Seek ye earnestly

by Joseph Fielding Smith

Seek Ye Earnestly . . . The scriptures are replete with admonition to seek earnestly, diligently, for the best gifts, to seek for knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. "No man can be saved in ignorance." "The glory of God is intelligence." President Joseph Fielding Smith has spent a lifetime pleading with the members of the Church to study, to pray, to gain an understanding of the scriptures and to develop a testimony of the divinity of the mission of Jesus Christ. He has labored tirelessly to disseminate information with a great desire that the members of the Church might become more enlightened as to the principles of the gospel. "The Lord has promised to reveal unto those who are diligently seeking him, all the mysteries of his kingdom," President Smith has said. "The fact that a person is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not insure his salvation. He has to keep himself in touch with these sacred principles and know and live them. . . . The gospel of Jesus Christ is not merely a code of laws, it is more than that. It requires a spirit of humility, of faith, and a prayerful disposition. . . . The fact remains that too many of us take our membership as a matter of course. We do not study. We do not attend to the ordinary duties the Lord requires of us, and therefore we do not have an abiding testimony of the truth." This compilation of President Smith's sermons and writings represents a companion volume to "Take Heed to Yourselves." It is felt that the two greatest messages of President Smith's life have been the necessity for repentance and the need to seek earnestly for knowledge and understanding of the saving principles of the gospel-a living testimony of the true message of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Genres: Religion

459 pages, Hardcover

First published September 2, 2009

About the author

Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr. was the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, who was the sixth president of the LDS Church. His grandfather was Hyrum Smith, brother of LDS Church founder Joseph Smith, Jr., who was Joseph Fielding's great-uncle.

Reviews

[Kristopher Swinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always delight in President Smith’s plainness. He is essentially one of the most self-documenting authorities preceding this modern time in which such measures have become more of a norm. I got another glimpse into why he is so on the mark: “perhaps it is best to quote the doctrine just as it appears” (42).

I’ve taken no inconsiderable amount of time reading this because the vast selection of talks are the perfect format for Family Home Evenings and the like. (Naturally, this means that not all are of equal “quality” or length.)

I’ll just share a few truly randomly selected quotations from this packed book.

We do not have any prayer at night because we get scattered and cannot come together at night. . . . I went to the home of a stake president. I should not tell you this. It was not here. If it were here, I would not say it. It was some distance from here. In the morning when I was ready to leave, the table was set and all chairs were at the table. They were turned with their backs to the table, and one little fellow gave it away. He said, “Dad, what have you got all the chairs turned that way for?” There was silence outside of heaven. (98)

We frequently hear quoted these words of the Lord to Joseph Smith: “It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance.” In ignorance of what? The philosophies of the world? NO! In ignorance of the gospel truth–the saving principles and ordinances by which salvation comes! These must not only be understood, but they must be lived! Knowledge of them will not in itself save us! Obedience thereto will! (147)

[Also addressed in Answers to Gospel Questions, a type of viewpoint generally that I feel is so important in a time when it seems that even some of the faithful have this mania to deduce what “influences” the Prophet might have had, when revelation needs no such explanation:]
If [Joseph Smith] had come out of the woods saying he had seen a vision, had it been untrue never would he have thought of separating Father and Son, nor would he have ever thought of having the Father introduce the Son and for him to put his question to the Son to receive his answer. He never could have thought of it; for that was the farthest thing from the ideas existing in the world in the year 1820. (184)

We have false teachers among us. We have apostates among us who are endeavoring to tear down and destroy the kingdom of God, and they are disturbing a great many members of the Church. Why? Because they haven’t the faith nor the background in knowledge to resist these false teachers and their false doctrines. (382)