Live By Every Word (part one)

As the Lord began the process of the restoration it became important that these new young elders know how the spirit of revelation worked.  The Lord begins with Oliver Cowdery by explaining the process of revelation.

D&C  6:14-24
 14 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, blessed art thou for what thou hast done; for thou hast inquired of me, and behold, as often as thou hast inquired thou hast received instruction of my Spirit. If it had not been so, thou wouldst not have come to the place where thou art at this time.
 15 Behold, thou knowest that thou hast inquired of me and I did enlighten thy mind; and now I tell thee these things that thou mayest know that thou hast been enlightened by the Spirit of truth;
 16 Yea, I tell thee, that thou mayest know that there is none else save God that knowest thy thoughts and the intents of thy heart.
 17 I tell thee these things as a witness unto thee--that the words or the work which thou hast been writing are true.
 18 Therefore be diligent; stand by my servant Joseph, faithfully, in whatsoever difficult circumstances he may be for the word's sake.
 19 Admonish him in his faults, and also receive admonition of him. Be patient; be sober; be temperate; have patience, faith, hope and charity.
 20 Behold, thou art Oliver, and I have spoken unto thee because of thy desires; therefore treasure up these words in thy heart. Be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love.
 21 Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I am the same that came unto mine own, and mine own received me not. I am the light which shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not.
 22 Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things.
 23 Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?
 24 And now, behold, you have received a witness; for if I have told you things which no man knoweth have you not received a witness?

It is important that it be remembered that this revelation was given by the Spirit to the Prophet Joseph Smith who is dictating it to Oliver who is writing down the words.  Therefore, when it comes through Joseph Smith revealing the time that Oliver had peace spoken to him (that only he and the Lord knew about) he then realizes that Joseph Smith is a conduit of the Spirit which is a sign to Oliver that the work is true.  It is important to note that the Lord uses the word "instruction" in verse 14.  He doesn't give yes and no answers but instead he give experiences which instruct and which allows the receiver to come to correct conclusions. 

Then again Oliver is given another revelation where the Lord explains the revelatory process:

D&C  8:2-3
 2 Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.
 3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground. 

We are taught in the Law of Moses that in the mouth of two or more witnesses every truth will be established.  Notice that the Lord has two places in our body that receives revelation - our heart and our mind.  The two must be in agreement with each other to establish the truth of the revelation.  Sometimes the feeling in the heart is also called a burning of the bosom:

D&C  9:7-9
 7 Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.
 8 But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.
 9 But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me.

 

Notice that much of revelation deals with "feelings."   That is very important.  One must learn to know when the spirit is present and when it is confirming an answer by the feelings one receives. 

As in the D&C 6:14-24 revelation - speaking peace to ones mind is a feeling. 

Merry Christmas

http://www.youtube.com/user/mormon?v=9Wxixc0KI58

The Prophet Brigham Young On Progression

I wish to notice this. We read in the Bible, that there is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars. In the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, these glories are called telestial, terrestrial, and celestial, which is the highest. These are worlds, different departments, or mansions, in our Father's house. Now those men, or those women, who know no more about the power of God, and the influences of the Holy Spirit, than to be led entirely by another person, suspending their own understanding, and pinning their faith upon another's sleeve, will never be capable of entering into the celestial glory, to be crowned as they anticipate; they will never be capable of becoming Gods. They cannot rule themselves, to say nothing of ruling others, but they must be dictated to in every trifle, like a child. They cannot control themselves in the least, but James, Peter, or somebody else must control them, They never can become Gods, nor be crowned as rulers with glory, immortality, and eternal lives. They never can hold sceptres of glory, majesty, and power in the celestial kingdom. Who will? Those who are valiant and inspired with the true independence of heaven, who will go forth boldly in the service of their God, leaving others to do as they please, determined to do right, though all mankind besides should take the opposite course. Will this apply to any of you? Your own hearts can answer. Do you know what is right and just, as well as I do? In some things you do, and in some things you may not know as well; but I will explain what I mean, in the following words-I will do all the good I can, and all I know how to do, and I will shun every evil that I know to be an evil. You can all do that much. I will apply my heart to wisdom, and ask the Lord to impart it to me; and if I know but little, I will improve upon it, that to-morrow I may have more, and thus grow from day to day, in the knowledge of the truth, as Jesus Christ grew in stature and knowledge from a babe to manhood; and if I am not now capable of judging for myself, perhaps I shall be in another year. We are organized to progress in the scale of intelligence, and the least Saint by adhering strictly to the order of God, may attain to a full and complete salvation through the grace of God, by his own faithfulness.    
            (Journal of Discourses, 26 vols., 1:, p.313)

The Nobility of Man

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Speaker John Boehner is working against fiscal responsiblity

The Purge of Conservatives!  Several tea party conservative U.S. House members have been removed from their respective powerful committees by Speaker John Boehner, in a move that is being called "vindictive" by some members. It is no surprise Boehner made this move against these anti-tax crusaders, seeing as he just offered the President $800 billion in new revenue (aka tax hikes) in his fiscal cliff counter offer. The members who were pulled from their committees were Kansas Republican Rep. Tim Huelskamp, Michigan Republican Rep. Justin Amash and Arizona Republican Rep. David Schweikert. All three were on either the Budget or Financial Services Committees, each with lots of power in fiscal matters. These conservatives are some of the boldest in the House of Representatives, and Speaker Boehner's decision to remove these men from their posts is a sign of hostility toward fiscal conservatism. These members of Congress were elected to hold firm to their principles of fiscal responsibility and low taxes and they are showing courage by not backing down to the Speaker and his latest $800 billion tax hike! Friends, the establishment of the Republican Party does not welcome tea party conservatives. This report of conservative committee purging comes on the heels of the Republican's counter-offer budget to the President that included a whole host of new taxes. The conservative wave of 2010, and the reelection of a conservative U.S. House this November was not a fluke and the people DEMAND better! The Contract From America was created so that selfish politicians would be held accountable to conservative principles. We salute Representatives Huelskamp, Amash and Schweikert, and thank them for standing up for the same convictions that have made this Contract so strong! So far the backlash to the Speaker's move has been harsh, and the chorus of discontent among conservatives is growing! For that we want to thank you, and hope you keep speaking out against the establishment. We will be right there alongside you every step of the way! In Freedom,  Contract From America Team

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