Choice 3: 1 Thessalonians 3-5; 2 Thessalonians 3:1-6 11. Counsel for Members

I will first compile a list of various attributes that Paul counseled the members to improve upon. In 1 Thessalonians 3, Paul counseled them to increase and abound in love towards everyone. He say increase and abound even as he and his companions did towards them. In 1 Thessalonians 4, they were counseled to walk and to please God, they should turn away from fornication, to abound in sanctification and honor, to not “defraud” their brother, to increase in righteousness, and to work with their own hand and be honest in all things. Some things taught in 1 Thessalonians 5 are they do not need to be afraid of the Second Coming of Christ but be sober, that they need to put on the armor of God, that they should edify and comfort each other, to “pray without ceasing”, have a spirit of gratitude, obey prophecies, and “hold fast that which is good”. In 2 Thessalonians 3, members are counseled to follow the commandments given to them, let the Lord direct their hearts to the love of god, and to be directed into “the patient waiting for Christ”.

One thing I feel that I can work better on is that of increasing in righteousness. I feel that I still have various things in my life that are the best things…they may be good but they’re not the best. I have plans to continue to set goals in doing better at reaching those best things instead of remaining complacent with that which is just “good”, as Elder Dallin H. Oaks mentioned a while ago.

Another thing I feel that I can work on is that of abounding in love towards everyone, even those who are the nicest of people. There are people that I meet that I view in my thoughts as someone I don’t want to talk to or smile at because of the way they look or the way they act. I am striving and am determined to continue striving to smile at them and not just ignore them. I need to always strive to show kindness to them at all times.

The last thing that I will list here is to be patient and listen to the Holy Spirit as He guides me into patience. Sometimes I find myself becoming impatient and having a hard time waiting. Then the Lord comforts me in saying that I need to be patient. What will happen will happen when it needs to happen. My goal is to not forget that counsel/comfort…to always remember the virtue and attribute of patience.

Choice 1: Acts 13-14. Paul’s First Mission

Using the map “Paul’s First Mission” found in the New Testament institute student manual on page 218, I will list some of the cities that Paul went through. He left from the city of Seleucia and first stopped on the island of Cyprus. On his way to the first major city he stopped at, Paphos, he went through Salamis. He then traveled north to the mainland and stopped in cities like Antioch, Iconium, Derbe, and Lystra. He then made his way back to Seleucia after visiting those cities and a couple of others.

In Acts 13:1-5, there are at least three points that could help a missionary who is discouraged. Those three that  I have chosen are to fast, to pray and to go out and preach “the word of God”. Those, I believe are three of the best things a missionary can do when they have a discouraging time/moment. Fasting and prayer, especially when you do them together are miracle workers. Going out and preaching the gospel is also one of the best medicines, because it helps the missionary focus on what he is called and needs to do instead of allowing him to focus on the discouragements that he faces.

Barnabas was Paul’s companion during Paul’s first mission. From what is said about him, he played an integral part in Paul’s life. He was the one who got Paul into the ministry. His history before Paul was that he was part of those who sold their possessions in order to help other saints and to have everything in common. They had one contention about a new third companion and separated for a time, but got back together later on.

There are a few blessings and advantages of the Lord sending missionaries out by twos. One of them is that the companions can support each other’s teachings and testify that they are true. This advantage reminds me of Alma in the Book of Mormon. He had his companion, Amulek. In Alma 12:1, it says, “Now Alma, seeing that the words of Amulek had silenced Zeezrom, for he beheld that Amulek had caught him in his lying and deceiving to destroy him, and seeing that he began to tremble under a consciousness of his guilt, he opened his mouth and began to speak unto him, and to establish the words of Amulek, and to explain things beyond, or to unfold the scriptures beyond that which Amulek had done.”

In Acts 14:8-18, Paul and Barnabas heal a man crippled since birth in the city of Lystra. The people see this and think that they are Gods. They call them Jupiter and Mercurius. Then, the priest of Jupiter rally the people to perform sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas. Paul and Barnabas get mad and chastise them for turning away from their only one true God, Heavenly Father. After chastising the people, the people repented and didn’t make sacrifices.

In Acts 14:19, certain Jews came into the city and persuaded the people to stone Paul. Paul was dragged out of the city and taken care of by disciples. He then enters back and builds up the saints of that city. It was interesting that in this second experience the people were easily turned to believe oppositely from verses 8-18. As Paul was building up the saints in that city, he said that only through much tribulation can we enter the kingdom of God. Both of these experiences are examples of what he taught about entering the kingdom of God because of the tribulation that he and Barnabas went through. I think he saw it as a great teaching experience for all those who followed him in that city. They saw all that he went through and yet he was still strong in the gospel and hadn’t given up.

Choice 3: Acts 2. The Day of Pentecost

For all those who read my blog, this is for a online New Testament class. I will be doing these for at least the next 12 weeks once a week.

The day of Pentecost is the day after the seven weeks of Passover. It is a day where the people pour out their hearts with gratitude towards God. The word Pentecost comes from the Greek word pentekoste…which means “fiftieth.” Another name for the day of Pentecost is the day of the first fruits.

On the day of Pentecost after the Holy Ghost came upon everyone gathered, Peter taught some great doctrine. He taught that whoever calls “on the name of the Lord” will be saved. He quoted Joel in telling about some of the signs before the Lord comes. For example, the sun will be dark and the moon will turn into blood. He also quoted Joel in saying that in the last days, God is going to “pour out” His Spirit on everyone and everyone will prophesy, have visions, and have dreams. Another thing that he taught was about the resurrection of Christ.

Peter fulfilled his role as a special witness of Jesus Christ by testifying of Christ’s second coming. He testified with boldness and surety. I love his testimonies that he shared in the New Testament. He had his lows where he learning experiences, but it was said by Christ that he will be the head of the Church. He was predestined, and his witness in Acts 2 showed everyone in that gathering that he was the leader of the Church.

Some of the great gifts of the Spirit that were manifest were the gift of tongues, the gift of testimony, and the gift of prophecy.

With what occurred on that day, the people responded by desiring to get baptized and receiving the Holy Ghost. They received their desire and joined the Church. They were becoming unified and helped each other out in their physical needs.