The concepts of "making your calling and election sure" and having the "second comforter" is Biblical. They are based on 2 Peter 1:10-11: "Wherefore . . . brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fail: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (see also v. 19 and Eph. 1:13-14).
The Prophet Joseph Smith not only tied "calling and election" to sealing theology but also to the "second comforter" mentioned in John 14:26. According to the Prophet the second comforter was a personal manifestation of Jesus Christ. These ideas were also tied to the concept of personal revelation and the fact that the twelve apostles and all Mormons could and should follow Smith's steps and "become perfect in Jesus Christ."
The Prophet Joseph Smith not only tied "calling and election" to sealing theology but also to the "second comforter" mentioned in John 14:26. According to the Prophet the second comforter was a personal manifestation of Jesus Christ. These ideas were also tied to the concept of personal revelation and the fact that the twelve apostles and all Mormons could and should follow Smith's steps and "become perfect in Jesus Christ."
The sermon given 27 June 1839 was additionally important because Joseph Smith defined the principle of "mak[ing your] calling and election sure". This was to be accomplished, he said, after a lifetime of service and devotion, by being "sealed up" to exaltation while yet living.
(Joseph Smith, Jr., History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 vols., ed. B. H. Roberts, 2d ed. rev. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1973), 3:379-81 (hereafter HC). The original source is Willard Richards's Pocket Companion, "The Doctrine of Election," published in Andrew F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook, eds., The Words of Joseph Smith: The Contemporary Accounts of the Nauvoo Discourses of the Prophet Joseph (Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Religious Studies Center, 1980), 4-6. A brief discussion of this doctrine can be found in Roy W. Doxey, "Accepted of the Lord: The Doctrine of Making Your Calling and Election Sure," Ensign 6 (July 1976): 50-53; a more in-depth discussion is Hyrum L. Andrus, Principles of Perfection (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1970), 331-400.)27 June 1839: Joseph Smith explains the meaning of making one’s calling and election sure in a sermon in Nauvoo (based on 2 Peter 1:10–11 and tied to John 14:26 and the Second Comforter) (32: History, 1838–1856, volume C-1 [2 November 1838–31 July 1842], p. 9 [addenda], The Joseph Smith Papers.)
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Hannah Rebekah, I would like to extend to you a personal invitation to the following Website, that you may complete your studies and gain further "insight" into that which you seek: http://elliaison.org/
ReplyDeleteFurther, I would invite you to review a YouTube presentation on the significance and symbolism of the Tabernacle of Moses by searching for "Bruce Gilbert Tabernacle of Moses" Too, I would share with you that the Seal of Melchizedek represents a prayer circle.
ReplyDeleteBless you Hannah Rebekah! First of all, I love you name. What a fitting name for someone who is so interested in these topics. I think you're amazing. You have studied so much. I really appreciate your website and look forward to exploring it in more depth. You have together in one spot so many relevant sources. I would never be able to find these on my own. Please know that there is someone in the blogger land who appreciates what you do. I'm a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Crhist of Latter Day Saints. The only thing I would change on your website is to changes all references to Mormon to the Restore Gospel of Jesus Christ.
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