This is the talk that I gave at our Ward Conference Fireside tonight. I really enjoyed putting this talk together and learning from President Kimball, Elder Bednar and President Hinckley.<\/p>\n
Seek Learning, Even By Study and Also By Faith
\nDoctrine and Covenants 109:7-9<\/p>\n
President Spencer W. Kimball quoted D&C 93:36 which says \u201cThe glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth.\u201d And then quoted D&C 121:42 \u201cPure knowledge \u2026 shall greatly enlarge the soul.\u201d And then asked three questions:<\/p>\n
1.\tWhat is this knowledge, intelligence, and light and truth that our Heavenly Father would have us receive?
\n2.\tDoes it consist solely of the truths God has revealed through His prophets?
\n3.\tWhat place does knowledge gleaned from secular sources and with secular means have in the scheme of eternal progression?<\/p>\n
Define Secular: of or pertaining to worldly things or to things that are not regarded as religious, spiritual, or sacred.<\/p>\n
He then answered these questions by saying, \u201cIn considering these questions, we must recognize that secular knowledge alone can never save a soul nor open the celestial kingdom to anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
He gives the examples of the Apostles Peter and John and how they were termed ignorant. They knew the vital things of life, they knew that Jesus was their Redeemer and is the Son of God. This knowledge, however, does not excuse us from going to school and gaining a secular education. On the contrary, President Kimball goes on to say that \u201cSecular knowledge can be most helpful to the children of our Father in Heaven who, having placed first things first, have found and are living those truths which lead one to eternal life. These are they who have the balance and perspective to seek all knowledge \u2013 revealed and secular \u2013 as a tool and servant for the blessing of themselves and others.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Doctrine and Covenants 109:7 it says\u2026<\/p>\n
There are two different types of learning identified in this phrase:<\/p>\n
1.\tLearning by study
\n2.\tLearning by faith<\/p>\n
I think it\u2019s safe to say that we know what it means to seek learning by study. If you study, you\u2019ll learn. That\u2019s what text books and curriculums were developed for. <\/p>\n
More importantly, it\u2019s also the reason that we have the scriptures. Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin has said, \u201cThe more we study the scriptures and pray, the more likely we can enthusiastically share our testimonies of the gospel with others.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the Church website, under the topic of testimony, it says:
\n\t\u201cMembers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have the sacred opportunity and responsibility to obtain their own testimonies. Having obtained a testimony, each member has a duty to nurture it throughout life.\u201d<\/p>\n
I have found that the words of Nephi in 1 Nephi 3:7 are all too true in this instance:
\n\t\u201c\u2026for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.\u201d<\/p>\n
If we, as Latter-day Saints have a responsibility and a duty to gain, nurture and share our own testimonies of the gospel, then it only makes sense that the Lord would provide the resources to do so.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s interesting that we\u2019re taught to seek learning by faith. It almost seems backwards. Shouldn\u2019t we study something and then believe in it, rather than learning something because we believe in it?<\/p>\n
There was an excellent address given by Elder Bednar to the Church Educational System educators in Feb. 2006 entitled \u201cSeek Learning by Faith\u201d that I will be pulling the majority of the rest of my comments from. It was printed in the September 2007 Ensign in case you\u2019re interested in going back and learning more.<\/p>\n
He suggests that learning by faith is to act and not to be acted upon and gives two examples.<\/p>\n
The first example is that of Adam in the Garden of Eden. In Genesis 3:9 it says \u201cAnd the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?\u201d Don\u2019t think for a second that the Lord didn\u2019t already know where Adam was. So why then did he ask the question? \u201cA wise and loving Father enabled His child to act in the learning process and not merely be acted upon. There was no one-way lecture to a disobedient child\u2026. Rather, the Father helped Adam as a learner to act as an agent and appropriately exercise his agency.\u201d<\/p>\n
The second example is that of Nephi\u2019s desire to know about the things his father, Lehi, had seen in the vision of the tree of life. If we look in 1 Nephi 11:2 we see that the Spirit said unto Nephi, \u201cBehold, what desirest thou?\u201d \u201cClearly the Spirit knew what Nephi desired. So why ask the question? The Holy Ghost was helping Nephi to act in the learning process and not simply be acted upon.\u201d All throughout chapters 11-14 \u201cthe Spirit both asked questions and encouraged Nephi to look as active elements in the learning process.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA learner exercising agency by acting in accordance with correct principles opens his or her heart to the Holy Ghost and invites His teaching, testifying power, and confirming witness. Learning by faith requires spiritual, mental, and physical exertion and not just passive reception. It is in the sincerity and consistency of our faith-inspired action that we indicate to our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, our willingness to learn and receive instruction from the Holy Ghost. Thus, learning by faith involves the exercise of moral agency to act upon the assurance of things hoped for and invites the evidence of things not seen from the only true teacher, the Spirit of the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe learning I am describing reaches far beyond mere cognitive comprehension and the retaining and recalling of information. The type of learning to which I am referring causes us to put off the natural man (see Mosiah 3:19), to change our hearts (see Mosiah 5:2), to be converted unto the Lord, and to never fall away (see Alma 23:6). Learning by faith requires both \u201cthe heart and a willing mind\u201d (D&C 64:34). Learning by faith is the result of the Holy Ghost carrying the power of the word of God both unto and into the heart. Learning by faith cannot be transferred from an instructor to a student through a lecture, a demonstration, or an experiential exercise; rather, a student must exercise faith and act in order to obtain the knowledge for himself or herself.\u201d<\/p>\n
In James 2:17-18 we read \u2026<\/p>\n
We are taught here that faith without works is dead. The way that we show our faith is by our works. Put it all together and we learn that to seek learning by faith is to DO the things which the Lord will have us do so that the Spirit of the Lord will be our constant companion and teacher. The Bible Dictionary teaches us that the Holy Ghost \u201cGives one a testimony of Jesus Christ and of his work and the works of his servants upon the earth.\u201d To have the direction, guidance, comfort and wisdom of the Spirit with us as a constant companion is a blessing that the Lord has given us. President Hinckley instructed us to Be Smart.<\/p>\n
In January 2002, he said the following:<\/p>\n
\u201dYou are moving into the most competitive age the world has ever known. All around you is competition. You need all the education you can get. Sacrifice a car; sacrifice anything that is needed to be sacrificed to qualify yourselves to do the work of the world. That world will in large measure pay you what it thinks you are worth, and your worth will increase as you gain education and proficiency in your chosen field.<\/p>\n
\u201cyou beling to a church that teaches the importance of education. You have a mandate from the Lord to educate your minds and your hearts and your hands. The Lord has said, \u2018Teach ye diligently \u2026 of things both in heaven and in the earth, and under the earth; things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass; things which are at home, things which are abroad; the wars and the perplexities of the nations, and the judgements which are on the land; and a knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms \u2013 that ye may be prepared in all things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMind you, these are not my words. These are the words of the Lord who loves you. He wants you to train your minds and hands to become an influence for good as you go forward with your lives. And as you do so and as you perform honorably and with excellence, you will bring honor to the Church, for you will be regarded as a man or woman of integrity and ability and conscientious workmanship. Be smart. Don\u2019t be foolish. You cannon bluff or cheat others without bluffing or cheating yourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a nutshell, to seek learning, even by study and also by faith means that we are to study the words of God and then apply them and put them into action in our lives so that He can continue to teach us through the Spirit.<\/p>\n
I would like to close with one more quote from President Kimball:<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd let us remember that it is not so much what we know that is important, as what we do and what we are. The Master\u2019s plan is a program of doing, of living, not merely knowing. Knowledge itself is not the end. It is how we righteously live and apply that knowledge in our own lives and how we apply it to help others that describes our character.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This is the talk that I gave at our Ward Conference Fireside tonight. I really enjoyed putting this talk together and learning from President Kimball, Elder Bednar and President Hinckley. Seek Learning, Even By Study and Also By Faith Doctrine and Covenants 109:7-9 President Spencer W. Kimball quoted D&C 93:36 which says \u201cThe glory of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-scripture-study"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.team-studer.com\/abi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}