Moroni's Guide for Surviving Turbulent Times by John Bytheway

Author:John Bytheway
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Deseret Book Company
Published: 2017-11-29T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

Moroni 6

“Numbered Among the

. . . Church of Christ”

Having taught us about the Savior, the Holy Ghost, the priesthood, and the sacrament, Moroni continues by teaching us what follows—participation in a church.

The strait and narrow path is a commonly used and widely understood biblical metaphor (see Matthew 7:14). Interestingly, the Book of Mormon adds a gate, a rod of iron, substantial hazards, and boisterous opposition to those traveling on the strait and narrow (see 1 Nephi 8–15). Nephi teaches that the path so often talked about is accessed by a gate:

The gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost. And then are ye in this strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life. (2 Nephi 31:17–18)

Passing through the gate signifies entrance onto the path, or into the kingdom of God on earth. In the nine verses of Moroni 6, Moroni shares with us a few essential practices of the ancient Saints in the New World. By implication, Moroni is showing us the value of a church! While some in the Christian world may disagree, we believe that Jesus did in fact ordain leaders, bestow keys, and organize a church through which His people would teach and strengthen one another. In this way, Moroni 6 is like a mini “Handbook of Instructions.”

The Church of Imperfect Members

I have heard people say, “I don’t believe in organized religion.” I am tempted to respond, “Well, go visit the nursery, it’s not that organized.” Another one we’ve probably all heard is, “I’m spiritual, but not religious,” whatever that means. Moroni’s words and instructions, while giving us a model for modern worship, also serve to validate that there is a place and a purpose for organized religion.

Many years ago, I read an essay titled “Why the Church Is as True as the Gospel.” In sharing our testimonies, we sometimes use the words church and gospel interchangeably. The author of this essay was trying to show that belonging to a church, with all of its administrative challenges and with its rolls bursting with imperfect people, is part of the test of mortality. The gospel message is true, as we all believe. But in a way, so is the church of imperfect people, because it is part of our test—a true test. In an address titled “Why the Church,” Elder D. Todd Christofferson taught:

In the Church we not only learn divine doctrine; we also experience its application. As the body of Christ, the members of the Church minister to one another in the reality of day-to-day life. All of us are imperfect; we may offend and be offended. We often test one another with our personal idiosyncrasies. In the body of Christ, we have to go beyond concepts and exalted words and have a real “hands-on” experience as we learn to “live together in love” [D&C 42:45]. (Ensign, November 2015, 108–9)

One Sunday, while serving as a

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