FLDS Priesthood History for 3rd – 8th Grade Students

Taught by Warren Jeffs

Tape # 27 – February 20, 1996

Subject: Take Upon Us the Name of Christ
Before we go into details of training in this, I want to point a few things out to you. Maybe you
haven't realized what you have done so far in your life, as far as your religion is concerned. I remind
you of what we taught you concerning Father Adam. He was told that all who look forward to the
event of Jesus' coming would be saved. All who do not will be damned. That looking forward involves
obeying, not just thinking something. We are to do all we do in the name of Jesus Christ. When you
were baptized, you took upon you the name of Christ and from that moment on, your life is to be
dedicated to him. He has promised that if you obey Him, He will give you eternal life.
I remind you all that priesthood means God. Priesthood is God - God is priesthood. Whenever
a blessing is given in the name of the priesthood that means it's in the name of our Lord and Savior.
Some of the young men here have received the Aaronic priesthood - in the authority of the priesthood
and in the name of Jesus Christ. Young people, please listen. You are the only true Christians on the
face of the earth. The only true Christians are the followers of Christ - those who come unto Him
through His prophet.
Ahead of you young people are more priesthood blessings - one of the greatest, of course, is
celestial and plural marriage. When the prophet gives you that blessing - after you make the promise -
he ends that blessing with "by the authority of the holy priesthood, and in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Ghost". Every blessing is in the name of Christ, so if you receive blessings
in his name, that means you willingly take upon you His name. That involves obedience every minute
of your life. What a terrible situation it is, to take Christ's name upon ourselves and then serve the
other party - serve the evil one.
After you receive your marriage covenants and other blessings, there is one great event that
you must have in your life, in order to go to the celestial kingdom. It is called "having your calling and
election made sure." It is also called "receiving the second comforter." I want to plant this in your
hearts. You need to know about it. You don't just die, then get resurrected, then go to heaven. You have
to have certain priesthood blessings to go to the celestial kingdom. If you don't have them, you can't go
there.
The first one of course, is baptism. If you will obey that covenant, it will lead you to the
celestial kingdom. There are other blessings you must receive: the priesthood, the covenant of
marriage - and you must prove faithful in those promises. Any person that enters into a promise with
the Lord - He will allow the evil powers to test us, to see if we will keep that promise. Those who keep
their promises - covenants they are called - they will continue on and receive the greatest blessing
through priesthood, and that is "the second comforter." When the Lord sees that you are faithful in all
things, He will tell His prophet to give you blessings called the endowments. Then, according to the
Lord's time, the prophet will introduce our Lord and Savior to you.
Who receives eternal life in the highest degree of glory in the celestial kingdom? Those people
who can be blessed personally by our Lord Jesus Christ. Our prophet is trying to teach us how to live.
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 If you will be faithful to the blessings received in the priesthood - those will lead you to
come into the presence of our Savior. If you cannot, you don't get the celestial kingdom. It is not going
to be given to you. You must be worthy to live in His presence.
There's many young people who have been baptized - even some young men who have
received the Aaronic priesthood - and they don't even care. It's almost nothing to them. When you were
baptized and took upon yourself, the name of Christ, it meant your whole life was involved in coming
into His presence - all your thoughts, all your desires - everything would be given you through that
great power. Young people know this is doctrine and not stories. You are learning this priesthood
history so that you can one day come into the presence of our Savior.
If you are not worthy of that blessing where He personally blesses you, you do not receive that
eternal life. All of us are called to be part of the good people, but to have it sure means the Savior
Himself puts His hand on your head and gives you a blessing. There are millions of people who have
been baptized and are damned - they didn't make it. If He (Christ) offers you a blessing and you reject
it, all there is left is a cursing. Most of the people that have been baptized since Joseph Smith's day
have proven unfaithful. Now it's our turn to take upon us His name and live this religion.
Our Savior so often said, "I come to do the will of my Father." We all have one common
father in the flesh – our priesthood father, President Jeffs. Your earthly fathers had you as
children by approval and appointment of the prophet. Your father has the mission to turn you to
the one man on earth who represents the Savior. The full sense of taking upon you the name of
Christ is to obey his prophet in everything, not just on Sunday or here at school - in everything at all
times.
One of the Ten Commandments says, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord, thy God, in
vain." Uncle Roy gave us the full meaning of that. When you enter a covenant like baptism and
declare that you will follow Him (Christ) and obey Him. If you then break that promise and do not
obey Him, you are making fun of Him. Even without saying any words, you take His name in vain,
mock Him The devil is saying, "Worship me, worship me, just follow your selfishness and your
body", so you can worship the devil- that's the temptations of the evil spirits. Whenever you break
your promise by disobeying the priesthood, you are dishonoring God's name.
That is why I'm taking this time today, before we talk of Jesus' life. There are millions of
children that can read stories of Him, but you children in this priesthood work are the only ones
privileged on the face of the whole earth to take upon you the name of Jesus Christ. You do it through
baptism approved of President Jeffs.
Uncle Roy says we're under condemnation - shut out of Heaven - and why? Because we have
treated Heavenly Father lightly. We live our life like He's not even there. He is offended, His spirit
leaves us, and we're not that prepared people yet. It is a great blessing to come into the presence of
President Jeffs. To meet and be blessed by our Lord and Savior personally - that is what gives a person
eternal life. Now, imagine you trying to go up and meet Him, but you haven't followed His word - He
will say, "I don't know you - depart." He will say, "You go on my left hand where the wicked are - you
who have not honored me."
On the right hand will be those who obeyed Him. The words of our prophets are the words of
our Savior Jesus Christ. Young people do you realize that you did this - took upon you His name?
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Let's see if you can keep your promise and start thinking of our Savior often - how died on the cross -
lived and died for us.

February 23, 1996

Subject: The Life of Our Lord and Savior
It's a marvelous thing, to think upon our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He has made many
worlds and has been into mortality many times. He had to suffer by His worst enemy - Lucifer, who
rejoiced to bring the affliction upon our Savior.
Father Michael was Jesus' earthly father. It was promised that Jesus would be born during the
meridian of time - the middle of time. The time of this earth is eight thousand years. He came four
thousand years after the "fall." Our Lord and Savior was God before the world was made - He was
God when He came here, but when He was born into the flesh, He didn't have His eternal power to
control all things. That's how humble He became. He had to learn one step after another, how to be
good. He set the example that it's possible to come to this life and not do evil. He showed that you
could come here and do only right, because He had weaknesses of the body just like we do.
All of you know that for a baby to come here, it takes a father and a mother. Years before the
Savior was born, one of Heavenly Father's wives was born into this earth. On this earth, she was
known as Mary. While she was yet a very young lady, the angel Gabriel, who was Noah, appeared to
Mary. He taught her what her mission in life was. She was to be the mother of the Savior, but she was
also taught who the father would be. She was not married - she was very young. The scriptures say the
Holy Ghost, the spirit of God, fell upon her and she was with child. It means when Father Michael, the
father of this earth, came to Mary, she had to have the spirit of God protect her, as she was with a God.
The earthly father of Jesus was Father Michael. It wasn't a mortal man like our fathers are.
Jesus is called "The Only Begotten Son of the Father" in the flesh. That means His father was a
celestial man while His mother was mortal. People with earthly bodies can have children. Spirits
cannot. That's why the devil can never have children - he doesn't have a body. Jesus' body was
different in that way. It was earthly, yet heavenly.
All of us are also the children of Father Michael, but we were born through mortal men and
women. We are decendents of Father Michael who was Adam. According to the people of the world,
Mary didn't have a husband. Even in the world, if a woman has a baby and doesn't have a husband,
everybody calls her wicked. There was a man named Joseph who was supposed to marry Mary. When
he found out she was with child, married her but was commanded by the Lord "Don't you touch her
until after she has her child." When a mother is filled with the spirit of God, so are her children when
they are born. About the time when we have conference (April 6th) was the time of year when Jesus
was born.
Our story of the Savior in His young years when He was twelve years old - this story is
something that Uncle Roy wanted the people to realize. The lesson from this story that Uncle Roy
gives is: The Lord expects you, at a very young age, to grow up - to become good priesthood men and
women at an early age where you can be trusted, or you can be blessed, or you can do jobs for the
priesthood and not make fun of Heavenly Father. We have some twelve year olds here - some are
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older. The question is, can you be trusted? When you are given priesthood truths, do you just throw
them off like they are nothing, or are you hungering and thirsting to know the truth, and be a useful
person in the Lord's hands?
When Jesus was very young, he was visited by his real Father, who appeared to Him and
taught Him the truth. He didn't learn everything at once. He learned a little, believed it, obeyed. By
obeying, you are able to learn more and more and more. By age twelve, Jesus knew so much He could
have been the ruler of all the people. He grew up in Nazareth. He was a carpenter. In that day a
carpenter meant a tentmaker. He learned to work with His hands, just like you and I must. He
remained there unknown until He was thirty years old. He actually taught the people for only three
years. In the short life of thirty-three years, He performed the greatest work on earth. He set the
example that no matter what tests or trials, you can stay sweet and do the will of your father.
Mary was a wife of Michael on another earth. She was born here, grew up and prepared to
become the mother of our Savior. Why is Jesus called the Only Begotten? Sixth grade - raise your
hand, somebody. None of you know? I think you do - you just don't want to answer. He was the only
one born in the flesh through who? Father Michael, a celestial man. Jesus is the only heir - the son
who has the right to his Father's kingdom through birth.
It makes you just feel so grateful that the God over Father Michael, Jehovah was born into the
flesh through Father Michael. Jesus Christ is Jehovah - He is the Father and the Son. This great being
loved Father Michael and His children so much He left the eternal worlds for the purpose of suffering
more than man can suffer - to pay for the fall of Adam. He did this so you and I could be resurrected
and get our bodies again after death. It's just marvelous.
We are sad that He had to suffer. We rejoice in His love for us, that He would suffer for us.
Now, the only ones that He suffered for are the obedient. The disobedient - His suffering will only earn
them the right to receive a punishment. Let us honor His name by being obedient.

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