My Christmas Farewell Talk December 20th

Taking the Saviors Name upon us as we partake of the sacrament and what this means

Introduction

Isaiah 9:6 “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”

During this month every year, individuals in society put down their pitchforks of politics and controversy and greet each other with warm hugs and friendship. We sing carols of joy and happiness, exchange gifts to one another and forget our differences as we enjoy the spirit of Christmas. During this unique time of year we commemorate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. This is a time of meditation, of gratitude and commitment.

In the 2011 Christmas Devotional, President Monson declared, “There is no better time than now, this very Christmas season, for all of us to rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus Christ. Because He came to earth, we have a perfect example to follow. As we strive to become more like Him, we will have joy and happiness in our lives and peace each day of the year. It is His example which, if followed, stirs within us more kindness and love, more respect and concern for others.”

I want you to imagine being one of the shepherds or wise men who traveled across the lands to behold the Christ child, “wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” Imagine the joy you felt as you returned to your home land, “glorifying and praising God for all the things that [you] had heard and seen, as it was told unto [you].”How marvelous the experience, how joyful your testimony!

President Uchtdorf, in the same devotional quoted from previously, stated, “Christmas and some of the cherished traditions of the season remind us that we, like the Wise Men of old, should seek the Christ and lay before Him the most precious of gifts:” Now please take note the gifts that he points out here: “a broken heart and a contrite spirit. We should offer Him our love. We should give Him our willingness to take upon ourselves His name and walk in the path of discipleship. We should promise to remember Him always, to emulate His example, and to go about doing good”.

The meaning of taking His name upon us

One of these gifts is our “willingness to take upon ourselves His name”. What exactly does that mean, and how do we do this? The scripture you may have first thought of was just recently read during the blessing of the Sacrament. In D&C 20: 77 one part of the prayer for the bread reads, “that they may eat in remembrance of the body of thy Son, and witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing to take upon them the name of thy Son…”

Something interesting I hadn’t noticed until preparing this talk was the specific phrase “willing” to take upon them. Dallin H. Oaks expanded on this in the April 1989 Ensign, stating, “It is significant that when we partake of the sacrament we do not witness that we take upon us the name of Jesus Christ. We witness that we are willing to do so. The fact that we only witness to our willingness suggests that something else must happen before we actually take that sacred name upon us in the most important sense.” That someone else, he later clarifies is our “willingness to take upon us the authority of Jesus Christ. According to this meaning, by partaking of the sacrament we witness our willingness to participate in the sacred ordinances of the temple and to receive the highest blessings available through the name and by the authority of the Savior when he chooses to confer them upon us.”

This concept isn’t new to just the Latter-day Saints. In Alma 46: 15 it reads, “And those who did belong to the church were faithful; yea, all those who were true believers in Christ took upon them, gladly, the name of Christ, or Christians as they were called, because of their belief in Christ who should come.”

Some verses in Mosiah 5 state,

“And it shall come to pass that whosoever doeth this shall be found at the right hand of God, for he shall know the name by which he is called; for he shall be called by the name of Christ.

10. And now it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall not take upon him the name of Christ must be called by some other name; therefore, he findeth himself on the left hand of God.

12. I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts, that ye are not found on the left hand of God, but that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you.

John Tanner in the same Ensign Article quoted previously, states, “We who have taken upon ourselves the name of Christ, first at baptism and then weekly with the sacrament, may also be worthy to be embraced by the Lord. But first we will have to make an accounting of what we have done with his name, the only name under heaven through which salvation comes.”

How we take His name upon us

Christmas time is a great opportunity to take His name upon us! The LDS Youth article about covenant keeping gives us many examples of ways to do this! They present a list of ideas, including: “Find[ing] opportunities to serve others for Him, Fulfill[ing] your callings and Church assignments, Ponder[ing] what it means to be a Christian and mak[ing] your faith known by sharing your testimony with friends and family and posting gospel-related messages on social media.”

Finding service opportunities is one of the more popular ways we can take His name upon us. A well-known phrase in Matthew 25:40 declares, “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” I wish to further emphasize the significance of this concept.

One issue I have noticed in the church is this idea that the type of calling we have represents how righteous or prepared we are, or how much the Lord loves us vs others. Your calling may seem insignificant, like the librarian or relief society greeter. This thought process can be heard in some Conference talks that share amazing stories of how someone converted to the church, but then emphasizes how they later got married and became a Bishop or Stake President. I am not discrediting those in leadership callings at all, because as Elder Wong in the November 2014 General Conference stated, “In order to assist the Savior, we have to work together in unity and in harmony. Everyone, every position, and every calling is important. We have to be united in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

But what I am saying is that we should not judge each other based off of our callings in the Church. My friend [name removed], a return missionary, suggested, “I always believe God does things for more than one reason. Yes, we are given certain callings because we need to learn. But I also believe that no matter what, someone else can learn from us in our callings. No matter how "good" or "bad" you do it. ...always do your best of course, but no matter the total outcome, people are effected. Lives are touched. That is how God works.”

So the next time someone says “oh, you’re the Assistant Librarian?” point them to Sister Bonnie Oscarson’s talk in the 2014 Christmas Devotional, where she boldly stated, “The Savior of the world did not come to earth at that time with a great show of power and majesty—He came as a helpless baby. This Christ child was certainly one of “the greatest forces in the world,” and yet He was born in a simple stable with straw in a manger for His bed. “Through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.” And yet, according to tradition, He shared His birthplace with sheep and oxen. He would become the Savior of all mankind, yet there was no room for His expectant mother and her anxious husband in the inn. He is the Redeemer of us all, yet His first visitors were humble shepherds”.

You can also reference D&C 122: 8, which says “The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?”

Sharing your faith and beliefs on social media has been another popular way to take His name upon us. We can see in the past decade members of the church including Lindsey Stirling proclaiming their love for their Savior by using their talents on the Internet. While most of us may never become a YouTube sensation, just remember, if you have done “it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

I do not have time to cover all the suggestions provided for us in great detail, but a few others mentioned included “Mourn with those that mourn.”, “Have a determination to serve Him to the end.”, “Stand as a witness.” and “Always remember Him.”

Staying faithful when others are not

After we witness our willingness to take upon us His name, do we feel ashamed? President Monson in the October 2011 Conference, warned “In Lehi’s vision of the tree of life, found in 1 Nephi 8, Lehi sees, among others, those who hold to the iron rod until they come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree of life, which we know is a representation of the love of God. And then, sadly, after they partake of the fruit, some are ashamed because of those in the “great and spacious building,” who represent the pride of the children of men, who are pointing fingers at them and scoffing at them; and they fall away into forbidden paths and are lost. What a powerful tool of the adversary is ridicule and mockery! Again, brethren, do we have the courage to stand strong and firm in the face of such difficult opposition”?

Matthew 6: 24 states: “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

Part of Mosiah 18: 9 reminds us that we need to, “stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death”.

Feeling a bit worried about not being perfect enough to fulfill this expectation? Take comfort in President Uchtdorf’s message in the 2011 Christmas devotional, where after sharing a story of how he set his family’s living room curtains on fire, he said, “We cannot offer Him the gift of perfection in all things because this is a gift beyond our capacity to give—at least for now. The Lord does not expect that we commit to move mountains. But He does require that we bring as gifts our best efforts to move ourselves, one foot in front of the other, walking in the ways He has prepared and taught”.

We may not be able to do everything perfectly right now, but we can do our best, “line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little” as taught in 2^nd Nephi 28.

Conclusion

Brothers and Sisters, don’t be a Scrooge, rejoice! Monson reminds us in the 2011 Christmas Devotional, “Because He came, there is meaning to our mortal existence. Because He came, we know how to reach out to those in trouble or distress, wherever they may be. Because He came, death has lost its sting, the grave its victory. We will live again because He came. Because He came and paid for our sins, we have the opportunity to gain eternal life.”