Hugh B. Brown Writes:
"A story is told of the final test to which the Arabians put their colts when selecting young stallions with which to perpetuate and improve that splendid stock. The best specimens were trained, while still at their mother's side, to run to the tent of their master whenever they heard a certain bell. When these colts were two years old they were confined in a corral for three days without food or water. In the evening of the third day, hay and grain and water were placed outside the gate; the bell sounded, the gate opened and the young thoroughbreds allowed to choose between appetite and duty. Those which stopped for food or water were rejected as unfit. Those chosen as worthy sires of future generations were the ones which were not deterred by the pull of the appetite when the bell of duty sounded."
For us as members of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints the bell is ever sounding. Dozens of times each week we are confronted with a choice of appetite verses duty. Appetite verse duty. This is not something that just affects those of our generation it has been around since the beginning. We like our forefathers before us are in training, training to hear our masters voice? Just like the young Arabians we to must prove to ourselves that we will respond to our masters voice at the sound not at our own convenience. Just like the story of the Arabian colts who must learn to recognize a single bell from the others and respond we to will return to our master through listening to the right bell. It is not always easy for the young colts to respond to the correct bell especially when so many bells can be sounding at one time. When the colt is very young all bells will sound right, all bells might even sound the same, but the careful training will allow the colt to grow to know the right bell, and thereby respond accordingly. Only a few Arabian colts will become stallions.
In an effort for the Lord to help us better understand,hear and distinguish the correct bell for us to follow he has provided us with direction through his servant a prophet.
The main message of the prophets of both yesterday and today is Jesus Christ. Paul said, "I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified..."(1 Cor.2:2) Nephi said, "and we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophecy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." (2 Ne. 25:26) Jacob declared this beautiful truth that "all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world unto man are for the typifying of him (Christ)." (2 Ne. 11:4) Therefore our attitude toward Christ is no different than our attitude toward the prophet.
To accept the prophets then is to accept Christ, to reject the prophet is to be ashamed of Jesus Christ. (John 10:40) "He that receiveth you receiveith me." (Luke 10:16) "He that despiseth you despiseth me and him that sent me." General Moroni indicated it is when men and women transgress that they are "ashamed to take upon them the name of Christ (or abide his councils)."
The gates of hell will not prevail against church members who follow the words of the living prophet.
On the day when the church was organized, the Lord said,
"4 Wherefore, meaning the church," --and this message is not to just the few that were present on that day but to all members of this church-- "thou shalt give heed unto all his words and commandments which he shall give unto you as he receiveth them, walking in all holiness before me;
5 For his word (meaning the President of the Church) ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth, in all patience and faith.
6 For by doing these things the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good, and his name's glory. (D&C 21:4-6)"
President Harold B. Lee said "to you latter day saints everywhere, that promise will be yours if you will follow the leadership the Lord has placed within the church, giving heed to their council in patience and faith; this promise to you and yours is that the gates of hell will not prevail against you, that the Lord will disperse the powers of darkness from before you and will cause the heavens to shake for your good and his names glory. (Ensign 1: 11-12 Nov 1971)
One of the reasons that President Barney suggested that we speak about following the Prophets is that General conference is coming up next month and conference is probably far more significant than most people realize.
Elder Marion G Romney said the Lord "inspired the brotheren who have talked in this conference to say what they have said, it is our high privilege to hear through these men, what the Lord would say if he were here. If we do not agree with what they say, it is because we are out of harmony with the spirit of the Lord." (Gen Conf. Oct 1950 pp 126-127)
Elder Alvin Dyer said "from experience we have learned that the expressed will of our heavenly father comes to his people at conference time... but may I ask a question of you? What will the aftermath be? (Conf Oct 1966)
Do we give heed to the instruction that he gives us through our prophets?
It has been suggested that one of the key reasons for the scriptures is to give us examples compiled by former prophets of those things to do and those things not to do to remain on the Lords side.
Lets explore some examples of those that did as instructed by their prophet and those that did not...
Enoch, those that followed the prophet Enoch were caught up with their entire city into the presence of God. Could you imagine seeing a city physically removed from this earth and realizing that you had not followed the prophet enough and hence were left behind.
Moses, as he led his people. Everything went good for awhile, but before reaching the promised land things got a little tough. Most rebelled against the prophet Moses and then the Lord required them to wait a generation before they were able to enter the promised land.
I'm sure the people mocked the prophet Noah as he labored to build an arc for no apparent reason, except that he was commanded of the Lord. Can you imagine the look on some of his neighbors faces about 10 days into a steady rainstorm were everything was flooding.
But the question is not any different for us today than it was in days of old. Simply stated there are those that will listen to the bell and respond favorably and there are those that hear the bell sound and just don't respond. There are those whom here the voice of the prophet and respond with obedience and there are those who chose not to and the consequences follow. Now for us we must look at our actions and determine would we be among those that complained constantly to Moses and were not allowed to enter the promised land. Or would we be among those that helped Noah build the arc and were allowed entrance into the arc,and were saved from the flood and not drown in the depths of the sea?
Our current Prophet has spoken time after time and the message he has given us most common is to Read the Book of Mormon. Do you ever wonder why it is so important to our salvation to understand the Book of Mormon and why our current prophet continues to say to read it with more emphasis than at any time before.
I suppose that it could be because it was written by the prophets of this American continent like Nephi, Jacob, Mormon and Moroni. All whom saw our day and then did their best to edit down from the some 57000 plus pages that they had and gave us the most important hundredth part for our day.
Except for about 7 pages of which were written by Enos, Jarom, Omni, Chemish, Abinidum and Amalichi. The entire book of Mormon was engraved by one of only four persons Nephi, Jacob Mormon, Moroni.
In order to more fully understand why this is so important we should know something about each of these four men and the experiences that they had that were common.
Shared Experiences include:
1) Each was a personal witness of Jesus Christ. Nephi and his brother Jacob saw the premortal Christ and were visited by and talked with him. Mormon and his son Moroni after Christ saw the resurrected Christ and were visited by and talked with him.
2) Each was personally tutored by Christ as to what they should write. Indeed Jesus Christ is the author.
3) Each were visited by angels and or translated beings & were instructed by these beings. Nephi and Jacob were tutored by Angels (1st nephi 11 and 2nd nephi chapter 10). Mormon and Moroni were taught by translated beings including the three Nephi disciples. (3 Nephi 28 vs 26 and mormon 8 vs 11).
4) Each saw our days and our challenges and they wrote for us not the people of their time. They knew the Book of Mormon would not even published during their lifetime. Mormon wrote in Chapter 8 "Behold the lord hath shown me...and I know of your doing"
Now the Book of Mormon is written for our day by prophets that foresaw the problems of our time and did their best to describe them to us.
I think that if most of us were given the opportunity to set at the feet of a prophet and have him summarize an instruct us from the scriptures we would not miss such an occasion for the world. May I share with you such an example that we can have each and every day...AND THUS WE SEE
1 Nephi 16:
28 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld the pointers which were in the ball, that they did work according to the faith and diligence and heed which we did give unto them.
29 And there was also written upon them a new writing, which was plain to be read, which did give us understanding concerning the ways of the Lord; and it was written and changed from time to time, according to the faith and diligence which we gave unto it. And thus we see that by small means the Lord can bring about great things.
1Nephi 17:
2 And so great were the blessings of the Lord upon us, that while we did live upon raw meat in the wilderness, our women did give plenty of suck for their children, and were strong, yea, even like unto the men; and they began to bear their journeyings without murmurings.
3 And thus we see that the commandments of God must be fulfilled. And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them; wherefore, he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness.
Alma 12:
19 Now it came to pass that when Alma had made an end of speaking these words, the people began to be more astonished;
20 But there was one Antionah, who was a chief ruler among them, came forth and said unto him: What is this that thou hast said, that man should rise from the dead and be changed from this mortal to an immortal state that the soul can never die?
21 What does the scripture mean, which saith that God placed a cherubim and a flaming sword on the east of the garden of Eden, lest our first parents should enter and partake of the fruit of the tree of life, and live forever? And thus we see that there was no possible chance that they should live forever.
Alma 12:
22 Now Alma said unto him: This is the thing which I was about to explain. Now we see that Adam did fall by the partaking of the forbidden fruit, according to the word of God; and thus we see, that by his fall, all mankind became a lost and fallen people.
23 And now behold, I say unto you that if it had been possible for Adam to have partaken of the fruit of the tree of life at that time, there would have been no death, and the word would have been void, making God a liar, for he said: If thou eat thou shalt surely die.
Alma 24:
18 And this they did, it being in their view a testimony to God, and also to men, that they never would use weapons again for the shedding of man's blood; and this they did, vouching and covenanting with God, that rather than shed the blood of their brethren they would give up their own lives; and rather than take away from a brother they would give unto him; and rather than spend their days in idleness they would labor abundantly with their hands.
19 And thus we see that, when these Lamanites were brought to believe and to know the truth, they were firm, and would suffer even unto death rather than commit sin; and thus we see that they buried their weapons of peace, or they buried the weapons of war, for peace.
Alma 24:
25 And it came to pass that they threw down their weapons of war, and they would not take them again, for they were stung for the murders which they had committed; and they came down even as their brethren, relying upon the mercies of those whose arms were lifted to slay them.
26 And it came to pass that the people of God were joined that day by more than the number who had been slain; and those who had been slain were righteous people, therefore we have no reason to doubt but what they were saved.
27 And there was not a wicked man slain among them; but there were more than a thousand brought to the knowledge of the truth; thus we see that the Lord worketh in many ways to the salvation of his people.
Alma 28:
10 And from the first year to the fifteenth has brought to pass the destruction of many thousand lives; yea, it has brought to pass an awful scene of bloodshed.
11 And the bodies of many thousands are laid low in the earth, while the bodies of many thousands are moldering in heaps upon the face of the earth; yea, and many thousands are mourning for the loss of their kindred, because they have reason to fear, according to the promises of the Lord, that they are consigned to a state of endless wo.
12 While many thousands of others truly mourn for the loss of their kindred, yet they rejoice and exult in the hope, and even know, according to the promises of the Lord, that they are raised to dwell at the right hand of God, in a state of never-ending happiness.
13 And thus we see how great the inequality of man is because of sin and transgression, and the power of the devil, which comes by the cunning plans which he hath devised to ensnare the hearts of men.
Alma 28:
14 And thus we see the great call of diligence of men to labor in the vineyards of the Lord; and thus we see the great reason of sorrow, and also of rejoicing&emdash;sorrow because of death and destruction among men, and joy because of the light of Christ unto life.
Alma 30:
58 And it came to pass that they were all convinced of the wickedness of Korihor; therefore they were all converted again unto the Lord; and this put an end to the iniquity after the manner of Korihor. And Korihor did go about from house to house, begging food for his support.
59 And it came to pass that as he went forth among the people, yea, among a people who had separated themselves from the Nephites and called themselves Zoramites, being led by a man whose name was Zoram&emdash;and as he went forth amongst them, behold, he was run upon and trodden down, even until he was dead.
60 And thus we see the end of him who perverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the devil will not support his children at the last day, but doth speedily drag them down to hell.
Alma 42:
2 Now behold, my son, I will explain this thing unto thee. For behold, after the Lord God sent our first parents forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground, from whence they were taken&emdash;yea, he drew out the man, and he placed at the east end of the garden of Eden, cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the tree of life&emdash;
3 Now, we see that the man had become as God, knowing good and evil; and lest he should put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat and live forever, the Lord God placed cherubim and the flaming sword, that he should not partake of the fruit&emdash;
4 And thus we see, that there was a time granted unto man to repent, yea, a probationary time, a time to repent and serve God.
Alma 42:
6 But behold, it was appointed unto man to die&emdash;therefore, as they were cut off from the tree of life they should be cut off from the face of the earth&emdash;and man became lost forever, yea, they became fallen man.
7 And now, ye see by this that our first parents were cut off both temporally and spiritually from the presence of the Lord; and thus we see they became subjects to follow after their own will.
Alma 42:
12 And now, there was no means to reclaim men from this fallen state, which man had brought upon himself because of his own disobedience;
13 Therefore, according to justice, the plan of redemption could not be brought about, only on conditions of repentance of men in this probationary state, yea, this preparatory state; for except it were for these conditions, mercy could not take effect except it should destroy the work of justice. Now the work of justice could not be destroyed; if so, God would cease to be God.
14 And thus we see that all mankind were fallen, and they were in the grasp of justice; yea, the justice of God, which consigned them forever to be cut off from his presence.
Alma 46:
5 And they had been led by the flatteries of Amalickiah, that if they would support him and establish him to be their king that he would make them rulers over the people.
6 Thus they were led away by Amalickiah to dissensions, notwithstanding the preaching of Helaman and his brethren, yea, notwithstanding their exceedingly great care over the church, for they were high priests over the church.
7 And there were many in the church who believed in the flattering words of Amalickiah, therefore they dissented even from the church; and thus were the affairs of the people of Nephi exceedingly precarious and dangerous, notwithstanding their great victory which they had over the Lamanites, and their great rejoicings which they had had because of their deliverance by the hand of the Lord.
8 Thus we see how quick the children of men do forget the Lord their God, yea, how quick to do iniquity, and to be led away by the evil one.
Alma 50:
15 And they also began in that same year to build many cities on the north, one in a particular manner which they called Lehi, which was in the north by the borders of the seashore.
16 And thus ended the twentieth year.
17 And in these prosperous circumstances were the people of Nephi in the commencement of the twenty and first year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi.
18 And they did prosper exceedingly, and they became exceedingly rich; yea, and they did multiply and wax strong in the land.
19 And thus we see how merciful and just are all the dealings of the Lord, to the fulfilling of all his words unto the children of men; yea, we can behold that his words are verified, even at this time, which he spake unto Lehi, saying:
20 Blessed art thou and thy children; and they shall be blessed, inasmuch as they shall keep my commandments they shall prosper in the land. But remember, inasmuch as they will not keep my commandments they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord.
Heleman 3:
25 And so great was the prosperity of the church, and so many the blessings which were poured out upon the people, that even the high priests and the teachers were themselves astonished beyond measure.
26 And it came to pass that the work of the Lord did prosper unto the baptizing and uniting to the church of God, many souls, yea, even tens of thousands.
27 Thus we may see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name.
28 Yea, thus we see that the gate of heaven is open unto all, even to those who will believe on the name of Jesus Christ, who is the son of God.
Helaman 6:
32 And it came to pass that all these iniquities did come unto them in the space of not many years, insomuch that a more part of it had come unto them in the sixty and seventh year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi.
33 And they did grow in their iniquities in the sixty and eighth year also, to the great sorrow and lamentation of the righteous.
34 And thus we see that the Nephites did begin to dwindle in unbelief, and grow in wickedness and abominations, while the Lamanites began to grow exceedingly in the knowledge of their God; yea, they did begin to keep his statutes and commandments, and to walk in truth and uprightness before him.
35 And thus we see that the Spirit of the Lord began to withdraw from the Nephites, because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts.
Helaman 6:
36 And thus we see that the Lord began to pour out his Spirit upon the Lamanites, because of their easiness and willingness to believe in his words.
Helaman 6:
38 And it came to pass on the other hand, that the Nephites did build them up and support them, beginning at the more wicked part of them, until they had overspread all the land of the Nephites, and had seduced the more part of the righteous until they had come down to believe in their works and partake of their spoils, and to join with them in their secret murders and combinations.
39 And thus they did obtain the sole management of the government, insomuch that they did trample under their feet and smite and rend and turn their backs upon the poor and the meek, and the humble followers of God.
40 And thus we see that they were in an awful state, and ripening for an everlasting destruction.
Helaman 12:
2 Yea, and we may see at the very time when he doth prosper his people, yea, in the increase of their fields, their flocks and their herds, and in gold, and in silver, and in all manner of precious things of every kind and art; sparing their lives, and delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; softening the hearts of their enemies that they should not declare wars against them; yea, and in fine, doing all things for the welfare and happiness of his people; yea, then is the time that they do harden their hearts, and do forget the Lord their God, and do trample under their feet the Holy One&emdash;yea, and this because of their ease, and their exceedingly great prosperity.
3 And thus we see that except the Lord doth chasten his people with many afflictions, yea, except he doth visit them with death and with terror, and with famine and with all manner of pestilence, they will not remember him.
Ether 14:
21 And so great and lasting had been the war, and so long had been the scene of bloodshed and carnage, that the whole face of the land was covered with the bodies of the dead.
22 And so swift and speedy was the war that there was none left to bury the dead, but they did march forth from the shedding of blood to the shedding of blood, leaving the bodies of both men, women, and children strewed upon the face of the land, to become a prey to the worms of the flesh.
23 And the scent thereof went forth upon the face of the land, even upon all the face of the land; wherefore the people became troubled by day and by night, because of the scent thereof.
24 Nevertheless, Shiz did not cease to pursue Coriantumr; for he had sworn to avenge himself upon Coriantumr of the blood of his brother, who had been slain, and the word of the Lord which came to Ether that Coriantumr should not fall by the sword.
25 And thus we see that the Lord did visit them in the fulness of his wrath, and their wickedness and abominations had prepared a way for their everlasting destruction.
Today as in the past these messages from the Lord come through his servants the prophets, as a matter of fact he said in Amos 3:7 "surely the Lord God will do nothing save he reveals his will to his servants the prophets". So once again as we approach the time of year that conference is here, we have a chance to "come Listen to a Prophets voice; and hear the word of God". The bell will sound, the prophet will speak, and how will we respond.
I pray that we can be like those stallions that are fit for eternal offspring, that we too may be worthy of such eternal blessings. That we like the Arabian sires will chose to follow our master at the sound of the bell.