By Alan on Mar 06 in Daily Inspiration tagged America, blessed, cursed, fall, fight against the Lamb, forever, God, inheritance, keep the commandments, Obama, Pride, promises, safely, sin, we the people, wicked | Comments Off

“OBAMA On My Mind” by: ‘We The People’

 

 

Mr. President,

Are you aware of the God given promises made to this nation?
YOU SHOULD BE!

Here are some:

1 Nephi 11:36

“And it came to pass that I saw and bear record, that the great and spacious building was the pride of the world; and it fell, and the fall thereof was exceedingly great. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Thus shall be the destruction of all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, that shall fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

Alma 45:16

“And he said: Thus saith the Lord God—Cursed shall be the land, yea, this land, unto every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, unto destruction, which do wickedly, when they are fully ripe; and as I have said so shall it be; for this is the cursing and the blessing of God upon the land, for the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance.”

2 Nephi 1:9

“Wherefore, I, Lehi, have obtained a promise, that inasmuch as those whom the Lord God shall bring out of the land of Jerusalem shall keep his commandments, they shall prosper upon the face of this land; (North America) and they shall be kept from all other nations, that they may possess this land unto themselves. And if it so be that they shall keep his commandments they shall be blessed upon the face of this land, and there shall be none to molest them, nor to take away the land of their inheritance; and they shall dwell safely forever.”

 

By Alan on Jun 02 in Blog tagged alcohol, Almighty God, battles, cigarette, courage, David and Goliath, discouragement, doubt, duty, effort, envy, fear, greed, humility, in your life, laziness, love of duty, lust, no less important, prayer, Pride, selfish streak, selfishness, the battle for our souls, the enemy, Thomas S. Monson, unruly tongue, vice | Comments Off

The Battle For Our Souls

Meeting Your Goliath

Of all the battles that have been fought over many centuries in the area of the world known as the Holy Land, no single battle is better remembered than the one which occurred in the Valley of Elah during the year 1063 B.C. Along the mountains on one side, the feared armies of the Philistines were marshaled to march directly to the heart of Judah and the Jordan Valley. On the other side of the valley, King Saul had drawn up his armies in opposition.

Historians tell us that the opposing forces were about evenly matched in number and in skill. However, the Philistines had managed to keep secret their valued knowledge of smelting and fashioning iron into formidable weapons of war. The sound of hammers pounding upon anvils and the sight of smoke rising skyward from many bellows as the smiths went about the task of sharpening weapons and fashioning new ones must have struck fear into the hearts of Saul’s warriors, for even the most novice of soldiers would know the superiority of iron weapons to those of brass.

As often happened when armies faced each other, individual champions challenged others from the opposing forces to single combat. There was considerable precedent for this sort of fighting; and on more than one occasion, notably during the tenure of Samson as judge, battles had been decided by individual combat.

Now, however, the situation was reversed as far as Israel was concerned, and it was a Philistine who dared to challenge all others—a veritable giant of a man called Goliath of Gath. He wore heavy brass armor and a coat of mail. And the staff of his spear would stagger a strong man merely to lift, let alone hurl. His shield was the longest ever seen or heard of, and his sword a fearsome blade.

This champion from the Philistine camp stood and cried unto the armies of Israel: “Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me” (1 Samuel 17:8).

His challenge was that if he were overpowered by an Israelite warrior, then all the Philistines would become servants to the Israelites. On the other hand, if he were victorious, the Israelites would become their slaves. Goliath roared: “I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together” (1 Samuel 17:10).

For forty days came the challenge, met only by fear and trembling. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man Goliath, “fled from him, and were sore afraid” (1 Samuel 17:24).

There was one, however, who did not quake with fear nor run in alarm. Rather, he stiffened the spine of Israel’s soldiers by his piercing question of rebuke toward them: “Is there not a cause? … Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:19, 32). David, the shepherd boy, had spoken. But he did not speak just as a shepherd boy. For the hands of the prophet Samuel had rested upon his head and anointed him; and the Spirit of the Lord had come upon him.

Saul said to David: “Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth” (1 Samuel 17:33). But David persevered; and bedecked with the armour of Saul, he prepared to meet the giant. Realizing his helplessness so garbed, David discarded the armor, took instead his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag; and with his sling in hand, he drew near to the Philistine.

All of us remember the shocked exclamation of Goliath: “Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? … Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field” (1 Samuel 17:43–44).

Then David said: “Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

“This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand … that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

“And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hands.

“And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

“And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it and smote the Philistine in the forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

“So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him” (1 Samuel 17:45–50).

The battle had been fought. The victory had been won. David emerged a national hero, his destiny before him.

Some of us remember David as a shepherd boy divinely commissioned by the Lord through the prophet Samuel. Others of us know him as a mighty warrior, for doesn’t the record show the chant of the adoring women following his many victorious battles, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands” (1 Samuel 18:7)? Or perhaps we look upon him as the inspired poet or as one of Israel’s greatest kings. Still others recall that he violated the laws of God and took Bathsheba, she who belonged to another. He even arranged the death of her husband Uriah. I like to think of David as the righteous lad who had the courage and the faith to face insurmountable odds when all others hesitated, and to redeem the name of Israel by facing that giant in his life—Goliath of Gath.

Well might we look carefully into our own lives and judge our courage, our faith. Is there a Goliath in your life? Is there one in mine? Does he stand squarely between you and your desired happiness? Your Goliath may not carry a sword or hurl a verbal challenge of insult that all may hear and force you to decision. He may not be ten feet tall, but he likely will appear equally as formidable, and his silent challenge may shame and embarrass.

One man’s Goliath may be the stranglehold of a cigarette or perhaps an unquenchable thirst for alcohol. To another, her Goliath may be an unruly tongue or a selfish streak which causes her to spurn the poor and the downtrodden. Envy, greed, fear, laziness, doubt, vice, pride, lust, selfishness, discouragement—all spell Goliath.

The giant you face will not diminish in size nor in power or strength by your vain hoping, wishing, or waiting for him to do so. Rather, he increases in power as his hold upon you tightens.

The poet truly describes this truth:

David went to the brook and carefully selected five smooth stones with which he might meet his enemy. He was deliberate in his selection, for there could be no turning back, no second chance—this battle was to be decisive.

Just as David went to the brook, well might we go to our source of supply—the Lord. What polished stones will you select to defeat the Goliath that is robbing you of your happiness by smothering your opportunities? May I offer suggestions.

The stone of COURAGE will be essential to your victory. As we survey the challenges of life, that which is easy is rarely right. In fact, the course that we should properly follow appears at times impossible, impenetrable, hopeless.

Such did the way appear to Laman and Lemuel. When they looked upon their assignment to go unto the house of Laban and seek the records according to God’s command, they murmured, saying it was a hard thing that was required of them. Thus, a lack of courage took from them their opportunity, and it was given to courageous Nephi, who responded, “I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them” (1 Nephi 3:7). The stone of courage is needed.

Next, I select the stone of EFFORT—mental effort and physical effort.

The decision to overcome a fault or correct a weakness is an actual step in the process of doing so. “Thrust in thy sickle with thy might” was not spoken of missionary work alone.

Then there must be in our selection the stone of HUMILITY, for haven’t we been told through divine revelation that when we are humble, the Lord, our God, will lead us by the hand and give us answer to our prayers?

And who would go forth to battle his Goliath without the stone of PRAYER, remembering that the recognition of a power higher than oneself is in no way debasing; rather, it exalts.

Finally, let us choose the stone of LOVE OF DUTY. Duty is not merely to do the thing we ought to do, but to do it when we should, whether we like it or not.

Armed with this selection of five polished stones to be propelled by the mighty sling of faith, we need then but take the staff of virtue to steady us, and we are ready to meet the giant Goliath, wherever, and whenever, and however we find him.

For the stone of COURAGE will melt the Goliath of fear. The stone of EFFORT will bring down the Goliath of indecision and procrastination. And the Goliaths of pride, of envy, of lack of self-respect will not stand before the power of the stones of HUMILITY, PRAYER, and DUTY.

Above all else, may we ever remember that we do not go forth alone to battle the Goliaths of our lives. As David declared to Israel, so might we echo the knowledge, “The battle is the Lord’s, and he will give [Goliath] into our hands” (1 Samuel 17:47).

But the battle must be fought. Victory cannot come by default. So it is in the battles of life. Life will never spread itself in an unobstructed view before us. We must anticipate the approaching forks and turnings in the road. We cannot hope to reach our desired journey’s end if we think aimlessly about whether to go east or west. We must make our decisions purposefully. Our most significant opportunities will be found in times of greatest difficulty.

The vast, uncharted expanse of the Atlantic Ocean stood as a Goliath between Christopher Columbus and the New World. The hearts of his comrades became faint, their courage dimmed, hopelessness engulfed them; but Columbus prevailed with his watchword, “Westward, ever Westward, sail on, sail on.” (See Joaquin Miller, “Columbus,” in Ralph Henry and Lucile Pannell, comps., My American Heritage, [1949], 153–54.)

Carthage Jail, an angry mob with painted faces, and certain death faced the Prophet Joseph Smith. But from the wellsprings of his abundant faith he calmly met the Goliath of death. “I am going like a lamb to the slaughter,” he had said over a month earlier, “but I am calm as a summer’s morning. I have a conscience void of offense toward God and toward all men” (History of the Church, 6:555).

Gethsemane, Golgotha, intense pain and suffering beyond the comprehension of mortal man stood between Jesus the Master and victory over the grave. Yet he lovingly assured us, “I go to prepare a place for you … that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:2–3).

And what is the significance of these accounts? Had there been no ocean, there would have been no Columbus. No jail, no Joseph. No mob, no martyr. No cross, no Christ!

Should there be a Goliath in our lives, or a giant called by any other name, we need not “flee” or be “sore afraid” as we go up to battle against him. Rather we can find assurance and receive divine help from Him of whom David wrote in his inspired psalm: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. … Yea, though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me” (Psalm 23:1, 4).

Victory will be ours.

I like to think of David as the righteous lad who had the courage and the faith to face insurmountable odds when all others hesitated, and to redeem the name of Israel by facing the giant in his life.

Like David of old, “our cause is just.” We have been placed upon earth not to fail or fall victim to temptation’s snare, but rather to succeed. Our giant, our Goliath, must be conquered.

What polished stones will you select to defeat the Goliath that is robbing you of your happiness by smothering your opportunities?

May I suggest the stones of Courage, Effort, Humility, Prayer, and Duty.

Thomas S. Monson
For The Family 

By Alan on Sep 20 in Blog tagged abortion, ACLU Sued Judge, Alabama, America, America the Beautiful, displaying the Ten commandments, forgive us of our sins, God, goless judges, government, Judge Ray Moore, kill a baby, poem, poisoned, practice law, Pride, strip right, stripped of his judgeship, turn from Gods teachings | Comments Off

The following is a  poem written by Judge Roy Moore from Alabama.

Judge Moore was sued by the ACLU for displaying the
Ten Commandments
in his courtroom foyer.

He has been  stripped of his judgeship and now they are trying to  strip his right to practice law in Alabama!

.

The judge’s  poem sums it up quite  well.

America the beautiful,
or so you used to be.
Land of the Pilgrims’ pride
I’m glad they’ll never see.

Babies piled in dumpsters,
Abortion on demand,
Oh, sweet Land of Liberty
your house is on the sand.

Our children wander aimlessly
poisoned by cocaine
choosing to indulge their lusts
when God has said abstain

From sea to shining sea,
our Nation turns away
From the teaching of God’s love
and a need to always pray

We’ve kept God in our temples,
how callous we have grown.
When earth is but His footstool,
and Heaven is His throne.

We’ve voted  in a government
that’s rotting at the core,
Appointing Godless Judges
who throw reason out the door.

Too soft to place a killer
in a well deserved tomb,
But brave enough to kill a baby
before he leaves the womb.

You  think that God’s not angry,
that our land’s a moral  slum?
How much longer will He wait
before His  judgment comes?

How are we to face our God,
from Whom we cannot hide?
What then is left for us to do,
but stem this evil tide?

If we who are His children,
will humbly turn and pray;
Seek His holy face
and mend our evil way.

Then God will hear from Heaven
and  forgive us of our sins,
He’ll heal our sickly land
and those who live within.

But, America the Beautiful,
If you don’t – then you will see,
A sad but Holy God
withdraw His hand from Thee.

~~Judge  Roy Moore~~

“Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” 1 Kgs. 3: 9

Joseph Olivetti
For The Family

By Alan on Apr 03 in Blog tagged excess and selfishness, five reasons, habitation of devils, Holy Spirit, humble, ignoring the underprivileged, illicit relationships, John, meek, natural men submissive, our world today, patient love, Pride, prophecy of Babylon's Fall, revelation 18 Chapter of John, wealth-seeking | Comments Off

John’s Prophecy of Babylon’s Fall – Our World  Today!

In the chapter 18 of the Revelation of John, the apostle saw a powerful angel descend from heaven, “and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils.” John lists five reasons for Babylon’s fall:

1. Illicit relationships, interactions, and transactions that bring power and wealth. Described as “fornication,” these universally accepted things stand contrary to the Covenant.

2. The intolerable sin of wealth-seeking: “and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies”

3. Pride: “How much she hath glorified herself”
   
4. Excess and selfishness: “[Babylon] lived deliciously”
   
5. Ignoring the underprivileged: “I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.” But enough is too much: “her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.”

We must “yield to the enticings of the Holy Spirit and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.”  Mosiah 3: 19

Alan Osmond
For The Family

By Alan on Apr 02 in Blog tagged abominations, Babylon, blood, earthquakes, fine apparel, great pollutions, Hesus Christ, hypocrites, Joseph Smith, Latter-day Saints, money, Moroni, Pride, riches, rumors of wars, saw our day, secret combinations, secret dealings, The Book of Mormon, the great and abominable church, vaprs of smoke, wickedness, Zion | Comments Off

The last Prophet and writer of The Book of Mormon who abridged all of the gold plates that had been writen by previous writers in America, buried this abridgement in the Hill Cumorrah, New York, and then appeared as a glorified being to Joseph Smith and showed him were these plates were buried.

Joseph eventually got these gold plates and translated them into what we call The Book of Mormon.

This prophet, Moroni, when he was yet alive wrote this note to all of us, in our day, who reads this book:

“Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.”

Then Moroni described latter-day Babylon as if he were a modern-day journalist:

And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts; and there are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities; and your churches, yea, even every one, have become polluted because of the pride of your hearts. For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted.

Moroni’s vision was essentially the same vision as that seen by Jesus, Paul, and John the Revelator. Moroni foresaw pervasive pride, attention to fashion, envy, strife, malice, persecution, iniquity, and polluted churches, which are actual religious institutions and the philosophies of men, all of which are worshipped and followed devoutly.

Saints will embrace in Babylon (The World)

Sadly, Moroni reported, these conditions would exist among the Saints, whose fascination with Babylon would defile the holy church of God:

O ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers, who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God? Why are ye ashamed to take upon you the name of Christ? Why do ye not think that greater is the value of an endless happiness than that misery which never dies—because of the praise of the world?”

Moreover, Moroni said that our embracing Babylon while professing Zion would serve to persecute, rank, alienate, and maltreat the less fortunate among us: “Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not?”

Frighteningly, he noted that some Saints would adopt Babylon’s strategy of sinful secret dealings to get rich. Their selfish attitude toward money would hold the vulnerable and poor in captivity:

Yea, why do ye build up your secret abominations to get gain, and cause that widows should mourn before the Lord, and also orphans to mourn before the Lord, and also the blood of their fathers and their husbands to cry unto the Lord from the ground, for vengeance upon your heads?” Unless we Saints repent and flee Babylon, we will suffer her fate: “Behold, the sword of vengeance hangeth over you; and the time soon cometh that he avengeth the blood of the saints upon you, for he will not suffer their cries any longer.

A Day of Immense Wickedness and Contentions

Moroni described latter-day Babylon as “a day when the blood of saints shall cry unto the Lord, because of secret combinations and the works of darkness. Yea, it shall come in a day when the power of God shall be denied, and churches become defiled and be lifted up in the pride of their hearts; yea, even in a day when leaders of churches and teachers shall rise in the pride of their hearts, even to the envying of them who belong to their churches.”

Beyond the preponderance of latter-day secret combinations, denials of the power of God, and myriad competing churches and man-made philosophies that are built up to get gain, Babylon boasts one continual scene of natural disasters and war: “Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be heard of fires, and tempests, and vapors of smoke in foreign lands; and there shall also be heard of wars, rumors of wars, and earthquakes in divers places.”

Moreover, Babylon is a place and condition of “great pollutions,” both physical and spiritual: “Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be great pollutions upon the face of the earth.” Every conceivable sin abounds: “There shall be murders, and robbing, and lying, and deceivings, and whoredoms [every form of sexual sin], and all manner of abominations.”

Babylon is a place and condition of apathy and lack of accountability to God: “Many . . . will say, Do this, or do that, and it mattereth not, for the Lord will uphold such at the last day. But wo unto such, for they are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity.”

Babylon (The World) as a Counter-religion

As we recall, the word church, in Babylonian terms, means both a religious institution and a worshipped philosophy of man, anything that we worship other than God, whose leaders and teachers are those to whom we give our allegiance in place of God. Therefore, for example, Moroni prophesied: “Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be churches built up that shall say: Come unto me, and for your money you shall be forgiven of your sins.”

Beyond spawning many corrupt religious institutions and man-made philosophies, Babylon promotes the attitude of entitlement, the doctrines that having money equals personal goodness, and that money exalts its owner above those of lesser fortunes. In the process, Zion’s equality, unity, and oneness become nonexistent.

To achieve her goals, Babylon first focuses her disciples on seeking riches for self-serving purposes; then she soothes their consciences with the lie that God will favor or at least wink at the rich (because they are rich, they warrant God’s favor, they are told), and eventually He will usher them into heaven where more riches await. This is false doctrine. Hugh Nibley notes, “God recognizes only one justification for seeking wealth, and that is with the express intent of helping the poor (Jacob 2:19).”

Moroni offered no comfort to those who espouse such Babylonian attitudes: “O ye wicked and perverse and stiffnecked people, why have ye built up churches [worshipped philosophies] unto yourselves to get gain? Why have ye transfigured [reinvented] the holy word of God, that ye might bring damnation upon your souls?” Clearly, Babylon wants money so badly that she will ignore or wrest the scriptures to justify her actions.

The Fall of Babylon

Babylon is like a cancer: her presence is destructive to the system. She is an unwelcomed intruder that must be excised completely, or she will overwhelm and kill her host. Babylon can be neither converted nor saved. Total annihilation is the only answer. “We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country: for her judgment reacheth unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.”

Other prophets have weighed in on Babylon and its future. For example, Nephi foresaw the absolute demise of latter-day Babylon (a.k.a., the great and abominable church): “Behold, that great and abominable church, the whore of all the earth, must tumble to the earth, and great must be the fall thereof. For the kingdom of the devil must shake, and they which belong to it must needs be stirred up unto repentance, or the devil will grasp them with his everlasting chains, and they be stirred up to anger, and perish.” Unfortunately, many people who are aware of these scriptures will still choose to wait it out, then try to jump ship to Zion at the very last minute.

We should take to heart these prophecies. Babylon and Zion do not mix. Zion merged with even a little bit of Babylon is no longer Zion. For Zion to be Zion—a Zion person, a Zion family, or a Zion priesthood community—there can be no hint of Babylon. Hugh Nibley writes:

Zion is pure, which means ‘not mixed with any impurities, unalloyed’; it is all Zion and nothing else. . . . It is all pure—it is a society, a community, and an environment into which no unclean thing can enter. ‘Henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean’ (3 Nephi 20:36). It is not even pure people in a dirty environment, or pure people with a few impure ones among them; it is the perfectly pure in a perfectly pure environment.

If we partake of Babylon or embrace her teachings in any degree, we are not Zion, and we will suffer Babylon’s fate.

John’s Prophecy of Babylon’s Fall

In the chapter 18 of the Revelation of John, the apostle saw a powerful angel descend from heaven, “and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils.” John lists five reasons for Babylon’s fall:

1. Illicit relationships, interactions, and transactions that bring power and wealth. Described as “fornication,” these universally accepted things stand contrary to the Covenant.

2. The intolerable sin of wealth-seeking: “and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies”

3. Pride: “How much she hath glorified herself”

4. Excess and selfishness: “[Babylon] lived deliciously”

5. Ignoring the underprivileged: “I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.” But enough is too much: “her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.”

The first angel’s voice is now joined by a voice from heaven, which is directed at the Saints: “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” This merciful warning is dire; the Lord has undertaken to judge Babylon, and neither she nor the people who remain in her will be able to withstand his judgment: “Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.”

The reference to a sudden and astonishing fall is repeated throughout the prophecy:

• “…in one day”

• “Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come”

• “For in one hour so great riches is come to nought”

• “…in one hour is she made desolate.”

Babylon’s fall will be violent and permanent: “Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.”

The wicked, who have loved Babylon, will greatly miss her; their reaction will be widespread mourning: “And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, standing afar off for the fear of her torment.”

The world’s economy will collapse, and those who have bought and sold will never recover: “And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more.”

John then records the words of a voice from heaven, as if it were speaking directly to Babylon, saying, “All things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.” Then viewing the merchants, the voice adds, “The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, and saying, Alas, alas.”

But the merchants are not the only ones to mourn. The fall of Babylon is lamented by everyone who has remained within her precincts:

And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, and cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What [city is] like unto this great city! And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

Then a mighty angel assesses the extent of the destruction:

And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; and the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee.

No more of the world’s music and art; no more worldly crafts; no more worldly manufacturing. Babylon’s light has been snuffed out forever, and the world mourns, “For thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.”

But Zion’s hour has come at last. While the people of Babylon mourn, the people of Zion rejoice. “Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.” Clearly, we have a choice: we can remain in Babylon, suffer her plagues and mourn, or we can come to Zion, obtain safety in the Covenant, and rejoice.

Nephi’s Vision of Babylon’s Fall

According to Nephi, the fall of Babylon will be “exceedingly great.”Babylon will be destroyed “speedily; . . . it shall be at an instant, suddenly.” Lehi’s foundationless “great and spacious building” that “stood as it were in the air, high above the earth” will collapse, to the astonishment and fear of the world. Then a voice from heaven will be heard: “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit.”

Moreover, when Babylon, “the glory of kingdoms,” falls, it “shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.” That is, Babylon will be so fully eradicated that “it shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; . . . her time is near to come, and her day shall not be prolonged. For I will destroy her speedily; yea, for I will be merciful unto my people, but the wicked shall perish.”

Joseph Smith’s Revelation on the Fall of Babylon

Speaking to the Prophet Joseph Smith, the Lord said,

Behold, vengeance cometh speedily upon the inhabitants of the earth, a day of wrath, a day of burning, a day of desolation, of weeping, of mourning, and of lamentation; and as a whirlwind it shall come upon all the face of the earth, saith the Lord. And upon my house shall it begin, and from my house shall it go forth, saith the Lord; first among those among you, saith the Lord, who have professed to know my name and have not known me, and have blasphemed against me in the midst of my house, saith the Lord.

The Saints are not exempt. Those Saints who hold to Babylon and its philosophies will suffer the consequences of Babylon’s fall. Either we must decide to be safe in Zion or defenseless in Babylon. To the extent that we dabble with Babylon we are vulnerable.

Given the mountain of irrefutable evidence that the foundation of Babylon is cracking, we would be well served to reconsider our allegiance to the principles Zion and flock to her safety.

By Larry Barkdull For The Family
 Author’s Note:

This article was adapted from my new book, The Three Pillars of Zion. Click here to receive a free sample. Use the code Meridian to receive a 20% discount.

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Larry Barkdull
For The Family

By Alan on Oct 09 in Blog tagged enemy, fire, greed, laws, money, power, Pride, Satan, world | Comments Off

Our World has become so wicked that we are afraid to see and hear the truth!

It is so much easier and comfortable having free will with no consequences than to obey God’s Laws.

Our day is now worse than Sodom and Gomorrah which was destroyed by fire!

Yes, Man will be punished for his own sins! The “Natural Man” is an enemy to God!

The body that we received from our earthy parents is part of God’s “Plan of Life” so that we can become like our Heavenly Parents, be created in Gods own image, with powers to multiply and replenish the earth and create the future posterity of man. The Family,

Most of the Sin in this world is caused by distorting and misusing that Godly process.

Pride, Power, Greed, and the Love of Money are today’s motives.

The price on Sin is soon to be paid.

Few there will be that shall find “The Way” to Eternal Life.

Whoa be the followers of Satan!