Thy Faith Hath Saved Thee

1. Thy Faith Hath Saved Thee www.kevinhinckley.com

2. Minister of a growing church in Latin American: The minister has the number 666 tattooed on his arm. "The spirit that is in me is the same spirit that was in Jesus of Nazareth," he says. He says he learned he was Jesus reincarnate when he was visited in a dream by angels. He preaches there is no devil and no sin. His followers, he says, literally can do no wrong in God's eyes. He says he has a church-paid salary of $136,000 but lives more lavishly than that. During an interview, he showed off a diamond-encrusted Rolex to a CNN crew and said he has three just like them. He travels in armored Lexuses and BMWs…All are gifts from his devoted followers. Korihor …he was Anti-Christ, he began to preach unto the people against…the coming of Christ …behold, the [devil] appeared unto me in the form of an angel… He saith unto [him] I am no devil, for there is none. He did say unto them…every man prospered according to his strength; and whatsoever a man did was no crime. And he began to be lifted up in the pride of his heart and to wear very costly apparel What is his name?

3. Reminder on Documentaries not made by the Church As the Second Coming Gets Closer: Will we, as a church, look more like the world, or less? In their eyes, will we look more bizarre or less? Will Satan, the great deceiver and accuser, spread more lies or less lies about us? For that reason, will we be treated more sympathetically or less?

4. Sister Susan Easton Black Tell me a story," I nightly pled of Grandma as a child. Though I wanted to hear of Cinderella, Snow White, or Sleeping Beauty, she would say, "Susan, I can only tell you stories that are true. If you want to hear truth, I have something to say." Not wanting to sleep, I enthusiastically listened to stories of Jesus, the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, and those whose sacrifices created our legacy of faith. Though I believed in the truthfulness of Grandma's stories, there was one that caused discomfort. It was of a young pioneer girl named Sarah Ann who was in danger of being trampled by stampeding buffaloes. In this perilous situation she knelt and prayed for protection. "In answer to her prayer," said my grandmother, "she remained unharmed, even though hundreds of buffalo stampeded around her." Instead of marveling with wonder at the miracle, I emphatically pronounced, "That's impossible!" Grandma countered, "It is not impossible to those who have faith, Susan. It was because Sarah Ann had faith and you don't." BYU Devotional, 22 November, 1994

5. Question When I have Enough Faith …I’ll Keep the Commandments If someone, like Sister Black, is looking to develop Faith, what would you tell her? Answer: We don’t grow or produce faith. President George Albert Smith Faith is a gift of God; it is the fruitage of righteous living. It does not come to us by our command but as the result of doing the will of our Heavenly Father. …I receive the Gift of Faith As I do His Will…

6. John 11 Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby. When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was. Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the house. Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee. Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world. And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee. Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. Question What does He expect of us when, for whatever reason, He tarries?

7. Finally Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days. Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God? Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it,that they may believe that thou hast sent me. And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go. Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.

8. Joseph F. Smith (Sec. 138) As I pondered over these things which are written, the eyes of my understanding were opened, and the Spirit of the Lord rested upon me, and I saw the hosts of the dead, both small and great. And there were gathered together in one place an innumerable company of the spirits of the just, who had been faithful in the testimony of Jesus while they lived in mortality; And who had offered sacrifice in the similitude of the great sacrifice of the Son of God, and had suffered tribulation in their Redeemer's name. All these had departed the mortal life, firm in the hope of a glorious resurrection… I beheld that they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand. And the saints rejoiced in their redemption, and bowed the knee and acknowledged the Son of God as their Redeemer and Deliverer from death and the chains of hell. Their countenances shone, and the radiance from the presence of the Lord rested upon them, and they sang praises unto his holy name.

9. Parley P. Pratt It was Joseph Smith who taught me how to prize the endearing relationships of father and mother, husband and wife; of brother and sister, son and daughter. It was from him that I learned that the wife of my bosom might be secured to me for time and all eternity; and that the refined sympathies and affections which endeared us to each other emanated from the foundation of divine eternal love. It was from him that I learned that we might cultivate these affections, and grow and increase in the same to all eternity. . . . I had loved before, but I knew not why. But now I loved--with a pureness--an intensity of elevated, exalted feeling, which would lift my soul from the transitory things of this groveling sphere and expand it as the ocean. I felt that God was my heavenly Father indeed; that Jesus was my brother, and that the wife of my bosom was an immortal, eternal companion; a kind ministering angel, given to me as a comfort, and a crown of glory for ever and ever. In short, I could now love with the spirit and with the understanding also. [Parley P. Pratt, Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, pp. 297–98]

10. Sister Black On a whim [during my freshman year at BYU] a girlfriend and I decided to spend the weekend in Salt Lake City. While sitting with suitcases in hand at Temple Square, my friend casually remarked, "The president of the Church, David O. McKay, lives just across the street in the Hotel Utah." Her continual nods of assurance and our curiosity led us to the hotel. Speaking with the bellboy and then the hotel manager about where the famous resident lived was frustrating. Their negative attitude, punctuated with security implications, fell on deaf ears. We left them determined to answer the hypothesis "If I were a prophet of God, behind which door would I choose to live in this hotel?" After hours of knocking on doors and greeting blank stares from grumpy hotel guests, we staked out three floors. An innocent chambermaid on one of the floors revealed the answer. Excitedly, we hugged each other as only BYU freshmen could. Our enthusiasm was boundless, until we concluded to see if the prophet was home. Being the smallest of the twosome, I was designated to knock on the door. If the knock was answered, I had been programmed to say, "We are selling early orders for Girl Scout cookies. Would you care to place an order?" As I walked toward the door I felt reticent; yet, as my feet faltered and heart pounded, my friend pushed me forward. It wasn't until I reached the door and was knocking that she ran like a "flash of light" to the far end of the hall. I was just turning to run when the door opened, and before me stood the prophet. He looked surprised but didn't say anything. Neither did I, I couldn't. I felt like I had a key to the celestial kingdom but did not belong--I was not worthy to be in his presence. I started to cry and then to sob. He took me by the hand and said, "Won't you come in?" I waved to my friend down the hall--whose open mouth betrayed her surprise--and entered the prophet's home. Our discussion remains personal, but the resulting impact was to change my inner direction dramatically. I resolved, as never before, to not just mirror faith, but to know of faith.