54- 2/19/24 Temple Covenants

 54- 2/19/24

Good Morning Family,

I know I may have shared this with most of you before, but a couple of things really stood out to me in Come Follow Me this week, and so I will share them again and invite you to go and study them more on your own.

As we read the stories of Lehi and his family we seldom think of the Priesthood power he held. The same Plan of Salvation that God has taught to us through prophets is the same Plan for Lehi and his family. Therefore needed Priesthood keys to perform sacred saving ordinances, binding his family to God through covenants existed in their time as well. These covenants were given to them for the same reason they are given to us, to give us the strength and power to see us through mortality’s journey, guiding us back to the presence of our Heavenly Father. They serve to protect us against all the distractions and negative influences of the adversary, and mostly importantly point us to Jesus Christ. Though the Nephites kept the Law of Moses, they understood through a prophet what that Law ultimately was leading them to, their Savior.

As Lehi prepared to talk to his grandchildren one last time before he passed away, he wanted to leave them a blessing. Listen to the words of his blessing to Lamen and Lemuels children.“Wherefore, because of my blessing the Lord God will not suffer that ye shall perish; wherefore, he will be merciful unto you and unto your seed forever.” 

Many generations passed before the seed of Lamen and Lemuel turned to the gospel. Many of their seed are still waiting for this promised blessing to come to pass. It made me think of the temple sealing ordinance when children are sealed to their parents. All the blessings of God are pronounced upon the heads of the children “as if they had been born under the New and Everlasting Covenant.” This is the blessing promised by Lehi to his offspring. But not until a pure and righteous descendant would come along to perform sacred ordinances in their behalf. 

Shortly after Lehi dies, we learn that the Nephites separate themselves from the Laminites in chapter 5, and then Nephi is commanded to build a Temple. 

All of this teaches us of the power the temple brings into our lives and the lives of our ancestors. We are blessed to have been born under these sacred covenants, and also for our ability to serve as proxy io offering these blessings to all those who have gone before us.

The other neat thing that stood out to me this week is found in Chapter 4 of 2Nephi. Nephi is expressing frustration in himself that he is so easily swayed by the influence of the adversary. However, he knows in whom He has trusted, and is recommitting to do better. How many of us so frequently feel these same feelings? The key to moving forward for Nephi is the exact same for us. In vs 32-33 we learn that he was seeking forgiveness and was open to the reception of the Holy Ghost , “because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite!” 

And then he prays for strength, “O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road!” He is  praying for help to stay on the covenant path… 

“O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies!

I love this scripture. As I think of the temple and the promises that are made to each of us there as we are “encircled” or clothed in the robe of righteousness, it makes me feel so much gratitude. We are taught that the robes of righteousness are the garments of the Holy Priesthood. And that these garments will serve as a protection to us against the power and temptations of the destroyer our whole mortal existence if we choose to hold them sacred. How does this protection come to us? By acting as a symbolic reminder of our covenants. The robes of righteousness operate in our lives under the power of our individual righteousness and adherence to our covenants.  If we let the holy garment and all it symbolizes remind us of our covenants, therein lies the power to pray as Nephi prayed, pleading for the Lord to “make a way for mine escape before mine enemies!” 

We read in the 84 section of the Doctrine&Covenants that “in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest”, this is the power of our covenants that we can draw on. When we feel like Nephi, frustrated by the sins that so easily beset us, let us pray like Nephi for the strengthening power of our covenants to carry us through. Power that only comes from heaven through Jesus Christ.

I am grateful for the scriptures that teach us how to apply these important principles and lessons into our lives. They are meant for us. We each can find in them the strength and power we need to be the kind of disciple Jesus Christ needs us to be. I love each of you so much and am grateful for the love you have for the scriptures and for  your own personal covenants with God. These will see you through any challenge you will face in your lives, as they have for your mama and me.

Love, 

Dad