Jesus Christ: Taking His Name upon Ourselves

2 Nephi 31:13

If ye shall follow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real intent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.

We take upon ourselves the name of Christ by baptism, by being baptized by a legal administrator with proper authority and under the auspices of ecclesiastical direction, witness and approval. “And no man taketh this honor unto himself but he that is called of God as was Aaron” (See Hebrews 5:4). When we take upon ourselves the name of Christ, who is our Lord and Savior, we are promising to strive to live as He lived, as perfect as possible. We need to seek a higher standard of living every day and every hour, to raise the bar of performance.

Self-Evaluation

1. Do you put God first in all that you do?
2. What is your current standard of living?
3. What are your current needs?
4. How can you improve?
5. What commandment are you having the most difficulty living?
6. What is the quality of your prayers?
7. What is the extent of your praise and gratitude to God?
8. What are you doing to build the Lord’s kingdom on earth? Do you magnify your callings?
9. How are you using your talents?
10. Can you, with perfect honesty, acknowledge God’s hand in all things?
11. Do you serve others selflessly? “When we serve others, we find Christ” (Harold Clyde)

The gospel of Jesus Christ is a balm, like the balm of Gilead. Look to God and live, even the abundant life.