December 1, 2025, 4:00 AM MST
Editor’s note: To support individual and family gospel study, Church News is publishing articles about the October 2025 general conference messages. In addition to checking out these resources, we encourage you to listen and read the entire address.
About this talk
Click here for the full message. Click here for a summary of Elder Cuvelier’s message.
overview
President Russell M. Nelson taught that a person’s true identity is as a child of God, a child of the covenant, and a disciple of Jesus Christ. Any other designation will ultimately be disappointing. Elder Cuvelier humorously learned this for himself when his eldest son received his first cell phone and entered Elder Cuvelier’s name in his contacts as “not my mother.” Jesus called his followers many names, each emphasizing their personal relationship with him. King Benjamin taught that those who take the name of Christ “will be called by the name of Christ” (Mosiah 5:8-9). Those who take the name of Christ become disciples and witnesses of Christ. The New Testament and the Book of Mormon describe believers in Christ as Christians. “To be called by the name of Christ” means to make and keep covenants, to always remember the Lord, to keep His commandments, to serve others, to stand as God’s witnesses, and to stand with the prophets and apostles who carry Christ’s message throughout the world. It is a lifelong pursuit, and it is easy to get caught up in worldly titles during the journey of discipleship. It is timely and wise to follow the prophetic counsel to prioritize discipleship. The seeds sown by the German branch president in 1909 bore countless fruits, resulting in several generations of Martin Gassner’s family being sealed in the Bern Temple in Switzerland. Martin is the elder Cuvelier’s great-grandfather. Strive to follow the example of Jesus Christ by making doing good and discipleship a priority in your life. Then others can feel the love of God and the confirming power of the Holy Spirit. After all, a person’s identity is not defined by the world. But a person’s discipleship is determined by the ordinances they receive, the covenants they keep, and the love they show toward God and neighbor.
reflection questions
How have President Russell M. Nelson’s teachings on identity influenced the way you view yourself and others?
How would you respond to Elder Cuvelier’s question, “Brothers and sisters, what name are you called?”
What does it mean to be “called by the name of Christ”?
How did you feel when you heard the story about Elder Cuvelier’s great-grandfather, Martin Gassner? How can you respond to the Savior’s call like a branch president?
What can you do this week to follow Christ’s example of doing good and make discipleship a priority?
speaker’s words
“Brothers and sisters, what name are you called? Jesus called his disciples by many different names: disciples. sons and daughters. children of the prophets. sheep. friends. light of the world. saints. Each has eternal meaning and emphasizes a personal relationship with the Savior. But among these names, one name stands out above the rest: Kiri. Jesus means to keep God’s commandments and to ‘stand willingly as a witness of God at all times and in all things’ (Mosiah 18:9). It means to stand with the prophets and apostles who carry the message of Christ throughout the world with their doctrines, covenants, and ordinances, to be a light and bring hope in Christ to all peoples. ” Discipleship is defined by the ordinances we receive, the covenants we keep, and the love we show toward God and neighbor simply by doing good. As President Nelson taught, we are truly children of God, children of the covenant, and disciples of Jesus Christ. ”
Reference scripture
“And under this head shall ye be set free, and there is no other head by which you shall be set free. There is no other name given by which salvation should come. Therefore, I would that all of you who have made a covenant with God that you should be obedient unto the end of your life, take the name of Christ. And whoever does this will be at the right hand of God, for he knows this.” “And when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. And the disciples were first called Christians at Antioch. And no one was baptized unless he had a determination to serve Christ to the end.”
invitation and promise
“Because the path of discipleship requires time and effort, ‘line by line, lesson by lesson’ (D&C 98:12), it is easy to get caught up in worldly titles. These only provide temporary value and are never enough. Salvation and eternity only come ‘in and through the holy Messiah’ (2 Nephi 2:6). Therefore, it is important to follow prophetic counsel for discipleship. “Perhaps the greatest sermons are not the ones we never hear, but the ones we see in the quiet, unassuming actions and deeds of ordinary people who strive to be like Jesus and do good deeds. He was simply following the gospel, as recorded in the book of Alma. “They were not cast out.” “…the hungry, the thirsty, the sick…they were generous to everyone, young and old, male and female.”And we must not overlook that they did not cast out anyone “outside the church, or in the church” (Alma 1:30). ” “Let us follow Christ’s example and strive to make good deeds and discipleship a priority in our lives so that in every interaction we have with others, they may feel the love of God and the confirming power of the Holy Spirit.” Then we will join the millions of others who, like our great-grandfather and the disciple Andrew, proclaimed, “We have found the Messiah” (John 1:41). ”
story
When Elder Cuvelier’s eldest son received his first cell phone, Elder Cuvelier noticed that his son had entered Elder Cuvelier’s name in his contacts as “not my mother.” This humorous story emphasizes President Nelson’s teaching that a person’s true identity is as a child of God, a child of the covenant, and a disciple of Jesus Christ, and that “any other designation will ultimately lead to disappointment.” Elder Cuvelier’s great-grandfather, Martin Gassner, was able to join the Church because in 1909, a humble branch president in Germany “answered the call of the Savior.” Forty-eight years later, several generations of Martin’s family were sealed in the Bern Temple in Switzerland on both sides of the veil.
From footnote
20. “We believe that God created man with a teachable mind and an ability that grows in proportion to his attentiveness and diligence to the light transmitted from heaven to his intellect. The enjoyment increases until one submits and loses all desire for sin. And like the ancients, man reaches a point of faith where he is enveloped in the power and glory of God.”But we believe that this is a station that no one has ever reached in an instant. ” Teachings of the President of the Church: Joseph Smith, 2007, p. 211.27. “There is a saying that says you can count the seeds in an apple, but you can’t count the apples from one seed. Only one person accepted Abinadi’s testimony, but that one, Alma, influenced generations of Nephites. Perhaps we can use seeded fruit to demonstrate this principle. How does this message apply to our family? How can we share our testimony with others?” “Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Book of Mormon 2020,” page 76.30. “Love is one of the chief attributes of God and should be exhibited by those who seek to become children of God. Those filled with God’s love are not content to bless only their own families, but aspire to extend to the whole world and bless all humanity.” Teachings of the President of the Church: Joseph Smith, 2007, p. 426.
additional resources
Talks at recent conferences on discipleship
Who is Elder Cuvelier?
Elder B. Corey Cuvelier was sustained as a General Authority Seventy during April 2025 general conference. He was born in Los Angeles, California, where he was adopted and raised. The elder Cuvelier worked for Shell Oil Company in various business units in North America and served as a director and officer on several boards of directors.
