Below are the quotes that were used in the video.
Some believe that it doesn’t matter what you believe and that it just matters that you live a good life. Section 49 addresses people with this attitude and God teaches that it does matter what you believe and ordinances matter. It also matters how you teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. We teach by the Spirit and when we do that, conversion happens.
Bishop Glenn L. Pace: “There are some of our members who practice selective obedience. A prophet is not one who display a smorgasbord of truth from which we are free to pick and choose. However, some members become critical and suggest the prophet should change the menu. A prophet doesn’t take a poll to see which way the wind of public opinion is blowing. He reveals the will of the Lord to us.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/1989/04/follow-the-prophet?lang=eng).
Shaker Beliefs
Boyd K. Packer: “Some members of the Church who should know better pick out a hobby key or two and tap them incessantly, to the irritation of those around them. They can dull their own spiritual sensitivities. They lose track that there is a fulness of the gospel, . . . [which they reject] in preference to a favorite note. This becomes exaggerated and distorted, leading them away into apostasy.” (Teach Ye Diligently (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1975), p. 44).
"On Saturday 7 May 1831 these three brethren went to a Shaker meeting and asked permission to read the revelation. Elder Sidney Rigdon arose and read to the congregation of Shaker the entire contents of section 49. One can only imagine the reaction building in the minds of the Shakers as they heard a document read which the Mormon elders claimed to be from God – a revelation in which the Lord rejected their basic beliefs one by one.
"At the conclusion of his reading of the revelation, Elder Rigdon asked the Shakers if they were willing to be baptized for the remission of their sins and receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, Ashbel Kitchell, the leader of the group of Shakers, responded:
“The Christ that dictated that, I was well acquainted with, and had been from a boy, that I had been much troubled to get rid of his influence, and I wished to have nothing more to do with him; and as for any gift he had authorized them to exercise among us, I would release them & their Christ from any further burden about us, and take all the responsibility on myself.”
"But Sidney was not easily dissuaded from his purpose. “This you cannot do,” said Elder Rigdon, “I wish to hear the people speak.”
"In response, Kitchell gave permission for the congregation of Shakers to speak for themselves.
"Their response was very similar to their leader’s; they were fully satisfied with their faith and wanted nothing to do with them or “their Christ.”This seemed to satisfy Sidney, and he put the revelation back into his pocket." (Revelations in Context p. 120).
Parley’s reaction to the Shaker’s Mission was short but to the point. “We fulfilled this mission, as we were commanded, in a settlement of this strange people, near Cleveland, Ohio; but they utterly refused to hear or obey the gospel.” (The Ministry to the Shakers, Keith W. Perkins V1 p 212-216_
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin: “Satan is the master of deception and the father of all lies. Only by exercising faith in the Savior and his atoning sacrifice and keeping all the commandments are you protected from Satan’s incessant, insidious efforts to lead you carefully into his power.
“You cannot approach the gospel as you would a buffet or smorgasbord, choosing here a little and there a little. You must sit down to the whole feast and live the Lord’s loving commandments in their fullness.
“You have been taught the commandments. You know what to do: pray, study the scriptures, fast, pay your tithes and offerings, attend your meetings, partake of the sacrament, magnify your callings and serve others, sustain your Church leaders, make and keep sacred covenants, share the gospel, be honest, true, chaste, benevolent, and virtuous.” (“It’s Your Choice,” New Era, Feb. 1998, 4).
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: “On those days when we feel a little out of tune, a little less than what we think we see or hear in others, I would ask us, especially the youth of the Church, to remember it is by divine design that not all the voices in God’s choir are the same. It takes variety--sopranos and altos, baritones and basses--to make rich music. To borrow a line quoted in the cheery correspondence of two remarkable Latter-day Saint women, “All God’s critters got a place in the choir.” … Believe in yourself, and believe in Him. Don’t demean your worth or denigrate your contribution. Above all, don’t abandon your role in the chorus. Why? Because you are unique; you are irreplaceable. The loss of even one voice diminishes every other singer in this great mortal choir of ours, including the loss of those who feel they are on the margins of society or the margins of the Church.”
“Brothers and sisters, we live in a mortal world with many songs we cannot or do not yet sing... Fortunately, the seats for this particular number are limitless. There is room for those who speak different languages, celebrate diverse cultures, and live in a host of locations. There is room for the single, for the married, for large families, and for the childless. There is room for those who once had questions regarding their faith and room for those who still do. There is room for those with differing sexual attractions... With divine imperatives of love and faith, repentance and compassion, honesty and forgiveness, there is room in this choir for all who wish to be there.” (“Songs Sung and Unsung” Ensign, May 2017).
Joseph Smith: “Soon after the Gospel was established in Kirtland, and during the absence of the authorities of the Church, many false spirits were introduced, many strange visions were seen, and wild, enthusiastic notions were entertained; …
…men ran out of doors under the influence of this spirit, and some of them got upon the stumps of trees and shouted, and all kinds of extravagances were entered into by them; one man pursued a ball that he said he saw flying in the air, until he came to a precipice, …
…when he jumped into the top of a tree, which saved his life; and many ridiculous things were entered into, calculated to bring disgrace upon the Church of God, to cause the Spirit of God to be withdrawn, and to uproot and destroy those glorious principles which had been developed for the salvation of the human family.” (History of the Church, 4:580).
Elder Parley P. Pratt: “Feeling our weakness and inexperience, and lest we should err in judgment concerning these spiritual phenomena, myself, John Murdock, and several other elders, went to Joseph Smith, and asked him to inquire of the Lord concerning these spirits or manifestations.
"After we had joined in prayer in his translating room, he dictated in our presence the following revelation:—(Each sentence was uttered slowly and very distinctly, and with a pause between each, sufficiently long for it to be recorded by an ordinary writer, in long hand." (Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, p. 72).
Elder Bruce R. McConkie: “Conversion comes and the truth sinks into the hearts of people only when it is taught by the power of the Spirit.” (The Foolishness of Teaching [pamphlet, 1981], 9).
Joseph Smith: For nothing is a greater injury to the children of men than to be under the influence of a false spirit when they think they have the Spirit of God. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith p. 205).
Teaching Thoughts:
Bishop Glenn L. Pace: “There are some of our members who practice selective obedience. A prophet is not one who display a smorgasbord of truth from which we are free to pick and choose. However, some members become critical and suggest the prophet should change the menu. A prophet doesn’t take a poll to see which way the wind of public opinion is blowing. He reveals the will of the Lord to us.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/1989/04/follow-the-prophet?lang=eng).
Shaker Beliefs
- Deity is dual in nature. God is Male and Female. Male form is Jesus Christ, and the Female form is Ann Lee.
- Celibacy – To attain a higher or angelic order of existence virginity is a prime requisite.
- Open confession of sins.
- Community of possessions.
- Separation from the world.
- Pacifism.
- Equality of sexes.
- Consecrated work.
- Continuous revelation.
- External ordinances “ceased in the apostolic age.”
- Christ’s Kingdom is the Shaker movement.
- Doctrines of Trinity, vicarious atonement and resurrection are untrue.
- Disease is a sin.
- Abstinence from meat.
- There is a God, and He sent His ‘Only Begotten Son’ into the world (49:5).
- “Marriage is ordained of God” (49:15).
- “Repent and be baptized” (49:13).
- “Not given that one man should posses that which is above another” (49:18).
- Zion … assembled together … place which I have appointed” (49:25).
- Proclaim peace (Isaiah 52:7).
- “All are alike unto God” (2 Ne 26:33).
- “Zion shall flourish” (49:25).
- Section 49 as one example.
- “… be baptized … and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (49:13-14).
- “Preach my gospel … even as you have received it … “ (49:1).
- God testifies of Himself, His son Jesus Christ, and the Atonement (49:5).
- Sin is a sin (49:8, 11-13).
- “And whoso forbiddeth to abstain from meats, that man should not eat the same, is not ordained of God” (49:18).
- Zion shall flourish
- ... and rejoice
- ... and shall be assembled together
- .…ask and ye shall receive; knock and it shall be opened unto you.
- I will go before you
- and be your rearward;
- and I will be in your midst,
- and you shall not be confounded.
Boyd K. Packer: “Some members of the Church who should know better pick out a hobby key or two and tap them incessantly, to the irritation of those around them. They can dull their own spiritual sensitivities. They lose track that there is a fulness of the gospel, . . . [which they reject] in preference to a favorite note. This becomes exaggerated and distorted, leading them away into apostasy.” (Teach Ye Diligently (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1975), p. 44).
"On Saturday 7 May 1831 these three brethren went to a Shaker meeting and asked permission to read the revelation. Elder Sidney Rigdon arose and read to the congregation of Shaker the entire contents of section 49. One can only imagine the reaction building in the minds of the Shakers as they heard a document read which the Mormon elders claimed to be from God – a revelation in which the Lord rejected their basic beliefs one by one.
"At the conclusion of his reading of the revelation, Elder Rigdon asked the Shakers if they were willing to be baptized for the remission of their sins and receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, Ashbel Kitchell, the leader of the group of Shakers, responded:
“The Christ that dictated that, I was well acquainted with, and had been from a boy, that I had been much troubled to get rid of his influence, and I wished to have nothing more to do with him; and as for any gift he had authorized them to exercise among us, I would release them & their Christ from any further burden about us, and take all the responsibility on myself.”
"But Sidney was not easily dissuaded from his purpose. “This you cannot do,” said Elder Rigdon, “I wish to hear the people speak.”
"In response, Kitchell gave permission for the congregation of Shakers to speak for themselves.
"Their response was very similar to their leader’s; they were fully satisfied with their faith and wanted nothing to do with them or “their Christ.”This seemed to satisfy Sidney, and he put the revelation back into his pocket." (Revelations in Context p. 120).
Parley’s reaction to the Shaker’s Mission was short but to the point. “We fulfilled this mission, as we were commanded, in a settlement of this strange people, near Cleveland, Ohio; but they utterly refused to hear or obey the gospel.” (The Ministry to the Shakers, Keith W. Perkins V1 p 212-216_
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin: “Satan is the master of deception and the father of all lies. Only by exercising faith in the Savior and his atoning sacrifice and keeping all the commandments are you protected from Satan’s incessant, insidious efforts to lead you carefully into his power.
“You cannot approach the gospel as you would a buffet or smorgasbord, choosing here a little and there a little. You must sit down to the whole feast and live the Lord’s loving commandments in their fullness.
“You have been taught the commandments. You know what to do: pray, study the scriptures, fast, pay your tithes and offerings, attend your meetings, partake of the sacrament, magnify your callings and serve others, sustain your Church leaders, make and keep sacred covenants, share the gospel, be honest, true, chaste, benevolent, and virtuous.” (“It’s Your Choice,” New Era, Feb. 1998, 4).
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: “On those days when we feel a little out of tune, a little less than what we think we see or hear in others, I would ask us, especially the youth of the Church, to remember it is by divine design that not all the voices in God’s choir are the same. It takes variety--sopranos and altos, baritones and basses--to make rich music. To borrow a line quoted in the cheery correspondence of two remarkable Latter-day Saint women, “All God’s critters got a place in the choir.” … Believe in yourself, and believe in Him. Don’t demean your worth or denigrate your contribution. Above all, don’t abandon your role in the chorus. Why? Because you are unique; you are irreplaceable. The loss of even one voice diminishes every other singer in this great mortal choir of ours, including the loss of those who feel they are on the margins of society or the margins of the Church.”
“Brothers and sisters, we live in a mortal world with many songs we cannot or do not yet sing... Fortunately, the seats for this particular number are limitless. There is room for those who speak different languages, celebrate diverse cultures, and live in a host of locations. There is room for the single, for the married, for large families, and for the childless. There is room for those who once had questions regarding their faith and room for those who still do. There is room for those with differing sexual attractions... With divine imperatives of love and faith, repentance and compassion, honesty and forgiveness, there is room in this choir for all who wish to be there.” (“Songs Sung and Unsung” Ensign, May 2017).
Joseph Smith: “Soon after the Gospel was established in Kirtland, and during the absence of the authorities of the Church, many false spirits were introduced, many strange visions were seen, and wild, enthusiastic notions were entertained; …
…men ran out of doors under the influence of this spirit, and some of them got upon the stumps of trees and shouted, and all kinds of extravagances were entered into by them; one man pursued a ball that he said he saw flying in the air, until he came to a precipice, …
…when he jumped into the top of a tree, which saved his life; and many ridiculous things were entered into, calculated to bring disgrace upon the Church of God, to cause the Spirit of God to be withdrawn, and to uproot and destroy those glorious principles which had been developed for the salvation of the human family.” (History of the Church, 4:580).
Elder Parley P. Pratt: “Feeling our weakness and inexperience, and lest we should err in judgment concerning these spiritual phenomena, myself, John Murdock, and several other elders, went to Joseph Smith, and asked him to inquire of the Lord concerning these spirits or manifestations.
"After we had joined in prayer in his translating room, he dictated in our presence the following revelation:—(Each sentence was uttered slowly and very distinctly, and with a pause between each, sufficiently long for it to be recorded by an ordinary writer, in long hand." (Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, p. 72).
Elder Bruce R. McConkie: “Conversion comes and the truth sinks into the hearts of people only when it is taught by the power of the Spirit.” (The Foolishness of Teaching [pamphlet, 1981], 9).
Joseph Smith: For nothing is a greater injury to the children of men than to be under the influence of a false spirit when they think they have the Spirit of God. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith p. 205).
Teaching Thoughts:
- Buffet analogy … What food have you tasted in the last 5 years that you now love? And if you were not willing to taste it…?
- Have a ‘desire to taste’ all of God’s truths.
- Piano analogy … striking only one, or a few gospel keys.
- What do you and others in your life and in the scriptures do to teach by the Spirit?
- What will you do this week to teach others by the Spirit?