Elders Quorum
Grace
Ether 4:12
12 And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good; he that will not believe my words will not believe me—that I am; and he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father, I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world.
The instructor gave a comparison of a fruit tree to parts of the gospel.
Without the roots and leaves and such the tree can't take in the things it needs. Without the nutrients and sun the roots are worthless.
Wind is like our trials. Wind flexes the tree and stimulates growth.
God loves us unconditionally, but good things don't come without effort. Why are there conditions on getting light when I flip a light switch? The power must be connected
to the house. The wiring has to be sound. The switch has to be functional. Even though the electricity is there and flows freely, if we are not equipped to receive it then it does not function for us. The same is true for Grace or the Atonement. If we have not done anything to reach out to that grace it can not operate in us.
Sunday School
Jude and the Peters
Jude is the brother of James. Likely the brother of James that wrote the epistle of James and was the leader of the church at Jerusalem.
Jude 1:3,9
3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.
3 Nephi 11:29
29 For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
Both of these scriptures are true, so we must reconcile to find the meaning and not just jump to a conclusion by looking at one alone. Many verses in the scripture need to be reconciled together to understand the doctrine.
Verse 9 says that Michael contended without railing accusation. It must be possible to contend without being contentious.
Peter uses Babylon as a code word for Rome.
Some dispute that Peter wrote the epistles of Peter, since the Greek is too good for a fisherman. But prophets at times have scribes or spokes persons. Also, prophets do grow and learn a lot beyond their profession and schooling over the course of being a prophet. Joseph Smith knew much more about Hebrew at the end of his life than he did when he was called when he was a farmer who possessed only an elementary education.
Isaiah 8:13-15
13 Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
14 And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.
How is Jesus a stone of stumbling and rock of offense? Some are offended at the standards the Savior sets and they cause them to stumble and not accept the Gospel.
We should be chaste and also not partake of drugs (alcohol, nicotine, heroine, marijuana...). This makes a strong foundation for us and yet others stumble because of these standards saying that it restricts them from doing what they want.
1 Peter 2:19-20
19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
What glory is there if you get trouble because of things you did that were wrong? We should take our lumps patiently. If you are being good and you suffer because of it and you take it patiently then God is pleased.
1 Peter 3:14
14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
1 Peter 4:5-6
5 Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.
6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.
2 Peter 1:3-4
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
2 Peter 1:5-7
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
Doctrine and Covenants 4:5-6
5 And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.
6 Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence.
Sacrament Service
The young women's presidency and one of the young women talked about their scripture heroes that they had talked about this last week at the night of excellence.
One spoke about what a good friend Rebeca was.
One talked of Hannah and the things that Hannah would've done differently and similarly with her sabbath in comparison to the person giving the talk.
“Christ is the Creator, the Healer. What He made, He can fix. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the gospel of repentance and forgiveness (see 2 Ne. 1:13; 2 Ne. 9:45; Jacob 3:11; Alma 26:13–14; Moro. 7:17–19).” (President Boyd K Packer, “I Will Remember Your Sins No More”, General Conference April 2006)
Alma 34:32-33
32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.
33 And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed.
One chose Enos and spoke on his feelings about his family and what his personal prayers were like. His prayers were probably sincere and not rush.
Another studied Ruth an Hannah. They talked of how Ruth and Hannah handled adversity.
“...meaningful morning prayer is an important element in the spiritual creation of each day—and precedes the temporal creation or the actual execution of the day. Just as the temporal creation was linked to and a continuation of the spiritual creation, so meaningful morning and evening prayers are linked to and are a continuation of each other.” (Elder David A Bednar, “Pray Always”, General Conference November 2006)
“Service to others deepens and sweetens this life while we are preparing to live in a better world. It is by serving that we learn to serve. When we are engaged in the service of our fellowmen, not only do our deeds assist them, but we put our own problems in a fresher perspective. When we concern ourselves more with others, there is less time to be concerned with ourselves! In the midst of the miracle of serving, there is the promise of Jesus that by losing ourselves, we find ourselves!” (President Spencer W Kimball, “President Kimball Speaks Out on Service to Others”, Ensign March 1981)
From the Bulletin
Divine guidance and inspiration are promised to those who ‘feast upon the words of Christ’ and ‘liken all scriptures’ unto themselves.” Elder Spencer J. Condie, Claim the Exceeding and Precious Promises, Ensign, Nov. 2007, pg.16.
Grace
Ether 4:12
12 And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good; he that will not believe my words will not believe me—that I am; and he that will not believe me will not believe the Father who sent me. For behold, I am the Father, I am the light, and the life, and the truth of the world.
The instructor gave a comparison of a fruit tree to parts of the gospel.
- Roots/Hope - anchors us - it is critical that a tree remain anchored
- The Condition of the Soil/Humility - much like the parable of the sower- the condition we are living.
Matthew 13:4-8
4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirty fold.
- The Trunk/Knowledge - the trunk or structure of the tree
- Growth/Faith - the growth of tree or the fact that it is growing
- Fruit/Charity - fruit - the love of god
- Grace - the sun, the rain, the nutrients, wind
- Repentance - the act of the root and branches reaching for the sun or water or better soil.
Without the roots and leaves and such the tree can't take in the things it needs. Without the nutrients and sun the roots are worthless.
Wind is like our trials. Wind flexes the tree and stimulates growth.
God loves us unconditionally, but good things don't come without effort. Why are there conditions on getting light when I flip a light switch? The power must be connected
to the house. The wiring has to be sound. The switch has to be functional. Even though the electricity is there and flows freely, if we are not equipped to receive it then it does not function for us. The same is true for Grace or the Atonement. If we have not done anything to reach out to that grace it can not operate in us.
Sunday School
Jude and the Peters
Jude is the brother of James. Likely the brother of James that wrote the epistle of James and was the leader of the church at Jerusalem.
Jude 1:3,9
3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.
3 Nephi 11:29
29 For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another.
Both of these scriptures are true, so we must reconcile to find the meaning and not just jump to a conclusion by looking at one alone. Many verses in the scripture need to be reconciled together to understand the doctrine.
Verse 9 says that Michael contended without railing accusation. It must be possible to contend without being contentious.
Peter uses Babylon as a code word for Rome.
Some dispute that Peter wrote the epistles of Peter, since the Greek is too good for a fisherman. But prophets at times have scribes or spokes persons. Also, prophets do grow and learn a lot beyond their profession and schooling over the course of being a prophet. Joseph Smith knew much more about Hebrew at the end of his life than he did when he was called when he was a farmer who possessed only an elementary education.
Isaiah 8:13-15
13 Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.
14 And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.
How is Jesus a stone of stumbling and rock of offense? Some are offended at the standards the Savior sets and they cause them to stumble and not accept the Gospel.
We should be chaste and also not partake of drugs (alcohol, nicotine, heroine, marijuana...). This makes a strong foundation for us and yet others stumble because of these standards saying that it restricts them from doing what they want.
1 Peter 2:19-20
19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
What glory is there if you get trouble because of things you did that were wrong? We should take our lumps patiently. If you are being good and you suffer because of it and you take it patiently then God is pleased.
1 Peter 3:14
14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
1 Peter 4:5-6
5 Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.
6 For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.
2 Peter 1:3-4
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
2 Peter 1:5-7
5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
Doctrine and Covenants 4:5-6
5 And faith, hope, charity and love, with an eye single to the glory of God, qualify him for the work.
6 Remember faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence.
Sacrament Service
The young women's presidency and one of the young women talked about their scripture heroes that they had talked about this last week at the night of excellence.
One spoke about what a good friend Rebeca was.
One talked of Hannah and the things that Hannah would've done differently and similarly with her sabbath in comparison to the person giving the talk.
“Christ is the Creator, the Healer. What He made, He can fix. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the gospel of repentance and forgiveness (see 2 Ne. 1:13; 2 Ne. 9:45; Jacob 3:11; Alma 26:13–14; Moro. 7:17–19).” (President Boyd K Packer, “I Will Remember Your Sins No More”, General Conference April 2006)
Alma 34:32-33
32 For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.
33 And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed.
One chose Enos and spoke on his feelings about his family and what his personal prayers were like. His prayers were probably sincere and not rush.
Another studied Ruth an Hannah. They talked of how Ruth and Hannah handled adversity.
“...meaningful morning prayer is an important element in the spiritual creation of each day—and precedes the temporal creation or the actual execution of the day. Just as the temporal creation was linked to and a continuation of the spiritual creation, so meaningful morning and evening prayers are linked to and are a continuation of each other.” (Elder David A Bednar, “Pray Always”, General Conference November 2006)
“Service to others deepens and sweetens this life while we are preparing to live in a better world. It is by serving that we learn to serve. When we are engaged in the service of our fellowmen, not only do our deeds assist them, but we put our own problems in a fresher perspective. When we concern ourselves more with others, there is less time to be concerned with ourselves! In the midst of the miracle of serving, there is the promise of Jesus that by losing ourselves, we find ourselves!” (President Spencer W Kimball, “President Kimball Speaks Out on Service to Others”, Ensign March 1981)
From the Bulletin
Divine guidance and inspiration are promised to those who ‘feast upon the words of Christ’ and ‘liken all scriptures’ unto themselves.” Elder Spencer J. Condie, Claim the Exceeding and Precious Promises, Ensign, Nov. 2007, pg.16.
