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Showing posts with the label Eternal Life

Our Great and Merciful God (J. Reuben Clark)

“I  believe  that  our  Heavenly  Father  wants  to  save  every  one  of H is  children.  I  do  not  think  He  intends  to  shut  any  of  us  off. … “… I  believe  that  in  His  justice  and  mercy  He  will  give  us  the  maximum  reward  for  our  acts,  give  us  all  that  He  can  give,  and  in  the  reverse,  I  believe  that  He  will  impose  upon  us  the  minimum  penalty  which  it  is  possible  for  Him  to  impose”  (J. Reuben Clark,  Conference  Report,  Oct.  1953,  84).

the object of our existence (Joseph Smith)

"What is the object of our coming into existence, then dying and falling away, to be here no more? It is but reasonable to suppose that God would reveal something in reference to the matter, and it is a subject we ought to study more than any other. We ought to study it day and night, for the world is ignorant in reference to their true condition and relation [to God].” Joseph Smith

If there be a design in this universe...there must be a Designer (Senator Everett Dirksen)

Senator Everett Dirksen, shortly before his death, responded impressively to Job’s question in these words: “What mortal being, standing on the threshold of infinity, has not pondered what lies beyond the veil which separates the seen from the unseen? “What mortal being, responding to that mystical instinct that earthly dissolution is at hand, has not contemplated what lies beyond the grave? “What mortal being, upon whom has descended that strange and serene resignation that life’s journey is about at an end, has not thought about that eternal destination and what might be there? “Centuries ago the man Job, so long blessed with every material blessing, only to find himself sorely afflicted by all that can befall a human being, sat with his companions and uttered the timeless, ageless question, ‘If a man die, shall he live again?’ In the Easter Season, when all Christendom observes the Resurrection and seeks answers to many questions, there in the forefront is the question raise

the blessings prepared for us (Lorenzo Snow)

I presume to say that we do not all of us fully comprehend the blessings and privileges that are prepared in the Gospel for us to receive. We do not fully comprehend and we do not have before our view the things which await us in the eternal worlds, nor, indeed, the things which await us in this life and that are calculated to promote our peace and happiness and to answer the desires of our hearts… We frequently, in the multitude of cares around us, get forgetful, and these things are not before us; then we do not comprehend that the Gospel is designed and calculated in its nature to bestow upon us those things that will bring glory, honor, and exaltation—that will bring peace and glory. We are apt to forget these things in the midst of the cares and vexations of life; and we do not fully understand that it is our privilege, and that the Lord has placed it in our reach to pursue that Gospel whereby we may have peace within us continually. All this trouble and vexation of mind is

life after death (Joseph Smith)

We have, reason to have the greatest hope and consolations for our dead of any people on the earth; for we have seen them walk worthily in our midst, and seen them sink asleep in the arms of Jesus… I have a father, brothers, children, and friends who have gone to a world of spirits. They are only absent for a moment. They are in the spirit, and we shall soon meet again. The time will soon arrive when the trumpet shall sound. When we depart, we shall hail our mothers, fathers, friends, and all whom we love who have fallen asleep in Jesus. There will be no fear of mobs, persecutions, or malicious law-suits and arrests; but it will be an eternity of felicity. Joseph Smith,  King Follett Discourse, Journal of Discourses  6:9

Two precious gifts

Life offers you two precious gifts—one is time, the other freedom of choice, the freedom to buy with your time what you will. You are free to exchange your allotment of time for thrills. You may trade it for base desires. You may invest it in greed…Yours is the freedom to choose. But these are no bargains, for in them you find no lasting satisfaction. Every day, every hour, every minute of your span of mortal years must sometime be accounted for. And it is in  this  life that you walk by faith and prove yourself able to choose good over evil, right over wrong, enduring happiness over mere amusement. And your eternal reward will be according to your choosing. A prophet of God has said: "Men are that they might have joy"—a joy that includes a fullness of life, a life dedicated to service, to love and harmony in the home, and the fruits of honest toil—an acceptance of the Gospel of Jesus Christ—of its requirements and commandments. Only in these will you find true happines

Just men (and women) made perfect through Christ

"Now those men, or those women, who know no more about the power of God, and the influences of the Holy Spirit, than to be led entirely by another person, suspending their own understanding, and pinning their faith upon another's sleeve, will never be capable of entering into the celestial glory, to be crowned as they anticipate; they will never be capable of becoming Gods.  They cannot rule themselves, to say nothing of ruling others, but they must be dictated to in every trifle, like a child.  They cannot control themselves in the least, but James, Peter, or somebody else must control them.  They never can become Gods, nor be crowned as rulers with glory, immortality and eternal lives.  They never can hold scepters of glory, majesty, and power in the celestial kingdom.  Who will?  Those who are valiant and inspired with the true independence of heaven, who will go forth boldly in the service of God, leaving others to do as they please, determined to do right, though all mank

Agency and joy

In the next world, we will finally receive what we have persistently desired and chosen during mortality (Alma 29:4).   Individually, we will have made so many incontestable, on-the-record choices.   The final outcome, therefore, will be perfectly just, and all mortals will so acknowledge (Alma 29:4; Mosiah 27:31).   In effect, we will receive the degree of joy we have demonstrably chosen and which we have developed the capacity to receive… Only in the framework of faith in God’s mercy and justice can we ponder the interplay of agency and joy so central to God’s plan.   Of necessity, God’s gift of agency operates in the context of genuine alternatives among which we choose.   This is a condition fully consistent with God’s plan of happiness.   Without the very important condition of agency amid alternatives, life would be an undifferentiated “compound in one” (2 Nephi 2:11).   God’s creations would then be without real purpose, and His plan would certainly not be worthy of being cal

Those things which are prepared for those who love and fear God

The Spirit itself beareth witness to our spirit, that we are the children of God:  And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if it so be that we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together.  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Romans 8:16-18 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive of those things which are prepared for those who love and fear God 1 Corinthians 2:9 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, not perceived by ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him. Isaiah 64:4 For by my Spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I make known unto them the secrets of my will--yeah, even those things which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the hea