Preach My Gospel teaches us "For you to grow in the gospel and stay on the path that leads to eternal life, you need to develop a habit of gospel study." The habit of study is essential to progressing in understanding and growing in the gospel. In the gospel, we either progress or we regress. We cannot stand still. Just as we must eat daily to maintain our bodies, we must study daily to maintain our spirits.
Impressions
The definition of a habit is a regular practice that is hard to give up, an automatic reaction to a situation. There are certain aspects of having Obsessive/Compulsive Disorder that are beneficial. People with OCD latch onto a behavior and cannot give it up. When it comes to the habit of gospel study, we could all be a little more OCD.
When we create the habit of regular gospel study, we instill into our characters and constantly reference and reflect on the scriptures and the words of the living prophets. When we have a problem or a challenge, the gospel will be the first place to which we instinctively turn.
Through gospel study we learn to hear the voice of the Spirit. When we learn to hear that voice while we are studying, it becomes easier to hear it when we are engaged in other activities. Hearing the Spirit is a skill, and like any skill, it requires regular daily practice to stay sharp. The habit of daily gospel study is an excellent source of practice.
We study not only by reading and pondering, but also by observing, interacting with, and relating to other people. We learn the gospel not only from hearing the words of Jesus and the prophets and apostles but by watching what they do and emulating them. We can study the lives and actions of righteous men and women and find principles in their examples that we should develop in our own lives. Study is not only about knowing but about doing.
Scriptures
D&C 88:118 "And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
We are commanded to "seek diligently ... words of wisdom" from teachers and from the "best books". Surely the scriptures are the very best books.
D&C 11:21-22 "Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men. But now hold your peace; study my word which hath gone forth among the children of men, and also study my word which shall come forth among the children of men, or that which is now translating, yea, until you have obtained all which I shall grant unto the children of men in this generation, and then shall all things be added thereto."
We are to study before we try to teach others. We are specifically directed to study the Bible and the Book of Mormon.
2 Nephi 4:15-16 "And upon these I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which are engraven upon the plates of brass. For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children. Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard." Nephi pondered continually upon the scriptures and upon the revelations that he had received personally. Pondering is an important element of studying. Writing these blog articles is my way of pondering.
1 Nephi 10:19 "For he that diligently seeketh shall find; and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto them, by the power of the Holy Ghost, as well in these times as in times of old, and as well in times of old as in times to come; wherefore, the course of the Lord is one eternal round."
To receive the mysteries of God from the scriptures, we must diligently seek. When we do so, we can expect every blessing in our life that we read about in the scriptures. God is no respecter of persons, nor is he a respecter of time and distance. They are nothing to him. He loves us as much today as he loved the ancient patriarchs and the people in the meridian of time. The Book of Mormon proves that he loved the people in America as much as he loved the people in Jerusalem. If he loves us equally, then we can expect that he will bless us equally if we qualify for the blessings. We can seek every blessing that God has bestowed upon any other person, including Adam, Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Peter, Paul, Nephi, Ammon, Moroni, and Joseph Smith.
Examples
President Spencer W. Kimball is often quoted: “I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away. If I immerse myself in the scriptures the distance narrows and the spirituality returns. I find myself loving more intensely those whom I must love with all my heart and mind and strength, and loving them more, I find it easier to abide their counsel” (What I Hope You Will Teach My Grandchildren [address to seminary and institute teachers, July 11 1966], 4).
Nephi is a great example of one who delighted in, studied, and pondered the scriptures. He quoted them extensively, and he copied them into his own writings to ensure that his posterity would have access to his favorite passages. He taught extemporaneous sermons to his brothers from the scriptures. He directed his life by them.
When I was in the mission home in Salt Lake during the first week of my mission, all of the missionaries attended an endowment session in the Salt Lake Temple. We then ascended to the solemn assembly room on the top floor and met with President Harold B. Lee. He invited us to ask him any question we wanted about the temple or the gospel in general. He promised that he would answer every question from the scriptures. I was too overwhelmed by the whole experience of starting my mission and memorizing discussions and just being in the Salt Lake Temple to learn any fine points of doctrine in that meeting, but the principle I learned from a prophet of God is that the scriptures are essential to our learning the gospel. And I saw that a lifetime of diligent study had prepared President Lee to find anything he needed to know in the scriptures.
Jesus, who is the perfect example in all things, knew the scriptures by heart. Though the Gospel writers do not mention having ever seen Jesus study the scriptures, he quoted them frequently and to good effect. He obviously knew them, and he knew what they meant and how they applied to him and his life and ministry.
By developing a life-long habit of gospel study, we can draw closer to the Lord and invite the Holy Ghost to teach us. We are on a marvelous journey in this life. We have the opportunity to re-learn principles that we knew in the pre-existence, but apply them in an entirely new way because of our mortal condition. Our physical condition and the veil that has been drawn across the heavens give new meaning to faith, hope and charity. As we study the gospel regularly, may we gain not only in knowledge but in wisdom.
No comments:
Post a Comment