Who is REALLY in Charge Here?

Just in case you were wondering, I do not like sports.

However I do like looking at symbols, and most sports teams have an animal as the symbol of the team.

Lion

Penguins

Bears

So why do we used all these animals as a symbol of strength for the team? We are higher on the totem pole than they are right?

"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
-- Genesis 1:26

So if we are the ones who attach specific symbols to animals, wouldn't God help us learn through symbols as well?

Christ sacrificed His life for us Vicariously.  His suffering can take away our sins.

In the same way He commanded us to be baptized.  This allows us to follow His example more fully.

"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."
-- Acts 2:38


There must be an opposition in all things.  Think about it, if you never got hurt at all, would you really know what it felt like not to be in pain?  If you never saw the sunshine, would dark clouds really be that gloomy?  If you were never alive, would you be able to die?

 "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things.

If not so, ..., righteousness could not be brought to pass,

 neither wickedness,

neither holiness nor misery,

neither good nor bad.

Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one;

wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead,

having no life neither death,

 nor corruption nor incorruption,

happiness nor misery,

neither sense nor insensibility."

-- 2 Nephi 2:11

So there is opposition in all things, and they compound in one.  The Ankh is an ancient Egyptian symbol of life, but it closely resembles a cross which we see today as a symbol of death.  This is where we may easily see that opposition must be a part of mortality.  Through the Resurrection of Christ we shall all be made alive, but with His Death on the cross He would never have been Resurrected.

God can see everything.  Below is the Eye of Ra as well as the 'All Seeing Eye' that is on the back of American currency.  Egypt again has the ancient form of a symbol we recognize today.  They knew that God could see everything, and used this trait to depict Ra, the false 'Sun God' of Egypt.

As we read the scriptures, we should look for those symbols that help us to understand the True nature of God, as well as our purpose in life.  These Symbols will make it so we know exactly who is in charge here on Earth, and it is the same person who has been in charge forever.

Armor of God - One of Six - Loins Girt with Truth

Truth is an interesting word that many people are not interested in.

To have your loins 'girt' means that you have all the excess clothing on the bottom half of your body, wrapped up in your 'girdle', or belt.

Having your robe or cloak girded in this fashion makes it so you can run faster without tripping yourself, and also enables you to do regular chores and other work without obstruction.  This increased ability and range of motion would be much desired on the battle field.

The girdle is also where the bottom of your breastplate latches, and your sword hangs on the side of the girdle.  If your girdle is not 'true' at all times you might find your other pieces of armor to slip out of place, or your sword to fall off unexpectedly.  This would not be something you want to happen while you are fighting a war.

This girding of the loins with truth is the first piece of armor mentioned in the Armor of God, and without it everything else wouldn't truly work the way they were intended to.


NEXT POST : Breastplate of Righteousness

How Do We Glorify God?

This is a story about me, my breakfast cereal, and JEEPs. (I LOVE JEEPs, just in case you didn't already know that.)

So there I was, eating my breakfast cereal, when out of the middle of nowhere I had a bit of revelation.  I was thinking about how to "Be an example of the Believers"(1 Timothy 4:12), and the thought came to me of what we were commanded to do.

"Let your light so shine before men, 

that they may see your good works, 

and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

-- Matthew 5:16

Then I thought, "How exactly do we Glorify our Father in Heaven?"

"For behold, this is my work and my glory

—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."

-- Moses 1:39

So if God's work and glory is immortality and eternal life, then to glorify Him would be to help others find this eternal life.  Everyone will be resurrected and become immortal, because the Savior was resurrected.

"And, if you keep my commandments 

and endure to the end 

you shall have eternal life, 

which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God."

-- Doctrine and Covenants 14:7

So I thought about how we gain eternal life, or rather how do we keep the commandments.  Those who keep the commandments have Faith, Repent of their sins, are Baptized by someone holding the Priesthood Authority, receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and then Endure to the End.

Baptism and receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost are ordinances, something that takes place at a specific place and time, and is performed by someone holding the proper Priesthood to do so.

Faith and Repentance however are both principles of the Gospel that we must have every day of our lives in order to truly Endure to the End.

But my original question was How do we apply this in our lives?

Basically everything we do should be to Glorify the Father.  This doesn't mean we shout praises and sing hymns all day long although there is a time to do so.  This means that everything we do should be an example, to help others make that decision to exercise their Faith in Jesus Christ by, Repentance, Baptism, receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and then to help them stay strong and Endure to the End throughout the rest of their lives.

Being this example and striving to help others to also come into the waters of Baptism will qualify them for eternal life, which brings much more Joy and Happiness to God then any amount of praise or singing.  

Our Heavenly Father is most happy when we keep His commandments, so as we help others come closer to Him, we are only giving Him praise and glory by our works.  Let His work and glory, become what we work for, and we can truly Glorify Him.

If you are wondering when I am going to get to the JEEPs I mentioned, I will start now.

So my favorite car in the world is a JEEP.  I don't have one yet but I really really want one.

Why do I want one?  Because I think it will make me happy, but that happiness will only last a short time in this life.

So why would someone want to be Baptized?  Because the example of those who have been Baptized makes them think that being Baptized will help them be happy, and this happiness can last forever and extend beyond this life.

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The JEEP will represent Baptism.  I don't have a JEEP, but the JEEPs I see around me look cool in my eyes, and I desire one.

So since I have been Baptized, I need to be just like a JEEP and my example should help others desire to be Baptized.



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People are there to Glorify the Father by helping others get Baptized!!

JEEPs are there to make me want a JEEP!!



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Armor of God -- Fight for Your Life

"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:"

-- Ephesians 6:10-17

Loins girt about with Truth.  In Biblical times to 'Gird up your Loins' would be to wrap the bottom of you cloak into your belt, and by doing so you would be more able to move about and perform the days labor.  You really don't want your clothing to limit your movement in battle.

The Breastplate of Righteousness.  The Breastplate covers your Heart and Lungs, as well as other vital organs.  When the scriptures say that in the last days, "men's hearts shall fail them", (Luke 21:26) it is because they do not have their Breastplate protecting them.  Your Righteousness, which is your diligent obedience to the Commandments of God, will protect you from having your heart fail you.

Feet Shod with Preparation of the Gospel.  When the Hebrews were 'Preparing' to leave Egypt they were told to eat the Passover.  This was done with their Shoes on their feet and their staff in hand, and you ate while standing.  This is because even though they had not yet received permission to leave Egypt, they were planning on going somewhere.

Whenever I go home for anything my Mommy always gets frustrated with me because I never take my jacket off.  This has several reasons behind it, but the first and foremost reason is because I like having my jacket on, even in the middle of the summer.  Then there are the reasons that are actually logical, like my jacket is somewhat a safety object and i am more comfortable around people when I am wearing it.  My jacket has all my stuff in the pockets, my keys, my iPod, my phone, and an assortment of other things for the day.  My jacket is what prepares me to go do what I need to later, and I don't take it off just because I am going to sit down for a few minutes.

 

A Shield of Faith.  You must have Faith in order to be equipped with your best defense, your Shield.  This Faith is required because when you put your Shield up you cannot see your enemy.  You cover your head and most of your upper body to block the opponents sword, but also block him from your eyes.

Much like when Luke Skywalker puts the BlastSHIELD down and cannot see the remote, but must follow the promptings within, or his instinct, to know what to do.

 

The Helmet of Salvation.  The Helmet protects YOUR BRAIN.  There are a few things we need to know in order to return and live with our Heavenly Father.  First is that Jesus Christ is His only Begotten Son in the Flesh.  Second is the Plan of Salvation.  Once you have a Knowledge you must protect it and continue learning.

The Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  The only offensive weapon you have in the Armor of God is the Sword of the Spirit.  In combat your sword is your life, you need it in hand if you are to fight the foe. 

If you do not have your sword and you go up to battle anyway, your only option is to try and block the blows of your enemy.  Sure you have your other Armor, but how long can your Shield last when it is being beat upon repeatedly.  How long do you think it would be before your breastplate either came loose, or perhaps had a small gap between the plates where the enemy's sword found a way through.  How long before your legs grew tired and you trip over your own feet.

The answer, not very long at all.

Without the Spirit you begin to lose faith (Shield), it is harder to keep the commandments (Breastplate), and you become less prepared for the fight (Feet Shod).  Once you lose these other pieces of Armor you are an easy target and then POOF, you die.  When it comes to the Armor of God you die Spiritually, and Christ is the Light and Life of the world, therefore the only way back is through His Atonement.

So remember to always have your Armor, and be on Guard.

God will protect you, IF you are doing what is Right.
 

"And it came to pass that I said unto them 

that I knew that I had spoken hard things against the wicked, 

according to the truth; 

and the righteous have I justified, 

and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; 

wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, 

for it cutteth them to the very center."

-- 1 Nephi 16:2 (emphasis added)

The Scriptures are the Word of God.  Both the Bible and the Book of Mormon.  God teaches only Truth, and therefore the Wicked take the Scriptures to be Hard.

Keep the Commandments, Read the Scriptures, and do whatever it takes to truly have the Spirit with you at all times, in all things, and in all places.

The Sword of the Spirit is the Spirit of Truth.
Truth will fight your battles for you, as long as you keep it close by, and in your Heart.