Welcome to the Come Follow Me podcast for teens and for parents of teens. of the Come Follow Me curriculum. Thoughts, ideas. questions all geared towards helping teenagers better follow Christ through their teenage years. Hey everybody, welcome to another edition of the Come Follow Me for Teens podcast. I'm Josh Downs. This week's study, we're going to take a look at Doctrine and Covenants sections 41 through 44. And the theme for this week's study is My Law to Govern My Church.
Now, last week we kind of set the stage a little bit for this week's study as one of the principles that we referenced. discussed how the lord taught a very important principle as it relates to following him keeping his commandments and eventually following his law which is these things will help us to be free And I shared a little bit about how sometimes it's easy to take a look at these kinds of things as being restrictive.
When in fact they're meant to bring great freedom into our lives and protection. We're going to see that through this week's study as really this entire section is about the laws that he gives to the new members of the church. to make sure that they understood his will concerning them and the way that he wanted them to live their lives.
And again, these laws that he gives are not so much for him as much as they are for us to help guide us, they'll protect us, to help us make sure that we get the most. Out of life. And my hope is that by the end of this week's study in particular that you young people will come to see, understand, and love God's commandments and His laws for what they are and recognize the absolute gift that they are to each and every one of us.
The background of this week's study is as follows. The church grew rapidly in 1830 and 1831, particularly with the rush of new members in Kirtland, Ohio. This growth was exciting and encouraging to the saints, but it also presented some challenges. How do you unify a quickly expanding group of believers? Specifically, what do you do when they bring doctrine and practices from their previous faith?
For example, when Joseph arrived in Kirtland in early February 1831, he found new members sharing common property in a genuine attempt to imitate the New Testament Christians. The Lord made some important corrections and clarifications on this and other topics. And he did this largely through a revelation in Doctrine and Covenants section 42 that he called my law to govern my kingdom.
In this revelation, we learn truths that are fundamental in establishing the Lord's church in the latter days, and we learn that we have a lot more to learn. If thou shalt ask, the Lord promised, thou shalt receive revelation upon revelation, knowledge upon knowledge. a great introduction as always and as always there's just there's so much in here section 42 just by itself um you should really enjoy just going through and finding doctrine principles and truths just on your own because it is
It's just loaded with those kinds of things. As always, we're just going to have to pick and choose a few things we can highlight. And one of the things I want to highlight at the beginning kind of sets the stage for this entire week's study. And these verses are Doctrine and Covenants section 41, verses 1 and 5. And as we go through these,
I want you to just look for what is it that the Lord teaches about those who are his disciples. He makes a very important distinction between those that choose to be his followers and his disciples and those that don't. In verse 1 of section 41, it reads, Hearken and hear, O ye my people, saith the Lord and your God, ye whom I delight to bless with the greatest of all blessings. Ye that hear me, and ye that hear me not, will I curse, that have professed my name with the heaviest of all curse.
And then in verse 5 he says this, He that receiveth my law and doeth it, the same is my disciples. And I want you guys to mark that first phrase, that line. He that receiveth my law and doeth it, the same is my disciple. He goes on to say, and he that saith he receiveth it and doeth it not, the same is not my disciple. and shall be cast out from among you. That's a pretty powerful clarifier when it comes to those that are his disciples and that choose to follow him.
Now with that context, young people, I'm going to teach you one of the most important lessons that you can learn at this point in time in your life. See, in all the history of the church and of God's people, if you kind of zoom out over time, you will basically see that all God has really been doing is just been being a parent and raising his children from spiritual infancy to spiritual adulthood.
Like with a child, at times he had to be very strict with his people, especially early on. They just hadn't developed. the spiritual capacity and maturity to be left without a ton of rules and immediate consequences and commandments. That's why they were referred to early on as the children of Israel. They were very infant-like in their spiritual growth and development. And so they were given the law of Moses.
If you go back and look at it, you'll see it's a very... strict law, a set of rules and laws, much like those that maybe your parents gave you when you were young. You remember those days? No running in the street. Don't talk to strangers. You must eat your veggies. Only so much TV or time with electronics. No hitting, no spitting, no biting. You had all kinds of rules and laws that you were given.
that you were more or less forced to obey, if we're honest, right? Even though I'm sure many of you did your best to break those rules. Yet you learned pretty quickly that there were consequences to breaking those rules. And they came pretty quick and were pretty severe.
If you didn't do any of those things or you broke any of those rules, you'd often have to go to your room or maybe you went to timeout or you'd get grounded from playing with friends or going outside or there'd be no dessert or TV. And those consequences were meant to teach you the importance of the rule. Well, and now fast forward a few years, and those rules have most likely changed.
If they haven't, well, that's a problem. If any of you are still biting people, you need to stop it, and you need to stop it right now. But most likely, those rules have changed, and maybe some new ones have been put in place. You've been taught and given different laws, laws that maybe govern your home or just your life. You've been given greater freedom along with that to choose those things for yourself. the consequences may not come quite as quick anymore.
Your parents have obviously still done their best to enforce. some of these laws. Laws may be involving things like the attendance of church or seminary or getting good grades in school or being home by a certain time, something that is known as a curfew. or the time and manner in which you maybe use technology. And of course, there are laws that you are becoming familiar with that just simply govern our society. Laws like getting all the rules and regulations and laws of the road.
Laws against theft and hurting other people. Laws that are meant to basically protect us and keep us safe as a society. And while it's normal when growing up to see laws as restrictive. the more that you move into adulthood, you will hopefully come to see how vital following law is for our peace, for our protection, and for our happiness.
Well, as your parents, I'm sure, have also taught you from an early age, God has laws as well. He always has and He always will. He governs through law and follows eternal law Himself. He refers to himself as the law giver, and his laws serve much of the same purpose as those given by your parents as well as those in society. They are meant to bless, to protect,
and to bring happiness and peace into our lives as well. You are approaching, however, a point in your life where you'll be free, more free than you have been in your entire life, to choose how and when you will follow all law in your life. When you move into adulthood, you move into a space of complete agency, and you truly are free to choose. Free to choose whatever laws of man and laws of God that you want to follow.
However, as we talked about last week, you're not free to choose the consequences of those choices in whatever laws you choose to disregard or not follow. They will come on their own. So again, my hope is that today I'll be able to help you better understand the purpose specifically of God's laws, what many of them are, and what they're meant to do and inspire you to become. in hopes that you'll be more fully committed to follow and obey them.
Now, the first principle that we're going to take a look at in relation to this is simply this. When it comes to God's laws, he says very clearly that he that receiveth my law and doeth it, the same is my disciples. And on the flip side, he that saith, he receiveth it and doeth it not. The same is not my disciple. So our discipleship by and large. It comes down to whether or not we choose to receive and follow the Savior's law.
Now, he also reminds us in verse 1 of what happens when we do. He says, O ye my people, saith the Lord and your God, ye whom I delight to bless with the greatest of all blessings, ye that hear me. He wants to bless you and I. He delights in blessing you and I. There is nothing he would rather do or that makes him happier than to bless you and I, especially when we choose to keep his life. Being a disciple of Christ means following his life.
The prophet Joseph Smith said this, that although God's laws are exact and immovable, they are revealed and given to mankind for one purpose, to bring to pass their ultimate joy. that the great parent of the universe looks upon the whole of the human family with a fatherly care and a paternal regard. and that he will never institute an ordinance or give a commandment to his people that is not calculated in its nature to promote that happiness which he has designed.
and which will not end in the greatest amount of good and glory to those who become the recipients of his law and order. powerful statement to the purpose and the value of God's laws. And I just want to lend my voice my testimony to that truth i and i've mentioned this multiple times i know just how grateful i am
for the laws and the commandments of the gospel. And yes, there were times, and maybe there are still some, where I feel that they are a little restrictive, especially when I see people doing other kinds of things.
I remember growing up watching people be able to go and do things on the Sabbath day, going and playing with friends or just doing certain things that my family... chose not to do because we wanted to make that day a little different from the rest of the week and there are times I still see that and I wonder if man it'd be nice to be able to to have a whole extra day to do what what I wanted but I've come to recognize that the Lord doesn't give laws for him in his benefit. He gives them for us.
And I have since seen great blessings come into my life by just taking one day a week to really recharge my spiritual batteries before I go about the rest of my week's business and life. And I'm grateful for laws like that, laws like tithing and law of chastity and all the other laws and commandments of the gospel. Just think what a wonderful world this would be if everybody followed those laws and commandments, how safe we would all feel, how much joy there would be.
Now some journal and discussion questions for you to consider about this is, number one, I want to make sure you understand what is the purpose of rules and laws, especially as it relates to God. Why are rules and laws so often difficult to obey? Which did you struggle with the most as a child? And be honest, it's okay. None of us were perfect. Which do you struggle with the most as a teenie?
I'm sure there are rules and laws that you struggle with even as a teenager. How do you often feel about your parents when they try to enforce a punishment for breaking a rule? And be honest with yourself in that. And why do you think that they are so strict? What is it that they're trying to teach you, or what is it that they want for you? I think it's important that we pause and ask ourselves those questions.
And while they certainly are not perfect in what they're doing, how might what they're doing and the way that they're doing it relate to God and His laws that He has for you to follow in your life? And why do you think he equates following his laws to being one of his disciples? Of all the things that he could say would qualify you for being a disciple, why that one? Why following?
To apply this, I might invite you to write down how you have experienced peace or joy or safety through following a rule or a law in your life. whether that rule or law be from your parents, from society, or one of God's laws? Or how have you seen the opposite come into your life or a person's life by not following a particular rule? It's good to recognize those kinds of experiences for what they have.
For the next principle, in section 42, which is kind of the meat of the entire group of sections that we're taking a look at, and it's in this section where the Lord states that this is my law to govern my church. And there's just too much in here to spend a lot of time with. I'm going to invite you to just pause and go through section 42 on your own and mark anything that stands out to you as it relates.
Now, many of these things you'll be familiar with. You've been taught ever since you were in primary. Maybe there's something that will stand out to you, that maybe you'll learn something new about one of his laws. But there are some great truths, doctrines, and principles all throughout here. So take a moment, pause, go through this section on your own, and then come back and we'll hit a few of the highlights.
Okay, now you've had a chance to do that. We're going to start in verse 2. It's here that he says, again, I say unto you, hearken and hear and obey the law which I give. and then he proceeds to give much of his life. And again, just some of the highlights. You're familiar with these. Verse 18, things like thou shalt not kill. It's a pretty important law to follow. Verse 20, thou shalt not steal. Verse 21, thou shalt not lie.
Verse 22, love thy wife with all thy heart, or of course I would add husband. Verse 23, do not lust after a woman or a man. Verse 24, thou shalt not commit adultery. 27. Thou shalt not speak evil of thy neighbor. Verse 30. Thou shalt remember the poor. Verse 38. Inasmuch as ye do it unto the least of these, ye do it unto me. That's a wonderful... part of god's law verse 40 thou shalt be not be proud in thy heart
and let all thy garments be plain. That's an interesting one. I know as young people, you're very concerned about the things that you wear. You want nice clothes. You want to kind of stand out a little bit. There's nothing wrong with that, but the Lord is just... trying to warn us about becoming pride in our heart and sometimes the outward appearance how much we worry about what's on the outside can begin to creep in to the inside
and cause pride to begin to develop. So he counsels us about just being plain, being okay, not having... every name brand of everything that there is, because that's more about trying to make a statement than it is just about wearing clothes. And it's kind of interesting in the Book of Mormon, whenever The Nephites started to enter the pride cycle. One of the connections that was always made or referenced was the fine clothing that they wore.
Just the Lord knows what he's doing, and he understands the challenges that come to his children. So, again, these aren't for him. They're for us. So take them for what they're worth. Verse 42, thou shalt not be idle. Verse 45, thou shalt live together in life. Just so many great laws and truths and principles all throughout there.
But there is also one that I just want to pause on for just a moment. Not necessarily related to his laws, although it certainly can make the connection. But he teaches a little bit in here. about calling upon the elders of the church to give blessings to those that are sick and the healing or sometimes the lack of healing that can be associated with those blessings.
In verse 44, listen to what he says here. And the elders of the church, two or more, shall be called and shall pray for and lay their hands upon them in my name. And if they die, and he's referencing those that are sick and afflicted, verse 46, and it shall come to pass that those that die in me shall not taste of death, for it shall be sweet unto them. 47, and they that die not in me, woe unto them, for their death is bitter.
And then this in verse 48, and again it shall come to pass that he that hath faith in me to be healed and is not appointed unto death shall be healed. Now that's a very important and profound statement for several reasons. One, it teaches that there is an appointment to death. When people pass away, it is not unknown to God, has not been foreseen, and not even appointed for that to happen. The Lord is very aware of when we leave and will leave this earth. He knows those days and times.
And it's important for us to recognize that when God says he knows all, he knows all things. And there are times where we are appointed to die. And that brings comfort to me because death at times feels Very chaotic, like something that we can't always control. And truth is, we can't. Every day is a gift that we have. We never really know what each day will bring. But we do know that there is a time appointed to die. which means God is in control of the death of his children.
meaning that if someone is not appointed to die, that there will be divine help, miracles, blessings, gifts that will preserve and protect that person's life. And while we don't have the time to get into it today, one of my favorite talks from Miller Bednar.
He tells of a story of a young couple that the husband was diagnosed with cancer, and they asked him as an apostle to come give him a blessing in hopes that he would be healed and cured of his cancer. And they had the absolute faith that they could. be that the Lord could do that for them through the blessing. And while that was absolutely true, Elder Bednar said that he felt impressed to ask them a different kind of question instead of asking them, do you have the faith to be healed?
He felt impressed to ask them, do you have the faith not to be healed? implying what the Lord is teaching here in this verse, is that do we have faith to be healed, and do we need to have faith to be healed? Absolutely. We have to believe that God can do all things. Can he help? Can he bless? Can he protect? Can he cure? Can he heal? Absolutely. But what if he doesn't? It's the but-if-not principle.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were cast into a fiery furnace for choosing not to believe in idol worship. and before they were cast in, they basically said, we know that the Lord has power to deliver us from these flames, but if not, be it known unto the old king that we will not bow down and worship these idols, implying that they knew God had the power to save them. But if he chose not to, and if he didn't, that there's still purpose behind it. That maybe they were appointed.
unto death. Or maybe they were appointed to suffer what they were going through. Maybe they were appointed to have this particular struggle or challenge in their There is great comfort in knowing that when life feels like it's out of our hands or out of our control, that it's always in God's hands. As he says, all flesh is in my hands. And as we heard and listened in a couple conferences now ago, mortality works.
It works. And I love kind of referencing that through those verses. And hopefully you see that as well. In this section, again, the Lord makes clear many of his laws and what he expects his people to obey and follow. And again, not for him, but for us. And if we are to be his disciples, you guys, these are the laws we must learn to accept and follow, even if the world chooses not to. And herein is the point and letter.
This is what brings me to one of the main points of this principle, is that most of these laws, again, I know you are familiar with, most of you have been taught since you were in primary. However, you have grown up in and are now living in a world that does not choose to follow or even recognize many of God's.
You live in the day that was foretold, where good would be called evil and evil would be called good, where the fingers of those living in the great and spacious building will be pointing. at you and laughing at you. Those who are living differently than they are. The Lord's people will be seen by the world as being strange and peculiar, I think is the word he uses, just different, which I know isn't always easy.
but for those that love God and choose to be His disciples and follow His laws. That will always be the case. And as a young person, the sooner you can learn this truth and understand that God's laws will never be popular or accepted by the world until he comes again. well, the less you'll be able to and likely be deceived by the world's ideas and ways, and the more true you will be able to remain to God in His ways.
President Spencer W. Kimball taught that absolute truth cannot be altered by the opinions of men. If men were really humble, they will realize that they discover but do not create truth. He said, many now claim that truth is relative and that there is no such thing as divine law or a divine plan. Such a claim is simply not true. There is a difference between right and wrong.
Truth is based upon the laws that God has established for the dependability, protection, and nurturing of his children. Eternal laws operate in and affect each of our lives, whether we believe in them or not. Thus our commission as apostles, he said, is to teach nothing but truth. That commission does not give us authority to modify divine law.
For example, he said, let's consider the definition of marriage. In recent years, many countries, including the United States, have legalized same-sex marriage. As members of the church, we respect the laws of the land and abide by them, including civil marriage. the truth is however that in the beginning The beginning marriage was ordained by God and to this day it is defined by him as being between a man and a woman God has not changed his definition of
God has also not changed his law of chastity. Requirements to enter the temple have not changed. And our desire for there to be love at home and harmony between parent and child has not changed. Heavenly Father and His beloved Son want you back home with them. They want you to be happy, and they will do anything within their power that does not violate your agency or their laws to help you come back.
How I cherish, he said, the privilege of feeling their love for you. Sometimes we as leaders of the church are criticized for holding firm to the laws of God. defending the Savior's doctrine, and resisting the social pressures of our day. But our commission as ordained apostles is to go into all the world to preach His gospel unto every creature. That means we are commanded to teach truth.
In so doing, sometimes we are accused of being uncaring as we teach the Father's requirements for exaltation in the celestial kingdom. But he said, wouldn't it be far more uncaring for us to not tell the truth, not to teach what God has revealed? It is precisely because we do care deeply about all of God's children that we proclaim His truth. We may not always tell people what they want to hear. Prophets rarely are popular. But we will always teach the truth. I love this.
Now he said in my capacity as president of the church, I invoke a blessing upon you to be able to discern between right and wrong, between the laws of God. and the conflicting voices of the world. I bless you with power to detect the adversary's deceptions. I bless you with greater capacity to receive revelation. I bless you to be able to feel the infinite reach of God's perfect love for you. I just love that quote and those statements from President Kimball.
I have learned, as I'm sure you are learning now, that God's ways are not the world's ways. But I've also learned that they are the right way and the best way. And I've experienced, as many as you have and will, that sometimes we learn the sweet from tasting the bitter. I haven't always followed and loved God's laws, and there are some I still struggle with keeping perfectly today.
But I've lived my life long enough to recognize that when I follow God's laws, I'm happy. And things go better for me in my life. Blessings come. And I've also come to see that when I don't, I disregard them, I ignore them, I don't follow them, I break them. Well, there are consequences that come as well. I'm not as happy. I feel a withdrawal of the Spirit. Sometimes it affects my relationships with other people. Sometimes it affects my relationship just with God or the way I feel about myself.
or the success that i have at work or a number of other ways that that his blessings and sometimes his cursings come because he knows in the end what will bring happiness And so he's designed his plan and life's experience to teach us those things. And I know that his way and his laws are the best way in the right. Some journal and discussion questions for you to consider might be which of God's laws stand out to you the most in maybe this section and why.
Which seem to be neglected by the world most today? Or challenged by the world most today? And why do you think they are? Which laws in here have you learned to love? Which laws have been hard for you to follow? And why do you believe personally in following the laws of God? What blessings have you seen come into your life from following His? And to apply this, I might just simply invite you to write which of these laws that God lists here in section 42 are you most grateful for and why.
Now, for the last principle, I just want to point out one additional thing about God's laws. We know that they are meant to bless and protect and preserve and all that, but there is something else. that you need to understand about his laws, that the Lord kind of references here, and we'll take a look at later on in future sections. But look at section 43, verse 9, what he says about his laws.
He says in verse 9, And thus ye shall become instructed in the law of my church, and be sanctified by that which ye have received. and ye shall bind yourselves to act in all holiness before me. I cannot end these thoughts about God and His laws without talking about one of the greatest blessings that comes to a person's life from living his life. Notice what the Lord implies will happen to a person internally from living his laws that are often external.
Verse 9, and ye shall become instructed in the law of my church and be sanctified by that which ye have received. Obeying his laws, you guys, have a sanctifying effect upon us, meaning that they change us, they cleanse us, they purify us, they sanctify us. Which is why he then instructs us to bind ourselves to them. And we bind ourselves to God through making covenant.
This is the whole purpose of the covenant path that we hear our prophet and apostles talk so much about and why they encourage us to make and keep covenant. to basically follow and obey God's laws because his laws change us for the better. To further understand this, take a look at section 78, sorry, 88 as a cross route. Section 88, verse 34 is a wonderful verse that also teaches that.
He says in verse 34, And again, verily I say unto you, that which is governed by law is also preserved by law, and perfected and sanctified by the saints. The struggle to keep his laws are not just a struggle to keep his laws, they're a struggle to be sanctified because it's through his law that we change, that we grow, that we become clean.
Young people, you need to understand that one of the main reasons it's so important to follow God's laws is, again, not only do they preserve and protect you, but they will also serve to sanctify and perfect you. Not only does God desire for you to follow his law, but he will empower you to do so as well. As you keep his perfect laws, his laws, again, will perfect you.
The association of his spirit and sanctifying power is tied very closely to the obedience of his laws and in the covenants that bind us to them and him. His laws also prepare us for the kingdom in which we will reside in after this life. Each kingdom has its law. And we will choose in this life basically which kingdom we want to reside in by choosing what laws we are willing to follow now.
There are terrestrial laws, there are telestial laws, and there are certainly celestial laws all sprinkled out in life. And we get to choose which kingdom we want to reside in by choosing what laws we will and are willing to follow. But knowing that, I'm sure that you've come to learn as I have. That this is something that the natural man does not want to do. The natural man doesn't want to follow God's laws. It pushes against them.
Because of that, you will feel a war inside you, within you, fighting against following his laws. And that's okay. That's normal. That's a part of living in a fallen world. There's light and dark in us. And the dark parts of us, the natural man... push against God's laws because It doesn't want to succumb to them. It doesn't want to give in to them. It doesn't want light. And its life doesn't want to change and improve and be better.
It just wants to do what comes natural to the natural man. This is what Paul describes in Romans chapter 7 when he says this. Listen carefully. It's a perfect description of what we're talking about. In verse 21 he says,
I find then a law that when I would do good, evil is present with me. And I'm sure you guys have experienced that. Verse 22, But I see another law in my members or in my body, warring against the law of my mind and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members or in my flesh or in my body. O wretched man that I am, he said, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin. He's describing this war that I know you have gone through and are experiencing and so am I. But the Lord warns us in section 88. against those who choose to not follow his laws and the consequences that come to those who do choose not to follow.
Verse 35, he goes on to say, again in section 88, That which breaketh the law, and abide not by the law, but seeketh to become a law unto itself. and willeth to abide in sin, and altogether abide in sin, cannot be sanctified by law, neither by mercy, justice, or judgment. Therefore, they must remain filthy still.
And again, he reminds us that all kingdoms have a law given in verse 36. Again, the choices you make in this life, young people, will by and large reflect the laws you are striving to keep. There are telestial laws, terrestrial laws, and then celestial laws. And the Lord, thank goodness, is willing to patiently guide each of us and empower us through all of them.
Until we bind ourselves to him and his celestial law that governs a celestial life in his celestial kingdom. And we can embrace that journey. By simply striving to think celestial, as President Nelson invites us. Now listen to these invitations given by prophets past and present.
King Benjamin in the Book of Mormon taught this very powerfully when he gave this great counsel and said, Moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual. And if they hold out faithful to the end, they are received into heaven, that thereby they may dwell with God in a state of never-ending happiness.
Oh, remember, remember that these things are true, for the Lord God hath spoken it. President Ezra Taft Benson taught in the Book of Mormon, we read that despair cometh because of iniquity. When I do good, I feel good, said Abraham Lincoln. And when I do bad, I feel bad. Sin pulls a man down into despondency and despair. While a man may take some temporary pleasure in sin, the end result is unhappiness. Wickedness never was.
Sin creates disharmony with God and is depressing to the spirit. Therefore, man would do well to examine himself to see that he is in harmony with all of God's law. Every law kept brings a particular blessing. Every law broken brings a particular blight. Those who are heavy laden with despair should come unto the Lord, for his yoke is easy, and his burden is light. And in referencing the struggle that one young man had in particular to keep God's laws,
and in his journey to come to recognize the access that he has to help through God to keep God's laws. Elder Wilcox, in referencing again this young man that was struggling with keeping some of God's laws, said, Damon said the only time I had turned to God in the past was to ask for forgiveness. But now I also ask for grace, his enabling power.
I had never done that before. These days I spend a lot less time hating myself for what I have done, and a lot more time loving Jesus for what He has done. And he went on to say that so many have been hurt by broken and strained relationships that it's difficult for them to believe in God's compassion and long suffering. They struggle to see God as He is, a loving Father who meets us in our need and knows how to give good things to them that ask
His grace is not just a prize for the worthy. It is the divine assistance He gives that helps us become worthy. It is not just a reward for the righteous. It is the endowment of strength He gives that helps us to become worthy. We are not just walking toward God and Christ. We are walking with God. I just want to, once again, share my voice and testimony, and particularly of the sanctifying effect of keeping the laws of God in our lives.
I have come to, again, see them as the great blessing that they are and come to recognize the purifying effect that they have when I strive to keep them and that I am not required to do that alone. because there is a war going on inside of us, and we need and have access to the greatest source of strength that there is, and that's the Savior.
He can enable us and empower us to keep His laws. He doesn't just give us the laws, but He gives us the power to keep them if we ask for it and if we continue to strive for it. So no matter where you are in your struggle in keeping any of God's laws, never give up hope. Never stop trying. Always believe that there is power that is available to you to help assist you. And that some battles will be fought for a long time. Some struggles will go on for days, weeks, maybe a year.
but that through Christ in the end and by striving to keep his laws, we can become cleansed, sanctified, and perfected. His celestial laws are what I am striving to hold on to the most because I know that by trying to live them, that they will pull me into the celestial kingdom because that's where those laws reside. Now some journal discussion questions for you to consider is why do you think the laws of God have a sanctifying effect upon those that keep them?
What differences have you seen in a person's demeanor and spirit between those that are striving to keep God's laws and those that are not? How have you felt an inner change yourself through keeping God's laws? Have you felt him help and enable you to do so in your life already? And how is it helpful to know that God will empower you to keep his laws and that you do not have to do it alone?
And what are your personal reasons for wanting to keep God's laws for yourself, not for your parents or for anyone else, but just for you? And I would invite you to maybe write down how you have seen or felt a change in your own life from keeping God's laws and how has following them helped you to become a better person and to stand out and be different from the rest of the world.
Well, hopefully some of those things have helped to motivate, inspire you, to give you clarity about God's laws, the purpose of them, help give you some things to think about. and help you to reflect on your own life and the journey that you are on to learn to accept follow and obey his laws. And to every step of the way. and helping you to pick yourself up and keep going when you fall short. Because not only again does he give us his laws, he gives us the power.
I bear testimony of that. And I hope that's been helpful to you guys this week as always. Please remember that person is greatest and most blessed and joyful. closely approaches to Christ. This has nothing to do the true test of greatness, blessing us. Chao to being like them. christ he is the right way the full truth and the abundant life and he invites us all to come follow me so
Let's follow him better this week as always and become better as we follow him. Until next week everyone, I'm Josh Downs and you've been listening to Come Follow Me for Teens.