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The following was a short talk given by a close friend of mine:
I'd like to talk about the big picture. Too often we get caught in the details of life and we don't see the big picture; the big picture of why we are here, why our eyes are opened and why we have such a burning desire to know the truth and serve the Savior.
We live in the end times, the last days.
These are the last days of the end of the world. In reading Nibley's book, Approaching Zion, Nibley says there is
only one thing is left to do, only one thing that needs to happen, and that's
to gather to Zion.
We read on page one in Approaching Zion, speaking about the 10th Article of Faith:
"Article
10 deals explicitly with our time and our space and sets forth the steps by which God intends to consummate the
great latter-day work. What is the consummation of the great
latter-day work? The Return of Christ to usher in the millennium. "
Nibley goes on to say:
There are five steps (and this is the order):
(1) the literal
gathering of Israel;
(2) the
restoration of the Ten Tribes (which is happening right now though we have no
knowledge of it here);
(3) the
building of Zion upon this the American continent: (and that will usher in)
(4) Christ's
personal reign upon the earth; and
(5) the renewal
of the earth in its paradisiacal glory.
So let's talk about this gathering. What is the purpose in gathering? and what was the object of gathering the Jews, or the people of God in any age of the world?
You have to have a temple for the Savior and
the Hosts of heaven to return. You have to open a nexus point, a connection between heaven and earth for the Lord to
return. So the whole purpose of gathering is to build a temple, open the
heavens and summon the Lord and start the millennium.
In a blog post entitled How to Fail
asks the questions:
·
What if the Lord were to give the opportunity to build
Zion?
·
What if the Lord wanted it to happen now?
·
What would be done differently than was done by those who went
before and failed?
The
post goes on to say how they failed how there were jarrings and contentions. We
all know the story. And then concludes with this:
“It is easy to fail. Just gather people who will contend
with each other and there will be failure EVERY time. It makes sense to
try something new rather than repeat the pattern that will never
work. First, provide an opportunity for those who are interested to display who
they are, whether they can live peaceably with others. Once we know one
another’s hearts then the Lord can gather only those who will avoid
contentions, jealousies, strifes, envyings, and jarring. Like the pattern in
Abraham, first men are “proven” and then they are gathered, or spared.
So let's talk about this gathering. What do
we know about the gathering?
First off, you have to be invited. You just
don't volunteer. You don't just show up. You have to have an invitation.
D&C 77: 9 -11 talks about the angels
gathering the righteous.
"The angels
to whom it is given power over the nations of the earth to bring as many as
will come to the Church of the Firstborn."
And there is our sermon for today...as many as will come.
Well, who wouldn't want to come? To answer that, the Lord gives us the story of
the certain man who made a great supper.
Luke 14: 16-21, 24, 26
A certain man
made a great supper, and bade many: And
sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all
things are now ready. ( So the context is the supper is ready, just come and
come now.) And they all with one consent
began to make excuse. The first said unto
him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray
thee have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go
to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a
wife, and therefore I cannot come. So that servant came, and shewed his lord
these things. Then the master of the
house being angry said to his servant, none of those men which were bidden
shall taste of my supper.
Why didn't the
people who received the invitation want to attend? Business, family ties, etc.
We look at these people and we think: "How foolish of them not to attend
the party!" and we easily judge them.
But wait a
minute. What if this was not just a
party for an evening, but the Certain Man is asking you to come not for just
for a couple of hours, but come permanently and live with him for good. Drop
everything and come, and come to stay because you're not going back to your
home. Remember the context...everything
is ready, you are invited to come, and you are to come now.
What does that
mean? To you men it means to abandon your job, everything you've worked for and
built up, the people who depend on you, your retirement, your investments,
everything you've worked so hard to make. To you women it means to abandon your
friends. Abandon your family, say goodbye because you're not coming back. Can
you leave your grandchildren? Can you leave your home and all your nice things?
Can you leave all your comforts, your comfortable lifestyle? Can you just walk away?
The invitation
is to leave everything you have and come, and come to stay, you are not going
back. That's the invitation.
Now
how excited are you about the invitation? Now
how excited are you about receiving the angel or receiving the dream that
summons you?
I wrestle with
this terribly. My wife's a non-believer. I would have to abandon her and my
helpless autistic son. Without me and my income...they are in poverty and would
perish. Literally, without my income they are out on the street. I've spent 32
years with this woman. Hard to throw it all away, especially if my leaving
would hurt my helpless, dependent son.
There must be
an easier way, right? Surely the Lord
makes exceptions. No...there is not an easier way. Christ anticipates my very
dilemma in the very next verse when he says:
If any man (or woman) come to me, and hate not his father, and mother,
and spouse, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life
also, he cannot be my disciple.
There is no
easier way.
THE
INVITATION:
So let's talk
about the invitation.
Let's assume you get the invitation. The
angel comes and delivers your invitation. Will you have the option to say at
that point. "Wow...okay...let me talk this over with my spouse and I'll
get back to you." Is that how it works?
No... it's a "go" or "no
go" answer. You don't have the option to say: "Let me think about it
and I'll get back to you." The window of opportunity opens and closes with
the initial offer.
You don't get asked a second time. The Lord
doesn’t beg you to join him. He doesn't sent the servant around the second time
to pick up the indecisive. He offers and
you either take him up on the offer or you don't.
The point is
you have to make up your mind in advance.
Why am I
bringing all this up?
The reason I'm
bringing up this unpleasantness is to say this: The time is growing short. All
too soon this is going to get real. If a true messenger is starting to say
stuff like this, then the time is getting short and this is going to be all too
real very soon, and you will have to make the decision. Better to understand
what you are getting into now, than to say: "Sure, I'll go," and then
when reality hits and you understand the cost to then back out.
So that's the big picture. That's what faces
us. We live in the end times - the last days. These are the last days of the
end of the world. There is only one thing is left to do and that's to gather to
Zion. We are to build the temple, receive the ordinances, open the heavens and
summon the Lord.
To do that, you need your invitation, and if
and when the invitation comes you need to be willing to go.
In the original Greek, John 14:15 says:
"If you love me, stand watch as a sentry awaiting my instructions."
And then when the instructions comes, do it.
