April 15, 2018 –
Family Ties
Hello! Things are still going great, lots of new and old faces
showing up at church and helping to make a great edifying body of worship.
Sacrament meeting yesterday was so fulfilling and spiritually refreshing! The
poor senior couples just understood their first sacrament meeting in a year
because we were able to translate it as the speakers gave their messages. What
a huge sacrifice to go to a foreign country for 1.5-2 years (old people don't
pick up a language so fast) and they are such a massive help to the Branch,
bringing wisdom and experience that is just unparalleled in a growing
church.
I've been reading the Old Testament the past 5 weeks because my
companion Elder A- showed me the start of his family tree he is making
from Adam to Christ. I thought, what a great idea! So I'm unashamedly copying
him, and learning a ton! Here's my thoughts and opinions, which can only be
about 50% accurate because I'm just over halfway done with the book:
I get the feeling as I read it that it is a really ancient book,
the customs are so far different. Yet their LORD is our Lord, and many of the
commandments hold fast to this day. It is a holy book, it holds the history of
the whole human race, in its thick chapters describing war and chronology and
mighty achievements is an overarching, grandiose genealogy. It is one
continuous family tree with very deep roots. Genesis quickly gives thousands of
years of history, and then Exodus helps us understand how Israel becomes it's
own nation once again, reclaiming a promised land, which it continues to hold
for generations, found in the books of Kings and especially in the Chronicles.
After the 10 tribes are lost and the Kingdom of Judah is taken captive as well
I have lost where the family connects. But it's thrilling reading it this way
because sometimes you just find a chapter that connects the story or gives the
missing link. 20 or so more generations and we are in the New Testament times!
It is scripture, it is full of commandments, blessings and even
cursings. I get this feeling that it is is incomplete, that many parts are
missing or haven't been included. I have read mention of multiple records (like
the record of Israel and of Judah, or the "sayings of the seers")
that can't be found in our version of the Bible, but the narrator refers you to
those books to attain more information. It shares the success and failures of a
chosen people, who have been given the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but the record
lacks sufficient mention of what we know today as faith, repentance, baptism,
receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. Only some
remnants have been left, making the book a quality spiritual experience as we
can understand our roots and the meaning of the Abrahamic covenants and the
Tribes of Israel, but not sufficient to teach the Gospel standalone like the
New Testament and Book of Mormon. One remnant of is mention of a "molten
sea" which in reality is a big brazen basin that fits thousands of gallons
of water, and could only be used to submerge individuals (baptism) the
description of this artifact that is part of the temple of Solomon is what
current baptismal fonts look like in Latter Day Saint Temples, which is not a
surprise.
I love how complete the Church of Christ is today, there is
hardly any room for confusion on what is truth. Everything I am reading in the
Old Testament can be found and verified as something that has an integral role
in the latter-day Church (more support for Elder McConkie's statement that the
Church of Christ has always been taught in it's fullness when God has sent a
prophet, and that even back then they had 12 apostles) For example, brief
mentions of the Urim and Thummin, the breastplate with 12 stones representing
Israel, ephods and caps, temples, and much more.
I also love how similar the Book of Mormon actually is to the
Old Testament, and if you put back in all the truth that has been removed from
the Old Testament, it would look and read just like the Book of Mormon, with
Judges being replaced by Kings, and wicked "Gentile" nations being
the main antagonist and pride being the main test of faith.
Studying
scripture is truly a lifetime pursuit. Tanner Farnsworth an old friend met with
me for lunch just before I started for the Philippines, and I asked some advice
on scripture study. We went through an exercise where I would open to a random
verse, then read intently that one verse, coming up with ways it could help me,
seeking a deeper understanding, wringing out as much knowledge and light from
that one verse. The verse I opened to is still highlighted in my New Testament.
Matthew 1:14. When I read it I said in my head "Tanner this isn't
going to work, all I found was a list of 3 names, so and so is the son of so
and so" But I was able to come up with some thought after the initial
skepticism, relating the verse to my own recent ordination to the Melchizedek
Priesthood, where my dad and my dad's dad ordained me. Then the importance of
family and keeping track of family came to mind. That short verse 2 years ago
meant very little to me other than those insights I squeezed out of it, but
earlier this morning i read it again as I was double checking my family tree
I'm throwing together, and remembered this event. But now, the 3 names are ones
I recognize, who have story and life and meaning, and bring comfort to me as I
realize that this is the Family of God, on top of my original encounter with
the verse.
I love questions that are hard to answer at first. I remember in
a Priesthood meeting in the 3rd hour of Church when I was probably 15 or 16, a
man asked the question, "Why is Jesus (aka Jehovah) an angry and fierce
and punishing God in the Old Testament, and a loving forgiving God in the New
Testament?" That questioned is still not completely answered for me, and
it has provoked another question, what does it mean to "fear God"?
Maybe another week I will give another update on this fascinating book and what
I learn about these questions! For now, the way I pray is significantly different
and much more enriching after reading most of the Old Testament. Like President
Nelson has cautioned us, let us seek personal revelation!!
Thanks for reading, sorry for
the long excerpt with no pictures! I love you all!
Elder Fish
