From: Paul Gage
LIVING IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD APRIL 27, 2023
Greetings from the Second Epistle of John 1-3; “The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth--and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth, 2 For the truth's sake, which dwelleth in us and shall be with us forever: 3 Grace be with you, mercy, and peace from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.”
Wednesday, April 26, 2023, at Prayer Service, mention was made about all the Saints being part of the “Body of Christ.” Physically, the Body of Christ is found throughout the world. I thought of many Saints I know that do not have the privilege of meeting regularly with other Saints, but each one, no matter where they live are a very vital part of the “Body of Christ.” We are even more so, part of the Body in spirit. I have a couple of magnets around my house that read, “Kingdom Connections” with a lion and a lamb in one corner. That is our Kingdom Connection, Jesus Christ as the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God.
As John the Baptist, twice stated, in John1:29 and 36, “Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world.” Luke makes a statement in Luke !:17 that is a reference to John the Baptist and his mission, “...to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” As John was a forerunner for Jesus, to prepare the people to receive Him, so in 2023, we also are forerunners for the return of Jesus in His Glory to complete the establishment of His Kingdom.
As we are living in the Kingdom of God each day, in addition to perfecting our own lives, we are called to be witnesses to the world for Jesus. In the Book of Mormon, the title at the top of the page describing Moroni’s last words, at the end of Chapter Ten, is “Moroni’s Pathetic Finale.”
27 And again, I would exhort you that ye would come unto Christ, and lay hold upon every good gift, and touch not the evil gift nor the unclean thing.
28 And awake and arise from the dust, O Jerusalem; yea, and put on thy beautiful garments, O daughter of Zion, and strengthen thy stakes, and enlarge thy borders forever, that thou mayest no more be confounded, that the covenants of the eternal Father which he hath made unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled.
29 Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness and love God with all your might, mind, and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in no wise deny the power of God.
30 And again, if ye, by the grace of God, are perfect in Christ and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father, unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy without spot.
31 And now, I bid unto all, Farewell. I soon go to rest in the paradise of God until my spirit and body shall again reunite and I am brought forth triumphant through the air, to meet you before the pleasing bar of the great Jehovah, the eternal Judge of both quick and dead. Amen.
Pathetic can mean “heartbreaking or heartrending.” Imagine the anguish Moroni was feeling as he realized the condition of his world and the condition of the people. He was heart broken because he had done all he could do, as directed by God to bring the people back to God. All to no avail.
We have a calling, which is our stewardship, to witness for Jesus in every aspect of our lives. We will be held accountable as to how we respond to that stewardship. God bless you in your efforts.
Paul Gage
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