12/29/2017 - Section 75:6-13

December 29, 2017

Section 75:6-13

Missionary Attitude, Missionary Work, Read This AGAIN, My Quest, My Goal,

How nice to start my morning with verses 7-13. These verses seem to me to be the only missionary manual one would need. It seems to encompass—in these few verse—so many of the things that, as missionaries, we struggle with : V 7-8: “…I, the Lord, chasten him for the murmurings of his heart; 8. …nevertheless, I forgive him and say unto him again, Go….” 9. “…go with him [or her], and proclaim the things which I have commanded—10. Calling on the name of the Lord for the Comforter, which shall teach them all things that are expedient for them—11. Praying always that they faint not; and inasmuch as they do this, I will be with them even unto the end.”  12: “Behold, this is the will of the Lord your God concerning you….” 13:...proclaim the things which I have commanded them; and inasmuch as they are faithful, lo, I will be with them even unto the end.”

Smith and Sjodahl explain in their commentary about the importance of prayer for gospel teachers, and then they quote Arthur T Pierson wrote in The Fundamentals, Vol IX., p67: “They were commanded (75:4) to preach the truth according to the revelations and commandments given. They were to keep strictly to the revealed word, but even this they could not do without the aid of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit of God. Studying alone does not qualify an Elder for preaching the truth. It is the Spirit that qualifies….Some Elders put all their faith in preaching. The Latter-day Saints generally will endorse the following, though uttered by one not a member of the Church: (Arthur T Pierson): ‘What is preaching without praying! Sermons are but pulpit performances, learned essays, rhetorical orations, popular lectures, or it may be political harangues, until God gives, in answer to earnest prayer, the preparation of the heart, and the answer of the tongue. It is only he who prays that can truly preach. Many a sermon that has shown no intellectual genius and has violated all homiletic rules and standards has had dynamic spiritual force. Somehow it has moved men, melted them, moulded them. The man whose lips are touched by God’s living coal from off the alter may even stammer, but his hearers soon find out that he is on fire with one consuming passion to save souls’”

This is an entry I probably should read at least every week. This is the influence I want in my life—whether I’m on a mission or not. This is the feeling I want in my heart. This is the courage I desire to have when I feel those promptings of the Holy Ghost. This is the vision I want each day. This is the kind of communication I seek from my Father. This is peace. This is work. This is joy.

7/4/2021 – D&C 75

This revelation was given at a planned conference of the Church in Amherst Ohio. Earlier the Lord had commanded many of the men of the Church to “go ye into all the world” to preach the gospel. Many of the elders had difficulty in understanding just how to preach the gospel in an effective way. This section has lots of help—for them and for us!

V 3 was straight to the point: “I say unto you that it is my will that you should go forth and not tarry, neither be idle but labor with your might”. V 4 tells us to “lift up your voices…proclaiming the truth. And v 5 tells us that when we go to work for the Lord, not to be surprised when we find that the ‘faithful …shall be laden with many sheaves…” Basically, work in the church is WORK. We should not shy away from that effort or the intensity of that effort.

We are to ENDURE GLADLY. If we find ourselves with “murmurings” in our hearts, then we are not doing the work with the attitude or the strength that the Lord would have us do. When we do our best, the Lord has promised us His help: “Calling on the name of the Lord for the Comforter, which shall teach them all things that are expedient for them: (v 10). Most of the revelations in the D&C were given because Joseph asked specific questions and for specific help. The Lord also tells us the “Praying always that they faint not; and inasmuch as they do this, I will be with them even unto the end.” (v 11) His next promise: “…inasmuch as they are faithful, lo, I will be with them even unto the end.” (v 13) And in the midst of this is the Lord’s powerful statement: “Behold, this is the will of the Lord you God concerning you…” The Lord knows US, and he wants to help us. Much of that help is in our scriptures. And if we ever have a concern that isn’t in the scriptures, if we study and pray with real intent—our questions will be answered. Sometimes we are answered quickly, and sometimes it is not until we have prayed and search His scriptures for a long time, that the answer will come. He knows when it is best for us to receive His help.

In this section, the Lord then gives more commandments to specific individuals, and then He gives yet another promise: “And he who is faithful shall overcome all things, and shall be lifted up at the last day.” 

The Lord wants us to share the blessings that come from following Him. He tells “in whatsoever house ye enter, and they receive you, leave your blessing upon that house.” He knows that not all will receive us. But if we do our best, teaching with the Spirit and with love…being sure that their refusal of the gospel is not due to our short comings—then we will find more success. We could not have a better companion than that of the Holy Ghost. And we can certainly prayer for that, and make sure we are worthy for a positive answer to those prayers.

The Lord continues to help us recognize the blessings that we will receive: “And you shall be filled with joy and gladness…” (v 21) He then speaks to us all “Let every man be diligent in all things. And the idler shall not have place in the church, except he repent and mend his ways.” (v 39) The Lord knows our abilities, and He expects us to work hard with those abilities, so that we may help others, as well as helping our own selves.