December 29 — Calling all Sinners! Malachi 4:5; “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.”
Matthew 3:1-2 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
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Forerunner in the spirit of Elijah … In the days of John the Baptist there wasn’t a person alive who didn’t know him. The majority of Israelites knew he’d been sent to speak the will of God, and yet…
John threw caution to the wind and spent his life fulfilling the role God created him for. He wasn’t hesitant about calling out those who sinned, and was beheaded for it (Mark 6:14-29). Even the manner in which he dressed is another indication his focus was on God, not man. Are we so focused? Will the body of Christ be found ready, or running in haste like the five virgins who scampered about looking for oil to fill their lamps? (Mt. 25:1-13)
Deserts can be foreboding places when you’re not prepared, and so can life itself. As we read about John the Baptist living in such harsh conditions, it goes without saying he was well prepared. So how do we prepare ourselves? Simply put, the Bible.
Do you know how to discern the truth from a lie? Do you know where to look in your Bible to determine when someone is lying? Are you ready? What will your reaction be when a false teacher comes along? Just like biblical times, the majority of people today know that God has spoken His will through the Bible and yet…
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Ensign, ‘Prophecies in the Bible about Joseph Smith,’ January 1989;“Here, “the voice of him that crieth” does not refer to John the Baptist in the meridian of time; the context of the chapter deals with happenings that will occur just prior to the Second Coming and the Millennium. Therefore, it is likely that Joseph Smith is “the voice of him that crieth.” Once this is recognized, it becomes easier to understand similar biblical passages, such as Jeremiah 30:21” – George A. Horton, Jr.
“Therefore, shalt thou fall in the day and the prophet shall also fall with thee. My people are destroyed from a lack of knowledge, because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will reject thee (Hosea 4:5,6)….”Search the scriptures, for in them, ye have eternal life and they are they that testify of me.” (John 5:39).
Ever wonder why the LDS church places so much emphasis on reading the BOM and so little emphasis on reading the Bible? How can we ignore Biblical scripture and expect to understand what the Lord’s will for us?
Hi David, if the church put more emphasis on the Bible, members would learn the BOM is not God’s word. And if the BOM isn’t true, neither is the church.