December 23, 1805 in Sharon,
Vermont, Lucy Mack and Joseph Smith Senior welcomed Joseph Smith Junior into
mortality. I reflect on the mission of Joseph Smith each year on that day.
Joseph Smith II was the man who the Lord saw fit to visit, along with His
Son Jesus Christ, to usher in the fullness of times, or the complete restoration
of the gospel of Jesus Christ before the Second Advent of Jesus Christ, this time as King of kings and Lord of
lords.
Joseph was a 14-year-old boy who had the faith to go to
the Lord in prayer and receive an answer based on scripture he read from the
Holy Bible. He was the prophet whom I had been looking for when I so foolishly
decided to give up on Christianity. He is the prophet I discovered so
miraculously after I read a book of scripture that he translated. A book that facilitated my conversion to Christ. I owe my faith in God, my Christianity, and all the blessings
available to me and millions of others to the willingness of Joseph Smith
Junior to follow God.
Let it be said of him the vilest and untoward things,
as will be said and has been said, I record of him now that I know of divine
knowledge that he did see God the Father and Jesus Christ in answer to
his prayer as he claims he did. He also saw angels who ministered to him and he
conversed with Jesus Christ about his salvation as his several accounts record.
I know it because God sent His Spirit to me, who spoke by
the mouth of an angel, revealed it to me, and constantly reassures me that what
He revealed to me is true. Without going into my personal account too much, when the missionaries revealed his vision to me, I also saw in vision Joseph Smith seeing God the Father and Jesus Christ. Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery received the
priesthood authority to baptize and, eventually, to organize the Church of Christ
as the authorized entity on Earth to transport the souls of men on the sown the Covenant Path of
Jesus Christ back into the presence of God the Father.
As a disciple of Christ and a member of The Church ofJesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Christian, I lend my witness that God has
restored His authority to Earth. I testify I am a partaker in the Covenant
and that the Atonement of Christ is effective in my life. I testify that
through Jesus Christ only can salvation come to humanity—something I came only
to know through reading The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.
Why do I add that here? It is the only reason I found God because a 14-year-old
boy knew to ask Him a question that led to the tool that converted me to Jesus
Christ. It is the most important event in my life because all other events hang
onto the witness I received of Jesus Christ from reading that book. Joseph Smith Jr. is important to me. I think about that on the 23rd
of December.
Other Articles
- The African Heritage of The Book of Mormon
The obvious connection to Africa is the language. - To Repent Or Not To Repent
- This essay uses a hook-line from a song by Counting Crows to explore how we can deal with all the "if onlys" of life.
- What Does It Mean To Repent?To repent is to turn away from, turn your back to a particular sin. What does it mean to turn away from something? This isn’t about actions and behavior; it’s about your character.
- Become like a Little Child: Teachings of King BenjaminIn order to become one of God's chosen people or a saint Benjamin expresses that all MUST deny, put off, reject--or any other word of separation--the natural or basic man.
