Doctrine and Covenants Lesson 26

The Lord poured out great blessings during the Kirtland period

Most of the last 13 lessons have focused on the doctrines that were revealed and the events that occurred while the Saints were in Kirtland, Ohio. During this time the Lord blessed His people greatly. Highlights from the Kirtland period include the law of consecration, the law of tithing, the kingdoms of glory, the Word of Wisdom, the Second Coming, and the priesthood.

Of these doctrines, principles, or blessings, which have special meaning for you?  What would you be willing to give up to have and understand them?  What would you be willing to give up so that someone you love had them?

In the spring of 1836, Erastus Snow left Kirtland to serve a mission in western Pennsylvania.  He brought with him all his worldly possessions: a set of scriptures, a pair of socks, and five cents.

Which is easier – to sacrifice little when we only have little, or to sacrifice much when we have much?  In the end it really doesn’t matter.  God asks the same from each of us – all that we have.

The Saints in Kirtland made great sacrifices to share the gospel

Read D&C 42:6 and D&C 88:81.  What message does the Lord deliver in these verses?  Read the following stories, watching for answers to the following questions:

• How did the Lord bless these Elders as they worked to share the gospel? 
• What challenges did they have to overcome?

In 1836 Elder Parley P. Pratt, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, was called to serve a mission to Canada. On his way to Toronto, Canada, “a stranger gave him a letter of introduction to John Taylor, a Methodist lay preacher in Toronto. Taylor was affiliated with a group who believed existing churches did not correspond with New Testament Christianity. For two years this group had met several times a week for the ‘purpose of seeking truth, independent of any sectarian organization.’ In Toronto, Elder Pratt was courteously received by the Taylors, but they were not at first enthusiastic about his message.

“Discouraged at being unable to secure a place to preach, Parley decided to leave Toronto. Before going he stopped at the Taylors to get some of his luggage and to say goodbye. While he was there, Leonora Taylor told her friend Mrs. Isabella Walton about Parley’s problem and said she was sorry he was leaving. ‘He may be a man of God,’ she said. Mrs. Walton replied that she had been inspired by the Spirit to visit the Taylors that morning because she was willing to let Elder Pratt stay at her home and preach. He did so and was eventually invited to attend a meeting of John Taylor’s group, in which John read the New Testament account of Philip’s preaching in Samaria. ‘Now,’ said he, ‘where is our Philip? Where is our receiving the Word with joy, and being baptized when we believed? Where is our Peter and John? Our apostles? Where is our Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands? …’ When Parley was invited to speak, he declared that he had answers to John Taylor’s questions.

“For three weeks John Taylor attended Elder Pratt’s meetings, making detailed notes of his sermons and carefully comparing them with the scriptures. Gradually he became convinced that the true gospel of Jesus Christ was restored. He and his wife, Leonora, were baptized on 9 May 1836” (Church History in the Fulness of Times [Church Educational System manual, 1993], 157; see also Parley P. Pratt, Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt [1975], 134–40, 151).

Levi Hancock was baptized in November 1830, and soon afterward he was called to leave Kirtland and serve a mission in Missouri. The journey involved walking hundreds of miles, and he and his companion, Zebedee Coltrin, had success in preaching the gospel as they traveled. “But they also suffered hardships on their journey. Levi fell ill because of an infection in his feet and had to spend time recuperating with a family who took him in while Zebedee went on without him. Later, in Missouri, he continued to struggle with illness and chafed at times because of his inability to do all he wanted. But grateful to serve, he wrote: ‘I have to be honest before God and do all the good I can for his kingdom or woe is me. I care not for the world nor what they say. They have to meet my Testimony at the Judgement seat. I mean that my conduct shall be such that my words will be believed, the Lord being my helper.’ ”

What sacrifices are required of us today for full-time missionary service?  How about in our efforts to share the gospel with those around us?

Members of the Quorum of the Twelve taught thousands in England

During the Kirtland period, opposition to the Church became more intense, even as great blessings and revelations were being poured out upon the Saints.  Because of these attacks from without and the apostasy of many members of the Church, the Lord revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith that “something new must be done for the salvation of His Church” (History of the Church, 2:489).  What was that “new thing” that the Lord directed?

I believe there is great instruction here: The Lord’s solutions to the world’s problems rarely make sense to the mortal mind. 

• The Church faced a financial crisis and there was a drought in Southern Utah when President Lorenzo Snow was the Prophet.  The Lord’s solution to both these problems was to remind the Saints of the law of tithing.
• The Lord counsels us to love our enemies.  (see Matt. 5: 43-44)
• He tells us that he gave us weaknesses so that we can be strong.  (see Ether 12: 27)

As we deal with challenges in our lives and work to overcome problems, remember these experiences from the past.  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 55:8).

So eager was Heber C. Kimball to preach the gospel on foreign soil that as the boat approached the landing at Liverpool, England, he leaped from the boat to the dock before it was moored, proclaiming that he was the first to reach a land overseas with the message of the Restoration. By 23 July the missionaries were preaching to congregations of overflow crowds and the first baptisms were scheduled for 30 July. George D. Watt won a footrace to the River Ribble in Preston, which determined the honor of being the first to be baptized in Britain.

Within eight months, hundreds of converts had joined the Church and many branches had been organized. Reflecting on this great harvest of souls, Heber recalled that the Prophet and his Counselors “laid their hands on me and … said that God would make me mighty in that nation in winning souls unto Him: angels should accompany me and bear me up, that my feet should never slip; that I should be mightily blessed and prove a source of salvation to thousands.” 15

Read D&C 112:19–22. What promises did the Lord make to the Twelve Apostles in these verses?

The promise given in D&C 112:19 was fulfilled quickly. Within eight months, 2,000 people had joined the Church through the efforts of these missionaries, and 26 branches had been organized.

The Lord continues to support His work throughout the nations of the earth:

“In 1968 when I made my first visit to the German Democratic Republic, tensions were high. Trust and understanding did not exist. No diplomatic relations had been established. On a cloudy and rain-filled day I journeyed to the city of Görlitz, situated deep in the German Democratic Republic. … I attended my first meeting with the Saints. We assembled in a small and ancient building. As the members sang the hymns of Zion, they literally filled the hall with their faith and devotion.

“My heart was filled with sorrow when I realized the members had no patriarch, no wards or stakes—just branches. They could not receive temple blessings—either endowment or sealing. No official visitor had come from Church headquarters in a long time. The members could not leave their country. Yet they trusted in the Lord with all their hearts.

“I stood at the pulpit, and with tear-filled eyes and a voice choked with emotion, I made a promise to the people: ‘If you will remain true and faithful to the commandments of God, every blessing any member of the Church enjoys in any other country will be yours.’ Then I realized what I had said. That night, I dropped to my knees and pleaded with my Heavenly Father, ‘Father, I’m on Thy errand; this is Thy Church. I have spoken words that came not from me but from Thee and Thy Son. Wilt Thou fulfill the promise in the lives of this noble people.’ Thus concluded my first visit to the German Democratic Republic.”

Eight years later, Elder Monson offered a dedicatory prayer on the land:

“On a Sunday morning, April 27, 1975, I stood on an outcropping of rock situated between the cities of Dresden and Meissen, high above the Elbe River, and offered a prayer on the land and its people. That prayer noted the faith of the members. It emphasized the tender feelings of many hearts filled with an overwhelming desire to obtain temple blessings. A plea for peace was expressed. Divine help was requested. I spoke the words: ‘Dear Father, let this be the beginning of a new day for the members of Thy Church in this land.’

“Suddenly, from far below in the valley, a bell in a church steeple began to chime and the shrill crow of a rooster broke the morning silence, each heralding the commencement of a new day. Though my eyes were closed, I felt a warmth from the sun’s rays reaching my face, my hands, my arms. How could this be? An incessant rain had been falling all morning.

“At the conclusion of the prayer, I gazed heavenward. I noted a ray of sunshine which streamed from an opening in the heavy clouds, a ray which engulfed the spot where our small group stood. From that moment I knew divine help was at hand.”

Following this inspired prayer, the Church grew rapidly in the land. District councils were organized, followed by the creation of stakes. Priesthood leaders and patriarchs were called. The Freiberg Germany temple was dedicated in 1985. And in 1989 the government permitted the Church to send full-time missionaries to the country. (In Conference Report, Apr. 1989, 66–69; or Ensign, May 1989, 50–53.)

Conclusion

As we consider the responsibility the Church has always been under to “warn our neighbors” (see D&C 88:81), we can take strength and comfort from the fact that this is the Lord’s work.  We are responsible to do everything we can and sacrifice those things the Lord requires of us.  Then we can “be still and know that [the Lord] is God” (see Psalms 46: 10 and D&C 101: 16) and that He will go before our face and will be on our right hand and on our left, and His angels will bear us up (see D&C 84:88).

Doctrine and Covenants Lesson 25

Introduction

List the following offices, quorums and councils of the priesthood (Omit dates and scripture references):

Aaronic Priesthood: 15 May 1829 (D&C 13) [1]

Apostles, elders, priests, teachers, and deacons: April 1830 (D&C 20:38–60) [3]

Bishop: 4 February 1831 (D&C 41:9–10) [4]

First Presidency: 1832–33 (D&C 81; 90) [6]

First Quorum of the Seventy: 1835 (D&C 107:26, 93–97) [11]

High council: 17 February 1834 (D&C 102) [8]

High priests: June 1831 (heading to D&C 52) [5]

Melchizedek Priesthood: May or June 1829 (D&C 128:20) [2]

Patriarch: 18 December 1833 (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith [1976], 38–39) [7]

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: 1835 (D&C 107:23–24) [9]

Seventies: 1835 (D&C 107:25) [10]

Ask class members to order these items into the chronological order in which they were revealed.  (Order is in brackets).

This lesson discusses the covenants and blessings associated with the Priesthood.

The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood

D&C 84:33–44 contains the oath and covenant of the priesthood.  These verses outline (1) the covenants a man makes with the Lord when he receives the Melchizedek Priesthood and (2) the covenants the Lord makes with faithful Melchizedek Priesthood holders.

Elder Carlos E. Asay of the Seventy said: “Of all the holy agreements pertaining to the gospel of Jesus Christ, few, if any, would transcend in importance the oath and covenant of the priesthood. It is certainly one of the most sacred agreements, for it involves the sharing of heavenly powers and man’s upward reaching toward eternal goals” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1985, 56; or Ensign, Nov. 1985, 43).

Considering Elder Asay’s remark, I realize that every other covenant God offers to man is conditioned on this covenant of the priesthood, for every other blessing comes through the priesthood.

As we discuss the oath and covenant of the priesthood, remember these words from President Joseph Fielding Smith: “[T]he blessings of the priesthood are not confined to men alone. These blessings are also poured out … upon all the faithful women of the Church. … The Lord offers to his daughters every spiritual gift and blessing that can be obtained by his sons, for neither is the man without the woman, nor the woman without the man in the Lord” (Joseph Fielding Smith, in Conference Report, Apr. 1970, 59; or Improvement Era, June 1970, 66).

Our promises to the Lord

Read D&C 84:33–44.  What do priesthood holders promise as part of the oath and covenant of the priesthood?  (Remember, these promises also apply on the part of those who seek to receive blessings through the Priesthood.)

a.       Be faithful in obtaining the Aaronic Priesthood and the Melchizedek Priesthood (verse 33).

b.      Magnify their callings (verse 33).

c.       Receive the Lord’s servants (verse 36).

d.      Give diligent heed to the words of eternal life (verses 43–44).

·         What does it mean to magnify a calling? (See D&C 107:99; Jacob 1:17–19.)

President Gordon B. Hinckley said: “We magnify our priesthood and enlarge our calling when we serve with diligence and enthusiasm in those responsibilities to which we are called by proper authority. … We magnify our calling, we enlarge the potential of our priesthood when we reach out to those in distress and give strength to those who falter. … We magnify our calling when we walk with honesty and integrity” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1989, 63; or Ensign, May 1989, 48–49; emphasis added).

·         How have you been blessed as someone has magnified their calling, or as you have magnified a calling you have held?

·         What does it mean to receive the Lord’s servants? (D&C 84:36). Explain that as we accept the message and ordinances of the gospel from the Lord’s servants, we also receive the Lord.

The Lord’s promises to us

The Lord covenants to:

a.       Sanctify us by the Spirit (verse 33).

b.      Renew our bodies (verse 33).

c.       Give us the blessings promised to Abraham and his posterity (verse 34).

d.      Make us His elect, or chosen (verse 34).

e.       Give us all that the Father has (verse 38).

f.       Give His angels charge over us (verse 42).

The Lord promises that if we are faithful, we will become “the seed of Abraham … and the elect of God” (D&C 84:33–34). As we fulfill the responsibilities of the priesthood, we will help fulfill the promises given to Abraham that through his seed, all the earth will be blessed.

The crowning promise in the oath and covenant of the priesthood is that we can receive “all that [the] Father hath” (D&C 84:38). How can knowledge of this promise help us in times of adversity? How can it help us in times of plenty?

Principles for Using the Priesthood

D&C 121:34–46 contain words revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith towards the end of his months-long imprisonment in Liberty Jail.  They discuss principles of proper use of priesthood authority, and apply not just to priesthood holders, but to all human interaction.

Things not to do

Read D&C 121:34–40 and make a list of things we should not do:

a.       Set our hearts too much on the things of the world (35)

b.      Seek the honors of men (35)

c.       Cover our sins (37)

d.      Gratify our pride or vain ambition (37)

e.       Exercise control, dominion or compulsion over others unrighteously in any degree (37).  Even being a little domineering is wrong.

Remember that Joseph is receiving this revelation in a dungeon where he has been unjustly confined by those who seek the honors of this world and want to gratify their pride and ambition.

What are some “things of this world” that we might be tempted to care too much about?  How can we overcome this problem?

How might we exercise “unrighteous dominion”?  What are the consequences of doing so?  How can we overcome this tendency?

Things to do (and get better at doing!)

Read D&C 121:41–42.  What can you do this week to develop these characteristics within yourself?  What can you do today?

Read D&C 121:43–44. 

Betimes means soon – Don’t let the problem get worse or stale before addressing it.

Sharpness means clearly or precisely, not roughly or unkindly.  Imagine you’re going in for surgery.  Do you want the surgeon to use a sharp scalpel, or a dull one?  Why?  The sharp one hurts less!  Imagine you’re focusing a camera.  What happens when the image in the viewfinder is in sharp focus?  You can see the details better.  When we reprove with sharpness, we are very clear about what is being reproved, and what is not.  We’re reproving the behavior, not the person.

Read D&C 121:45–46.  Imagine if all the world practiced these principles each day.  What would the world be like?  Since we can’t change the whole world, imagine if you personally practiced these principles at home and at work.  How would your life be different?  Is that difference worth working for?  Will you do it?

I find it interesting that after warning against trying to use the priesthood to unrighteously exercise dominion or compulsion over others in verse 37, God promises that if we use the priesthood righteously, then “thy dominion shall be an everlasting dominion, and without compulsory means it shall flow unto thee forever and ever” in verse 46.  It is perfectly protected from those who would misuse this power, and given freely to those who use it to bless and serve others.

Conclusion

While serving in the Quorum of the Twelve, Elder Gordon B. Hinckley said: “It has been my privilege on various occasions to converse with Presidents of the United States and important men in other governments. At the close of each such occasion I have reflected on the rewarding experience of standing with confidence in the presence of an acknowledged leader. And then I have thought, what a wonderful thing, what a marvelous thing it would be to stand with confidence—unafraid and unashamed and unembarrassed—in the presence of God. This is the promise held out to every virtuous man and woman” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1970, 66; or Improvement Era, Dec. 1970, 73).

It is my testimony that as we seek to use the priesthood righteously, we will be able to enjoy this blessing both now and throughout eternity.

Doctrine and Covenants Lesson 24

Introduction

Write the following phrases on the chalkboard:

·         A pint of cream

·         A misspelled name

·         No available seating at the Kirtland Temple dedication

These phrases all have something in common. They are all reasons given by early Church members for their apostasy from the Church.  Looking at these reasons today, we think they’re pretty “silly” reasons to leave the Church.  Put in the proper perspective, are any of the reasons we might give today any less silly?

Today’s lesson focuses on how we can avoid personal apostasy.

Recognizing Satan’s deceptions

Read D&C 50:2–3 and 2 Nephi 2:18, 27.  Satan tries to deceive us because he is miserable!  He will try any trick to get us to leave the truth and be like he is.  What are some ways he tries to deceive us?

Not recognizing the prophet as the source of revelation for the Church

In 1830, Hiram Page, one of the Eight Witnesses to the Book of Mormon, possessed a stone through which he claimed to receive revelations about the building of Zion and the order of the Church. Oliver Cowdery, the Whitmers, and others believed these claims. However, the Prophet Joseph Smith said the claims “were entirely at variance with the order of God’s house, as laid down in the New Testament, as well as in our late revelations” (History of the Church, 1:110).

The Prophet prayed about the matter and received a revelation in which the Lord made clear that only the President of the Church has the right to receive revelations for the Church (D&C 28). The Lord instructed Oliver Cowdery to tell Hiram Page that the revelations that came through the stone were from Satan (D&C 28:11).

What happened in this instance?  Read D&C 28:11.  Hiram was reproved gently and privately, and he chose to humble himself and renounce his false teachings.  After hearing the Lord’s instructions, “Brother Page, as well as the whole Church who were present, renounced the said stone, and all things connected therewith” (History of the Church, 1:115).

Later, Hiram became disaffected with Joseph’s leadership and left the Church.  This illustrates our need to continually guard against personal apostasy.  Overcoming it once is not enough.

Pride

Some members are deceived because of their pride. The following story illustrates how pride led Thomas B. Marsh, who was President of the Quorum of the Twelve, and his wife, Elizabeth, into apostasy.

While living in Far West, Missouri, Sister Marsh and Sister Harris decided to exchange milk so they could each make a larger cheese than they otherwise could. They agreed to send each other both the milk and the cream from their cows. But Sister Marsh saved a pint of cream from each cow and sent Sister Harris the milk without the cream.

A quarrel arose, and the matter was referred to the bishop. When he determined that Sister Marsh had violated her agreement, she and her husband were upset and appealed the matter to the high council and then to the First Presidency. Each council approved the original decision that Sister Marsh had been in error.

Thomas B. Marsh declared that he would sustain the character of his wife. Soon afterward, he turned against the Church and went before a government official to declare that the Latter-day Saints were hostile toward the state of Missouri. (See George A. Smith, in Journal of Discourses, 3:283–84.)

President Gordon B. Hinckley said of this incident: “What a very small and trivial thing—a little cream over which two women quarreled. But it led to, or at least was a factor in, Governor Boggs’ cruel exterminating order which drove the Saints from the state of Missouri, with all of the terrible suffering and consequent death that followed. The man who should have settled this little quarrel, but who, rather, pursued it, … lost his standing in the Church. He lost his testimony of the gospel” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1984, 111; or Ensign, May 1984, 83).

After 19 years of darkness and bitterness, Thomas B. Marsh painfully made his way to the Salt Lake Valley and asked Brigham Young to forgive him and permit his rebaptism into the Church. He wrote to Heber C. Kimball, First Counselor in the First Presidency: “I began to awake to a sense of my situation; … I know that I have sinned against Heaven and in thy sight.” He then described the lesson he had learned: “The Lord could get along very well without me and He has lost nothing by my falling out of the ranks; But O what have I lost?! Riches, greater riches than all this world or many planets like this could afford” (quoted by James E. Faust, in Conference Report, Apr. 1996, 6; or Ensign, May 1996, 7).

The Lord will bless us as we seek to be humble and lay aside all pride.  Read D&C 112:10.  Note that this well-known verse was given to Thomas B. Marsh in 1837.  How can we overcome prideful tendencies and choose to be humble, even when we feel like we may be justified in our pride?

Being critical of our leaders’ imperfections

Briefly reference the story of Simonds Ryder.  I once heard a talk (possibly by President Faust?) in which he told of a meeting he attended.  (Details are not exact, but the general idea is below.)  The general message of President Faust’s message is that the speaker in the meeting spent his time sharing stories about the Prophet that showed his imperfections.  President Faust concluded, “The speaker spent his time convincing his listeners that Prophet was an imperfect mortal.  We already knew that!  He should have spent his time instead convincing his listeners that this imperfect mortal was in fact a prophet of God.”

In our ward, I hope we all recognize that we are all imperfect mortals trying our best.  Each of us will occasionally make a mistake.  We should be humble and look with patience on the mistakes of others, rather than using these events as an excuse to become less faithful.

Being offended

Some Church members become offended by the actions of other members and allow an offense to fester until they are led into apostasy. An example of this is illustrated in the following incident.

When the Kirtland Temple was completed, many Saints gathered for the dedication. The seats in the temple filled quickly, and many people were allowed to stand, but still not everyone could be accommodated inside the building. Elder Frazier Eaton, who had given $700 for the building of the temple, arrived after it had been filled, so he was not allowed inside for the dedication. The dedication was repeated the next day for those who could not be accommodated the first day, but this did not satisfy Frazier Eaton, and he apostatized. (See George A. Smith, in Journal of Discourses, 11:9.)

Seven hundred dollars was a lot of money in 1833!  What should we do when we feel that we have been wronged?  Read D&C 64:8–11.  How can we forgive, even when it is hard?  How can we avoid being offended in the first place?

Other paths that lead to apostasy

Other ways we may be led into apostasy include rationalizing disobedience, embracing the false teachings of the world, or simply neglecting our testimonies.

Remaining valiant in our testimonies

What can we do to remain valiant in our testimonies of the gospel?

Recognize and sustain the prophet

Read D&C 43:1–3.  How do we come to “know assuredly”?

Read D&C 26:2.  What does it mean to do things by “common consent”?  Partly, it means that we have agreed to sustain those who are called to lead.  Part of this includes raising our arm in sacrament meeting to indicate our willingness to do so.  Then it  continues with our actual actions to sustain, support, and uphold those we have so sustained.

For the most part, I think we recognize that the Prophet is the only person who can receive revelation for the entire Church.  It’s easy to know how to respond to a person who claims that he’s received a revelation, but the Prophet just “doesn’t get it.”  But what about those who want to meet with the Prophet to lay out and pursue their own agenda?  Do we sympathize with them and worry that the Prophet may be just a bit out of touch?

Study the scriptures and General Conference

Read D&C 33:16.  The Spirit “quickeneth” us as we regularly and faithfully read the scriptures.  How can these help us avoid being deceived?

We can better discern the truthfulness of ideas by comparing them with the truths we learn from the scriptures and our current leaders.

President Harold B. Lee taught: “If [someone] writes something or speaks something that goes beyond anything that you can find in the standard Church works, unless that one be the prophet, seer, and revelator—please note that one exception—you may immediately say, ‘Well, that is his own idea.’ And if he says something that contradicts what is found in the standard Church works, you may know by that same token that it is false” (The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, ed. Clyde J. Williams [1996], 540–41).

Scripture study strengthens our testimonies so we are less likely to become complacent in righteousness or to be influenced by false doctrine.

President Lee taught, “If we’re not reading the scriptures daily, our testimonies are growing thinner, our spirituality isn’t increasing in depth” (The Teachings of Harold B. Lee, 152).

The things of God always edify

The Prophet Joseph Smith explained that soon after the Saints were settled in Kirtland, “many false spirits were introduced, many strange visions were seen, and wild, enthusiastic notions were entertained; men ran out of doors under the influence of this spirit, and some of them got upon the stumps of trees and shouted, and all kinds of extravagances were entered into by them; … many ridiculous things were entered into, calculated to bring disgrace upon the Church of God, to cause the Spirit of God to be withdrawn” (History of the Church, 4:580). Concerned by these excessive spiritual displays, the Prophet inquired of the Lord. The revelation in D&C 50 is the Lord’s response.

Read D&C 50:17–24.  I think the keys to this idea are in verses 22-23.  All our preaching should edify – strengthen, lift, and build.  If it does not, the teaching is not of God.

This important principle does not just apply in the realm of religion.

President Joseph Fielding Smith taught: “There is no saying of greater truth than ‘that which doth not edify is not of God.’ And that which is not of God is darkness, it matters not whether it comes in the guise of religion, ethics, philosophy or revelation. No revelation from God will fail to edify” (Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols. [1953], 1:201–2).

Additional counsel about how to strengthen ourselves against apostasy

Elder Carlos E. Asay of the Seventy specified the following things we can do to strengthen ourselves against apostasy:

1.       Avoid those who would tear down your faith. …

2.       Keep the commandments. …

3.       Follow the living prophets. …

4.       Do not contend or debate over points of doctrine. [See 3 Nephi 11:29.]

5.       Search the scriptures. …

6.       Do not be swayed or diverted from the mission of the Church. …

7.       Pray for your enemies. …

8.       Practice ‘pure religion.’ [See James 1:27 and Alma 1:30.] …

9.       Remember that there may be many questions for which we have no answers and that some things have to be accepted simply on faith” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1981, 93–94; or Ensign, Nov. 1981, 67–68).

Conclusion

By our consistent, daily actions, we can protect ourselves from personal apostasy.  As we search the scriptures and follow the living Prophet and other Church leaders, we will be edified together and strengthened to recognize and resist temptation.

Doctrine and Covenants Lesson 23

The School of the Prophets provides a pattern for us to follow in our learning

The Lord wants his children to be educated, both temporally and spiritually.

The Lord instructed the Prophet Joseph Smith to begin a School of the Prophets in Kirtland, Ohio. The School of the Prophets began meeting in January 1833 in a small room above the Newel K. Whitney Store in Kirtland. In this school, the leaders of the Church were instructed in gospel doctrine, the affairs of the Church, and other matters. They were to prepare for Church leadership and missionary service.  Read D&C 88:77–80, and note the following:

• Verse 77 and 78 – The counsel is to teach diligently; not just study or learn diligently.  If we are going to be doing the teaching, we’d better know the material ourselves!
• Verse 78 – As we are diligent, meaning we keep at it even when it’s difficult, God’s grace will compensate for our weaknesses.
• Verse 80 – We are to learn to enable us to be more effective missionaries and servants in God’s kingdom.

These meetings provided the setting for spiritual experiences and in-depth discussions of gospel principles. Several revelations were received. The history of the Church records that “great joy and satisfaction continually beamed in the countenances of the School of the Prophets, and the Saints, on account of the things revealed, and … progress in the knowledge of God” (History of the Church, 1:334).

• What opportunities for learning do we have at church? What can we do to better prepare ourselves to learn in our Church meetings?
• Read D&C 88:122–25 with class members. What did the Lord command the brethren in the School of the Prophets to do? What did He command them not to do? (List class members’ responses on the chalkboard.) What can we learn from these verses about how to teach one another? What do these verses say about how we should learn from one another?

We should learn by study and also by faith

Read D&C 88:118.  Why are study and faith both necessary in our efforts to learn?  What are the dangers of learning without having faith in God and obeying His commandments? (See 2 Nephi 9:28–29; Satan tries to twist every good thing to serve his evil intents.)

In addition to studying the gospel, we should seek learning in other areas, such as history, science, and good literature. How has the study of such subjects enriched your life?

What should be the relationship between gospel learning and other worthwhile study?

President John Taylor, the third President of the Church, said: “We ought to foster education and intelligence of every kind; cultivate literary tastes, and men of literary and scientific talent should improve that talent; and all should magnify the gifts which God has given unto them. … If there is anything good and praiseworthy in morals, religion, science, or anything calculated to exalt and ennoble man, we are after it. But with all our getting, we want to get understanding, and that understanding which flows from God” (The Gospel Kingdom, sel. G. Homer Durham [1943], 277).

We should continue to learn throughout our lives

Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve said: “Because of our sacred regard for each human intellect, we consider the obtaining of an education to be a religious responsibility. … Our Creator expects His children everywhere to educate themselves” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1992, 5; or Ensign, Nov. 1992, 6).

As faithful followers of Christ, we want to receive this education that Elder Nelson refers to.  We can appropriately ask the following questions:

• Why should we learn?
• What should we learn?
• How can we learn?

The Savior has answered these questions, at least partly, in the Doctrine and Covenants.

D&C 6:7 – Why (to obtain eternal life) and what (seek wisdom, not riches).  Our society really has this messed up!  We seek riches, and the learning that we obtain is largely done with an eye to get rich!

D&C 19:23 – What (learn of Jesus Christ), how (in the meekness of his Spirit), and why (to have peace in Jesus).  What does “in the meekness of his Spirit” mean?

D&C 90:15 – What (languages, tongues and people) and how (by study).  How will this help others come to know Jesus?

D&C 93:36–37 – Why (so we can be glorified like God and forsake the evil one).

D&C 130:18–19 – Why (our knowledge goes with us in the next life and gives us advantage there).

• Point number one – what knowledge is likely to be of more value to us in the next life?  Sports statistics, movie star trivia, and skill at video games is likely to be less “advantageous.”
• Point number two – what does the scripture mean we will have an “advantage”?  I thought we were all supposed to be one in the Celestial kingdom, and we would not be competing with each other!  The word “advantage” has the same root as the word “advance.”  I don’t think this advantage refers to our being better than others or getting ahead of them.  Instead, it refers to our ability to advance, which is defined as “To accelerate the growth or progress; to further; to forward; to help on; to aid; to heighten.”  Doesn’t that sound like exaltation?

D&C 131:6 – Why (so we can be saved).

D&C 136:32–33 – How (learn through humility).

President Gordon B. Hinckley taught young people the value of education: “It is so important that you young men and you young women get all of the education that you can… Education is the key which will unlock the door of opportunity for you. It is worth sacrificing for. It is worth working at, and if you educate your mind and your hands, you will be able to make a great contribution to the society of which you are a part, and you will be able to reflect honorably on the Church of which you are a member. My dear young brothers and sisters, take advantage of every educational opportunity that you can possibly afford, and you fathers and mothers, encourage your sons and daughters to gain an education which will bless their lives” (“Inspirational Thoughts,” Ensign, June 1999, 4).

President Brigham Young taught, “Our education should be such as to improve our minds and fit us for increased usefulness; to make us of greater service to the human family” (Discourses of Brigham Young, sel. John A. Widtsoe [1941], 255).

President Thomas S. Monson reminded us that little children can understand the teachings in the scriptures: “A … hallmark of a happy home is discovered when home is a library of learning. … The Lord counseled, ‘Seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith’ (D&C 88:118). The standard works offer the library of learning of which I speak. We must be careful not to underestimate the capacity of children to read and to understand the word of God” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1988, 81–82; or Ensign, Nov. 1988, 70).

President Ezra Taft Benson of the Quorum of the Twelve taught: “Today, with the abundance of books available, it is the mark of a truly educated man to know what not to read. … Feed only on the best. As John Wesley’s mother counseled him: ‘Avoid whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, takes off your relish for spiritual things, … [or] increases the authority of the body over the mind’ ” (“In His Steps,” in 1979 Devotional Speeches of the Year [1980], 61).

In the temple we gain an education for eternity

In late June 1833, the Prophet Joseph Smith sent a plat for the construction of the city of Zion to the Saints in Independence, Missouri, with the temple at the center of the city.  Although Independence was not built as the Saints envisioned, they followed this pattern when building Salt Lake City. 

Placing the temple physically in the center of the city helps remind us that the temple can be a center of learning, and that focusing on Jesus Christ and his gospel should be the center of our lives.

The Lord has said that the temple is a house of learning (see D&C 88:119).  How does the Lord teach us when we attend the temple?  What can we do to receive the knowledge that is available in the temple?

Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve said:

“The temple is a great school. It is a house of learning. In the temples the atmosphere is maintained so that it is ideal for instruction in matters that are deeply spiritual. …

“The temple ceremony will not be fully understood at first experience. It will only be partly understood. Return again and again and again. Return to learn. Things that have troubled you or things that have been puzzling or things that have been mysterious will become known to you. Many of them will be the quiet, personal things that you really cannot explain to anyone else. But to you they are things known. …

“So look toward the temple. Point your children toward the temple. From the days of their infancy, direct their attention to it, and begin their preparation for the day when they may enter the holy temple.

“In the meantime, be teachable yourself, be reverent. Drink deeply from the teachings—the symbolic, deeply spiritual teachings—available only in the temple” (The Holy Temple [pamphlet, 1982], 6–8).

Conclusion

I know that we will be blessed in our efforts to learn all that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want us to learn if we do so with humility and a desire to serve in his Kingdom and bless others.  It is my prayer that we will all strive to do so with greater diligence.