Transcript Document

Abraham’s Journey
D&C 132:29
“Abraham … hath entered into his
exaltation and sitteth upon his throne.”
D&C 132:37
“Abraham … Isaac … and Jacob … have
entered into their exaltation, according to
the promises, and sit upon thrones, and are
not angels but are gods.”
Abraham’s Journey
What made the difference?
Abraham 1:1-4
Neal A. Maxwell
Quorum of the Twelve
("The Education of Our
Desires," University of Utah
Institute of Religion
Devotional, 5 January 1983)
Abraham ... desired greater
knowledge, greater righteousness,
greater happiness in his life; much
more than he found in his father’s
household…. He really wanted to
be righteous. He had a lapsing
father, but his desires overcame the
poor example that he had before
him.... But what [he] desired then
controlled what happened
subsequently. No wonder, as
President Joseph F. Smith said,
“You and I must take great care
concerning the education of our
desires.”...
The Education of His Desires
How were Abraham’s desires educated? How
did he even know what he ought to want?
How was he aware of his possibilities?
A Clue?
Abraham 1:28, 31
Book of Jasher Insights?
Brief History on the Book of Jasher:
Jewish scholars classify [the book of Jasher] as
midrashic haggada—a historical narrative
consisting of ancient Jewish legends and lore. It
was compiled from rabbinic traditions and was
supposedly written in Spain during the thirteenth
century A.D….
[It is] a non-scriptural apocryphal writing that
should be viewed the same way as the books in the
Apocrypha [see D&C 91:1-6].
Book of Jasher Insights?
Jasher 9:5-6
5 And when Abram came out from the cave, he went to
Noah and his son Shem, and he remained with them to
learn the instruction of the Lord and his ways, and no man
knew where Abram was, and Abram served Noah and
Shem his son for a long time.
6 And Abram was in Noah's house thirty-nine years, and
Abram knew the Lord from three years old, and he went in
the ways of the Lord until the day of his death, as Noah
and his son Shem had taught him;
Genesis 11:10-26
10 ¶These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred
years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood:
11 And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters.
12 And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah:
13 And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and
daughters.
14 And Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber:
15 And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters.
16 And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg:
17 And Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters.
18 And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu:
19 And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters.
20 And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug:
21 And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters.
22 And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor:
23 And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters.
24 And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah:
25 And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and
daughters.
26 And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor,
and Haran.
Neal A. Maxwell
Quorum of the Twelve
("The Education of Our
Desires," University of Utah
Institute of Religion
Devotional, 5 January 1983)
If like Abraham of old you desire
even greater happiness, then you too
must also be desirous of being
further instructed in the ways of the
Lord and in the grammar of the
gospel…. When we have a genuine
desire for him to instruct us—as did
Abraham—and to tutor us—as did
Abraham—then either the onrushing
and sometimes crushing events of
life or its deceptive ordinariness will
be seen realistically and
developmentally by us.
Neal A. Maxwell
Quorum of the Twelve
("The Education of Our
Desires," University of Utah
Institute of Religion
Devotional, 5 January 1983)
Either way, one will then allow for
the divine design and the pattern
which is present even when we
cannot see it....
Abraham, if he had not early on had
a deep desire to be instructed in the
ways of the Lord, could not have
done what he did on Mount Moriah.
The one followed the other....
Neal A. Maxwell
Quorum of the Twelve
("The Education of Our
Desires," University of Utah
Institute of Religion
Devotional, 5 January 1983)
We cannot of course, you and I,
frustrate the overall purposes of God
for us, [nor for] mankind generally.
But we can surely fail to rise to our
personal possibilities because we fail
to desire as did Abraham, that which
is possible within us. Around us all
the time there are people settling for
less than they are, for less than they
have the possibility to become. And I
believe so much of that stems from
an intrinsic failure for them to
educate their desires.
“It was conferred upon me …”
“Abraham received the priesthood from Melchizedek, who
received it through the lineage of his fathers, even till Noah.”
~D&C 84:14
Joseph Smith
President
(History of the
Church, 5:555)
Abraham says to Melchizedek,
“I believe all that thou hast
taught me concerning the
priesthood and the coming of the
Son of Man;” so Melchizedek
ordained Abraham and sent him
away. Abraham rejoiced, saying,
“Now I have a priesthood.”
Abraham vs. the World
The herd instinct is strong
in the human animal, and
the phrase “Everybody else
is doing it” has an insidious
attraction.
President Thomas S. Monson
(Dixie State Commencement
Address, May 6, 2011)
Joseph Fielding Smith
Quorum of the Twelve
(The Way to Perfection,
p.86)
“We all know something of the
courage it takes for one to stand in
opposition to united custom, and
general belief. None of us likes to be
ridiculed. Few are able to withstand
popular opinion even when they
know it is wrong, and it is difficult to
comprehend the magnificent courage
displayed by Abraham in his
profound obedience to Jehovah, in
the midst of his surroundings. His
moral courage, his implicit faith in
God, his boldness in raising his voice
in opposition to the prevailing
wickedness, is almost beyond
comparison.”
Thomas S. Monson
First Presidency
“Courage Counts,”
Ensign, Nov. 1986, 41
“Let us have the courage to defy the
consensus, the courage to stand for
principle. Courage, not compromise,
brings the smile of God’s approval.
Courage becomes a living and an
attractive virtue when it is regarded
not only as a willingness to die
manfully, but as the determination to
live decently. A moral coward is one
who is afraid to do what he thinks is
right because others will disapprove
or laugh.”
Abraham and the Law of Sacrifice
He was willing to lay down his life in
sustaining and defending God’s truth.
The King Concept
Adam and Noah were true Kings & Priests
over their own posterity.
Joseph Fielding Smith
Quorum of the Twelve
(Answers to Gospel
Questions, 3:191)
From the days of Adam down to
the days of Moses, there were no
apostles. The Church was under
the patriarchal order, and those
who directed and presided were
patriarchs. It was not until the
coming of Jesus Christ that he
added the office of apostle to the
priesthood.
“… seeking earnestly to imitate that order…”
Kings on Thrones
End