Come, Follow Me Insights with Taylor and Tyler | Doctrine and Covenants Lesson 50: December 6–12 “We Believe” The Articles of Faith and Official Declarations 1 and 2 | Book of Mormon Central

PART 1: Come Follow Me Insights (Articles of Faith, Dec 6-12) – powered by Happy Scribe

I’m Taylor and I’m Tyler and I’m Anthony Swett. This is Book of Mormon Centrals. Come follow me insights today. The Articles of Faith it’s exciting. As we’re now finished with our official sections in Doctrine Covenants, we’re winding down towards the finish line here for this year. And I love the fact that they let us talk about the articles of faith in this context this year. I think it’s a good fitting place to put them. Tony, what background can you give to? Where did the Articles of faith even come from?

Let me give a 1 hour and 45 minutes summary for all. I’ll give a 1 minute summary. How about that?

There you go.

Basically, it’s and the Church has settled into what we know is Navu, formerly Commerce, Illinois have all these lottery things who have gathered there and up in Chicago in Illinois, there’s a newspaper man, his name’s John Wentworth, and he basically wants to know, what is this religious group of people that’s moved into our state?

And why are there so many of them? What do you believe?

What’s going on? So Joseph Smith has a letter written to John Wentworth, the editor of a newspaper called the Chicago Democrat, and it’s a fabulous letter.

This letter is loaded with things that maybe you’re aware of or not.

Articles of faith are included in the Articles of faith are in there the standard of truth. No one how at hand can stop this work from progressing. The missionaries often recite that’s in there.

Our account is the first vision.

We have a first vision account in there. It’s such a great letter that John Wentworth never publishes it. That’s how great of a letter. No, I mean, it is a gospel classic, but Wentworth never publishes it for whatever reason. So the Church.

So we published it in our we published it in our newspaper.

Yes. And then it will later be excerpted by Franklin D. Richards when he prepares the Pearly Great Price. And that’s how we’ve gotten into the pellet price.

That’s where it is today. Okay, let’s jump in now. Articles of Faith. These are the things you’ll notice with the exception of Article of Faith number eleven, they all start with we believe there’s something pretty powerful, by the way, about that word that sometimes in our worlds, in our culture, today, our society today belief or trust faith in things that you can’t fully see and maybe even at times fully explain. Sometimes that gets denigrated or seen as naive, simpleton. Or someone would even go to the extreme of saying that that’s lame that you would believe that I love the fact that these articles of faith reinstitute this word that there’s power in choosing to believe and in aligning your action with those beliefs, even if you don’t have all the answers to every question that everybody is going to throw at you.

So without Foundation, let’s jump in. This is a very powerful broad and deep foundation on which we can base our faith in God. Starting with number one, we need to begin with the God head and who they are. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.

And I do think it’s interesting that in a letter to non latterday Saints saying, what do you believe? The very first thing that Joseph Smith has is we believe in God and in His Son and in the Holy Ghost kind of as a flag for us of where maybe we should start with other people as well.

I love that which then takes us to the next article, which in a scriptural sense in the religious world of 1842. This is an important doctrine. Verse two, we believe that men will be punished for their own sins and not for Adam’s transgression. Did you notice there that he made a distinction between our sins versus being punished for Adam’s transgression? So you’ll notice that there are places in the biblical account where it refers to the fall of Adam and Eve, and there are times where it will even use the word sin.

But you’ll notice in the Book of Mormon doctrine and Covenants Pearl of great Price, it never refers to Adam and Eve and what they did in the Garden of Eden as a sin. It always refers to them committing a transgression. President Delany choked back. In 1993, October General Conference gave a talk about the plan of happiness. And in there he describes using more legal terms the difference between a transgression and a sin, and why in our Restoration Scripture, we don’t refer to what Adam and Eve did as a sin, but they transgressed a specific law to Eden at that time.

Well, and at the heart of it, sin, the nature of sin is meaning. I’m an open rebellion against God. There’s a major difference there.

Yeah, which in 1842, in the religious environment of the United States at that time, many people believing in this notion of original sin or original guilt that you’re born into article of faith. Number two is kind of a firm foundation being planted to say, look, you are not accountable for what Adam and Eve did.

And many of Joseph Smith’s revelations too, whether in the Daughter of Covenants and the Book of Mormon, saying, children also are not born with this. Therefore they’re innocent before God. They’re pure, so that actually kind of somewhat ties into verse two as well.

So great cross reference. If you want to write cross references in your scripture would be Moroni chapter eight, where Mormon gives a great letter to his son Moroni about that idea of the innocence of children being alive in Christ through his infinite atonement, which now brings us to number three or article of faith number three, we believe that through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved. How, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel. So it’s this two part article of faith, one, the foundation that Jesus Christ provides for us to find Salvation and then the essence of His gospel, which is what he will help us do to be able to tap into that which is to be faithful to the laws and ordinances of His gospel.

They’re not manmade. So what are those laws and ordinances takes four. Tony, take it.

Well, it’s interesting that they call him the first principles and ordinances, which are what we might call the Gospel of Christ, the Book of Mormon, and even the doctrine covenants. This is my gospel. Sometimes in the Church, when we say the gospel the gospel, we can use it as a catch all word for anything and everything the Church has ever taught, as though setting up 1000 metal chairs is part of a needing as part of the gospel. That’s the core of the I’m just kidding. The gospel is very simple and it’s taught in the Book of Mormon doctrine covenants in here.

Very clearly it’s faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Second, repentance. Third, that we make a Covenant commitment to God by baptism. And then fourth, that we receive the Holy Ghost by only one of hands. And so Jesus over and over says, this is my gospel, and that’s what saves somebody. That’s really important too, to jump back a number of sections ago that you guys already touched on section 76, who goes to the slasher Kingdom, and it doesn’t list perfect people. It lists people who are made perfect by Christ through faith in him, repentance a Covenant connection and receiving a spirit over a lifetime over a lifetime.

This is not an event. This is a long process. Now. I think it’s important for us to point out here that as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints, we are not claiming to have a corner on the market with those first two principles of the gospel of faith in Lord Jesus Christ and repentance. Some of the best people you’ll meet aren’t going to be members of the Church as far as their faith in God and their trust in Christ and their willingness to change their heart and their mind and to go to God.

I think the unique thing that our Church is offering through the priesthood keys that have been restored to the Earth from Jesus Christ to latter day prophets is those keys that open up the ordinances of the gospel that help people on that pathway towards eternal life.

This is a restoration of Covenant and Covenant is through the ordinances of the priesthood, and that’s really at the heart of the restoration.

Absolutely. So you’ll notice this interesting progression from establishing the identity of the Godhead, then our identity as sons and daughters in this big family of Adam and Eve with agency to act and the Savior’s atonement which allows me to repent and to make things right as I seek to do my best to follow the laws and ordinances that he lays out. Then he gives those first principles and ordinances of the gospel. But how are they to be administered? Can just anybody go and do that? Can anybody who feels like they want to help me baptize me?

Or does it have to be done in a certain way by a certain person? Number five.

Yeah, that we believe a man must be called to God. And I’ll make a comment on that in a second, by prophecy and by the laying out of hands by those who are in authority to preach the gospel and a Minister in the ordinances there you have to have authority to teach and administer these ordinances. These ordinances have to be done by authority. But I would add, if it’s okay, I’m maybe a little partial this in particular because I have a daughter on a mission right now, and when she left on her mission, reread verse five, we believe that a woman must be called of God.

My daughter was called of God by prophecy, by prophets who hold keys and by revelation, and she had hands laid on her head by those who are in authority and gave her authority to preach the gospel. Now priesthood office holders nails administer the ordinances. When my daughter left, I told her, you have just as much authority to preach the gospel as any male has authority to preach the gospel because she was called by prophecy.

And by those who had authority that’s beautiful and the same exists for any woman or man called an award, a branch, a stake calling when they’re called and set apart by laying on of hands, they have the power of God to operate in that calling and to preach the gospel. Now the 6th article of faith takes us to the organization which has that authority given to and that embodies those teachings and those ordinances the vehicle, if you will, by which we take the gospel and the Covenant and administer it to all the world.

So number six, as we believe in the same organization that existed in the primitive Church, namely, Apostles notice Apostles are listed first and prophets are listed second in the normal Church speech that we use. Most people if asked which is hire a Prophet or an Apostle. Most would say a profit because we’ve used that word as a title to represent. Usually when we just use it in the singular, the Prophet. We’re usually referring to the President of the Church or the chief Apostle.

When in reality or we’re saying Prophet, Sears and Revelators. But their office is.

An Apostle is a Prophet seer and a Revelator. So the Book of Hebrews in the New Testament talks about this that it’s better to have an Apostle than it is to have an Old Testament Prophet because an Apostle is all three, and it’s pretty powerful. And so he starts with that one Apostles, then prophets. By the way, we’re getting probably this list from Ephesians Apostles, prophets and then pastors. What is a pastor? It’s this shepherding idea. Now, Anthony, you happen to have a calling right now where you have a little flock that you are in charge of being the pastor, for, which means you look over that flock and you help feed them and you help provide for their needs and protect them.

Bishops and state presidents can fill these roles beautifully. And then you’ll notice this next one. Teachers, if you’re called to be a teacher in your nursery or in the primary or in the young men or the young women or the Sunday school or the elders corner, the new society or any other position, maybe an early morning seminary teacher. Some of you being a teacher in this Church is something that is given by God. It’s part of our articles of faith. This is a very.

Very important role that’s not only just teachers in the teacher’s quorum.

No, as a whole, this is teachers of the gospel and then evangelists and so forth in the Christian world at large, evangelists are usually considered to be the missionaries, the ones that go out. Joseph Smith gave us some interesting interpretation of that word.

Yeah. Joseph Smith gave evangelist as patriarchs in the Church and beginning with his own father as early as 18, 33, 34, we had a patriarch or patriarchs in the Church.

Yeah. Now I’m running out of room on my board here. Number seven, once you have all of this initial groundwork laid, you’ll notice that the 7th article of faith then goes to what are the fruits that are going to flow out of that Church as far as the gifts of the Spirit, what’s going to be manifest if you go to that Church and associate with these people?

Yeah. And you probably had a lot of discussions already when you did section 46. And you were at home of talking about gifts of the Spirit. I do think it’s important in context in Joseph’s time, right. At this time, there were people who kind of would dampen spiritual gifts. They didn’t think that they were logical or what educated, rational people would do. They want Christianity to be appealing in that way. And so they kind of suppress the gifts of the Spirit as something that’s erratic. And one of our main claims from the very beginning is no.

If you receive the Holy Ghost, you’re going to receive the gifts of the Spirit and these things, you will have the spirit of prophecy. You can have a vision, there will be healings, etc. And that’s an important point from the beginning of the restoration. And if these things are gone, then what does Mormon say? Faith is gone.

Faith is gone. Yeah. If miracles ceased, then we’re in big trouble. So, seven, we believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues and so forth. And for some of you who have perhaps served a foreign mission or needed to learn a foreign language, you maybe have experienced points where you pledge for the gift of tongues. And I’ll never forget I was in Kurdishepa, Brazil, sitting in Sacrament meeting. I’d only been there two weeks. My Portuguese was terrible. I was sitting in Sacrament meeting, waiting for the meeting to start when the Bishop came up and I’m sitting there next to Elder Pratt, my trainer and the Bishop tapped on my shoulder and said something to me.

I had no idea what he said, so I turned to Elder Pratt for interpretation. Elder Pratt said the speaker didn’t show up one of their two speakers, and he wants you to come and speak. It’s like, what? Are you kidding me? No way. And I was scared to death as I stood up and followed that Bishop up to the stand and sat down. I had no idea what to say, even if I was going to speak in English, let alone in my broken Portuguese brothers and sisters.

That was an amazing experience where I pled with God to help me get out of the way and to deliver some message that this congregation needed to hear. In spite of my weakness, I don’t know how, but the Portuguese just flowed and people came up afterward and they were congratulating on my language and I’m thinking I got this language figured out, and I’m sitting here trying to have these conversations with people after the meeting. It was terrible. It was gone. It was back to how I was before.

But there was a moment when I was given that talk when it did just flow. And there were other moments like that through my mission. I guess my point is sometimes we get this idea that these spiritual gifts have to be permanent. Sometimes they come in a flash for a specific need and then service purpose. Now, number eight, this one is a big one for the Wentworth letter for 10 00 18 42. Context, where do we stand with regards to Scriptures? We believe the Bible to be the Word of God as far as it is translated correctly.

And we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.

To me, that first line is a big deal. If we just take that one alone, we believe the Bible to be the Word of God. Period. We need to make sure we share that. People remember the Book of Mormon says that one of the reasons why the the Book of Mormon written was to prove the truthfulness of the Bible. We believe the Bible is God’s word.

So some will say things like the Bible is perfect. It’s immutable it’s inviolate. It is the mind and will and voice of God. The problem with that is that the word Bible. I’ll by itself. If you look at the etymology of the word, it comes from the diminutive form of the French word bibliotec, which is a library. So it’s the diminutive form of that, which means it’s a little library. Well, that’s a perfect name for that book because you have 66 books inside this little library, the Bible, and those 66 books have been translated into every language, I think, on the Earth.

And in English alone, you have dozens and dozens, if not hundreds, of translations of the Bible. So the claim of it is perfect. It’s Invalid. It would be so rich version because these people weren’t speaking English. None of them were speaking English. Back in the older New Testament. There are multiple translations and transmissions and reinterpretations and passage of time that create these struggles. And if anybody has ever done any translation work, you know that this gets pretty tricky not just for giving you the black words on the white page, but in the way you then interpret it and translate it for your own life, for your own setting.

I love the fact that our prophets are encouraging us to hear Him to turn to God and get answers. Well, one of the places to turn for putting our roots in to get those answers as we turn to God is into the scriptures and make sure that we’re seeking to understand what God wants us to learn from what we’re reading.

That’s a good segue in the revelation, isn’t it?

For number nine, which is number nine, how do you live your life? And how do you know sources of truth? You seek the gifts of the Spirit, you turn to the Scriptures and then you seek for revelation. Go ahead and read number nine.

We believe all that God has revealed, all that he does now reveal and something we’ll talk about as we get into official declaration one and two, and that he will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. That is such an important line that there is yet great and important revelations that will come pertaining to the Kingdom of God in the future.

Which is such a powerful concept coming from Joseph Smith saying, Look, I’ve either not received or not been allowed to give everything that God wants us to have. Yet it will continue to come. And section 101, we’re told that when Jesus comes again, he will reveal all things, including things which have been hidden from the beginning and no man ever knew them, which tells us that we could probably be a little more Meek and humble in admitting what we don’t know and that we don’t have all the answers yet the limitations of what has been revealed and be grateful for what we do have and believe in the things that we’ve received and move forward in faith with those which now brings us to number ten, which was on the conscious mind of many religionists in the 1840s.

This idea of scattered Israel and the tribes of Israel and the gathering of Israel. This is not unique to our Church. There were a lot of people talking about this. So verse ten, you get this or article of faith number ten, you get this idea that the New Jerusalem is actually going to be here. This is kind of an important article of faith. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel, not symbolic and in the restoration of the ten tribes that Zion, the New Jerusalem will be built upon the American continent and that Christ will reign personally upon the Earth and that the Earth will be renewed and receive it’s.

Paradiseycle that is loaded.

There is so much there in verse ten, and obviously our prophets encouraging us to gather Israel on both sides of the veil as we talk about the literal gathering of Israel. But I wouldn’t overlook that. That’s a literal gathering. There’s a spiritual gathering. But there’s a literal gathering too. Now what that fully looks like? I don’t know. But he’s saying we leave Israel must literally be regathered. And then also don’t forget that Zion, that New Jerusalem is a city. It is one of the main focuses of Joseph Smith’s prophetic mission and the Book of Mormon and the Book of Ether.

There literally will be a new Jerusalem, a new Holy city built upon the American continent. That’s one of our articles of faith.

And keep in mind 1842. It’s what nine years previously in 33, when the Saints were driven out of Jackson County independence where that center stake of Zion was designated to be built. Verse eleven. Religious freedom and free conscience to be able to worship God. Verse eleven, we claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience and allow all men the same privilege. Let them worship how, where or what they Mary. So this idea of how you connect with heaven, how you worship God.

And it’s so important to Joseph Smith was very Liberal in his approach with other people’s views and beliefs. Let me say it this way a little bit better. Joseph was intolerant when people showed a lack of tolerance for other people’s religious views. He would allow people from other faiths to preach to the Saints. He saw the results of religious persecution on his own people and on others, and he didn’t want any of it in the city of Navu when it was founded. One of their big things in the charter for the Navu city charter was people can believe whatever they want and there’s not going to be like persecution.

It is so important that as we continue to participate in the global Church and the global world as global citizens that we adhere to our article of faith on that subject.

Beautiful. Now, number twelve, how do we interface with the governments and the laws of the land wherever the Church exists? We believe in being subject to Kings, presidents, rulers and Magistrates in obeying, honoring and sustaining the law. So laws and leaders. The idea is we don’t want to be the zealots that are constantly stirring up insurrection.

And we’ll touch a little bit on this one with official declaration one when laws are passed that we feel are unjust, which is exactly what they felt with the laws that were passed with antipolgamy. How did the Church respond to that? And ultimately, what did they do? And we’ll touch a little bit on this.

We’re going to come back to that one. And then number 13, which is this beautiful catch all. What kind of a person are we trying to be? So we’ve talked about all these other things leading up to now number 13, which, by the way, you could cross reference with Philippians chapter four, verse eight, because that’s the admonition of Paul that’s quoted here. We believe in being honest, true chaste. Now I’m going to pause here because what happens frequently when we’re in a scripture setting, as students or even as teachers, at times, we’ll come to a long list of good things like this.

And what does human tendency do in our mind? We zone out. We’re like, oh, yeah, this is a good list. And our brain keeps reading these nice things, these nice words on this page, but we don’t focus really intently on what it’s trying to communicate. Can I just invite you and encourage you that whenever you come to a list of good attributes in the scriptures, one way that will help you not zone out would be to stop seeing it as a list of just random good attributes, but rather see it as a list describing the Savior, Jesus Christ’s perfections characteristics, his attributes that I am trying to become like him.

So Consequently, what you’re going to read in verse 13 becomes a blueprint for our life to pattern. And after to say, Jesus is the only one who was perfectly honest. He was the only one who was 100% of the time true and chaste and benevolent and virtuous. And in doing good to all men, there’s only one person that fits that description, and that’s Jesus. Well, I want to be like him, and he wants me to be like him. And because of his infinite atonement and the ordinances and the principles of his gospel that he’s given, he’s allowed me to work through the process of time to become more like him.

So now notice that it shifts to say, indeed, we may say that we followed the admonition of Paul. Now, once again, Jesus is the only one who perfectly fits this ultimate description. But it’s not beyond us to strive for this. We believe all things. We have endured many things, and we hope to be able to endure all things.

We don’t believe all things. We believe all things in Christ. We hope all things. As Tyler has been saying, this is all centered in the Savior. We hope all things in Christ. He is the source of our hope. We don’t just hope that tomorrow a random check for a million dollars shows up to solve all of our woes. We don’t hope all things like that. We have all hope in Christ and in His promises, in what He’s extended to you and I, through His perfection. We’ve endured things and then strengthened and have hope that we can endure all things because of the Grace of Christ to help us.

So these are very Christ centric too. They’re not just general platitudes.

And isn’t it interesting that there’s no time stamp attached to article Faith number 13? He doesn’t say, for instance, we believe all things for five years. But if we can’t find an answer or resolve to that question or that doubt or that fear or make that decision clear, then we’re going to stop believing. He doesn’t say we hope all things for about a decade. And then if we haven’t gotten the blessings, then we let go of the Hope brothers and sisters. This gospel of Jesus Christ is a lifelong pursuit.

When is the first time that you can relax and say spiritually speaking? It’s a lot of work. I don’t need to keep trying anymore. I’m good. I’ve arrived at what point? I could be wrong, but I think the point for mortality is maybe once I’ve taken my final breath.

Then I can begin taking care of things in the next and then you pass into the next life and Wilford waterfall say you’re busier there than you are here.

There’s more to do. Yeah. So notice this closure is beautiful and it’s profound. If there is anything virtuous, lovely or a good reporter, praiseworthy we seek after these things. And he didn’t tell you that. You have to find only those things in Church or in the scriptures. We are seeking for these things all over this amazing Earth and all over our life, where we can find them.

God doesn’t work in a lot of places.

Absolutely. And isn’t it amazing how this happens? It can be when you hear a song. It can be when you’re out in nature. It can be when you’re sharing a meal with a friend. It can be when you’re all alone, walking around the block. It can come in a feeling of resolve and connection with heaven. When you’re sitting in a meeting and you hear a phrase or you see a word or you see a look on somebody’s face, it can happen anywhere. These little reminders along the way to keep going, keep believing, keep trusting that God knows what he’s doing and that he is able to do his own work.

I love for me the summation of the articles of faith to bring me back to the 300 foot level of looking at them and saying, Why do I care about them? They really for me become connecting points between me and heaven, where it makes me recognize more fully who God is and who I am and who my loved ones are and my circle of influence, who those people are, and I feel of God’s love for them, not just for me but for everybody, and it’s motivating to move forward.

As President Hinckley would say, to try a little harder, to be a little better, and every one of us can do that.

Hey, man.