Thought: We
see today all of these evils, more commonly & generally, than they have
ever been seen before, as we have so recently been reminded by what has
occurred in New York City, Washington, and Pennsylvania. We live in a season
when fierce men do terrible and despicable things. We live in a season of war.
We live in a season of arrogance. We live in a season of wickedness, pornography,
immorality. All of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah haunt our society. Our young
people have never faced a greater challenge. We have never seen more clearly
the lecherous face of evil.... We have become as a great army. We are now a
people of consequence. Our voice is heard when we speak up. We have
demonstrated our strength in meeting adversity. Our strength is our faith in
the Almighty. No cause under the heavens can stop the work of God. Adversity
may raise its ugly head. The world may be troubled with wars and rumors of
wars, but this cause will go forward. (GBH CR Oct. 2001)
Book of the Week: "Covenants Prophecies & Hymns of the Old Testament-The 30th
Annual Sidney B. Sperry Symposium" 2001
David is mentioned 1139 times in the
Bible, second only to Jesus.
Each of Israel's Kings reigned for 40
years.
2 Samuel
12:15 - It was fulfilled as David had 4 sons die. 2 Samuel 13:28-33; 18:14-15;
1 Kings 2:23-25.
Psalms- “Music is part of the
language of the Gods. It has been given to man so he can sing praises to the
Lord. It is a means of expressing, with poetic words and in melodious tunes,
the deep feelings of rejoicing and thanksgiving found in the hearts of those
who have testimonies of the divine Sonship and who know of the wonders and
glories wrought for them by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Music is both in
the voice and in the heart. Those whose voices can sing forth the praises found
in their hearts are twice blest. “Unfortunately not all music is good and
edifying. Lucifer uses much that goes by the name of music to lead people to
that which does not edify and is not of God. Just as language can be used to
bless or curse, so music is a means of singing praises to the Lord or of
planting evil thoughts and desires in the minds of men. (D&C 25:12.)
“In view of all that the Lord Jesus Christ
has done for us, ought we not to sing praises to his holy name forever?”
(McConkie, The Promised Messiah, p. 553.)
The Bible commands
us "to sing" 37 times. See Zephaniah 3:17
Anciently the Hebrews divided the one hundred and fifty
psalms into five separate books that included, in today’s Bible, Psalms 1
through 41, 42 through 72, 73 through 89, 90 through 106, and 107 through 150.
At the end of each division, the break is marked with a doxology, or formal
declaration of God’s power and glory (see Psalms
41:13; 72:19;
89:52;
106:48).
Psalms 150
is itself a doxology, using the Hebrew Hallelujah,
“praise ye the Lord,” at its beginning and end, as well as the word praise eleven other times. It is a fitting conclusion to
the Tehillim, “songs of praise.”
Our English word psalms derives from
the Greek psalmoi, meaning sacred
songs sung to musical accompaniment, and is a translation of the Hebrew plural
noun tehillim, usually rendered songs
of praise. The book of Psalms, also called the Psalter, was ancient Israel's
hymnbook. We have 150 psalms in the
KJV of the Bible. Anciently it was divided into 5 sections. It is the longest
book in the Old Testament (97 pages-Isaiah has 80) Of 283 direct citations form
the OT in the New, 116 have been counted from Psalms. (Other quote said 414 and Isaiah was quoted
419 times and Genesis 260-Jesus 25x)The Psalms contain praises, prayers,
laments, blessings, vows and exultations. They include much thanksgiving,
honoring the mortal king and the eternal King, and acknowledging wisdom,
prophecy, and the judgments of God. Many were written by King David.
One of the prominent features of
Hebrew poetry is the pattern or form, involving the repetition of words or
thoughts in parallel or successive lines, with the two or more parts somehow
balancing each other in order to give additional emphasis to the original
thought. The various forms of parallelism are synonymous (same or similar),
synthetic (completing or complimentary), and climactic (building to a climax).
1- Begins with
a Beatitude and contrasts the righteous with the ungodly.
2 - Messianic
Psalms; 2, 8, 16, 22, 31, 34, 41, 55, 69, 91, 107, 110, 118
3- Written as
David flees from Absalom
8- (70)vs. 5,
a better translation from the Hebrew, "Thou didst make him lack little of
God." see footnote.
15- & 24 -
Temple worthiness Psalms.
22- A detailed
prophecy of Christ's suffering and death.
23- #1 rated
Psalm.
46 - Count the
46th word from the beginning and the 46th word from the end.
90- Said to be
written by Moses.
110:1 - Is
quoted more than any other Psalm in the New Testament.
119 Acrostic Psalms -
We can learn the aleph-bet by
examining various Biblical passages which are written as acrostics
(alphabetically ordered verses & each first word commencing with each
Hebrew letter of the alphabet in turn, from 1 through to 22). Psalm 119 is a
famous example, written with 8
verses for each of
the Hebrew consonants in order, so verses 1-8 each have a first word beginning
with 'aleph and verses 9-16 each have a first word beginning with beth,&
so on. Other acrostic psalms 25, 34, 111, 112, 145.
117- The shortest
chapter in the Bible.
118- The middle chapter
in the Bible. Verse 8 may be the middle verse in the Bible.
119- The Longest chapter
in the Bible.
113-118 - Hallel
consists of six Psalms (113–118), which are said as a unit, on joyous
occasions. On those occasions, Hallel is usually chanted
aloud as part of Shacharit (the
morning prayer service) following the Shacharit's Shemoneh Esreh ("The Eighteen", the main
prayer). It is also recited during the evening prayers the first night of Passover and after the Grace After Meals in the Passover Seder service. The first 2 psalms
113 and 114 are sung before the meal and the remaining 4 are sung after the
meal.
136 - In
Jewish liturgy is called "the Great Hallel" recited at the Passover
meal after the "Lesser Hallel". It is punctuated by the refrain that
emphasizes God's lovingkindness is everlasting. 26 times it says, "For His
mercy endureth forever.
The Heart is
mentioned 122 times in Psalms.
The 39 Psalms where
no author is given are called "The Orphan" psalms.
Should we view David’s life as a triumph or as a tragedy? The
answer is not a simple yes or no. Certainly David must be viewed as one of the
greatest royal administrators. He never took to himself authority that was not
his nor practiced unrighteous dominion. He never lost his perspective, as Saul
did. His refusal to lift his hand against Saul because he was the Lord’s
anointed is one of the finest examples of loyalty. Perhaps Jesus, in His office
of Messiah, is constantly tied into David and his reign because David did 3
things for temporal Israel that typify what Christ will do for spiritual
Israel. David united the 12 tribes into one nation under the ultimate
leadership of God. For the first time in history, David succeeded in winning
the whole extent of the promised land for the covenant people . And David
established Jerusalem as the spiritual and political center of Israel. Nevertheless,
no success can compensate for failure in our personal lives or in our families.
Consider that David was destined for exaltation, destined to rule in heaven
forever. As the Lord said, there is no greater gift that He could offer a man
than eternal life David had it within his grasp, and then, in a foolish attempt
to hide his sin, sent a man to his death. (OTSM p. 291)
Goodbye is a contraction of the phrase, "God be with
you" - Goodbye until Sept. 10 and 11.
Church History by the Decade 1980's
|
1980
|
Church Membership
|
4,639,822
|
|
1980-Mar. 2
|
Consolidated Meeting
|
Schedule announced
|
|
1980-Apr. 6
|
Sesquicentennial
|
Spencer W. Kimball speaks in Conference from Fayette, NY.
|
|
1981
|
Church installed
|
Extensive satellite system
|
|
1981
|
GB Hinckley called as an
|
Additional counselor to SWKimball
|
|
1981-Apr. 3
|
3-Fold Mission of Church announced by
|
President Kimball; Perfect the saints, proclaim the gospel and redeem
the dead.
|
|
1981-Sept.1
|
New editions of
|
Book of Mormon, D&C & Pearl of Great Price published. D&C
178 & 138 moved to D&C from Pearl of Great Price.
|
|
1982
|
Subtitle "Another
|
Testament of Jesus Christ" added to Book of Mormon
|
|
1982
|
Church membership
|
Hits 5 million
|
|
1983- Jan. 16
|
Deseret News
|
Began to be published on Sundays
|
|
1983
|
GB Hinckley dedicated
|
Atlanta Temple - the 1st of 92 he dedicated or re-dedicated.
|
|
1983-Jun 20
|
FORBES says in recent yrs. at least 10 swindles uncovered in Utah involving >
9,000 people
|
Losses > $200 million. "why?" Utah "fertile soil for swindles"
because of excessive trust among LDS members: "Most bilked are Mormons,
bilkers, too, profess to be upstanding members of the church and use church
connections
|
|
1984-Apr. 12
|
Russell M. Nelson was
|
Ordained a member of
the 12 after the death of LeGrand Richards.
|
|
1984-June
|
Area Presidencies began
|
With members called from the Seventies. Some 3-5 yr. terms.
|
|
1985-June
|
Freiberg Germany
|
Temple dedicated
|
|
1985-Nov. 5
|
Spencer W. Kimball
|
Died. age 90.
|
|
1985-Nov. 10
|
Ezra Taft Benson
|
Became President of Church
|
|
1985-Aug.
|
Johannesburg South
|
Africa temple dedicated-The first in Africa
|
|
1986
|
Seventies quorums in
|
Stakes are discontinued.
|
|
1987-Aug.
|
Genealogical Department
|
Renamed-Family History Department
|
|
1987-Sept.
|
International Mission
|
Discontinued. Areas taken over by Area Presidencies.
|
|
1988-Jan. 16
|
Adam Swapp
|
Used 87 sticks of dynamite to bomb Stake Center in Kamas.
|
|
1988-May 18
|
Elder Howard W. Hunter signs agreement with State of Israel
|
that "the Church will not engage in any missionary activity within
the borders of Israel, as long as such activity is not allowed by the
government of Israel
|
|
1988-Aug
|
Church completes
|
100 million endowments for dead
|
|
1988-Sept. 15
|
Mark Hoffman attempts
|
suicide by drug overdose. He is rushed to Uof U Hospital.
|
|
1988-May 3
|
David P. Wright, BYU Prof. N.
Eastern languages,
|
Is informed that his contract will not be renewed because of his
"unorthodox views" on "biblical scholarship, scriptural
prophecy, and the Book of Mormon."
|
|
1988-Jan. 30
|
7 Stakes created in
|
Lima Peru
|
|
1988-May 15
|
1st Stake organized in
|
Western Africa-Aba Nigeria-1st Stake all black priesthood ldrs.
|
|
1988-May 20
|
M. G. Romney died
|
Howard W. Hunter becomes President of the Quorum.
|
|
1988-Oct. 1
|
Ezra Taft Benson
|
urges members to flood the earth with the Book of Mormon.
|
|
1988-Oct. 2
|
Michaelene P Grassli,
|
Gen. Prim. Pres., 1st woman to speak in Gen. Conf. in 133 yrs.
|
|
1988-Oct. 24
|
Thomas S. Monson -1st Presidency met with official of German
Democratic Republic
|
Asks permission to
send missionaries to the DDR & call DDR citizens to serve missions to
other countries. Government officials later grant his requests.
|
|
1989-Apr. 1
|
2nd Quorum of Seventy
|
Formed with those who will serve for limited
time. President Benson gave pride talk.
|
|
1989-May 16
|
BYU Jerusalem Center
|
Dedicated by President Howard W. Hunter.
|
|
1989
|
Church is closed in
|
Ghana for 1 1/2 years
|
|
1989-Nov.
|
Fall of Berlin Wall
|
Signals the eventual breakup of Soviet Union |
|
1989-Nov.
|
Ward & branch budgets
|
In U.S. and Canada began to be funded from tithes. |
Church History by the Decade 1990's
|
1990
|
Church Membership
|
7,761,179
|
|
1990-sumer
|
Missions opened in
|
Poland,
Czechoslovakia, Hungary, (Soviet Union supervised in Helsinki)
|
|
1990
|
Ty Detmer BYU
|
Quarterback wins
Heisman Trophy
|
|
1990
|
Genealogical data
|
on compact disks is
available at Family History Centers.
|
|
1991-June
|
Tab. Choir performed in
|
Eastern Europe.
Church recognized in Russian Republic
|
|
1992
|
Relief Society sponsored
|
Gospel Literacy
|
|
1992-Dec.
|
Tabernacle Choir on
|
Tour in Israel
|
|
1993
|
Triple Combination
|
With new study helps
is published in Spanish
|
|
1993-Apr. 15
|
Mongolia dedicated
|
For preaching of Gospel by Elder Neal A. Maxwell
|
|
1993-June 7
|
Joseph Smith Memorial
|
Building dedicated.
|
|
1993-Sept. 13
|
The Council of Religious Affairs of the Council of Ministers in the
|
Soviet Union approves the registration of the Leningrad Branch of the
Church. The approval marks formal Soviet Union recognition of the Church for
the first time.
|
|
1993-Nov. 8
|
Temple-Ready a software
program to
|
speed up the process
of clearing names obtained from family history research for temple work.
|
|
1993-Nov. 15
|
Statue of Brigham Young moved from
|
S. Temple & Main
- 82 ft. to the north
|
|
1994-Feb. 13
|
Announced that 87 yr.
|
Old Uintah Stake
Tabernacle to be renovated to be temple.
|
|
1994-Feb. 25
|
Marvin J. Ashton died
|
|
|
1994-May 30
|
Ezra Taft Benson died
|
Age 94
|
|
1994
|
2000th Stake is
|
Organized in Mexico
City
|
|
1994-June 5
|
Howard W. Hunter
|
Became President of
the Church
|
|
1994-Dec. 11
|
2000th Stake organized
|
In Mexico City
|
|
1995
|
DVD's invented
|
|
|
1995-Jan. 8
|
Bountiful Temple
|
dedicated
|
|
1995-Mar. 3
|
Howard W. Hunter died
|
Age 87 after serving
for only 9 months as President of Church.
|
|
1995-Mar. 12
|
Gordon B. Hinckley
|
Became President of
the Church
|
|
1995-Apr. 1
|
Position of regional representative -
|
Discontinued. Announcement of a new
leadership position to be known as an Area Authority.
|
|
1995
|
The Family: A
|
Proclamation to the World is 1st presented at Gen. RS Meeting
|
|
1995-Apr.
|
Liahona became
|
International church magazine
|
|
1996
|
More than 1/2 of
|
Church members live outside the USA
|
|
1996
|
President Hinckley is
|
Interviewed on 60 minutes by Mike Wallace
|
|
1996
|
Pres. Hinckley dedicated
|
The Hong Kong temple & became 1st Church Pres. to visit mainland
China.
|
|
1996-Apr. 6
|
New Conference Center
|
Announced
by Pres. Hinckley |
|
1996-May 29
|
Cambodia & Vietnam
|
Dedicated
for preaching of the gospel. President
Hinckley visited China. (1st Pres. of Church) |
|
1997
|
England turned
|
Hong Kong over to China |
|
1997-Apr-5
|
Area Authorities to be
|
ordained 70's- 3rd, 4th, & 5th Quorums of 70 announced. |
|
1997
|
Pioneer
|
sesquicentennial is commemorated |
|
1997-Oct. 4
|
Announcement to build
|
Smaller temples made by President Hinckley |
|
1997-Nov
|
Church membership
|
reached 10 million. |
|
1997
|
Ground was broken for
|
New Conference Center |
|
1998-Feb. 17
|
Members from Somalia travel to Kenya to see Pres. Hinckley
|
The Church sent relief supplies to Somalia but no organized
missionary effort in that country. During the years of civil unrest and
drought, many Somalians had accepted the gospel while living as refugees in
nearby Kenya.
|
|
1998-Mar. 26
|
Pres. Hinckley dedicated replica of log home
|
where Smith. family resided at time of First Vision and Moroni
appeared.
|
|
1998-Apr. 4
|
Pres. Hinckley
|
Announced plan to build smaller temples.
|
|
1998-July 26
|
1st of smaller temples
|
Dedicated in Monticello, Utah
|
|
1998-Sept. 8
|
Pres. Hinckley appeared
|
On Larry King Live to discuss the LDS faith.
|
|
1998
|
New curriculum
|
Announced for Melchizedek Priesthood & Relief Society.
|
|
1999-Feb. 10
|
Mitt Romney chosen
|
As new chief of the Olympic Committee for 2002 games in SLC.
|
|
1999-Apr. 4
|
Pres. Hinckley
|
announced rebuilding Of Nauvoo Temple .
|
|
1999
|
Total # of temples in
|
Service or announced reached 100 w/ Palmyra Temple
|
|
1999
|
Church made
|
Genealogical Internet site available to public
|
