1 October 2014
The great High Priestly prayer of Christ in Gethsemane:
20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou has sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou has sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. (John 17:20–23)
Messages in this scripture:
- The Father and the Son are one. Thus, there is One God.
- We are all invited to become one with them, even as they are one.
- Christ gives glory to His servants, even the same glory (light and truth) which the Father gave to Him.
- Our personal goal should be to become perfect (complete) in one so that the world will see the truth.
- The proof that we are one with each other and with Christ will be that we have pure love one to another.
- Our Savior is already in us. We need to achieve oneness with Him.
I see some keys to becoming one in Him, even as He is One with Father. These keys are part of the glory He gives us.
Key No. 1: Always remember Him. He says: “Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.” (D&C 6:36)
Key No. 2: Love God. He says: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all they might, mind and strength; and in the name of Jesus Christ thou shalt serve him.” (D&C 59:5)
The temple ordinances are the training for learning to love God with all of our heart, might, mind and strength. In the endowment we promise to love God so much that we will obey Him in every thing and make any sacrifice necessary to perform this obedience. This is to love God with all of our mind. We also promise to keep the law of the Gospel, which is to put our total love and trust in Jesus Christ. This is how we love God with all of our heart. We promise to be chaste and to multiply and replenish the earth. This is how we love God with all of our strength. We promise to give and use all that we have to the building up of the kingdom of God on the earth and to the establishment of Zion. This is how we love God with all of our might.
Key No. 3: Love our neighbor. He says: he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. (Matthew 23:11) We love our neighbors in the measure that we serve them.
Key No. 4: Seek the face of the Lord always. He says: “Therefore, care not for the body, neither the life of the body; but care for the soul, and for the life of the soul. And seek the face of the Lord always, that in patience ye may possess your souls, and ye shall have eternal life.” (D&C 101:37–38)
He tells us where to seek His face:
- 31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
- 32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
- 33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
- 34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
- 35 For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
- 36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
- 37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? Or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
- 38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
- 39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
- 40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say it unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. (Matthew 25:31–40)
We shall thus actually see our Savior after we have learned to see Him in all of His earthly children.
Key No. 5: Mighty prayer. And there is a final key to make the other four keys actually turn the lock. This final key is mighty prayer. And what is the main thing we should pray for? Mormon tells us: “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 7:48)
To pray with all the energy of our heart is mighty prayer, through which we will learn to love purely as Christ does and thus become One with Him and with Father. This pure love is not just a feeling. It is strenuous love, service and sacrifice in the cause of Christ to minister to His children around us.
I we do all this with an eye single to the glory of God and with a firm mind in every form of godliness, we will prove what Peter says, that we have all things that pertain to life and godliness, and that through our diligence and the overflowing grace of Christ, the day star will arise in our hearts and our calling and election will be made sure. May it so be. Then we will be One with Father and our Savior, even as they are One with each other.