General Conference Applied
S4 E36 – Thursday, April 3, 2025 | “Sons and Daughters of God” by Elder Rubén V. Alliaud; October 2024 General Conference
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Podcast Episode Outline
Introduction
Bio
- “Elder Rubén V. Alliaud was sustained as a General Authority Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on April 6, 2019. At the time of his call, he had been serving as an institute teacher, first counselor in the Argentina Missionary Training Center presidency, and public affairs director. He is currently serving in the Europe Central Area Presidency.
“Elder Alliaud has served in a number of Church callings, including full-time missionary in the Uruguay Montevideo Mission, elders quorum president, counselor in a stake mission presidency, young single adult adviser, counselor in a bishopric, high councilor, bishop, counselor in a stake presidency, stake president, Area Seventy in the South America South Area, and president of the Argentina Córdoba Mission.
“Elder Alliaud received a juris doctor degree from the University of Belgrano in 1993. He then began his career in the national civil courts under the Supreme Court of Justice; he later specialized in criminal law. In 1996 he was designated professor at the University of Belgrano Law School. In 1998 he started working as an attorney and a managing partner for Alliaud & Asociados. During his career, he joined the board of several companies.
“Rubén Vicente Alliaud was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on January 8, 1966. He married Fabiana Bennett in 1992. They are the parents of six children.” - This was Elder Alliaud’s second general conference address. His most recent address was “Found through the Power of the Book of Mormon” from the October 2019 General Conference.
- “Just before I turned 15, I was invited by my uncle Manuel Bustos to spend some time with him and his family here in the United States. This would be a great opportunity for me to learn some English. My uncle had converted to the Church many years before, and he had a great missionary spirit. That is probably why my mother, without my knowing, spoke with him and said she would agree to the invitation on one condition: that he did not try to convince me to become a member of his Church. We were Catholics, and we had been for generations, and there was no reason to change. My uncle was in complete agreement and kept his word to the point that he didn’t want to answer even simple questions about the Church.
“Of course, what my uncle and his sweet wife, Marjorie, could not avoid was being who they were.
“I was assigned a room that contained a large library of books. I could see that in this library there were roughly 200 copies of the Book of Mormon in different languages, 20 of them in Spanish.
“One day, out of curiosity, I took down a copy of the Book of Mormon in Spanish.
“It was one of those copies with a sky-blue soft cover, with the figure of the angel Moroni on the front. When I opened it, on the first page there was written the following promise: ‘And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.’
“And then it added: ‘And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.’
“It is difficult to explain the impact that these scriptures had on my mind and heart. To be honest, I was not looking for ‘the truth.’ I was just a teenager, happy with his life, enjoying this new culture.
“Nevertheless, with that promise in mind, I secretly began reading the book. As I read more, I understood that if I really wanted to get anything from this, I had better start to pray. And we all know what happens when you decide not only to read but also to pray about the Book of Mormon. Well, that is just what happened to me. It was something so special and so unique—yes, just the same as what has happened to millions of others around the world. I came to know by the power of the Holy Ghost that the Book of Mormon was true.
“I then went to my uncle to explain to him what had happened and that I was ready to be baptized. My uncle could not contain his astonishment. He got into his car, drove to the airport, and returned back with my plane ticket to fly back home, with a note addressed to my mother that simply stated, ‘I had nothing to do with this!’
“In a way he was right. I had been found directly by the power of the Book of Mormon.”
- “Just before I turned 15, I was invited by my uncle Manuel Bustos to spend some time with him and his family here in the United States. This would be a great opportunity for me to learn some English. My uncle had converted to the Church many years before, and he had a great missionary spirit. That is probably why my mother, without my knowing, spoke with him and said she would agree to the invitation on one condition: that he did not try to convince me to become a member of his Church. We were Catholics, and we had been for generations, and there was no reason to change. My uncle was in complete agreement and kept his word to the point that he didn’t want to answer even simple questions about the Church.
- How this General Authority found the gospel after his mother kept him from learning about it
A Connection Between Jesus Christ’s Experience and Moses’s Experience
- “Do we see the connection? Can we recognize a pattern here?
“It is no wonder that every time we are taught about our divine nature and destiny, the adversary of all righteousness tempts us to call them into question.
“How different our decisions would be if we really knew who we really are.” -Elder Alliaud
“Today I would like to address one of the most joyful, glorious, and powerful gospel truths that God has revealed. At the same time, it is ironically one for which we have been criticized. An experience I had some years ago profoundly deepened my appreciation for this gospel truth.
“[DIRECTIVE] As a representative of the Church, I was once invited to a religious conference where it was announced that from that moment on they would recognize as valid all baptisms performed by almost all other Christian churches, as long as the ordinance was done with water and in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Then it was explained that this policy did not apply to baptisms performed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“After the conference I was able to delve deeper into the reasons for that exception with the leader in charge of the announcement. We had a wonderful and insightful conversation.
“In short, he explained to me that that exception had primarily to do with our particular beliefs about the Godhead, which other Christian denominations often refer to as the Trinity. I expressed my appreciation for him taking the time to explain to me his beliefs and the policy of his church. At the end of our conversation, we hugged and then said goodbye.
- Corresponding Invitation (Directive): “How different our decisions would be if we really knew who we really are.”
- “The Infinite Game” by Simon Sinek: “I have a friend who is so focused on her Cause, it is as if she has forgotten that there are other points of view in the world besides her own. My friend, sadly, has labeled anyone who has a different opinion as wrong, stupid or morally corrupt. My friend suffers from Cause Blindness.
“Cause Blindness is when we become so wrapped up in our Cause or so wrapped up in the ‘wrongness’ of the other player’s Cause, that we fail to recognize their strengths or our weaknesses. We falsely believe that they are unworthy of comparison simply because we disagree with them, don’t like them or find them morally repugnant. We are unable to see where they are in fact effective or better than we are at what we do and that we can actually learn from them.
“Cause Blindness blunts humility and exaggerates arrogance, which in turn stunts innovation and reduces the flexibility we need to play the long game. Less able to engage in any kind of honest or productive practice of constant improvement, we end up repeating mistakes or continue to do many things poorly. Plus, hubris increases the chance that any weaknesses our organization may have are left open to exploitation by other players. All of which contributes to the draining of will and resources we need to stay in the game. Whenever I try to show my friend that those players she finds despicable are really good at certain things and she should respect them for that, she mocks me and thinks me a turncoat because I dare pay her competitor a compliment.” - Am I able to handle frustration so admirably? Elder Alliaud remembered who he was – literally a son of God – even though this individual from another faith believed otherwise. This was Elder Alliaud’s opportunity to follow Jesus Christ’s and Moses’s examples!
- Elder Dale G. Renlund, “The Peace of Christ Abolishes Enmity“, October 2021 General Conference: “After the Savior’s visit to the Americas, the people were unified; ‘there was no contention in all the land.’ Do you think that the people were unified because they were all the same, or because they had no differences of opinion? I doubt it. Instead, contention and enmity disappeared because they placed their discipleship of the Savior above all else. Their differences paled in comparison to their shared love of the Savior, and they were united as ‘heirs to the kingdom of God.’ The result was that ‘there could not be a happier people … who had been created by the hand of God.’
“Unity requires effort. It develops when we cultivate the love of God in our hearts and we focus on our eternal destiny. We are united by our common, primary identity as children of God and our commitment to the truths of the restored gospel. In turn, our love of God and our discipleship of Jesus Christ generate genuine concern for others. We value the kaleidoscope of others’ characteristics, perspectives, and talents. If we are unable to place our discipleship to Jesus Christ above personal interests and viewpoints, we should reexamine our priorities and change.
“We might be inclined to say, ‘Of course we can have unity—if only you would agree with me!’ A better approach is to ask, ‘What can I do to foster unity? How can I respond to help this person draw closer to Christ? What can I do to lessen contention and to build a compassionate and caring Church community?’
“When love of Christ envelops our lives, we approach disagreements with meekness, patience, and kindness. We worry less about our own sensitivities and more about our neighbor’s. We ‘seek to moderate and unify.’ We do not engage in ‘doubtful disputations,’ judge those with whom we disagree, or try to cause them to stumble. Instead, we assume that those with whom we disagree are doing the best they can with the life experiences they have.
“My wife practiced law for over 20 years. As an attorney, she often worked with others who explicitly advocated opposing views. But she learned to disagree without being rude or angry. She might say to opposing counsel, ‘I can see we are not going to agree on this issue. I like you. I respect your opinion. I hope you can offer me the same courtesy.’ Often this allowed for mutual respect and even friendship despite differences.”
“As I later contemplated our discussion, what this leader said about Latter-day Saints not understanding what he called the ‘mystery of the Trinity’ stayed in my mind. What was he referring to? Well, it had to do with our understanding of the nature of God. We believe that God the Father ‘is an exalted man’ with a glorified ‘body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; [and] the Son also.’ Thus, every time we talk about the nature of God, in some way, somehow, we are also talking about our own nature.
- Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Grandeur of God“, October 2003 General Conference
- Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Only True God and Jesus Christ Whom He Hath Sent“, October 2007 General Conference
“And this is true not only because we all were made ‘in [His] image, after [His] likeness,’ but also because, as the Psalmist recorded, God said, ‘Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.’ This is for us a precious doctrine now recovered with the advent of the Restoration. In summary, it is nothing more or less than what our missionaries teach as the first lesson, first paragraph, first line: ‘God is our Heavenly Father, and we are His children.’
“Now, you might say, ‘But many people believe we are children of God.’ Yes, that is true, but their understanding may be a little different from the implication of its deeper meaning that we affirm. For Latter-day Saints, this teaching is not metaphorical. Rather, we truly believe that we are all literally the children of God. He is ‘the Father of [our] spirits,’ and because of that, we have the potential to become like Him, which seems to be inconceivable to some.
- President Hugh B. Brown, “Father, Are You There?“, October 8, 1967, BYU Devotional: “You know that palm trees do not grow from acorns—only oaks come from acorns. The reason is that somehow oaks are involved in acorns, and that which is involved can evolve. Now, young people, God is your Father—in a very real and genuine sense He is your Father—and therefore He is involved in you. If you will conduct yourselves properly, you may evolve into something like Him. But again I say, if we yield to the temptations to do what we ought not to do and continue to yield, then we will not develop and grow and unfold into our possibilities. That which is involved can evolve, and God is involved in you. I pray you resolve tonight that you are going to evolve into something like that from which you came.”
“It has now been over 200 years since the First Vision opened the doors to the Restoration. At the time, young Joseph Smith sought guidance from heaven to know what church to join. Through the revelation he received that day, and in later revelations given to him, the Prophet Joseph obtained knowledge about the nature of God and our relationship to Him as His children.
“Because of that, we learn more clearly that our Heavenly Father has taught this precious doctrine from the very beginning. Allow me to cite at least two accounts from the scriptures to illustrate this.
“You might remember God’s instructions to Moses as recorded in the Pearl of Great Price.
“We read that ‘God spake unto Moses, saying: Behold, I am the Lord God Almighty, and Endless is my name.’ In other words, Moses, I want you to know who I am. Then He added, ‘And, behold, thou art my son.’ Later he said, ‘And I have a work for thee, Moses, my son; and thou art in the similitude of mine Only Begotten.’ And then finally, He ended with, ‘And now, behold, this one thing I show unto thee, Moses, my son.’
“It appears that God was determined to teach Moses at least one lesson: ‘You are my child,’ which He repeated at least three times. He could not even mention the name of Moses without immediately adding that he was His son.
“However, after Moses was left alone, he felt weak because he was no longer in the presence of God. That is when Satan came to tempt him. Can you see a pattern here? The first thing he said was, ‘Moses, son of man, worship me.’
“In this context, Satan’s request to worship him may have been only a distraction. A significant temptation for Moses in that moment of weakness was to become confused and believe that he was only a ‘son of man,’ rather than a child of God.
“‘And it came to pass that Moses looked upon Satan and said: Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten.’ Fortunately, Moses was not confused and did not allow himself to become distracted. He had learned the lesson of who he really was.
“The next account is found in Matthew 4. Scholars have entitled this ‘the three temptations of Jesus,’ as if the Lord was tempted only three times, which of course is not the case.
“Hundreds of gallons of ink have been used to explain the meaning and content of these temptations. As we know, the chapter begins by explaining that Jesus had gone into the desert, ‘and when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.’
“Satan’s first temptation apparently had only to do with satisfying the Lord’s physical needs. ‘Command that these stones be made bread,’ he challenged the Savior.
“A second enticement may have had to do with tempting God: ‘Cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee.’
“Finally, Satan’s third temptation referred to the aspirations and glory of the world. After Jesus had been shown ‘all the kingdoms of the world, … [Satan] saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.’
“In truth, Satan’s ultimate temptation may have had less to do with those three specific provocations and more to do with tempting Jesus Christ to question His divine nature. At least twice, the enticement was preceded by the challenging accusation from Satan: ‘If thou be the Son of God’—if you really believe it, then do this or that.
“Please notice what had happened immediately before Jesus went into the desert to fast and pray: we find the account of Christ’s baptism. And when He had come out of the water, there came ‘a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’
“[INVITATION] Do we see the connection? Can we recognize a pattern here?
What is the speaker inviting me to do?
- In my own words: There are connections and patterns in the scriptures. Are we seeing and recognizing them?
Why does it matter, or why is it important? (Doctrines, Principles, Christlike Attributes)
- Christlike Attribute: “I cherish the doctrine and principles of the gospel. (2 Nephi 4:15)” (Knowledge)
- “[15] And upon these I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which are engraven upon the plates of brass. For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children.”
What’s in it for us? (Promises)
- No promises identified.
How will we take action? (Directives, Personal Revelation)
- Elder Russell M. Nelson, “Truth . . . and More“, BYU Devotional, August 1, 1985: “The word ‘truth’ is used 435 times in the scriptures. I have studied each one of them. In 374 of those instances, ‘truth’ is coupled in the same verse with some strengthening term such as ‘spirit, mercy, righteousness, judgment, love, peace,’ and so on. The vast majority of scriptural references to this weighty word exemplify the importance of “truth… and more.” What do these figures tell us? Truth… and more bring more than truth alone. Just as oxen may be equally yoked together to accomplish what one could not do alone, so the power of truth is augmented if equally yoked together with righteousness or with mercy or with the spirit of love.” [This is an example of how to make connections and see patterns.]
- Note how Elder Alliaud not only saw this connection and recognized this pattern, but he also found an application from his real life (i.e., the story he shared at the beginning of his address).
- Mitch: I will do a better job of studying Come, Follow Me each week so that I see connections and recognize patterns between the Come, Follow Me section and the current general conference address I am preparing for the General Conference Applied Podcast.
“It is no wonder that every time we are taught about our divine nature and destiny, the adversary of all righteousness tempts us to call them into question.
“[INVITATION] How different our decisions would be if we really knew who we really are.
What is the speaker inviting me to do?
- In my own words: We make better decisions – celestial decisions – when we truly understand that each of us on this earth is a child of Heavenly Father.
Why does it matter, or why is it important? (Doctrines, Principles, Christlike Attributes)
- Christlike Attribute: “I try to understand others’ feelings and see their point of view. (Jude 1:22)” (Charity and Love)
- “[22] And of some have compassion, making a difference.”
What’s in it for us? (Promises)
- No promises identified.
How will we take action? (Directives, Personal Revelation)
- “As a representative of the Church, I was once invited to a religious conference where it was announced that from that moment on they would recognize as valid all baptisms performed by almost all other Christian churches, as long as the ordinance was done with water and in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Then it was explained that this policy did not apply to baptisms performed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“After the conference I was able to delve deeper into the reasons for that exception with the leader in charge of the announcement. We had a wonderful and insightful conversation.
“In short, he explained to me that that exception had primarily to do with our particular beliefs about the Godhead, which other Christian denominations often refer to as the Trinity. I expressed my appreciation for him taking the time to explain to me his beliefs and the policy of his church. At the end of our conversation, we hugged and then said goodbye.
“As I later contemplated our discussion, what this leader said about Latter-day Saints not understanding what he called the ‘mystery of the Trinity’ stayed in my mind. What was he referring to? Well, it had to do with our understanding of the nature of God. We believe that God the Father ‘is an exalted man’ with a glorified ‘body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; [and] the Son also.’ Thus, every time we talk about the nature of God, in some way, somehow, we are also talking about our own nature.” -Elder Alliaud - “Choices for Eternity“, President Russell M. Nelson, Worldwide Devotional for Young Adults, May 15, 2022: “Who are you?
“First and foremost, you are a child of God.
“Second, as a member of the Church, you are a child of the covenant. And third, you are a disciple of Jesus Christ.
“Tonight, I plead with you not to replace these three paramount and unchanging identifiers with any others, because doing so could stymie your progress or pigeonhole you in a stereotype that could potentially thwart your eternal progression.” - Elder Russell M. Nelson, “Thanks for the Covenant“, BYU Devotional, November 22, 1988: “Each of you is a child of God, created in his image. And you are disciples of his Beloved Son. If you really comprehend the power of that identity, other elements of your background matter less. Paul described this well. He said:
“‘For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
“‘There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
“‘And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. [Galatians 3:27–29]'” - We trust our Father in Heaven. To become like Him, am I treating others in such a way that they can trust me? Can they feel my love for them?
- Mitch:
- “The Ideal Team Player: How to Recognize and Cultivate The Three Essential Virtues (J-B Lencioni Series)” by Patrick M. Lencioni: “In the context of teamwork, humility is largely what it seems to be. Great team players lack excessive ego or concerns about status. They are quick to point out the contributions of others and slow to seek attention for their own. They share credit, emphasize team over self, and define success collectively rather than individually. It is no great surprise, then, that humility is the single greatest and most indispensable attribute of being a team player. …
“Truly humble people do not see themselves as greater than they are, but neither do they discount their talents and contributions. C.S. Lewis addressed this misunderstanding about humility when he said ‘Humility isn’t thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.’
“A person who has a disproportionately deflated sense of self-worth often hurts teams by not advocating for their own ideas or by failing to call attention to problems that they see. Though this kind of lack of humility is less obtrusive and obvious than the other, more negative types, it detracts from optimal team performance nonetheless.” - I asked my supervisor for feedback at work, and I was invited to be more willing to share my opinion in team meetings. I am a son of God with divine potential. I have much to offer to my team and the world, and I will improve on this invitation to share my opinion and let my voice be heard in team meetings.
- “The Ideal Team Player: How to Recognize and Cultivate The Three Essential Virtues (J-B Lencioni Series)” by Patrick M. Lencioni: “In the context of teamwork, humility is largely what it seems to be. Great team players lack excessive ego or concerns about status. They are quick to point out the contributions of others and slow to seek attention for their own. They share credit, emphasize team over self, and define success collectively rather than individually. It is no great surprise, then, that humility is the single greatest and most indispensable attribute of being a team player. …
“We live in a challenging world, a world of increasing commotion, where honorable people strive to at least emphasize our human dignity, while we belong to a church and embrace a gospel that lift our vision and invite us into the divine.
“Jesus’s commandment to be ‘perfect, even as [our] Father which is in heaven is perfect’ is a clear reflection of His high expectations and our eternal possibilities. Now, none of this will happen overnight. In the words of President Jeffrey R. Holland, it will happen ‘eventually.’ But the promise is that if we ‘come unto Christ,’ we will ‘be perfected in him.’ That requires a lot of work—not just any work, but a divine work. His work!
“Now, the good news is that it is precisely our Father in Heaven who has said, ‘For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.’
“President Russell M. Nelson’s invitation to ‘think celestial’ implies a wonderful reminder of our divine nature, origin, and potential destination. We can obtain the celestial only through Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice.
“Perhaps that is why Satan enticed Jesus with the very same temptation from the beginning to the end of His earthly ministry. Matthew recorded that while Jesus hung on the cross, those ‘that passed by reviled him, … saying, … If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.’ Glory be to God that He did not hearken but instead provided the way for us to receive all celestial blessings.
“Let us always remember, there was a great price paid for our happiness.
- What price am I willing to pay to show Jesus Christ my appreciation?
“I testify as with the Apostle Paul that ‘the Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.’ In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.”
What will you do?
How will you take action on the invitations extended in this General Conference address?
Conclusion
The focus of our next podcast episode will be the October 2024 General Conference address that was delivered by Elder I. Raymond Egbo and was entitled “Focus on Jesus Christ and His Gospel.”
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Tags
Divine Nature | God the Father | Jesus Christ | Satan | Temptation | Truth
Additional Content
Previous Podcast Episode (Preparing for the April 2025 General Conference)
Next Podcast Episode (“Focus on Jesus Christ and His Gospel” by Elder I. Raymond Egbo)