Saturday, October 26, 2019

What Does It Mean to Be a Disciple of Jesus Christ?


            In my “Come, Follow Me” studies this week, I studied 1 Thessalonians 3 where the Apostle Paul told the Thessalonian Saints that he had received a good report from Timothy saying that there was “faith and charity” among the Thessalonian members of the Church (verse 6). However, Paul reminded them that discipleship requires constant growth and improvement. In other words, a true disciple of Jesus Christ cannot allow themselves to become stagnant in knowledge or testimony. Paul encouraged them to “increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men” 
(verse 12).

           
            Modern-day Apostles counsel today’s members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to do the same. Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926-2004) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said that “discipleship is to be lived in crescendo” or steadily and continually increasing (“Premortality, a Glorious Reality,” Ensign, Nov 1985, 15). 


            President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency also spoke of the increased need for continuous spiritual growth for disciples of the latter days: “As the forces around us increase in intensity, whatever spiritual strength was once sufficient will not be enough. And whatever growth in spiritual strength we once thought was possible, greater growth will be made available to us. Both the need for spiritual strength and the opportunity to acquire it will increase at rates which we under-estimate at our peril” (“Always,” Ensign, Oct. 1999, 9).


            These three Apostles bring the Lord’s law of witnesses into effect. The Savior taught that in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall all truth be known. When three Apostles are saying basically the same thing, we can know that it is truth. This means that we must continually increase in our ability to follow the Savior and to do the things that He commands us to do. In fact, He said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). If we truly love Him, we will keep His commandments and follow Him wherever He leads us.

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