Kitab Mormon

oleh Elder Gerrit W. Gong
dari Tujuhpuluh
Penasihat Kedua dalam Presidensi Area Asia

I bear witness of the Book of Mormon – Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

The Introduction to the Book of Mormon “[invites] all men [and women, young men and young women, and children] everywhere to read the Book of Mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ if the book is true.”

This invitation is to each of us. We may live in this country or that country. We may have been raised in this or that cultural, political, or religious tradition. We may have less or more wealth. We may have less or more education. We may be less or more comfortable or satisfied with life. We may be young or old, single or married, part of a small or large family.

Whoever we are and wherever we may be, the divine invitation to read the Book of Mormon, ponder in our hearts its message, and then to ask God in the name of Christ if it is true is to each of us.

The promise of the Book of Mormon is also for each of us. The promise is this: each person who reads, ponders, and asks in faith “will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of the Holy Ghost.”

This is a great promise. It never fails because it comes from God. It is manifest through the power of the Holy Ghost.

The Holy Ghost testifies of the Father and the Son. The Holy Ghost is the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God. We sometimes feel the Holy Ghost as spiritual warmth, as though a light were shining into and through us. We sometimes describe His influence as a still, small voice – though His is often a voice we feel as much as hear.

It is easier for the Holy Ghost to be with us if we invite Him by pure hearts and clean hands. Pure hearts and clean hands do not refer to our work. Hands which labor in the soil can be the cleanest hands. Hearts which reach out to others, including those who carry sorrows, mourning, or distress, can be the purest hearts.

A promised testimony of truth and divinity comes by study and faith and by personal revelation. It is said one of the great miracles in the universe is that He who is all knowing, all wise, and all powerful, is also all loving, all kind, and all compassionate. To learn of truth and divinity is truly a great blessing.

But there is more.

We can also “come to know by the same power that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, that Joseph Smith is his revelator and prophet in these last days, and that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the second coming of the Messiah.”

Please consider these three essential truths.

First, Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world. Jesus Christ lives. He loves us. There is purpose and design and beauty in the world. Our Father in Heaven and His Son have provided a Plan of Happiness to bless us and our families.

I know Jesus Christ is our Savior. I know by His infinite and eternal love we can find peace, strength, and joy.

Second, God speaks to modern-day revelators and prophets. The first prophet in this dispensation of time is the Prophet Joseph Smith. Our prophet today is President Thomas S. Monson.

This week I heard President Monson testify of our Savior, His Gospel, the Atonement, and our individual responsibility to love and serve. I know President Monson is our living prophet today.

Third, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Lord’s kingdom once again established on the earth, preparatory to the second coming of the Messiah.

To me, this includes the Lord’s again entrusting His priesthood power and authority to bless individuals and families across the earth, including through sacred temple ordinances. To me, this means the Lord as the Promised Messiah is preparing to come again to the earth to bring lasting happiness and peace.

I know “God shall wipe away all tears from [our] eyes” (Revelation 7:17) -- except our tears of joy when we find ourselves clean and pure, together with our families and loved ones, sealed by priesthood authority in love, to rejoice in the goodness of our Heavenly Father and His Son and our love for each other.

Three further thoughts.

In some countries or situations, translation of the full Book of Mormon may not yet be available. Please still accept invitation to read, ponder, and ask about the Book of Mormon and receive its promised blessings. Please be obedient and do the best we can with what we have available. If a single translated sentence of the Book of Mormon is all that is available, even that can bring the power and witness of the Holy Ghost.

Some of us may not read or read very well. The Book of Mormon invitation and promise are still for us. I know dear members who could not read when they were first introduced to the Book of Mormon. One sweet sister taught herself to read during her breaks at work by reading the Book of Mormon.

Some of us have faithfully read the Book of Mormon for years. The invitation and promise of the Book of Mormon are still for us. Each time, on each page, as I read the Book of Mormon reverently and with an open mind and heart, I find new insights and new testimony of its truth and divinity.

Sometimes eyes to see and ears to hear come with reading by theme, e.g., the doctrine of the Holy Ghost in the Book of Mormon. Sometimes they come by reading with a specific question or concern, e.g., what does the Book of Mormon teach about belief and unbelief, about how we ask with faith, not question with doubt?

And, finally, we are grateful for the Bible and other scriptures, and for continuing revelation through living prophets, seers, and revelators, all of whom also teach and testify of the Book of Mormon.

Testified the Prophet Joseph Smith: “The Book of Mormon [is] the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precept, than by any other book.”

How grateful I am for the Book of Mormon! It invites. It promises. It testifies of our eternal spiritual identity; of sacred covenants; and of personal revelation to guide our daily path as part of our Heavenly Father’s eternal plan of Happiness.