Quotes about Prophets



D&C 21: 4-9 -- WE THANK THEE O GOD FOR THE PROPHETS!
(The following quotes were gathered by our Stake presidency and presented at Ward Conference)



  1. Pres. Ezra Taft Benson: "Fundamental #1: The prophet is the only man who speaks for the Lord in everything." ... "Fundamental #14: Follow the [prophets] and be blessed - reject them and suffer." ("Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet," in BYU Speeches of the Year: 1977-1980 p.26-30.)
  2. Pres. Harold B. Lee: "Now the only safety we have as members of this church is to ... give heed to [all] the words and commandments that the Lord shall give through his prophet...There will be some things that take patience and faith. You may not like what comes from the authorities of the church. It may contradict your political ... or social views. It may interfere with some of your social life. But if you will listen to these things, as if from the mouth of the Lord himself...the promise is that 'the gates of hell shall not prevail against you; and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you, and cause the heavens to shake for your good and his name's glory.' Your safety and ours depends upon whether or not we follow the ones whom the Lord has placed to preside over His church." (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee 12000], p.84-8S.)
  3. Pres. Spencer W. Kimball: "May I remind all of us that if we will live the gospel and follow the counsel of the leaders of the church, we will be blessed to avoid many of the problems that plague the world." (CR. April 1980, p.128.) "Let us hearken to those we sustain as prophets and seers ... as if our eternal life depended upon it, because it does!" (CR., April 1978, p.ll7)
  4. Elder Russell M. Nelson: "The living Lord leads His living Church! The Lord reveals His will for the Church to His prophet ... Think of that! We sustain 15 men as prophets of God! They hold all the priesthood keys that have ever been conferred upon man in this dispensation ... These 15 men-prophets, seers, and revelators-know what the will of the Lord is when unanimity is reached! They are committed to see that the Lord's will truly will be done." ("Sustaining the Prophets, Ensign [CR], Nov. 2014, p.7S.)
  5. Elder M. Russell Ballard: "When the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve speak with a united voice, it is the voice of the Lord for that time." ("Stay in the Boat and Hold On!" in Ensign [CR], Oct. 2014, p.90.)
  6. ElderNeal A. Maxwell: "Make no mistake about it, brothers and sisters, in the months and years ahead, events are likely to require each member to decide whether or not he will follow the First Presidency." (Ensign/Feb. 1979, p.69.) "Now we are entering times wherein there will be for all of us as church members ... some special challenges which will require of us that we follow the Brethren. All the easy things that the Church has had to do have been done. From now on, it's high adventure, and followership is going to be tested in some interesting ways./I ("The Old Testament: Relevancy within Antiquity," in A Symposium on the OT [SLC: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1979], p. 12).
  7. Sister Virginia U. Jensen (former counselor in the Gen. RS Presidency): "There aren't many guarantees in this life. There isn't a car made with a warranty that covers everything. No bank on earth can absolutely guarantee that your money is completely safe. Even the Good Housekeeping seal of approval has a disclaimer written right on it! Nothing man-made or man-controlled can ever be truly guaranteed! But here's the miracle. The Lord has given some marvelous guarantees without any disclaimers. And this is one of them: He will choose the prophet, and He will never let that man lead us astray. It is an unimpeachable guarantee." (CR. Oct. 98, p.14.)
  8. Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley: "We [sing] in this [church] a marvelous hymn .. .'We Thank Thee Oh God, for a Prophet.' It is distinctive with us. As a people we sing some hymns that have come from other churches, and others sing some of ours. But only we can properly sing, 'We thank thee 0 God, for a prophet to guide us in these latter days.' How thankful we ought to be, my brethren and sisters .. .for a prophet to counsel us in words of divine wisdom as we walk in these complex and difficult times ... God will make his will known to his children through his recognized servant." (In tribute to Pres. Harold B. Lee in Oct. 1973 Gen. Conf., see Ensign [CR] Jan. 1974, p. 122.)
  9. Pres. Spencer W. Kimball: "To be a prophet of the Lord, one does not need to be youthful. .. athletic ... a financier ... a general. .. nor a scientist. He need not be a linguist to speak French and Japanese, German and Spanish, but he must understand the divine language and be able to receive messages from heaven." (Improvement Era, June 1970, p. 93.)
  10. Elder L. Tom Perry: "Never has there been a time when the written and spoken word can descend upon us from so many different sources. Through the media we find analysts analyzing the analysts, almost overwhelming us with opinions and different views. What a comfort it is to know that the Lord keeps a channel of communication open to His children through the prophet. What a blessing it is to know we have a voice we can trust to declare the will of the Lord." (Ensign [CR], Nov. 1994, p.19.)
  11. Elder Neal A. Maxwell:
  • "Prophets need tutoring, as do we all. However, this is something the Lord seems quite able to manage without requiring a host of helpers." (Ensign [CR], May 1982, p.39.)
  • "The true believer is growing in his patience, including being patient in following the living prophets. He knows that trying to get ahead of the Brethren is a sure way of falling behind." ("True Believers in Christ." BYU Devotional, 7 October 1980.)
  • "The living prophets are not perfect men, but they live close to Him who is perfect." (Things As They Really Are, /Deseret Book Co., SLC, Ut. [1980], p.77.)
  1. The First Presidency in August 1913 issued a warning to the members of the Church: "To the officers and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ... "When visions, dreams, tongues, prophecy, impressions or an extraordinary gift or inspiration convey something out of harmony with the accepted revelations of the Church or contrary to the decisions of its constituted authorities, Latter-day Saints may know that it is not of God, no matter how plausible it may appear. Also, they should understand that directions for the guidance of the Church will come, by revelation, through the head. All faithful members are entitled to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for themselves, their families, and for those over whom they are appointed and ordained to preside. But anything at discord with that which comes from God through the head of the Church is not to be received as authoritative or reliable." (see: Improvement Era/June 1970, p.63-64.)
  2. Now we have world where people are confused, If you don't believe it, go and watch the news. We can get direction all along our way, If we heed the prophets, follow what they say! Follow the Prophet, follow the Prophet, Follow the Prophet, don't go astray. Follow the Prophet, follow the Prophet, Follow the Prophet, He knows the way. (Children's Songbook, #110-111.)





Comments

Post a Comment