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The following remarks were delivered on Sunday the 27th of October 2024 at Zion Ponderosa Ranch near Orderville, UT.
I want to thank the people who organized that—not just Mark and his wife, but all of the people who participated in organizing—and thank the speakers who have participated throughout the conference, and then everyone who has helped in getting this set up because there are a lot of people who participate and provide help that remain invisible. That has always been the case, that there are people that work behind the scenes that accomplish a great deal, and we benefit from it, but they don’t stand out and ever get any recognition. And there are a lot of things that have and ARE taking place that don’t come into anyone’s actual notice until a work has been accomplished, and then it rolls out into public view. But the work is ongoing, and there’s a great deal currently underway (just like Covenant of Christ has been underway for years before it rolled out this summer to public view).
The time’s come to vote on this question: “Do you have faith in these things and receive the scriptures approved by the Lord as a standard to govern you in your daily walk in life, to accept the obligations established by the Covenant of Christ as a covenant, and to use the scriptures to correct yourselves and to guide your words, thoughts, and deeds?” That’s the same question as was asked in 2017 at the time of the original covenant, with the only change being leaving out the Book of Mormon (which has previously been accepted) and substituting in its place the Covenant of Christ. If this is approved by the vote, it’s going to necessitate a change to the Teachings and Covenants Teachings and Commandments 158:4. That question in T&C 158:4 asks, Second, do you have faith in these things to receive the scriptures approved by the Lord as a standard to govern you in your daily walk in life, to accept the obligations established by the Book of Mormon as a covenant, and to use the scriptures to correct yourselves and to guide your words, thoughts, and deeds? I thought it would be re-worded to state, in relevant part, “…to accept the obligations established by the Book of Mormon AND Covenant of Christ as a covenant.” I was corrected by the Lord. T&C 158:4 is to be re-worded to state, in relevant part, “…to accept the obligations established by the Book of Mormon AND/OR the Covenant of Christ as a covenant.” The Lord wants those who want to accept one or the other or both to be part of His covenant people. The Lord wants to include in His covenant—in His covenant people—as many as will receive His offer.
So the time has come to vote, and I pose to you the question: Do you have faith in these things and receive the scriptures approved by the Lord as a standard to govern you in your daily walk in life, to accept the obligations established by the Covenant of Christ as a covenant, and to use the scriptures to correct yourselves and to guide your words, thoughts, and deeds? Those who have faith and agree to receive the Covenant of Christ, please stand and say, Yes.
Congregation: Yes.
Denver Snuffer: Thank you.
Now, I hope that doesn’t deter anyone, because those who reject the Covenant of Christ, they should also please stand and say, No.
Congregation Member: No, not in its current state.
Congregation Member: No. [Two additional “no” votes were not heard on the recording.]
DS: Thank you.
The vote is determined by the voice of the people, which requires a majority. In addition to those voting today, previous votes were taken in fellowships last Sunday, October 20, 2024. Paul Durham has tabulated those votes, and the tally for “yes” is 691 votes, and “no” was zero/none. Based on today’s and prior votes, the voice of the people has accepted the Covenant of Christ, which will become another added volume of Scripture for believers to correct themselves and to guide their words, thoughts, and deeds. So thank you.
Now, normally I try to prepare something, but I got instructed that at this point I was to offer a prayer on behalf of all those who have accepted the Covenant of Christ. And when I went to try to compose something, I was told not to do that. And so I’m going to… ([Phone rings] Please hold my calls, if you would.) I’m going to offer a prayer, but it’s not something that has been prepared in advance. So if you’ll bear with me for a moment, the instruction is to pray for those who have accepted Covenant of Christ.
O Lord, my God, on behalf of those who have accepted the Covenant of Christ, I would ask that You pour out upon them Your spirit, to increase the light by which they view the events in this dispensation, the challenges that they face in life, the choices that they have to make. Let the light of Your countenance illuminate the decisions that they make. As they have responded to Your voice and witnessed unto You, by their acceptance of Covenant of Christ, that they hear You, I ask that Your voice get louder, that it increase in clarity, that the understanding of these people increase, that they have Your blessing, Your guidance, and Your voice to be with, guide, and always accompany them.
We face peril at this point, and understanding, heeding, listening, and recognizing Your voice is essential to survival throughout the coming days and trials. I ask in Your name that You bless the people who have heard Your voice to this point, that it become louder, clearer, and that their understanding increase always. I ask that You bless them as a covenant people, that they may rise up to face the things that are put before every one of us through our daily life, and that we be gathered, and that we become, in fact, Your Covenant People, obedient, giving heed unto Your voice, recognizing that it’s You that they serve and no one else.
And I ask this in the name of Your son, Jesus Christ, Amen.
Congregation: Amen.
DS: This is a historic moment needed to prepare people for the Lord’s return. The Lord has condescended to help us understand His message for the last days by making the language easier for us to understand. His mercy and kindness again show how He reaches out to rescue us from a faltering and failing society. This modern English version of the Book of Mormon is protected by copyright but is available for any group to use, even if they only view it as a commentary and not as scripture. We would welcome using it by the LDS Church, the Community of Christ, the Fundamentalist groups, the Remnant Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or any other group or churches. Although copyrighted, we will allow it to be reproduced or published by different religious groups without charge; the only condition required is for our copyright notice to be included in all copies made of the text. If our copyright notice is included, anyone asking will receive written permission to copy and use the text without any fee or charge. It will now be added to the scriptures.info website in a searchable, copyable version, exactly as the rest of the Scriptures appear on scriptures.info website. I don’t think we’ll take it down from the current Covenant of Christ website, but there you cannot copy and move it into another medium. On scriptures.info, you will be able to do that.