Church Talk Given on Easter Sunday (Emailed April 25th) ...

Dear Brethren,

Happy Easter! I hope you all had a great one! Mine was a lot of fun, and I got to speak in Sacrament Meeting! It was a very spiritual meeting--not just because I was speaking. We had some other good speakers, and blessing the sacrament really added to my feeling the spirit. It was just a great day.
So some of you have inquired as to what I spoke about, and how it went. My Mom even wanted a copy, so I decided I'll just type it out and send it to all of you right now.

CHURCH TALK (Modified just a tad)

My dear brothers and sisters, it is my pleasure to address you, and to speak today on a subject that is very dear to my heart. In preparing I prayed for the divine guidance of the Holy Ghost--and even now I invite the Spirit of the Lord to be here that He might uplift our spirits, that our minds might be enlightened, and that the Spirit may give me utterance so that we may be taught from on high.
This morning I wish to open with the words of a tender parent, the Prophet Lehi, to his young son Jacob, that are recorded in the Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Two, verses six and seven in the Book of Mormon, which read: "Wherefore, redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah; for he is full of grace and truth. Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered". (Continue to 2 Nephi 2:8 later)
These words of a prophet spoken very plainly and simply to his son Jacob, give us a very simple summary of what things must take place in any individuals life in order for that individual to return to live with God. This scripture passage teaches first that redemption comes only in and through Jesus Christ, the Holy Messiah, and through His atoning sacrifice for us. This is the truest and purest doctrine of all the doctrines of the world or the church, that salvation comes through this loving Son of God, who is merciful to all mankind who will come unto Him and allow Him to take them into His outstretched arms. He lives today brothers and sisters, and His is the power to heal even the most broken, torn, and despairing soul. "The worth of every soul is great in the eyes of God" (Joseph Smith), so please, all who are feeling broken, torn, discouraged, or defeated, come unto Him.
Secondly, (referring back to the scripture read earlier) the Book of Mormon prophet teaches his son what the Lord requires of him. he taught that we must come to the Savior with a broken heart, and a contrite spirit. This is truly what the Lord requires: that we come to Him with a humble and willing heart.
King Benjamin, a Book of Mormon king, taught these principles in his angelical sermon, saying: "For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father" (Mosiah 3:19)
King Benjamin again taught these things when pleading with his people to put their trust in the Lord. He said, "Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend. And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins, and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you.; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them".
Speaking somewhat on the subject of humility, I wish to touch just momentarily, on the subject of pride. I am pleased to say that I have not seen many instances of prideful behavior among you, and for the few that I have seen, I do not feel that I should judge, for I too struggle greatly with pride--but every time I start to exalt myself, the Lord brings me back to earth. I find I am humbled, and who am I to fight it? I am nothing before my Father, yet I mean everything to Him. When He humbles me, I have learned to take joy in it.
Pride is a very dangerous thing, brothers and sisters. It is a cancer that easily spreads--a plague that can easily take hold on one's heart, and then it will harden that one's heart until their heart fails them completely. Speaking in a poetic sense as Elder Holland did in his beautiful sermon titled, "Safety for the Soul", the heart in this case become the center of our emotions, the indicator of our character, and the listening device for sensing the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. A humble heart is indeed the key to the doors of heaven. Should we allow our hearts to become hardened and prideful, we shall find that our spiritual sensitivity will decrease greatly.
Many times, pride has been referred to as the "universal sin", and in my opinion, there are two reasons for this title. The first is that pride is a very common sin. It can take hold on anyone. I firmly believe that every man who has ever lived--save Jesus only--has had at least one prideful moment. Each of us should examine ourselves and seek to correct our pride with charity, service, and gratitude.
The second reason I believe pride is called the "universal sin", is because it leads us into other sins. A hardened heart leaves the word of God at naught. We start to sin and justify our sin. Pride causes us to not repent, and to turn away from the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His true church.
[ A quote that I find we each need to consider, says: "Sin will not keep you out of the temple. Pride will" (Kearney Stake Conference).-wasn't in my talk, cause they have already heard it.]
I do not wish to speak any more of pride, but to instead refer back to my original topic that redemption can only come through Jesus Christ. If we are burdened by this sin of pride--or any other sin--He can take the burden off of our shoulders, if we will repent. His invitation as recorded by Matthew, in the Bible, reads: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30)
As Latter-day Saints we are a very blessed people. We have great reason to rejoice! For us the fulness of the gospel has been spelled out in such beautiful simplicity. By the good graces of our Eternal God, we have been given a knowledge of our Savior's infinite atonement. We have been given the miracles of both The Holy Bible, and The Book of Mormon. Through these sacred records we can more fully come to know our Loving Savior, and more fully come to understand His atonement. What a rich blessing! And glory be to the Father for it!
I wish to conclude with my final point in 2 Nephi 2:8. Previously in verses six and seven we learned that redemption only comes to through Jesus Christ, and that that redemption only comes to those who will come unto Him with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Now, verse 8: "Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise" (2 Nephi 2:8).
Brothers and sisters, we use this Easter Season to celebrate our Savior's great victory over death and hell, and we do this because we know what that means. It means that if we will repent, we too can conquer death and hell, through Jesus Christ. Christ can enable our souls to be free.
We now have a responsibility to make these things known unto all men. The Prophet Joseph Smith said, "After all that has been said, the greatest and most important duty is to preach the Gospel". Let us not forget that before this life on earth we promised our brothers and sisters, who we loved so much, that we would find them and bring the Gospel to them. We knew the end goal--we wanted it badly--and we knew what it would take to get there. The Prophet George Albert Smith said, "We will attain our exaltation in the Celestial Kingdom only on the condition that we share with our Father's other children the blessings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and observe the commandments that will enrich our lives here and hereafter".
It is my testimony that Jesus the Christ lives. Redemption does come through Him. This is His Church, and it is true. The Book of Mormon is the word of God, and was truly translated by it's unlearned translator, Joseph Smith, who was a chosen prophet of the true and living God. We can find relief and forgiveness in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As we strive to become like Him, we be transformed into something far greater than we could ever make ourselves. I wish to leave you with the dying words of the Prophet Moroni, in the end of the Book of Mormon: "Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God. And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot" (Moroni 10: 32-33).
I love you all brethren, and I leave these things with you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.