Jesus Christ directed us to call the Church by His name because it is His Church, filled with His power.
-It is not a name change.
-It is not rebranding.
-It is not cosmetic.
-It is not a whim.
And it is not inconsequential.
Instead, it is a correction. It is the command of the Lord.
It was the Savior Himself who said, “For thus shall my church be called in the last days, even The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
“Ye shall call the church in my name. …
“And how be it my church save it be called in my name? For if a church be called in Moses’ name then it be Moses’ church; or if it be called in the name of a man then it be the church of a man; but if it be called in my name then it is my church.”
To remove the Lord’s name from the Lord’s Church is a major victory for Satan. When we discard the Savior’s name, we are subtly disregarding all that Jesus Christ did for us–even His Atonement.
When we omit His name from His Church, we are inadvertently removing Him as the central focus of our lives.
Taking the Savior’s name upon us includes declaring and witnessing to others–through our actions and our words–that Jesus is the Christ.
Have we been so afraid to offend someone who called us “Mormons” that we have failed to defend the Savior Himself, to stand up for Him even in the name by which His Church is called?
If we as a people and as individuals are to have access to the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ–to cleanse and heal us, to strengthen and magnify us, and ultimately to exalt us–we must clearly acknowledge Him as the source of that power. We can begin by calling His Church by the name He decreed.
That report provides a pattern. One by one, our best efforts as individuals will be required to correct errors that have crept in through the years. The rest of the world may or may not follow our lead in calling us by the correct name. But it is disingenuous for us to be frustrated if most of the world calls the Church and its members by the wrong names if we do the same.
Our revised style guide is helpful. It states: “In the first reference, the full name of the Church is preferred: ‘The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.’ When a shortened [second] reference is needed, the terms ‘the Church’ or the ‘Church of Jesus Christ’ are encouraged. The ‘restored Church of Jesus Christ’ is also accurate and encouraged.
My dear brothers and sisters, I promise you that if we will do our best to restore the correct name of the Lord’s Church, He whose Church this is will pour down His power and blessings upon the heads of the Latter-day Saints, the likes of which we have never seen. We will have the knowledge and power of God to help us take the blessings of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people and to prepare the world for the Second Coming of the Lord.
-Sherri Jorgensen
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