Teach Them the Word of God with All Diligence: Elder L.

Tom Perry (April 1999) Nearly all of our associations and relationships involve the process of teaching. One of the major responsibilities of parents is to teach their children. Many of our assignments in the world of work involve being a teacher. Every assignment we receive in the Church requires some form of teaching. The Lord directed us in the Doctrine and Covenants: "And I give unto you a commandment that you shall teach one another the doctrine of the kingdom. "Teach ye diligently and my grace shall attend you, that you may be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand" (D&C 88:7778). "And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, and they were hearing him, and asking him questions. "And all who heard him were astonished at his understanding, and answers" (JST, Luke 2:4647). This example from the Savior's early life shows the sense of urgency He felt about teaching the word of God. One prophet who felt a similar sense of urgency was Jacob, the younger brother of Nephi. Jacob and his brother Joseph were consecrated priests and teachers of their people. They took their responsibilities very seriously, assuming they themselves would be held accountable if they did not teach the people with all diligence. In verse 19 of the first chapter of Jacob, he wrote: "And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day" (Jacob 1:19). Like the Savior, teachers should also feel a sense of urgency about learning the word of God. "Seek not to declare my word, but first seek to obtain my word, and then shall your tongue be loosed; then, if you desire, you shall have my Spirit and my word, yea, the power of God unto the convincing of men" (D&C 11:21) "And they shall observe the covenants and church articles to do them, and these shall be their teachings, as they shall be directed by the Spirit. "And the Spirit shall be given unto you by the prayer of faith; and if ye receive not the Spirit ye shall not teach" (D&C 42:1314) May God bless us that we will be more determined to study and prepare and improve our abilities to be effective teachers. Let us all remember that it is through inspired teaching that the gospel message is carried to the world. It is my humble prayer that we will all accept the challenge to teach our brothers and sisters the word of God in all diligence. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen. Also read: The Power of Teaching Doctrine: Elder Henry B. Eyring (April 1999)

Reading 1 There has been a war between light and darkness, between good and evil, since before the world was created. The battle still rages, and the casualties seem to be increasing. All of us have family members we love who are being buffeted by the forces of the destroyer, who would make all God's children miserable. For many of us, there have been sleepless nights. We have tried to add every force for good we can to the powers swirling around the people who are at risk. We have loved them. We have set the best example we could. We have pled in prayer for them. The Power of Teaching Doctrine: Elder Henry B. Eyring (April 1999) Reading 2 A wise prophet long ago gave us counsel about another force which we may at times underestimate and thus use too little. Alma was the leader of a people faced with destruction by ferocious enemies. In the face of that danger, he could not do everything, so he had to choose. He could have built fortifications or created armaments or trained armies. But his only hope of victory was to get God's help, and for that he knew the people must repent. And so he chose to try one thing first: "And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just--yea, it had . . . more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them--therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God" (Alma 31:5). The Power of Teaching Doctrine: Elder Henry B. Eyring (April 1999) Reading 3 Because we need the Holy Ghost, we must be cautious and careful not to go beyond teaching true doctrine. The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Truth. His confirmation is invited by our avoiding speculation or personal interpretation. That can be hard to do. You love the person you are trying to influence. He or she may have ignored the doctrine they have been taught. It is tempting to try something new or sensational. But we invite the Holy Ghost as our companion when we are careful to teach only true doctrine. The Power of Teaching Doctrine: Elder Henry B. Eyring (April 1999)

Reading 4 never miss a chance to gather children together to learn of the doctrine of Jesus Christ. Such moments are so rare in comparison with the efforts of the enemy. For every hour the power of doctrine is introduced into a child's life, there may be hundreds of hours of messages and images denying or ignoring the saving truths. The question should not be whether we are too tired to prepare to teach doctrine or whether it wouldn't be better to draw a child closer by just having fun or whether the child isn't beginning to think that we preach too much. The question must be, "With so little time and so few opportunities, what words of doctrine from me will fortify them against the attacks on their faith which are sure to come?" The words you speak today may be the ones they remember. And today will soon be gone. The Power of Teaching Doctrine: Elder Henry B. Eyring (April 1999)