a Bit About Belief

Some Thoughts of the Pre-Second Coming

Mark 13, Matthew 24 and More

"Four matters are indisputable to Latter-day Saints: (1) The Savior will return to the earth in power and great glory to reign personally during a millennium of righteousness and peace. (2) At the time of His coming there will be a destruction of the wicked and a resurrection of the righteous. (3) No one knows the time of His coming, but (4) the faithful are taught to study the signs of it and to be prepared for it. I wish to speak about the fourth of these great realities: the signs of the Second Coming and what we should do to prepare for it."

(Dallin H. Oaks, April 2004 General Conference, Preparation for the Second Coming)

Today I want to discuss Elder Oak's third point: the signs of the Second Coming. These are given many times throughout the scriptures. In that same talk, Elder Oaks describes these signs in a list form:

"Biblical and modern prophecies give many signs of the Second Coming. These include:

1. The fulness of the gospel restored and preached in all the world for a witness to all nations.

2. False Christs and false prophets, deceiving many.

3. Wars and rumors of wars, with nation rising against nation.

4. Earthquakes in divers places.

5. Famine and pestilence.

6. An overflowing scourge, a desolating sickness covering the land.

7. Iniquity abounding.

8. The whole earth in commotion.

9. Men’s hearts failing them."

The time before the Second Coming, as described in Mark 13, seems to be a time of testing for the righteous believers of Christ. They will have the opportunity to display their loyalty to and faith in Jesus Christ. The faithful will look for the signs of the Savior's return, and will be ready for His arrival. Verse 32 reads:

"But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father."

No one except Heavenly Father knows the day or time: this is repeated all throughout the scriptures. There are a lot of people who claim to know the day of the Second Coming, or of other significant events involving a rapture from their earthly plights. Our job is not to try to speculate the Lord's time, but to prepare ourselves for when the Father says we are ready. 

Verse 22 reads:

"For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect."

The closer that we get to the Savior's return, the more divine fallacies will arise. The elect mentioned in the scriptures are people who have made sacred gospel covenants- people who consider themselves strong and faithful. There will be false Christs and false prophets. Who are the false prophets? Read this quote from Elder M. Russell Ballard's October 1999 General Conference talk: 

"When we think of false prophets and false teachers, we tend to think of those who espouse an obviously false doctrine or presume to have authority to teach the true gospel of Christ according to their own interpretation. We often assume that such individuals are associated with small radical groups on the fringes of society. However, I reiterate: there are false prophets and false teachers who have or at least claim to have membership in the Church. There are those who, without authority, claim Church endorsement to their products and practices. Beware of such."

(M. Russell Ballard, October 1999 General Conference, Beware of False Prophets and False Teachers)

Who are they? They are regular people, who are seemingly righteous. They pretend to do good in the name of the people, but go against the Lord's wishes. False prophets lead away many hearts that are not strong enough to see them for the spiritual virus that they are. They will suck the Lord's light out of their followers- sometimes even in the name of God, or some other value of a bleeding heart. False prophets convince good members of the gospel to follow in their ways, and together, they slowly leave the protective arms of the Spirit and eventually leave the gospel. False prophets come in the form of women seeking the priesthood, in the form of leaders of marriage equality, or even in more subtle and hidden ways. They are a careful poison, given in small enough doses to keep an unsuspecting sympathizer unaware of their spiritual malignancy. 

False prophets, false Christs, persecution of believers...these signs of the Second Coming are like a spiritual survival-of-the-fittest. Those who desire and work to be strong, will survive and be happy. Those who get complacent, who get spiritually distracted, or choose to be offended....they will fall away and find, that somewhere along the line, they lost their Salvation.

So what, then, are we to do? Here is another quote, this one from Elder Richard G. Scott:

"A strong testimony has sustained prophets throughout the ages and fortified them to act with courage and determination in times of difficulty. A powerful testimony can do the same for you. As you fortify your own personal testimony, you will have power to make correct choices so that you can stand unwaveringly against the pressures of an increasingly vicious world. Your personal security and happiness depend upon the strength of your testimony, for it will guide your actions in times of trial or uncertainty."

(Richard G. Scott, October 2001 General Conference, The Power of a Strong Testimony)

To make it through the Satan's eventual storm of trickery, Christ's followers will need to figure out what they believe and in whom their faith lies. They will need to look for Christ's coming, full of faith and loyalty. Believers will need to be able to distinguish God's own will from the will of self-serving do-gooders who profess the ability to improve and fix Heavenly Father's unbroken church. 

I know that these are the days leading up to Christ's return. I know that the Savior will come back to this Earth once more, in his fullness of wonder and amazement. I know that there will many opportunities for growth- all with the potential for both greatness and doom. As I live faithfully, and strive to remain strong in my testimony, I will pass through this life of fallacy and wickedness, and come out refined and polished. Someday, I don't know when, I will get to feel Christ's physical scars of His spiritual sacrifice for me. I will get to hear His voice, and listen to Him tell me that I made it. I know it's real, every part of my heart tells me it's true. Someday Christ will walk this earth again, I know it. 

a Seven Day Rundown

a Seven Day Rundown

As explained in the institute manual: The Life And Teachings of Jesus & His Apostles, pp. 135-137.

My institute manual gives a rundown of the last week before Christ's death, and also His resurrection. Really understanding how He spent his last few days before the crucifixion has given me a new level of respect and a deeper love of the Savior. His complete faith in the Plan, and His lack of any fear for the future is amazing. He knew he would suffer, he knew he would hurt and he completely understood that he would be killed. The details didn't matter, because he had a mission to fulfill; one that would save me, and my children, and make us stand a chance in eternity. 

Day 1 (5 days before the crucifixion): Jesus Christ rode a donkey in to Jerusalem and people gathered around Him while he rode up to the temple. He noted the things taking place at the temple and then He left the city and returned to Bethany for the evening. 

Day 2 (now 4 days to go): Jesus rode again up into the temple. There, he challenged the Jewish leadership, by throwing out of the temple all of the wicked money exchanging going on within the sacred building. The Jewish leadership had previously allowed business and sales to go on in the temple, so when Jesus evicted the those acting in a less-than-sacred manner, those leaders got angry. Christ reminded people that the temple is a place of worship, not a marketplace. Christ left the temple and again spent the night in Bethany.

Day 3 (3 days to go): The next morning, when Christ returned to the temple, he was interrogated by the Jewish leadership. They tried to trick Him, and make him contradict himself. Christ answered the wicked leaders with parables. Unhappy and offended by that, they tried to trick him again. Christ then called them out on being hypocrites and let them know that they were wrong. Christ left them, and did not preach anymore to crowds- only to His apostles. Angry with Christ, the Jewish leaders tried to think of ways to make sure that He was put to death. They worked on concocting a plan that would let them arrest the Savior without causing a scene that might spark an rebellion or riot. 

Day 4 (2 days left): Christ was aware that his mortal life was coming to an end. There aren't really records of what He did on this day, as it was written down in the scriptures. However, it was spent outside of Jerusalem.

Day 5 (the day before): Christ and His apostles spent the Passover alone. He introduced the Sacrament ordinance to them that night. Jesus also explained to the apostles that he knew His end was coming, and told them of Judas's upcoming betrayal. After His intercessory prayer (or a prayer on behalf of
other people), 11 of the 12 apostles (Judas was busy betraying) left and went to Gethsemane. Just inside the garden, Christ left all the apostles but Peter, James and John, who went with Him deeper in to the garden. After a while, the three apostles stayed behind as Christ went on alone to pray. 

In this garden, at this most holy of times, the Savior knelt in prayer and atoned for the sins of every person who has, or will ever walk the Earth. The pain and sorrow that I feel for just my own selfish self is sometimes unbearable. Christ felt that. He also felt that for every single other person ever. He suffered and felt excruciating pain, so that I would not have to. All of His anguish was felt and endured in behalf of other people. I will forever feel grateful, and blessed, but so unworthy of His perfect love for me. 

Continuing with Day 5...after he had selflessly atoned for each of us, he returned to Peter, James and John, and they all returned back to the other apostles who awaited them. Christ announced that Judas and the Jewish leaders would be there soon, and they did. Christ did not struggle or fight back as they placed Him under arrest and marched Him in to an illegal trial in the middle of the night. 

Day 6 (the day of the crucifixion): Those Jewish leaders worked really hard at scraping up any possible charges they could to make sure that Jesus was put to death. He was given two charges: blasphemy (with which He was unanimously convicted) and sedition (of which he was found not-guilty by Pilate, a Roman governor. However, just outside of Pilot's judging room, the wicked leaders were egging the crowd to demanding a death sentence for Christ. Pilate was scared of a rebellion, so he agreed to it, knowing of His innocence. 

So on day six, Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, was crucified in the brutal roman fashion of the cross. Eventually, that afternoon, he gave up his body and sent His spirit home to His Father. Because of the next day being the Passover holiday, and also the Sabbath, Christ was taken down from the cross that night and placed in a sealed tomb by two of His loving disciples.

Day 7 (one day after Christ's mortal death): While His body remained in the tomb, Christ's spirit went to the spirit world to minister unto all those spirits there. In doing this, as we learned last week, Christ forged a gate between Spirit Paradise and Spirit Prison, allowing all those spirits in prison to have to opportunity for conversion.

Day of the Resurrection: Christ left his tomb where His body had been laid, and there met Mary. There are several witnesses to Christ's body arisen from His death. Many saw the scars from his body being crucified. I wasn't aware of this, but apparently this part of the scripture accounts are called "the good news." Christ died, and was resurrected, setting a perfect precedence for us: we will die, and will come alive again, and be resurrected some day.

The last 5 days that preceded Christ's mortal death were amazing. His atonement, crucifixion and resurrection are all because of His love for each of us, and for our Heavenly Father. I am truly blessed to have been able to do this assignment this week, and my heart is full knowing what I know. I encourage everyone to study all of the elements of His last mortal days and the days following.

a Parable or Two

a Parable or Two

Luke 16-18

It is pretty widely known that the Savior chose to speak to his disciples in the form of a parable- or a story with a lesson hidden somewhere in the middle of it. Some of them are pretty well known and understood, like the parable of the Ten Virgins. However, there are many, many more that are less popular and less widely comprehended. Taking the time to study the principles found within parables is seeking to hear what Christ wants us to know. Below are some of the parables found in Luke 16-18. 

The Parable of the Unjust Steward (Luke 16:1-12):

Basically, there was a steward (I imagine this to be the bookkeeper or financial guru for a household), who worked for a very rich man. The rich man caught wind of the steward wasting his resources, and called him in to discuss it. He put the steward on probation. The steward, feeling nervous and threatened, thought up a plan to get back into good graces with his master. He called up all of the people that owed things to the rich man, and struck deals with the debtors. He collected only portions of what they owed to the rich man, which worked out pretty well for the debtors. This debtors were happy with the steward, and he made some friends. The master was pleased with the steward, because he saw that he was looking down the road. 

This is a very confusing parable at first. Does that mean that the Lord condones dishonesty? In his book, Jesus is the Christ, James E. Talmage clarifies this for us: 

"On first reading, the parable of the Unjust Steward would seem to be an endorsement for malfeasance in office. Careful study will show, however, that it was given to teach the care with which the saints of God should approach the task of preparing for their eternal future. Knowing that he had but a short time left in his appointed post, the steward wisely tried to secure his future by winning some friends.

"It was not the steward’s dishonesty that was extolled; his prudence and foresight were commended, however; for while he misapplied his master’s substance, he gave relief to the debtors; and in so doing he did not exceed his legal powers, for he was still steward though he was morally guilty of malfeasance. The lesson may be summed up in this wise: Make such use of your wealth as shall insure you friends hereafter. Be diligent; for the day in which you can use your earthly riches will soon pass. Take a lesson from even the dishonest and the evil; if they are so prudent as to provide for the only future they think of, how much more should you, who believe in an eternal future, provide therefor!" (pg. 464)

The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31):

In this parable, there is a very rich man and a very poor and sick man named Lazarus. The rich man thinks very highly of himself, and refuses to provide any help or support to Lazarus, even while the dogs licked up his wounds. Eventually the beggar, Lazarus, died and was carried away to Abrahams bosom (Spirit Paradise). He experienced a loss of his fears, troubles and sorrows. In it's place grew peace, joy and rest. 

Soon after, the rich man also died and was sent to hell (Spirit Prison). His experience was much different, as he dealt with weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth, darkness and constant fear. Because of the awful state he dwelt in, he asked for help getting out. He was reminded frankly that he chose not to help the beggar Lazarus when they were both alive. He was also explained that there was a huge "gulf" between the Spirit Paradise and the Spirit Prison, that divided the two places and kept the spirits from connecting with the other side. 

He then asked to visit his family that he left behind to preach to them of his newly acquired understanding of the plan. He was told that they would be sent prophets (missionaries, scriptures?) to teach them. He was also told that it wouldn't matter if he went back to teach them from the grave, if they didn't accept the prophets, they wouldn't accept the truth. 

After Christ's spirit left his body, he spent three days teaching and preaching in the spirit world. When he went there, he created a bridge over the "gulf" between the Spirit Paradise and the Spirit Prison. About this, Bruce R. McConkie says: 

"The Savior’s visit to the spirit world bridged the gulf between paradise (Abraham’s bosom) and hell, making it possible for the spirits in prison to receive the message of the gospel by authorized ministers."

The Parable of the Ten Lepers (Luke 17:11-19):

This parable begins with some men who suffered from leprosy. Leprosy is a nasty disease, where chunks of skin falls off of the infected person, exposing their insides to plain view. It was very contagious, and caused lepers (people with leprosy) to be cast out from the cities. In order to be able to come back to their homes, families and friends, they had to be pronounced clean by a priest. Rarely did this happen, and once diagnosed with leprosy- you pretty much expected to die alone in the hills.

As Christ was walking one day, he was surrounded by ten lepers, who sought Him to be healed. In verse 13 they said "...Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." Christ then told the lepers to go show themselves to the priest. Bruce R. McConkie says about this that,

 "Jesus also told the lepers to show themselves to the priests as a test of their faith.When all ten believed and complied with the terms of the cure, all were healed “as they went” to visit the priests. "

After they were healed, only one former leper out of all of the 10 former lepers came back and found Christ to thank him. Verse 17 reads: "And Jesus answering said Were there not ten cleansed? but Where are the nine?" And of all of them, he was a Samaritan who would have typically been looked down upon! Elder Bruce R. McConkie said about this: 

The one who returned to give thanks was a Samaritan, and “perhaps this exhibition of gratitude by a Samaritan was another evidence to the apostles that all men are acceptable to the Lord and that the Jewish claim to exclusive superiority as a chosen race was soon to be replaced with a command to take the gospel of peace to all races.”

I wonder how many times we forgot to stop and say thank you? Are we like the Samaritan, or are we like the other nine? 

The Parable of the Unjust Judge (Luke 18:1-8)
In this parable, Christ tells about a poor widow who sought the help of a judge, seeking to get rid of some of her adversaries. The judge, who was very selfish and wicked, decided not to help the widow. Then, after a while of her asking, it seems like he just got tired of it and helped her. He didn't help her because it was the right thing to do, or because he wanted to be nice--he helped her because it was beneficial to him.

This parable is kind of a tricky one, and a lot of people get caught up thinking that Christ is comparing himself and Heavenly Father to this wicked judge. That is not the case, though! Verse 4-5 tells about the heart of the judge, who said

 "Thought I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubeleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me."

Jesus Christ uses this parable to teach us that even that wicked judge finally helped the poor widow eventually, even if it was for the wrong reasons. If the judge, being so full of himself, would help someone in need, of course God will too! We should not get caught up in doubt, wondering if God hears our prayers, or if he will answer any of them. Of course He does! There may be a lesson we are gaining, so we need to remember that our desired timing often times does not coincide with the Heavenly Father's timing. So be patient, and hang on tight to your faith!

The Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18:9-14):

The final parable for this post concerns a Pharisee and a Publican (tax collector). Both men went up to the temple at the same time to pray. In the Pharisee's prayer, he told God about how awesome and righteous he was, and made a running list of all of the good things that he did all the time. He also took the opportunity to tell God how much better he was than all of the other people. By contrast, the Publican quietly prayed, and asked God for mercy, and explained that he lacked. 

Christ then explains that the Pharisee is no better than the Publican, even though he wanted to believe he was. In verse 14, about the publican he says: 

"I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

In Jesus the Christ, James E. Talmage says: 

"We are expressly told that this parable was given for the benefit of certain ones who trusted in their self-righteousness as an assurance of justification before God. It was not addressed to the Pharisees nor to the publicans specifically. The two characters are types of widely separated classes. There may have been much of the Pharisaic spirit of self-complacency among the disciples and some of it even among the Twelve. … The parable is applicable to all men; its moral was summed up in a repetition of our Lord’s words spoken in the house of the chief Pharisee. …"

Studying parables give us a unique opportunity. We learn the important principles of the gospel, in exactly the way the Christ wants us to hear them. This was a difficult assignment for me, mostly because I am not very smart. But after days of studying, I think that I was able to really grasp a better understanding of what I need to be working on! I encourage everyone to look up these parables and really seek to understand them. They are powerful and will bless you as you try to hear the message!