SON OF THE MORNING 2

 

He Shall Reign by Susan Edwards

“Satan is not opposed to good morals. He’s opposed to Jesus Christ.

“Read that again because most Christians miss this completely.

“Satan doesn’t care if you’re a “good person”. He doesn’t care if you volunteer at the food bank, recycle your trash, and help old ladies cross the street. He doesn’t care if you’re kind, generous, and well-liked by everyone in your community.

“He cares that you don’t bow the knee to Jesus. Here’s the deception that’s damning millions: Satan has convinced people that morality equals spirituality. That being a “good person” is the same as being a Christian. That if you just live right, treat people well, and avoid the “big sins”, you’re acceptable to God.

“This is a lie straight from the pit of hell. The Pharisees had impeccable morals. They followed the law meticulously. They were respected, disciplined, and religiously devoted yet Jesus called them children of the devil. Why? Not because their morals were bad. Because their morals replaced Christ. Satan’s greatest trick isn’t making bad people worse. It’s making good people think they don’t need a Saviour.

“Think about it: The atheist who feeds the homeless thinks he’s good enough without God. The Buddhist who meditates and practices compassion thinks she’s enlightened without Christ. The Muslim who prays five times daily thinks he’s righteous without Jesus. The moral Christian who goes to church, pays his tithe, and avoids scandal thinks he’s saved without surrender. All of them are headed to the same place: eternal separation from God.

“Because morality doesn’t save. Jesus saves: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

“Satan loves moral people who reject Jesus. They’re his best advertisement for the lie that you can earn your way to heaven.  They’re living proof that you can:

·         Be kind without Christ;

·         Be generous without God;

·         Be disciplined without the Holy Spirit;

·         Be respected without redemption.

“And still be lost. The most dangerous people in hell won’t be the murderers and rapists. They’ll be the moral, upstanding citizens who thought their goodness was good enough. Their morals became their idol. Their goodness became their god. And Satan smiled because he’d accomplished his goal: to keep them away from Jesus.

“Your goodness won’t save you. Your works won’t redeem you. Your morality won’t justify you. Only the blood of Jesus Christ can wash away your sins and make you acceptable to a holy God. Everything else is just Satan’s distraction from the one thing that actually matters.”

-          Author Unknown

This piece of writing made me think of the truthfulness of it. President Nelson once said that Lucifer is skilled at distraction, distortion, deception and misdirection. He will employ any tactic to lift us to the level of his pride, even the tactic of ‘goodness’. This is perhaps one of the greatest tools he is using today: to make us think we are good enough as we are, to believe in ‘our truth’, to pursue our importance, to make this world attractive veiled in our self-absorption. He has succeeded creating the ‘me, myself and I world’.

His goal is for us to miss out on Christ’s salvation of grace. Lucifer is the ultimate antithesis of the Saviour of the world who desires our salvation while he desires our destruction. They are polar opposites who have one thing in common: they both desire for us to become as they are.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

SON OF THE MORNING 1

 

Get Thee Hence Satan by Carl Heinrich

Some years ago I wanted to know what the ‘Son of the Morning’ title meant so I elicited the meaning of it from a friend who is well versed in scripture. This was his understanding: “While there is not much written about Lucifer and his being ‘the son of the morning’, it is interesting that in the only two places in the scriptures (at least that I can think of; Isaiah 14:12-20 and D&C 76:25-27) where the name Lucifer is used there is also a reference to him being ‘a son of the morning’.

“My presumption is that the term ‘morning’ refers to the fact that he was born early on as a spirit offspring of the Father. Perhaps he might have even been second born vs his brother who was firstborn. We have so many fascinating stories among the great patriarchs of having two competing sons vying for the firstborn birthright and it almost seems as though these stories are a continuation of that which started in the pre-mortal life with the Saviour and Lucifer.

“You can even get that sense from a statement in D&C 88:115, about Lucifer having as his goal that of displacing of his brother from his throne. It seems likely from the two scriptures above and one in Luke 10:18 that Lucifer (whose name means ‘Light Bearer’ or perhaps a ‘Shining One’ and in the Hebrew Bible could be translated as ‘son of dawn’ or ‘son of morning’) had progressed greatly and was in fact a ruler and had authority of some kind (D&C 76:25-26; Isaiah 14:12-20).” (Larry Keeler, Feb 6, 2023)

The Latin word ‘lucifer’ comes from the Latin words luc-and-fer, which mean ‘light and ‘bearing’ respectively. Lucifer was a sprit son of Heavenly Father and led the rebellion in the pre-mortal life seeking to dethrone the Father and His Christ. He fell and was banished to this earth with his followers (Isaiah 14:12; Luke 10:18; 2 Nephi 24:12; D&C 76:25-29). After his fall, he became Satan and the devil (D&C 76:25-29; Moses 4:1-4).

He is the thief who comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). Jesus proclaimed him to be a liar and a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44). In his first epistle Peter warned that we should be sober and vigilant because our adversary the devil was a roaring lion who walks about seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). Paul warned that we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world and against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12). This is the way he accomplishes his work:

HIS THREE DOCTRINES:

No punishment for sin

Nothing after death

He does not exist

HIS LIES THROUGH RATIONALISATION:

Just once won’t hurt

No one will know

Everybody is doing it

HIS VALUE SYSTEM:

Selfishness

Self-indulgence

Immediate gratification

HIS SALES TECHNIQUES:

Pacifying

Flattering

Lulling

HIS GOAL:

To steal our spiritual identity

To kill our faith in God

To destroy our commitment to Christ

HIS WORLDLY ENTICEMENTS:

Power

Popularity

Praise

Lucifer, or Perdition as he was also called in pre-mortal life, where he was so mighty he was in authority amongst us, would have to be the biggest tragedy known to man. Such a great tragedy that we wept over him when he was lost. Not only him but also one third of the host of heaven, no doubt siblings we loved and were close to who were overcome with the charm and persuasion of one such powerful liar of influence (D&C 29:36,37; Revelation 12:4,9).

 

He was the Son of the Morning,

His pride yielded irreversible cost

In the beginning we sorely wept

When his soul was forever lost.

 

Like a thief in the night,

He now seeks to steal, kill and destroy.

He is the collector of ruined lives,

The Master of ravaged souls.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

MY EVERYTHING

 

Transcendent Glory by Greg Collins

He is my Sovereign,

He is the King of all kings,

He is my wings of protection,

He is my everything.

 

-      Cathryne Allen 

A NOISY WORLD

 

Send Forth Labourers by Greg Collins

“Inspiration comes more easily in peaceful settings. Such words as quite, still, peaceable, Comforter, abound in the scriptures: “Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46:10). And the promise, “You shall receive my Spirit, the Holy Ghost, even the Comforter, which shall teach you the peaceable things of the kingdom. (D&C 36:2)

“The world grows increasingly noisy. Clothing and grooming and conduct are looser and sloppier and dishevelled. Raucous music, with obscene lyrics blasted through amplifiers while lights flash psychedelic colours, characterizes the drug culture. Variations of these things are gaining wide acceptance and influence over our youth. This trend to more noise, more excitement, more contention, less restraint, less dignity, less formality is not coincidental nor innocent nor harmless.

“The first order issued by a commander mounting a military invasion is the jamming of the channels of communication of those he intends to conquer. Irreverence suits the purposes of the adversary by obstructing the delicate channels of revelation in both mind and spirit.” 

The above was spoken by Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles during his talk, “Reverence Invites Revelation” in General Conference of October 1991. That was 35 years ago. The world has grown much busier and louder since then. Technology has made sure of that. Today we cannot exist without our phones and social media connections.

Technology has become the adversary’s greatest tool of 21^st century. Not only has he used it to keep our minds occupied with the voices of the world, he has used it to spread his loudest message yet by calling “evil good and good evil” (Isaiah 5:20). This is true of even the most innocent messages through technology today. Misinformation of all sorts  is spread from all corners of the world and mistrust has become rampant in our society. AI created content is a large part of that mistrust.

We live in “spiritual Babylon” today: “Each era of the earth has known its own Babylon, but the Babylon of the latter-days was seen by the prophets as being among the most wicked of any era and the object of destruction at the coming of the Lord…..ancient Babylon with its evil and judgment was a shadow and a type of present-day Babylon, or the world. It is to present-day Babylon that Isaiah delivered the sharpest warnings.” (Old Testament Student manual 1 Kings – Malachi, p 153)

Among these sharpest warnings of today, lies also the call for the “sanctified ones”, the Saints of the latter days, to gather together and join with God in overthrowing wickedness and spiritual Babylon from the world to coincide with the Second Coming as contained in chapter 13 of Isaiah.

Considering the population of the world and the wickedness which abounds, that’s an enormous call to action but there is hope in Nephi’s vision of us:

“And it came to pass that I beheld the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were few….and their dominions upon the face of the earth were small….and it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.” (1 Nephi 14:12-14)

The more righteous we are, the more spiritual light we emit throughout the world which fights the forces of evil and opens the channels of inspiration and revelation from the realms above for the benefit of all the nations upon the face of the earth.

The spiritual war begun in heaven with Lucifer and his angels continues, only the venue has changed….(Revelation 12:7-9)

There is a desire in my soul

That wants to conquer Goliath

And watch him fall….

This warrior within me never sleeps

And yearns to hear the angels’ call,

A call to battle to make the devil fall.

And when Christ comes in clouds so holy

He will conquer that enemy

And we will confess His glory.

 

-      Cathryne Allen

MY HOLY GRAIL

 

Seeds of Joy by Yongsung Kim

I looked up to You

When in my beginning.

I saw Your strength,

Your care, Your undying love,

And I knew only You

Could make up for what

I alone could not do.

 

You are my Shepherd,

You are my King,

You are my Holy Grail,

You are my everything.

 

-      CATHRYNE ALLEN 

EMMANUEL

 

His Mighty Hand by Yongsung Kim

Perhaps the greatest of all the prophecies of Isaiah is the birth of Christ:

“Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)

There are two significant truths in this sentence, and they both confirm that the Saviour Jesus Christ is the Son of God. The first is that his mother was a virgin which some have discounted, including the Jews, whom He was sent to, and who accused Him of being born of fornication (John 8:41). The definition of ‘virgin’ seems to have become lost over time with modern translators claiming: “Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version [1952], Isaiah 7:14) The loss of Isaiah’s precise wording is also the loss of belief that Christ was divine (see also the Old Testament Student Manual Book 2, p 145)

The second truth has to do with the name Immanuel:

“This name is also a title that describes Jehovan’s mission in mortality. The New Testament provides a correct interpretation of its meaning in Hebrew. Matthew recorded: “Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God With Us” (Matthew 1:22-23) (Old Testament Student Manual Book 2, p 145)

I have over the years been collecting the names and titles by which the Saviour is known. So far I have found 99 names and 16 titles. My favourite would have to be Isaiah’s name for Him which is “The Holy One of Israel”. I think one of the most known would have to be “The Prince Of Peace” because it is so relatable for people of all dispensations and walks of life. Here is something significant about this title:

“Modern Man sometimes vainly thinks that Jesus’ mission was to wipe out war; and scoffers have cried that since war still curses the earth, Christ’s mission has failed and Christianity is a blight. Yet Christ himself sent forth his Twelve, saying: “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.” (Matt 10:34).

“Christ did proclaim a peace – the peace of everlasting righteousness, which is the eternal and mortal enemy of sin. Between righteousness and sin, in whatever form, there can only be unceasing war, whether in one man, among the people, or between nations in armed conflict. This war is the sword of Christ; whatever its form this war cannot end until sin is crushed and Christ brings all flesh under his dominion. Righteousness is peace wherever it abides; sin in itself is war wherever it is found.” (President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., In Conference Report, April 1939, pp 104-5)

Whatever one of Christ’s names appeals to us the best, according to our understanding of Him, the name that should stand out in our minds the most is the one of salvation:

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Therefore, with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation…..Praise the Lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted. Sing unto the Lord; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth. Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion; for great is the HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL in the midst of thee.” (Isaiah 12:2-6)

Your arms, so willing and so strong,

Dived into the deep and shattered my sorrow;

The depth was no match for the strength

You gained at Calvary so long ago.

Your saving grace

Has lifted me to Your cross

Becoming my mortal weakness’ greatest foe.

I now walk with You

In paths I dare not walk alone;

In the valley of shadow of death,

I rejoice to be Your own.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

ENDURING THE ROAD

 

And Israel's Daughters Wept Around by Rose Datoc Dall

The road is so rough dear Lord

And I am here all alone.

I don’t know how I will walk

To the end with my burden

Pressing on me so.

 

Yes, I remember, said He,

I walked it myself long ago.

The cross was heavy

But I carried it

Because some burdens

Are meant to be carried alone.

-      CATHRYNE ALLEN

OF OYSTERS AND DIGNITY

I Am the Way by Chris Brazelton

For some reason I became fascinated of late with the saying, “the world is your oyster”. I wondered why people use that saying as something encouraging to propel you forward in your life so I decided to look into the life of an oyster.

The idiom “the world is your oyster” is supposed to mean you have endless freedom, choices, and opportunities to do or go wherever you want in life. It is true that we are free to go anywhere and do anything, however, even though our potential is vast, not all endless possibilities culminate in success.

And here is an interesting analogy. In nature, only about 1 in every 10,000 wild oysters develops a pearl. Pearls form when an irritant like a parasite or a grain of sand enters the shell. The oyster covers the irritant with layers of mother-of-pearl to protect its soft body. In other words, the oyster is stronger than the irritant that comes into its life and it turns that irritant into a magnificent, rare pearl…..it turns its misfortune into a fortune. Honestly, I don’t know who the hero of this situation is, the oyster or the pearl. I’d say the oyster even though the pearl’s value is greater because the oyster is the creator of the pearl. The pearl is the success of the oyster.

Perhaps the oyster teaches us that real beauty cannot be born without the invading forces of opposition. Its resilience in protecting itself must yield beauty of character in the midst of survival. It’s something I am hoping for myself. Like a lot of people, I have had a hard life…..I am in my third major trial. It has been going for two years now. I am struggling with isolation, incapacity, depression and physical pain. Because of it, I have come to view myself in a very lowly way and have looked back on my life as a thing of insignificance. I struggle to put any value to it.

All this has made me reflect on the life of the Saviour and how bleak and unproductive His life seemed to so many when He ended up on the cross. Imagine the Saviour who had just been crucified and suffered an unimaginable death meeting the two disciples on the road to Emmaus who expressed their disappointment that His life did not culminate in redemption of Israel (Luke 24:17,21). They basically said, “we thought this was it”. Never did it occur to them that the Saviour had indeed just redeemed Israel but not in the way they thought.

While the Jews forced the disciples into hiding (John 20:19) and attempted to contain the movement by sealing the tomb (Matthew 27:63-66), Jesus was met with righteous spirits in the spirit world who recognised the triumph of His life and death….”they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand (D&C 138:15). How differently things are viewed from the earthly vantage point to the eternal one!

My lament of late has been the possibility of death devoid of dignity. Here again I have reflected on Christ who was spit upon, rejected, tortured and crucified naked on the side of a highway without any dignity whatsoever. The Romans were brutal with crucifixion seeking not just death but to degrade and humiliate their victims.

I wonder if some oysters think their life has not amounted to much because they never produced a pearl and therefore met with undignified death. I think I’ll focus on the Saviour and the pearl He produced beyond price.

I want to remember the beauty

Of my life like that

Surrendered by the withered rose;

I want to remember all the

moments of my life

Near and far,

I want to take them with me

Like priceless jewels

When I am called to cross the bar.

 

-      Cathryne Allen

HIS LAMBS

Finding the One by Liz Lemon Swindle

 

Behold my lambs, Father,

So dear and priceless are they!

They break my tender heart

When from me they stray.

 

I willingly carried my cross

To Golgotha’s hill,

I would do it again

If it would keep them with me still.

 

I will bring home each lamb

Who are willing to follow

And those who stray

I will keep in my sorrow.

 

-      Cathryne Allen

BEYOND THE VEIL

 

Arms of Faith by Yongsung Kim

To say that the scriptural accounts of those who have had visions of God’s kingdom beyond the veil are easy to comprehend would be an understatement. We have no reference to describe such experiences and we simply lack the language also. The Prophet Joseph Smith provided a perspective on this when he said:

“Could we read and comprehend all that has been written from the days of Adam, on the relation of man to God and angels in a future state, we should know very little about it. Reading the experience of others, or the revelation given to them, can never give us a comprehensive view of our condition and true relation to God. Knowledge of these things can only be obtained by experience through the ordinances of God set forth for that purpose. Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you would by reading all that ever was written on the subject.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p 324)

Even the Saviour had difficulty explaining the workings of the universe and the kingdoms that existed within it in a revelation given to Joseph Smith and contained in Doctrine and Covenants 88. You can almost feel His frustration in reading His words: “Unto what shall I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand?” (v 46) And then His summation of the difficulty of the task: “Behold, all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these hath seen God moving in his majesty and power.”  (v 47)

Isaiah endeavoured to describe what he was permitted to see of the celestial sphere in chapter 6 of his book (vs 1-4) by using images and terms with which his readers could identify, but even he sensed how much he fell short of communicating the reality of his experience. The description of his experience is definitely beyond my understanding or appreciation because I cannot relate to it.

Others who have had visions of the celestial realms have cited Isaiah’s somewhat adequate summation of such an experience which readers of all generations and time-lines can understand:

“For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.” (Isaiah 64:4)

Paul refined Isaiah’s explanation to the Corinthians by saying: “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

Perhaps the testimony of the Nephites is the greatest of the glories beyond the veil:

“And no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvellous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.” (3 Nephi 17:16-17)

The joy is an incentive to those who want to experience the reality of the glories beyond the veil…..

Some days, Father, I cannot bear,

The absence of Your touch.

I cannot wait for Your embrace

That I have missed so very much.

 

In this abyss of worldly darkness

I stumble but I fall into the arms of Him

Who lifts me higher than I can go.

 

I fly to You, Father, on my wings of faith,

I sail through stormy skies,

Seeking for Thy face.

Look Father, no hands!

Only trust in these strong arms

Of my Saviour’s loving grace.

 

-      CATHRYNE ALLEN

ZION A PLACE OF REFUGE

 

Jesus Prince of Peace by Danny Hahlbohm

“And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.

“And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.”  (Isaiah 4:5,6)

Elder Orson Pratt suggested that the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy would be literal:

“The time is to come when God will meet with all the congregation of his Saints, and to show his approval, and that he does love them, he will work a miracle by covering them in the cloud of his glory. I do not mean something that is invisible, but I mean that same order of things which once existed on the earth so far as the tabernacle of Moses was concerned, which was carried in the midst of the children of Israel as they journeyed in the wilderness….But in the latter days there will be people so pure in Mount Zion, with a house established upon the tops of the mountains, that God will manifest himself, not only in their Temple and upon all their assembles, with a visible cloud during the day, but when the night shall come, if they shall be assembled for worship, God will meet with them by his pillar of fire; and when they retire to their habitations, behold each habitation will be lighted up by the glory of God, - a pillar of flaming fire by night.

“Did you ever hear of any city that was thus favoured and blessed since the day that Isaiah delivered this prophecy? No, it is a latter-day work, one that God must consummate in the latter times when he begins to reveal himself, and show forth his power among the nations.”  (In Journal of Discourses, 16:82)

It’s the time worth waiting for…..

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

ISAIAH AND OUR DAY

Dreaming Dreams of Prayer by Joel Rea

 

I have a friend who cannot understand why I love the Old Testament. She told me once that the Old Testament is a ‘dead book’. I take it that some think so because the law of Moses has been fulfilled through the ministry of Christ, however, the Old Testament is full of prophecies of our day which are in the process of being fulfilled or are yet to be fulfilled. A book that contains prophecies which are still pending cannot be a dead book.

Reading all the dual prophecies in the book of Isaiah makes me feel like I am reading about our world instead of ancient Israel. The tragedy of it is that Isaiah’s comments are directed to the House of Israel and not the condition of the world at large. His lament is about Israel following in the ways of the world and reaping the same consequences.

In chapter 3, Isaiah spoke at length about the corruption of women of his day who were proud, arrogant, and more concerned with their clothing and personal appearance than with righteousness. It also reads like 2026 where women have lost sight of proper priorities and the women of Zion are following suit all the way to the fruits of addiction and transgression:

“The prophet contrasts their former beauty with the results of judgment. Because of their wickedness, the beauty, the pride, and the fashion will become tragedy, disaster, and slavery. The girdle in verse 24 of chapter was the sash used to fasten the outer clothing. Keil and Delitzsch showed that the “rent” which was to replace it was the rope used to bind slaves. Sackcloth was black goat’s hair worn at times of great mourning. The “burning” refers to the branding that often accompanied one’s being made a slave (Commentary, 7:1:147; Old Testament Student Manual 141).

Slavery today might not appear in the physical form but a spiritual and emotional one. This is not just about dress or immodesty but also about women’s assertiveness in denying the qualities of their gender in pursuit of a more masculine role.

Of most interest is the parallel used in Isaiah 4:1. Isaiah speaks of scarcity of men due to war mentioned in Isaiah 3:25-26 and the devasting effect that this had on women in the ancient world. To be unmarried and childless in ancient Israel was a disgrace (see Genesis 30:23; Luke 1:25). So terrible the conditions would be anciently when Israel was at peril of dispersion and devastation, that women would be willing to share a husband with others and not expect any material support from him, if only they could claim they were married to him and had children by him.

In 21^st century we see women avoiding child bearing in preference of convenience and their pursuits by freezing their eggs, having abortions and even eradicating the need of husbands by replacing them with sperm banks.  Isaiah wrote that in his day seven women would be willing to share one man just to have his children. Reflect on how many women could end up having children by one man through the sperm bank……

Whether we follow the world or not is the deciding factor in who we become. Isaiah spoke of this too when he said, “the show of their countenance doth witness against them” (3:9). This perhaps is the most important lesson we can take from Chapter 3 of Isaiah:

“Every man and every person who lives in this world wields an influence, whether for good or for evil. It is not what he says alone; it is not alone what he does. It is what he is. Every man, every person radiates what he or she really is…It is what we are and what we radiate that affects the people around us.” (President David O. McKay, Man May Know For Himself, p 108)

The influence we have on the world is crucial because we are a ‘peculiar’ people, the definition of which is: one’s very own, exclusive or special, uncommon, unusual, distinctive in nature or character from others, belonging exclusively to some person, group or thing. As God’s people, we are obligated to pursue a character of nobility that we might be an influence for good on the nations of the earth as we await the return of our King.

Nephi’s vision of our day should give us the hope and courage to make this a reality: “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.”  (1 Nephi 14:14)

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

A MILLENIAL NATION

 

The Bridegroom by LDS Bookstore 

By Isaiah’s time, Israel, a chosen nation of God had sunk into such spiritually depraved condition that Isaiah referred to them as Sodom and Gomorrah (Isaiah 1:10). Their hypocritical performances of the Mosaic offerings and feasts was a clear indication of their superficial form of worship devoid of repentance (1:11).

As per Jehovah’s inexhaustible mercy, the following hope was issued to Israel that they can still remain chosen:

“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)

Even though this beautiful promise can be applied to individual members of Israel, it was originally issued to Israel as a nation: “No matter how many prophets the Lord sent to Israel and Judah, the how many times he pleaded with them, all through their history they were rebellious. Here we find a promise that if they would return to the Lord, their past sins would be forgotten, and he would again receive them as his people and bless them abundantly, and they should continue to be his covenant people.” (President Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, 2:180)

The House of Israel has had a treacherous past but its destiny remains. This destiny is centred on the Millenial Day when “out of Zion shall go forth the law and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem” (2:3).

“Jerusalem shall be the gathering place of Judah and his fellow of the house of Israel, and Zion shall be the gathering place of Ephraim and his fellows, upon whose heads shall be conferred ‘the richer blessings’. These two cities, one in the land of Zion [America] and one in Palestine, are to become capitals for the kingdom of God during the Millennium (Old Testament Student Manual 1 Kings – Malachi p 139). In other words, the House of Israel will be the theocratic governing body of the world with Christ as its head during the Millenium age.

In chapter 2 of his book, Isaiah summarized the basic spiritual problems that troubled Israel in his day and made this a dualistic prophecy applicable to the last days before the Second Coming:

·         Verse 6: Ancient Israel looked to the religious philosophies and the gods of the Assyrians and other heathen countries for power and for sustenance. Today people look to may other religions and philosophies of men for wisdom and guidance instead of the gospel of Jesus Christ;

·         Verse 6: Ancient Israel was joining the heathen nations in all their wickedness, and modern society is joining with the influences of the world rather than looking to the Lord;

·         Verse 7: The people were wealthy and materialistic. Their hearts were set on the things of the world. In the last days, materialism runs rampant.

·         Verse 7: The land was “full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots”. The horse was a symbol of warfare as was the chariot. Today is an age characterized by wars and military power.

·         Verse 8: The land was filled with idolatry then, and people still turn to false gods today, though not necessarily to idols made of wood or stone.

·         Verse 9: Nephi’s quotation of Isaiah in the Book of Mormon says that the “mean man boweth NOT down, and the great man humbleth himself NOT (2 Nephi 12:9). Here Isaiah was referring to the fact that men would not worship the true God. In the preface to the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord indicated this failure would be a major concern of the last days (D&C 1:16).

-          (Old Testament Student Manual 1 Kings – Malachi, p 139)

To fulfil our destiny as the Millenial Nation we need to heed this call:

“O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord”  (Isaiah 2:5)

Like Israel of old

I foolishly sought man’s protection

Until you showed me the strength

Of Your invincible arm

And how much easier You can make

My journey’s difficult path.

How foolish I was to trust in man’s might,

How foolish to seek mortal comfort

And settle for feeble sentries of the heart.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

AN HIGH PRIEST

 

Jesus of Nazareth by Cynthia Pottorff

“No one’s eyes were more penetrating than His, and much of what He saw pierced His heart. Surely His ears heard every cry of distress, every sound of want amid despair. To a degree far more than we will ever understand, He was “a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.” Indeed, to the layman in the streets of Judea, Christ’s career must have seemed a failure, a tragedy, a good man totally overwhelmed by the evils surrounding Him and the misdeeds of others.

“He was misunderstood or misrepresented, even hated from the beginning. No matter what He said or did, His statements were twisted, His actions suspected, His motives impugned. In the entire history of the world no one has ever loved so purely or served so selflessly – and been treated so diabolically for His effort. Yet nothing could break His faith in His Father’s plan or His Father’s promises. Even in those darkest hours at Gethsemane and Calvary, He pressed on, continuing to trust in the very God whom He momentarily feared had forsaken Him.

“Because Christ’s eyes were unfailingly fixed on the future, He could endure all that was required of Him, suffer as no man can suffer except it be “unto death”, as King Benjamin said, look upon the wreckage of individual lives and the promises of ancient Israel lying in ruins around Him, and still say then and now, “Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

“How could He do this? How could He believe it? Because He knows that for the faithful, things will be made right soon enough. He is a King; He speaks for the crown; He knows what can be promised. He knows that “the Lord….will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble….For the needy shall not always be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.” He knows that “the Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.” He knows that “the Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in Him shall be desolate.”

-          Jeffrey R. Holland, “An High Priest of Good Things to Come”, GC Oct 1999

 

As Golgotha raged and tore

Your flesh without mercy,

The Garden sprang anew

As from every drop of blood You spilt

New flowers came into bloom.

How pitiful the cross that claimed You

Not knowing it sent a God to a

Darkened tomb!

 

-      CATHRYNE ALLEN