The Ultimate Source of Truth

What I love about the internet is that with one click of the mouse, you can have more information available than you have time to read. The problem is that just because something is written on the internet, doesn't mean that it is true. You always have to be careful. I always try to be careful to check the sources. In the same way, I always caution my friends who want to learn about our church to go to the source. I tell them to come to me, or the missionaries, or an official church website to learn about our church. Even our youth attend 4 years of seminary and can explain our beliefs. But other sources, such as websites, or other churches, might be biased in their view of our beliefs, and might have misunderstandings. They might not understand our beliefs because they don't understand the underlying doctrine.

Before a person can do algebra, they must learn addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. So too, before coming to an understanding of some of our beliefs, a person must have an understanding of the underlying doctrine. Some think that because they understand their own religion, that they have enough of a foundation to understand ours. But some of our fundamental basics are slightly different from others' understanding.

The other source we should go to is God. We can pray to God for understanding and guidance to know which things are true. In John chapter 14 verse 26 we read, "26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." Our Heavenly Father is the ultimate source of truth. I encourage anyone who is studying our religion, or reading the Book of Mormon, to pray to know the truth. God is the ultimate source of all truth.

The Book of Mormon teaches,

"4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.
5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." Moroni 10:4,5
In my mind, this is one of the most powerful of all scriptures. It teaches us how we can find truth. There are some key parts to this scripture.
--"And when ye shall receive these things.." The first step in understanding if something is or is not true is to study it. We need not be afraid of truth. We need more to be afraid of ignorance of the truth. If something is true, we want to know it.
--"I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true.." The next step is to pray and ask God
--"and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent..." Some people pray with the attitude to prove it wrong, not with an open mind and heart. How can the Holy Ghost communicate with a closed heart and mind?
--"he will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things." How does the Holy spirit communicate with us? In Doctrine and Covenants 8:2 we read, "2 Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart." When the spirit communicates with us, we feel the truth in our hearts, and we know the truth in our minds.

Can you see how important it is to have an open mind and heart? How can we truly be taught something we never knew if we close our minds and hearts to possibilities? We need to have faith in the power of the Holy Ghost to testify to us. This power isn't limited to religious topics. We can ask God for help in whatever endeavor we pursue. Truth is truth, no matter the field.

My challenge to you is to read the Book of Mormon with a sincere heart, with real intent to know if it is true. Then pray to know if it is true. Once God gives you an answer, then you too can know "the truth of all things."