Back In The Saddle

   Well after a brief break from blogging of about 2 months, I am back! And I can't believe it is the year 2013. I was thinking about doing a really cliche post about how it is a new year and so we should all set goals. We know we need to set goals to be better. Everyone sets goals this time of year: losing weight, exercising more, saving for a new car, getting a better job, something. But I have decided to do something a little different. I have been studying about the topic of "mercy" the past few days. What is mercy, anyway?
   The definition found in the Guide to the Scriptures reads "The spirit of compassion, tenderness and forgiveness. Mercy is one of the attributes of God. Jesus Christ offers mercy to us through His atoning sacrifice." God loves us. We are all His children. As a loving father, He wants what's best for us and wants us to make the right decisions. He has given us so many gifts. He really gives us everything we have. But one of the most precious things He has given us is the gift of mercy, through His Son Jesus Christ. How does one obtain this mercy? Some people say you don't have to do anything. That mercy is a free gift from Christ's sacrifice. In a way, they are right. His sacrifice redeems all of us so we can be resurrected. But we must repent and live the way he lived to earn the full effects of Christ's mercy. Christ's mercy is the only thing that can save us from the "demands of justice." 

  "And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the arms of safety, while he that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice; therefore only unto him that has faith unto repentance is brought about the great and eternal plan of redemption." 
-Alma 34:16

  Mercy is was what saves us from the fall of man. If we have faith in Jesus Christ and repent of our sins, and try to do our best everyday, mercy will have claim on us. And the opposite is true as well, as you saw in that scripture. Jesus Christ is "mighty to save." But, his mercy does have conditions. Each person will have to experience consequences for their acts here on earth, whether that be good or bad. I am so grateful for Jesus Christ's atonement. And the role is plays in our lives. Yes, we all make mistakes. Yes we aren't perfect. But if we just get up one more time than we fall, we will be OK. So I guess if I absolutely have to set a goal for this new year to satisfy my readers, I would say...do whatever I can to qualify for Christ's mercy at judgement day. Oh...and maybe to lose a few pounds too. 

http://mormon.org/me/7QF5/Nick

Eternal Life: It's So Simple

   When you think on it, obtaining eternal life, which means to live in the presence of God in a state of never-ending happiness with our families, is pretty simple. There is a difference between simple and easy. I never said it was easy, but simple? Yes. Why do I say it is simple? Because we have the road map to eternal life right in front of us.

   God tells us several times in the scriptures how to obtain eternal life. In the book of 2 Nephi, chapter 31, it says 

"And the Father said: Repent ye, repent ye, and be baptized in the name of my Beloved Son. 

And also, the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father give the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, follow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do... 

Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life." (2 Nephi 31:11-12, 20)

   We have that promise right there.  We shall have eternal life. All we have to do is repent, be baptized, receive the Holy Ghost, have faith in Christ, and then endure to the end. It's the only way. But how do we endure to the end? It is simple. This process called the "Doctrine of Christ" which you have seen me mention before (faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end) is actually a cycle. It doesn't end once we are baptized and receive the Holy Ghost. We start over. We try to increase our faith even more. We do that by reading the scriptures and coming to church. We always need to be repenting. We are not perfect. None of us are.

 "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." (1 John 1:8-10). 

   Since we can't really be baptized again, we renew the covenants we made at baptism every Sunday when we take the sacrament. That's how we keep living the cycle. We must go to church every Sunday to fully live the doctrine of Christ. As we take the sacrament to renew that baptismal covenant, we are promised the companionship of the Holy Ghost. So you see? It all fits together. 

   This is a cycle that never ends. We must always be striving to make ourselves better. As we do that, the Atonement of Jesus Christ takes over the rest. Christ is our Advocate with the Father. In Spanish, it says that He is our "abogado." Which means "lawyer." He fights for our side, defends us and will convince the Father that we are worthy to merit eternal life and glory. The question is, are we worthy?

Not Everyone That Saith Unto Me "Lord, Lord..."

   The scripture is clear. Matthew 7:21, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." This scripture is also repeated in 3 Nephi 14:21. The first principle in the Gospel is faith in Jesus Christ. What does it mean to have faith in Jesus Christ? Having faith in Him means you follow Him. You follow His teachings and strive to be like Him. The reason I bring this up is because there are many who say "I believe in Christ, so I'm saved." That is a very broad and generic statement. What does it mean to be saved? What does it even mean to believe in Christ?
   First of all, what is the definition of saved? The dictionary defines "saved" as: to rescue from danger or possible harm, injury, or loss. In that respect, we are all saved thanks to Jesus Christ. Christ rescued all of us from the effects of the Fall of Adam and Eve. He rescued us from physical and spiritual death. So in this sense, we are "saved." But, this does not guarantee us a place in the kingdom of heaven. This does not eliminate our own personal responsibility to act. "For we labor diligently to write, to our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." (2 Nephi 25:23) After all we can do, then we are saved by the blood of Christ.
   Like I said before, having faith in Christ leads you to act and strive to be like Him. And if you have faith in Him, you believe what he taught. But part of having faith is acting on that belief. "Faith, if it hath not works, is dead." (James 2:17). How do we act on that faith? Like I mentioned in previous blogs, the Gospel of Jesus Christ has 5 components: faith, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. All 5 of those components involve some sort of action. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is one of action. How do we follow Jesus Christ? We do what he says. What does he say? "Now this is the commandment: "Repent, all ye ends of the earth, and come unto me and be baptized in my name, that ye may be sanctified by the reception of the Holy Ghost, that ye may stand spotless before me at the last day." (3 Nephi 27:20). Repent, be baptized and get the Holy Ghost. That is the "action" we must take with the faith we have. It's not enough to say you "believe." Believing requires action. To play professional sports, you can't just say "Yeah, I will play for your team, sure." You must sign a contract, by physically signing your name on the dotted line at the bottom of the contract. The Lord has written a contract for us, He asks us to sign it and follow it. But no one is forced to sign this contract. But I will say this, this contract is way better than a 10-year, $250 million contract. It is a eternal reward for a life contract.