upon their heads, in ^cglory even as I am, to ^djudge the whole house of Israel, even as many as have loved me and kept my commandments, and none else.

Doctrine and Covenants 109:76

76 That our garments may be pure, that we may be clothed upon with ^arobes of ^brighteousness, with palms in our hands, and ^ccrowns of glory upon our heads, and reap eternal ^djoy for all our ^esufferings.

The Importance of Calling Upon God....

Alma Baptizes in the Waters of Mormon, Walter Rane

12 And now it came to pass that Alma took Helam, he being one of the first, and went and stood forth in the water, and cried, saying: O Lord, pour out thy Spirit upon thy servant, that he may do this work with holiness of heart.  (Mosiah 18:12)

It is easy to go about our labors in the church with good intent but under our own strength and power.  We desire to serve but are busy and become habitual in our routines, forgetting to call upon God before we endeavor to perform our labors in the kingdom.  We miss out when we do this.  We accomplish good but we leave so many blessings untouched for both ourselves and others.  The experience of having the spirit poured out upon us and those we serve is a choice blessing.  It is also a great blessing to be able to do our work with holiness of heart unimpeded by our ever present natural man. 

9 But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul. (2 Ne. 32:9)

10 Nevertheless Alma ^alabored much in the spirit, ^bwrestling with God in ^cmighty prayer, that he would pour out his Spirit upon the people who were in the city; that he would also grant that he might baptize them unto repentance. (Alma 8:10)

15 Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.  (Isaiah 32:15)

Escaping Bondage

But if ye will turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart, and put your trust in him, and serve him with all diligence of mind, if ye do this, he will, according to his own will and pleasure, deliver you out of bondage.  (Mosiah 7:33)

I do know those who have overcome the bondage of sin and/or addictions and in every case it was with a full turning of the heart to God and keeping an eye single to the Lord (serving Him with all diligence of mind.)  We are duel beings not only of spirit and body but also of heart and mind.  The Lord works through both of these faculties and in order to receive deliverance we must give God both.  Often we are bound by addictions because of commandment breaking either from ignorance or of our own free will and choice.  But once we are trapped, that ability to choose becomes compromised and we need a deliverer outside of ourselves. As a loving Father, he will not free us until we have truly learned the lessons involved. It will take time and constant refocusing but deliverance will come in the wisdom of God.   

...And All This

 ...and all this because that Nephi was more faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord—therefore he was favored of the Lord, for the Lord heard his prayers and answered them, and he took the lead of their journey in the wilderness.   (Mosiah 10:13)

In our day and age of not wanting to offend anyone and wanting everyone to feel accepted we sometimes dumb down the importance of keeping the commandments in relationship to the Lord's favor.  We do have infinite and eternal love from God but God's dealings with us have a lot to do with our dealings with Him.  Our commandment keeping does increase responses from God because of our increased faith and the natural consequences of eternal law. Do not our own mortal children gain increased privileges and favor from their parents when they are obedient and are making decisions that lead to more productive lives?  Yes, that is an imperfect comparison but the guiding principle is still in play.  

Exceedingly Many Prophets

Frieze of the Prophets by John Singer Sargent Boston Public Library

The Lord's pattern is to call multiple prophets.  This is true in the Old Testament and also in the Book of Mormon.   We are so used to thinking of the prophets in a linear manner that we sometimes overlook the significance of multiple prophets who give multiple witnesses.  

Haggai and Zechariah prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem.  The prophet Isaiah spanned the ministries of Hosea, Amos, Johan and Micah.  Jeremiah was a contemporary of Lehi, Joel, Ezekiel, Daniel, Nahum, Zephaniah and Habbukuk.  Obadiah and Malachi served simultaneously.  And, these are only the prophets we have scriptural records for.   The Book of Mormon mentions several OT prophets whose writings we do not have.  

In the Book of Mormon, Samuel the Lamanite, is sent by God to warn the Nephites, though Nephi is the prophet and leader of the church at that time in the land of Zarahemla.  Those who listened and were converted, went to Nephi for baptism as he was the ecclesiastical leader in the church.  

If righteous people are available, God calls upon a representative group to be His prophets.  Here are other verses in the Book of Mormon indicating multiple prophets.

22 And there were exceedingly many prophets among us. And the people were a stiffnecked people, hard to understand.  (Enos 1:22)

10 And it came to pass that the prophets of the Lord did threaten the people of Nephi, according to the word of God, that if they did not keep the commandments, but should fall into transgression, they should be destroyed from off the face of the land.  (Jarom 1:10)

11 Wherefore, the prophets, and the priests, and the teachers, did labor diligently, exhorting with all long-suffering the people to diligence;  (Jarom 1:11)

16 And after there had been false prophets, and false preachers and teachers among the people, and all these having been punished according to their crimes; and after there having been much contention and many dissensions away unto the Lamanites, behold, it came to pass that king Benjamin, with the assistance of the holy prophets who were among his people— (Words of Mormon 1:16)

18 Wherefore, with the help of these, king Benjamin, by laboring with all the might of his body and the faculty of his whole soul, and also the prophets, did once more establish peace in the land.  (Words of Mormon 1:18)

Note also the attempt the adversary makes to insert false prophets and teachers among the people.