Posted on 03/21/2011 7:01:14 PM PDT by Paragon Defender
By Elder D. Lee Tobler
Of the Seventy
D. Lee Tobler, "Words of Jesus: Resurrection to Ascension", Ensign, Aug. 2003, 36–39
“Ye shall be witnesses unto me … unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
As Jesus was taken from the cross and lovingly prepared for burial following the customs of the Jews, His disciples wanted to protect His body from intrusion or harm. They wrapped His body with fresh linen, and a great stone was rolled into place to seal the doorway of the tomb (see Matt. 27:57–60). Three days later Jesus emerged victorious over death from the tomb. For the next 40 days He taught and ministered to His disciples in what must have been an intensely powerful experience, preparing them for His Ascension into heaven.
The Savior’s words during these 40 days provide a wonderful road map for us as we contemplate His assured triumphal return to earth. The Lord gave at least three highly significant messages to His Jerusalem disciples: (1) His Resurrection was real and all are inheritors of that wonderful gift; (2) His Atonement was completed, but there would be requirements for us to fully partake of its blessings; and (3) His disciples were responsible to carry the message of His gospel to the world.
To both believer and unbeliever, the evidence on the morning of the third day was compelling. The stone was rolled to the side. The dead Christ was no longer in the tomb. However, even with that evidence, the Lord chose to confirm His Resurrection in numerous glorious visitations. The first was to Mary Magdalene, who mourned outside the tomb. Two angels appeared to her and asked, “Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.
“And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.
“Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.
“Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master” (John 20:13–16).
There is a great lesson to be learned from Mary Magdalene’s experience with the resurrected Lord. We learn that if we truly seek Him, if we truly want to know Him, we will find Him and know Him as He really is. Mary had become a disciple through conversion and had followed the Savior faithfully unto His death. By her own experience, she then knew that He was alive.
After this first confirmation of Christ’s Resurrection, others occurred. The risen Lord walked with two disciples on the road to Emmaus. They spoke together of the rumored news of angels appearing and the Savior’s missing body. “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” He asked the two disciples. “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself” and His Resurrection (Luke 24:26–27). The Savior then appeared to Simon Peter and afterward to the 11 Apostles and others. “Peace be unto you,” He said. “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have” (Luke 24:36, 39).
While all these confirmations of His Resurrection are of great value, perhaps the most graphic is the Savior’s appearance to Thomas and others eight days later. Thomas had doubted that Jesus was the resurrected Lord. “Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands,” Jesus invited, “and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God” (John 20:27–28). With this confirmation, Thomas was also given a gentle but clear reproof: “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:29).
Thomas’s experience carries a particular message for us. If we want to know sacred things and experience all of the rich blessings related to those sacred experiences, our faith must be stronger than our curiosity.
There were other remarkable confirmations of the Lord’s Resurrection, including His appearance, teachings, and meal with seven of His disciples on the shores of Galilee. “Lovest thou me?” was His question to Peter (see John 21:15–17). “Follow thou me” (John 21:22) was His command. By the time of His Ascension, there were no doubters of His immortality among His faithful disciples.
The Savior was eager to help His disciples understand that while the Resurrection would be universal for all of Heavenly Father’s children, there was a difference between becoming immortal and inheriting eternal life. In John 14, the Savior had already explained the difference to them:
“In my Father’s house are many [kingdoms] 1 : if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
“And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
“Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:2–6).
Thomas’s question (see John 20:25) still lingers in the hearts of many of our Father’s children, and the Savior’s answer remains today the only answer: No son or daughter of our Heavenly Father will be able to return home to Him except by becoming a partaker of the Atonement of Christ. When the resurrected Lord taught the disciples in Galilee, He made it clear why all the world must hear the gospel: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16).
Matthew further records the words of the Savior on this occasion:
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
“Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19–20).
Therefore, we must conclude that partaking of Christ’s Atonement for sin is conditional; it is dependent upon our being baptized and accepting His “way” and living His commandments. From the New Testament we learn that His way begins with a living faith in Jesus Christ as Redeemer of the world.
This kind of faith leads us to the covenant of baptism, when we take upon us His name and promise to keep His commandments. Other covenants follow. We learn, as evidenced by His early disciples, that our lives must be consistent with our covenants. Only then will we receive that peaceful assurance from the Holy Ghost that we can become partakers of the Savior’s Atonement. “John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost,” Jesus told His disciples (Acts 1:5). In the end all ordinances must be validated by the Holy Spirit of Promise (see D&C 132:7). It is only when the Lord’s Atonement is applied to us individually that we become free of our sins and worthy to enter the presence of our Heavenly Father.
On the shores of Galilee and on the Mount of Olives, the Savior gave the assignment or calling to His Apostles that they (and others whom they would call) should carry the message of resurrection and redemption to the world. The Lord first introduced the assignment with an inquiry, referring to the meal He proffered His disciples: “Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs” (John 21:15). Jesus asked him a second time and received a similar response. Then He asked “the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep” (John 21:17).
These early disciples had to make a critical choice. Would fish and bread, or other earthly goods and materials, take priority over the matters of heart and soul that are required for those who seek eternal life? If they had let earthly things become top priority, it would have been difficult to accomplish the more critical task, that of teaching Heavenly Father’s children throughout the world—the spiritual feeding of His sheep.
Then just before His Ascension into heaven, the Lord repeated the call: “Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
As members of the Church and disciples of Christ, we must come to terms with this challenge today. At a time when the prophets of God have called all members to be missionaries to neighbors, to family members, and to those in distant lands, will we choose to feed the Savior’s sheep or will we choose the good but lesser part? The increasing numbers of prepared young men and women and senior couples engaged in full-time missionary work are a heartening testimony that there are many who understand and feel the call to serve. Many members remaining at home are increasingly joining the ranks of those who understand the need to teach the gospel at home as well as abroad. We are learning that disciples of Christ constantly look for ways to share this great message.
As we prepare for that future day when the Savior returns and reigns as King of kings and Lord of lords, these particular teachings take on increasing urgency. As we study the New Testament and pray for light and wisdom, we will be reassured of our divine origins. We will find great joy in the reality of resurrection, redemption, and exaltation through the Lord Jesus Christ. We will seek to carry the message to all, that our joy and their joy might be full and that we will all be able to partake of eternal life through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Is the bishop paying you over time?
I admire your tenacity.
And then there are others who seem to delight in damaging themselves.
Mormon atonement - Jesus died just so you can be resurrected. Your salvation depends on how many and how hard your works are - to become sinless. The mormon Jesus didn’t die for you sins - you have to remove sin on your own.
You need to look here. You are being misled as is obvious by your worn out propaganda.
Here’s a few links to get your started from a different viewpoint. I have found that the vast majority of the “issues” brought up in the anti-Mormon propaganda can be found and addressed at http://www.fairlds.org/ but here’s more:
http://scriptures.lds.org/
http://www.lds.org
http://www.fairlds.org/
http://www.mormonapologetics.org/
http://www.mormonwiki.com/Main_Page
http://www.lightplanet.com/response/index.html
http://www.jefflindsay.com/LDS_Intro.shtml
http://www.answeringantimormons.com/index.htm
http://promormon.blogspot.com/
“Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves ... For such are FALSE apostles, DECEITFUL workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.” (Matthew 7:15; 2nd Corinthians 11:13).
How do you explain baptism of the dead?
2 NEPHI 25:23: “For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.”
Grace only counts 'after all we can do' - how do you know you've done enough for salvation? Evidently Christ's resurrection doesn't mean much. Lets try another.
MORONI 10:32: “Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.”
My my, for Christ's grace to be sufficient the mormon must remove ALL ungodliness FIRST. Well, tell me pd are you completely godly, completely sinless???? So far I've been correct, lets try another
DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS 25:15: “Keep my commandments continually, and a crown of righteousness thou shalt receive. And except thou do this, where I am you cannot come.”
Hmmmm, we cannot be with God unless we keep the commandments CONTINUALLY. Do you meet this requirement pd??? Lets look at another
DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS 1:31-32: “For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance; Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven.”
Well, if you repent, but what is repentance in mormonism?
DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS 58:43: “By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins—behold, he will confess them and forsake them.”
Oh, you must completely stop sinning to really repent. Well what happens when you slip up pd?
DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS 82:7: “And now, verily I say unto you, I, the Lord, will not lay any sin to your charge; go your ways and sin no more; but unto that soul who sinneth shall the former sins return, saith the Lord your God.”
Wow, God dumps you right back to square zero huh. All those temple works, other works of righteousness - up in a puff of smoke, and then some. How often do you keep trying to repent pd? How successful have you been pd? Lets see what else you 'sources' tell me.
ALMA 11:37: “And I say unto you again that he cannot save them in their sins; for I cannot deny his word, and he hath said that no unclean thing can inherit the kingdom of heaven; therefore, how can ye be saved, except ye inherit the kingdom of heaven? Therefore, ye cannot be saved in your sins.”
Well, this isn't looking too good. You have to do the work getting sin out of your life, live completely sinless and if you sin, well YOUR scriptures say you cannot be saved in your sin. Really Pd - you have to do all the work first too. What else do your sources say?
“…for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.”—1 Nephi 3:7
Hmmmm, only have this life time to become perfectly sinless. Is that the what this says? One of your prophets makes this clear -
“This progress toward eternal life is a matter of achieving perfection. Living all the commandments guarantees total forgiveness of sins and assures one of exaltation through that perfection which comes by complying with the formula the Lord gave us. In his Sermon on the Mount he made the command to all men: ‘Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.’ (Matt. 5:48) Being perfect means to triumph over sin. This is a mandate from the Lord. He is just and wise and kind. He would never require anything from his children which was not for their benefit and which was not attainable. Perfection therefore is an achievable goal.”—The Miracle of Forgiveness, 1969, Spencer W. Kimball, pp. 208-209
Well, there you have it pd - if you are not perfect in this life you fail. Is that correct?
And the burden of the prophetic warning has been that the time to act is now, in this mortal life. One cannot with impunity delay his compliance with God’s commandments.” —The Miracle of Forgiveness, pp. 7, 10
Yep, in this mortal life pd. Are you perfect yet? Why not pd?
Hmmmmmm, it appears that my statement is completely correct by mormon doctrine standard works and the directed teaching of your prophet. It is clear I'm not the one being misled by worn out propaganda.
You are aware, of course, that Mormons say that YOU are not a Christian?
Devil’s in the details...
You can disagree, but it is of little relevance because the facts paint an entirely different story.
That you are willing to compromise your savior for personal reasons is your affair and between the two of you really.
But when you publicly defend Mormonism and try and paint it as what it is not, expect to be called on it.
There are those of us who take defending the faith seriously.
Hum, must have been some revisions to Webster's I missed...
Do you really need to keep being reminded when you address those of us who have called you in your game?
lds believe in a created jesus - not Biblical
lds believe god progressed to godhood - not Biblical
lds have taught that Christians are Whores of Babylon
lds believe that yo must work for your salvation - not Biblical
I do not care how nice they are, mormonISM is not Christianity.
This Mormon doctrine never made the slightest bit of sense anyway, besides being ridiculous.
Can any ex-mo explain how exactly this worked? Jesus was one of millions of spirit children and Heavenly Father hung onto him for thousands of years and then beamed him down to earth so he could die and be resurrected, therefore everybody gets to be resurrected?
The only explanation I ever saw for this is that it was so deep and sacred that it was imponderable.
Right.
In Mormonism, you merely get to be resurrected, then you have to be judged for your sins.
Kind of a raw deal.
lds believe in a created jesus - not Biblical
lds believe god progressed to godhood - not Biblical
lds have taught that Christians are Whores of Babylon
lds believe that yo must work for your salvation - not Biblical
I do not care how nice they are, mormonISM is not Christianity.
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I’m not here to defend Mormonism and their beliefs. I will comment on your bashing of their beliefs however. First I would like to make a point. Some of your complaints to me are the same as arguing what color hair Jesus had. It doesn’t make any difference.
1st
LDS believe in a created Jesus.
On some plane Jesus was created, that is in His earthly body He was created just like the rest of us. However Mormons preach that He is the Alpha and Omega. I don’t care what you dig up by Mormon leaders of the past or even the present, Mormons believe that Jesus was from the beginning.
2nd
LDS believe that God progressed to godhood.
Ok it isn’t biblical, I agree with you, but what difference does it make, they believe He is God. They don’t believe they have another God. They worship the same God you worship, they may wonder about when He became God but I simply don’t see how it hurts anything to think or wonder about that.
3rd
lds have taught that Christians are Whores of Babylon
Baptists have taught the same thing about Catholics, it angers me when I hear it but it doesn’t make me think that Baptists don’t try to follow Christ or that they are non-Christian. While you are correct about this, that is that there have been Mormon leaders that have said this, there are more leaders that have said that this statement is not true. I have attended their “General Conference” and heard it with my own ears.
4th
lds believe that yo must work for your salvation
Mormons believe that you must do all you can do to follow Christ for his grace to have effect on you. This is something that I believe too. Does that make me an infidel? I think it is Biblical. I truly believe that James says it best when he says “show me your works and I will show you your faith”. I might be wrong, but I don’t believe in death bed confessions of Christ for the most part. I don’t think you can live your whole life fighting Christ and then in fear of death confess him and think you will get to live with him an a mansion above. I do believe that those that find him late in life and really repent can indeed have all the benefits of those who have followed Him all their lives but, without a broken heart it won’t work.
I think they are probably pretty close to right on this. I think too many preachers preach the easy way to keep people coming. I don’t believe unrepentant sinners will be with those that do repent. I hope this doesn’t sound selfish but it is what I believe. I hope it doesn’t offend you, I don’t mean it to.
Whatever I believe about the meaning of Grace it has no effect on what it really means. I may be wrong. If I am hopefully The Lord will personally tell me what is right but in the meantime I don’t think he will reject me because of a simple mistake.
I have never been exposed to the meanness you seem to have seen. I have only seen really good people trying their best to serve The Lord Jesus Christ as they really believe. They feel they have felt The Holy Spirit in their lives. How can I refute that? I should accuse them of following the wrong spirit? In Christs own words those that do good don’t follow Satan.
It seems to me you hate the Mormons. Not only their doctrines but them. It is really hard to separate the two. I have learned that it is easy to be judgmental about the beliefs of others. I am an old man and have learned (mostly) to back off when it comes to judging others. Most people even Moslems do what they believe is right.
I don’t have any love for Islam, I hate it. I have a really hard time not hating Moslems. These people do things that hurt other people. They take joy in raping, maiming, and killing other people. There are some things that are just too easy for me to judge so I continue to see the evil in them but I do not see this evil in the Mormons.
I don’t fail to see evil in Mormons because of my wife, although I believe her to be a very true Saint. She tries hard to live her religion, I wish I was as good a person as her. Mind you I try to be a good person, I just don’t think I am willing to put as much effort into it as she.
My father once told me that it doesn’t make any difference what religion you belong to as long as you follow Jesus Christ. I follow Christ with most of my heart. My wife follows Him with all her heart. I have to repent and beg forgiveness too often. I have hope that His grace will be sufficient for me, but I know I will not deserve it. Because of the hope I have I will keep trying to follow Him. My description of Him may not be the same as yours, but, from what I have read from you, you believe in Christ too. Your description (for the most part) simply doesn’t matter. It is the Christ that was born in Bethlehem. It is the Same Christ that was crucified on Calvary. It is the Christ that was laid dead in a tomb yet three days later was seem alive by many people. It is the same Christ that for 40 days after he died on the cross preached to the people that followed him. It is the same Christ that ascended to Heaven right in front of a crowd of people. It is the same Christ that says if I will come to Him with a contrite heart he will make me His and protect me from the consequences of my sins. I personally believe that if you believe this much then I am not sure that anything else you believe about Him matters. From what I have seen, the Mormons believe this much. Perhaps they are wrong in wearing funny underwear, from building and going to temples, not drinking booze, having a priesthood and a lot of other strange things to some of us, but what difference does it makes if they come unto Christ.
Uhm, yes you did and that's fine, but don't try to say one thing and do another.
But before I go any further, are you willing to debate what you posted or are you just posting and running like before?
Uhm, yes you did and that's fine, but don't try to say one thing and do another.
But before I go any further, are you willing to debate what you posted or are you just posting and running like before?
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I'm sorry if my rant seemed like a defense of Mormonism. I'm not trying to convert anybody to any religion unless bringing people to believe in Christ counts. I am however turned off by people who say things that I think are untrue or who say things that may have some truth in it but is said in such a way as to be misleading or belittling. I simply often try to correct these kinds of statements. Yes I have a hard time not taking critical post about Mormons and Mormonism as being about my wife.
You must know my posts and notice that I comment on a wide variety of subjects other than religion. I in fact am always reluctant to talk about religion since I feel so unprepared as compared to others. I am not a Bible student. I have read it several times but am not a student.
I don't know what you mean by running before. I don't spend my life in front of the computer and I am at work. There are limits to what I can do here but I am willing to have a “discussion” with anybody about most anything.
I find it very distasteful when discussions/debates devolve into arguments. The reason for discussions are for people to learn what others know or believe. I enjoy civil discussions. Sometimes people have to agree to disagree but that doesn't mean we can't at least let others know what it is we do believe.
When I see posts that cherry pick quotations from “Mormon Leaders”, especially when taken out of context I am especially offended and lost about how to comment. The reason is that I am not a Mormon Scholar. I'm sure that if you were to debate a Mormon Scholar you would have a lot more fun. I would be just a dimwit by comparison. Perhaps my wife could answer questions.
I guess if you have questions, I would be glad to try to answer them from my perspective but I'm not sure a debate would be much fun for either of us.
So, did I say something in my last post that you find particularly offensive or obviously indefensible from a Christian perspective? My meaning was to defuse the differences and make sense of them since I find the Mormons to be Christian.
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