Parables of Christ

Choice 2: Matthew 13: 24-48. The Lord Often Taught with Parables

1. In the Bible Dictionary read the first three paragraphs under the entry “Parables” (pgs. 740-41). In your own words, write a definition of a parable.

A parable to me means a story in which those who are familiar with the scriptures and in tune with the spirit are able to have an understanding greater than what may at first seem to be. A parable can teach deep doctrine and points about life if you are able to spiritually discern its message.

 

2.    Read the following parables: parable of the tares (Matthew 13:24-30); parables of the mustard seed and the leaven (Matthew 13:47-50); parables of the treasure and the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44-46); parable of the gospel net (Matthew 13:47-50). Next to each of the following questions write the name of the parable that best answers that question.

o       What describes the future growth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Parable of the leaven.

o       Why does the Church send out so many missionaries? Parable of the Tares.

o       How do you explain the remarkable growth of the Church, considering that it is fairly new compared to most world religions and started small in the American frontier? Parable of the mustard seed.

​o       Why are some members of the Church willing to sacrifice so much worldly wealth and recognition in order to maintain membership in the Church? Pearl of Great Price

·         Why do some Church members choose to leave the Church? Parable of the Net.

·      How and what did you do to complete the assignment?

I read the scriptures as given and also looked in the institute manual to gain further insight because the parables can be hard to understand.

·      Why did you decide to do the assignment you did?

I love reading the parables and I think it makes you think harder and dig deeper into the doctrine.

·      What do you think is the best thing about your assignment, and how do you think it could it be improved?

The best part of the assignment was being given the different parables to read about. This can be improved upon by giving us different resources to go to in order to better understand the meanings of the parables.

The Beatitudes Matthew 5:1-12

1. Blessed: To be happy and have blessings come upon you.

Blessedness: To have joy come upon you, or good things.

2. Beatitude 1: The Merciful

                Being merciful is such an important part of life. I know that when I show mercy on others it always helps them in life and brightens their outlook. There are enough rough people in this life who take what they think they deserve and help no one around them. I believe being merciful creates a love for others and helps others create a love for you. I know that when others are merciful to me I really appreciate them not being judging of my flaws and helping me get through life.

Beatitude 2: Pure in Heart

                Being pure in heart is one of the greatest characteristics you can create within yourself and seek in others. Being pure in heart creates happiness because people who are pure in heart have no other intentions behind what it is they are doing. They seek after what is right and do it for the right reason. This creates happiness because they inspire you to be pure in heart, and help you to better yourself. It also creates amazing people in your life who are solid friends.

Beatitude 3: Poor in Spirit

                When you are poor in spirit you are humble. It is not easy to obtain humility especially when there are so many things you can be prideful about. I believe that being poor in spirit creates happiness because you acknowledge the hand of God in your lives. You know where you came from, where you’re going, and where you’ll end up. Being humble draws others to you and it really helps people to connect and relate to you in all aspects of life. 

Matthew 3:13–17. The Baptism of Jesus Christ

On this discussion I am learning about why Jesus needed to be baptized if he were already perfect.

Review Matthew 3:13–17 and the institute student manual commentary for Matthew 3:16, “What Is the Significance of the Holy Ghost Descending ‘like a Dove’?” (pg. 28–29). Then write answers to the following questions:

Greater Information on Baptism: http://www.lds.org/topics/baptism?lang=eng

• Why was John hesitant to baptize Jesus?

A: I believe John was hesitant to baptize Jesus because he knew Christ was the Son of God and wondered why He needed to baptize Jesus if He were perfect. I also think John could have felt unworthy of such a task.

• What is taught here about the Holy Ghost? 

A: The Holy Ghost represents death of your sins (immersion) and then the coming up out of the water represents a rebirth of your spiritual life.

• Jesus Christ said He must be baptized to “fulfill all righteousness.” List three reasons why Jesus Christ was baptized (see 2 Nephi 31:6–11).

A: To show unto the Father that Christ is obedient unto all commandments, for Him to set the example of how the path is strait and the gate is narrow, so the Father can tell us to be baptized like His perfect Son was, and to receive the Holy Ghost.

• What evidence is found in Matthew 3:16–17 that the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are three separate personages in the Godhead?

A: In these verses we have Christ in the water just being baptized, we have the Holy Ghost descending upon Him in the form of a dove, and we have Heavenly Father speaking from Heaven showing that they are three distinct separate personages. 

New Testament

For my New Testament class I was given the assignment of reading about Mary the mother of Jesus. I was told to pick characteristics out about Mary and to choose one I wish I possessed and to write about it.Then I'm supposed to blog what I wrote so here are my findings.

Luke 1:28, Luke 1:26-56

-She trusted in the Angel the first time he told her what was going to come to pass.

-She had unseen faith

-She humbly submits to the Lords will

-She is blessed because she believed those things she was told by the Angel Gabriel.

-Mary magnifies the Lord

-Her spirit rejoices in God.

-She respects (fears) God.

                A quality that I wish to possess of Mary’s is to be able to have faith in that which I cannot see. Mary was so willing to believe in the Angel and in what was going to come to pass. I want to be able to study the scriptures and receive answers to prayers and believe that those answers and events in my life will come to pass. I want to be able to put my full trust in Heavenly Father. I think I can accomplish this by studying the scriptures and learning from figures in the scriptures such as Mary. Her story inspires me to have more faith and more fully be willing to submit to Heavenly Father’s will for me.

In all Mary is such an astounding woman. She was favoured of the Lord and she never questioned her purpose. She had faith in that which she could not fully see, and was so humble to quickly understand and believe the words of the Angel Gabriel. She is an example to me faith and humility. 

Life Update #234584950.6

Hello everyone. It is Sunday and Sunday means I have some time! Aw yeahhhh. I love Sundays. I joined my ward Choir and today we practiced this. It's going to be really pretty, and it gives me goosebumps when we sing it.It's about our Savior and the Atonement. If you have questions about what that means visit here.  I made a goal that I would do things that scared me this semester, things that put me out of my comfort zone. And yes that means joining choir....it also means joining a soccer team. I joined with a big group of people from home. The other night we also played against another big group from home. I'm so thankful to have so many people from home around me, it reminds me home still exists and people actually know where I'm from.

So this semester I am in a class called "Early Field Experience" and I go to the schools twice a week and I'll teach and help with whatever the teacher needs. I'm learning SO much. SOOO much! I'm really starting to picture myself as a teacher, and I'm starting to realize what it is I want for my future students! I'm so excited to have my own classroom one day, and the teachers at my University for the most part were those teachers who you always remembered as a kid. They are so passionate about teaching and changing lives it's so contagious! Teaching children gives me an energy you can't get anywhere else. Where else can you go to work and your "co-worker" (read:student) tells you their favorite food is "cheetos and bacon!!!" Come now.

On the other hand their is so much that goes into teaching that you never know about until you are on the other side. I work with children who for the most part live with people other than their parents and where some only come to school so they can eat and be in a safe place for a portion of the day. It really breaks my heart and it's something I'll have to work on not taking home with me one day when I do have my own classroom.

I'm really loving my roommates this semester. Something has changed and I am no longer the baby! I'm the old one now. Weird. Super weird. I'm not sure how to feel about it, but as for now I'm rolling with it. I think the reason why I don't have too much of a problem with it, is because I've been where they are now. I don't want to go back and I'm happy to be progressing along into adulthood and it means I'm that much closer to graduating. Only two semesters more after this. Life is a lot different now than it was before I took a break from school. I was such a terrible student before. Very irresponsible. Now I can tie my own shoelaces and everything. I don't remember anyone telling me that College is hard. Really hard. I feel like every time I talk to my Dad I have an ugly cry breakdown. His advice was "take one day at a time", and I've been doing just that. Sometimes I think my teachers must have forgotten that we're humans and can't stay up 24 hours a day doing homework, projects, lesson plans, etc.

I had to spend four hours in a wheelchair on Tuesday as  part of a simulation for my special education class. It's serves to help me have more empathy for future students who may have special needs. I was getting a long pretty okay, but we had a list of tasks we had to accomplish and one of them was going up and down a hill. I knew this was going to be one of the harder challenges and I came to the conclusion that I was very right when I was trying to wheel myself up a hill. I thought I was going to die to put it nicely. I was getting up but it was a very slow go. A few people walked past me,and didn't say anything but then this boy was walking by and anyone could see I was clearly struggling. He bent down and asked me if he could push me where I needed to go. He was absolutely kind. It was so strange because I recognized him, and came to find out that he was from home and was getting married that weekend and I had met his fiance before and we had a few different connections. It restored my faith in humanity that some people are just good. He didn't have to help me but he he could see my struggle. I committed myself that day to be a little better like the boy who helped me. It also gave me an appreciation for my healthy able legs.

I'm off for now..until another few months...au revoir.

Favorite Occurence

Serendipity: (n.) finding something good without looking for it.

And Then I Went Mad...

So here I am it is 3:47 A.M. and I am currently working on a project for my Children's Literature class. The project started out where I was feeling like this...

Then about 6 hours later I felt a little more like this...

And now I'm feeling like this

I'll probably end up like this...

But then again I could end up like this...

This is more likely though....

But it could possibly end up like this....

*All modeling agencies, please contact my agent to book me for more photo shoots. Please nothing sooner than at least 3 months out, as you can probably assume from the gorgeous photos shown above...I'm pretty booked.