1370 Caldwell Blvd. Ste. 300
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And now on to the email!
So this week has been pretty good! I decided I would email my trainer, who is home now, and beg for his forgiveness because I now understand all the things I did that were annoying!
So this week we have been mainly focusing on the young people in our wards that we felt needed help. When it comes to calling in all that we did for the week, there isn't a number that goes along with that but we know that if we can help the young people in the church continue to build their faith in God then the week wasn't wasted. We love helping people because we love them! Haha! What better thing is there?
So a spiritual thought for the week. The other day I was pondering the question "Who crucified Christ?" Well of course the Bible tells us that the Jews accused him and the Romans carried out the deed so that should be the end of the question right? No! It's deeper than that. Maybe the better question is "What kinds of people crucified Christ?"
When we look into the Saviors Earthly ministry, the answer runs through the whole course of His life. The Savior was born in humble circumstances and the news of His birth was heralded by angels to mere shepherds. The humble were the ones who would truly appreciate Christ. Do you think Herod, even if he hadn't been seeking to destroy the Messiah, would have come to see him in person? Probably not.
To emphasize the point I'm getting to, note that Jesus sat at meat with Publicans and Sinners rather than with the Scribes and Pharisees. He very much enjoyed the presence of the humble crowd rather than those who were puffed up in pride because they were teachable. Those who recognize their NEED for a savior are the ones that would recognize their Savior.
So what is Elder Norrell getting at? What does the question that he asked have anything to do with what he is saying? Well I'll tell you. Jesus Christ wants to be with those that accept him and those that Accept Him want to be with Him. When we accept Christ we are saved, not because we vocally said "I accept Christ as my Savior" but because when we make that commitment to humble ourselves and let Him help, He will show us how to become like Him and He will complete us and make up for what we cannot do on our own. That is the meaning of the word Atonement, to make up for something.
So what kind of person was it that crucified Christ? It was those who felt no need for saving. They had been lead under the false impression that they didn't need to accept help of any kind because they were already perfect. They were the ones who were so caught up in what was said or what had already been said, that they missed the bigger picture. They let worldly things get in the way of what, or who, would truly save them: Jesus Christ.
The message here is that we need to always watch ourselves to be sure we aren't getting so caught up in saving ourselves that we don't let Jesus save us. I can guarantee you that His way is so much easier. So don't be like the hypocrites and only worship in word alone or deed alone. Turning our lives over to Christ mean turning over our thoughts, our words, and our actions. Easier said than done, huh?
That's what I learned! And it's not so much that I didn't know it before but it was a new perspective on an old topic.
I hope you all are doing well and I pray that God's love finds you!
Love,
Elder Norrell
