Among the reading for Gospel Doctrine this week, is this passage from Joseph Smith to the School of the Prophets:
"And as all have not faith, seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith."
I have often heard this scripture, but never before has the phrase "as all have not faith" struck me the way it did today. It adds a whole new depth of meaning to this passage. Not only are we to learn by study and by faith out of the best books (not just good books), but we are to do it because not everyone has faith. It is not only for our own personal advancement, but to teach others who do not have faith to understand.
There are many who find themselves constantly questioning, unable to, as they put it, "just believe". Constantly beset by crises of faith, they begin to doubt themselves, perhaps even to despise themselves or others when they compare their experiences to what others claim to feel. Yet, by the import of this passage, perhaps they demand too much of themselves. It is not given to everyone to have the conviction and/or faith that some are blessed with, and that is according to the will of God.
For those who are blessed with that burning light of faith, there is a special charge on them to go out and seek for the knowledge they, personally, may not feel they need. As they do so, they will be guided by wisdom in how to nurture, protect and love those who are not given the particular Spiritual gift of faith they are given. When they study the history and the "big issues" with an eye of faith, they can nurture the strength of the gospel not only in themselves, but also in others who cannot, no matter how they may desire, "just believe."
As far as I am concerned, this is at least part of the holy and divine purpose in blogging. Only online can so many reach towards each other, and in forgiving themselves and others of their faults, clasp hands in the Gospel. When we have weakness, we learn to rely on God and each other, and by so doing, accomplish the truest purposes of God.
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I agree with your thoughts and along the same line of thinking; most people have areas where they exhibit great faith and strength and other areas where they struggle or have less faith. For example some have faith to pay tithing others may have a great faith or commitment to temple blessings attending often, some may have faith to talk in sacrament meetings or teach lessons in relief society or priesthood others not, we all have areas of strengths and weaknesses.
ReplyDeleteTo be a Zion like people I think we have a need to reach out to those around us and help each other build their faith and strengthen one another, the desire of our hearts being that we want others to succeed with us and enjoy the same joy and blessings together.
I agree with your thoughts and along the same line of thinking; most people have areas where they exhibit great faith and strength and other areas where they struggle or have less faith. For example some have faith to pay tithing others may have a great faith or commitment to temple blessings attending often, some may have faith to talk in sacrament meetings or teach lessons in relief society or priesthood others not, we all have areas of strengths and weaknesses.
ReplyDeleteTo be a Zion like people I think we have a need to reach out to those around us and help each other build their faith and strengthen one another, the desire of our hearts being that we want others to succeed with us and enjoy the same joy and blessings together.
This post made me think about alot of things, so thank you.
ReplyDelete#1 is that I never noticed that the reason to seek learning was because not all have faith. Sometimes in the scriptures I get lost on a topic because the sentences get long, with commas and semicolons, etc.
#2 is that your post supports all the great LDS blogging that is going on out there. Especially places like Mormon Women ;)
#3 is that we need to seek out learning in all fields so that we are worldly wise (meaning to have knowledge of temporal things) in addition to our faith. We will never be able to stand our ground in an intellectual discussion if we haven't bulked up our vocabulary and have knowledge outside the parameters of the gospel. I have found that when I gain knowledge with the right attitude it strengthens my faith like a giant reinforced net. The more we study in all areas, the bigger our net.
Great thoughts! I especially like what you said about looking at the issues with an eye of faith and expressing that to others.
ReplyDeleteAWESOME. Thank you for this.
ReplyDelete