Introduction
One of the most memorable seminary classes I ever had occurred early in my sophomore year. I had seminary first period from Brother Carpenter. As we began class one morning, another teacher poked his head in the door and asked to talk with him outside. A few moments later, Brother Carpenter came back in and announced that he had just received word that the Church was re-instituting the Law of Consecration on a trial basis, and that one of the stakes from the Spanish Fork area would participate in the experiment.
How would you react to this news? What motivates that reaction? What can you learn about yourself as you examine your feelings and attitudes toward the Law of Consecration?
The Law of Consecration revealed to the Saints
To consecrate means to set apart or dedicate something to the service of the Lord.
Why did the Lord reveal the Law of Consecration?
- D&C 42:30. (To care for the poor and needy.) How is caring for the poor and needy accomplished through the law of consecration? (See D&C 42:31–34.)
- D&C 42:35. (To purchase lands, build houses of worship, and build the New Jerusalem.)
- D&C 42:40. (To help the Lord’s people overcome pride.) How can living the law of consecration help members overcome personal pride or greed?
- D&C 42:42. (To help the Lord’s people be industrious and avoid idleness.)
- D&C 51:9. (To help the Lord’s people be one.) In what ways does the Lord expect us to be one? How can the law of consecration help the Saints be one?
- D&C 78:3–7. (To make the Lord’s people equal in earthly things and help them receive a place in the celestial kingdom.) How does being equal in “earthly things” help us obtain “heavenly things”? (D&C 78:5).
- D&C 78:14. (To help the Church “stand independent above all other creatures.”)
- D&C 82:17–19. (To help the Lord’s people improve their talents for the good of all, seek the interest of their neighbor, and do all things with an eye single to God’s glory.) How can living the law of consecration help the Lord’s people develop greater charity?
Note in D&C 82:17–19 that we receive according to our wants if our wants are just. What might be some unjust wants? (I want a fancier house than the Joneses.) In verse 18 God wants to help us earn a 100-fold return on our talents. The Law of Consecration is not a law of scarcity, it is a law of abundance! The key is in verse 19 – we all seek the interest of our neighbor. This isn’t meddling in your neighbor’s business; it’s sincerely wanting to do things that will help each other. The Law of Consecration is not about “What can I get?” Rather it focuses on “What can I give?”
Consecrating possessions
Under the law of consecration, Church members voluntarily consecrated their possessions to the Church by legal deed (D&C 42:30).
Receiving a stewardship
After Church members consecrated their possessions, the bishop granted them stewardships, or portions, from all the properties received. The size of the stewardship depended on the circumstances and needs of the family, as determined by the bishop in consultation with the member who received it (D&C 42:32; 51:3). The stewardship was given with a deed of ownership so each member would be fully responsible and accountable for managing it (D&C 51:4; 72:3–4; 104:11–13). The stewardship, then, was treated as private property, not common or communal property, even though all property ultimately belongs to God.
Surpluses
If members produced a surplus from their stewardships beyond what was necessary for their families, at the end of the year they gave it to the bishop to put in the bishop’s storehouse (D&C 42:33; 51:13). The bishop used the surplus to care for the poor, to build houses of worship, and for other worthy purposes (D&C 42:34–35).
The Law of Consecration brings peace and prosperity
The people in the City of
After Jesus visited the Nephites, they lived this law successfully for nearly 200 years. Read 4 Nephi 1:1–3, 12–13, 15, 23. What recurring themes do you find in these verses? I love the truth that because the Nephites followed this principle, they became exceedingly rich! I believe that building our society and economy on eternal principles will bring prosperity like we have never known, both in its abundance and in its distribution.
We can consecrate our lives to the Lord now
In what ways can we live the law of consecration today?
Realize that everything we have belongs to the Lord
Read Psalm 24:1. Why is it important to remember that the world, everything in it, and even we belong to the Lord? How do our behaviors change when we remember this?
Bishop Victor L. Brown, former Presiding Bishop of the Church, said that until we “feel in total harmony” with the principle that everything we have belongs to the Lord, “it will be difficult, if not impossible, for us to accept the law of consecration. As we prepare to live this law, we will look forward with great anticipation to the day when the call will come. If, on the other hand, we hope it can be delayed so we can have the pleasure of accumulating material things, we are on the wrong path” (“The Law of Consecration,” 1976 Devotional Speeches of the Year [1977], 439).
Read D&C 19:26. How can we overcome covetous feelings? Remember, Martin was a wealthy landowner and he ended up selling his farm to pay for the first printing of the Book of Mormon!
President Brigham Young said: “I am more afraid of covetousness in our Elders than I am of the hordes of hell. … All our enemies … in the world, and all hell with them marshalled against us, could not do us the injury that covetousness in the hearts of this people could do us; for it is idolatry” (in Journal of Discourses, 5:353).
Make the sacrifices the Lord requires now
We don’t need to be like Naaman and hope for “some great thing” before we are willing to consecrate our lives. Here are some suggestions on what we can do right now, without waiting for any special invitation:
a. Pay tithing and fast offerings and give generously in other ways to those in need. By doing these things, we can help the Church care for the poor and carry on the important activities necessary to build the kingdom of God on earth. Elder Marion G. Romney asked: “What prohibits us from giving as much in fast offerings as we would have given in surpluses under the United Order? Nothing but our own limitations” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1966, 100; or Improvement Era, June 1966, 537).
b. Serve willingly in the Church. The Lord has admonished each person to “learn his duty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all diligence” (D&C 107:99). We should fulfill the callings we receive to the best of our ability. In addition to specific Church callings, we can share the gospel with others, do temple work, and seek to strengthen the testimonies of those who are new or weak in the faith.
c. Serve as a full-time missionary. Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve taught: “Going on a mission teaches you to live the law of consecration. It may be the only time in your life when you can give to the Lord all your time, talents, and resources. In return, the Lord will bless you with His Spirit to be with you. He will be close to you and strengthen you” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1996, 50; or Ensign, May 1996, 36).
Develop Christlike love for others
The ability to have Christlike love for others is the foundation of the law of consecration. As we grow in love, our ability to live this law will also grow.
Strive to consecrate all aspects of our lives to the Lord
Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve said: “We tend to think of consecration only in terms of property and money. But there are so many ways of keeping back part” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1992, 90; or Ensign, Nov. 1992, 66).
a. An unwillingness to be completely submissive to the Lord’s will. “The submission of one’s will is really the only uniquely personal thing we have to place on God’s altar,” Elder Maxwell said. “The many other things we ‘give’ … are actually the things He has already given or loaned to us. However, when you and I finally submit ourselves, by letting our individual wills be swallowed up in God’s will, then we are really giving something to Him! It is the only possession which is truly ours to give!” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 30; or Ensign, Nov. 1995, 24).
b. An unwillingness to give up selfish things, such as “our roles, our time, our preeminence, and our possessions” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 28).
c. Letting hobbies and preoccupations with less important things become too consuming.
d. Giving commendable civic service but remaining “a comparative stranger to Jesus’ holy temples and His holy scriptures” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 27).
e. Being dutiful in family responsibilities but not emulating Jesus’ example of gentleness with some family members.
f. Building up ourselves first rather than the
g. Sharing talents publicly while privately retaining a particular pride.
h. Accepting a Church calling while having a heart more set on maintaining a certain role in the world.
(See Conference Report, Oct. 1992, 88–92; or Ensign, Nov. 1992, 65–67; and Conference Report, Oct. 1995, 27–30; or Ensign, Nov. 1995, 22–24.)
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