The Word In Us

In the most recent general conference Elder Bednar questioned, “The Savior’s promise to His followers is twofold: if we abide in Him, He will abide in us. But is it indeed possible for Christ to abide in you and me —individually and personally?” He responded with enthusiasm: “The answer to this question is a resounding yes!” He suggested that sometimes we struggle as members of the Church to really believe this for ourselves: “Some Church members accept as true the doctrine, principles, and testimonies proclaimed repeatedly from this pulpit in the Conference Center and in local congregations around the world—and yet may struggle to believe these eternal truths apply specifically in their lives and to their circumstances. They believe sincerely and serve dutifully, but their covenant connection with the Father and His redeeming Son has not yet become a living and transforming reality in their lives.” He then gave this powerful promise: “I promise that by the power of the Holy Ghost, you can know and feel the gospel truths I have attempted to describe are for you—for you individually and personally.” Elder Bednar wants us to really believe that the Savior can come to us and help us individually on our lives, that the plan of redemption is not just for believers in general but for us individually.

                Using the teachings of Alma about the word and the seed, Elder Bednar suggested that “the seed we should strive to plant in our hearts is the word—even the life, mission, and doctrine of Jesus Christ. And as the word is nourished by faith, it can become a tree springing up in us unto everlasting life.” He then asked this thought-provoking question: “My beloved brothers and sisters, is the Word in us? Are the truths of the Savior’s gospel written in the fleshy tables of our hearts? Are we coming unto and gradually becoming more like Him? Is the tree of Christ growing in us? Are we striving to become ‘new [creatures]’ in Him?” This reminds me of the image from the prophet Ezekiel who wrote about an experience he had at the beginning of his ministry. A heavenly messenger said to him, “Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee…. Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me:… Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.” Ezekiel continued, “And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;… Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness” (Ezekiel 2:1-2, 8-9; 3:1-2). As Ezekiel symbolically ate the roll—the word of God—he was prepared for his mission to preach the word to the people. The message for us I believe is clear—we must internalize the word of God so that it is in us, and then we will understand God’s work He wants us to do. An angel with a sacred book did a similar thing with John: “And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey” (Revelation 10:9-10). The Lord explained the significance of this in our dispensation: “[The book] was a mission, and an ordinance, for him to gather the tribes of Israel; behold, this is Elias, who, as it is written, must come and restore all things” (Doctrine and Covenants 77:14). John gained a knowledge of his mission through this “little book,” and I believe we each will come to understand our mission in this world as we study and ponder and bring within us the word of God. We must seek, as Elder Bednar encouraged us, to get the word of God down into our souls. We can become so familiar with the holy words of ancient and modern prophets that they are indeed as sweet as honey and as transformative as a seed growing into and everlasting tree.