Watch the video presentation on YouTube at:https://youtu.be/oZ7KJBDnyTI
To purchase slides or handouts, go to: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TeachingWithPower
109-BLESSINGS OF TEMPLE WORSHIP
ICEBREAKER
As an icebreaker for section 109, I like to ask my students to do the following exercise. Raise your hands if you’ve ever been to a sporting event. Now raise your hands if you’ve ever been to a sporting event and something good happened in the game that caused you to stand up out of your seat. Now, raise your hands if you’ve ever been to a sporting event, and something good happened in the game that caused you not only to stand up, but you shouted as well. Now, raise your hand if you’ve ever been to a sporting event, and something good happened in the game that not only caused you to stand up and shout, but you also waved something in the air. A program, a sign, one of those big foam hands, or even your own fist. Now, if you’ve had that experience, why did you do that? What on earth could have happened in a relatively unimportant, in the grand scheme of things, sporting event that would cause such elation and celebration? It’s exciting, right, when your team wins or is winning. It’s an expression of joy, elation, and anticipation of victory. Right?
Now, there is another time, in the church when we do something similar. It’s in a much more sacred context, of course, but can you think of a time when we stand, shout, and wave something in the air as members of the church. Do you know what I’m referring to? It’s called the Hosanna Shout, and we do it at temple dedications. Maybe you’ve had the opportunity to participate in one. Why do we that? In a way, for the same reasons we do it at a sporting event. The dedication of a new house of God is an occasion that merits the same kind of joy, excitement, and celebration. We have just won another victory in our war against Satan and a victory for the immortality and eternal life of man. The hosanna shout is an expression of the joy we feel in knowing that another house of the Lord has been established on earth. It’s a heavenly touchdown, or goal, or 3-point shot at the buzzer. The hosanna shout has been performed at every temple dedication since the very first in this dispensation. And that temple is the subject of today’s lesson. The Kirtland temple.
BACKGROUND
A little bit of background. The Kirtland temple is different in a lot of ways from the temples that we worship in today. It was kind of a preliminary temple—or steppingstone temple. You know, that principle we’ve seen all over church history this year—line upon line, precept on precept. There was no baptistry, no sealing rooms, no endowment, no Celestial room. It was more of an assembly hall of sorts for meetings and the sacrament. Now it is true that some of the first initiatory ordinances are performed in the upper rooms of the Kirtland temple, but the rest of the temple ceremonies won’t come until Nauvoo and later.
The building of the Kirtland temple was really a miracle. It was built under two very challenging circumstances. Can you find those circumstances in the first five verses of Section 109? Joseph mentions them in the dedicatory prayer. They’re both found in verse 5. They built the temple in great tribulation and out of their poverty. It took nearly three years to build, as both men and women contributed in various ways to the construction. Mobs in the area were a constant threat as they vowed to destroy the saint’s work before they could complete it. Constant vigilance was necessary. They had to defend and build at the same time. The Saints were incredibly poor at this time. Interesting fact, in terms of cost per capita, or per existing member, the Kirtland temple is the most expensive temple the church has ever built. It cost around 60,000 to construct (close to 1,000,000 dollars by today’s standards) and the church only had about 13,000 members at the time. Many sacrificed personal fortunes to help bankroll the construction. John Tanner and Vienna Jacques come to mind. And in light of all that sacrifice and challenge, what is the first word out of Joseph’s mouth in the dedicatory prayer? Thanks. Thanks be to thy name. Thank you, Lord, for allowing us to make these great sacrifices to build this house unto you.
When the glorious day for the dedication finally came, so many showed up for the ceremony that a second service had to be planned for later. Sidney Rigdon gives a two-hour sermon; Joseph speaks and gives the dedicatory prayer, and a very well-known hymn is first sung at the dedication The Spirit of God. The Spirit of God has been sung at every temple dedication since. During and after the services, many experienced incredible spiritual manifestations, and visions. You’ll find a number of those in the Come, Follow Me manual for this week and I have some slides with those quotes available here, but we won’t take the time to read through each. What I would like to do is start to dig into the sections themselves here. The way that I like to approach sections 109-110 is by looking for two major things. One, the blessings of the temple, and two, what we must do to receive those blessings.
THE BLESSINGS OF THE TEMPLE
SEARCH
First, let’s focus on the blessings themselves. Section 109 is full of them. Particularly the first 44 verses. You could, as an activity, simply send your students into those first 40 verses to find and mark as many as they can. Or you could narrow their search down a little. I see 6 major categories of blessings taught in these verses. I call them the 6 P’s of the Temple. 6 kinds of blessings that the temple offers us. And they all just happen to start with the letter P. I’ve put together a list of where you find examples of these blessings and I’ve turned it into a little handout. Send your students into these verses and encourage them to pick one of the P’s that best represents the theme of those verses. I’ve also added some other words to the mix to make it a little more challenging. Not all the P words are going to be used. So take some time to read those sets of verses and determine the blessings.
PRESENCE-A HOUSE OF GOD
The word I would choose to represent the first set of verses here would be “Presence”. The temple offers us the chance to be in the presence of the Lord. It’s the first blessing really mentioned in section 109.
Verse 5 tells us that the temple was built so:
:5 That the Son of Man might have a place to manifest himself to his people.
:12 That thy glory may rest down upon thy people . . . that thy holy presence may be continually in this house.
:13 And that all people who shall enter upon the threshold of the Lord's house may feel thy power, and feel constrained to acknowledge that thou hast sanctified it, and that it is thy house, a place of thy holiness.
The temple is a place where we can feel the presence of God and Jesus Christ because it is their house on earth. That’s one of the things I love about the temple being called the House of the Lord. If you were to ask someone where they pictured God living, how do you think they would answer that? More than likely, they would say heaven, somewhere out there in the universe, or maybe even that He lives in a different spiritual dimension. But do you want to know how I would answer that question? Oh, He lives just up the street from me—on 4th West. Just up on the hill, He has a house there. The temple is a sign that God and Jesus Christ live among us. That their presence and care for us are not far or distant. They are not absentee deities. It’s not a long-distance relationship between the Lord and his people. He’s right here, in our cities, and in our nations. He has a home in Paris, France and Aba, Nigeria, and Tokyo, Japan, and Apia, Samoa, and Mexico City, and Sao Paulo. And He invites us to come and spend time in His house almost as often as we want. Except for recent pandemic rules, the temples are open almost all the time. It’s basically easier to get into a temple than it is into one of our church buildings. I may be able to get into a chapel on a Sunday or on a weeknight when there’s youth activities going on. But other than that, they’re usually closed. Under normal circumstances, I can usually go the temple any day of the week except Sunday’s and Monday’s from 5 in the morning, to 10 o’clock at night. Their house is almost always open for us to visit. When we worship there, we can feel their presence, their glory, their power, and their love. I can’t think of any place where I feel closer to God. The closest thing that approximates it, for me, is standing on the top of a high mountain. But aside from that, worshipping within the walls of the temple is the closest thing to being in heaven that we can experience on this earth. Maybe you’ve felt, like I have, a little divine homesickness every once in a while. A strange feeling that you weren’t really made or meant for this world. That there was something far greater, more intelligent, more meaningful out there. A wise person once said that “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience” (Pierre Teilhard de Chardin). In the temple, the veil between heaven and earth is parted ever so slightly and sometimes you may have been able to feel a small sliver of a beam of divine light and glory from the presence of God rest on you. It should feel familiar to us because we’ve been there. It’s where we came from. Like a distant memory at the back of our hearts. I know I felt that way on the first day I did baptisms for the dead as a young man. I felt that way on the day I was sealed to my dear wife. And I’ve felt that way on numerous occasions in the temple when my heart and mind were truly open rather than preoccupied with the things of the world.
We’re going to take a quick jump over to Section 110 because verses 1-10 are the fulfillment of the request that we find in section 109. Joseph prayed that the Lord would manifest himself to his people and accept that house as his. Here that all comes to fruition. Let’s read it together and try to imagine what it would be like to experience this vision. What would it be like to actually see the Savior, literally, in the temple? It must have been spectacular.
1 The veil was taken from our minds, and the eyes of our understanding were opened.
2 We saw the Lord standing upon the breastwork of the pulpit, before us; and under his feet was a paved work of pure gold, in color like amber.
3 His eyes were as a flame of fire; the hair of his head was white like the pure snow; his countenance shone above the brightness of the sun; and his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters,
(I love that description. It speaks of warmth, and power, and purity, and light, and glory. And I love that his voice was as the sound of the rushing of great waters. What do you picture when you hear that phrase? A waterfall? The waves of the ocean at the beach? A rushing river? That power of rushing water is captured in his voice. And yet. How do those locations make you feel? When you sit on the beach, or look at a waterfall, or sit by a river. It’s peaceful, isn’t it? That’s the voice of the Lord, powerful, yet peaceful. And what does the voice say?
4 I am the first and the last; I am he who liveth, I am he who was slain; I am your advocate with the Father.
5 Behold, your sins are forgiven you; you are clean before me; therefore, lift up your heads and rejoice.
6 Let the hearts of your brethren rejoice, and let the hearts of all my people rejoice, who have, with their might, built this house to my name.
7 For behold, I have accepted this house, and my name shall be here; and I will manifest myself to my people in mercy in this house.
8 Yea, I will appear unto my servants, and speak unto them with mine own voice, if my people will keep my commandments, and do not pollute this holy house.
9 Yea the hearts of thousands and tens of thousands shall greatly rejoice in consequence of the blessings which shall be poured out, and the endowment with which my servants have been endowed in this house.
10 And the fame of this house shall spread to foreign lands; and this is the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of my people. Even so. Amen.
What an incredible promise and blessing from the Savior himself regarding those who worship in the temple. He will be our advocate, he will forgive our sins, he will cause us to rejoice, he will manifest himself in mercy to us, he will pour out blessings upon us and endow us with great things. And this is just the beginning of the blessing which shall be poured out upon the heads of his people. His presence blesses us with so many other things.
PERCEPTION-A HOUSE OF LEARNING
The P word for this next set of verses is “Perception” or knowledge. We’re going to spend some extra time on this one. Section 109 teaches us that:
:14 “. . .all those who shall worship in this house may be taught words of wisdom out of the best books, and that they may seek learning even by study and also by faith.
One of the names God gives his house is a house of learning. Regardless of what they say down at BYU, the temple is really the Lord’s university. This is where we are taught the truths of eternity. The Lord had taught in previous revelations that the temple was meant to endow us with power. Much of that power comes from the knowledge and intelligence that we receive there. But in order to gain that knowledge we’ve got to be good students when we go. Good students are alert, and attentive, and prepared, and hungry to learn. If we attend this way, then the Spirit can act as our own personal tutor and tailor his teaching to our own level of experience and maturity. Much of what we learn in the temple is taught through symbols. Symbolism is a powerful method of instruction. Symbols can teach so many different things to different people at different times. I know a lot of people who were a bit baffled or even troubled by their first experience in the temple. They might have even used the word “strange” to describe it. I like the word “unique” instead. But there’s a purpose behind that uniqueness. They almost force us to ask questions. Questions like: “Why am I dressed like this?”, “Why am I doing this particular thing?”, “Why is their story being presented?”, “Why are they saying that?” This is exactly what the Lord wants us to do when we go to the temple. The danger is not in asking the questions, but in allowing the symbols of the temple to become so commonplace and familiar to us that we stop asking questions. Questioning is one of the best ways to learn. That gives the Spirit an opportunity to then, teach you something. And I don’t think God ever intends us to master or understand everything about the temple. Maybe that’s one of the reasons we don’t talk about the specifics of the temple ordinances. We don’t print out the words and pass them around for all to study. We don’t post them online and have discussions and church lessons about them. We can’t go to the experts and the scholars and the authorities to explain it all to us. The Spirit teaches us, and his instruction is individualized. I gain new insights almost every time I go to the temple. We are never meant to completely grasp it all. The temple is meant to feed us for a lifetime. And so, he continually invites us to come back and learn on site.
Though we can’t discuss the particulars of the endowment, or temple clothing, or covenants. Allow me to give you an example of learning from temple symbolism that I believe is safe for us to discuss. The mirrors in the sealing rooms. What we might call infinity mirrors. When you stand between them and look into one, the reflection bounces back and forth and stretches out for what seems like an eternity until the image slowly bends into oblivion. What is that teaching us? It can teach us a lot of things. It’s a representation of eternity. The ceremony that is performed in that sealing room is meant to seal spouses and families together for eternity. But is that the only thing it teaches? No. It also teaches me that I have an eternal nature. If I look behind me, the mirrors stretch off into infinity in that direction. I have always existed. And when I look in front of me the mirrors stretch off into infinity in that direction. I will always exist. Or the different reflections may represent generations of my ancestors stretching out behind me. A part of them is reflected in me, just as I will be reflected in my posterity as well. Those mirrors can serve as an encouragement for me to keep that chain of faith strong and perpetuate it into the next generation. My father once pointed this idea out to me. When you look in the reflections, you notice that your head kind of gets in the way. You realize that if you could just take yourself out of the picture, you would be able to see much further. Well, isn’t that the truth. We can see eternity much better when we stop concentrating so much on our ourselves and our own desires. And there’s so much more that that one symbol could teach us. So that’s what you do in the temple. Seek learning by study and faith by everything that you see and hear and do. You’ll be amazed at what you can learn.
Verse 15 has one of my favorite phrases in this entire section. It pleads with God that we may “grow up in thee (spiritual maturity) and receive a fulness of the Holy Ghost. The temple promises to help us grow up in God. If baptism is being born again, then the temple is where we go to grow up. It’s like a second home where we can learn to be more like our older brother Jesus Christ. It helps us to mature spiritually. The childlike spirit within us may complain and wonder about earthly trials and challenges while the more mature spirit recognizes the purpose of those trials and the growth they provide. The childlike spirit may balk at commandments and standards and feel they’re restrictions while the more mature spirit recognizes that the commandments are guardrails and expresses gratitude for their protection. The childlike spirit wants to be told exactly what to do, while the more mature spirit learns to be anxiously engaged in a good cause and do many things of their own free will. The temple can help us to mature in our spiritual understanding. I like something I’ve heard my father say before. He says that the ordinances and ceremonies of the temple are “sacred play”. Play, for children, is often geared around things that they see themselves doing in the future. A child may play with a doll and take care of it like a baby. What does this do for them? It prepares them to grow up and one day be a parent and take care of a real child. A child may play with toy cars or building blocks. They may dress up like a doctor, a chef, or a construction worker. These things, in a small way, are their way of “playing grown up” and help to prepare them for future responsibilities. When we go to the temple, we’re doing something similar, but in a much more meaningful and sacred way. It’s as if the Lord is saying, let’s pretend for a little while. We’re going to play a game. It’s called “eternal progress”. The things that you see, and say, and do, the rooms that you enter, all are there to help you envision your real eternal progress from pre-mortality, to mortality, to eternal life. The covenants you make are there to help you know what behaviors and attributes you will need in life to progress toward becoming like your heavenly parents. When we go into the Celestial room, we are not actually in the Celestial kingdom, but we are (in a way) pretending to be in the Celestial Kingdom and the surroundings certainly help us to make that connection. It’s a place filled with beautiful light, purity, comfort, and peace. It’s a place where we can spend meaningful time with spouse, family, and friends. As we ponder in that room, we can think back to all that went before in the temple ceremony that got us to that point and the lessons should be clear. What knowledge and principles and actions did I need to arrive here? Then, as I leave the temple, I can go into the real world and live as a better and more prepared disciple of Christ as I play the real game of mortality. Because the Celestial kingdom is also a real place. Just as real as this mortal earth. And if we wish to attain it, we must apply, literally, the lessons that we learn by “pretending” in the temple.
Besides this kind of knowledge that we’ve been talking about, the Lord can also offer us personal guidance and instruction in the temple. When I’ve needed help in making critical decisions or I’ve needed counsel for facing my own specific challenges, the temple has provided a peaceful place to pray and seek answers to those questions.
PREPARATION-A HOUSE OF ORDER
The P for these verses is Preparation. The temple prepares us for greater things in the future.
I love the connection between verses 8 and 15. In 8 we are instructed to organize and prepare every needful thing. And as a result, we are promised that we will be organized and prepared to obtain every needful thing. If we are willing to organize and prepare ourselves to enter his house, then God will complete the effort and will organize and prepare us to do greater things within his house. What are some of those things?
:22-23
22 And we ask thee, Holy Father, that thy servants may go forth from this house armed with thy power, and that thy name may be upon them, and thy glory be round about them, and thine angels have charge over them;
23 And from this place they may bear exceedingly great and glorious tidings, in truth, unto the ends of the earth, that they may know that this is thy work, and that thou hast put forth thy hand, to fulfil that which thou hast spoken by the mouths of the prophets, concerning the last days.
The temple helps to prepare us to go forth and share the gospel with the world. Is it any wonder that missionaries are required to get their temple endowments before they enter the mission field? It gives them power. It prepares them to teach with a greater eternal perspective and understanding. That idea is continued in verses 38-39
38 Put upon thy servants the testimony of the covenant, that when they go out and proclaim thy word they may seal up the law, and prepare the hearts of thy saints for all those judgments thou art about to send, in thy wrath, upon the inhabitants of the earth, because of their transgressions, that thy people may not faint in the day of trouble.
39 And whatsoever city thy servants shall enter, and the people of that city receive their testimony, let thy peace and thy salvation be upon that city; that they may gather out of that city the righteous, that they may come forth to Zion, or to her stakes, the places of thine appointment, with songs of everlasting joy;
There is another thing the temple prepares us for in verses :45-46 Can you see what it is?
45 We know that thou hast spoken by the mouth of thy prophets terrible things concerning the wicked, in the last days—that thou wilt pour out thy judgments, without measure;
46 Therefore, O Lord, deliver thy people from the calamity of the wicked; enable thy servants to seal up the law, and bind up the testimony, that they may be prepared against the day of burning.
The temple helps us to be prepared against the day of burning. What’s the day of burning? The Second Coming. Our covenants, our knowledge, our strengthened faith, will all help us to be more fully ready for Christ’s return.
PROTECTION
Our next P.
:25-33 This entire next section deals almost exclusively with the blessing of protection. This is one of the most common blessings associated with the temple in scripture. The temple provides us with protection.
In the Book of Revelation, the Lord speaks in detail of the calamities of the last days. In his vision, John sees four angels holding back the winds of destruction previous to the Second Coming. However, before they’re sent, the Lord sends another angel with “the seal of the living God” in his hand and instructs the other angels not to unleash the winds until he has “sealed the servants of God in their foreheads”. (Revelation 7:1-9) Later John is told that the seal is the Father’s name written on their foreheads (Revelation 14:1) Anyone who has the seal of God in their forehead is promised that they will be protected from the wickedness and destruction of the last days. So, the question for us is “Where can I get that seal?” “Where do I get the name of the Father written on me?” Verses 25-26 here in section 109 gives us the answer.
:25-:26
25 That no weapon formed against them shall prosper; that he who diggeth a pit for them shall fall into the same himself;
26 That no combination of wickedness shall have power to rise up and prevail over thy people upon whom thy name shall be put in this house;
It’s at the temple that we receive that seal. It’s where the Father “symbolically” places his name on our foreheads. That protective mark will keep us safe from the wickedness of the world in the last days. That mark isn’t literal, of course, but you can understand the significance. If God writes his name on you, what does that suggest about you? It suggests that you belong to him. If I write my name on a book, or a tool, or my backpack, that means that it belongs to me. When God writes his name or seals it upon you, you are his.
How is that protection manifested in our lives? I believe it comes in spiritual protection. The temple itself offers us the motivation to continue worthy. Those questions that we are asked in a temple recommend interview, if lived, will protect us from the evils and temptations of the adversary. Just think of the questions we’re asked. Is our testimony strong, do we support our leaders, do we strive to live the gospel, do we keep the word of wisdom, chastity, and the Lord’s other laws? If we do, we will be protected. I think that’s part of the reason we’ve been counseled to continue to hold a temple recommend during the pandemic. There is protection offered us in our worthiness to attend the temple.
If you look at the architecture of many of the pioneer temples, you see this idea taught symbolically. I know I’ve used this example before, but take a look at the Salt Lake temple, or the Logan temple, or the Manti temple. If you remove the spires or cupolas, what kind of a building does it look like? A castle. These little structures along the edge of the roof are called battlements. In a medieval castle, you would place your archers along the walls, and they could hide behind the battlement while being shot at and then reach out and fire their own arrows from the relative safety of that barrier. Why would early church architects add this feature to their temples? Not because they felt that one day they would actually put archers up there to fight off the gentiles, but to symbolically teach us something about the nature of the temple. That it is a place of protection and refuge. Have you ever felt that spirit of refuge in your own life? I love the way the temple feels when I walk through those doors. It’s almost as if there are two large angels guarding them. And all the wickedness and vulgarity of the world, and problems, and temptations of the servants of Satan are stopped in their tracks as you walk in. It’s like those angels are saying, you can’t bother her here. You’re not allowed to give him trouble within these walls. Stay back!
POWER
Verses 35-37 speak of power from on high being granted to the Saints within the temple.
35 Let the anointing of thy ministers be sealed upon them with power from on high.
36 Let it be fulfilled upon them, as upon those on the day of Pentecost; let the gift of tongues be poured out upon thy people, even cloven tongues as of fire, and the interpretation thereof.
37 And let thy house be filled, as with a rushing mighty wind, with thy glory.
Not only is the temple the house of God and of Jesus Christ, but the Holy Ghost as well. The temple is filled with the Spirit of God like a fire is burning. Perhaps you’ve felt the power of that spirit as you’ve worshipped within the walls of the temple.
PURPOSE
Our final blessing of the temple is going to take us to the second half of section 110 which relates one of the most significant events in all of early church history. This can go right up there with the First Vision, the restoration of the priesthood, and the official organization of the church. It’s in the Kirtland temple that essential priesthood keys for the preparation of the earth for the second coming are restored. Considering the fact that the Kirtland temple remained in church hands for such a short time, one might conclude that the major reason the Lord wanted them to build this temple was so that this very event could take place. Three individuals appear to Joseph and Oliver and restore some very significant priesthood keys. I’d like to send you into 110:11-16 and fill in the following chart. Who visited? What keys did they restore? What work do these keys direct?
The first person who visited in verse 11 was Moses. He restored the keys of the gathering of Israel. These keys direct missionary work.
The second person to visit is Elias. He restores the keys of the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham. What keys do these represent? There’s a clue in the next statement. “saying that in us and our seed all generations after us should be blessed”. This would be referring to the keys of Celestial marriage and eternal posterity”.
The third person to visit is Elijah. He restores what is referred to here as the “keys of this dispensation”. If you remember our lesson way back in section 2, you’ll know what keys Elijah restores. The keys that turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers. These would be the keys of the work for the dead and sealing of parents of children. The keys that seal ancestors to posterity and vice versa.
Now you could go into a deeper more doctrinal explanation of each of these works, but that’s not what I usually do. We’ve had ample time in the Doctrine and Covenants this year to discuss the gathering of Israel. We’ll discuss the principles of Celestial marriage in more depth when we get to section 132. And we’ll discuss the keys of work for the dead when we get to section 128. What I do like to do, however, is focus on a more general truth about the temple this event teaches. The label I would give this section is “PURPOSE”. The temple provides us with a purpose. It’s more than just a place to go and feel closer to God. There is work to be done in the temple. That’s why it’s often referred to as temple work, not just temple worship. Now the Saints aren’t going to fully comprehend that work at this point, but it’s going to pave the way for it in the future. That’s another thing I love about the temple. The is a reason to the work we do there. We all know that God’s eternal purpose is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. The work we do in the temple allows us to aid God in that divine work. I can help bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man for the living and the dead.
The temple is the great unifier. It’s all about making connections. I can think of five in particular. I call them the five “onenesses” of the temple. Who does the ordinances of the temple bring together and unify? If you look at the keys that were restored in the Kirtland temple back in April of 1836, they might help you to figure some of them out.
What are the five onenesses of the temple?
The ordinances of the temple bring our fellowmen together. It unites brother and brother, and sister and sister, and brother and sister. One of the sweetest experiences I’ve ever had in the temple is when I was able to attend a session where a sister and brother in my ward received their endowments for the first time. Usually when I attend the temple, the Celestial room is filled with strangers. Other than my wife, I don’t really recognize anyone else. But this time was different. I knew everyone in that room. They were all members of my ward. Faces that I knew and loved. And I thought to myself. This, is what heaven is really going to be like. A wonderful association with people that I know and recognize. I felt this incredible outpouring of love and connection with my fellowman in that moment. The temple helps to create this.
What other onenesses are created in the temple? Think about the keys of the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham.
We have Husband and Wife. One of the most important unions we can create. Husband and wife is the basic unit of eternity. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh. That oneness is created in the temple.
We also have the oneness of parent and child. Even though there is no special ceremony for children born in the covenant, some of my favorite temple memories are doing baptisms for the dead with my children. As time goes on, I anticipate even more special experiences with my children as I watch them receive their endowments and being sealed to their spouses.
Another oneness is illustrated by the keys that Elijah restored. What oneness would that be? Ancestor and Posterity. I’ve always found temple work to be more meaningful when I do it for my own ancestors and not just extracted names. There is a deep and powerful connection that is created with our heritage through temple work.
And then we have one more oneness remaining. Who else is brought together within the walls of the temple?
Our last oneness would be man and God. The temple is the “House of the Lord” after all. What better way to unite with God than within the walls of his own house?
TRUTH
So there we have it. 6 great blessings of the temple. The temple provides us with Presence, Perception, Protection, Preparation, Power and Purpose.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
To liken the scriptures, a simple question. When have you experienced one of these blessings from the temple?
As they contemplate that question, you might consider showing this video clip entitled “Strength Beyond My Own”. It’s a really beautiful song accompanied by images of the interiors and exteriors of many of the church’s temples. Encourage your students to listen to the words carefully and to ponder the blessings of the temple that they’ve experienced. When the video is over, encourage them to share.
Strength Beyond My Own
CONCLUSION
I can personally testify to the reality of each of the blessings that we’ve discussed. I love the temple. We are so fortunate to have these special buildings where earth and heaven can meet and connect us with the things of eternity. When Jacob was returning to his homeland, he stopped for the night in a place called Beth-el and, in vision, saw a staircase that reached to heaven and angels were ascending and descending on it. After he awoke, he deemed that that place was the very house of God. That’s why he calls it Beth-el, which in Hebrew means House of God. When the children of Israel finally decided that the tabernacle should have a permanent location, this is where they first chose to place it. In Beth-el. It’s not until later that the ark is moved to Jerusalem and a more permanent temple built there. The temple is just that for us also. It represents a connection between heaven and earth. I like to picture our temples in that same way. Above each one hovers a giant staircase that reaches to the heavens, and angels ascend and descend from it. No wonder we rise, and wave, and shout when these buildings are dedicated. I pray that you will find perception, preparation, protection, purpose, power, and the presence of God each time you visit.
109-RECEIVING TEMPLE BLESSINGS
For the second part of this lesson, let’s focus briefly on the other half of these temple principles. If we wish to receive these great blessings, we’ve got to be willing to do something as well. Temple blessings are reserved for those that live their lives in a certain way. So what must we do to receive the blessings of the temple?
You could cover these ideas with this secret quote activity. I’ve put one of my favorite quotes about the temple from President Nelson at the bottom of the page. Identify the words that go in the blanks, and you’ll know you got it right if they fit into the adjacent boxes. When you’re done identifying those words, use the corresponding letters to discover the secret quote at the bottom.
1. :8 Organize yourselves. If we wish to attend the temple, we need to get our spiritual lives in order.
2. :8 Prepare every needful thing. If we wish to attend the temple, we need to prepare ourselves physically, mentally, and spiritually for that experience.
3. :11 Be found worthy. In order to enjoy the blessings of the temple, we must be found worthy. This is why we have temple recommend interviews. Remember the word is worthy, not perfect. There is a question on the temple recommend interviews that seems to give people the most fits and I bet you can you guess what it is? It’s the last question. Do you consider yourself worthy to enter the Lord’s house and participate in temple ordinances? And sometimes they’ll sigh, or hesitate, or state how much they dislike that question. And sometimes I’ll just gently remind them that the temple is not for perfect people. God knows full well that the people entering his house have things that they’re working on, weaknesses, attributes that are not fully developed, and issues they still need to fix. But if they have honestly answered all the preceding questions, then they can answer that last question in confidence.
4. :14 Seek learning by study and faith. If we wish to enjoy the great understanding and wisdom we can receive in the temple, that I talked about earlier, we must be willing to seek learning. I imagine there are people that have been to the temple numerous times but have never really learned much from their experience. How could that be? They haven’t sought learning. Effort must be expended if rewards are to come. So seek when you attend the temple.
5. :21 When I transgress, I must speedily “repent and return unto thee”. I really like this verse. It shows that the Lord knows and understand that people will sometimes do things that will cause them to be unworthy to enter his house. That’s not what he’s most worried about though. I think he’s more concerned that they won’t do anything about it. We mustn’t let years go before we return. We must speedily repent and return. The temple can provide motivation for those that sinned to repent and return. The temple then acts as a great reward for those that have strayed from the path. The desire to return to the temple is often one of the best signs of a repentant heart and a contrite spirit.
6. :21 I should “reverence thee in thy house”. The temple is a place of great reverence. It’s one of the last places on earth that has not been polluted by the noise and confusion of the world. That’s why we leave our cell phones in our lockers, and whisper, and move quietly from room to room. Reverence invites the spirit.
7. :24 “Establish the people that shall worship”. Worship is a word we discussed a couple of weeks ago in section 93. There we learned that true worship was imitation. Imitation of Christ and his attributes. The temple can teach us how to be more like Christ. So pay close attention to the covenants you make, the principles you’re taught, and the promises that are made to you. They will help you to worship or imitate Christ.
8. :24 “Honorably hold a name and standing in this thy house”. This reminds us that we must not only obtain a temple recommend to enter the Lord’s house, but we must also honorably hold it. To honor something is to respect it. To conduct yourself with integrity in regards to it. I think there’s a reason we’ve been encouraged to keep our temple recommends current even throughout the pandemic. Our recommends are symbols of honorable standing in God’s house. Our recommends communicate that we are worthy to be in the Celestial room of the temple. And if we’re worthy to be in the Celestial room, that would suggest that we are also worthy to be in the Celestial kingdom. No wonder the Lord wants us to keep our recommends current.
So what is the final quote at the bottom?
“Every activity, every lesson, all we do in the Church, point to the Lord and His holy house”. Russell M. Nelson
The temple is central to our understanding and fulfillment of God’s plan for his children on this earth. All we do points to it and culminates within it. Hopefully we’re willing to take these actions suggested by section 109.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
Encourage your students to personally ponder the following question. Do you need to do any of these things? If so, what’s your plan to do it?
CONCLUSION
I pray that we will all be willing to do what is necessary to obtain the great blessings of the temple. When you consider the two things that we just studied: the blessings of the temple, and what is required to obtain those blessings, it’s easy to see that we believe in a God that gives so much and requires so little. When we stop to think about all the sacrifices the early saints in Kirtland made in order to worship in temple, hopefully it causes us to reflect on what we are willing sacrifice in order to have the blessings of the temple. They gave so much to build it in great tribulation and out of their poverty. What is required of us to receive the same blessings? A bit of our time and effort. Paying an honest tithe so the church has funds to build these magnificent structures. For me, I just have to hop in my car and make a 10-minute drive and I’m there. I wonder what the early Saints would think if they found out we weren’t taking advantage of that great blessing. I’ve been very fortunate in that I’ve had the opportunity on a number of occasions to visit the holy land. The most sacred site in the world for Jews is the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Or sometimes it’s referred to as the wailing wall. Jews from all over will come to this place to pray and express their sadness and grief that their temple is gone. They pray and weep and leave little rolled up pieces of paper with prayers written on them in the cracks of the wall. That wall is all that is left of their beloved temple. And it’s not even a wall of the temple proper. That was completely destroyed by the Romans. It’s just a retaining wall. When I’ve stood there and seen their grief, I’ve thought to myself, “We have what they mourn for”. And I’ve also often wondered, “Does our enthusiasm and for the temple and temple work and temple blessings equal their grief”. I hope it does. And I hope that we can all make the effort and sacrifices necessary to enjoy all that God has to give us in his holy house.
That message from sections 109-110 is where I would focus my attention if I only had one lesson that I could teach from this block of scripture. However, there are some other brief principles that are found in this section that we could discuss as well. Allow me to quickly share some of those ideas too.
109-A PATTERN FOR PRAYING FOR PEOPLE
We could add one more P to our list from section 109. And that P would be prayer. The second half of the dedicatory prayer of the Kirtland temple shows Joseph praying for a number of different groups of people. It’s a great place to see who we can think about when we pray. Who is worthy of our consideration and divine petitions? You could put this list on the board and then give your students a set of verses and see who can figure out who Joseph is praying for first. I’ve also added in some answers that won’t be used. So, who is Joseph praying for?
• All of God’s creatures
• Church leaders and their families
• Future unborn members of the Church
• Our enemies
• The progress and success of the Church
• The leaders of the world
• The Jews and the descendants of Lehi
• His ancestors
• Suffering members of the Church
• Former prophets
:47-49 Suffering members of the Church
:50-53 Our enemies
:54-57 The leaders of the world
:58-67 The Jews and the descendants of Lehi
:68-71 Church leaders and their families
:72-76 The progress and success of the Church
Well, perhaps we can look at this list and use it as a pattern for our own prayers. It might be good to ask ourselves how much time we spend praying for the good and blessing of others, and how much time we spend praying for the good and blessing of ourselves. Are we more service centered, or self-centered in our prayers? Certainly it’s appropriate to pray for both, but I love the ratio demonstrated in section 109.
110-SECTION HEADING-ADMINISTERING THE SACRAMENT
One more thought. There is a brief little activity that I love to do with the young men that are involved in the blessing, preparing, or passing of the sacrament. Some of them may be tempted to think that what they do during sacrament meeting isn’t that important. That it’s just something that they have to do because they’re the young men and somebody’s got to do it. That’s not the spirit of it at all. In fact, I think it’s one of the most important things we can do in the church. So what I like to do with them is have them read the section heading and choose a single word that teaches them something about the administration of the sacrament. Encourage them to share their word and what it taught them with the rest of the class. There are many words that they could choose from but here are just a few ideas.
They could choose the word “I” in that part. Who’s the “I” here? It’s Joseph Smith. If the prophet of the restoration didn’t feel that it was beneath him to administer the sacrament to the church, then we shouldn’t feel any reservations about doing it all. It’s an admirable and praiseworthy duty.
Another word along those lines is “privilege”. Joseph Smith felt that it was a privilege to officiate at the sacrament table that day. Blessing, preparing, and passing the sacred emblems of the sacrament is a privilege and an honor. It is no small thing to bear the emblems of Christ’s sacrifice.
They could choose the word sacred. I like what they call the sacrament table here. It’s referred to as “the sacred desk”. Maybe we should still call it that. What we do at the sacrament table is sacred work and approach it with great humility and awe.
I like the word “service”. Administering the sacrament is a service that we perform to our fellow man. Without the bearers of the Aaronic priesthood performing their duty at the sacred desk, the members of the church would not be able to reap the benefits of Christ’s atonement in their lives. It is a great act of service.
There are other words that they could choose as well, but I like this little exercise because it elevates in their minds the experience and responsibility that they perform each week.
Comments