The Law of Consecration

President HinckleySaturday Morning

The past decade has been a wonderful season in the history of the Church.  There has never been another to equal it.  There has been a remarkable flowering of the work.  There have been many meaningful accomplishments…

As we stand on the summit of these years and look back, we must never feel arrogant or proud, but we can feel humbly grateful for what has been accomplished in a variety of undertakings.

Accounting President Hinckley’s Stewardship

Membership3 Million new members

Wards and Stakes500 new stakes4000 new wards

Temples72 new temples

Church EducationDoubled

Perpetual Education Fund18,000 students helped

Book of Mormon19 new languages51 Million distributed

New Conference Center8000 in Tabernacle21,000, Conference Center

Humanitarian Aid“Hundred’s of Millions”

Joseph Smith

"A religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation;

…from the first existence of man, the faith necessary unto the enjoyment of life and salvation never could be obtained without the sacrifice of all earthly things....

Enoch’s Zion

Moses 7:18

And the Lord called his people ZION, because

1) they were of one heart and one mind,

2) and dwelt in righteousness;

3) and there was no poor among them.

The Saints Arrive in Kirtland

30 And behold, thou wilt remember the poor, and consecrate of thy properties for their support that which thou hast to impart unto them, with a covenant and a deed which cannot be broken.

31 And inasmuch as ye impart of your substance unto the poor,

ye will do it unto me;

Consecration

D&C 42:32

And it shall come to pass, that after [properties] are laid before the bishop… every man shall be made accountable unto me, a steward over his own property,

Matthew 20:8

8 So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.

Steward: one to whose care or honour anything has been intrusted (Thayer’s Bible Dictionary)

Question…

What is the spiritual difference between

Steward and Owner?

D&C 72: 3 And verily in this thing ye have done wisely, for it is required of the Lord, at the hand of every steward, to render an account of his stewardship, both in time and in eternity.

Bishop Victor L. Brown

…until we feel in total harmony that everything we have belongs to the Lord, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for us to accept the law of consecration.

As we prepare to live this law, we will look forward with great anticipation to the day when the call will come. If, on the other hand, we hope it can be delayed so we can have the pleasure of accumulating material things, we are on the wrong path”

(1976 Devotional Speeches of the Year [1977],

439

Rebuilding the “Third Temple”

"Renewing animal sacrifices and building the Temple depends on the spiritual level of the entire Jewish nation. It makes no sense to talk about it

at a time of glaring socioeconomic inequalities in Israeli society, at a time when Shabbat (sabbath)

is openly desecrated …

If there is no family sanctity, it is inconceivable that there can be a Temple. Only when the majority of Jews living in Israel are observant and God-fearing can we begin to conceive of rebuilding the Temple." Rabbi Ya'acov Ariel

Elder John H. Groberg(This note was included with a check for $1000 to the presiding Bishop from

Elder Groberg)

“Recently, while visiting one of the far distant islands that is very difficult to get to, I went late in the day to the home of one of the good widow sisters there.

“When I first approached her hut the sun was still quite bright and I could not help but notice the stark poverty of her surroundings. It had been raining earlier. The mud and decay and the ever-present smell of drying fish were at first repulsive. But the warmth of meeting with a fellow Church member—especially after years of separation—together with tears of appreciation for the long-awaited visit, soon pushed the unpleasantness of the surroundings temporarily into the background.

“As we conversed in her fluid native tongue and she told of her love for and faith in the Church and of all the blessings she had received, I could not help but think about her apparently miserable circumstances. … All sorts of ideas went through my mind, and I must have let my thoughts wander as I suddenly became aware that somewhere between phrases about blessings and poverty and service she had gone to her hut and was now returning with a small knotted rag.

Threepence“Suddenly my mind seemed to fill with light, and the words ‘fast offerings’ flooded

in. I was so excited with the idea that had come so suddenly and so clearly, that you can imagine my utter amazement and unpreparedness when she took a threepence (a coin worth about 3¢) from her rag and said softly, ‘Here is my fast offering … to help the poor.’

“I wanted to explain that fast offering was to help her, not for her to help others. The explanation never came, for as I looked through misty eyes, first at the threepence then back at the good sister, the whole scene changed.

“The hut was a glowing mansion and the mud was gold. … The world seemed to stand still for a moment. All of nature seemed to stop and listen as from the heavens the whole universe seemed filled with the reassuring words: ‘Blessed are the poor … for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’ (  Matt. 5:3.)

“As the setting sun signaled the end of the day, so it also told of the approaching end of her beautiful life of service.

“I took the threepence, and as I write this check the whole experience once again fills my mind and I wonder,

‘How many threepences to make a thousand dollars?’