This is a talk that my friend gave at church on
the Sunday before Christmas. I am
thankful that she agreed to let me post it on my blog.
Like most of you, I love the Christmas season.
It gives me the chance to reflect on the birth of Christ, his ministry here on
Earth, and the atoning sacrifice he made for all of us.
Some of the most beautiful scriptures written relate
to the birth of Christ.
Like Isaiah’s prophecy in chapter 9 verse 6 - For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is
given: and the government shall be upon his
shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Or
the account in 3 Nephi 1:19 - And it came to pass that there was no darkness in
all that night, but it was as light as though it was mid-day. And it came to
pass that the sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order;
and they knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born, because of the sign which had been given.
And
of course Luke chapter 2. I love when the angel is speaking to the shepherds in
verses 10 & 11-Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great
joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of
David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
But
we know that the birth of Christ was just the beginning of his mission here on
Earth. He accomplished two important things while he was here.
The
first was explained in Moses 1:39 – For behold this is My work and my glory-to
bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. We know this as the
Atonement.
The
second was made clear in John 13:15 “For I have given you an example, that ye
should do as I have done to you”. His life was an example of how we should live
ours.
The
resurrected Christ further explained these two missions when he visited the
people in ancient America. In 3 Nephi 27:13 & 14 he said, Behold I have given unto you my gospel, and this is
the gospel which I have given unto you—that I came into the world to do the will of my Father, because my Father sent me. And my
Father sent me that I might be lifted up
upon the cross; and after that I had been
lifted up upon the cross, that I might draw all men unto me. And then skipping to verse 21 - Verily,
verily, I say unto you, this is my gospel;
and ye know the things that ye must do in my
church; for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do; for that
which ye have seen me do even that shall ye do;
Everything
Christ did during his ministry was an example of how we should live. In a talk
given by Russell M. Nelson of the quorum of the 12, he listed a few ways that
Christ showed us the way. One of Christ’s first & foremost characteristics
is love. He loved everyone-He loved his earthly parents and his family. He
loved His apostles and he loved his followers. He loved the sinner without
condoning the sin. And he loved his Father in Heaven. Many of his actions
showed his love- his kindness, compassion, charity, devotion, forgiveness, and
mercy. He served his Father & he served the people. As the other speaker talked
about, WE should also be serving others. We can do this in our immediate
families, extended families, and in our ward and community. I know that when we
serve others, we grow to love them.
I
have seen this happen in my life through visiting teaching. I have had sisters
assigned to me that I hardly knew, and by getting to know them and by serving
them I have grown to love them.
When
asked what the greatest commandment was, Christ answered, (and this is in
Matthew 22:37-39) “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Christ was the perfect
example of love.
Two
other principles that Christ taught were fasting and prayer. He taught us when
to pray, how to pray, and showed us by example how to pray for others. He
fasted often and helped us understand how and why this is done.
He
also showed us the importance of ordinances. He was baptized even though he was
without sin. In Moses 6:59 he said, “ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit,
and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might
be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world,
and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory;” He also instituted the ordinance of the sacrament,
which allows us to renew our baptismal covenants each week.
Another
trait Christ showed us was endurance. He was mocked, scourged, and rejected by
His own people. He had his share of personal heartaches. He was betrayed by one
disciple and denied by another. And yet he handled these trials with grace. The
most important thing he had to endure was atoning for our sins. He never quit
on this assignment, even though he experienced suffering beyond our
comprehension. The Atonement was Christ’s ultimate mission here on earth. It
enabled everyone who has lived to be resurrected. It also allowed Christ to pay
the price for our sins. We can repent and be forgiven of our sins. The
scriptures tell us that no unclean thing can dwell in the presence of the God,
so it is only through the Atonement that we can be cleansed and return to live
with our Heavenly Father again.
We
know that if we will follow Christ’s example, keep His commandments, and allow
His atonement to work in our lives, we are promised the blessings of joy and
peace. Those two words are used often at Christmastime because they sum up the
message of Christ – joy and peace through Him.
The
greatest gift we can give to others is to share our knowledge of Christ and the
blessings that come to us through living His gospel. We have a son on a mission
in Asia, so sharing the gospel is on my mind quite often. When I think of the
term, “missionary work”, it seems like such a big job. But when I think of it
as just sharing the message of Christ, it seems like something I can do. We
have been commanded in the scriptures as well as by modern day prophets to
spread the Gospel. Now is the time to do just that.
Never
before have so many missionaries been called to assist us in this work. The
missionaries here in our ward now only cover two wards. We have some work to do
to keep them busy! President Monson said this, “Now is the time for members and
missionaries to come together and labor in the Lord’s vineyard to bring souls
unto Him. He has prepared the means for us to share the gospel in a multitude
of ways. He will assist us in our labors if we will act in faith to fulfill His
work.” I think that last line is so important-He will assist us in our labors
if we will act in faith to fulfill His work. We are promised that if we will
replace fear with faith, we will be able to accomplish anything. When you talk
with friends and neighbors, be positive. Show them the peace you have found.
Show your love for them. Pray to have the spirit with you as you share your
testimony of Christ with them. Then, look for opportunities to bring up the
gospel. The words will come to you. When you love someone, its only natural to
tell them about things that are the most important to you. They won’t be
offended or annoyed by that.
Elder
M. Russell Ballard gave a great talk on sharing the gospel in this past October
general conference. He said this, “The key is that you be inspired of God, that you
ask Him for direction and then go and do as the Spirit prompts you. When
members view the work of salvation as their responsibility alone, it can be
intimidating. When they view it as an invitation to follow the Lord in bringing
souls unto Him to be taught by the full-time elders and sisters, it is
inspiring, invigorating, and uplifting. We are not asking everyone to do
everything. We are simply asking all members to pray, knowing that if every
member, young and old, will reach out to just “one” between now and Christmas,
millions will feel the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. And what a wonderful gift
to the Savior.”
Luckily, we all still have 2 ½ days to complete his challenge. I
want to testify to you that Christ lives and that He loves each one of us. I
know that he suffered and died for us. I know that His gospel was restored to
the earth through the prophet Joseph Smith. I know that we can all do a little
bit better in sharing what we know about Christ with others and that we can get
help to do this if we just ask.
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