SONGS OF EVERLASTING JOY

 

Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake saying, I will sing unto the Lord; for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation: my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

The Lord is a man of war: the Lord is his name.

Pharaoh’s chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea.

Thy right hand, O Lord is become glorious in power, thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.

And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee: thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble.

Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?

Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, the earth swallowed them.

Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.

The Lord shall reign for ever and ever.

-          Exodus 15:1-18

“Regardless of where the Ten Tribes are, it will require a miracle to bring them forth. It will be of greater magnitude than the dividing of the Red Sea in the days of Israel’s Exodus. Mountains, ice and a continent of water will stand between the Ten Tribes and the land of Zion when they first appear, but they will ‘smite the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence’ (D&C 133:26). As they come to the great body of water, dry land will be cast up in the midst of it so that a mighty highway will spread before them (ibid v 27; Isaiah 11:16).” (Cleaon Skousen, “Prophecy and Modern Times” p 56)

And the boundaries of the everlasting hills shall tremble at their presence.

And there shall they fall down and be crowned with glory, even in Zion, by the hands of the servants of the Lord, even the children of Ephraim.

And they shall be filled with songs of everlasting joy.

(D&C 133:31-33

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Artist Unknown)

THE GATHERING

 

Israel’s exodus from Egypt was epic. So momentous and powerful was it that it has been remembered as an unparalleled act of God’s power to this day but something much bigger is yet to happen to show the mankind who is in control of this project we call ‘earth’.

Subsequent Prophets to Moses both in the Near East and the Americas spoke often of the Exodus to keep this momentous deliverance of Israel fresh in people’s minds. They used the event as remembrance of Jehovah’s power and His mercy toward the covenant people. I am reminded of Nephi bringing Moses to his brothers’ remembrance when faced with the challenge of recovering the brass plates from Laban (1 Nephi 4:2,3).

Besides the Exodus, another sensational and dramatic example of Jehovah’s deliverance is found in the book of Daniel. I was reading the other day of Daniel’s prayer for forgiveness on behalf of the exiles in Babylon and I was enthralled with the beauty of his words through which he acknowledged Jehovah’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt (Daniel 9:15).

And herein is the beauty of it all. Daniel prayed because he knew that God would deliver the exiles from Babylon too and he knew it because of Isaiah’s prophecy (2 Chr 36:22-23; Isaiah 44:28; 45:1).

It is suggested by historians that when Cyrus conquered Babylon, he found Daniel there in his governmental capacity,  and that Daniel  pointed out to him the prophecy of Isaiah that was given 140 years before the fall of Jerusalem, that the Lord would raise up a mighty king who would free the Jewish captives in Babylon and allow them to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and the holy city. Isaiah even named Cyrus by name.....180 years before he even appeared in Babylon.

Astonishing isn't it? It certainly was to Cyrus because he sent out the proclamation amongst the Jews in Babylon that ‘the Lord God of heaven….had charged [him] to build Him a house in Jerusalem’ (Ezra 1:2) and asked who among all of God’s people wanted to return home. He actually offered freedom to anyone who wanted it. Proof that God always accomplishes His purposes in miraculous ways because nothing is beyond His power. It was no parting of the Red Sea but think about it…a Persian king liberating the Jews….just for some perspective - ancient Persia is modern day Iran.

In our day, the Lord will perform another miracle of restoring those that are lost. As early as 1831 the Lord revealed to Joseph Smith that the translated Apostle John was fulfilling a mission among the Ten Tribes preparing them for their journey to Zion (“Essentials in Church History, p 126).

This will be an event of enormous proportions, greater than the dividing of the Red Sea. So much so that ‘the boundaries of the everlasting hills shall tremble at their presence…’ (D&C 133:31-33). 'The boundaries of the everlasting hills' being North America (Orson Pratt, in “Journal of Discourses”, 18:167-68; see also Genesis 49:26).

So great will this event be that ‘it will no longer be said “The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt but, the Lord liveth that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands whither he had driven them…” (Jeremiah 16:14,15) because “this is the blessing of the everlasting God upon the tribes of Israel …”  who proclaims:

“I am he who led the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; and my arm is stretched out in the last days, to save my people Israel.” (D&C 133: 34; 136:22)

We will come to Zion

With songs of everlasting joy

To worship our Lord and our King

And to Him forever our praises we will sing. 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Joyful by Graphic Arts Design)

THE LORD'S BELOVED

 

 

Have you ever wished to have a title added to your name that would describe your relationship with God? Abraham had 'a friend of God' attached to his name. What spiritual title would you like to be known by?  Sally, the disciple of Christ? Mary, the seeker of truth? Richard, the upholder of faith? Simon, the warrior of God?

My favourite person from the four Gospels in the New Testament is John, 'the disciple whom Jesus loved', as he referred to himself in his book. Jesus called him 'the son of thunder' (Mark 3:17) but he was and is best known as John The Beloved. I have a desire to meet John The Beloved because I think I could more intensely feel the Saviour's love just by simply being in his presence. 

When I refer to John I simply refer to him as The Beloved. I am in awe of his name. Imagine having “The Beloved”  tagged onto your name because it is so obvious to everyone that the Saviour loves you so much. This is the title that I want.

If you study John’s writing, it is impossible not to see the love. In his book, The Beloved records of the discourse on love that Jesus delivered at the Last Supper.  His account of this discourse is related to the Sacrament and our remembrance of the Saviour and mentions love 22 times.

John records the Saviour giving an amazing promise to all who are motivated through their love for Him to obey His commandments. The promise is that they can enjoy the literal companionship of the Father and the Son in this life (John 14:23). This is an amazing promise.

None of the other gospels record this discourse on love or such an important promise, only John; the disciple who outran Peter to the sepulchre with a pounding heart hoping against hope that the rumours were true, that He whom He loved, lived again (John 20:2-4).

Doctrine and Covenants Section 7 gives a clear picture of the love between John and the Saviour. In His communication with John and Peter, the Saviour asked: “John, my beloved, what desirest thou? For if you shall ask what you will, it shall be granted unto you. And I said unto him: Lord, give unto me power over death, that I may live and bring souls unto you”  (D&C 7:1,2).  That’s love. There is no greater.

Some 90 years after Christ’s death, during the bleakest period of Church history, John sat on the island of Patmos, alone, an exiled last apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ; Peter having been crucified, Paul beheaded, Bartholemew skinned alive, Thomas and Matthew run through with spears. By the time of Patmos, the history of the Church included the lining of Nero's colonnade with crucified Christians and the savagery of the mobs screaming for blood in the Coliseum and the Circus Maximus." (The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles, p 449).

Something magical happened to John at Patmos. One Sabbath day the Saviour appeared to him and revealed to him all that will happen on earth until He returns. It was as if the Saviour was saying to him: "You will be here a long time and you will sorrow for the sins of the world, but be comforted John because I am coming back and when I come, I will 'wipe away all tears....and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain...." (Revelation 21:4).

At the Church Conference in June 1831, Joseph prophesied that John was then among the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel, “to prepare them for their return from their long dispersion, to again possess the land of their fathers” (in History of the Church, 1:176). He who lives and sorrows for the sins of the world will have some stories to tell…..

 

I long to see the paths he wanders

To and fro the length of the earth;

I wish to wipe his brow

At the end of the day

To uphold the magnitude of his holy work.

Let me hold him close

And soothe his heavy heart

As the time for final gathering nears,

And let me gather in my cupped hands

The hallowed drops of The Beloved’s tears.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: Hope by Liz Lemon Swindle)

WHAT WAS LOST IS FOUND

 

The imagery Isaiah used to describe the splendor of the gathering of the House of Israel in latter days is stunning. Picture if you will lambs whose “pastures shall be in all high places, who shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them” (1 Nephi 21:9,10). Isaiah says we shall be led from the four corners of the earth for the God of Israel who had once been rejected shall have mercy on the offspring of them who rejected Him. He expresses the proof of that mercy by saying it is more likely that a nursing woman would forget her child before He forgets His covenant children (v 15).

So great will this gathering be that the House of Israel will far exceed the children it once had. They will be brought to Zion by the Gentiles who will establish a standard for God’s people, meaning the restored Church (v 22). Yet again the imagery of children being carried in their arms and daughters carried upon their shoulders is overwhelmingly endearing and suggestive of Jehovah’s spiritually begotten children whose importance shall far exceed that of the kings and queens of the earth who will ‘bow down to Israel’s covenant children and lick up the dust of their feet’ (v 23). Such a global event this will be that ‘all flesh shall know that He is our Saviour and Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob’ (v 26).

The gathering of Israel is yet in its infancy. That which is yet to come will be a global event to behold. When the main body of the Ten Lost Tribes return, who are now hidden from us, they alone will affect a migration of gigantic proportions (D&C 133:26-34). It will be of greater magnitude than the diving of the Red Sea in the days of Israel’s Exodus. The massive miracle of the Exodus will be forgotten compared to the Ten Lost Tribes’ return. In awe, we will no longer say, “The Lord liveth that brought up the Children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but the Lord liveth that brought up the Children of Israel out of the North” (Jeremiah 16:14-15). So great will this migration be that the ‘boundaries of the everlasting hills (North America) shall tremble at their presence. The Lost Tribes will come to be crowned with glory, even in Zion, by the hands of the servants of the Lord, even the children of Ephraim’ (D&C 133:31,32). We will then come to Zion singing songs of everlasting joy (D&C 101:18). We will kiss them and rejoice that what was lost is found.

But even this is not all. Ín Jeremiah’s words: “Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks." (Jeremiah 16:14-16). Right now we are just ‘fishing’ through the missionary work, but after the return of the Ten Lost Tribes and before the Lord comes, there will be 144,000 high priests appointed, 12,000 from each tribe who will be ordained and receive power to ‘hunt’ out the House of Israel, wherever they are scattered, to be brought to Zion (D&C 77:11,18; Orson Pratt, Journal of Discourses, 16:325; 18:25). Not one, with the ‘believing blood of Israel’ coursing through their veins will be overlooked.

The Holy One of Israel will gather His own… He is our Shepherd who will feed us in green pastures and assuage our thirst with living waters, who will lead us to rest in the shadow of His mighty wings…..our King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jehovah the king of heaven and earth……‘for the mighty God shall deliver His covenant people’ (v 24a JST). 

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art by Yongsung Kim)

TAUGHT FROM ON HIGH

 

I am amazed at how many voices there are in the world today due to technology. I guess I am one of them, for which I am profoundly grateful as expressing my love for the truth is my driving force.

 

What concerns me is that some of the voices out there are replacing the most important voice of all, the voice of the Spirit. Let me explain. I have friends who have given up reading the scriptures because podcasts by people who study them are so much easier to ‘listen’ to. This is a grave mistake, not only because you miss out on being tutored by heaven, which I highly recommend, but also because you are at the risk of being misinformed by people’s well intentioned interpretations of the truth.

 

For example, let me discredit one false theory that is circulating right now concerning the 10 Lost Tribes. For some reason, even some self-proclaimed Church ‘scriptorians’ have decided that it is too hard to believe the 10 Tribes of Israel are really lost simply because ‘we don’t know where they are’. They instead believe that these tribes are merely scattered around the world amongst other people. Many members I know have started to believe this.  Firstly, this is partly true because, not all of the 10 tribes were led away by the Lord into the land of the north (D&C 110:11). When Assyrians attacked the Northern Kingdom of Israel, many fled to the safety of the Southern Kingdom; some remained in the Northern Kingdom and intermarried with Assyrians and thus became the Samaritans; and some abandoned their journey north and were scattered throughout Europe and Asia. 

 

On April 3, 1836, Moses appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple and committed to them the keys of the gathering of Israel, specifically from ‘the four parts of the earth, AND the leading of the ten tribes from the land of the north” (D&C 110:11). Section 133 goes one step further and explains the manner in which they will come back (vs 26,27).  It says that their prophets will hear the Lord’s voice; they shall smite the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence; and a ‘highway’ shall be cast up ‘in the midst of the great deep’. And what is this highway? If you look down in the footnotes, you will see a reference to Exodus 14:29 which talks about the parting of the Red Sea for the children of Israel to walk through on dry ground to escape the Egyptians. Clearly the ‘highway’ then means the Lord will perform the same miracle for the 10 Lost Tribes to come to America to receive their blessings at the hands of Ephraim. This undertaking will be so massive and so grand that Jeremiah promised that the God will no longer be called the Lord who led the children of Israel out of Egypt but the Lord who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north (Jeremiah 16:14-15). These scriptures are discussed at length in the Doctrine and Covenants student manual which I would highly recommend.

 

My point is this: make the scriptures your foundation of knowledge and then when you hear other people speak, you will know what is true. My most favourite section of D&C is section 76. It promises that faithful saints will be given to know the ‘wonders of eternity’ and that their understanding will ‘reach to heaven’ (D&C 76:6-10). This can only be accomplished by the power of the Holy Ghost.  All the general conference talks are backed by the scriptures. Ponder, pray, study and cherish the word of God. It is food for the soul and salve to the heart. Listen to the spirit and trust it.

 

Your truth pierces my soul

And binds me to Your loving heart;

Your teaching moments

Find my hungry mind

And feed me like a bird in flight

Searching for a morsel

That gladdens its hungry heart.

Your mysteries are laid at my feet

And, I come to you Father

Clutching the riches that are mine to keep.

- CATHRYNE ALLEN

(Art: Outpouring of the Spirit by Danny Hahlbohm)