Truth Will Prevail

Truth Will Prevail

Laurel Lawrence’s class 1/10/19

Elder Elder M. Russell Ballard gave a fireside:

What Came from Kirtland

Nov. 6, 1994 • Devotional

https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/m-russell-ballard_came-kirtland/

The Lawrence’s were neighbors to Elder Ballard and got to know him very well while Elder Lawrence was a 70.

Joseph Smith was Elder Ballard’s great uncle, so he felt very close to him.

Joseph Smith lived in Kirtland 7 years. That was the longest he ever lived anywhere in his life. There were more heavenly manifestations there than anywhere else. Half of the D & C was received there. Kirtland is where Joseph Smith translated portions of the Bible and where they received the Pearl of Great Price!

  

At this time (1835) while the Kirtland temple was being built and new converts were arriving EVERY DAY, traveling salesmen found that it was a great place for commerce. One of the traveling salesmen was Michael Chandler, nephew of Lebolo, a famous Italian explorer who had discovered a bunch of ruins and had mummies and scrolls and such. Lebolo had kept all his ruins in a museum but when he died (in 1830 – amazing timing!), he willed all of them to Michael Chandler, and had them shipped to him in the United States.

Chandler didn’t really know what to do with them and eventually started a touring museum. Some place he went someone told him that he should show his stuff to Joseph Smith because everyone knew he was interested in ancient artifacts. So Chandler when to Kirtland, and yes – Joseph Smith was very interested in the scrolls that he had. Chandler wanted to sell all of it to Joseph Smith, so he let him take some home to try to translate. He had previously had a languages scholar translate a portion of the scrolls and he wanted to see if Joseph got the same translation as the scholar.

When Joseph Smith took them home and translated, he saw that they were writings from Moses and Abraham and of great worth, so he decided to buy them.  Chandler wanted to sell the 4 mummies with the scrolls, but JS didn’t want the mummies, just the scrolls.  Chandler was amazed that JS translated exactly the same as the experts! Joseph Smith bought them for $2400. The members there were so excited to get them that they put in $$ to help with the purchase. It is equal to $60,000 of our $$.

The Pearl of Great Price contains many things we don’t have anywhere else.

1.       Worlds without number

2     .       The creation – spiritual creation

3     .       Much more information about Cain and Able – that they were grandsons or great grandsons of Adam; that they held the Melchizedek priesthood and that’s why Cain could become a Son of Perdition – he sinned against the greater light.

4     .       The History of Abraham and how he was almost sacrificed as a child, so it was way harder for him when the Lord asked him to sacrifice his own son.

5     .       Facsimiles – it is the only scripture we have that has facsimiles.

6     .       The story of Enoch, that he was asked to preach, that he had many obstacles, that he was given the sealing power – all that compared to 1 sentence in the Bible. The saints at that time needed this example to know how to build up Zion.

7     .       Premortality – there is nothing in the D & C and only 1 verse in Jeremiah, but a lot in the Pearl of Great Price about the pre mortal life.

8     .       That 1 day to God is 1,000 of our years; This is also in Peter, but not as clear-"But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day."  Peter 3:8. Compared to the PofGP- "And the Lord said unto me, by the Urim and Thummim, that Kolob was after the manner of the Lord, according to its times and seasons in the revolutions thereof; that one revolution was a day unto the Lord, after his manner of reckoning, it being one thousand years according to the time appointed unto that whereon thou standest. This is the reckoning of the Lord's time, according to the reckoning of Kolob." Abr 3:4
-      Based on this, mathematically 1.5 times your age in years = minutes in God's time (it is only "approximate") So if you are 60 years old, that’s 60 + 30 = 90 minutes you’ve been gone from heaven.

Satan always strikes when God sends new light and knowledge. In spite of the new temple and new scriptures, the spirit of apostasy grew. It was the greatest apostasy in the history of the Church.

It was literally the best of times and the worst of times.

Joseph Smith prayed of what to do and the answer was to send missionaries to England. 6 of the most faithful men were sent. Among them was Heber C Kimball and Joseph Fielding.  

They were sent to England because much of the tribe of Ephriam dwells in those parts. Ephriam’s assignment is the Gathering of Israel. They had to gather to Zion. Whenever Israel is commanded to gather in any place, it is to increase/multiply and build temples. The saints needed to multiply and reproduce to create an army of missionaries.

Marriage has always been commanded to be between 1 man and 1 woman unless God needs to raise up righteous seed. Like Jacob 2:30 and like Jacob (Israel) had 4 wives.

Polygamy only lasted 40 years and only 20%-25% of the members participated. It was a calling; not something everyone was asked to do.  At the MTC, the whenever the president is asked why we practiced polygamy in the early years of the church, the answer was to raise up righteous army of missionaries. Then he would ask the missionaries to raise their hands if they knew they were descended from a polygamy marriage. 90% usually raise their hands.

In England, the missionaries were impressed to go to Preston where the brother of Mary Fielding and Joseph Fielding lived. His name was James and he was a preacher. They both had written to him many times about the new religion that they had found and had tried to convince him to investigate it, but he never did. When they went there, he agreed to let them come to his congregation to preach. He knew the members would find it interesting and he felt no threat of losing anyone, he just thought, as all his congregation did, that it would be something rather novel to listen to.

But after they preached, many were interested in knowing more, so John had to forbid them from listening more, and shut his doors to them, so they started teaching people in their own homes. It hardened his heart against the Church because he ended up losing most of his congregation. This was repeated in all the towns. The local preacher would invite them to preach to their congregation, they would convert many, then the preachers would forbid them to return and try to convince people to not listen to them.

When the missionaries first arrived in Preston, they felt very intimidated and insecure. They felt like hillbillies -  very inadequate in a highly educated town but when they arrived it was an election day, and there was a banner over the street that said, “Truth will prevail”. They all felt it was a sign that their truth  - what they were teaching from God – would prevail.

Satan tried to stop the work there. The first Sunday that they scheduled a baptism, 9 were ready to be baptized, one man, Isaac Russell went to Heber C Kimball and said that Satan had been bothering him all night. They laid their hands on Isaac and were struck to the floor. They had a vision of Satan and all the hosts for an hour. The spirits came at them with hate and hellish design. He said they were adult men spirits. It was a vision of sweat and pain and the most horrible experience they had ever had. https://scottwoodward.org/satan_eldersexperienceinEngland.html

After their mission, Kimball told Joseph Smith about it and JS said he already knew about it and was happy because he knew that the work had commenced.

At the first baptism, the men ran into the water because they each wanted to be the first to be baptized. Soon there were 27 members of the Preston branch which made James very angry.

Then the missionaries split up and went to different cities. The Preston branch grew; Ephriam means fruitful.

Later the converts were asked to immigrate to the U.S.

Charles Dickens was at the dock when 800 members were leaving and he wrote about the great quality of the people who left. He said they were the pick and flower of England – some of the choicest people. https://www.lds.org/new-era/1976/01/the-pick-and-flower-of-england?lang=eng&_r=1

The Captain of the ship was impressed because they were so organized and happy. He had never had a group of passengers like them.

In the meantime in Kirtland, Joseph Smith was trying to translate the Bible and he read about plural marriage. As always, he prayed about it and God told him it was true and that the Saints would be asked to do the same. He was shocked and ignored the counsel for a long time. He was told he had to be the first as an example but keep it sacred and not tell people. Then an angel appeared to him with a sword and essentially said, “do it or die” and commanded him to do it.

Reluctantly he married.

There was so much apostasy he hesitated but eventually told other leaders. 99% of those who practiced polygamy received a direct personal revelation about it. It was not a calling to all to do.

Many men were in a state of apostasy. They seized the temple and threatened to drive out all who followed Joseph. One of the wives of the men on a mission in England wrote to him and said she was glad he wasn’t there to see what was going on because it was terrible.

Joseph prayed about what to do now and was told to take everyone to Missouri .

It took weeks to get there but it was a fresh start. This is where Joseph Smith received the revelation to change the name of the Church from Church of Christ to Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, to distinguish them from the ones who took over the temple and kicked them out of Kirtland. They were told that Far Went is Holy Ground but got no explanation as to why. As they wandered around and went to Spring Hill, it was revealed that this was Adam Ondi Ahman (D&C 107) where Adam dwelled. There Adam gathered all righteous to give his farewell. Jesus appeared and told them Adam was Michael. Adam lived to 900+ years.

It is a place that has perfect acoustics. There Adam will return and Christ and they will take the Sacrament with the saints – all who have held the Priesthood keys will give an accounting of their time. This will be right before the 2^nd coming.