Robin Duke
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Comments = The Savior expounded all scriptures into one -- showed how all scriptures bear witness of Him. Old Testament Theme: Concept of Covenant Why should God make covenants with His people, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob? ~To establish relationships -we are saved as families -the O.T. is a book about the family of Jacob ~To bind people to God - Amos 5:1,4-6,14-15 -come unto the Lord -problem with Israel - "She does not know me" -Jeremiah 31:31-34 How many times does the Lord say, "You be my people, I'll be your God?' ~To bind people to one another -if every man would live his religion we would see "eye to eye" BYoung -we don't see things as they are; we see things as we are. The more we perfect ourselves, the more we see things as God sees them--which IS the way they are. ~To set them apart as a people; designate them -Ex 19:5 Peculiar treasure = traslates as sealed ones (from Latin) ~The covenant God makes with us is so powerful because it predates us. The whole House of Israel was predestined to spiritual things. Israel was tested, tried, and proven in the spirit world. Deut. 32:7- 9 Where shall I put House of Israel? (Where it can serve a leavening function, and a redemptive function) ~violating covenants = standing in opposition to something we agreed to before we came here. ~Our redemptive role (according to John Widtsoe) - when we agreed to the plan in pre-mortality, we entered into a partnership with God to offer salvation to all His children. It is His glory and our duty. ~Temple is the place of the covenant between: man - woman parents - children heaven - earth ~D&C 124:36-39 temples for animal sacrifice only? NO! -- for saving ordinances ~The temple is the final stage of the gathering - Joseph Smith, TPJS pp 307-308 ~What does it mean when we break the covenant? When Israel begins to be like other nations - she is scattered Jeremiah 16:11-13 *main reason for Israel's scattering - she rejects the covenant *Israel scattered to spread influence 1 Ne 17:36-38; 2 Ne 10:20-22 ~Ephraim scattered more than any other tribe ~What does the gathering represent? Return to the covenant (Jeremiah 16:14-17; 32:37-42; Isaiah 27:12; Jeremiah 3:14-18 ~we may be saved as families, but we must be converted individually ~In our day, the Lord gathers by restoring the covenant ~In the Wentworth Letter, in describing the events of the first vision, Joseph wrote the "covenant with ancient Israel was about to be fulfilled" (restoration) ~Joseph Smith became a modern Abraham D&C 124:58; D&C 132: 30-32 ~Patriarchal blessing - we affirm the covenant; know how we are tied to the covenant (lineage is declared). The blood of one particular tribe will be dominant even though tribal blood will be mixed. ~All missionaries must receive their patriarchal blessing before reporting because it is the missionary's ministerial certificate (affirmation that the covenant is alive & well) Enduring the Covenant ~3 Ne 5:21-26 ~In the Dedication of Kirtland Temple, Joseph Smith prayed, "put upon thy servants a testimony of the covenant". ~Russell M. Nelson said, "once we know who we are, our royal lineage, our actions will be more in line with our lineage". The children of the covenant are a "strain of sin resistant souls" April 1995 Conference talk ~Mariners use sextants and heavenly light to guide their ships -- the sun and the stars. Our spiritual sextants draw from spiritual light -- set your course on �covenant'. Life is a homeward journey back to God and the celestial kingdom. Boyd K Packer Apr. 97 conf. It's the covenant that matters.