Our Clan of Celtic Offspring: I'd Like to Bear My Testimony

Friday, July 11, 2008

I'd Like to Bear My Testimony

To heed the counsel of the apostles, I would like to share my testimony with everyone I know and everyone I don't. Let me first begin by saying that there are times in my life when I have taken for granted the things that I know. There have been times when life's challenges and circumstances have, unfortunately, bogged me down or made me 'too busy' to stop and daily ponder the things I know. However, I have never doubted, nor ever will what I know to be true.

I know I have a Heavenly Father. I know that I am truly His daughter. I know that as a earthy father loves and is aware of his children, my Heavenly Father loves and is aware of me only on a much grander scale. I know that He hears me when I pray to Him. I know He answers me. I know that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to this earth to intercede in my behave. Christ came willingly as a most beloved Brother to sacrifice Himself for all of God's children. I know that Jesus Christ is my personal Savior. He lived and died for me, so that I may have the opportunity to return to live again with my Father in Heaven. I know that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ can I receive not only salvation, but also exaltation. I know that by and through this miraculous ordinance, I can be made pure, made whole and eventually made perfect. I have felt the power of the Atonement in my life, not only when I have needed the divine gift of forgiveness, but also when I have needed the divine gift of comfort, peace and healing.

I know that there was an apostasy and a falling away from truth after Christ's death and the death of the Apostles. And I know that Christ called for a restoration of all things. I know that this Restoration of Christ's gospel in it's fullness was revealed to Joseph Smith in 1820 in a grove of trees. I know that the Father and the Son standing side by side appeared to Joseph Smith as he prayed for guidance. I know that Joseph Smith was divinely appointed to translate the Book of Mormon. I know the Book of Mormon to be the word of God and His Son, Jesus Christ. I know that God intends for us to have a living prophet and modern revelation.

I have a testimony of the doctrines of the restored gospel. I have a testimony of tithing, temple ordinances, the priesthood and eternal families. I know that the power of God has been given to man once again. And I know that only with proper authority can man act in God's name. The power of the Priesthood as given to Peter, James and John was given to Joseph Smith and is on the earth today. With the Priesthood, sacred ordinances such as baptism, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and temple ordinances can be performed for both the living and the dead.

I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is Christ's church upon the earth today. Christ is it's Head. He guides and directs and leads through a living Prophet, Thomas S. Monson and the Quorum of the 12 Apostles. And I know that Jesus Christ will come to the earth again to reign as Lord and King.

I know these things because I have studied, I have prayed, I have asked in faith with sincere intent, having faith in Christ, and the Holy Ghost has confirmed to me the truthfulness of these things. And I leave them with you, in the name of the Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

1 comment:

kemp-y-QUA!! said...: you rock.

i like this church because of how it makes me feel.; July 14, 2008 at 6:02 AM

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The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles

As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth. He was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New. Under the direction of His Father, He was the creator of the earth. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). Though sinless, He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness. He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38), yet was despised for it. His gospel was a message of peace and goodwill. He entreated all to follow His example. He walked the roads of Palestine, healing the sick, causing the blind to see, and raising the dead. He taught the truths of eternity, the reality of our premortal existence, the purpose of our life on earth, and the potential for the sons and daughters of God in the life to come. He instituted the sacrament as a reminder of His great atoning sacrifice. He was arrested and condemned on spurious charges, convicted to satisfy a mob, and sentenced to die on Calvary’s cross. He gave His life to atone for the sins of all mankind. His was a great vicarious gift in behalf of all who would ever live upon the earth. We solemnly testify that His life, which is central to all human history, neither began in Bethlehem nor concluded on Calvary. He was the Firstborn of the Father, the Only Begotten Son in the flesh, the Redeemer of the world. He rose from the grave to “become the firstfruits of them that slept” (1 Corinthians 15:20). As Risen Lord, He visited among those He had loved in life. He also ministered among His “other sheep” (John 10:16) in ancient America. In the modern world, He and His Father appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, ushering in the long-promised “dispensation of the fulness of times” (Ephesians 1:10). Of the Living Christ, the Prophet Joseph wrote: “His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters, even the voice of Jehovah, saying: “I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father” (D&C 110:3–4). Of Him the Prophet also declared: “And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives! “For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father— “That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (D&C 76:22–24). We declare in words of solemnity that His priesthood and His Church have been restored upon the earth—“built upon the foundation of … apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:20). We testify that He will someday return to earth. “And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together” (Isaiah 40:5). He will rule as King of Kings and reign as Lord of Lords, and every knee shall bend and every tongue shall speak in worship before Him. Each of us will stand to be judged of Him according to our works and the desires of our hearts. We bear testimony, as His duly ordained Apostles—that Jesus is the Living Christ, the immortal Son of God. He is the great King Immanuel, who stands today on the right hand of His Father. He is the light, the life, and the hope of the world. His way is the path that leads to happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come. God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son. © 2000 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. English approval: 12/99. 36299