To commemorate the life of President Thomas S. Monson (1927-2018), I decided to pick up the following volume:
Teachings of Thomas S. Monson (comp. Lynne F. Cannegieter; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2011)
It arrived today. Here are some excerpts from the book that I found particularly interesting and uplifting:
Mankind as “co-creators” with God
God left the world unfinished for man to work his skill upon. He left the electricity in the cloud, the oil in the earth. He left the river unbridged, the forests unfelled and the cities unbuilt. God gives to us the challenge of raw materials, not the ease of finished things. He leaves the pictures unpainted and the music unsung and the problems unsolved, that we might know the joys and glories of creation. (“Your Future Awaits,” BYU College of Engineering and Technology Convocation, April 25, 2003) (pp. 76-77)
The Potency of True Faith (cf. Heb 11; Ether 12)
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that the brother of Jared saw the finger of God touch the stones in response to his plea.
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that Noah erected an ark in obedience to the command from God.
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that Abraham was willing to offer up his beloved Isaac as a sacrifice.
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that Abraham was willing to offer up his beloved Isaac as a sacrifice.
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt and through the Red Sea.
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that Joshua and his followers brought the walls of Jericho tumbling down.
It was by faith, nothing wavering, that Joseph [Smith] saw God our Eternal Father and Jesus Christ his Son . . .
There is a golden thread that runs through every account of faith from the beginning of the world to the present time. Abraham, Noah, the brother of Jared, the Prophet Joseph, and countless others wanted to be obedient to the will of God. They had ears that could hear, eyes that could see, and hearts that could know and feel.
They never doubted. They trusted. (“Come unto Me,” Conference Report, April 1964, 131, 132) (p. 107)
“Faith” and “Doubt” are Antithetical
It was not raining when Noah was commanded to build an ark. Two Heavenly Personages were not yet seen when Joseph knelt and prayed. There was no visible ram in the thicket when Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac. First came the rest of faith, and then the miracle.
Remember that faith and doubt cannot exist in the same mind at the same time, or one will dispel the other. Cast out doubt. Cultivate faith. Strive always to retain that childlike faith which can move mountains and bring heaven closer to heart and home. (“The Lighthouse of the Lord,” General Young Women Meeting, March 22, 1980) (p. 108)
Thomas Monson Affirms Joseph Smith’s Teachings about God
The Apostle Paul told the Athenians on Mars Hill that we are “the offspring of God” (Acts 17:29). Since we know that our physical bodies are the offspring of our mortal parents, we must probe for the meaning of Paul’s statement. The Lord has declared that “the spirit and the body are the soul of man” (D&C 88:15). It is the spirit which is the offspring of God. The writer of Hebrews refers to Him as “the Father of spirits” (Hebrews 12:9). God Himself is a soul, composed of a spirit and of a body of flesh and bones, as tangible as man’s. He is a resurrected, glorified, exalted, omniscient, omnipotent person and is omnipresent in spirit and power and influence, the ruler of the heavens and the earth and all things therein. The spirits of all men are literally His “begotten sons and daughters” (D&C 76:24). (“An Invitation to Exaltation,” Satellite Broadcast, March 4, 1984) (pp. 124-25)
God the Father Suffered like a loving Parent when His Son was Crucified and Died
Can we, in part, appreciate the suffering of God the Eternal Father as His Only Begotten Son in the flesh was placed on a cross and crucified? Is there a Father or a mother who could not be moved to complete compassion if he or she heard a son cry out in his own Garden of Gethsemane, “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42) . . .
As God witnessed the suffering of Jesus, His Only Begotten Son in the flesh, and beheld his agony, there was no voice from heaven to spare the life of Jesus. There was no ram in the thicket to be offered as a substitute sacrifice. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). (“The Search for Jesus,” Conference Report, October 1965, 142) (p. 125)
God was not passive during the Great Apostasy
Our Heavenly Father inspired Christopher Columbus in his discovery of America. Our Heavenly Father inspired the leaders of the renaissance period. Our Heavenly Father inspired men and caused that they would dream dreams and see visions and discover marvelous instruments and inventions which would enable them to set forth upon the oceans and to be led to the place where our Father in Heaven would have them led. Our Heavenly Father inspired the man who invented movable type, that His holy word, as found in the Bible, could be printed and disseminated widely to the people. Our Heavenly Father inspired the leaders of . . . the United States of America, that they might together, under His direction, having been raised up by God for the purpose, establish the Constitution of this country and . .. Bill of Rights, that . . . by the year of our Lord 1805 [there would be] a climate where our Heavenly Father could send into this period of mortality a choice spirit who would be known as Joseph Smith, Jr. His life’s mission would alter the course of all future events. Thus came Joseph into the world. (Twenty-First Annual Joseph Smith Memorial Sermon, December 11, 1963) (pp. 157-58)
The Importance of the Prophet Joseph Smith in the Economy of Salvation
Through Joseph Smith, the gospel—which had been lost during centuries of apostasy—was restored, the priesthood and its keys were received, the doctrines of salvation were revealed, the gospel and temple ordinances—along with the sealing power—were returned and, in 1830, the Church of Jesus Christ was re-established on the earth.
Though reviled and persecuted, the Prophet Joseph never wavered in his testimony of Jesus Christ. His peers watched him led with dignity and grace, endure hardships, and time and again rise to new challenges until his divine mission was completed. Today that heritage he established still shines for all the world to see. The teachings he translated and his legacy of love for his fellow man continue in the millions of hearts touched by the message he declared so long ago.
Few in this dispensation have paid so dearly for an irrevocable testimony of Jesus Christ as did the Prophet Joseph Smith. On June 18, 1844, he gave what was to be his last sermon. He very likely knew that he would not again address his people. His concluding remarks were these: “God has tried you. You are a good people; . . . I love you with all my heart. Greater love hath no man than that he should lay down his life for his friends. You have stood by me in the hour of trouble, and I am willing to sacrifice my life for your preservation. May the Lord God of Israel bless you forever and ever.” His words sank deep into the hearts of the people. It was the last time, in the flesh that they were to listen to . . . his voice, or to feel . . . his inspiration (from Historical Record, edited and published by Andrew Jenson [1889], 555)
Ultimately, the Prophet Joseph was slain by evil men who assumed the church would collapse after his death. George Q. Cannon, who served as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and as a counselor to several Church presidents, wrote: “The enemies of truth were sure that they had now destroyed the work. And yet it lives, greater and stronger after the lapse of years. It is indestructible, for it is the work of God. And knowing that it is the eternal work of God, we know that Joseph Smith who established it was a prophet holy and pure” (Life of Joseph Smith the Prophet [1999], 527) . . .
We do not worship the Prophet Joseph; however, he left behind a legacy that enables [his] followers today on every contingent to proclaim him as a prophet of God. May we, each of us, strive to continue the Prophet Joseph’s vision for this work and to magnify his legacy through our works and testimonies to others, that they may know him as we do and that they may experience the peace and joy of the gospel he restored.
When the Savior returns to the earth in glory, the Prophet Joseph will come forth with the righteous as a resurrected being and will continue to minister under the Savior’s direction. As our beloved hymn affirms, “Millions shall know ‘Brother Joseph’ again.” Of this truth I testify. (“The Prophet Joseph Smith,” 200th Birthday Commemoration, December 23, 2005) (pp. 160-61)