10:3-5 - "...And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things..."
The feelings of the Holy Ghost come through feelings of happiness, peace, etc. (Galatians 5:22). The devil cannot give us those feelings, so we can use that as a gauge to see if it is true. Although the devil may imitate those feelings through emotion, he cannot give us those specific feelings. This is how we can know the truth of all things.
10:4 - "...I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true..."
President Gordon B. Hinckley talked about this and used this scripture in the November 2007 Ensign, Pg. 83-86. "The Book of Mormon is the only book ever published, of which I know, that carries in it a promise that one who reads it prayerfully and asks concerning it in prayer will have revealed to him by the power of the Holy Ghost a knowledge that it is true."
There is a great promise, but it takes work. It's worth it!
10:23 - "...If ye have faith ye can do all things which are expedient unto me..."
This faith is essential to accomplish what the Lord wants us to do. It has to be expedient in the Lord, however. We can't just start flying, even though it's possible, unless it is expedient in the lord. He will qualify those whom He chooses and will help them accomplish the things that he commandeth them to do (1 Nephi 3:7).
10:23 - "...If ye have faith ye can do all things which are expedient unto me..."
I think this is a very good summary on a study of faith. Faith is the backbone for so many things - repentance, mercy, baptism, moving mountains, etc. If we have faith, and exercise it righteously, we will be able to accomplish all things which are expedient unto the Lord.
Let us act in faith, and open ourselves up to receiving even more of the gift of faith in our lives.
9:4 - "...when I speak the word of God with sharpness they tremble and anger against me..."
We cannot reach this level or it is almost too late because the Spirit of the Lord ceases to strive with us. We need to repent and return to Christ, taking the words of His prophets and applying them, not hardening our hearts.
9:21-22 - "...Behold, my son, I cannot recommend them unto God lest he should smite me. But behold, my son, I recommend thee unto God..."
Oh that this could be said of all of us. We need to live our life so that it is patterned after the Savior and His servants, and it may be said of us.
9:22 - "...But behold, my son, I recommend thee unto God, and I trust in Christ that thou wilt be saved..."
Mormon had faith in his son, and worked to build that up in him. We must do the same for the people in our lives - family, friends, neighbors, and associates.
8:3 - "...I am mindful of you always in my prayers..."
This is how we need to remember others, especially friends, family, and enemies (Ephesians 1:15-16, Philippians 1:3-4). We should always pray for others.
8:11-15 - "...little children need no repentance, neither baptism..."
People who think little children need baptism do not understand the plan of salvation.
Elder Octaviano Tenorio talked about this in the November 2007 Ensign, Pg. 95-97. "I know that thanks to the power of godliness manifested in the ordinances of the temple, I will now be able to know my daughter. I will embrace her, and we will be with her for eternity, just as we are now with our three surviving children...(this priesthood makes eternal families possible)."
Correct understanding brings great comfort!
8:17 - "...I love little children with a perfect love..."
Little children are innocent, and it's fun to be around them. The Savior loved little children as well - we need to treat children correctly.
8:25 - "...baptism cometh by faith unto the fulfilling the commandments..."
So many blessings of faith! Baptism...eternal life...even repentance. We rely so much on faith, sometimes without even realizing it. We must do what we can to be grateful and show Him our faith and gratefulness by accepting these things.
7:9 - "... if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart...it profiteth him nothing..."
If we are insincere, it's as if we are not praying at all. Many great blessings come from prayer, but it takes work sometimes (Bible Dictionary - Prayer).
7:12-13 - "...that which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually..."
We are constantly being pulled to do either good or evil. We would not act if we were not enticed one way or the other (2 Nephi 2:16). We must choose to act on the good enticements and leave the evil behind.
7:15 - "...it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil..."
The choices we have in life are black and white, and often we try to make things gray to please our own desires. We have the commandments given to us, and they are plain to help us know what we should do.
7:32-33 - "...after this manner [of faith] bringeth to pass the Father, the covenants which he hath made unto the children of men..."
I can see this in many ways. We can only perform covenants through the priesthood in faith.
I have studied and tried to increase my faith and it feels like it has prepared me to make covenants with the Lord and my family, especially with getting married to my wife. We must do our best to make and keep sacred covenants.
7:33-48 - Faith, Hope, and Charity
We have faith in Jesus Christ, hope for eternal life, so we may have Charity (or Love) as in the pure love like Christ's Love. As we increase our faith in Jesus Christ through him and his Atonement, we increase our hope for eternal life, which eliminates despair, and helps us to want to be more like Him, and have Love like Him, and serve others like He would serve.
7:47 - "...But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him..."
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin talked about this in the November 2007 Ensign, pg. 28-31, talking about how we can gain this pure love. He said, "If we wish to learn truly how to love, all we need to do is reflect on the life of our Savior."
As we come to learn and follow the example of the Savior, we will gain this pure love.
6:2-4 - "...Neither did they receive any unto baptism save they came forth with a broken heart and a contrite spirit..."
If we have not truly repented of our sins, baptism is not going to help us out too much. We need to be sincere in our repentance and desire to come unto Christ.
6:4 - "...that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God..."
President Hinckley has said that every new convert (and basically everybody in the church) needs a friend, a responsibility, and to be nourished by the good word of God. We should help where we can, especially with helping others come unto Christ.
6:4 - "...Christ...was the author and the finisher of their faith..."
Jesus Christ made it possible for us to have faith, and we must be grateful. He also made it possible that our faith can be 'finished' or 'refined.' If we will let Him, He can help us increase and refine our faith.
6:9 - "...And their meetings were conducted by the church after the manner of the workings of the Spirit, and by the power of the Holy Ghost..."
It's important to conduct meetings by the Spirit - we need to be led by the Spirit in all things and baptism leads us to the Spirit.
5:1-2 - "...that they may have his Spirit to be with them..."
It's necessary to repent and take the sacrament weekly because it helps us have the Spirit with us at all times. The Spirit cannot dwell in unholy places, so we need to repent and have a cleansing. It will help us throughout our lives.
5:2 - "...that they may witness unto thee..."
It's not enough to just think of Christ - we must show God that we do remember them. We must show that our remembrance galvanizes our faith into action, and that we help others do the same.
4:1 - "...they administered it according to the commandments of Christ..."
Obedience with exactness is what we need to do. We must do what is expected of us. If we sin, we must repent and come unto Christ.
4:2-3 - "...in remembrance...and always remember him..."
A rock climber was once saved from certain death by his climbing partner, and when asked how he thanked his savior, he said, "The best way to thank him is to always remember him."
We show our gratefulness by renewing our covenants weekly to remember our Savior.
4:3 - "...and always remember him..."
This is a key component of faith. How can we have faith in somebody we don't know or try to get to know regularly? We can all do better to remember Him. We want to be remembered, and we should do the same.
