John the Baptist

In Matthew 11:1-9 John the Baptist sent disciples to Christ to see if he was the one John had been waiting for. Can you imagine the kind of news they had to share with John the Baptist. If I had been one of those disciples I would have been jumping with joy to tell John a) that Christ has come and that He is who we have waited for b) that I had witnessed Christ perform many miracles and c) that he is waiting for John and praises him as a great prophet!
In Matthew 11:2-3, as we discussed, John send disciples to Christ to see if it really is the Savior of the world. Some wonder if this was John's lack of faith in Christ. But after reading the institute manuel on the subject you find that John was simply trying to get his followers to recognize who Jesus was and to believe in and follow Him. It was not for John's benefit, but for those who followed him.
In Matthew 11:11 Jesus says, "there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist". So why was John the baptist considered greater than ALL other prophets and disciples of Christ? Joseph Smith says that "First, he was entrusted with a divine mission of preparing the way before the Lord... Second, he was entrusted with the important mission... to baptize the Son of Man... Thirdly, he was the only legal administrator in the affairs of the kingdom there was then on earth, and holding the keys of power." John the baptist was the most trustworthy, and the most committed to do the sacred works that needed to be done for Christ to come.
John 3:3 says, "He must increase, but I must decrease." John knew that Christ was perfect and therefore, increasing in knowledge and perfectness. John was of the earth- a mortal- and therefore can only hope to become somewhat like Him. We need to remember that the goal is be like Christ and "increase".

Miracles or Evidence of Faith and God's Power

Matthew 8:1-4
Miracles of the Lord: Healing the leper of his disease
Who Demonstrated Faith: The Leper
Matthew 8:5-13
Miracles of the Lord: Healed a sick child without even seeing or going to her
Who Demonstrated Faith: A Centurion
Matthew 8:14-15
Miracles of the Lord: Healed a fever/sickness
Who Demonstrated Faith: Peter's wife's mother
Matthew 8:16
Miracles of the Lord: Casting out the devils from many people
Who Demonstrated Faith: The ones who brought the possessed to Christ
Matthew 8:23-27
Miracles of the Lord: Commanded the wind and the seas to be calm
Who Demonstrated Faith: Christ did, because his disciples did not have enough faith to do it themselves
Matthew 9:20-22/ Mark 5:25-34
Miracles of the Lord: Healed a blood disease of a woman who simply touched him
Who Demonstrated Faith: The woman with the blood disease
Matthew 9:27-31
Miracles of the Lord: Healed the blind man
Who Demonstrated Faith: The blind man
Matthew 2:1-12
Miracles of the Lord: a new star to light the way to Christ, warned the wise men not to go back to herod
Who Demonstrated Faith: the wise men
When I look at all the many incredible miracles that the Lord has performed, I am amazed. How could one be so powerful? It increases my respect and humility. I know that God can accomplish whatever it is that He wants. I know that he can help me when I need it- if I have enough faith. All of God's miracles happen on basis of faith. I must continually strive to increase my faith so that I will be ready when I am in need of a miracle.

We Must Be Born Again

In John 3:3-5 Jesus talks about how one can enter into the Kingdom of God. He says in verse 3 that "except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." But then in verse 5 he says, "except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God". So, what is the difference between "seeing" and "entering" into the kingdom of God? If you look closely, he specifies that just by being baptized by water you can SEE the kingdom of God- it is within reach. But you must be baptized by water AND by the spirit to actually ENTER the kingdom of God. In this chapter of John, Jesus is telling Nicodemus that you must be born again OF THE SPIRIT, not of the flesh. And to do so, you must be baptized by water and by the spirit. To be born of water means to be baptized- fully immersed in water.
Baptizm sympolized birth by the way we are immersed in water, as we were immersed in the womb. Then we come out of the water clean of sin- just as we were when first born.
Baptizm also symbolizes death in the way we are bured by water (like in the earth). And like Christ, we are raised up again "by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." (romans 6:4)
The Father loves each one of His children and has done countless things to show His love for us! Such as, sacrifice His only begotten son to be redeemed for all of our sins so that we could return to Him. When Jesus was baptized, God showed His love for him by opening the heavens and declaring his love for him. When we follow Christ we are blessed for our faith and love. God loves us all and wants the best for us all!

The Birth of John the Baptist

In Luke 1:14, Zacharias was told that the birth of his son would bring much gladness and rejoicing. In the Bible Dictionary it says that John's purpose was "to prepare the way for the Messiah and make ready a people to receive [Christ]". It was announced that one would prepare the way for a Savior and that John was the "prophet of the Highest" (Luke 1:76). In Luke 1:79 it reads, "To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." People were so excited about his birth because it meant that the Savior was coming soon! What news would be more exciting than that!?

Teaching

In 2 Peter chapter 2 he warns us against false prophets and gives us signs and characteristics to look for in them. Some of those signs and characteristics include worldy, lusting after uncleanliness, despise government, not afraid to speak evil, adulterous, unable to cease sin, and seek out the "unstable souls". These are just a few of the many things seen in false prophets and wicked men. We must watch carefully and judge prayerfully- seeking wisdom from God to know who is truthful and who is not.
Peter goes on to say that we must "escape the pollutions of the world" through the gospel of Christ. But, he warns us too that we will be worse off if we then return back to the ways of the world after having a testimony of the gospel of Christ. It is as if we know the rules and disobey willingly, as opposed to someone who disobeys without even knowing the rules. Therefore, we must watch ourselves and remember to act in a way that is in accordance with what we have learned through the scriptures, church, leaders, and personal revelation. In this way, we may be spotless before God at the last day.

Faith without Works is Dead

Faith requires work. There is nothing else about it. You cannot simple say "I believe" and think all is well. The Lord requires action on behave of our faith. We ACT on the gospel BECAUSE of our faith, or to strengthen our faith. Matthew 7:21 says, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." it is those that DO the will of God, that will be received unto God. We DO because we have faith. James chapter 2 is all about faith and works combined. In verse 17 he states, "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." In verse 26 he also says, "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." We must act on our faith to prove to our Father in Heaven that we believe in that which we cannot see and that we obey because we trust him.

Works of Righteousness

"Let brotherly love continue." We never know who we are really in the company of when in the company of a stranger. There have been many stories about people who unknowingly assisted an angel in disguise. Why not treat everyone as an angel in need of assistance. We all suffer so we all need to help each other through it.
Marriage is looked up as an honorable thing. In this age and time I think its meaning has degraded to nothing more than a friendship. We need to remember the sacredness of it.
As for covetousness, we need to just be grateful for the things we DO have instead of dwelling on those we dont. Those who covet put material things above the Lord and need to remember what is more important in life. The Lord will not stand for coveters.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today and forever. He is ever constant in all that he does.
We have been sanctified through the blood of Christ, and no other way is sufficient. We owe our lives and our salvation to Him. We can never repay him.
We all live under the rule of others. There is always someone who is watching over us (Parents, Spouse, Family, Friends, etc.) We need to be obedient and joyful, that we may stand righteous at the last day.
Paul asks the people to pray for him. I find that interesting because he is an apostle of the Lord, you would think that he's got it all. He's as spiritual as they come. But he is also still human, and still needs the Lord's strength and mercy to be great. We need to remember our leaders in our prayers so that might have the spirit to be with them to give us the instruction we need when we need it