6:1
The work of this church is a great and marvelous work. “A great and marvelous work is about to come forth unto the children of men.” But what is the work? I think the answer is simple but broad. The footnote illustrates in D&C 18. “And by your hands I will work a marvelous work among the children of men, unto the convincing of many of their sins, that they may come unto repentance, and that they may come unto the kingdom of my Father.”
This work is about exercising faith in Jesus Christ and repenting. The church offers the priesthood so that ordinances of baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost can be administered. The church helps us come unto Christ by offering other sacred ordinances in temples that we can receive. The church also offers opportunities to serve and love our fellow man. The church gives a charge to avoid light mindedness and any unholy or impure practice.
The church has the priesthood which is a sacred brother and sisterhood in a holy order after the Son of God. This order allows the power of God to be administered in a consistent way across the world. The purpose of the priesthood is to help members of the church progress in their living of the gospel. The purpose of the priesthood is to gather Israel.
So, this great and marvelous work is God’s work. It’s great and marvelous.
6:2
“Behold, I am God; give heed unto my word, which is quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow; therefore give heed unto my words.” The word of God is truly the eternal element of this world. Every single other thing will become dust. Every man, woman and child will die. Every plant and animal will die. Every worldly kingdom will fall. Every structure will pass away in a fervent heat. The only thing that will remain is what God has spoken.
His words are clear and precise. We can trust his words. We can live our lives based on his words. There are always consequences to disregarding his words. No strength of flesh compares to the strength contained in the words of God. His words will divide those who are on his right side and who’s on the left.
6:3
“Behold, the field is white already to harvest; therefore, whoso desireth to reap, let him thrust in his sickle with his might, and reap while the day lasts, that he may treasure up for his soul everlasting salvation in the kingdom of God.” What does it mean, “while the day lasts?”
We all have our personal opportunity to gather Israel. We all have a personal opportunity to share the gospel. We all have a personal opportunity to receive the promptings of the Holy Ghost. We all have a personal opportunity to serve others. We all have a personal opportunity to bring others to Christ. Our “personal opportunity” is the length of our day.
There will come a day when we can’t do any of this in this world. Whether we become too old and feeble or we just simply die. The day of opportunity will eventually close. Simply put, our lifetime is how long the day will last where we have an opportunity to “trust in his sickle with his might, and reap.” As we earnestly do this, we will be building a treasure for our souls in the kingdom of God.
6:7
“Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich.” Knowing the purpose of life is worth how much? How much money would you take to forget the purpose of life? How much gold could I give you when the price is forgetting the plan of Salvation. How much crypto would it take to lose your knowledge of the Savior?
looking at riches in this way, who is more rich - someone who understands the mysteries of God or someone who has a lot of money. Those of us that are blessed to understand, in detail, the atonement of Jesus Christ and our glorious future OR those who can buy a lot of stuff? When we look at things from the correct perspective, the value of money verses wisdom is made clear.
6:9
“Say nothing but repentance unto this generation; keep my commandments, and assist to bring forth my work, according to my commandments, and you shall be blessed.” What are we to preach? The primary message is to have faith in Jesus Christ and come unto him through repentance. This faith in Christ and a willingness to repent is what will fuel our progression into the eternities.
If we will preach repentance AND keep the commandments AND do our part in this great and marvelous work, WE WILL BE BLESSED. Blessed with what? Eternal life.
6:12
“Make not thy gift known unto any save it be those who are of thy faith. Trifle not with sacred things.” I’ve learned this over and over in the last few years. There are principles of the gospel that I have figured out through much study and thought. On occasion, I’ve shared what I’ve learned with those who weren’t ready to hear it. It never ends in the way I hope. I guess I expect that they will immediately throw their hands in the air and praise Jesus and shake my hand in gratitude for me dispensing my amazing knowledge to them.
Instead, it almost never lands in their brains - certainly not their heart. It’s like my words bounce right off of their ears. I need to be more deliberate with who I share something that’s taken me a while to discover. Those who aren’t prepared will not hear what I’m saying. In the footnote, there are a couple of good references:
Proverbs 23:9 “Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words.”
D&C 10:36-37 “Behold, I do not say that you shall not show it unto the righteous; But as you cannot always judge the righteous, or as you cannot always tell the wicked from the righteous, therefore I say unto you, hold your peace until I shall see fit to make all things known unto the world concerning the matter.”
6:14-15
How easy is it to know if we are being prompted or taught by the Spirit? In Moroni, we read, “Wherefore, all things which are good cometh of God.” So, let’s just assume that if we have a good or correct or insightful thought, that it is coming from the Spirit. “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, blessed art thou for what thou hast done; for thou hast inquired of me, and behold, as often as thou hast inquired thou hast received instruction of my Spirit. If it had not been so, thou wouldst not have come to the place where thou art at this time. Behold, thou knowest that thou hast inquired of me and I did enlighten thy mind; and now I tell thee these things that thou mayest know that thou hast been enlightened by the Spirit of truth.”
We don’t need the Lord to tell us the same thing. We can assume that this principle is true for us as children of Heavenly Father. The two big points that I’m getting from this is:
As often as we will sincerely ask for instruction, we will receive it. We MUST have faith that this is the case. I think many of us believe that God is far too busy or that he wants us to be more self-reliant and develop. Sure, God wants us to develop and won’t do things for us. But, he absolutely will strengthen and teach us if we ask for it in prayer. There are a dozen scriptures that tell us so. The challenge is to ask for the inspiration and then have the patience to listen for the inspiration to come. I’m usually heading straight to bed or starting my day. Imagine if I asked you for your thoughts about something and then immediately walked away after asking you. That would be weird and ineffective.
When our minds are enlightened, we should safely assume that it is coming from the Spirit. I would say that a solid amount of my enlightenment comes when I am pondering the scriptures. You could say that this is my primary conduit to enlightenment from the Spirit. This is good. What would make it better is if I could also develop prayer as another line of communication with the Spirit. My enlightenment could double! I have ADHD so patiently waiting for enlightenment in prayer is tricky for me but it’s something I should lean into.
6:16
“Yea, I tell thee, that thou mayest know that there is none else save God that knowest thy thoughts and the intents of thy heart.” This is interesting. I think I’ve unconsciously thought that perhaps Satan could hear my thoughts and that’s how he knows what to whisper to me. This scripture is pretty straightforward. Satan doesn’t have insight into our thoughts. That makes me feel good but also illustrates how good Satan knows human nature. He knows what whispers will be effective simply from seeing the surface. It’s a capable enemy that we are fighting.
6:32
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, as I said unto my disciples, where two or three are gathered together in my name, as touching one thing, behold, there will I be in the midst of them—even so am I in the midst of you.” Keep in mind that this was given to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery early on. The church was small. The Lord is reminding them that, although their numbers are small, the Lord is still with them.
This is true for us. It does not require a congregation or a stadium full of people to invite the presence of the Lord. If just two people are united in a righteous purpose and are asking for guidance, they will receive it. Whether in a small family prayer, a companionship in missionary work, or two friends studying the gospel together, Christ’s presence is real and promised. If I think about this, it’s a very powerful promise.
We should have faith in this promise and appreciate the value of even small gatherings. This may be a family home evening, a ministering visit, a Sunday School class, or simply a couple kneeling in prayer. I must admit that I haven’t thought in this way as much as I should. I will keep this in mind going forward.
6:33-35
“Fear not to do good, my sons, for whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap; therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward.” Sometimes, we let the baggage of past mistakes or a feeling of being overwhelmed paralyzed us. Or we may feel like the obstacle that we’re facing is too much. We should boil it down to simply “going good.”
Perhaps we’ve got a long wake of past mistakes. Those past mistakes can just be in the past and we can work to string a series of good choices beginning right now. “Therefore, fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail.” We can replace fear with action - instead of worrying about what’s going to happen in the future, let’s focus on what we can do right now, today, in faith.
Most serious problems can be overcome by a chain of a few good decisions. I know someone who is having trouble in life. Their problems are complicated and serious. But, if he could make a few good choices, he could work his way out of it. For example, one good choice of going to bed and getting up on a regular schedule would solve a lot of his current issues.
If we’ve got a mountain of bad choices behind us, it doesn’t prevent us from doing good this morning or afternoon or evening or tomorrow. Our past decisions don’t control us. “Behold, I do not condemn you; go your ways and sin no more; perform with soberness the work which I have commanded you.” The Lord’s words to Joseph Smith and the adulterous woman are nearly identical. Their pasts couldn’t have been more different but God’s feelings and lack of condemnation towards either is exactly the same.
6:36
“Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.” How is this possible? Surely, we cannot think of Jesus in EVERY thought. So what does it mean?
We should work to train our mind to think of Christ when we’re facing decisions, challenges or just something that we are worrying about. We should ask, “What would Christ want me to do?”
In times of temptations or struggle, we should think to pray for strength rather than simply rely on ourselves.
If we have a negative thought, we may want to replace it with: “Christ is with me - I don’t need to be afraid” or “I trust in His timing.”
We can strengthen our relationship with him DAILY by studying the scriptures, frequent prayer and listening to uplifting music, conference talks or good podcasts (Marci’s favorite).
Looking to Christ in every thought isn’t literal. But it is the way we think and how we react and how we make decisions. Any thought CAN be based on a foundation of Christ:
“This guy bugs me!” Vs. “How can I help him?”
“What decision should I make? Vs. “I should pray and listen to the Spirit’s promptings.”
“I don’t know if I can do this calling.” Vs. “The Lord will help me succeed.”
“This is what I want to do.” Vs. “What is His will?”
“What is this idiot doing in the fast lane!” Vs. “He’s one of God’s children and I don’t know what he’s going through.”
“I hope he gets what he deserves.” Vs. “I forgive him.”
“I love listening to Eminem.” Vs. “What could I listen to that would bring me closer to Christ.”
These are examples of how I can look to Christ in every thought.
8:6-8
“Now this is not all thy gift; for you have another gift, which is the gift of Aaron; behold, it has told you many things; Behold, there is no other power, save the power of God, that can cause this gift of Aaron to be with you. Therefore, doubt not, for it is the gift of God; and you shall hold it in your hands, and do marvelous works; and no power shall be able to take it away out of your hands, for it is the work of God.”
So, I did a little research about what the “gift of Aaron” is. It appears that it was a stick or rod. Aaron used a rod to bring forth plagues such as turning the water to blood. It was also Aaron’s rod that turned into a snake for Pharoah. Apparently, Oliver had a divining rod that would allow him to do “marvelous works.”
I am today’s years old when I have learned about this. It is interesting. It makes sense to me that having an object in my hands that allows me to focus my faith is useful. Because this rod isn’t mentioned later, I assume that Oliver (and Joseph) were able to receive revelation without the use of an object.
Truly, the gift of Aaron is the gift of revelation. The object isn’t the point, faith is the point. But, if an object helps us to have faith, great. It also reminds me of Thor. In the movie Ragnarok, his special hammer is broken to pieces. He explains to his father than he cannot do what he once did because he doesn’t have the hammer. His dad says something like, “Really? Are you Thor, the ‘god of hammers?’ That hammer was meant only to focus your power - it was never the source of power.” So, yeah, Thor and Oliver both enjoyed having a magical object for a while.
9:3, 6
In the scriptures, patience doesn’t mean what we first think. When I read the word “patience,” I first think of how I have to be more patient with my fellow man. But this, usually, isn’t what it means when the scriptures talk about patience. Instead, patience deals directly with how we interact with God:
We must wait patiently for God’s timing.
Our prayers may be answered in a way other that what we desire.
We may experience a trial that the Lord doesn’t save us from.
Our lives may actually be one heartache after another.
In any uncomfortable situation, we are supposed to patiently endure the trial or delay. Joseph and Oliver were encouraged to be patient. “Be patient, my son, for it is wisdom in me, and it is not expedient that you should translate at this present time.” Obviously, Oliver wanted to translate but it wasn’t time. In fact, he was supposed to but delayed and the Lord took that privilege.
The point is to endure whatever comes patiently. “Do not murmur, my son, for it is wisdom in me that I have dealt with you after this manner.” We may not see the big picture or God’s point of view but we must have faith that he knows everything and is in complete control.
9:7-9
“Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.” I think that I have, in most cases, assumed that God knew my situation and would give me blessings or direction regardless if I asked for it or not. That’s NOT how it goes. We cannot suppose that God will just give us intelligence or answers or power without ASKING!
But, what do we ask? Do we simply say, “tell me what to do Lord?” No. God is not going to do anything for us that we can do ourselves. So, if we have a big decision, it is up to us to study every choice and MAKE OUR OWN CHOICE and THEN ask if it be right. “But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right. But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me.”
I am so grateful for this scripture and this pattern of receiving revelation. I have been blessed greatly by using this process outlined in these verses. When I was deciding to marry Marci, many were very concerned that I was making such a hasty decision after being divorced only a few months. But, I had prayed and fasted and pondered in the temple. I can say that I had a great burning in my bosom and I knew that Marci and I should be together. I had made the decision to marry her and I wanted a confirmation that it was right and I definitely received one that will stay in my memory forever.
I’m so grateful that there is a scripture that spells out the process for me. I needed that I guess. I can say that these verses have had more impact in my life and just about any other scripture!
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