I Said It...: Testimony

P.D. Laws

High Council Speaking Assignment

Navarre Ward

21 Nov 2004

Testimony—real testimony, born of the Spirit and confirmed by the Holy Ghost—changes lives.

So said Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve in the Oct 2004 World General Conference of the Church.

I think we all claim to have a testimony; is what we have the "Real" thing? Has your life been changed by a testimony?

What is a "REAL" testimony anyway?

What are the key components of a testimony?

Why is it important for each of us to gain a personal testimony?

What are the consequences of not having a firm testimony?

Why are we obliged to share our testimony?

The substance of my talk is the answer to these questions. I naturally invite you to revisit Elder Ballard's talk entitled "Pure Testimony" as well.

First to the concept of what comprises a "real" testimony. Might I say in preamble my remarks here are not intended to offend anyone, only to educate and cause some reflection on all of our parts. Many of you will recognize the style and substance of some of our brothers and sisters testimonial styles in the following comparison. I have broken the components into a "IS" and a "IS NOT" for a side by side comparison:

A Testimony IS NOT…	A Testimony IS…
An adjunct to our belief system as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints	The foundation of our faith as Latter-Day Saints without which the marvelous and glorious restoration and the countless blessings and manifestations that followed would not have occurred. The testimonies of the countless faithful are the power by which the evil designs of the enemies of the Church have become but a low hollow murmur as the triumphant blast of Moroni's Angelic trump has sounded in the ears of the faithful in these the last days.
A static part of our belief system as Latter-Day Saints	Changes lives; as President Hinckley has said (quoting David O. McKay) concerning living the principles of the gospel: "It makes bad men good, and good men better"
A knowledge we gain through our own means or given to us by someone else.	Is borne of the Holy Spirit: (John 14:26) "But the comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance…. (wouldn't it be great to remember "all" of the things we knew before? And again in John 16:13:…He will guide you into all truth…and he will (show) you things to come." A precious gift borne of the Spirit into the heart of every seeking son or daughter of God. "The testimony of Jesus IS the spirit of prophecy" (Rev 19:10). We who have this blessing must NEVER take it for granted! While others may inspire us to seek a testimony, we might find just like that proverbial transferring missionary, if we are not firm and valiant in our own personal assurance from the Holy Ghost for ourselves, we are less likely to endure well the trials of this life as they relate to the constant quest of satan to destory our faith in the one thing that will ultimately save us forever!
Gained by a single event or bestowed by birth or association.	Elder Ballard: "Like almost everything else in life, testimonies grow and develop through experience and service." Laman & Lemuel, Nephi & Sam Within our own homes and Wards we see the disparity in the levels of activity/involvement with the saving principles and ordinances of the Gospel
Something you gain and maintain with little or no effort	Gaining and maintaining a firm testimony of the Restored Gospel throughout one's life is of the utmost importance
Testimonies that consist largely of "I am thankful" and "I love" and "I'm grateful for…"	Testimonies need to be based on the first principles of the Gospel from an early age according to Elder Ballard. Stating with sincerity and humility that which one "knows" (this is where the Holy Spirit comes into the equation; He will whisper into the heart and mind of every seeker the divine truths of our Savior's matchless Gospel; his "good news") Most Church authorities agree a pure testimony consists of at least the following 5 pillars: God is our Father and Jesus is the Christ The Atonement of Jesus Christ is central to our Father's Plan of Salvation Joseph Smith was and is the Prophet of the restoration. He has done more for the salvation of men in this world than any other man who ever lived in it with the exception of the Savior Himself" (D&C 135:3) The Book of Mormon is the Word of God, a book of holy scripture, the book the Prophet referred to as "the most correct book of any on the earth and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other books."" (DHC 4:461.) Elder Hugh Pinnock of the Seventy has called it "the most Christ-centered book ever written…"(4 Jan 92 Church News) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints IS the Lord's Church and Kingdom here on the earth: (D&C 1:30) "And also those to whom these commandments were given, might have power to lay the foundation of this church, and to bring it forth out of obscurity and out of darkness, the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth, with which I, the Lord, am well pleased…
Stories, travelogues, and lectures.	While most of us enjoy a good analogy or hearing about someone else's journeying to and fro, our testimony meetings should not be the forum for these types of information. D&C 50:17: 17. Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way? 18 And if it be by some other way it is not of God. 19 And again, he that receiveth the word of truth, doth he receive it by the Spirit of truth or some other way? 20 If it be some other way it is not of God. 21 Therefore, why is it that ye cannot understand and know, that he that receiveth the word by the Spirit of truth receiveth it as it is preached by the Spirit of truth? 22 Wherefore, he that preacheth and he that receiveth, understand one another, and both are edified and rejoice together. Do you remember and cherish the stories and travel stories you've heard in Testimony Meeting over the years? On the uther hand…. How about the testimonies where your heart and mind were touched by the Holy Ghost as you heard and felt the words being spoken ratified to you by the Spirit? We MUST teach each other by the Spirit! Elder Ballard counsels: "Again, please keep in mind that we are talking about sharing real testimony, not just speaking generally about the things we are thankful for. While it is always good to express love and gratitude, such expressions do not constitute the kind of testimony that will ignite a fire of belief in the lives of others." Herein lies the difference between an effective and/or not effective testimony.
"No one else is getting up so I guess I'd better get up and fill the time"	We have a responsibility to use the time allotted by the Bishopric to it's fullest potential to change the lives of our brothers and sisters and to persuade them to "Come unto Christ and be perfected in Him" (Moroni 10:32) as directed in closing verses of the Book of Mormon However, Jumping up without the nurturing prompting of the Holy Ghost will probably lead to a testimony that may not edify or inspire those who are seeking this blessing. It is likely better to remain in our seat. The silences we sometimes experience in some of our testimony meetings can be a great time for reflection and pondering the truths of the Gospel or recommitting ourselves to our Heavenly Father. Elder Ballard reminds us :"clear declaration of the truth makes a difference in people's lives"

I challenge you to make a concerted effort to bear "pure" testimony! I promise you, it will ,ake a difference!

Why is it important for each of us to gain a personal testimony of the Gospel?

There are many reasons: I'll cite only 2

It would be irresponsible not to do so: (Abraham 3:25-26)
25. And we will prove them herewith, to see if they will do all things whatsoever the Lord their God shall command them;
26 And they who keep their first estate shall be added upon; and they who keep not their first estate shall not have glory in the same kingdom with those who keep their first estate; and they who keep their second estate shall have glory added upon their heads for ever and ever. Keeping our 2^nd estate requires a testimony and a great deal of endurance.
Importantly, it is the means by which we may be instruments in the Lord's hands to bring the Gospel to His seeking children. Moroni promises (Moroni 7: 31-33) ministering angels.
31 …call men unto repentance, …to fulfil and to do the work of the covenants of the Father, which he hath made unto the children of men, to prepare the way among the children of men, by declaring the word of Christ unto the chosen vessels of the Lord, that they may bear testimony of him.

32 And by so doing, the Lord God prepareth the way that the residue of men may have faith in Christ, that the Holy Ghost may have place in their hearts, according to the power thereof; and after this manner bringeth to pass the Father, the covenants which he hath made unto the children of men.

33 And Christ hath said: If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me.

The central chapters of Mosiah in the Book of Mormon give the account Abinidi and Alma and later the account of Alma son of Alma and the sons of Mosiah. This epic tale has all of the drama and intrigue anyone could hope for and is extremely instructive for us as to the power of testimony in their lives.

Abinidi is commanded by the Lord to call the Nephites to repentance and in so doing is captured and taken before the wicked king Noah and his priests. He bears fervent testimony to all assembled and is ultimately put to death for his unwavering testimonial, but not before the young priest of Noah named Alma attempts to get his sentence commuted. Alma went on to become a leader of the Lord's Church among the Nephites. Mosiah 18:35 reveals that Alma already had 450 followers at the time he fled the pursuit of Noah! Alma was valiant in his testimony which he initially received from hearing Abinidi testify to Noah.

In Mosiah Chapter 27 we find Alma the younger (son of Alma, priest of Noah) and the four sons of Mosiah are seeking to destroy the Church—An angel appears and commands them to cease their evil course.

Verse 8: Now the sons of Mosiah were numbered among the unbelievers; and also one of the sons of Alma was numbered among them, he being called Alma, after his father; nevertheless, he became a very wicked and an idolatrous man. And he was a man of many words, and did speak much flattery to the people; therefore he led many of the people to do after the manner of his iniquities.

9 And he became a great hinderment to the prosperity of the church of God; stealing away the hearts of the people; causing much dissension among the people; giving a chance for the enemy of God to exercise his power over them.

10 And now it came to pass that while he was going about to destroy the church of God, for he did go about secretly with the sons of Mosiah seeking to destroy the church, and to lead astray the people of the Lord, contrary to the commandments of God, or even the king--

11 And as I said unto you, as they were going about rebelling against God, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto them; and he descended as it were in a cloud; and he spake as it were with a voice of thunder, which caused the earth to shake upon which they stood;

12 And so great was their astonishment, that they fell to the earth, and understood not the words which he spake unto them.

13 Nevertheless he cried again, saying: Alma, arise and stand forth, for why persecutest thou the church of God? For the Lord hath said: This is my church, and I will establish it; and nothing shall overthrow it, save it is the transgression of my people.

14 And again, the angel said: Behold, the Lord hath heard the prayers of his people, and also the prayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father; for he has prayed with much faith concerning thee that thou mightest be brought to the knowledge of the truth; therefore, for this purpose have I come to convince thee of the power and authority of God, that the prayers of his servants might be answered according to their faith.

15 And now behold, can ye dispute the power of God? For behold, doth not my voice shake the earth? And can ye not also behold me before you? And I am sent from God.

16 Now I say unto thee: Go, and remember the captivity of thy fathers in the land of Helam, and in the land of Nephi; and remember how great things he has done for them; for they were in bondage, and he has delivered them. And now I say unto thee, Alma, go thy way, and seek to destroy the church no more, that their prayers may be answered, and this even if thou wilt of thyself be cast off.

17 And now it came to pass that these were the last words which the angel spake unto Alma, and he departed.

18 And now Alma and those that were with him fell again to the earth, for great was their astonishment; for with their own eyes they had beheld an angel of the Lord; and his voice was as thunder, which shook the earth; and they knew that there was nothing save the power of God that could shake the earth and cause it to tremble as though it would part asunder.

19 And now the astonishment of Alma was so great that he became dumb, that he could not open his mouth; yea, and he became weak, even that he could not move his hands; therefore he was taken by those that were with him, and carried helpless, even until he was laid before his father.

20 And they rehearsed unto his father all that had happened unto them; and his father rejoiced, for he knew that it was the power of God.

21 And he caused that a multitude should be gathered together that they might witness what the Lord had done for his son, and also for those that were with him.

22 And he caused that the priests should assemble themselves together; and they began to fast, and to pray to the Lord their God that he would open the mouth of Alma, that he might speak, and also that his limbs might receive their strength--that the eyes of the people might be opened to see and know of the goodness and glory of God.

23 And it came to pass after they had fasted and prayed for the space of two days and two nights, the limbs of Alma received their strength, and he stood up and began to speak unto them, bidding them to be of good comfort:

24 For, said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.

25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;

26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.

The consequences of not having a testimony of the Gospel are profound and eternal as well as final in their execution. In short, if you and I don't attain, maintain, and strengthen as well as share our testimonies with others we will not only not merit a place in our Father's kingdom we will stand condemned before the Lord:

D&C 60:2

But with some I am not well pleased, for they will not open their mouths, but they hide the talent which I have given unto them, because of the fear of man. Wo unto such, for mine anger is kindled against them.

D&C 82:3-4

For of him unto whom much is given much is required; and he who sins against the greater light shall receive the greater condemnation.

Ye call upon my name for revelations, and I give them unto you; and inasmuch as ye keep not my sayings, which I give unto you, ye become transgressors; and justice and judgment are the penalty which is affixed unto my law.

Personal Testimony