Day 35 September 13 - Hebrew 11-James 5

[pam]

Discussion

[KeithLBrown]

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God

While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. - JS-H 1:11

Therefore, he that lacketh wisdom, let him ask of me, and I will give him liberally and upbraid him not. - D&C 42:68

Scripture Reference: James 1:5-7

5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Precious Fruits of the First Vision," Ensign, Feb 2009, 4–8

This is how Joseph Smith’s First Vision blesses our own personal lives, the lives of families, and eventually the whole human family—we come to believe in Jesus Christ through the testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Prophets and apostles throughout the history of mankind have had divine manifestations similar to Joseph’s. Moses saw God face-to-face and learned that he was a son of God "in the similitude of [His] Only Begotten" (Moses 1:6). The Apostle Paul testified that the resurrected Jesus Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus (see Acts 26:9–23). This experience led Paul to become one of the Lord’s great missionaries. Hearing Paul’s witness of his heavenly vision during the trial at Caesarea, the powerful King Agrippa admitted, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian" (Acts 26:28).

And there were many other ancient prophets who also bore powerful testimony of Christ. All of these manifestations, ancient and modern, lead those who believe to the divine source of all righteousness and hope—to God, our Heavenly Father, and to His Son, Jesus Christ.

God has spoken to Joseph Smith for the purpose of blessing all of God’s children with His mercy and love, even in times of uncertainties and insecurities, of wars and rumors of wars, of natural and personal disasters. The Savior said, "Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive" (3 Nephi 9:14). And all who accept this invitation will be "encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love" (Alma 26:15).

Through our faith in the personal witness of the Prophet Joseph and the reality of the First Vision, through study and prayer, deep and sincere, we will be blessed with a firm faith in the Savior of the world, who spoke to Joseph "on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of eighteen hundred and twenty" (Joseph Smith—History 1:14).

The following outline summarizes a few of the important events in the restoration of the gospel and the establishment of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which the Lord has declared is "the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth" (D&C 1:30).

Early spring, 1820. Seeking the true Church of Jesus Christ, 14-year-old Joseph Smith prayed in a grove of trees near his home in Palmyra, New York. In answer to his humble prayer, Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ visited him and told him that he must not join any of the churches on the earth at that time. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:11–19.) In the Church we refer to this experience as Joseph Smith's First Vision.

September 21–22, 1823. Joseph Smith was visited by an angel named Moroni. Moroni prophesied of coming events and told Joseph of the Book of Mormon record, written on plates of gold. The angel allowed Joseph to see the gold plates, which were buried in the nearby Hill Cumorah. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:27–53.)

September 22, 1827. Joseph Smith received the gold plates from Moroni at the Hill Cumorah after having met with Moroni on 22 September of each of the previous four years. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:53, 59.)

May 15, 1829. Having read about baptism for the remission of sins as they worked on the translation of the gold plates, Joseph Smith and his scribe Oliver Cowdery went to a secluded area to inquire of the Lord concerning the matter. There, on the banks of the Susquehanna River near Harmony, Pennsylvania, they received the answer to their prayer. John the Baptist, a resurrected being, came to them as "a messenger from heaven . . . in a cloud of light." He conferred upon them the Aaronic Priesthood. Then, in obedience to his instructions, Joseph and Oliver baptized each other and ordained each other to the Aaronic Priesthood. (See Joseph Smith—History 1:68–72; see also D&C 13.)

May 1829. The ancient Apostles Peter, James, and John conferred the Melchizedek Priesthood upon Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. (See D&C 128:20.)

June 1829. Guided "by the gift and power of God" (D&C 135:3), the Prophet Joseph Smith completed the translation of the Book of Mormon.

March 26, 1830. The first printed copies of the Book of Mormon became available in Palmyra, New York.

April 6, 1830. The Church was organized in Fayette Township, New York, beginning with six members.

March 27, 1836. The Kirtland Temple, the first temple built in this dispensation, was dedicated. The Prophet Joseph Smith offered the dedicatory prayer, which had been given to him by revelation. (See D&C 109.)

April 3, 1836. The Savior appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple. Moses, Elias, and Elijah also appeared and gave priesthood keys to Joseph and Oliver. Elijah brought the keys of the sealing power, which make it possible for families to be sealed together forever. (See D&C 110.)

Elder Carlos E. Asay, "Oh, How Lovely Was the Morning!": Joseph Smith’s First Prayer and the First Vision", Ensign, April 1995, 44

But Joseph Smith’s first vision was not the first of its kind in the history of mankind. Moses saw God face to face and talked with him. In the process, Moses learned of his relationship to God, that he was a son of God, "in the similitude of [his] Only Begotten (Moses 1:6). He learned also of the darkness of Satan and the glory of Deity in contrast to man’s present condition (see Moses 1:2–20). The Apostle Paul testified that Jesus of Nazareth appeared to him on the road to Damascus and changed the course of his life (see Acts 26:9–23). His recital of the heavenly vision prompted King Agrippa to say, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian" (Acts 26:28). Who knows how many converts Paul won during his missionary journeys after receiving his fountainhead experience? Others, such as Lehi, Nephi, and Alma, could be added to the list of privileged individuals who received marvelous manifestations of godly powers. Each vision received and recorded was glorious in its own right and was provided in accord with divine will and to fulfill divine purposes.

One might ask what divine purposes were realized by the theophany that took place in a grove near Palmyra, New York, in the spring of 1820. The full answer to this question comes only to those who understand the circumstances surrounding this singular happening. A long night of spiritual darkness, unusual religious excitement, divisions among professed Christians, ordinary farm folks seeking a greater knowledge of godly matters, and other unique conditions set the stage for the Prophet Joseph’s entrance into a drama that is still being played. Among the many purposes fulfilled and the nuggets of truth drawn from the gold mine of the First Vision are these:

1. There are no winners in wars of words. Joseph learned that there are no winners in the tumult of opinions regarding religious matters. Such contention plays into the hands of Satan because he is the "father of contention" (3 Ne. 11:29). He is the devil who turns priest against priest and convert against convert, creating strife or engendering good feelings more pretended than real (see JS—H 1:6, 12).

Moreover, Joseph verified the fact that critical issues pertaining to the Spirit cannot be settled alone by "an appeal to the Bible" as long as teachers of religion understand the same passage of scripture so differently (JS—H 1:12).

2. Satanic powers and darkness are real. Joseph learned of "the power of some actual being from the unseen world," which bound his tongue and enveloped him in thick darkness as he began to pray (JS—H 1:16; see also JS—H 1:15). This power was exerted by the evil one, who viewed Joseph Smith as a threat to his realm of sin and error.

Few men have disturbed and annoyed the adversary more than Joseph did; few have felt the combined powers of darkness more than he did; and few have triumphed over Satan more nobly than he did (see JS—H 1:20).

3. Powers of light and truth are of God. While praying for escape from the influence that bound his tongue and created within him a feeling of doom, Joseph learned what Moses had learned centuries before about Satan’s darkness and nothingness, as compared with the light and liberty associated with God (see Moses 1:10–15). Said Joseph:

"I saw a pillar of light exactly over my head, above the brightness of the sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me.

"It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound" (JS—H 1:16–17).

"Light and truth [do] forsake [the] evil one" (D&C 93:37). The powers of darkness do flee before the powers of light, just as the night runs from the dawn.

4. The only true God and Jesus Christ appeared. Beholding the glorious appearance of the Father and the Son, Joseph learned that he was made in the image of God, exactly as the scriptures attest. "When the light rested upon me" Joseph recorded, "I saw two Personages, whose brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name and said, pointing to the other—This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" (JS—H 1:17.)

[pam]

Hebrews 11:1 faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen

Definitions help us understand. However, Paul’s definition of faith can be confusing rather than clarifying. ‘Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.’ The words are graceful and the phrase flows beautifully, but what does it mean? Fortunately, Alma gives us a simpler definition, declaring that faith is to ‘hope for things which are not seen, which are true’ (Alma 32:21, see also Ether 12:6). The Joseph Smith Translation further clarifies Paul by using the word assurance instead of substance. Hence, “faith is the assurance which men have of the existence of things which they have not seen” (Lectures on Faith 1:10). This assurance becomes a witness or evidence—not to the world, but to the individual—that the hope or belief is true.

Howard W. Hunter

“…faith makes us confident of what we hope for and convinced of what we do not see. The scientist does not see molecules, atoms, or electrons, yet he knows they exist. He does not see electricity, radiation, or magnetism, but he knows these are unseen realities. In like manner, those who earnestly seek for God do not see him, but they know of his reality by faith. It is more than hope. Faith makes it a conviction—an evidence of things not seen.” (“To Know God,” Ensign, Nov. 1974, 97)

Neal A. Maxwell

“Faith brings with it the expanding ‘evidence of things not seen.’ (Heb. 11:1.) Some mortals dismiss this real, spiritual evidence because ‘the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him … because they are spiritually discerned.’ (1 Cor. 2:14.) But this provincialism on the part of others should not deprive the rest of us of energizing evidence.” (“Lest Ye Be Wearied and Faint in Your Minds,” Ensign, May 1991, 89)

Boyd K. Packer

“You exercise faith by causing, or by making, your mind accept or believe as truth that which you cannot, by reason alone, prove for certainty. The first exercising of your faith should be your acceptance of Christ and His atonement.” (“Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise,” Ensign, Nov. 1994, 60)

Gordon B. Hinckley

“If there is any one thing you and I need in this world it is faith, that dynamic, powerful, marvelous element by which, as Paul declared, the very worlds were framed (Hebrews 11:3) . . . Faith—the kind of faith that moves one to get on his knees and plead with the Lord and then get on his feet and go to work—is an asset beyond compare, even in the acquisition of secular knowledge. I do not minimize the need for study and labor. I would add to these faith and prayer, with the sacred promise that ‘God shall give unto you knowledge by his Holy Spirit, yea, by the unspeakable gift of the Holy Ghost.’” (Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1997], 186.)

[pam]

Hebrews 11:40 they without us should not be made perfect

“’They without us should not be made perfect’ (Heb. 11:40). Joseph Smith used no scripture more often in explaining work for the dead, for it indicates the unity of the family of God in all ages and suggests salvation through interdependence, just as the turning of the children to their fathers does at the end of Malachi. One with the truth is obligated to share the gospel with the living, and Joseph Smith insists on the same horizon for the dead, ‘for their salvation is necessary and essential to our salvation’ ("D&C 128:15).” (Understanding Paul [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1983], 412 - 413.)

Joseph Smith

“[Malachi] had his eye fixed on the restoration of the priesthood, the glories to be revealed in the last days, and in an especial manner this most glorious of all subjects belonging to the everlasting gospel, namely, the baptism for the dead. . . . I might have rendered a plainer translation to this, but it is sufficiently plain to suit my purpose as it stands. It is sufficient to know, in this case, that the earth will be smitten with a curse unless there is a welding link of some kind or other between the fathers and the children, upon some subject or other—and behold what is that subject? It is the baptism for the dead. For we without them cannot be made perfect; neither can they without us be made perfect" Neither can they nor we be made perfect without those who have died in the gospel also.” (Kent P. Jackson, comp. and ed., Joseph Smith's Commentary on the Bible [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 69 - 70.)

Joseph Smith

“These are principles in relation to the dead and the living that cannot be lightly passed over, as pertaining to our salvation. For their salvation is necessary and essential to our salvation, as Paul says concerning the fathers—that they without us cannot be made perfect—neither can we without our dead be made perfect.

“The greatest responsibility that God has laid upon us [is] to seek after our dead. The apostle says, ‘They without us cannot be made perfect.’ Now I am speaking of them. I say to you, Paul, you cannot be perfect without us. Those that are gone before and those who come after must be made perfect, and God has made it obligatory to man.

“The greatest responsibility laid upon us in this life is in relation to our dead. Paul [said], ‘They cannot be made perfect without us.’ For it is necessary that the seals are in our hands to seal our children and our dead for the dispensation of the fulness of times, a dispensation to meet the promises made by Jesus Christ before the foundation of the world for the salvation of man.” (Kent P. Jackson, comp. and ed., Joseph Smith's Commentary on the Bible [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 195.)

Theodore M. Burton

“We have assumed that this work was to be done merely as a gesture of grace on the part of the living for those of our ancestors who are dead. This is a misconception which comes from not understanding the full meaning of the gospel. The plan of salvation is the plan of saving the children of God in a family relationship. Indeed, we may call this a universal salvation because it applies to all men and women who will qualify themselves through repentance and desire to become the children of God. We cannot be saved without our progenitors. In spite of the faith of all the prophets as cited by Paul in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, he concludes by saying:

‘And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:10808

God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.’ (Heb. 11:39-40.)

“We must be linked to them, and they to their fathers and mothers back to Father Adam and Mother Eve, and they to Jesus Christ, and he to God as his Only Begotten Son in the flesh. Thus to save our own selves and to complete our own salvation, we must have our hearts turned to our fathers seek out their identities, and perform the work of salvation for them. We will be held accountable for their blood unless we do so.” (Conference Report, April 1965, Third Day—Morning Meeting 113.)

[pam]

Hebrews 12:1 let us run with patience the race that is set before us

‘Do not run faster or labor more than you have strength and means provided…but be diligent unto the end’ (DC 10:4)

Neal A. Maxwell

“Sometimes that which we are doing is correct enough but simply needs to be persisted in patiently, not for a minute or a moment but sometimes for years. Paul speaks of the marathon of life and of how we must ‘run with patience the race that is set before us’ (Heb. 12:1). Paul did not select the hundred-meter dash for his analogy!” (Cory H. Maxwell, ed., The Neal A. Maxwell Quote Book [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997], 242.)

Neal A. Maxwell

“…we are to ‘run with patience the race that is set before us’ (Heb. 12:1), and it is a marathon, not a dash. When you and I are unduly impatient, we are suggesting that we like our timetable better than God’s.” (“Endure It Well,” Ensign, May 1990, 34)

Neal A. Maxwell

“There is a difference…between being 'anxiously engaged' and being over anxious and thus underengaged.” (Conference Reports, Oct. 1976, p. 14)

[pam]

Hebrews 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth

H. Burke Peterson

“Let us remember—trials are an evidence of a Father’s love. They are given as a blessing to his children. They are given as opportunities for growth.

“Now, how do we approach them? How do we overcome them? How are we magnified by them? There seems to be a reason why we lose our composure in adversity—why we think we can no longer cope with what we’re faced with here in this life. There is a reason why we give up, why we ‘fall apart at the seams’ so to speak. The reason may be so simple that we lose sight of it.

“Could it be it’s because we begin to lose contact with our greatest source of strength—our Father in heaven? He is the key to our enjoying sweetness in adversity—in gaining strength from our trials—he and he alone.

“As a reassurance to us, let us read from the New Testament: ‘There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.’ (1 Cor. 10:13.)

“Did you get the significance of that scriptural promise—we will have no temptation or trial beyond our ability to overcome—he will provide a way for us to rise above—whatever it may be.” (“Adversity and Prayer,” Ensign, Jan. 1974, 19)

Orson F. Whitney

“There is always a blessing in sorrow and humiliation. They who escape these things are not the fortunate ones. ‘Whom God loveth he chasteneth.’ "#Heb. 12:6When he desires to make a great man he takes a little street waif, or a boy in the back-woods, such as Lincoln or Joseph Smith, and brings him up through hardship and privation to be the grand and successful leader of a people. Flowers shed most of their perfume when they are crushed. Men and women have to suffer just so much in order to bring out the best that is in them. (IE, November 1918, 22:5-7.)” (Roy W. Doxey, comp., Latter-day Prophets and the Doctrine and Covenants [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978], 4: 231.)

Ezra Taft Benson

“May God bless us to be grateful, even in times of trouble and reverses. We all have our reverses: ‘Whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth’ (Hebrews 12:6). It is in the depths where men and women learn the lessons which help them gain strength-not at the pinnacle of success. The hour of man's success is his greatest danger. It sometimes takes reverses to make us appreciate our blessings and to develop us into strong, courageous characters. We can meet every reverse that can possibly come with the help of the Lord. The Lord taught the Prophet Joseph Smith that every reverse can be turned to our benefit and blessing and can make us stronger, more courageous, more godlike (D&C 122).” (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1988], 465.)

Neal A. Maxwell

“There is another dimension of suffering, and other challenges that come to us even though we seem to be innocent. These come to us because an omniscient Lord deliberately chooses to school us…A good friend, who knows whereof he speaks, has observed of trials, ‘If it's fair, it is not a true trial!’ That is, without the added presence of some inexplicableness and some irony and injustice, the experience may not stretch us or lift us sufficiently. The crucifixion of Christ was clearly the greatest injustice in human history, but the Savior bore up under it with majesty and indescribable valor.” (All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1979], 31.)

Neal A. Maxwell

“…brothers and sisters, no one ever promised us that discipleship in the last days would be a picnic in the park.” (“The Great Plan of the Eternal God,” Ensign, May 1984, 23)

Joseph Fielding Smith

“Moreover, those who stand before the throne dressed in white are they who have ‘come out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.’ There is great experience in tribulation that brings to pass much good. The person who goes through life without pain or sorrow, and who is not called upon to sacrifice comforts and partake of hardships, never receives the full value of life. We came here for experience, the benefits of which are not to be limited to this mortal life, but to be of value to those who receive the exaltation in the Kingdom of God.” (Church History and Modern Revelation, 4 vols. [salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1946-1949], 3: 202.)

[pam]

Hebrews 13:4 Marriage is honourable in all

Spencer W. Kimball

“The…clean courting of young men and women, [brings them] eventually to a virtuous union at an altar where a fully authorized servant of God seals the union for eternity. The Hebrew saints were properly taught, ‘Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.’ (Heb. 13:4.)

“And to those who might decry marriage or postpone it or forbid it Paul spoke, condemning them. It is generally selfishness, cold and self-centered, which leads people to shun marriage responsibility. There are many who talk and write against marriage. Even some of our own delay marriage and argue against it. To all who are deceived by these ‘doctrines of devils,’ we urge the return to normalcy. We call upon all people to accept normal marriage as a basis for true happiness.” (“Guidelines to Carry Forth the Work of God in Cleanliness,” Ensign, May 1974, 6)

The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve

“We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children…

“The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.

“We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan…The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ.” (“The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102)

[pam]

James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God

Bruce R. McConkie

“This single verse of scripture has had a greater impact and a more far reaching effect upon mankind than any other single sentence ever recorded by any prophet in any age. It might well be said that the crowning act of the ministry of James was not his martyrdom for the testimony of Jesus, but his recitation, as guided by the Holy Ghost, of these simple words which led to the opening of the heavens in modern times.

“And it might well be added that every investigator of revealed truth stands, at some time in the course of his search, in the place where Joseph Smith stood. He must turn to the Almighty and gain wisdom from God by revelation if he is to gain a place on that strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life.” (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3 vols. [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965-1973], 3: 247.)

Ezra Taft Benson

“Take time to meditate. Meditation on a passage of scripture—James 1:5—led a young boy into a grove of trees to commune with his Heavenly Father. That is what opened the heavens in this dispensation.” (“Seek the Spirit of the Lord,” Ensign, Apr. 1988, 2)

James E. Faust

“Joseph Smith has given us not only the message of the divine Restoration but also the practical how-to steps to obtain personal and divine communication… The answer and the instruction were complete and full. Is not this the instruction, the how-to we need to obtain divine answers to the confusion and to the vexatious problems in our lives?

“May I suggest four steps:

“First, when possible, study the scriptures daily, with an emphasis upon the Book of Mormon and the modern scriptures.

“Second, pray daily.

“Third, listen for the divine answer.

“Fourth, be obedient to it.” (“He Restoreth My Soul,” Ensign, Oct. 1997, 4)

[pam]

James 1:13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God

Spencer W. Kimball

“’God made me that way,’ some say, as they rationalize and excuse themselves for their perversions. ‘I can't help it,’ they add. This is blasphemy. Is man not made in the image of God, and does he think God to be ‘that way’? Man is responsible for his own sins. It is possible that he may rationalize and excuse himself until the groove is so deep that he cannot get out without great difficulty, but he can resist, he can change. Temptations come to all people. The difference between the reprobate and the worthy person is generally that one yielded and the other resisted. It is true that one's background may make the decision and accomplishment easier or more difficult, but if one is mentally alert, he can still control his future. That is the gospel message—personal responsibility.” (President Kimball Speaks Out [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1981], 12.)

[pam]

James 3:2 If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body

Marion G. Romney

“This bridling of the whole body is a lofty objective. To reach it requires a real struggle, however. For notwithstanding the tongue is a small member of the body, it is very effective and it seldom wears out…(See James 3:2–8.)

“Although nearly two thousand years have passed, the evils against which James so forcefully, counseled are still with us; but they are no more consistent with the life of a Latter-day Saint than they were with the life of a former-day saint.” (“Speak Kind Words,” Ensign, Aug. 1977, 2)

Bruce R. McConkie

“The tongue is the mirror of the soul. Spoken words reveal the intents, desires, and feelings of the heart. We shall give an account before the judgment bar for every spoken word, and shall be condemned for our idle, intemperate, profane, and false words. Implicit in this principle of judgment is the fact that we can control what we say. And what better test can there be of a godly self-control than the ability to tame the tongue!” (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3 vols. [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965-1973], 3: 263.)

Milton R. Hunter

“If it pays well to guard our lips, it pays just as well and even better to guard our thoughts, for every word that we speak is preceded by the thought. We, as Saints of the Most High, should accustom ourselves at all times to think such pure thoughts that if our minds and hearts were laid open before the world, nothing would appear which when brought to light would cause us to blush.” (Conference Report, October 1946, Afternoon Meeting 42.)

[pam]

James 3:5 Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth

Spencer W. Kimball

“Lies and gossip which harm reputations are scattered about by the four winds like the seeds of a ripe dandelion held aloft by a child. Neither the seeds nor the gossip can ever be gathered in. The degree and extent of the harm done by the gossip is inestimable.” (The Miracle of Forgiveness [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1969], 54)

Joseph Smith

“The tongue is an unruly member—hold your tongues about things of no moment, a little tale will set the world on fire.” (The Words of Joseph Smith: The Contemporary Accounts of the Nauvoo Discourses of the Prophet Joseph, compiled and edited by Andrew F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook [Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1980], 120 - 121.)

Joseph Smith

“I now counsel you, that if you know anything calculated to disturb the peace or injure the feelings of your brother or sister, hold your tongues, and the least harm will be done. (History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 5:140)

Milton R. Hunter

“Throughout my life in mingling with many people of various religious denominations I have observed that as a rule it seems as if human beings like to gossip. We like to hear unsavory things about our neighbors and talk about each other. It seems that ofttimes we get a certain degree of satisfaction or even joy out of saying bad things about other people. We thoughtlessly and sometimes maliciously judge each other. We censure our associates sometimes unjustly, many times unkindly; and most of the time we speak without having the evidence to back up what we are saying. We seem to forget that James, the brother of the Lord, warned that the unbridled tongue is ‘full of deadly poison.’ (James 3:8.)

“ know that even sometimes people who are faithful in the Church pass judgment and condemnation on those with whom they associate without knowing the facts. Such is displeasing to God.

“I know that many people's hearts have been broken and tears have been shed because of the unkind and perhaps untrue things that have been said about them and because of unjust judgments that we give of each other.

“As I look into the faces of the members of this congregation, my conscience certainly tells me that I err at times. Sometimes I gossip and judge others, and when I do it I act unrighteously before the Lord. My heart tells me I would like to repent, I would like to overcome my weakness of gossiping and saying bad things about other people. I am sure that you feel the same as I do.” (Conference Report, October 1960, Afternoon Meeting 24.)

[pam]

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss

Neal A. Maxwell

Clearly, when our prayers are uninspired, we petition for things we should not ask for, even though we do so innocently. This is, in effect, what we do when we pray and “ask amiss.” (James 4:3.)

When we ask amiss, God, being perfect, must reject our petitions: “And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.” (3 Nephi 18:20. Italics added.)

The task is to draw close enough to the Lord that we progress to the point where we petition Him according to His will, not ours. “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us.” (1 John 5:14.) In modern revelations the Lord has declared His willingness to grant us the requests contained in our petitions if what we ask for is expedient for us. (D&C 88:64-65.) (All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1979], 94.)

Neal A. Maxwell

We are told by God that we receive no blessings except by obedience to the laws upon which those blessings are predicated (D&C 130:20-21), prayer is required as part of that process of learning to ask for what is right. “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us” (1 John 5:14; see also 3 Nephi 18:20; James 4:3; 2 Nephi 4:35).

We cannot expect the blessings of prayer unless we submit sincerely, meekly, and fully to the process of prayer.

Granted, finite minds do not fully understand the infinite mind of God. We are not fully comprehending when our agency brushes against His divinity. Yet we should trust Him as our provincial petitions meet His universal omniscience…

It is necessary for us thus to place our desires and needs genuinely and unselfishly before God in prayer. It is in this process of placing our desires before Him, to a greater extent than we usually do, that we can listen and learn concerning His will. Such could not be done if we were ritualistically submissive or only partially involved.

Of course, after we place our petitions before Him we are to be submissive: “Thy will be done.” But this is the last part of the process of petition, not the first.

Learning to pray is, therefore, the work of a lifetime. If we keep on praying, we will keep on discovering. (That Ye May Believe [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1992], 179.)

[pam]

James 4:4 know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?

Hugh Nibley

James does not mince words: “Know ye not, that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever, therefore, will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4). Nor does John: “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world . . . is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof” (1 John 2:15-17). “Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you. . . . We are of God: he that knoweth God, heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. . . . And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness” (1 John 3:13; 4:6; 5:19). (Mormonism and Early Christianity, edited by Todd M. Compton and Stephen D. Ricks [salt Lake City and Provo: Deseret Book Co., Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1987], 294.)

Spencer J. Condie

As we cling to the iron rod and partake of the gospel fruit of the tree of life, we become enemies of the world, and some begin to scoff at us from their perch in the great and spacious building seen in Father Lehi's dream (see 1 Ne. 8). We are then called a peculiar people because we do not drink martinis before banquets, we do not toast others with a glass of wine, nor do we finish our meals with a cup of cappuccino coffee. (Your Agency, Handle with Care [salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1996], 50.)

Neal A. Maxwell

Because our behavioral standards are different, we must come to despise the ridicule of the world. The scorn and derision of the world are fleeting. James, who was not shy concerning truth, counseled, “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?” (James 4:4.)

Those who are in error must not call the cadence for our lives, for those who boast of their sexual conquests are only boasting of that which has conquered them—in the same way that drinkers who make nervous jokes about drunkenness are only mocking that which has come to mock them. We may pity behavioral clones, but we do not envy them. (Notwithstanding My Weakness [salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1981], 102 - 103.)

James E. Faust

I owe my text to Elder Marion G. Romney, who, at a Brigham Young University devotional in 1955, stated: “Now there are those among us who are trying to serve the Lord without offending the devil.” This is a contradiction of terms. Elder Romney goes on: “Must the choice lie irrevocably between peace on the one hand, obtained by compliance with the Gospel of Jesus Christ as restored through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and contention and war on the other hand?”

Someone once said, “If you come to a fork in the road, take it.” But it doesn’t work that way. The Savior said, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Today many of us are trying to serve two masters—the Lord and our own selfish interests—without offending the devil. The influence of God, our Eternal Father, urges us, pleads us, and inspires us to follow him. In contrast the power of Satan urges us to disbelieve and disregard God’s commandments. (“Serving the Lord and Resisting the Devil,” Ensign, Sept. 1995, 2)

[pam]

James 5:14 Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders…

Gordon B. Hinckley

That power to heal the sick is still among us. It is the power of the priesthood of God. It is the authority held by the elders of this Church.

We welcome and praise and utilize the marvelous procedures of modern medicine which have done so much to alleviate human suffering and lengthen human life. All of us are indebted to the dedicated men and women of science and medicine who have conquered so much of disease, who have mitigated pain, who have stayed the hand of death. I cannot say enough of gratitude for them.

Yet they are the first to admit the limitations of their knowledge and the imperfection of their skills in dealing with many matters of life and death. The mighty Creator of the heavens and the earth and all that in them are has given to His servants a divine power that sometimes transcends all the powers and knowledge of men. I venture to say that there is scarcely a faithful elder within the sound of my voice who could not recount instances in which this healing power has been made manifest in behalf of the sick. It is the healing power of Christ. (“The Healing Power of Christ,” Ensign, Nov. 1988, 54)

James A. Cullimore

The accounts of miraculous healings in the Church are numerous. They warm one’s soul and give great strength of testimony as to the divinity of this great work. But the Lord has instructed us that we are not to boast of these great blessings. He said, “But a commandment I give unto them, that they shall not boast themselves of these things, neither speak them before the world; for these things are given unto you for your profit and for salvation.” (D&C 84:73.)

It was not intended that we make merchandise out of the gifts of God and shout to the world the result of these most wonderful gifts. They are given to us for our salvation, to strengthen our testimony and the testimonies of others as we bear humble witness of them in our meetings, quietly, by the Spirit but not before the world. (“Gifts of the Spirit,” Ensign, Nov. 1974, 28)

Gordon B. Hinckley

The priesthood includes the power to bless the sick. Is there anyone within my hearing who has not exercised or felt that divine power? Can any of us have any doubt concerning its efficacy? We could tell of miracles, sacred and wonderful, that we have witnessed within our own experience. (“Priesthood Restoration,” Ensign, Oct. 1988, 72)