Come Unto Christ

During the 1980s there was a spiritual movement of people born again in faith and a new life to follow Jesus Christ led by Billy Graham. Billy Graham represented change to many millions of people and at this time, he represented it to a woman named Patricia. Patricia had taken her family to one of these mega meetings when Graham ministered in Florida.

Graham was not trying to build a church as far as Patricia could see. He truly ministered to the hearts of people and invited them to come to Christ. Down she went with her family for Billy to lay hands on them when he called for people who needed a healing in the word of Christ. The feeling in the arena with thousands of people praising and worshiping was serious and solemn as the people called out to Jesus for healing. It was real and soul changing. How do I know? I was there. I was a small child there with my Aunt Patricia. Billy Graham made me want to come to Christ.

Nephi taught that if we ask the Lord for anything that is good, God would grant that thing to us if we do so sincerely. In fact, Nephi is very explicit about this. He recorded, “Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said?—If ye will not harden your hearts, and ask me in faith, believing that ye shall receive, with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you.” (1 Nephi 15:11)

Nephi was talking, specifically to his brothers Laman and Lemuel who were upset that the mysteries of God were not revealed to them without effort. The message applies to all of those who want to know Christ.

Nephi reminded them that in order to get answers to their prayers they had to have faith AND keep the commandments—something which his brothers tended to do at their leisure if they did it at all, or by compulsion.

My heart, my spirit asked the Lord a question that I was not aware of at the time. My spirit wanted to know how to get back to the way I was when I was new to the gospel. The Lord kept throwing hints my way until I finally got it. Like Nephi's brothers who did not put forth the effort, I loved the idea of being a saint in Christ but did not want to put forward the effort to embrace Him.

God gives no commandment to us that He is not willing to provide detailed instructions on how we can fulfill that commandment and a path to succeeding. Nephi instructed us so and I can testify that it is true for all of us no matter our religion or circumstance.

Moroni teaches us that we must lay hold on every good thing. He then asks the question how to do that. He gives us the simple answer, which I am saddened in my heart to reveal because it is so simple that people will disregard it. Moroni, Nephi, and many other prophets taught and still teach that by small and simple things do great things come about.

The way to lay hold on to good things, to Christ and His teachings is through FAITH. Faith that Christ can do what He promised He would. He went to heaven to prepare a place for His followers. Believe Him.

He promised us that He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father any other way. Believe Him.

He promises us that He will share all that our Father in Heaven gives Him. Trust and Believe Him.

He promised that anything we ask in His holy name of the Father with faith that we shall receive it if it is right. Test it. Use faith to work out your salvation before God with respect and humility.

I adapt the words of King Benjamin:

Believe in God. Believe that He exists and that He created all things, both in heaven and in earth. Believe that He has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth. Believe that humanity’s wisdom does not comprehend all the things, which the Lord can comprehend. Believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God. Ask in sincerity of heart that He would forgive you of your sins. And now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them. (Reference Mosiah 4:9-10)

Brothers and sisters; come unto Christ and be perfected in Him and deny yourselves the vices of this world. Be perfected in Christ through repentance and service. And if through these things you find that you are perfect, or complete in His love you cannot deny His power or influence in you—nor would you want to do so. (Reference Moroni 10:32)

We suffer the little children to come unto Christ by how we live our lives and show them our devotion to all that is good and lovely in the world. We suffer or put aside our vanities so that they can have a chance to see what it means to be a true disciple of Christ. We suffer, or humble ourselves before the children letting them know that we have a higher power who we look to for guidance.

We come to Christ by being humble and looking for change in our way of thinking.