In part 1 we discussed the first bit of President Nelson’s talk “Spiritual Treasures” including Section 25 of the Doctrine & Covenants which he asked us to study. I wanted to add just a little more to the discussion of this section before moving on.
In verse 1 of section 25 it says that all who receive the gospel (believe in Christ and enter in at the gate which is baptism) are sons and daughters of the kingdom. One of the footnotes for kingdom takes you to Daniel chapter 2. This chapter recounts the experience of Daniel, who was taken captive and carried away into Babylon, and his interpretation of king Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. The king dreamed of a great image in the figure of a man that was destroyed by a stone cut out of the mountain without hands.
Daniel then tells the king, “Thou art this ahead of gold.” Daniel goes on to reveal that each portion of the great image represents a kingdom that would arise sequentially after Babylon which would rule the earth (or at least the majority of the known world at that time). Each of these kingdoms beginning with Babylon would have a significant and lasting impact on all people of the earth. By looking throughout history and what influence remains of certain powerful nations today we can infer what these remaining kingdoms are.
- The head of gold = Babylon Empire. The ways of Babylon are often described in scripture as worldliness. Babylon’s influence has lasted millennium and still permeates our societies today.
- Breast and arms of silver = Medes’ and Persia Empire ruled by king Cyrus who played a significant role in the Jews returning to Jerusalem and the temple being rebuilt. It was this same temple to which Jesus would expound the scriptures and cast out the money changers.
- Belly of Brass = Macedonian and Grecian Empire. Philosophies of ancient Greece as well as its contribution to math, astronomy, medicine, literature, and architect have influenced nearly every civilization and nation since.
“And the fourth akingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise” (Daniel 2:40).
4. Legs of Iron = Roman Empire. Often referred to as the Roman iron age, the Roman empire was at it’s height of power and influence over the nations when Christ walked the earth. It has influenced democratic governments, law, city planning and infrastructure, as well as philosophy and literature. Rome is also the capital of what would become the Roman Catholic church. The Catholic church has certainly fulfilled the prophecy of “subdueth all things” and “break in pieces and bruise” through centuries of oppression and violence against all other religions and cultures in the name of God.
“And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters’ clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the airon, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the adays of these bkings shall the God of heaven cset up a dkingdom, which shall never be edestroyed: and the fkingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall gbreak in pieces and hconsume all these ikingdoms, and it shall stand for ever” (Daniel 2:41-44).
5. Feet and Toes of Iron and Clay = World superpower nations + Roman Catholic church
The identity of the feet of iron mixed with clay has been debated among many Christian scholars. According to the Old Testament seminary manual on churchofjesuschrist.org it simply identifies the feet and toes of Nebuchadnezzar’s image as, “Kingdoms that arose after the fall of the Roman Empire”. It is not hard to determine nations that have qualified as world superpowers since the Roman Empire: Great Britain, the United States of America, and the Soviet Union could all qualify.
The mixture of iron and clay could also symbolize the significant influence that the Roman Catholic church (iron) continues to have as it is still very much mixed in with all these nations. “Forasmuch as thou sawest that the astone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made bknown to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure” (Daniel 2:45).
The stone cut out of the mountain without hands symbolizes the Church in the latter days, which is the kingdom of God on earth. And it has and will continue to roll forth until all nations as Daniel later sees in a vision of our day. He describes the destruction of worldly nations and empires before the coming of the Lord.
“I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.”(Daniel 7:9, emphasis added).
The Lord through His prophet and all the prophets who have ever lived are asking you and me to leave the world behind! Leave Babylon. Leave behind the philosophies and accolades of this world, because they won’t stand when God’s work and glory rolls forth!
Now, that was a long detour just from one footnote! This is how most of my study of President Nelson’s talk has been. I have pages and pages of notes, quotes, and personal revelation that came as I read just this short section of D&C 25.
The prophet described what it means to walk away from the world.
Part of this endeavor will require you to put aside many things of this world. Sometimes we speak almost casually about walking away from the world with its contention, pervasive temptations, and false philosophies. But truly doing so requires you to examine your life meticulously and regularly. As you do so, the Holy Ghost will prompt you about what is no longer needful, what is no longer worthy of your time and energy.
As you shift your focus away from worldly distractions, some things that seem important to you now will recede in priority. You will need to say no to some things, even though they may seem harmless. As you embark upon and continue this lifelong process of consecrating your life to the Lord, the changes in your perspective, feelings, and spiritual strength will amaze you!
Pray and ask the Father what things in your life would fit into this category. I promise if you examine your life meticulously He will let you know what you need to change! Just be prepared to do it when that inspiration comes. If you feel overwhelmed, like I did, make a list of your spiritual gifts. Some of them may even be named in your patriarchal blessing.
This profoundly inspirational section of the Doctrine and Covenants we’ve reviewed so far was given to Emma Smith and as I read this and the words of this beloved prophet I felt so loved! Loved by my Heavenly Parent’s, my Savior, and His prophet.
I entreat you to study prayerfully all the truths you can find about priesthood power. You might begin with Doctrine and Covenants sections 84 and 107. Those sections will lead you to other passages. The scriptures and teachings by modern prophets, seers, and revelators are filled with these truths. As your understanding increases and as you exercise faith in the Lord and His priesthood power, your ability to draw upon this spiritual treasure that the Lord has made available will increase. As you do so, you will find yourselves better able to help create eternal families that are united, sealed in the temple of the Lord, and full of love for our Heavenly Father and for Jesus Christ.
Yay! Let’s dive in to D&C 84 and find some more treasures….
2 Yea, the word of the Lord concerning his church, established in the last days for the arestoration of his people, as he has spoken by the mouth of his bprophets, and for the cgathering of his dsaints to stand upon eMount Zion, which shall be the city of fNew Jerusalem.
3 Which city shall be abuilt, beginning at the btemple lot, which is appointed by the finger of the Lord, in the western boundaries of the State of Missouri, and cdedicated by the hand of Joseph Smith, Jun., and others with whom the Lord was well pleased.
4 Verily this is the word of the Lord, that the city aNew Jerusalem shall be built by the gathering of the saints, beginning at this place, even the place of the temple, which btemple shall be creared in this dgeneration.
5 For verily this generation shall not all apass away until an bhouse shall be built unto the Lord, and a ccloud shall rest upon it, which cloud shall be even the dglory of the Lord, which shall fill the house.
There it is again! The temple being referenced isn’t any temple, it is the temple in Zion, that is, Jackson County, Missouri. (3 Nephi 20:22; 21:23–25; Ether 13:3–4, 6–8)
The big question that I have to ask then is…how long is a generation? If the New Jerusalem was promised to be built by the gathering saints in this generation, then knowing how long a generation is according to the Lord’s time table seems important.
According the significance of numbers associated with the Hebrew religious calendar and holy days it could be interpreted as either 40, 70, or 100 years. Well, that’s disappointing because obviously the New Jerusalem temple was not built during that generation according to the time frame that we understand. We also learn that in D&C 124:49-54 that the saints of that generation were excused from building the temple because mobs prevented it and the saints weren’t keeping the commandments like they should.
“There have been various interpretations of the meaning of a generation. It is held by some that a generation is one hundred years; by others that it is one hundred and twenty years; by others that a generation as expressed in this and other scriptures has reference to a period of time which is indefinite. The Savior said: ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign.’ This did not have reference to a period of years, but to a period of wickedness. A generation may mean the time of this present dispensation.”
Joseph Fielding Smith (Church History and Modern Revelation, 1:337.)
That’s comforting. But, let’s read more closely. “Which temple shall be reared in this generation”. I thought a little more about the definition of the word “rear”. Yes, it does mean to build something, however it also means to bring to maturity or self-sufficiency usually through nurturing care. That has certainly been true for the Saints as they were first gathered to the Rocky Mountains to avoid persecution and the extermination order, as well as the what the prophets throughout this dispensation have been trying to do with the members of the church – encourage spiritual maturity and self-sufficiency through their nurturing care.
“We ought to have the building up of Zion as our greatest object. When wars come, we shall have to flee to Zion. The cry is to make haste. The last revelation says, Ye shall not have time to have gone over the earth, until these things come. It will come as did the cholera, war, fires, and earthquakes; one pestilence after another, until the Ancient of Days comes, then judgment will be given to the Saints. … The time is soon coming, when no man will have any peace but in Zion and her stakes.”
Joseph Smith, (Teachings, pp. 160–61.)
Zion is the opposite of the world, or spiritual Babylon. In preparation for the Millennium, therefore, Babylon must be destroyed. The cry to all people is, “Go ye out from among the nations, even from Babylon, from the midst of wickedness, which is spiritual Babylon. … and he that goeth, let him not look back lest sudden destruction shall come upon him.” (D&C 133:14–15.) When one flees Babylon, one gathers to Zion and her stakes. (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/manual/doctrine-and-covenants-student-manual/section-84-the-oath-and-covenant-of-the-priesthood?lang=eng)
Next, D&C 84 outlines the Priesthood lineage from Adam to Moses and Aaron.
17 Which apriesthood bcontinueth in the church of God in all generations, and is without cbeginning of days or end of years.
19 And this greater apriesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the bkey of the cmysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the dknowledge of God.
20 Therefore, in the aordinances thereof, the power of bgodliness is manifest.
The same priesthood that was conferred upon Adam is the same passed on to all who are worthy and able to receive it. Joseph Fielding Smith said, “It is impossible for men to obtain the knowledge or the mysteries of the kingdom or the knowledge of God, without the authority of the Priesthood.”
How then do women obtain such knowledge and mysteries of the kingdom of God?
“You must not misunderstand what the Lord meant when Adam was told he was to have a helpmeet. A helpmeet is a companion suited to or equal to us. We walk side by side with a helpmeet, not one before or behind the other. A helpmeet results in an absolute equal partnership between a husband and a wife. Eve was to be equal to Adam as a husband and wife are to be equal to each other.”
Earl C. Tingey, “The Simple Truths from HeavenóThe Lord’s Pattern. CES Fireside for Young Adults, January 13, 2008, Brigham Young University, http://lds.org/library/display/0,4945,538-1-4399-1,00.html
According to Valerie Hudson in a talk entitled “The Two Trees” given during a Fair Mormon conference, described complimentary priesthood ordinances beginning with mother Eve.
She stood on the threshold between Home and the Great Journey. The Parents had decreed that if none of their daughters consented to the Great Journey, it would not occur. Those who would bear the responsibility of bringing all of the children through the doorway, and risk their life in this task, had the right to make that decision. She weighed it all in her heart and her mind, counted the cost to all of the daughters who would come.
The First Tree was the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and it was Eve and all her daughters since who have had stewardship over it. It is the woman, the mother, who brings the sons and daughters of God into this mortal probationary sphere. It is her sacred privilege to do so. The Second Tree is the Tree of Life. This tree is the door from this mortal realm back to our heavenly home where our Heavenly Parent’s dwell. The man and the priesthood which he holds has stewardship over it.
[The] priesthood is not some extra given to men and denied women. Priesthood is a man’s apprenticeship to become a heavenly father, and I believe that women have their own apprenticeship to become like their heavenly mother. The ordinance—and they are ordinances—of body and of agency—pregnancy, childbirth, lactation—the spiritual ordinances of the First Tree are not less powerful or spiritual than the ordinances of the Second Tree. Women have their own godly power.
Valerie Hudson (The Two Trees, https://www.fairmormon.org/conference/august-2010/the-two-trees#en3)
President Nelson clarified this further when he said, “…in the holy temple you are authorized to perform and officiate in priesthood ordinances every time you attend. Your temple endowment prepares you to do so.
If you are endowed but not currently married to a man who bears the priesthood and someone says to you, “I’m sorry you don’t have the priesthood in your home,” please understand that that statement is incorrect. You may not have a priesthood bearer in your home, but you have received and made sacred covenants with God in His temple. From those covenants flows an endowment of His priesthood power upon you. And remember, if your husband should die, you would preside in your home.”
22 For without this (the ordinances thereof, and the aauthority of the priesthood, the power of godliness) no aman can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.
The footnote to man in this verse leads you to D&C 67:11 “For no man has seen God at any time in the flesh, except quickened by the Spirit of God.” To be quickened by the spirit of God is “to make alive, to resurrect, or to change a person so that he can be in the presence of God” (Guide to the Scriptures, Quicken). It is to be translated or transfigured. Anyone who has seen the glory of God in the flesh has had this quickening take place.
This is the priesthood privileges which we as faithful woman and men alike have been promised – to come into the presence of the Lord. “And the saints that are upon the earth, who are alive, shall be quickened and be caught up to meet him” (D&C 88:96).
This is what Moses desired for his people, that they might repent, be humble, and become pure so that they could see God as Moses had, face to face.
23 Now this aMoses plainly taught to the children of Israel in the wilderness, and sought diligently to bsanctify his people that they might cbehold the face of God;
24 But they ahardened their hearts and could not endure his bpresence; therefore, the Lord in his cwrath, for his danger was kindled against them, swore that they should not eenter into his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the fulness of his glory.
25 Therefore, he took aMoses out of their midst, and the Holy bPriesthood also;
26 And the lesser apriesthood continued, which priesthood holdeth the bkey of the cministering of angels and the dpreparatory gospel;
The Children of Israel, like the early Saints were not spiritually prepared or mature enough for all that the Lord wanted for them.
Are we prepared? Am I?
The Children of Israel were given a lesser law because they were unable to live a higher one. Likewise, God’s church in the latter-days could not live a higher law and establish the New Jerusalem. Are we ready now?
31 Therefore, as I said aconcerning the sons of Moses—for the sons of Moses and also the sons of Aaron shall offer an acceptable boffering and sacrifice in the house of the Lord, which house shall be built unto the Lord in this generation, upon the consecrated cspot as I have appointed—
32 And the sons of Moses and of Aaron shall be filled with the aglory of the Lord, upon bMount Zion in the Lord’s house, whose sons are ye; and also many whom I have called and sent forth to build up my cchurch.
33 For whoso is afaithful unto the obtaining these two bpriesthoods of which I have spoken, and the cmagnifying their calling, are dsanctified by the Spirit unto the erenewing of their bodies.
34 They become the asons of Moses and of Aaron and the bseed of cAbraham, and the church and kingdom, and the delect of God.
According to D&C 128:24, the acceptable offering and sacrifice which must be made unto the Lord in this “spot” is indeed Mount Zion, or the temple at New Jerusalem. What is the offering and sacrifice? It is the greatest work we can be engaged in, and that is to invite everyone on both sides of the veil to come unto Christ. It is the work for the living and the dead in the temple.
“Behold, the great day of the Lord is at hand; and who can abide the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appeareth? For he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap; and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Let us, therefore, as a church and a people, and as Latter-day Saints, offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness; and let us present in his holy temple, when it is finished, a book containing the records of our dead, which shall be worthy of all acceptation” (D&C 128:24).
As of March 25, 2020 the daily sacrifice was taken away when all the temples world wide were closed. This was prophesied of in Daniel 11:31. Daniel also says that this is the beginning of the Abomination of Desolation by none other than the Anti-Christ. So, I guess we’ll see what happens next in real time. Luckily, we are also assured that we need not fear.
33 For whoso is afaithful unto the obtaining these two bpriesthoods of which I have spoken, and the cmagnifying their calling, are dsanctified by the Spirit unto the erenewing of their bodies.
34 They become the asons of Moses and of Aaron and the bseed of cAbraham, and the church and kingdom, and the delect of God.
“Who are the sons of Aaron and Levi today? They are, by virtue of the blessings of the Almighty, those who are ordained by those who hold the authority to officiate in the offices of the priesthood. It is written that those so ordained become the sons of Moses and Aaron.” (Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, 3:93.)
35 And also all they who receive this priesthood areceive me, saith the Lord;
36 For he that receiveth my servants areceiveth me;
37 And he that areceiveth me receiveth my Father;
38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s akingdom; therefore ball that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
In the temples both men and woman, sons and daughters of God are promised the blessings of priesthood power, angels to attend us, and the heavens to be opened. All that our Heavenly Parent’s have we may also obtain through our faithfulness to the covenants which we have made. But there is a warning in the footnote to “the elect of God” as well as in the following verses that we must heed.
“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect” (Matt. 24:24).
“And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days” (Mark 13:20).
The days of tribulation, when false Christs and false prophets show great signs and wonders intent on deception, these days will be shortened so that not all the elect (those who have made covenants) will be deceived. But, we are also warned that those who willfully break covenants “after he hath received it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall bnot have forgiveness of sins in this world nor in the world to come” (D&C 84:41).
President Marion G. Romney said of this verse: “Now, I do not think this means that all who fail to magnify their callings in the priesthood will have committed the unpardonable sin, but I do think that priesthood bearers who have entered into the covenants that we enter into—in the waters of baptism, in connection with the law of tithing, the Word of Wisdom, and the many other covenants we make—and then refuse to live up to these covenants will stand in jeopardy of losing the promise of eternal life.” (In Conference Report, Apr. 1972, p. 112; or Ensign, July 1972, p. 99.)
President Nelson gave a similar warning specific to woman of the covenant, or in other words elect ladies.
From the dawning of time, women have been blessed with a unique moral compass—the ability to distinguish right from wrong. This gift is enhanced in those who make and keep covenants. And it diminishes in those who willfully ignore the commandments of God.
I hasten to add that I do not absolve men in any way from God’s requirement for them also to distinguish between right and wrong. But my dear sisters, your ability to discern truth from error, to be society’s guardians of morality, is crucial in these latter days. And we depend upon you to teach others to do likewise. Let me be very clear about this: if the world loses the moral rectitude of its women, the world will never recover.
We Latter-day Saints are not of the world; we are of covenant Israel. We are called to prepare a people for the Second Coming of the Lord.
That is what our generation must do! Be prepared for the Second Coming of the Lord! But as we continue to read the next dozen verses of D&C 84 we are reminded that we have to do better. We have to repent and not have our minds darkened with unbelief because we took lightly the things of God (verse 54). We are commanded to “remain bsteadfast in your minds in csolemnity and the spirit of prayer, in bearing dtestimony to all the world of those things which are communicated unto you” (verse 61).
As we share the gospel message in whatever capacity we are able, whether as a full time missionary or not, we will be blessed in our efforts. Then, as if in response to me thinking about all the missionaries being brought home, these next verses seemed to read like a news headline about COVID19 happening today.
97 And aplagues shall go forth, and they shall not be taken from the earth until I have completed my work, which shall be cut bshort in righteousness—
98 Until all shall aknow me, who remain, even from the least unto the greatest, and shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, and shall bsee eye to eye, and shall lift up their voice, and with the voice together csing this new song…
Read the next verses and try to imagine yourself standing with a host of Saints in Zion with Jesus Christ personally among us. It is almost overwhelming to think of singing praises to my Redeemer, when Satan is bound, and justice, peace, mercy, and His grace abound! It makes you wonder if we will see verses 99-102 put to music in the new hymn books being prepared. How else will we be able to sing it together if we haven’t practiced first?
It is interesting that we go from this joyous thought back to our more immediate present by the next few verses talking again about warning the people of the abomination of desolation. I’m sure the abomination which makes desolate is similar to what ancient Israel did, to sacrifice children to dumb idols. It may be no coincidence that in verse 114-115 that New York, Albany, and Boston are specifically warned that their cities will be left desolate. In our day these cities have embraced and legalized the practice of abortion, which is just the modern form of child sacrifice to the idols of “choice” and “self”.
These cities were the subject of another prophet’s testimony. Elder Wilford Woodruff addressed a conference in Logan, Utah, on 22 August 1863. Speaking directly to the youth in attendance, he declared: “‘Now, my young friends, I wish you to remember these scenes you are witnessing during the visit of President Young and his brethren. Yea, my young friends, treasure up the teachings and sayings of these prophets and apostles as precious treasure while they are living men, and do not wait until they are dead. A few days and President Young and his brethren, the prophets and apostles and Brothers Benson and Maughan, will be in the spirit world. You should never forget this visitation. You are to become men and women, fathers and mothers; yea, the day will come, after your fathers, and these prophets and apostles are dead, you will have the privilege of going into the towers of a glorious Temple built unto the name of the Most High (pointing in the direction of the bench), east of us upon the Logan bench; and while you stand in the towers of the Temple and your eyes survey this glorious valley filled with cities and villages, occupied by tens of thousands of Latter-day Saints, you will then call to mind this visitation of President Young and his company. You will say: That was in the days when Presidents Benson and Maughan presided over us; that was before New York was destroyed by an earthquake; it was before Boston was swept into the sea, by the sea heaving itself beyond its bounds; it was before Albany was destroyed by fire; yea, at that time you will remember the scenes of this day. Treasure them up and forget them not.’ President Young followed and said: ‘What Brother Woodruff has said is revelation and will be fulfilled.’” (In Lundwall, Temples of the Most High, pp. 97–98.)
118 For, with you saith the Lord aAlmighty, I will brend their ckingdoms; I will not only dshake the earth, but the estarry heavens shall tremble.
119 For I, the Lord, have put forth my hand to exert the apowers of heaven; ye cannot see it now, yet a blittle while and ye shall see it, and know that I am, and that cI will dcome and reign with my people.
The reality that Christ will indeed come and reign with His people has been the theme throughout this study so far.
In part 3 we’ll cover Section 107 and see what more we learn.
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