Doctrine and Covenants 76

INTRODUCTION: VALUE OF THE VISION

President Wilford Woodruff: “I will refer to the ‘Vision’ alone, as a revelation which gives more light, more truth, and more principle than any revelation contained in any other book we ever read. It makes plain to our understanding our present condition, where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going. Any man may know through that revelation what his part and condition will be” (G. Homer Durham, ed., Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, p. 47-48).

President Joseph Fielding Smith: “Section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants, in its sublimity and clearness in relation to the eternal destiny of the human family, has not been surpassed. It should be treasured by all members of the church as a priceless heritage. It should strengthen their faith and be to them an incentive to seek the exaltation promised to all who are just and true” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Church History and Modern Revelation, 2:50).

BACKGROUND FOR THE VISION

When Joseph Smith was translating the Bible in 1832, with Sidney Rigdon as his scribe, they came upon a remarkable passage of scripture, John 5:29. “ And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation” (John 5:29). (See heading to D&C 76.)

When they translated this verse, the Lord changed it slightly. The change is noted in D&C 76:17 “And shall come forth; they who have done good, in the resurrection of the just; and they who have done evil, in the resurrection of the unjust.”  “The resurrection of life” was clarified to “the resurrection of the just,” and “the resurrection of damnation” to “the resurrection of the unjust.” Joseph and Sidney had learned about being justified because that came up in the translation work on Genesis a year and a half previous, which we now call the Book of Moses in The Pearl of Great Price. 

“That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory”  (Moses 6:59).

The just are those who have had their sins forgiven, those who have “opened” the gift of Christ’s grace through exercising the first principles and ordinances of the gospel. So, the summation of this scripture is that those who are justified and sanctified are resurrected to eternal life.

Yet here it says in the writings of John that the “unjust” are also resurrected. Huh?  

“Now this caused us to marvel, for it was given unto us of the Spirit” (D&C 76:18). They were sure the change was correct, because it had been “given [to them] of the spirit.” They pondered about it and decided that, obviously, there was something more about the afterlife that they had not yet learned. 

”And while we meditated upon these things, the Lord touched the eyes of our understandings and they were opened, and the glory of the Lord shone round about” (D&C 76:19).

They found out the answer to their question by way of a grand and glorious vision which they were commanded to write down for us “while still in the spirit,” before they could make any human error in recall. That is the glorious chapter of scripture we now call Section 76.

But before they wrote down the glorious vision, they felt to testify to us of another great truth that was reaffirmed to them because of the experience.

“For thus saith the Lord—I, the Lord, am merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end.  Great shall be their reward and eternal shall be their glory.  And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come, will I make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom.  Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come will I show them, even the things of many generations.  And their wisdom shall be great, and their understanding reach to heaven; and before them the wisdom of the wise shall perish, and the understanding of the prudent shall come to naught.  For by my Spirit will I enlighten them, and by my power will I make known unto them the secrets of my will—yea, even those things which eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet entered into the heart of man” (D&C 76:5-10).

CHRONOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE VISION

The Kirtland Temple was dedicated in 1836. This vision of the three degrees of glory was given February 16, 1832. There was no temple of any kind on the earth for the Lord to visit, so he visited the two brethren in Joseph Smith’s temporary residence, the John Johnson home, in Hiram, Ohio.

Photograph from Mormon Historic Sites Foundation

By the way, do you know what other significant event occurred here, six weeks later? The first physical mob violence, completely unforeseen and unprovoked, led by two apostates, Simonds Rider and Ezra Booth, the tarring and feathering of the Prophet in the middle of the night. This action also led to the first martyrdom of the Church, the death of Joseph’s eleven-month-old baby, Joseph Murdock Smith, 4 days later, as a result of the exposure he endured. Heaven and hell in the same house. (Another interesting note is that little Joseph’s biological father, John Murdock, was on a mission at the time and didn’t hear about his baby’s death until he returned in June.) After that, as you know, mob action continued to escalate everywhere the saints moved to escape it. But at the same time, for those faithful in the church, visions and revelations and the bestowal of light and knowledge also escalated, giving the saints the eternal perspective that they needed to endure the difficulties that arose.

ELEMENTS OF THE VISION

We think of this as one vision, but as recorded, it was actually seven visions (as I see it) stuck together. Seven very important truths, six of which they were commanded to bear record of in writing. What were they, and in what order?

1.       The Vision of Jesus Christ. D&C 76:20-24.

2.       The Vision of Satan. D&C 76:25-29.

3.       The Vision of Sons of Perdition. D&C 76:30-49.

4.       The Vision of the Resurrection of the Just (Celestial Kingdom). D&C 76:50-70.

5.       The Vision of the Terrestrial World. D&C 76:71-80.

6.       The Vision of the Telestial World. D&C 76:81-113.

7.       The Unutterable Vision. D&C 76:114-118.

The Vision of Jesus Christ—This great testimony has been an anchor to many Saints ever since that day. 

20 And we beheld the ^aglory of the Son, on the ^bright hand of the ^cFather, and received of his fulness;

21 And saw the holy ^aangels, and them who are ^bsanctified before his throne, worshiping God, and the Lamb, who ^cworship him forever and ever.

22 And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the ^atestimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he ^blives!

23 For we ^asaw him, even on the ^bright hand of ^cGod; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the ^dOnly Begotten of the Father—

24 That by ^ahim, and through him, and of him, the ^bworlds are and were created, and the ^cinhabitants thereof are begotten ^dsons and daughters unto God.

The Vision of Satan—Why was it important for us to have a vision of Satan? When it comes to having an eternal perspective, understanding the reality of Satan is important, just as is knowing Christ. We cannot resist something we know nothing about.

25 And this we saw also, and bear record, that an ^aangel of God who was in authority in the presence of God, who ^brebelled against the Only Begotten ^cSon whom the Father ^dloved and who was in the bosom of the Father, was thrust down from the presence of God and the Son,

26 And was called ^aPerdition, for the heavens ^bwept over him—he was ^cLucifer, a son of the morning.

27 And we beheld, and lo, he is ^afallen! is fallen, even a son of the morning!

28 And while we were yet in the Spirit, the Lord commanded us that we should write the vision; for we beheld Satan, that old ^aserpent, even the ^bdevil, who rebelled against God, and sought to take the kingdom of our ^cGod and his Christ—

29 Wherefore, he maketh ^awar with the saints of God, and encompasseth them round about.

The Vision of Sons of Perdition

30 And we saw a vision of the ^asufferings of those with whom he made war and overcame, for thus came the voice of the Lord unto us:

31 Thus saith the Lord concerning all those who know my power, and have been made partakers thereof, and ^asuffered themselves through the power of the devil to be overcome, and to deny the truth and defy my power—

32 They are they who are the ^asons of ^bperdition, of whom I say that it had been better for them never to have been born;

33 For they are ^avessels of wrath, doomed to suffer the wrath of God, with the devil and his angels in eternity;

34 Concerning whom I have said there is ^ano ^bforgiveness in this world nor in the world to come—

35 Having ^adenied the Holy Spirit after having received it, and having denied the Only Begotten Son of the Father, having ^bcrucified him unto themselves and put him to an open ^cshame.

36 These are they who shall go away into the ^alake of fire and brimstone, with the devil and his angels—

37 And the ^aonly ones on whom the ^bsecond ^cdeath shall have any power;

38 Yea, verily, the only ones who shall ^anot be redeemed in the due time of the Lord, after the sufferings of his wrath.

39 For all the rest shall be ^abrought forth by the resurrection of the dead, through the ^btriumph and the glory of the Lamb, who was slain, who was in the bosom of the Father ^cbefore the worlds were made.

40 And this is the ^agospel, the glad ^btidings, which the voice out of the heavens bore record unto us—

41 That he ^acame into the world, even Jesus, to be ^bcrucified for the world, and to ^cbear the sins of the ^dworld, and to ^esanctify the world, and to ^fcleanse it from all unrighteousness;

42 That through him all might be ^asaved whom the Father had put into his ^bpower and made by him;

43 Who ^aglorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands, except those sons of ^bperdition who deny the Son after the Father has revealed him.

44 Wherefore, he saves all ^aexcept them—they shall go away into ^beverlasting ^cpunishment, which is endless punishment, which is eternal punishment, to ^dreign with the ^edevil and his angels in eternity, where their ^fworm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched, which is their torment—

45 And the ^aend thereof, neither the place thereof, nor their torment, no man knows;

46 Neither was it revealed, neither is, neither will be revealed unto man, except to them who are made partakers thereof;

47 Nevertheless, I, the Lord, show it by ^avision unto many, but straightway shut it up again;

48 Wherefore, the end, the width, the height, the ^adepth, and the misery thereof, they understand not, neither any man except those who are ^bordained unto this ^ccondemnation.

49 And we heard the voice, saying: ^aWrite the vision, for lo, this is the end of the vision of the sufferings of the ungodly.

Joseph Smith: “What must a man do to commit the unpardonable sin [and become a son of perdition]? He must receive the Holy Ghost, have the heavens opened unto him, and know God, and then sin against Him. After a man has sinned against the Holy Ghost, there is no repentance for him. He has got to say that the sun does not shine while he sees it” (Teachings, p. 358).

Are we in daily jeopardy of committing the unpardonable sin?  President Spencer W. Kimball answers the question: “The sin against the Holy Ghost requires such knowledge that it is manifestly impossible for the rank and file to commit such a sin” (Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 23).

The Vision of the Telestial World

 photo from nasa.gov

 “These are they who received not the gospel of Christ, neither the testimony of Jesus” (D&C 76:82). And yet, “These are they who deny not the Holy Spirit.  These are they who are thrust down to hell.”  And yet, they will not stay there.  “These are they who shall not be redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work” (D&C 76:83-85). 

“These are they who say they are some of one and some of another—some of Christ and some of John, and some of Moses, and some of Elias, and some of Esaias, and some of Isaiah, and some of Enoch; But received not the gospel, neither the testimony of Jesus, neither the prophets, neither the everlasting covenant” (D&C 76:100-101).

 "When Jesus came into the coasts of Cæsarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven" (Matt. 16:13-18).

Knowing that Jesus is the CHRIST, the SON OF GOD and not just another great teacher is of utmost importance to our salvation. If we deny this, we are lumped together with ”liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie.  These are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth.  These are they who suffer the vengeance of eternal fire. These are they who are cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fulness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his work." (D&C 76:103-106).

They still will be resurrected to a kingdom of glory, because, unlike the devil and the sons of perdition, they did not deny the Holy Spirit, but they will have to sit in hell for quite some time, because that is the fruit of their actions on earth. Unfortunately, they are “as unnumerable as the stars in the [sky] or the sand upon the seashore. (See verse 109.)

And yet, “thus we saw, in the heavenly, vision, the glory of the telestial, which surpasses all understanding” (D&C 76: 89).  It will still be a glorious heaven, because eventually “These all shall bow the knee, and every tongue shall confess to him who sits upon the throne forever and ever” (D&C 76: 110). We can gain a testimony that Jesus is the Savior now, or we can gain it later, but when we gain it makes all the difference in eternity.

The Vision of the Terrestrial World

photo from lds.org

71 And again, we saw the ^aterrestrial world, and behold and lo, these are they who are of the terrestrial, whose glory differs from that of the church of the ^bFirstborn who have received the fulness of the Father, even as that of the ^cmoon differs from the sun in the firmament.

72 Behold, these are they who died ^awithout ^blaw;

73 And also they who are the ^aspirits of men kept in ^bprison, whom the Son visited, and ^cpreached the ^dgospel unto them, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh;

Is it fair that these never had “the law,” or in other words, never had the chance to learn the gospel in this life?  Elder Melvin J. Ballard gives a reason why this might be so:

“Now, those who died without law, meaning the pagan nations, for lack of faithfulness, for lack of devotion in the previous life, are obtaining what they are entitled to. I don’t mean to say that all of them will be barred from entrance into the highest glory. Any one of them who repents and complies to the conditions might also obtain celestial glory, but the great bulk of them will only attain terrestrial glory” (Sermons of Melvin J. Ballard, p. 251).

74 Who ^areceived not the ^btestimony of Jesus in the flesh, but afterwards received it.

75 These are they who are ^ahonorable men of the earth, who were ^bblinded by the craftiness of men.

It seems unfair that the eternal reward of these people is messed up because others deceived them, but the reason this happened could only be that they listened to men, rather than listening to the promptings of the Spirit, which would have guided them to the truth. In the next life, they are given a second chance to gain a testimony of Jesus, and, as the scripture says, “every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ.” They will realize that he is the Christ while they are being taught in Spirit Prison.

76 These are they who receive of his glory, but not of his fulness.

77 These are they who receive of the ^apresence of the Son, but not of the fulness of the Father.

78 Wherefore, they are ^abodies terrestrial, and not bodies celestial, and differ in glory as the moon differs from the sun.

79 These are they who are not ^avaliant in the ^btestimony of Jesus; wherefore, they obtain not the crown over the kingdom of our God.

80 And now this is the end of the ^avision which we saw of the terrestrial, that the Lord commanded us to ^bwrite while we were yet in the Spirit.

Saddest of all in this group are those who knew the truth and let it go.

President Ezra Taft Benson: “Not to be valiant in one’s testimony is a tragedy of eternal consequence. These are members who know this latter-day work is true but who fail to endure to the end. Some may even hold temple recommends, but do not magnify their callings in the Church. Without valor, they do not take an affirmative stand in the kingdom of God. Some seek the praise, adulation, and honors of men; others attempt to conceal their sins; and a few criticize those who preside over them” (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 292-293).

Who thinks you fit here? If you have sins, such as President Benson mentioned, you need to give them up and follow Christ, and you have that opportunity every Sacrament Meeting. Membership in the Church alone does not get you into the Celestial Kingdom, it is true. You cannot join the Church and then sit still. You must use the gift of the atonement, by exercising the first principles and ordinances of the gospel continually.

But too many times we think that because we didn’t ever make the cut as bishop or apostle or we didn’t have cute enough wood cut-out projects when we were den leaders, or we never learned to garden or can, we will be limited to the Terrestial Kingdom, because that is the place for mediocre people. The Celestial Kingdom, we think, is only for the few gospel valedictorians, or the doctrinal overachievers. However, that is not true:  To make mistakes, to have character flaws, to get tired, to try and not succeed, to find that your best was not quite good enough—that is not to not be valiant. That is to be human and to need a Savior.  The Celestial Kingdom will be full of people like this.

The Vision of the Resurrection of the Just (D&C 76: 50-70)

Photograph from lds.org

As we learned in Moses 6:60 last week, and as Joseph Smith had learned a year or two earlier, those who exercise faith in Christ and are baptized for the remission of their sins and receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost by one in authority, and who endure to the end (or, as verse 53 says, “overcome by faith,”) will be perfected in Christ so that they will belong here.  They will be Celestial people. Christ will “subdue all enemies under [their] feet,” even those within themselves. (See verse 61.) Just as we learned last week, they open the “gift” of grace by exercising the first principles and ordinances of the gospel, and they continue to use that gift throughout their lives by constantly trying to adhere to those principles and ordinances, and eventually, through Christ, all the difficulties will be overcome.

“ Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God— Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. And they shall overcome all things. Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet” (D&C 76:58-61).

There is another term for the members of this kingdom introduced to us here in this vision. D&C 76:54 – They are they who are the church of the Firstborn. The Church of the Firstborn. Where else can we find this in the scriptures? You really have to hunt. The Topical Guide and the Bible Dictionary will not help you much. It is found in the Joseph Smith Translation appendix in the beautiful passage which I call the “Covenant of the Rainbow,” given to Noah after the flood. JST Genesis 9:21-23 –

And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant, which I made unto thy father Enoch; that, when men should keep all my commandments, Zion should again come on the earth, the city of Enoch which I have caught up unto myself.

And this is mine everlasting covenant, that when thy posterity shall embrace the truth, and look upward, then shall Zion look downward, and all the heavens shall shake with gladness, and the earth shall tremble with joy;

And the general assembly of the church of the firstborn shall come down out of heaven, and possess the earth, and shall have place until the end come. And this is mine everlasting covenant, which I made with thy father Enoch.

The Church of the Firstborn is the City of Enoch, or Zion. When we “embrace the truth, and look upward,” (as we have said, we get on the path and keep heading in the right direction), Zion will “look downward” upon us and “come down out of heaven and possess the earth.” That would be the Celestial Kingdom, This is the covenant of Enoch.

“They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things— They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory; And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son” (D&C 76:55-57).

Where else can we find the order of Melchizedek and the order of Enoch in the scriptures? Speaking of Melchizedek , “And thus, having been approved of God, he was ordained an high priest after the order of the covenant which God made with Enoch, It being after the order of the Son of God; which order came, not by man, nor the will of man; neither by father nor mother; neither by beginning of days nor end of years; but of God; And it was delivered unto men by the calling of his own voice, according to his own will, unto as many as believed on his name.”  (JST Genesis 14:27-29) What is meant by the word "order," anyway? It means an organized group. Priesthood is not a calling, or something you "hold" like a position or a title; it is something you join, the order or organization of God.

This wonderful covenant of the order of Melchizedek and the order of Enoch, is offered simply to “as many as [believe] on his name.” (See verse 29.) The people of Melchizedek kept the covenant of their father Enoch.  “And his people [note the gender-neutral term] wrought righteousness, and obtained heaven, and sought for the city of Enoch which God had before taken, separating it from the earth, having reserved it unto the latter days, or the end of the world...And this Melchizedek, having thus established righteousness, was called the king of heaven by his people, or, in other words, the King of peace”  (JST Genesis 14:34, 36).

They embraced the truth and looked upward, and joined Zion in Heaven, just as we will be able to do someday, through the grace of Christ, if we keep those same covenants.

D&C 76:69 – “These are they who are just men made perfect through Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, who wrought out this perfect atonement through the shedding of his own blood.  They are “just" men (justified by Christ’s atonement, or made holy and worthy of the Celestial Kingdom—but it is also appropriate to say, they are “just men” or simply men or ordinary men, made perfect by Christ). And this refers to "just women" equally well. The temple initiatory, endowment, and sealing ordinances all verify that women can enter into this order as priestesses.

The Unutterable Vision. Joseph Smith said of this vision, “I could explain a hundredfold more than I ever have of the glories of the kingdoms manifested to me in the vision, were I permitted, and were the people prepared to receive them.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 304)

WHAT IF YOU'RE NOT THERE YET?

If you are a member of the Church, but do not fit in the pattern of one who is “valiant in the testimony of Christ,” you just need one sacrament meeting in which you truly repent and covenant with Christ to start becoming so. Live the truths you know in love throughout the week. And then by the next week, attend the next sacrament meeting to keep “looking to Heaven.” Repeat to the end.

As my favorite Bruce R. McConkie quote goes:

“As members of the Church, if we chart a course leading to eternal life; if we begin the processes of spiritual rebirth, and are going in the right direction; if we chart a course of sanctifying our souls, and degree by degree are going in that direction; and if we chart a course of becoming perfect, and step by step and phase by phase, are perfecting our souls by overcoming the world, then it is absolutely guaranteed—there is no question whatever about it—we shall gain eternal life.  Even though we have spiritual rebirth ahead of us, perfection ahead of us, the full degree of sanctification ahead of us, if we chart a course and follow it to the best of our ability in this life, then when we go out of this life we’ll continue in exactly that same course.  We’ll no longer be subject to the passions and the appetites of the flesh.  We will have passed successfully the tests of this mortal probation and in due course we’ll get the fullness of our Father’s kingdom—and that means eternal life in his everlasting presence.”  (Bruce R. McConkie, "Jesus Christ and Him Crucified," Brigham Young University 1976 Devotional Speeches of the Year, p. 400-40, emphasis added.  The entire speech is available online at this link.)

“And thus we saw the glory of the celestial, which excels in all things—where God, even the Father, reigns upon his throne forever and ever;  Before whose throne all things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory forever and ever. They who dwell in his presence are the church of the Firstborn; and they see as they are seen, and know as they are known, having received of his fulness and of his grace;

And he makes them equal in power, and in might, and in dominion” (D&C 76:92-95).

CONCLUSION

As Joseph Smith said: “Nothing could be more pleasing to the Saints…than the light which burst upon the world through [that] vision. Every law, every commandment, every promise, every truth, and every point touching the destiny of man, from Genesis to Revelation, where the purity of the scriptures remains unsullied by the folly of men, go to show the perfection of the theory, and witnesses the fact that the document is a transcript from the records of the eternal world, the sublimity of the ideas; the purity of the language, the scope for action; the continued duration for completion, in order that the heirs of salvation may confess the Lord and bow the knee; the rewards for faithfulness, and the punishments for sin, are so much beyond the narrow-mindedness of men, that every honest man is constrained to explain: “It came from God” (History of the Church 1:252-253).

Doctrine and Covenants 71-75

OVERCOMING THE OPPOSITION OF EZRA BOOTH'S LETTERS

The infant restored Church of Jesus Christ had very little hierarchy--the Prophet Joseph Smith functioned not only as a Prophet who interacted with heavenly beings in visions, as a President who directed the temporal affairs of the new Church [Jesus Christ as its head], and as a translator/interpreter of scripture and revealer of doctrine, but he also walked through the mud on rescue missions, lived as a houseguest in other people's homes, personally helped individual members with problems, acted as an itinerant preacher in his travels, struggled to make a living for his family, and, in December of 1831, ran a public relations campaign to recover the Church's reputation after Ezra Booth's anti-Mormon letters were published. (See previous post.)

Section 71:

1 Behold, thus saith the Lord unto you my servants Joseph Smith, Jun., and Sidney Rigdon, that the time has verily come that it is necessary and expedient in me that you should open your mouths in ^aproclaiming my gospel, the things of the kingdom, expounding the ^bmysteries thereof out of the scriptures, according to that portion of Spirit and power which shall be given unto you, even as I will.

2 Verily I say unto you, proclaim unto the world in the regions round about, and in the church also, for the space of a season, even until it shall be ^amade known unto you.

3 Verily this is a mission for a season, which I give unto you.

Ira Ames, from Huntsman-Gifford

(Click on the link to read Ira's journal)

God can create positive benefits from negative events, and that is often the case with anti-Mormon criticisms. My husband recently came across the story of Ira and Charity Ames, who were both converted in part because of the criticism of others, including Ezra Booth's letters. Ira Ames wrote in his personal history: 

"About this time [August 1830] I read some letters that were written by a man named Booth who had been a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He had apostatized and was very severe against the work. When reading his letters, I left an impression that there was something in Mormonism." 

Ira then received a letter from his mother, whom he had not seen in years, telling him that she and some of his siblings had joined the Church. "My mother and sister Sally and Jared Carter [Ira's wife's brother] and Lydia had moved previous to this to Cherango County near Norwich, State of New York and were living not far from each other. When reading over my mothers letter it ran through me like lightning it roused every feeling of my mind, the effect was powerful." He tried to share this excitement with his wife, Charity, but she laughed and ridiculed him for his gullability.

In June of 1832, Jared Carter visited him for several days and taught him the gospel. "He seemed to me filled with light, he answered all my questions to my satisfaction, and gave out many ideas I had never thought of." Jared then baptized Ira in the river and told him that he now had the privilege to receive the Holy Ghost. 

"On the way back while pondering over what Jared had taught me, a bright light burst on my mind. Many passages of Scripture came most plain and clear to my mind. I understood the work of these last days. I was full of intelligence and light and had a full evidence of the truth of Mormonism. And realized what Jared had been telling me that it was my privilege to obtain from the Lord in relation to the gifts. Jared further informed me before he left that a conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was to be held in the town of Benson, Vermont on August 10th at my wife's father's house, Jabez Carter. He also informed me that two of my wife's brothers Luman and Daniel Carter had joined the church and also many others of her relations and friends. In fact, the work had taken deep hold in her family." 

Two brethren of the Church visited the Ames home shortly which angered Charity, Ira's wife. This anger festered and grew. "One morning in the forepart of August, I had been reasoning with my wife in mildness, meekness and calmness, when she suddenly seized her infant son and left the house determined never to live with me again. She knew that the Methodist circuit preacher was at John Shadins house about a mile from my house. When she reached the house they were at breakfast, the doors all open, and the Methodist preacher sat in such a manner that he saw my wife as she approached the kitchen door. He called aloud to her as she approached, 'Ah Mrs. Ames, how is that Mormon husband of yours? If I had been to your house when those two fellows were there I would have cracked their heads together.' (Slapping his hands together up over his head.) All this was said in a sneering, jeering, mocking tone and manner. It had a powerful effect on the mind of my wife, who turned instantly about without speaking and returned home. She told me she was convinced I was right, told me of the preachers words and that she saw that he was full of a devilish spirit. And from that moment was a humble, obedient, quiet, dutiful wife. I never saw so great a change in anyone. She said she was willing to be subject to me, to gather with the Saints or do whatever I saw proper, for she saw the difference in my spirit and that preachers" (Ira Ames, Journal, accessed online at Huntsman-Gifford.com).

DIRECTIONS FOR THE BISHOPS

Section 72 details the work of the bishops, and tells the Saints that they need permission from the Kirtland bishop to get an inheritance in good standing with the Independence (Zion) bishop. As mentioned in a previous post, many people didn't follow this direction, one of the problems that led to the dissolution of Zion in Missouri.

24 A few words in addition to the laws of the kingdom, respecting the members of the church—they that are ^aappointed by the Holy Spirit to go up unto Zion, and they who are ^bprivileged to go up unto Zion—

25 Let them carry up unto the bishop a ^acertificate from three elders of the church, or a certificate from the bishop;

26 Otherwise he who shall go up unto the land of Zion shall not be accounted as a wise steward.

UNDERSTANDING THE BIBLE

Section 73, received in early January, tells Joseph and Sidney their mission is accomplished and they are to return to the Bible effort. As they do so, they encounter a scripture they do not understand, which leads to the revelation in Section 74.

LITTLE CHILDREN ARE SAVED BY CHRIST

Section 74 solves a theological problem that has confounded many religions. If people are born into a fallen world, are those people born sinful? As Joseph Smith read 1 Corinthians 7:14, he was confused and asked the Lord for clarification. Steven C. Harper writes that Jewish husbands wanted their infant sons circumcised to show a covenant to obey the law of Moses, but their "Christian wives believed that Christ's atonement satisfied the law of Moses and that baptism was the new token of the gospel covenant." Because of circumcision, the idea had arisen that children were born unholy and circumcision remedied that problem. Paul counseled Christians not to marry Jews unless they agreed to let the children be raised Christian (Steven C. Harper, Making Sense of the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 74). Thanks to this early understanding, we Latter-day Saints know that babies and children are holy, sanctified by the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Ira Ames from Latter Day Light

(Definitely click on that link above 

if you want more really interesting 

information about Ira Ames)

EVERY MEMBER A MISSIONARY

And now we are in the year 1832. The Church is not yet 2 years old. Section 75 is a mission call to a number of brethren, including Gideon Carter and Sylvester Smith. 

1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, I who speak even by the ^avoice of my Spirit, even ^bAlpha and Omega, your Lord and your God—

2 Hearken, O ye who have ^agiven your names to go forth to proclaim my gospel, and to ^bprune my vineyard.

3 Behold, I say unto you that it is my will that you should go forth and not tarry, neither be ^aidle but ^blabor with your might—

4 Lifting up your voices as with the sound of a trump, ^aproclaiming the ^btruth according to the revelations and commandments which I have given you.

5 And thus, if ye are faithful ye shall be laden with many ^asheaves, and ^bcrowned with honor, and glory, and immortality, and eternal life.

On the 6th of August, Brother Ames went to Benson to the conference his brother-in-law had told him about. He met with ridicule and criticism of "Joe Smith" on his way there. The wild tales troubled him so severely that he went to bed with great anxiety on his mind. In the night he was visited by an angel in a dream three times who told him to wake up and read Isaiah chapter 11. He read about the rod coming forth out of the stem of Jesse, and the root of Jesse standing as an ensign to the people, gathering Israel from among the Gentiles. He felt a confirmation that he was a part of this work. 

"I was satisfied and felt to rejoice and thank the Lord for his kindness in manifesting the thing to me and I told Him it was enough... [I went on] to the Conference where I met Orson Pratt, Lyman Johns[on], Sylvester Smith and Jared Carter and Gideon [Carter] and about twelve other members of the church. I was very young in the Church and knew but little but thought I knew it all. And then when Orson Pratt, Lyman, Sylvester and others spoke to us, they unfolded new principle after new principle, glory after glory, until my Soul was fed with fatness, and I wept many tears of joy" (Ira Ames, Journal, linked previously).

"From 1835 through 1836, Ira worked on the temple, slept rolled in a blanket on the Prophet’s floor at night to guard against the depredations of the mob, kept the temple books in order, was assigned to receive tithing and donations, and was chorister at the Kirtland temple dedication" (Barton Golding, "Ira Ames," LatterDayLight.com, Oct. 26, 2018).

"In 1846 Ira moved his family to Council Bluffs. 'We remained at the bluffs farming and raising stock, being greatly blessed and prospered until the year 1851.' In the summer of 1851, Ira and his family traveled with the Easton Kelsey Company to the Salt Lake Valley. 'We arrived in the Valley on the 22nd or 23rd day of September and my heart was poured out in thankfulness to God that I was once more with his true Servants, in the chambers of the Lord, in the tops of the Mountains. I felt heavenly. I felt I was at home again'" (Golding).

Brother Ames spent the last ten years of his life in Cache Valley, Utah, where he died at the age of 65. He is buried in the Wellsville, Utah Cemetery.

Doctrine and Covenants 67-70

 Section 67 begins:

1 Behold and hearken, O ye elders of my church, who have assembled yourselves together, whose prayers I have heard, and whose hearts I know, and whose desires have come up before me.

2 Behold and lo, mine eyes are upon you, and the heavens and the earth are in mine hands, and the riches of eternity are mine to give.

3 Ye endeavored to believe that ye should receive the blessing which was offered unto you; but behold, verily I say unto you there were fears in your hearts, and verily this is the reason that ye did not receive.

Here are some questions for us to think deeply upon: 

What fears are in our hearts? 

And what blessings are we not receiving because of those fears?

Now that I am 57 years old I have seen a lot of life. Due to the number of children and the variety of mothering opportunities I have been blessed to experience--this is a very long story--sometimes it feels as if I have experienced 114 years of life packed into those 57 years! Looking back, I can see that many of my greatest fears actually happened. Sometimes I thought these fears would overcome me and I would never be okay again. But with each of these challenges, came great blessings (over time) as the Lord was ready to help. With each of these blessings, came greater faith in the Lord. With greater faith in the Lord comes less fear.

What great fears have happened to you?

What blessings did you receive by facing those fears and turning to the Lord?

Here is the great blessing the Lord promised to the Saints at this conference:

10 And again, verily I say unto you that it is your privilege, and a promise I give unto you that have been ordained unto this ministry, that inasmuch as you strip yourselves from jealousies and fears, and humble yourselves before me, for ye are not sufficiently humble, the veil shall be rent and you shall see me and know that I am—not with the carnal neither natural mind, but with the spiritual.

Let us note that jealousy is just a type of fear, right? It's the fear that we are not good enough or that we do not have enough.

If we strip ourselves of fear, we will get mighty blessings from the Lord--even knowing Him and being united with Him. The Kirtland Saints actually saw the Lord as the veil was parted between heaven and earth at the dedication of their temple a few years later. It was an amazing event, which we will read about later. For us, the veil may be rent in other ways, and we may "see" the Lord in other ways.

In Section 68, four departing missionaries (Orson Hyde, Luke and Lyman Johnson, and William McLellin) are told by the Lord:

6 Wherefore, be of good ^acheer, and do not ^bfear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the Son of the living God, that I ^cwas, that I am, and that I am to come.

7 This is the word of the Lord unto you, my servant Orson Hyde, and also unto my servant Luke Johnson, and unto my servant Lyman Johnson, and unto my servant ^aWilliam E. McLellin, and unto all the faithful elders of my church—

8 ^aGo ye into all the world, ^bpreach the gospel to every ^ccreature, acting in the ^dauthority which I have given you, ^ebaptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

Each of these brethren responded to this call and faced the fears they encountered in a different way. Each of them was so overcome by fear at some time in their life that they left the Church. Two of them came back.  I'm sure we cannot comprehend their times, their culture, their challenges. They were all young men; they were all new converts. They lived and worked near the Prophet Joseph Smith and saw his ordinariness along with his extraordinariness. But learning from them (with compassion) may be instructive for us, as we face our fears in staying true to the faith, and as we maintain relationships with beloved family members and friends who choose to leave the faith.

Two points are important to remember here: 

1) Although D&C 68:25 tells us that if we don't teach our children properly concerning the gospel of Jesus Christ, "the sin be upon the heads of the parents," that word "sin" is singular. It is not the sins the children commit that will be upon the parents' heads--it is the sin of not teaching the children that will be upon their heads. It is a grave error to assume that we can control what our children choose to do by the way that we teach. This would be in direct opposition to the plan of our Heavenly Father.

2) "This life" is the time to prepare to meet God, but "this life" includes the spirit world after our mortal life; there is no Judgment until after that time. The spirit world is one great mission field. No one is completely finished with living and learning when they die. That includes the early Saints who were all beginners at Sainthood, and had no family history of Church membership, and that includes us and our children who are living in a different but also wicked world. It is very possible that all four of these early Saints are now great missionaries and leaders in the post-existence.

William McLellin

William McLellin was discussed in the previous blog post. Being a schoolteacher made William McLellin very educated and respected in his day--perhaps equivalent to holding a doctorate degree today. 

Orson Hyde

Orson Hyde was a genius, pure and simple. He had a photographic memory and "when anyone quoted one verse [of the Bible], [he] could quote the next...in English, German, [or] Hebrew" (Susan Easton Black, Who's Who in the Doctrine and Covenants, Bookcraft, 142). He traveled east in the United States with Samuel Smith on his first mission. He served in Zion's Camp. He was one of the first Apostles to serve a mission to England where a great harvest of souls was reaped. 

For about six months in 1838-1839, he was one of the apostates. He signed a slanderous document against the Prophet, which caused great distress and damage. He confessed and apologized sincerely in the spring and was restored to his previous position and remained faithful for the rest of his life. 

In the 1840s he served an arduous mission to Israel to dedicate Jerusalem for the returning of the Jews and for the building of a temple. When he returned from this mission, he was called to St. Petersburg, Russia, but that call was changed to Washington, D.C. to plead the cause of the Saints in their persecutions to the government (Black, 143).

Luke and Lyman Johnson

Luke and Lyman were the sons of Elsa Johnson, whose miraculous healing inspired the baptism of Ezra Booth. They became brothers-in-law to Orson Hyde when he married their sister Marinda Nancy Johnson in 1834 (Joseph Smith Papers; Brian and Laura Hales, Joseph Smith's Polygamy). 

Luke served a mission to the eastern states and another to the southern states. He was a fun-loving guy who played a trick on one of his investigators who had been waiting upon a direct voice from an angel to tell him to join the Church by climbing a ladder to the man's bedroom window and whispering loudly, "Ezekial! Ezekial! Ezekial! Repent! Repent! Repent!" Apparently, it worked.

Luke left the Church after two successful missions because of the financial crises that hit the United States and crushed the Kirtland church bank in 1838. In the ensuing years, he studied medicine and became a doctor. Finally, eight years later, he was rebaptized by his brother-in-law Orson in 1846 in Nauvoo (Joseph Smith Papers) and was never again troubled by that fear that shook his faith in Kirtland. He journeyed with the 1847 company of pioneers to Salt Lake City and settled in Tooele County, Utah. He died suddenly at the age of 54 at Marinda and Orson's home while he was in Salt Lake City on business. 

Luke's brother Lyman served his mission to the eastern states with Orson Pratt. He served in Zion's Camp and was the first Apostle called in this dispensation at the young age of 23. But in 1837 he began his decline into apostacy over his personal financial loss. The following April he was excommunicated for "bringing distress to the innocent, assaulting Phineas Young, not attending Church meetings, failing to observe the Word of Wisdom, and unrighteous conduct" (Black, 158-9). Although he never served another mission, he sent Heber C. Kimball off on his mission to England with his own cloak, and that cloak served seven missions to the British Isles--three times on Brother Kimball's back and four times on Parley Pratt's.

Lyman is reported by Brigham Young to have said, "I would suffer my right hand to be cut off, if I could believe [in the Church] again. Then I was full of joy and gladness. My dreams were pleasant. When I awoke in the morning my spirit was cheerful. I was happy by day and by night, full of peace and joy and thanksgiving. But now it is darkness, pain, sorrow, misery in the extreme. I have never since seen a happy moment" (Black, 159). Lyman became an attorney in Iowa and died at age 45 in an sleighing accident on the frozen Mississippi River.

In Section 70, the Lord warned the Saints to share their temporal blessings, and that became quite a difficult challenge for many of the Saints, Luke and Lyman included.

14 Nevertheless, in your temporal things you shall be ^aequal, and this not grudgingly, otherwise the abundance of the manifestations of the Spirit shall be ^bwithheld.

In addition to the financial greed and ensuing jealousies that broke some Saints apart from their faith, these four men had the intellectual and educational superiority that sometimes makes it hard to be humble and honor a prophet who is younger, rougher, poorer, and less educated.

The Rest of the Story

After the Saints left Kirtland, the city never regained its glory. Nearby Cleveland and Akron became bustling centers of industry, but Kirtland remained a small town, with a population of as little as 900. But the Lord did not forget His promise that the Church in Kirtland would rise again.

In 1954 the editor of the Cleveland Press wrote, "If Joseph Smith, the dedicated and courageous founder of the Mormon Church, were living today, he would take special pride in the news that a new Mormon Chapel shortly will be built on Lake Avenue near Edgewater Park" (quoted in Karl Ricks Anderson, Joseph Smith's Kirtland, 374). About 1,000 members of the Church lived in the Cleveland/Kirtland area at the time. In 1956, the Church purchased its first historic property in its mission to restore Kirtland. That purchase was the John and Elsa Johnson home.

In 1976, President Spencer W. Kimball traveled to Ohio and conducted a missionary-oriented meeting at the Cleveland Colliseum, attended by 19,000 people. Nearly 1,000 baptisms resulted from that inspirational meeting.

From 1979 to 1986 President Ezra Taft Benson traveled to Kirtland five times, meeting with descendants of the early Saints who had left the Church and remained in Ohio. When the Kirtland Stake was reorganized in 1983, "a substantial portion of the members were descendants of the earlier Kirtland Saints." Efforts were then made to connect descendants whose ancestors had traveled west with the Saints with their cousins whose ancestors had stayed behind. This was the case with the siblings Luke, Lyman, and Marinda Johnson and their family was one of the first to reestablish ties between Utah and Ohio descendants when Grant Johnson and his wife from Utah were called on a mission to the Kirtland area and met with cousins they never knew (Anderson, 384).

(Personal note: In 2006, my husband and I took our youngest four children on a Church History cross-country tour, as we had done previously with our older children. When we visited Kirtland, we attended the indoor musical pageant, "This is Kirtland," performed by the Kirtland Stake. It was exceptionally good and was one of the highlights of our trip.)

What can we learn from this portion of the Doctrine and Covenants and this time in the history of the Church that we can apply in our lives?

1) Don't assume that righteousness will equal financial gain or you are likely to consider the loss of your money as cause for a loss of faith.

2) Don't allow your education and intelligence to put you in a position to criticique Church leaders and members past and present. The glory of God is intelligence, so get all the intelligence you can, but know where your learning stops and the intelligence of God takes over. Never reverse the two. Smarter people than you (such as Orson Hyde) have kept the faith to the end of their lives. 

3) Reach out to your extended family members whether or not they believe the same way you do. The gathering of Israel, the key commission of the dispensation of the fullness of times, is all about family connections.

4) Share the gospel wherever you go, and always be willing to serve. The gospel is the way to navigate this life in happiness and to find joy in the eternities.