Keep The Commandments

The Savior declared: "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments" (Matt. 1917). "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15). The surest way to happiness in this life is to keep the commandments of God and live the gospel of Jesus Christ. Consider the following scriptural examples:

Keep The Commandments

“Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy might, mind, and strength; and in the name of Jesus Christ … serve him.” (D&C 59:5.)
Confess the hand of God in all things. (See D&C 59:21.)
“Be patient in afflictions.” (D&C 24:8.)
“Be of good cheer.” (D&C 61:36.)
Sustain and support the priesthood in the home and Church. (See D&C 107:22.)
Pay an honest tithe and a generous fast offering. (See D&C 119:4; Mosiah 4:21.)
“Love thy neighbor as thyself.” (D&C 59:6.)
Teach your children. Bring them up in light and truth. (See D&C 93:40, 42–43.)
“Cease to find fault one with another.” (D&C 88:124.)
“Forgive one another.” (D&C 64:9.)
Elect honest, good, and wise men to public office. (See D&C 98:10.)
Obey and befriend “that law which is the constitutional law of the land.” (D&C 98:6.)
Be thrifty. Stay out of debt. (See D&C 19:35.)
Do not covet. (See D&C 88:123.)
Be honest in your dealings with others. (See D&C 51:9.)
Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy. (See D&C 59:10, 12–13.)
Abstain from the use of liquor, tobacco, and strong and hot drinks. (See D&C 89:5–9.)
“Cease to be unclean”; shun pornography. (D&C 88:124.)
Seek learning out of the best books. (See D&C 88:118.) Avoid literature and movies which portray evil as good and good as evil.
Do not commit adultery “nor do anything like unto it.” (D&C 59:6.) That means petting, fornication, homosexuality, and any other form of immorality.
“Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly.” (D&C 121:45.)
“Practice virtue and holiness” continually. (D&C 38:24.)
“Clothe yourselves with the bond of charity.” (D&C 88:125.)
Live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God. (See D&C 98:11.)
Be valiant in your testimony of Christ. (See D&C 76:51, 79.)
Honor your covenants. (See D&C 25:13.)
“Endure to the end.” (D&C 14:7.)

In a word, though you live in the world, be not of the world!

Live The Gospel

President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910 - 2008) gave this wise counsel:

"If our leaders could have spoken to us, I am confident they would have said, “Live the gospel.” That is the greatest challenge we face. It is a simple declaration, but encompassed in those few words is a mandate applicable to each of us. It concerns our home and family life. It concerns our daily work. It concerns our activities and responsibilities as men and women, brothers and sisters, in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As we return to our homes, let us resolve within our hearts to more fully live the gospel.

"One hundred years ago at the October 1884 conference, in this same Tabernacle, George Q. Cannon, Counselor in the First Presidency, standing where I now stand, said to those here assembled:

'If I could speak so that the whole world would hear the utterance I would like to sound it in the ears of all mortal men—that there is no power that will ever be permitted to array itself, or to combine itself against this work of our God, to retard its onward progress from this time forward until the full consummation will be achieved—that is, if the Latter-day Saints themselves are faithful to God, if they will keep the commandments of God, if they will sanctify themselves and cleanse themselves from sin, and live pure and holy lives. If they will do this, then the success and the triumph and the continued growth and advancement of this kingdom … are assured unto us as a people. There is no doubt of it. I say in the name of Jesus Christ, that it will be so.' (Journal of Discourses, 25:325.)

"I urge the people of the Church, wherever you may be, when you are faced with problems, first to try to solve those problems yourselves. Think about them, study alternatives available to you, pray about them, and look to the Lord for direction. If you are unable to settle them yourselves, then talk with your bishop or branch president. He is a man of God, called under the authority of the holy priesthood as the shepherd of the flock.

"Enjoy your membership in the Church. Where else in all the world can you find such a society? Enjoy your activity. When I was a missionary in London fifty years ago, my companion and I would shake hands in the morning and say to one another, “Life is good.” Life in the service of the Lord is good. It is beautiful. It is rewarding.

"Be happy in that which you do. Cultivate a spirit of gladness in your homes. Subdue and overcome all elements of anger, impatience, and unbecoming talk one to another. Let the light of the gospel shine in your faces wherever you go and in whatever you do"(Gordon B. Hinckley, “Live the Gospel,” Ensign, Nov 1984, 85)