Taking On the Name of Christ

I was recently asked to speak in our Church's Sabbath Worship, called Sacrament Meeting. This is the talk I gave. 

Sunday July 24, 2016

There I was, 8 years old, getting ready for my baptism, watching them fill up the baptismal font and watching the steam rise as it filled. Thinking of the warmth I would soon feel as I entered the waters of baptism.

Soon I was shaking a bit. Nerves? Yes, I was nervous, but also because that steam wasn’t because the water was warm… it was because the room was warm and the water was … FREEZING!

No, the warmth I felt at my baptism may not have come from the water, but it did come from the joy I felt at partaking of this most precious ordinance of the gospel.

Once baptized, we take on Christ’s name and with it the responsibility to act in his name, on his behalf. That seems like such a daunting task at times. But he has provided us ways to know how to do this.

One of the most beautifully written is The Living Christ. Written in April 2000 by the First Presidency and Quorum of the 12 Apostles, it is a declaration of the life and ministry of our living Christ.

Let me share with you the first paragraphs.

The Living Christ:

"As we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ two millennia ago, we offer our testimony of the reality of His matchless life and the infinite virtue of His great atoning sacrifice. None other has had so profound an influence upon all who have lived and will yet live upon the earth.

He was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New. Under the direction of His Father, He was the creator of the earth. “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). Though sinless, He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness. He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38), yet was despised for it. His gospel was a message of peace and goodwill. He entreated all to follow His example. He walked the roads of Palestine, healing the sick, causing the blind to see, and raising the dead. He taught the truths of eternity, the reality of our premortal existence, the purpose of our life on earth, and the potential for the sons and daughters of God in the life to come."
Click here to read the entire document

1.)"He went about doing good

                Not only did Christ go about doing good works, he did good works that were hard and were NOT popular, or were tiring, or probably inconvenient! The story in St. John chapter 8 comes to mind of the woman that was brought before him who was caught in sin and the punishment was to be to stone her.

In his very loving way, he asked for those without sin to cast the first stone. But what I love besides that,  is the very next verse. It isn’t talked about much, but it’s the verse I need to hear the most!

 What did Christ do?
Vs: 8  And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.

Now the reason this means so much to me, is that I know myself, that when I am in the mode of  protective “mama bear” and stepping in to stop someone from being stoned, I can tell you I am not usually just going to quietly sit down. No, an eye to eye stare down with my arms crossed  and a “don’t mess with me” look on my face is more my style.

Christ just left them to quietly contemplate  what he said, not judgement and accusations.  he  acted with peace and goodwill  towards them, even  the accusers.

For me, it’s this tiny little action, of how he treated the accusers, the stone throwers,  that is such a bigger, deeper faith building lesson on the true divinity of Christ. It truly shows his true nature, and mission. He truly treated ALL men with peace and goodwill.

 Many of us are willing to step in front of stones, but how do we treat the stone throwers?
I need to work on this one.

As I've gotten more experienced with my responsibilities of acting on Christs behalf, I've learned to better recognize the promptings or whisperings of the Holy Ghost nudging me to do things that are out of my planned things for the day.

 A wise Christian will learn to heed those promptings right away without questioning them or delay. I usually tell my children when they were growing up. "If you get the idea to do something for someone, if it is a kind and good thing... then just do it. Don't stop to question whether it is a prompting or not. Just go and don't delay doing it." You'll be amazed at the blessings that will come to you and to others when you just make this a practice in your life.

My husband is such a great example of this.  Our next door neighbor, Bob, has passed away now, but we were very close and miss him dearly. One day while we were driving home from running errands we were literally just a mile or so from home when Jay felt the need to call Bob and just check on him. Although to me, I thought it could wait till we got home.. in like 1 minute, Jay proceeded to call him. It turned out Bob was in the parking lot of the grocery store   and was having such a low blood sugar he was nearly in a coma. We were just pulling off of the highway right where the grocery store is when we called, and Jay had some glucose with him and we were able to get him treated literally within a minute or so. Our beloved Bob had a few more years to bless our lives, and I am forever grateful for the lesson I learned from my husband that day to not delay a simple prompting as to pick up the phone and check on someone. "Even though I am almost home.... I will go and do the thing the Lord commands".

2) His message was of Peace and Goodwill:

In a BYU Devotional: Julie Franklin spoke of this:

When Christ was in situations where He was challenged, confronted, or pestered, we read of a man who stood firm and unshaken. When He rebuked individuals who needed correction, His words were measured and delivered with the precise level of emotion to bring about the desired result. During the events leading to the Crucifixion, Jesus Christ did not shrink. I love the account where Christ was taken into custody and Peter, the loyal Apostle, drew his sword and cut off the ear of one of the high priest’s servants. Jesus did not use the opportunity to run, nor to feel smug that someone else might suffer a fraction of what He had and would endure. He also did not criticize Peter. With a few of what I would characterize gentle words to Peter, He simply touched the servant’s ear and healed him.¹¹We have no evidence Jesus was ever out of control; instead, in all things He displayed peace.

As for finding evidence of a person who possessed good will, there has never been another person whose entire life reflected benevolence more completely than Jesus Christ. At the lowest level of good will, I believe we simply think kindly or hope the best for others. At the highest level of good will, I believe we have charity. At some point in the middle I think we are service oriented. It appears Jesus never acted without considering the impact of His behavior on others. He comforted, gave hope, taught, healed the sick, and raised the dead. We know the Savior possessed charity; He provided us with the Atonement. In fact, He possessed charity so perfectly that when Mormon defined the wordcharity as “the pure love of Christ,”

• Simply put, we just need more kindness in the world today.
• We need to treat others that are different than us without fear or judgment but with a kindness for a brother /sister in our Heavenly Father’s kingdom.
  
  
• Spread more joy, kindness, tolerance, goodwill, peace,
• Use uplifting words-language-and thoughts.
• Stand up for people who are not being treated well, even if they are outside of your comfort zone.

 The church has asked us all to reach out to refugees. We all can do more to lift up and bless the lives of  others and spread goodwill!

You may have seen the story on social media of the LDS scout troop that took this challenge to heart and teamed up with the international rescue committee and built/put together some donated bikes and then taught the refugees how to ride them. What a blessing! They may not have money yet to own their own cars to get around, but to now own a bike, and know how to ride it. What a blessing for them! And what a wonderful experience for the scouts as well on serving God’s children.

Since I shared a story about my husband I’ll share a story about  one of my children, and how easy it can be to make a difference in the lives of  those in need.

Our oldest son Joshua had a student move into his class in first grade that had come as a refugee from another country. He’s 26 years old now, so this was quite a few years ago, but the student spoke no English at the time.  Joshua buddied up with him instantly to help him learn English and make sure he knew what to do in class and around school.  I remember the teacher telling me how impressed she was that Josh would do that, but the part that made us chuckle a bit, but was so sweet was at that time, if you did something good, you could earn  “bobcat” bucks. Then at certain times of the year you could go redeem those earned “dollars” at the school office for certain prizes. Well, Josh was very concerned that his new friend did not have a proper understanding of the value of the good old American bobcat buck so he insisted on being allowed to accompany his friend to redeem his dollars to make sure he got his money’s worth and wasn’t  “ripped off  and given  junk” by some cunning office secretary! They became life long friends all the way through high school and each was such a good influence on the other. (and his grandmother made the BEST spring rolls ever! )

Helping others can be as simple as helping those in our neighborhoods and communities know what we know. Share what we have, the smallest things really do mean the most, and can bring about the biggest changes in their lives and in ours.

Let me close with the words of Ezra Taft Benson:

"Yes, Christ changes men, and changed men can change the world.

Men changed for Christ will be captained by Christ. Like Paul they will be asking, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” (Acts 9:6.) Peter stated, they will “follow his steps.” (1 Pet. 2:21.) John said they will “walk, even as he walked.” (1 Jn. 2:6.)

Finally, men captained by Christ will be consumed in Christ. To paraphrase President Harold B. Lee, they set fire in others because they are on fire. (Stand Ye in Holy Places, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1974, p. 192.)

Their will is swallowed up in His will. (See John 5:30.)

They do always those things that please the Lord. (See John 8:29.)

Not only would they die for the Lord, but more important they want to live for Him".