Followers of Christ

From conference talk given by Elder Walter F. Gonzalez

According to Elder Gonzalez, members of the LDS church from all over the world have a desire to follow Christ, but he also states that millions who are not members of the Church also have a desire to follow Him. I agree wholeheartedly with his assessment. Before I joined the church I was a Christian in the sense that I wanted to be a follower of Christ. And I was, in so far as I knew how to be.

By joining this church I have found more than I was able to find in the various churches that I had attended. I agree with Elder Gonzalez that it is our duty, as Latter-day Saints, to invite these millions to come and see what our church can add to the good things that they already have.

The Savior promises, “He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

As a follower of Christ I try to pattern my life after Him, I try to walk in the light. The test to know if I am accomplishing my goal to follow Christ can be seen in two ways. One, am I a loving person (as Christ was), and two do I make and keep covenants with my Heavenly Father?

Elder Gonzalez stated that when we follow Christ out of love, we follow His example. As Jesus Christ was obedient to the will of the Father, so too we must be obedient to the will of the Father.

Christ was obedient when it meant great physical and emotional pain, when it meant being whipped and tortured. He was obedient when his friends abandoned Him and even denied that they knew Him. Are we obedient when we are in pain, when we feel tortured and tormented, when we are abandoned by our friends, and sometimes family?

Just as Christ followed the Father under any circumstances, we should also follow our Savior, His son. If we do so, we are not alone. Christ will be with us, He will make us mighty in any circumstance.

When we follow Christ some of us, much as Ruth the Moabite, may be asked to forsake many dear things. Ruth, a convert, left everything that she knew and loved to follow Naomi because of her love for God.

It may mean withstanding adversity and temptation, like Joseph who was sold into slavery. He was taken from everything and everyone that he loved. He resisted temptation and did not sin. His love for God was greater than the adversity and temptation that he endured.

If we truly love Christ, he will provide the required strength needed to follow Him. Our love for our Savior will inspire us to keep His commandments, to live righteously and to continue to follow him through adversity and temptation.

A characteristic of Christ’s followers is making and keeping covenants just as He did. The Savior Himself is our example. He was baptized to fulfill all righteousness, thus demonstrating His willingness to be obedient in all things. Making covenants is an expression of love. This is how we say to Him, “Yes, I will follow Thee because I love Thee.”

We as Christians must know that “all things work together for them that are called according to his purpose.” (my paraphrase)

The power of our covenants is greater than any challenge we have faced, now face, or may face. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

We need to ask ourselves daily, is my love for my Savior reflected in my actions and my obedience to Him? We must determine to live by the power of our covenants, and refuse to let the challenges of life, of mortality, defeat our potential as followers of Christ.