40t - The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ is Truly What Its Name Says It Is! - Part 1

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TODAY'S THEME

Please notice that there are two parts to the title of the Book of Mormon. It wasn't until sometime about in 1985 or 1986 that the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints added the last two lines to that book's title.

In actuality, ever since it was first published in Palmyra, New York (U.S.A.), it was always Another Testament of Jesus Christ, but that truth was not, at that time, reflected in that book's official title as it is now. I quote now from the October General Conference 1986 Report Opening Address by the then, President of the Church, Ezra Taft Benson:

President Ezra Taft Benson

Has the fact that we have had the Book of Mormon with us for over a century and a half made it seem less significant to us today? Do we remember the new covenant, even the Book of Mormon? In the Bible we have the Old Testament and the New Testament. The word testament is the English rendering of a Greek word that can also be translated as covenant. Is this what the Lord meant when He called the Book of Mormon the “new covenant”? It is indeed another testament or witness of Jesus. This is one of the reasons why we have recently added the words “Another Testament of Jesus Christ” to the title of the Book of Mormon. (emphasis by highlighting was added by this blogger.)

My Intent and purpose in this post and in a yet unknown number of subsequent posts, will be to show by many Book of Mormon quotes the powerful statements the Book of Mormon Prophets make in testifying of Jesus Christ, even up to 600 years before His birth.

Except for adding paintings that help illustrate the testimonies of these prophets regarding their and our Savior, Jesus Christ, I will let each of their statements stand on their own. I won't elaborate much. I may add some brief summarizing words at the end of each of these posts that turn out to make up this series.

The Coming of Jesus Christ into the world was foreknown by all of the Ancient prophets we read about in the Old Testament and also in the Latter-day Scriptures, The Pearl of Great Price - Selections From the Book of Moses and also from the Book of Abraham.

The Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ is not one step behind any of those scriptures and even the New Testament itself, in quoting prophets and apostles who testify of Jesus Christ!

Arriving at the Promised Land -by Arnold Friberg

The Book of Mormon prophet whose testament of Jesus Christ I will quote first in this series of posts, is Nephi, Son of Lehi. He is shown, with others in this painting, in the ship that the Lord inspired him, Nephi, to design and to build with the help of others who were with him. It carried them from the Eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula to somewhere on the West coast of what we know as Central America, which land they, in this painting, are viewing for the first time!

Nephi's mother Sariah and his father, Lehi are standing to Nephi's immediate left with a younger brother (most likely, Jacob) right in front of him.

In this very detailed vision Nephi (Occuring Sometime Between 600 and 592 B.C.) was shown the coming of Jesus Christ into the world in about 600 years and also many of the things that the Savior would accomplish during his mortal lifetime.

I Nephi 11: 1 FOR it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen,*and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my foot.

2 And the Spirit said unto me: Behold, what desirest thou?

3 And I said: I desire to behold the things which my father saw.

4 And the Spirit said unto me: Believest thou that thy father saw the tree of which he hath spoken?

5 And I said: Yea, thou knowest that I believe all the words of my father.

6 And when I had spoken these words, the Spirit cried with a loud voice, saying: Hosanna to the Lord, the most high God; for he is God over all the earth, yea, even above all. And blessed art thou, Nephi, because thou believest in the Son of the most high God; wherefore, thou shalt behold the things which thou hast desired.

7 And behold this thing shall be given unto thee for a sign, that after thou hast beheld the tree which bore the fruit which thy father tasted, thou shalt also behold a man descending out of heaven, and him shall ye witness; and after ye have witnessed him ye shall bear record that it is the Son of God.

Painting: Harry Anderson



The Angel Gabriel Speaking with the Virgin, Mary -by John Scott

8 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me: Look! And I looked and beheld a tree; and it was like unto the tree which my father had seen; and the beauty thereof was far beyond, yea, exceeding of all beauty; and the whiteness thereof did exceed the whiteness of the driven snow.

9 And it came to pass after I had seen the tree, I said unto the Spirit: I behold thou hast shown unto me the tree which is precious above all.

10 And he said unto me: What desirest thou?

11 And I said unto him: To know the interpretation thereof—for I spake unto him as a man speaketh; for I beheld that he was in the form of a man; yet nevertheless, I knew that it was the Spirit of the Lord; and he spake unto me as a man speaketh with another.

12 And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look! And I looked as if to look upon him, and I saw him not; for he had gone from before my presence.

13 And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the great city of Jerusalem, and also other cities. And I beheld the city of Nazareth; and in the city of Nazareth I beheld a virgin, and she was exceedingly fair and white.

The Annunciation - Mary and the Angel, Gabriel

14 And it came to pass that I saw the heavens open; and an angel came down and stood before me; and he said unto me: Nephi, what beholdest thou?

15 And I said unto him: A virgin, most beautiful and fair above all other virgins.

16 And he said unto me: Knowest thou the condescension of God?

17 And I said unto him: I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things.

18 And he said unto me: Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh.

19 And it came to pass that I beheld that she was carried away in the Spirit; and after she had been carried away in the Spirit for the space of a time the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!

20 And I looked and beheld the virgin again, bearing a child in her arms.



Baby Jesus With His Mother, Mary and Joseph, by Ted Henniger

21 And the angel said unto me: Behold the Lamb of God, yea, even the Son of the Eternal Father! Knowest thou the meaning of the tree which thy father saw?

22 And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things.

23 And he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most joyous to the soul.

24 And after he had said these words, he said unto me: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Son of God going forth among the children of men; and I saw many fall down at his feet and worship him.

25 And it came to pass that I beheld that the rod of iron, which my father had seen, was the word of God, which led to the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life; which waters are a representation of the love of God; and I also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of the love of God.



Jesus Baptized by John -by Harry Anderson

 26 And the angel said unto me again: Look and behold the condescension of God! 

27 And I looked and beheld the Redeemer of the world, of whom my father had spoken; and I also beheld the prophet who should prepare the way before him. And the Lamb of God went forth and was baptized of him; and after he was baptized, I beheld the heavens open, and the Holy Ghost come down out of heaven and abide upon him in the form of a dove.

28 And I beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in power and great glory; and the multitudes were gathered together to hear him; and I beheld that they cast him out from among them.



Jesus washing the feet of the Twelve Apostles -by Del Parson

29 And I also beheld twelve others following him. And it came to pass that they were carried away in the Spirit from before my face, and I saw them not.

30 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the heavens open again, and I saw angels descending upon the children of men; and they did minister unto them.



Jesus Blessing the Children -by Del Parson



31 And he spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Lamb of God going forth among the children of men.

And I beheld multitudes of people who were sick, and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and with devils and unclean spirits; and the angel spake and showed all these things unto me. And they were healed by the power of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean spirits were cast out.

32 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God, that he was taken by the people; yea, the Son of the everlasting God was judged of the world; and I saw and bear record.

33 And I, Nephi, saw that he was lifted up upon the cross and slain for the sins of the world.

34 And after he was slain I saw the multitudes of the earth, that they were gathered together to fight against the apostles of the Lamb; for thus were the twelve called by the angel of the Lord.

35 And the multitude of the earth was gathered together; and I beheld that they were in a large and spacious building, like unto the building which my father saw. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Behold the world and the wisdom thereof; yea, behold the house of Israel hath gathered together to fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

36 And it came to pass that I saw and bear record, that the great and spacious building was the pride of the world; and it fell, and the fall thereof was exceedingly great. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Thus shall be the destruction of all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, that shall fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb.



Jesus Healing the Blind -by Del Parson



The Crucifixion of Jesus -by Harry Anderson



*In the scripture given above, references (in verses 1 and 8) are made by Nephi to his father's dream. If you would like to learn what Nephi's father, Lehi, saw in his dream, I have provided a scriptural link for you.

(After clicking on the link found below the title of the picture shown here, scroll up on your screen and click on the word, Listen, which is on the upper left hand side. It will make what you read more understandable when you hear it as well as read it.)

Painting: Jerry Thompson

The Tree of Life and the

Great and Spacious Building

Here is the scripture in Nephi's father Lehi's Dream of the Tree of Life and the Great and Spacious Building is told about. You will be able to listen to the scripture as well as read it.

1Nephi 8:1-38

That revelation given to Nephi on a mountain by the Spirit of the Lord. Is there anything like that anywhere in the Old Testament? There are marvelous prophesies there regarding the Savior's Coming (particularly those of the Prophet, Isaiah), but none in such great and accurate detail as the one you have just read and listened to!

You will learn of other prophesies by other Book of Mormon prophets regarding the Coming of Jesus Christ in the blog posts to follow!
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The following link, when clicked upon, will allow you to view the latest Mormon Messages Video. You will find it very well done and hopefully it will be applicable to your particular needs.

http://www.youtube.com/mormonmessages?v=wiiadnMvm20

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.


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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX: To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This BlogPost, (Or To Search The Index For Any Other Blog Post You Decide To Open), When You Have Read All of This Paragraph, Please Click on the Following: Nephi Was Told By the Spirit of the Lord of the Birth of the Lord That Will Come in 600 Years, -Post 40t When the Picture Of Our Savior, Jesus Christ Sitting Next to a Little Boy Comes Onto Your Screen, Please Scroll Down To Your Target Item Or Use the Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed).
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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.
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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish:

Neil Birch

40s - Living According to The Book of Mormon's Teachings Is Vital to Our Eternal Salvation!

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

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TODAY'S THEME



Jesus Christ the Redeemer of the World -by Heinrich Hoffman

Moses 1: 39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

As I come to understand the word of the Lord I have inserted above, I recognize that there is nothing more important to Him than that which He anciently stated through His Prophet, Moses! Are you able to really let those words soak into your heart and realize that YOU, and the rest of us mortals, including all human beings who have or who ever will live on this earth are more important to Him than anything else!

Today's Theme is centered on that which I've written above! Now I suggest that you consider some very important advice Our Lord Jesus Christ gave to all of Mankind through His Latter-day Prophet, Joseph Smith. It is found in the Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Remember now, this was intended by the Lord Jesus Christ to help us attain that Eternal Life that He mentioned to Moses.

I just finished reading the book entitled: Joseph Smith Rough Stone Rolling written by Richard Lyman Bushman and Published by: Vintage Books, A Division of Random House, Inc. New York (It was first published in March 2007).

Throughout that very captivating book readers are told of many examples of the ups and downs of members of the LDS Church in its early days. It emphasizes what Joseph Smith, Jr. was required by the Lord to go through to bring about His Church on the earth once again and which in our day has nearly fourteen million members world wide.
In that book there are many examples of dedicated members of the Church who must have failed to live up to what the Lord requires of all of us as He explained in Section 84 of the Doctrine and Covenants which I quoted above.

I will only give one example of a member of the Church who figured very heavily in the early period of the Church when Joseph Smith was still the Prophet.

My purpose in doing this is to assist each of us, including myself, to honestly look into the way we are living so as to determine if we are really living the way the Lord wants us to live. I will now emphasize verse 57 of Section 84.

D. and C. 84:57 And they shall remain under this condemnation until they repent and remember the new covenant, even the Book of Mormon and the former commandments which I have given them, not only to say, but to do according to that which I have written— (emphasis added)

Please read and reread that verse again and ask yourself if you have done what the Lord wants you to regarding using the Book of Mormon to guide your actions in life!

I believe those of you who are not members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, should take the Lord's words very personally. After all in the scripture from the Book of Moses I quoted first, He stated clearly that

His Work and His Glory is to bring about the Immortality and Eternal Life of Man! (That Means All of us, living and dead and not just Mormons!)

Below are the words of a hymn found in the current LDS Church Hymn Book. This hymn was written after the death of Joseph Smith. Earlier, Joseph excommunicated the author of this hymn, William Wines Phelps for having seriously betrayed himself, Joseph, and other leaders and members of the Church to their enemies who were attempting to destroy them and their church. In June 1840, Phelps plead for forgiveness in a letter to Joseph Smith. Joseph replied with an offer of full fellowship, and ended with a famous couplet,

Now I will excerpt from a recent post of mine (Post 40p) in which I told about one early member of the Lord's Church in this time of the world's history who was a very strong believer in the Lord and in His restored Gospel, but because of some characteristics in his personality he never really coped with until perhaps right at the end of his life he finally did! You'll notice in this excerpt that the Lord in a section of the Doctrine and Covenants spelled out that good man's weakness. The Lord knows your and my key weaknesses too, but perhaps after hearing this particular man's challenges, we will feel compelled to do something about ours. Here is the couplet I mentioned above that Joseph offered to Brother W.W. Phelps.

"Come on, dear brother, since the war is past, For friends at first are friends again at last."

William W. Phelps

Hymn: Praise to the Man, Words written by William W. Phelps, (1792-1872) Hymns of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.


Verse 1: Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah! Jesus anointed that Prophet and Seer, Blessed to open the last dispensation, Kings shall extol him, and nations revere,

Verse 2: Praise to his mem'ry he died as a martyr; Honored and blest be his ever great name! Long shall his blood, which was shed by assassins, Plead unto heav'n while the earth lauds his fame.

Verse 3. Great is his glory and endless his priesthood, Ever and ever the keys he will hold. Faithful and true, he will enter his kingdom, Crowned in the midst of the prophets of old.

Verse 4. Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven, Earth must atone for the blood of that man. Wake up the world for the conflict of justice, Millions shall know "Brother Joseph" again.

Chorus: (Sung after each verse) Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven! Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain, Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren; Death cannot conquer the hero again.

On 11-15-2009 I, Neil Birch am inserting something additional about William W. Phelps and the hymn he wrote which you have just read above.

In June of 1952, at the end of my first mission to Finland I traveled through part of Europe by myself. Later, all solo travel by returning missionaries was not permitted.

One Sunday in that month I arrived in Hamburg, Germany by train. By some miracle, not knowing the German language very well (I had been successful in completing German I and II in my year at Placer College in Auburn, California but had not learned to converse well in that language), I was able to arrive at an LDS Sacrament meeting being held in an LDS Chapel in a nice part of Hamburg.

After entering the building and walking toward the door to the chapel I heard those in attendance at that Sacrament meeting singing: Praise to the Man which I quoted for you above. I was deeply touched. I was handed a German Hymn Book and began singing with them. Tears flowed freely. I was especially touched by the spirit with which those German members were singing. The truthfulness of Joseph Smith's mission was reinforced strongly in my heart and soul by their singing that inspired hymn.

That experience also helped me to develop a love and respect for Brother William Wines Phelps. After finishing my degree at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah in 1960 and my Master of Social Work degree at California State University in San Jose, CA in 1973, I became a social worker. As such I became very interested in helping people overcome particular problems they have somehow developed that hamper their progress. Therefore, I appreciated reading this revelation received by President Joseph Smith August 1, 1831 which, in part, is about William W. Phelps:

D. and C. 58: 40 And also let my servant William W. Phelps stand in the office to which I have appointed him, and receive his inheritance in the land;

41 And also he hath need to repent, for I, the Lord, am not well pleased with him, for he seeketh to excel, and he is not sufficiently meek before me. (emphasis added)

That problem the Lord knew William had, apparently hindered his progress throughout much of his life. I did not mention it above, but Brother Phelps was excommunicated several additional times, each after the death of the Prophet Joseph Smith. Brother Phelps went to Utah with the Church. One record I recently read on the Internet showed that on a certain day he was excommunicated and then the very next day was re baptized and welcomed back into full fellowship. I believe he died in full fellowship. He must have eventually overcome the pride the Lord implies in the scripture above he had. I'm quite sure that eventually he had humbled himself sufficiently!

I, and many other members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints love you, Brother W.W. Phelps. We hope that we too can overcome our particular weaknesses and enjoy eternal bliss with our families and fellow saints like you.
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Now I will try to tie together what you just read about dear Brother W. W. Phelps with what the Lord taught him and the other Saints in their day through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

I quote again the one verse from Doctrine and Covenants Section 84 which I quoted above. If Brother Phelps and many other early Saints would have heeded this verse more fully they would have had a hard time counting all their blessings!
Now, I will turn right to a key part of the Book of Mormon. It is in 3 Nephi which, in so many ways is the key to and the most sacred part of the Book of Mormon because it conveys to us what the Resurrected and Glorified Jesus Christ told this portion of his sheep (members of the House of Israel.)

D. and C. 84:57 And they shall remain under this condemnation until they repent and remember the new covenant, even the Book of Mormon and the former commandments which I have given them, not only to say, but to do according to that which I have written— (emphasis added)

Here is the introduction to that particular chapter, Chapter 9:

In the darkness the voice of Christ proclaims the destruction of many people and cities for their wickedness—He also proclaims his divinity, announces that the law of Moses is fulfilled, and invites men to come unto him and be saved. About A.D. 34

All of that which the Savior spoke from the darkness above to those Nephites is very important, but I have chosen to excerpt the following verses for the purpose of giving you a key teaching He gave those Nephites that both Brother W.W. Phelps perhaps should have lived by and each of us must learn to live by:

3Nephi 9: 16 I came unto my own, (The Jews) and my own received me not. And the scriptures concerning my coming are fulfilled.

17 And as many as have received me, to them have I given to become the sons of God; and even so will I to as many as shall believe on my name, for behold, by me redemption cometh, and in me is the law of Moses fulfilled.

18 I am the light and the life of the world. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.

19 And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings.

20 And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.

21 Behold, I have come unto the world to bring redemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.

22 Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved. (clarification and emphasis added)

I personally believe that dear Brother W.W. Phelps did have a Broken Heart and a Contrite Spirit, perhaps mostly just not long before his death.

But your and my lives are continuing and we can do as the Dear Lord commands us and bring ourselves to have as He instructed: Broken Hearts and Contrite Spirits. After baptism into His Church and having received the Gift of the Holy Ghost to guide us in our lives, we can have such and can be blessed to have that condition the rest of our lives which will bring us back to live with Him the Eternal Life He promises!

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I will now give you an opportunity to view the latest Mormon Messages Video. You will find it very well done and surely will be applicable to your particular needs.

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DISCLAIMER
This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX: To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post, (Or To Search For Any Other Blog Post You Desire to Access, After Reading All of This Paragraph), Please Click On The Following: Book of Mormon's Teachings Must Be Lived To Gain Eternal Life. - Post 40s. When the Picture of Our Savior Jesus Christ Sitting Next To the Little Boy Has Come Onto Your Screen, Please Scroll Down to Your Chosen Target Item or Use the Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed).

Joseph Smith, a True Prophet . . . Post 40p

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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.
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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish:  Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch


I feel the truth I shared above is so profound! I hope all of you are able to really feel the truth of that!

40r - This is a Repeat of Post 38x. Elijah the Prophet Returns the Keys For Bringing About Salvation for the Dead.

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

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TODAY'S THEME



The Resurrected Jesus Christ Teaches Nephites in Ancient Central America -by John Scott

In this scripture you will read one of the great promises the Lord made to the Nephites while He was visiting in Ancient America. You may not yet fully understand what our Resurrected Savior meant by the following statement.

III Nephi 25: 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

You will be helped to gain the needed understanding of that later in this post.

First I invite you to read the following scripture in which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ emphasizes something He always expects of His Saints.

III Nephi 24:1-18 (See also Malachi 3:1-18 - Old Testament for the exact same words. Each set was spoken by Our Savior Jesus Christ.)

Quoting the words of Malachi which were recorded in our Old Testament, and then later, at his command, on the Plates of Nephi, the Savior taught the Nephites the necessity of their obeying His law of Tithing. In our day, through his prophet, Joseph Smith, the Lord reiterated his unchanging law of Tithing.

D. and C. 64: 23 Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming.

24 For after today cometh the burning—this is speaking after the manner of the Lord—for verily I say, tomorrow all the proud and they that do wickedly shall be as stubble; and I will burn them up, for I am the Lord of Hosts; and I will not spare any that remain in Babylon. (emphasis added)

The Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ -by Harry Anderson

In addition, the Lord's first Latter-day Prophet, Joseph Smith, received the following revelation from the Lord on that same subject.

D. and C. 19:4 And after that, those who have thus been tithed shall pay one-tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them forever, for my holy priesthood, saith the Lord.

Here is the complete Chapter 25 of III Nephi from which our TODAY'S THEME was taken. (Compare with Malachi 4:1-6)

Elijah Appearing in the Kirtland Temple to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery -by Dan Lewis

Now you will read an account of the fulfillment of the promise made in the final two verses of that prophecy given through His prophet, Malachi, which our resurrected Savior, Jesus Christ, related to His Nephite flock in Ancient America. The Lord's first Latter-day prophet, Joseph Smith, recorded this vision.

D. and C. 110:13 After this vision had closed, another great and glorious vision burst upon us; for Elijah the prophet, who was taken to heaven without tasting death, stood before us, and said:

14 Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by the mouth of Malachi—testifying that he [Elijah] should be sent, before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come—

15 To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten with a curse—

16 Therefore, the keys of this dispensation are committed into your hands; and by this ye may know that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the doors. (emphasis added)

This turning of hearts has already been taking place since soon after that recorded visit from Elijah. The power from Jesus Christ was given to His Church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in our day, to seal by the power of the Spirit of the Lord, family members, both the dead (who are now living as spirits in the Spirit World) and the living, one to another for all eternity! This sealing doesn't just automatically happen. Worthy family members who have been baptized as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, must attend to or have attended to, this business for their dead in one of the more than 151 temples that have already been built or scheduled to be built or are already under construction by this Church world-wide.

There certainly will be many others scheduled to be built in the future. After the baptisms and other ordinances and sealings are done by these living members for themselves, they can then, vicariously, do these same ordinances for their ancestors whose records they have diligently and carefully researched (often with assistance from qualified others. Other qualified church members can also perform the temple work in place of us where needed.)

For your information here is evidence that the Apostle, Paul, serving with the other apostles who had been called of the Lord, in the near East after our Savior's resurrection, knew of the ordinance of baptism for the dead: (At least one minister from another church has declared publically on video tape that the Apostle Paul was aware of the practice of baptisms for the dead, and did so in a convincing manner. It actually is a very easy assumption for any readers of that scripture to make.)

I Corinthians 15: 29 Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?

Below is a Latter-day scripture in which the sixth Latter-day Prophet, Joseph F. Smith explains how our Savior, Jesus Christ, between His death by crucifixion and His resurrection, prepared the way that the unrighteous dead could be taught His Gospel by righteous spirits whom He assigned to do that important work. You will also learn from this scripture that the Lord, Jesus Christ, has seen to it that temple work has been set up in our day so that the ordinance of baptism and other necessary ordinances for salvation can be done vicariously here on earth for those among the unrighteous spirits who listened to the message brought them by those appointed by the Lord in His visit between His crucifixion and His resurrection there in the World of Spirits.

President Joseph F. Smith -Photo from LDS Archives

D. and C. 138:25-60  Please note that this scripture begins with verse one therefore you can either also read verses 1 - 24 or scroll down and begin reading at verse 25. If you do this you will not be able to use the "Listen" feature provided you.

I will end this post by showing you pictures of six of these nearly 140 (so far, and many more are coming) very beautiful and very functional temples along with two typical temple baptismal fonts where baptisms can be performed vicariously for your and my beloved deceased ancestors, back as far as their records can be found.

Something you must realize; all of these blessings that can be brought to our deceased ancestors who weren't taught the Savior's Gospel during their lifetimes, can be done for them only by doing this work for them vicariously in Temples of the Lord, according to what the Lord Jesus Christ has instructed His Latter-day Prophets, beginning with the Prophet, Joseph Smith.

There is a great cost involved in providing sufficient temples for the vast amount of work that is yet to be done for our dead ancestors. Because of what you were taught earlier in this post, you can surely guess how the Lord wants these costs to be taken care of and it is being done on an ongoing basis very effectively.

You are right! Through the tithing of His people! His law of Tithing works very well. By personal experience I can tell you that it is easy to be a full tithe-payer. Before retirement my salary was very average. My children's mother and I, raised nine. I know by experience, paying a full (10% gross income) tithing helps you put all of your priorities in the right place! Remember, it is our Savior's law, He who who suffered and died for us!

You and I and surely everyone should be very grateful for the birth of our Savior at Bethlehem and for His successful completion of His life's mission culminating in His atoning sacrifice so that our personal salvation and this great reuniting with loved ones, known, and not yet known, could take place!

One more clarifying thought: I hope that all of of you can see clearly how that the Lord Jesus Christ continues to be very surely and actively involved, most often undetected by most of us, in blessing us that we might achieve His greatest blessings. Remember His, what I call, "sacred job description":



Jesus the Christ -by Del Parson

 Pearl Of Great Price, Moses 1:39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

We are also taught another principle which is such a vital part of our Lord's great plan: This is in the words of His prophet Lehi in the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

II Nephi 10:23 Therefore, cheer up your hearts, and remember that ye are free to act for yourselves—to choose the way of everlasting death or the way of eternal life.

These pictures, from top to bottom, are as follows: Mexico City, Mexico Temple; San Diego, California Temple; Hong Kong, China Temple; A baptismal font of an unidentified LDS Temple; Santiago, Chile Temple; The Baptismal font of the Salt Lake City Temple; Washington D.C. Temple; and the Helsinki, Finland Temple.

Something you may want to know: The twelve oxen holding up each of all our temple baptismal fonts, represent the twelve tribes of Israel.






















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The following  is the latest Mormon Messages Video. You will find it very well done and applicable to each of us.

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DISCLAIMER

This website is not owned by or affiliated with the Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon or LDS Church). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the position of the Church.

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TO OPEN NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post (or to Any Other BlogPost You May Choose), Please Click on the Following: Baptism For the Dead Began To Be Needed After . . . - Post 40r; When You See The Picture of Our Savior, Jesus Christ Sitting Next To The Little Boy, Please Scroll Down To Your Chosen Target Item Or Use the Alphabetic Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed).
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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.
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I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you will find very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch 

40q - Among the Lamanites Converted By the Sons of King Mosiah Was the Queen. This Changed Her Life and the Lives of Many Other Mothers Significantly!

To Access This Blog's Index, Please Scroll Down To the Fifth Paragraph From the End of This Post!

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TODAY'S THEME

Helaman's 2000 Stripling Warriors -by Arnold Friberg

After the conversion of King Lamoni and his Queen, many of the other (Lamanite) citizens of their land were quickly converted thanks to their conversion. The Prophet Mormon, using the record he accessed from the Large Plates of Nephi,  tells us of the Queen's conversion [which occurred in in about 90 B.C.]

Alma 19:
27 And there were some who said that Ammon was sent by the Great Spirit to afflict them because of their iniquities; and that it was the Great Spirit that had always attended the Nephites, who had ever delivered them out of their hands; and they said that it was this Great Spirit who had destroyed so many of their brethren, the Lamanites.

28 And thus the contention began to be exceedingly sharp among them. And while they were thus contending, the woman servant who had caused the multitude to be gathered together came, and when she saw the contention which was among the multitude she was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto tears.

29 And it came to pass that she went and took the queen by the hand, that perhaps she might raise her from the ground; and as soon as she touched her hand she arose and stood upon her feet, and cried with a loud voice, saying: O blessed Jesus, who has saved me from an awful hell! O blessed God, have mercy on this people! (emphasis edded)

This dramatic conversion of a Lamanite Queen was the first of many other conversions among her Lamanite people who had previously had nothing to do with their close relatives, the Nephites and with their belief in Jesus Christ who was to come! This was true both with Lamanite men and women, fathers and mothers and their children!

One of the most significant outcomes of this great conversion of Lamanite families [which occurred in about 65 B.C.]:  is described by Mormon:

Alma 56: 1 AND now it came to pass in the commencement of the thirtieth year of the reign of the judges, on the second day in the first month, Moroni (A Nephite General) received an epistle from Helaman, (Another Nephite Army Officer) stating the affairs of the people in that quarter of the land.

2 And these are the words which he wrote, saying: My dearly beloved brother, Moroni, as well in the Lord as in the tribulations of our warfare; behold, my beloved brother, I have somewhat to tell you concerning our warfare in this part of the land.

3 Behold, two thousand of the sons of those men whom Ammon brought down out of the land of Nephi—now ye have known that these were descendants of Laman, who was the eldest son of our father Lehi;

4 Now I need not rehearse unto you concerning their traditions or their unbelief, for thou knowest concerning all these things—

5 Therefore it sufficeth me that I tell you that two thousand of these young men have taken their weapons of war, and would that I should be their leader; and we have come forth to defend our country.

6 And now ye also know concerning the covenant which their fathers made, that they would not take up their weapons of war against their brethren to shed blood.

7 But in the twenty and sixth year, when they saw our afflictions and our tribulations for them, they were about to break the covenant which they had made and take up their weapons of war in our defence.

8 But I would not suffer them that they should break this covenant which they had made, supposing that God would strengthen us, insomuch that we should not suffer more because of the fulfilling the oath which they had taken.

9 But behold, here is one thing in which we may have great joy. For behold, in the twenty and sixth year, I, Helaman, did march at the head of these two thousand young men to the city of Judea, to assist Antipus, whom ye had appointed a leader over the people of that part of the land.

10 And I did join my two thousand sons, (for they are worthy to be called sons) to the army of Antipus, in which strength Antipus did rejoice exceedingly; for behold, his army had been reduced by the Lamanites because their forces had slain a vast number of our men, for which cause we have to mourn. (clarification and emphasis added)

These 2060 young Lamanite warriors had been prepared by their mothers (who by the example of their queen, had been converted to Jesus Christ). This is what was written about how well their mothers had prepared their sons:

Alma 56: 47 Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them. (emphasis added)

The following describes how effective the teachings of their (converted to Christ) mothers were in the words of these young warriors:

Alma 57:19 But behold, my little band of two thousand and sixty fought most desperately; yea, they were firm before the Lamanites, and did administer death unto all those who opposed them.

20 And as the remainder of our army were about to give way before the Lamanites, behold, those two thousand and sixty were firm and undaunted.

21 Yea, and they did obey and observe to perform every word of command with exactness; yea, and even according to their faith it was done unto them; and I did remember the words which they said unto me that their mothers had taught them.

22 And we do justly ascribe it to the miraculous power of God, because of their exceeding faith in that which they had been taught to believe—that there was a just God, and whosoever did not doubt, that they should be preserved by his marvelous power.

23 And we retained our city Cumeni, and were not all destroyed by the sword; nevertheless, we had suffered great loss.

24 And it came to pass that after the Lamanites had fled, I immediately gave orders that my men who had been wounded should be taken from among the dead, and caused that their wounds should be dressed.

25 And it came to pass that there were two hundred, out of my two thousand and sixty, who had fainted because of the loss of blood; nevertheless, according to the goodness of God, and to our great astonishment, and also the joy of our whole army, there was not one soul of them who did perish; yea, and neither was there one soul among them who had not received many wounds.

26 And now, their preservation was astonishing to our whole army, yea, that they should be spared while there was a thousand of our brethren who were slain.

27 Now this was the faith of these of whom I have spoken; they are young, and their minds are firm, and they do put their trust in God continually. (emphasis added)

I now quote from part of verse 21 above: "and I did remember the words which they said unto me that their mothers had taught them."

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On Sunday May 9th of this year Mother's Day was celebrated in this country (U.S.A.). I neglected to mention that in the post that I published about the time of that U.S. national holiday. It can be said that with today's post I helped each of you readers celebrate it. I was somewhat late, but Motherhood is so important, be it the Lamanite Mothers about whom we learned in today's post and in Post 40o, or the wonderful mothers we have or are married to or that you are!

With much Love and Respect to You Wonderful Mothers Who May Be Reading this Post! Please take the time to view this Mormon Message Video.





There is just one other post-script I will add. Today, July 2, 2010 it was announced on the evening Television News that Arnold Friberg, the well-known artist who painted the painting I used at the beginning of this post, died today at age 96. The TV reporter told about how much energy and feeling Brother Friberg, an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints put into each of his paintings. I have used six of his Book of Mormon paintings in various posts. He gained much fame by his prize winning paintings used in the award winning Movie, "The Ten Commandments" created by Cecil B. De Mille.

Here is perhaps his most famous painting: Prayer at Valley Forge which Arnold Friberg painted for the celebration of the U.S. Bicentennial on July 4, 1976. For those of you viewing this post who live in other countries I should point out that the general who is praying for God's help in his battle for his country which became the U.S.A. is General George Washington who became its first president!



Thank you for your viewing this blog post! May the Lord bless you! By the way, the day after tomorrow is July 4, American Independence Day, so Happy Fourth of July to all of you Americans! Good wishes to the rest of you when you celebrate the holiday that you might have which is similar to our Independence Day. I wish I knew when those each are celebrated.

Neil Birch

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TO ACCESS NEIL BIRCH'S BLOG INDEX To Either Read the Full Index Item Which Refers To This Blog Post (Or to Search The Index For Any Other Blog Post You desire To Access), After You Have Read All of This Paragraph,Please Click on the Following: Mothers, Their Great Role in Our Lives - Post 40q When the Picture of Our Savior, Jesus Christ Sitting Next to the Little Boy, Comes Onto Your Screen, Please Scroll Down In The Index To Your Target Item Or Use the Alphabetical Scrolling Device (When It Has Been Installed).

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"Have You Really Read the Book of Mormon?" Legal /Statement. Thank you for visiting. The author retains intellectual property and creative licensing rights. Permission to use or reprint must be given in writing. © Est.2008 Neil Birch Legal /Statement.

_____________

I deeply appreciate your readership and hope you found very beneficial, that which was presented to you in this blog post.

If you have any questions about what you have read or viewed in this post or in any previous posts of mine, or if you even have a curiosity about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and or its teachings, please e-mail me. I'm Neil and my e-mail address is: jneilmelva@gmail.com. If you contact me I'll get back to you just as soon as possible.

I invite you to let your friends and relatives know about this blog if you think they would be interested. Please be advised that I also have an additional blog. It is in Spanish: Its content is translated from the English in this blog.

Neil Birch