Genesis 18-19

Genesis 18:13-14

"A miracle has been defined as   “a beneficial event brought about through divine power that mortals do not understand and of themselves cannot duplicate.”                           –Elder Oaks June 2001

Genesis 19:17

“Apparently what was wrong with Lot’s wife was that she wasn’t just looking back; in her heart she wanted to go back. …“It is possible that Lot’s wife looked back with resentment toward the Lord for what He was asking her to leave behind” (“Remember Lot’s Wife” [Brigham Young University devotional address, Jan. 13, 2009], 2; speeches.byu.edu).

 

“All of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah haunt our society. Our young people have never faced a greater challenge. We have never seen more clearly the lecherous face of evil.”

-President Gordon B. Hinckley

“Tell them I want them to make something of their lives.  They need to be the best generation ever because the world is worse than it has ever been.”

-Elder L. Tom Perry, Interview December 6,2014

Spencer W. Kimball

Because of this widespread tolerance toward promiscuity, this world is in grave danger. When evil is decried and forbidden and punished, the world still has a chance. But when toleration for sin increases, the outlook is bleak and Sodom and Gomorrah days are certain to return. (Faith Precedes the Miracle,  Deseret Book, [1972], p.154)

Gordon B. Hinckley

The traditional family is under heavy attack. I do not know that things were worse in the times of Sodom and Gomorrah. … We see similar conditions today. They prevail all across the world. I think our Father must weep as He looks down upon His wayward sons and daughters. (Worldwide Leadership Training Meeting, 10 Jan. 2004, 20)

We live in a season when fierce men do terrible and despicable things. We live in a season of war. We live in a season of arrogance. We live in a season of wickedness, pornography, immorality. All of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah haunt our society. Our young people have never faced a greater challenge. We have never seen more clearly the lecherous face of evil. (Ensign, Nov 2001, 4)

Boyd K. Packer (Quorum of the Twelve)

Nothing happened in Sodom and Gomorrah which exceeds in wickedness and depravity that which surrounds us now.

Words of profanity, vulgarity, and blasphemy are heard everywhere. Unspeakable wickedness and perversion were once hidden in dark places; now they are in the open, even accorded legal protection.

At Sodom and Gomorrah these things were localized. Now they are spread across the world, and they are among us. (Address to CES religious educators, Feb. 6, 2004, 4)

Richard G. Scott (Quorum of the Twelve)

Much of the world is being engulfed in a rising river of degenerate filth, with the abandonment of virtue, righteousness, personal integrity, traditional marriage, and family life. Sodom and Gomorrah was the epitome of unholy life in the Old Testament. It was isolated then; now that condition is spread over the world. Satan skillfully manipulates the power of all types of media and communication. His success has greatly increased the extent and availability of such degrading and destructive influences worldwide. In the past some effort was required to seek out such evil. Now it saturates significant portions of virtually every corner of the world. We cannot dry up the mounting river of evil influences, for they result from the exercise of moral agency divinely granted by our Father. But we can and must, with clarity, warn of the consequences of getting close to its enticing, destructive current. ("How to Live Well Amidst Increasing Evil," Ensign, May 2004)

Genesis 15-17

Genesis 17:1-8

“The ultimate blessings of the Abrahamic covenant are conferred in holy temples. These blessings allow us to come forth in the First Resurrection and inherit thrones, kingdoms, powers, principalities, and dominions, to our ‘exaltation and glory in all things.’” (Elder Russell M. Nelson, in “Special Witnesses of Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Apr. 2001, 7).

Genesis 17:1-8     

  “When he or she is married in the temple for time and for all eternity, each worthy member of the Church enters personally into the same covenant the Lord made with Abraham. This is the occasion when the promises of eternal increase are made, and it is then specified that those who keep the covenants made there shall be inheritors of all the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” (Elder Bruce R. McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [1985], 508).

No Pictures?

Sorry guys! I checked the policy and I am not allowed to post pictures on a public blog like this. There are privacy and safety concerns with it. Anyway, I will show you the pictures I take in class sometime, but I can't post them here. :-(

Have a great day!

Don't forget to see things with spiritual eyes.

- Brother Winkler

Moses 6

Moses 6:8 Book of Remembrance

 “Please follow the counsel you have been given in the past and maintain your personal journals. Those who keep a book of remembrance are more likely to keep the Lord in remembrance in their daily lives. Journals are a way of counting our blessings and of leaving an inventory of these blessings for our posterity.”

 President Spencer W. Kimball, Listen to the Prophets, Ensign (CR), May 1978, p.76

Moses 6:59. Water, Blood, and Spirit

 Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained: “Two births are essential to salvation. Man cannot be saved without birth into mortality, nor can he return to his heavenly home without a birth into the realm of the Spirit. . . . The elements present in a mortal birth and in a spiritual birth are the same. They are water, blood, and spirit. Thus every mortal birth is a heaven-given reminder to prepare for the second birth. 

“In every mortal birth the child is immersed in water in the mother’s womb. At the appointed time the spirit enters the body, and blood always flows in the veins of the new person. Otherwise, without each of these, there is no life, no birth, no mortality.   

“In every birth into the kingdom of heaven, the newborn babe in Christ is immersed in water, he receives the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and the blood of Christ cleanses him from all sin. Otherwise, without each of these, there is no Spirit-birth, no newness of life, no hope of eternal life. . . .

(A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, 288 89).

Moses 6:60. Justification

To be justified is to be made just, or free from guilt and sin. 

The Holy Ghost is the member of the Godhead whose power

 acts as a cleansing agent that removes guilt and sin from 

our lives (see 2 Nephi 31:17). President Joseph Fielding 

Smith said: “Through the shedding of the blood of Christ, we 

are cleansed and sanctified; and we are justified, through 

the Spirit of God” (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:324–25).

Moses 6:60. Sanctification 

To be sanctified is to be holy and worthy of eternal life and immortal glory (see Moroni 10:32–33). Through His perfect Atonement, Jesus Christ shed His blood and made it possible for all who have faith and repent to be sanctified (see Mosiah 3:11, 18; Alma 34:10–16). Thus, we are ransomed and made holy by the blood of Christ.

 

Moses 5

MOSES 5:22–39

Moses 5:22–39 contains the Lord’s warning to Cain concerning the consequences of his choices. Read the Lord’s warning in verse 23. You may want to mark the word if wherever it appears in this verse.
Based on what you have learned from verse 23, discuss how you might complete the following principle, and write your answer in the space provided:
If we hearken to the Lord’s warnings, then _____________________________________________.
Discuss the following question:
• How do the Lord’s warnings demonstrate His love for us?
Read Moses 5:26, looking for how Cain responded to the Lord’s warning. Then discuss the following question:
• Why do you think it was a mistake for Cain to respond to the Lord’s warning in this way?
After rejecting the Lord’s warning, Cain continued to listen to Satan. Read Moses 5:29–31, looking for what Satan offered Cain and how Cain responded to this offer.
You may want to mark the following phrases in your scriptures: “that thy father may not know it” (Moses 5:29) and “all these things were done in secret” (Moses 5:30).
Discuss the following questions:
• What did Satan offer Cain?
• How did Cain respond to Satan’s offer?
• Why do you think Satan’s promise to keep Cain’s sins secret appealed to Cain?
• How does the Lord’s way of dealing with sin in Doctrine and Covenants 58:43 differ from Satan’s way in
Moses 5:30?
Moses 5:32–37 explains that Cain murdered his brother Abel and that the Lord held Cain accountable for his actions. Read Moses 5:38–39, looking for Cain’s response to the Lord.
In your scriptures, you may want to mark the following phrase in Cain’s response in verse 39: “these things are not hid from the Lord.”
In the following space, write a principle we can learn from Moses 5:39 about the consequences of hearkening to Satan’s temptations: __________________________________________________________________.

Moses 3-4

"When we realize, as one person (Pierre Teilhard de Chardin) put it , that we're not human beings having a spiritual experience, we're spiritual beings having a human experience, we come to understand where our main emphasis should be and on whom we are reliant."

                        (Pres. Monson BYU Devotional Tues Nov. 1, 2011)

    The patterns used by God in creating the earth

are instructive in helping us understand how to

make prayer meaningful. In the third chapter of the book of Moses we learn that all things were created spiritually before they were naturally upon the

earth. (Moses 3:4–5).

We learn from these verses that the spiritual

creation preceded the temporal creation. In a similar way, meaningful morning prayer is an important element in the spiritual creation of each day—and precedes the temporal

creation or the actual execution of the day. Just as the temporal creation was linked to and a continuation of the spiritual creation, so meaningful morning and evening prayers are linked to and are a continuation of each other. Elder Bednar (Oct. Conf. 2008)

“the story of the rib, of course

is figurative”

(“The Blessings and Responsibilities of Womanhood,” Ensign, Mar. 1976, 71).

“The rib, coming as it does from the 

side, seems to denote partnership. 

The rib signifies …a lateral relationship

 as partners, to work and to live,

 side by side” (“Lessons from Eve,” Ensign, Nov.1987, 87).

 “Two compelling doctrinal reasons help us to understand why eternal marriage is essential to the Father’s plan.

 

Reason 1: 

 The natures of male and female spirits complete and

perfect each other, and therefore men and women are

 intended to Progress together toward exaltation.

“… For divine purposes, male and female spirits are different, distinctive, and complementary.”

… The unique combination of spiritual, physical, mental, 

and emotional capacities of both males and females 

were needed to implement the plan of happiness.

 Alone, neither the man nor the woman could fulfill the purposes of  his or her creation.

“… Because of their distinctive temperaments and capacities, males and females each bring to a marriage

relationship unique perspectives and experiences.

 The man and the woman contribute differently but equally to a oneness and a unity that can be achieved 

in no other way. The man completes and perfects the 

woman and the woman completes and perfects the 

man as they learn from and mutually strengthen and 

bless each other.

 ‘Neither is the man without the woman, neither the 

woman without the man, in the Lord’

  (1 Corinthians 11:11; italics added).

 

“Reason 2:

By divine design, both a man and a

woman are needed to bring children into mortality

and to provide the best setting for the rearing and

nurturing of children. …

“A home with a loving and loyal husband and wife

is the supreme setting in which children can be

reared in love and righteousness and in which the

spiritual and physical needs of children can be met.

“Just as the unique characteristics of both

males and females contribute to the

completeness of a marriage relationship, so

those same characteristics are vital to the

rearing, nurturing, and teaching of children”

Elder Bednar - (“Marriage Is Essential to His Eternal Plan,” Ensign, June 2006, 82–84;).

Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of  the Twelve Apostles explained:“The Father’s plan … offered a genuine

opportunity for his spirit children to achieve what he desired for them

—immortality and eternal life. …

“In his proposed modification, Lucifer [only] 

pretended to seek the same outcome.

[In contrast to Jesus Christ (the premortal

Beloved Son, who sought to further the work 

and glory of the Father), Lucifer sought to obtain

 the Father’s power for himself]

”(The Lord’s Way [1991], 

viii; the bracketed text is taken from the footnote on the cited page).

Two truths concerning Satan that are important

for us to remember:

    “Number one, Satan, or Lucifer, or the father of lies…

is real, the very personification of evil. His motives are in

every  case malicious, and he convulses at the

appearance of redeeming light, at the very thought

of truth.

    Number two, he is eternally opposed to the love of God,

the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the work of peace

and salvation. He will fight against these whenever and 

wherever he can. He knows he will be defeated and cast

out in the end, but he is determined to take down with 

him as many others as he possibly can”

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland (“We Are All Enlisted,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov.2011, 44).

 

“To the first man and woman on earth, the Lord said,

‘Be fruitful, and multiply’

 (Moses 2:28; see also Gen. 1:28; Abr. 4:28).

This commandment was first in 

sequence and first in importance.

It was essential that God’s spirit

children have mortal birth and an

opportunity to progress toward

eternal life”

(“The Great Plan of Happiness,” Ensign, Nov. 1993, 72).

Elder Oaks