The following is a testimony delivered on January 7, 2018:
I want to tell you what a great gift we have in the scriptures. We call them our “standard works.” They are inspired of God and, to our own detriment, we don’t spend enough time in them. Joseph Smith said before his passing that if any man came to the people saying anything against the scriptures-the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants (at that time), that you could set him down as an imposter—himself, included. They are such a guide to us and, when read and studied under the influence of the Spirit, they become a Urim and Thummim to have...to give you the ability to have your mind filled with light and understanding at a level that is not, otherwise, attainable. Making a serious study of the scriptures is just very important and, in that vein, I would like to bring up a passage of scripture that seems so very foreign to us a lot of time. It’s the book of Revelation.
John sees things in the Spirit on the island of Patmos and quite often, I think, we read that book and we just go, “What the heck is he talking about? I have no idea what he’s trying to say!” But there are some things that we can glean. Most of it is for people who are under the influence of the Spirit. In order to do that, you have to have a baptism of fire. You have to have the impurities burned out of you so that the Spirit can inhabit you and teach you the things that John is trying to teach in that book. But, even if you don’t, there are some things that we can look at in that book and learn from and one of those things is in chapter 5 in the book of Revelation. It says:
And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
3 And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
4 And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
Now, I’m not going to go into all of the analogies, here, that are presented, but there is something that has to happen and John realizes that there is no individual among all of the hosts of heaven who is able to open that book and he cries because it has to happen. Continuing in verse 5:
5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
And we know that that is Christ. It’s Yeshua.
6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
7 And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
14 And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.
Christ is worthy of all those things. He is the only one who is worthy of praise and honor and blessing. And I have been known, in the past, to ruffle some feathers, so I don’t see any point in stopping now, but there is no man on the earth, there was no man in heaven who was worthy of that, and there is no man on this earth who is worthy of it. And any true man of God that comes to you...? One of the things that you can know and discern that he is a man of God is that he will deflect praise and honor and glory and blessing from him and will point you to the One who deserves it and there is only One who deserves it.
Nephi, when his brothers came to him in repentance and tried to bow down to him, told them to get up. “Get up and go repent to your God!” King Benjamin, who was a righteous king, because he did not esteem himself any more than his subjects, as they came to give him any praise or honor, he said, “You are beholden to your God. You are unworthy. Even if you were to spend your whole lives in His service, yet you would be unprofitable servants because He would immediately bless you.” And no man of God will have you stand for him and not tell you to sit down! No man of God will say, “Look to me! Look to us!” That is NOT where we are supposed to look. We are supposed to look to God.
In setting up this country, (I don’t know how many of you guys are political scholars out there, but...) in setting up the Constitution of the United States, which we know from the Doctrine and Covenants is something that the Lord had a hand in, He made it so that the federal government was not supposed to be strong. It was not supposed to be a “top-down” structure. It was supposed to be given to the individual to govern himself and to be in contact with that person who was supposed to guide them. And that was HIM. Do you not think that God would set up His church the exact same way? The government of God is that God is at the helm of YOU! That is how you know that you are part of His church. If someone else stands in the way of that, you will never know, but you can know-when God gives you direction, when God is your guide, when you lean on Him in every thing, and you obey Him in everything He tells you to do.
It is my testimony that God IS at the helm of THAT church and, if you’re not part of it, I suggest you become so. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.