I Will Consecrate Myself to Building the Kingdom
A story has been told about a chicken and a pig who found themselves discussing their contributions to the farmer’s breakfast table. The hen bemoaned having to donate her eggs for the breakfast. The pig replied, “Yes, but for you, it’s just a small sacrifice. For me, it’s a total commitment!”
What lessons does this little anecdote contain for us as members?
Consecrate means...to set apart or dedicate something to the service of the Lord
*Quote 1: "Consecration is the giving of one's time, talents, and means to care for those in need—whether spiritually or temporally—and in building the Lord's kingdom. In Welfare Services, members consecrate as they labor on production projects, donate materials to Deseret Industries, share their professional talents, give a generous fast offering, and respond to ward and quorum service projects. They consecrate their time in their home or visiting teaching. We consecrate when we give of ourselves" (Spencer W. Kimball, in Conference Report, Oct. 1977, 124).
**During the lesson Sharleen made three headings on the chalkboard
Time Talents Possessions
She asked the question "How do we consecrate our time, talents, possessions?
Stop for a moment and see what you come up with...the board was full of wonderful thoughtful responses. Isn't it wonderful to be given opportunities to do some reflecting on our lives!
*Quote 2: "For now, consecration may not require giving up worldly possessions so much as being less possessed by them" (Neal A. Maxwell, "Settle This in Your Hearts," Ensign, Nov. 1992, 67).
What are the purposes of the law of consecration? Why not just tithing?
*Quote 3: "For Zion can only be built up by the law that God revealed for that purpose, which is the law of consecration—not the law of tithing. . . . If the law of consecration were observed, the Lord would have plenty in His storehouse and could accomplish a vast deal more, and none would lack. All the energies and power of the people would be concentrated in the direction He chose, the people giving all their labor, talent and possessions, if required, for the accomplishment of the purposes of God" (Joseph F. Smith, Millennial Star, June 18, 1894, 386).
The following scriptures you can use in a study of the law of consecration...
D&C 42:30
D&C 42:35
D&C 42:40
D&C 42:42
D&C 51:9
D&C 78:3-7
D&C 78:14
D&C 82:17-19
How can living the law of consecration help the Lord's people develop greater charity?
Wasn’t the Law of Consecration a law of the past? Why are we still talking about it? (***The command to live the United Order was repealed but the law of consecration is a Celestial Law)
Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained: “I shall now set forth some of the principles of sacrifice and consecration to which the true saints must conform if they are ever to go where God and Christ are and have an inheritance with the faithful saints of ages past.
“. . . The law of sacrifice is a celestial law; so is the law of consecration. . . .
“Sacrifice and consecration are inseparably intertwined. The law of consecration is that we consecrate our time, our talents, and our money and property to the cause of the Church; such are to be available to the extent they are needed to further the Lord’s interests on earth.
“The law of sacrifice is that we are willing to sacrifice all that we have for the truth’s sake—our character and reputation; our honor and applause; our good name among men; our houses, lands, and families; all things, even our very lives if need be.
“We are not always called upon to live the whole law of consecration and give all of our time, talents, and means to the building up of the Lord’s earthly kingdom. Few of us are called upon to sacrifice much of what we possess, and at the moment there is only an occasional martyr in the cause of revealed religion.
(The Lord tells us in Doctrine & Covenants 88:22, “He who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory.”) What the scriptural account means is that to gain celestial salvation we must be able to live these laws to the full if we are called upon to do so.
“Now I think it is perfectly clear that the Lord expects far more of us than we sometimes render in response. We are not as other men. We are the saints of God and have the revelations of heaven. Where much is given much is expected. We are to put first in our lives the things of his kingdom.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1975, pp. 74–76; or Ensign, May 1975, pp. 50–51 .)
About 20 years ago Neal A. Maxwell sent out a call for greater consecration to the essentially “honorable” members who he said are skimming over the surface instead of deepening their discipleship. He identified some such members as those who accept callings but not all of the accompanying responsibilities thereby leaving the work to be done by those already anxiously engaged; those who regard themselves as merely resting in between Church callings but he said we are never in between the call from Jesus “What manner of men [and women] ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.” He said that some of these members may even pass through our holy temples, but, alas, they do not let the holy temples pass through them.”
*How are we doing in heeding his call?
*What keeps us from living a more consecrated life?
Brigham Young counseled the Saints on this very subject. Said he: “Stop! Wait! When you get up in the morning, before you suffer yourselves to eat one mouthful of food, … bow down before the Lord, ask him to forgive your sins, and protect you through the day, to preserve you from temptation and all evil, to guide your steps aright, that you may do something that day that shall be beneficial to the kingdom of God on the earth. Have you time to do this? … This is the counsel I have for the Latter-day Saints to day. Stop, do not be in a hurry. … You are in too much of a hurry; you do not go to meeting enough, you do not pray enough, you do not read the Scriptures enough, you do not meditate enough, you are all the time on the wing, and in such a hurry that you do not know what to do first. … Let me reduce this to a simple saying—one of the most simple and homely that can be used—‘Keep your dish right side up,’ so that when the shower of porridge does come you can catch your dish full.” 1
Neal A. Maxwell spoke concerning fear. He said: “In pondering and pursuing consecration, understandably we tremble inwardly at what may be required. Yet the Lord has said consolingly, “My grace is sufficient for you” (D&C 17:8). Do we really believe Him? He has also promised to make weak things strong (see Ether 12:27). Are we really willing to submit to that process? Yet if we desire fullness, we cannot hold back part!
Having our wills increasingly swallowed up by the will of the Father actually means an enhanced individuality, stretched and more capable of receiving “all that [God] hath” (D&C 84:38). Besides, how could we be entrusted with His “all” until our wills are much more like His? Nor could His “all” be fully appreciated by the partially committed.
So many of us are kept from eventual consecration because we mistakenly think that, somehow, by letting our will be swallowed up in the will of God, we lose our individuality (see Mosiah 15:7). What we are really worried about, of course, is not giving up self, but selfish things—like our roles, our time, our preeminence, and our possessions. No wonder we are instructed by the Savior to lose ourselves (see Luke 9:24). He is only asking us to lose the old self in order to find the new self. It is not a question of one’s losing identity but of finding his true identity! Ironically, so many people already lose themselves anyway in their consuming hobbies and preoccupations but with far, far lesser things.
Consecration involves pressing forward “with a steadfastness in Christ” with a “brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men … [while] feasting upon the word of Christ” (2 Ne. 31:20). Jesus pressed forward sublimely. He did not shrink, such as by going only 60 percent of the distance toward the full atonement. Instead, He “finished [His] preparations” for all mankind, bringing a universal resurrection.”
Sharleen closes with her testimony and final thoughts: Reflect on the story at the beginning of the lesson today much during this next month. Decide today to take Brigham Young’s counsel and consecrate yourself to Heavenly Father in prayer each morning. Our consecration will not happen with one single act. Offering ourselves for sacred uses might simply mean maintaining a consistent attitude of meek willingness to offer all we are capable of giving at any given time while we help those about us do the same. Consecration is a day-to-day process of dedication, humility, refinement, and purification as we follow the example of the most consecrated person of all time—our Savior and Redeemer Jesus Christ.
