Some days You
seem so near
And some days
so far.
I long to see
Your face,
To walk the
clouds with You
With poise and
godly grace.
I know You are
there keeping at bay
The darkness
of despair,
And gifting me
memories of You
To fill the
loneliness that I tearfully bear.
-
CATHRYNE ALLEN
“If
thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy
day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and
shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor
speaking thine own words:
“Then
shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the
high places of the earth and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father:
for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”
(Isaiah 58:13,14)
“Keeping
of the sabbath as a day of surcease from ordinary toil was a national
characteristic, by which the Israelites were distinguished from pagan peoples,
and rightly so, for the holiness of the Sabbath was made a mark of the covenant
between the chosen people and their God. (James Talmage, Jesus the Christ,
p 203).
This
characteristic of Sabbath observance lives with us still as a commandment within
the House of Israel to be a standard and an ensign to the world. In Hebrew the
term Sabbath means ‘rest’. This rest constitutes quiet tranquillity,
peace of mind and spirit, however, the main benefits promised by Isaiah
regarding the Sabbath are three-fold:
·
Sanctification:
It is called a holy day because ‘holy’ means set apart or sanctified for the
work of God (see also Exodus 31:13);
·
Revelation
and communion with God (I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the
earth);
·
Exaltation
(I will feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father)
Other
promises are ones of temporal plenty, divine protection and spiritual power.
The
most important of these three is sanctification. So important was this
sanctification that violation of the Sabbath was a capital crime punishable by
death under the Mosaic dispensation and this is why….. it impressed upon
ancient Israel the seriousness of spiritual death (see Numbers 15:32-36).
Without sanctification you cannot have eternal life but instead suffer
spiritual death. Whereas eternal life means a life with God, spiritual death
means to be cut off from His presence (Alma 42:1-9; D&C 29:41).
“Alma
taught that certain early Saints entered the “rest of the Lord” after being made
pure through a process of sanctification (Alma 13:12). In other words, God’s
work is the sanctification of His children to the point where they can enter
into the ultimate rest, which is the fulness of His glory.
“Once
each week man is commanded to cease his own labours and allow God to perform
His work of sanctification on him. Resting on the Sabbath, then, implies far
more than taking a nap or stopping normal activities. Mankind must enter into
the Lord’s work on that day. This work involves making themselves and others
more godlike, another way to speak of sanctification.
“Doing
the work of the Lord (sanctification) often involves great activity on the
Sabbath day, and the day may not be restful in the usual sense. One can assume
that if doing good to an animal on the Sabbath is approved by the Lord (see
Matthew 12:11; Luke 13:15), then doing good to men is an even higher good. The
two commandments for the Sabbath are rest and worship (see D&C 59:10). The
Hebrew verb la-avodh, “to worship”, means also “to work” and “to serve”.
This holy work then creates a new and holy man;
so the Sabbath is tied into the work of creation.” (Old Testament Student Manual Book 1, p 130)
Sometimes
I fear that we have lost the holiness of the Sabbath in our day and age. When I
was growing up in Croatia, our Catholic community was very observant of the Sabbath.
Nobody worked, nobody partied. We usually made the best meal on Sunday with the
only dessert of the week, usually a cake or a slice that could be shared in
case any guests should come by. My mother would not allow us girls to even knit
on Sunday. It was a peaceful, calm day of the week when we went to Church and sometimes
met with extended family or friends but it was a meeting devoid of any
entertainment. I always felt a special
spirit on Sunday. I felt it was God’s day. This is the Europe I remember of
some 50 years ago.
The
Australia of today where I live now is vastly different. Consumerism has
destroyed a lot of values we once used to have, children’s parties are rampant
on Sundays as are sporting events and competitions. Sometimes I feel like we
observe the Sabbath day if there isn’t anything else going.
We,
modern-day Israel have a higher obligation than just abstaining from work and
frivolity. We are to turn away our foot (the symbol of following or obeying)
from doing our own pleasure on the Sabbath and to remember the Lord’s work
which is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man (Moses
1:39). If we did so we would be drawn to God in the greatest way possible (see
The Old Testament Student Manual Book 1, p 181). It would be the beginning of
our path to eternal life. And when we came to it, we would hear God say: “Well
done thou good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
Angels are you near me
To catch me if I fall?
Do you stand guard at the entrance
Of my heart
On God’s errand and sentinel’s call?
Do you pave the way
And steady my feet,
And ensure my enemy’s defeat?
You are unsung heroes
Of every journey’s flight
You are phantoms of love
Concealed from mortal sight.
- Cathryne Allen
“Is
not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo
the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free….is it not to deal thy
bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy
house?
“Then
shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health hall spring forth
speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord
shall be thy rereward. “ (Isaiah 58:6-8)
“Rereward
is an older word meaning “rear guard”. The Hebrew word asaph has the
root meaning of “to gather” and, as used
in Isaiah 58:8, “it is applied to the gathering up of the scattered rear of an
army, or the keeping it from straggling, and defending it from the attacks of
an enemy” (William Wilson, Old Testament Word Studies, s.v. “rereward”.)
“A
better translation would be “the glory of Jehovah will gather thee, or keep
thee together, i.e. be thy rear-guard” (C.F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Commentary
on the Old Testament, 7:2:390)
“When
Israel is diligent in the performance of works of compassionate love, it is
like an army on the march or travelling caravan, for which righteousness clears
and shows the way as being the most appropriate gift of God, and whose rear is
closed by the glory of God, which so conducts it to its goal that not one is
left behind” (Keil and Delitzsch, Commentary, 7:2:390)
PROMISES
OF FASTING (Isaiah 58:8-12):
·
You
shall have light within, physical health, righteousness and the Lord will
answer you and His glory will gather you;
·
God’s
providence in time of lack (satisfy thy soul in draught);
·
Physical
health (Make fat thy bones – as in marrow in the bones that manufactures
blood);
·
Inspiration
and wisdom (like a spring of water whose waters fail not);
·
Strength
and foundation for posterity and restoration of others (raise up the
foundations of many generations and be a restorer of paths to dwell in)
When
fasting has genuine spiritual purpose, its power breaks the bands of
wickedness, sets free the spiritually oppressed, and provides bread for the
hungry and covering for the naked Isaiah 58:6,7). Fasting without spiritual motivation only
engenders discomfort and irritability (Isaiah 58:4b – footnote)
“Fasting cures disease, dries up bodily tumours, puts demons to flight, gets rid of impure thoughts, makes the mind clearer, the heart purer, and the body sanctified, and raises man to the throne of God.” (Athenaeus, Greek Physician)
Jesus fasted 40 days: Matthew 4:2
Moses fasted 40 days twice: Deuteronomy
9:9,18,25
Elijah fasted 40 days: 1 Kings 19:8
Esther fasted 3 days: Esther 4:16
Paul fasted 3 days: Acts 9:9
Alma Senior fasted 2 days and two
nights: Mosiah 27:23
Alma the Son of Alma fasted 3 days: Alma 36:16
“Mortals
can never attain the unity with Deity that it is their privilege to gain
without fasting and prayer.” ( Bruce R. McConkie, Mortal Messiah Book 2, p
59)
“Then
shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say,
Here I am….” (Isaiah 58:6-8)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
As I watched from heaven
Your slowly climb to that fateful hill,
I flew on angel’s wings
To gather the blood that You would
spill.
I remembered Your godly suffering
In lonely Gethsemane
So I flew there too to search for tears
Scattered amongst the flowers in sacred
agony.
I saw the empty bitter cup
I saw Your will all swallowed up
I saw the man, the God of love
The testament of grace divine.
- Cathryne Allen
“And
now I say unto you, who shall declare his generation? Behold, I say unto you,
that when his soul has been made an offering for sin he shall see his seed. And
now what say ye? And who shall be his seed?
“Behold,
I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, yea, all
the holy prophets who have prophesied concerning the coming of the Lord – I say
unto you, that all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that
the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a
remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed, or they are
the heirs of the kingdom of God. (Mosiah 15:10,11; Isaiah 53:10)
“The
seed of Christ are those who are adopted into his family, who by faith have become
his sons and his daughters. They are the children of Christ in that they are
his followers and disciples and keep his commandments” (4 Nephi 17; Mormon
9:26; Moroni 7:19). (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p 700).
King Benjamin of the Book of Mormon spoke at great length to his people about the importance of becoming children of Christ. The setting of King Benjamin’s speech was the occasion of his son Mosiah's succession to the throne. This was however, a coronation with a difference.
It was common practice anciently for a new king ascending the throne to be given as many as five names or titles by which he was distinguished among the people; to acknowledge his greatness and his achievements; and to establish him as the link between the people and the divine. (See Scripture Central Post of October 17, 2019, Know Why 536). King Benjamin, however, did something extraordinary at his son's coronation. Instead of using this occasion to bring prominence to his son, he mentions Mosiah only twice. Once to announce him as the new king and once again to affirm that he will act under the direction of God for the benefit of the people (Mosiah 2:30,31).
Rather than proclaiming his son as the divine king as was expected anciently, King Benjamin solidified his people's reliance on The Heavenly King (Mosiah 2:19) by enumerating His endless goodness and honouring Him with names worthy of His station as the promised Messiah, such as: Jesus Christ, The Son of God, The Father of Heaven and Earth, The Lord Omnipotent and The Creator of all things from the beginning. But King Benjamin didn't stop there. He bestowed upon his people a new name that would bind them to the Heavenly King forever. He proclaimed that they be known by the name of Christ rather than by his son's name which would have been the usual protocol.
Mosiah’s subjects entered into a covenant of obedience to Christ and His Gospel and thus became ‘spiritually born’ of him and were known as 'the children of Christ' (Mosiah 5:7). Today we become spiritually born through the covenant of baptism as we take upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ. We become CHRISTians.
King Benjamin mentioned the importance of having Christ’s name 11 times in 6 verses of Mosiah 5 (V 7-12). Why is this important? Because when we are born physically, we take upon ourselves our earthly father’s name and just as we are genetically predisposed to inherit their physical and mental traits, so we, when we take upon ourselves the name of Christ, and live his teachings, inherit His spiritual qualities. In other words, we become like Him by the virtue of our newly acquired parental bond (Moroni 7:48). This gives a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘you’re just like your father’, does it not???
I have written about this personal experience before but will repeat it
here because it fits the narrative of this post rather well. My baptism into
the Church was a traumatic experience for my family. I was 18 and my father was
strongly opposed to me changing my religion. I was told that I had to choose
between my family and the Church. I chose the Church which meant I had to leave
home. My parents were devastated and refused to have any contact with me for a
whole year. It was the most stressful event of my then young life.
Shortly after my baptism I had an unusual and highly symbolic dream. I
was in a high rise building with my parents when there appeared a lot of
commotion on the street below. We hurried down to see what was happening, but
when we reached the street level a white matter akin to snow fell on top of us.
We dug our way up to the top, but I was the only one that emerged. As I
surveyed the street, I saw whiteness everywhere. I looked to my right and saw
the Saviour coming towards me with outstretched arms saying: “Where are my
children?” I did not understand that dream straight away, but the understanding
came as I studied the scriptures and came to see that my baptism was the
gateway to new birth.
When through the water’s gate
I was given the Saviour’s name,
His law was written in my heart
Forever there to remain.
I offered love, I obeyed,
I followed the paths He had me take;
I’ve endured all my trials
For His name’s sake.
And when in clouds of heaven He appears
And I stand in the shadow of His frame,
I want to hear the Saviour say:
I love what you have done with my name!
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
One
day soon Father,
when
I kneel at Your throne
I
will bring you my deeds
from
my earthly home.
Because
of Thy Son’s mercy,
Consider
them bliss,
And
greet me joyfully
With an holy kiss.
- Cathryne Allen
