Obedience Quotes - 2
"If you cannot obey those you have seen, how can you obey those you never saw? You never will see those whom brother Brigham and his brethren represent, unless you first obey those that you see every day. We are God's representatives; and if you want to know whether you will ever go into the presence of God, I can tell you that you never will, unless you learn to obey your brethren."
Heber C. Kimball Journal of Discourses, Vol.6, p.192 December 27, 1857
"Through obedience to gospel principles, the enticements of the world lessen in our lives. With each right choice we make, we spiritually empower ourselves. The accumulation of right choices builds inner spiritual strength and divine character. We should expect temptation, for without temptations there would be little education and little character improvement."
Rulon G. Craven April 1996 Conference (May Ensign) pg. 77
"Obedience must be voluntary; it must not be forced; there must be no coercion. Men must not be constrained against their will to obey the will of God; they must obey it because they know it to be right, because they desire to do it, and because it is their pleasure to do it. God delights in the willing heart."
"Those who talk of blind obedience may appear to know many things, but they do not understand the doctrines of the gospel. There is an obedience that comes from a knowledge of the truth that transcends any external form of control. We are not obedient because we are blind, we are obedient because we can see. The best control, I repeat, is self-control.
Elder Boyd K. Packer, "Agency and Control", April 3, 1983 Gen. Conf. address
Obedience Strengthens Faith
"Faith is a gift of God bestowed as a reward for personal righteousness. It is always given when righteousness is present, and the greater the measure of obedience to God's laws the greater will be the endowment of faith."
Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p. 264
"Youth, do not feel oppressed by obedience. Obedience is a wonderful and a great privilege. In Abraham 4:18 it states, "And the Gods watched those things which they had ordered until they obeyed." What if the elements had not obeyed? They would have been damned or held back. So it is with us. Obedience to God is truly the only way to really be free and exercise our agency. Satan teaches the opposite and, with each wrong choice, binds us with chains. I promise you, obedience is a wonderful privilege. "
Vaughn J. Featherstone, CR, October 1999, "One Link Still Holds"
"Obedience is a powerful spiritual medicine. It comes close to being a cure-all."
Boyd K. Packer (Ensign, November 1977, page 60), Oct. 1977 Gen. Conf. "Balm of Gilead"
"How often do Church members arise early in the morning to do the will of the Lord? How often do we say, 'Yes, I will have home evening with my family, but the children are so young now; I will start when they are older'? How often do we say, 'Yes, I will obey the commandment to store food and to help others, but just now I have neither the time nor the money to spare; I will obey later'? Oh, foolish people! While we procrastinate, the harvest will be over and we will not be saved. Now is the time to follow Abraham's example; now is the time to repent; now is the time for prompt obedience to God's will."
First Presidency Message: Spencer W. Kimball, "The Example of Abraham," Ensign - June 1975, p. 4
"When we are obedient, we are blessed with greater ability to communicate with our Heavenly Father and to know and do His will."
Monte Brough, Ensign, July 2000, p. 44
"Seventy years ago, Lord Moulton coined a perceptive phrase, 'obedience to the unenforceable,' describing 'the obedience of a man to that which he cannot be forced to obey.' God's blessings, including those associated with consecration, come by unforced obedience to the laws upon which they are predicated (see D&C 130:20-21). Thus our deepest desires determine our degree of 'obedience to the unenforceable.' God seeks to have us become more consecrated, by giving everything. Then, when we come home to Him, He will generously give us 'all that [He] hath'(see D&C 84:38)."
Neal A. Maxwell "If Thou Endure It Well," [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1996], p. 54
"Rationalization is one of the real obstacles to obedience."
Russell M. Nelson (Ensign, November 1987, page 88)
"I cannot overemphasize that one's independence and spiritual strength depend on obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel."
Boyd K. Packer Book: The Things of the Soul, p. 58 - CES Fireside, Nov. 7, 1993
"One of the sneaky ploys of the adversary is to have us believe that unquestioning obedience to the principles and commandments of God is blind obedience. His goal is to have us believe that we should be following our own worldly ways and selfish ambitions. This he does by persuading us that 'blindly' following the prophets and obeying the commandments is not thinking for ourselves. He teaches that it is not intelligent to do something just because we are told to do so by a living prophet or by prophets who speak to us from the scriptures.
"Our unquestioning obedience to the Lord's commandments is not blind obedience. President Boyd K. Packer in the April conference of 1983 taught us about this: 'Latter-day Saints are not obedient because they are compelled to be obedient. They are obedient because they know certain spiritual truths and have decided, as an expression of their own individual agency, to obey the commandments of God. . . . We are not obedient because we are blind, we are obedient because we can see' ("Agency and Control," Ensign, May 1983, 66)."
(Elder R. Conrad Schultz, "Faith Obedience," Ensign, May 2002, 29-30)
"No steam or gas drives anything until it is confined. No life ever grows great until it is focused, dedicated, disciplined."
Harry Emerson Fosdick
"I believe that if we will walk in obedience to the commandments of God, . . . he will open a way where there appears to be no way."
(Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, July 1995, 2)
"Obedience [is] … part of the plan of eternal happiness. I know of no doctrine that is more critical to our well-being in this life or the next."
Elder R. Conrad Schultz, "Faith Obedience," Ensign, May 2002, 29-30
"We should prepare ourselves through obedience to God's commandments, that our confidence will wax strong when we call upon the Lord."
Elder L. Tom Perry - Ensign, May 1999, 8 "Teach Them the Word of God with all Diligence"
"To know His will you must be committed to do it. The words 'Thy will be done,' written in the heart, are the window to revelation."
Elder Henry B. Eyring - Ensign, Nov. 2002, 76