Saturday, September 27, 2014

Part 2: Jewish Church: Wresting of keys, the kingdom, the power...

Jews:
They had priesthood.
They had the keys of the kingdom.
They had temples.
They rejected John the Baptist "crying from the wilderness"
They rejected Christ when he came as a man. (Mosiah 3:9)

Jews Lost the Kingdom:
"The son of Zacharias wrested the keys, the kingdom, the power, the glory from the Jews, by the holy anointing and decree of heaven, and these three reasons constitute him the greatest prophet born of a woman." (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 5:260-261)
How did he do it?
"he had his authority from God"...he came forth from the wilderness crying out, "Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is nigh at hand," as much as to say, "Out here I have got the kingdom of God and I am coming after you; I have got the kingdom of God, and you can get it, and I am coming after you; and if you don't receive it, you will be damned;(History of the Church, 5:257-259) 
"was ordained by the angel of God at the time he was eight days old unto this power, to overthrow the kingdom of the Jews, and to make straight the way of the Lord before the face of his people, to prepare them for the coming of the Lord, in whose hand is given all power."(D&C 84:28)
John was sent forth, in part, to be rejected by the Jews so that he could wrest "the keys, the kingdom, and the power and the glory from the Jews, and this by the holy anointing and decree of heaven." Because an angel had established it, and because the Powers of Heaven were behind it, the rejection of John was a necessary step to permit one dispensation to close and another to begin. God follows patterns in every age.

Rejection of John
The Jews no longer had the keys of the kingdom.
The Jews no longer had priesthood.
The Jews ordinances were no longer valid.

Gentiles Get the Gospel
 The Jews, as a nation, having departed from the law of God and the Gospel of the Lord, prepared the way for transferring it to the Gentiles. (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, 5:257-259) 
Gentiles Reject the Gospel
The Gentiles, as a nation, having departed from the law of God and the Gospel of the Lord, prepared the way for transferring it to the Remnant. To permit one dispensation to close and another to begin. This permits Zion to move forward.
10 And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you: At that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my gospel from among them. (3 Nephi 16:10)
"At the day when the Gentiles shall sin against the Gospel..."  Not IF.  Not SHOULD THEY HAPPEN TO DO SO. It is in the day WHEN the Gentiles SHALL sin against the Gospel.

The Father has already seen this happen. (D&C 130: 7)  He has told Christ to speak about it. But it is before the Father and therefore He can speak with knowledge of the coming rejection by the Gentiles.

What do the Gentiles do as they reject the Gospel?  They "shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations... above all the people of the whole earth." The Gentiles take their inheritance of the promised land as their birthright. They presume God's favor. They mistake their probation and testing as proof of having God's favor. They are on trial, and presume they aren't being tested

To reject the fullness is not to reject the Gospel itself.  As we have seen, some fragment of the Gospel remains even when it has turned into "iniquity" and "abomination." Without some fractured segment of the Gospel to salve the conscious and let the people feel good about their sins, there couldn't be "abominations."

It is not the "Gospel" which is lost. Rather it is the "fullness of my Gospel" which is rejected and then taken away. It is first rejected, then it is forfeited. The Gentiles lose their entitlement to possess what they have rejected.

The Father has decreed it will happen. The Gentiles will change the ordinance and break the everlasting covenant. (Isa. 24: 5.)  What ordinance? What change? Has it happened? If not, what will be required to make a change and lose the "everlasting covenant" by the Gentiles?  I hope to avoid that..

O House of Israel Get the Gospel
11 And then will I remember my covenant which I have made unto my people, O house of Israel, and I will bring my gospel unto them.
The judgements of God will be poured out upon the wicked, to the extent that our elders from far and near will be called home; or in other words, the Gospel will be taken from the gentiles, and later on will be carried to the Jews. (Heber C. Kimball (quoted by J Golden Kimball, son of Heber, Conference Report, Oct. 1930, p. 58-59))  
Gentiles Shall Assist the remnant if they repent. (3 Nephi 21:23) It is the remnant that build the New Jerusalem, not the Gentiles because we will not repent and return unto Him (3 Nephi 16:10, D&C 45:25-30) And only those who repent, come into the Lords presence and receive what is offered (D&C 84:23-25), will ASSIST. For "When God offers a blessing or knowledge to a man, and he refuses to receive it, he will be damned."(WJS, 244). What good does it do to be offered a gift and not receive it?

Gentiles Reject Fulness: Times of The Gentiles Fulfilled
28 And when the times of the Gentiles is come in, a light shall break forth among them that sit in darkness, and it shall be the fulness of my gospel;
29 But they receive it not; for they perceive not the light, and they turn their hearts from me because of the precepts of men.
30 And in that generation shall the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (D&C 45:28-30)
The Latter Day Saints Are Identified With The Gentiles.
The kirtland dedicatory prayer the Lord said.
60 Now these words, O Lord, we have spoken before thee, concerning the revelations and commandments which thou hast given unto us, who are identified with the Gentiles (D&C 109:60)
         “We are those Gentiles of whom Nephi speaks.” (McConkie, Millennial Messiah, p 238)

No comments:

Post a Comment