Here’s most of the talk I gave. The introduction I gave and the testimony at the end of the talk I didn’t script (sorry), so they are excluded:
In the book the Acts, short for the Acts of the Apostles, we are reintroduced to the men Christ had commissioned to “feed his sheep.” Chapter after chapter we read about the spread of the Gospel message through the Roman Empire.
We may remember Phillip from the Gospels, mainly from the Gospel of John. Not much is said about him there, but what is said speaks volumes. When Jesus beckoned him to “Follow me.” He did. Phillip reported to Nathanael, “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph!” and when Nathanael was skeptical, Phillip replied with an invitation to, “Come and see.”
So, it shouldn’t surprise us when we read Acts, that Phillip is a natural missionary. He is quick to follow promptings. Even if they lead him to a lone road between Jerusalem and Gaza, he goes. And that’s where I want to start.
This story is found Acts 8. Phillip receives an angelic visitation, and he told to, “Arise, and go” to that desert road previously mentioned. And he arose and went and there he beheld an official of the Queen of Ethiopia in a chariot reading the words of Isaiah. Once again, he was prompted to act. He ran up to the chariot and asked the man, “Understandest thou what thou readest?”
And the Ethiopian official replies, “How can I, except some man should guide me?” So, two things I want us to gather from this story: First, that Isaiah has been stumping people for a very long time. Don’t feel bad. And second, most importantly, we need each other, we need to teach each other about the Gospel.
I was given the topic on Following the Savior’s Example by Sharing the Gospel. Now, as I prepared this talk, I veered slightly from that, so forgive me. The topic of this talk is more Following the Savior’s Example by Teaching the Gospel. Semantics, I know. But it had to be said.
In all efforts to teach the gospel, Jesus Christ is the example.
Consider his teaching moments we witness in the scriptures...
The lessons vary in length from a day-long sermon to a lesson delivered stooped on the ground, dispelling hate in sentence, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone.” Christ taught in parables and object lessons, he was blunt, saying, “Go and sin no more.” He served those around him, a powerful miracle worker, and yet asked a Samaritan woman for a drink of water, a lad to share his bread, and for the Nephites to bring forth their afflicted.
Consider the ways He has taught you in your life. The methods are quite an array, but there are two constants. And if we practice these two principles we can share the Gospel as Christ did.
The first is: loving those we teach.
And the second: teaching by the Spirit.
At this point I want to have an intermittent testimony because I am five minutes in and I know I am stating to lose some of you. So if anything, listen to this because this is the whole gist of this talk.
I have been a member of the Church for 12 years, and in that time frame I have been called to teach any many different capacities. I taught in Nursery, Primary, Activity Days, Sunday School, Young Women’s, and Relief Society. I am also a wife, mother, and visiting teacher. And I can tell you, doesn’t matter the audience, the materials covered, or as I have found out more recently your own abilities if you have those two things: love and the Spirit, you can teach the Gospel. I’m the Primary Chorister. I know nothing about music. I’m learning, the Spirit is helping me out a lot, but it is way out of comfort zone. But you know what, I love your children. I love the children in this ward. I wish I had more time to spend with them individually, but I am glad to see them as a group on Sunday. So this is my witness that these two principles work in sharing the Gospel in any setting.
So, let’s talk about those two principles when teaching and sharing the Gospel.
First, love.
President Hinckley declared, “Opportunities for sharing the Gospel are everywhere.”
As it says in True to the Faith “Each parent, son, daughter, husband, wife, brother, sister, Church leader, classroom teacher, home teacher, visiting teacher, coworker, neighbor, or friend has opportunities to teach.” We have opportunities of sharing the Gospel not only out in the world, but in our homes and within the Church. I think we forget that sometimes.
Christ put it simply when he advised, “and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”
So, what is love? What does love look like? Most of us are familiar with 13th chapter of First Corinthians, running through the check list: it suffereth long, it’s kind, envieth not, is not puffed up, etc. That is a classic list of charity and its attributes. But, I really like this scripture in First Thessalonians 2:8. This for me describes what love looks like in regards to missionary work. It’s part of an epistle written by Paul on behalf of himself and his missionary companion Timothy and they are writing the Thessalonians they taught. They have been delayed getting back to them and this is a letter of encouragement, trying to remind them of their missionary work among them and just to keep the faith. And Paul writes, “So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us.”
After the Gospels the New Testament is this account of men, commissioned by Christ, to share the Gospel, to build up the Church. They risked safety and sacrificed their lives for this cause. Love is sacrifice.
And in this day and age, the two biggest things we can sacrifice to show love to anyone are: our time and our pride. Time because there just never seems to be enough of it and pride because we have so much it hinders the work. Pride can lead us to pass unrighteous judgement on others! Doubting their readiness or willingness to hear the Gospel. Pride can also cause us to fear embarrassment or cause us to shrink imaging the marred relationships that sharing the Gospel may bring.
Mormon had no such qualms sharing the Gospel because in his words, “Behold, I speak with boldness, having authority from God; and I fear not what man can do; for perfect love casteth out all fear.”
I remember the first time I was asked if I wanted to take the missionary discussions. I was 14. It is a very vivid memory for me. I was riding in my friend's car; her mom was driving us to mutual. I had been going to Girls' Camp since I was 11 with my friend, and I would attend mutual for the certification and camp prep. Anyways, we were driving and I just want the youth in the room to imagine this scenario: you are in the car and your mom asks your non-member friend the following questions, “Have you been reading the Book of Mormon? Do you think it is true? Do you think Joseph Smith was a prophet of God? ” And finally, “Would you like to meet with the missionaries?” My friend was mortified. But I answered affirmative to all the questions except that last one. The first time I was asked if I wanted to take the missionary discussions I said NO. But between you and me, and well, anyone listening in on this talk, the questions that proceeded that invitation to meet the missionaries they are the ones that impacted my life. Because my friend's mom asked me those questions regarding my testimony of the Restoration, I was able to say what I had been feeling and discovering and I hadn't had a safe place or person that I could confide with about that yet. So, it was a powerful moment for me to answer those questions. And, you know what, when I did begin meeting with the missionaries I never took the discussions in her home. And I had them a billzillon times between the time I was 16 and 18.
But back to the main point, love. My friend's mom loved me. She knew me. She loved her God. She was like Mormon. She wasn't afraid to ask me what people considered the “tough” questions, those questions were the right ones for me.
This kind of leads into the next principle, how do we know what the right questions, or the right method or the right anything? This is where the Spirit comes in.
The Holy Ghost has many roles, but testifying and teaching of Christ. Whew. It is something remarkable. I have been the Primary Chorister for over a year now- longest term in a calling I have ever had. And one of the most memorable moments for me is teaching the song Follow the Prophet. I doubt many of the kids even remember this, but it is memorable for me. Besides them learning the song my objective was for the kids to understand that prophets are atype of Christ- meaning that they have certain qualities that can remind us and testify of Christ. I used four examples: Moses, Samuel, President Monson, and Daniel. Moses was the lawgiver, Samuel answered “Here am I, send me,” President Monson served others, but when I got to Daniel I talked about how he reminds us how Christ fulfilled the law for us, how Christ subjected himself to death, and came out victor. The quiet that fell. And you know what quiet I am talking about. It is a change in atmosphere, it is a peace, it is truth occupying the space where mundane used to be. It the Spirit. It isn’t me. It is the Spirit.
If Church members prepare spiritually, they will have the privilege of feeling the Holy Ghost teach, testify, and inspire through them. Nephi taught, “When a man speakth by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of children of men.” (2 Nephi 33:1)
We need to be seeking the companionship of the Holy Ghost through prayer and as we study.
To share the Gospel using the Holy Ghost, we need to be living the Gospel.
Let's revisit the story I began this talk with, Phillip and the Ethiopian.
Where we left off the Ethiopian asked Peter to teach him, and invited Peter to ride along in the chariot. Peter testifies of Christ and when the chariot comes upon a body of water, the Ethiopian asks to be baptized immediately.
So this is the English teacher part of me shining through, so forgive me. But let's take this story and enlarge it, make it less about Phillip and more about you and me as member missionaries.
There will be plenty of times in our lives our paths will intersect with someone, and we will feel prompted to approach their chariots. Sometimes they may even desire for us to come and sit with them. For us to teach them. But rarely are we as lucky as Phillip, able to witness a baptism so quickly if at all. Sometimes it is a really long journey. That's life. And often the chariot isn't much of a smooth ride; it feels more like public transportation- there's lots of stops and a revolving cast doing their best. The only exception to this is Parents. We are in it for our family to win it, even after baptism. Forget the nearest body of water, children, we are riding all the way back home to Ethiopia with you, just try to stop us!
I guess my closing remark is: don't be discouraged in the work. If you have a genuine love for His children, and are revelation-ready, Heavenly Father will use you to share the Gospel.
Let me just reiterate the testimony I shared five minutes in. I could have spent this time talking about my experiences as a member missionary or sharing stories from the Ensign from other members, but I thought it was best to kind of declutter and get back to basics. We can share the Gospel as Christ taught. We must have love, and we must have the Spirit to guide us.
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