Ahab Posted January 13, 2016 Posted January 13, 2016 I just got asked to give a talk in Sacrament meeting this next Sunday, the 17th, and although I am very familiar with the subject matter I am now beginning to wonder about how much I should share of what I know. How much, and toward what goal. What do you think? The "Eternal" aspect is interesting but I don't want to get hung up on that too much. Just a brief idea of what makes him our Eternal father would probably be something worth saying. And the believe "in" them part should probably be mentioned as well. Remember there will be little children present. What would you like to hear if you were there?
VideoGameJunkie Posted January 13, 2016 Posted January 13, 2016 Talk about how Heavenly Father has a body of flesh and bones and is separate from Jesus Christ. That differs us from many Christian churches.
Ahab Posted January 13, 2016 Author Posted January 13, 2016 I'd rather not say anything like "this makes us differ from many Christian churches" but I suppose I could mention the kind of body our Father has and that he is separate/distinguishable from Jesus. What about the we believe "in" them part? How would you describe what it means to believe "in" them? And how would you explain how our Father is our "Eternal" father, including being our father before we were born to him as his children in heaven? Or what if any difference would you say there is between believing "in" the Holy Ghost and believing "in" our Eternal Father? Is there anything about them that you don't understand very well that you would like someone to explain to you, regarding this article of faith? I think it also might help to explain how these things we believe are an issue of faith and what it means to have faith in those people. Can you give me some good reasons for why anyone should even want to have faith in them?
Russell C McGregor Posted January 13, 2016 Posted January 13, 2016 22 minutes ago, Ahab said: I'd rather not say anything like "this makes us differ from many Christian churches" but I suppose I could mention the kind of body our Father has and that he is separate/distinguishable from Jesus. What about the we believe "in" them part? How would you describe what it means to believe "in" them? And how would you explain how our Father is our "Eternal" father, including being our father before we were born to him as his children in heaven? Or what if any difference would you say there is between believing "in" the Holy Ghost and believing "in" our Eternal Father? Is there anything about them that you don't understand very well that you would like someone to explain to you, regarding this article of faith? I think it also might help to explain how these things we believe are an issue of faith and what it means to have faith in those people. Can you give me some good reasons for why anyone should even want to have faith in them? I would suggest that "believe in" doesn't just mean "I accept that they exist" but "I trust their promises." This leads in turn to obedience and covenant-keeping. It's a topic with a lot of scope. Good luck! 3
Storm Rider Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 I have never enjoyed the topic when it begins to approach God having a Father, the mysteries, etc., etc., etc. Stay on the firm foundation of fundamentals. The reality of God, Son, and Holy Spirit; how they differ in task without losing their united singleness of purpose. I would also want to know how your relationship with them has evolved and grown. What were some of the trials to your faith and how you moved beyond doubts. That would be an interesting talk to me. 2
JLHPROF Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 It's a hard balance due to audience, but sticking to scriptures AND going into some depth just makes for a better meeting. I've never believed in speaking/teaching to the weakest in a class or audience. Any good teacher teaches to the top student. There is no reason on that subject to go into speculations or personal theories, but there is no reason to stick to "three separate beings" and "faith vs belief" as the only topics either. There are a great many approaches you could choose to follow that aren't over children's heads and could be much more beneficial than a rehash of Godhead 101. For example you could cover - You could cover Christ doing the will of the father. You could cover the "comforters" and how the Godhead are comforters to us. You could cover presidencies (head + 2 counselors). The options are endless without going into weird doctrines. Basic anti-trinitarianism doesn't need to be the only topic. 1
Ahab Posted January 14, 2016 Author Posted January 14, 2016 2 hours ago, Storm Rider said: I have never enjoyed the topic when it begins to approach God having a Father, the mysteries, etc., etc., etc. Stay on the firm foundation of fundamentals. The reality of God, Son, and Holy Spirit; how they differ in task without losing their united singleness of purpose. I would also want to know how your relationship with them has evolved and grown. What were some of the trials to your faith and how you moved beyond doubts. That would be an interesting talk to me. Yes I agree that talks are better when people share personal experiences and thoughts that are on topic instead of just repeating doctrine. This one would involve me sharing how I can and do believe in each one of them and yet still have some issues that need resolving that will take me some time instead of taking care of those issues immediately. Like right now I am not paying a full tithe of my income because I am struggling with debt, not having enough income for everything. And rather than sell my house to pay rent which would be higher than my mortgage payment I am opting to wait 6 years until I can get myself out of most of my debt, other than the mortgage payment. And yet I still say and believe that I believe in God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and that they also believe in me. I just got myself into a fix that will take me some to get myself out of, and I believe they will continue to help me through it. They aren't giving up on me, and I'm not giving up on following them either. It's just taking me some time to become perfect. Not that I'll necessarily share that info with my ward but probably something like that to share the same message.
The Nehor Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 2 hours ago, JLHPROF said: It's a hard balance due to audience, but sticking to scriptures AND going into some depth just makes for a better meeting. I've never believed in speaking/teaching to the weakest in a class or audience. Any good teacher teaches to the top student. There is no reason on that subject to go into speculations or personal theories, but there is no reason to stick to "three separate beings" and "faith vs belief" as the only topics either. There are a great many approaches you could choose to follow that aren't over children's heads and could be much more beneficial than a rehash of Godhead 101. For example you could cover - You could cover Christ doing the will of the father. You could cover the "comforters" and how the Godhead are comforters to us. You could cover presidencies (head + 2 counselors). The options are endless without going into weird doctrines. Basic anti-trinitarianism doesn't need to be the only topic. I agree in general but also believe you should avoid teaching at the edge of your knowledge. 1
HappyJackWagon Posted January 14, 2016 Posted January 14, 2016 Speak about Heavenly Mother. If she is an equal partner in godhood with the father, she deserves a little mention especially if she is a necessary contributor in the creation of billions of spirit children. Of course we don't know that for sure as any past teachings are speculative and we can see from the creation narrative that female was unnecessary in the creation of worlds and peoples.
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