Saturday afternoon session: Testimony of Jesus is given of God by the Holy Ghost
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"As the world could not overcome Him in the meridian of time, so the world cannot do without Him in our time, and neither can we," said Bishop Keith B. McMullin, second counselor in the Presiding Bishopric.
After citing words penned in the early 12th Century by the cleric, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, "a man of intense faith," Bishop McMullin said, "These lines speak of hope and joy and peace, though written in a time when much of the world lay blanketed in ignorance, impoverishment and despair. These words capture the calm assurance that always accompanies the testimony of Jesus."
What then is this testimony of Jesus, how can it be acquired, and what will it do for those who receive it, he asked during the Saturday afternoon session.
"The testimony of Jesus is the sure and certain knowledge, revealed to the spirit of a person through the Holy Ghost, that Jesus is the living son of the living God."
A testimony of Jesus is given of God, he said. "It stands pre-eminent and is essential to a happy life."
A testimony is nurtured through righteous living and becomes the governing force in all that a person does, he continued.
"Acquiring such a testimony does not, however, come without personal effort. One must desire to know, study to learn, live to merit and pray to receive. When so pursued, in humility and faith, the knowledge comes, and with this knowledge comes both the sweet assurance that all will be well and the inner strength to make it so."
Bishop McMullin spoke of the Savior in the premortal world as the "stalwart, unwavering advocate of God's eternal plan" and how He "wrought out a perfect Atonement for all mankind by His incomparable life, His suffering in Gethsemane, the shedding of His blood, His death upon the cross and His glorious resurrection. He conquered the grave, and because of Him, so will we. . . .
"Jesus, the very thought of Thee fills my heart with inexpressible joy. It controls every part of my being. My life, my loves, my ambitions are molded, enlivened and given purpose because I know that Thou art the Christ, the Holy One."
