In the phrase "Hear Him"...who is "Him"?


carlimac
 Share

Recommended Posts

For some reason, this has been something I haven't really understood my whole life. But I didn't realize I wasn't comprehending till maybe the last few years. I have merrily gone along in my life believing one thing but now I'm confused.  I have yet to get an answer that is clear and definitive and sticks with me. 

This is my current understanding. Show me where I am wrong:

Who do we pray to? - God the Father, Elohim through Jesus Christ as the conduit. So all communication goes through Jesus Christ to the Father.

Who answers us?- God the Father through the Holy Ghost

 

When President Nelson says " Hear Him", who are we to be hearing? God the Father? Jesus Christ? The Holy Ghost?  

Does it matter?  Would they all answer us in the same way anyway? 

When we are encouraged to "have a relationship" with God, are we to develop three different relationships with three different beings? 

Here's why I ask-

In my logical mind I have a very different relationship with a father than I would a brother. And almost no " relationship" at all with the Holy Ghost in that I don't pray or speak to that entity, only listen. There is no back and forth with the Holy Ghost. 

With a father I come to him to express love and thanks for all he does for me. ( He is the giver of all earthly blessings, right?) I come to him for help and advise and for a hug and comfort when I'm feeling lousy. 

With a brother who has been (as I understand it) the creative engineer of this earth and all that's in it and who came to earth to become half mortal so he could take on my sins, I'm ovewhelmingly humbled and grateful to him. What an amazing brother. But am I supposed to ask Him for help and advise...if I don't really pray to Him? 

This confusion struck me again yesterday as I listened to a BYU Education week talk and the speaker pointed out this quote by President Nelson from last April's conference 

"Our Father knows that when we are surrounded by uncertainty and fear, what wil help us the very most is to hear His Son... Because when we seek to hear- truly hear- His Son we will be guided to kow what to do in any circumstance." 

Someone help me out. How does this work?  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, carlimac said:

For some reason, this has been something I haven't really understood my whole life. But I didn't realize I wasn't comprehending till maybe the last few years. I have merrily gone along in my life believing one thing but now I'm confused.  I have yet to get an answer that is clear and definitive and sticks with me. 

This is my current understanding. Show me where I am wrong:

Who do we pray to? - God the Father, Elohim through Jesus Christ as the conduit. So all communication goes through Jesus Christ to the Father.

I think this is not a complete understanding. Our prayers do not "go through" the Christ. We come boldly before the throne of God as his sons and daughters. But we do so in the name of our Savior and Justifier. Somehow, having the name of Jesus gives us standing before God that we of ourselves lack. Christ is our Redeemer and will plead our cause before the Father. In this sense, he is most certainly our intermediary. But I don't believe he stands between us and the Father in prayer. Jesus' own teachings seem to me to say the opposite, that we are expected to go before our God and speak intimately with him.

26 minutes ago, carlimac said:

Who answers us?- God the Father through the Holy Ghost

Any divine answer is from God, whether it's a pillar of fire, a whirlwind, a gentle whisper to the soul, or the Father and the Son standing bodily before us. I'm not sure I see the point in trying to distinguish between an answer from the Father in an audible voice or in an inspiration to the heart.

26 minutes ago, carlimac said:

When President Nelson says " Hear Him", who are we to be hearing? God the Father? Jesus Christ? The Holy Ghost?

I'm not sure I understand the functional difference. Hearing any one is the same as hearing the others. But technically speaking, President Nelson almost certainly means the same as the Father Himself meant: That we are to hear the Son.

26 minutes ago, carlimac said:

Does it matter?  Would they all answer us in the same way anyway?

Yes, I believe this is exactly the case.

26 minutes ago, carlimac said:

When we are encouraged to "have a relationship" with God, are we to develop three different relationships with three different beings?

https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/bruce-r-mcconkie/relationship-lord/

I encourage you to read Elder McConkie's talk above. I also encourage you to listen to it as well as read it, to hear McConkie's inimitable delivery and sense of humor.

26 minutes ago, carlimac said:

Here's why I ask-

In my logical mind I have a very different relationship with a father than I would a brother. And almost no " relationship" at all with the Holy Ghost in that I don't pray or speak to that entity, only listen. There is no back and forth with the Holy Ghost. 

With a father I come to him to express love and thanks for all he does for me. ( He is the giver of all earthly blessings, right?) I come to him for help and advise and for a hug and comfort when I'm feeling lousy. 

With a brother who has been (as I understand it) the creative engineer of this earth and all that's in it and who came to earth to become half mortal so he could take on my sins, I'm ovewhelmingly humbled and grateful to him. What an amazing brother. But am I supposed to ask Him for help and advise...if I don't really pray to Him? 

This confusion struck me again yesterday as I listened to a BYU Education week talk and the speaker pointed out this quote by President Nelson from last April's conference 

"Our Father knows that when we are surrounded by uncertainty and fear, what wil help us the very most is to hear His Son... Because when we seek to hear- truly hear- His Son we will be guided to kow what to do in any circumstance." 

Someone help me out. How does this work?  

Jesus is our Father, in the sense that he buys us back and becomes our Master. I realize that we spend much time in the Restored Church teaching our children that Jesus is our "older brother" and not our Eternal Father. This is a truth, to be sure, but a child's truth, like "I am a child of God". There is far more to it than the simple teaching; the scriptures make it crystal clear that we become children of God, not merely as some sort of birthright, but by striving to follow him and come unto Christ.

Our relationship with Christ is not merely that of a much younger sibling to an older and far wiser brother. Christ is our Creator, in a real and literal sense. At the very least, he creates our eternal life, for which we reverence him as a Father.

Hope these thoughts have been of some help. I don't pretend to understand the deep and true nature of our relationship to God, except that we are his children and his creations. But the above represents some of my own understandings and thoughts on the matter. FWIW.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, carlimac said:

When President Nelson says " Hear Him", who are we to be hearing? God the Father? Jesus Christ? The Holy Ghost?  

Does it matter?  Would they all answer us in the same way anyway? 

Doesn't matter: they're all give you the exact same answer.  Just like my daughter is going to get the exact same message from both my hobby and I when she asks "Can I play my tablet in the middle of the night?".  Father, Son, and Spirit are on the exact same page caring for us all.  

 

1 hour ago, carlimac said:

When we are encouraged to "have a relationship" with God, are we to develop three different relationships with three different beings? 

(Speaking my personal thoughts)

In the eternities, we'll get to know each of the three different persons individually.  But for right now, it's more of a combined thing.  Our understanding of God is SO basic right now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I appreciate these answers but it still remains nebulous to me. In the church a pretty big deal is made of the fact that the godhead is made up of three distinct individuals and yet when it comes to receiving revelation they are  kind of meshed together in a way that is hard for me to get my head around. I personally don't communicate with Jesus and I don't receive revelation from Him. I am eternally grateful to Him and want to follow his example as taught to us in the scriptures, but  I don't hear Him. I feel like that would take some mental gymnastics to pray to and communicate with Father in Heaven but get personal revelation from Jesus Christ- as President Nelson says.    Maybe I'm autistic-like in that I see this in a literal sense. If they are literally separate beings, I want to know which one is communicating with me. I have felt a nearness to Jesus on occasion, but never actual personal revelation  from Him. Only from my Father-in-Heaven.  I feel poked and prodded by the Holy Ghost with an occasional almost verbal (ish) nudge in my mind. And the warm blanket feeling now and then. But after being in this Church my entire life, I can't say I've ever heard from Jesus. I don't mean to be disrespectful. I just want to know if I'm doing this wrong and how, in a very practical sense, to change if I am. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 minutes ago, carlimac said:

I appreciate these answers but it still remains nebulous to me. In the church a pretty big deal is made of the fact that the godhead is made up of three distinct individuals and yet when it comes to receiving revelation they are  kind of meshed together in a way that is hard for me to get my head around. I personally don't communicate with Jesus and I don't receive revelation from Him. I am eternally grateful to Him and want to follow his example as taught to us in the scriptures, but  I don't hear Him. I feel like that would take some mental gymnastics to pray to and communicate with Father in Heaven but get personal revelation from Jesus Christ- as President Nelson says.    Maybe I'm autistic-like in that I see this in a literal sense. If they are literally separate beings, I want to know which one is communicating with me. I have felt a nearness to Jesus on occasion, but never actual personal revelation  from Him. Only from my Father-in-Heaven.  I feel poked and prodded by the Holy Ghost with an occasional almost verbal (ish) nudge in my mind. And the warm blanket feeling now and then. But after being in this Church my entire life, I can't say I've ever heard from Jesus. I don't mean to be disrespectful. I just want to know if I'm doing this wrong and how, in a very practical sense, to change if I am. 

What is your take on D&C 1:38?

"38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same."  

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, Vort said:

 

Jesus is our Father, in the sense that he buys us back and becomes our Master. I realize that we spend much time in the Restored Church teaching our children that Jesus is our "older brother" and not our Eternal Father. This is a truth, to be sure, but a child's truth, like "I am a child of God". There is far more to it than the simple teaching; the scriptures make it crystal clear that we become children of God, not merely as some sort of birthright, but by striving to follow him and come unto Christ.

Our relationship with Christ is not merely that of a much younger sibling to an older and far wiser brother. Christ is our Creator, in a real and literal sense. At the very least, he creates our eternal life, for which we reverence him as a Father.

Hope these thoughts have been of some help. I don't pretend to understand the deep and true nature of our relationship to God, except that we are his children and his creations. But the above represents some of my own understandings and thoughts on the matter. FWIW.

I listened to that talk by Elder McConkie. He says a couple times in no uncertain terms, "Jesus is our Elder Brother" He never says in any way the Christ is our father. He says our relationship with God ( only God) is that of parent to child. 

So I wonder after listening to that talk, if Elder McConkie is really speaking truth- that all revelation comes from whichever of the Godhead because they are unified, why President Nelson would single out Jesus Christ as the one we should try to hear? Why is he clearly separating The Father and the Son in regards to where the revelation is coming from by saying "God wants us to know that in uncertainty and fear what will help us the very most is to hear His Son... Because when we seek to hear- truly hear- His Son we will be guided to know what to do in any circumstance."  McConkie was so very stern and forceful in saying we shouldn't single them out and that if we were to at all our deference should be to the Father. Nor should we try to have a special relationship with Jesus Christ. I think that in focusing so much on trying to hear the Son, maybe we're crossing the line into that territory that Elder MCConkie says is false and dangerous. I don't know...

Am I justified in being confused? 

 

Edited by carlimac
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, carlimac said:

I appreciate these answers but it still remains nebulous to me. In the church a pretty big deal is made of the fact that the godhead is made up of three distinct individuals and yet when it comes to receiving revelation they are  kind of meshed together in a way that is hard for me to get my head around. I personally don't communicate with Jesus and I don't receive revelation from Him. I am eternally grateful to Him and want to follow his example as taught to us in the scriptures, but  I don't hear Him. I feel like that would take some mental gymnastics to pray to and communicate with Father in Heaven but get personal revelation from Jesus Christ- as President Nelson says.    Maybe I'm autistic-like in that I see this in a literal sense. If they are literally separate beings, I want to know which one is communicating with me. I have felt a nearness to Jesus on occasion, but never actual personal revelation  from Him. Only from my Father-in-Heaven.  I feel poked and prodded by the Holy Ghost with an occasional almost verbal (ish) nudge in my mind. And the warm blanket feeling now and then. But after being in this Church my entire life, I can't say I've ever heard from Jesus. I don't mean to be disrespectful. I just want to know if I'm doing this wrong and how, in a very practical sense, to change if I am. 

I think I understand why you might have come confusion.  What is meant to hear Him?  The best explanation I think I would offer is D&C section 84.  Specifically what is called the oath and covenant of the priesthood.  Whether it be from the Father or his covenant servant it is the same.  Thus the real question is - who is a covenant servant?  That question is also answered in section 84.  At least I think it is answered quite clearly.

 

The Traveler

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, Traveler said:

I think I understand why you might have come confusion.  What is meant to hear Him?  The best explanation I think I would offer is D&C section 84.  Specifically what is called the oath and covenant of the priesthood.  Whether it be from the Father or his covenant servant it is the same.  Thus the real question is - who is a covenant servant?  That question is also answered in section 84.  At least I think it is answered quite clearly.

 

The Traveler

No, I understand that. It's the problem of the prophet making a clear distinction of whom we should try to hear (Jesus Christ) when apparently the doctrine is that we shouldn't try to make that distinction. 

Or was that really just a slogan to go along with the 200 year anniversary of the first vision? Because that's what the Father said to Joseph Smith. "this is my Beloved Son...Hear Him." And then the Son spoke.   It probably doesn't really matter at all except that it seems the prophet is encouraging us to try to hear  ( at times?) Jesus Christ only. 🤷‍♀️

Edited by carlimac
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, carlimac said:

No, I understand that. It's the problem of the prophet making a clear distinction of whom we should try to hear (Jesus Christ) when apparently the doctrine is that we shouldn't try to make that distinction. 

Or was that really just a slogan to go along with the 200 year anniversary of the first vision? Because that's what the Father said to Joseph Smith. "this is my Beloved Son...Hear Him." And then the Son spoke.   It probably doesn't really matter at all except that it seems the prophet is encouraging us to try to hear  ( at times?) Jesus Christ only. 🤷‍♀️

My husband and I are two different people.  But we're on one page, and I'm totally ok with him signing my name of a bunch of things, and vise versa.

The Son and the Father are two different people.  They are totally on one page, and ok with "signing" each other's name of things.  There needs be no distinction.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 minutes ago, carlimac said:

No, I understand that. It's the problem of the prophet making a clear distinction of whom we should try to hear (Jesus Christ) when apparently the doctrine is that we shouldn't try to make that distinction. 

Or was that really just a slogan to go along with the 200 year anniversary of the first vision? Because that's what the Father said to Joseph Smith. "this is my Beloved Son...Hear Him." And then the Son spoke.   It probably doesn't really matter at all except that it seems the prophet is encouraging us to try to hear  ( at times?) Jesus Christ only. 🤷‍♀️

It seem like you are trying to find a meaningful distinction... at a level were no meaningful distinction exists.

As members of the church we tend to down play the oneness of God as a knee-jerk counter response to the various creeds and other churches statements... In so doing we need to be careful that we do not distort or belittle the actual scriptures which show a oneness of the Father and Son at level we honestly have a hard time fully understanding. (We try analogies but they are poor shadows of the real thing)

If the Father speaks the Son has spoken, if the Son speaks the Father has spoken. If the Holy Ghost speaks the Father and Son have spoken.  The prophets know this... so it does not matter to them who they tell you to listen to.  It literally does not matter to whom they tell you to listen to because it is effectively both.  To answer the question of whom are we suppose to be hearing in the praise 'Hear Him' the Father or the Son... the answer is YES.  The answer of God also works.  

Trying to enforce or find a difference in the very oneness of God... is a good way to break your brain.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, carlimac said:

I appreciate these answers but it still remains nebulous to me. In the church a pretty big deal is made of the fact that the godhead is made up of three distinct individuals and yet when it comes to receiving revelation they are  kind of meshed together in a way that is hard for me to get my head around. I personally don't communicate with Jesus and I don't receive revelation from Him. I am eternally grateful to Him and want to follow his example as taught to us in the scriptures, but  I don't hear Him. I feel like that would take some mental gymnastics to pray to and communicate with Father in Heaven but get personal revelation from Jesus Christ- as President Nelson says.    Maybe I'm autistic-like in that I see this in a literal sense. If they are literally separate beings, I want to know which one is communicating with me. I have felt a nearness to Jesus on occasion, but never actual personal revelation  from Him. Only from my Father-in-Heaven.  I feel poked and prodded by the Holy Ghost with an occasional almost verbal (ish) nudge in my mind. And the warm blanket feeling now and then. But after being in this Church my entire life, I can't say I've ever heard from Jesus. I don't mean to be disrespectful. I just want to know if I'm doing this wrong and how, in a very practical sense, to change if I am. 

I love your questions.  And I think that these are some of the most important questions that we have.  One of my favorite quotes from Joseph Smith is the following.

“my first object is, to find out the character of the only wise and true God"   Joseph Smith Jr., Times and Seasons Minutes, General Conference April 7, 1844

Personally, I think that the "Him" is Jesus Christ.  

When you read the scriptures, do you try to differentiate who is the speaker?  Do you recognize when the words are Christ's, or Elohim.

What do Jesus Christ's words sound like (in your mind) when you read them?  

He sounds pretty amazing to me (as I read the scriptures).

I have personally never heard the words of God (be it the Father, Son, or Holy Ghost) speaking in my mind.

But I hope that I hear HIS voice.  And I perceive the Light of Christ and the promptings of the Holy Ghost.  

 

BTW, one of my pet peeves is when LDS refer to Jesus Christ as our Elder Brother.  It has been stated that it is not inappropriate to refer to him as a brother.  But by golly the scriptures are full of passages referring to him as a Father.  I can't find a single scripture that refers to him as our elder brother...

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, carlimac said:

Someone help me out. How does this work?  

Let's review the doctrine we already know and which you have mentioned:

First - The Godhead which is comprised of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost (Article of Faith #1).

Second - which I would say there is a misunderstanding regarding Jesus Christ as our Elder Brother. The information in your post appears to only place Christ as our Elder Brother (which indeed he is, and by which apostles and prophets have referred to him as). Jesus Christ is all three: the Father, the Son, and the Second Comforter (in that sense a Trinity).

We learn from scripture that Christ has spiritually begotten us, thus making him the Father. Notice the following word phrase given in Mosiah 16:15, "Teach them that redemption cometh through Christ the Lord, who is the very Eternal Father. Amen." (Other scriptures: Alma 11: 38-39, TG God the Father, Jehovah, Mosiah 15:4) I may have misunderstood above, and you can clarify my misunderstanding of your words if that is so, but if we see Christ only as our Elder Brother then we are missing a very important principle in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Third - "Hear Him" reminds me of a time in the beginning of the restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. A time where a young boy prayed and in answer to his prayer he was visited by the Father (God the Father) and the Son (God the Son), and the only words God the Father spake, "This is my beloved son, hear him."

Hear Him I think is really simple, we are to hearken unto the words that have been given by Jehovah/Jesus Christ since the beginning of the Fall. When we pray we are to pray to the Father in the name of Jesus Christ and hearken unto the still small voice -- the Holy Ghost. We hear Christ by coming unto Christ through yielding unto the enticing of the Holy Spirit, which brings all of God's children to Christ, and by which Christ returns us to the Father.

Hear Him equals hearing the Father (God the Father) and hearing the Son (God the Son) through whatever means they see fit to communicate to us. As Christ and the Father are "one" if I were to hear an audible voice from the Son, wouldn't that voice be the same as the Father? And the Father (God the Father) always points us back to His Son.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, carlimac said:

No, I understand that. It's the problem of the prophet making a clear distinction of whom we should try to hear (Jesus Christ) when apparently the doctrine is that we shouldn't try to make that distinction. 

Or was that really just a slogan to go along with the 200 year anniversary of the first vision? Because that's what the Father said to Joseph Smith. "this is my Beloved Son...Hear Him." And then the Son spoke.   It probably doesn't really matter at all except that it seems the prophet is encouraging us to try to hear  ( at times?) Jesus Christ only. 🤷‍♀️

When we say we need to obey the law, which branch of government are we referring to?  Legislative, Executive, or Judicial?  Which is responsible for "the law"?  All are in different ways with different distinctions.  But they have to act as one.

Do you think of your "relationship" with the legislature as completely separate from your "relationship" with the executive or judicial?  Judicial activism happens because we tend to believe in the supremacy of the judicial.  And that is not a good thing for the democratic process.  In fact, it is quite dangerous.  Hence Elder McKonkie's quote from the speech you said you read:

Quote

But the very moment anyone singles out one member of the Godhead as the almost sole recipient of his devotion, to the exclusion of the others, that is the moment when spiritual instability begins to replace sense and reason.

  https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/bruce-r-mcconkie/relationship-lord/

The reason why the phrase "Hear Him" tends to be about the Son is that ever since the Fall, the Father has committed all judgment to the Son.  Ever since the Fall, I believe the only actual words we've heard have come from the Son, except for the testifying of the Son (baptism of Christ, Stoning of Stephen, First Vision).

But that does not mean the Father has nothing to do with us anymore.   He still leads the Godhead.  Thus, we still worship Him, just as we worship the Son and the Holy Ghost.

Others have said it on this thread.  But I'll echo their voices.  You're trying to eek out a distinction where there is none -- except in your mind.  Who is "Him"?  It is "God".

The distinction you should be focusing on is "Their nature" vs "The nature of our relationship with them". 

  • Their nature is that they are three distinct people with different identites, all united in one purpose.
  • The nature of our relationship with them is that of a single body.  We worship them as one.  We relate to them as one.  We HEAR THEM as one.
Edited by Carborendum
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@carlimac, you ask important and provocative questions.  I would just encourage you not to get too hung up on the idea that whatever answers you arrive at need to perfectly align with President Nelson’s talk.  The emphasis in his April 2020 address is on “Hear Him”, not on “Hear Him”.  Nelson himself acknowledges in that talk that “hear[ing] Him” includes obedience, scripture study, temple worship, recognizing the whisperings of the Holy Ghost, and following the prophets.  His point is how we prepare ourselves to receive and act upon revelation.  The talk is not intended as a doctrinal exposition about the mechanics of revelation or the ultimate composition or roles of the Godhead.

Edited by Just_A_Guy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can appreciate trying to define a teaching in it's exactness, though doing so we risk losing sight of the ultimate purpose of the teaching by straining at the gnat or if it becomes strictly an intellectual pursuit and that is something I have to keep reminding myself. 

To avoid that I would recommend Pres Nelson's talk Hear Him which I think addresses both the big picture but also answers your specific question.

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2020/04/45nelson?lang=eng

In this talk we tells us specifically how we hear Him but I would draw attention to the following remark:

"As we seek to be disciples of Jesus Christ, our efforts to hear Him need to be ever more intentional. It takes conscious and consistent effort to fill our daily lives with His words, His teachings, His truths."

The things Pres Nelson wants us to HEAR are Jesus Christ's words, teachings, and truths. What's missing here is Jesus Christ's voice which is what we typically relate to hearing. But it doesn't matter whose voice we are hearing be it missionaries, teachers, parents, prophets, friends, or the Savior himself. What matters is what it is we are hearing and if what we are hearing is Jesus Christ's words, teachings and truths then we are hearing Jesus Christ.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I want to add 2 scriptures.

JSH 1:17 It no sooner appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me bound. When the light rested upon me 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!

I'm pretty sure that the Hear Him movement originates from this scripture.

John 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

Sheep do not understand English, Aramaic, Hebrew, or Greek.  But they obviously can pick out their Shepherd's voice and follow him.  Thus we don't necessarily have to Hear His voice in our ears or mind and interpret the words in order to follow him.  Perhaps we just need to perceive the Holy Ghost promptings and the Light of Christ - AND follow.  

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We have the Words of the Lord in the New Testament and the Book of Mormon.  We have his words in the Doctrine and Covenants.  We have the voice of his servants in the Bible and in General Conference.

James mentions that anyone can believe in something, but to have faith can be demonstrated by action.  Those who truly listen and follow will have the actions that reflect that intent and faith.

In that light, one way to hear him is to read the scriptures above and heed them.  To actually HEED the words of the Savior and his servants and do what he has told us to do.  To seek out the confirmation of the Spirit and to strive to do what we are asked by the Lord.

A prime example is that of a farmer with 3 sons.  He asked them to help in the fields.  One acknowledged his father and said he would help, but never showed up and never did anything.  Another didn't acknowledge his father but showed up and worked with him.  The third acknowledged it and went WITH his father to the fields and worked.  Which ones listened and heard their father and which ones did not?

If by their fruits they can know them, what fruits do we exhibit?

Those who are the Lord's servants are those that hear him and do what he asks.  One of the ways to hear his words is to read them and seek to do what he has asked us to do already.   There are a LOT of words in the scriptures, but there are many who will read them but do not do them, those that never read them but do as they have heard they say, and those that read them and do as they ask. 

Part of hearing is doing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It seem fairly simple to me. God the Father is too glorious for us to behold, so Jesus acts as a filter, but then again, he has a physical body, so cannot be everywhere at once, and appears in specific instances, when necessary, so the Holy Ghost acts as the conduit for us to feel the presence of God.  But we communicate to the Father, and the response is from the Father, but manifested through the Holy Ghost.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think you should hear whoever is speaking. I think that I share @Carborendum's view that the only time the Father has actually spoken is when He has introduced His son. If that is the only time we hear Him, there wouldn't really be much to listen to. 

I think that when we perceive communication from the Holy Ghost, whether or not it is heard or felt or nudged, the content of the communication is not from the Holy Ghost, it is only conveyed through the Holy Ghost and does not originate from him. We should definetely seek to perceive that communication, but I don't think we should consider him as the originator of the content of the communication. 

I suspect that the question may be complicated by the occasional tendency for people to refer to Jesus as the Father. If Christ is both the Father and the Son, as some passages in the Book of Mormon seems to suggest, then when we hear Him, we hear the Father and the Son. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3  Listen to him who is the advocate with the Father, who is pleading your cause before him—
4  Saying: Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin, in whom thou wast well pleased; behold the blood of thy Son which was shed, the blood of him whom thou gavest that thyself might be glorified;
5  Wherefore, Father, spare these my brethren that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have everlasting life.
6  Hearken, O ye people of my church, and ye elders listen together, and hear my voice while it is called today, and harden not your hearts;
7  For verily I say unto you that I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the light and the life of the world—a light that shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not.

(Doctrine and Covenants | Section 45:3 - 7)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, Phineas said:

It should be “Them.” Our Heavenly Parents.  

@Phineas, you should let President Nelson know that he misspoke. For that matter, you should let God know that His words were incorrect. I'm sure both will thank you kindly for your correction.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share