The Importance of Section 76 in D&C

Doctrine and Covenants section 76 was a big shift for the saints. This revelation was given to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon ad Hiram, Ohio, February 16, 1832. In is precisely in this revelation that Lord teaches us all that their is more than just a division between paradise and spiritual prison after we die; he reveals some of the mysteries of the kingdom to us. An important principle taught here was defining the true meaning between salvation and exaltation. Members of our church today, including myself have used these two words interchangeably. The truth is that these words must be used in accordance with the doctrines of the scriptures, which contain the word of God. Salvation comes through individuals alone and independently. Thus, eternal live is used in context to teach that each individual can have eternal live if they accordingly to what the gospel of Jesus Christ teaches. Exaltation on the other hand deals with inheriting the Celestial Kingdom, where our Father in Heaven lives. The only way to reach this highest kingdom of glory, it must be done with "team work - families. This is where the the ordinances of the temple come into play with a sacred duty and deep covenant with Heavenly Father. It is thorugh a celetial marriage in the temple that we can have the privilege to live with God. Now, just because one is sealed in the temple, does not entitled the couple to a free passage into the Celestial Kingdom. It takes two, plus the children of the couple to work together and be righteous. God does not expect perfection but he does ask of each and one of us to do our best. We do our best when we go the extra mile, and come to a rest in our journey when the burdens life are just to heavy to carry on our shoulders. Here is where the Savior's atonement heals, supports, uplifts us, and purifies anyone who comes unto our Savior, Jesus Christ. In context, when the scriptures read eternal lives, this is referring to families and the principle thereof. When the prophet Joseph Smith received the revelation, along with Sidney Rigdon, they were given a total of five revelations: (1) Celestial Kingdom (2) Outer darkness (3) Celestial kingdom (4) Terrestrial kingdom (5) Telestial Kingdom. Heavenly Father showed the Celestial Kingdom twice, with outer darkness in between, in order that they could see the shocking and deep contrast in the both. In the Telestial kingdom, the Holy Ghost will be the only one present. In the Terrestrial Kingdom, Jesus Christ will rein there as well. Those who inherit the Celestial Kingdom will have the privilege to meet God. When the saints first received this revelation, much contention, argumentation, and debate arose. In class, we discussed that maybe the view of the people was centered more on themselves and the idea that everyone would be exalted together did not seem right for them in the beginning. We discussed how human nature will sometimes have feelings to condemn people. We are sometimes to harsh on other and are hard to forgive. But when it comes us personally, we are easier on ourselves and excuse our sins and imperfections. It through section 76 that Mormonism changed forever and God wants each and one of us to return to him, which is why be has commanded that we follow principle of celestial marriages in order to strengthen each other and lighten our paths.

Insights of Creation from D&C 59

In section 59 of the Doctrine and Covenants, insights about creation can be gained. This revelation was given on August 7 1831, which answered the question regarding which day to worship God. God commanded that the sabbath day be Sunday and kept consecrated. Upon personal reflection, I have come to realize the more and more the importance of keeping this day holy and dedicated to the Lord. God gives the things which we are able and should do during this holy day. He speaks of fasting by rejoicing in prayer; provide service to one another; rest from our larbors; pay our most high devotions to Him. The scriptures use the word oblations to refer to offersings or sacraments we may offer to God. These include our talents, providing service to our "fellowmen." As each week passes by, its a reminder of how God created the world and rested on the 7th day. The Lord also cautions us that as we do these things, we must show our gratitude and without much "laughter." Being to over joyful is an offense and a sin. The Lord also speaks about recognizing his hand in all things. There are some who are ignorant and do not "confess God's hand in all things." Living in Utah has opened my vision to God's marvelous work. The fact that I can wake up each moring with a breath of life testifies his power of creating man. The mountains here are a big impact and I find them at times fearsome. To me, this is symbolic of God; he is grandeur, powerful, with authority. And as the mountain, it immediately calls for respect. At the same time, God's countenance is ever beautiful and full of color, as the mountains show throughout the seasons. Everything that is in this world serves as a testimony of his existence and the divinity of the Savior. Because he have been created in his own image and are here on earth for a purpose, we are subject to following the Lord's commandments. But he has unconditional love for each and one of us, and as a consequence, he gave us free agency to act upon ourselves. From this revelation, we are able to see that Jackson County was the center of Even and that Far West is the and Adam-Ondi-Ahman. The ending will we were the beginning was. In this revelation, God speaks also of of the things with grow on earth and there benefit for ourselves. Unfortunately, the idea that the world was endless was the idealistic belief for the people during the 19th century. This revelation serves as a person to caution the saints to use all things on earth wisely. The promise that the Lord makes unto all of us is that if we labor in righteous, striving to follow his commandments, then we will otain peace in thie world, and eternal life with him. I have personally experienced difficult trials in my life, where I know that if I did not get on my knees, continously, to pray and cry to our God, I would be utterly point of deception. Above the many afflictions, the Lord still gave me peace of mind and heart. Of this I do testify, that He is our God and will fulfill his promises.

My Experince at the MOA Types and Shadows Exhibition

Last week, I had the opportunity to visit the BYU Museum of Arts and walk through the “Types and Shadows” exhibition. This experience has been by far the most memorable and influential of all other art shows I have experienced. The scripture in Moses 6:63 states clearly that “all things have their likeliness, and all things are created,” which does in fact bear record of God. This scripture was in fact the opening of the exhibition. I have been taught an important lesson – “Learning to read religious symbols is an essential part of becoming a spiritually mature person.” In one of the paintings, “Christ the Shepherd,” I felt a deep connection with the Savior and his role in my life. I pictured the lamb he is holding to be me; this made me think of the love, mercy, and his capability to care for each one of us. I also put into perspective the role I would play if I was the sheep that surrounded him. I too play an important part in not only following the Savior, along with the other sheep, but as well caring for the “one” in his arms. Another painting called “The Rod and the Veil,” made me take into deeper perspective my life. Holding on to the Iron Rod requires us to first reach out and grab hold it. Because of the temptations, trials, and tribulations we face while here on earth, it is a hard to grab hold of the Iron Rod. But all it takes is for us to reach out and the Savior will provide the aid we need to grasp a hold of it. Becoming more spiritually mature requires “Seeing Beyond” the picture, as “ And then I looked” painting suggests. The jagged tock for me represents the trials in my life, which can be a challenged to climb all the way to the top to reach Heaven. But we are provided with light, the Savior’s light, so that we can see where we are stepping and not tumble down the rocks. I liked the symbolism found in the painting of “The Prodigal Son.” The blue cloth suspended in three differ areas of the painting symbolizes God’s constant watch care. It also symbolizes the atonement, which means to “cover. ” The painting titled “Man of Sorrows” had by far the biggest impact in me. Its image was so realistic, almost as if I was seeing Christ in person. He is bearing the cross his shoulder and looking down. After observing the painting for a while, it then occurred to me that I too was included in the picture. The cross was me, who Christ was holding and bearing. I then meditated deeper and realized that my suffering and pain, plus those of all humanity, was all on the shoulders of Christ. We never will have to walk alone or bear our sorrows with no aid. If we hold onto to what Christ has taught and strive to live as his example, then we can overcome anything that comes before us. The Savior, on the other hand did bear the pain and suffering of all alone, a man who was free from sin and had done no evil. If one loves the Savior, then we show that through action and by giving our hearts to him.

The Old Testament Exodus and the Restoration Exodus

In the Old Testament, the exodus led by the prophet Moses can compare and contrast with the exodus of the restoration. I find it a blessing to have the examples of both these stories to give one strength and faith to press forward. These stories teaches everyone a lesson of sacrifice, charity, and love for the Lord. They do differ in certain aspects like the children of Israel taking forty years to reach the promise land. In contrast, the pioneers of the restoration took about two year (1846-1848) to reach their destination, Utah, modern promise land. The Old Testament landmark is similar if not identical to the landmark of the restoration exodus. For example, New York is the modern place what Egypt was. The persecution the Mormons where receiving, along with threats of killing, compare to the Egyptians slaying and working the Israelites to death in Labor. Once pharaoh granted Moses permission to set the people free, the Israelites were led by Moses into the wilderness, just as Brigham Young – modern day Moses – the Saints across the Missouri. Like the Old Testament, pioneers crossed the Rocky Mountains, what would have been Mount Sinai for the Israelites. Afterwards, both parties of the exodus where face with crossing across bodies of waters; the Israelites crossed the Jordan River and the pioneers crossed the Utah lake as well as the Mississippi river. When reaching the their “promise land,” this was just ahead of the bodies of waters for both parties. The exodus in the Old Testament is foreshadowing of the coming of Christ. Moses receive the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai where as the law of the church was given in Ohio. I believe the exodus of the restoration to foreshadow the second coming of Christ. All of us will be required to face much tribulation, trial, pain, suffering. All this must come to pass in order to builds us stronger and prepares for our greatest gift of all – eternal life with our Father in Heaven. I especially like the fact how the Old Testament exodus can be applied in a symbolic way to our dispensation. Egypt represents our modern world. Many may not see that the worldly things of this earth – drugs, violence, killings, etc. - are holding the hearts of men captive. Those victims surrounded by such destructions suffer through it all. Physical bondage of the Israelites is like being spiritually bonded. If we do not repent of our sins, then we cannot progress spiritually and the Holy Ghost cannot be with us. Moses is a figure representing Christ, who is fighting for our cause. Christ sacrificed his life for the children of men, so that all of us could be redeemed and perfect ourselves through his atonement. In order to reach the Celestial Kingdom, where God reigns, we must walk through baptismal waters of the red sea, be given the pillar of fire through the Holy Ghost; walk through the Lord’s temple. After our exodus through the wilderness, Christ will come and reign for one thousand years and afterwards, the great judgment day will come. The veil be taken away and all children of God will be judged according to their works.

Significance of D&C 42

Section forty-two of the Doctrine and Covenants contains the Law of the Church. It is a composite revelation in which the first portion was received February nine, 1832 and the second portion on February 23. This revelation, in the prophets words, "embraces the law of the church." The Lord for the elders to preach the gospel and convert new people. Section forty-two also restates the ten commandments God has given to all of us to obey. This brings a bigger testimony of how the D&C, along with the Book of Mormon, and the Bible have the word of God and parallels with other. This fulfills God's promise to all his children that he speaks to all and that he is the same God yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Laws of consecration are also stated, where everyone is to care for the needy, the poor, the scik, etc. This teaches us a lesson of having charity, being humble, self-less, and benevolent for the "one." This reminds me much of when the scriptures say to loose ourselves in the service of others. By doing this, we are becoming more Christ-like. I have learned that doing this requires much sacrifice and love. But in the end, if we truly love God and his beloved Son, and strive to follow the commandments, doing this shall no longer be a sacrifice since we are doing out of love for God and having faith in Him.THe Lord revealed section forty-two by the prayers of faithful saints. The law was received in Kirtland, Ohio, where a temple would also be built. This was significant because ordinances would soon be established to " clothe the saints with endowments - temple clothes would be worn as a symbol of God giving us some sort of power). This reminded me of a discussion we had in my temple class. Many who are not members will often say why is the temple so "secretive." THere is a big difference between what is kept as a secret as what is watched as sacred. A secret can never be revealed - only to certain people. The temples are sacred, but anyone who is worthy and endowed may enter inside. Section forty two answers five questions asked by Grant Underwood. These included: shall the church come together, what is the law of the church, how are elders to dispose of families, how far is the will of the Lord that we should have dealings with the world, and what preparations do the saints need to make for the bretheren in the East and when and how. Section forty gives us an insight of the process on how the prophet recorded and published the works. This is a further testimony to me that the prophet Joseph Smith was truly a prophet of God; He was a young man with very little education. Yet, because the Lord chose him to restore the gospel, he was endowed with the spirit of revelation and power to bring the word of God to all men.

Visit to the Crandall Museum

My visit to the Crandall Museum gave me a deeper insight and appreciation for the Book of Mormon, as well as for the people who played a major role in bringing forth its word unto all nations. My testimony has grown to a degree of understanding better the Lord’s hand in the lives of his children and letting his will, word, and spirit know through his servants here on earth. As we were given a brief history of Guttenberg and his invention of the printing press, I came to appreciate his work and dedication in doing so. It required many multiple steps from finding the right metal to makes letters to designing the right ink so write with. We were what Guttenberg’s printing press looked liked and shown the process of printing. First, many letters were place in the body of printing press. People, known as beaters would then, use balls of goose skin to damp the ink in, spread well, and beat onto the character letters. A sheet of paper would be laid on the top of the printing press, and positioned with hinges to be placed over the inked letters. The body of the printing press was slid into a wooden presser, which then someone would use a handle bar to press the wood hard over the body and allow the body of letter to be printed well on the paper. Afterwards, the sheets of paper would be laid to dry. This was the early method of printing bibles; the thought all this to thousands of pages on the bible required much effort and dedication. After learning about Guttenberg’s press, the class was then introduced to the life of Benjamin Franklin. I learned many things about him that I never knew before. As early as sixteen, he was in charge of a printing newsletter. The story that had the greatest impact on me about his life was when he told his wife he would be leaving home for fours years to relief the colonists from the stamp acts of the British. Fours years turned into eleven years because of the many other cruel acts the British imposed on the colonists. For eleven years, his wife and him wrote without stopping and were faithful to each other. In December of the eleventh year, he stopped receiving letters from his wife and soon discovered that she had passed away due to sickness, just three months before his arrival back home. The fact that this couple was able to do this sets a great example love and charity. As we then shifted towards the publication of the Book of Mormon, many things I had yet to learn. By then, many years have passed since the invention of the printing press. The Book of Mormon was published on a metal printing press. Fourteen-year old boys were hired to wash each letter and press on paper. A great lesson learned here was that these boys were printing on average one page per minute, a task Brother Crandall stated was nearly impossible, since he himself was printing presser back then. It was estimated that 5000 copies of the Book of Mormon would take two years to bind but in reality was done in a short amount of time. This is a testimony to me that God lives, grants us strength, and gives each of his children callings to carry out his work. It is my testimony that he lives and loves each and one of us in the world.

The Gathering

The gathering during the time period of the Prophet Joseph Smith is an event in history to admire and learn from. The gathering of the Latter-Day Saints from all parts of the country, New York, Missouri, etc., not only involved leaving behind precious possessions, the warmth of homes, lands, but as well suffering, pain, and the loss of dear ones. One must wonder why would the pioneers sacrifice their lives to come across thousands of miles in the piercing, cold of winter season and walk through deadly bitter ice waters to reach the Salt Lake valley, which had absolutely no means of survival? The history of this gathering continues to impress me more each time I hear of it and builds on the testimony I have of God, and His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. What an immense faith did these people have, that even the persecutions of their enemies did not stop them from believing. I have experience Utah winters, walking on icy snow and frozen grounds. The task requires much poise, patience, and precaution; a small –blundering insignificant step will bring you straight down on earth. I picture these pioneers with pulling handcarts and riding wagons in snow, with no special shoes or fit clothing to withstand the cold. They put to shame every time I find myself whining about insignificant problems, compared to their tribulations. I especially loved the connection made in class about the gathering being like the children of Israel and Moses wandering in the dessert for forty years to get to the promise land. Brigham Young was the modern Moses, Salt Lake the present promise land, and the Saints the children of Israel. Just like Moses was commanded to take the people from Egypt to free them from their enemies (pharaoh and servants), the Lord also told Brigham Young to gather up the saints into one place because they were no longer safe. The greatest impact between the two events is the fact that the geographical settings are the same, only in different parts of the world. For example New York is simulated to Egypt; both events required the people to go through a body of water and mountains. Another connection is the gathering of the Saints at Kirtland, Ohio, where they received the power of endowment. This parallels with the ancient Israelites who received the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai. It was necessary for the Lord to call up the Saints to gather because only that was is possible to have enough people to build the temples, organize the church into districts, and built “Zion.” Today, the Lord does not need to gather the Saints because the membership of the church has grown immensely with service of faithful and strong missionaries throughout the world. Are gatherings now happen every Sunday at church buildings; participating in callings, such as visiting and home teaching. In this way, we all grow spiritually together and strengthen one another. Yet again, if there ever was a gathering again like the past, this would be a great test of my faith and testimony. I find the strength in this passage of the New Testament:

2 Tim 1:7
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
8 ... be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began….