Oct 5th- Love one another

John 13:34-35

" A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
By this shall men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."


To end this week with the study of charity, I chose this scripture. Ask yourself:
How has Christ loved me?

"Go thou and do likewise" is what I would imagine he would say. :)

Men will know that you are a follower, a disciple if Christ, if you have love for one another.

Let us all do better at keeping this commandment. For charity never faileth.

Oct 4th- Love your Enemies

Matthew 5:43-44

"Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.
But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;"


How often do we pray for our enemies? Let alone love them! Think on who you consider your "enemy". Do you pray for them? Love them? Bless them?


Matthew 5:45

"That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.


Don't worry about justice. God will take care of it. Focus rather on charity.


Matthew 5:46-47

"For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

It's easy to love those that love you. It's easy to love those who share your same values and opinions. But what "reward" do you receive? Even the publicans do the same! Publicans were not seen very kindly by the Jews. Christ uses this example to rebuke those he is teaching. Are you any better then your "enemy", who love their own kind as well? What makes you any better than they? Because you are the "chosen" people?
Being a member of the church does not make you any better than the rest of the world. "love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you."


Matthew 5:48

"*Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

*JST:"Ye are therefore commanded to be perfect..."

Oct. 3rd- Charity is the bond of Perfectness

Colossians 3: 14

"And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness."

In the verses before, it talks about how we are to live our lives: setting your affection on things above, lie not to one another, kindness, humbleness, meekness, longsuffering, forgiving one another...etc.
And then it says that ABOVE ALL THESE THINGS, put on charity.

Charity is the bond of perfectness. What does that mean? A bond is a firm assurance; something that holds together... and my favorite, a covenant.

Charity is the covenant of perfectness.

In the bible dictionary under "Covenant" it says in the second paragraph: "The gospel is so arranged that principles and ordinances are received by covenant placing the recipient under strong obligation and responsibility to honor the commitment."
Charity is a principle of the gospel. Charity is received by covenant... placing us under responsibility to honor the commitment.

How do we receive charity?

Moroni 7:48
"Wherefore my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love (charity), which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ..."

As it continues it explains God's part on this covenant, the blessing we receive by having charity...
"that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen."

Charity is the covenant of perfectness.

So what are we obligated to do? What are we covenanting to do?

President Thomas S. Monson in General Conference of OCT 2010, said:

"There is a serious need for the charity that gives attention to those who are unnoticed, hope to those who are discouraged, aid to those who are afflicted. True charity is love in action. The need for charity is everywhere.

Needed is the charity which refuses to find satisfaction in hearing or in repeating the reports of misfortunes that come to others, unless by so doing, the unfortunate one may be benefited. The American educator and politician Horace Mann once said, “To pity distress is but human; to relieve it is godlike.” 11

Charity is having patience with someone who has let us down. It is resisting the impulse to become offended easily. It is accepting weaknesses and shortcomings. It is accepting people as they truly are. It is looking beyond physical appearances to attributes that will not dim through time. It is resisting the impulse to categorize others."

This is what we covenant to do.

Oct 2nd- Charity is a Feeling

2 Nephi 26:30

"...wherefore, the Lord God hath given a commandment that all men should have charity, which charity is love. And except they should have charity they were nothing..."

Charity is a feeling not an action. It is an integral part of your spiritual being. Charity is love. To have this is a commandment.


Moroni 7:45

"And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things."

Let's ponder on this one today and then follow up in tomorrow's study. :)

Oct 1st- Charity

Bible Dictionary

Charity: The highest, noblest, strongest kind of love, not merely affection; the pure love of Christ. It is never used to denote alms or deeds or benevolence, although it may be a prompting motive.


I forgot to post this study yesterday, but I have been thinking alot about charity lately. So, I am devoting this whole week's study to it.

From the Bible dictionary we can see that there are different kinds of love, and charity is the greatest.

I always find this interesting... when you ask in a Sunday school class what charity is, you get many remarks of "actions": serving your neighbor, giving substance to the poor, not fighting with your siblings... etc etc.
However, it says that charity "is never used to denote alms or deeds or benevolence". To denote something is to serve as an indication of, or to represent something. So, charity does not represent alms or deeds or an act of kindness or goodwill.
Charity stands on it's own... "although it may be a prompting motive" to be kind, or to give.

This week I will be studying more on what true charity is.

Sept 30th - Scriptures fill us with the Spirit

1 Nephi 1:12

"And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord."

This is a passage from Lehi's dream. An angel stands before him and gives him a book and bids him to read it. As he does, he is filled with the Spirit.

As we read from the scriptures, we will be filled with the Spirit.

Sept 29th- Plow and Thresh in Hope

1 Corinthians 9:10

"...For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope."


Let's look at two words: plow and thresheth.

Plow: to turn up the soil; move, cleave, or push through
Plowing is an important process to farming or growing a garden. Proper preparation of the soil is the key to well-formed vegetables and a bountiful harvest.
Plowing enables gardeners to evenly rake or shape the soil; it also makes the planting process easier. When you plow length-wise and width-wise over the area it evenly distributes the nutrients.

Thresh: an ancient process to separate grain from straw
After being harvested, the sheaves of wheat with the chaff, were brought to the threshing floor, loosened and arranged in a circle on it. Oxen would then be driven repeatedly in a circle over the sheaves of wheat to trample out the kernals of wheat. After the threshing was completed, the threshed grain was thrown into the air to enable the wind to blow away the chaff and allow the valuable grain to fall seperately to the threshing floor.

This scripture is talking not literally about us going out and plowing and threshing, but spiritually in our own lives. I won't get too deep in the symbolism, but I would like to say that threshing in our lives in necessary for us to draw closer to God and to spiritually mature.
Chaff is not good. It takes heavy oxen to be able to separate the wheat from it. So too is it sometimes painful to have the chaff separted from us.
If we decide to plow (it is a choice!) we should plow in hope.
If we thresh in hope, we are promised to be a partaker of his hope.

James E. Faust said that "hope is a trust in God's promises; faith that if we act now, the desired blessing will be fullfilled in the future..."

Sept 28th - Waiting on the Lord

Isaiah 40:31

"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."


What does it mean to wait upon the Lord? If you look at it as a transitive verb it means to delay serving or to stay in place in expectation of.

If you look at it as an intransitive verb it means to be ready and available, to look forward expectantly.

But, if we take into account the the word "upon" is used in this context, it takes on a whole new meaning. To "wait upon" means to attend as a servant, to supply the wants of; serve.

So what does it mean to WAIT UPON the Lord? It means to serve the Lord.

What are the blessing that come from waiting upon the Lord?
-the Lord shall renew their strength
-They shall mount up with wings as eagles
-they shall run and not be weary
-they shall walk and not faint

So most of these are pretty straight forward. But what about the whole eagle thing? Well, what is so special about eagles wings? The eagle has long, strong wings. He can soar with very little wing-flapping, enabling him to conserve energy. So if we wait upon the Lord we are blessed that we shall rise up with wings as eagles... make the connection.

Sept 27th - Law of Fast

True law of the fast with its attendant blessings:

Isaiah:58:5-12

"Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?
Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward.
Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking vanity;
And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday:
And the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in."


He tells us first what fasting ISN'T. Its not to afflict your soul. It is not merely a ritual to be done.
The Lord explains what fasting is truly meant for: to loose the bands of wickedness, undo heavy burdens, let the oppressed go free, break every yoke! To give of your substance to those who have none (sounds like fast offerings!).

Then the blessings! The endless blessings.

I love how he says "Then shall thy light break forth as the morning". When does morning come? After night, after darkness. A blessing to you is that you will be a light that breaks the darkness.
Your health shall spring forth speedily.
The glory of the Lord shall be your rearward. Rearward is another way of saying rearguard. Rearguard means "towards the rear"... meaning the glory of the Lord will follow behind us, behind our works. He will consecrate our choices.
When you pray, the Lord will answer.

Here's a really neat blessing, and a really beautifully painted way of saying it... "If thou take away (so take away these things!)from the midst of thee the yoke (put away what's burdening you), the putting forth of the finger (pointing fingers/scorn/blaming others), and speaking vanity (being proud),
and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry (so the spiritually hungry), and satisfy the afflicted soul...

HERE"S THE BLESSINGS!...
"then shall thy light rise in obscurity (darkness), and thy darkness be as the noonday."

Lets look at this..."THY darkness be as the noonday". Your darkness. Not someone else's. Your darkness will be as noonday. What's so special about noonday? Its the brightest part of the day! The peak of sunlight!
Your darkness will be as noonday. What a sweet blessing. It reminds me of the scripture in the Book of Mormon Ether 12:27 (weak things become strong).

Basically, if you stop fretting about your own worries and burdens, and rather reach out and help others... your own problems will be taken care of!

BLESSINGS CONTINUED...

The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought. Are you spiritually hungry? Looking for answers? Your soul will be satisfied.

And make fat your bones. Why are bones important? They hold your body together! They protect your vital organs. The Lord isn't going to physically bless you with fat bones, he is going to bless your spiritual bones. The things that protect your spirit and make you the glorious being you were created to be... will be added in great measure. Your spiritual bones will be made fat.

And thou shalt be as a watered garden... what does a watered garden do? Prospers! Grows! This is your blessing...

And like a spring of waters, whose waters fail not... AKA abundant life.

And one of the last blessings mentioned
"and they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in".

I only want to point out one particular line, "The repairer of the breach". A breach is a violation or infraction of a a law, trust, faith, or promise. You will be the called the repairer of the breach.

So many blessings!!! Puts a new perspective on the purpose of fasting, right? Let's not just go hungry this Sunday! Don't be a part of verse 5! Be verse 6 and 7!

So why do we have the law of fasting? To loose the bands of wickedness, undo heavy burdens, let the oppressed go free, break every yoke! To give of your substance to those who have none.

And if that wasn't enough to convince you, there are so many more blessing that come from a true fast. 

Having depression, I can relate really well to darkness. To be able to have the blessing of having your darkness turn as the noon day sun? That's enough to convince me to be better about not starving on fast Sundays, but truly coming to know what it means to fast.... so that I can claim those blessings as my own.

Sept 26th - Come buy and eat

2 Nephi 9:50-52
"Come, my brethren, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money, come buy and eat; yea, come buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Wherefore, do not spend money for that which is of no worth, nor your labor for that which cannot satisfy. Hearken diligently unto me, and remember the words which I have spoken; and come unto the Holy One of Israel, and feast upon that which perisheth not, neither can be corrupted, and let your soul delight in fatness.
Behold, my beloved brethren, remember the words of your God; pray unto him continually by day, and give thanks unto his holy name by night. Let your hearts rejoice."


Everyone is invited. You don't have any money? You don't need it. Yet then, why does it say "and he that hath no money, come buy and eat"? What then do you buy it with? In Alma 5:34-35 it says
"Yea, he saith: Come unto me and ye shall partake of the fruit of the tree of life; yea, ye shall eat and drink of the bread and the waters of life freely:
Yea, come unto me and bring forth works of righteousness, and ye shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire-".

The price is free when you bring forth good works.

Do you have worldly possessions? Or desire them? Will not these things bring you satisfaction?
No.

Hearken to the Lord DILIGENTLY, remember his words, Come unto him (2 Nephi 31:10), and FEAST upon those things which do not perish or corrupt (eternal truths!).
AND LET YOUR SOUL DELIGHT IN FATNESS.
If you are not satisfied with your life, perhaps you have not been letting your spirit feast. Perhaps you only eat spiritually one time a day, or week (on Sundays). Well, stop I say! Start eating. Feast upon the words of Christ.

If you do these things, your soul will delight.

Always remember to give thanks to your God, who gives you freely this feast.

Sept 25th - How the Lord answers

Matthew 7:7-8
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."


These words were spoken by the Savior as he gave the Sermon on the Mount. I often have read these words with the brief acknowledgment that if we ask, we shall receive. Stopping to think and ponder on this scripture has brought even more understanding.
This scripture tells us in three separate descriptions, on how the Lord answers our prayers in different ways.

First: Ask. If we ask, it will be given to us. How many of us stray or struggle because we simply neglect to get on our knees and ask? Sometimes, all it takes to get an answer... is to ask.

Second: Seek. Seek, and YOU will find. Sometimes the Lord requires more from us than simply asking: He requires us to seek. Seek the answer. Search. Look. This type of answer requires that you go looking for your answer. Do some research. He promises us that if we seek, we will find. Many times I find myself doubting the Lord will answer, simply because all I HAVE done is ask. If you don't get your answer after simply asking, I have learned it means the answer is going to come by either seeking or knocking.

Example: I have been wondering and pondering on what to major in. Music, Psychology, Education, Philosophy, Sociology, Medicine, etc etc... I prayed and prayed for enlightenment. None came... until I sat down and did some research. First, I started with my Patriarchal blessing. It helped me to keep an eternal perspective in mind, and the promises that were given to me according to my faith and obedience. Then, I spent weeks looking at different colleges and degrees. I often went back to the same web pages, reading the same content. After weeks went by, I was often compelled back to the same website. Whether by my own interest or by providence I know not. Nor do I think it matters. God has said that "he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward..." (D&C 58:26-29). Meaning, sometimes its up to us! We get to make our own decisions! So after much seeking, I found what I wanted to major in.

Third: Knock. Knock and it shall be opened unto you. What does it mean to knock? I thought of it like this. You are sitting outside a friends house who is having a party. You really want to join. In order to join the fun and celebration, you have to first walk up to that door and knock. Knock and wait to see if someone will answer the door and let you in. Scary? YES! What if no one answers? What if they don't hear you? Or worse, what if they see its you at the door and don't answer for that very reason? Its going to take some faith on your part. If you want to walk through that door and join the party, you have to have faith enough to walk up to the door and knock, and faith that someone will answer and let you in.
Be assured. If you are knocking on a door the Savior is behind, He will always open.

Other references: JST Matt. 7:12-17, Luke 11:9