The Eternal Blessings of Families:
Bringing Families Unto Christ

By Brother Keith L. Brown

Member of the Annapolis Maryland Stake High Council

The following Sacrament talk was delivered on Sabbath day afternoon, 20 October 2002 to the congregation of the Severn Ward, in Odenton Maryland.
 

Good afternoon Brothers and Sisters. I bring you love and greetings from our Stake Presidency with whom I had the privilege of meeting with this morning.  I wish to extend to all of you their sincere love and appreciation for each of you and all that you do as you humbly serve in this Stake of Zion.

On September 23, 1995 the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued a proclamation which emphasizes the importance that our Heavenly Father places upon the family.  The title of that proclamation reads: “The Family: A Proclamation to the World.” Because our Heavenly Father loves His children, He will not leave us to guess about what matters most in this life concerning where our attention could bring happiness or our indifference could bring sadness. Sometimes He will tell a person such things directly, by inspiration. But He will, in addition, tell us of these important matters through His servants.  In the words of the prophet Amos recorded long ago, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7).  He does this so that even those who cannot feel inspiration can know, if they would but listen, that they have been told the truth and have been warned.

The proclamation on the family begins with these words, “We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children. All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of Heavenly Parents. And, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose. In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize his or her divine destiny as an heir of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally.“

A careful study of the proclamation will ensure us that God won't just tell us a few interesting things about the family, but rather, He will tell us what a family ought to be and why. Further, we know that our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ, want us to become like them so that we can dwell forever with them as families. We know that from this simple statement of their intent: “This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). By following our Heavenly Father’s plan, families can return to God’s presence, united eternally.

President Spencer W. Kimball once said, “It is important for us to cultivate in our own family a sense that we belong together eternally, that whatever changes outside our home, there are fundamental aspects of our relationship which will never change” (CR, October 974, p.161.)  And it was President Lorenzo Snow who warned, “Let families put themselves in possession of all the good they can—be in a position to do right, and be continually in the path to exaltation and glory” (JD, 5:316.)

The family unit is fundamental not only to society and to the Church but to our hope for eternal life. Within the family, people experience most of life’s greatest joys and greatest sorrows. Happiness in our own lives as well as the lives of our families is most likely to be achieved when our thoughts and actions are founded upon the principles of the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. In Matthew 7:24-25 Christ likened those who hear His sayings and follow them to a wise man who built his house upon a rock. We read these words, “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.” In the Book of Mormon in Helaman 5:12 we are reminded, “And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.“ To all who will listen our Savior said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). With a foundation built upon Christ and His teachings we can all find that rest which includes peace and joy.

Just as a man on a journey in the wilderness relies upon a compass to point him in the direction that he needs to go, there is a compass that will always point us in the direction that we should go and lead us to the path that we should take. That compass is the Scriptures. By applying the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ found therein, we will learn to overcome anger and contention and bring greater peace and joy into our lives and family relationships.  Jesus taught us in 3 Nephi 11:30, “Behold, this is not my doctrine, to stir up the hearts of men with anger, one against another; but this is my doctrine, that such things should be done away.“

The gospel of peace and love must be taught in our homes and practiced in our family relationships. Husbands and wives have a solemn responsibility to set the example and to love and care for each other and their children. Parents have a sacred responsibility to ensure that their children are taught in the ways of the Lord. Parents are instructed in Proverbs 22:6 to, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” In Doctrine and Covenants 68:25-28 we read these words, “And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents. For this shall be a law unto the inhabitants of Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized. And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.  And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord.“ President Joseph F. Smith taught, “Let love, peace, and the Spirit of the Lord, kindness, charity, sacrifice for others, abound in your families. Banish harsh words,. . .and let the Spirit of God take possession of your hearts. Teach to your children these things, in spirit and power. . .Not one child in a hundred would go astray, if the home environment, example and training, were in harmony with. . .the gospel of Christ” (IE, December 1904, p. 135.)

As we read further into the proclamation on the family we are taught, “The first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God’s commandment for his children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman, lawfully wedded as husband and wife.
We declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God’s eternal plan.
Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. "Children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalms 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, to teach them to love and serve one another, to observe the commandments of God and to be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives—mothers and fathers—will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.“

The spirit of a righteous home is love. President Gordon B. Hinckley once stated, “Love is the very essence of family life. Why is it that the children we love become so frequently the targets of our harsh words? Why is it that these children who love their fathers and mothers sometimes speak as if with daggers that cut to the quick? “There is beauty all around,” only “when there’s love at home.” (Hymns, 985, no. 294.) (Ensign, May 989, p. 67.) The Lord said, “Thou shalt live together in love” (D&C 42:45) – Love of heavenly parents, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost; of husband and wife; and of parents for children, children for parents, and siblings for each other. Making one’s home a place of peace and joy takes effort. That effort requires consistent planning, cooperation, and prayer. President Thomas S. Monson once stated, “Family prayer is the greatest deterent to sin, and hence the most beneficient provider of joy and happiness. The old saying is yet true: "The family that prays together stays together." (Ensign, November 988, p. 69.) The Church encourages families to hold weekly family home evenings, in which all members of the family study eternal gospel principles and ordinances and do things together that bring them joy. Two Church Presidents have stated, “The most important of the Lord’s work [you] will ever do will be the work you do within the walls of your own homes" (Lee, p.7), and “No other success can compensate for failure in the home” (McKay, p. iii).

Brothers and Sisters, the world is filled with subtile and hidden dangers that threaten to ensnare each of us. To fortify ourselves as well as our family members aginst the onslaught of the world, we must earnestly strive to live our lives in accordance with the teachings of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. True protection is found in the teachings of the Savior. An ancient prophet once wrote, “We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.” In order to strengthen our families we need to learn to pray together as a family, read Scriptures together as a family, hold Family Home Evenings, and love one another. No greater joy can be found in a home than when family members genuinely love one another and strive to earnestly follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. In such a home God can and will work miracles. Of these solemn truths I do so testify this day in the name of our Lord and Savior, even Jesus the Christ. Amen. 

Tags: Eternal Families

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