Gifts of the Spirit

The Lord wants us to seek the gifts of the Spirit, which are many. He invites us, “Seek earnestly the best gifts, always remembering for what they are given” (D&C 46:8). Why are they given? “To give us strength, lead us to do good, help us resist temptation, encourage and edify us, increase our wisdom, help us judge righteously, and help us qualify for eternal life.”[i]

President George Q. Cannon taught: “If any of us are imperfect, it is our duty to pray for the gift that will make us perfect. Have I imperfections? I am full of them. What is my duty? To pray to God to give me the gifts that will correct these imperfections. If I am an angry man, it is my duty to pray for charity, which suffereth long and is kind. Am I am an envious man? It is my duty to seek for charity, which envieth not.” He also asked: “How many of you, my brothers and sisters, are seeking for the gifts that God has promised to bestow? How many of you, when you bow before your Heavenly Father in your family circle or in your secret places, contend for these gifts to be bestowed upon you? How many of you ask the Father, in the name of Jesus, to manifest Himself to you through these powers and these gifts? Or do you go along day by day like a door turning on its hinges, without having any feeling upon the subject, without exercising any faith whatever; content to be baptized and be members of the Church, and to rest there, thinking that your salvation is secure because you have done this?”[ii]

[i] Mervyn B. Arnold, “Messages from the Doctrine and Covenants: Seek Ye Earnestly the Best Gifts,” Ensign, March 2005, 65.

[ii] George Q. Cannon, “Discourse,” Millennial Star, April 23, 1894, 260.

A Long, Slow Process Requiring Patience

The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, “Here, then, is eternal life—to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how . . . to be kings and priests to God, . . . , namely, by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one; from grace to grace, . . . [until you] are able . . . to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power.”[i] This, of course, is a long process: “When you climb up a ladder, you must begin at the bottom, and ascend step by step, until you arrive at the top; and so it is with the principles of the gospel—you must begin with the first and go on until you learn all the principles of exaltation. But it will be a great while after you have passed through the veil before you will have learned them. It is not all to be comprehended in this world; it will be a great work to learn our salvation and exaltation even beyond the grave.”[ii]

So when we fall short of perfection, let’s be patient with ourselves. It’s a long, slow process of growing, becoming, and sometimes making mistakes. Some people misunderstand the commandment “Be ye therefore perfect” (Matthew 5:48). Instead of trying to perfect ourselves, we enter a covenant process of becoming perfected in Christ through faith and repentance and the enabling power of His grace. Moroni taught, “Come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and 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” (Moroni 10:32; emphasis added).

[i] History of the Church, 6:306.

[ii] History of the Church, 3:306–7.

The Gift of Grace

Without the gift of grace, we could not be saved or exalted.  “The truth is,” wrote Jeff Lindsay, “we are saved by the grace of Christ, which is offered to us through a covenant, a two-way contract: if we accept Christ and do our part, following and obeying him, then Christ does everything else, forgiving us, cleansing us, healing us, and giving us power to return to the presence of the Father—not because we earned it, but because we accepted the terms upon which he offers his infinite grace and mercy.” Our part is to exercise faith in Him, repent of our sins, be baptized, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. In the process, the grace of Christ enables us to become like Him.

To the Nephites in the Americas, He said, “Therefore, what manner of men ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.” Immediately afterward, He suggests a way to accomplish this: “And now I go unto the Father. And verily I say unto you, whatsoever things ye shall ask the Father in my name shall be given unto you. Therefore, ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you; for he that asketh, receiveth; and unto him that knocketh, it shall be opened” (3 Nephi 27:27–29). They want us to be as They are, and They promise if we ask we shall receive.

Jesus has said that His grace is sufficient for us. In the words of the song, let’s “believe his word, and trust his grace.”[i] Remember, God is a God of miracles!

In the fall of 1976, a seminary teacher asked Elder Bruce R. McConkie, “As you know, we are studying the New Testament in seminary this year. How do we keep our students from being discouraged (and how do we avoid discouragement ourselves) when we read in the scriptures that strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life and few there be that find it?”

Elder McConkie’s reply took them by surprise: “You tell your students that far more of our Father’s children will be exalted than we think!” Even though their job as seminary and institute teachers was to spread the good news of the gospel, they had not thought with such optimism how many people would be exalted. When asked to explain further, he said: “All faithful Latter-day Saints—those who chart their course toward eternal life, receive the ordinances of salvation, and strive with all their hearts to be true to their covenants—will gain eternal life. Even though they are certainly not perfect when they die, if they have sought to stay on course, in covenant, in harmony with the mind and will of God, they will be saved in the highest heaven. . . . We ought to have hope, [and] we [need] to be positive and optimistic about attaining that glory.”[ii]

[i] William W. Walford, “Sweet Hour of Prayer,” Hymns (Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1985), no. 142.

[ii] Quoted in Robert L. Millet, Within Reach (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1995), 9–10, 13.

Our Eternal Potential

As we grow from grace to grace, we become more like the Father and the Son, progressing toward Their greatest gift of all, the gift of eternal life. In this phrase, the word Eternal refers to God. Thus eternal life refers to living, thinking, and being like the great Eternal One. “It is the kind, status, type, and quality of life that God himself enjoys. Thus those who gain eternal life receive exaltation; they are sons of God, joint-heirs with Christ, members of the Church of the Firstborn; they overcome all things, have all power, and receive the fulness of the Father.”[i]

Eternal life means being one with the Father and the Son, for we will be like Them (see John 17:3, 21). It means to dwell in God’s presence as an eternal family in eternal glory (see D&C 130:2). It means to receive all that They have: “glory, and salvation, and honor, and immortality, and eternal life; kingdoms, principalities, and powers!” (D&C 128:23).

The Prophet Joseph Smith spoke of our eternal potential at the funeral of  his friend King Follett: “Here, then, is eternal life—to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be gods yourselves, and to be kings and priests to God, the same as all gods have done before you, namely, by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one; from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the resurrection of the dead, and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings, and to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power.”[ii]

As with any child, we have the potential to become like our parents, as President John Taylor taught, “Man, made in the image of God, is rendered capable not only of being a son of man, but also a son of God, . . . capable of becoming a God, possessing the power, the majesty, the exaltation and the position of a God. As it is written, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” [1 John 3:2.]”[iii]

[i] Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed. (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965), 237.

[ii] History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, ed. B. H. Roberts, rev. ed. (Salt Lake City: Deseret News), 6:306.

[iii] John Taylor, The Mediation and Atonement (Salt Lake City: Deseret News, 1892), 140–41.

Latter-day Saint Temples

Latter-day Saint temples offer an eternal perspective of our divine potential. There we covenant to forsake sin and remain unspotted from the world. There we receive promises of our divine potential, that we may rule and reign under our Father’s direction if we are faithful to our covenants. There we seek the peace of the Spirit and find quiet dignity to face the challenges of life.

I love the strong spirit of peace that comes with regular temple worship: “A temple is a retreat from the vicissitudes of life, a place of prayer and meditation providing an opportunity to receive inner peace, inspiration, guidance, and, frequently, solutions to the problems that vex our daily lives” (Franklin D. Richards, “Happiness and Joy in Temple Work,” Ensign, November 1986, 70). I testify that this promise is true.

For these reasons and many more, President Howard W. Hunter inspired us to “be a temple-attending and a temple-loving people,” adding, “We should hasten to the temple as frequently, yet prudently, as our personal circumstances allow. . . . As we attend the temple, we learn more richly and deeply the purpose of life and the significance of the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us make the temple, with temple worship and temple covenants and temple marriage, our ultimate earthly goal and the supreme mortal experience” (“A Temple-Motivated People,” Ensign, February 1995, 4). The temple truly is the pinnacle of our earthly experience, and there we receive our greatest assurance of our eternal potential as children of God.

Receiving God’s Gifts

Good thoughts from Rebecca Scott on receiving gifts:

Receiving is the first step to progressing. For example, we can only gain a testimony after first receiving the gospel (see Moroni 10:4). We must receive the Holy Ghost for it to benefit us. We receive the priesthood before exercising it. We receive a spouse to start a family and receive children.

So, what is involved in receiving? Well, every blessing has a law upon which it is predicated (Doctrine and Covenants 130:20-21), so the requirements for receiving different things will vary some depending on what gift is at stake. However, for most things within the gospel, in order to receive gifts from God we must be worthy of them. As we receive and follow the laws we have been given, we will be worthy to receive higher laws/blessings/gifts. Receiving involves proper use of what we are being given. If we abuse or misuse it, it will be taken from us. If we break the “law” or covenant we made to receive that thing, it will be taken from us. Thus receiving involves a level of responsibility to use what we have been given wisely as God intended us too. In many cases, such as receiving the priesthood, this involves blessing the lives of those around us. All the gifts we receive are meant to help us progress and learn too. Thus, God’s gifts are blessings and responsibilities for His children. I believe receiving then them means we are accepting both the responsibilities and blessings that come from any gift God gives us.

I think that the marriage/sealing covenant is a very special covenant that is a bit unique in that it involves a giving and receiving covenant between two people plus God rather than just between God and an individual. The covenants we make at the alter in the sealing room of the temple are not just to God, but to our spouse. By listening carefully to the words, I think that one can understand how a marriage relationship made under this covenant should be a continuous round of each spouse receiving and giving.

In the end, all giving and receiving has both sides involved in both parts to some extent, even with our Heavenly Father. As I have read the scriptures, I have noticed how God is usually referred to as the one giving. God gives us everything. If we are faithful, then through Christ we will be able to receive God’s greatest gift: eternal lives. Through Christ’s atonement, God then will be able to receive us into His presence and into His kingdom (see 2 Nephi 10:25). We will be able to be a blessing to God, who has taken the responsibility for us as His spiritual children.

The Gifts of God

God's Greatest Gifts smallAbout 10 years ago, I worked as an editor at the Ensign magazine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. One day I was surprised to note that Church leaders had referred to various gifts of God as the greatest. For example, Elder Alexander B. Morrison wrote, “At this season of gift giving and gift receiving, this season of rejoicing in the great gifts that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have given us, it is most fitting to ponder their greatest gift of all—the gift of life.”

Then I read a statement by President Gordon B. Hinckley, who said, “On Calvary’s hill [Jesus] gave His life for each of us. That is the greatest gift that any of us can ever receive. It is the gift of the Resurrection and eternal life.” I certainly agreed with that statement as well. Christ gave His life for us so that we could be resurrected and receive eternal life, returning to the presence of the Father. What greater blessing could we receive?

I decided to run a computer search to identify possibilities for God’s greatest gifts. As I researched, I realized that the label of “greatest” depended on which gift was being emphasized. It finally dawned on me that all the gifts of God might collectively be called the greatest—much like a “greatest hits” album by a favorite artist.

I invite you to read more in my book, God’s Greatest Gifts: 10 Reasons to Rejoice (Springville, UT: Cedar Fort, February 2010). Order at Cedar Fort (click here), Amazon (click here), Barnes & Noble (click here), Borders (click here), or Cedar Fort (click here).

The Gift of Hope

Sometimes life beats us down, but there are always good things in store for us just around the corner. For any who are discouraged (or know someone who is), I highly recommend Elder Jeffrey R. Holland’s video testimony of “good things to come” (click here).

The Magnificent Priesthood Authority

On May 15, 1829, John the Baptist returned to earth to confer the Priesthood of Aaron on Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. Within a few weeks, the Apostles Peter, James, and John restored the higher priesthood. They were the senior Apostles and leaders of the early Church. Jesus promised Peter, “I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven” (Matthew 16:19). This is the sacred priesthood power that seals family together. Six days later He took Peter, James, and John to a mountaintop where He was transfigured before them. Prophets from earlier dispensations, including Moses and Elijah, appeared in glory and conferred keys and powers upon Peter, James, and John.

Unfortunately the Apostles were killed or taken from the earth, and their priesthood keys were taken with them, resulting in more than 1,400 years of apostasy. We call this time the Dark Ages.

During the 1600s, religious people realized there had been a gradual falling away from the Church organized by Jesus Christ. As these people voiced their opinions, they were persecuted by the Catholic Church. In return, these reformers organized Protestant churches. Among these reformers was a man named John Lathrop, a vicar of the Church of England. In 1623 Reverend Lathrop resigned his position because he felt the Anglican Church lacked authority to act in the name of God. As he read the Bible, he realized that the keys of the apostleship were not on the earth. In 1632 he became the minister of an independent church, which was not legal in England, and was imprisoned. While he was in prison, his wife passed away, and his orphaned children pleaded that he be released. The bishop finally agreed as long as Lathrop promised to leave England. He agreed and set sail for America along with thirty-two members of his congregation. It is fitting that one of his descendants, Joseph Smith, was chosen by God to have the priesthood keys conferred upon him.

On April 3, 1836, seven years after the priesthood was restored, the Saints gathered to dedicate the Kirtland Temple. There the Savior appeared to accept the temple. Then, just like that earlier experience at the Mount of Transfiguration, Moses, Elijah, and Elias appeared to confer priesthood keys and powers. What a miracle! In fact, the priesthood authority is the single most distinguishing feature of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. With it comes the authority to confer the gift of the Holy Ghost, provide fathers’ blessings and other priesthood blessings, and perform temple work for both the living and the dead.

As holders of the priesthood, we are called to serve. We are called to share the message of the restored gospel, the message of baptism by immersion by sacred priesthood power, the message of receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, and the message of sealing families together by priesthood power in holy temples. Sometimes we are persecuted like the reformers of old. But we hold our heads high, knowing that “the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done” (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 4:540). How magnificent is the priesthood authority!

Families

One of the greatest gifts Heavenly Father has blessed us with is the opportunity to be raised in a family. President Henry B. Eyring notes that “the greatest joys and the greatest sorrows we experience are in family relationships. The joys come from putting the welfare of others above our own. That is what love is. And the sorrow comes primarily from selfishness, which is the absence of love” (“Our Perfect Example,” Ensign, Nov 2009, 70). Of course, no family is perfect, but the home is the place God has prepared for us to some of life’s greatest lessons, including how to serve each other and put others’ needs above our own. The home is a laboratory of love and learning.

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