Week of December 4 - 10, 2011
WEEKLY QUESTIONS
What verses stick out to me or would I like to remember?
What life lessons can I take from this chapter?
What does this chapter teach me about my Savior?
How can I apply what I've learned this week?
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS TO PONDER
Reread Vs. 3 - 7. The people of Nephi heard the voice of God three times before they “did open their ears to hear it; and their eyes were towards the sound thereof; and they did look steadfastly towards heaven, from whence the sound came.” It was only after this that they finally understood what the voice was saying to them. How can we liken this to ourselves? What personal experiences have you had that illustrate this principle?
What is your personal testimony of the Savior? How do you feel about His sacrifice for you?
Reread Vs. 29 – 30. What things can you do in your life right now to eliminate contention and increase harmony and love?
The Lord establishes his doctrine of repentance and baptism in this chapter. How would you explain these principles to a neighbor or non-LDS friend who may not understand why these are necessary components of following Christ?
I was reading D&C 97 today and verses 12 through 17 talk about the temple. I was especially struck by the description of the temple as a "place of thanksgiving for all saints" in verse 13. I've always thought of the temple as a place of service for the dead and as a place for spiritual nourishment, instruction, and revelation, but I had never really thought of it as a place of thanksgiving. What a wonderful thing to go to the temple as an act of gratitude to our loving Heavenly Father and our Savior. I will make a particular point to make my temple service an act of sincere gratitude to my Creator from here on out.
ReplyDeleteThen, I noticed that the verses pertaining to the temple in Section 97 directly apply to the first three questions on this week's Scuba reading. The first question deals with revelation, the people's ability to hear and understand the voice of the Lord. That event took place near the temple (3 Nephi 11:1), reinforcing the temple as a place of revelation. The second question is about expressing our gratitude for our Savior, and the temple is the perfect place to express that gratitude, as it is indeed a place of thanksgiving. The third question about how to increase harmony and eliminate contention can be answered with sincere and diligent temple attendance. Even the fourth question about explaining the importance of repentance and baptism points to the temple - the Lord provides ordinances for us to help us progress and return to him, and that is available to ALL people through the temple. EVERYTHING POINTS TO THE TEMPLE! I love that! We are so blessed to have a temple so close to us. May we use it wholeheartedly to receive all the blessings Heavenly Father is waiting to give us.
I love verse 29 where it says "the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention. " Contention is definitely the world's way of handling things. When I have feelings of contention, I try to talk to myself and realize that when I have those feelings I can't feel the Spirit. I try to resolve those feelings as quickly as I can so I can feel the promptings of the Holy Ghost in my life.
ReplyDeleteEven if you are "justified" - meaning it isn't your fault or that someone has hurt you, you won't feel the peace that you are seeking until your life is free from contention.
I also love the first few verses that talk about when Christ came to visit them and they couldn't hear the voice until the third time. They couldn't hear until they "did open their ears to hear it; and their eyes were towards the sound thereof; and they did look steadfastly towards heaven, from whence the sound came. "
Open their ears: I think this means that we are praying and reading and seeking for answers. We can't hear Christ's words until we are reading his word - it is that simple.
Their eyes were toward the sound thereof: What are we listening to the day? Are we so immersed in the sounds of the world's television, radio and the Internet that we can't hear the Holy Ghost?
They looked steadfastly towards heaven: I think this means we want to be near God's house. We need to be looking heavenward by attending all of our meetings and either attending or working on attending the temple.
The people in the story were not righteous. Their good deeds were that they had not killed the prophets and not slain the saints. I'm thinking they weren't really focused on righteous things.
If we are doing those three things, when the Holy Ghost speaks we will be able to hear his voice the first time.
I loved reading 3 Nephi 11 over and over again. I was just thinking about how important baptism is to the Savior, as stated in the Bible and Book of Mormon. Matthew closes his book in chapter 28 with the Savior's appearance after His resurrection and His commission to take His message to the world and baptize them in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost. The Savior then adds that He will be with us. Third Nephi 11 also is an account of His appearance after his resurrection and once again He states several times the importance of being baptized and the specific way to do it along with the proper authority. I can't tell you how blessed I have been having the opportunity to be baptized by the proper authority and given the gift to receive the Holy Ghost as a constant companion. Think about what that has done for you in your life. I probably don't think about it enough, with the gratitude that I should for receiving the fullness of his gospel. As a child I was baptized into a different church and I had no idea at the time that the Lord would set up the circumstances to give my family the opportunity to come to His true church. At this Christmas season when our hearts are drawn closer to the Savior, in gratitude and love...I can only say, thank you to all those who seek after the prepared and truly follow the Lord's commission to take His message to the world and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost!
ReplyDelete