Vision of Zion

Heavenly signs of future events were first mentioned in Genesis 1:14. The word appears frequently in both the Old and New Testament several times in both the Hebrew and the Greek, respectively. Not ony are there heavenly signs about the end of the world (or destruction of the wicked) but also signs of the second coming of Jesus Christ, or the "coming of the Son of Man" on earth. Jesus describes a number of them privately to his dis...

"Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime." The objective of Vision of Zion is not merely to share insights and information about prophecies concerning the last days, but to teach and encourage you to develop your own ability to understand them through personal effort, guided by the Holy Ghost.

In this podcast, I suggest some of the things that I have done to help me better...

One of the valuable lessons we can learn is how to apply the art of reason. There are two kinds of reasoning: deductive and inductive. Deductive is drawing conclusions from axioms--it works great with math--but not so good with the natural sciences. It took humankind centuries to go from a geocentric solar system to a correct, heliocentric understanding. Inductive reasoning gathers data and facts first (i.e., the empirical method) ...

While preparing to review lessons from the book, "Evolution Under the Microscope," by David W. Swift, I found some thoughts that came to me when I read this book a few years ago. I thought I'd share some of them with you. They are kind of random.

My notes deal with the best of things is yet to come, some truths about truth, and one of the limits of evolution. Spoiler on the last one: evolution has not explained how life began; it ca...

God taught Adam and Eve they had the power to crush the head of the serpent, or Lucifer, even though he could bruise their heal. By calling upon the name of Jesus Christ, we can cast the devil out from our midst, out of our lives, as often as is needed.

Casting out Satan is as fundamental to Christianity as any other principal Jesus exemplified. We should be well-versed in recognizing the power we have been given to command him, "G...

The prophets spoke to God, and they describe how powerful yet friendly the exchange was! They testified that they spoke to God face to face, the same way we speak to each other. These prophets encourage us to do the same.

No one brought God down to our level than Jesus Christ. The Son of God walked among us, and taught that us we knew him, we would know the Father. (John 14:7). He let us know we can have the same quality of relatio...

God wants to bless you. Jesus has encouraged us to ask, seek, and knock. God is not stuck in the past, he is as able to answer you today as he was in days of old. God has spoken in the past, he is speaking, and he will speak to you if you approach him. He is liberal in his answers, as a father treats his child.

In this podcast, the presenter describes recent blessing given to his brother, and shares some of the specifics of that exp...

Many people have seen God and Jesus Christ in their spiritual glory. Visions, out-of-body and near-death experiences can be found in scripture, journals, books, and other recorded accounts. While such spiritual events occur, Satan is raging to suppress knowledge of the very existence of God--deceiving many. From the time that old serpent, the Devil, appeared in the Garden of Eden, God has promised Adam and Eve--and their posterity-...

The last three episodes described Zion or Heaven on Earth, and the power that can be generated by a group or city of righteous people, and the power, protection and the joy that comes from this collective righteousness: God protects his people. In this episode, return to the fundamental principles and ordinances that are central to how we, individually, get to that point. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is simple, and consists of faith,...

According to Methodist Scholar Margaret Barker, and others, the accounts of Enoch and Melchizedek were scrubbed from the post-exilic Jewish scriptural compilations. Why? Were their miraculous stories and incredible successes too fantastic to believe in a modern world? 1 Enoch also speaks about an end-times Messiah--was it too much to believe? Although today's Bible barely mentions them, Enoch and Melchizedek were known to the ancie...

Are the Church and Kingdom of God the same thing? Initially the two enjoy a symbiotic relationship, as a mother and child. But they become separate entities with separate functions. The Kingdom of God is destined to become a secular organization. Within its structure, a plurality of religions and religious beliefs will be protected and permitted to exercise freedom of conscience. Has the Kingdom of God been born yet, as described i...

The Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar had a disturbing dream that only the exiled Jewish prophet, Daniel, could interpret: the stone cut out of a mountain, without hands, filling the whole earth, crushing every remaining kingdom set up by man. This was the kingdom of heaven, and it's still coming. Flashes of this kingdom have been set up upon the earth in the past. We'll explore in some detail the church and kingdom that Peter and the...

Trials of faith are more valuable than gold. 1 Peter 1:7. We won't receive an affirmation of our faith, or witness, until we are tried first. In this life, we face opposition in all things. For every good thing we receive, we can expect opposition from the adversary. Expect it and be aware of it. But there is no comparison to the joy we can feel versus the opposition we will have to endure.

Instead of focusing on the obstacles tha...

What does it mean to be born again? Who can be born again? In this episode, I talk briefly about my approach to Bible study before beginning an examination of the Savior's doctrine that we must be born again as set forth in John chapter 3. We study the examples of the Day of Pentecost, Saul's conversion, Alma the Younger, and personal experiences of witnessing the Holy Spirit speaking to and converting others. Also, what do we do ...