Below are the quotes that were used in the video.
If you know someone whose faith is faltering, then the Book of Hebrews is for you. Paul's primary purpose in this book is to fortify and convince Jewish Christians not to withdraw from Christ and His Church. In a day when belief in Christ is declining in parts of the world, Paul's words are especially applicable and relevant. I hope the word of Paul will fortify your faith.
Hebrews
“As we focus on His titles, roles, and character, and attributes, the Spirit will testify of Him, bringing greater understanding and love for who He truly is and a greater desire to become like Him.” (Chad H Webb, “We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ” [address given at the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion annual training broadcast, June 12, 2018], ChurchofJesusChrist.org).
President Russell M. Nelson: “If you proceed to learn all you can about Jesus Christ, I promise you that your love for Him, and for God’s laws, will grow beyond what you currently imagine. I promise you also that your ability to turn away from sin will increase. Your desire to keep the commandments will soar. You will find yourself better able to walk away from the entertainment and entanglements of those who mock the followers of Jesus Christ. …
“Study everything Jesus Christ is by prayerfully and vigorously seeking to understand what each of His various titles and names means personally for you.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/broadcasts/article/worldwide-devotionals/2017/01/prophets-leadership-and-divine-law)
Elder David A. Bednar: “There is no physical pain, no spiritual wound, no anguish of soul or heartache, no infirmity or weakness you or I ever confront in mortality that the Savior did not experience first. In a moment of weakness we may cry out, “No one knows what it is like. No one understands.” But the Son of God perfectly knows and understands, for He has felt and borne our individual burdens. And because of His infinite and eternal sacrifice (see Alma 34:14), He has perfect empathy and can extend to us His arm of mercy. He can reach out, touch, succor, heal, and strengthen us to be more than we could ever be and help us to do that which we could never do relying only upon our own power.” (“Bear Up Their Burdens with Ease,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 90)
Joseph B. Wirthlin: “Because Jesus Christ suffered greatly, He understands our suffering. He understands our grief. We experience hard things so that we too may have increased compassion and understanding for others.” ( “Come What May, and Love It,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2008, 27)
President Howard W. Hunter: “It is important to remember that Jesus was capable of sinning, that he could have succumbed, that the plan of life and salvation could have been foiled, but that he remained true. Had there been no possibility of his yielding to the enticement of Satan, there would have been no real test, no genuine victory in the result. If he had been stripped of the faculty to sin, he would have been stripped of his very agency. It was he who had come to safeguard and ensure the agency of man. He had to retain the capacity and ability to sin had he willed so to do. As Paul wrote, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8); and he “was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). He was perfect and sinless, not because he had to be, but rather because he clearly and determinedly wanted to be." (“The Temptations of Christ,” Ensign, Nov. 1976, 19)
Elder Neil L. Andersen: “In some parts of the world where His name has been proclaimed for centuries, faith in Jesus Christ is diminishing. The valiant Saints in Europe have seen belief decline in their countries through the decades. Sadly, here in the United States faith is also receding. A recent study revealed that in the last 10 years, 30 million people in the United States have stepped away from believing in the divinity of Jesus Christ. Looking worldwide, another study predicts that in the decades ahead, more than twice as many will leave Christianity as will embrace it.” (“We Talk of Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 88)
President Joseph F. Smith: “The ancient prophets speak of “entering into God’s rest” [see Alma 12:34 ; Doctrine and Covenants 84:23–24 ]; what does it mean? To my mind, it means entering into the knowledge and love of God, having faith in his purpose and in his plan, to such an extent that we know we are right, and that we are not hunting for something else, we are not disturbed by every wind of doctrine, or by the cunning and craftiness of men who lie in wait to deceive. … The man who has reached that degree of faith in God that all doubt and fear have been cast from him, he has entered into “God’s rest.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith [1998], 56)
What can we do to enter into God’s rest?
President Russell M. Nelson: “Choose to believe in Jesus Christ. If you have doubts about God the Father and His Beloved Son or the validity of the Restoration or the veracity of Joseph Smith’s divine calling as a prophet, choose to believe and stay faithful. Take your questions to the Lord and to other faithful sources. Study with the desire to believe rather than with the hope that you can find a flaw in the fabric of a prophet’s life or a discrepancy in the scriptures. Stop increasing your doubts by rehearsing them with other doubters. Allow the Lord to lead you on your journey of spiritual discovery.” (“Christ Is Risen; Faith in Him Will Move Mountains,” Liahona, May 2021, 103)
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf: “There is no magic to belief. But wanting to believe is the necessary first step! God is no respecter of persons. He is your Father. He wants to speak to you. However, it requires a little scientific curiosity—it requires an experiment upon the word of God—and the exercise of a “particle of faith” [ Alma 32:27 ]. It also takes a little humility. And it requires an open heart and an open mind. It requires seeking, in the full meaning of the word. And, perhaps hardest of all, it requires being patient and waiting upon the Lord.
"If we make no effort to believe, we are like the man who unplugs a spotlight and then blames the spotlight for not giving any light.” (“Be Not Afraid, Only Believe,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2015, 78)
President J. Reuben Clark Jr: “The youth of the Church are hungry for things of the Spirit; they are eager to learn the gospel, and they want it straight, undiluted. They want to know about the fundamentals … they want to gain testimonies of their truth. They are not now doubters but inquirers, seekers after truth. Doubt must not be planted in their hearts…
“These students crave the faith their fathers and mothers have; they want it in its simplicity and purity. There are few indeed who have not seen the manifestations of its divine power. They wish to be not only the beneficiaries of this faith, but they want to be themselves able to call it forth to work.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32709_eng.pdf)
Teaching Thoughts:
Hebrews
- Attributed to Paul.
- “Some have rejected the Epistle to the Hebrews, saying that it is disputed by the church of Rome, on the ground that it was not written by Paul." (See Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. 3.3.5)
- Greek scholars consider the writing style to be ‘polished’ and well thought out. It is not a letter written with emotion.
- The main purpose is to fortify and convince Jewish Christians from withdrawing from the Church to escape persecution for believing in Christ.
- Paul wanted to show these Jewish Christians that Jesus is greater than Moses.
- The second New Testament manuscript in the Chester Beatty collection (P. II), includes Paul’s letters and is dated at 200 AD. The manuscript includes:
- Romans chapters 5–6, 8-15
- Hebrews
- Ephesians
- Galatians
- Philippians
- 1–2 Corinthians
- Thessalonians 1–2, 5
- There are missing leaves and scholars have concluded that 2 Thessalonians would have been a part of the codex. Note that Hebrews is placed second in this manuscript.
“As we focus on His titles, roles, and character, and attributes, the Spirit will testify of Him, bringing greater understanding and love for who He truly is and a greater desire to become like Him.” (Chad H Webb, “We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ” [address given at the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion annual training broadcast, June 12, 2018], ChurchofJesusChrist.org).
President Russell M. Nelson: “If you proceed to learn all you can about Jesus Christ, I promise you that your love for Him, and for God’s laws, will grow beyond what you currently imagine. I promise you also that your ability to turn away from sin will increase. Your desire to keep the commandments will soar. You will find yourself better able to walk away from the entertainment and entanglements of those who mock the followers of Jesus Christ. …
“Study everything Jesus Christ is by prayerfully and vigorously seeking to understand what each of His various titles and names means personally for you.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/broadcasts/article/worldwide-devotionals/2017/01/prophets-leadership-and-divine-law)
Elder David A. Bednar: “There is no physical pain, no spiritual wound, no anguish of soul or heartache, no infirmity or weakness you or I ever confront in mortality that the Savior did not experience first. In a moment of weakness we may cry out, “No one knows what it is like. No one understands.” But the Son of God perfectly knows and understands, for He has felt and borne our individual burdens. And because of His infinite and eternal sacrifice (see Alma 34:14), He has perfect empathy and can extend to us His arm of mercy. He can reach out, touch, succor, heal, and strengthen us to be more than we could ever be and help us to do that which we could never do relying only upon our own power.” (“Bear Up Their Burdens with Ease,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2014, 90)
Joseph B. Wirthlin: “Because Jesus Christ suffered greatly, He understands our suffering. He understands our grief. We experience hard things so that we too may have increased compassion and understanding for others.” ( “Come What May, and Love It,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2008, 27)
President Howard W. Hunter: “It is important to remember that Jesus was capable of sinning, that he could have succumbed, that the plan of life and salvation could have been foiled, but that he remained true. Had there been no possibility of his yielding to the enticement of Satan, there would have been no real test, no genuine victory in the result. If he had been stripped of the faculty to sin, he would have been stripped of his very agency. It was he who had come to safeguard and ensure the agency of man. He had to retain the capacity and ability to sin had he willed so to do. As Paul wrote, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8); and he “was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). He was perfect and sinless, not because he had to be, but rather because he clearly and determinedly wanted to be." (“The Temptations of Christ,” Ensign, Nov. 1976, 19)
Elder Neil L. Andersen: “In some parts of the world where His name has been proclaimed for centuries, faith in Jesus Christ is diminishing. The valiant Saints in Europe have seen belief decline in their countries through the decades. Sadly, here in the United States faith is also receding. A recent study revealed that in the last 10 years, 30 million people in the United States have stepped away from believing in the divinity of Jesus Christ. Looking worldwide, another study predicts that in the decades ahead, more than twice as many will leave Christianity as will embrace it.” (“We Talk of Christ,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 88)
President Joseph F. Smith: “The ancient prophets speak of “entering into God’s rest” [see Alma 12:34 ; Doctrine and Covenants 84:23–24 ]; what does it mean? To my mind, it means entering into the knowledge and love of God, having faith in his purpose and in his plan, to such an extent that we know we are right, and that we are not hunting for something else, we are not disturbed by every wind of doctrine, or by the cunning and craftiness of men who lie in wait to deceive. … The man who has reached that degree of faith in God that all doubt and fear have been cast from him, he has entered into “God’s rest.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith [1998], 56)
What can we do to enter into God’s rest?
- Hear Him! (Heb. 3:7; 4:7)
- “Harden not your hearts” (Heb. 3:8, 15; 4:7)
- Have a heart of belief (Heb. 3:12)
- Stick with “the living God” (Heb. 3:12)
- “But exhort one another daily (Heb. 3:13)
- “Hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end (Heb. 3:14)
- The word of God needs to be “mixed with faith” (Heb 4:2, 12)
- “Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.” (Heb 4:11)
- Priesthood (Heb 6)
President Russell M. Nelson: “Choose to believe in Jesus Christ. If you have doubts about God the Father and His Beloved Son or the validity of the Restoration or the veracity of Joseph Smith’s divine calling as a prophet, choose to believe and stay faithful. Take your questions to the Lord and to other faithful sources. Study with the desire to believe rather than with the hope that you can find a flaw in the fabric of a prophet’s life or a discrepancy in the scriptures. Stop increasing your doubts by rehearsing them with other doubters. Allow the Lord to lead you on your journey of spiritual discovery.” (“Christ Is Risen; Faith in Him Will Move Mountains,” Liahona, May 2021, 103)
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf: “There is no magic to belief. But wanting to believe is the necessary first step! God is no respecter of persons. He is your Father. He wants to speak to you. However, it requires a little scientific curiosity—it requires an experiment upon the word of God—and the exercise of a “particle of faith” [ Alma 32:27 ]. It also takes a little humility. And it requires an open heart and an open mind. It requires seeking, in the full meaning of the word. And, perhaps hardest of all, it requires being patient and waiting upon the Lord.
"If we make no effort to believe, we are like the man who unplugs a spotlight and then blames the spotlight for not giving any light.” (“Be Not Afraid, Only Believe,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2015, 78)
President J. Reuben Clark Jr: “The youth of the Church are hungry for things of the Spirit; they are eager to learn the gospel, and they want it straight, undiluted. They want to know about the fundamentals … they want to gain testimonies of their truth. They are not now doubters but inquirers, seekers after truth. Doubt must not be planted in their hearts…
“These students crave the faith their fathers and mothers have; they want it in its simplicity and purity. There are few indeed who have not seen the manifestations of its divine power. They wish to be not only the beneficiaries of this faith, but they want to be themselves able to call it forth to work.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32709_eng.pdf)
Teaching Thoughts:
- Guided discovery of Christ’s titles, roles, character, and attributes.
- “Power phrases.”
- Re-anchor our teaching on Christ.