13 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry called And Now, Why Tarriest Thou?, given on December 27, 1953. He states, "This morning we complete a year of HEAR YE HIM broadcasts, in which we have invited you to hear the words of Jesus Christ as recorded in his scriptures, and as they are brought to you by his apostles, prophets, and servants, both ancient and modern. We have presented the history and claims of the Restoration Movement, as represented by the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We have described the prophetic mission and ministry of Joseph Smith, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, the history of the rise of the church. We have tried to bring you the fullness of Christ's gospel -- to explain its doctrines, sacraments, and ordinances, to give you some understanding of what we believe as a church, and why. We have tried to bring you an explanation of the purposes, goals and ideals towards which we are striving as individuals and as a church."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #52 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 13 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on December 27, 1953. He states, "This morning we complete a year of HEAR YE HIM broadcasts, in which we have invited you to hear the words of Jesus Christ as recorded in his scriptures, and as they are brought to you by his apostles, prophets, and servants, both ancient and modern. We have presented the history and claims of the Restoration Movement, as represented by the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We have described the prophetic mission and ministry of Joseph Smith, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, the history of the rise of the church. We have tried to bring you the fullness of Christ's gospel -- to explain its doctrines, sacraments, and ordinances, to give you some understanding of what we believe as a church, and why. We have tried to bring you an explanation of the purposes, goals and ideals towards which we are striving as individuals and as a church."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry called Good Will To Men, given on December 20, 1953. He states, "...men have sought a peace which they supposed would come through some magic formula, mysteriously, providentially, suddenly. We have sought a peace in which all our enemies shall be forced to quit fighting us, but in which we shall be free to continue business as usual; a peace which will keep others from bothering us as we continue in our age-old sins, without repentance, without sacrifice, without effort. If Jesus would just do that for us, there would be countless millions of the peoples of earth who would gladly build him a church or make a substantial cash offering out of their prosperity, so that they could be let alone to enjoy themselves in sin and idleness and selfishness and lust and greed as before. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is not going to do it all. Neither will he coerce unwilling subjects. He has shown men the way of peace; he leaves it with them whether or not they will follow the ways of peace. The world today is still following the ways of strife and discord and hatred and war, and wondering why Jesus does not establish his reign of peace so that no one will make war any more."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #51 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on December 20, 1953. He states, "...men have sought a peace which they supposed would come through some magic formula, mysteriously, providentially, suddenly. We have sought a peace in which all our enemies shall be forced to quit fighting us, but in which we shall be free to continue business as usual; a peace which will keep others from bothering us as we continue in our age-old sins, without repentance, without sacrifice, without effort. If Jesus would just do that for us, there would be countless millions of the peoples of earth who would gladly build him a church or make a substantial cash offering out of their prosperity, so that they could be let alone to enjoy themselves in sin and idleness and selfishness and lust and greed as before. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is not going to do it all. Neither will he coerce unwilling subjects. He has shown men the way of peace; he leaves it with them whether or not they will follow the ways of peace. The world today is still following the ways of strife and discord and hatred and war, and wondering why Jesus does not establish his reign of peace so that no one will make war any more."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.14 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry called The Fullness Of The Gospel, given on December 13, 1953. He states, "You are entitled to a fullness of the gospel today. No condensation or simplification of it will do. All of it is necessary to a complete and full and satisfactory salvation. Many churches today offer the gospel in part. Like the incomplete book which I bought, their doctrine is all right as far as it goes; their organization to implement that doctrine is all right as far as it goes. But something is always lacking, or the emphasis is too much on one aspect of the gospel, while other equally essential parts are soft-pedalled or omitted entirely. Some preachers will tell you that all you have to do is to believe on Christ, and be saved. That is partly true, but it is not all the truth. Some churches place most of their emphasis on ritual, ceremony, and ordinance. That is good, but it is not all. Some churches base almost their whole philosophy on a belief in and practice of spiritual and divine healing. Some emphasize diet; some Sabbath observance; some authoritarian government; some democracy in church government; some social service; some foreign missions; some education; some a belief in the survival of spirits. None of us would quarrel with any of these beliefs; but we might safely dispute with any man or any church which stresses one to the exclusion of others, or omits even one essential portion of the gospel of Christ, and then purports to sell it as the fullness of the gospel."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #50 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 14 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on December 13, 1953. He states, "You are entitled to a fullness of the gospel today. No condensation or simplification of it will do. All of it is necessary to a complete and full and satisfactory salvation. Many churches today offer the gospel in part. Like the incomplete book which I bought, their doctrine is all right as far as it goes; their organization to implement that doctrine is all right as far as it goes. But something is always lacking, or the emphasis is too much on one aspect of the gospel, while other equally essential parts are soft-pedalled or omitted entirely. Some preachers will tell you that all you have to do is to believe on Christ, and be saved. That is partly true, but it is not all the truth. Some churches place most of their emphasis on ritual, ceremony, and ordinance. That is good, but it is not all. Some churches base almost their whole philosophy on a belief in and practice of spiritual and divine healing. Some emphasize diet; some Sabbath observance; some authoritarian government; some democracy in church government; some social service; some foreign missions; some education; some a belief in the survival of spirits. None of us would quarrel with any of these beliefs; but we might safely dispute with any man or any church which stresses one to the exclusion of others, or omits even one essential portion of the gospel of Christ, and then purports to sell it as the fullness of the gospel."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry called The Voice Of Warning, given on December 6, 1953. He states, "If Joseph Smith was a prophet of God (and we confidently believe that he was) then we of this generation are in peril, as individuals, as a nation, and as a world, Our lives, our wealth, our freedoms, our government, our civilization itself are all in jeopardy. Many other men -- good and wise and studious men who claim no particular prophetic insight, but who base their conclusions on fact of history -- are telling us the same things. There have been so many calamity-howlers in the past twenty years or so that people have shut their ears against them in self-defense. We have lived under the tensions of fear for so long that we have become wearied, and have calmly gone to sleep, only to be awakened by another rumor of war, or the hue and cry of another witch hunt, or the announcement of a new kind of bomb many times more destructive than the last. But remember that the people of Noah's day got a little weary of warnings too and as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #49 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on December 6, 1953. He states, "If Joseph Smith was a prophet of God (and we confidently believe that he was) then we of this generation are in peril, as individuals, as a nation, and as a world, Our lives, our wealth, our freedoms, our government, our civilization itself are all in jeopardy. Many other men -- good and wise and studious men who claim no particular prophetic insight, but who base their conclusions on fact of history -- are telling us the same things. There have been so many calamity-howlers in the past twenty years or so that people have shut their ears against them in self-defense. We have lived under the tensions of fear for so long that we have become wearied, and have calmly gone to sleep, only to be awakened by another rumor of war, or the hue and cry of another witch hunt, or the announcement of a new kind of bomb many times more destructive than the last. But remember that the people of Noah's day got a little weary of warnings too and as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry called Was Joseph Smith A Prophet?, given on November 29, 1953. He states, "Was Joseph Smith a prophet? The world says "No;" but many people who have investigated his work and his message would answer "Yes!" We ask you to listen for a few moments to some of the affirmative reasons why we believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that he accomplished God's work. As a theme text at the beginning of this sermon we read for you the words of Amos, who declared that God would do nothing without revealing his secret unto his servants, the prophets, It is a rule which can be traced through the Bible from beginning to end, that whenever God has been about to move to accomplish some great purpose, he has raised up prophets -- one or more -- has revealed to them that purpose, and commanded them to tell forth that purpose to the people. Whether his purpose was the destruction of wickedness, as in the days of Lot or of Noah, or Nebuchadnezzar or Titus, or the release of his people from captivity, as in the days of Moses; or the sending of his Son into the world as it was foretold by many Old Testament Prophets and announced by John the Baptist -- God has always revealed his secret unto his servants, the prophets. There is no reason to believe that he has ever rescinded that policy."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #48 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on November 29, 1953. He states, "Was Joseph Smith a prophet? The world says "No;" but many people who have investigated his work and his message would answer "Yes!" We ask you to listen for a few moments to some of the affirmative reasons why we believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that he accomplished God's work. As a theme text at the beginning of this sermon we read for you the words of Amos, who declared that God would do nothing without revealing his secret unto his servants, the prophets, It is a rule which can be traced through the Bible from beginning to end, that whenever God has been about to move to accomplish some great purpose, he has raised up prophets -- one or more -- has revealed to them that purpose, and commanded them to tell forth that purpose to the people. Whether his purpose was the destruction of wickedness, as in the days of Lot or of Noah, or Nebuchadnezzar or Titus, or the release of his people from captivity, as in the days of Moses; or the sending of his Son into the world as it was foretold by many Old Testament Prophets and announced by John the Baptist -- God has always revealed his secret unto his servants, the prophets. There is no reason to believe that he has ever rescinded that policy."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry on Jesus Is Coming Soon, given on November 15, 1953. He states, "Is Jesus coming again? Twenty of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament teach the second coming of Christ, and the authors of those books which do not expressly mention it (Paul for instance) teach it in their other writings. It can therefore be truthfully said that every writer who contributed to the New Testament believed in and taught the second coming. It is mentioned, according to one student, three hundred eighteen times in two hundred sixty chapters. And in addition, there are many references in the Old Testament to a Messiah who should come to gather the dispersed remnants of Israel, and the believing Gentiles, and to reign over them in glory -- promises which were never fulfilled by Christ's first advent as a babe. There are several glib but unscriptural and unsatisfactory explanations offered by those who do not believe in a personal, physical, literal second advent for Christ. One is that his return is to be only a spiritual return; that his second coming is the coming of his Holy Spirit to the believer. The recital of one simple historical fact disproves that theory. Every word of the New Testament was written after the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given to the Christian Church; and yet that New Testament, as we have said, promises in three hundred eighteen verses and in two hundred sixty chapters that Jesus will come again. Why keep renewing the promise, if the promise was already fulfilled on the day of Pentecost?"
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #46 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on November 15, 1953. He states, "Is Jesus coming again? Twenty of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament teach the second coming of Christ, and the authors of those books which do not expressly mention it (Paul for instance) teach it in their other writings. It can therefore be truthfully said that every writer who contributed to the New Testament believed in and taught the second coming. It is mentioned, according to one student, three hundred eighteen times in two hundred sixty chapters. And in addition, there are many references in the Old Testament to a Messiah who should come to gather the dispersed remnants of Israel, and the believing Gentiles, and to reign over them in glory -- promises which were never fulfilled by Christ's first advent as a babe. There are several glib but unscriptural and unsatisfactory explanations offered by those who do not believe in a personal, physical, literal second advent for Christ. One is that his return is to be only a spiritual return; that his second coming is the coming of his Holy Spirit to the believer. The recital of one simple historical fact disproves that theory. Every word of the New Testament was written after the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given to the Christian Church; and yet that New Testament, as we have said, promises in three hundred eighteen verses and in two hundred sixty chapters that Jesus will come again. Why keep renewing the promise, if the promise was already fulfilled on the day of Pentecost?"
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry on The Millenial Reign, given on November 22, 1953. He states, "Men have no power within themselves to overcome wickedness and sin and evil, alone and unaided, and bring about the golden age. Even if we grant that a group of very good men and women could perfect themselves as a group, there would always be those outside the group, if not within, who would make peace impossible and righteousness most difficult. Human wickedness must be restrained and judged in all its forms and in all places before we can have the golden age, This is a task for Deity. Man can help in many ways, through organized religion, through education, through various social and philanthropic organizations, through the efforts of government. Nevertheless history does not record the story of a single nation or group of people who alone and unaided have been able to build and maintain a golden age. On the contrary, Toynbee, one of the greatest of modern historians, says that sixteen out of the twenty-six great world civilizations known to history have already perished, that there is little hope for nine of the ten remaining, and grave danger even for the tenth one -- our own Western civilization. When men do reach the heights through their own efforts, leaving out God, they become lifted up in their pride and self-sufficiency, which inevitably lead them down to destruction. Jesus taught that his coming would usher in the millenial reign -- not follow it."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #47 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on November 22, 1953. He states, "Men have no power within themselves to overcome wickedness and sin and evil, alone and unaided, and bring about the golden age. Even if we grant that a group of very good men and women could perfect themselves as a group, there would always be those outside the group, if not within, who would make peace impossible and righteousness most difficult. Human wickedness must be restrained and judged in all its forms and in all places before we can have the golden age, This is a task for Deity. Man can help in many ways, through organized religion, through education, through various social and philanthropic organizations, through the efforts of government. Nevertheless history does not record the story of a single nation or group of people who alone and unaided have been able to build and maintain a golden age. On the contrary, Toynbee, one of the greatest of modern historians, says that sixteen out of the twenty-six great world civilizations known to history have already perished, that there is little hope for nine of the ten remaining, and grave danger even for the tenth one -- our own Western civilization. When men do reach the heights through their own efforts, leaving out God, they become lifted up in their pride and self-sufficiency, which inevitably lead them down to destruction. Jesus taught that his coming would usher in the millenial reign -- not follow it."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.16 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry on The Resurrection Of The Body, given on November 8, 1953. He states, "Are there any logical reasons why we should believe in a resurrection of the body? Yes! Nature teaches us that nothing can be lost or destroyed, that there is a natural conservation of energy and matter. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Matter can be chanced into energy, but matter can never be completely destroyed, no matter how it is changed in form....Another argument for a resurrection is the continuity of personality in a constantly changing stream of body cells. Old body cells are constantly dying and being replaced by new materials, and yet the real life and personality which reside in and find expression through the body remain unchanged through three score years and ten! Is it not reasonable to suppose that the life and personality that called together, organized, enlivened, and for many years directed and governed all this constantly changing stream of material will have power through Christ and his resurrection to call together, organize, and govern the material of a perfected, glorified body in the resurrection?...The deeds of this life are done by body and spirit in union and in cooperation with each other. If there is to be a judgment, it is necessary to justice that spirit and body be judged together for the deeds done together in this life. This then runs through all of scripture. The rewards and punishments meted out by the righteous judge at the great day of final judgment will be meted out in accordance with the deeds done in the body, and will be received by the redee
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #45 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 16 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on November 8, 1953. He states, "Are there any logical reasons why we should believe in a resurrection of the body? Yes! Nature teaches us that nothing can be lost or destroyed, that there is a natural conservation of energy and matter. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Matter can be chanced into energy, but matter can never be completely destroyed, no matter how it is changed in form....Another argument for a resurrection is the continuity of personality in a constantly changing stream of body cells. Old body cells are constantly dying and being replaced by new materials, and yet the real life and personality which reside in and find expression through the body remain unchanged through three score years and ten! Is it not reasonable to suppose that the life and personality that called together, organized, enlivened, and for many years directed and governed all this constantly changing stream of material will have power through Christ and his resurrection to call together, organize, and govern the material of a perfected, glorified body in the resurrection?...The deeds of this life are done by body and spirit in union and in cooperation with each other. If there is to be a judgment, it is necessary to justice that spirit and body be judged together for the deeds done together in this life. This then runs through all of scripture. The rewards and punishments meted out by the righteous judge at the great day of final judgment will be meted out in accordance with the deeds done in the body,
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.14 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry on Implementing Social Righteousness, given on October 18, 1953. He states, "We come now to a consideration of how man's desire for social righteousness is to be implemented. If men are to share as stewards over the good things of earth which God has placed within our reach, there must be some machinery, some organization, some implementation set up or established whereby men can accomplish these ends together in an orderly, reasonable, equitable fashion. If a good steward owes an accounting to God and fellow man, and if he owes a debt to God as tangible acknowledgement of his stewardship, there must be some authoritative means established whereby the accounting can be received in the name of God, and the tithe paid to God's representative and used for the purposes of God and his kingdom. If there is to be a voluntary sharing of the proceeds of labor, so that some men are not forced to live in poverty in spite of all their best efforts, while others live in idle ease by the sweat of another's toil, there must be some sort of organization or framework or mechanism established by which men can combine their efforts as stewards to insure the well-being of all."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #42 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 14 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on October 18, 1953. He states, "We come now to a consideration of how man's desire for social righteousness is to be implemented. If men are to share as stewards over the good things of earth which God has placed within our reach, there must be some machinery, some organization, some implementation set up or established whereby men can accomplish these ends together in an orderly, reasonable, equitable fashion. If a good steward owes an accounting to God and fellow man, and if he owes a debt to God as tangible acknowledgement of his stewardship, there must be some authoritative means established whereby the accounting can be received in the name of God, and the tithe paid to God's representative and used for the purposes of God and his kingdom. If there is to be a voluntary sharing of the proceeds of labor, so that some men are not forced to live in poverty in spite of all their best efforts, while others live in idle ease by the sweat of another's toil, there must be some sort of organization or framework or mechanism established by which men can combine their efforts as stewards to insure the well-being of all."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry on Judgment Is Eternal, given on November 1, 1953. He states, "We may hide our sins from the eyes of man. We may commit crimes and seemingly get away undiscovered and unpunished. But every act, good or bad -- every thought and wish -- leaves its impress to judge us. Every act, every thought, every wish either conforms to and obeys law, or defies and flouts it. It therefore follows that every act, thought, and wish leaves its impress upon us, has its inevitable effect and influence upon our total character. We are what we do; we become the kind of people that our actions make us. God's laws are eternal; the consequences of obedience or disobedience to those laws are eternal; therefore God's judgment is eternal, or in other words, is eternal judgment. It is judgment which shall endure through all eternity, for never can we escape from the consequences of our many choices -- the sum-total of which make up our character."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #44 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on November 1, 1953. He states, "We may hide our sins from the eyes of man. We may commit crimes and seemingly get away undiscovered and unpunished. But every act, good or bad -- every thought and wish -- leaves its impress to judge us. Every act, every thought, every wish either conforms to and obeys law, or defies and flouts it. It therefore follows that every act, thought, and wish leaves its impress upon us, has its inevitable effect and influence upon our total character. We are what we do; we become the kind of people that our actions make us. God's laws are eternal; the consequences of obedience or disobedience to those laws are eternal; therefore God's judgment is eternal, or in other words, is eternal judgment. It is judgment which shall endure through all eternity, for never can we escape from the consequences of our many choices -- the sum-total of which make up our character."
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry on Thy Kingdom Come (Zion), given on October 25, 1953. He states, "It is significant that when John the Baptist came preaching, he did not say that the kingdom of heaven was going to be available in some far off, distant day and time; it was available then. 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Jesus expressed the same idea somewhat later when he said, 'The kingdom of God is within you.' Some people have interpreted this verse to mean that the kingdom is in the individual heart. Since Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees, it is not plausible to believe that the kingdom of which he was speaking was within them, or in their hearts. A marginal note in the King James version reads, 'Or among you.' Another version says 'The kingdom of heaven is in the midst of you.' Still another says, 'The kingdom of God has already come unto you.'....Whichever of these renditions you prefer, the idea runs through them all that the kingdom of God is not some far-off, impossible-to-be-achieved ideal, but a reality which exists now. On another occasion Jesus himself said, 'The Kingdom of God is come unto you.' Christ is the King of this Kingdom, His laws are the laws of the Kingdom. His subjects will obey his will and his commandments. We can be citizens of his kingdom NOW, at this very moment, or any time we choose to accept him as King, and obey his laws completely, unreservedly, sincerely, instead of half-heartedly, fearfully, with reservations and backward looks at the kingdoms of this world in which we have heretofore trusted. The kingdom is available NOW; is at hand, is among you, has already come unto
This electronic publication copyright © 2024 LatterDayTruth.org; All Rights Reserved.Original script for sermon #43 of the Hear Ye Him Radio series, a 15 minute sermon by Evan A. Fry given on October 25, 1953. He states, "It is significant that when John the Baptist came preaching, he did not say that the kingdom of heaven was going to be available in some far off, distant day and time; it was available then. 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Jesus expressed the same idea somewhat later when he said, 'The kingdom of God is within you.' Some people have interpreted this verse to mean that the kingdom is in the individual heart. Since Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees, it is not plausible to believe that the kingdom of which he was speaking was within them, or in their hearts. A marginal note in the King James version reads, 'Or among you.' Another version says 'The kingdom of heaven is in the midst of you.' Still another says, 'The kingdom of God has already come unto you.'....Whichever of these renditions you prefer, the idea runs through them all that the kingdom of God is not some far-off, impossible-to-be-achieved ideal, but a reality which exists now. On another occasion Jesus himself said, 'The Kingdom of God is come unto you.' Christ is the King of this Kingdom, His laws are the laws of the Kingdom. His subjects will obey his will and his commandments. We can be citizens of his kingdom NOW, at this very moment, or any time we choose to accept him as King, and obey his laws completely, unreservedly, sincerely, instead of half-heartedly, fearfully, with reservations and backward looks at the kingdoms of this world in which we have heretofore trusted. The kingdom is available NOW; is at han
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