Hey there everybody welcome out to another episode of Redeemed Through His Blood.
This is Scott Durfey joined as always by David Durfey
What's up Dave?
Good to see you Scott.
Yeah it's good to be with you this morning.
How you doing?
I'm good thank you thank you thank you it's been a fun last four days for me.
Our family went up to Bear Lake and we were camping we were roughing it.
Well I wasn't roughing it too much but some of my other kids were intense and roughing
it and you know no showers and no running well we had water but anyway there's no plumbing.
There's a big lake.
There's a big lake and lots of rivers and streams that fill that lake.
There's some outhouses I don't know what they call those in other countries but there's
some outhouses that I just told them they couldn't use my trailer.
They didn't want to have to go dump it once or twice.
That's always the rule.
Anyway all of our kids were there except those we had one son who wasn't able to come.
You know our Isaac he had to kind of stay home and work and get the time off but all
of our grandchildren except well we had our oldest grandson couldn't come either darn
it because he had to work but the other two are on missions so I guess we had 13 grandchildren
there and five of our children and their spouses there so that's wonderful.
But we just for those of you who are not in the United States you know I'm sure you're
aware we have this fourth of July holiday Independence Day we celebrate and love it so much and
it's a great opportunity.
We had a on that day we had a little barbecue at the house and Deb's birthday is right
around there too and we had all 16 of our grandchildren here.
Awesome.
Actually that's not true.
Two of them weren't here unfortunately so we had 14 of our grandchildren and that was
amazing that was a lot of fun.
We did have a you know this is a great time of year we love this time of year but sometimes
you know things happen and the guy that I'm really close to in our ward here he'd been
our executive secretary I think for 11 years two bishops and I had an opportunity to work
with him very closely in our ward council and in the elders quorum and we were good
friends.
His wife passed away a couple of decades ago from cancer.
Not a whole guy either in his mid 70s maybe and then he contracted a form of cancer over
the last couple of years and it ended up finally taking his life on the fourth of July.
Wow really.
Yeah his kids thought that he has two sons who I love.
I know one of them quite well Johnny and and I don't know the other one as well but he
said that it was probably his dad's way of going out with a bang because that was kind
of works.
You know his personality but we missed on loved on condolences and love to his family
this week because they'll be doing a funeral this weekend.
Okay.
Yeah.
I you know my favorite thing I know this will sound weird.
Camping's you know it's a lot of work.
Yeah.
And it's not something that I would necessarily call fun but it is so memorable.
It's so special.
It's just so good to have those experiences I think with your families when you can.
Yeah.
And we went to church together in a little town up there Lake town and they had fast and
testimony meeting of course and that was kind of fun to hear the old timer's bear their
testimony up there and and that night we had just a short little family meeting and family
prayer and those kinds of things are so memorable and I told my my grandchildren and children
the same thing I shared with our listeners on the podcast last week which still continues
to affect me Scott which still continues to affect me and I think about it and that is
I told them you can be unworthy.
We're all unworthy.
King Benjamin tells us not to forget our unworthiness but we cannot be ungrateful as a family please
individually please be grateful please be grateful for Jesus please remember Jesus that
he died for you individually that he died that we could all be together together as
a family that through his atoning sacrifice anyway Scott I just that's just so important
that when families get together I think that they make the atonement of Jesus Christ kind
of the center of the message I bet we didn't our little meeting and prayer probably wasn't
more than 15 or 20 minutes but I think they'll remember it I mean the setting and everything
and the feeling that we had I think they'll remember it and there's just there's no reason
to give a lecture there's no reason to give a talk they're just it's just a time to just
kind of share and grateful for my family and for the gospel Jesus Christ and all the all
the knowledge blessings powers gifts of the spirit that we enjoy as members of the church
my granddaughter Scott wrote me an email while we were up there our granddaughter in
Philadelphia Pennsylvania Mission sister Walker and such a good missionary such a good girl
and that's such a perfectionist and just so you know this is a girl with 4.0 and does
all the hard classes and starts leaves high school having finished two years of college
and all that stuff you know anyway she she texts or she writes me an email and she just
says grandpa just seems like I can't be good enough and can't be kind enough I can't love
enough I can't I just can't do enough how do you how can I she asked me grandpa how can
I overcome that and how can I strengthen my relationship with Jesus Christ and how do you
how do you rely on them I thought that was just such an inspired question and affects
so many of us and I can remember dealing with that I can remember struggling with that and
I'll respond to her email and greater length but I'm sure that some of our listeners struggle
with that same thing and Scott I just it just depends on your focus it it's a choice it's
it depends on what you choose to focus on you choose to focus on your inadequacies and
your sins or do you choose to focus on Jesus Christ and his atonement what do you choose
to focus on I just think it's so critical that in fact that night after I had read the
email that she sent me I actually wrote that I actually wrote this down that night laying
in my trailer listening to the waves hit the beach and you know it's so beautiful up there
I wrote focus more on his gifts I'll probably put this in my email to her focus more on
the Savior's gifts and less on your offering then focus more on receiving them and less
on earning them be an instrument not the doctor a vessel not the water a window not the light
the gospel is not about performing or conforming but about Jesus transforming us man can merit
nothing of himself then I just finished this thought by saying praise God Adam and Eve
fell Jesus redeemed us both were part of the plan and necessary to our eternal progression
I may be unworthy but I will not be ungrateful this life is about being faithful in him not
perfect in me I I just really believe I read years ago it still affects me I read Mother
Teresa you know all the good that she did Scott all the charities and all the she did
and I think she's now become a saint in the Catholic Church but I read a book about Mother
Teresa and she was quoted as saying you know the purpose of life is not to be good the
purpose of life is to be faithful she talked about her depression and how life was so hard
for her it was so hard for her to be good and she she couldn't she knew she she wasn't
good and she knew that she was so imperfect and anyway the purpose of life is not to be
good or perfect the purpose of life is to be faithful and I would add grateful that's
the purpose of life and if we would just focus on being faithful in Jesus Christ and grateful
to our Heavenly Father for the gift of his son and for Jesus and his sacrifice all of
the stress and distress all of the anxiety and all of the so much so much of the worry
would just kind of melt away if we would choose who and what we focus on so I offer
that to all of our listeners as well as to my granddaughter and all my grandchildren
and children I may have an additional comment on that Dave you know in October of 2016 I
think it was elder President Nelson gave a talk about this is I think this is a one
and I'm trying to find it exactly can't find it as I'm going here but I think this is one
where we talked about that our the way our lives are and I'm paraphrasing have really
little to do with the circumstances in our lives but more to do with our focus yeah our
lives right now as a prophet right and joy and that's that that's what determines our
joy and I think that's the answer you know if I focus on me you know there's only to
focus on imperfection as it was designed to be I am not designed to be perfect not in
this realm not in this life etc. I'm I'm designed to be converted to be changed into perfection
eventually through Jesus Christ and His Atonement so if I focus on me I'm going to get a whole
bunch of more imperfection in front of me but if I focus on Him and if I focus on living
my life and and of and through Him then the imperfections in my life are really insignificant
the only significance is the perfection in His life as long as as long as I am making
an attempt to align a line with Him so that I can be receiving the blessings of the of
the Atonement in my life yeah like my wife like my sweetheart he says it Scott I am able
to be good enough because he was good enough yeah you know that's that's the important
thing is to know that he was good enough and that's all this important that he was sinless
that he was perfect and then then he suffered for all of the demands of justice and met
them met the demands of the law of justice right and because of that we're we're redeemed
we we just have to learn how to receive it and to quit stop trying to earn it yeah by
being perfect that scripture we're saved by grace after all we can do and for so many
and for so many years people have tried to earn it by doing all they can do before they
call upon the grace of God through Jesus Christ and that's that's not what Nephi meant in
that scripture all we can do is receive him all we can do is come unto him all we can
do is repent and anyway so well you know Dave look before we move on I just want to I just
want to address this for just another second because I think that you know the church gets
a bad rap sometimes you know I have conversations with my friends and people who are not in
the church and these this perfection thing can come up and sometimes the church deserves
it well okay however however because I'm talking about the people I understand church but the
individuals yeah who who struggle with this but and I understand all that but the thing
about it is is it's not just the church no right any organization institution group of
people that has an ideology that lifts us beyond where we currently sit is subject to the same
kind of judgment yeah true and so I think first of all we need to divorce ourselves from that
judgment you know the church expects too much from me the church and then as soon as we
start doing that then we jump into the blame game or we have the ability and it has happened
to jump in the blame game and then the victim game and then pretty soon everybody's at fault
but not me and and if you understood then you wouldn't have to hold yourself to the
same ideologies the same expectations etc if you understood it the way I understood and
that's and that's kind of the thought process that develops well that's untrue anything that
requires us to grow or encourages us to grow will have the ability because we we compare
ourselves to an eye to a bellwether to a to a set of standards that we will never be
able to to live up to and if that's our worship is the standards if that's our worship and
our focus is the doings in this life and they you know they by default become that there's
no doubt no question but our focus shouldn't be that our focus should be his perfection
our focus should be his sinless life our focus should be his sacrifice taking upon him all
the sins inequities inequalities unfairness everything injustices of this world when he
took that upon him there's the perfection yeah it's got a people understood the character
of God I know the character attributes and perfections of God which is the one of the
one of the first elementary steps of obtaining faith is is seeking to understand that they
would they would see a father who is so kind so loving so patient takes so much joy and
is willing to to go to the ends of the earth to save their save his children I mean it
just it just is a little you know your grandpa my dad was was could be kind of harsh sometimes
and sometimes I mean he was disciplinarian he was some what of an authoritarian loving
tender hearted for sure righteous no doubt but you know sometimes you judge God based
upon the character of important male figures or role models in your life right exactly
and man that can mess you up it really can anyway hi I know that I have a sweet Japanese
friend Ted Sorrell who well sometimes well for many years when we were living in the
same war together in Minnesota you know often seemed like for a while maybe even months
like he had grown up shinto well they're very talk about discipline yeah they're very disciplined
and very tough and harsh and good people though and anyway he would call me up and say nothing
tell me tell me again David tell me again about the love of God tell me about God's
love tell me about how many of his children are gonna be saved tell me about his mercy
tell me about his grace you know can we really repent the spirit world can we really you
know can we really do things progress after this anyway he he he was he was amazing he'd
been a bishop in Japan before I ever moved to Minnesota was an amazing gentle loving
wonderful man who was really nothing like his father but had grown up under that that
discipline and that authoritarian style and anyway he he just really struggled to know
to believe and to feel the love of God in his life and I'm sure there's a lot of other
young men young women hold her men you know older women and maybe especially women who
have been perhaps abused or suffered at the hands of of evil men to really struggle with
that I've known of others who really sighted president who said she never really felt the
love of God mother Teresa struggled with that herself and many others I just think if we
just could get a glimpse of his love for his children and I guess what's helped me more
than anything else is to just be a patriarch and to give blessings to heavenly father's
children and to feel his love and to try to communicate that to them and I guess that's
taught me more about the character of God than maybe anything else I could have done
but it's in the scriptures it's the prophets have taught us well testify often and our
examples of the love of God and I hope that our listeners can feel that because it does
make all the difference are are knowing our connection with him and and then to be able
to enter into covenants with him as we've been talking about and that his desire is
to betroth us right Hosea in the Old Testament he wants he wants to betroth Israel in this
new this everlasting covenant which we said last week we would talk more about that it's
really humbling to think that a God wants to marry us that a God wants to protect us
he wants to be our provider he wants to be our protector he wants to preside over us
in perfect love and kindness anyway to kind of really know the everlasting covenant and
all the covenants that are contained in the everlasting or Abrahamic covenant can really
change how we see our heavenly father and can really be an aid a strength to us to help
us to feel his love so maybe let's just jump into that Scott just a little bit about what
the everlasting covenant is the we call it now the new because it's the restoration and
it's the latter days and it's the last time that that covenant would be renewed before
the coming of Jesus Christ and the end of the world that we call it the new and everlasting
covenant I'm sure in Abraham's day it was called maybe the new and everlasting covenant
then to because it was new to Abraham it was given to Adam it was given to Noah it was
given to Enic and then it was restored again with Abraham later Moses would receive it
but the rest of the children of Israel didn't fully completely receive all of it they they
had a little bit of a lower law the law of Moses and didn't receive all of the ordinance
and covenants and have all the priesthood power or authority that they might have had
but Moses had it Aaron had it their leaders had it Joshua would have had all the prophets
had it and knew of it and and tried to get the people to receive it but it is the center
I mean the word covenant is like 550 times got in the scriptures and we we really to
know God to know his character to know and feel his love is to learn about his his desire
to make covenants with us and his desire to help us to keep those covenants so what's
your what's your understanding or questions that you might have or you think others might
have about the new and everlasting covenant?
I think that when most of us think of the new and everlasting covenant we tend to let
our minds go directly to a lot about what we talked about last week which was our temple
covenants the covenants that we make in the temple culminating of course in the ceiling
covenant but but that's that's what comes to my mind Dave but when we talk about the
Abrahamic covenant and the new and everlasting covenant that's really what it is right is
talking about primarily about the temple covenants that we make it's all of them so even
go into the baptism it's all the ordinances and it's all of the covenants it's all the
saving covenants and ordinances the saving and exalting covenants and ordinances that
we receive including baptism which is the first one that we receive it's kind of the
five yeah for the five you know saving ordinances of the gospel so it's it's all of that Scott
it's all into one you president Nelson if our listeners really want to study this in
more depth I would recommend them I'd refer them to an article in the Leona magazine and
this this article in the Leona magazine is so the context will make you want to read
it as soon as possible and not just read it but to really study it so president Nelson
two years ago right before I think it was the April General Conference you know the
general authorities come back for training and in the training president Nelson our
prophet gave a whole hours training on what the new and everlasting covenant is to all
the general authorities of the church and then six months later so this is in October
2022 he wanted that printed in the Leona church magazine all the church all the adult church
magazines so it's it's available to all of the members of the church in the church magazine
on the it's just called the everlasting covenant it's in the Leona for those in the in North
America well United States of Canada at least it's in the Leona in October of 2022 it might
be another of the church's magazines maybe another time I don't know but I just think
it really deserves a study and and I'm just going to quote a little bit from it so he
says the new and everlasting covenant and the Abrahamic covenant are essentially the
same two ways of phrasing the covenant God made with mortal men and women at different
times throughout the history of the world and then he goes in and defines it but one
of my favorite parts of this whole talk or training article is when he says all those
who have made a covenant with God have access to a special kind of love and mercy that's
really what it's about Scott the new and everlasting covenant these these covenants
that we are asked to make is not to give us more things to do or a checklist or put more
more pressure on us it is it is to give us access to a special quote special kind of
love and mercy from God and if people don't feel that man I it just seems like the gospel
would be a lot of work and could wear you down in a hurry if you if you think again the
focus is on you to keep all of these ordinances and covenants these ordinances and covenants
allow us to receive not earned to receive a special kind of love and mercy and other
gifts from our loving heavenly father I just it's just really important that I think people
see that and this is this is where the training that he gives on the word hessed you know that
hessed is a unique term in the Old Testament Hebrew term that describes a covenant relationship
a loving kind it's it's really loving kindness it's translated in the Old Testament loving
kindness all one word I love that it's all one word loving kindness a special kind of
love and I use that word a lot my prayers I think God a lot for his loving kindness towards
me and and my family and anyway he talks about that he talks about this celestial marriage
and what all that what all that means so I really recommend that our listeners go to
that and and president Nelson of course makes a big deal out of Jesus Christ being the center
of that covenant and quote the Savior's atoning sacrifice enabled the father to fulfill all
his promises to his children the atonement of Jesus Christ is at the center of the any
covenant relationship any ordinance that we make Jesus Christ is the center of it everything
points us in the temple all the ordinances think about baptism the burial in the water
right we're being buried liken to Jesus Christ the water I think of it as living water we
come forth out of this living water as a resurrected new creature born again spiritually speaking
I mean every ordinance that's baptism we could go through all of the ordinances all of them
point to the to our Savior Jesus Christ and to his atonement I when I do a live ceiling
I love to talk about in more detail the ordinances of the temple the initiatory right and how
that points us to Jesus Christ the initial the initiatory ordinances of the temple I
love to talk about the endowment and how the endowment and the reenactment of the creation
the fall and how the atonement is is throughout that entire ordinance we call the endowment
and then the celestial room and the celestial everything that takes place at that holy altar
in a celestial room and and the bride in the groom and kneeling and and all of the tokens
and all of the names and all of the signs that are given in the temple should point
our minds our hearts our spirits to Jesus Christ and his atonement everything's got
Jesus Christ is the center so having a relationship with him being connected to him and bound
to him is the key to us entering into the presence of the father and that's all enacted
right in the temple that's all reenacted that we go through the Savior Jesus Christ
to enter back into the presence of the father and the son because of the Savior's atonement
you used a word and it's used throughout this talk so this talks called the everlasting
covenant you can find it October 2022 by halfway through President Nelson says Adam
and Eve accepted the ordinance of baptism and began the process of being one with God
they had entered the covenant path when you and I also enter the covenant path we have
a new way of life we thereby create a relationship keyword we thereby create a relationship with
God that allows him that allows him to bless and change us the covenant path form us you
know and I think that's an interesting let me just pause right there for a second I think
that's interesting you know going back to you know sweet little sister Walker's question
you know why am I lacking white and you know when I'm summarizing she didn't say these
things exactly why but why do I just feel like I can't measure up I never do enough
I think we've all felt that way right I think that you know I've got to earn heavenly father's
love we've talked about that right but this we thereby create a relationship with God that
allows him that allows him to bless us and change us you know to my to learn to rely
on him that's what she asked me how do you how have you learned to rely on them well
and any kind of answers it the covenant path leads us back to him if we let God prevail
in our lives that covenant will lead us closer and closer to him all covenants are intended
to be binding they create a relationship with everlasting ties a relationship is that word
right yeah you're quoting from the article I'm reading the article so all covenants are
intended to be binding they create a relationship with everlasting ties so Scott when you are
in essence a yoke yoke when you are joined together in a covenant with a God how can
you fail that covenant creates a relationship that allows him to bless us and changes it
allows him to how could we have to rely on him because if you if you're in that covenant
you can't fail the only way you can fail is say I'm out to hell with this exactly and
some do and I don't want anything to do with this I don't want anything to do with God
or to be like him or to live that life I don't want a relationship with him I don't understand
that but I know that that is out there yeah anyway I it's just if you really understand
these sacred holy and the and Scott it's not new to the restoration I know we call it new
because it's been restored the new and everlasting covenant but anybody can see this in the scriptures
this covenant relationship was which was renewed over and over and over again again the word
covenant is hundreds of times in the scriptures God God's relationship with us is by covenant
through ordinances and covenants it's not just though God loves us and he's going to
save all of his children yeah well he does love all of his children and he definitely
wants to save all of his children but it can't it's it's not like you just go live with somebody
if you if you love them you have to be married to them you know I mean it's it's kind of
the difference right of common law and God's law or God's law right so which which do you
choose common law you just live together without any commitment then you think that's that's
God's way well or you do it his way which is by covenant commitment sacrifice love obedience
and to receive learn to receive all that he has yeah you know we God's law or man's law
you know law and I've had this kind of I've been doing a bit of a study for the last several
weeks months on that word law and how it relates to love and you know I think I even shared
with you a talk that Steve Young actually gave at faith matters or something right yeah
and how God's law is God's love yeah that's how we feel that's yeah and so you know if
we if we transpose it that way you know are we do we want to be subject to God's love
or and God's law or man's love and man's law and we know there's vast difference also
in this talking I or not yeah in this article and I'm just going to read one one little
bit more it says once we make a covenant with God we leave neutral ground ground forever
okay now there's not David says once we make a covenant God we leave neutral ground forever
I don't hear anything qualifying us in other words it's not saying as long as you keep
your end of the bargain which is important I get it right but he says God will not abandon
his relationship with those who have forged a bond with him period even if those individuals
for have moments of amnesia spiritual amnesia and they forget maybe who they are or who
they're bound to hundred percent and that's my point remember last week we talked about
this and a matter of friend who had made covenants who was no longer living in that covenant
who told me but Scott I feel the covenant pole I feel God's love still I feel but that
extra mercy I feel that extra love and I feel God's keep God keeping his end of the covenant
and I don't think about I think oftentimes we think of this covenant is us entering into
a blood oath which you know we can talk about that entering into a blood oath which binds
me to live my life a certain way and if I don't execution is on its way well that's
not it no no not at all any any blood is not gonna be from you or for me it's already been
shed it's all points us to Jesus Christ right you know towards the end of this this this
talk he repeats it Scott the covenant path is all about our relationship with God right
our hesed relationship with him loving kindness when we enter a covenant I'm quoting president
Elton when we enter a covenant with God we have made a covenant with him who will always
keep his word he will do everything he can without infringing on our agency to help us
keep ours it's pretty sweet so Dave you know so we're talking about relationship we talk
about you you use the word betrothal from hosé earlier you know and all this what we're
really talking about is a family relationship of familial relationship entering into and
covenant covenant team to become part of God's family forever and how we become joint heirs
and air think about I use that word in the temple ordinances to seal children to parents
right air Wow inherit I will inherit by way of my family relationship with God all that
he has to offer me airship yeah that's amazing with a God yeah so that's what the that's
what the everlasting covenant really to me kind of comes down to is that you become in
the air right all that he has in most cultures on planet earth when a betrothal takes place
somebody takes their name upon yeah right when Deb and I got married she changed her
last name to share the same last name I have I could have changed it culturally to share
the same last name she has and it would have had the same impact I know that you know a
lot of Native American cultures and others like that there's not one way better than
the other the point is is that it's a taking upon us a name yeah and we talked a little
bit about that last week so maybe we move so so what does that do for an individual if
I take upon myself someone else's name who is in the authority power or standing of a
God what would that do for me Scott I mean it's not just taking a name upon us it's taking
the name of a God upon us it's taking the name of Jesus Christ upon us God and taking
anybody's name upon me changes probably my privileges my rights my responsibilities right
just kind of legally lawfully talking right now yeah but when you when you transfer a
name of a God upon you and you take the name of Jesus Christ upon you Scott what does that
change that changes everything that changes your eternity it changes your identity to
begin with humans your eternity exactly and that name is everything and and you know over
and over again and Scott in the scriptures I know we I've made this point several times
we've talked about this we're not we're not exalted by faith in Jesus we are exalted by
faith in the name of Jesus and what that means as we have taken upon ourselves his name to
call upon the name is more than just praying to call upon the name means that we have bound
ourselves to him through the name that we have have entered into ordinances and covenants
that those are active and important in our lives that's what it means when we call upon
the name we have rights that we call upon it gives us certain powers it gives us strength
and privilege and place and standing all of that to take upon ourselves the names God
means everything and I we've done other podcasts on this so I don't want to just reiterate it
repeat myself but I think it's okay if we repeat ourselves a little bit because I don't
think everybody goes back and listens to every single one of them well it seems like I bring
it up almost in every podcast well and if that's the case it must be important you know
moseya he wanted to give his people a name the whole reason he called them together was
because he wanted to give them a name well he didn't want to give him his name he wanted
to give him the name of God by by covenant through ordinances and then he after all that
he says about in the doctrine of the atonement of Jesus Christ and and all that he says about
the sharing and giving and serving God and how know what the master whom you have not
served and and giving to the beggar and anyway that Jesus bled from every poor the first
place Joseph Smith learned that was from King Benjamin's address anyway moseya is amazing
the book of moseya the King Benjamin this King Benjamin who who just understood the gospel
of Jesus Christ and what ordinances and covenants really really meant and then in chapter five
you know after they have all repented and been forgiven and received a remission of
sin and peace of conscience in moseya chapter five Scott we're starting with verse seven
and now because of the covenant because of what because of the covenant and I then I believe
he's talking about the new and everlasting covenant here because of the covenant which
he have made ye shall be called the children of Christ a new name his sons and his daughters
for behold this day he has spiritually begotten you for you say that your hearts are changed
through faith on his name okay now just think about that for your change not through faith
not through faith in him you are changed through faith on his name how does a name change you
I I hope all our listeners are pondering that and answering that for themselves how can
a name change you because these people their hearts are changed through faith on his name
therefore you are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters then listen how
many times he used the word name here and under this head you're made free how does
how does a name free you what what privilege power freedom liberty does that there is no
other head whereby ye can be made free there is no other name given whereby salvation and
I would say exaltation cometh therefore I would the he should take upon you the name
of Christ all you that have entered into the covenant with God that ye should be obedient
unto the end of your lives in verse nine and it shall come to pass it whosoever doeth
this shall be found at the right hand of God and he shall know the name knowing that name
so important Scott he shall know the name by which he is called for he shall be called
by the name of Christ and now and by way verses 10 11 and 12 this kind of a little chiasmus
there's a little chiasmus here and now it shall come to pass that whosoever shall not
take upon him the name of Christ must be called by some other name therefore he findeth himself
on the left hand of God and I would the he should remember also that this is the name
that I said should be given unto you that never should be blotted out except it be through
transgression therefore take heed that ye do not transgress that the name be not blotted
out of your hearts that's kind of the center of the chiasmus don't let that name be blotted
out of your hearts I think about how do we blot the name out how do we blot a name out
of our hearts that's that's kind of the center of this chiasmus here I say unto you I would
that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts that you're
not found on the left hand of God that but that ye hear and know the voice by which he
shall be called and also the name by which he shall call you wow it's amazing in my mind
that passage those verses in and of themselves to me strengthen my testimony of the Book
of Mormon in the Prophet Joseph Smith and certainly help me understand my relationship
with my Heavenly Father my Savior Jesus Christ and and where I stand as a son a spiritual
spiritual son of Jesus Christ and a spirit son of God and how I can return to his presence
through the name by the name anyway I that's ordinances and covenants are such a huge part
of that going through the temple we learn how important a name is in the temple through
the tokens and the signs and the names that are given there we also learn from the sacrament
prayer on the bread how important taking his name upon us is right this is so let me just
by way of preface say this this whole podcast has been about developing a relationship through
the atonement of Jesus Christ that allows us to become clean that allows us to become
worthy to enter into the kingdom or enter into the presence of God and be welcomed there
as one of his joint heirs right that family relationship so everything that we've talked
about has led in culmination you know we're kind of culminating today and over the last
several weeks and in weeks coming to will be culminating on everything that we talked
to last few weeks prior to last week we talked about this so the several weeks prior to last
week we talked about the Holy Ghost and the role of the Holy Ghost in the atonement for
actually throughout the entirety of the podcast we talked about the role of the Holy Ghost
in Christ's atonement as being the administrator of the Holy Ghost so we know that when we're
filling the Holy Ghost that we are being forgiven of our sins we know that the effects of the
fall are being negated through the atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives and so we think
about you know we've and we talk about in its rare that we don't talk about how important
the sacrament is in the renewal of all of those covenants even prior to today when we
are now talking about those covenants we've talked about how important that is and we
know that the role of the Holy Ghost in the administration of the atonement in our lives
is critical there's nothing more critical than the administration of the atonement in
our in our lives there's nothing in mortality or eternity more critical to us than that
and so everything else Joseph Smith said is an appendage appendage it just grows out
of it that's what an appendage is it just grows out of the body an appendage is just
something that grows out of it and that's and they're important and they can they can
be enhancing spiritually enhancing and they can lighten us they can create light in our
lives through the again the Holy Ghost etc but it all comes down to the atonement of Jesus
Christ and when we take the sacrament and we hear the words that they may eat in remembrance
of the body of thy son okay and then witness unto the oh God the eternal Father that they
are willing to take upon them the name of thy son and always remember him and keep his
commandments okay and so it tells us and so there's our part you know there's our reminder
here's what we need to be focusing on this week today and always it are those things
and and then it gives us so I love it in Scripture when it gives us that they will do this and
this and this and then there's a semicolon that they may in other words that's the promise
that comes from the condition the condition is we take his name upon us we remember him
and we strive to keep his commandments okay so those are the conditions now now what we
get in return for that they may always have his spirit I take that literally always be
with them always yeah and so we really as we align and think about how do we want to
live our lives do we want to have it with the spirit always with us do we want to have
God's love and mercy available to us at all times then you know taking his name upon us
is real it's not just important it's critical it is the key well it's just the power associated
with it Scott yeah right you know if you're a member of the kingdom yeah and the king
the king has said you could take upon yourself his name and wherever you go you can use his
name and wherever you go that you're a joint heir that you have the the royal ring that
you have the ordinances the covenants that you've been bound to him that you're a joint
heir of his Scott that that changes everything right not just your heart as King Benjamin
says that our hearts are changed through faith on his name everything changes when we take
upon ourselves the name the holy sacred name so sacred that the Hebrews wouldn't even say
it you know they wouldn't even pronounce it just so sacred and I invite all of our listeners
in the next week the coming weeks as you study the gospel to notice the word name and how
it's used in the scriptures you know elder Oaks wrote a whole book on that after a ten
year study ten year study of an apostle to understand what his responsibility was to be a special
witness of the name of Jesus Christ all the world you know apostles are not their their
charge given to them in doctrine comes section 107 verse 23 is not to be a special witness
of Jesus the charge given to apostles is to be a special witness of the name of Jesus
Christ in all the world well just think about that for a minute and elder Oaks spent ten
years studying that tries this little 99 page book called in his holy name well I've tried
I haven't studied in depth that he has I've studied his book I've studied lots of scriptures
been an important part of my gospel study for many years now and I notice it and every
time I read the scriptures I notice it how many times I mean I think the word name is
in the scriptures like 1500 times and to look those up and to study those and then to notice
how many times in the scriptures it talks about faith in the name faith on the name
faith through the name it it really there's something really significant about that and
when it's one of the three things that we covenant to do in the sacramental prayers
in this every Sunday when we partake of the holiest ordinance of the restored gospel to
renew all our covenants with God by promising just three things that we will witness that
we have taken upon ourself his name to remember him and to strive to keep his commandments
to be with us Scott Wow how important and critical is that and I just we should act
different we should be different when you when you feel tempted you should call upon
the name you should thank God that you are that you have his name upon you it will give
you power when you feel not tempted but when you feel that you are not good enough that
you just don't measure up that you're being accused if you're not being tempted by saying
that seems like you're being accused by Satan if he can't get you to sin then he'll make
all kinds of accusations against you that you're not good enough if he can't get you
to go long he'll get you to go short if he can't go short he'll try to get you to go
long it's the name and calling upon the name that I have found can be a great source of
power and strength to overcome evil in this life and to help us to to not just be good
but to be faithful and even though we may not be worthy because of the name we should
be really really grateful.
Yep.
Well just to kind of wrap things up here I just want to close with just another quote
from President Nelson from this talk October 20, 2022 the everlasting covenant because
of our covenant with God he will never tire in his efforts to help us and we will never
exhaust his merciful patience with us each of us has a special place in God's heart.
May God bless us to fill that this week that's our prayer please please as we partake of
this sacrament consider what it means and how can I what can I do better to take his
name upon me and what can I stop doing or do I need to stop doing so that I might be
able to do that that's our that's our invitation to you among others this week thanks for being
with us we look forward to being with you again.