How do you deal with priestcraft? Living God’s commandment that we should have
charity. Moroni, writing the word of
Mormon shared his definition of charity.
But
charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found
possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the
Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love,
which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus
Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall
be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we
may be purified even as he is pure.
Amen.
Moroni 7:47-48
Those involved in priestcraft think of themselves first,
foremost, and always. And, when they get
around to it, we may do things for others.
Priestcraft is me at the expense of others.
James gave us a wonderful definition of charity, pure
religion. “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To
visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself
unspotted from the [JST James 1:27 ...
the vices of the world]” (James 1:27).
Nephi makes clear those who labor “in Zion shall labor for Zion” (2 Nephi 26:31). Whoever works for
money will perish.
Jacob would remind the Nephites:
Think
of your brethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with
your substance, that they may be rich like unto you.
But
before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God.
And
after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek
them; and ye will seek them for the intent to ado good—to clothe the
naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer
relief to the sick and the afflicted.
Jacob 2:17-19
The Lord would tell Hyrum Smith, “Seek not for riches but for wisdom; and, behold, the mysteries of God
shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich” (D&C
11:7).
Don Norton explains:
The problem of a materialistic
outlook on life is that it produces a false sense of security—as if humans have
things under control. (Some critics lay similar blame on another sacrosanct
feature of our modern world—technology.) If the Book of Mormon has one great
message, it is the danger of the love and inequitable distribution of material
things. In every case, the Nephite slide into corruption begins with the words
"costly apparel" (or as we would say today, "designer clothes").
The charge is clear: "But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if
they labor for money they shall perish" (2 Nephi 26:31). "It is the
love of money and the love of those things which money can buy which destroys
us. The love of [money] . . . warps our values . . . and fosters selfishness
and greed," President Gordon B. Hinckley warned priesthood bearers as
recently as the April 1997 General Conference.[1]
We have been commanded not to murder, lie, steal, take the
name of the Lord in vain, envy, have malice, contend with one another, and not
commit whoredoms. If we do, than we
shall perish.
No iniquities come from the Lord. He does good for all men. All are invited to come and partake of the
goodness of the Lord. No one is
denied. Be they “black and white, bond and free, male and female, and he remembereth
the heathen; and all are alike unto God” (2 Nephi 26:33).
[1] Working
toward Zion: Principles of the United Order for the Modern World, reviewed
by Don Norton, Maxwell Institute, accessed November 20, 2013.
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