My message tonight

[mlbrowninwa]

Hi again all. Just have a little something to share. Each night at some point I will sit down with a bible. I say a quick prayer for God to show me a message and close my eyes and flip though the bible slowly. I stop at a page, open my eyes and read the first verse at the top of the page. I have been looking into the LDS church for some time now and read the Book of Mormon daily as well and i always say a prayer that God will lead me in the right direction. I just wanted to share what I read tonight. I stopped at Luke, chapter 8, verse 1 thur 18:

1 Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, 2 along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; 3 Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.

4 One day Jesus told a story in the form of a parable to a large crowd that had gathered from many towns to hear him: 5 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. 6 Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!” When he had said this, he called out, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables to teach the others so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled:

‘When they look, they won’t really see.

When they hear, they won’t understand.’

11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.

16 “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. 17 For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.

18 “So pay attention to how you hear. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what they think they understand will be taken away from them.”

This kindof hit home with me tonight when i think about my other church experiences, how many people say they follow God, but in reality do not and how for those who truly do follow him we should not do it in secret but shout it to the world. And verse 18-the more we listen to his word, the more we will understand! That really seems to be true.

What are your thoughts?

[bytor2112]

By there fruits you will know them. Have you ever read Joseph Smith's account of the first vision?

A brief snippet:

19 I was answered that I must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the Personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: “they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.”

[Guest ceeboo]

by there fruits you will know them. Have you ever read joseph smith's account of the first vision?

A brief snippet:

19 i was answered that i must join none of them, for they were all wrong; and the personage who addressed me said that all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those professors were all corrupt; that: “they draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me, they teach for doctrines the commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof.”

yuck!!!!!!!! :(

[Prodigal_Son]

Alma once cried:

"O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people! Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth."

I think this is the type of reaction you're referring to.

In our day and age, however, it is somewhat difficult to "shout it to the world" without coming off as some sort of hypocrite - as we're all so flawed and the world is so critical.

Our ACTIONS, however, should do the talking for us. Those who are TRULY committed to adhering to the teachings of the Savior will exemplify Christ-like behavior and that light of the gospel of Jesus Christ will be ever present in their countenance and their daily interactions.

I, for one, love the gospel of Jesus Christ and want others to know of it and of my love for it. But I'm soooooo far from perfect that rather than being "ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ", I fear that my imperfections might actually SHAME the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Thus, the key to being that light for the house to see; that light set on a hillside - is to live in harmony with the example set by The Master. At least that's what it boils down to for the likes of imperfect me.

[eternalpromise516]

lol ceeb

[Palerider]

yuck!!!!!!!! :(

thats interesting.....:)

[Hemidakota]

Hi again all. Just have a little something to share. Each night at some point I will sit down with a bible. I say a quick prayer for God to show me a message and close my eyes and flip though the bible slowly. I stop at a page, open my eyes and read the first verse at the top of the page. I have been looking into the LDS church for some time now and read the Book of Mormon daily as well and i always say a prayer that God will lead me in the right direction. I just wanted to share what I read tonight. I stopped at Luke, chapter 8, verse 1 thur 18:

1 Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, 2 along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; 3 Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.

4 One day Jesus told a story in the form of a parable to a large crowd that had gathered from many towns to hear him: 5 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. As he scattered it across his field, some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it. 6 Other seed fell among rocks. It began to grow, but the plant soon wilted and died for lack of moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up with it and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still other seed fell on fertile soil. This seed grew and produced a crop that was a hundred times as much as had been planted!” When he had said this, he called out, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables to teach the others so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled:

‘When they look, they won’t really see.

When they hear, they won’t understand.’

11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is God’s word. 12 The seeds that fell on the footpath represent those who hear the message, only to have the devil come and take it away from their hearts and prevent them from believing and being saved. 13 The seeds on the rocky soil represent those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they believe for a while, then they fall away when they face temptation. 14 The seeds that fell among the thorns represent those who hear the message, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life. And so they never grow into maturity. 15 And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest.

16 “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. 17 For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.

18 “So pay attention to how you hear. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what they think they understand will be taken away from them.”

This kindof hit home with me tonight when i think about my other church experiences, how many people say they follow God, but in reality do not and how for those who truly do follow him we should not do it in secret but shout it to the world. And verse 18-the more we listen to his word, the more we will understand! That really seems to be true.

What are your thoughts?

True...allot people claiming they know GOD but how many really have seen HIM? Experiences has taught me, a person can be active temple goer, active member of the church and yet, still lack something in the Spirit. Yet, I can find a person who does go to church but not 100-percent in all this individual should be doing, GOD has revealed HIMSELF to that member. It starts with the desire of the Spirit and following the will of HIM who has sent us.

[DigitalShadow]

This kindof hit home with me tonight when i think about my other church experiences, how many people say they follow God, but in reality do not and how for those who truly do follow him we should not do it in secret but shout it to the world. And verse 18-the more we listen to his word, the more we will understand! That really seems to be true.

What are your thoughts?

I'm agnostic so it has always struck me as strange that so many people believe they truly follow God but so many other people seem truly convinced that they are following God as well but believe completely different things. How does anyone know they are truly following God when whatever the case may be, billions of people in the world are very wrong, yet have complete faith in the wrong thing.

[Guest ceeboo]

thats interesting.....:)

Interesting ???, Not really, more yucky than interesting.

[bytor2112]

yuck!!!!!!!! :(

Ceeboo my friend, I fear I have offended you by my comment. It was not my intent, but if I did, I hope you will forgive me, :confused:I should have further clarified my point.

Many profess with there mouths to be followers of Christ, but are not. That includes all faiths...even Latter Day Saints. The quote from Joseph Smith was for illustrative purposes, not my attemt to indict others religious views. You know well our beliefs by now regarding the restoration and should also know by now that we see truths in most faiths as well. I was speaking from an LDS perspective, just I am sure you speak from a Catholic perpective and though we disagree on some doctrinal points, we have much much more in common. :)

Sorry for the yuck. :)

[Guest ceeboo]

Ceeboo my friend, I fear I have offended you by my comment. It was not my intent, but if I did, I hope you will forgive me, :confused:I should have further clarified my point.

Many profess with there mouths to be followers of Christ, but are not. That includes all faiths...even Latter Day Saints. The quote from Joseph Smith was for illustrative purposes, not my attemt to indict others religious views. You know well our beliefs by now regarding the restoration and should also know by now that we see truths in most faiths as well. I was speaking from an LDS perspective, just I am sure you speak from a Catholic perpective and though we disagree on some doctrinal points, we have much much more in common. :)

Sorry for the yuck. :)

Bytor my friend :)

Ceeboo offended?? Not at all. I was just a litle puzzled ( yucked really ) as to why you offered what you did when the OP asked for thoughts regarding some New Testament Scripture in the book of Luke.

Not sure your " sales pitch " had good timing nor do I think it will be profitable for the potential LDS member in his journey( the OP ). Just my opinion though :)

Really was not offended !!!:)

Peace,

Carl

[bytor2112]

Bytor my friend :)

Ceeboo offended?? Not at all. I was just a litle puzzled ( yucked really ) as to why you offered what you did when the OP asked for thoughts regarding some New Testament Scripture in the book of Luke.

Not sure your " sales pitch " had good timing nor do I think it will be profitable for the potential LDS member in his journey( the OP ). Just my opinion though :)

Really was not offended !!!:)

Peace,

Carl

This kindof hit home with me tonight when i think about my other church experiences, how many people say they follow God, but in reality do not

Ceeboo.....I will sleep better knowing you are not offended. My comment was in response to the above quote. Hope that clarifies. Seems like an appropriate response, in light of his comment.

Edited December 18, 2008 by bytor2112

[Guest ceeboo]

Ceeboo.....I will sleep better knowing you are not offended. My comment was in response to the above quote. Hope that clarifies. Seems like an appropriate response, in light of his comment.

More than fair :):):)

Perhaps my own bias got in my way :)

Sleep well my friend

[mlbrowninwa]

:lol:Thanks for your replies. Sometimes i think the more we look and study the more questions we bring forth. I enjoy reading all the responses here on this board though and getting opinions from everyone, LDS members or not. It truly helps guide the journey.

[applepansy]

This kindof hit home with me tonight when i think about my other church experiences, how many people say they follow God, but in reality do not and how for those who truly do follow him we should not do it in secret but shout it to the world. And verse 18-the more we listen to his word, the more we will understand! That really seems to be true.

What are your thoughts?

I love the parable of the sower. It illustrates the need to have the right soil (a softened heart and a contrite spirit) to allow the seed (Word of God) to grow. This is a personal experience and while we can share our experiences with the world unless other's hearts are softened then the "seed falls on hard ground".

When we garden we prepare the soil. How? We use hard metal objects to break up the hard soil and then we add peat moss and furtilizer. In the scriptures the word Harrow is used. What is a harrow? Its a sharp instrument used to break up hard soil.

Alma said " . . . for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins" (Alma 36:12)

2 Nephi 9:47 But behold, my brethren, is it expedient that I should awake you to an awful reality of these things? Would I harrow up your souls if your minds were pure? Would I be plain unto you according to the plainness of the truth if ye were freed from sin?

I think that we need to sometimes break up our hard hearts to allow the Word of God to take root.

There is a great talk by John Bytheway called "Weed Your Brain, Grow Your Testimony" Its great. I recommend it. He takes the parable of the sower and puts in terms that are easily understood. DeseretBook.com - Weed Your Brain, Grow Your Testimony

Thanks for the great questions.

applepansy