Elders Quorum
Doctrine and Covenant 101:43-54 - what need have my lord of this tower in a time of peace
44 A certain nobleman had a spot of land, very choice; and he said unto his servants: Go ye unto my vineyard, even upon this very choice piece of land, and plant twelve olive trees;
45 And set watchmen round about them, and build a tower, that one may overlook the land round about, to be a watchman upon the tower, that mine olive trees may not be broken down when the enemy shall come to spoil and take upon themselves the fruit of my vineyard.
46 Now, the servants of the nobleman went and did as their lord commanded them, and planted the olive trees, and built a hedge round about, and set watchmen, and began to build a tower.
47 And while they were yet laying the foundation thereof, they began to say among themselves: And what need hath my lord of this tower?
48 And consulted for a long time, saying among themselves: What need hath my lord of this tower, seeing this is a time of peace?
49 Might not this money be given to the exchangers? For there is no need of these things.
50 And while they were at variance one with another they became very slothful, and they hearkened not unto the commandments of their lord.
51 And the enemy came by night, and broke down the hedge; and the servants of the nobleman arose and were affrighted, and fled; and the enemy destroyed their works, and broke down the olive trees.
52 Now, behold, the nobleman, the lord of the vineyard, called upon his servants, and said unto them, Why! what is the cause of this great evil?
53 Ought ye not to have done even as I commanded you, and—after ye had planted the vineyard, and built the hedge round about, and set watchmen upon the walls thereof—built the tower also, and set a watchman upon the tower, and watched for my vineyard, and not have fallen asleep, lest the enemy should come upon you?
54 And behold, the watchman upon the tower would have seen the enemy while he was yet afar off; and then ye could have made ready and kept the enemy from breaking down the hedge thereof, and saved my vineyard from the hands of the destroyer.
Do we sometimes feel that our families are active (peace time) and we are busy, so our time could be used elsewhere (rather than in watching from the tower)?.
Doctrine and Covenants 58:26
26 For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
Even if one isn’t prepared yet to go in the temple one should remember that the grounds are dedicated and you can go sit outside the temple and get some clarity and peace.
Sunday School
Mosaih 1-3
Mosiah 1:5
5 I say unto you, my sons, were it not for these things, which have been kept and preserved by the hand of God, that we might read and understand of his mysteries, and have his commandments always before our eyes, that even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief, and we should have been like unto our brethren, the Lamanites, who know nothing concerning these things, or even do not believe them when they are taught them, because of the traditions of their fathers, which are not correct.
Does having them in our minds and having them readily come to mind when needed, the same as having them always before our eyes. Can Having them in the front of our mind be termed always before our eyes?
Is the Liahona an artifact at this time of the book of Mosiah or was it still being used to direct the people in some manner?
We should strive to be servant leaders.
Mosiah 2:17
17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
"only in the service of your god"
Sacrament Service
Helaman 5:40-41
40 And it came to pass that the Lamanites said unto him: What shall we do, that this cloud of darkness may be removed from overshadowing us?
41 And Aminadab said unto them: You must repent, and cry unto the voice, even until ye shall have faith in Christ, who was taught unto you by Alma, and Amulek, and Zeezrom; and when ye shall do this, the cloud of darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you.
2 Nephi 31:19
19 And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.
We can have all things that God has and all we have to do is claim it. We claim it through covenants.
A covenant life is a life of apprenticeship.
One of the speakers said, “...based on a host of scriptures, the most well known being Moses 1:39, that the reason why God and Jesus exist is to serve you and me -- to assist you and me to become as they are.”
Romans 8:16-18
16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us.
The speaker, commenting on Romans 8, said, “‘Sufferings’ is also translated to mean ‘adversity, pain, self-sacrifice.’
“So AS we are willing to sacrifice to become as Jesus is, to do what He would do if HE was in our place, we show them that we are ready to receive of the their greatest gifts – eternal life and exaltation……or, in short, to have everything and be everything that they are.”
Ephesians 4:13 (Emphasis added by the speaker)
11 And he gave some (TO BE), apostles; and some (TO BE), prophets; and some (TO BE), evangelists; and some (TO BE), pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto THE measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.
Mosiah 2:41 (Emphasis added by the speaker)
41 And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal (or daily affairs) and spiritual; and if they hold out faithful to the end they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.
Commenting on Mosiah 2:41, the speaker said, “Essentially, all we need to do is show up, step up, serve up, and live up to our baptismal and temple covenants and they give us everything.”
From the Bulletin
"Now is the time to become a disciple of Jesus Christ, which means accepting His invitation to 'come, follow me' (Luke 18:22). This is the decision we made in our premortal lives. Now we must make it again here in mortality, every day, in every situation by taking the Savior's name upon us, remembering His atoning sacrifice, and keeping His commandments. This we covenanted to do when we were baptized, and we have the opportunity to renew those covenants each week as we partake of the sacrament."
Robert D. Hales, "To the Aaronic Priesthood: Preparing for the Decade of Decision," Ensign, May 2007, 49
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