Pliny the Younger to Trajan: Early Christian Covenants

We had been having a respectful conversation about the exclusiveness and inclusiveness of the Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ and it's requirements for  inward purity and sactification. While, all kingdoms, nation's, tongues and people's are invited (you also are invited), admittance has it's requirements according to 1 Cor 5:9-13. You had expressed that such requirements of inward purity were unrightly exclusionary.  Yet James 1:27 says pure Religion demands purity just as faith demands works. Good works, such as covenant-making and covenant-keeping, are a manifestation of true faith.

The Church of Jesus Christ maintains that, except the "sons of perdition" (those that would crucify Christ afresh); all of God children will eventually bend the knee and confess that "Jesus is the Christ".  Therefore, all who confess will receive some degree of salvation (many mansion, differing rewards, 1Cor15:40-42, see Ireneas on Papias).  Accordingly, LDS doctrine has a place for all of God's children in heaven unless they absolutely refuse (no coersion in religion). No Christian doctrine is more inclusive. 

Now, while you had mentioned that in the resurrection (just and unjust), all men would be glorified (to a degree), and have no more disposition to do evil.  While, our susseptability for evil will end, what will differ is men's willingness to do right.  Some are valiant in their testimony of Christ and others less so.  The degree of our love for God and capability to serve Him will be restored unto us.  Just as the ED has Doctors, nurses, and techs; but all work together; the degrees of heaven may not be so much a physical separation, but one of responsibility or calling. 

The Latter-day temple is the Mountain of the Lord's House.  The temple is the physical manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven, and it is preparing the Earth for the Second Coming of Christ.  The temple is preparing human kind (those who will) to receive the highest responsibilities on Earth and in heaven-- even reaching beyond the grave. Death has no power over Christ or Christ's followers at all. Again, there can not be any more inclusive doctrine than vicarious proxy and baptism for the dead (1 Cor 15:29). Christ's atonement was the supreme act of vicarious proxy, and in His temple, His disciples offer His atonement (by covenant) to all the human family. 

But what about covenant making and covenant keeping.  Are baptism, the Lord's Supper, and temple only arbitrary, man-made, fear-based, additions to Christ's already all-sufficient Gospel? While confession with the lips that Jesus is Lord is the minimum requirement for any degree of salvation.  Those who are called, chosen, and faithful (Rev 17:14); have more fully received the Holy Ghost.  These faithful will be inspired to draw nearer unto Christ and will be empowered to make additional righteous covenants as did Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. The temple and it's covenants are not man-made but divinely given (house built without men's hands).  The temple and it's covenants, are given by Christ, and are part of His all-sufficient Gospel. 

Do we have evidence of Early Christian covenant making? Thanks to the words of Pliny the Younger to the Emperor Trajan (see below) , Pliny records the earliest (non-Christian) descriptions of Christian religious observance and covenant making.  Covenant making and covenant keeping are not a product of fear, but a product of love for our Saviour Jesus Christ.  Covenants are not about being exclusive, but cleansing the inner vessel and being made a "vessel of honor, sanctified, and meet for the Master's use" (2 Tim 2:21).  

Pliny the Younger's Description of Early Christianity!

On top of this, they affirmed that this was the sum of their guilt or error:

They had been accustomed to come together on a fixed day before daylight and to sing responsively a song to Christ as God. They bound themselves with an oath—not to commit some crime—but, on the contrary, that they would not commit theft, nor robbery, nor adultery, that they would not break faith, nor refuse to return a deposit when asked for it.

When they had done these things, their custom was to separate and to assemble again to partake of a meal, common yet harmless (which is not the characteristic of a nefarious superstition)

Christ's Church is the Kindom of God and His Temple is the Kingdom of Heaven on the Earth. Apart from a false temple that may be built in Jerusalem and an anti-Christ that may rule for a time. The restoration of the true temple, according to Isa 2, will accompany and preceed Christ's coming in glory (Mal 3:1).  The true temple and it's covenants will be the divine mechanism by which world peace will finally be achieved. According to Isaiah, it is because of the true temple (it's laws it's paths, it's ways), that men will finally "beat their swords into plowshares". 

Righteous covenants are the laws, paths, and ways of the true House of the Lord.  The covenants themselves are more important than a physical building.  Accordingly, covenants have been made by prophets and saints on mountain-tops and other surrogate sacred spaces.  But the physical importance and reality of God's kingdom, His Church, and His temple cannot be ignored.  Only the unification if the spirit and body together produces a fullness of joy. The Church of Christ is both a spiritual and physical reality.  Christ's resurrection was both a physical and spiritual reality. Likewise, Christ's temple is both a spiritual and physical reality. 

Ezekiel and John were commanded to measure the temple   The temple serves as divine pattern that transends reality. That is why Daniel described a stone cut out of a mountain without hands, which grew until it became a mountain and eventually filled the whole Earth. The temple is the body of Christ.  When you accept Christ and receive His Spirit, your body becomes a temple. When your marriage is blessed by Christ's Spirit it becomes a covenant marriage.  A family becomes an eternal family, a city becomes a temple city, a nation becomes a holy nation until the entire Earth is filled with the light and glory and truth of God. When John is shown the future sactified Earth, he comments that "there is no temple there".  There is no temple because there is no special place set aside as holy. The whole Earth has become sanctified and has become holy.

Covenant making and covenant keeping are critical to the preservation of society.  Keeping our word increases trust, cooperation, and social capital.  When people break their word, even if circumstances seemingly justify it, trust is erroded. The social fabric of society breaks down.  Kindergardeners recite the pledge of allegiance,  Boy Scout take the scout oath. Lawyers, military, and politicians take an oath of office.  Doctors make the Hippocratic oath.  Oath-making has ancient Christian roots, but it seems most religions today preach very little oath making and even less oath keeping. 

Why do we make covenants? We make them because life never fails to provide all the reasons, justifications, excuses, and rationalizations to break our word.  Covenants give us the ultimate divine reason to keep our word in spite of our good excuses. Each and every one of us have given our Heavenly Father every reason to cast us off forever.  But God is the ultimate Man of His Word, and has sent His Son Jesus Christ (the Word) to rescue and redeem us. 

Isa 49:15_16 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands;

We can not learn to become more like our Heavenly Father unless we learn to become people of our word as our Heavenly Father is the God of His Word. God makes covenants with His children, and helps us keep them, in order that we might become more like Him. Covenant making and covenant keeping is a major aspect of the society of heaven. If we desires to live with God in heaven, we need to get used to living with people that keep their commitments by becoming the kind of people that keep ours. 

Justice is not some monster that God must appease.  Gods justice is God doing exactly as He has said.  likewise, God's mercy is God doing exactly as He has said.  God knew mankind would fall into sin and error. Justice demands consequences. But in the Grand Heavenly Council,  before the foundations of the Earth, God also promised to send us a Savior who would satisfy the demands of justice, and take upon Himself the consequences of our sins.  But our acceptance of Christ is contingent upon the conditions of repentance.  Covenant making and covenant keeping in His Holy Temple are part of these conditions, the process of repentance, and our ultimate sactification.