Sacrament Service
First Speaker
John 9:1-3
1 And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.
2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?
3 Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
Miracles don’t bring faith. Faith bring miracles.
“Nothing opens the heavens quite like the combination of increased purity, exact obedience, earnest seeking, daily feasting on the words of Christ in the Book of Mormon, and regular time committed to temple and family history work.” (President Russell M. Nelson, “Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives”, April 2018 General Conference)
Next Speaker
John 8:31-32
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Knowing and following truth does indeed make us free.
“Freedom thus obtained—that is, by obedience to the law of Christ—is freedom of the soul, the highest form of liberty.” (President Marion G. Romney, “The Perfect Law of Liberty”, October 1981 General Conference)
Joint RS/EQ/YM/YW
Patriarchal Blessings
Abraham 1:2
2 And, finding there was greater happiness and peace and rest for me, I sought for the blessings of the fathers, and the right whereunto I should be ordained to administer the same; having been myself a follower of righteousness, desiring also to be one who possessed great knowledge, and to be a greater follower of righteousness, and to possess a greater knowledge, and to be a father of many nations, a prince of peace, and desiring to receive instructions, and to keep the commandments of God, I became a rightful heir, a High Priest, holding the right belonging to the fathers.
DnC 8:2-3
2 Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.
3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground.
Patriarchal blessings should be viewed from an eternal perspective.
Patriarchal blessings have to do with the Abrahamic covenant.
Genesis 26:4
4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;
All families of the earth, on both sides of the veil, are blessed by the seed of Abraham.
He spent time talking about that each tribe has a land inheritance. Why did he talk about that? Are those land inheritances eternal and not just for dividing up places to live for ancient Israel?
Romans 8, 9, and 11
2 Corinthians 6:17-18
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Deuteronomy 21:17
17 But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.
3 Nephi 20:25-27
25 And behold, ye are the children of the prophets; and ye are of the house of Israel; and ye are of the covenant which the Father made with your fathers, saying unto Abraham: And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
26 The Father having raised me up unto you first, and sent me to bless you in turning away every one of you from his iniquities; and this because ye are the children of the covenant—
27 And after that ye were blessed then fulfilleth the Father the covenant which he made with Abraham, saying: In thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed—unto the pouring out of the Holy Ghost through me upon the Gentiles, which blessing upon the Gentiles shall make them mighty above all, unto the scattering of my people, O house of Israel.
Mortality is not over until the resurrection. It is possible that some parts of our patriarchal blessings are fulfilled during the time between physical death and resurrection.
Lineage in the house of Israel is not about blood line or race. It is the tribe through which a person receives responsibilities and blessings.
“A declaration of lineage is not a scientific pronouncement or an identification of genetic inheritance. A declaration of lineage is representative of larger and more important things. . . . . This declaration concerns the government of the kingdom of God, not the nature of the blood or the composition of the genes of the person being blessed.” (Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Patriarchal Blessings, Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting: the Patriarch, January 8, 2005, 8)
“Every worthy, baptized member is entitled to and should receive a patriarchal blessing, which provides inspired direction from the Lord. Patriarchal blessings include a declaration of a person’s lineage in the house of Israel and contain personal counsel from the Lord. As a person studies his or her patriarchal blessing and follows the counsel it contains, it will provide guidance, comfort, and protection.” (Gospel Topics, “Patriarchal Blessings”, www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/patriarchal-blessings?lang=eng)
Your patriarchal blessing is sacred, confidential, and personal to you.
“Your blessing is not to be folded neatly and tucked away. It is not to be framed or published. Rather, it is to be read. It is to be loved. It is to be followed.” (President Thomas S. Monson, “Your Patriarchal Blessing: A Liahona of Light”, October 1986 General Conference)
No comments:
Post a Comment