Lesson 24 -- "The rest of the story"

So, the smoke has cleared and alas... another week is behind us.

Covered in class today: We talked about the importance of remaining steadfast in our testimonies of the truthfulness of the Gospel. Satan desires to deceive us, just as he did the early saints living in Kirtland, Ohio. Brother Schaeffer read from "Our Heritage" p. 36, "Exodus from Kirtland": During the early years of the Church, some members allowed themselves to be deceived by Satan, which led to their apostasy, and many trials for the membership of the Church. As members of the Church today, we must learn from their mistakes and be faithful to our covenants and watchful of the deadly sin of PRIDE (read D&C 50:2-3, and 2 Nephi 2:18-27). Several stories were related to illustrate some of the pitfalls we must avoid along the road to personal apostasy:
1. Not recognizing priesthood authority: The story was told of Oliver Cowdery who had witnessed some of the revelations that Hirum Page (one of the original 8 witnesses of the Book of Mormon) supposedly received from a seer stone. When the Prophet Joseph became aware of the situation he prayed to the Lord and received the revelation given in D&C 28. The Lord instructed Oliver to tell Hirum Page that the revelations were from the devil and that they both had been deceived. The Lord showed unto Oliver the proper order for receiving revelation for the body of the Church: "Behold, verily, verily I say unto thee, no one shall be appointed to receive commandments and revelations in this church excepting my servant Joseph Smith... For all things must be done in order, and by common consent in the church, by prayer and faith" [D&C 28: 2, 13].
2. A pint of cream: The story was told of Elder Thomas B. Marsh, who although he was the senior Apostle of the Church, and notwithstanding he had received direct counsel from the Lord to the contrary (see D&C 112: 2-10), left the Church over a dispute which arose when his wife was exchanging cream with another member and was accused of skimming the cream from the top of the milk.
3. No place to sit: The story was told of Elder Frazier Eaton, who had donated generously to the Kirtland Temple building fund. On the day of the temple dedication, he arrived late and there was no seat reserved for him inside the temple. He was offended and left the Church.
4. A misspelled name: The story was told of Elder Simonds Ryder, whose name was misspelled on his mission calling certificate. Simonds reasoned that if the certificate contained a mistake (his last name was spelled "Rider"), then the calling itself might be in question. He later left the Church disaffected. One class member pointed out that the error followed brother Ryder to the grave for legend has it that his tombstone was similarly misspelled. How ironic...
5. Rationalizing disobedience to the commandments: The story was told of an active member of the church who had recently fallen into immoral trangression and been disciplined accordingly by his local church leadership. When a close family member learned of the situation, he immediately contacted a mutually respected friend and priesthood authority and asked if he would be willing to visit and talk to his troubled relative. The two men visited the relative in the hope that they might prove instrumental in bringing him back into the fold. However, the disaffected member turned away the visitors, too enmeshed in his personal sense of hurt pride to allow the Spirit to bring him to true repentance.
6. Accepting the false teachings of the world: A quote by Bishop H. David Burton was read which extolled the necessity of rejecting pornography and immorality in all of its variety of forms in the world today.
7. Attraction to the dangerous/thrill seeking: The extraordinary case of "Running of the Bulls" participant, Daniel Jimeno, gored to death last week by a bull in Pamplona, Spain, was reviewed (see blog post #2 herein).

And now... "the rest of the story:"
The above was only the first half of the material for Lesson 24. If there had been more time, I would have erased the chalk board again and started with the question: How can we remain valiant in our testimonies of the truth and avoid deception?

The first scripture reference I wanted to bring up on this subject is located in D&C Section 27, verses 15-18: "Wherefore, lift up your hearts and rejoice, and gird up your loins, and take upon you my whole armor, that ye may be able to withstand the evil day, having done all, that ye may be able to stand. Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, having on the breastplate of righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, which I have sent mine angels to commit to you; Taking the shield of faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked; And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of my Spirit, which I will pour out upon you, and my word which I reveal unto you, and be agreed as touching all things whatsoever ye ask of me, and be faithful until I come, and ye shall be caught up, that where I am ye shall be also."

What activities tend to help us clothe ourselves in the armor of righteousness?
1. Remaining close to the teachings of Christ and His living prophets on the Earth today. President Joseph F. Smith and his counselors in the First Presidency taught: “The Lord has … appointed one man at a time on the earth to hold the keys of revelation to the entire body of the Church in all its organizations, authorities, ordinances and doctrines. The spirit of revelation is bestowed upon all its members for the benefit and enlightenment of each individual receiving its inspiration, and according to the sphere in which he or she is called to labor. But for the entire Church, he who stands at the head is alone appointed to receive revelations by way of commandment and as the end of controversy” (in James R. Clark, comp., Messages of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 6 vols. [1965–75], 4:270).
2. We should study the scriptures and the doctrines of the Church. President Harold B. Lee taught: “If [someone] writes something or speaks something that goes beyond anything that you can find in the standard Church works, unless that one be the prophet, seer, and revelator—please note that one exception—you may immediately say, ‘Well, that is his own idea.’ And if he says something that contradicts what is found in the standard Church works, you may know by that same token that it is false” (The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, ed. Clyde J. Williams [1996], 540–41).
3. Recognize that the things of God are always edifying. President Joseph Fielding Smith taught: “There is no saying of greater truth than ‘that which doth not edify is not of God.’ And that which is not of God is darkness, it matters not whether it comes in the guise of religion, ethics, philosophy or revelation. No revelation from God will fail to edify” (Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols. [1953], 1:201–2).
4. Regular temple attendance. Nothing will clothe us in more "power from on High" than can the temples of God. President Gordon B. Hinckley said:
“I urge our people everywhere, with all of the persuasiveness of which I am capable, to live worthy to hold a temple recommend, to secure one and regard it as a precious asset, and to make a greater effort to go to the house of the Lord and partake of the spirit and the blessings to be had therein. I am satisfied that every man or woman who goes to the temple in a spirit of sincerity and faith leaves the house of the Lord a better man or woman. There is need for constant improvement in all of our lives. There is need occasionally to leave the noise and the tumult of the world and step within the walls of a sacred house of God, there to feel His spirit in an environment of holiness and peace” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 72; or Ensign, Nov. 1995, 53).
5. We can be good examples by obeying the commandments and sharing our testimonies with others, thereby becoming Saviors on Mount Zion (see D&C 103: 9-10). The example of Mary Brommeli (Henry B. Eyring's great-grandmother) stands out as a great example. She was born in 1830. The missionaries taught her family in Switzerland when she was 24. She was still living at home, weaving and selling cloth to help support her family on their small farm. When the family heard the doctrine of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, they knew it was true. They were baptized. Mary’s brothers were called on missions, going without purse or scrip. The rest of the family sold their possessions to go to America to gather with the Saints.
There was not enough money for all to go. Mary volunteered to stay behind because she felt she could earn enough from her weaving to support herself and save for her passage. She found her way to Berlin and to the home of a woman who hired her to weave cloth for the family’s clothing. She lived in a servant’s room and set up her loom in the living area of the home.
It was against the law then to teach the doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Berlin. But Mary could not keep the good news to herself. The woman of the house and her friends would gather around the loom to hear the Swiss girl teach. She talked about the appearance of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ to Joseph Smith, of the visitation of angels, and of the Book of Mormon. When she came to the accounts of Alma, she taught the doctrine of the Resurrection.
That caused some problems with her weaving. In those days many children died very young. The women around the loom had lost children in death, some of them several children. When Mary taught the truth that little children were heirs of the celestial kingdom and that those women might again be with them and with the Savior and our Heavenly Father, tears rolled down the faces of the women. Mary cried too. All those tears falling got the cloth wet that Mary had woven.
Mary’s teaching created a more serious problem. Even though Mary begged the women not to talk about what she told them, they did. They shared the joyous doctrine with their friends. So one night there was a knock at the door. It was the police. They took Mary off to jail. On the way she asked the policeman for the name of the judge she was to appear before the next morning. She asked if he had a family. She asked if he was a good father and a good husband. The policeman smiled as he described the judge as a man of the world.
At the jail Mary asked for a pencil and some paper. She wrote a letter to the judge. She wrote about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ as described in the Book of Mormon, about the spirit world, and about how long the judge would have to think and to consider his life before facing the final judgment. She wrote that she knew he had much to repent of which would break his family’s heart and bring him great sorrow. She wrote through the night. In the morning she asked the policeman to take her letter to the judge. He did.
Later the policeman was summoned by the judge to his office. The letter Mary had written was irrefutable evidence that she was teaching the gospel and so breaking the law. Nevertheless, it wasn’t long until the policeman came back to Mary’s cell. He told her that all charges were dismissed and that she was free to go. Her teaching the doctrine of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ had opened eyes and hearts enough to get her cast into jail. And her declaring the doctrine of repentance to the judge got her cast out of jail.

Brother Eyring commented upon the long lasting effect of the example his great-grandmother had set for his family:
"The teaching of Mary Bommeli touched more than those women around the loom and the judge. My father, her grandson, talked to me during the nights as he approached death. He spoke of joyous reunions that were coming soon in the spirit world. I could almost see the bright sunlight and the smiles in that place of paradise as he talked about it with such assurance.
At one point I asked him if he had some repenting to do. He smiled. He chuckled softly as he said, “No, Hal, I’ve been repenting as I went along.” The doctrine of paradise that Mary Bommeli taught those women was real to her grandson. And even the doctrine Mary taught the judge had shaped my father’s life for good. That will not be the end of Mary Bommeli’s teaching. The record of her words will send true doctrine to generations of her family yet unborn. Because she believed that even a new convert knew enough doctrine to teach it, the minds and hearts of her descendants will be opened, and they will be strengthened in the battle.
Your descendants will teach doctrine to each other because you taught it. Doctrine can more than open minds to spiritual things and hearts to the love of God. When that doctrine brings joy and peace, it also has the power to open mouths. Like those women in Berlin, your descendants will not be able to keep the good news to themselves."
You can read Elder Eyring's entire message in the April 2009 Ensign, or at: http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=86a6eafcee340210VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD

The Lord's pattern by which we can avoid being deceived is revealed in the Doctrine & Covenants, Section 52: 14-19:


"14 And again, I will give unto you a pattern in all things, that ye may not be deceived; for Satan is abroad in the land, and he goeth forth deceiving the nations—

15 Wherefore he that prayeth, whose spirit is contrite, the same is accepted of me if he obey mine ordinances.

16 He that speaketh, whose spirit is contrite, whose language is meek and edifieth, the same is of God if he obey mine ordinances.

17 And again, he that trembleth under my power shall be made strong, and shall bring forth fruits of praise and wisdom, according to the revelations and truths which I have given you.

18 And again, he that is overcome and bringeth not forth fruits, even according to this pattern, is not of me.

19 Wherefore, by this pattern ye shall know the spirits in all cases under the whole heavens."

Have a great week brothers and sisters! Remember who you are!