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Show ilUiMifcJMlKMfflW w. - . . . ', Bt 'i i & Wi f - ' c. gfi S .- ' - UI tfffl - gMb S S VI 11 I S Are Covenant Makers Celestial Kingdom, tie spoke of The Saviors modern church a covenant making people just as were the people of ancient Israel, Elder Joseph Anderson said in conference the new and everlasting covenant of marriage. It must be understood that the covenant of marriage must be made and entered into and sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise through the medium of him whom the Ixrd has appointed and authorized to hold this power on the earth in these last days. The covenant pertaining to the eternity of the family unit is one of the utmost importance, If we are to he emphasized. return into the presence of our Eternal Father and His Beloved Son and obtain eternal life, we must honor the covenant pertaining thereto. He said, In order to have true joy, the joy that our Father desires us to have, we must honor the covenants and the commandments involved in the the new and everlastgospel ing covenant. i: Oct. 3. Speaking sion, ' v r in the morning ses- Elder Anderson, a member of ihe First Quorum of Seventy, said, "Righteous Israel, ancient and modern, has laways been a covenant making people. Ancient Israel worshipped a living God, a personal God, a God in whose image they had been created. In this respect they were different from all other peoples. He identified other differences of ancient Israel observance of a weekly sabbath and the payment of tithing. However, he said. Israel of old failed to keep the covenants and, as a result, the Lord was displeased with them and calamities befell them. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-daSaints, in this day, is a covenant making people. He said, The gospel is the everlasting covenant. In the very first section of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord, speaking through the Prophet Joseph Smith, said: Knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth he called upon his servant, Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven and gave him commandments . . that mine everlasting covenant might be established; That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers. Elder Joseph Anderson "different people" . . . y selves worthy of the blessings that are premised to those who honor their priesthood covenants and keep the commandments of the Lord. Speaking then about the three degrees of glory in the War for Souls 4 i Jift. "j, Elder Anderson ciuoted from sections 22 and 45 of the Doctrine and Covenants regarding the everlasting covenant, then he said, Baptism by water is a part of that covenant, that everlasting covenant. Before entering into the waters of baptism one must learn about the gospel. He must My 4 1 full-tim- i: 4 - 1 A 4.2. CHURCH 9 VlCK e them about their preparation. I think we may learn something from their answers, he said. My first question was: What could you have done to better prepare yourself- before your pre-missi- f, His comment drew chuckles from the congregation, which quieted as he continued: The war is not a hot one where there are guns and armaments, but the struggle between the forces of righteousness and of evil for the souls of our Heavenly Fathers's children is intense .and the conflict is very real. From my front-lin- e position m the field, I can personally testify that the enemy is well trained in the ways of eternal dent thereon. Elder Anderson while mission serving as a president makes me feel somewhat like an army field commander who has been summoned home from the front lines to report on conditions of the war to the commander-in-chiejoint chiefs of stall anti other general officers. - made specific point of the oath and covenant of the priesthood. He said,' There are among us those who break this covenant after receiving it and turn therefrom. We plead with them to repent and seek forgiveness ' 6f thei Folly afr.? hi a kef tfivih-'- - to conference , ; . vwarfare FND1NG OCTCBfR a Intensely of all of their methods is the spirit of apathy and indifference that they use to penetrate the minds and hearts of mankind, to dull their feelings toward God, His Son Jesus Christ and His church. Elder Ballard said, Based on my experience, I believe that, if the saints and missionaries are to build up the Church at the much faster rate that President Kimball has called for, we must all strive to prepare ourselves to become better gospel teachers. He said he surveyed his missionaries by questioning brothers and sisters, my coming f. jit lidvc itSUil ii U, 4.tacit H VViun the Lord says it is, His everlasting covenant, a light to the world, a light to His people. He spoke of other covenants and said, These covenants all pertain to keeping the commandments of the Lord and the blessings promised are depent. Is Raging The war for souls is raging intensely throughout the world and missionaries must be better prepared for the conflict. Elder M. Russel! Ballard Jr. declared in conference. Speaking during the morning session Oct. 3, Elder Ballard, a member of the First Quorum of Seventy and president of the Canada Toronto Mission said: . Z.r Robert C, Bowden directs Mormon Youth Chorus during session Saturday afternoon. - mission? Eider M. Russell Ballard Jr. . . . "prepare 6urselves" The army of the devil exploits all kinds ot sinful prache said, noting that tices, Satan's servants promote his cause through every kind of printed, means. audio and visual My missionaries responded with comments like these:. I could have really read and studied the scriptures; paid more attention in seminary and other Church classes: learm-how to pray and relate to the Lord; started much earlier to build my testimony. Elder Ballard aded, I then asked my missionaries: What could your father have done to better prepare you Here are a few of their answers: He could have taught me more about the priesthood ; taught me to understand that the priesthood is the power by which the cause of righteousness moves forward: given me a father's blessing; taught how to budget my money; taught, me how to set and reach goais; prayed with me and shared with me his testimony. Eider Ballard then said, To you wonderful mothers of the Church, listen to the response of my elders to this question: What could my mother have done to better prepare me? They said: Somehow Mom should have insisted that I paid more attention when she was trying to teach me about housekeeping cooking, cleaning, laundry, bargain shopping, personal hygiene, mending, quick recopes, to name just a few. The response brought laughter from the congregation as Elder Ballard recalled the comments. fie then said, Our great potential is to prepare the world lor living in the presence of Heavenly Father and His son Christ, and to do this we must teach the go.iel to all the people of the Je-su-s earth |
