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My talk is on Moroni 6:4-6

Before I begin, I would First like to set the stage

• Moroni 1:1-4

  I had supposed not to have written more, but I have not as yet perished; and I make not myself known to the Lamanites lest they should destroy me.

  because of their hatred they put to death every Nephite that will not deny the Christ.

  And I, Moroni, will not deny the Christ; wherefore, I wander whithersoever I can for the safety of mine own life.

  Wherefore, I write a few more things, contrary to that which I had supposed; for I had supposed not to have written any more

• Moroni was the last follower of Christ in his time
• was being chased, yet took the time to write just a few more things
• Writing on the plates was not trivial, took a lot of work
• So he only included things of great worth!
  • Holy ghost
  • ordination of the priesthood
  • Sacrament prayers

then the focus of my talk

• Moroni 6:4-6

  And after they had been received unto baptism, and were wrought upon and cleansed by the power of the Holy Ghost, they were numbered among the people of the church of Christ; and their names were taken, that they might be remembered and nourished by the good word of God, to keep them in the right way, to keep them continually watchful unto prayer, relying alone upon the merits of Christ, who was the author and the finisher of their faith.

  And the church did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls.

  And they did meet together oft to partake of bread and wine, in remembrance of the Lord Jesus.

• Of all the things for him to take the time to write about, why this? Why about the church?

• Lets start with

  • Moses 1:39

    For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

  • God’s purpose, his work and glory is us!

• How did he provide us a way back to him? His son Jesus Christ

  • From the 1986 Missionary Discussions:

    The atonement of Christ removes all obstacles from our path if we accept him and follow his perfect example. Thus, we can come unto the Father and obtain the gift of exaltation only through the Savior, Jesus Christ.

  • We read in John 14:6

    Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

  • Back to the Missionary Discussions:

    Through membership in the Church of Jesus Christ, we can receive the ordinances, spiritual guidance, and fellowship we need to progress toward exaltation.

• Moroni gave four key actions the church did

  • Be numbered
  • Be remembered
  • Be nourished
  • Meet together oft

To be numbered

• Lots of places in the scriptures mention being numbered
• My favorite is Parable of the lost sheep
  • Luke 15:4

    What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

  • We should follow the example of the shepherd
    • Knows each of his sheep
      • Knows to go looking when one is lost
      • Are we the same?
      • President Monson said:

        Ours is the responsibility to care for the flock, for the precious sheep, these tender lambs, are everywhere to be found—at home in our families, in the homes of our extended families, and waiting for us in our Church callings. Jesus is our Exemplar. Said He, ‘I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep’ . We have a shepherding responsibility. May we each step up to serve.

      • It is an continuous action, not a one time thing

To be remembered

• NYC ward
  • Travel time by bus
  • Did not really fit in
  • Amazing elders quorum pres
    • He moved...
    • job changed...
  • less active due to work
  • Felt alone and isolated
  • Two things helped
    • Missionaries random visits
    • Bishop saw me on the bus
  • made the difference when job changed
    • I sought out my new ward

To be nourished

• It is a common analogy in the scriptures to use plants when talking about nourishing: Alma 32:37-38

  And behold, as the tree beginneth to grow, ye will say: Let us nourish it with great care, that it may get root, that it may grow up, and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye nourish it with much care it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit.

  But if ye neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.

• Shawna’s garden
  • Well cared for
    • Lots of water
    • Careful planting, weeding
    • Huge, green, lots of produce
  • things changed
    • Good reason but result not good for garden
    • Still watered!
    • Less Planting, more weeds
    • Untended, very little harvest
• Which type of garden are we growing?
  • Do we nourish or neglect?
  • Church helps to nourish our garden

Meet together oft

• Moroni made a point that the church met together oft. Why is this important?
• To strengthen each other! President Thomas S. Monson:

  Long years ago, Joseph Lyon of Salt Lake City shared with me the lesson of a lecture which a minister from another faith observed. … [He related] what I’ve called the ‘hot coals’ story. He described a warm fireplace where the pieces of wood had burned brightly, with the embers still glowing and giving off heat. He then observed that by taking in hand brass tongs, he could remove one of the hot embers. That ember would then slowly pale in light and turn black. No longer would it glow. No longer would it warm. He then pointed out that by returning the black, cold ember to the bed of living coals, the dark ember would begin to glow and brighten and warm. He concluded: ‘People are somewhat like the coals of a fire. Should they absent themselves from the warmth and spirit of the active church membership, they will not contribute to the whole, but in their isolation will be changed. As with the embers removed from the heat of the fire, as they distance themselves from the intensity of the spirit generated by the active membership, they will lose that warmth and spirit.’

• How much did Moroni miss being in the “fireplace” it was important enough he included it in his final words
• We meet together to Fast and Pray, council with each other, and most important to take the sacrament
• Elder Oaks said:

  Attendance at Church each week provides the opportunity to partake of the sacrament, as the Lord has commanded us. If we act with the right preparation and attitude, partaking of the sacrament renews the cleansing effect of our baptism and qualifies us for the promise that we will always have His Spirit to be with us. A mission of that Spirit, the Holy Ghost, is to testify of the Father and the Son and to lead us into truth. Testimony and truth, which are essential to our personal conversion, are the choice harvest of this weekly renewing of our covenants.

  What has our Savior done for us? He has given us His Atonement, His gospel, and His Church, a sacred combination that gives us the assurance of immortality and the opportunity for eternal life.

Conclusion

• 4 keys to the church
  • Be numbered
  • Be remembered
  • Be nourished
  • Meet together oft
• Really all tie together