3.093 Why Persecute Me for Telling the Truth

In Matthew 5, Jesus calls us the salt of the earth and the light of the world, reminding us that our lives are meant to preserve, illuminate, and point others to Him. This season on Savory Salt, we'll walk through the Old Testament, one verse and one thought each day. Perhaps these moments will add greater savor and brighter light to our lives as we seek to truly live as Savory Salt.

Hello, my friends, it's a new day with new opportunities. Choose ye this day whom you will serve. How many witnesses does it take for you or for me to believe that something happened?

That's been stewing in my mind as we've been reviewing this week several different points of view from Easter. Some scriptures from the Old Testament, some modern scripture from general conference talks, as well as some Book of Mormon scriptures. And I've been, in all honesty, I've been wrestling this week with Easter topics, not because I don't know where to look for them or not because I don't want to spend time in the Old Testament or over here or over there.

I've really been trying to look at this through the lens of what the Easter holiday means for us. What are the results of it as we believe in it? As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we believe in a living Jesus Christ, a resurrected being.

And others say, you know, this is wonderful news, but there's no way that he would then continue to guide and direct his church today. And so we have others that would say that Jesus Christ may be resurrected, but inactive in our lives. And so it took me down the line of going back into Joseph Smith—History.

And I think we could use other modern-day prophets as well. But I just reflected on this idea as we go through our challenges in life. And as we go through our difficulties in times with our own faith challenges, struggles with our testimonies, I think at those times, it really whittles down to one core idea.

And it could be summed up for me. Earlier this week, I talked about not summing it down to one. And yet here we sit on this one that I believe for me and for Easter, it really actually stems off of this idea I want to share with you today.

We're going to go over to Joseph Smith—History and we're going to look inside of there as Joseph Smith explains what it was like to struggle with sharing the idea that he had seen God and Jesus Christ. I was led to say in my heart, "Why persecute me? Why persecute me for telling the truth?

I have actually seen a vision, and who am I that I can withstand God? Or why does the world think to make me deny what I have actually seen? I had seen a vision.

I knew it. I knew that God knew it. I could not deny it.

Neither dared I do it. At least I knew that by so doing I would offend God, and come under condemnation." My friends, this testimony of Joseph Smith seeing God the Father and Jesus Christ is a core attribute for each one of us in the modern day. Joseph Smith either had this event or he didn't.

There is no gray area. He is a witness to a living Jesus Christ, a resurrected Savior for us all. I believe in his words, and at my difficult times and challenges with faith, with questions I may have about gospel topics, I come back to this core belief for me.

Joseph Smith either experienced this or he did not. And I'm grateful for the testimony that I can lean into as I have sought to have my own witness of Jesus Christ, of the Atonement, of the restored gospel, of living prophets and apostles today, and have received what I believe to be my witness in their reality and truth as well. May we lean on this event here as a testimony builder is my hope and prayer as we go forth in this Easter season today.

That is all for today, my friends. You and I have come here for such a time as this. Step forward in faith and let's be savory salt. We will be here tomorrow and we hope you are too.