The Nature of God

There are three separate persons in the Godhead: God, the Eternal Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost. We believe in each of them (A of F 1:1). From latter-day revelation we learn that the Father and the Son have tangible bodies of flesh and bone and that the Holy Ghost is a personage of spirit, without flesh and bone (D&C 130:22–23). These three persons are one in perfect unity and harmony of purpose and doctrine (John 17:21–23; 2 Ne. 31:21; 3 Ne. 11:27, 36).

God the Father

It is generally the Father, or Elohim, who is referred to by the title God. He is called the Father because he is the father of our spirits (Mal. 2:10; Num. 16:22; 27:16; Matt. 6:9; Eph. 4:6; Heb. 12:9). God the Father is the supreme ruler of the universe. He is all powerful (Gen. 18:14; Alma 26:35; D&C 19:1–3), all knowing (Matt. 6:8; 2 Ne. 2:24), and everywhere present through his Spirit (Ps. 139:7–12; D&C 88:7–13, 41). Mankind has a special relationship to God that sets man apart from all other created things: men and women are God’s spirit children (Ps. 82:6; 1 Jn. 3:1–3; D&C 20:17–18).  There are few recorded instances of God the Father appearing to or speaking to man. The scriptures say that he spoke to Adam and Eve (Moses 4:14–31) and introduced Jesus Christ on several occasions (Matt. 3:17; 17:5; John 12:28–29; 3 Ne. 11:3–7). He appeared to Stephen (Acts 7:55–56) and Joseph Smith (JS—H 1:17). Later he appeared to both Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon (D&C 76:20, 23). To those who love God and purify themselves before him, God sometimes grants the privilege of seeing and knowing for themselves that he is God (Matt. 5:8; 3 Ne. 12:8; D&C 76:116–118; 93:1).

God the Son

The God known as Jehovah is the Son, Jesus Christ (Isa. 12:2; 43:11; 49:26; 1 Cor. 10:1–4; 1 Tim. 1:1; Rev. 1:8; 2 Ne. 22:2). Jesus works under the direction of the Father and is in complete harmony with him. All mankind are his brothers and sisters, for he is the eldest of the spirit children of Elohim. Some scripture references refer to him by the word God. For example, the scripture says that “God created the heaven and the earth” (Gen. 1:1), but it was actually Jesus who was the Creator under the direction of God the Father (John 1:1–3, 10, 14; Heb. 1:1–2).

God the Holy Ghost

The Holy Ghost is also a God and is called the Holy Spirit, the Spirit, and the Spirit of God, among other similar names and titles. With the aid of the Holy Ghost, man can know the will of God the Father and know that Jesus is the Christ (1 Cor. 12:3).

For more scriptural references, see: lds.org

How to Move a Mountain

How to Move a Mountain

(Cherie Call)

When I was young I heard the stories
About the people who could make the mountains flee
And every now and then, someone would tell me
I could do the same if I believed
So one summer night, I looked out my window
And I closed my eyes and listened to the wind blow

And I tried to move a mountain
I wished for it to crumble at my feet
I tried one thing after another
but I couldn't shake a leaf

 

I never knew that the mountain
Had a lesson it would teach
Cause as tall as I got, I still lived in its shadow
I watched it tower over me
Till one summer day, I thought I heard it call me
So I closed my eyes and then changed into my blue jeans

And I learned how to move a mountain
It was harder than I dreamed it would be
But I set one foot down past the other
Till the mountain was under me

 

And I felt like I could see forever
When the truth hit my senses suddenly
This mountain wasn't nearly the first one that I'd moved
God had seen my victory
Every time I put my weaknesses behind me
And I close my eyes and let His mercy find me

I know how to move a mountain
I have to fall down on my knees
Then I get back on my feet and head on upward
Till I make it to the peak
And the mountain's under me

 

I love the messages that this song has behind it.  It wasn't really about moving the mountain at all, but moving ourselves above it.  It's all about our perspective and how we view our lives.  Are we going to just going to sit around and hope that something happens in our lives, or are we actually going to DO something about it?

 

Ether 12:30  "For the brother of Jared said unto the mountain Zerin, Remove—and it was removed. And if he had not had faith it would not have moved; wherefore thou workest after men have faith."

Listen to the song: "How to Move a Mountain"

 

Can We See God?

Today I was reading in John 14 when something at the end of verse 21 caught my attention.

"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him."  I read this and asked myself the question, "Can we see God?"  I remembered several scriptures about some prophets that had seen Him and decided there must be some requirements.  Here are some of the scriptures that I looked up:

I have seen God face to face, Gen. 32:30
Moses … was afraid to look upon God, Ex. 3:6
Lord will come down in the sight of all the people, Ex. 19:11
nobles of the children of Israel … saw God, Ex. 24:11
Lord spake unto Moses face to face, Ex. 33:11

I will love him, and will manifest myself to him, John 14:21 

I see … the Son of man standing on the right hand, Acts 7:56 

etc.   (for the complete list: God, Privilege of Seeing)

One that stuck out to me was in Matthew 5:8  which says, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God."  I had read this scripture many times, but never really thought about what it meant.  Jesus is giving the Sermon on the Mount and tells us that we can see God if we are pure in heart.  So what does 'pure in heart' mean?
D&C 67:10 says "that inasmuch as you strip yourselves from jealousies and fears, and humble yourselves before me, for ye are not sufficiently humble, the veil shall be rent and you shall see me and know that I am—not with the carnal neither natural mind, but with the spiritual."  This tells me that we need to not be jealous, fearful, or prideful if we are to have the opportunity to see God the Father.  I looked up some other references and found James 4:8 which says to "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts..."  So as long as we are drawing unto God, and cleansing our hands, we are purifying our hearts.  This reminded me of another scripture in Revelation 3:20 which says, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."  
In conclusion, I believe that we need to draw closer to God.  As we do this by avoiding the carnal mind and humbling ourselves, we can be 'pure in heart'  This includes virtuous thoughts, words, and actions.  As we do these things, we are promised in the scriptures that we will see God.