RS Lesson Summary December 21st

Sister Armstrong gave the lesson on the topic of the second coming. If you would like to read the entire talk you can visit lds.org and read Preparing for the coming our Lord.

From the Life of Joseph Fielding Smith

President Joseph Fielding Smith once told a group of Latter-day Saints that he was “praying for the end of the world.” He said, “If it came tomorrow I would be glad.” In response to that declaration, a woman spoke out, loudly enough for others to hear. “Oh, I hope not,” she said.

Sharing this experience some time later, President Smith taught:

“Do you not want the end of the world to come?

“Most people have the wrong idea of what is meant by the end of the world. …

“… When Christ comes there will be an end to the world. … There will not be any war, any turmoil, envying, lying; there will be no wickedness. Men will learn then to love the Lord and keep His commandments, and if they don’t they will not stay here. That’s the end of the world, and that is what the Savior prayed for when His disciples came to Him and said, ‘Teach us to pray.’ What did He do? He taught them, ‘Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.’ [See Luke 11:1–2.]

1 The coming of the Lord is near.

We are rapidly approaching the great day of the Lord, that time of “refreshing,” when he will come in the clouds of heaven to take vengeance upon the ungodly and prepare the earth for the reign of peace for all those who are willing to abide in his law [see Acts 3:19–20].³

2 There will be a judgment when Christ comes.

The parable the Lord taught of the Wheat and the Tares had reference to the last days. According to the story a sower planted good seed in his field, but while he slept the enemy came and sowed tares in the field. When the blades began to show, the servants desired to go and pluck up the tares but the Lord commanded them to let both the wheat and the tares grow up together until the harvest was ripe, lest they root up the tender wheat while destroying the tares. Then at the end of the harvest, they were to go forth and gather the wheat and bind the tares to be burned. In the explanation of this parable, the Lord said to his disciples that “the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.” [See Matthew 13:24–30, 36–43; D&C 86.]⁶

3 To prepare for the coming of the Lord, we need to watch and pray and get our houses in order.

There are many events in the world today which indicate that the great day of the Lord is drawing near when the Redeemer will again appear to set up his kingdom in righteousness preparatory to the millennial reign. In the meantime it is the duty of members of the Church to seek for knowledge and to prepare themselves by study and by faith for the ushering in of that great and glorious day.¹³

We do not need to be worrying about the times and the seasons when Christ shall come, but we do need to watch and pray and be ready.¹⁴

4 Latter-day Saints can be instruments in God’s hands to prepare a people for the Lord’s coming.

Would it not be an extraordinarily strange thing if the Lord should come and begin his reign of peace, take vengeance on the wicked, cleansing the earth from sin, and not send messengers to prepare the way before him? Should we expect the Lord to come to judge the world without first giving it warning and preparing the means of escape for all who will repent?

5 The Millennium will be a time of peace and a time to labor in the work of the Lord.

The righteous will rejoice when he comes, because then peace will come to the earth, righteousness to the people, and that same spirit of peace and joy and happiness which prevailed upon this continent for two hundred years [see 4 Nephi 1:1–22] shall again be established among the people and eventually shall become universal, and Christ shall reign as Lord of lords and King of kings for a thousand years. We are looking forward to that time.²³

For one thousand years shall this happy time of peace prevail and in due time all the inhabitants of the earth shall be brought into the fold of the Church.²⁴

"The Lord has said through his servants that during the Millennium those who have passed beyond and have attained the resurrection will reveal in person to those who are still in mortality all the information which is required to complete the work of these who have passed from this life. Then the dead will have the privilege of making known the things they desire and are entitled to receive. In this way no soul will be neglected and the work of the Lord will be perfected.³⁰

I pray every day of my life that the Lord will hasten His work. … I am praying for the end of the world because I want a better world. I want the coming of Christ. I want the reign of peace. I want the time to come when every man can live in peace and in the spirit of faith, humility and prayer."