Lifelong Conversion | Dale G. Renlund | 2021

[Music] in the april general conference leadership meetings sister joy d jones then the primary general president led a discussion with children let's view a portion and learn from young sister charlotte nance i want to know what do you remember about your baptism um i felt really really happy because well i just got baptized you know now i could keep being happy and be a member of the church and get a testimony and as some would say live happily ever after but it's not that simple is there a little bit of work involved let me say what we all pray for that we'll live happily ever after but as we learn from sister nance and sister jones it's not that simple and there's a little bit of work involved what can we do to live happily ever after the road to eternal happiness depends on lifelong conversion to the truths of the restored gospel of jesus christ lifelong conversion means that we endure to the end remaining firm in our commitment to keep the covenants we've made with god no matter what such a commitment can't be conditional or dependent upon the circumstances in our lives the best way to become a lifelong convert is to engage with the doctrine of christ the doctrine of christ faith in the savior and his atonement repentance baptism and receiving the gift of the holy ghost is not intended as a one-time event we're invited to get on and stay on the covenant path and to participate in the doctrines specified elements we endure to the end by repeatedly and iteratively relying wholly upon the doctrine and merits of christ repeatedly means that we cycle through the elements in the doctrine of christ throughout our lives iteratively means that we change and improve with each cycle even though we cycle repeatedly we're not spinning in circles like on a merry-go-round without upward motion if that were the case the experience would be dizzying and unproductive instead as we cycle through the elements of the doctrine of christ we arrive at a higher plane each time this ascent provides new vistas and perspectives brings us closer to the savior and we eventually return to the presence of our heavenly father as an heir to all that he has the best way to picture this process is to imagine a long road ascending a mountain peak if you view this road from a high altitude all you see is a flat spiral however if you view it from the side you see an ascending spiral if you start at the bottom you'll trace a circle around the mountain as you continue you spiral upward so that the course you travel becomes helical mathematically it might be called an irregular conical helix each element in the doctrine of christ builds on the preceding step repentance builds on faith baptism on repentance the gift of the holy ghost on baptism and then the sequence recurs each cycle ends progressively higher so the subsequent cycle is higher and different in this way the doctrine of christ is iterative cycling iteratively through the elements of the doctrine of christ enables us to endure to the end enduring to the end is not a separate step in the doctrine of christ as if we complete the first four steps and then hunker down grit our teeth and wait to die now enduring to the end is actively and intentionally repeating the steps in the doctrine of christ thus the doctrine of christ becomes central to the purpose of life as stated in the restoration of the fullness of the gospel of jesus christ a bicentennial proclamation to the world for those of us who've been baptized how can the step of baptism be repeated well it's through the sacrament the covenants of baptism are renewed by partaking of the sacrament in remembrance of our savior and his atoning sacrifice and the blessings of baptism are also renewed partaking of the sacrament is the next ordinance everyone needs after being confirmed a member of the church the sacraments the next ordinance needed at the beginning middle or end of a semester at byu the sacraments the next ordinance needed after triumphantly passing a test or being miserably disappointed with the result the sacraments the next ordinance needed after receiving the endowment or being sealed in the temple the sacraments the next ordinance needed after making a good choice and the next ordinance needed after making a poor choice the sacraments the next ordinance needed every week the rest of our lives president dallin h oaks taught we're commanded to repent of our sins and come to the lord with a broken heart and a contrite spirit and partake of the sacrament we witness that we're willing to take upon us the name of jesus christ and always remember him and keep his commandments when we comply with this covenant the lord renews the cleansing effect of our baptism we're made clean and can always have his spirit to be with us when we worthily partake of the sacrament we qualify for the cleansing power of jesus christ but a word of caution we can't willfully sin saturday night and expect to be miraculously forgiven by taking a piece of bread or drinking a little water on sunday pre-planned repentance is offensive to god the sacrament doesn't replace baptism but it provides the link between the initial steps in the doctrine of christ of faith and repentance and the later step of receiving the holy ghost in the cycle it serves a similar function as does baptism this allows for the elements in the doctrine of christ to be experienced iteratively in our lives the sacrament unlocks the power of god for you and me however we frequently miss out on this power before sacrament meeting we may scurry about text on our phones or otherwise be preoccupied we may enter the meeting late or worry about how someone's reacting to the sacrament service with these distractions the blessing of the sacrament is diminished for us we should conscientiously prepare for and worthily partake of the sacrament this preparation should happen in the days leading up to the sacrament meeting decide what aspect of the savior's mission you're going to think about during the sacrament and perhaps consider one thing you can do to increase your faith to change in a positive way which is another way to say repent and follow the promptings of the holy ghost when the sacrament hymn begins focus on the savior and his atonement this directs us toward him and away from ourselves we should pray to be renewed as we partake of the sacrament and remember him sacramental covenants are made anew each week the sacramental prayers indicate that we are willing to take upon ourselves the name of christ using the present tense of the verb the prayers don't use the past tense of the verb saying that we took or have taken upon ourselves the name of christ the promised blessing doesn't use the past tense either the promise is that the holy ghost will always be with us not that the holy ghost was given or was with us instituting the sacrament among the nephites the savior commanded them to regularly partake of it he warned them that if they did not they would not be built upon his rock but would be built upon a sandy foundation and when the rain descends and the floods come and the winds blow and beat upon them they shall fall lifelong conversion requires that we access the holy ghost and we do that by focusing on the sacrament throughout our lives by iteratively claiming the cleansing effect of baptism through the sacrament our own personal conversion becomes lifelong in the course of my lifetime and because of my chosen profession i missed many sacrament meetings i recognized that this was dangerous so when i knew i was likely to miss a sacrament meeting i tried to compensate for it i prayed and studied more but these things did not adequately compensate for missing the sacrament now if you know you're not going to be able to sleep for a while wouldn't it be nice to practice defensive sleeping storing it storing that sleep for later it doesn't work i've tried it similarly you cannot adequately compensate for missing the sacrament when circumstance is precluded so be it do the best you can but to willfully choose to not partake of the sacrament when you could is a spiritual death trap this seemingly small action jeopardizes things of an eternal nature for this repetitive cycle of the doctrine of christ to be iterative the trajectory has to be upward and for that to happen we need to be similarly engaged with the other elements of the doctrine of christ faith and repentance choosing to believe in jesus christ and the validity of the restoration of his church is crucial alma encouraged the zoramites to experiment on the word but this experiment differs from today's standard scientific experimental protocol it begins by choosing and desiring to believe not with a skeptical or even a neutral bias it treats christ's gospel as a seed planting it and then acting in faith to nourish it as the seed grows not only is faith increased but we can also know that the seed is good let me repeat we can know that the gospel of jesus christ is a good seed as alma said and now behold is your knowledge perfect yea your knowledge is perfect in that thing and your faith is dormant and this because you know for ye know that the word has swelled your souls and you also know that it has sprouted up that your understanding that begin to be enlightened and your mind does begin to expand oh then is not this real i say unto you yea because it is light and whatsoever is light is good because it's discernible therefore ye must know that it's good there's no better foundation for lifelong conversion than to know that the word the gospel of jesus christ which is the doctrine of christ is good and true that knowledge prompts us to trust the faith we already have and then to act in faith acting in faith enables faith to grow stronger when we act in faith by studying the scriptures to better understand christ's mission and ministry we come to know the doctrine of christ and to understand its power in our lives we seek to recognize how jesus christ through his atonement brings blessings to all aspects of our lives we act in faith by asking heavenly father for help president russell m nelson said ask and then ask again because god knows what will help faith grow increasing faith in jesus christ naturally leads to repetitive and iterative repentance which leads to eternal progression repentance and lifelong conversion go hand in hand repentance is not to be feared fearing repentance blocks lifelong conversion because it hinders cycling through the elements of the doctrine of christ president nelson taught repentance is conversion a repentant soul is a converted soul and a converted soul is a repentant soul president nelson also warned of thinking of repentance as punishment something to be avoided he said this feeling of being penalized is engendered by satan he tries to block us from looking to jesus christ who stands with open arms hoping and willing to heal forgive cleanse strengthen purify and sanctify us for those of us with overexpressed guilt genes we need to remember the following words by nelson mandela he frequently deflected accolades for his role in the anti-apartheid movement in south africa by saying i'm no saint that is unless you think a saint is a sinner who keeps on trying while we know that we're not perfect we may be perfected by relying on jesus christ god cares a lot more about who we are and who we're becoming than about who we once were he cares that we keep on trying augustine of hippo a christian theologian of the late 4th and early 5th centuries argued that the church is not made up of inherently good people but of people who are in the process of being transformed from his writings derive the insightful phrase that the church is not a museum of saints but a hospital for sinners engaging with each element of the doctrine of christ iteratively is vital to lifelong conversion and becoming who god wants us to be as we iteratively cycle through the doctrine of christ we learn of and develop christlike attributes our faith increases we become a little better we're better prepared to partake of the sacrament next sunday and the holy ghost will have a greater influence in our lives our hearts are changed we have no more disposition to do evil but to do good continually we become more outwardly directed and less self-centered and we can endure to the end let's look at the mountain road again note that nowhere on the upwardly spiraling road is it perfectly horizontal nowhere is the slope zero there's no plateau there's no place to pause and rest the course either goes up or down similarly faith is either becoming stronger or weaker being converted is an ongoing even a lifelong process that means that you can become unconverted at least as easily as you can become converted your faith and commitment are going to either increase or decrease the increase depends on your upward movement on the covenant path cycling through the elements of the doctrine of christ the decrease happens if you disengage from the doctrine of christ imagine driving a powerful sports car with dysfunctional brakes up the mountain road what happens if you shift the gear into neutral the powerful engine is disengaged from the drive chain and wheels once forward momentum stops does the car remain where it is no slowly at first and then faster and faster it goes backwards revving the powerful engine will do nothing to halt the decline what a terrifying descent and when you're rolling backward you navigate or drive using only the rear view mirror the lord has said i will give unto the children of men line up online precept upon precept hear little and their little and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts and lend an ear unto my counsel for they shall learn wisdom for unto him that receiveth i will give more and from them that shall say we have enough from them shall be taken away even that which they have as almat he that will not harden his heart to him is given the greater portion of the word until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of god until he know them in full and they that will harden their hearts to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries and then they're taken captive by the devil and led by his will down to destruction the lord's warned there is a possibility that man may fall from grace and depart from the living god therefore let the church take heed and pray always lest they fall into temptation yea and even let those who are sanctified take heed also ultimately whether we remain converted throughout our lifetimes depends on our determination to be engaged with the doctrine of christ the type of determination we need can be explained borrowing a word from the finnish language that finnish word is sisu s-i-s-u it has no good or complete translation in english sisu has been described as stoic determination tenacity of purpose resilience and heartiness sisu expresses a characteristic that manifests itself in displaying grit resolve and courage in the face of extreme adversity or against the odds someone with sisu decides on a course of action and then adheres to it no matter what sisu is the type of determination we need to stay on the covenant path with spiritual sisu we're committed to conscientiously prepare for and worthily partake of the sacrament every week spiritual sisu is not conditioned on the circumstances in our lives in the savior's parable of the wise and foolish men who built houses rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat upon both houses only one stood because the builder listened to and followed the commandments of the savior our continued righteousness does not preclude the occurrence of adversity opposition and adversity come to all with spiritual sisu we have settled it in our hearts that we will do the things which jesus christ shall teach and command we're spiritually resilient and are better better able to withstand challenges without falling or faltering with spiritual sisu we grow up in the lord and seek to receive a fullness of the holy ghost because we choose to take the holy ghost as our guide we're not deceived and we remain steadfast despite adversity spiritual sisu means that we speedily repent and return to the covenant path when we transgressed thereby qualifying for god's promised blessings we're armed with god's power so that no combination of wickedness will have power to prevail over us with spiritual sisu we engage with the doctrine of christ and fulfill the covenant to live the law of the gospel that we made in the temple we'll then receive all promised temple blessings brothers and sisters young sister charlotte nance was right to live happily ever after is not that simple but it's also not really that complicated either as we engage with the doctrine of christ we develop spiritual sisu the spiritual resilience that's essential to lifelong conversion i testify of the savior's living reality of his atoning sacrifice of heavenly father and his plan and of the restoration of the lord's church in these latter days i know these things are true i know that our heavenly father lives and that he loves you he loved us so much that he sent his son to earth to live and die as the savior did jesus christ rose the third day ascended to heaven and there he claimed from the father the rights of mercy on our behalf and he has become our advocate with the father he's not only our judge but he's our advocate and he's advocating what heavenly father has wanted all along for you and for me to return to our heavenly home as a co-inheritor with jesus christ of all that he heavenly father has god bless you my dear brothers and sisters in the name of jesus christ amen you

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Length: 26min 26sec (1586 seconds)

Published: Tue Sep 14 2021