Class 5 Exploring the Teachings of Christ

Welcome back to the course Seeking Jesus. Can you name a verse from 2 Nephi that has touched your heart? I found that a lot of people can. But what about this question? Can you name a verse from the book of Jerem that has touched your heart? People often draw a blank on this question, but there's a verse that really resonates with me, and I think you'll like it too. Jerem wrote several hundred years before Christ was born. He said that the prophets did labor diligently, exhorting with all longsuffering the people to diligence, teaching the law of Moses, and the intent for which it was given, persuading them to look forward unto the Messiah and believe in him to come as though he already was."Think about that phrase, believing in Christ to come as though he already was. Scholar Adam Miller commented on these verses saying, that's what's different about Nephite Christianity. They lived in Christ before Christ came. They lived Christ's future in their present. For the Nephites, the temptation was to think that Christ only belonged to the future. For me, the temptation is to think that Christ only belongs to the past, or again, to some future world. Either way, the temptation is to think that Christ does not belong to the present. But a past or future Christ is not enough. It is not enough for me to believe in the past or future idea of Christ. To be a Christian, I have to learn how to share my life with Christ in the present. Just like the Nephites were looking forward to Christ, believing in Him as though He already were there, we need to believe in Christ as though He were here with us right now, not in the past in Galilee or in the future of the second coming. How do we do this? Today we'll look at a few different ancient prophets to get some ideas on how we can live with Christ in the present. In the previous two videos, we went from Adam and Eve all the way down to Moses. In this class, we'll skip around across the millennia, seeing a variety of prophets and others. how they testified of Jesus Christ, and what their words can mean to us. Let's start with Enoch. Enoch lived a few generations after Adam and a few generations before Noah. He spent decades of his life preaching the gospel. He loved those he taught, and he was heartbroken when God gave him a vision showing him that the descendants of those he was teaching would turn to wickedness and be destroyed in the flood. Before we continue with Enoch's story, look at these six images. As you can see, three portray Christ's suffering in Gethsemane, and three portray the Savior's crucifixion. If you had to choose one of these paintings to hang in your home, which would you choose? My friend Anthony Sweat and I asked this question to more than 800 Latter-day Saints, and found that 97% of them chose one of the Gethsemane images. Only 3% chose an image of the crucifixion. Keep that in mind while we look at the experience of the prophet Enoch. As Enoch saw the destruction of his people, he had bitterness of soul. and wept over his brethren."Can you relate to Enoch? Have you ever felt bitterness of soul? What image did God show Enoch in response to Enoch's heartache? God showed him the Son of Man lifted up on the cross after the manner of men. The answer to the pain Enoch felt was found in the cross of Christ. I think it's interesting that Enoch found comfort in the crucifixion, especially because, going back to the survey, When we asked participants to explain why they chose the painting that they did, about 50% of people specifically said something negative about the crucifixion paintings. Things like, it's too painful, or it makes me feel uncomfortable, or I only want to focus on the living Christ. Of course we believe in the living Christ. We also believe in the loving Christ. And Jesus Christ personally defined his greatest act of love as his crucifixion. He said, greater love hath no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. It's not either the living Christ or the loving Christ. It's both. As with Enoch, seeing Christ on the cross can comfort us or others in the pain that we feel. In Doctrine and Covenants, section 6, verse 36, Jesus says, Look unto me in every thought, doubt not, fear not. That's a verse that many of us are familiar with. But do you know what Jesus says next? He says, Behold, meaning fix your eyes upon, the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet. The living Christ personally invites us to fix our eyes on his crucifixion wounds. Think about Christ's invitation and Enoch's experience. Those who have suffered bitterness of soul can find comfort from the cross. Consider this experience from Jessica Brody. She said, Ugly tears coursed down my cheeks. Why? How could this have happened? The betrayal hit me like a gut punch. I wanted to scream it all away, or at the very least, tear someone apart with my bare fingernails. But even that wouldn't make it better, wouldn't erase what I was going through. I felt so alone. Talking to a counselor brought temporary relief, but no real solutions. Blocking it out and staying as busy as possible only worked for so long. Then came Jesus. In the darkness, in the depths of my pain, I realized he knew. He'd experienced the worst pain, the deepest betrayal, the hardest suffering. None of it deserved. And it hurt him so very, very badly. But for some reason, I'd never before understood this. Growing up, I'd been taught Jesus died on the cross, but his suffering seemed abstract. In paintings depicting the crucifixion, the holes from the nails had a bit of blood and Jesus was frowning beneath his crown of thorns. But it was all rather contained, a PG version of what he'd really been through. Then his suffering was over and whoosh, our Savior was dressed in head-to-toe white with a glowing golden halo, smiling like he'd never been gasping for his last breath or sobbing from the pain of being sold for 30 pieces of silver. by one of his twelve best friends. But when I encountered Jesus in my sorrow, it wasn't the Sunday School, family-friendly version kneeling beside me as I collapsed before him in a darkened room with my prayer of surrender. It was the scarred-up Jesus, the one who remembered the ragged, blood-stained holes from where they'd driven the nails in, who didn't wince as they beat him but cried out in agony, who didn't just quietly and stoically accept that Judas let him down but ached over the treachery. This Jesus understood, and when I realized that and I allowed him to meet me in my suffering, I was no longer alone. That's a powerful story. Christ's invitation for us to fix our eyes on his crucifixion wounds has been echoed by other prophets. The prophet Jacob wrote, We would to God that we could persuade all to view Christ's death. What does it mean to view Christ's death? Scholar Deidre Green wrote, The operative definition of the word view during Joseph Smith's time was,"...to survey intellectually, to examine with the mental eye, to consider the subject in all its aspects."Additionally, she said, a sense from the Latin root is that of reaching or extending toward the object one views. Jacob desires for everyone to contemplate thoroughly the multifaceted death of Christ in a way that requires each person to reach or extend toward it. Consider also the example of Mormon, who went through his own decades of bitter disappointment and loss. He worked his whole life to protect the Nephites spiritually and physically, but failed on both counts. Rather than wallow in despair, Mormon told his son, May Christ's death rest in your mind forever. Note that Mormon emphasizes letting Christ's death rest in our minds. Sometimes we want to focus only on the happy experiences in Christ's life. But maybe there are times that we can find power from the Savior's suffering. That's what Dietrich Bonhoeffer proposed. He was a Christian minister who fought against the Nazis. Eventually, he was arrested and put into a concentration camp. In a letter from the camp, he wrote, Only the suffering God can help. When we teach others, if we gloss over the cross, we rob those who have experienced deep pain of the opportunity to learn more about a Savior who understands their grief. That's the suffering Jesus on the cross. He understands what you are experiencing. Now, if you don't mind, a brief aside. I've found that many people, when talking about images of Christ's crucifixion, will say something like, if Christ's crucifixion is so important, then why doesn't the Church institutionally use the symbol of the cross? When Latter-day Saints are asked why their church doesn't display crosses, they tend to paraphrase words stated by President Gordon B. Hinckley in 1975. In response to a minister's question about a lack of a cross at the temple, President Hinckley said, I do not wish to give offense to any of my Christian brethren who use the cross on their steeples of their cathedrals and at the altars of their chapels, who wear it on their vestments and imprint it on their books and other literature. But for us, the cross is the symbol of the dying Christ, while our message is a declaration of the living Christ. In this same talk, President Hinckley also referred to the cross upon which Christ hung and died and said, we cannot forget that. We must never forget it, for here our Savior, our Redeemer, the Son of God gave himself a vicarious sacrifice for each of us. Thus, while de-emphasizing the Church's use of the cross as an institutional symbol, President Hinckley accentuated the atoning significance of Calvary. Although the meaning of a symbol can change over time, the doctrine of the saving importance of Christ's crucifixion is eternal. If we see the cross exclusively as a representation of the dying Christ, we ignore the fact that symbols are multifaceted. They permit, even invite, layers of meaning. A cursory look at church history indicates that the symbol of the cross has been viewed in different ways across the decades. For example, multiple 19th century Latter-day Saints posed for photographs while wearing cross jewelry. including the wife and a daughter of Brigham Young. Keep in mind that this happened in an era when taking photos was a special occasion. The fact that they posed for formal portraits wearing cross jewelry suggests that these were accessories that the individuals were proud of. They weren't being rebellious, they were dressing their best for a special portrait. A cross appears on the 1852 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants, and a floral cross was present at the funeral of John Taylor. A proposal for a cross to be placed on Ensign Peak was approved by President Joseph F. Smith in the First Presidency. A large cross appears on the gravestone of Elder B.H. Roberts of the Seventy. And some church members today choose to wear a cross. It's important to note that no church handbook has ever said that members should not wear or display crosses. No church leader has taught in General Conference that it is wrong for members to wear or display crosses. Consider a few quotes that illustrate the diversity in which the cross has been viewed by Latter-day Saints. Eliza R. Snow referred to the triumphs of the cross. In 1915, the Young Women's Journal, which would be like For the Strength of Youth magazine today, included this statement, The cross that was then a sign of disgrace has become a symbol of love and salvation. In 1933, the Relief Society magazine published the following, Christ changed the cross. into a symbol of glory. More recently, Elder Edward Dubé of the Seventy referred to seeing an image of Christ's crucifixion as one of the defining moments of his life. Elder F. Enzio Boucher of the Seventy described how looking at a crucifix while on a hospital bed gave him a tremendous hope. Many similar examples could be provided. My point is that throughout the history of Christianity, and even within our own church, Faithful leaders have had different perspectives on how the cross should be used by individuals to represent Christ's atoning sacrifice. To be clear, I'm not saying that we all need to go out and buy crucifixion paintings, although I do think that some of us could be blessed by not being so squeamish about them. I'm also not urging you to go out and buy a cross necklace. But I do urge all of us to not mock or make fun of someone who wears cross jewelry. In the past, some of us may have said something like, well, would you wear a necklace with a dagger on it if your friend was killed by a stabbing? That phrase totally misunderstands the meaning of the cross and is insulting to Christians. In fact, that phrase was anti-Catholic rhetoric that was used to attack Catholics centuries ago. It's time to retire that idea. Too many converts or people investigating the church have been treated rudely over wearing a cross. The reality is, someone wearing a cross is sending me a signal I believe in Jesus. And that's great! Rather than seeing someone wearing a cross and thinking, ooh, that's the other, I should go up to them and say, hey, I see you believe in Jesus. I do too. Tell me more about your beliefs. Maybe the person I'm talking to will say, oh, it's just a fashion item. Or maybe they'll tell me about why they love Jesus. Either way, we'll have an opportunity to talk about Christ. When Enoch had bitterness of soul, the Lord pointed him to the cross. Remember these scriptural invitations. Jesus says, Behold my wounds."Mormon taught, let Christ's death rest in your minds forever. And Jacob wrote, view Christ's death. Take a minute to think, how can you apply these teachings in your life? If the principle is to let Christ's death rest in my mind forever, what specific applications could we make? How would doing this help us live our lives with Christ in the present? Let's jump forward a few centuries to the brother of Jared. Many of us are familiar with the basic storyline. The brother of Jared was leading his family and others toward the promised land. Along the way, they built some ships to cross the ocean, and the brother of Jared asked Jesus to touch 16 stones so that they could provide light on the ships. In response, the brother of Jared saw the premortal Christ, and Jesus said to him, Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. Some of us might read that verse and think, I understand how Jesus is the Son, but in what sense is Jesus the Father? Here are two ideas to consider. One is from King Benjamin, who taught that Jesus Christ is the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning. So, one way that Jesus is the Father is that he is the Father of creation. Under the direction of his Father, Jesus created the earth. For a second reason, let's go back to Ether chapter 3 verse 14. The Savior said, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name, and they shall become my sons and my daughters."Another way that Jesus Christ is the Father is that he is the Father of our spiritual rebirth. We know that we have heavenly parents who are the parents of our spirits. We also have earthly parents who are the parents of our physical bodies. What Jesus is saying is that he is the father of our spiritual rebirth. We believe in being born again. When we're born again, Jesus becomes our father. King Benjamin taught this also. He said, Because of the covenant which ye have made, ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons and his daughters. For behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you. For ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name. Therefore ye are born of him, and have become his sons and his daughters."So that's a beautiful way that Jesus is the Father. He's the Father of our spiritual rebirth. As I was preparing for this video, I got to thinking that maybe, how is Jesus the Father isn't the most important question. Sometimes we might have discussions with people about the Trinity and ask a question like, are God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost one and the same? And maybe we— get really into this issue and we want to prove that they're all different individuals. They are different, and that's important. But notice what Elder Jeffrey R. Holland taught. He said, part of the reason we are so misunderstood by others in the Christian tradition is because in stressing the individual personages of the Godhead, we have not followed that up often enough by both conceding and insisting upon their unity in virtually every other imaginable way. For this we have reaped needless criticism. and we have made our LDS position harder to be understood than it needs to be. What that says to me is, rather than focusing so much on how members of the Godhead are different, maybe I should focus more on how they're the same and what that means for me as a believer. In other words, instead of reading a verse about Jesus being the Father or God and Jesus being one and immediately wanting to talk about how they're different, maybe it's okay for me to sit with a bit on their unity. At the Last Supper, Jesus said, He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. I am in the Father, and the Father in me. The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth in me. In this passage, Christ is strongly stressing the unity he has with the Father. Or consider Christ's prayer in John 17. It's obvious that God and Jesus are two separate beings because Jesus is praying to God. Listen to what he says. I pray for those who believe in me. That's you and me, Christians. I pray that they may all be one. Father, may they be in us just as you are in me and I am in you. May they be one just as you and I are one. That's really powerful. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are one in purpose. They're unified. Here, Jesus is praying that we may be unified with them, that we will have the same unity of purpose. How could we increase our efforts to be one with God in Christ? What does that mean? unity look like in your life and in my life? How could developing that unity, being of one mind with Christ, help us live our lives with the Savior in the present? Well, let's jump forward several centuries to Hosea. I've found that many people aren't familiar with the storyline of Hosea. There's a great modern rendition of Hosea on YouTube, and I've gotten permission to show you just two minutes from part one of Hosea. Let's take a look. Oh If you'd like to see the rest of that video series on Hosea and find out what happens next in the modern retelling, you can find a link to the whole series on our course website. Here's the basic storyline of the Book of Hosea. In the beginning of the book, the Lord said to Hosea, Go marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her. So he married Gomer. You might be thinking, what kind of weird story is this? Why is God telling a prophet to go marry a prostitute? There are a couple of possibilities. One is that God works in mysterious ways and he's doing something a little unusual. Or it's possible that this is an extended allegory, kind of like a parable, and it didn't actually happen. You can think about Hosea in either way. Well, what happens is, Hosea marries Gomer. She's unfaithful. She cheats on Hosea. Her children were conceived in disgrace. She said, I will go after my lovers, who give me my food and my water, my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink. In the book of Hosea, Gomer represents you and me, and Hosea represents Jesus. Even though we've covenanted with the Lord, we sometimes turn our back on Him. The story of Hosea gives us a powerful metaphor to connect with Christ. We can imagine the pain Hosea feels when Gomer cheats on him. But Hosea doesn't give up on Gomer. What happens after Gomer cheats on him? Hosea says, Then God ordered me, Start all over. Love your wife again, your wife who's in bed with her latest boyfriend, your cheating wife. Love her the way I, God, love the Israelite people. even as they flirt and party with every God that takes their fancy. I did it. To be clear, the book of Hosea is not giving you dating advice, and it's not a guidebook on what to do with a cheating spouse. The purpose of the book of Hosea is to tell you that God loves you no matter what. Hosea is the story of God's unfailing love. In Hosea chapter 2 verses 19 and 20, Jesus says, I will take you for my wife forever. I will take you for my wife in righteousness and injustice. In steadfast love and in mercy, I will take you for my wife in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord."The message is, no matter what you've done, Jesus is not giving up on you. Notice how, in the book of Hosea, Hosea doesn't wait for Gomer to come back to him. He goes out to find her. In a similar way, Jesus Christ is seeking after you and me. You can imagine the hurt you would feel if someone you loved betrayed your trust. Through Hosea, Jesus says, I feel pain when you cheat on me. but I'm still taking you back."That's a powerful message of how we can have Christ with us in our present. Let's look at another interaction between Jesus and somebody trying to do his work. Hosea prophesied around 750 BC, shortly before the Assyrians scattered the ten tribes. We're going to jump about 300 years in the future to 450 BC. As you might remember, Lehi and his family left Jerusalem around 600 BC because it was going to be destroyed. In fact, shortly after Lehi's family left, Jerusalem was destroyed by a superpower called Babylon. Approximately 70 years later, another superpower, Persia, defeated Babylon and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. During this time, a Jew named Nehemiah served in the court of a Persian king as his professional food taster, which was a position of great trust. When some of Nehemiah's friends from Jerusalem visited him, Nehemiah asked how things were going in the holy city. Unfortunately, the news was not good. Among other problems, Nehemiah learned that the wall had been broken down, and the gates thereof were burned with fire. Remember that in those days, it was important to have fortifications around your city. Nehemiah used an interesting phrase to describe what happened next. He said that God put it into his heart to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. Remember that phrase, God put it into his heart. Nehemiah followed this prompting, got support from the Persian king, returned to Jerusalem and began rebuilding the fortification wall. But it wasn't easy. First, as he started to rebuild the wall, the workers said, There is much rubbish so that we are not able to build the wall. All the debris from the destruction of the city made it so they couldn't build. In other words, clutter prevented construction. Thus, the first order of business was to get rid of the rubbish. Think for a moment about how that might apply in our lives. Although we do not struggle to rebuild fortifications around a city, A parallel problem prevents many of us from finding peace. We have too much rubbish in our lives. This rubbish can take many forms, including having too much stuff, doing too many activities, and tons of digital distractions. All these things can be good, but they might not be the best. And they can collectively distract us from our focus on seeking Jesus. A survey of 752 Christian leaders found that 75% of them said that the busyness of their lives frequently interferes with the development of their relationship with God. When our goal is connecting with Christ, we often need decreased busyness. Although life sometimes forces busyness upon us, like urgent situations, health emergencies, and so forth, busyness is often a choice. And in the case of parenting, we may choose busyness for our children, multiplying the work to be done. My wife and I found ourselves in this situation a few years ago. We had five children attending four different schools, plus a toddler at home. Although we were trying to maximize the educational opportunities for each of our children, juggling multiple school carpels on top of piano, violin, tumbling, tennis, soccer, and other activities became unmanageable. And even if we had been able to do it all, was doing it all really the goal? Our lives often felt out of control, and we needed fewer activities, not more. We were so busy with the rubbish that we found we couldn't build the wall. The same principle is true with all the things that we purchase and store, as well as social media and other digital distractions. Some of us, myself included, probably think we're spending more time on important things than we actually are. For example, I've talked with college students who think that they spend a lot of time studying, but when they carefully analyze their study time, they find that large portions of it are consumed by phone checking, social media, and surfing the internet. One young adult who audited his phone usage realized that if he kept up his same pace, by the time he was 80, he would have spent over a decade of his life on social media. I love these words from Sister Michelle D. Craig, If God speaks in a still, small voice, you and I need to draw close to Him. Just imagine what would happen if we were as intent on staying connected with heaven as we are on staying connected to Wi-Fi. All of us will benefit from President Russell M. Nelson's invitation. He said, take an inventory of how you spend your time and where you devote your energy. That will tell you where your heart is. Just as a budget helps us track our finances, a time audit can help us see where we spend our time. Recently, I accepted an invitation to track how I used the 168 hours available in a single week. Using a simple app on my phone, I was able to pinpoint how much time I spent in work meetings, teaching classes, meeting with students, exercising, family time, Scripture study, serving in the church, and so forth. Tracking my time helped me realize both areas where I was doing well and where I needed to make changes. Although possessions, activities, and digital devices are not inherently bad, following Nehemiah's example of getting rid of the rubbish can give us more time to focus on what God wants us to do. That's one thing I love about Nehemiah's relationship with the Savior. He didn't get rid of the rubbish for its own sake. He got rid of it so that he could do what the Lord had put into his heart. When we have a divine purpose, it gives us strength to say no to good things so that we can say yes to the best. Nehemiah faced additional difficulties in rebuilding the wall. People from the neighboring city Samaria wanted to stop the wall from being built and devised a plan to harm Nehemiah. They asked Nehemiah to come and meet them. Their plan was, as the scripture says, to do him mischief. But Nehemiah refused to go. He said, I am doing a great work so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease whilst I leave it and come down to you? Again, we see that because Jesus put something in Nehemiah's heart, Nehemiah could not be distracted. Notice what happens next. Nehemiah says,"...they sent unto me four times after the sort, and I answered them after the same manner."Nehemiah resisted temptation and stayed true to his purpose, not just once or twice or three times, but on the fourth time as well. For me, the phrase, the fourth time, is a metaphor for consistently staying true to what we know we should do. Not just once or twice, but metaphorically speaking, even on the fourth, or fortieth, or four hundredth time. From Nehemiah, we learn that when the Lord plants something in our hearts, it changes how we see the world. It's a very real way to live with Christ in the present. Could you and I take some time to let the Lord establish the direction in our lives? Let's look at one more example of a lesson we can learn from ancient prophets and their witness of Christ. This one is from an ancient prophet in America named Moroni. A couple of years ago, I made a little video about a conversation between Jesus and Moroni. I'd like to share it with you. We all have weaknesses, things we're not good at. In my case, when it comes to fixing things around the house, I'm not very handy. Like a few years ago, one of our toilets stopped working. I tried to plunge it, but that didn't work. Then I shoved a snake down the toilet. This is a tool, by the way, not the animal. But that didn't work. So I thought, well, I guess we'll never be able to use that toilet again. A couple of days later, I... Came home from work. My wife, Lonnie, is more clever than I am. She was rocking the toilet back and forth and she picked it up. I didn't even know you could pick up toilets. Kids, do not try this at home. She took the toilet outside, did some investigating, and found a little jewelry box one of our kids had put in the toilet. Problem solved, but not by me. A few years ago, I decided that I wanted to build a swing set for my children, even though I have no construction skills. I bought a swing set kit. There were 27 steps to building this swing set. The first step, and I am not making this up, took me more than six hours to complete. Here's an actual excerpt from the instruction manual. Attach A8 lower diagonal to A2 STB ground using an H2 bolt, then square the assembly in pre-drill 1-8 pilot holes What is this even talking about? I know some of you are so skilled you can see those directions immediately and know what to do. And I have some friends who put up a swing set over a weekend, but that's not me. It took several weeks and lots of help until the swing set was finally completed. It was a magical day. Everyone was happily playing. The only problem came when my daughter said, Dad, I love the swing set, but there's only three monkey bars. I told her, you will love those monkey bars because I am never building another swing set. I was proud of that little playground. I may never paint a masterpiece, but that swing set was my creation. Well, we finished the swing set on Saturday. At the time, I was teaching seminary, and the day before, I taught my seminary students about Ether 1227, in which the Lord says to Moroni, I give unto men weakness that they may be humble, and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me. For if they humble themselves before me and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. After reading the verse, I explained to the students that Ether 1227 is part of a conversation between Jesus Christ and Moroni. Now Moroni had a concern. He was worried that people in the latter days would make fun of his words because he was a poor writer. Moroni said, Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, meaning the Book of Mormon, because of our weakness in writing. Moroni continues, Thou hast not made us mighty in writing like unto the brother of Jared. For thou madest him that the things which he wrote were mighty, even as thou art."In other words, Moroni compared himself to the brother of Jared and felt discouraged. That's the context in which the Savior said, My grace is sufficient. It was about comparison. So as a class, we discussed the principle of avoiding comparison, and I invited students to carefully track whether they compared themselves to others over the next 48 hours, and if they did, how it made them feel. So class was Friday. I completed the swing set on Saturday, went to church on Sunday, and saw my students again on Monday. I gave them 3x5 cards and asked them to write about their experiences with comparison over the weekend. I collected all the cards, and Lonnie and I read them later that night while we drove over to her brother's house. As we reviewed the cards, I was amazed to see how many of my students said things like, I realize that I compare myself to others all the time, and it really hurts me. As I got out of the car, I thought, wow, these teenagers really struggle with comparison. When we walked into my brother-in-law's backyard, the first thing I noticed was his swing set. It had five monkey bars. I thought, the swing set I made is junk. And I realized I had fallen into the exact same trap as my students. Just two days earlier, I had been completely content with my swing set. It was my masterpiece, my creation. But when I compared it to another, I felt bad. Perhaps this is why Paul told the Corinthians, they comparing themselves among themselves are not wise. Comparison often leads to feelings of discontentment and discouragement. Comparison is the thief of joy. In the context of comparison, Jesus Christ said, my grace is sufficient. You and I can count on that. We don't need to feel discouraged in comparing ourselves to others. Instead of looking sideways for approval, we can look up for God's approval. Jesus is the one who is the best. is enough. While in some instances there can be benefits to comparison, if you're like me, you still compare yourself in unhealthy ways from time to time, even though you know you shouldn't. It's easy to compare. I could compare how much hair I had a few years ago with how much hair I have today. A few years ago, I was speaking at a function with Brad Wilcox. Brad is such an amazing, gifted speaker. As I was getting things ready, a young lady approached with a camera. I thought, oh, that's so precious. She wants to take her picture with me. She looked at me. with big eyes and said, are you Brad Wilcox? I said, no, he's the next speaker. Oh, she said, and then she walked off. I thought, I'm such a loser. But I shouldn't compare myself to Brad Wilcox. Instead, I'll remember, and I hope you will too, the words of Jesus Christ. Even mighty Moroni compared himself, and in the context of comparison, the Savior said, my grace is sufficient. As Moroni concludes Ether 12, he bids farewell to readers. At the time, he didn't know he was going to write the Book of Moroni, so his plan was to give his final personal words to readers in Ether 12, and then wrap up the story of the Jaredites. In his final verse, after learning about the Savior's grace being sufficient, he says to readers, seek this Jesus. That word seek is so common that we might lose track of what it means. Sometimes I like to look up words in the 1828 dictionary to see their contemporary meaning at the time Joseph Smith was translating the Book of Mormon. You can easily find the 1828 dictionary online. Looking up the word seek, it says, to go in search or quest of, to look for. I love that. Moroni is counseling us to search for Jesus, to go on a quest to really discover him, to look for him everywhere. As we conclude this class today, I want to point out that we've only scratched the surface of how ancient prophets testify of Christ. We could spend hours talking about the relationship Jehovah had with prophets like Elijah, Elisha, Amos, Jeremiah, and many other people, such as Hagar and Ruth. We could also examine what Alma, Helaman, Nephi, Samuel the Lamanite, and many others taught about Jesus Christ. As with all of the topics in this course, there is so much more we could explore. At the start of this video, we looked at Jerem 111 and the idea of living with Christ in the present. I've shared some thoughts about how we can do this. From Enoch, we see the idea of embracing the image of a suffering Christ on the cross. And the brother of Jared points us to the unity we can have with the Father in Jesus Christ. From Hosea, we remember Christ's unfailing love. Nehemiah tells us to let the Lord plant things in our heart. And Moroni's struggle with comparison reminds us that Jesus'grace is sufficient. Take a moment to reflect on your life. What do you see as an application you could make based on the messages from these different prophets? I hope and pray that you'll be able to act on whatever impression you receive. This course contains a lot of information, but the most important part of the course is transforming our lives. And that happens as we act. Maybe I can illustrate this with an analogy and a quote. Many years ago, I received a prompting to learn Chinese. That's a story for another day, but for now, I want to point out that Chinese is a hard language to learn because it's not only the words you say, but the tone and how you say it that communicates the meaning. Let me teach you a little bit of Chinese. If you have the word ma, M-A, with a high-level tone, ma, that means mom. Now take the same word with a different tone, ma, that means horse. So if you're not careful, you can call your mom a horse. Chinese can be a tricky language to learn. As I was learning Chinese, I found that I just had to talk. Speaking Chinese was sometimes embarrassing because I couldn't speak that well, and I made lots of mistakes. But I traveled to China and I started talking Chinese as much as I could. As I continued to speak Chinese, I became a Chinese speaker. That's a life lesson. It's in the doing that we become. I hope that with the different principles we've talked about today, that there's something you feel like you can do so that you can become. Speaking to parents, Elder David A. Bednar emphasized this same principle. It's true for parents, and it's true for teachers. He said, we put way too much importance on what we say. We think that by telling people things, that somehow that will connect and get inside. My observation is that the role of a parent, or we might say teacher, includes talking and telling, but it extends beyond that to inviting a child, or we might say student, to act in accordance with truth. And only when the child acts in accordance with the truth that has been explained or taught can the child come to know for himself or herself the truthfulness of the truth. of what they have heard and what they are doing. It's only when, in that process of communicating, loving, and working with the child, you help them act in accordance with truth that they get it for themselves. It moves from their head to their heart. This course is called Seeking Jesus, and some of the most important seeking that you and I do will come as we learn for ourselves by acting on truth. If you go to the course website, and you can find a link for it in the video description, you'll find a section called Learn of Me. As your schedule permits, and I acknowledge this won't work for everyone, consider selecting an independent learning project, something meaningful you can do to significantly strengthen your relationship with Jesus Christ. Just like learning another language, it's action that will really drive our learning and becoming. Thanks for staying until the very end. I want to make sure that you know there are pre-class readings for each of these videos in the course, as well as additional resources like PowerPoints and quiz questions to explore. Click the link in the description to access these additional learning resources.

Welcome back to the course Seeking Jesus. Can you name a verse from 2 Nephi that has touched your heart? I found that a lot of people can.

But what about this question? Can you name a verse from the book of Jerem that has touched your heart? People often draw a blank on this question, but there's a verse that really resonates with me, and I think you'll like it too. Jerem wrote several hundred years before Christ was born. He said that the prophets did labor diligently, exhorting with all longsuffering the people to diligence, teaching the law of Moses, and the intent for which it was given, persuading them to look forward unto the Messiah and believe in him to come as though he already was."Think about that phrase, believing in Christ to come as though he already was. Scholar Adam Miller commented on these verses saying, that's what's different about Nephite Christianity. They lived in Christ before Christ came. They lived Christ's future in their present. For the Nephites, the temptation was to think that Christ only belonged to the future. For me, the temptation is to think that Christ only belongs to the past, or again, to some future world. Either way, the temptation is to think that Christ does not belong to the present. But a past or future Christ is not enough. It is not enough for me to believe in the past or future idea of Christ. To be a Christian, I have to learn how to share my life with Christ in the present. Just like the Nephites were looking forward to Christ, believing in Him as though He already were there, we need to believe in Christ as though He were here with us right now, not in the past in Galilee or in the future of the second coming. How do we do this? Today we'll look at a few different ancient prophets to get some ideas on how we can live with Christ in the present. In the previous two videos, we went from Adam and Eve all the way down to Moses. In this class, we'll skip around across the millennia, seeing a variety of prophets and others. how they testified of Jesus Christ, and what their words can mean to us. Let's start with Enoch. Enoch lived a few generations after Adam and a few generations before Noah. He spent decades of his life preaching the gospel. He loved those he taught, and he was heartbroken when God gave him a vision showing him that the descendants of those he was teaching would turn to wickedness and be destroyed in the flood. Before we continue with Enoch's story, look at these six images. As you can see, three portray Christ's suffering in Gethsemane, and three portray the Savior's crucifixion. If you had to choose one of these paintings to hang in your home, which would you choose? My friend Anthony Sweat and I asked this question to more than 800 Latter-day Saints, and found that 97% of them chose one of the Gethsemane images. Only 3% chose an image of the crucifixion. Keep that in mind while we look at the experience of the prophet Enoch. As Enoch saw the destruction of his people, he had bitterness of soul. and wept over his brethren."Can you relate to Enoch?

Have you ever felt bitterness of soul? What image did God show Enoch in response to Enoch's heartache? God showed him the Son of Man lifted up on the cross after the manner of men.

The answer to the pain Enoch felt was found in the cross of Christ. I think it's interesting that Enoch found comfort in the crucifixion, especially because, going back to the survey, When we asked participants to explain why they chose the painting that they did, about 50% of people specifically said something negative about the crucifixion paintings. Things like, it's too painful, or it makes me feel uncomfortable, or I only want to focus on the living Christ.

Of course we believe in the living Christ. We also believe in the loving Christ. And Jesus Christ personally defined his greatest act of love as his crucifixion.

He said, greater love hath no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. It's not either the living Christ or the loving Christ. It's both.

As with Enoch, seeing Christ on the cross can comfort us or others in the pain that we feel. In Doctrine and Covenants, section 6, verse 36, Jesus says, Look unto me in every thought, doubt not, fear not. That's a verse that many of us are familiar with. But do you know what Jesus says next?

He says, Behold, meaning fix your eyes upon, the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet. The living Christ personally invites us to fix our eyes on his crucifixion wounds. Think about Christ's invitation and Enoch's experience.

Those who have suffered bitterness of soul can find comfort from the cross. Consider this experience from Jessica Brody. She said, Ugly tears coursed down my cheeks. Why?

How could this have happened? The betrayal hit me like a gut punch. I wanted to scream it all away, or at the very least, tear someone apart with my bare fingernails.

But even that wouldn't make it better, wouldn't erase what I was going through. I felt so alone. Talking to a counselor brought temporary relief, but no real solutions. Blocking it out and staying as busy as possible only worked for so long. Then came Jesus.

In the darkness, in the depths of my pain, I realized he knew. He'd experienced the worst pain, the deepest betrayal, the hardest suffering. None of it deserved. And it hurt him so very, very badly. But for some reason, I'd never before understood this.

Growing up, I'd been taught Jesus died on the cross, but his suffering seemed abstract. In paintings depicting the crucifixion, the holes from the nails had a bit of blood and Jesus was frowning beneath his crown of thorns. But it was all rather contained, a PG version of what he'd really been through. Then his suffering was over and whoosh, our Savior was dressed in head-to-toe white with a glowing golden halo, smiling like he'd never been gasping for his last breath or sobbing from the pain of being sold for 30 pieces of silver.

by one of his twelve best friends. But when I encountered Jesus in my sorrow, it wasn't the Sunday School, family-friendly version kneeling beside me as I collapsed before him in a darkened room with my prayer of surrender. It was the scarred-up Jesus, the one who remembered the ragged, blood-stained holes from where they'd driven the nails in, who didn't wince as they beat him but cried out in agony, who didn't just quietly and stoically accept that Judas let him down but ached over the treachery. This Jesus understood, and when I realized that and I allowed him to meet me in my suffering, I was no longer alone.

That's a powerful story. Christ's invitation for us to fix our eyes on his crucifixion wounds has been echoed by other prophets. The prophet Jacob wrote, We would to God that we could persuade all to view Christ's death.

What does it mean to view Christ's death? Scholar Deidre Green wrote, The operative definition of the word view during Joseph Smith's time was,"...to survey intellectually, to examine with the mental eye, to consider the subject in all its aspects."Additionally, she said, a sense from the Latin root is that of reaching or extending toward the object one views. Jacob desires for everyone to contemplate thoroughly the multifaceted death of Christ in a way that requires each person to reach or extend toward it. Consider also the example of Mormon, who went through his own decades of bitter disappointment and loss. He worked his whole life to protect the Nephites spiritually and physically, but failed on both counts.

Rather than wallow in despair, Mormon told his son, May Christ's death rest in your mind forever. Note that Mormon emphasizes letting Christ's death rest in our minds. Sometimes we want to focus only on the happy experiences in Christ's life.

But maybe there are times that we can find power from the Savior's suffering. That's what Dietrich Bonhoeffer proposed. He was a Christian minister who fought against the Nazis. Eventually, he was arrested and put into a concentration camp.

In a letter from the camp, he wrote, Only the suffering God can help. When we teach others, if we gloss over the cross, we rob those who have experienced deep pain of the opportunity to learn more about a Savior who understands their grief. That's the suffering Jesus on the cross. He understands what you are experiencing.

Now, if you don't mind, a brief aside. I've found that many people, when talking about images of Christ's crucifixion, will say something like, if Christ's crucifixion is so important, then why doesn't the Church institutionally use the symbol of the cross? When Latter-day Saints are asked why their church doesn't display crosses, they tend to paraphrase words stated by President Gordon B. Hinckley in 1975. In response to a minister's question about a lack of a cross at the temple, President Hinckley said, I do not wish to give offense to any of my Christian brethren who use the cross on their steeples of their cathedrals and at the altars of their chapels, who wear it on their vestments and imprint it on their books and other literature.

But for us, the cross is the symbol of the dying Christ, while our message is a declaration of the living Christ. In this same talk, President Hinckley also referred to the cross upon which Christ hung and died and said, we cannot forget that. We must never forget it, for here our Savior, our Redeemer, the Son of God gave himself a vicarious sacrifice for each of us.

Thus, while de-emphasizing the Church's use of the cross as an institutional symbol, President Hinckley accentuated the atoning significance of Calvary. Although the meaning of a symbol can change over time, the doctrine of the saving importance of Christ's crucifixion is eternal. If we see the cross exclusively as a representation of the dying Christ, we ignore the fact that symbols are multifaceted.

They permit, even invite, layers of meaning. A cursory look at church history indicates that the symbol of the cross has been viewed in different ways across the decades. For example, multiple 19th century Latter-day Saints posed for photographs while wearing cross jewelry. including the wife and a daughter of Brigham Young. Keep in mind that this happened in an era when taking photos was a special occasion.

The fact that they posed for formal portraits wearing cross jewelry suggests that these were accessories that the individuals were proud of. They weren't being rebellious, they were dressing their best for a special portrait. A cross appears on the 1852 edition of the Doctrine and Covenants, and a floral cross was present at the funeral of John Taylor. A proposal for a cross to be placed on Ensign Peak was approved by President Joseph F. Smith in the First Presidency. A large cross appears on the gravestone of Elder B.H. Roberts of the Seventy.

And some church members today choose to wear a cross. It's important to note that no church handbook has ever said that members should not wear or display crosses. No church leader has taught in General Conference that it is wrong for members to wear or display crosses.

Consider a few quotes that illustrate the diversity in which the cross has been viewed by Latter-day Saints. Eliza R. Snow referred to the triumphs of the cross. In 1915, the Young Women's Journal, which would be like For the Strength of Youth magazine today, included this statement, The cross that was then a sign of disgrace has become a symbol of love and salvation. In 1933, the Relief Society magazine published the following, Christ changed the cross. into a symbol of glory.

More recently, Elder Edward Dubé of the Seventy referred to seeing an image of Christ's crucifixion as one of the defining moments of his life. Elder F. Enzio Boucher of the Seventy described how looking at a crucifix while on a hospital bed gave him a tremendous hope. Many similar examples could be provided.

My point is that throughout the history of Christianity, and even within our own church, Faithful leaders have had different perspectives on how the cross should be used by individuals to represent Christ's atoning sacrifice. To be clear, I'm not saying that we all need to go out and buy crucifixion paintings, although I do think that some of us could be blessed by not being so squeamish about them. I'm also not urging you to go out and buy a cross necklace.

But I do urge all of us to not mock or make fun of someone who wears cross jewelry. In the past, some of us may have said something like, well, would you wear a necklace with a dagger on it if your friend was killed by a stabbing? That phrase totally misunderstands the meaning of the cross and is insulting to Christians.

In fact, that phrase was anti-Catholic rhetoric that was used to attack Catholics centuries ago. It's time to retire that idea. Too many converts or people investigating the church have been treated rudely over wearing a cross. The reality is, someone wearing a cross is sending me a signal I believe in Jesus.

And that's great! Rather than seeing someone wearing a cross and thinking, ooh, that's the other, I should go up to them and say, hey, I see you believe in Jesus. I do too. Tell me more about your beliefs. Maybe the person I'm talking to will say, oh, it's just a fashion item.

Or maybe they'll tell me about why they love Jesus. Either way, we'll have an opportunity to talk about Christ. When Enoch had bitterness of soul, the Lord pointed him to the cross. Remember these scriptural invitations.

Jesus says, Behold my wounds."Mormon taught, let Christ's death rest in your minds forever. And Jacob wrote, view Christ's death. Take a minute to think, how can you apply these teachings in your life? If the principle is to let Christ's death rest in my mind forever, what specific applications could we make? How would doing this help us live our lives with Christ in the present? Let's jump forward a few centuries to the brother of Jared. Many of us are familiar with the basic storyline. The brother of Jared was leading his family and others toward the promised land. Along the way, they built some ships to cross the ocean, and the brother of Jared asked Jesus to touch 16 stones so that they could provide light on the ships. In response, the brother of Jared saw the premortal Christ, and Jesus said to him, Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. Some of us might read that verse and think, I understand how Jesus is the Son, but in what sense is Jesus the Father? Here are two ideas to consider. One is from King Benjamin, who taught that Jesus Christ is the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning. So, one way that Jesus is the Father is that he is the Father of creation. Under the direction of his Father, Jesus created the earth. For a second reason, let's go back to Ether chapter 3 verse 14. The Savior said, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name, and they shall become my sons and my daughters."Another way that Jesus Christ is the Father is that he is the Father of our spiritual rebirth. We know that we have heavenly parents who are the parents of our spirits. We also have earthly parents who are the parents of our physical bodies.

What Jesus is saying is that he is the father of our spiritual rebirth. We believe in being born again. When we're born again, Jesus becomes our father.

King Benjamin taught this also. He said, Because of the covenant which ye have made, ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons and his daughters. For behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you. For ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name. Therefore ye are born of him, and have become his sons and his daughters."So that's a beautiful way that Jesus is the Father. He's the Father of our spiritual rebirth. As I was preparing for this video, I got to thinking that maybe, how is Jesus the Father isn't the most important question. Sometimes we might have discussions with people about the Trinity and ask a question like, are God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost one and the same? And maybe we— get really into this issue and we want to prove that they're all different individuals. They are different, and that's important. But notice what Elder Jeffrey R. Holland taught. He said, part of the reason we are so misunderstood by others in the Christian tradition is because in stressing the individual personages of the Godhead, we have not followed that up often enough by both conceding and insisting upon their unity in virtually every other imaginable way. For this we have reaped needless criticism. and we have made our LDS position harder to be understood than it needs to be. What that says to me is, rather than focusing so much on how members of the Godhead are different, maybe I should focus more on how they're the same and what that means for me as a believer. In other words, instead of reading a verse about Jesus being the Father or God and Jesus being one and immediately wanting to talk about how they're different, maybe it's okay for me to sit with a bit on their unity. At the Last Supper, Jesus said, He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. I am in the Father, and the Father in me. The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth in me. In this passage, Christ is strongly stressing the unity he has with the Father. Or consider Christ's prayer in John 17. It's obvious that God and Jesus are two separate beings because Jesus is praying to God. Listen to what he says. I pray for those who believe in me. That's you and me, Christians. I pray that they may all be one. Father, may they be in us just as you are in me and I am in you. May they be one just as you and I are one. That's really powerful. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are one in purpose. They're unified. Here, Jesus is praying that we may be unified with them, that we will have the same unity of purpose. How could we increase our efforts to be one with God in Christ? What does that mean? unity look like in your life and in my life? How could developing that unity, being of one mind with Christ, help us live our lives with the Savior in the present? Well, let's jump forward several centuries to Hosea. I've found that many people aren't familiar with the storyline of Hosea. There's a great modern rendition of Hosea on YouTube, and I've gotten permission to show you just two minutes from part one of Hosea. Let's take a look. Oh If you'd like to see the rest of that video series on Hosea and find out what happens next in the modern retelling, you can find a link to the whole series on our course website. Here's the basic storyline of the Book of Hosea. In the beginning of the book, the Lord said to Hosea, Go marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her. So he married Gomer. You might be thinking, what kind of weird story is this? Why is God telling a prophet to go marry a prostitute? There are a couple of possibilities. One is that God works in mysterious ways and he's doing something a little unusual. Or it's possible that this is an extended allegory, kind of like a parable, and it didn't actually happen. You can think about Hosea in either way. Well, what happens is, Hosea marries Gomer. She's unfaithful. She cheats on Hosea. Her children were conceived in disgrace. She said, I will go after my lovers, who give me my food and my water, my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink. In the book of Hosea, Gomer represents you and me, and Hosea represents Jesus. Even though we've covenanted with the Lord, we sometimes turn our back on Him. The story of Hosea gives us a powerful metaphor to connect with Christ. We can imagine the pain Hosea feels when Gomer cheats on him. But Hosea doesn't give up on Gomer. What happens after Gomer cheats on him? Hosea says, Then God ordered me, Start all over. Love your wife again, your wife who's in bed with her latest boyfriend, your cheating wife. Love her the way I, God, love the Israelite people. even as they flirt and party with every God that takes their fancy. I did it. To be clear, the book of Hosea is not giving you dating advice, and it's not a guidebook on what to do with a cheating spouse. The purpose of the book of Hosea is to tell you that God loves you no matter what. Hosea is the story of God's unfailing love. In Hosea chapter 2 verses 19 and 20, Jesus says, I will take you for my wife forever. I will take you for my wife in righteousness and injustice. In steadfast love and in mercy, I will take you for my wife in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord."The message is, no matter what you've done, Jesus is not giving up on you.

Notice how, in the book of Hosea, Hosea doesn't wait for Gomer to come back to him. He goes out to find her. In a similar way, Jesus Christ is seeking after you and me. You can imagine the hurt you would feel if someone you loved betrayed your trust.

Through Hosea, Jesus says, I feel pain when you cheat on me. but I'm still taking you back."That's a powerful message of how we can have Christ with us in our present. Let's look at another interaction between Jesus and somebody trying to do his work. Hosea prophesied around 750 BC, shortly before the Assyrians scattered the ten tribes. We're going to jump about 300 years in the future to 450 BC. As you might remember, Lehi and his family left Jerusalem around 600 BC because it was going to be destroyed. In fact, shortly after Lehi's family left, Jerusalem was destroyed by a superpower called Babylon. Approximately 70 years later, another superpower, Persia, defeated Babylon and allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem. During this time, a Jew named Nehemiah served in the court of a Persian king as his professional food taster, which was a position of great trust. When some of Nehemiah's friends from Jerusalem visited him, Nehemiah asked how things were going in the holy city. Unfortunately, the news was not good. Among other problems, Nehemiah learned that the wall had been broken down, and the gates thereof were burned with fire. Remember that in those days, it was important to have fortifications around your city. Nehemiah used an interesting phrase to describe what happened next. He said that God put it into his heart to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. Remember that phrase, God put it into his heart. Nehemiah followed this prompting, got support from the Persian king, returned to Jerusalem and began rebuilding the fortification wall. But it wasn't easy. First, as he started to rebuild the wall, the workers said, There is much rubbish so that we are not able to build the wall. All the debris from the destruction of the city made it so they couldn't build. In other words, clutter prevented construction. Thus, the first order of business was to get rid of the rubbish. Think for a moment about how that might apply in our lives. Although we do not struggle to rebuild fortifications around a city, A parallel problem prevents many of us from finding peace. We have too much rubbish in our lives. This rubbish can take many forms, including having too much stuff, doing too many activities, and tons of digital distractions. All these things can be good, but they might not be the best. And they can collectively distract us from our focus on seeking Jesus. A survey of 752 Christian leaders found that 75% of them said that the busyness of their lives frequently interferes with the development of their relationship with God. When our goal is connecting with Christ, we often need decreased busyness. Although life sometimes forces busyness upon us, like urgent situations, health emergencies, and so forth, busyness is often a choice. And in the case of parenting, we may choose busyness for our children, multiplying the work to be done. My wife and I found ourselves in this situation a few years ago. We had five children attending four different schools, plus a toddler at home. Although we were trying to maximize the educational opportunities for each of our children, juggling multiple school carpels on top of piano, violin, tumbling, tennis, soccer, and other activities became unmanageable. And even if we had been able to do it all, was doing it all really the goal? Our lives often felt out of control, and we needed fewer activities, not more. We were so busy with the rubbish that we found we couldn't build the wall. The same principle is true with all the things that we purchase and store, as well as social media and other digital distractions. Some of us, myself included, probably think we're spending more time on important things than we actually are. For example, I've talked with college students who think that they spend a lot of time studying, but when they carefully analyze their study time, they find that large portions of it are consumed by phone checking, social media, and surfing the internet. One young adult who audited his phone usage realized that if he kept up his same pace, by the time he was 80, he would have spent over a decade of his life on social media. I love these words from Sister Michelle D. Craig, If God speaks in a still, small voice, you and I need to draw close to Him. Just imagine what would happen if we were as intent on staying connected with heaven as we are on staying connected to Wi-Fi. All of us will benefit from President Russell M. Nelson's invitation. He said, take an inventory of how you spend your time and where you devote your energy. That will tell you where your heart is. Just as a budget helps us track our finances, a time audit can help us see where we spend our time. Recently, I accepted an invitation to track how I used the 168 hours available in a single week. Using a simple app on my phone, I was able to pinpoint how much time I spent in work meetings, teaching classes, meeting with students, exercising, family time, Scripture study, serving in the church, and so forth. Tracking my time helped me realize both areas where I was doing well and where I needed to make changes. Although possessions, activities, and digital devices are not inherently bad, following Nehemiah's example of getting rid of the rubbish can give us more time to focus on what God wants us to do. That's one thing I love about Nehemiah's relationship with the Savior. He didn't get rid of the rubbish for its own sake. He got rid of it so that he could do what the Lord had put into his heart. When we have a divine purpose, it gives us strength to say no to good things so that we can say yes to the best. Nehemiah faced additional difficulties in rebuilding the wall. People from the neighboring city Samaria wanted to stop the wall from being built and devised a plan to harm Nehemiah. They asked Nehemiah to come and meet them. Their plan was, as the scripture says, to do him mischief. But Nehemiah refused to go. He said, I am doing a great work so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease whilst I leave it and come down to you? Again, we see that because Jesus put something in Nehemiah's heart, Nehemiah could not be distracted. Notice what happens next. Nehemiah says,"...they sent unto me four times after the sort, and I answered them after the same manner."Nehemiah resisted temptation and stayed true to his purpose, not just once or twice or three times, but on the fourth time as well. For me, the phrase, the fourth time, is a metaphor for consistently staying true to what we know we should do. Not just once or twice, but metaphorically speaking, even on the fourth, or fortieth, or four hundredth time. From Nehemiah, we learn that when the Lord plants something in our hearts, it changes how we see the world. It's a very real way to live with Christ in the present. Could you and I take some time to let the Lord establish the direction in our lives? Let's look at one more example of a lesson we can learn from ancient prophets and their witness of Christ. This one is from an ancient prophet in America named Moroni. A couple of years ago, I made a little video about a conversation between Jesus and Moroni. I'd like to share it with you. We all have weaknesses, things we're not good at. In my case, when it comes to fixing things around the house, I'm not very handy. Like a few years ago, one of our toilets stopped working. I tried to plunge it, but that didn't work. Then I shoved a snake down the toilet. This is a tool, by the way, not the animal. But that didn't work. So I thought, well, I guess we'll never be able to use that toilet again. A couple of days later, I... Came home from work. My wife, Lonnie, is more clever than I am. She was rocking the toilet back and forth and she picked it up. I didn't even know you could pick up toilets. Kids, do not try this at home. She took the toilet outside, did some investigating, and found a little jewelry box one of our kids had put in the toilet. Problem solved, but not by me. A few years ago, I decided that I wanted to build a swing set for my children, even though I have no construction skills. I bought a swing set kit. There were 27 steps to building this swing set. The first step, and I am not making this up, took me more than six hours to complete. Here's an actual excerpt from the instruction manual. Attach A8 lower diagonal to A2 STB ground using an H2 bolt, then square the assembly in pre-drill 1-8 pilot holes What is this even talking about? I know some of you are so skilled you can see those directions immediately and know what to do. And I have some friends who put up a swing set over a weekend, but that's not me. It took several weeks and lots of help until the swing set was finally completed. It was a magical day. Everyone was happily playing. The only problem came when my daughter said, Dad, I love the swing set, but there's only three monkey bars. I told her, you will love those monkey bars because I am never building another swing set. I was proud of that little playground. I may never paint a masterpiece, but that swing set was my creation. Well, we finished the swing set on Saturday. At the time, I was teaching seminary, and the day before, I taught my seminary students about Ether 1227, in which the Lord says to Moroni, I give unto men weakness that they may be humble, and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me. For if they humble themselves before me and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them. After reading the verse, I explained to the students that Ether 1227 is part of a conversation between Jesus Christ and Moroni. Now Moroni had a concern. He was worried that people in the latter days would make fun of his words because he was a poor writer. Moroni said, Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, meaning the Book of Mormon, because of our weakness in writing. Moroni continues, Thou hast not made us mighty in writing like unto the brother of Jared. For thou madest him that the things which he wrote were mighty, even as thou art."In other words, Moroni compared himself to the brother of Jared and felt discouraged. That's the context in which the Savior said, My grace is sufficient. It was about comparison. So as a class, we discussed the principle of avoiding comparison, and I invited students to carefully track whether they compared themselves to others over the next 48 hours, and if they did, how it made them feel.

So class was Friday. I completed the swing set on Saturday, went to church on Sunday, and saw my students again on Monday. I gave them 3x5 cards and asked them to write about their experiences with comparison over the weekend.

I collected all the cards, and Lonnie and I read them later that night while we drove over to her brother's house. As we reviewed the cards, I was amazed to see how many of my students said things like, I realize that I compare myself to others all the time, and it really hurts me. As I got out of the car, I thought, wow, these teenagers really struggle with comparison. When we walked into my brother-in-law's backyard, the first thing I noticed was his swing set.

It had five monkey bars. I thought, the swing set I made is junk. And I realized I had fallen into the exact same trap as my students. Just two days earlier, I had been completely content with my swing set. It was my masterpiece, my creation.

But when I compared it to another, I felt bad. Perhaps this is why Paul told the Corinthians, they comparing themselves among themselves are not wise. Comparison often leads to feelings of discontentment and discouragement. Comparison is the thief of joy. In the context of comparison, Jesus Christ said, my grace is sufficient.

You and I can count on that. We don't need to feel discouraged in comparing ourselves to others. Instead of looking sideways for approval, we can look up for God's approval. Jesus is the one who is the best. is enough.

While in some instances there can be benefits to comparison, if you're like me, you still compare yourself in unhealthy ways from time to time, even though you know you shouldn't. It's easy to compare. I could compare how much hair I had a few years ago with how much hair I have today.

A few years ago, I was speaking at a function with Brad Wilcox. Brad is such an amazing, gifted speaker. As I was getting things ready, a young lady approached with a camera. I thought, oh, that's so precious. She wants to take her picture with me.

She looked at me. with big eyes and said, are you Brad Wilcox? I said, no, he's the next speaker. Oh, she said, and then she walked off.

I thought, I'm such a loser. But I shouldn't compare myself to Brad Wilcox. Instead, I'll remember, and I hope you will too, the words of Jesus Christ.

Even mighty Moroni compared himself, and in the context of comparison, the Savior said, my grace is sufficient. As Moroni concludes Ether 12, he bids farewell to readers. At the time, he didn't know he was going to write the Book of Moroni, so his plan was to give his final personal words to readers in Ether 12, and then wrap up the story of the Jaredites.

In his final verse, after learning about the Savior's grace being sufficient, he says to readers, seek this Jesus. That word seek is so common that we might lose track of what it means. Sometimes I like to look up words in the 1828 dictionary to see their contemporary meaning at the time Joseph Smith was translating the Book of Mormon. You can easily find the 1828 dictionary online. Looking up the word seek, it says, to go in search or quest of, to look for.

I love that. Moroni is counseling us to search for Jesus, to go on a quest to really discover him, to look for him everywhere. As we conclude this class today, I want to point out that we've only scratched the surface of how ancient prophets testify of Christ. We could spend hours talking about the relationship Jehovah had with prophets like Elijah, Elisha, Amos, Jeremiah, and many other people, such as Hagar and Ruth. We could also examine what Alma, Helaman, Nephi, Samuel the Lamanite, and many others taught about Jesus Christ.

As with all of the topics in this course, there is so much more we could explore. At the start of this video, we looked at Jerem 111 and the idea of living with Christ in the present. I've shared some thoughts about how we can do this. From Enoch, we see the idea of embracing the image of a suffering Christ on the cross. And the brother of Jared points us to the unity we can have with the Father in Jesus Christ.

From Hosea, we remember Christ's unfailing love. Nehemiah tells us to let the Lord plant things in our heart. And Moroni's struggle with comparison reminds us that Jesus'grace is sufficient. Take a moment to reflect on your life.

What do you see as an application you could make based on the messages from these different prophets? I hope and pray that you'll be able to act on whatever impression you receive. This course contains a lot of information, but the most important part of the course is transforming our lives. And that happens as we act.

Maybe I can illustrate this with an analogy and a quote. Many years ago, I received a prompting to learn Chinese. That's a story for another day, but for now, I want to point out that Chinese is a hard language to learn because it's not only the words you say, but the tone and how you say it that communicates the meaning.

Let me teach you a little bit of Chinese. If you have the word ma, M-A, with a high-level tone, ma, that means mom. Now take the same word with a different tone, ma, that means horse. So if you're not careful, you can call your mom a horse.

Chinese can be a tricky language to learn. As I was learning Chinese, I found that I just had to talk. Speaking Chinese was sometimes embarrassing because I couldn't speak that well, and I made lots of mistakes.

But I traveled to China and I started talking Chinese as much as I could. As I continued to speak Chinese, I became a Chinese speaker. That's a life lesson.

It's in the doing that we become. I hope that with the different principles we've talked about today, that there's something you feel like you can do so that you can become. Speaking to parents, Elder David A. Bednar emphasized this same principle.

It's true for parents, and it's true for teachers. He said, we put way too much importance on what we say. We think that by telling people things, that somehow that will connect and get inside. My observation is that the role of a parent, or we might say teacher, includes talking and telling, but it extends beyond that to inviting a child, or we might say student, to act in accordance with truth.

And only when the child acts in accordance with the truth that has been explained or taught can the child come to know for himself or herself the truthfulness of the truth. of what they have heard and what they are doing. It's only when, in that process of communicating, loving, and working with the child, you help them act in accordance with truth that they get it for themselves.

It moves from their head to their heart. This course is called Seeking Jesus, and some of the most important seeking that you and I do will come as we learn for ourselves by acting on truth. If you go to the course website, and you can find a link for it in the video description, you'll find a section called Learn of Me.

As your schedule permits, and I acknowledge this won't work for everyone, consider selecting an independent learning project, something meaningful you can do to significantly strengthen your relationship with Jesus Christ. Just like learning another language, it's action that will really drive our learning and becoming. Thanks for staying until the very end. I want to make sure that you know there are pre-class readings for each of these videos in the course, as well as additional resources like PowerPoints and quiz questions to explore. Click the link in the description to access these additional learning resources.

Transcript for:Class 5 Exploring the Teachings of Christ

Transcript for:
Class 5 Exploring the Teachings of Christ