Matthew 26:36-75                 Mark 14:32-72            Luke 22:39-71                    John 14-18

I went to bed last night with tears in my eyes and a broken heart for my favorite city, Dallas, TX. We spent 12 years living in the Dallas area and consider it our hometown. So many happy memories and friends and family there. 

If you aren't aware, 5 police officers were killed by a sniper during a protest on July 7, 2016. 

All I can think of this morning is how much we all need the Savior of the world, even Jesus the Christ. His life was filled with love and compassion. He taught love and forgiveness. He healed the sick. He gave sight to the blind. He lifted the poor and lowly of heart. He suffered for all the sins that we continue to heap upon his shoulders. He overcame death and despair and gives us all the chance to live with a loving Heavenly Father after this life. 

"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. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." - John 3:16

This beautiful scripture is known all over the world and it is a beautiful description of how important the Savior is and how important it is to follow him. I also encourage you to read the scriptures I have listed above. They are the chapters that tell of the Savior's last hours. The tell of his love, his suffering, and his betrayal. 

May we all turn to Him, and love each other as He loved us, is my sincere hope and prayer today.

In Matthew chapter 23 verse 11, the Savior said, "But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant." 

That is a pretty short scripture, but it packs a powerful punch. It also goes against the worldly view of a leader. The dictionary says that a leader is "the person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country." I think the Savior is saying that a leader should serve those that he leads. 

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have Bishops that are called to lead a congregation of members. By the dictionary definition of leader, our bishops would lead or command our congregations, but in my experience, that is not the case. 

LDS bishops are not compensated in any way and most bishops are anticipated to fulfill their duties for at least 5 years. I'm not sure there are many people with great leadership aspirations that would willingly give up their free time without any compensation in worldly terms. The work of a bishop is not glamorous and they don't get public accolades like the leaders of companies or political leaders.

As members, we always refer to the work a bishop does as his service. This is what the Savior was talking about. A bishop serves his ward and its members. He serves by mourning with those that mourn and comforting those in need of comfort. He helps those that are in need of physical support. He is charged with helping the members spiritually too. Doesn't really sound like a leader who commands, does it?

The Savior taught that when we are put in a position of leadership, we need to serve those we lead. He was the Son of God, the greatest of us all, and He was the perfect example of a leader who served. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, forgave the sinner, and lifted the hearts of the lowest in society. He gave his life for all of us as His great final act of service in this mortal life. I know that the reason so many follow Jesus Christ, is because through His service to all mankind, He leads us back to the presence of God. 

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The Prodigal Son. One of the most famous of the Savior's parables.

When Jesus taught in parables, He wanted us to identify with people in the story and learn how to apply the parable to ourselves. So, which person in the parable of the prodigal son do you most identify with?

I'm going to bear my soul a little bit here... Many times in my life, I have identified with the "other brother." The one who stayed home and tried to do all that his father asked. I didn't realize how much I identified with the other brother until Elder Jeffrey R. Holland gave a talk at general conference called "The Other Prodigal." I actually remember sitting up and saying out loud: "Hey, that's how I have felt!"

Honestly, it isn't something to be proud of. I, in my selfishness, have been put out when others, who have made mistakes, are welcomed back with open arms, while I have been steady all along. Elder Holland gives a glorious sermon about this concept and helped me to realize that nothing is taken away from me when someone else is rewarded for returning. He said this:

"Who is it that whispers so subtly in our ear that a gift given to another somehow diminishes the blessings we have received? Who makes us feel that if God is smiling on another, then He surely must somehow be frowning on us? You and I both know who does this—it is the father of all lies. It is Lucifer, our common enemy, whose cry down through the corridors of time is always and to everyone, “Give me thine honor.

But God does not work this way. The father in this story does not tantalize his children. He does not mercilessly measure them against their neighbors. He doesn’t even compare them with each other. His gestures of compassion toward one do not require a withdrawal or denial of love for the other. He is divinely generous to both of these sons. Toward both of his children he extends charity."

This parable is one of the most layered and deep parables the Savior shared. Who hasn't identified with the prodigal son, who went seeking for the pleasures of the world, only to find that they are hollow and of no value? Who hasn't felt ashamed when they realized they have hurt a beloved parent by their behavior and choices? 

Who hasn't identified with the father of the wayward child? Who hasn't realized that, as a parent, you can't force your children, but only watch and wait for them to find their way back home to you?

I absolutely love the Savior's teachings of forgiveness and love without limits in the parable of the Prodigal Son. I encourage you to read it again and see who you identify with the most at this time in your life. I also encourage you to listen to Elder Holland's talk which is posted below. It has had a huge impact on me and I know that you will also hear something that pricks at your heart and gives you greater understanding of God's love for you.

This week, one of my favorite passages was when the Savior asks His disciples who the people are saying that He is. They respond that many believe He is John, the Baptist, or Elias, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. Then Jesus asks them who THEY say He is. This video shows Peter's response:

 What I love is the Savior's response to Peter. He tells him that Peter has this knowledge of who Christ is not because of anything earthly witness, but because it was revealed to Peter through the Father in heaven. 

This principle is the foundation upon which our belief in the Savior must be built:  We must have faith in things that we cannot see with our earthly eyes. I personally have not seen the Savior as His disciples did. However, that fact does not diminish my testimony of the reality of Jesus Christ. 

I don't need to see the Savior to know that He is real and that He loves me. I don't need to see the Savior to know that He suffered for my sins and forgives me when I make mistakes. I don't need to see the Savior to know that He was crucified and rose from the dead on the third day. I know these things are true through the Spirit of God, who has witnessed to my heart and mind that these things are true.

It hasn't been easy to know for myself that things are true. I have had to read and study the scriptures. I have had to pray earnestly for answers to my questions and doubt. I have had to act in faith and follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. I have had to humble myself and follow the teachings of living prophets and apostles.

We live in a world that says those who believe in God are foolish and mocked. People just can't understand how a person can KNOW God lives. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf gave a wonderful talk about this subject and said this:

"Satan, our adversary, wants us to fail. He spreads lies as part of his effort to destroy our belief. He slyly suggests that the doubter, the skeptic, the cynic is sophisticated and intelligent, while those who have faith in God and His miracles are naive, blind, or brainwashed. Satan will advocate that it is cool to doubt spiritual gifts and the teachings of true prophets.

I wish I could help everyone to understand this one simple fact: we believe in God because of things we know with our heart and mind, not because of things we do not know.  Our spiritual experiences are sometimes too sacred to explain in worldly terms, but that doesn’t mean they are not real.

Heavenly Father has prepared for His children a spiritual feast, offering every kind of exquisite food imaginable—and yet, instead of enjoying these spiritual gifts, the cynics content themselves with observing from a distance, sipping from their cups of skepticism, doubt, and disrespect.

Why would anyone walk through life satisfied with the light from the candle of their own understanding when, by reaching out to our Heavenly Father, they could experience the bright sun of spiritual knowledge that would expand their minds with wisdom and fill their souls with joy?

When you and I talk to people about faith and belief, don’t we often hear, “I wish I could believe the way you do”?

Implied in such a statement is another of Satan’s deceptions: that belief is available to some people but not to others. There is no magic to belief. But wanting to believe is the necessary first step! God is no respecter of persons.6 He is your Father. He wants to speak to you. However, it requires a little scientific curiosity—it requires an experiment upon the word of God—and the exercise of a “particle of faith.”7 It also takes a little humility. And it requires an open heart and an open mind. It requires seeking, in the full meaning of the word. And, perhaps hardest of all, it requires being patient and waiting upon the Lord.

If we make no effort to believe, we are like the man who unplugs a spotlight and then blames the spotlight for not giving any light."

Like Peter, I know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God and I'm so grateful for all the experiences in life that prove to me every day that He is real. I invite you to also believe!

Here is Pres. Uchtdorf's talk called "Be Not Afraid, Only Believe"

One thing that I kept noticing over and over in the reading this week was an invitation given by the Savior:

"He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."

As I thought about that, I came back to a gospel principle that I love: We have been given our moral agency to choose for ourselves and God will never take it away from us, even if we don't follow Him. He will not force us to accept his commandments. Before we came to earth, Heavenly Father gave us this agency and an opportunity to come to earth and choose whether we would do what is necessary to return to His presence. 

So, if God can't force us to follow His commandments, what can He do to help us come back to Him?

He can invite. "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."

We need to choose to listen to Him. We need to choose to hear His teachings. We need to choose to follow those teachings and keep His commandments. 

It's a lot harder than it sounds. We are constantly plagued by worldly temptations that seem so much easier and so much more enjoyable than exercising the self discipline, humility, and obedience that is required to follow Jesus Christ. One question keeps coming to mind: When we realize that ALL we have comes from a loving Heavenly Father, and His Beloved Son, who died for us, He really isn't asking all that much, is He? After all He has given us, He only asks for one thing in return: 

That we choose to listen and then choose to follow Him.

When I look at it that way, it doesn't seem like He asks for very much.

I'm in week 2 of my class and this is my first "Putting it All Together" post. We have just covered the Savior's baptism and some of his early miracles, along with the calling of his apostles. So many wonderful stories and gospel principles in these few chapters!

I particularly enjoy studying the 3 accounts of the Savior's baptism in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. My favorite part is when the Savior comes up out of the water and the voice of God, the Father, is heard saying, "This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." I am so grateful that the New Testament has evidence that Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father are two separate beings.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland gave a talk entitled "The Only True God, and Jesus Christ Whom He Has Sent". It is one of my all time favorite talks and teaches about what we, as Mormons, believe about the nature of God. God truly is our Father, and Jesus Christ is His Only Begotten Son. Through the Savior's Atonement, we can repent of our sins, and return to live with He and our Father in Heaven again. I'm so grateful for this knowledge and I'm grateful for the opportunity to study the Savior's life in more depth. I know that He truly is "the way, the truth, and light."