The Lovingkindness of God’s Everlasting Covenant

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people gathered for baptismal service

In the October 2020 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson gave his landmark talk “Let God Prevail.” He mentioned that for more than 36 years, he had been studying the gathering of Israel, including the ministries of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and “the covenant God made with them and extended through their lineage” (Liahona, Nov. 2020, 92).

On March 31, 2022, he shared more from his studies in a meeting with the general leadership of the Church. He felt inspired to share the same message with all Church members in this month’s issue of the Liahona. In his article, “The Everlasting Covenant” (see page 4), President Nelson teaches more of what he has learned about the covenant relationship God offers His children.

Learning that Israel means “let God prevail” opened my mind to seeing the gathering of Israel in new ways. Now I find that President Nelson has opened my heart as he explains the meaning of hesed, a Hebrew word often translated as “lovingkindness.” Understanding how covenants enhance this loving relationship that God wants with His children has changed how I view my relationship with Him.

As we study Jeremiah’s teachings about the gathering of Israel this month in Come, Follow Me, President Nelson helps us see how choosing a covenant people wasn’t an act of exclusivity but rather the path to an all-encompassing inclusivity. Not only can anyone receive the blessings of the everlasting covenant, but those who enter into this covenant honor it by taking it to all the world.

What a blessing it is to have prophets of God, both past and present, to help us understand how we can connect to the love of God through His everlasting covenant!

Sincerely,

Elder Michael T. Ringwood

Of the Seventy

Adviser to the Church Magazines